Saturday, December 12, 2009

The Importance of Resting Meat



Instructions on how to be a man: Start large fire. Cook large steaks over large fire. Rip steaks from fire with bare hands, bite down, and allow succulent juices to dribble down chin.

Instructions on how to be a smart man: Start large fire. Cook large steaks over large fire. Rip steaks from fire with bare hands, allow steaks to rest in a warm place undisturbed for 10 minutes. Bite down, and allow succulent juices to dribble down throat.

This week at The Food Lab, we're going to explore the importance of resting meat. Asides from over/under-cooking/seasoning, not resting meat properly is probably the cooking blunder that we are all most guilty of.

You mean I have to wait before I can tuck into that perfectly charred ribeye? Unfortunately, yes.

Here's why:

This is a picture of a steak that was cooked in a skillet to medium rare (an internal temperature of 125°F or 51.7°C). The steak was then immediately placed on a cutting board and sliced in half, whereupon a deluge of juices started flooding out and onto the board.

The result? Steak that is less than optimally juicy and flavorful. This tragedy can be easily avoided by allowing your steak to rest before slicing.

Continue reading..

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A New Firefox Security Problem

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Now That's Power

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Tiger Woods: I feel Sorry For The Man

This went from:

"Tiger Woods was involved in a minor, 1-car accident a block from his home at Thanksgiving."

-to-

"Tiger quit golf."

"Tiger is retiring."

"Tiger won't be back until probably May or June, and will miss his first Masters."

"I don't think he really will catch Jack Nicklaus."

...in 15 days!!

It won't surprise me if the media is posting its 92nd member of Tiger's illustrious "list". You know, sometime in March - 3 full months from now - when there are two huge golf tournaments right around the corner...

Heck, maybe news will come out that:

Tiger was on his way to his own personal lighted driving range area, when he swerved to miss his neighbor's dog, and while re-correcting, mowed over a fire hydrant on its way to coming to rest against a tree.

Tiger was never driving the Escalade. One of the 92 women came and stole it, and Tiger was chasing them down with the 3-iron.

Tiger left the house at 2 am to take a short drive to remove himself from a situation he didn't want to be in at that moment. Then he decided crashing his car felt like it'd be fun. "I'm a billionaire - why is that news?"

Tiger was leaving for the store late at night to get his wife some ice cream. He was jumped in the driveway, and in a matter of seconds overtook the assailant. The vehicle then took out a fire hydrant, a neighbor's dog, and crashed into a tree. The assailant fled.

Elin was the one driving the Escalade. She knew about a few of Tiger's real mistresses at the time, and was driving them around at his request. The mistress took over control of the vehicle for a few seconds, but was subsequently bludgeoned by Elin with a 3-iron. The body has yet to be found. Tiger says he quickly ran to get help, and saw nothing. Elin then attempted to kill her own mother a few days later. Tiger's been effectively kidnapped to Sweden. Elin releases the statement: "I was blackmaled with $58 million from about 14 women to kidnap this bastard, and remove him from the game of golf. What do I have to lose?"

How To Clean Your Toilet

An oldie but goodie!

1. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl.

2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.

3. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close both lids..

4. The cat will self agitate. You may need to stand on the lid and give the cat time to make ample suds. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this.

5. Flush the toilet three or four times.This provides a "power-wash" and rinse".

6. Have someone open the front door of your home. Be sure that there are no people between the bathroom and the front door.

7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can,and quickly lift both lids.

8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, and run outside where he will dry himself off.

9. Both the commode and the cat will be sparkling clean.

SINCERELY,
THE DOG

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No One Can Leave It Alone

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Thanks Kurt!

Friday, December 11, 2009

Cats vs. Christmas Trees

When I was growing up, we always had a cat or two. Come Christmas time, if they aren't getting into stuff (helping you) by the time you finish putting up the tree, then no doubt it'll only be a matter of minutes before they're INTO the tree - literally (helping themselves)!

Enjoy this set..


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Oops I Just Got Owned By a Mirror


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Thursday, December 10, 2009

A Four-fold Look at Guns & Games

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One Last One

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And I mean last.

To the Media:

You all need to stop. Stop reporting Tiger Woods' accident. Stop reporting everything "Tiger". Wasn't hurt.. wasn't arrested.. accident. Somehow everything from this point on is the result of your actions. If it weren't for you, the story wouldn't be what it is. So why is it?

So why is it? With every day of continued coverage, you are going to expose perhaps for the first time ever your biggest flaw.. perpetuating the fact that there is so much more going on than what you choose to report. And it's not just Tiger. Or Michael.. or Anna Nicole Smith, or Lohan, Kanye, Britney... or college football BCS crap that you have no clue about.

Or how about Osama Bin Laden. Saddam Husein or 9/11 in retrospect.. Why are there no follow-ups for this? We're at war, and no one really knows why, right? Can anyone tell me why?

Or perhaps in one single 24-hour period, there are still at least a dozen good stories to report. If there are not, or if there seems to be nothing crime-related to report on, then find some good stuff! When your local news leads off with 10 straight crime reports.....

For how many months are we going to hear about Jon & Kate?

The Casey Anthony trial is coming up. You better start preparing... Now.

Unemployed Per Job Opening

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Wednesday, December 9, 2009

A Couple Hot Links

In some cases it's just best to post links. These are two very good cases:

Earning Power: A Visual Survey of 80 Occupations - Via

Why Americans Are Fat - Via

Kittens Are So Cute - Then They Grow Up



Can't remember for the life of me where I found this. If you find it before I do, please let me know. This is for you, Mom!

The Company of Myself



It isn't often I get completely sucked into a flash game. Yeah, it happens every now & then, but there are only a handful of those that I would consider great. Most of 'em you don't even waste more than a couple minutes on. Some you finish, and then wonder why you wasted 20 minutes of your life. Then there are games like "The Company of Myself".

This one is very well done! It's not complicated, deep, nor does it require tons of time to learn or much ability. Just use of a few arrow keys and the spacebar.. Oh, and your mind. You will learn in a matter of seconds, and each level gets more & more interesting. Great relaxing background music, and a thought-provoking, movie-like theme with an incredible little narrated story behind it.

Go play! or click the picture above.

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Membership Has Its Privileges


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Lazy


Can anyone tell what Asian country this is? Just curious..

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She Needs Larger Breasts

A husband, tired of his wife asking him how she looks, buys her a full length mirror. This does little to help, as now she just stands in front of the mirror, looking at herself, asking him how she looks.

One day, fresh out of the shower, she is yet again in front of the mirror, now complaining that her breasts are too small. The husband comes up with a suggestion. “If you want your breasts to grow, then every day take a piece of toilet paper, and rub it between your breasts for a few seconds.”

Willing to try anything, the wife fetches a piece of toilet paper, and stands in front of the mirror, rubbing it between her breasts. “How long will this take?” she asks.

“They’ll grow slightly larger every day over a period of years,” he replies.
The wife stops. “Why do you think rubbing a piece of toilet paper between my breasts every day will make my breasts grow over the years?”

The husband shrugs. “Why not, it worked for your butt, didn’t it?”

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Lineup

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Recession

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Warm. Comfy. Sleepy.

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Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Notice

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25 Everyday Technologies That Came from NASA



Though associated mainly with aerospace innovations, NASA holds a significant influence over daily life as well. Many people do not realize that everything from toys to sunglasses and even horseshoes have benefited from technologies originally intended for astronauts, shuttle flights, and other elements of space exploration. While some inventions stem directly from NASA and its collaborations, others simply involve vast improvements to existing designs. The following list contains a combination of technologies that went straight from NASA to consumers as well as ones that went on to streamline articles that were already available.

Grooved Runways:

Due to the Safety Grooving research program at NASA’s Langley Research Center, highway accidents under adverse weather conditions are down by nearly 85% in some areas. Aircraft tires have been measured to perform between 200% and 300% better when confronted with wet, slick runways. The program devotes itself to discovering ways of preventing hydroplaning, responsible for a number of car and aircraft accidents every year. Researchers discovered a method of creating thin grooves in concrete as a means of maximizing water runoff. Drier pavement means fewer hydroplaning-related accidents, and hundreds of airports and highways across the United States and the world have applied this system of grooves to astounding and relieving results. Beyond the vehicular, the groove method has also been applied to playgrounds, factories, refineries, and even swimming pool decks in order to reduce injuries from slipping.

Contact Lenses:

NASA, in conjunction with Paragon Vision Sciences, Inc., has developed hyperpurified delivery system – or HDS – technology as a means of learning more about polymer formation and testing how contact lenses operate in microgravity. HDS contacts do not contain water, resist deposits, and run a lower risk of harboring bacteria. Their rigidity renders them easier to handle and capable of keeping their shape longer than soft lenses and possess a structure that maximizes their oxygen efficiency. Paragon has furthered HDS technology by developing a contact lens that helps to reshape corneas without surgery while users sleep.

Outboard Motors:

Fishing and boating enthusiasts have NASA and Bombardier Motor Corporation of America for improved technology on outboard motors. Aluminum alloy initially created for the space shuttle and other equipment goes into creating strong, durable, and cost-effective pistons. Motors utilizing these pistons do not require oil changes, winterization, or regular tune-ups, and do not need any scheduled maintenance with normal recreational use any more than once every three years.

Continue reading..

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iCandy: Tech Gifts Beautiful Inside and Out



Good-looking gadgets emphasize style and luxury despite the recession.

Pogoplug

The new Pogoplug arrives in a colorful and whimsical package. This cutting-edge device has ports for four USB drives. The Pogoplug makes the drives' contents available to family and friends, PCs or Macs, around the home and across the Internet. The Pogoplug service makes networking possible without a computer science degree.

Samsung Pebble

Rocks are a popular theme with this year's beauty tech. The Samsung Pebble's case looks like it was sculpted in a flowing stream and comes in a stack of colors. The 1.5-inch-wide Pebble looks natural hanging from a neck on its lanyardlike earbuds. No screen means limited control over playback, but buttons allow switching between shuffle mode and a playlist.

Continue reading..

Monday, December 7, 2009

Creative and Funny Bathroom Signs Around The World




So you gotta go, huh? Well, if you gotta go, you gotta go! The focus of this post is the various different signs you see when approaching a bathroom, a pair of bathrooms, or toilets inside the bathrooms. Heck there are even a few blogs around whose entire concept is showing you these creative signs.


Toilet Signs! What is it? The Toilet Signs project show us that the art can be anywhere. Every sign that I see I register to share with you but if you want to participate and share with us, feel's like your own bathroom. You just have to send to toiletsigns@gmail.com with the place's name and location and your name that I post for you. Thanks a lot. Visit Toiletsigns


Funny toilet signs, washroom humor plaques, humorous urinal emblems, comedy wall placecards and loo warnings. Visit PorcelainPoetry

96 More here from losu.org





And lastly 16 more here from funniez.net

Enjoy!

I Don't Know

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Censorship

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6 Adorable Cat Behaviors With Shockingly Evil Explanations


Crude Language

There seem to be two kinds of people in the world: those who don't understand cats, and those who think cats are kind of douchebags.

Unfortunately for cat lovers, science has kind of come down on the side of that second group. Research has revealed that a lot of the quirky and even cute things your kitty does are actually signs that your cat is kind of a dick.

Leaving Their Poop Uncovered As An Insult
One of the major perks to owning a cat over, say, a dog or a horse, is that all cats instinctively drop their waste into neat little litter boxes, eliminating the need for frequent "walkies" and the palpable awkwardness that comes with the public use of pooper-scoopers and plastic baggies. Cats instinctively seek to bury their droppings, so it works out for everybody.

Contrary to popular assumptions though, this behavior doesn't come from Snowball's obsessive compulsive cleanliness, but rather an evolutionary holdover from before felines were domesticated and had more dangerous predators than the vacuum cleaner to worry about.

Burying the poop prevents detection by their enemies, but there's another layer to it, which is that they do it to avoid challenging the dominant cat of the group. It kind of makes sense, if burying the poop is a sign that they fear another, larger animal, then leaving it uncovered would be a pretty aggressive act. "No one here is bad enough to fuck with me. Enjoy my shit."

So... what do you suppose it means when your cat doesn't bother to cover his poop?

Yep, some cats intentionally leave their crap uncovered or in conspicuous locations (such as on a doormat or in your sister's bed) in order to communicate to us that they are the dominant member of the household, and that this territory is theirs.

In the wacky world of feline politics, feces act as little, smelly flags that clearly dictate the boundaries of each cat's domain. In the wild, these flags are intended to be seen, and smelled, by other cats, a sign that this is the stomping grounds of a badass kitty.

When it comes to the shared domain with humans that domesticated cats enjoy, the same territorial rules still apply, so a housecat who leaves his waste out in the open is sending the message to us that he is El Presidente, and that we should be covering up our shit, so as not to offend him.

And guess what? We do. We helpfully flush away our poop and your cat probably thinks it's done entirely to avoid offending him. Yes, if you want to take back your house, it's time to poop in kitty's bed.

Continue reading..

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How To Paint The Mona Lisa With MS Paint

I forget where I first saw this, but it was some time ago. It's pretty incredible! Bookmarked it on Youtube to post later and then forgot I had done so. Anyway, enjoy the 2 ½ hours squashed down to less than 5 minutes.

Sunday, December 6, 2009