>  ML> I'm torn between wanting to be long gone and
>  ML> not wanting to be gone.
> I'm not wanting to be gone yet but will reach that point eventually.

Heh, that's probably the way most of use feel most
of the time.

>  ML>  to be poor and wretched on the earth and then
>  ML>  to become earth itself.
>  ML>   - Caspar Neumann, as set by Bach
> Ashes to ashes and dust to dust................

Nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer.

>  ML> We have a lot of living left in us. As Charlie
>  ML> Brown used to say, Wait 'til next year.
> Yes, but knowing that Steve's parents are aging/having health issues, we
> do want to see them more often. Mom had a crisis last week but came out
> of it ok--her bp was going up and they thought she was having a stroke
> but MRI was negative on that. A change in medication brought the bp back
> down and she's back home.

No strokes is good.

>  ML> > Just to show that we can't predict the weather as well as we think
>  ML> we > can.
>  ML> I wonder - do the forecasts vary that much, and
>  ML> if so, why doesn't someone do reviews of them?
> I'll leave that wondering to the weather prognosticators.

Au contraire. We are after all the consumers of
the information, and it's in our interest, not
theirs, to determine who the best purveyors are.

>  ML> >  ML> There are international boards that pass on name
>  ML> > Guess the names probably have to be screened so that you're not
>  ML> saying > something offensive in a different language.
>  ML> There should be a wide variety of those, enough
>  ML> to be undangerous, things like Chevy Nova
>  ML> notwithstanding.
> With so many language groups, dialects, etc, it could get rather
> involved.

The easiest and perhaps most sensible thing to do
would be to ignore most of them.

>  ML> An a propos funny article:
>  ML> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand_blunder
> I'll look it up later.

>  ML> > I think I saw something in the N&O but no follow up story.
>  ML> It does make sense that the farther away
>  ML> something is the less the perceived relevance,
>  ML> but our news are more provincial than they
>  ML> really ought to be.
> Plus the N&O is only putting out a thin paper edition, putting a lot on
> line. I usually don't read the on line edition unless, for some reason
> (usually weather related) we don't get the hard copy.

Newspapers are suffering. It's too bad. There is
a (perhaps more reassuring than it should be) 
good feeling about a medium that isn't subject
to constant change without notice.

>  ML> We're not the only nation in the world failing to
>  ML> cover itself in glory at the moment.
> Sounds like we're all falling apart.

The whole world, pretty much. I was counting possible
candidates for horsemen, but there were too many.

>  ML>       Title: Thousand Island Dressing
> I just mix some mayo, pickle relish and ketcup into a quick and easy
> version. (G)

Fair enough, but it's basically pretty quick and
easy to begin with.

Nancy Reagan's Rancho California Rice 
categories: celebrity, political, main, dairy, side
servings: 6 to 8

1 c onion, chopped
4 tb butter
4 c rice, cooked
2 c sour cream
1 c cottage cheese
Bay leaf, crumbled
Salt & Pepper, to taste
16 oz whole green chilis (canned)
2 c grated cheddar cheese

Saute onions in butter until limp. Add rice, sourcream,
cottage cheese, bay leaf, salt & pepper. Mix well. In greased
cassarole dish, put a layer of rice mixture, a layer of chilies
(seeded and cut into strips), and 1/2 c cheddar. Repeat
(save 1/3 c cheddar) ending with a layer of rice. Bake for
25 min in 375-degree oven. Top with remaining cheese, and
bake 10 more min.
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