November 28, 2021

Berkeley/Oakland/SF Bay Sunset Photo from Grizzly Peaks tonight ... freaking amazing!

Of course, *I* wasn't there, but my brother was, and he loves to send me pictures from home that make me

November 26, 2021

It's like it can't help its little self, every time I turn around the damn thing is being adorable

November 26, 2021

I make some dang tasty grilled Brussel Sprouts if I say so myself ...

Method:
1) peel off any outer leaves that aren't pretty-looking
2) cut in half, let soak in clean water for about 5 mins, then salad-spinner them
3) put in a ziplock bag (or better yet, use a bowl with glass lid) with, for each 5 or so sprouts of medium size, 1tsp olive oil, one pat of butter, a bit of salt, pepper & garlic powder, and a squeeze of fresh lemon (or bottled if that's all you have).
4) nuke the container with the brussels for about 1:20 (that's the time for when I cook about 15 medium sized ones). Not trying to fully cook them here. Once warmed the butter should be melted, so toss it all to coat the brussels, and leave 'em that way for at least 20 mins to marinate.
5) put them on some kind of grate or basket, cut side down, and grill directly over the flame (charcoal makes them much better but gas grill will work too) until they start to char. Turning them fairly black is fine but don't let them dry out too much. Usually this takes about 4-5 mins on my Weber kettle.
6) toss with a bit more salt and pepper, drizzle of olive oil, squeeze or splash of lemon juice ... and serve!

Even the people who who tell me they don't like Brussels end up saying mine are at the least very tolerable, and sprout fans always love this recipe

November 19, 2021

Not gonna lie, I'm playing my salad hand STRONG for today's lunch!

Mesquite-grilled chicken breast (grilled by me), bleu cheese crumbles, toasted walnut & almond, shredded carrot, hothouse cukes, red apple, dried cherries, asiago cheese clusters, crispy fried onions, and pepperoncini, all on a bed of 8 different lettuces/greens.

Brianna's Organic French Vinaigrette to top it off.

Mr. L doesn't play when it comes to ensalada!

November 17, 2021

My favorite level in Beat Saber (virtual reality), getting in some great exercise each day!

It's a trip this is NOT me, but he's like EXACTLY my skill level on this game. I can clear this level with a total of 1-3 misses as this dude does (3 in this case for him).

This game is super-addictive and this level is a great example of why ... not all, but a lot of the levels have this awesome way of matching the swipes you have to do with the song, it makes you feel like powerful and it's just FUN exercise.

Day 1 was 10 days ago, I couldn't have dreamed of clearing this level (you are only allowed so many mistakes) and now I'm trying to finally get it 100% perfect .. I'm close with just a couple misses.

Day 1 I could only play for about 20 mins before feeling super-tired, now I can play for an hour ... that's after playing every day for slightly longer each time over that span.

I'm tellin ya, if you want to get yourself moving ... buy an Oculus Quest 2 ($299) and this game ($29) and you'll be looking forward to your workouts

November 16, 2021

You ever decide to just make something NICE for yourself to eat? Just for you I mean?

Belgian endive, radicchio, iceberg heart, tri-color carrot, shallots, mozzarella, toasted walnut, Juici red apples w/bleu cheese vinaigrette. Wish I'd have some other soft cheese like ... bleu ... but was out.

November 13, 2021

The virtual reality game Beat Saber is surprisingly fun, gentle exercise, highly rec'd

If you're trying to motivate to getting your body moving, and build some upper body strength, this game is really a pretty good way to do it. For something so simple as chopping at flying blocks with a pair of light sabers as they wiz by, it's surprisingly addictive.

My little nephew got an Oculus Quest 2 (only $299, and no PC needed) for his birthday a week or so back and we've been playing it together (basically that means you both do the same 'course' and try to outscore each other). I already had one, so ... that worked out.

It has totally gotten me up off my computer chair, standing for like 30 minutes, moving my arms around, stepping from side to side, occasionally crouching. Played like 5 times and already feel like I'm in better shape than the first time, can play longer, etc.

Note that in the real game, it's like you are IN this world, it's not just a 2-d image on a screen. And also, this demo is going by MUCH faster than the lowest speed you can set it to, so don't look at it and be like 'I could never move that fast', cause you don't HAVE to

This girl is much better at this game than me, I could do the slower parts of this no problem but there stretches here where no way am I this fast lol ...

November 13, 2021

the war on drugs w/lucius - i don't live here anymore (studio-oct 2021) new WoD album y'all!

Just found it, on the 6th song.

Pretty damn good so far, as one can seemingly rely on at this point

And I love Lucius too, so, bonus!

November 5, 2021

pete yorn w/liz phair - here comes your man (studio - 2018) excellent pixies cover!

November 3, 2021

On a happier note, the cheating Astros are about to go down ... at home ... HARD

so there's that.