Just a lot of hot air

I happened to find a website which offered seasoned toppings for popcorn. In itself, not a unique website. But I found it after reading an article on the health aspects of popcorn and the debate over air vs. oil vs. microwave. According to the many sites and articles, and also common sense, air is better than oil. I won't even consider microwave because I don't like the taste, no matter the brand or variety. I have always made popcorn in oil, made on the stove in a regular pot, but hated the clean up, and in getting older thought about the healthier air method. So, I looked further, found some reviews of air versus oil, and found many stated that air was as good as or better than oil. So, I looked further, which brought me to the seasoned topping site. They offered an air popper for purchase and also an oil mister to spray on the popcorn so their seasoned toppings would stick. It seemed that the oil mist would make up for any lack of taste from the lack of oil in cooking. I was intrigued. So, on a whim when I was in Kohl's I saw the recommended air popper and bought it. I figured I wouldn't need the mister because we use a no fat, no calorie butter spray. Which brings me to Saturday night. Movie time. I set up the popper, got the bowls ready, got out the butter spray and some salt and was ready to go. I will say the convenience of the air popper and the clean up put it way above my oil/pot method. But, even with the butter spray, the taste in no way measured up to the old way. Pat didn't finish her portion. I drowned mine in butter spray which made it palatable. My final conclusion after this experiment?

Anyone want an air popper?

A Sad Day

It isn't because I only watched NBC for my news. It isn't that he was such a well known newsperson. I think my shock at Tim Russert's death at 58 comes from a different viewpoint. Sure I have seen him during the elections with his grease board tracking the electoral votes, and an occasional viewing of Meet the Press, but it was reading his two books (Wisdom of Our Fathers and Big Russ and Me) and seeing him in interviews when the books came out that caused me to admire him and the relationship he had with his father and with his son as well as his love of baseball and life itself. So, it truly is a sad day.

New Flashdrive

Late in May, around the twentieth I was in the library parking lot on a rainy day, about to get in my truck when I saw what appeared to be a flashdrive laying on the ground against the curb. It was raining so I got in the truck but then thought better of it and got out to retrieve the drive. It was indeed a SanDisk 4 GB flashdrive. A couple days later I plugged it into my computer and saw that there were a lot of files on the drive, but I couldn't open them because they were all PC oriented. I did manage to open one file and translate it into a Mac program. It was a resume which gave the name and address of the what I assumed was the owner of the drive. I emailed him and he replied that he was very grateful because it was the only backup he had. I emailed him again saying that if his address was correct i would drop it off at his house. No reply. I emailed again. No reply. I emailed again and gave him my address saying I would leave it outside in a plastic bag. No reply. Finally at the beginning of this week I emailed once more saying that if I didn't hear from him by Friday I would assume he didn't want it and I would reformat and keep it for myself. No reply.

Is he dead? Is he in the hospital? Why doesn't he want it? Who knows? So much for being a good Samaratin. I could send it to him but I am not paying to ship something that he doesn't want. So, I have a new flashdrive.

Smell

I was riding my bike yesterday, a not unusual occurence, and as I came through a part of Keansburg I passed a swampy boggy area. With the heat, around eighty, and the surrounding environment I was transported back in time. They say that the sense of smell tied most closely to memory and thusly elicits memories with just a whiff of something familiar. The smell of the hot swampy area brought back memories of canoing as a young adult and as a parent with Kevin. All pleasant memories.