Blog Cookoff - Anyone interested?

After a comment by Mamma Bear in reply to Jacked Up Glock Mom, I thought I might put some feelers out for a blog cook off contest. I don't know what the prize will be other than bragging rights, but it sounded like a fun idea.  I'll host and setup a nice blog entry ( w/ links ) for the voting day, just let me know if you want to enter. Deadline for entry is the 29th at 11:59pm.

I do have a few rule suggestions though...

1- Pictures have to be posted!!!
2- Recipes have to be included ( bonus points for old family recipes ).
3- Presentation matters
4- A cheap bottle of wine has to be included ( exemptions for AA or any other reason really )
5- The post title has to be " Blogger Cook Off Entry" or something???? to identify it.
6- Entrants have one vote, but cannot vote for themselves. ( To prevent a six way tie of 1 vote )
7- Sunday the 30th of September is the posting date. Voting begins through the comments section on Monday the 1st of October.

Any other rules?
Suggestions?
Comments?
Spread the word through your blog, and let's have some fun!

I'll update as the comments roll into my email....

Contestants And their links:

Jacked Up Glock Mom & Senor
Pioneer Preppy
Myself ( K )

Test Results

Here are the results:
33/35 on Basic Patient Care ( 94%)
68/70 on Radiographic Anatomy (99%) + 1 bonus point
...FYI the ligament that connects to the Hyoid bone is the stylohyoid ligament.
42/47 on Procedures I ( 89.3% )

So, if you'll excuse me I have something waiting on me.....

Mid Week Update

To all three four six of my loyal followers,

It has been a busy week. Row, my first grader, started Cub scouts this week. Scouting was the only group activity that  I really wanted to push on my sons. I like the values and activities, and this is the last place that I'm aware of that he will be saying the Pledge of Allegiance. This is really a sad commentary on America. I remember having to place my hand over my heart every school morning as a kid. I guess I'm showing my age.

We went to the local scout shop, and got nearly all of the gear that Row needs. Red Ant had to have a cub scout shirt and belt too. I don't mind, he's gonna be a scout too. I figure that it will be cheaper to buy it now, rather than later. I was disappointed to see that all the patches and clothing that we touched were not made in the USA. I think that this is fundamentally wrong, and would be willing to pay more for an American label.

School has been keeping me busy. I have three different tests on Friday: Radiographic Anatomy, Lab Procedures, and Basic Patient Care. Thankfully, this will be the last time that I have three tests scheduled on a Friday. Physics of Radioactive Isotopes in quite hard, and this test is on Wednesday. I'll be ready for a beer when I'm done. I am taking 15 hours this semester, and the  'A's  start at 93%. I have one A and the rest are B's, to varying degrees, and am really struggling with this reality. I really hate it when I'm chasing an 'A'.

The world has gotten a lot crazier, but I won't post about it, you can read the news yourself. I posted this on Small Holding blog site and could make an entire post about it. "I don't know how much more duct tape and baling wire this world can take without it falling apart. Keep Right On prepping, it's gonna get rough."

Congrats to my cousin for their new baby girl. Another female for the compound! A.T. probably already has the baby doing pushups.

Matt - Good Luck!!!

Keep Right On Prepping, Take Care, and Phone a Friend.

  

 COUNTDOWN TO BOOK BOMB DATE OF SEPTEMBER 25th: LINK TO MY STORE

6 DAYS

MRE Monday - Almond Poppy Seed Pound Cake

If it is posted early in the morning, then I already had it done. In the evening, I just did it for dinner. Anyways, here is today's MRE.

Nutritional Information:

Serving Size: 71 g or 2.5 oz.
Calories: 310
Calories from fat: 140
Total Fat: 15g or 23% DV
Cholesterol: 30mg or 10% DV
Sodium: 270mg or 11% DV
Total Carbohydrates: 38g or 13% DV
Dietary Fiber: 0g or 0% DV
Sugars: 20g
Protein: 4g
Vitamin A: 0% DV
Vitamin C: 0% DV
Thiamine: 10%
Riboflavin: 6%
Niacin: 6%
Calcium:  8% DV
Iron: 10%
Folic Acid: 6%

Expectations:
I expect that it will be very similar to the Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake.

Realities:

Right out of the gate, Row took a small bite and said that "I don't like it." After a little questioning, he said that it tasted funny in his mouth. It was the texture that was turning him off to the dessert. He did say that it smelled good though.

Red Ant, our youngest, was much more receptive to the new dessert. "Yummmmm...I like it very much", which might be the first time I have ever heard him say very and much together. I offered another portion, and he gladly took it, but this time said that "I super like it." Well, sounds like a winner to me.

My dear wife, Sweetheart, noticed the heavy almond extract scent almost immediately. "I'd eat it again.", was her overall assessment. She did make the comment that the heavy scent didn't carry over to the taste of the pound cake. We looked at the ingredients, and found that it was the artificial flavors that carried the scent, but it didn't translate into taste.

I thought it was good, and maybe a bit on the dry side. The flavors carried over towards the end of the taste, and it would also go great with a cup of coffee.

Realities:

We'll order it again, but probably won't make it on this month's order. I would probably consider this a secondary item, even though it rates three stars. Not that it's bad, but we would prefer different items to have in our BOBs except for Red Ant's bag. $1.10 was the price on the last invoice.

Try it out.

Stars: * * * ( 3 )

Picture Collection #4

Stephen & his new and improved Boar's Nest retreat. No more wet ammo!!!

New screen saver

The 90's seems so long ago.

[/sarcasm] Yep, putting America back to work. [sarcasm]

 

Curiosity Rover images of Earthrise.

Link to article ... Earth is the lowest "dot".

 

 

 

 

 

Space Shuttle Cockpit

For my brother...here's a new screensaver for you. Van Gogh style

Election Prediction

I've gone out on a limb a few times since I've started this blog, and I'm gonna go out on it again. I am predicting that President Obama will win a second term. I know that this is an unpopular position to take, especially in the blogging world.

Here is my reasoning:

1. Population of USA:  311,591,917 . Which we will round up to 312 million.

2. "During the 2008 presidential election, there were 132,645,504" people that voted. I'm going to round it up to 133 million people.

3. SNAP ( Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program ) / WIC recipients will likely vote for their master. If someone is "giving" you money, are you going to vote for someone that wants to take it away? I don't think so.

***3A. "As of August 2011, 45.8 million persons were participating in SNAP."
             This is 14.679% of the US population.
***3B.  "9.17 million people who received WIC benefits each month in FY 2010"
             I believe that this number is even higher now, considering the current economic conditions.
             This is 2.93% of the US population. Most of these recipients are children, but I'm sure that the parents will remember where their food is coming from.

"In 2010, the average SNAP client received a monthly benefit of $133.79, and the average household received $289.61 monthly."

This equals roughly around 17.6 % of the Total USA population. This number will carry over to the percent of  people that vote. The voter apathy of the poor can be negated by liberals, if not more.

4. I will also make the assumption that registered voters will continue to vote along their party lines. Which leaves just the independent voter as the most courted group of voters.

"169 million registered - 86 million Democrat- 55 million Republican - 28 million others registered."

Even if Romney captures all 28 million Independent votes, he is still 3 million voters short, and this doesn't take into account ethnicity nor food stamp recipients in item #3

5. Cash, yes cash. We also need to look at who has how much.It is currently reported that Romney has $60 Million more than  Obama.

6. The Liberal Media will pick and choose what news is "worthy" to report. Obama has the advantage.

7. The incumbent usually wins.

 "There have been 31 presidential elections in which a sitting president has run for re-election. (This includes Franklin Roosevelt running for this 3rd and 4th terms) Of those 31, the incumbent won 21 times. That is a reelection rate of 67.7%"

8. The economy will also be a factor this year, like every election year.  I think that the economy has been bad for so long, coupled with the American attention span, that any small good news will greatly benefit Obama. The price of gasoline and the pocketbook of Americans has always been closely related, and the recession/depression is keeping the price of oil down.

9. Point two about the economy. Around 80% of Mitt Romney's contributions are from large individual contributions and the top five campaign financiers are the banking/stock industry. The economic climate does not favor the silver-spoon-in-the-mouth candidates. Mitt will try to distance himself from the rich, but the harder he tries the more obvious it is.

	Small Indiv. Contrib. Large Indiv. Contrib.	$37,310,424 $156,626,329
Total Individual contributions		$192,355,237

10. Obama's campaign contributions are about 40% from small individual contributions. These people are invested in the Obama campaign. If you are invested, you're going to vote for them.

	Small Indiv Contrib. Large Indiv. Contrib.	$137,921,783 $213,696,880
Total Individual contributions		$347,909,254

This is just my unbiased opinion. In all likelihood, I will not be voting this year. The United States of America is really in trouble if this is the best two candidates that America has to offer.

"Keep Right On" prepping and getting ready!!!
Comments are always welcome.


SOURCES:
(http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=kf7tgg1uo9ude_&met_y=population&idim=country:US&dl=en&hl=en&q=population+of+us)

(http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_registered_voters_in_the_2008_Presidential_election)

(http://www.snaptohealth.org/snap/snap-frequently-asked-questions/#howmany)

http://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/faqs/faq.htm#3
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/partisan_trends

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_registered_voters_in_the_2008_Presidential_election
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110512141245AAUeDCz
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/index.php

............

8:46am

 

Never Forget.

MRE Monday - Maple Muffin Top

Still running a little late getting these posted, but it's here! This is the other MRE my wife was ready to sample.

Nutritional Information:

Serving Size: 2.2 oz.

Calories: 270
Calories from fat: 130
Total Fat: 14g or 22% DV

Trans Fat:1.5g

Cholesterol: 45mg or 15% DV
Sodium: 300mg or 13% DV
Total Carbohydrates: 32g or 11% DV
Dietary Fiber: 0g or 0% DV
Sugars: 18g
Protein: 3g
Vitamin A: 6% DV
Vitamin C: 0% DV
Calcium:  2% DV
Iron: 4%

Expectations:

My hope is that it is like a homemade muffin top, probably a little more cake like or moister.

Realities:

Red Ant, our 3 year old, took two bites before he decided to pass it on over to Sweetheart. She did happen to get Red Ant to take another bite. I did ask him what he thought, and Sweetheart offered to options of yummy or kinda yummy. He chose kinda yummy, but for him to eat 3 bites was a real good sign that he liked it. Otherwise, he would flat out refuse to eat any more.

Row, our six year old, got excited and said, " It smells like syrup! ( chew ) It taste like syrup too!" He ate a third of the muffin top and when I asked him if he wanted more he replied that " I want some more, I want it all." An excellent sign.

The family food critic, my wonderful wife, after taking a bite said that " It's the best one we have tasted...period." She compared the smell to an early morning when the pancakes have cooled and the house is drenched in the smell of pancakes and syrup. She also noted that the first taste had a strong maple syrup flavor, but mellowed out into a more subtle cake flavor. The texture was also a big improvement from other MREs we have tried. The ever present slight chemical taste was also absent..another first.  ( I sometimes wonder if she is a super-taster. )

Her critique is hard to follow, but I also liked the maple muffin top. I thought that the texture was much improved and the moisture level was good too. I thought it would be similar to the maple sausage sandwich from Mcdonalds and it was close taste-wise, but much moister.

Final Thoughts:

We thought it was a good product, but really excited that Row was all about the maple muffin top. He was more excited about this product than anything we have tried so far. They will be reordered at $1.25 each, and would make a great morning meal.

Stars: * * * * ( 4 ) 

  

 COUNTDOWN TO BOOK BOMB DATE OF SEPTEMBER 25th: LINK TO MY STORE

15 DAYS