Chili----Must be a Man thing

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I take great pride in my homemade chili(aka chilli, chilie)as do most men I have come in contact with. Seldom can I mention that I make my chili from scratch with out the man or woman I speaking with telling me that he or her husband also has his own personal recipe. Take into consideration how many Chili cook offs you personally have heard about over the years. Seems like it is often used as a big fund raiser. Yet another opportunity for men to show their prowess at cooking and another opportunity for the rest of us to indulge in the meaty, juicy, spicy, savory and versatile thing we all call chili. Over the years I have made chili with beans and with out, with potatoes, tomatoes, celery, jalapenos, onion, bread crumbs, steak meat and chili straight from a can. With packed seasoning and with seasoning I just found around the kitchen. Forever looking for just that right mixture and blend of flavors and textures that make my chili the chili's of all chili's!

So what is it about cooking chili that has such a strong appeal to men? Is it the fact that it uses a lot of meat? I don't think so even though meat does appeal to most men. There are plenty of dishes out there that use meat, some much more flavorful then chili. Personally, I would always take a nice Fillet Mignon cooked med over a bowl of the best chili. Is it the spice? Well, if you consider that Mediterranean, Mexican, Asian and Indian foods all have a great deal of spice, then I think you would have to agree it isn't the spice that calls us men to cook chili.

No, it isn't the spice, meat or any combination of the many, many, many different ingredients you might find in chili. I think it is because chili is one of those rare dishes that anybody, man included, can make however they want and always say, "That's just how I like it"! That's the caveat. We all want something that we can make and nobody can say "you didn't make it right" because we can counter with "but that is just how I like it, that is my kind of chili, unique to me and me alone!"

Of course it seems no matter how much the chili's differ, they all seem to leave us with the unpleasant but satisfying sense of relief when we expel gas a few hours later.

I'm dad--I'm just saying.

It's Just Business.....

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OMG! Have you seen the news about the crime ring in New Jersey? Here is the story MSNBC has put out:

NEWARK, N.J. - The mayors of two New Jersey cities and a state legislator were arrested Thursday in connection with a major corruption and international money-laundering conspiracy probe.

Among the approximately 30 people arrested were Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano, who took office 23 days ago, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, state Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt and Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark.

Several rabbis in New York and New Jersey were also taken into custody, federal prosecutors said.

On one hand I'm shocked that this was going on, unfortunately on the other hand it seems that corruption among our politicians and religious leaders is becoming more and more common. What has happened to the values and integrity that we believed was such an integral part of these people's character? Has our society declined to the point of "it's all about me" mentalities? Most of us would like to think we have integrity and high morale's and values; at least in comparison to organized crime. Most of us wouldn't never even consider taking money obtained illegally. Or that is at least what we would like to think.

With the economy in such dire straights and no real assurances that it is going to improve anytime soon, perhaps the easy money is just to tempting. I am not sure where I would draw the line on ethics when it comes to money right now. If someone offered me say $1000.00 to spy on a spouse and report back, I might very well do it, especially if I didn't have any kind of friendship or history of the person I'm spying on. On the other hand if one of my boys or God forbid my grandson needed an organ in order to continue to live and I was given the option of buying one on the black market and not have to wait and take our chances, I would probably sell whatever I needed to buy that organ. In these two scenario's, the spying is probably more ethical or at least legal. But the buying of an organ is maybe more understandable.

These guys were selling organs and body parts to the top bidders. People who either felt they were out of time or they just didn't want to take the chance on waiting. Hard to judge the people who spent their money for this but easy to look down on the people who profited from this, unless you are the Dr. and you know the patient in front of you has little chance of surviving with out buying the needed organ. I guess it's just business........... I'm Dad--and I'm just saying.

Man's Best Friend

That is all I have to say and immediately most people think of a dog. Why is that? Why is it we think of a dog as man's best friend? Surely most men have other friends then a dog. They have friends they play, watch or discuss sports with. Friends they work with. Friends they hand out with. Even friends they share deep feelings, thoughts and fears with. But the title of "man's best friend" is unanimously claimed by a dog. His dog. The man's dog. You know dogs were not always domestic. They were wild. But the dogs and man both learned how to help each other out. They developed a symbiotic relationship. The dogs provided security and assistance in hunting and the man provided shelter and steady meals. Out of this, somewhere along the time line, they developed a fondness for each other. The dog accepts the man as he is with out question or judgement and the man does the same. Both the man and dog teach each other how to get their needs fulfilled. Both learn how to entertain and be entertained by the other.

I recently had to have one of my dogs put to sleep. Dori, a beagle with one ear shorter then the other, was suffering from kidney failure. I did not have the money to pay for expensive treatment or surgery so in order to stop her suffering, I had her put to sleep.

Dori came to me by way of my son and his x-wife. When he and his x divorced she was planning on sending Dori to one home and Oscar, a chocolate lab that grew up with Dori, to another home. Neither dog would be with a family they new. Both dogs had already spent much of their time in kennels in order to keep them from chewing up and messing up the home. Oh, and the reason Dori had one ear shorter then the other was due to a wolf/dog next door that got a hold of her ear through an opening in the fence and chewed it off. It took some time before I could get her to let me rub her ears. At any rate, I felt the dogs had been through enough and even though we already had two dogs of our own, we took the two dogs in. They loved being at our house. We have a nice size back yard and a dogie door so they can come in and out as they please. Even though we also took possession of the kennels, we never put the dogs in them. Dori loved chasing a laser light back and forth from the bedroom to the living room. Each time she would get to the light, she would lift up her head and howl as though she was announcing she had caught the light and everyone was now safe. She had a favorite itch on her lower back just above her back legs. If you put your hand down to pet her on the head she would immediately step forward until your hand would be on her lower back. Scratching her there would cause one or both of her back legs to start jumping or sometimes just go completely limp. And if you stopped before she was ready, she would turn her head and look back with an question of "that's IT??????" She also loved going for rides in my truck. If I was driving less then 45 mph, she would have her head out the window catching the breeze in her 1 and 1/2 ears.

I often felt that she and Snoopy had a lot in common. Dori liked being on the top of the back of the couch. Snoopy spent a lot of his time on top of the dog house. Dori always slept under the covers at night. Snoopy was always stealing Linus's blanket away from him. Dori would sometimes sit on the back of the couch, lower her head and just stare at you or some other unsuspecting person. Snoopy would sometime pretend he was a vulture sitting on top of his dog house waiting for another victim to fall. When I would change clothes in the evening, I would take my dirty clothes to the utility room, which just happen to be where we kept the pig's ears. Dori and Oscar (the chocolate lab) would go crazy as soon as I turned off my bath room light and picked up my clothes to head for the utility room. Dori would be on my bed and start barking. Oscar would be jumping up and down on all fours at the same time. I would say "Let's go" and both would run to the utility room, barking and jumping. I would put my clothes in the hamper and get out two pig's ears. As soon as each got their ear to chew on, they would run back to my bed room to devour it. OK, Snoopy never did any of that but it was still funny. Be sure you click on the picture to get a short video.

But now Dori is gone and with her goes part of my heart. Thanks Dori for the laughs and good times.

I'm Dad--I'm just saying....goodbye Dori.

How round are your toes?

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When I was a child, I remember looking at my mothers feet/toes and wondered why they were so square in shape. The sides were perfectly vertical and pressed together like stacked bricks. Of course my toes, as a child, were still round. Each one separate from the other, soft and smooth. Now that I'm older and after years of wearing shoes, my toes have also taken on the pressed look of bricks laying side by side. Recently I have wondered if those people who live in warmer climates have round toes vs square toes. It would stand to reason that they do. Logic would dictate that people who live in warmer climates go barefoot or ware sandals more often then those who live in cooler climates. This being the case I also wonder if people who live in warmer climates have a more laid back attitude and approach to life. Again, logically I would think that being barefoot or wearing sandals or flip flops would encourage a person to me more casual and laid back then one who was wearing dress shoes or boots to protect themselves from the elements. Not to mention the rest of the clothing that naturally goes with casual foot ware IE: shorts, t-shirts or tank tops or no shirt at all. It seems that when a person takes off their shoes, they suddenly become less stressed, more relaxed and more open to leisurely activities. It isn't that the stress they were facing before they removed their shoes has suddenly disappeared, on the contrary, it is still very much apart of their thoughts and fears. However, being barefoot seems to cause us to not take things quiet as serious. It seems to help us say "I know there is a problem but right now I need to relax, rest my feet, rest my mind and let go; even if it is just for a few minutes". I don't know but I suspect there is some correlation between going barefoot and longevity of life or at the very least overall contentment of life. Someday I hope I can again return to being barefoot in an attempt to bring my toes back to their natural roundness and along with it a well rounded attitude for life.

I'm Dad--and I'm just saying, take your shoes off.

The Midas Tough...

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There is a story I remember being taught as a child about a king named Midas. This King wanted more wealth. Lots more. He called for his wizard and asked the wizard to cast a spell on him so that everything he touched would turn to gold. It worked beautifully! He went about the kingdom touching vase's, goblets, trinkets... you get the picture. Then came dinner time. Hard to eat a gold turkey leg or a gold leg of lamb, so he had to have one of his servants hold his food for him to eat. Minor set back. The next few days went fine and the King had more gold then any of the other Kings in his neighborhood! Unfortunately, one day his daughter came running up to greet him and before he could stop himself, he put out his hands to pick her up and you guessed it, she turned to gold. The touch had lost it lustre and become a curse. I always wondered why the guy didn't just ware gloves! I have met people who seem to have the Midas touch. It seems everything they put their hands to turns out to be a huge success. Or at lest success in terms of wealth and prosperity. I see that and often times wish I could be so fortunate. Then down the road I hear about how those same people have gotten a divorce or some other problem in their relationships. King Solomon was the wealthiest King in the world, ever! God told him he could have anything he wanted and he asked for wisdom, so God gave him wisdom and wealth because he put caring for Gods people above wealth. Now that I'm older, I realize that the Midas Touch can be for things more valuable then gold. We touch people everyday, or at least I hope we do, and in doing that we should hope to develop a golden relationship with that person. At the very least we should want our touch to make the rest of that person's day shimmer. I'm dad--I'm just saying.....