StarCups

I tend to surround myself by like-minded individuals on FaceBook.  But, every now and then I get someone up in arms about something I believe to be completely stupid.  And then this article came out:

http://www.cnbc.com/2015/11/09/starbucks-holiday-red-cup-brews-controversy-on-social-media.html

And, FaceBook became the battlefield on which the “War on Christmas” has started to rage.  (Note: typically when Trump is for something, I can almost guarantee I’m against it.)

This whole debate is very aggravating for a non-Christian such as myself.  I’m going to make some generalizations without any documented evidence, so just follow along.

1.

There is no war on Christmas.  Usually, this is a gut reaction to when a commercial entity tones down otherwise religious themes in order to appeal to a broader marketable audience.  The first instinct from the religious public is that the commercial entity is softening their approach.  Yes.  This is capitalism.  And, if a company thinks they’ll make more money during a “Holiday Season” vs. strict “Christmas-only” celebrations, then it’s certainly within their rights to do so.  And, as a consumer, you have a choice: you can turn a blind eye to a company’s (most likely) fiscal initiatives, or you can shop somewhere else.  So, before you start raging that the War on Christmas is on, bitches, teach that company a lesson, and spend your money elsewhere.  We Jews, Hindus, Muslims, etc. will likely fill the void as our holidays roll in around the same time.  (P.S. did you know that it’s already Diwali???)

2.

Are you telling me that a seasonal conveyance of coffee that is exclusively red and green represents anything other than Christmas?  Even toned down, this can’t be mistaken for anything other than Christmas colors.  So, idiot, get the fuck over it and, I challenge you to draw your own goddam snowflakes and Christmas trees on it to your liking…because, everyone is obviously staring at your cup in hopes for religious guidance and approval. It. Is. A. Cup.

3.

For those who have posted “No matter what is said to me, I’m never uttering the phrase ‘Happy Holidays’ because I’m Christian, and anything less than ‘Merry Christmas’ is a personal affront and demeaning to the season,” well, sir/madam, you’ve now made it easy (and logical) to block your narrow-minded ass from my FaceBook feed.  Certainly, I wouldn’t be offended if someone who doesn’t know me wished me a Merry Christmas.  That’s casual.  However, if you’re going to be an ass-clown about your insistence that Jesus is the only game in town this time of year, go beat feet, my friend.  You’re the reason why, internationally, the world thinks Americans are fat and ignorant.  And, taking pride in your ignorance is nothing to be proud of.  Being loudest doesn't mean you're right.

To sum up, nobody is waging war on your religion, Christians. Until they change it, the Constitution has clearly made religious freedom a priority…which means you can practice any way you choose.  However, as soon as you start your “I’m right and you’re wrong” religious intolerance hate speech, you can count me out…or rather, I can count you out.  Christmas has never been more publicized than it is today.  NEVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD.  As long as there is money to be made from it, expect the advertisements and rhetoric to get louder and more in your face.  This fact alone makes it hard to be a non-Christian in this country.  You can’t go shopping in any store without the constant affront.  However, I have a suggestion for those feeling nostalgic about years past when there wasn’t this controversy: if you want to return to those good old times…the Norman Rockwell Christmases of the early part of the 20^th Century, then I suggest you do what they did in the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s…and get the messages of Jesus Christ from Church instead of Starbucks.

Happy Holidays.

Swimming up the music stream

So, how do you like your music?  Personally, as you may know from previous posts, I’m a fan of having a physical CD.  Now, that’s not especially practical due to the volume of music I have digitally.  However, most of my digital collection I ripped myself into iTunes.  Why?  Because I wanted higher quality versions of songs than a typical MP3.  For those not attuned to lossy audio codecs, see this entry. 

Apple’s default encoder is AAC (or M4A) which, supposedly, has a small sound-quality advantage on MP3s recorded at the same bit-rate.  Following?  Good.  Personally, I like to rip my CDs at 192 kbps (kilobits per second, the more the higher quality), or better yet, 256 kbps AAC.  This is as close to CD quality as you can get with a squished audio file.  But, these days, people are streaming music left and right.  What do you get with one of the subscription services?In a quick breakdown, Pandora is 64 kbps for free and 192 kbps for Pandora One subscribers.  Rhapsody Apple Music streams at 256 kbps.  Spotify is up at 320 kbps for subscribers.

What’s this all mean?  Well, most of us who are streaming are either sitting at a computer somewhere (with or without headphones) and/or driving in a car.  Computer speakers produce a cringe-worthy sound when music is played through them, regardless of the quality.  Similarly, unless you have some kind of premium audio system in your car, the surrounding ambient noise while driving makes car music sound like crap.  However, when streaming to a stereo or pair of decent headphones, you could expect to hear decently recorded/streamed music.  And, that means that if you’re starting with a crap feed (i.e. Pandora’s free feed) then it’s going to sound that much worse when played through sub-par speakers. 

However, if you’ve got a decent sound system, it has the chance to work.  Personally, I’ve eschewed streaming services preferring a mix of my already-owned music.  I won’t pay for satellite either.  If I want to listen to 40 non-stop hours of the Grateful Dead, I’ve got that (and likely more) on my PC at home.  And, if that’s not enough, I’ve got some options.

Specifically, I’ve turned to a couple of apps which feed my desire to listen to good music.  First is Live 365 (iOS/Android and free).  This is the app that’s helped me through my WNTI fix.  It’s also got a ton of music categories you can check out, and other established internet stations.  They broadcast at 128 kbps. 

Phish time?  For free you can get a non-stop Phish stream at 64 kbps.  That’s not great, but it’s your trip, man, and if you need a fix, they got what you’re looking for.

Perhaps my favorite app is the one that draws from Archive.Org, the on-line non profit digital library, based on San Francisco, which has access to websites, software, games, movies, images, and, best of all, music.  As of May 2014, they had collected 15 petabytes of information/media.  And, in their collection is over 10,000 Grateful Dead recordings.  Granted, there are multiple (and different) recordings from many of the shows, mostly due to a taper-friendly band.  Still, that’s countless hours of music.  And it’s not just the Dead.  They have shows from Smashing Pumpkins, the Radiators, Guster, Cracker, John Mayer, Jack Johnson, and countless others.  Also, you can check out music from around the world, in about any language, and any genre.  It’s an amazing collection…all for free.  And, typically, music is preserved in its highest digitally available quality, with most recorded/streaming between 100 kbps and 200 kbps.  Zowie!

How do you access it?  Either go directly to the site (the Grateful Dead button is clear and obvious), or get an app for your mobile device.  My preference is Archivist ($3.99 iOS) which scans the music on your phone and adds any artists who have an Archive.Org presence to your favorites list.  Right now, based on its analysis, I’ve got about 12,000 shows to go through before I’m done…and, at decent quality.  Also, it will allow me to ‘favorite’ shows/recordings I like the best so I can re-listen at any time.  I’d be curious about your listening habits, so if you have a favorite way to get your music, let me know in the comments section here or on FB.  Until then, I’ll be jamming to some awesome tunes for the next couple of … years.    

Nuts for Photos!

Photography…If you know me, then you know that I have a passion for nature photography.  And, typically, the shots I feel like I’ve gotten the most out of are of landscapes.  What’s amazing, at least to me, is that I don’t typically have to go off-road or off-trail too often to capture some really scenic views.  National and State Parks know where the vistas are, and typically provide parking right there so that people don’t inadvertently clog the road as they stop to see.

Our national parks are so amazing but most NJ people don’t tend to go, and that makes my shots somewhat exotic.  NJ is a pretty bad place for landscapes until you go out west towards Pennsylvania, or east to get shore shots.  Just too many people.  So, imagine how distressed I get when I've gone halfway across the country and  I witness people taking selfies at those same "exotic" locations.  You’re ruining the picture people!  Get someone to take it for you, but your big fat heads are getting in the way of something much bigger than yourself.

And then came planking: selfies of me lying on god-knows-whatever, stiff as a board, for no apparent reason.  I don’t really know what inspires people to go places, lay down, and have their picture taken.  It’s flat out stupid for stupid’s sake.  Dumbest. Pictures. Ever. Which is what I thought…until I discovered #nutscaping.

Go ahead.  Login to Facebook or Twitter or Tumblr or Instagram.  I’ll wait. 

Now, I think you’d normally find me as angry about this as I am intolerant of the aforementioned.  But, before you draw a conclusion, I’ll first say…I don’t hate it.  Anyone can lay down fully clothed, but it takes a real man to bare his balls out in the open, bend over, and snap an otherwise fantastic landscape shot, albeit with his dangly bits in the top parts of the frame.  That isn’t to say that there isn’t a right way and a wrong way to #nutscape. 

Take this gent.  This is the wrong way to do it.  Way too much of the sunset (or sunrise) is hidden behind your junk. 

However, this dude, absolutely nails it.  I know because I’ve been in this spot at sunrise at Bryce Canyon National Park.  Just the way that his man-bits obscure the sun so that he can compose the rest of his image…with the hoodoos and mountains of Utah in the background…just breathtaking.

Now, I don’t have aspirations of competing with these gents as it’s not my type of photography.  But, as with all art, if done correctly, it can be awe-inspiringly beautiful…or at least hysterically funny and well executed. 

(And then, if you want to see some real nature money shots…here’s a link to my on-line gallery.)

Mixed Bag: Coffee, Star Wars, and Football

Just a mish-mash of things that are floating around in my head:

Today, Amazon has a really nice Bodum 8-cup French Press coffee maker for only $26.46 and 2-day shipping with Prime membership.  That's a ridiculously low price for this press that regularly costs around $50.  8 cups is enough for 2 1/2 tall mugs of coffee...and enough Joe for you and a friend to be highly caffeinated in about 4-minutes of steeping time.  If memory serves, I think my 4-cup version of the same press cost $40.


And, while you're at it, grab this grinder, find some freshly roasted beans, and make yourself some mother-loving coffee.

Next, Star Wars is coming.  If you didn't know that, you live under a rock with your hands over your eyes and fingers in your ears.  The marketing campaign is in full "FORCE" as Disney will make sure that every man, woman and child will know the true power of the dark side.  I know there are 6 other Star Wars movies, but you and I both know that only three of those count...and only three of those directly contribute to the latest release/s.  So, back to Amazon you go, where for $55, you can get the ORIGINAL Trilogy.  The prequels to these (Eps. 1, 2, and 3) should just be considered optional back-story into Darth Vader's life...which I believe is mostly inconsequential.  Who cares?  The only movies you're going to need in your collection will be the aforementioned linked ones, and the soon-to-be-released Episodes 7, 8 and 9...one a year, starting December 17th!  Trust me.  The next three Christmas movie seasons will be nerd-gasm material.

Speaking of football (what?), I'm thoroughly enjoying this year's games, somewhat.  As a Giants fan, there's as much to like as there is to hate.  Fantasy is always good and it's fun to track teams you would otherwise not give two shits about.  More TV stations are covering football than ever: CBS, NBC, FOX, ESPN and NFL.  Not sure that the NFL Network coverage helps or hinders.  However, I think the better question is, what scandal will emerge during this year's off season to keep people interested in the NFL when games aren't even being played?  That's right, lending credence to my conspiracy theory is the way that the NFL handled Ray Rice (and to a lesser extent, Adrien Peterson), and the subsequently how it handled Tom Brady and the Patriots.  For Ray Rice, I believe (and I have no proof of this) that once the NFL learned about the beating in AC, they immediately got their money-machine running back into a therapy program, and convinced Ray and his beaten girlfriend, to tie the knot...immediately!  He beat her in mid February and by the end of March they were married.  Cover-up, cover-up, cover-up.  When the news broke, they allowed the media machine to cover the story for the entire off-season!    And, if the video of him actually doing it didn't get out, he would have served his 2-game suspension, and then started making NFL money again in mid-September.  Well, the video leaked, and he was fired...but reinstated in late November...because the NFL didn't have enough causation to keep him out due to the fact that the authorities didn't do anything either (probably influenced by the NFL.)

Fast forward to the 2014 post season and Superbowl.  Gee, what can we blow (pun intended) out of proportion to keep the NFL in the news from March to September?  I know, let's dole out more harsh penalties that will eventually be overturned...just before the regular season starts...to the Patriots and Tom Brady so that we'll have some news to cover over the summer.  Think I'm nuts that this was all just an orchestrated media event?  Take into account that the NFL suspended Brady for the first four games of the season.  If that suspension was upheld, his first game back would have been this past weekend, when the Pats played the Indianapolis Colts, the very team that accused the Patriots of ball tampering.  WHAT A GREAT STORY THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN!  Extra, extra, read all about it: the angry quarterback makes his season debut against the very team that got him suspended in the first place!  Let me be clear, the Patriots are a bunch of cheating idiots.  And, the argument that was floating out there is that the NFL is picking on New England, and that every team in the NFL has some skeletons in their collective closets.  Tell that to Lance Armstrong.  The logic of "everyone does it" is BS.  The Pats took the NFL fines without flinching.  Why?  Because that shit happened.  Tom Brady spiked his phone on the ground...because, that's the Patriot way (see: Aaron Hernandez).  Still, as we now know, the NFL penalty was (again) too harsh.  Brady was immediately reinstated just before the season started, and we're now so deep into games, the scandals have taken a back-seat.

Mark my words...some bullshit will rear its ugly head and be responsible for 6 months of water-cooler talk, until the preseason starts up again in August.  Why?  Because this is the NFL's new publicity model...and it's worked brilliantly!

Eat'em and Beat'em, 2

If it's good, then there's likely to be a sequel.  Same is the case with my quest to Eat'em and Beat'em as a tailgater at Met Life Stadium.

The Giants played two teams where I hadn't made something before: the Atlanta Falcons and the San Francisco 49ers.

Let's start with Atlanta.  What's unique to Atlanta?  Well, there's grits, but that seemed to be a generic Southern US food.  With it being mid-September, I remembered that Atlanta resides in Georgia, and, as their license plates show, the peach is king.  But, what to do? 

I started by quartering the peaches, about 10 of them, and placing them all into a Ziploc bag.  In that bag, I added a liberal amount of brown sugar, cinnamon and kosher salt.  I mixed it all together and threw it in the cooler for game-day.

Once at the stadium, I had a pan that I could put directly over a grill.  I coated the pan with an olive-oil non-stick spray, and started cooking the peaches, moving them around a bit as to keep them from burning.  When I realized that they were almost soft I took about 8oz of Coca-Cola and poured that in, allowing the peaches to simmer in the Coke.  Why Coke?  Because Atlanta is the national headquarters for the company and it seemed fitting.

When they were soft to the touch (but still firm enough to stick a fork into (about 15 min total in the pan), I took them off the heat to let them cool.  Then, I took a small scoop of a "honey" chevre, and laid it where the pit would have been in each of the quarters...finishing off the peach with crumbled (and previously cooked/cooled) bacon.

This shit was goddam tasty.

For San Francisco, I wanted to incorporate both sourdough and Rice-a-Roni.  Taking a pound of shrimp, I used the seasoning packed for the pilaf box, and coated them evenly, adding about 2 tablespoons of dried thyme.  I wanted to keep them moist and so, again, I turned to a pan with olive oil over the grill to cook them...about 10 minutes, and until they were opaque and pink.  Then, I plated them by taking a half a sourdough roll (thanks Trader Joes), adding a tangy honey mustard, and putting between 2 and 3 shrimp on them.  Toothpicks are necessary for this as the rolls tend to pop open.  What would have made this perfect would have been a couple of cucumber slices...but, when eating it, you could really taste the pilaf mix and the delicious sourdough.  A perfect finger food in early October in the parking lot.

Next home-game will be against Dallas...so, there will definitely be meat involved.  As the [injured] quarterback is of Mexican descent, that may factor into it.  Yum.

It happened again

Because I don't truly know who is reading this blog, I will make the assumption that I am preaching to the choir.  Today, news sites are reporting yet another mass shooting, this time in Arizona at North Arizona University: 4 injured and one confirmed dead.

It's a week since the last mass shooting.

The "guns don't kill people,  people kill people" argument sucks for many reasons.  One, if that's true, why is our military trained in the use of firearms?  Defense?  Why not send in a bunch of bare-knuckled Navy Seals to rid us of evil-doers?  Right, ridiculous.

The thing is, I believe in hunting for food.  I believe that, due to the fringe ecosystems we maintain (i.e. yards, suburban development), we've caused an explosion of certain wildlife, which, are not just responsible for auto accidents in NJ, but also loss of indigenous species due to overgrazing.  I get it.  And, to hunt, you're not sneaking up on the deer with a bowie knife held in your teeth.  You're using a longer-ranged weapon, bow or rifle or shotgun.  That said, hunting also requires, not just a weapon, but a permit as well.  There's documentation.

And, NJ, due to its density, tends to have more restrictive gun laws on the books.  NJ requires a permit, runs universal background checks, has no silly "stand your ground" policy, makes it difficult to carry (both concealed and open), and has a 7-day wait period.  This graphic link is well sourced (Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, CDC, NRA) and shows that, using 2013 data, NJ had 5.7 per 100,000 people gun-related deaths.  Only 6 people still sounds like too many, but compared to Arkansas' 20 per 100k, where you can practically walk into a gas station and buy a gun, it's far better.


The thing is, laws like NJ's should be the norm across the country.  It doesn't prevent the purchase of firearms.  It doesn't violate the constitution.  It's just common sense shit.

The problem is the squeaky wheels on the opposite side of the isle who don't understand the facts...and when presented with them, won't listen.  It's our job, then, to politicize this in an effort to elect like-minded politicians who can push common sense and keep out the lunatics who are frequently in the news for their outrageous statements, including our "pander to the right" governor. 

To help, here's a link to help you write your NJ State legislators:

http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp

Here's a link to NJ's national representatives:

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/NJ

And, here's what you're going to copy and paste (edit as necessary):

Dear Congressman:

As a NJ resident, I would like to encourage you to support Senator Chuck Schumer's (D, NY) proposal to start a national referendum on improving gun laws in our country.  In light of the tragedy this morning at Northern Arizona University, -- and in and in Oregon, and in Charleston, and in Newtown, and in Aurora, and in Tucson, and in Fort Hood, and at Virginia Tech, and in Columbine, and in Oak Creek, and so many more -- we know that no more time can be wasted.  As citizens of the United States, we have a moral obligation to keep guns out of the hands of people who may harm themselves or others.

Research demonstrates that in the states that already require background check for private sales, gun-related deaths are substantially lower.  Congress must act to ensure that background checks are required to protect innocent lives nationwide.  This is not a "States" issue.  By virtue of all the communities listed above, gun violence knows no boundary.

Our national reluctance to pass common sense gun laws has made us a violent laughing stock in front of our international peers.  The time to draft sweeping legislation to prevent more unnecessary deaths is now.  The alternative is apathy, and guaranteed blood on the hands on those who refuse to act.  The time to take back our country from gun violence is now so that average, every-day citizens can go to the movies, university, gas station, park, elementary school or grocery store unafraid.

The time is now.

Thank you in advance for your hard work to make common sense gun laws a reality in our nation.

Sincerely,

Upsetting

I was all ready to write some smarmy, overreaction to my almost getting sprayed by a skunk this morning while walking my dog, but then I read the following headline:

Oregon Community College Shooting Leaves at Least 7 Dead

Needless to say, I am no longer interested.

I've posted about gun violence before.  I've made pleas to celebrate/mourn the victims, leaving the assailant/terrorist out of the equation so as to not lift that person to martyrdom. 

Today, I'm going to ask that you use the time you typically use to read my drivel and think of the victims and their families, none of which deserved this headline or this reality.  In the coming days, when more information is known, focus on the people who this was done to.  Keep them in your thoughts, and do something good that you don't typically do in their honor.

Thanks.