Smoked Turkey

For Thanksgiving we smoked a turkey on the Big Green Egg. By we, I mean me, and by smoked, I mean I used pecan wood chunks. The turkey was very good. The pecan wood turned the turkey a darker color than I would have desired, but it was delicious. The past few years we've fried turkeys, and this was a nice change.

Teaching My Son The Game of Football (Testicle Squeeze Edition)

My son Gilgamesh just finished his first season playing youth football. His team went undefeated and he learned some of the basics including blocking and tackling. Yesterday we spent his 10th birthday biking to the Superdome to see the Saints beat the Seahawks. So being that he has the fundamentals down, I thought I'd step up the lessons and show him how to how to get 30 yards of penalties against his opponent. Thanks to Tony Jerod-Eddie of Texas A&M, I had access to this pedagogical video:

The conversation that followed went like this:

Me: "You see son, Ben Cotton just recovered a fumble for Nebraska. The other team can't let him get away with that. So in the ensuing pile up, Tony Jerod-Eddie grabs and squeezes the testicles of Ben Cotton."

Gil (horrified): "Oh my God! Why did he do that? Let me see it again!"

Me: "Ben Cotton kicks his leg in a reaction and get's two 15-yard penalties. That's why. The referees always penalize the retaliation."

Gil: "That's wrong. I can't believe that guy actually grabbed his nuts. I would never do that. It's terrible."

Me: "You're being naive. He just got his team 30 yards of real estate."

Gil: "So you would actually be willing to grab somebody's private parts like that if the coach asked?"

Me: "Sure. It's a brilliant career move. Tony Jerod-Eddie has ensured a position with the TSA patting down tight-trousered men in airports."

Gil: "Let me see the video again. My God! I can't believe the Texas A&M player did that. Why didn't he get a penalty?"

A Movie for Katrina Dogs and the People Who Love Them

I thought the documentary Mine 2009 was very well made and highly recommend it for people interested in the plight of animals and humans after Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans area. I watched it with my dogs, who as Katrina survivors, they are interested in the topic too. We all cried a little I have to admit. It's a happy story for some of the participants, especially the families of Bandit and Murphy Brown. But for others, the situation is never resolved. Race and social class play a big role in the movie also. There' some real heros, and some villains, but most of the time the movie makers do a good job of presenting just how complicated this whole situation is, and what the ramifications would be for rescue dogs in the future if policies were changed. I have a neighbor who was forced to leave his house with his dog in it after the flood, was put on a plane to Utah against his will, fought really hard to get back to his house a week later to get his dog, only to find a note on his door stating the dog was no longer his but now resides in a happy home in California. He never saw his dog again. You can watch the trailer at the end of this post. By the way, our 2006 Barkus float and our bowling shirts made by Carol are visible towards the end.

Awesom-O Robot Predicted Saints' Superbowl Victory

While the Southpark Awesom-O episode, in which Cartman dresses up like a robot to prank Butters, originally aired in 2004, I hadn't seen it until this summer. I find this clip, in which Awesom-O predicts that the Saints will win the superbowl to be amazing. The people laughing afterwards shows just how unlikely it was. The authors had to pick a team that had no chance of winning to make the joke work. Then enter Peyton, Brees, and an unlikely cast of characters that most of the other teams passed on. The Saints almost did it in 2006, and then won the Superbowl after the 2009 season. Thanks Awesom-O!

Who Dat Say They Gonna Eat Some Brains?

Some more Halloween pics on Flickr.

Why I Reward Phone Losers

Kalypso lost her phone at Voodoo Fest. So this afternoon I went to the AT&T store on St. Charles Ave. There, after two hours, I left with a new phone for Kalypso, one that cost $109 (allegedly $59 after rebate) and has many fancy features including internet access, and now we have a new data plan that will cost an extra $10 per month. I didn't plan on this, essentially rewarding her for losing her phone. Instead I thought I would tell them she lost it and then because we've been paying for phone insurance, we'd get the phone replaced for a minor cost. Instead, there was such a large deductible and other fees, the cheapest option was for me to upgrade her phone and include the data plan. I was not shocked to learn new levels about how these phone companies and their plans are a modern day version of indentured servitude. If I quit using all of my AT&T phones I would still be paying bills for two years. If that is not incentive to live I don't know what is.

And by the way, while I waited to sort all of this out, there is a hotel across the street from the AT&T on St Charles, and on a 2nd floor balcony, a hotel guest with an inordinate amount of hair covering all of his body except his head, well, he was doing to a girl on the balcony what AT&T was doing to me. I'll bet he was a Steeler's fan.