The tentacles of fascism unfurl

Chalk up another point for the home team in the game of justification for aggression and control on yet another front..!

Pentagon Declares Internet a Theater of War

You have our word on it!

Some things just make you chuckle... I don't know which statement in this ABC news quote is more absurd?

"The (U.S.) government says it has a policy not to send detainees anywhere they are likely to be tortured. Courts have ruled that the government's word is sufficient." (High court turns down Gitmo detainees' appeal)

It's nice to know that torturers have a policy of protecting detainees from being tortured, and it's also reassuring that a government that lies about things like, say, justification for war and torture can be taken on its word.

Lines and Buoys

Ample sun here this past weekend! Never a better opportunity to take a walk around Fisherman's Terminal and take in all the the contrasting colors of sky, buoys and boat bumpers, and sweeping lines floating on the calm lapping waters of Salmon Bay.

Los Mapaches

So I'm not the first person to discover the unexpected surprise visitors while eating at Taqueria Los Mapaches in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. There are a few others here, here, and here. But, despite a few would-be health code violations in any U.S. city, we couldn't help but find these little creatures adorable and quite the attraction for this roadside restaurant. As for the tacos, they were pretty good too!

At the back of the restaurant, there was an empty corridor where 20 or so racoons (mapaches) were having their evening snack of what looked to be dry corn masa.

Beautiful Sunlight

I found the sun last weekend in Edmonton, Alberta! It lent its rays nicely to a few subjects, and warmed me during my extended weekend escape from the never-ending Seattle pre-Spring/Summer, or whatever they call it around here these days.

I can always count on a good home cooked hearty German meal while visiting the in-laws!









It seemed like everyone was out stretching their wings in the sun as it melted away the snow, well everyone except the skiers and snowboarders at Snow Valley ski hill.

Who's that?!

Piece of Cake

As my wife’s birthday, which happens to share the same day with our wedding anniversary, approached earlier this week I had the motivation to do something special. I have only made a cake once before and, while it was successful for the most part, it was overwhelming and took me forever to complete. Years pass though, and there I was on Wednesday flipping through cookbooks and comparing different versions of cake recipes.

What would I make? Well, my wife loves hazelnuts, as do I, so I decided on a classic, German style Hazelnut Torte.

I chose to go with the recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Joy of Cooking (Rombauer, Rombauer Becker, and Becker). To limit my time in the kitchen on the weekend, I planned ahead and prepared the cake components in stages; Mocha-Frangelico Buttercream Thursday night, cake layers Friday night, and assembly frosting and decorating on Saturday morning. The result was fabulous, not too sweet, and not too heavy.

To dress it up a bit, I added chopped nuts to the side of the cake, and made some caramel espresso-hazelnut candy broken into 8 wedges, which I placed in a fan pattern on top of the cake.

My cake project didn’t overwhelm me this time and was actually very enjoyable, and the sweet success has me looking forward to the next baking opportunity!

*RAM: See, she got her flowers... Now, Happy Birthday to you!

(Thanks Jean Louise at Juniper Flowers!)