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Monday, March 13, 2017

Cold Oil French Fries

I read a recipe somewhere and while it caught my eye, I sorta dismissed it.  Then I caught the same, or similar, recipe in several other places and decided to give it a try, cooking french fries in cold oil . . . and it worked well!

One of the things I rarely make is fresh french fries.  I buy the bags of various frozen kinds and either bake or deep fry them.  The main reason is making french fries from scratch is annoying.  Cutting, soaking, drying, frying at one temp to cook the inside and then cranking up the heat and frying a second time to get the crisp exterior . . . see what I mean, a hassle and very annoying.  So I decided to give this cold oil method a try . . . and I, and my family, was pleasantly surprised.

  • 4-5 potatoes of various kinds.  Like Russets or Yukon Golds
  • 4, or so, quarts of vegetable oil (or peanut or safflower oil) Do not use olive oil, or any low smoke point oil
  • Salt

That's it, that's all it takes.

  • Cut the potatoes in sticks, about 1/4 to 3/8 inch cross-section.  You can go as big as a half inch, but any larger and I would worry about cooking time.  Don't worry about peeling them, the skin, especially on Yukon Golds are delicious fried.
  • Put the fries into a large dutch oven, or heavy bottom pan (to retain heat)
  • Cover by at least an inch in oil, but don't get too close to the top or the oil might boil over once you get it near cooking temp.
  • Turn on the burner to med-high and step away -- not far, you have oil on the stove, but don't mess with them.
  • After about 5 minutes the potatoes will be in a rolling boil. . . Do Not Touch Them.  If you do, they will start breaking apart, this is the point where they are at their most fragile..
  • After about 10-12 minutes they are hard enough to move around.  Be gentle, but stir them around, make sure none are sticking to the bottom of the pot or each other.
  • Keep cooking until they are nice and golden brown, my last batch took over 30 total minutes to cook.
  • Remove to a drain rack and salt immediately.  They may still be a bit soft, the brief draining time will cause them to firm up further.
  • Serve!

Delicious and crispy!  I do like to pull out a couple right when I think they are ready and test, but be careful, the oil is hot and so will the fries right out of the oil.

For some reason I was expecting them to be greasy, but to my surprise they were no greasier than the bagged fries when I deep fry them.  It does take longer than a bagged variety, but not all that much longer.  I also put a thermometer in the oil and make sure it doesn't get too hot (over 390F).  This way the oil doesn't start breaking down and after straining it through a couple of layers of cheesecloth, I can get several uses out of the oil . . . only for frying though.  Not sure how it would work in salad dressing.

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Chili Verde II

Found a damn good recipe for Chili Verde and one that is pretty easy!  What I really love is how easy it is, especially compared to the other recipes I've tried.  Seriously easy!  I was roasting tomatillos, jalapenos, and other peppers for the base of the green sauce.  Between the prep work and the cooking time, it was pretty much an entire afternoon.  While I liked the result, I tried a number of different things and was kinda iffy on the whole thing.

In my search I serendipitously came across a jarred Salsa Verde (yes, a jarred salsa) that I really liked. Frontera Tomatillo Salsa, it was developed by Rick Bayless -- and anyone who watches way to much food TV knows he's one of the best chefs cooking Mexican-style food and star of the long running TV series 'Mexico:  One Plate at a Time'.  While the salsa isn't as chunky as I like, its got a great taste.  I was wondering about using this in my Chili Verde when I ran across the recipe from the Dad Cooks Dinner blog.

I am a subscriber of Dad's blog and have gotten lots of useful tips, tricks, and recipes.  This one struck me for two reasons.  The first is it uses a pressure cooker, which cuts down on the cook time dramatically.  The second is that while he includes a great homemade Salsa Verde recipe, he also includes a cheater version using the same Frontera Salsa Verde that I recently discovered, along with some canned diced green chiles.  So both prep time and cook time cut down from an entire afternoon to about about an hour.  The longest item is cutting, trimming, and browning the pork.  I also added some fresh diced peppers and cilantro to up the flavor a bit more.  Once I discovered that my regular grocery store had canned Hatch Green Chilis, I was done!  So here is the recipe, hope you like it:

  • Canned Diced Green Chilis, about 24 oz.  I like Hatch Green Chili's.  They come in 4 oz cans here.  I also like Ortega Fire-Roasted Diced Green Chilis, but prefer the Hatch even though they are not roasted
  • 4 Jalapeno chilis, medium dice (if you go much smaller they pretty well melt away, and I am after the bit of texture you get as well as the flavor
  • 4 Anaheim chilis, medium dice as well
  • 1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro (leaves and stem), separated into two piles, half of it chopped (for cooking) and the other half simply roughly chopped for garnishing
  • 16 ounce jar tomatillo salsa or salsa verde, like stated earlier, I like Frontera.  I they also won the taste test on America's Test Kitchen.  If you are going to use jarred salsa, make sure it's one you like to eat, there are a few really awful ones out there.  If you want to go the whole, fresh salsa route, click on the link from Dad's above and check it out.
  • 4 pounds pork shoulder, cut into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes trim off most of the visible fat and hold onto the bone.  I like adding the bone during cooking,  I have tried cooking the shoulder whole and then shredding it, but not in a pressure cooker.
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt (for the meat)
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, medium dice
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (for the onion)
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon roasted ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon roasted ground coriander
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 cup chicken stock or water
Now the fun part.
  • Mix the salsa ingredients and let sit, remember only use half the cilantro, the chopped cilantro
  • If the pork isn't already cut, it's time.  I usually cut and season the meat with salt as I go.  Once I have enough cut to start browning, I get that going as well.  Dad Cook's recipe called for 1 1/2 inch cubes.  I usually go a little smaller, but no larger than 1 1/2 inches.  If you go too small, or a mix of larger and smaller, they might cook uneven.  Remember the meat will shrink during cooking, but if you go much larger than 1 1/2 inch cubes, you may have to cut the meat as you eat.
  • Brown one side of the meat in batches small enough to avoid crowding the pan.  This is one of the tricks I saw on Dad Cooks Dinner.  Browning one side give you the brown-bits on the pan you want for flavor, without having to spend tons of time browning all sides.  It takes about 4 minutes a batch and you have less chance overcooking the pork.  Browning all sides takes forever, and while you do get lots of fond (french for 'brown bits'), you also run the chance of over cooking.  Think about it, a 1 inch cube has 6 sides, that's 24 minutes of cooking!  If you only do two sides, you get fond, but you really don't add enough to change the flavor profile you get from one side. The other consideration is trim off the visible fat!  Since we are only browning the meat on one side, that means there is a lot of fat that might not get rendered, so if you don't trim it carefully.
  • Remove the meat to a bowl.
  • Empty all the fat and return 1 Tbs back to the pot.  If you leave all the rendered pork fat in there, your chili will look and taste greasy!
  • Put the diced onion and peppers in the pot and season with 1/2 tsp kosher salt.  Cook until softened.  Using a large wooden spoon or spatula to move them around and also scrape up - deglaze for those who like fancy  terms - those delicious brown bits left over from the meat.  This should take about 5 minutes.
  • Clear the center of the pot and put in the spices (garlic, cumin, coriander, and oregano).  Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Do not burn your spices, you will regret it!
  • Add a little stock or water and scrape the bottom of the pot one more time, make sure the pot is deglazed, then add the rest of the stock/water and the salsa.
  • Return the meat, along with any juices, to the pot and close the pressure cooker and cook for 25 minutes for a stove top cooker or 30 for an electric.  Which sure beats the 2 1/2 to 3 hours in a dutch oven or the 10 hours in a slow-cooker!
  • Let the pressure release naturally, and check the seasonings.  You might need a little pepper, but the canned salsa verde is usually salty enough.  Bottom line, if it tastes flat, it needs salt.
Serve with the lime juice, fresh chopped cilantro, and maybe some sour cream.  I have also served this over rice, which worked out perfectly.

Does the version using all fresh ingredients taste better?  You know, for me it's a toss up.  The two taste different, but I can't place one over the other.  So since the two are about at the same level for me, I'll stick with the quicker version for now.

I plan on playing a little with some of the ingredients.  For example I wonder how beer will work instead of the stock, or upping the liquid content and cooking the rice in the chili.  On second thought, 25 minutes in a pressure cooker might be too much for the rice.  Anyone ever try rice in a  pressure cooker?  Well in any event, be sure and have some fun with it.  Thanks again to Mike Vrobel and his Dad Cooks Dinner Blog.

Monday, October 17, 2016

Pasta Salad

I was looking for a side dish that would also serve as a light lunch.  I wanted it cold, mainly because it's hot outside.  I also didn't want anything mayonnaise-based much for the same reasons.  I settled on making a pasta salad.  Nothing earth-shattering, it was just something light and tasty.  I did have a few other requirements.  For example a light dressing, not only not mayo-based but something you don't need a lot of it.  I wanted it to compliment the flavors of the other ingredients, not overrule them.  What I discovered was that you can put pretty much any veggie you like and a wide selection of cold-cuts.  It's more versatile than I thought and it's a great way to deal with a few veggie-draw leftovers.  For example those basil leaves left over from a Caprese salad, or that half a cucumber or onion.  Here's what I did:

I boiled up a pot of the three-color rotini pasta, 12 oz box.  It's not that the green and red one are flavored all that different from the white ones, but the color contrast works nicely.  Cook this slightly past aldente -- and I mean slightly.  If you overcook these, they tend to fall apart.  The reason I go slight past aldente is that since this is a cold dish, aldente pasta tends to become a little harder once cooled down.  My preference more than anything else.  Once cooked and drained, set aside to cool.

While it was cooling, I broke out the chef's knife and started cutting and chopping.  Here's what I had on hand for my first attempt at this sort of salad:

  • 1 whole cucumber, peeled (it was an older one and the peel tends to get bitter), small dice
  • 1 medium red onion, small dice
  • 1 large sweet red bell pepper, small dice
  • 1 medium ham steak, also small dice
  • 1 head of broccoli, chopped
  • 2 carrots cut and sliced into thin matchsticks about an inch or so long
  • 1 ball of mozzarella (1/4 inch cube dice).  I prefer fresh over the part-skim drier form.
  • 4 green onions, sliced on a bias, about 1/4 inch long
  • 4 basil leaves, chiffon-ed. That is rolled up together lengthwise, then thinly sliced with a sharp knife across the width.  You end up ribbons of basil.

Lastly the dressing, you put 3 Tbs of red wine vinegar in a bowl, add about 2 tsp of Dijon mustard and one finely chopped (or minced) garlic clove.  Then whisk as you slowly drizzle in 6 Tbs of good olive oil (extra-virgin is best).  The ratio of 3:1 or 4:1 seems to work well.  If you drop it to 2:1 it tastes more of the vinegar, and anything over 4:1 comes across a little oily texture.  For this type of dressing, I stay away from the county-style Dijon's, they are a bit lumpy and the flavor doesn't seem to distribute that well.

Once you are done adding the oil, whisk for another minute or two, check the seasoning for taste and add salt and pepper.  It's a nice light dressing and you won't need a lot of it.  In fact it all depends on the volume of the other ingredients.  I usually dress with half and see how things look and taste before I add any more.

And that it.  Just put everything in a large bowl and dress to your taste.  Like I said, this was what I had on hand.  The ingredients for this sort of summer salad are pretty versatile.  If my veggie drawer had a different selection, I would have used that.

An added note, I did this salad a second time and added some diced fresh button mushrooms.  The flavor was good, but they were a little woody.  So the next time, I made up the dressing early and twice the usual amount.  Then I marinated the mushrooms for a couple of hours before doing the rest.  That softened them up and they became more part of the whole instead of a slightly discordant note.

Hard-boiled eggs, leftover chicken or turkey, shredded lettuce, celery, and even a little canned tuna might work well in various combinations.  I am also tempted to spice things up a bit with some jalapeno, cilantro, and even red pepper flake, but that will have to wait until I am flying solo.  Not everyone appreciates such spices.

Ranch Fried Chicken

I made something that went over real well with the family, Ranch Fried Chicken.  I'd heard of it before but the recipes always involved a packet of dry ranch seasoning, which to me never tasted very much like Ranch dressing once cooked in anything, like a meatloaf.  Well I caught an episode of America's Test Kitchen or Cook's Country (I have trouble telling those two shows apart) and they did Ranch Fried Chicken without using the packet of whatever.  It was intriguing.  I couldn't use part of the recipe, since cilantro and cayenne don't agree with my spouse, so I changed things a couple of times and hit a recipe that not only did remind me of Ranch, but the family enjoyed it!

  • Finely chopped fresh Dill (5 Tbs, divided 3 and 2)
  • Finely chopped fresh Parsley (5 Tbs, divided 3 and 2)
  • Finely chopped fresh Rosemary (3 Tbs, divided (2 and 1)
  • Finely minced garlic (2 cloves)
  • Buttermilk (1 cup)
  • White Vinegar (2 tsp)
  • Salt (1/2 tsp)
  • Black Pepper (1/2 tsp)
  • AP Flour (1 cup)
  • Cornstarch (1/2 cup)
  • Garlic Powder (1 tsp)
  • Old Bay Seasoning (2 tsp)
  • 6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs (yes, boneless and skinless, it really does work)
  • Dry, salt and pepper your Chicken Thighs
  • Mix the Buttermilk, Vinegar, 3 Tbs of Dill and Parsley, 2 Tbs of Rosemary, Salt and Pepper, and minced Garlic in a bowl.
  • Reserve a quarter cup as a dipping sauce.
  • In a separate bowl combine the Flour, Cornstarch, Garlic powder and Old Bay Seasoning.
  • Soak each Thigh in the Buttermilk mixture to coat.  No need to brine or marinate for long period, that's the benefit of using chicken thighs.
  • Dredge in the Flour mixture and set aside.
  • Preheat 2-3 inches of Vegetable or Peanut oil to 350F degrees is a vessel wide and deep enough for some frying.  I usually use a cast iron dutch oven.
  • Once the oil is hot, gently, and I do mean gently, slid in two pieces of chicken.  Fry for approximately 7-8 minutes.  You do have to keep adjusting the flame to keep the oil about 350.
  • You will see a drop in temperature when the pieces are added, but it should recover quickly.  If it falls too far, you might need to cook one piece at a time.  About the 3.5-4 minute mark turn over the pieces.
  • Remove to a paper towel for just a few seconds to get some of the surface oil off.
  • Then transfer to a wire rack over a sheet pan to drain off any more oil.  If the oil remains hot enough, there is usually very little oil drained off.
  • Repeat with the other three batches.
  • Let the last batch rest while plating, using a little of the reserve buttermilk mixture as a dip.  I have also found Ranch Dressing and even Frank's Red Hot are excellent accompaniments rather than the buttermilk mixture.
  • I have made as many as 6 batches (12 thighs) and the first pair of thighs were still plenty hot when I was done.  If you are making more, I recommend placing your wire rack/sheet pan in the oven at 200 degrees.  It will keep it hot without cooking it further and shouldn't start drying out out before you are done.
Some notes:
  • Do not let the oil go too high.  Not only can you burn your chicken, but if you let it get over 400F, you shouldn't strain the oil and reuse.  I use two strainers and a double piece of cheesecloth between them to strain my oil and I can set several fries out of each container.  I don't use it for anything other than frying.  You wouldn't want to make a salad dressing out of it.
  • The chicken is also good cold and even as leftovers.  I know it sounds like a sin, but I simple put the leftovers in a plastic ziploc bag.  It's never going to be as crispy as freshly fried, so I have given up trying to maintain the crispness.  None of the techniques I have heard of seemed to work overnight anyway.

Sous Vide Cooking

I picked up a Sous Vide Cooker (Anova Precision Cooker) and have been experimenting with it.  So far, so good!  Chicken breasts come out perfectly cooked and incredibly juicy.  I vacuum-packed two of them with some thyme, froze them, and then dropped them in 145F water for two hours.  After letting them cool, I diced them and mixed in some chopped celery, onion, mayo, and some seasonings and had a great tasting and basic chicken salad.  Served with some lettuce and lunch is on.  Going to be doing some more soon!  Pork Tenderloin is up next!  I'm thinking of dicing it and tossing into a sweet-sour sauce -- NOT on of those sickly-sweet red jarred sauces -- I'll let you know how it turned out.

Only downside of sous-vide cooking is the time.  It's not for a quick meal after work.  However, I have found that if you cook it ahead, you can simply dice, brown, and mix it into just about anything else and time is less of a problem.  Just a bit of planning.

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Pressure Cooker Soft Chicken Tacos

I've been doing more cooking lately, but haven't been blogging about it.  I will try and get things down on paper . . . so to speak . . . more often.  Recently I did a Root Beer BBQ sauce that came out great and last night I did chicken thighs in the pressure cooker and everyone loved them.

  • Chicken Thighs (about 2lbs):  I used skinless and boneless thighs, but you can use bone-in.  I do recommend removing the skin, it's kinda nasty in the pressure cooker.
  • Canned Tomatoes (1 14.5 oz can of crushed or diced)
  • Onion (1 chopped)
  • Garlic (3 cloves, minced)
  • Chicken Stock (1/2 cup)
  • Olive Oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper
Serve with:
  • Tortillas (I like soft, taco size)
  • Lettuce (about 2 cups shredded)
  • Tomatoes (2 fresh, diced)
  • Onion (1 diced)
  • Shredded Cheese
  • Salsa

  1. Salt and pepper the chicken thighs liberally.
  2. Heat some olive oil in your pressure cooker, medium heat
  3. Add the chopped onion, saute until softened
  4. Add the minced garlic, saute for about 30 seconds
  5. Add chicken stock and de-glaze the pan
  6. Add the chicken and canned tomatoes
  7. Seal the lid and let the pressure rise to it's limit
  8. Cook for 10 minutes under pressure and then turn off the heat
  9. Let the pressure release naturally.  It will take 10-15 minutes.
  10. Once the pressure is gone, remove the lid and take the chicken out with a slotted spoon
  11. Shred the chicken between two forks and return to the cooking liquid to stay warm and juicy.
  12. Once the rest of the meal is ready, spoon the chicken into a serving dish, it's OK to have some of the cooked onion and tomatoes as well.

Should make enough for 12-15 tacos, depending on how loaded you like them.  Serve with the condiments of your choice.  I like keeping it simple with lettuce, fresh onion and tomato, salsa, cheese, and sour cream.  But whatever you like will work!

This isn't a very spicy dish because a couple of family members can't handle spice.  There are plenty of alternatives:

  • Season the chicken with Chile Powder or Cumin, in addition to salt and pepper
  • Use Salsa instead of canned tomatoes for the cooking medium.  You should be able to eliminate the onions and garlic if you use salsa instead.
  • Use Beer or Apple Juice instead of Chicken Stock
  • I do recommend Chick Thighs over Chicken Breasts, I have had very little luck with breasts in the pressure cooker.  They get surprisingly rubbery and dry.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Blood Sugar and Oatmeal Choco-chip cookies

OK, it's been 2 months since my last post.  My blood sugar reading has been pretty stable, today was 104, 7 day average 102 and 30 day average 101.  I had one low reading, low as in way off the norm, of 90.  I took it twice to make sure I didn't mess anything up.  But I think it was because I had a very busy day, very physically busy, and really ate light, including very few carbs, much lower than normal.

I also had two high reading, 126 and 128 about a week apart.  Both of those readings were after eating out.  I think I need to work on making better choices whenever I eat out, but to be honest, i don't like eating salads in most places.  I don't mind a side-salad instead of fries or potatoes, but most of the larger, meal-sized, salads are nearly as bad as most of the rest of the menu.

To help deal with that, I've downloaded a bunch of restaurant menu nutritional information PDF's to my phone and PC. This way I can plan what's better on their menu than take guesses.  Hopefully that will help.

As for cooking, so far I have been keeping things pretty basic.  Grilling meats as opposed to other preparations, lots of greens and salads, and for snacking I've been making batches of oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies that contain about 10-12 carbs each.  So two cookies for a mid-afternoon snack satisfy a little sweet-tooth and don't do much in elevating my blood sugar.  I evaluated a number of recipes and settles on one with minimal white flour and use walnuts and Spenda Brown Sugar blend instead of straight-up brown sugar.  I've estimated the carb count based on several recipes and the best part . . . the whole family likes them, so I make them in large batches and they usually last most of a week.

  • 1 Stick of Crisco Butter Flavor shortening (16 Tbs)
  • 4 Tbs of unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 Cup and 2 Tbs of Spenda Brown Sugar Blend
  • 3 whole eggs
  • 3 tsp vanilla
  • 1 Cup Unbleached White flour
  • 1 Cup Whole Wheat flour
  • 4.5 cups of Old-Fashioned Oatmeal
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • 2.25 tsp baking soda
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
  2. I melt the butter while beating the shortening on low.  Once it's melted I add it to the bowl of the mixer to combine.
  3. Then I add the brown sugar blend and beat on medium until well blended.
  4. Add the eggs and vanilla.  Beat on medium until well combined.  I have tried to beat until light and fluffy, incorporating more air, but I haven't seen it make much of a difference.
  5. While the liquid ingredients are beating, I combine the oatmeal, white and wheat flour, salt, and baking soda in a separate bowl and mix well.
  6. Once the liquid ingredients are ready, I incorporate the dry with the liquid about a quarter cup at a time, on low.  It comes together as a very dry mixture and I usually have to switch to my dough hook to mix.
  7. Once done, I toss in 1.75 cups of chopped walnuts and 12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Be careful here, the mixer will be working very hard!  You might need to push the mixture back down to get it well mixed.
  8. I prep two cookie sheets with parchment.
  9. Using a tablespoon scoop, I scoop up a level tablespoon and place on the cookie sheet about 1.5 inches apart.  I get 25 per sheet.  The cookies don't spread a lot.  If you are after more of a flat cookie, up the butter content.
  10. Bake one cookie sheet at a time, 7 minutes, then rotate and cook another 7 minutes.  When I pull one out, I put in the next right away.
  11. Once out, I pull the whole parchment sheet off onto a cooling rack so they don't keep cooking on the hot sheet.
  12. After rotating, I prep the next sheet.
I get about 125 cookies.  Once cool, I bag them up in two gallon-sized zip lock bags.  Like I said they last between 5 and six days around my house.  Because of my blood sugar, I limit myself to 6 a day, two about 10 AM, two about 3 PM, and if I get munchie after dinner, two more.  So far. so good!


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Laundry Soap Image

Homemade laundry soap is a great way to cut costs in these tough economic times. Why not try it yourself? This simple, fun and easy task can save you tons of money! Making your own laundry soap can be done for just pennies per load. You can also avoid the harsh chemicals and dyes found in leading laundry soaps and detergents.

Before jumping in and making a batch, read the following helpful hints:

What you need:
If you choose to make a large batch of the liquid detergent, other than the ingredients listed you will also need a very large container to mix them up in and let sit overnight. A bucket or large stockpot will work fine. If you are making the powdered version, you will need a small container with an airtight lid. Also, having a good grater makes the grating easier. I have found a microplane kitchen grater to work best.

Where to Buy Ingredients:
Most of the ingredients can be found at your local grocery store in the laundry aisle and at some Walmarts and Targets. Some people have a difficult time Fels Naptha soap. If this happens, you can either try a substitute (such as Zote, Ivory or Sunlight bar soaps, or other low-scented soap) or buy it online at

What to Store Your Soap In:
Many websites about homemade laundry detergents suggest that you keep your large batch of liquid laundry detergent in a 5-gallon bucket with lid and keep a large wooden spoon in it to stir it before each use. I have found that it is much more practical to use several smaller containers that I can pick up and shake. Just make sure that your batch is well stirred before dividing it into the smaller conatiners. Old laundry detergent containers work the best since they have built-in measuring cups in the cap, but old bleach or vinegar containers work okay too. Remember to wash all containers before using.

Scented Soap:
The detergent has a fairly strong scent right after you make it, but it fades quickly. After the clothes are washed, there is little, if any, scent on the clothes. If you’ve never tried a non-scented laundry detergent before, it might be hard for you to accept that the clothes are actually clean. They are, whether they smell like soap or not. But if it continues to bother you, you might want to try adding a liquid fabric softener to your wash or even adding your favorite essential oil to your preferred liquid laundry detergent recipe.

Now that you're ready, you can continue reading recipes for liquid detergent or powdered detergent.

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Search billions of records on

Steps to Installing FamilySearch

on a Windows 98 Network

Link to Updated Instructions

Contributed by: Bob & Debi Rebo on 18 Oct 1999 (Updated 3/26/2000)

We recently built a simple peer-to-peer network with the 5 machines in our FHC. Only a minimal purchase of equipment was required and by utilyzing the Network installation of Family Search, we were able to set it up relatively quickly and easily.

We loaded all the CD's from FamilySearch onto 2 large hard drives. We then shared these drives over the network and allowed all machines to run Family Search without having to use the CD's which makes searching for information and processing TempleReady incredibly fast.

Choose your fastest machine to use as the server. You can use almost any machine as a client on the network, but the server, or machine with the large disks should be as fast as possible. The following is step by step instructions on how we set up FamilySearch in our Family History Center on a network. It is not the only way, maybe not even the best way, but it is easy, and the speed improvement is nothing short of miraculous. You can use this same procedure for only one machine and rid yourself of the constant CD exchanging required when using TempleReady, IGI, Ordinance Index, and Ancestral File.

1. At a minimum you will need a fast machine as a "server" with a drive for the operating system and application program and at least two large hard drives of 20 GB each or larger. I recommend the two large drives be connected to a Promise Ultra66 Controller Card in order to take advantage of the increased speed. I also recommend using Windows 95 or Windows 98. They both are easy to use, inexpensive, and lend themselves to peer to peer networking very nicely. You may also use DOS or other operating systems, but the procedures outlined here are designed for Windows 95/98. After installing an operating system on this system, create directories for the FamilySearch CDs and load the data as follows (Assuming D: and E: are the 20 GB Hard Drives):

Create the following directories:

MD C:\PASNET (Directory for the Network version of FamilySearch)
Using Windows Explorer or XCOPY in DOS

Copy all the IGI CDs into D:\IGI directory (17.5 GB)

Total = 17.5 GB

Copy the IGI Addendum CDs into the E:\AD directory (8.4 GB)

Copy Ancestral File CDs into E:\AF directory (5.6 GB)

Copy the U.S. Social Security Death Index CDs into the E:\SS directory (1.5 GB)

Copy the Scottish Church Records CD into the E:\SCR directory (630 MB)

Copy the Military Index CD into the E:\MI directory (500 MB)

Copy Family History Library Catalog CD into E:\LC directory (450 MB)

Total = 17.08 GB

2. In the C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file add the following lines to the end, but before any menu commands:

NOTE: This method is less restrictive than using multiple partitions and future changes can be made easily.

3. Restart the machine so these changes take effect. Next you will need to share these data drives so other machines can "see" them. To do this, open Windows Explorer, highlight each directory, right click the mouse and select share. Share the drives with the same names as above, or in other words, share "D:\IGI" as "J:" and "E:\AD" as H:", etc. This will make the data drives available from each machine on the network.

4. Once you have built a simple "peer to peer" network (procedure not discussed here, see note at end), you should "Map a Network Drive" to the same letter on each computer in the network. For example, on another system in the network, map the J: drive to \\ServerName\J. Each additional machine added to the network should also share the drive as "J". This will serve to standardize the network, configuration files, and ease troubleshooting in the future.

5. On each new machine in the network, in addition to mapping the shared drives, create a directory for the networked FamilySearch (MD C:\PASNET) and add the one line to the C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file for the PASNET directory (SUBST P: C:\PASNET) (again, before any menu command) then restart that system also.

6. Next you should load FamilySearch. I recommend you load it twice. Once for normal operation using the CD-ROMs and once using the network. First install FamilySearch normally on the C: drive. This will be used as a backup and works with CD-ROMs if the network is down.

7. Install FamilySearch again, but this time click on "Start", then "Run" and (if F: is your CD-ROM drive) type "F:\Setup network". Answer that you wish to install it on the P: drive.

8. The program will ask the drive letters where you loaded the data CD-ROMs.

The window looks like this. ®

If you installed to this point exactly as recommended, then the settings should match your drive settings and no changes are necessary here.

9. After checking the information and making any needed changes, click Continue.

10. When you are prompted to

Select type of Install:

You should select option

B. Data on multiple drives.
11. Do not make any changes to the drive assignments during installation, simply press F12 to accept the drive settings.

12. Complete the installation normally.

13. If you have not previously installed PAF on each system, do so now.

14. After the installation is complete, you can make changes to the setup files as desired. However, for the system to work over a network, no changes to the setup files are necessary if you installed FamilySearch as per these instructions. You may change the PAF directories or the number of generations in Ancestral File. You can exceed the artificial 13 generation limit imposed in the FamilySearch installation. To make changes, open the file you wish to change with an editor such as the DOS Edit or Windows Notepad.

- Verify the proper directories are listed for installed PAF versions
- increase generations changing the following lines:

15. Set up each additional machine on the network with Windows 98. Each computer should have an network card and be connected through an Ethernet Hub or via coax (thin wire Ethernet) to the peer to peer network. Make sure the line is added as before to the AUTOEXEC.BAT (SUBST P: C:\PASNET). Finally map the H: through N: drives from the server as described previously.

16. If you would rather copy instead of reinstalling FamilySearch, you can copy the C:\PAS and C:\PASNET directory over the network to each new machine (using Windows Explorer or XCOPY).

This is meant as a guide to setting up FamilySearch under a network. It is not meant to outline procedures for establishing a network nor does it advocate the use of any version of commercial software. I mentioned Windows 98 because that is what we used and it is easy to use. Other network products may be as easy to use as Windows 98.

Questions or corrections can be sent to Bob Rebo at or


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Welcome to Hometown Veterinary Care! Get ready for your upcoming appointment by beginning here.

1. Register you and your pet

> New client? Visit our New Client center.
> New pet? Visit our New Pet center.

2. Fill out your paperwork

Please print, fill out, and bring all necessary forms with you to your appointment. One check-in is required for each animal.

Dog boarding check-in
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3. Read up

Tips on taking the trauma out of veterinary visits
Getting your cat to the veterinarian

4. Activities

> Understand our payment policy
> View cage options
> Boarding policy
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Technician, Equine Assistant

Pets: Lots of farm animals: cows, horses, sheep, goats, cats, dogs & chickens

Tina was hired in 2003 and is an animal assistant and manages the equine facility. She performs animal dental procedures and enjoys drawing blood and working with the animals.

Family: Tina and her husband Jason have three girls.

Personal Interests: Riding her horses, going on trail rides and campouts, fishing, breaking horses, gardening vegetables and flowers; "Outdoors is where I want to be"


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Monday, August 24, 2009

Tasty Tuesday!

Sooooo, remember when I told you that I went to Caputo's and they gave me a free bag of bananas? This week, I was walking out the store, and they again asked me if I wanted some free bananas. Sure, I said innocently. And they then put a case of bananas in my cart.

Do you know how many bananas a case is? Any clue? I do now, as the box they provided lists the weight contained therein. Forty pounds. Forty pounds of bananas. That are already ripe.

Needless to say, we've been doing a lot of banana in the house -- plain bananas, banana smoothies, banana bread, etc. And thanks to Melisa, banana boats!

Raise your hand if you were a Girl Scout and remember making these!

(And boo to Dominick's for not carrying caramels anymore. Seriously, caramels is a normal food product. Why on earth aren't they stocked?)

Banana Boats

Ripe bananas
Mini marshmallows
Chocolate chips

With the peel on, slit the banana lengthwise like you would a baked potato, and then push at the ends to squish it open a little.

Add the caramels at the bottom, then marshmallows, and finally the caramels. (And no, I didn't follow my own advice, which is why I was trying to scrape caramel off the tin foil after cooking them. Learn from my mistakes.)

Wrap the bananas in tin foil, leaving a little room on top where the yummies inside the banana are poking out. Place the wrapped bananas on the grill and let them cook for about five minutes.

Remove from the grill, take off the foil, and use your spoon to scoop out allllll the yumminess.

Thanks for the reminder. Now, any more suggestions on what to do with the remaining bananas?

Troop August 24, 2009 at 10:17 PM

Holy COW, that looks GOOD! I was going to post just such a recipe on my cooking blog, but now, I just might link to yours instead! :)

Troop August 24, 2009 at 10:18 PM

P.S. We also cut across the banana, so that it's already cut into bites. The caramels will melt better if they are a little smaller, too :)

Teresa @ Grammy Girlfriend August 24, 2009 at 10:39 PM

That looks too good.....Wow

Fishsticks and Fireflies August 24, 2009 at 10:55 PM

Those look good! I have been wanting to do an entire meal on the grill, but always get stuck on dessert - somehow letting the kids melt marshmellows over a gas grill doesn't seem like a great idea to me. I will definitely be trying these!

Laura August 25, 2009 at 12:42 AM

oh dang I never had these but they look sooooo good! mmmm my friend is having a 'the death of summer' party and these might be fun to eat.
Thanks for entering in the contest good luck!! (((hugs)))

Ave August 25, 2009 at 4:05 AM

I have never seen something like that! It looks so delicious! :D

jsprik August 25, 2009 at 2:17 PM

i knew they sounded familiar!! girl scouts!!! lol blast from the past goin on here!! these look great btw...thnx for a great memory, too!!

Unknown Mami August 25, 2009 at 3:50 PM

Oh My Goodness! Do I really need to know about these?

Jill August 25, 2009 at 7:04 PM

MMMMMMMMMMMM! I have never seen or heard of this before it sure does sound yummy. My husband has heard of it and now wants some! YUMMY!

darnold23 August 25, 2009 at 7:17 PM

Isn't this a fun dessert??? Come join me for Crock Pot Wednesday at

septembermom August 25, 2009 at 8:13 PM

Really fun and yummy dessert. My kids would enjoy it very much. Thanks, Michelle :)

Lisa@BlessedwithGrace August 25, 2009 at 8:31 PM

Nothing to say but.... Oh my gosh!!! How wonderful!!!

S3XinthePantry August 26, 2009 at 1:42 AM

My mom used to make this great choco banana pie...but I don't know how to make it! (sorry)

Here's something I found online -it got 100+ good reviews:

Also if you have an ice cream maker you can make banana ice cream just like any other fruit ice cream. only use half as much lemon juice if you typically use lemon juice.

Pat August 26, 2009 at 10:26 AM

Oh, yummmm...That instantly brought back wonderful memories of Girl Scout Camp in the 1950s!

Maybe you could mash and freeze them...with a splash of lemon juice or pineapple juice to avoid darkening. Two banans per ziploc bag, perfect for a loaf of b-bread or a smoothie.

Debbie August 26, 2009 at 11:55 AM

Ah yes. We made those with the girl scouts just a few years ago. But, 40 pounds of bananas? Wow.

Nanna August 26, 2009 at 5:43 PM

rich & yummy!

Angela August 26, 2009 at 7:27 PM

Okay, the banana boats look seriously awesome. But forty POUNDS of bananas? I don't think I can even envision that in my kitchen!

The best way I know to freeze them for smoothies and bread is peeled, in freezer bags. They'll keep a while that way.

Michelle August 26, 2009 at 8:52 PM

Troop - Ohhh it was good. My husband had ummm three. Apparently, he liked them. Feel free to link up! And yeah... I was trying to hurry making this and cheated on cutting the caramels, but next time they're definitely getting smaller!

Teresa - And yet so easy. Gotta love that combination, no?

Nichole - Oh there's a ton you can do on the grill for dessert. Have you ever tried grilling fruit?

Laura - That would be perfect for a death of summer party! I love that entire concept!

Ave - You were never a Girl Scout, were you? These were a staple!

jsprik - Absolutely. The memories from making these with my grade school friends alone -- and how seriously we took our jobs -- is worth making these!

Unknown Mami - Ummm hey, if I have to know about them, then yeah, you do, too!

Jill - Go make your husband happy! This is such an easy treat. If you can find the caramels, that is.

Debbie - A totally fun dessert. I love it. I'm almost sad that we're nearly out of bananas (we've eaten a ton, and yes I've given many away).

Kelly - Absolutely. What a great treat for them at the end of summer.

S3XinthePantry - Ooo, I should totally make banana ice cream. Brilliant! I haven't made any ice cream in awhile. Thanks! And allrecipes? Definitely one of my favorite sites.

Pat - We've got many frozen. However... forty pounds of bananas is in the neighborhood of 15 bunches. There's only so much that fits in my freezer!

Debbie - Yeah, I'm still not sure what they were thinking. I found out that they did the same thing to another neighbor earlier this month.

Helen - And yet not overly heavy or hugely nasty in calories. I love those kinds of treats. One and a half caramels, eight mini marshmallows and maybe 10 chocolate chips? I can afford that!

Angela - You're trying to convince me to buy a deep freeze, aren't you? :) Go make a treat for your huband; he'd love it!

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Thursday, September 30, 2010

Giveaway: Precious Moments

It's always a joy when a new baby is welcomed into the world. I love seeing and holding and smelling the new babies - and of course finding ways to spoil them. It's easy when it's a first child born into the family. By the time it's the third child though, it's harder to find that perfect gift. The parents know more - and have more preferences - plus they already have so many clothes and toys.

A good friend of mine gave birth to a beautiful baby girl yesterday - younger sister to a six year old boy and a three year old girl. They have everything. Luckily, Precious Moments came to my rescue.

They have an online baby boutique full of all sorts of perfect baby gifts for a child - no matter how many siblings he has. Every child needs his own special blanket and stuffed animals. And what proud parent doesn't need another photo frame for their precious new bundle of joy?

I love that these items aren't too expensive, which makes it easier to not have to decide amongst my favorite few! Plush blankets with mini-stuffed animals attached are $10, while a mini plush animal is $5.

I received the mini plush giraffe. While many of the plush animals are truly gender neutral (lion, monkey, elephant, and lamb), the giraffe has pink feet and horns. While I'd be fine with this for my son, I know many parents who would prefer it only for girls. Fortunately, my friend's new baby turned out to be a gorgeous baby girl.

The stuffed animal has a nice amount of detail - eyes, spots, horns, mane, tail, nostrils, etc. They are all sewn on, which greatly reduces the worry of anything detaching and injuring a child. The animal itself is that lovely new soft plush that I wish had existed when I was a child! It's possible I've sat with it on my lap stroking it because it just feels so nice.

And the new baby's reaction? Well, she grabbed it and flung it around - but hey, she's only one day old. Her mom loved it though. And how could she not?

Want one of your own? You can visit the online baby boutique and find one yourself. Or you can win one here. One lucky reader will get a mini plush animal just like mine!

So what do you have to do?

First of all, let me stress that you must follow all the rules. If you do not follow the rules, your entry will not count!

This contest is open until Thursday October 14 at 7pm CST. I must have a valid way to reach you, so leave me your email address in your comment or be sure your profile has your email address visible. No duplicate comments will count. This giveaway is open to US residents age 18 and older. Winners will be selected via and must respond within 48 hours of being notified by me or I will select a new winner.

Mandatory Entry: What is your biggest skin problem?

Bonus Entries (leave a comment for each entry - if you put it all in one comment, I'll count it as one entry):

1) Earn one additional entry for following me on Twitter and tweeting this contest (leave a link to your tweet as your comment).
2) Earn one additional entry by following this review blog publicly via Google Friend Connect.
3) Earn one additional entry by following my “regular” blog Honest & Truly! publicly via Google Friend Connect.

Good luck!

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a mini plush giraffe from MomSelect and Precious Moments. I did not receive any compensation, and all opinions expressed are my own.

  1. My biggest skin problem is redness.

    urchiken at gmail dot com

  2. my biggest skin problem? Probably breaking out when I'm stressed or really hot.

    lauren51990 at aol dot com

  3. follow this blog

    lauren51990 at aol dot com

  4. I get hives once in a while from various foods.

  5. My skin always gets really dry during the winter months.

  6. my face breaks out ALL the time for every little thing... SO embarrassing!

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.


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Monday, July 28, 2014

Free Saratoga Horse Pick for Monday 7/28

Overnight rain has once again taken the races off the turf at Saratoga. There might be some interesting bets, but won't know until after scratches.

To purchase today's selections, visit

For Monday's Free Pick ~

Saratoga race 8 - #6 CALISTOGA - might be at the right place at the right time. There is some serious speed signed on for this affair, hoping Calistoga sits the perfect trip, tips out around the far turn, then draws off while reveling in the mud.

The very best of luck.

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Saturday, December 30, 2006

Who is this?

Having a bored day, and with wireless internet access, that equates to me doing strange things - so here we go, which Super hero are you?
Your results:
You are Green Lantern

Green Lantern
Wonder Woman
The Flash
Iron Man
Hot-headed. You have strong
will power and a good imagination.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

Umm...maybe I should turn the laptop off - I have no clue who this guy is!

I need to learn me some Greek, so I can understand the New Testament a little better. There's one word that is bugging me a bit, I don't know whether I'm looking into it too much, but there we go. Its in my mind for a reason, and now I wish I'd done Biblical languages during my degree.
It's the word 'belong' in 1 Peter. Any ideas? Like the original Greek meaning? Or the New Testament context? Umm...

On another note...there are now Christmas photos online atflickr. All good ones, with a Christmas theme. Seen as the limit for downloading is really big, I'm going to put a lot more on in future.

Not a lot else to say really, life is going along. Getting ready for parties tomorrow, trying to find out what everyone is doing while I'm at church.

Friday, December 29, 2006

Feeling Deflated

I've just found out that my ring is not worth as much as I thought it was, which shows how much I know and also is rather annoying and upsetting. Its worth more to me than what I was offered, so now I really don't want to let go of it, but probably should. I've been given some good advice about selling it and how much I should receive for it, but still its hard to hear a jeweller say that he doesn't feel theres much value in it.
But like my sister said 'they don't buy sentiment', I guess its true, so there we go, I'm going to keep it for a little while long, and hope that someone would like to buy it from me for a little bit of money.

Thursday, December 28, 2006

New Toy

I was going to keep a secret, but I'm a girl and I like to share things, so I'm going to tell you that I've got a new laptop!!
Tomorrow is going to be spent transfering some of my work so that I can leave the 'zombie laptop' (Ant's nickname for the beloved machine that has been dying since May!) in Billericay and not have to worry about whether the keyboard is going to work, or how long the battery is going to last. I do have to pay careful attention to what I download and how I treat the tiny thing that is sat on my lap at the moment. Its a Philips X55. I'm so excited, I can pick it up in one hand without breaking my wrist and the blood doesn't get cut off to my feet when I'm sat down with it!
I was told that I'm a girly boy today, just because I got all girly about a new laptop and then stated that I loved technology. Its how I feel though. I can get excited about having a new toy to play with and I do love the fact that computers are getting smaller.
We also went to giant Tesco, to do a bit of shopping. Spending my Christmas money already, but for good reasons!!

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing day!

We're all 'relaxing' after a busy Christmas, its all over and I'm already looking for things to spend my money on! Is that awful or what?

Christmas, as my sister says, was quite an achievement this year. With a 5 year old and a toddler who is 20 months, dinner was the craziest thing I've done in years. Children just don't sit still any more. Of course, I can't remember being five, but I'm sure in the years after that I was glued to my seat during Christmas dinner, and had to ask if I could get down. It was a good day anyway, it seems to run really smoothly (because I stay out of the kitchen!), the whole family understand what they are allowed to do, and what they aren't.

Boxing Day was the usual. My family extend Christmas for as long as possible, as far as present opening goes, we start on Christmas Eve and finish on Boxing Day. This year we were joined by my Nan - no girlfriends or boyfriends (as we had last year), just Nan, that meant that we strangely behaved ourselves over dinner!!

Christmas does have its ups and downs, we were reminded on Christmas Eve, by our vicar, that there are some people who don't have enough to eat all year round and personally I was reminded that I'm single now and I don't have a wedding to look forward to (or organise) any more. The ups come from getting a whole series of C.S.I. on DVD, getting cards from the people in Bristol and falling asleep during POTC, but still knowing exactly whats gone on when I wake up!

Saturday, December 23, 2006

Brand new!

I realised I can't write spanking in a title of a blog, its probably not right!

Anyway, I'm sat in front of a totally new computer and benefiting from the wonders of crystal clear screens and broadband, I'm just waiting for wireless to hit the house so I can sit in the comfort of the living room and blog. At the moment I have a cold hand! (Yes singular, no mistake!)

We've also got a recordable box now, which makes watching TV so much more fun, we only fight over when we're going to watch the recorded stuff now!

I still have to find a new laptop, I'm thinking ultra small and light, to save space in the office and my shoulders when I'm traveling. If I could go home with a new laptop, that would be ideal, but we'll see. The keypad seems to be working fine, since I started to complain. Funny, that!

Being back at home is interesting, we've already spent a morning in Basildon, and I've managed to help mum with wrapping presents, though not much else! My room is still as cold as the outside temperature, which means I'm finding getting up a little difficult. IS there a away to wrap a room, so it keeps all the heat in?

Thursday, December 21, 2006

When a day just gets better and better...

Today has been an awesome day! With all that has gone on in my life recently I needed to spend a day smiling, and today has been just that! So thank you to everyone who has blessed me, even if they don't know it.

I've received numerous presents, which I am itching to open, but won't do until Boxing Day (as per family tradition), had lunch with a friend (which included cake!!) and had a conversation with someone who is on a cruise ship off the coast of Cardiff! Very brief, but it was great to hear from him!

Off home tomorrow, as I keep saying, can't wait to be home, but I'm going to miss Bristol and work... I'm sure God will use me while I'm at home. He always does!

Happy (belated) birthday to my boss, who was dreading 30, but looked like he really enjoyed himself yesterday!!

I spent yesterday trying to get over my cold, by working with a lot of 5-10 year olds for the afternoon! Much fun, a little out of my comfort zone, but I managed it, and I've realised that there is still a scary side to me.
I spent a good hour on my hair yesterday, because its so long and I'm getting bored of the 'dead straight' look, its too serious! So here's what I came up with

'All by myself'

I think I look good, but I swallowed a can of hair spray to achieve it, and didn't feel too good until I got some fresh air into my lungs!

I'm on my way home, tomorrow morning, my good friend James is picking me up and we're going back to Billericay together, which is better than being sat on a train on my own, and carrying a huge suitcase with me. I do however have to do the return journey on my own, so I'm practicing a little restraint!

Monday, December 18, 2006

Not a lot to say...

But I'm going to blog anyway.

Today I'm feeling a little run down, after all of the joys of the weekend. I was almost sent home, but refused, because I'm basically well enough to long as I get to eat and drink too. And the office needed to be tidy, otherwise none of us could work.

Staff meeting this morning was interesting, lots of different things to consider for the new year, and now I realise how uncomfortable I am praying aloud when I don't have a clue what I'm saying! I have to pray aloud when I'm on my own because my focus drifts horribly, but when there are a load of people I respect in a room, my thoughts and sentences fall to pieces! Got to keep trying though!

Tomorrow my main event in the Youth Alpha leaders team meeting, which I'm slightly spooked about as I've never done Alpha in any form as a leader, so I'm going to be learning and leading at the same time! Hard to strike a balance!

One last thing, in my general 'curl up and die' mood this evening I came across some awful TV. It was about Princess Di's dresses and how apparently they're all cursed. Now I know its been 10 years since she died, but can't we just leave her alone please. Americans crying over someone they've never met is a little odd, and do we talk about Mother Teresa in the same way? I have never seen or heard it. Ok celebrate someone's life, by all means, but believing that dresses are cursed just because they belong to a woman who died in a tragic accident? Too far fetched for me.

Going home on friday, and looking forward to it.

Saturday, December 16, 2006

Mettle/RE:fresh Banquet

A whole day on my feet, but I loved every moment of it!! Everyone looked amazing all dressed up. It's great to see the lads put in the effort too. There's not a lot else I can say really. It's my first one, I didn't quite know what to expect, but it was beyond what I'd imagined. I was disappointed that I couldn't eat my roast though!

A huge amount of effort went into the evening. I've never handled so much cutlery in my life! We were talking about getting my brothers in on the act for next year - they both work in the silver service industry and would be ideal for the job! It looked so good at the end and all of the party goers were really thankful for it.

I took a few photos, but none of myself, I'm waiting for the main ones to be put online so I can see what I really looked like. By the end of the night, my feet really hurt, but I wanted to keep going, after all, I have been a student, and I'm used to going until 2am at least, so finished by 12 meant that I still had two hours of energy left!

So I phoned a friend, one who I am not going to see for another 6 months. Someone who I have know for a long time. He's doing the right thing by going away, but those who know him are going to miss everything about him. He's a great person, who can alway put a smile on my face! Well Done, Rich, good luck with everything!

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Blogging from a limited keyboard

Not that limited, but its amazing that the letter in the middle of q and e means that my blogging is a little stranger and there are not as many open questions. Beleive me this is harder than it seems. Typing http's is annoying, and my shift key dosen't like making capitals! Going to need a replacement soon. FED UP, GOING TO TURN THE LAPTOP OFF!

Monday, December 11, 2006

Being unique...

As Helen has mentioned - she spent the weekend (well, about 36 hours!) visiting me in Bristol and spending time in Cheltenham with old friends. It was really good to see a lecturer who is now a pastor and a family who I haven't seen in a long time.

Funny thing is the phrase that was used the most was 'nothing changes'. I guess there are certain traits that don't change - like my love of shoes and dresses as well as my obsession with pink, but everything else is constantly moving on. Religion, the people we are friends with, the seasons, thoughts and feeling, faith. All of these things are changing, developing. I'm lucky that I have a constant through all this: God and His faithfulness. I can trust totally that when everything around me is unrecogniseable, God will still provide for me. Its brilliant.

My Bible notes this morning were challenging and so was Ant's sermon yesterday. Have you ever looked at Genesis 1 as an instruction or a commandment? Each 'day' of creation starts with 'Let there be...', so in God's perfect creation, why do we have to change what is already there?

Ant spoke about stepping out in God's image of who you are, being happy with who you are and not asking 'but what about them?'. John 21, where Jesus talks to Peter about becoming the head of the church, was a passage that Ant used. Jesus says to Peter 'Follow me' after telling him not to worry about John. Are we so concerned about others that we miss the point of what Jesus says to us? Jesus calls us by name, and says 'follow me', He's got everyone else sorted, so we don't have to worry about it. Of course we should have fellowship, share and question faith, but we are all just as important to God as each other, given our own gifts. Loved. Equally. With our own paths, and God wants you to step into who He wants us to be.

And this is who I am -

Pink Christmas Tree

Pink tree. I finally found some decorations, after being stubborn about going into the loft (via a ladder that is not attached to anything!). What do you think? A tad unconventional, but then haven't I always been?

We're all currently looking to the future, which all seems rather exciting, and scary too!

Thursday, December 07, 2006

...for the weather to let up so I can walk home without getting too wet.
...for this evening to come so I can have my massage and manicure, then go to Rock Solid.
...for Helen to arrive tomorrow evening so she can chill.
...for my brain to slow down so I can listen to God.

I've spent the day in relative silence (as much as you can have with three people in an office) after being challenged this morning to spend time listening to God and to do it every day...which for me means getting up earlier to do Bible reading notes, not having the TV or the radio on from the moment I step in the door or wake up and (this one is the hardest of all) not thinking while it is silent around me.

All too often I think 'right I'm going to listen to God' and then I spend that time thinking of what I need to be doing or I'm praying, which is talking to God, rather than listening. It's really lazy of me to start jabbering in my head when I'm trying to listen, after all I don't do it when I'm listening to my friends - I'm totally focused on what's coming from their mouth, otherwise I wouldn't be a very good friend.

So now I am going to try my hardest not to talk whilst I'm listening. What are you going to do?

I'm going to post pictures of my Christmas tree at some point, when I've got a few moments. The weather is not going to be clear or sunny again today, and if I don't leave now, I'm never going to get home. It's winter and it's starting to show!

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Time to get back to work!

Its funny how a week ago life was slow. Now Christmas is coming up rather fast. Things have picked up quite a lot. We've got various things happening all at once in the office and in church too. We're looking forward to the New Year as well as trying to focus all our energy into the next week and a half.
Trev came back from training more tired than when he went which is a little worrying.
I've spent a majority of the day (and I'm still not finished...why am I blogging?) on Alpha stuff, which is good.
I'm excited about the new term and the possibility of a youth centre, we did a walk round as a team this morning and it has loads of potential! Watch this space...

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Thinking it over

There are so many things to think about at the moment. Christmas is approaching fast (and it's all I seem to write about) and therefore the New year isn't that far off. We had a 14-18's meeting this evening which covered so many things. There's an awful lot to think about when there's so much going on in the ministry you're involved in.

Being busy is obviously a blessing in disguise for some. So bear a thought for Ant and Helen who are both struggling in their own ways at the moment.

It's important that a lot of prayer goes into the next month at least (if not forever, but you know what I'm getting at!).

I'm also starting to realise just what it means to be single and what effect it is having on me at the moment.

Pray and pray hard, but be sincere. I know that God feeds the birds, so He will do more for me than I can ever imagine! Ask and it will be given, knock and the door will be open.

Monday, December 04, 2006

Getting into work... 11am. Gotta love it! Although I did get soaked - it started raining as I left the house and stopped just after I got into the office!
I'm leading f.h.c.u. at lunch time and have the minimal amount of prep, which is why I'm working and blogging at the same time.
The radio seems to have taken the Christmas thing too far already. Commercial radio is using 'Santa's world tour' before playing a Christmas song - all of which I am slowly realising are at least 10 years old! No-one has done a Christmas themed song for yonks! I don't think the invention of X factor has helped! And 'Santa's world tour'? Really? Find something different..please. Or just play the songs, they don't need an introduction!
Ok, enough ranting, got to get back to work!!

Sunday, December 03, 2006

Its so cold my hands are staring to hurt if I don't put them in my pockets! How brilliant is that? We're finally getting into the proper winter weather. But that does mean that I'm going to get some sort of sickness soon. Oh well. Looking forward to the next few weeks, we've got parties and gatherings that the entire village has been invited to.
Last night was excellent, in fact my day off yesterday went really well. I've almost finished my Christmas shopping and wrapped everything in one afternoon. The icing on the cake was seeing An audience with Take That last night. I was sat in front of the TV with the biggest smile on my face and in awe of what I was seeing. It was just amazing. The boys have aged really well and the music as with them. I want to see them in concert now. They have updated all of their old songs and done some really clever things with them. I wasn't sure that patience was a good song, but it grew on me.
The Mix is going on tonight and its called 'Christmas Unwrapped' which apparently is the regular talk for the Christmas Mix, it also means that today is a month from when I split up with Henry. I'm praying that I hold it together. I'm starting to miss various things about our relationship and am in danger of doing stupid things, so pray for strength.
I'm reading Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell at the moment. Its a great book. Read'll be amazed at what you find.

Saturday, December 02, 2006

Can someone enlighten me as to the benefits of BetaBlogger (or the other way around?). I have no clue as to a) why it is any different from normal blogger and b) why I keep getting told that I need to change!

Thank you people who have commented. I'm on my way to figuring out the lightbulb situ, just haven't had any good light to do it in, seen as I have been out of the house for a good 11 hours today and I'm going to be out for most of tomoro! Christmas shopping again!

RE:fresh this evening was good, but it seems I need eyes in the back of my head to keep up with what is going on around the coffee shop. I also need to start learning everyone's names, cos I'm totally clueless at the long have I been doing this for?


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3 Powerful Tips: For a Great New Year!

fireworksAs the new year approaches, it is a good time to take stock of your life and ask yourself if you like what you see. A new year can offer a fresh start – which can mean beginning something new or leaving behind some old habits or behaviors you no longer want to continue. The article below from Rene Godefroy addresses this very thing. I hope you will give serious consideration to the 3 tips below and begin your start to a Happy New Year in 2013!
Here are 3 powerful steps you can take to free yourself from frustration and to start enjoying the good life:
1) Know “where you are.” Have you ever been lost in a residential area and no one was around to ask for directions? Now if you are somewhat familiar with the area, it’s easy to just turn around here and there and find your way back. But the worst part about being lost is when we are lost and we haven’t a clue where we are.
So, where exactly are you on your journey now? Do you know exactly how much money you owe? And how many assets you have? What are your strengths? And what are your weaknesses? Here’s a good exercise to help you know “where you are”:
Draw a map of your life and make every square a city. Name each square with an aspect of your life. One city can be your family, friends, knowledge of your field, spirituality, work, charity, financial, etc. Then rate each city from one to ten. Ten means you are doing extremely well, and one means it needs immediate help.
What I just shared with you is like having a balance sheet for your life. Put all your weaknesses on one side and your strengths on the other side. Put your strengths to work and strengthen your weaknesses. You can read more books, go back to school or find a mentor. Perhaps you can learn 50 to 100 power words this year in order to get a verbal advantage. Whatever you do, keep in mind that a better year begins with a better you. The readers of No Condition is Permanent know about this.
2) Do an inventory of friends. That’s right. Make a list of who your friends are, and how they relate to the direction your life is going in. When companies want to increase their revenue, they get rid of unnecessary employees or ones that are holding them back. So when you are ready to increase your worth, you need to get rid of unnecessary friends. I am talking about those that only cause you grief and are a pain in the “you know what.”
If you want to accomplish great things, you need to surround yourself with great people or people who have accomplished great things. You might say, “well, how do I find these great achievers you are talking about?” If you own a copy of No Condition is Permanent, refer to it for the answer.
You and I know fully well that some so-called friends are not worth the aggravation. They are draining, and they sap the life out of you. Consider this: Small people are always talking about things, but great people talk about ideas and concepts. Do you find yourself mentally stimulated when you are with your friends? If you are not, then you should be.
3) Quit killing time. Have you ever heard people say, “I’m just killing time.” Those people should be on death row for first degree murder. If they only realized how precious time really is. I have a wealthy friend who once told me that he can make millions of dollars any time he wants. He can purchase more homes, cars, and other luxuries. But the only thing he can never buy himself is more time.
His point is that he values his time more than his money. Wow! People who have little regard for time always find themselves engaging in activities that have nothing to do with improving their lives or that of those around them. They are routine people. They just do the same old things; they are just going through the daily motions. They love to shoot the breeze and just chill.
Listen, you are entering a new year, and you are not getting any younger. You may have lost so many opportunities. As a reader of my newsletter, you are important to me. I can’t stand by and watch you squander your time and procrastinate. That’s why I am encouraging you to find out “where you are” and start taking action to change your life. Take my advice. Inventory your friends and stop killing time.
I wish you all the best in this year!
Rene Godefroy works with companies to help them boost morale, increase productivity and improve performance. Mark Victor Hansen, Charlie T. Jones, Nido Qubein, W Mitchell, Les Brown and Jeffrey Gitomer endorse and recommend Rene’s book No Condition is Permanent. You Can find more info at http://www.villagehero.com or http://www.abcmotivation.com

Home for the Holidays: Tips for Grieving Families

Home_ the_night_before_christmasThe Holidays can bring families together, but during grief, it can also tear them apart. Grief is a family affair. It is important that families allow one another the freedom and support they need to move through and beyond their loss. Especially during the Holidays when emotions are “running high.” Here are some suggestions for families:
  • Talk about grief and feelings with one another and as a family. Confront any questions or concerns that surface about how family members are handling their grief.
  • Encourage open discussions about the loss and do not be afraid to cry together.
  • Accept help and support from others. Also be sure to recognize when other family members may need additional help.
  • Allow space for individuals to experience grief in his or her own way without criticism.
  • Try to stick with family routines as much as possible to foster stability and consistency
  • Individual time. Allow family members to ask for time alone when it is needed.
  • Remember that everyone in your family will move through grief at a different pace. Allow time for family members who need it, while enjoying the success of those who are resolving their grief.

Recognizing the differences each of you face in dealing with grief will allow you to pull together during a time when it is most important. Although grief can turn your attention inward, be sure to focus on your family during the Holiday Season.

The above is an excerpt from the book Hope is Like the Sun.


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December 24, 2009

Islamabad Hotels

Five Star Hotel, located at the foot steps of Margalla hills, close to Rawal Lake & the town centre, President & Prime Minister's House, Foreign Missions, World Bank, and government offices
Total Rooms: 258

Address: Aga Khan Road, Shalimar 5
Islamabad, Pakistan
islamabad hotels
islamabad serena hotels
islamabad hotels hall
new islamabad hotels
serena islamabad hotels

1 comment:

Nadeem1414 said...

These all hotels are excellent and in at different locations at Islamabad, so all of them the new Islamabad hotel is excellent and also the seven star which is only one in Pakisatan

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Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Purchase Non-Food Thanksgiving needs

Today:   If hosting, purchase napkins, paper goods, centerpiece items, and anything else needed to make your holiday table appealing.

If a guest, gather appropriate "outside" clothing for your family and pack in one suitcase.  This might be winter coats or swimsuits, depending upon your destination.

©Marie Calder Ricks/

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Friday, November 7, 2014

Burn fat AFTER your workout by doing these 3 exercises (study)

Today I want to share with you one of the biggest secrets in fat burning that you MUST know.

What’s the secret?

It’s not how many calories you burn during the workout that matters.

It’s how many calories you burn after the workout that helps you burn the most fat.

Let’s put this into perspective.

Say you do one hour-long workout and burn a total of 450 calories during that session.

You think you’re doing pretty good, right? 450 calories is going to yield you a weight loss of almost a pound a week if you do this daily.

But this workout did little for your metabolic rate, so once you’re finished, your calorie burn returns back down to baseline.

Now let’s take a second person. This person does a 30 minute session that contains a different type of exercise – a more intense exercise that’s going to target an increase in your resting metabolic rate.

This person only burns 300 calories in that session since it’s only 30 minutes in length (but it is more intense, so they burn more per minute while doing it).

But that’s not where the real magic happens.

The real magic takes place when this workout causes you to burn 10 more calories per hour more than you normally would for 24 hours after the workout is completed.

Now, 10 calories per hour above baseline may not seem all that special, but let’s do the math.

Calorie burn during the workout = 300.
Calorie burn after the workout = 10 X 24 = 240

Total Calorie burn = 540

So now you have 540 calories versus 450 calories and you exercised half as long.

See the power in that?

This is how you need to structure your workouts.

And how do you do that?

This is the power of metabolic workouts.

They help you burn fat even after the workout.

A collection of 72 best resources of burning fat <=

The AWESOME thing about metabolic training is the fact that by performing them, you are increasing your resting metabolic rate that we just mentioned above because of the nature of the workout design.

One study recently published in the Metabolism journal noted this very thing.

When subjects performed one of two exercise training protocols, either an endurance training protocol or a high intensity interval training protocol, despite the fact that the endurance training protocol utilized over twice as much energy to perform the session (120.4MJ versus 57.9MJ), when corrected for the energy cost of training, the sum of the skinfold reduction after the training period indicated that the high intensity program was nine fold greater than the endurance training group.

What does this mean?

Working out using interval training was WAY more effective than long-cardio workouts

== > Discover how to sculpt, lean muscle and shed body fat (72 amazing resources)

In the study above subjects lost 9X more total body fat by doing interval training versus endurance training.

So the results are clear. If you want fat loss, interval training should be the name of your game and there’s no better way to do interval training than through using bodyweight exercises.

If you are still stuck on the treadmill doing hour after hour of cardio training, it’s time to put an end to that.

== > 72 INCREDIBLE Resources for dropping body fat at 97% Off

You will never look at a workout the same way again.

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Disney Value Resorts 101- What They Offer and How To Choose Between Them

For a budget-friendly Walt Disney World vacation, choosing to stay at a Value Resort is the best option. With rooms available starting as low as $85/night, there are five Disney Resort Hotels to choose from, each with their own unique personality. To help you decide which hotel is right for you, we’ll take a closer look at what each has to offer.

5. All-Star Sports

The All-Star Sports Resort is located near the Animal Kingdom park and offers guests a selection of standard hotel rooms in one of five building categories. Each one focuses on a different sport like Football, Baseball, Basketball, Tennis, and Surfing. The buildings have larger than life displays of the featured sports that blend into the buildings and the surrounding areas. For example, you enter a large football helmet to get to a staircase. The food court is called the End Zone and the lobby displays pictures of different athletes.

Only standard rooms are offered with two double beds or one king-size bed, but connecting rooms are available upon request. Guests can also ask for a preferred room which is located closest to the food court and main pool. The hotel overall has two pools on property that are in the shape of a surfboard and a baseball diamond.

4. All-Star Movies

The All-Star Movies Resort is also near Animal Kingdom with the same standard room options available. These rooms, however, are themed to Disney films that include 101 Dalmatians, Fantasia, Toy Story, the Mighty Ducks, and Herbie: The Love Bug. Like the Sports resort, Movies also has enormous statues representing each film. In the Toy Story area, a large Woody and Buzz Lightyear face each other while other characters like Rex and Bo Peep are in between them on a slightly smaller scale.

The lobby displays pictures of famous actors and includes a photograph of Shirley Temple presenting the famous Seven Dwarfs Oscar to Walt Disney. Dining is found in the World Premiere food court with each food station being a different marquee. Two pools are also at this resort, near the Fantasia and Mighty Ducks areas.

3. All-Star Music

The All-Star Music Resort wraps up the three All-Stars and is also near Animal Kingdom. However, this resort offers both standard room sizes and family suites that can accommodate up to six people instead of four. These rooms include a double sleeper-sofa and small kitchenette. The themed buildings are centered on different styles of music and include Calypso, Jazz, Broadway, Country, and Rock. Items like jukeboxes, guitars and maracas are alongside their buildings while Disney characters from the Three Caballeros can be found in the Calypso section.

The Intermission food court is styled similarly to the Sports and Movies resorts and the two pools here are in the shape of a guitar and a piano.

2. Pop Century

The Pop Century is a Value Resort that is near the Wide World of Sports complex. The buildings are themed after different decades that include the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. Like other Value resorts, preferred rooms can be requested that would be in the 60s area right near the Hippy Dippy pool and Everything Pop food court. Unlike the All-Stars, Pop has three pools in total. Besides the 60s pool, there’s also a bowling pin pool and a computer-shaped pool.

The lobby here has a wall covered with pictures, toys, and other memorabilia from the decades featured throughout the resort and every so often, the Cast Members come out and teach guests how to do the hustle. Throughout the resort, trivia facts about each decade can be found along with Disney characters from films that came out during those decades.

1. Art of Animation

The Art of Animation Resort is not only the newest Value Resort, but the newest resort on WDW property. What separates this resort is that it consists of mostly family suites. Divided into four areas, guests can choose a suite in the Cars, Finding Nemo, or Lion King areas. Those looking for a standard room can book a Little Mermaid room, which is the furthest away from the food court and bus stops. Art of Animation also includes the largest pool on Disney property in the Finding Nemo section. Two smaller pools can be found in the Little Mermaid and Cars sections. Guests get to walk through scenes recreated from the featured films from the Cozy Cones to the African jungle.

The lobby features sketches of characters from the four movies ranging from original concept art to the final versions. A special chandelier hangs in between the concierge desk and the gift shop that is made up of panels with character sketches. If you look closely, you can see some of them have been signed by their voice actors.

Each value resort offers bus transportation, WiFi, an arcade, delivery service, jogging trails, and other amenities found on the WDW website. When choosing a Value Resort, consider what theme most appeals to you and how immersed in Disney characters you want to be. Pop, Music, and Sports feature more icons than characters where Movies and Art of Animation are more based in the Disney films. Also consider your party size as family suites can only be found in Music and Art of Animation. The resorts are also close together so you can stay at one and still visit the rest.

Kristina is a freelance writer and full-time marketer who is a loud and proud Disney fan. Besides Disney Fanatic and How To Disney, she has also written for, Disney Avenue, and XOJane. A frequent visitor to Disney World, she enjoys trying something new each trip and experiencing all Disney has to offer. She lives in New York with her cat, Lizzie.

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Saturday, October 29, 2011

Another Way To Control Weight

Overweight and obesity are big headache for health experts around the world as these 2 conditions will likely raise a person’s risk of getting diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension (high blood pressure), and eventually lead to heart disease or stroke. The medical cost involved can be a heavy burden for the governments.

In order to control body weight, one should watch the amount of food he or she eats. Numerous studies have looked at how the portion size can affect on the amount people eat. A new study, conducted by researchers from University of Utah, Salt Lake City, examined at how the bite size will influence the quantities ingested.

In their paper published in July 2011 in the ‘Journal of Consumer Research’, they argued that bigger bites lead to eating less, but only in restaurant settings.

The study was carried out in a popular Italian restaurant in the South-Western United States. 2 sizes of forks were used to manipulate bite sizes: a larger fork that held 20 percent more food than the fork usually used in the restaurant, and a smaller fork that held 20 percent less than the usual one. It was found that diners who used large forks ate less than those who used small forks.

Tables were furnished with either large fork or small fork over 2 lunches and 2 dinners in the restaurant. Servers, including one of the study's researchers, took customers' orders, and weighed the full plate of food that they had ordered before serving it to them.

Each plate was attached with a small sticky note written with details including weight and other information. At the end of the meal, every plate was brought back to the kitchen and weighed again. The results showed that diners who used the bigger fork ate less food than those who used the smaller fork.

Such theory, however, only worked in a restaurant setting. In another study conducted in the laboratory using also Italian food, researchers found that people who used big forks actually eat more. Hence, the study concluded that there are different motivations when people eat in a restaurant or a laboratory.

If you wish to control the amount you eat, perhaps you should ask for or simply bring along a big fork the next time you visit an Italian restaurant!

Friday, October 21, 2011

Can Olive Oil Prevent Stroke?

Olive oil is known to benefit heart disease patients.

Some clinical trials have found that Mediterranean diet, with olive oil as key ingredient, helps control some risk factors for heart disease, including high blood pressure, abdominal obesity and elevated levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol. Besides olive oil, Mediterranean diet also includes plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish and moderate amounts of red wine. High olive oil intake is also linked to a lower risk of heart attack, and a longer lifespan among heart attack patients.

Recently, researchers from the National Institute of Health and Medical Research in Bordeaux, France even suggested that older people who ate olive oil have a lower risk of stroke than those who did not. Their paper was published on June 15, 2011 in ‘Neurology’, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

They followed 7,625 French people who aged 65 and above from 3 cities (Bordeaux, Dijon and Montpellier) for a period of 5 years. The participants were divided into groups according to their use of olive oil, ranging from people who did not use it at all to those who used it in dressing, cooking and on bread (classified as ‘intensive’).

During the period of study, there were 148 strokes. Those intensive users suffered stroke at a rate of 0.3 percent per year, comparing with just over 0.5 percent among non-users and 0.4 percent among moderate users.

After adjusting for factors like body weight, physical activity and overall diet, the risk of stroke for ‘intensive’ olive oil users were found to have 41 percent lower than that of those who never ate olive oil.

Based on the findings, it seemed that a new set of dietary recommendation should be issued to prevent stroke in people who are 65 and above. Olive oil can be an inexpensive and easy way to help older people prevent from getting stroke.

People should choose olive oil and other unsaturated fats over saturated fats that are found largely in meats and dairy and trans fats that were found in some processed foods such as crackers, cookies and chips.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Would Meditation Help Heart Disease Patients?

Any practice in which the practitioner trains his or her minds or self-induces a mode of consciousness can be called meditation. As it is generally an inwardly oriented, personal practice, people can usually practice it by themselves. While meditation has been practiced since thousands of years ago for various reasons, it is now commonly used for relaxation and stress reduction.

Since 1960s, meditation has been the subject of scientific research. There were more than 1,000 published studies that linked various methods of meditation to changes in bodily processes including metabolism, blood pressure, and brain activation.

Meanwhile, popularity of meditation has grown steadily. A 2007 study by the United States government found that about 9.4 percent of adults (over 20 million) had practiced meditation within the past 12 years, up from 7.6 percent (more than 15 million people) in 2002.

In a paper published on June 27, 2011 in the ‘Archives of Internal Medicine’, researchers from the Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa reported that meditation would cut the rate of death, heart attack and stroke by half.

The 9-year study on the effects of meditation of heart disease patients was funded by the National Institute of Health, and the stress-reducing technique used is Transcendental Meditation.

Trial was conducted at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee in collaboration with Schneider’s Institute. The study tracked 201 African American men and women, with an average age of 59. These participants had narrowing of arteries in their hearts. While staying on the prescribed medications, they were randomly assigned to either a meditation group or a control group that was given conventional health education classes.

A comparison of results from the 2 groups showed that those who practiced Transcendental Meditation had the risk of death, nonfatal heart attack and stroke decreased by 47 percent. Significant drops in blood pressure, stress and anger found among people in the meditation group might help explain the results.

Researchers felt that more studies should be carried out to confirm the results. They also pointed out that meditation should not be a substitute for drug therapy for heart disease patients.

The study, nevertheless, highlights a hope that health conditions of heart disease patients could be improve if these patients are taught how to effectively reduce psychosocial stress.