Done with Morrie

 Well, I'm done with the Morris Berman blog. He's written a series of books, including one I've bought called Why America Failed. It's not bad, really, and like the blog a good part of the value is that it refers to other works that are worth looking up. 

It seems to be because of "you guys". I used the term, as innocuous as they come among the working class and even a bit chummy. It seems to have really set ol' Morrie off, though. It kind of reminds me of one of my father's girlfriends, a buxom blonde Midwest gal and nice as pie, but around her you could not say "toilet paper" you had to say "TP". It really bugged her. 

Really what it comes down to is class. The regulars on Morrie's blog seem to skew about 10 years older and $1 million more wealthy than myself. They're retired or semi-retired, jet around to Europe and Asia, buy $40 coffee-table books because the covers are nice. And while "you guys" seemed to be the final insult to this Chardonnay-sipping klatsh, it was building up as I was describing my day to day experiences, and my providing for my own defense - a scary thing to people who simply hire minions for such things. 

Morrie's OK; he has some good ideas although I don't plan to buy any more of his books. He's like a slightly higher IQ version of James Howard Kunstler. Kunstler has at least written one major book, The Geography Of Nowhere. That book probably made it big because it's written around a very simple, relatively non-political concept. And modern architecture really is awful. 

After all that work with Ken last night it was about 1AM and I was pretty tired. I fixed up a salad and toasted some walnuts, and got involved watching the first episode of The Winds Of War by Herman Wouk on YouTube. I kept thinking of a scene that's in the 2nd episode where the older Jewish guy figures he's OK with the Germans because he fought for Germany in WWI so bravely. That's another difference I have with Morrie and his blog. He seems to be intent on showing that while he's Jewish, it's OK because he's a "cool" Jew, see, he's anti-Israel too, just like you all folks... Well, in the movie of course the older Jewish guy gets beat up, and in real life the way the US is going, Morrie would be very smart to stay in Mexico City. 

I cut up and put beef and salmon in the freezer too, and my 2nd "yeasty beastie" showed no activity at all. Oh well. 

I woke up at 2 and among other things, checked things fermentation wise. The first batch is sitting quietly outgassing just a little bit, and the 2nd had "burped" through the air lock so I removed it and washed it out and replaced it. It's going along vigorously now. I'd put both bottles of fruit juice I'd made from the nectarines, plums, some blackberries, etc so it's a real mix. And a lb of sugar. It's bubbling at a rate of 1-2 seconds per bubble. 

I walked up to the lunch truck and got a breakfast sandwich for $2. I think the lady is giving me a special deal, and in return I buy breakfasty things that are hard to sell in the afternoon. It was really good with hot sauce. Then I rode downtown. 

I dropped off boxes (of individual packets) of "non aspirin cold relief" tablets at the blessing boxes and got a book, "The Tattoist Of Auschwitz" which might be good. 

Then I went over to the bank, where I hoped the ATM would be working right since it's hours they're open. It was not, and I had to knock on the door and one of the gals helped me do my deposit. So, scheduling appointments it is. 

I rode over to the bike shop to check on the wheel I've ordered but it's not in yet. "Supplies are slow lately". But, I was told when I was ordering the wheel that I was lucky to be able to get it, and if it were a rear wheel I wanted it would be very difficult. I remembered that the last time I was changing a tire, I could not find my blue Park Tool tire levers but could fine the pink Pedro's ones I'd bought recently, easily. So I got some bright yellow Pedro's ones so the visit was not a total waste. 

I priced fruit juice at CVS and at Whole Foods and it's pricey stuff! The whole idea in making ciders or wines or whatever they are, is to at the very least be able to drink both moderately and cheaply. If I'm going to pay the same as the jugs of sangria I can buy at Safeway, I might as well just buy those. I got a little bottle of sour cherry juice for about $2.50 though. 

I was able to buy some agar-agar at Nijiya that was a little pricey but about in line with what Knox Gelatin would cost me if  I could find it, to use as a "clearing agent" to make my cider clear when it's time to. (It turns out that I can just buy "Telephone Brand" agar at H Mart very inexpensively and it works fine according to my research online.) I also got some shrimp for a dish I want to try making. 

So I got my check deposited and my accounting lined up with the bank's to the last penny, got some errands done, and I'm already glad I got it done and won't have to bother with these things tomorrow. There's a bit of a heat wave going on and the weekend will be very hot, and there are just a few more bums and crazies and zombies of various types every time I go downtown.

After packing some Ebay stuff I cooked up a dish I thought up a day or two ago, a sort of red tomato sauce with cheese, but with shrimp.  It came out great. The shrimp and cheese were not cheap but at least the tomatoes were free. 

After eating I packed some more things so as to have a good load for tomorrow, and checked on my ferments. The first one seems to have stopped fermenting and is starting to clear itself. The second one, wow. It blew foam up into the airlock and was producing foam enthusiastically. Eventually after taking it to the sink and "burping" out foam a few times, I improvised what's called a blowoff tube. This is just a tube going from the top of the fermenter to a container of water, so it acts like a much higher capacity airlock. The bits of fruit in this second ferment are a bit of a problem, but fortunately boiled and strained bits of peach etc are pretty slippery so they find a way to squeeze through the tube. 

My first ferment, being just commercially sold apple juice and 6 oz. of brown sugar, was very well behaved. This one, with all that "wild" fruit in it, is really going gangbusters and for all the trouble, may yield a stronger drink. I just have to learn how to work with this stuff.