Granted, but you can't shut off all the noise.

I wish I could type with more fingers.

Kids are home for a second day here. Snow storm doesn't want to stop. Snow plow hasn't come by in three hours so I don't know if I'll get into work...

Here's a funny winter clip

Regards, Ross

I have a friend from Slovakia who makes this very delicious soup. I don't know the name but I remember she says it is fairly traditional in her region. Might be from Poland or the Czech Republic -- I don't know. Of course my version of it might only have a slight resemblance to the original.

I make it without a formal recipe but I'll try to guess on reasonable quantities. Even if you think you may not particularly like the individual ingredients please consider trying it anyways. The whole is definitely greater than the sum of the parts. Seriously good!

In a large pot, heat up 1.5 tablespoons on cooking oil.
Throw in at least one cup of diced kielbasa sausage and fry until browned.
[Note: A fairly lean dry-style pepperoni can be used in place of Kielbasa]
Add a large chopped onion and let it continue frying.
Add a few cloves of coarsely chopped garlic. Continue with the frying.
When the onions/garlic have some colour add about 1 litre of drained/rinsed sauerkraut.
Continue simmering - adding more oil if needed to keep it from sticking.
Stir so all the sauerkraut gets a couple of minutes of high heat treatment & the bottom of the pot is fully deglazed.
Add one tablespoon of brown sugar and two tablespoons of vinegar.
Add two litres of water.
Optional: Add two diced prunes (or four or five diced dried apricots).
Add 1.5 teaspoons of paprika spice.
Optional: Add a sprinkle of crushed chilies or cayenne pepper.
Simmer for minimum one hour with the cover on.
You can add more as req'd water to make up for evaporation.
Enjoy!

What happens with this soup is the sauerkrauted cabbage gets so tender & sweet that even people who think they hate sauerkraut or cabbage will be most pleasantly surprised. The broth has a very unique sweet & sour taste that is totally addictive. The broth remains fairly light -- it doesn't really thicken up, yet with the cabbage & Kielbasa it is a very hearty and satisfying soup. Real 'comfort food' of the highest order.

Please let me know if you try it. I'd love to hear what you think.

Regards, Ross

Back in architecture school during our final thesis 'crits' my classmate who was the professors' favorite had a brutal crit. A visiting critic (who apparently didn't know her star status) brutally attacked the fact that she had signed each and every image on her thesis presentation panels. That critic saw it as incredibly pretentious and didn't hold back -- he shredded her to tears. Apparently in agreement, the other even higher profile critics didn't find the project worthy of any comment. The crit that followed was my wife's. My wife was far from being a star and her humbly presented thesis, in complete contrast, received considerable praise. The other visiting critics, the great Aldo Van Eyck and Canadian architectural legend Eberhard Zeidler said her thesis was absolutely brilliant -- the best they had seen. In contrast to the previous presentation they loved the substance over style and my wife's quite competence. Those 20-year old crits have remained in my thoughts since. One thing I learned was if you sign your work some will see it as a self-important pretense of artistic merit. In general I do not sign my own works choosing to avoid that implication that I believe its "art" connotation. I prefer to just let others see only the illustration and get what they can from them without having them think about the 'meaning' of any signature.

Regards, Ross

When I was a small child I wanted to be a carpenter. I liked the idea of 'building' things. When I was a teen my mother had a home business making pewter & silver jewelry. Like her, I also enjoyed doing metal work but what I discovered in it was the really enjoyable part was in 'designing' vs. just 'making'. That then had me thinking about perhaps becoming an architect, thinking it was something that could combine my interest in drawing with designing. I did however have my doubts...

At the time there was a show on TV called the 'Paper Chase' about students at Harvard's Law School. As a rather lazy, unmotivated, high school student that show made me think graduate schools were only for the straight-A student. Knowing architecture schools in Canada were extremely tight with admissions, and likely tough like the 'Paper Chase' made me think I'd never get in one let alone survive. It seemed an unrealistic dream for someone not driven by academic achievement. I almost gave up the idea. Then when I was seventeen I went away for a summer job as a lifeguard. That summer I had a summer romance with a girl who was intent on becoming an architect. Believing that I was every bit as smart as her I started to think maybe I shouldn't give up without even trying. I did eventually go to architecture school and graduated near the top of my class with a Master's degree. I totally enjoyed the education and all my fears of inadequacy were unfounded. That was twenty years ago.

Regards, Ross

PS -- The admissions guy at the university I went to once told me of a study he did. He found that looking at the records of many years of architecture students, that there was absolutely no correlation between how good a student's high school marks had been and how well they ultimately did in architecture school.

My 13-year-old son will turn on and watch the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner go through a whole charge.

Thanks for sharing this Boo!

My fav was the cartoon instructions.

$700 million. Maybe you Australians need to elect practical decision makers. Sure the building has 'iconic' status --- but the reality is it has that and will continue to have that even if it has lousy acoustics.

Here's an eye-opener: In Toronto, the Skydome sports stadium cost $600 million to build in 1989. Last year it sold for "fair market value" -- just $25 million! The reason is it is a liability that has been losing its past owners money every year. There has been talk in Montreal that perhaps the most appropriate thing to do with the $1 billion+ Olympic Stadium is to tear it down. Sounds like Canadians are more practical than our Australian friends.

Regards, Ross

Mike wrote: "You are joking Ross?". Of course I'm joking but does that mean you really questioned if I was joking?

I'm glad to see others saw some of the humour in the idea of do-it-yourself laser eye surgery. Its funny how some don't just dismiss it outright as foolishness - even if only for a moment. We want to believe. I read a long thread of postings about it at another site. It was crazy how many people gave it even a few moments of belief.

Regards, Ross

Do-it-yourself laser eye surgery is now available. I've done it and it was easy. Now, sans glasses, I can fly a fighter jet and follow my dream to be an astronaut. The kit is inexpensive and not really painful. It hurt about as much as pulling ear hairs -- you know, it smarts for a moment but the pain is fleeting. The device is precalibrated for your eyeglass prescriptions so unless you know someone with exactly the same prescription as you the kit can only be used on yourself the one time. (Actually once each eye).

http://www.lasikathome.com/index.html

Regards, Ross "20-20" Macintosh

I had heard Sorbitol is linked to gastric problems. It is common in many 'diet' products, vitamins, and chewing gums. It is very common in sugar-free dietetic candy. Anyways, I just did a Google search and here's what I found: http://www.foodintol.com/food_intolerance/hot_ibs.htm

Interesting reading.

Regards, Ross

Yes I look all blotchy and half my face is very pale...

I'm not sure Ron. Is your brother-in-law smart, creative and unusually handsome just like me? Is your sister's name Heather? My wife's name is Heather. If not then maybe there's another explanation...

Do you believe in doppelgangers? Perhaps I have an evil twin that I don't know about.

Regards, Ross

Shaun -- clearly you've had a lot of rejection letters.

Roy -- that Russian model had a sweet gig. She didn't even have to change outfits. I'd like a runway gig like that!

kannonbal -- I don't accept being "used". I am a pro and I demand respect.

Hi I'm a SU artist and I'd like a modelling job. I do glamour, commercial, and runway work, but no lingerie, swimwear, nudity, or private modelling.

Serious offers will be entertained.

Regards, Ross

Craig - were you hired by Google as an 'enforcer'? It probably is a good way to keep office meetings focused --- have a hired gun like you in the corner ready to kick, say, Jody's head in if he strays off-topic. One or two good round-house kicks and soon all office meetings will remain focused. I imagine your showing Tricia how you like to spend your lunch break, kicking & punching concrete walls, has had an effective trickle-down intimidation effect as word spread throughout the office. I'll bet the office supplies won't go missing anytime soon.

Regards, Ross

Cheers to you and your wife on the birth of your baby! That is wonderful news! You are such an accomplished photographer I hope you'll share a pic or two with us.

And cheers for becoming home-owners! That's also a lot of fun. I hope work and your other activities are going well too. You are a great guy and you deserve lots of blessings!

And cheers for returning here to share all the great news! I join the others in hoping you'll have time to participate more. And you're right I do think you have nothing to feel sorry for. Stay Cool!

Regards, Ross

Cheers Guys! Trust you both will take a moment to think about all the things to be thankful for.

I will always remember your birthdays --- as it's my son's birthday today too.

Regards, Ross

Dave -- do tell us more about that "homemade yogurt cheese".