Thanks! I'm working until about noon today, but it's hard to make myself actually do anything right now.

congrats on the bar! it's a feeling like no other when you pass, no?

Thanks! Yeah, that morning was very exciting! It was a bit tempered though, because there were a few horror stories from the last bar, where a handful of people passed, but the Court did not give them a license because of some technical "irregularities" during the exam. Everyone admitted that it wasn't the individual's fault, that they hadn't tampered with anything, and that it was a just a glitch, but because those people didn't call the examiner's attention to it, the whole thing turned into a character and fitness ordeal. I'm not sure how it turned out (last I heard, it hasn't been resolved), so I remained a bit reserved until I had the license in hand. Now it's hanging on my wall, so I'm much more excited now.

I entered my appearance as co-counsel in three cases yesterday, and apparently I might take over as trial counsel in one of them. I think I'm filing my first case next week. The fun begins. If only the State knew what was coming.

Wahoo!!!
Congrats MJ. Can only imagine how good it must be, to finally have the license.

Thanks! It is indeed a good feeling. It's a bit strange, because I've lost that one big thing to work toward... now it's just... work toward death or retirement.

I vote retirement. Sounds like more fun than death.

Yeah, especially an early retirement. Then again, going out in a blaze of glory is better than a slow wasting away, especially since my family has shown a tendency toward Alzheimer's.

"Live fast, die young and leave a good looking corpse"

Now that sounds more like it.

Too late- three strikes, I'm out...

I'd probably better hurry before I strike out.... I've already hit the quarter-century mark, and now that I'm all done with school, I'll probably be getting older more quickly. I might even be a professor next year.

Have no fear my friend, take your time and enjoy.

Many things get even better as they age.

And here I thought that was only true with wine and certain liquors.

And Kimchi!

Hm... the thought of aged food doesn't seem to sit well with my stomach. I suppose it's because I grew up with fresh meat readily available from the cows.

Okay how about cheese?

And;

"Directly after cattle are slaughtered, their meat is generally quite tender, which is one reason people like fresh-killed meat. However, since few restaurants adjoin a stockyard, most of us have to settle for meat that's not nearly as fresh. During the first 12 to 24 hours postmortem the meat will toughen as the muscle fibers shorten due to rigor mortis. After that, however, enzymes in the meat attack the structural proteins that make meat tough (a process called "postmortem proteolysis"), resulting in slow and natural tenderization. The process happens quickest in pork and lamb and generally slowest in beef. Enzyme action has the additional effect of improving and strengthening the flavor of the beef, most likely due to the breakdown of proteins into amino acids."

I like the grocery store brand pre-packaged colby.



Hm, very interesting! That explains why I like the freshest stuff. I wonder how freezing the meat effects the proteolysis process?

"Since aging would normally allow bacteria and mold to act on the beef, it's carried out at low temperatures, generally between 34 and 38 F. Beef can be aged anywhere from a few days to as long as six weeks, with the average probably around 10-14 days in an effort to strike a balance between taste and storage costs. Aging is typically done by the so-called dry method, where the beef is hung in a freezer for a prescribed time prior to cutting. Dry aging results in a loss of meat over time due to water evaporation and surface mold (which must be trimmed off), but is said to concentrate the flavor of the meat. An alternative method is wet aging, where the meat is stored in large vacuum bags that seal the moisture in and keep some of the mold out. Wet aging reduces the loss of meat due to evaporation and mold, resulting in more saleable meat, but generally doesn't develop an agreeably strong taste to the degree that dry aging does."

Two things have happened:

1) I'm curious about the beef I get from the local farmer. I'm pretty sure he doesn't do any aging of the meat though.

2) I'm now hungry for a steak.

Don'tcha just love Henry?

So, how do you like your steak prepared, rare - medium rare - medium - medium well - well -

WRAPPED IN BACON!!!!!

I'm a big fan of medium.... and steak wrapped in bacon is the best! In fact, so is chicken wrapped in bacon. I make that quite frequently in the warmer months.

Operation "Get to the Caribbean" is now underway. ("The guy who thinks up the names is on vacation.")

Step One: Get OK from the Director for a July Vacation - CHECK

Step Two: Get Passport

Step Three: Figure out the dates and find a flight

YA MON!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDzmNYd_eaA

Steel Rolled??

anything wrapped in bacon is good well almost anything...cake and bacon...nope.
mmmmmmmmmmmm medium rare steak...

Oh hai.






edit - hahaha I've been steel rolled.
thx. now I need a pina colada

drinks,


on the beach,



WITH LITTLE UMBRELLAS IN THEM.

PITCHERZ!!!!

Uh, MJ, pichurs no workee....

PITCHERZ!!!!














I'm not sure why the first attempt didn't work... the links kept changing when the post finally posted.

I approve this pichur.

The size view has become my favorite view on this tank. I'm going to work on a modification to my DIY canopy this summer, so that I can get a bit more light to the edge of the tank. That should allow for even more growth on this side.

Chalk Bass looks great!!!!
Your tank is very nice MJ. Well done!

Thanks! I've been happy with how this tank has been growing up. Since the nudis seem to have been wiped out sans chemicals, everything seems just a bit happier. The current battle is against bubble algae.


If only the 75 were doing so nice though. I think I've lost the smaller of the two caps, and I've had to remove several other corals. The upside is that the fish are doing well (knock on wood), and the addition of the sump, additional LR, chemipure, and cheato seem to be helping. I'm still lights out on that tank, and probably won't turn back on until tomorrow.

IME bubble algae Valonia or Ventricaria is fairly easy to get rid of if it is out in the open where you can get to it. A siphon tube larger in diameter than the bubbles will suck it out during water changes. Use the end of the tube to dislodge it. Even if it happens to pop the siphon will carry away any of the spores.

I'm planning on tackling that this afternoon. I've got a small airline siphon tube that should do the trick. I'm going to use a dental pick to get the most stubborn ones. A few frags have the bubbles as well, so I'll probably put the frag in a cup of water while working on them.

I should be getting a few new frags today. One I'm buying, and the rest will be TBD, depending on what people are willing to trade me for some flame algae.

Tank is looking great! See ya at the swap!

Thanks! See you there.

Ok, time for a legal joke. I saw this one at the Volokh Conspiracy blog today:

Three judge friends, one from the District Court, one from the Appellate Circuit and one from the Supreme Court, decided to go pheasant hunting one day. They all agreed that they would only shoot pheasants and they would make absolutely sure it was a pheasant before they shot.

The Supreme Court Justice went first. Off in the distance the hunting dog rustled up a bird that flew into the air. The Supreme Court justice lowered his gun and spoke of what a difficult decision it was to determine whether or not a bird was a pheasant. He launched into a narrative history of bird classifications and quoted from Audubon. By the time he finally finished with this soliloquy — and determined that his conscience compelled him to conclude that the bird was indeed a pheasant — it was nowhere in sight.

The Appellate Judge went next. When he saw a bird rise, he announced that he had formulated a three part test to determine whether or not a bird was a pheasant. He then began a long and complicated application of the test but by the time he was finished, the bird was barely a dot on the horizon and way to far to shoot at.

The District Court judge went last. No sooner had he walked a few steps then something shot up from the brush a few feet in front of him. Instantly he fired his shotgun from the hip and there was a huge explosion and nothing but feathers and a beak fell to the ground. The District Court Judge then turned to the other two and said, “hot damn boys I sure hope that was a pheasant!”

^
|


That is the proper response.

Sorry I don't get it. Maybe I spend too much time in the lab. My scientific brain just doesn't get it.

My bad

It's OK. It takes a particularly warped mind to understanding the shenanigans around here. It's probably good that you don't get it.



Sheesh Opy, I had higher hopes in you than that. We need to up the level of shenanigans in here. No one's been pistol whipped in a while.

Shennaniganz

My pistol is ready to whip...that doesn't sound right

That's fantastic! I bet there's going to be line waiting for those whippings.

I thought you moved the shinanigans over to the Weetie lounge .

Maria, all I can say is...

It was more of a spillover. Plus, Weetie's Lounge has a PG rating...