I thought President Zelensky did a great job speaking before the joint session of Congress. He is truly a stellar leader for this time in Ukraine's history. When I mull that he was basically Ukraine's Stephen Colbert, it blows my mind.
I just came here to say much the same thing. A VERY good speech indeed; excerpts cannot do it justice. Here is is: Zelenskyy's Historic Speech to Congress [Click] ---Alan
What impressed me is his modesty. That is probably what prompted some pundit on the morning show to observe that it is the recipients of U.S. donations who ought to be thanked. This person also observed that the MAGA people have made fun of Zelensky for the modesty of his clothing. Makes sense. The MAGA people are mainly about ostentation and posturing.
We have watched some of the Ukrainian TV series in which Zelensky stars as a history teacher whose blow up over the way the current government is run allegedly went viral and he won the election in a write-in vote and is stunned to suddenly be the President. He also does not entertain the usual entrapments of the position...drives his own car or bicycles to work; doesn't like wearing suits, etc.. This is life imitating art!
He also (in the TV show) ignores the speeches written for him and says what he really thinks. Moreover, he weaves history into what he has to say. So that too is what Zelensky does when he gives speeches, weaving Saratoga and other battles into his speech to Americans, etc...!
Headlines from this morning’s edition of The Guardian: ---Alan
Kremlin says US supply of Patriot missiles to Ukraine will not harm its ‘military goals’ My translation: “Putin backs down.”
Zelenskiy meets Polish president Andrzej Duda on way back from US
Russia’s only aircraft carrier catches fire [during reconstruction in Murmansk] More careless smokers? Allegedly just minor damage.
The Ukrainian ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said the number of children who had been “forcibly deported” to Russia could be in the hundreds of thousands.
Note to my Christmas pudding post on yesterday's thread: my mother's recipe does not use suet.
Note No. 2: I discovered that the "plums" in plum pudding are traditionally raisins; in traditional British culinary parlance, the word generally meant any sort of sweet fruit used in baking. ----Alan
I suppose one would want to use a firm type of plum, like what we called "french plums" or "prune plums." (Which also are excellent for making plum pies.) ---Alan
1tsp soda 1 Cup each shredded potato, shredded carrots, sugar, flour, (chopped) nuts (walnuts), raisins, and candied citron (shredded if possible—maybe a food processor would do the job). 1 tsp salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves 1 grated orange rind 2 tbsp oil
Steam in one-pound coffee cans about 2 hours (probably longer in a pudding basin— test with a wooden skewer for completion, I suppose)
Hard sauce: Beat one cube soft margarine (she always used margarine because it was less expensive and easier to use than butter) Gradually add a cup and a half powdered sugar Add a little vanilla (and if desired brandy flavoring)
Half cup butter to 2.5 cups sugar [Click] Instructions for making small individual puddings—- the recipe sounds interesting, but the preparation rather complicated albeit the cooking time is short.
Now to check my great grandmother’s cookbook—The Toronto Ladies’ Home Cookbook (1889). Egad— a huge number of pudding recipes! And fifteen different pudding sauce recipes. Only one “hard sauce,“ though: HARD SAUCE FOR PUDDINGS, RICE, ETC. By M. Take one teacup sugar, one-half teacup butter, stir together until light; flavour with wine or essence of lemon. Smooth the top with a knife and grate nutmeg over it.
Upshot: the proportions are variable, but my mother’s recipe using a stick of butter rather than a proper cube is within the allowable range. I should think I would have learned what a cube of butter was if she made a distinction between a stick and a cube; after all, she taught me how to cook. Our smaller home-made raisins are blessed with brandy, so I think the sauce can quite well be made with brandy flavor/essence; there is probably some in the spice cabinet, but I haven’t searched for it in ages.
(Susan) But how much is a cube of margarine? When I was a toddler margarine came in a plastic tube. It was white with a circle of red dye in the middle. My mom used to give it to me to squeeze until all the margarine was yellow. Yes, I'm old.
Same size as a cube of butter. My mother told of the yellow coloring in the margarine being in a capsule back in the day--to suppress sales and thereby benefit makers of butter. ----Alan
Interesting; about the size of a cube of butter; I am fairly sure my mother meant a stick, but I will research alternate recipes. It occurred to me while walking that substituting chopped and floured dates (particularlyl big meaty ones like medjool) for part of the raisins in the pudding recipe should work well. And for supplements there are so many kinds of dried fruits in the stores these days (albeit not chopped)--- mango, etc. I decided to substitute craisins for the shredded citron. ----Alan
The Speaker need not be a member of the House. I have heard some prognostication that there will be a surprise. Some thought that Trump's great announcement would be associated with the Speaker job, but he's not at all qualified to do so much work. It is a shame that extra-legal factions have been allowed to control procedure in Congress, as well as the electoral processes. But then, to be honest, the U.S. governmental system is riddled with customs and traditions which have sprouted like weeds. I just learned that there are three recognized legal systems: custom, constitutional and case law. I can see why the originalists want to go back to the Constitution, but its provisions are not nearly adequate to a complex society of 330 million. The Constitution has only two interests: the protection of public and private property and the promotion of commerce to generate income. The founders sort of hedged their bets that treaties agreed to be the Senate would have the same force of law as the Constitution itself. That is why people captured on a battlefield are protected by the Geneva Convention. The sovereignty hawks in the Republican faction do not like that provision at all.
No snow here yet, either, but we have seen the wind begin to pick up a little. I highly recommend the app called "WINDY"!! It shows the wind direction and speed visually. *Seeing* the force of this wind (including forecast wind) is astounding!
I thought President Zelensky did a great job speaking before the joint session of Congress. He is truly a stellar leader for this time in Ukraine's history. When I mull that he was basically Ukraine's Stephen Colbert, it blows my mind.
ReplyDeleteI just came here to say much the same thing. A VERY good speech indeed; excerpts cannot do it justice. Here is is:
DeleteZelenskyy's Historic Speech to Congress [Click]
---Alan
Remember that Zelensky played the President in a TV series; he must have been thinking about how to be a President while doing so.
Delete---Alan
What impressed me is his modesty. That is probably what prompted some pundit on the morning show to observe that it is the recipients of U.S. donations who ought to be thanked. This person also observed that the MAGA people have made fun of Zelensky for the modesty of his clothing. Makes sense. The MAGA people are mainly about ostentation and posturing.
DeleteAll cattle and no hat?
Delete---Alan
We have watched some of the Ukrainian TV series in which Zelensky stars as a history teacher whose blow up over the way the current government is run allegedly went viral and he won the election in a write-in vote and is stunned to suddenly be the President. He also does not entertain the usual entrapments of the position...drives his own car or bicycles to work; doesn't like wearing suits, etc.. This is life imitating art!
DeleteHe also (in the TV show) ignores the speeches written for him and says what he really thinks. Moreover, he weaves history into what he has to say. So that too is what Zelensky does when he gives speeches, weaving Saratoga and other battles into his speech to Americans, etc...!
DeleteHeadlines from this morning’s edition of The Guardian:
ReplyDelete---Alan
Kremlin says US supply of Patriot missiles to Ukraine will not harm its ‘military goals’ My translation: “Putin backs down.”
Zelenskiy meets Polish president Andrzej Duda on way back from US
Russia’s only aircraft carrier catches fire [during reconstruction in Murmansk] More careless smokers? Allegedly just minor damage.
The Ukrainian ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said the number of children who had been “forcibly deported” to Russia could be in the hundreds of thousands.
{listener}
DeleteThe temperature dropped 70 degrees last night in Wyoming
As to your last note…that leaves me furious!!!!
Yes, that is an atrocity.
Delete---Alan
Note to my Christmas pudding post on yesterday's thread: my mother's recipe does not use suet.
ReplyDeleteNote No. 2: I discovered that the "plums" in plum pudding are traditionally raisins; in traditional British culinary parlance, the word generally meant any sort of sweet fruit used in baking.
----Alan
{listener}
DeleteAh, but magine it made with actual plums!
I suppose one would want to use a firm type of plum, like what we called "french plums" or "prune plums." (Which also are excellent for making plum pies.)
Delete---Alan
My mother’s carrot pudding recipe:
ReplyDelete1tsp soda
1 Cup each shredded potato, shredded carrots, sugar, flour, (chopped) nuts (walnuts), raisins, and candied citron (shredded if possible—maybe a food processor would do the job).
1 tsp salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves
1 grated orange rind
2 tbsp oil
Steam in one-pound coffee cans about 2 hours (probably longer in a pudding basin— test with a wooden skewer for completion, I suppose)
Hard sauce:
Beat one cube soft margarine (she always used margarine because it was less expensive and easier to use than butter)
Gradually add a cup and a half powdered sugar
Add a little vanilla (and if desired brandy flavoring)
^^^^ Alan
DeleteYes to the brandy...but that seems like WAY too much sugar for me. Let me know how sweet it tastes.
DeletePour some actual brandy over it and light it on fire! The alcohol will burn off, and the flavour will stay.
DeleteOh, it is sweet, all right--it complements the pudding. (As very old memory serves me.)
Delete---Alan
Some “hard sauce” recipes from the Internet:
DeleteHalf cup butter to 1.5 cups powdered sugar [Click]
Same here. [Click]
Half cup butter to 2.5 cups sugar [Click] Instructions for making small individual puddings—- the recipe sounds interesting, but the preparation rather complicated albeit the cooking time is short.
Half cup of butter, 1 cup sugar [Click]
Now to check my great grandmother’s cookbook—The Toronto Ladies’ Home Cookbook (1889). Egad— a huge number of pudding recipes! And fifteen different pudding sauce recipes. Only one “hard sauce,“ though: HARD SAUCE FOR PUDDINGS, RICE, ETC. By M. Take one teacup sugar, one-half teacup butter, stir together until light; flavour with wine or essence of lemon. Smooth the top with a knife and grate nutmeg over it.
Upshot: the proportions are variable, but my mother’s recipe using a stick of butter rather than a proper cube is within the allowable range. I should think I would have learned what a cube of butter was if she made a distinction between a stick and a cube; after all, she taught me how to cook. Our smaller home-made raisins are blessed with brandy, so I think the sauce can quite well be made with brandy flavor/essence; there is probably some in the spice cabinet, but I haven’t searched for it in ages.
——Alan
(Susan) But how much is a cube of margarine? When I was a toddler margarine came in a plastic tube. It was white with a circle of red dye in the middle. My mom used to give it to me to squeeze until all the margarine was yellow. Yes, I'm old.
ReplyDeleteSame size as a cube of butter. My mother told of the yellow coloring in the margarine being in a capsule back in the day--to suppress sales and thereby benefit makers of butter.
Delete----Alan
I don't recall uncolored margarine, but I suppose sale of colored margarine was legalized in different states at different times.
Delete---Alan
A cube is 2 tablespoons (one ounce) of butter. A quarter of a stick of butter.
Deletehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-government-came-to-decide-color-your-food-180973962/
DeleteInteresting; about the size of a cube of butter; I am fairly sure my mother meant a stick, but I will research alternate recipes. It occurred to me while walking that substituting chopped and floured dates (particularlyl big meaty ones like medjool) for part of the raisins in the pudding recipe should work well. And for supplements there are so many kinds of dried fruits in the stores these days (albeit not chopped)--- mango, etc. I decided to substitute craisins for the shredded citron.
Delete----Alan
Thanks for the margarine color link, puddle!
Delete---Alan
Technically, a stick of butter would be a rectangle of butter!
DeleteTwo items:
ReplyDeleteRon DeSantis Was Silent on Zelensky’s Speech [Click] Probably afraid he might be hoist by his own petard if he opens his mouth on the subject.
What Happens If the Speaker Vote Fails? [Click] Popcorn sales surge! [My bad—guess I’m not yet “owned.”]
--Alan
The Speaker need not be a member of the House. I have heard some prognostication that there will be a surprise. Some thought that Trump's great announcement would be associated with the Speaker job, but he's not at all qualified to do so much work.
DeleteIt is a shame that extra-legal factions have been allowed to control procedure in Congress, as well as the electoral processes. But then, to be honest, the U.S. governmental system is riddled with customs and traditions which have sprouted like weeds.
I just learned that there are three recognized legal systems: custom, constitutional and case law.
I can see why the originalists want to go back to the Constitution, but its provisions are not nearly adequate to a complex society of 330 million. The Constitution has only two interests: the protection of public and private property and the promotion of commerce to generate income. The founders sort of hedged their bets that treaties agreed to be the Senate would have the same force of law as the Constitution itself. That is why people captured on a battlefield are protected by the Geneva Convention.
The sovereignty hawks in the Republican faction do not like that provision at all.
So the snow has started. Off and on so far and no wind to speak of. The real blizzard will be later.
ReplyDeleteNo snow here, but we probably won't take a walk today--cold again (by our standards), and no sun yet (noon:40).
Delete---Alan
No snow here yet, either, but we have seen the wind begin to pick up a little.
DeleteI highly recommend the app called "WINDY"!! It shows the wind direction and speed visually. *Seeing* the force of this wind (including forecast wind) is astounding!
The sun came out, and we went for our walk.
Delete---Alan
It seems the latest fire on the Russian carrier Admiral Kuznetsov was indeed minor. [Click] But the Russian Federation sure does seem to have had a huge amount of trouble maintaining Soviet- era capital ships in operation. Not so the Kommuna salvage ship, but that was built and launched during the reign of Nicholas II.
ReplyDelete^^^^ Alan
DeleteLocated in a German region famed for its frugality, Tübingen is known for its fiercely green reputation, where veganism and environmental friendliness are the default setting.
ReplyDeleteWashington Post: Deep secrecy, high risk: How Zelensky’s improbable D.C. visit came together [Click] Wow. Incredible. Interesting to me that the WaPo just says Zelensky traveled by a US military aircraft without saying which one.
ReplyDelete—Alan