Jaymes

Yes, except for that aroma that I mentioned.

It does feel nice. Not only the warmth of it, but also that aroma drifting toward your nose. And it's so handy to take on picnics, especially on cool autumn football afternoons. You take some bags of Fritos and a pot of chili and you're all set. Add some plastic spoons and cleanup is also a breeze. You know, as an aside, every time I hear/read about that "invented in Santa Fe in the 1960's" thing, I am gob-smacked that it continues to be given any credibility whatsoever. There are a few things we know for certain. We know that by 1880-90, chili was so popular in San Antonio

Well, it might be a 'new trend' to some. But it was standard lunchtime fare at the drive-in across from my grade school in San Angelo, Texas, in 1952. Fritos were invented by Elmer Doolin in his mama's San Antonio kitchen in 1932. And, according to legend, almost immediately, his mama, Daisy Dean Doolin, added some to a bowl of famous San Antonio chili, thereby inventing chili pie before the year was out. You can use whatever chili you prefer, so if the Pioneer Woman's version suits her, that seems fine. It obviously didn't take a lot of imagination to split that small individual

Yep, he's a dreamboat, all right. Oh, Tim Riggins! You are the tragic antihero of the show. That scene in the opening/closing credits of him standing forlornly out in the rain beside the departing school bus gets me every time. If I were younger, I swear I'd be his stalker.

My daughter is pregnant, due July 1st, and she and her husband have been thinking over names. I heard her talking on the phone with a friend yesterday. "Well," she said, "'To Kill a Mockingbird' is suddenly so popular and we do want to keep up with the current stylish trends, but we don't want yet another obvious Atticus or Harper or Scout. We've decided we're going with Boo Radley Johnson."

"Witty banter/flirtation"? Maybe it's just me, but I don't remember any witty banter or flirtation. Seems to me that the mood was far too dark and brooding, even threatening and foreboding for witty banter. And Jane too shy and apprehensive and aware of her lowly station for flirtation. In fact, seems to me that the book, anyway, was more of a suspenseful mystery/thriller than just a romance. One spends most of the book fearful that Jane is in mortal peril and not sure from whom. Perhaps one of the sinister older women? Perhaps Rochester himself, who may be an unbalanced pervert? And wha

If you look closely at the photograph, they do look much yellower than Persian limes. Key limes are yellower than Persian in general. In fact, that's how you select the juiciest Key limes - get the yellowest ones. Orik - where was the photo taken?

I read about that Banana Vinegar, and about the Napa chef that was mixing it with piloncillo as a topping for ice cream, and was so intrigued that I had to try it. It is indeed amazing, just as Steve says. It's unusual, like nothing I've ever had on ice cream. It tastes like a really dark and slightly tangy caramel with definite banana undertones. I'm very eager to see what else I can do with that banana vinegar. It's ambrosial. Banana Vinegar

The scenes with the water surging, and carrying along what must be hundreds of people, are particularly wrenching.

A bit troubling for me, but I'm hoping soon it will belong in the "cheerful" thread. My son has spent the last month working in the Philippines. Scheduled to fly out from Manila at midnight last night (10AM today our time). His colleagues said he should get to the airport really early because it was likely to be rather chaotic, what with people trying to get to and from Japan and other affected areas. So he did. These days, with computers and international cell phones, we've been keeping up with him pretty closely. He said the airport was a madhouse, with flights that had been scheduled

I must have seen a different movie. I thought it was a critique of those fantasies, partly from the viewpoint of Rush's character, partly through the almost literal stranglehold upbringing and expectations placed on the guy forced to play the role of the strong, confident, imperturbable leader. But in scene after scene she displays her insistence on trivial details of etiquette and her great discomfort with the situation. ("Your Royal Highness the first time, then Ma'am as in ham, not Ma'am as in palm..." - from memory). And the line, said rather indignantly, "I don't have a

Although of course you're right - the incredible acting is the best part - one thing I really liked about it all was the unpredictability. I love it when you can't tell where the story is going. These plot twists really kept me guessing all the way to the end. Which, of course, I won't reveal. (I guess you want to be waterbedded as well.)

I think it was marketed badly. I can't tell you how many people I've heard say (and this is even in Texas), "I don't watch it because I'm not that interested in high school football." Although I realize it would have been difficult, given the name, the book it was based on, and the endeavors of the main characters, I wish they hadn't emphasized that so much. Football is really just the vehicle. And frankly, even when I was in high school, long, long ago, and in Kansas, much of what went on did revolve around what the team and its players were doing. But it's just so good. I know much o

Oh fiddledeedee. That's hardly a spoiler. More like an innocent little tease, revealing nothing. Surely it's not egregious enough that I should be forced to watch 2 1/2 Men. If punished I must be, I'd rather be waterboarded.

So many terrific moments in this series. One from the finale - A very young woman, a high school student, has befriended some of the gals that work in the local strip joint. They're all backstage, and the young woman is bemoaning some of the choices she's made in her life: "I even lost my virginity in a pickup truck. Who does that?" And all of the strippers raised their hands. Only in Texas, y'all.