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From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.
And I'm Audie Cornish. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney admits he could've used more elegant language, but he's not backing down. Romney was secretly recorded speaking at a fundraiser in May and his comments were publicized yesterday by the liberal magazine "Mother Jones." Here he is telling wealthy backers that President Obama has a built-in base of support.
MITT ROMNEY: There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they're entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what.
CORNISH: Romney also said that 47 percent of the public pays no income tax. NPR's Scott Horsley begins our coverage.
SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE: There's a lot to unpack in Romney's comment, which the candidate himself has described as off-the-cuff, but he seems to conflate people who don't pay income tax with those who are dependent on government benefits. On the tax question at least, his number is about right. Bob Williams of the Tax Policy Center says about 46 percent of Americans paid no income tax last year. At the worst of the recession, that number was above 50 percent.
BOB WILLIAMS: About half the people paying no federal income tax just have incomes too low. The other half benefit from the various tax preferences.
HORSLEY: Williams adds that most of those who don't pay federal income tax do pay other taxes, including the payroll tax, which helps to cover the cost of Medicare and Social Security.
WILLIAMS: About 3 out of 5 were working and paid federal payroll taxes. So, they're paying taxes, just not income taxes. And of the remainder, most are either elderly and retired or low-income families with children.
HORSLEY: More Americans will pay income taxes as the economy and incomes recover, but that won't erase a longer-term trend. The fraction of Americans paying no income tax has roughly doubled since the early 1990s. That's because policymakers increasingly rely on tax credits to reward low-wage workers, parents and others. In some cases, the refundable credits more than cancel out their total income tax bill.
WILLIAMS: Congress has chosen to use the tax system as a way of delivering benefits to families, rather than creating new spending programs. It's a lot easier to go home and say, I cut your taxes, then to go home and says, I created a new spending program, even though you can do the same thing through either means.
HORSLEY: At the same time, the Census Bureau says more and more Americans are collecting government benefits in form or another, and more of those benefits are flowing to middle-class families, rather than just the very poor. Chief economist Will McBride of the non-partisan Tax Foundation says there's always been a concern about that imbalance.
WILL MCBRIDE: The danger there is that in a democracy, if the tax burden is, say, entirely borne by a minority of voters, then you have an incentive for the majority to lobby for more generous government spending because they're not paying for it.
HORSLEY: So far, though, there's little evidence of that happening.
DEAN LACY: The blue states are subsidizing the red states.
HORSLEY: Dean Lacy is a political scientist at Dartmouth who's looked at which counties and states are net taxpayers to the federal government and which are net benefit collectors.
LACY: The states that receive the most overall in federal spending per tax dollar paid are the most Republican and they've been increasingly so since the 1990s. The states that are paying the most in taxes per federal dollar received are the most Democratic.
HORSLEY: Lacy suspects until now Republicans have been able to cast symbolic votes for smaller government without really jeopardizing their own popular benefits. With determined budget cutters, like Romney and Paul Ryan on the ticket, though, that could change. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
HQCD Feather Earrings & Thoughts
11:16 PMHey guys! I was digging around in my files to see what I should post today and I realized that I had stowed away a video that I forgot to edit, back from a couple months ago. It was a video of when I received a little love package from Lisa at He Qi Crystal Designs! Seeing as how I just posted my last blog post on her beautiful necklace, I thought it would be appropriate to post this as well.
41 comments
- AnonymousJuly 23, 2010 at 11:26 PM
You look so pretty as always~ I like the silver liner...
The crowns and pearls earring is really cute <3 You look gorgeous :) Those feather earrings are super pretty - I'm really into feathers too.
Youtube haters are sad, sad people :( I wish they would spread some more love instead of take out all their angst on well-meaning pretty girls.
Fighting! :3I think any pair of earrings would look good on you!
Pshhh @ haters! I feed off of reviews!! How else are you suppose to know if a product is good or not?! Some people are weird... =(- christinaJuly 24, 2010 at 12:55 AM
Those feather earrings look so good on you..
And i really love your blog, just ignore the haters, they are really sad people.. Always very nice!!!
I just speak about HQCD in my blog here http://butterflystar.hautetfort.com/archive/2010/07/22/he-qi-crystal-designs.html
and I speak a little about you too ;.)Those earrings are all so pretty! And I love that silver liner =)
I hope your making sure to have time for yourself and relax! Haters are the worst =( But there are so many people here on your blog who love the you that you are!awww jen! you are one of the sweetest people on youtube. i loove your videos and even more--your personality. i like when you get so excited over products haha. keep up the fabulous work you do, but don't overstress yourself. just ignore those haters b/c your fans are amazing. =))
ReplyDeleteYour makeup is pretty as always! And those earrings are gorgeous! Crowns are cute and the feather ones are pretty~ :D
Haters are haters..I really think people who do stuff like that are wasting their life. You don't need anyone to tell you who you are! :]Those that take the time to leave hateful comments probably have trouble with personal relationships around them too because it is very apparent that you are a very nice and honest person, so the fact that they don't see that is just a shame. What a pity.. just know you have way more supporters than haters! IDK if you can read Korean, but 파이팅 (fighting) Jen! :]
www.honorahs.blogspot.comawww jen! they look gorgeous and your makeup is stunning! hopefully you'll do more tutorials so we can all learn from you <3 =D
i've always wondered, which eyelashes are you wearing? i would def like to purchase them hahahThe feather earrings are my favorite. And as for YouTube haters, you already know how I feel about em. Your true readers/followers know how genuine of a person you are. Keep your chin up!
ReplyDeletewhat?! who's taking poop about you?! haters are just people who have nothing better to do and don't feel adequate with themselves. it's good you're trying to ignore them! just remember, for every one hater you have, you have 10 people who love and adore you! :)
I LOVE THE EARRINGS!!!! OMG! IWANTIT! *drool* :PI don't understand people who find it necessary to take time to leave a mean comment. It's such a negative use of energy and I really hope you ignore them. If I don't share the same opinion as you, I would never think to personally attack you! It saddens me when people leap to internet cruelty because it's the coward's way of bullying. I enjoy your blog thoroughly. Sending positive thoughts your way.
ReplyDeleteI love those feather earrings!!! I enjoy collecting accessories too!!
You know I've been a follower of your blog for quite sometime and I can see your genuine heart to share what your knowledge about beauty.. Forget about those haters. I hope that someday they'll realize that it's better to spread the love because it's the most refreshing feeling ever. =) I'm a loyal fan Jen! I hope you write more and make more vid.
Stay smiling! Hugging you~~Don't let the nasty comments get you down, there are always bound to be a few haters when you reach this level of popularity on the internet. :) And the silver liner really makes your eyes pop; I didn't even know L'oreal had HIP pencils!
ReplyDeleteHi Jen :) You are one of the sweetest people on blogger/youtube. Don't ever be compelled by people writing nasty comments. They are no lifers with nothing better to do than to sit and write a long, useless comment. I love your product reviews and I almost always try everything you give high ratings on! Never failed me :D
Anyway, the feathered earrings are lovely on you!!I really like the feather earrings! The purple top you have on is really pretty too... where's that from?
ReplyDeleteoh im going to try out that look soon! its simple but it does the trick!
those earrings are gorgeous too, but i wouldn't be able to pull them off i think.- ChristineJuly 25, 2010 at 6:25 AM
You are the best, just do what you feel like doing.. Ignore those haters...they are just jealous of you.. Dont let them drown you.. We all going to fight together with you..
ReplyDelete Seeing those super cute earrings really makes me wish I had the guts to get my ears pierced.
Screw those people who don't like what you're doing. I bet the only time they feel all big and bad is when they are sitting in front of their keyboard writing spiteful comments about others. Talk about low self-esteem in it's finest!Hi Jenn! I love your reviews... And you are beautiful both inside and out so ignore those haters cuz they're just jealous!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE your earrings!
About YouTube... another blogger once made a comment which I totally agree with: "There's nothing like jealousy to bring out the mean-ness in people." Whether you do it right or wrong, you'll always get haters. :/
Just stumbled upon your blog yesterday while looking for a flat-iron-hair tutorial. Your videos are super helpful and you're doing an excellent job with the blog!U looked really stunning in those pictures. The feather earrings really accentuate your features & makeup. Thanks for your review, who knew feather earrings will look so cute :)
Jen, you cannot please everyone. Look at them as an ultimate motivator in your life, to improvise yourself. They may be really discouraging now, but few years down the road, you may be looking back and thank them!
Personal case: my previous manageress whom everyone think she's wicked and i had a hard time working with her. Yes i cried and all but lasted for three years. She pushed me to my limit and now i secured myself in a better job with an appreciative boss.
Don't give up :)
xoxoBoth those earrings are super cute! And yeah, some people are just jealous. I think you're awesome ^.^
ReplyDelete- AnonymousJuly 25, 2010 at 9:23 PM
Awww...sorry to hear people out there misjudge you without getting to know you...
I've really come to depend on your reviews and honesty, and I can tell you're genuine in your videos. Keep up the amazing hard work you do though Youtube and this site - I can tell you put a lot of effort, time and thought into it! And I really appreciate.
Much love sent your way
<3 <3 <3 wow those earrings are amazing! and you look gorgeous, as usual! you have the prettiest eyes :)
people who take their time to leave nasty comments are just poor pathetic people with nothing better to do than bring others down because they are unsatisfied with their own lives. just feel glad that you have so many friends and followers who truly know how great you are, and those comments/haters won't matter :)I have been reading your blog for 3 months now and you are literally the first blogger who introduced me to this wonderful world of blogging. I want to tell you that you are good at what you do. We can't make every single person understand us but as long as you know what you are doing and you have people who genuinely love and support you, that's all it matters. It is inevitable when you put yourself in a public, people can say whatever they want, but don't let those words bring you down. Cheer up!
ReplyDelete- AnonymousJuly 26, 2010 at 9:32 AM
ah, crown earrings shot to fame when kim yuna won gold. so cute! she always rocks either the crown studs or dangle earrings in light of her moniker queen yuna / ice queen ;)
ReplyDelete Love the liner!
Don't be too troubled about the haters - you've always chosen the cutest products to review, and your reviews themselves are all very fair. Best of luck during your busy week =)- AnonymousJuly 27, 2010 at 9:41 AM
Always keep your head up =)
Your readers/viewers got your back! - AnonymousJuly 29, 2010 at 7:39 PM
I love your blog!!! Very helpful :)
What kind of contacts are you wearing in this video? sooo pretty!
Beautiful<3 please answer, thanks!!! Anonymous and Mimi: I'm not wearing any lenses at all in this video/pics! There was just light reflecting in my eyes. :)
ReplyDelete- AnonymousJuly 30, 2010 at 11:46 AM
hi jen!
i like ur make up for this post and the prev one too! is it possible for u to post a video on how to put on that two make-ups? it many look simple but i'm like totally a newbie when it comes to make-ups :( Wow!! I love your all the earrings but the feather earrings are so cute and you also look gorgeous in that earring with the silver liner in your eyes.


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This one is supposed to be a little cosmic and explorer-y and dusty. As always, it makes sense in my head.
Clockwise from up left: Yes, Rivkah, that is your tambourine. Yoshitomo Nara doll from his cafe in Tokyo (a year ago! Life is weird). Random box which houses my glitter glue. Guatemalan worry dolls. Yes, Rivkah, those are your optical illusion cards. Special journals. Romance Was Born headband sent to me by the folks there. Visually appealing book about deserts from a house-turned-book shop in Michigan. I Love Factory headband also sent to me by the folks there. Thrifted sun brooch. Stevie Nicks' Bella Donna. Grandma's old brooch. Random rock with fortune teller ring on top. Gara Danielle ring. Christian Sampson orange thing from Two Bridges Trading. Jamaican mask. Toothfairy box from Arizona. And all that stuff is sitting on a botanical illustrations booklet. And hanging above them is my New Orleans voodoo charm and a dreamcatcher.


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When a representative from POM Wonderful generously provided me with a dozen bottles of pomegranate juice, I was thankful but hesitant. I had never tried the stuff before, or even had any drink, dessert or other dish containing pomegranate, and for good reason. My mother is break-out-in-hives, throat-swellingly allergic to the fruit, and frankly, I didn't want to take the risk that I would be too.
But, I did.
… And it's a good thing I don't have the same bad reaction, because I think I've found my new favorite cocktail! I know you'll love it too, whether it serves as a festive holiday cocktail or a casual after-dinner drink. The sweet, slight bitterness of the pomegranate and orange juice is delicious, and combined with a splash of fresh lime juice and a shake with some ice cubes, it's magic on your tongue!
If you don't drink, don't worry about it! Just replace the vodka with some clear, fizzy soda, and you've got yourself a sinless version of the same cocktail.
Pomegranate Cosmopolitan
- 3 oz. 2 shots POM Wonderful pomegranate juice
- 3 oz. 2 shots vodka
- 3 oz. 2 shots orange juice
- 1 tsp. lime juice
- Ice cubes
- Combine all ingredients in a martini shaker and fill with ice cubes; shake well. Strain into glasses. Garnish with a sliced lime.
- Cheers!


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David Shannon has written books about an adorable West Highland terrier, a duck on a bike and a fairy named Alice. Maybe he's tired of drawing cute. So, now the author and illustrator has done a book called "Bugs in My Hair," and it isn't about pets, forests or fantasy creatures. No, it's about head lice. David Shannon joins us from the studios of KQED in San Francisco. Thanks so much for being with us.
DAVID SHANNON: Oh, my pleasure. Thank you.
SIMON: Yuck.
SHANNON: Yeah.
SIMON: Why a book about head lice?
SHANNON: Well, it all started when my daughter came home with head lice. And I really hadn't been exposed to them before that. And every time I mentioned it to my friends, they all had a story about, oh, I remember when my kid had them. It was terrible. It seemed like this dirty little secret that needed to be exposed.
SIMON: And how much research did you do about - I can't believe I'm asking this - how much research did you do about head lice?
SHANNON: Well, too much. I was forced to do research because my daughter got head lice several times.
SIMON: I mean, we all do that when our children get head lice. But you had to draw them.
SHANNON: Yeah. I did research what they looked like so that they're somewhat accurate. But I wanted to make them silly but also with just a slight amount of menace to them.
SIMON: I thought they were kind of cute, I must tell you.
SHANNON: The whole idea of the book is to sort of take the sting out of the whole thing.
SIMON: I mean, you address this. I turned it to two pages that I particularly admire where you write - and the illustrations are just wonderful 'cause you've got a sequence of kids scratching their heads. Well, you write: I wonder how I got lice. Maybe a sofa, from a hug, a hat, at school, at the movies, from a dog? And that's quite true. When children get head lice, they look all around the classroom and all of their buds. And I don't mean to over-politicize the issue, but there's a kind of McCarthyism that goes on in every classroom, isn't there? You know...
SHANNON: Yes, there is.
SIMON: Absolutely. You might have head lice. You might have given me head lice.
SHANNON: That's right. When the fingers aren't scratching, they're pointing.
SIMON: Is head lice, at some level, harder for the parents to take than children?
SHANNON: I think it is. Parents are kind of, they're kind of in denial about it.
SIMON: Well, the feeling is you must be a bad parent if your child gets head lice.
SHANNON: Yeah, you know, there's this feeling that, oh, it's from not bathing or something like that, and that's just not true.
SIMON: The eggs of lice are called nits.
SHANNON: Yes.
SIMON: And there are a group of people in this world called professional nitpickers.
SHANNON: Yes.
SIMON: And by that I don't mean the people that write in on our website - or just the people who write in on our website - but people who actually get paid to pick nits.
SHANNON: Yes, they do. There are professional anti-lice salons.
SIMON: And these are pretty pricy, aren't they?
SHANNON: You know, some can be very pricy. There's other people who will come to your house sometimes too. And we definitely made use of them.
SIMON: But a point your book makes is that the little boy gets his treatment - I don't mean to give away the ending - and he gets a good night's sleep and then he discovers the next day they're back. And it has been my anecdotal impression you can never get rid of them with just one treatment.
SHANNON: They do come back. And I just, you know, that was definitely a part of my experience. My wife did a lot of the nitpicking herself. And just when you think, oh, thank goodness that's over with, and then you see your kid doing that two-handed scratch again - you go, oh, no.
SIMON: I failed them , once more I failed them. On the other hand, you have the advantage of when you're locked inside a family psychodrama like this of being able to look at your spouse and say, aha, this would make a good book.
SHANNON: Well, I was able to write off the professional nitpickers as research.
SIMON: No. Is the IRS listening or are they shut down now too? Just when they should be tuned in and listening.
SHANNON: That's right.
SIMON: It does raise the question - without giving anything away - what's next for you? Maybe a book about Lyme disease?
SHANNON: How about bedbugs?
SIMON: Yeah. I have seen pictures of them - they are truly menacing.
SHANNON: Actually, I think I'm going to do something completely different. Because the whole time I was working on this book, I kept scratching my head and wondering, you know, the psychological toll that it took was something I don't want to repeat.
SIMON: I just - I was scratching now...
SIMON: ...in the middle of the interview.
SHANNON: There's a warning on the back of the book that says: warning, this book will make you itchy.
SIMON: Oh, my gosh. I just noticed that, as a matter of fact. How right you are. David Shannon, who is the author and illustrator of the new book, ostensibly for children, "Bugs in My Hair." Speaking with us from San Francisco. Thanks very much for being with us.
SHANNON: Oh, thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


text:
Pete Carroll's unrequited passion for big wide receivers, which didn't keep the Seahawks from the NFL championship, was sated a bit Tuesday when Seattle signed 6-foot-5, 218-pound wide receiver Chris Matthews, 24, from Winnipeg of the Canadian Football League to a future contract.
A graduate of Dorsey High in Los Angeles, the CFL's rookie of the year in 2012 was signed as an undrafted free agent by Cleveland on July 30, 2011, but was cut a month later, and signed with the Blue Bombers the next season.
After two years at Harbor College in LA, he played 2009 and 2010 the University of Kentucky, where in his senior year he had 61 receptions for 925 yards and nine touchdowns.
He worked out for a dozen NFL teams before signing with Seattle.
His first-year totals with the Blue Bombers were 81 catches for 1,192 yards and seven touchdowns. But he missed with injuries 13 games in his second year, catching 14 passes for 138 yards and one touchdown.
His agent, Rodney Edwards, told the Winnipeg Sun he thought Matthews was destined to be a slot receiver, since he wasn't quick enough for the outside positions and was too small to be a tight end.


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Today, Justice Department officials meet with family of Trayvon Martin. The unarmed African-American teen was shot in Florida by a neighborhood watch volunteer. Last night, Martin's parents joined a rally in New York's Union Square, and NPR's Margot Adler attended.
MARGOT ADLER, BYLINE: There was rage, sadness and also the feeling of a prayerful community gathering. When the parents of Trayvon Martin spoke, the crowds pushed closer to get a look and shouted words of encouragement. Tracy Martin, the teenager's father, spoke first.
TRACY MARTIN: George Zimmerman took Trayvon's life for nothing. George Zimmerman took Trayvon's life profiling him. My son did not deserve to die, but I'm here today to assure that justice is served and that no other parents have to go through this again.
ADLER: Then came Sybrina Fulton, Martin's mother.
SYBRINA FULTON: We need this kind of support. Our son is your son. I want you guys to stand up for justice, and stand up for what's right.
ADLER: Many African-Americans in the crowd said it could have been their son or daughter. It was called the Million Hoodie March, by Daniel Maree, one of the organizers.
DANIEL MAREE: Trayvon was murdered while wearing a hoodie. And the reason George Zimmerman gave for shooting him was that he looked suspicious. So, again, knowing that feeling of being in a hoodie and sometimes I've got to take my hoodie off, because I feel - I know people are going to hold their purse weird, or something, I wanted to de-stigmatize the hoodie among people of color.
ADLER: It was called the Million Hoodie March, but that was not the number at the gathering. It was a call for a million signatures by the end of the night on a petition calling for the shooter's arrest. There were apparently 800,000 signatures before the rally began.
ADLER: At the end of the rally, people marched to Washington Square chanting: We are all Trayvon Martin.
Margot Adler, NPR News, New York.
GREENE: This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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ATLANTA — There's no way Wichita State is going to shock anybody next season.
The gritty team from the Missouri Valley was picked to finish somewhere in the middle of the conference this year, a fairly safe guess considering the Shockers lost all of their starters from a team that earned a No. 5 seed to the NCAA tournament last season.
But with an entirely new group running the show, WSU head coach Gregg Marshall's crew slowly came together this season, picking up steam once they got healthy late in the year and getting on the kind of roll that Butler and VCU made famous before them.
The result was Wichita State's first trip to the Final Four since 1965.
It ended with a blown second-half lead and a disheartening loss to Louisville on Saturday night, but with leading scorer Cleanthony Early and several other key contributors returning, it's a good bet the Shockers will be tough again next season. It's an even safer assumption that their opponents will be ready for them.
"You know, it's hard to lose your last game. Everyone does it except for three or four tournament winners," Marshall said. "This one is especially hard because of the run we went on. We set a school record for wins, in the Final Four for the second time in school history.
"But we didn't say, 'Goodbye,' " Marshall said. "We didn't say, 'This is it.' This is just the beginning. This is just a beginning for us. A lot of good players in that locker room, all they're talking about right now is working hard this summer and getting better."
The Shockers' tremendous run is sure to make Marshall a hot coaching candidate, but the former coach of Winthrop has said repeatedly that he's happy in Wichita, and that it would take the right opportunity at just the right time to every pry him loose.
Especially with the kind of momentum the Shockers are riding.
They beat VCU early in the year, knocked off Creighton — the pride of the Valley most of the year — in a mid-season tilt at Koch Arena in Wichita, and then squeaked into the tourney as a No. 9 seed paired in the same region as Gonzaga, the No. 1 team in The AP Top 25 at the end of the regular season.
The Shockers were never intimidated, though, and they proved the stage was never too big for them.
They rolled through Pittsburgh, and then raised eyebrows when they busted brackets with a win over the 'Zags. They headed to Los Angeles for the West Regional semifinals and took care of La Salle, and then held off Ohio State down the stretch to reach the Georgia Dome.
It looked for a while as if their dream run would continue, too.
Wichita State managed to take a 26-25 lead over Louisville at halftime, and extended it to 12 in the second half, only for the Cardinals' intense full-court pressure to finally set in.
The Shockers wound up losing 72-68, sending Louisville into the title game against Michigan, where the Cards captured the national crown with an 82-76 victory.
"We have to be appreciative and understand what it takes to get here," said Fred VanVleet, who along with fellow freshman Ron Baker was critical to the Shockers' postseason charge.
"It's a huge steppingstone and something we can look back on and work for," VanVleet said. "Guys that are coming back, now we have motivation for next year, because no matter what, we can sit back and say, 'We didn't make it.' So that will be good motivation for us."
There will be pieces to replace, of course. There almost always is.
The Shockers' heart and soul, all-energy forward Carl Hall, will have graduated, and senior guard Malcolm Armstead — whose poise was so crucial in March — will be gone. Role players Ehimen Orukpe, Demetric Williams and Kadeem Coleby will also move on with their lives.
But there's plenty of production coming back, led by Early, the junior forward who made just about every power conference coach look silly for overlooking him coming out of junior college when he had 24 points and 10 rebounds against the Cardinals in the national semifinals.
Baker finished with 11 points and eight rebounds for the Shockers, Tekele Cotton — just a sophomore — had nine points, and VanVleet wound up playing 23 minutes in the Final Four.
All of them will be back, none of them sneaking up on anybody.
"We're still not satisfied," Cotton said. "We're going to come back next year, come at it again, and work hard during the summer and get better. We'll get right back here next year."
Wichita State turns to promising future
NCAA Tournament


text:
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Double Your Photos, Double Your "Fun"
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
That's the SAME photo, used twice. I guess whoever ordered this gave the bakery two to choose from, so they chose...both. Aside from (hopefully) being blindfolded while arranging the photos, the wreckerator also misspelled Bubie and Birthday (if you consider failing to cross the 't' a misspelling, that is.) S/he also couldn't even outline the photos right, but I guess we can chalk that up to the blindfold.
Nice wreckporting, Z.
67 comments | Post a Comment
- JohnnyB said...
We can assume the spacing issue in the message is also attributable to the blindfold.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:36 PM
- Reformed Supermom said...
What do you think the odds are her name is really Julie?
Picture cakes: When you just can't bear to eat a sculpture of your loved one. - January 13, 2009 at 12:38 PM
- Unknown said...
Maybe "Bulie" was decorating her own cake at the bakery??? Would explain the squiggly lines and misspelled words!
- January 13, 2009 at 12:38 PM
- NanU said...
I hope I'll be happy enough to have an 85th birthday cake not to care if it's a little wrecked. So long as it's chocolate.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:43 PM
- Ryan Dobie-Watt said...
They also forgot to dot the i.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:47 PM
Poor Bubbie. We can only hope that at 85 her eyesight isn't what it used to be.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:47 PM
- Boozy Tooth said...
At 85, Bulie is probably blind anyway. Let's hope.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:51 PM
- Candy said...
Wha? How could a decorator think the two photos ought to be there? And they aren't even placed in any sort of way that makes sense.
Somehow, the cake reminds me of a stamped letter. - January 13, 2009 at 12:53 PM
Oh my. Poor Bubie.
- January 13, 2009 at 12:54 PM
- Tantra Flower said...
Bear with me for a second here..I promise I have a point. About 18 years ago I had a very nice boyfriend who, most unfortunately, was not aesthetically pleasing. In fact, strictly superficially speaking of course, he was quite ugly. Now I'm not trying to compare my ex-boyfriend to that hideous cake (though he was very sweet indeed), I'm just saying that if somebody captured the expression on "Bolie's" face when she first saw the cake, that photo probably looks very similar to the photo I snapped of my father the second he first laid eyes on my boyfriend at the airport. Ouch!
- January 13, 2009 at 12:58 PM
- Vashti said...
- January 13, 2009 at 12:59 PM
Painful. These picture cakes never seem to work out. Also, the concept is so flawed. I mean, cakes are for eating, no?
~ Kathleen - January 13, 2009 at 1:01 PM
- Emily Pannell said...
Oh..no. But give them some credit. I mean what beautiful flourescent flowers. S/he must have thought that if the flowers were bright enough noone would notice the "T".
Word Verification
The act of reviving from the sugar coma you were in while decorating this cake. - January 13, 2009 at 1:04 PM
Where to begin...where to begin.
The atrocious outlining of the center photo. Oh my.
Poor Bulie! - January 13, 2009 at 1:05 PM
- Jessica said...
Maybe she was a siamese twin.
- January 13, 2009 at 1:06 PM
- Bedlam said...
now this is what my cakes looks like, flat with some stuff around the edges.
- January 13, 2009 at 1:07 PM
Actually, the double photo is a security feature. I have the same thing on my identification badge for work. It makes it more difficult for someone to arbitrarily paste a different photo into an existing name badge.
Clearly, "Bulie" works at an organization that uses cake for employee identification. (And at 85, too? I guess her 401(k) is doing as well as everyone else's.)
Kudos for this unsung decorator for clearly considering the security issues common to most photo cakes. - January 13, 2009 at 1:09 PM
What kind of tree/plant has flowers of so many different colors like that? I also thought Bulie was misspelled Julie.
- January 13, 2009 at 1:10 PM
- Casa Cornett said...
I'm hoping that splotch of orange on the front is just the shadow of the person taking the picture of this unfortunate cake...
(My word verification was "allized" - as if the decorator drank too much Alize before decorating this cake.) - January 13, 2009 at 1:13 PM
- Unknown said...
Those aren't the best looking flowers I've ever seen either.
- January 13, 2009 at 1:15 PM
I suppose s/he never learned to dot your i's and cross your t's before sending this cake out.
- January 13, 2009 at 1:26 PM
- The Courteous Chihuahua said...
My gawd...the floral work, handwriting, duplicate picture, overall design...I'm seriously at a loss here. ???
- January 13, 2009 at 1:43 PM
- ~ Rebecca Harbison said...
We had a photo cake at work, once -- granted, I work at Cornell university, and we were celebrating the anniversary of Spirit landing on Mars. It was decidedly less creepy to eat a Mars Rover cake than a person cake.
(Now I kind of want to see someone sculpt a Mars Rover out of cake.) - January 13, 2009 at 2:09 PM
I'm looking at the cake a second time and see that Bulie could be having a "HaRRy" birthday and that in addition to being a sporadic t-crosser, the cake decorator is also a sporadic i-dotter (in birthday).
- January 13, 2009 at 2:21 PM
When I saw this it made me think of the photos that were mostly popular in the 70's and early 80's where you had a forward facing picture of the person (usually smiling) and a very serious profile shot mysteriously floating somewhere up in the upper corner.
I don't know why...maybe it seemed like a miserable failure at that general effect?
While photo cakes have their appropriate place (i.e. that much maligned Dr. Seuss cake we discussed) I don't think recreating cakey people are it necessarily. - January 13, 2009 at 2:22 PM
- Unknown said...
I believe that the hideous nature of the florescent flowers is supposed to detract from the odd photos of poor Bulie. And for that matter maybe Bulie is really her name, she is quite old and they did use strange names back in the day.
As for your story Tantra...that would make a great photo cake for your Dad's next birthday. Doncha think? - January 13, 2009 at 2:25 PM
- Unknown said...
The rainbow poo-blobs are a nice touch.
- January 13, 2009 at 2:41 PM
I always thought that "make sure we dot the Is and cross the Ts was just an overused, annoying cliche, but I take back my criticism of it...we obviously do need it.
- January 13, 2009 at 2:47 PM
Im praying that this was the bakeries practice cake...no? Oh my!
There's just something so wrong with eating a picture of someone, cake or otherwise! - January 13, 2009 at 2:48 PM
- Chic Runner said...
Whatever happen to crossing your t's?
Wow there are so many things wrong I can't even count. - January 13, 2009 at 3:06 PM
I ate a photo cake at my friends' party a few years ago and the photo tasted awful! The edible image was so thick and nasty I had to scrape it off so I could eat the rest of the cake. Those should be banned.
- January 13, 2009 at 3:19 PM
- KPP said...
Ha! I love jayspec's security cake explanation.
I love that they cropped the picture to use it again. My guess is that they either lost the second picture and didn't want to fess up. Or maybe they thought it was a bad picture so used the one twice.
As for the uncrossed t's and dotted i's. Is this a case of the cashier gets the job of cake writing? Poor cashier is nearly done, someone shows up to pay for their cake, someone else comes in to order their cake, etc. By the time, they return to this cake, they completely forget that they weren't actually done with the lettering (crossing t, dotting i) and slip it into the box. I mean, its not like anyone's going to proofread the poor cake. - January 13, 2009 at 3:33 PM
I've officially looked at every posts. I've been in giggle fits all day long! Thank you for the joy. I will definitely be on the look out for more disasters.
Oh and this cake is just tragic.
--Kelly B. - January 13, 2009 at 3:45 PM
- the ginabean said...
I am not a cake decorator by any means. But I can assure you that I'd've done a much better job than that. MUCH.
Oh, and your blindfold comment killed me. Yet it makes sense... - January 13, 2009 at 3:46 PM
Yep, I officially love this site.
PS....I think it's just a little beyond WRONG to eat a photograph of your child. Cannibalism much? - January 13, 2009 at 3:47 PM
I'm guessing her formal name is Buelah (or some variation) and they call her Bulie. That still doesn't cover all the other issues on the cake. I'm so glad I mostly rake all the frosting off bakery cakes before eating anyway.
- January 13, 2009 at 4:00 PM
hee hee hee... security feature! That's good. Almost as good as my word verification:
Feel free to create your own sentence. - January 13, 2009 at 4:16 PM
Bulie is probably short for Beulah, a popular name back in the day.
No excuses for the rest. - January 13, 2009 at 4:51 PM
I also thought "Bulie" was Julie misspelled, but probably because my name is Julie. :) I saw "_ulie" and thought "Hey!" and then was a little confused.
But probably not as confused as Bubbie. I hope she had a nice birthday, anyway! - January 13, 2009 at 4:57 PM
- MahoneyMusings said...
But, look as the lovely swirly thing on the H. They tried to add a little bit of flair.....
- January 13, 2009 at 5:26 PM
- Sandi said...
jayspec, you are hilarious!
- January 13, 2009 at 5:45 PM
- Amy.mangos said...
It is sort of trippy, having two of the same picture one one cake, but cropped differently and different sizes. The vine of sweet-peas (I'm guessing?) floating between the two only adds to the WuuuuuuEeeeeeeeeeeUhooo* quality. Maybe turning 85 is like entering an alternate dimension, so these sorts of cakes are comforting to Bubbies everywhere?
*Spaceship noise
howdoicooksquirrel.blogspot.com - January 13, 2009 at 5:45 PM
- Samantha said...
Definitely looks like the bottom of the cake was scorched.
Perhaps Bulie hated it as much as we do! - January 13, 2009 at 6:02 PM
- sendingtheclowns said...
Starts off with a lovely little flourish on the "H," and it's all downhill from there.
Bulie, in her picture, looks as if she's had one nip too many and is about to topple off her bar stool.
Other than that, it's a...disaster.
(I know, Dad- you always say, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," but LOOK at this thing!)
That shade of green for decorating gunk should be recalled and destroyed; it's just hideous. And the flowers...the flowers. ((SIGH)) Those wobbly borders...the double photo...
I just don't get it; maybe the cake-maker is also in his/her late 80's (or greater) and has a few issues with, maybe, vision...hand shakiness...
TASTE? - January 13, 2009 at 7:42 PM
- Corbie said...
Oh, I don't know--I really like the flowers all being different colors. It's so....tasteful and looks so well thought-out. (snerk)
- January 13, 2009 at 7:53 PM
- joyce said...
Maybe the photo in the corner was for the dear lady to take home to remember this fine cake. A miniature of the actual cake. Maybe? Just a thought. Not that I would want one to take home. It is kinda gross to think about eating myself.
- January 13, 2009 at 8:46 PM
Can we PLEASE have the funeral wrecks post? Plz?
- January 13, 2009 at 9:08 PM
- WM said...
Maybe...since they weren't sure of the spelling, the photos made sure poor Bubie/Bulie would know the cake was really for her.
WV: toodys...one more than onedys - January 13, 2009 at 9:14 PM
WV: undhu...
Wreckorator should find a coworker to undhu the parts gone wrong before asking money for this cake.
Better yet, Wreckorator's boss should undhu said Wrecker's offer of employment in the bakery department. - January 13, 2009 at 10:07 PM
- Michelle said...
Even worse yet -- what is up with the Diaper Cakes ad on the post?
- January 13, 2009 at 10:31 PM
Congratulations on your Weblog Award. I agree with the other posters that the vast discrepancy of votes between you and the other contestants is due to the fact that yours is really a humor blog, and food-related humor is better than a cooking blog any old day.
- January 13, 2009 at 10:47 PM
He/she/it/they also forgot to dot the "i" in Birthday.
- January 13, 2009 at 11:20 PM
- kisekileia said...
I have to admit, I actually like the flowers. But I tend to like everything rainbow.
- January 13, 2009 at 11:35 PM
Bubie? She sure looks like Elizabeth Taylor to me!
- January 14, 2009 at 1:59 AM
- Latitude said...
FUNERAL WRECKS?! Can't wait!!!
- January 14, 2009 at 2:58 AM
Oy, double exposure aren't good....
Happy Birthday Bubie! - January 14, 2009 at 4:12 AM
- rae said...
I cant't believe you didn't even mention the globs of Already Chewed Gum that they used on that tree...
weird. - January 14, 2009 at 8:44 AM
- Unknown said...
"Okay, who wants the slice with Bubie's face on it?"
Amy B. - January 14, 2009 at 9:50 AM
Please make the funeral wreck post! My grandmother passed on the other day - she always liked a good cake and would have been amused at this site.
- January 14, 2009 at 10:17 AM
I know this Bubbie! And her name is not Julie or Bulie or Buleah. She's a sweetheart and a very young 85- she still drives and babysits for her great granddaughter!
- January 14, 2009 at 10:23 AM
- Lulubelle B said...
Our grandmother called my brother when he moved into is first college dorm. The message he got from his suitemate? "Some old lady named Bobby called you". LOL
- January 14, 2009 at 12:26 PM
- Michelle Lee said...
I'm thinking Bulie... was actually suppose to be Julie... the poor woman who received that cake for her birthday's name. [:
- January 14, 2009 at 1:23 PM
- Justin Lockwood said...
Funny post, but what caught my attention was this funeral cake wrecks post that's been "on hold for months." Please, don't deny us the morbid pleasure of seeing funeral cakes any longer!
- January 14, 2009 at 2:22 PM
- Miranda said...
Wow...is it really that hard to write with icing? I mean...just to keep the writing level, intelligible, and centered? C'mon...I have carpal tunnel and my meds make me twitch sometimes and I can still write decently with icing!
I also perceive a rose bush in which the roses hang in mid air (well, icing), surrounded by leaves and branches that do not touch them.
I dunno, man. lol - January 15, 2009 at 9:36 AM
- E.A.D. said...
A sweet idea (pun intended) that turned into a wreck. I hope dear Bulie at least got a laugh out of this. And please, post the funeral cake! Don´t DARE deprive us!
- January 15, 2009 at 8:55 PM
I waited 85 years for that?!? WTF.
-Bulie - January 17, 2009 at 2:52 AM
To me, it looks more as if the decorator was running out of space and therefore added to the cake and stuck a photo in the corner to make it look as if it was supposed to be like that.
- February 2, 2009 at 1:26 PM
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Public Notice Regarding Historic Review of Privately-Owned Residential Buildings Proposed for Demolition in Orleans Parish, Louisiana
The high winds and heavy rains of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the subsequent widespread flooding severely damaged many buildings in Orleans Parish. In the aftermath of the hurricanes, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is issuing this public notice as part of its responsibilities under 36 CFR Part 800, the regulations implementing Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. This notice applies to activities carried out by the Public Assistance (PA) program implemented under the authority of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C.§§ 5152-5206.
The City of New Orleans has determined that many of the buildings severely damaged by the hurricanes are an imminent threat to public health and safety. As part of its mission under the PA program, FEMA is proposing to fund the demolition of privately-owned residential buildings that pose such a threat. The regulations cited above require FEMA, as the funding agency, to identify if any of the properties proposed for demolition are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places; to assess the effect the demolition will have on historic resources; and to seek ways to avoid, minimize, or mitigate any adverse effects.
(1) FEMA has conducted a survey of the properties proposed for demolition. In previous public notices, FEMA has requested the aid of the public in identifying if any of the buildings are of historic significance. In consultation with the Louisiana State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), FEMA has determined that many of the buildings proposed for demolition are not eligible for the National Register. For informational purposes, the addresses of these buildings can be found at www.crt.state.la.us/culturalassets/fema106.
(2) Regarding those buildings proposed for demolition that FEMA, in consultation with SHPO, has found eligible for the National Register, FEMA is requesting the aid of the public in identifying alternatives to demolition. Any member of the public who has specific practical information on feasible alternatives to demolition for any of these buildings is encouraged to respond. Alternative proposals should include a source of funding for stabilization and/or repairs and the timeframe required to accomplish these actions.
For a list of the property addresses and to suggest specific alternatives to demolition, visit www.crt.state.la.us/culturalassets/fema106. This information will be accepted for a 15-day period beginning on Tuesday, January 30, 2007. Comments should be submitted to FEMA at the website or by regular mail to:
FEMA Algiers TRO 5th Floor, Historic Preservation 1 Seine Court New Orleans, LA 70114
If mailed, comments must be physically received at this address by February 14, 2007.


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Saturday, March 27, 2010
You Can Make Cheese
I receive several emails a week about this recipe, and most go something like, "Another successful cheese-maker here! Awesome recipe, very easy for a beginner cook like me." Of course, in the spirit of full disclosure I do get the occasional, "Thanks genius, your crap recipe just cost me a gallon of good milk. Didn't work at all. You fail." I have two words for that person, "operator error."
Just in case you missed, or forgotten about it, I'm happy to re-present "You Don't Have to Be a Cheese Whiz to Make Your Own Fromage Blanc." Click here to watch the video, and also check out the 99 existing comments, which have some great tips and success stories. Enjoy!
53 comments:
- rosemary said...
I will not lie on my deathbed mourning, "I never made cheese!". I have made some other versions. I will definitely make yours before I die.
Did you notice that some moron took your cheese video and said it was his on videojug? - March 28, 2010 at 5:06 AM
- Rita said...
add some fresh herbs on it... cheesy goodness!
- March 28, 2010 at 6:43 AM
- Grams Pam said...
Took a cue from Rosemary and went to videojug. Yep, YOUR video (complete with your opening saying your name) is posted as "made by you" (meaning the videojug member)
So, Chef John; unless you have a secret double-video life; your work as again been co-opted (stolen, used without permission, etc)
Link to the VideoJug member page of Midodido, the offender:
http://www.videojug.com/user/midodido/ - March 29, 2010 at 1:53 AM
hey chef john,
made this recipe many times, only once not successful (probs cause i didn't use a thermometre).
i have used whole goats milk (partner is mildy lactose intolerant) works great.
always delicious, and i think it IS cheaper than buying. 2L goat milk is $5.50, 500ml buttermilk $2, makes whey more goat "chevrai" than you can buy for $8. (hope you like the pun)
also instead of ever buying cheesecloth, i buy fabric from thrift stores that has wide stitches like cheesecloth, take it home and throw it in the wash, usually you can get METRES of fabric for a dollar. goes a long whey. hehe - April 5, 2010 at 11:38 PM
- Chef John said...
thanks for the info, and nice puns! ;-)
- April 5, 2010 at 11:45 PM
I would like to try making cheese however, would like to know if the "buttermilk" in the recipe is the type you find in the grocery store or the "buttermilk" that is produced from butter-making?
Thank you,
firstname.lastname@example.com - April 7, 2010 at 3:04 PM
- Chef John said...
the one from the store
- April 7, 2010 at 3:28 PM
- Lely said...
"It was the first Food Wishes video to be featured on YouTube's home page, and has been watched by over a million people."
*clap hands* Bravo Chef John! :) - April 21, 2010 at 1:07 PM
- The Brunch Bag said...
Hi Chef John, Help me please...I really wanna try this recipe, but here in my country, I could not find any butter milk. Could you explain what is buttermilk and whats the substitute for that?
Thank you - June 11, 2010 at 6:20 AM
- Cuddly Family said...
hi there Chef John, I live in Malaysia and they don't really sell buttermilk here (Except exclusive speciality stores, way too expensive!). I was wondering if what can I use instead of buttermilk or skip that altogether.
Instead of cheese cloth (also cant find that here), I'm planning to use cotton nappy material (Similar weave, dont worry, it's very clean haha) instead.It's an activity Im planning to do with my kids.
Your videos are easy to follow, thanks for uploading :)
Just need to know reg: buttermilk replacement that's all.
Thanks, Lia - July 9, 2010 at 2:18 AM
- Chef John said...
i hear you can sub with yogurt, but I haven't tried. good luck!
- July 9, 2010 at 8:58 AM
buttermilk substitute:
1 cup milk, tablespoon of lemon. Leave for 5 mins, DONE! - July 13, 2010 at 8:11 AM
- Chef John said...
thanks, but that trick is only to simulate the taste of buttermilk, but will not grow active bacteria cultures in the milk.
- July 13, 2010 at 9:17 AM
- Orangespear's Oasis said...
you said "Visit http://foodwishes.com to get the exact ingredient amounts. Making your own cheese is not only fun, but the quality of the results will amaze you! Requires no special equipment, and is a perfect project to do with the kids."
well im here to find the exact ingredients and ammounts.... where are they?? video looks good,cheese looks good, but this has been a waste of time due to the lack of a recipe. - July 16, 2010 at 4:30 PM
- Chef John said...
Come on! any of the 3 links in this post would have taken you to the video with ingredients listed below the video. Check it out!
- July 16, 2010 at 5:21 PM
- SuNfLoWeRbEe said...
ChEf JoHn,I mAkE iT !!i GoT mY oWn ChEeSe~I uSed ThE yOgUrT bUt NoT bUtTeRmIlK..AnD nOw I gOt OnE qUeStIoN~If I wAnT tO mAkE mOzArElLa ChEeSe,Is It I cAn UsE tHe SaMe CuRdS?aFtEr ThAt UsE tHe BoIleD SaLtY WaTeR aNd KnEaD iT?tHaNkS fOr ThE nIcE rEciPe~yOu ArE sUpEr GrEaT^^
- July 30, 2010 at 4:03 PM
- Chef John said...
Just wondering why you would type like that? Too hard to read, you'll have to translate.
- July 30, 2010 at 4:10 PM
- SuNfLoWeRbEe said...
Chff John,I am talking baout:"I make it !!I got my own Cheese~I used the yogurt but not buttermilk..And now I got one question~If I want to make mozzarella Cheese,Is It I can use the same Curds?After that use the boiled salty water and knead it?Thanks for the nice recipes~You are super great^^" HeHe~
- July 30, 2010 at 6:35 PM
- Chef John said...
I don't believe this will work for mozzarella. But never tried!
- July 31, 2010 at 12:56 AM
- Crisbet said...
I have a real quick question can i use powder buttermilk ?
- September 7, 2010 at 9:42 PM
- Chef John said...
not sure, but dont think so.
- September 8, 2010 at 1:22 AM
whats buttermilk in spanish.also if i was to use 40 liters of raw fresh milk, what amount of lemon juice or citric acid would i need plus the buttermil or its equivalent
- October 14, 2010 at 12:07 AM
- Chef John said...
not sure! do a google search...
- October 14, 2010 at 12:48 AM
I made this recipe with my preschool class. We all watched the video together, wrote down our recipe, and then made the cheese. The kids helped with measuring, scooping cheese curds, and of course tasting. They absolutely loved it! According to our survey, 19 out of 20 kids loved the cheese. Weeks later, they are still talking about it. Thanks for a great recipe and video that made the lesson a success!
Erin - November 8, 2010 at 10:07 PM
- Sperry said...
I'm thinking Kefir may work as a substitute for the buttermilk as well, wouldn't it?
- November 22, 2010 at 6:41 PM
- Chef John said...
not sure!
- November 22, 2010 at 7:38 PM
- Lorenz said...
The buttermilk you get from making butter DOES work. I tried it many times and it works just fine.
- January 19, 2011 at 1:47 AM
- sayabencingeblog said...
you can use this kind of curd to make mozzarella...but you ought to add rennet in order to make it sticky and "elastic" (rennet is somekind of enzyme inside herbivores stomach. usually sold in tablets)
- January 25, 2011 at 8:23 PM
Where are the ingredient amounts?!!!!!!!
- March 1, 2011 at 9:14 PM
- Chef John said...
Click on any of the 3 links in the post for the video. Ing. are always under the video.
- March 1, 2011 at 9:16 PM
- Diamond said...
Does it matter if the milk is homogenized or pasteurized? If it does matter, is organic milk good for this recipe? Sometimes I really wish I had a cow..
- May 5, 2011 at 10:01 AM
Could you post the ingredients? Thank you.
- June 5, 2011 at 12:05 PM
- Chef John said...
Use link in post! Thanks.
- June 5, 2011 at 12:53 PM
- USC423 said...
After you sprinkled olive oil onto the cheese you sprinkled some green liquid just before you added the pepper. What was that liquid?
- July 5, 2011 at 2:43 PM
- Chef John said...
not sure what u saw, but only added olive oil
- July 5, 2011 at 2:48 PM
- Sbb1 Wellness said...
Great video, and great site, great recipe...thanks!
- July 9, 2011 at 9:38 PM
can you use homogenized (or pasteurized) milk or not! because where i live it is very hard to find any organic milk.
- July 18, 2011 at 5:57 PM
Hi all, for anyone wondering if you can substitute buttermilk for yoghurt in this recipe, I have done it a few times and it turned out great. Use the same volume of yoghurt as you would have of buttermilk. I have used both 3% and 6% milk fat yoghurt and both seem to have the same result. I was told to make sure the yoghurt says "active bacterial cultures" on the side, although I'm not sure if it's even possible to find yoghurt that is not "active" anyway. I usually coat the cheese in a mixture of olive oil and herbs de provence in a bowl then invert it and take the bowl off after it's been in the fridge for a night. Great recipe!
- September 25, 2011 at 3:11 PM
i cant find the ingredients. where are they posted?
- January 7, 2012 at 8:26 PM
- Chef John said...
click link in last paragraph
- January 7, 2012 at 8:29 PM
Its not separating?!?!?!?!?!?! I followed the instructions to a T but it wont separate!!!!! Although i did use regular whole milk instead of organic, could that have made a difference????? HELP PLEASE?!?!?!?!?
- January 29, 2012 at 11:57 AM
- Chef John said...
Must be the milk!
- January 29, 2012 at 2:09 PM
What are the ingedients
- February 16, 2012 at 3:49 PM
Can you post the ingredients please
- February 20, 2012 at 2:19 AM
- Chef John said...
click link in last paragraph
Enjoy! - February 20, 2012 at 2:46 AM
Are the curds you get during this process the same as people talk about being so good and can buy from Specialty dairies online?
- March 16, 2012 at 4:25 PM
- Chef John said...
not sure, but i don't believe so.
- March 16, 2012 at 5:14 PM
Hey Chef John! Great video, great recipe.
My group and I are making cheese according to your recipe as our project in Biotechnology. I would just like to know, where do we store this? And for how long will it be good (I mean it won't spoil.)?
And if in case we put this in the fridge for like, two nights, then bring it in school the next day, will the change in temperature of the environment where the cheese it make it spoil? (Uhm it's kind of warm in school.)Because my teacher said cheese spoils easily. And what preservative would you advise?
Thank you so much for your easy instructions. <3 God bless your cooking!
~Kris from the Philippines - August 13, 2012 at 7:19 AM
- Chef John said...
It will last a few days, but don't have an exact time since I eat right away. No preservative other than the salt that I know of. Good luck!
- August 13, 2012 at 10:39 AM
You mentioned: I'm not really that militant about insisting people read nutritional labels. I mean, who has the time?
** Eh, I would respectfully disagree with all the frankenfoods on the market. There's many uneducated people out there who may just take your advice.
Nice video though. - September 21, 2012 at 12:17 AM
- doughplow said...
I've read comments and have clicked all over this page for ingredients. NOne. Nowhere. anyplace. Why is it so hard to just put an ingredient list on the page with the video? Seems like common sense.
- September 1, 2013 at 1:58 AM
- Chef John said...
This is not the video post! Click the link in the last paragraph.
- September 1, 2013 at 1:16 PM
- Unknown said...
Oh so beautiful ! Love this homemade cheese and you make it simple to follow! My holiday just got a homemade taste to it now! Thank you!!!
- November 26, 2014 at 2:41 PM


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The Importance of Calcium for Children Part I
Milk and other calcium-rich foods are a must-have in your child's diet, with calcium being a key building block for strong, healthy bones. But most kids ages 9 to 18 don't get the recommended 1,300 milligrams of calcium per day.
That's not surprising when you consider that many kids now drink more soda than milk, which is one of the best sources of calcium. And teens who smoke or drink soda, caffeinated beverages, or alcohol may get even less calcium because those substances interfere with the way the body absorbs and uses calcium.
What Calcium Does
During childhood and adolescence, the body uses the mineral calcium to build strong bones — a process that's all but complete by the end of the teen years. Bone calcium begins to decrease in young adulthood and progressive loss of bone occurs as we age, particularly in women.
Younger children and babies who don't get enough calcium and vitamin D (which aids in calcium absorption) are at increased risk for rickets. Rickets is a bone-softening disease that causes severe bowing of the legs, poor growth, and sometimes muscle pain and weakness.
Calcium also plays an important part in making sure that muscles and nerves work properly, and in the release of hormones and enzymes. So if blood calcium levels are low, the body takes calcium from the bones to help these functions.
When kids get enough calcium and physical activity during childhood and the teen years, they can start out their adult lives with the strongest bones possible. For optimal bone health, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends:
- 1 to 3 years old — 700 milligrams of calcium daily
- 4 to 8 years old — 1,000 milligrams of calcium daily
- 9 to 18 years old — 1,300 milligrams of calcium daily
Getting enough calcium is just part of the equation. Kids 1 to 18 years old also should get 600 IU of vitamin D daily. If you don't think your kids are getting the nutrients needed, talk to your doctor about changing their diet or using vitamin supplements.
Sources of Calcium
Of course, milk and other dairy products are good sources of calcium, and most contain added vitamin D, which is also important for bone health.
But don't overlook other healthy calcium-fortified foods, including orange juice, soy products, and bread. Here are some dairy and nondairy products that provide quite a bit of this vital nutrient:
Milk Milestones
Milk and other dairy products are among the best and most convenient sources of calcium you can find. But who should get what kind of milk and when?
- Infants younger than 1 year old shouldn't have regular cow's milk because it doesn't have the nutrients a growing baby needs. Stick with breast milk or infant formula as your baby's major source of nutrition during the first year.
- Kids between 1 and 2 years old should have whole milk to help provide the dietary fats they need for normal growth and brain development. But they shouldn't have more than 16 ounces a day.
- After age 2, most kids can switch to low-fat or nonfat (skim) milk.
The good news is that all milk — from skim to whole — contains about the same amount of calcium per serving. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines recommend 2 cups (473 milliliters) of milk per day for kids 2 to 3 years old, 2½ cups (591 milliliters) for kids 4 to 8 years old, and 3 cups (710 milliliters) for kids 9 and older.
When Kids Can't — or Won't — Eat Dairy
Some kids can't or won't consume dairy products. Here are some ways to make sure they get enough calcium:
Kids with lactose intolerance: Kids with lactose intolerance don't have enough of the intestinal enzyme (lactase) that helps digest the sugar (lactose) in dairy products. These kids may have cramps or diarrhea after drinking milk or eating dairy products.
Fortunately, low-lactose and lactose-free dairy products are available, as are lactase drops that can be added to dairy products. Also ask your doctor about tablets that kids with lactose intolerance can take that allow them to eat dairy products and thus benefit from the calcium they contain. Hard, aged cheeses (such as cheddar) are also lower in lactose, and yogurts that contain active cultures are easier to digest and much less likely to cause lactose problems.
Kids with milk allergy: The proteins in milk might cause allergic reactions in some people. Casein is the principal protein in cow's milk, accounting for about 80% of the total milk proteins. Casein is what makes up the curd that forms when milk is left to sour. The remaining 20% of cow's milk proteins are contained in the whey, the watery part that's left after the curd is removed. Someone may be allergic to proteins in either the casein or the whey parts of milk and sometimes even to both.
Talk to your doctor if you think your child may be allergic to milk. Formula-fed infants with a cow's milk allergy may need to be switched to soy-based or hypoallergenic formula. For older kids, good alternatives to milk and milk products include calcium-enriched rice or soy milk (if soy is tolerated), vegan products (such as vegan cheese), and other soy-based (again, if soy is tolerated) or rice-based frozen desserts, sorbets, puddings, and ice pops.
Vegetarian kids: Parents of kids who are ovo-vegetarians (they eat eggs, but no dairy products) or vegans (they eat only foods from plant sources) may be concerned about whether a dairy-free diet can supply enough calcium.
Although it can be more of a challenge to get the recommended amounts of calcium in a vegetables-only diet, good sources of calcium include dark green leafy vegetables, broccoli, chickpeas, and calcium-fortified products, including orange juice, soy and rice drinks, and cereals.
Teens who think dairy products are fattening: Adolescent girls, in particular, may decide to diet and avoid eating dairy foods they think will make them fat. But it's important for your teen to understand that an 8-ounce (240-milliliter) glass of skim milk has only 80 calories and zero fat and supplies one quarter of a teen girl's recommended daily calcium intake.
In fact, people who eat diets rich in calcium may actually weigh less and have less body fat. In one study, adolescent girls who had an extra 300 milligrams of calcium each day, which is equivalent to one glass of milk, weighed up to 2 pounds (907 grams) less than girls who didn't get the extra calcium.
You also can offer low-fat and nonfat dairy products as healthy alternatives to whole-milk products — and instead of sodas and sugary fruit drinks that have very little nutritional value. If your teen drinks juice, offer calcium-fortified 100% fruit juices (not too much juice, though, as that can contribute a lot of sugar and calories).
Stay tuned for part two!
Remember to follow and like Dr. Sunny Tatra on Twitter, Facebook and Google+ to stay up to date with the latest news and tips. To read client reviews or to share your own experience, visit our RateMDs and Yelp pages. To book an appointment with Dr. Sunny Tatra and his team, phone +1 250 590 0166, email, or fill out the online appointment form!


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Blind Ideological Justice
By effectively gutting the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday, two members of a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals showed how far right-leaning jurists have strayed from impartiality.Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens captured our ideal when he wrote of the judge as "an impartial guardian of the rule of law."
By effectively gutting the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday, two members of a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals showed how far right-leaning jurists have strayed from such impartiality. We are confronted with a conservative judiciary that will use any argument it can muster to win ideological victories that elude their side in the elected branches of our government.
Fortunately, the D.C. Circuit ruling is unlikely to stand. On the same day the D.C. panel issued its opinion, a three-judge panel from the 4th Circuit ruled unanimously the other way and upheld the law.
There is a good chance that the 11-judge D.C. Circuit will take the decision away from its panel — something it is usually reluctant to do — and rule as a full court to affirm the ACA as commonly understood. It is virtually certain that a majority of the court's members disagree with the panel's convoluted reading of the law and that they want to avoid creating a needless conflict in jurisprudence with the 4th Circuit.
When Congress wrote the health law, it envisioned that the states would set up the insurance exchanges where individuals could purchase coverage. But knowing that some states might not want to set up these marketplaces themselves, it also created a federal exchange for states that bowed out. There are 36 states under the federal exchange.
The law includes a mandate requiring Americans to buy health insurance and subsidizes those who need help to pay their premiums. The law falls apart without the subsidies, which go to its central purpose: providing insurance for those who cannot afford it.
But the law was not particularly well drafted. It's not uniquely flawed in this respect. As Judge Andre M. Davis wrote in a concurrence to the 4th Circuit ruling: "Neither the canons of construction nor any empirical analysis suggests that congressional drafting is a perfectly harmonious, symmetrical and elegant endeavor. … Sausage-makers are indeed offended when their craft is linked to legislating."
Here's what the two Republican-appointed judges on the D.C. panel did to make the sausage disappear entirely: Because the subsidies are established in a part of the law referring to state exchanges, the D.C. Circuit ruled that no one on the federal exchange is eligible for them.
Poof! There goes the health law in most of the country.
Never mind that many other parts of the law clearly assume that the subsidies apply to people on both the state and federal exchanges. And never mind that during the very long debate over the ACA, no one ever said otherwise.
In ruling to kill the subsidies for an estimated 5 million people on the federal exchange, Judge Thomas B. Griffith invents the idea that Congress may have intended to deny subsidies to people in states that didn't set up their own exchanges as an incentive for those states to do so. But as Judge Harry T. Edwards writes in his dissent, the "incentive story is a fiction, a post hoc narrative" to justify the idea that "Congress would have wanted insurance markets to collapse in states that elected not to create their own exchanges."
The extreme judicial activism here is obvious when you consider, as the 4th Circuit did, that even if you accept that there is ambiguity in the law, the Supreme Court's 30-year-old precedent in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council held that in instances of uncertainty, the court defers to federal agencies rather than concocting textual clarity when it doesn't exist.
Griffith has to pretend that his cramped reading of the written text — again, a reading utterly disconnected from the reality of the law's history — is the only one possible. From there, he goes on to force the government and those losing their subsidies to live with a patently absurd result.
Edwards' logic is compelling: that the Griffith decision "defies the will of Congress" and goes along with a "not-so-veiled attempt to gut the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act."
As the 4th Circuit's Davis put it, the law's opponents are trying "to deny to millions of Americans desperately needed health insurance through a tortured, nonsensical construction" of the law.
We cannot use judicial sophistry as an instrument of anti-democratic sabotage.
E.J. Dionne's e-mail address is ejdionne(at)washpost.com.
© 2014, Washington Post Writers Group
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November 15, 2012
Caffeinated Drink Cited in Reports of 13 Deaths
Federal officials have received reports of 13 deaths over the last four years that cited the possible involvement of 5-Hour Energy, a highly caffeinated energy shot, according to Food and Drug Administrationrecords and an interview with an agency official.
Since 2009, 5-Hour Energy has been mentioned in some 90 filings with the F.D.A., including more than 30 that involved serious or life-threatening injuries like heart attacks, convulsions and, in one case, a spontaneous abortion, a summary of F.D.A. records reviewed by The New York Times showed.
The filing of an incident report with the F.D.A. does not mean that a product was responsible for a death or an injury or contributed in any way to it. Such reports can be fragmentary in nature and difficult to investigate.
The distributor of 5-Hour Energy, Living Essentials of Farmington Hills, Mich., did not respond to written questions about the filings, and its top executive declined to be interviewed. Living Essentials is a unit of the product's producer, Innovation Ventures.
However, in a statement, Living Essentials said the product was safe when used as directed and that it was "unaware of any deaths proven to be caused by the consumption of 5-Hour Energy."
Since the public disclosure of reports about Monster Energy, its producer, Monster Beverage of Corona, Calif., has repeatedly said that its products are safe, adding that they were not the cause of any of the health problems reported to the F.D.A.
Shares of Monster Beverage, which traded above $80 earlier this year, closed Wednesday at $44.74.
The fast-growing energy drink industry is facing increasing scrutiny over issues like labeling disclosures and possible health risks. Some lawmakers are calling on the F.D.A. to increase its regulation of the products and the New York State attorney general is investigating the practices of several producers.
Unlike Red Bull, Monster Energy and some other energy drinks that look like beverages, 5-Hour Energy is sold in a two-ounce bottle referred to as a shot. The company does not disclose the amount of caffeine in each bottle, but a recent article published by Consumer Reports placed that level at about 215 milligrams.
An eight-ounce cup of coffee, depending on how it is made, can contain from 100 to 150 milligrams of caffeine.
The F.D.A. has stated that it does not have sufficient scientific evidence to justify changing how it regulates caffeine or other ingredients in energy products. The issue of how to do so is complicated by the fact that some high-caffeine drinks, like Red Bull, are sold under agency rules governing beverages, while others, like 5-Hour Energy and Monster Energy, are marketed as dietary supplements. The categories have differing ingredient rules and reporting requirements.
In an interview Wednesday, Daniel Fabricant, the director of the agency's division of dietary supplement programs, said the agency was looking into the death reports that cited 5-Hour Energy. He said that while medical information in such reports could rule out a link with the product, other reports could contain insufficient information to determine what role, if any, a supplement might have played.
Mr. Fabricant said that the 13 fatality reports that mentioned 5-Hour Energy had all been submitted to the F.D.A. by Living Essentials. Since late 2008, producers of dietary supplements are required to notify the F.D.A. when they become aware of a death or serious injury that may be related to their product.
Currently, the agency does not publicly disclose adverse event filings about dietary supplements like 5-Hour Energy. Companies that market energy drinks as beverages are not required to make such reports to the agency, although they can do so voluntarily, Mr. Fabricant said.
Along with caffeine, 5-Hour Energy contains other ingredients, like very high levels of certain B vitamins and a substance called taurine.
Reached by telephone, the chief executive of the Living Essentials, Manoj Bhargava, declined to discuss the filings and said he believed an article about the reports would cast the company in a negative light.
"I am not interested in making any comment," Mr. Bhargava said.
Subsequently, the company issued a statement that said, among other things, that it took "reports of any potential adverse event tied to our products very seriously," adding that the company complied "with all of our reporting requirements" to the F.D.A.
The company also stated that it marketed 5-Hour Energy to "hardworking adults who need an extra boost of energy." The product's label recommends that it not be used by woman who are pregnant or by children under 12 years of age.
The number of reports filed with the F.D.A. that mention 5-Hour Energy appears particularly striking. In 2010, for example, the F.D.A. received a total of 17 fatality reports that mentioned a dietary supplement or a weight loss product, two broad categories that cover more than 50,000 products, according to Mr. Fabricant, the F.D.A. official.
He added that it was difficult to put the volume of 5-Hour Energy filings into context because he believed that some supplement manufacturers were probably not following the mandated reporting rules and that consumers and doctors might also be unaware that they can file incident reports with the agency. Last year, the F.D.A. received only 2,000 reports about fatalities or serious injuries that cited dietary supplements and weight loss products, he said.
Another federal agency, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, reported late last year that more than 13,000 emergency room visits in 2009 were associated with energy drinks alone.
Along with Living Essentials, The Times sent queries last week to several producers asking whether they had received reports linking fatalities or serious injuries to their products.
Representatives for two of those companies - Red Bull and Coca-Cola, which sells NOS and Full Throttle - said they were unaware of any such reports. A representative for PepsiCo, which makes Amp, also said it was unaware of any such reports.
In addition to Red Bull, NOS, Full Throttle and Amp are also marketed as beverages, rather than as dietary supplements.
The disclosure of the reports is the second time in recent weeks that F.D.A. filings citing energy drinks and deaths have emerged. Last month, the agency acknowledged it had received five fatality filings mentioning another popular energy drink, Monster Energy.


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