Mr. McCorkle
December 17, 2008
You can know that your dad’s a doctor, you can hear him talk about patients, you can grow indignant when you cut your foot and, instead of giving you wads of sympathy like other dads, yours glances up from his paper and says “don’t bleed on the rug…”
But until you’re behind the scenes, watching “Dad” become “Dr. Morgan,” you can’t really understand the value he brings to the world. And once you’ve had your first Mr. McCorkle, you’ll try for the rest of your life to understand how your dad continued caring for terminally ill patients with such grace, even when he knew he couldn’t “fix” them.
Until he retired, my father was a radiation oncologist, someone who treats cancers and other nasties by zapping them with a variety of radioactive substances. During college, I worked in Dad’s clinic, which was quite possibly the most incredible experience of my life. I got to see my father as the rest of the world saw him, a skilled and compassionate physician who eased the pain of the dying, comforted the living and sometimes–but not often enough–got to cure somebody.
Can you SEE me now?
December 15, 2008
Hey…playing around with WordPress plugins, found Drop-in Slideshow, a simple .php script that can be used as a full-screen player. And so I need some beta test help…
See if this works for you–can you see a full-screen slideshow on your particular browser? I’m thinking about actually getting some of my sculptures up on the website, if I can get a good full-screen player that works behind text layers. So far SlideShowPro is doing funky things in tests, (click that link to see that test) so I’m still on the hunt. Rather not write it myself if I don’t have to.
Anyway, let me know–you should just see a grey background with maxed images in the center, like the screenshot above.
Thanks!
Mood=good
December 14, 2008
Judging from the condition of my “rest bucket” (where the dirty plasterwater from moldmaking waits until the plaster settles out and can be discarded), I’m going to be resting at home for awhile…
Let’s see:
- It’s 28 degrees outside, snowing, icy and and the wind is howling
- I’m snow-/icebound (and given the weather report, that’s probably for the next few days)
- The birthday party I was going to tonight has been canceled
- I’ve got to figure out year-end taxes today or there will be hell to pay
- The kiln may or may not be broken
- Somebody smashed my car yesterday
And I’m happy as a clam. I kid you not.
Ave Mr. Toedtemeier
December 12, 2008
Portland has a remarkably good collection of museums and galleries for a town of its size, and these institutions seem more able to reflect the personalities and great loves (obsessions) of individual curators than many larger or better-known venues.
That’s particularly true in photography. Wander around the Pearl and Alphabet districts and you’ll find several wonderful photo galleries–there’s even one for 3D photography.
Usually, when there’s this much flowering going on, there’s a hugely influential inspiration someplace. In this case, at least part of it has come from the general direction of the Portland Art Museum. Its surprisingly rich photographic collection is the child of a determined curator, Terry Toedtemeier.
Ze blue screen of death
December 11, 2008
Just had to post this one for all you geeks out there…
Blogcheck: Can you hear me now?
December 11, 2008
Just upgraded to WordPress 2.7–LOTS to like about the new version of this blogging tool–but the upgrade was kinda funky. So do me a favor, if you would–let me know if you see anything odd about the blog today…
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Vitrus interruptus
December 10, 2008
I just downloaded the new BE catalog, and right there on page 8 is a new glass, “Opaline Striker.” Hmmmm… “transmits warm and cool tones based on how the light hits it…Even more ethereal than Translucent White (000243). Paradoxically, transmitted light is both softened and made more fiery, viewed through Opaline.”
Bingo.
Don’t mess with the raccoon
December 8, 2008
When I moved to glassland I learned many astonishing things about glass, life on a corporate cubicle farm and being at one with Nature. Nature, apparently, also learned to be at one with me, at least when it came to raccoons. More specifically, Nature went out of her way to explain that the cute, cuddly little bandits of my favorite animated fantasies were just that: Fantasies.
Cookies and chickies (OK guys, here are the recipes)
December 4, 2008
Gosh, I’m feeling SOOOOOOOOO domestic these days. I’ve actually cooked party stuff twice in one week.
Gotta be a record.
In my misspent youth I not only cooked, I catered. Invented recipes, did the cooking school thing, watched Julia Child the way a dog watches a bone, wrote a cookbook. Made my first Chicken Kiev in the eighth grade (and discovered that a popcorn popper does NOT make a good substitute for a deep fat fryer). Had weekend-long cookfests where I invented recipes, thought nothing of spending two days making one dish.
These days, crockpot soup, sandwiches and the occasional scrambled egg are about as ambitious as I get. Still, with the holidays and all, I keep getting invitations to turn the kitchen into a disaster zone and bring the results to some party or other.
Surprise! Apparently I haven’t lost my touch, and people are asking for the recipes. So, as promised, I’m posting them here. The first is a cookie that I adapted from Cooks Illustrated (one of my favorite magazines, whether I actually cook the recipes or not). The second is a sweet and sour chicken recipe that I concocted many years ago in reaction to the gummy-red oversweetened mess served in most Chinese restaurants.
Farmers’ Market Oatmeal Cookies. Chocolate, cherries, cranberries, hazelnuts and pecans–this is one recipe where really fresh, top-notch ingredients make a HUGE difference. Caution on this one–keep a pan of these in the oven for exactly one minute too long and you’ll have Farmers Market Oatmeal Rocks. I happen to like crunchy-hard cookies but I’m in the minority, so watch your oven carefully.
Cynthia’s Sweet & Sour Chicken. Forget the icky foodcourt version–this one is more tangy than sweet, and the components are grilled/broiled/parboiled/stir-fried separately so they taste very fresh. I used to make this recipe on skewers for catered dos and it was really popular. It’s also not as hard as it looks; there are just a bunch of small steps. If you like the sauce sweeter, add more pineapple juice, not sugar. Even better, experiment with different types of vinegar and tomato preps for the sauce–you can RADICALLY change the style of the dish.
Awwwww, now I’m feeling all Julia-ey, but at least I keep my promises.