Why I Oughta...

One of the Christmas presents we gave our family was personalized outdoor door mats.   Using this post by Martha Stewart as my inspiration , I set out to make mats with names on them - while Martha's uses numbers.  We started with plain mats from Ikea.   The ones we bought are called Trampa and run less than $10 each. Just like M artha say s, I first started with creating a border.  For these, I used blue painters tape to make an edge that would remain un-painted.  From there, because I was doing names, not numbers, I had to create a stencil.  I did this by printing out the name on paper, affix it to a piece of posterboard and pricking holes through the posterboard to create an outline of the name.  Using a pair of sharp, small scissors, I cut the letters out - leaving behind custom stencil. I popped the stencil in the middle of the mat and taped everything down. Then came the easy part:  spray painting the mats.  Being careful to protect the mat I used a piece of scrap cardb

Equation Boy/Man surprised me one afternoon by inviting me to see the Bulls that night.  He said the tickets were "good".  I had no idea how "good" they were.  This photo shows where we were located:  on the floor.  Like...actually on the floor.  Baseline - right next to the Bulls bench. Those of you eagle-eyed Bulls fans can date these photos based on who is in a suit and who's dressed, right?  Pretty nice view of the game and a lot of inter-team discussions.  As the team left for half-time, they had to walk right by our seats.  Pretty rad.  Thanks again, Marc!

Right before Christmas, I spotted chestnuts and roasting instructions at Trader Joe's.  When I was in there this week, chestnuts were again prominently displayed.  These weren't raw, but rather steamed and peeled.  Are these for snacking?  Are chestnuts going to be "hot" in 2011?  Are they tasty? The TJ's buyer must be awfully close to whomever controls the chestnut racket, right?

I spotted a huge pallet of these in Costco the other day.  You send your kid to school with one of these in his lunch bag, I can guarantee he'll grow up to be a stand-up comedian.

I spent the better part of last week in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show working the show floor, stalking folks in the media room and learning a lot about what makes auto writers tick.  I was armed with a bunch of stats and insights - gleaned from Google's data - and landed some stories. But, this data needed greater exposure, and although just last month, I had my fourth post published ( about Google's 10 year mark in Chicago ), I figured the OGB would give the data a pretty wide audience.  So...I wrote a post for the OGB entitled:  Auto Industry off to a Fast Start in Motown .  This was the second time I've been to the Detroit show and it always amuses me how the industry treats the new models:  they're like brand new babies - kept under wraps.  This (I think) is the new VW Jetta.  Those of you following along at home will notice a similarity in this Auto Show post on the Official Google Blog and the other ones I've written - 4 of the 5

Each January, I take in my change jar to Harris Bank where they tally it up for me.  Starting last January, the proceeds have been heading to a savings account we set up for the Babe.  Prior to that, I think I just stuck it in my checking account and went on with my merry way.   I keep a quart mason jar on my desk and every time I have a few coins in the bottom of my pockets, I try to stick them in there. This year, the total was $19.60. Plus a few Canadians and a green marble (all of which I put back in the bottom of the jar). Which, when looking at the online records from last January, was pretty light.  2009's haul was more than double that at $53.51.   Maybe that's an indication that either I was spending less cash this year or that I was better about using available coins during my transactions.  I'm not sure.  But...next year, we'll have a third data point and that means we can start to claim things are starting to "trend"!

Wondering if the Tostitos sponsorship of the BCS National Championship game and the Fiesta Bowl are paying off for them?   They've faced some criticism for the way Brent Musburger inserted their brand name in the game - something Tostitos said they had nothing do do with.  I can't say for sure that it is money well spent, but based on the buzz on Google searches - which goes through the roof AROUND THE WORLD, I'd say it is money well spent.   They always get a smaller spike around Bowl Season, but this year, the public was clamoring for more info.  Anyone have any insight into why there are summer surges?  The world craving nachos?

**NOTE**  If you're looking to make your own version of this dressing, you should check out the recipe I posted back here:   Lou Malnati's Salad Dressing Recipe . Last week, I was in the Elmhurst Lou Malnati's picking up a pie and noticed that they're NOW selling a bottled version of their salad dressing they've called "Lou Malnati's Sweet Vinaigrette".    That's the second consumer packaged good they have in their take-out shops - with the first being Lou Malnati's Tomatoes.     They sell it in 16 oz jars. I didn't catch a price, but I did catch a photo of the ingredient list. Hmmm...comparing that to the Lou Malnati's salad dressing recipe , it seems that there are a few differences.  First, the bottled dressing uses corn oil (listed first) and olive oil (listed way down), while the recipe posted in the Tribune back 40+ years uses olive oil.  The bottled dressing also has mustard, "natural flavors" and a few differe

After a successful first attempt in baking bread (Pane Cafone) from my starter, I opted to take on bigger challenge:  sourdough baguettes. Using this recipe from Chocolate and Zucchini as inspiration , I undertook the two-day process.  For a first-time baguette shaper and baker, I think they turned out pretty good (aside from that one bent one!). And...they tasted, good, too!  I also took another shot at the round Pane Cafone and that baked a bit better the second time, too! Sourdough Baguettes (nets 4 demi-loaves) 200 grams (7 ounces) ripe starter 600 grams (21 ounces) flour(s) 400 grams (14 ounces) water 10 grams (2 teaspoons) salt 1. In stand mixer, combine flours, water, and starter - let stand for 20 minutes. Then, add salt and knead dough on low for 5 minutes. 2. Cover with a towel and let the dough rest at room temperature for 1 hour. After an hour, fold dough on itself. Wait an hour. Then fold it over on itself again. After those 2 hours, stick a piece of plastic wr

I was gifted a bottle of Dom Perignon from a friend when the Babe was born back in late 2009.  Quite the nice gift, eh? With champagne having somewhat of a shelf-life, we knew we wanted to drink it soon.  We kept trying to remember to bring it out or over to parties, but we always forgot it in our wine fridge.  So...we finally remembered and figured what better way to ring in 2011 than to pop the cork on this baby.  I don't drink A LOT of champagne, but I must say that this was pretty tasty and very drinkable.  I went back for a second glass. Consider drinking a big glass of Dom crossed off my life list.