2004-12-20

Codejack's really hot chili

From kuro5hin.org, a customizable and yummy chili recipe.

Let's start with some ingredients:
  • 1 lb. ground beef, 85-90% lean; Too much fat will make the chili greasy, while too little is bad, too.
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced; You can also use white onion, but under no circumstances should you use red or vidalia.
  • 1 can each light red kidney beans and dark red kidney beans.
  • 2 cans diced tomatoes; If you can find them with peppers and chiles, skip the next three items.
  • 2 habanero peppers, finely diced.
  • 2 jalapeno peppers, finely diced.
  • 3 green chiles, diced.
  • 1 can tomato paste.
  • 2 Tbsp chile powder.
  • 1 tsp salt.
  • 1 Tbsp pepper.
  • 2 cups (or more) water.
Combine beans, tomatoes, peppers, chiles, tomato paste, half the chile powder and water in a 3 qt. sauce pan. Stir, cover, and simmer on low/medium heat for 30 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally.

Cook beef over high heat until brown and drain. Add onion and return to heat. Cook until onion is just translucent and remove from heat. Lightly season with salt, pepper, and chile powder.

Add meat and onions to sauce pan, stir, and let simmer for 3-4 hours, adding water and stirring occasionally. About hour two, add the rest of the chile powder and pepper. For best results, remove from heat, let cool, and refrigerate overnight, then reheat the next day.

Now, this will not be the hottest chili in the world, but it's pretty hot, and I have found that if you get much spicier, it starts to interfere with flavor. If you want less spice, remove 1 each of the habanero and jalapeno peppers. If you want more spice, go find the dreaded Peruvian Death Pepper or the Aji Pinguita de Mono (literally "little monkey dick"), and add them. Compare the spices of different peppers and chiles on The Scoville Scale.
I tend to go a little on the less-spicy side, especially as my cast-iron stomach lining has deteriorated from my high-school days... just can't handle the heat anymore...

Anarchy Online tries free model

Huh, well dig this. According to the release:

To qualify for the offer, gamers need only register an AO account with Funcom before January 15. After registration, gamers will have free access to the game until 2006. Those already registered with Funcom need only reregister to qualify for free play. Credit cards are no longer necessary to register.
Story also covered at Ars Technica:
An article at Gamnespot.com tipped me off this morning that Anarchy Online is remodeling itself to run for free. Yes indeed, Funcom has eliminated all fees associated with the game until the year 2006. I suppose this is a recruitment drive with hopes that long-time subscribers will be hooked and remain as paying members when the monthly fees are reinstated. If you like MMORPGs, then this is your chance to check out Anarchy Online for free. Note: This is for the original game version sans any expansion packs.
I've always wondered about the whole MMORPG scene. I tried Evercrack out but it just didn't work well over dial-up, and I just can't justify spending more money per month to play a game. But, since the AO game itself is available as a free download, this might be worth the effort to try out...

Lifetimetv.com: Breast Cancer - Stop Drive-Through Mastectomies

This comes from the desk of my wife, Donna.
Hi everyone! Hope you are getting ready for Christmas and enjoying your time with your families. I just received this link below, and would appreciate it if everyone would take about 2 minutes- not much at all- and go the Lifetime website and sign this petition. It is to convince Congress that they need to pass a bill to stop the "drive-thru mastectomy". As some of you know, when I had my partial mastectomy, I had to come home the same day, with a drain tube sticking out of my side. I was in no way recovered, and yet my Mom, husband, and sister had to take care of me, measure and empty the drain tube for days, as well as try to remove my bandages from surgery- I had my breast partially removed as well as all the lymph nodes under my arm (two surgery spots) and my Mom had to clean the wounds and put new ones bandages me. This was horribly painful and very difficult to do in a home, when it could have all been done easily in a hospital by trained nurses. I don't like to dwell on things like this, but I would like to impress upon everyone that this was major, painful surgery, and mine was not as bad as some. They should make you stay in the hospital, and that's what this bill they're trying to pass would do. So please take a minute or two and sign your name to help stop what so many women, myself included have been through. We can'at stop the cancer-yet- but we can help make the removal safer and easier! I've got the link below to go right to the page you need. Thanks!

Please have a great holiday!
Love,
Donna

http://www.lifetimetv.com/reallife/bc/pledges/bc_mast_pledge.html

2004-12-01

Merry Xmas to me...

710TSAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T-Black 17" LCD Monitor

Specifications:
Panel Type: a-si TFT/TN LCD
Native Resolution: 1280 x 1024
Pixel Pitch: 0.264 mm
Brightness: 300 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio: 600:1
Response Time: 12 ms
View Angle: 160° / 160° (Horizontal / Vertical)
Input Connectors: 15pin D-Sub, DVI-D
Features: Narrow Bezel, MagicBright
Dimensions & Weight: 14.6" x 16.0" x 7.5" (WxHxD), 12.8 lbs