Gus has his sober side. He got me to read The Tortilla Curtain, for which I remain in his debt. Then, he talked me into buying a second book, which I found used online and should have any day now.
And THAT, Edgar, is sober evidence for the existence of Gus. Thanks.
Yes, we have no bananas...
Oh, that's nice, he actually talked to you in some way, edgar?
Phooey. All I see is five years of swamp jokes.
I trust he has a sober side.
I'm less enchanted as years go by and am more interested in what all the rest of us post in our flailing ways.
I admit to a miniscule interest re swamp waves.
Still, I'll buy Gus some nice pastry at the Flying Star... if only he'll talk with me/us/.
I should just hope he wipes his feet before he comes into the house and that he flushes the toilet. That swamp world of his affords very poor socialization. What does the sociologist, Dyslexia, say to that?
The Dys says, "the study of deviants is necessary in order to determine societal norms."
Thanks, Eva and Mame, for moving from the "Maybe" category to the "Yes*" category. The * of course means things could still change.
I met Eva in Chicago. Looking forward to seeing her again and to meeting Mame.
I'm looking forward to seeing you again too, RJB. And Mame is coming?! That's great! She's another A2Ker I've really wanted to meet. (Wasn't gonna happen if she stayed in the frigid north country, though!)
Whoo hoo, Eva! I'm so delighted to have decided to come, albeit for only 3 days. I think this is going to be a lot of fun!
Whoo hoo to both of you, Eva and Mame!!
Ahem, I seem to have lambasted poor Gus in one of my fits.
I'm not sure if I'm sorry. He needs to show up here so we can hash it out.
I kid, I'm not a hash person. But I remember it. Alas, I can't make a good hash since I can't find genuine pancetta here in the US. Don't get me started on that. Last pancetta I bought, by a company named Busseto, was ridiculous.
I have no idea what pancetta is, osso. The word isn't in my dictionary.
But this from my 1975 Joy of Cooking: "The Irish cook, praised for her hash, declared 'Beef ain't nothing. Onions ain't nothing. Seasoning's nothing. But when I throw myself into my hash, that's hash!'
RJB,
pancetta is cured pork belly with spices.
I reckon that, here in the rural south, we rednecks call pancetta "cured pork bellies with spices." And it sells for a whole lot less.
This is a pet subject, ya don't want me to start in on it..
Pancetta is an Italian bacon that is cured with salt, pepper, and other spices, but is not smoked. Unlike English and American bacon, which are taken from the sides and belly of the pig, may be smoked, and are usually cut into slices, pancetta comes only from the belly, is salt-cured but not smoked, and is generally sold rolled up into sausage shapes.
Yeah, and every bit of it I've eaten since the European Union rules (which I'm not that clear on if it's our US rules or their changes) has tasted simply terrible in contrast to the real thing I was used to prior to that time - same with prosciutto. I haven't yet tried Mario Batali's father's place in Seattle or La Quercia in Iowa, so there's still hope, but those are frightfully expensive just for the meat and then there's shipping...
I haven't been to Italy since the Euro came in so I'm not sure if pancetta is still delicious there or not. I do gather there is a similar problem with some cheese production..
she says, woefully.
(This is a person who went to Parma, not just for the art and the theater(s) but for the cheese and the prosciutto... sob).
goes real well with Chimay Red beer.
