Hi Michael,

 ML> > I just have to remember to put a pair of reading glasses in my purse
 ML> or > other carry on. The Nook has a light that is handy for reading at
 ML> night, > provided of course, I remember to check its batteries.

 ML> Why are people so resistant to plugging
 ML> their appliances in when the opportunity
 ML> arises? Back in ancient times, battery

Some (this computer) get plugged in every night. Others (my phone, new
tablet, Nook) only get plugged in when the power is under 50% Nook light
is battery operated and I don't use it that often.

 ML> life was adversely affected by frequent
 ML> charging, but reliable sources indicate
 ML> that that is no longer so. Other question:

But some things would need every day charging, like some of my older
cell phones. With my current one, when we replaced the battery last
year, the instructions were to let it run down to just about out for the
first few cycles of charging to "condition" the battery that it can go
that low. Now I plug it in if the battery is under 50% or I know it's
going to get heavy use the next day.

 ML> what became of the sensible custom of
 ML> wearing a pair of readers around one's neck?

Vanity? I've got a cord for that (somewhere) but it's just as easy to
put them in a set place every time I take them off. If I'm not near that
place, I'll leave them with my phone.


 ML> >  ML> the car for more than 5 minutes.
 ML> > The new vision being a bit of a problem?

 ML> I never could read comfortably in the car
 ML> for more than a short period.

We were't allowed to read in the car as kid--too many of us were prone
to car sickness when young. My parents didn't let us do anything that
might contribute to it like reading. All of us outgrew it but I don't
know how many of us read in the car. I do, but I also do other things
that don't require the same level of concentration.


 ML> > get reading material. One nice feature of the on line newspaper is
 ML> that > it has several extra sections that go into news, sports and
 ML> business in > more depth than the paper edition.

 ML> I still have my go-tos on line for news;
 ML> sports and business are basically beyond
 ML> me. Which reminds me that I've not checked

I'm skimming a lot of that right now.

 ML> my Al Jazeera to see its take on the
 ML> latest Washington fiasco. I might also go

Not one we follow.


 ML> to rt.com to see what kind of lying spin
 ML> it's putting on things. P.S. I did just
 ML> that, and what a chaotic mess.

No surprise.


 ML> >  ML> Part of it is that the professional
 ML> >  ML> opportunities for the handicapped, shy,
 ML> >  ML> or female started opening up, so you no
 ML> >  ML> longer got lots of first-class brains
 ML> >  ML> trapped in low-paying jobs where accuracy
 ML> >  ML> was de rigueur.
 ML> > And proofreading has become a dying art, thanks to computers with
 ML> spell > check. Trouble is, they don't have a sense check also.

 ML> Precisely because of the phenomenon that
 ML> I mentioned.

It bothers me tho, to see avoidable mistakes in publications where there
should be no mistakes.

 ML> >  ML> > One of the Mexican places in town has a big aquarium but for
 ML> show >  ML> only. > It appears to be fairly well kept; we aren't in
 ML> the place that >  ML> often but > haven't noticed any sort of algae or
 ML> other build up in it. >  ML> The Asian stores of course make these
 ML> >  ML> appliances do double duty.
 ML> > I usually don't order fish (but will order seafood) at an Asian
 ML> > restaurant.

 ML> Depends on the vibe. I can make a steamed
 ML> fish with ginger and scallion as well as any
 ML> restaurant, but there are preparations that
 ML> would benefit from bigger better equipped
 ML> kitchens and pantries. And fried, any port
 ML> in a storm.

I don't do that much deep fried, more stir fried over all. Stopped at
our favorite Chinese carry out for supper last night; they have an open
kitchen so it's fun to watch them prepare a meal. 99.9% of their
business is take out, and they are always busy. We wondered how long
they would last when they first came to WF (about a year after we did)
but they've lasted well.


 ML> >  ML> I was sitting next to a senator of some kind
 ML> >  ML> once, and even after somebody addressed
 ML> >  ML> Himself as such, it never occurred to me to
 ML> >  ML> find out who he was.
 ML> > Most of them aren't well known outside of their home state anyway.

 ML> Frankly, I'd recognize neither senator from
 ML> either California or Massachusetts. The only
 ML> such I was able to identify in the last couple
 ML> decades was from the midwest, mostly because
 ML> his wife said hello to me first.

Did you have a good talk with them?

 ML> >  ML> > I know the one, is the other the father of Hayley Mills?
 ML> >  ML> I don't know - who's Hayley Mills?
 ML> > British actress, big in the late 50s/early 60s.

 ML> Ah, so the father would be John Mills; the
 ML> name just came to me. No, he would be about
 ML> a million years old now.

Probably so; the name David Mills sounds slightly familiar but I'm not
familiar with British tv (and few movie actors) to associate him with
anything.


 ML> >  ML> Okay, on a trip I can see that, but even then
 ML> >  ML> a canister with premixed stuff from home
 ML> >  ML> would do the job nicely.
 ML> > I wasn't planning on anything that needed the premix that I usually
 ML> have > on hand so didn't bring it. It was just one of these last
 ML> minute "let's > do this" sort of thing.

 ML> If there's a substantial saving in time or
 ML> effort, maybe; I'm such a goofus with mixes
 ML> that from scratch would actually be more
 ML> efficient for me unless it were something
 ML> like Jell-O.

We like to keep a basic biscuit/muffin/pancake/waffle mix (usually
homemade) and a basic white sauce (also homemade) on hand while home.
The former goes with us on some camping trips but we didn't have any on
hand this time; with a few tweaks, it would have worked for a cobbler.
Other than that, I do just about everything from scratch. Most often
biscuits and muffins are from scratch; the mix is for those "last minute
but don't have all the ingredients" times.

 ML> >  ML> Sweet Shiruko
 ML> >  ML> 4 toasted rice cakes
 ML> > Like the commercial rice cakes that look (and taste somewhat) like
 ML> > styrofoam?

 ML> If I were a smartass like you and Other Ruth,
 ML> I'd ask why you know what styrofoam tastes like.

Reminds me of atime when the girls were younger; they had some rice
cakes on napkins and Rachel had half an actifed on her napkin to take
with the rice cake. Steve saw the actifed, thought it was a rice cake
crumb, popped it into his mouth and bit down. Need I say more? (G)

 ML> >  ML> M's note. I think that dogtooth starch is made out of the corm
 ML> >  ML> of some lily: you might substitute arrowroot or cornstarch.
 ML> > I figured cornstarch would be a good sub; I think we do have some
 ML> > arrowroot also.

 ML> Turns out further reading indicates that just
 ML> about nobody uses real dogtooth starch any more.

Probably because other starches have replaced it for convenience and
cost.

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net  FIDO 1:396/45.28


... It isn't hard to meet expenses...they're everywhere!

--- PPoint 3.01