a hawaiian thanksgiving

while some (karin) may be disappointed to hear that there was no
pineapple on our thanksgiving table, perhaps the okinawan sweet
potato casserole will prove that our thanksgiving was indeed,
hawaiian.

we stayed home this year for turkey day, and decided to host a potluck
for some new friends and their families. 11 adults and 6 children under
the age of 3 filled our home with food and fun!

here was the lineup, in order of appearance:

ahi poke
artichoke dip
red alert hummus
stuffed mushrooms
mixed green salad with glazed pecans
butter lettuce with spicy sprouts, feta and maui onion dressing
mashed potatoes, cauliflower & carrots
green bean casserole
brussel sprouts with bacon and apples
okinawan sweet potato casserole with pecan topping
white bread stuffing
jalapeno cornbread stuffing
pumpkin sausage cranberry stuffing
corn on the cobb
glazed ham
roast turkey (i love to brine!)
whole cranberry orange relish
homemade rolls and pecan sticky buns

after dinner we all headed out for a nice walk around the
neighborhood before returning for dessert:

homemade pumpkin pie
no-bake pumpkin pie
cheesecake
maple pecan cookies
apple cranberry pie
ice cream (owen calls it "icesheen")

a few photos from the day:

e carving the bird - 17lbs of juicy goodness

e & barb discussing oven space

spread

warming up for dessert

post dinner lounging

ready, set, GO!!!!

i'm so thankful for the opportunity to wear a tank top on thanksgiving,
the fact that there were leftovers for all our guests (isn't that the
whole point of thanksgiving, anyway?), and to have met so many
people who love cooks illustrated recipes and alton brown as much
as i do! oh, and i'm thankful to john for vacuuming before guests
arrived, even though doing so "hurt the logical part" of his brain. :)

A view from your shut down

The Daily Dish has been posting reader emails reporting on their " view from the shutdown ." If you think this doesn't affect you, or if you know all too well how bad this is, take a look at the growing collection of poignant stories. No one is in this alone except for the nutjobs in the House. I decided to email Andrew with my own view. I plan to send a similar letter to my congressperson. Dear Andrew, I am a professor of astronomy at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA). The CfA houses one of the largest, if not the largest collection of PhD astronomers in the United States, with over 300 professional astronomers and roughly 100 doctoral and predoctoral students on a small campus a few blocks west of Harvard Yard. Under the umbrella of the CfA are about 20 Harvard astronomy professors, and 50 tenure-track Smithsonian researchers. A large fraction of the latter are civil servants currently on furlough and unable to come to work. In total, 147 FTEs...

The Long Con

Hiding in Plain Sight ESPN has a series of sports documentaries called 30 For 30. One of my favorites is called Broke which is about how professional athletes often make tens of millions of dollars in their careers yet retire with nothing. One of the major "leaks" turns out to be con artists, who lure athletes into elaborate real estate schemes or business ventures. This naturally raises the question: In a tightly-knit social structure that is a sports team, how can con artists operate so effectively and extensively? The answer is quite simple: very few people taken in by con artists ever tell anyone what happened. Thus, con artists can operate out in the open with little fear of consequences because they are shielded by the collective silence of their victims. I can empathize with this. I've lost money in two different con schemes. One was when I was in college, and I received a phone call that I had won an all-expenses-paid trip to the Bahamas. All I needed to d...

back-talk begins

me: "owen, come here. it's time to get a new diaper" him, sprinting down the hall with no pants on: "forget about it!" he's quoting benny the rabbit, a short-lived sesame street character who happens to be in his favorite "count with me" video. i'm turning my head, trying not to let him see me laugh, because his use and tone with the phrase are so spot-on.

Mahalo.ne.Trash

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