Sunday, May 04, 2008

Rambling

It's a cloudy, rainy, gray weekend, perfect for putzing. Wait a minute, it's telling me putzing isn't a word, but I'm pretty sure I remember being admonished in the past for "putzing around". According to the reference source I just checked, it's slang and vulgar. Also it's a noun meaning "fool". Makes sense, fooling around, putzing around. Anyway, that's what we did yesterday and will probably be what we do today.

I finally received all the films I ordered for the session, and so we watched Silver Streak and The Graduate, both films I haven't seen in a very long time. Silver Streak was sooooooo lame, and I can't figure out why I had ever liked it. The recurring joke line of "Son of a bitch!" which I just know was funny way back when, seemed really stupid now. I'll never show that film in class. The Graduate, on the other hand, was timeless. A classic. I think I'll show that one next session.

Hmm, a couple other quasi-notables from yesterday. I printed up our cruise documents, and then I did the doc dance. 30 days until the cruise, but before that, Paris! It's this that keeps me chipper these days. Also, I made hamburgers for din-din last night. My secret ingredients are egg and parmesan, but I read over here that his secret is oats and milk. So I put them all in. Plus a bit of Montreal steak seasoning. They were quite possibly the best burgers I've ever consumed. Plump, juicy and flavorful. I wanted to make the perfect french fry (by far the most popular post on this blog, sigh) but after a martini, I lost the drive and punked out with tater tots. Ooh ooh ooh, I almost forgot, I bought a new toaster oven. Ours was 7 years old and I'm not sure if it had ever been cleaned, I know I never did. Tossed that mofo in the garage, and now we have a "self cleaning" one. (Quotes indicate my disbelief.) Anyway, that thing did those tater tots right. Yum.

18 comments:

Birdie said...

A toaster oven gets "ooh ooh ooh?" I want to see what happens when you get a new refrigerator. Put that one on video.

Those burgers you put together sound great. I'm going to try those. My secret ingredient for many meat dishes is Worcestershire Sauce. Yum with a bite.

CoffeeDog said...

We haven't owned a toaster oven in years (or a toaster). I think it's impossible to clean them, hence it always makes sense to just get a new one!

Paris??? Whaa, now I am getting jealous.

Burgers, I think I have heard where people have also used either a pinch of sugar, or brown sugar.

My adventures said...

I must have missed your post detailing your cruise but it sounds fabulous. I adore Paris and am supposed to meet friends there on the 14th of June. I'm excited to see what I remember from when I lived there 25 years ago. It's quite a blur, what I mainly remember is too much partying. I'm sure you'll have a ball!!! Take lots of pics, I love visuals!!

Snooze said...

count down to trips are almost as exciting as the trips themselves! Almost.

Anonymous said...

I cleaned my toaster oven with oven cleaner. I took it outside and sprayed it good and let it soak and most of the dirt and grime came off. Sell your old one in a tag sale.
I like hamburgers mixed with venison or Buffalo. They have less fat and shrink less. Nobody likes shrinkage.
I watched The Adventures of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. It was on ABC last night. I think your students would take inspiration from the fact that even a Beaver can speak English. Ed

RJ March said...

I'm glad you gave it a go. And it's hard to beat tater tot, although I'm sure your fries would win hands down.

Anonymous said...

The sun'll come out tomorrow!
I could do without the cruise because the idea of being trapped on some floating barge full of tourists just doesn't sound appealing to me...but Paris! I hate you.

Cooper said...

Those burgers sound fantastic! My secret is to add a little Diana sauce to the mix.

Paris! Oooh la la! I can feel the excitement from here!

dpaste said...

Was the toaster oven broken or did you just toss it out because you didn't want to clean it?

Butch said...

Can't wait to try your burger recipe. I usually finely chop shallots and mix them into the meat with a wee bit of salt & pepper and a touch of garlic powder.

I'm ready to try something new.

The trip to Paris sounds like a lot of fun. The last time we were there was in 1984. They had scaffolding erected (stop giggling) in Notre Dame Cathedral at the time we saw it and a wedding was in the process as well, ignoring the tour-guide whispering as he talked about the building to the tourists. Even Big Ben's Tower of the Parliment building in London had scaffolding around it as well. Time for the repairs, etc. Sounds like an enjoyable few months lined up for you. Enjoy!

GayProf said...

My regular oven isn't even self cleaning.


When I make burgers, I add fresh sage and red wine.

travelling, but not in love said...

Hey. The graduate, what a film. It is so good, and you are right, an absolute classic. Whoever would have thought that Dustin Hoffman started out so hot?

And Paris? tell more, tell more....!

Lemuel said...

Putzing is a perfectly acceptable activity in PA and I highly recommend it be done from time to time in Quebec.

Anonymous said...

"Putz" is actually a Yiddish term for shlong....uh....johnson...er...
weiner....um....mr.happy...uh..........cock (oooh--that was fun! hee-hee)

Anonymous said...

It's nice here for a change, and baby, I'm loving it!
-Rox

Gregory McCormick said...

i know "putz". but i've never heard of "putzing around." i always say "futzing around."

Greg said...

So many new variations for burger prep...what an informative post this turned out to be! (The Burger of Gravitas sounds seriously yummy...)

I still like "Silver Streak", but I confess it's mostly because of the train's starring role in the film. I do laugh at the SOB line, but only because he keeps getting thrown off the train...

It IS very dated, though, and many places are a bit dull now. I do still like the aviation lady who keeps calling him Steve, tho...

Mark in DE said...

Congrats on the new toaster oven. I love tater tots too.

Mark :-)