faith poison films

Arrest in front of Club Next in Houston, Texas 02.27.10

2010-03-02T19:55:00.001-06:00

Another early morning in front of Club Next in Houston's Eado area. Someone got busted for something in her car, so the entire police department came to arrest her.

This low light footage was shot with the Panasonic DMC-ZS3 point-n-shoot camera at 720p. Unedited, but rendered to MP4 for YouTube using Sony Vegas.

A look around EaDo, Houston, Texas...4 Panoramic Photos.

2010-02-21T22:10:00.000-06:00

I was playing with the panorama mode on my little Panasonic DMC-ZS3 point and shoot camera. Here's 4 panoramic pics...stitched together using Photoshop Elements 7, looking around the area East of Downtown Houston, Texas, AKA as "EaDo"...although I think that name is kinda stupid. Shots taken on February 20, 2010.

Pizza of the Day...

2010-02-21T21:57:00.002-06:00

I made a couple of pizza pies today...generally consisting of:

Wheat crust with Italian seasoning mix.
Kroger generic spaghetti sauce.
Kroger brand "pizza" blend cheese.
Sargento grated parmesan.
Diced yellow and orange peppers.
Kroger brand turkey pepperoni.
Chicken pulled from a whole Kroger BBQ rotisserie chicken, with additional kroger BBQ sauce.

I made two pies, but ate most of the first one before before I could take a picture of it...it was just that good...

Joseph Stack Manifesto

2010-02-18T17:23:00.003-06:00

This is apparently the Joseph Stack manifesto, the guy who flew a small plane into an IRS building in Austin today, which I copied off another website. I just wanted to make sure I had a copy before it mysteriously vanished from the interwebs:

If you’re reading this, you’re no doubt asking yourself, “Why did this have to happen?” The simple truth is that it is complicated and has been coming for a long time. The writing process, started many months ago, was intended to be therapy in the face of the looming realization that there isn’t enough therapy in the world that can fix what is really broken. Needless to say, this rant could fill volumes with example after example if I would let it. I find the process of writing it frustrating, tedious, and probably pointless… especially given my gross inability to gracefully articulate my thoughts in light of the storm raging in my head. Exactly what is therapeutic about that I’m not sure, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

We are all taught as children that without laws there would be no society, only anarchy. Sadly, starting at early ages we in this country have been brainwashed to believe that, in return for our dedication and service, our government stands for justice for all. We are further brainwashed to believe that there is freedom in this place, and that we should be ready to lay our lives down for the noble principals represented by its founding fathers. Remember? One of these was “no taxation without representation”. I have spent the total years of my adulthood unlearning that crap from only a few years of my childhood. These days anyone who really stands up for that principal is promptly labeled a “crackpot”, traitor and worse.

While very few working people would say they haven’t had their fair share of taxes (as can I), in my lifetime I can say with a great degree of certainty that there has never been a politician cast a vote on any matter with the likes of me or my interests in mind. Nor, for that matter, are they the least bit interested in me or anything I have to say.

Why is it that a handful of thugs and plunderers can commit unthinkable atrocities (and in the case of the GM executives, for scores of years) and when it’s time for their gravy train to crash under the weight of their gluttony and overwhelming stupidity, the force of the full federal government has no difficulty coming to their aid within days if not hours? Yet at the same time, the joke we call the American medical system, including the drug and insurance companies, are murdering tens of thousands of people a year and stealing from the corpses and victims they cripple, and this country’s leaders don’t see this as important as bailing out a few of their vile, rich cronies. Yet, the political “representatives” (thieves, liars, and self-serving scumbags is far more accurate) have endless time to sit around for year after year and debate the state of the “terrible health care problem”. It’s clear they see no crisis as long as the dead people don’t get in the way of their corporate profits rolling in.

And justice? You’ve got to be kidding!

How can any rational individual explain that white elephant conundrum in the middle of our tax system and, indeed, our entire legal system? Here we have a system that is, by far, too complicated for the brightest of the master scholars to understand. Yet, it mercilessly “holds accountable” its victims, claiming that they’re responsible for fully complying with laws not even the experts understand. The law “requires” a signature on the bottom of a tax filing; yet no one can say truthfully that they understand what they are signing; if that’s not “duress” than what is. If this is not the measure of a totalitarian regime, nothing is.

How did I get here?

My introduction to the real American nightmare starts back in the early ‘80s. Unfortunately after more than 16 years of school, somewhere along the line I picked up the absurd, pompous notion that I could read and understand plain English. Some friends introduced me to a group of people who were having ‘tax code’ readings and discussions. In particular, zeroed in on a section relating to the wonderful “exemptions” that make institutions like the vulgar, corrupt Catholic Church so incredibly wealthy. We carefully studied the law (with the help of some of the “best”, high-paid, experienced tax lawyers in the business), and then began to do exactly what the “big boys” were doing (except that we weren’t steeling from our congregation or lying to the government about our massive profits in the name of God). We took a great deal of care to make it all visible, following all of the rules, exactly the way the law said it was to be done.

The intent of this exercise and our efforts was to bring about a much-needed re-evaluation of the laws that allow the monsters of organized religion to make such a mockery of people who earn an honest living. However, this is where I learned that there are two “interpretations” for every law; one for the very rich, and one for the rest of us… Oh, and the monsters are the very ones making and enforcing the laws; the inquisition is still alive and well today in this country.

That little lesson in patriotism cost me $40,000+, 10 years of my life, and set my retirement plans back to 0. It made me realize for the first time that I live in a country with an ideology that is based on a total and complete lie. It also made me realize, not only how naive I had been, but also the incredible stupidity of the American public; that they buy, hook, line, and sinker, the crap about their “freedom”… and that they continue to do so with eyes closed in the face of overwhelming evidence and all that keeps happening in front of them.

Before even having to make a shaky recovery from the sting of the first lesson on what justice really means in this country (around 1984 after making my way through engineering school and still another five years of “paying my dues”), I felt I finally had to take a chance of launching my dream of becoming an independent engineer.

On the subjects of engineers and dreams of independence, I should digress somewhat to say that I’m sure that I inherited the fascination for creative problem solving from my father. I realized this at a very young age.

The significance of independence, however, came much later during my early years of college; at the age of 18 or 19 when I was living on my own as student in an apartment in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. My neighbor was an elderly retired woman (80+ seemed ancient to me at that age) who was the widowed wife of a retired steel worker. Her husband had worked all his life in the steel mills of central Pennsylvania with promises from big business and the union that, for his 30 years of service, he would have a pension and medical care to look forward to in his retirement. Instead he was one of the thousands who got nothing because the incompetent mill management and corrupt union (not to mention the government) raided their pension funds and stole their retirement. All she had was social security to live on.

In retrospect, the situation was laughable because here I was living on peanut butter and bread (or Ritz crackers when I could afford to splurge) for months at a time. When I got to know this poor figure and heard her story I felt worse for her plight than for my own (I, after all, I thought I had everything to in front of me). I was genuinely appalled at one point, as we exchanged stories and commiserated with each other over our situations, when she in her grandmotherly fashion tried to convince me that I would be “healthier” eating cat food (like her) rather than trying to get all my substance from peanut butter and bread. I couldn’t quite go there, but the impression was made. I decided that I didn’t trust big business to take care of me, and that I would take responsibility for my own future and myself.

Return to the early ‘80s, and here I was off to a terrifying start as a ‘wet-behind-the-ears’ contract software engineer... and two years later, thanks to the fine backroom, midnight effort by the sleazy executives of Arthur Andersen (the very same folks who later brought us Enron and other such calamities) and an equally sleazy New York Senator (Patrick Moynihan), we saw the passage of 1986 tax reform act with its section 1706.

For you who are unfamiliar, here is the core text of the IRS Section 1706, defining the treatment of workers (such as contract engineers) for tax purposes. Visit this link for a conference committee report (http://www.synergistech.com/1706.shtml#ConferenceCommitteeReport) regarding the intended interpretation of Section 1706 and the relevant parts of Section 530, as amended. For information on how these laws affect technical services workers and their clients, read our discussion here (http://www.synergistech.com/ic-taxlaw.shtml).

SEC. 1706. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN TECHNICAL PERSONNEL.

(a) IN GENERAL - Section 530 of the Revenue Act of 1978 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new subsection:

(d) EXCEPTION. - This section shall not apply in the case of an individual who pursuant to an arrangement between the taxpayer and another person, provides services for such other person as an engineer, designer, drafter, computer programmer, systems analyst, or other similarly skilled worker engaged in a similar line of work.

(b) EFFECTIVE DATE. - The amendment made by this section shall apply to remuneration paid and services rendered after December 31, 1986.

Note:

· "another person" is the client in the traditional job-shop relationship.

· "taxpayer" is the recruiter, broker, agency, or job shop.

· "individual", "employee", or "worker" is you.

Admittedly, you need to read the treatment to understand what it is saying but it’s not very complicated. The bottom line is that they may as well have put my name right in the text of section (d). Moreover, they could only have been more blunt if they would have came out and directly declared me a criminal and non-citizen slave. Twenty years later, I still can’t believe my eyes.

During 1987, I spent close to $5000 of my ‘pocket change’, and at least 1000 hours of my time writing, printing, and mailing to any senator, congressman, governor, or slug that might listen; none did, and they universally treated me as if I was wasting their time. I spent countless hours on the L.A. freeways driving to meetings and any and all of the disorganized professional groups who were attempting to mount a campaign against this atrocity. This, only to discover that our efforts were being easily derailed by a few moles from the brokers who were just beginning to enjoy the windfall from the new declaration of their “freedom”. Oh, and don’t forget, for all of the time I was spending on this, I was loosing income that I couldn’t bill clients.

After months of struggling it had clearly gotten to be a futile exercise. The best we could get for all of our trouble is a pronouncement from an IRS mouthpiece that they weren’t going to enforce that provision (read harass engineers and scientists). This immediately proved to be a lie, and the mere existence of the regulation began to have its impact on my bottom line; this, of course, was the intended effect.

Again, rewind my retirement plans back to 0 and shift them into idle. If I had any sense, I clearly should have left abandoned engineering and never looked back.

Instead I got busy working 100-hour workweeks. Then came the L.A. depression of the early 1990s. Our leaders decided that they didn’t need the all of those extra Air Force bases they had in Southern California, so they were closed; just like that. The result was economic devastation in the region that rivaled the widely publicized Texas S&L fiasco. However, because the government caused it, no one gave a shit about all of the young families who lost their homes or street after street of boarded up houses abandoned to the wealthy loan companies who received government funds to “shore up” their windfall. Again, I lost my retirement.

Years later, after weathering a divorce and the constant struggle trying to build some momentum with my business, I find myself once again beginning to finally pick up some speed. Then came the .COM bust and the 911 nightmare. Our leaders decided that all aircraft were grounded for what seemed like an eternity; and long after that, ‘special’ facilities like San Francisco were on security alert for months. This made access to my customers prohibitively expensive. Ironically, after what they had done the Government came to the aid of the airlines with billions of our tax dollars … as usual they left me to rot and die while they bailed out their rich, incompetent cronies WITH MY MONEY! After these events, there went my business but not quite yet all of my retirement and savings.

By this time, I’m thinking that it might be good for a change. Bye to California, I’ll try Austin for a while. So I moved, only to find out that this is a place with a highly inflated sense of self-importance and where damn little real engineering work is done. I’ve never experienced such a hard time finding work. The rates are 1/3 of what I was earning before the crash, because pay rates here are fixed by the three or four large companies in the area who are in collusion to drive down prices and wages… and this happens because the justice department is all on the take and doesn’t give a fuck about serving anyone or anything but themselves and their rich buddies.

To survive, I was forced to cannibalize my savings and retirement, the last of which was a small IRA. This came in a year with mammoth expenses and not a single dollar of income. I filed no return that year thinking that because I didn’t have any income there was no need. The sleazy government decided that they disagreed. But they didn’t notify me in time for me to launch a legal objection so when I attempted to get a protest filed with the court I was told I was no longer entitled to due process because the time to file ran out. Bend over for another $10,000 helping of justice.

So now we come to the present. After my experience with the CPA world, following the business crash I swore that I’d never enter another accountant’s office again. But here I am with a new marriage and a boatload of undocumented income, not to mention an expensive new business asset, a piano, which I had no idea how to handle. After considerable thought I decided that it would be irresponsible NOT to get professional help; a very big mistake.

When we received the forms back I was very optimistic that they were in order. I had taken all of the years information to Bill Ross, and he came back with results very similar to what I was expecting. Except that he had neglected to include the contents of Sheryl’s unreported income; $12,700 worth of it. To make matters worse, Ross knew all along this was missing and I didn’t have a clue until he pointed it out in the middle of the audit. By that time it had become brutally evident that he was representing himself and not me.

This left me stuck in the middle of this disaster trying to defend transactions that have no relationship to anything tax-related (at least the tax-related transactions were poorly documented). Things I never knew anything about and things my wife had no clue would ever matter to anyone. The end result is… well, just look around.

I remember reading about the stock market crash before the “great” depression and how there were wealthy bankers and businessmen jumping out of windows when they realized they screwed up and lost everything. Isn’t it ironic how far we’ve come in 60 years in this country that they now know how to fix that little economic problem; they just steal from the middle class (who doesn’t have any say in it, elections are a joke) to cover their asses and it’s “business-as-usual”. Now when the wealthy fuck up, the poor get to die for the mistakes… isn’t that a clever, tidy solution.

As government agencies go, the FAA is often justifiably referred to as a tombstone agency, though they are hardly alone. The recent presidential puppet GW Bush and his cronies in their eight years certainly reinforced for all of us that this criticism rings equally true for all of the government. Nothing changes unless there is a body count (unless it is in the interest of the wealthy sows at the government trough). In a government full of hypocrites from top to bottom, life is as cheap as their lies and their self-serving laws.

I know I’m hardly the first one to decide I have had all I can stand. It has always been a myth that people have stopped dying for their freedom in this country, and it isn’t limited to the blacks, and poor immigrants. I know there have been countless before me and there are sure to be as many after. But I also know that by not adding my body to the count, I insure nothing will change. I choose to not keep looking over my shoulder at “big brother” while he strips my carcass, I choose not to ignore what is going on all around me, I choose not to pretend that business as usual won’t continue; I have just had enough.

I can only hope that the numbers quickly get too big to be white washed and ignored that the American zombies wake up and revolt; it will take nothing less. I would only hope that by striking a nerve that stimulates the inevitable double standard, knee-jerk government reaction that results in more stupid draconian restrictions people wake up and begin to see the pompous political thugs and their mindless minions for what they are. Sadly, though I spent my entire life trying to believe it wasn’t so, but violence not only is the answer, it is the only answer. The cruel joke is that the really big chunks of shit at the top have known this all along and have been laughing, at and using this awareness against, fools like me all along.

I saw it written once that the definition of insanity is repeating the same process over and over and expecting the outcome to suddenly be different. I am finally ready to stop this insanity. Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let’s try something different; take my pound of flesh and sleep well.

The communist creed: From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.

The capitalist creed: From each according to his gullibility, to each according to his greed.

Joe Stack (1956-2010)

02/18/2010

faith poison pork and potato pocket pies

2010-02-05T22:01:00.001-06:00

Inspired by my discovery of the awesome Oh My! Pocket Pies lunch truck parked across the street, and the wonderful "pocket pies" they make, I decided I'd attempt to make a pocket pie of my own.

Instead of a tender, flaky, fried, "modest" sized pie, I decided to make mine with my pizza dough recipe (like a calzone), and make them big, ugly, and stuff them with my slow-cooker pork stew.

I filled them with:
Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Stew: 1 big pork loin, 3 sweet potatoes, 1 yellow onion, 6 cloves of garlic, 5 stalks of celery, and spices....cooked for 10 hours on low.
Kroger brand "pizza cheese".
Extra cayenne pepper and hot sauce added.

Pockets made from basic pizza dough kneaded in the stand mixer, sealed with an egg wash, and baked in the over instead of deep fried. (They're just too big for my deep fryer.)

I SHOULD have cooked these at a higher temperature, and should have cooked them on my pizza stone...but was worried they were going to explode and make a mess. So I just threw them on a cookie sheet...and it made the bottoms kinda tough.

But they're still pretty damned good...especially with some Valentina taco sauce or some Tiger sauce.

I now need to get some clothes with bigger pockets to carry them in....

First batch hot out of the oven...

First look...

A happy pocket pie with Valentina taco sauce...this second batch was made with extra pizza cheese...

So ugly only a father could love them...

It's pizza time again!

2010-01-27T23:48:00.000-06:00

Wheat crust. Pepperoni. Spaghetti Sauce. Mild cheddar cheese. Habanero cheese. Monterey Jack. Parmesan cheese. Italian seasoning. Flour....EVERYWHERE.

Pizza One:

Pizza Two:

Super Easy Bachelor Oven Fish...

2010-01-27T20:09:00.000-06:00

2 tilapia filets
smeared with olive oil margarine
coated with panko bread crumbs
sprinkled with creole spice

cook in your toaster oven at 375 degrees for 15 minutes

served on brown rice and corn...

Paper Thin Walls

2010-01-25T13:09:00.003-06:00

I've been wondering about the recent resurgence of classic rock with the 20-somethings I see at my gigs, and a buddy on a forum says it's probably because of the TV show "Glee"...which I've never seen.

Anyways, the young fella next door is always listening to classic rock now...sometimes singing along...which is a joy for me...considering our paper thin walls. I think it's hilarious...at least when it's not 3:00am and I'm trying to sleep. I just recorded him jamming out to Air Supply. Mini the cat gives her thoughts at the end...

Replace your Rival crock pot handle.

2010-01-23T11:33:00.003-06:00

The factory handle on my crock pot was of poor design...it trapped dirty water inside after washing, was awkward to use, and the rubber-like washer/seal was crumbling.

So I removed it, measured the mounting hole in the glass to be 1/4", and went down to Lowe's to figure out a replacement. Here's what I came up with:

I picked up a 1/4" STAINLESS STEEL eyebolt, with about 2" of thread on it. The package included two eyebolts, and two nuts to go with them. I needed the two nuts, but obviously only one of eyebolts.

I picked up a package (4) 1/4" nylon flat washers. I only need two...one will go on each side of the glass to protect it from contact with the metal.

A package of 1/4" STAINLESS STEEL flat washers. These hold the nylon flat washers against the glass lid.

A package of 1/4" STAINLESS STELL lock washers...to keep the nuts from backing off of the stainless steel flat washers.

Then just assemble!

Thread one nut all the way onto the eyebolt.
Slide on a lockwasher.
Slide on a stainless steel flat washer.
Slide on a nylon washer.
Insert through the top of the lid.
Put on another nylon washer (now on the bottom side of the lid).
Slide on another stainless steel flat washer.
Slide on another lock washer.
Put a nut on the end, and GENTLY tighten with a small wrench until the lockwashers get flat. Not to tight...you could easily crack the glass!

That was simple, and it works GREAT. It might be a really redneck fix, but my crock pot is stainless steel like most of my appliances, and the eyebolt kinda matches somewhat industrial look in my little loft.

I used all stainless parts, obviously so it won't rust and will stay clean. Hopefully the nylon washers won't melt, but I cooked a pork loin last night for 10 hours, and had no problem. It really makes the lid much easier to remove...but it gets much hotter of course than the plastic original...so use a towel! Of course, unlike the factory handle, it can easily be disassembled for cleaning/repair/or replacement if I can find a cooler looking handle to put on top. Good luck with yours!

Ummm...crock pot pulled pork loin!!

January 19, 2010 Downtown Houston Bike Ride Home Video

2010-01-20T00:17:00.001-06:00

Riding around Downtown Houston with my point-n-shoot camera. All the shots were within the defined area of downtown, except for the final shot...taken from the dump known as EaDo...

Pan Seared Tilapia and Deep Fried Sweet Potatoes

2010-01-18T13:45:00.005-06:00

Sometimes being too broke to eat out for lunch ain't so bad...

Why not deep fry everything?

Make your "escape"....

2010-01-04T11:56:00.001-06:00

Monday morning breakfast for the weekend warrior...

Vacation...a morning with bike, bloody mary, taco, downtown, eado, ah hell....

2009-12-15T15:13:00.012-06:00

Is anyone else sick of this weather?

Was just out taking some pictures to post on Yelp.

This is orange juice.

Breakfast taco from the Express Deli...awesome..

This place "supreme" was cheap. Check out Yelp to see their reviews.

Another pic or two of an Express breakfast taco. Pardon...I've been drinking all day. These rule.

Express Deli

Goodyear downtown on Fannin. These guys are great. The only place I've actually been cool about taking my piece of shit car to.

Major Peters.

The Express Deli...

Still clean...

It actuall had character when they had ash trays on the tables.

I don't know this place...uploaded for Yelp. Nicotine sammiches?

I don't remember...I won't eat there anyways....

Kim Phung's is doing well in EaDo.

This is EaDo...bustling.....

Kim Phung's

It's a parking garage...

Eado.

Taco Keto

2009-12-09T22:27:00.000-06:00

It's no secret...I like to eat tacos...so my review may be biased.

As part of my long holiday vacation, and a list of my neighborhood taco joints to hit, Taco Keto was at the top of my list. It's across the street from the Kombat Krogers on Cullen, where I go on beer runs, and the little red taco wagon has always had my interest. However, I was misunderstood....and thought they weren't open until the evening...but I was wrong...they are open most of the day, but closed on Sunday and Monday.

I ordered one each of the pastor (pork), fajita (beef), and pollo (chicken) tacos. Total price was only $4.50.

After the usual frustrating trip to Kombat Kroger (you know what I mean...it can be a pain to check out there sometimes) to pick up a case of Bud to go with my tacos (the smell of the taco bag had my stomach grumbling at me), I was excited to finally get home and tear open my prized tacos.

The taco kit included a half of a japaleno, half of a lime, some grilled onions, and even some potatoes! It even came with a "baggie" of green sauce.

Without going into any detail, all three meats were great...wonderful flavor. The pastor was my favorite, followed by the chicken, but the beef fajita was great as well. Even the corn tortillas were loaded with "flavor". Adding a squeeze of lime and some of the grilled onions really brought them to life. I almost felt guilty putting a little of my Valentina sauce on them for the last few bites. Even the potatoes had a great taste to them. My GF took a bite of the grilled japaleno pepper and set her mouth on fire. lol

The woman who took my order spoke English...very helpful for me...and was super nice. They cooked my meat when I placed my order, and after a few pics I was off in no time.

They don't have much of a parking lot...barely room for just my car...and it's not really safe backing out onto Cullen during rush hour like I did. It might be smarter to park at Krogers and risk traffic on foot. That's the only reason I take off a star...if that's reason enough.

Taco is my favorite food group, and I'm looking forward to coming back here! Stop by and check it out for yourself...you know you've had your eye on it, too!

Oh My! Pocket Pies - My Struggle With Addiction....

2009-12-01T14:55:00.004-06:00

I watched this cool looking food truck arrive this morning for it's first day of business, and after pulling up their website, I knew what I was having for lunch. With the exception of some great Vietnamese joints, and Lucky's sports bar, "EaDo" is a wasteland when it comes to food, so this was a VERY exciting new thing to go check out.

They were just getting up and running today, and suggested the burger. They have chicken, shrimp, and beef...I ordered the beef with just greens and tomato...I like simplicity on a burger...and like to add my own sauce. (They offer sriracha sauce...which is what I like to put on a burger at home!)

Instead of fries, I ordered their potato salad, because he said it was more like a German potato salad, which I like. I HATE regular potato salad.
Finished off my order with a glass of iced tea.

Supposedly all their food is sourced locally, even the grass-fed/free range beef on my burger, and the vegetables. What I can tell you, is that my burger was GOOD! Just the smell of the beef was driving me nuts as I was trying to get that brown bag up to my kitchen. The taste was just awesome...and the greens put it over the top. No tasteless iceberg junk on this burger. Even the bun was fresh and nothing like what you get on a typical burger.

The potato salad was a GREAT and refreshing alternative to greasy french fries, and came in a pretty good sized container. I really enjoyed every last bit of it.

And what can you say about iced tea? It didn't have any special fruit flavoring or anything like that, but it did actually have a great taste...like iced tea SHOULD. Not the typical flavorless stuff you get in restaurants.

I think all of the packaging was even compostable/recyclable...right down to the fork! They had a compost container available there. The guys running the truck were very friendly, and very enthusiastic about their new business, and I'm really impressed that Houston now has a place to eat like this...even better that it landed on my doorstep! :)

Check out my pictures...check out their website...then stop by and try their food. (I can't wait to go back and try their pocket pies!!) It's located in the parking lot of the Kim Hung Asian supermarket, and directly across the intersection from the popular Vietnamese restaurant "Huynh's". It's just an 11-3/M-F lunch spot, but it sounds like we'll be seeing them around town at other times. I know I can't wait to get back again!

http://www.ohmypocketpies.com/

UPDATE:

I went back again today...I needed more...

Chicken Burger: This isn't a dry, boring chicken breast, but instead a tasty ground chicken patty with sauce and veges. Awesome. Just like the beef burger, it isn't huge on size...it's huge on flavor. I can eat a burger and side of potato salad here, without having to take a nap afterwards and feel guilty about what I ate.

Chicken Chile Relleno Pie: A chile relleno that you can carry around in your hand...killer! The filling is great! This is a must-have here.

Twice Baked Potato Pie: How do you improve mashed potatoes? Fry it up in a tender, flaky crust. Jeez, I could stuff these in my face all day...

Vegetable Pie: All of their vegetables here are fresh and locally grown. Stuff them in a fried pocket pie...and even I could become a vegetarian chomping these down!

And as if I needed it...another side of potato salad...I'm going to have to save that for dinner. ;)

Oh yeah, and this time I opted for some blue agave honey in my tea....excellent!

And as if I needed more excuses to go back, they gave me a Pie Fan Club Card...buy 10 combo meals, get one free! Next week I'm going back for their shrimp burger...they say it's a patty made from fresh Gulf shrimp...I can't wait!

A really heavy bread-head...

2009-11-04T21:49:00.000-06:00

Molasses wheat bread.

The stand mixer makes dough kneading a snap...I don't know if this is a good thing or not yet...I could have ate an entire loaf of this stuff right out of the oven.

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, but I can believe it was blueberry all-fruit spread....

Hip to be square...

2009-11-04T00:31:00.000-06:00

After a couple of attempts at making my first "Chicago Deep Dish" style pizzas (the last batch turned out to be real monsters), I was ready to get back to making pizza the way pizza should be: thin...and simple. As in so thin I could literally see the countertop through the dough, and simple as in 1-topping...pepperoni being the best option there.

I haven't made thin-crust pizza since moving to the city...the kitchen in my downtown apartment was just too small and gross...no way was I rolling dough out on those counters.

But armed with my new stand mixer and a vast kitchen with clean granite countertops, I couldn't wait to heat up my old pizza stone...

The pizzas were so ugly that only their father could love them.

The crust was thin, and wheat. The stand mixer made quick work of the dough.

I rolled the crust out so thin that I had to trim them to fit the pizza peel...so they came out square-ish. "Round" pizzas look like frozen pizzas, anyways.

Toppings were canned generic spaghetti sauce, Kroger's "pizza" shredded cheese blend, turkey pepperoni, "Tabasco" pepperoni, and a few pieces of Canadian bacon left over from my last attempts at a deep dish.

They came out great. The Pope would kick out a stained glass window to get at one of these pies. Maybe they weren't THAT special...but how can you not love pizza you make yourself...it doesn't get any fresher.

I may need to invest in a pair of elastic waistband pants by the end of the week.

A Tale of Two Pies

2009-10-14T01:40:00.013-05:00

For my 38th birthday, Tracey gots me my dream KitchenAid stand mixer...so my first project was making dough to make a Chicago style pizza. Of course, I over-kneaded it...so the crust is tough...not to mention I'm a NY style pizza fan...but pizza is pizza...I like it all...and here was my first humble shot....

Layered: Mozzarella Cheese, Italian Sausage, Yellow and Orange Peppers, Onions, Tomatoes, and Parmesan Cheese.

For my first shot...it was pretty damned good.

Olympus E-510, Zuiko 50mm f2@f2, ISO1600...

2009 Weva Creative Award Entry - "No Backlog"

2009-09-16T02:02:00.007-05:00

3 minutes in tepoztlán

2008-08-21T13:42:00.002-05:00