~ Saint Pat... Still on the Way... ~

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~ Sunday ~ March 14, 2010 ~
~ More Corned Beef ~ And a Home Run!

~ Now This is a Good One! ~
~ And with Cabbage, Taters and Carrots ~
Win some... lose some... and I knocked this one outta the park!... That $2.99 brisket turned out tough.. and this $1.59 one turned out just GREAT! How did that happen? The Boyle's last year that I turned into a Pastrami was really good, the one this year tastes great but as I said.. a bit chewey... Oh well...

So... Nothing to do after trying to get my Media Center in Windows 7 to play live video.. and failing at that... Let's cook something... So yesterday I headed to the Price Chopper for a couple things and one of those cheaper corned beef briskets to do CB&C... Picked out a nice 3 pounder for a little over $%... Nice... And as I said in the last BLOG... Simmered that up nicely in my Crock Pot... and stored overnight in the fridge...

So... Saturday... After working on the Media Center some more... Why doesn't that Live TV work anyway? It did on Vista... Well, I seldon use it... So later... into the kitchen to peel a tater, and a couple carrots... Slice up some celery... dice up some onions... a couple chunks of cabbage... Then strain that Corned beef juice and plop in the veggies for a slow simmer... Meanwhile slicing up the corned beef into nice thick slices... After a bit of simmering onto a plate with a nice slice of beef... Buttering up a couple hunks of pumpernickel and pouring a glass of Vinto Tinto... Una comida excellente!

Fork tender and delicious corned beef, the cabbage not overdone, nice potato and carrots... Yeah! like CB&C is supposed to be.. and I have plenty more for a few more attempts...

Then, for the heck of it... I took all the frozen slices of the Pastrami out of the freezer... Stacked them tightly together and wrapped in aluminum foil and into a 250 oven for a couple hours in an attempt to tenderize them some more... So, I just sampled one, well... maybe a bit less chewey but it was just the cut of meat I lucked into.. not the cooking process.. Oh well, It tastes good and I'll use it all up in time.. A lotta time, there is a lot of it... And also.. that last one with CB&C will go fast it looks like .... yummmm!
~ And Now for the Rest of Sunday ~


~ Saturday ~ March 13, 2010 ~
~ More Corned Beef ~

~ But for Corned Beef and Cabbage ~
~ This Time in the Crock Pot ~
Lessee... Saturday? A long nothing weekend ahead... I like Mondays, get the week going again... My favorite day used to be Friday .. looking forward to a weekend off... But Now I have everyday off so I like weekdays better... Some snail mail, maybe... not much but an excuse to go up the hill anyway...

So, morning chat and what else? Clean-up and get ready for the day... Checked out a few new programs, trying out a couple, might just buy them... I have a new FTP program (File Transfer Protocol) to up-load my pages... I am going to dump Yahoo Web Hosting and the new one doesn't furnish an upload link... I like most things about the program, faster in some respects but at least one snag I haven't found a way around... But overall, It is faster...

Then when I installed Winndows 7 I had to reinstall my Hippie HTML Editor... It installed as the Trial version so will shut down after 50 uses and I can't find the company online to re-register it... So I am trying another new one that was reccomended by the Wise Old Man HTML help pages.... And it has a lot more bells and whistles and I kinda like it... So maybe I'll buy it... But again at least one item I don't like much... Win some, lose some...

On to the day... What now? got to thinking about another Corned Beef to do CB&C... Up to the Price Chopper for a Bingo, Crossword and Wheel of Fortune.. and a $1.00 scratcher to round out a $10 bill... And back to the meat section to pick out a nice looking CHEAP corned beef... Aha, nice one about 3 pounds for $5 plus... And these were the 'point cut'. the higher priced are the 'flat' cut...

Back to the ranch to work my scratchers... First off, won $2 on the dollar scratcher but duds for the rest... Oh Well... So then I got out my crock pot... Well is isn't really a 'Crock Pot'... That is a trade name of Rival, the company that started making them in Kansas City... many years ago... So it is a 'slow cooker'... anyway works the same... In with the beef, no rinsing this time, supposed to use the juices in the pack... That 3 pounder just fit nicely... covered with water to simmer the rest of the day... Later out with the beef, cooled and wrapped and into the fridge to slice later... Strained and stored the broth to cook some cabbage and taters and carrots later, maybe today... The first real Saint Pat's Day dinner this year... And then... that was the day...
~ Now Off to Use up a Saturday ~


~ Friday~ March 12, 2010 ~
~ Pastrami Sandwich ~Again ~

~ With Potato Salad ~
~ R.L. Chitwood ~ You can Skip this One ~ Just Food ~
(R.L. One Old St Joe Friend now in Las Vegas laughs at my food BLOGS... But Jake in Newfoundland likes to see my wayward food experiments... And Beam Me Up in Australia likes to tell me how to improve on them... So... Here's the result of the second try at Pastrami...

First get out my Waring Super-Pro slicer... Cut that Patrami in half to fit on it and slice away, thin slices but not too thin, package most in plastic bags for the fridge and freezer, a few slices for a trial sandwich... That 5 pounds of brisket made for a lot of slices... I had made some potato salad the day before to go with it... Hit the Price Chopper for a round of fresh baked pumpernickel too... So a sandwich of Pastrami, mustard and horseradish on dark rye, yeah....

So, results? Hmmm, not as good as last time... My culinary attempts are not consistent... Good flavor, lean meat... but kind of chewey... Nope, Not me (I think) I smoked it three hours and finished it in the oven another hour or so, should be enough time and the meat was done... It's Just luck to get the best cut of meat every time... Beautiful big brisket, very lean, nice thin layer of fat.. Looked just perfect but... Maybe the meat not marbled enough... Who knows? Better luck next time...

But, not BAD... Just not that tenderness you would expect and I have good teeth, so maybe be better after some time in the freezer as I use up the rest of it... And that will take some time.. that is a LOT of Pastrami...
~ Now What's Next? ~


~ Wednesday~ March 10, 2010 ~
~ Pastrami ~ Again! ~

~ From Boyle's 'Famous' Corned Beef ~
~ Ready for the Smoker ~ Just Out of the Smoker ~

Back to the ranch to rinse the corned beef... dry good and dredge it good with herbs and spices and warm up a bit... Out to light the fire and get a hunk of apple wood in there... Then smoking good and warmed up, in with the Corned beef at 1 pm to smoke away a few hours...

Then back inside to make up some tater salad, then catch up on the news with a glass of Vino Tinto... And at 4 p.m. Back out to take the brisket out of the smoker, wrap in foli and into the oven at 250 for another hour... Voila, done!...

Then let it cool and then into the fridge overnight... slice and wrap tomorrow.... except enough for a nice Pastrami sammich with Tater salad... How Sweet it Will Be!




~ Who Want's to Wait til Next Wednesday? ~


~ Tuesday~ March 09, 2010 ~
~ Not Yet But Getting Ready ~

~ The Last of Last Year ~ Getting Ready for This Year ~
So, what for today? Nice and warm but not too sunny a day... They say will reach 62F... Wasn't bad when I went out at 52F to get the old vines out of the tomato bed... So What for the garden this year? A couple more Better Boys for the bed... and What for the pots? Well that can wait for a few weeks when we can think about planting
and getting this year's show on the road...

But first for today... Checked the mail on the way out, then headed to the Price Chopper for a few things... Picked me up a Bingo... Crossword and a Wheel of Fortune... No win on the Bingo... $6 win on the Wheel and $10 win on the Crossword... What's that... $7 profit? At least it is a profit... Not doing great on the Bingos the last few days...

OK What else? Well I took that Crossword and Wheel to trade on more scratches... The result for the day? Won a $6... $10... $9... $6... and a $9... Nice... Total day profit $22... But remember... Gambling Does Not Pay.... Does it Can man?

~ Any way... Off to Finish Up Another Great Day... ~


~ Monday~ March 08, 2010 ~
~ Finally ~ New Shoes! ~

~ Well Those Old Converse had Seen Better Days ~
Another busy day ... All things considered... Nothing newsworthy for sure... But I headed out to Penneys... Stopped at the mail box... and lookee there... a coupon for JC Penneys... Buy $50 and get $10 off... $75 and you get $15 off, worth a try... Should get close to that... Early after opening, not many there, the way I like it... Well first, find me a belt, the strain of the weight gain kinda stretched the old one... And $26 to $30 for a strip of leather and a buckle?... get serious... Well AHA!... here is a rack of them on sale for $14.99... and I can't see any difference... So, one of those... Then next to the socks... All socks, buy one pack at full price get a second for half... My Gold Toes, $18 for a pack of six, so two packs for 12 pair at $27... OK... Gold Toes are the best socks I have found... Nice cushion sole and last for two years. the elastic goes before you wear a hole...

So, then where are the shoes?.. Oh way over there... They built this new store much closer to me.. but I stil haven't figured out where they put everything... I like the old store better... So I was looking for Converse, my preferred shoe for years... The guy asked to help. showed me the only two styles they had... Besides the Retro Chuck Taylors... Didn't like either one but saw this pair of Adidas I kinda liked... and on clearance for half price.. That's my style...

Now for some day to day Tees... Found a stack of nice ones on sale... $10 each separate... but buy two or more, they are $4.99... let's get some of those... Got 4... Then on to check-out... Hah! Just over $100, so I gave her my coupon.. Oh Oh... Not good til Wednesday... But she said shhhh.... and gave it to me anyway... Got my extra $15 off...

So, that was all at Penneys... I needed a couple things at Target... Next door... But I was all shopped out then... Do that next time... Headed on home but stopped by Kicks 66 for a Crossword and Wheel of Fortune scratcher... AHA! Crossword was a dud but the Wheel was a $10 winner... But later I went to cash it, saw I had missed a word.. after they rang it up as a a $20 winner... Well a good day again...

~ AND... How Sweet it IS!! ~


~ Sunday~ March 07, 2010 ~
~ NEW TV for the KITCHEN! ~

~ I Love New Tech Toys! ~

Well Now... Movin on UP! Since my new affluent status I am catching up on my Want List... You see I was stuck with this Big Red Van I really couldn't afford, because of a lack of judgement in the Sales Room... But you may know how easy it is to take advantage of someone in their dotage... Anyway on advice from my Legal Counsel.. Can the Man... Even though not ethical... he said to give it back to them... Which I did and bought a nice little Blazer, which fits my image better anyway, for less that half the payment on the Van... Anyway... Now a bit more free money to waste on other things now

So, first pay off the sales tax on the Blazer, a good hunk of cash... then the County Personal tax on the Van, another good hunk... Now on to Important things.. Like... That new SLR camera I have wanted for about a year... Then Windows 7... installed and running... And change my Web Host for a lower payment to save more money... Changed my cell phone plan.. more savings... Catching up on my Want List fast...

So, with some savings now in the bank... what's next? Well, I have wanted a new HD TV.. mainly to take to Sanctuary Meetings to show DVDs in Blu-Ray HD to the Committee... And while I am at it... that new TV goes in the kitchen so I don't miss any commercials while cooking... So that done, I believe for now, everything on my immediate Want List has been purchased... Only thing I can think of now is to save up for a new Computer that I don't really need, but with newer better specifications to brag about...

On and by the by... Those photos on those TVs.. where did they come from? That is downtown Parkville... Well on Channel 91 on my AT&T U-Verse TV, you can watch the pics that have been uploaded on the Internet to Flickr Photo Pages... How about that?

So, what's for today? Well... Lookee there... Capitol One increased my credit limit on the new NO INTEREST card they sent me... (for six months anyway)... Let's go shopping... I need some new shoes and socks.. and what else? OH MAN! I love to spend money!...

~ Off We Go.. To Penneys and Target! ~


~ Saturday~ March 06, 2010 ~
~ NEW WEB SITE! ~

~ www.donlsmith.net
~ Same Pages... But Different Domain ~

Well, that went better than expected... Windows 7 installed with no problems, just getting all those pregrams back on... The data catch-up was easy... All the data on the HP Personal Media drive... just make sure I put it in the right folders... Most everything seems to work... a couple of minor tunings needed here and there... One is getting that HIPPIE HTML editor registered... I use that everyday for my web pages... The one I like best of any that I have seen.. and an OLD one at that... I see that I bought that many years ago for $29.95.. a great price.. I think they want $79.95 for it now...

So then... I had the new Sanctuary Domain up and running on Thursday... But when I started working on my own new Domain... I checked the URL and it went to the same place as the Sanctuary site.. Now what? really stuck and couldn't figure what to do on the 1 and 1 control panel... So a call to Tech Support.. I got some foreigner but he was very friendly and helpful and wanted to step me through it... Really simple when you know how it is done... add a different Directory Folder after the Domain name... Then upload the pages to each folder... VOILA! The Sanctuary pages to the parkvillenaturesanctuary.net/sanctuary Folder... And MY pages to the donlsmith.net/donsmith Folder... Actually they are in separate folders but in the same Home Directory...

So not so many files for the Sanctuary site... But almost 4,000 files to be uploaded to My site... And I couldn't do that with the uploader to the Yahoo Domain... Have to use a separate FTP porgram.. and I found a new one called FlashXFP that I like better than the other I had used before... On a free trial now, but I think I will buy this one, works great and so EASY...

But uploading that many files takes a long time... Started yesterday and finished up early this morning... I had it running all night but it would time out... and when I woke now and then I would get up and get it going again... And I checked ALL the pages and the links seem to work but I know some little things will pop up and I'll hunt them down... The links on any page that target the old URL will have to be changed... They will still work as long as the Yahoo Domain is up but I'll shut that down as soon as I have everything working

And right now... I will start changing all the links on all the pages in my BLOG and there are 22 of them so far... Well, I wanted something to do... so Let's get at it...

~ Ever Onward and Upward! ~


~ Friday ~ March 05, 2010 ~
~ SUCCESS! ~

~ Windows 7 Installed and Up and Running! ~

Well now, that wasn't so bad and hardly a glitch, I have Windows 7 Installed and all my data back and most all the programs I could think of... And as usual a couple little things I don't like when you switch to a newer Operating System... But I will work those out as I usually do... One thing is the HTML editor I make my web pages with... I have it installed but it won't take my Product Key so it will only give me 50 uses til it quits... But I have it on the other HP to use there if I have to... I checked their web site for a new download but they say it is under construction or whatever and I couldn't get to it.. Always something...

So that done... And the Sanctuary Web Site up and running under it's new URL... Now to work on moving all my web pages to my new URL... And that may take a while as there are over 100 pages.. and I have to change the links on every page and then get them uploaded to my new site and using a new FTP program I am not familiar with yet... Always something else... But a new project for me and as I always say...

~ Ever Onward and Upward! ~


~ Thursday ~ March 04, 2010 ~
~ Windows 7 to Install ~

~ Let's Get at It! ~

Well, a busy day yesterday, looks like another one today... and probably tomorrow at least... Yesterday I obtained another Web Host and set about setting up a new URL for the Nature Sanctuary and then uploading all their Web Pages, Photos and Text... That's up and running with a new URL of: www.parkvillenaturesanctuary.net
And then this morning I obtained another URL for the site that I will move my Web Pages to... That will be www.donlsmith.net But don't try that one... No pages there yet... I have to install Windows 7 first to make sure everything is working and then I can get back to web pages...

And so, Instead of the Upgrade Version of Windows 7 from Vista... I opted for the Complete Version as there are a few advantages... But the big deal is that it wipes out all your programs and data when it installs... So...

I copied all my Documents to my Personal Media Drive... I hope I have everything on there that I want... I have most everything duplicated on the other HP computer also so maybe I won't lose anything... I have all my web pages and graphics and music on my Domain at Yahoo also, so I think I am all set to proceed with the new Install...

Now to see if I can get Windows 7 installed and then re-install all the programs I need or want... then to copy all the data back... And of course all this is going to take awhile...

~ So... Let's Get at It! ~


~ September 30 to October 23, 2008 ~ Page Number One ~ ~ October 23 to October 31, 2008 ~ Page Number Two ~ ~ November 04 to December 19, 2008 ~ Page Number Three ~ ~ December 24 to March 23, 2009 ~ Page Number Four ~ ~ April 01 to May 26, 2009 ~ Page Number Five ~ ~ May 30, 2009 ~ Page Number Six - Click Here ~ ~ May 31 to July 02, 2009 ~ Page Number Seven ~ ~ July 02 to July 18, 2009 ~ Page Number Eight ~ ~ July 20 to August 16, 2009 ~ Page Number Nine ~ ~ August 16 to August 26, 2009 ~ Page Number Ten ~ ~ August 27 to September 11, 2009 ~ Page Number Eleven ~ ~ September 12 to September 30, 2009 ~ Page Number Twelve ~ ~ October 02 to October 28, 2009 ~ Page Number Thirteen ~ ~ October 29 to November 09, 2009 ~ Page Number Fourteen ~ ~ November 09 to November 24, 2009 ~ Page Number Fifteen ~ ~ November 24 to December 10, 2009 ~ Page Number Sixteen ~ ~ December 10 to December 25, 2009 ~ Page Number Seventeen ~ ~ January 01 to February 01, 2010 ~ Page Number Nineteen ~ ~ February 02 to February 16, 2010 ~ Page Number Twenty ~ ~ February 17 to March 02, 2010 ~ Page Number Twenty-One ~ ~Email Me!~