http://briansp.com/blog Here's to the ladies who lunch... Thu, 21 Aug 2008 16:18:40 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en This is a recipe my husband asked me to make after watching Mario Batali make it on his Molto Mario show.  Although Alan insists that Mario is my culinary nemesis (based on some offhand comment I made years ago...he has the memory of an elephant for these things), actually Mario's ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/08/21/326/ Although I have worked in the IT field for nigh upon 17 years (there's a point in your life when you start measuring things in rather long stretches of time...its disturbing), I actually had actually never purchased a computer with my own money. My first computer was a Mac IIsi that ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/08/12/321/ I've had a rather busy summer.  As usual, every weekend has gotten booked with (fun) plans of various kinds, and a rather significant work project has finally come to fruition.  In this midst of all of this activity I've had little time to keep up here. I've become increasingly interested in ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/08/10/313/ I was introduced to Christopher Moore by the (very nice) boyfriend of my step-sister.  Actually there's a story there on my step-sister, but that's another show.  Bloodsucking Fiends was in the back seat of his car, which is a title almost no one could resist. Turns out Moore is something of ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/06/19/310/ We had something akin to this at Eve (the Restaurant) and I thought it represented a perfectly-balanced adult beverage. Items 2 oz premium vodka (Grey Goose is a nice choice) 1 oz lemon juice 1 Tbsp sugar (simple syrup is probably better but I'm going to make this at home) two thin slices of fresh ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/06/17/308/ As of 5:38PM yesterday I celebrated 36th birthday. This is an auspicious birthday, being the product of the squares of two primes. The next one I get is 100, so I tried to make the most out of this one just in case. As befitting such an occasion, we ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/06/16/307/   One thing that I love about living in Chelsea, MI is that we have a great little community of folks who grow and sell organic produce, meat, flowers, and other good stuff. So most every Saturday I get up a little early and head down to the Bushel Basket ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/06/13/306/ The past few months have been rather consumed with many work projects, church commitments, projects for More Light Presbyterians, travel, training, and just plain busy-ness.  So I've had little time or energy to engage here, and my several (one, two?) readers have gone without.  Alas. I think I'm on the other ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/06/10/304/ Alan and I are big fans of Iron Chef America, and Steingarten is one of the regular judges on the show. Steingarten is often paired with Queer Eye's Ted Allen, and their mutual annoyance with one another adds spice to an already entertaining affair. Steingarten himself is a Harvard-trained lawyer ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/03/26/298/ Today we observe an important fictional event, and an ancient feast in the Christian church. In Tolkien's Middle-Earth, March 25th, 3019 T.A. (Third Age, also 1419 in Shire Reckoning) is the date of the destruction of the One Ring, and the defeat of Sauron and the downfall of Barad-dûr. ... http://briansp.com/blog/2008/03/25/302/