A small piece of plastic can mean so many headaches

The image you see in this blog posting is of a small piece of plastic that was kicked out of my HP 722c printer on Friday. This piece of plastic is not part of the internal workings of the printer, but rather, part of the mechanics of making sure the paper that is spit out of the printer comes out evenly. It's a part that that would, normally, be "unessential" to the workings of a printer, but as I found out, this small piece of plastic is costly in both time and money.

This small piece of plastic prevented my printer from doing anything other than a flashing light, telling me if I wanted to print any document, I was screwed. After a photo session Saturday (annual family photos), Wifey and I went to Office Depot and bought a new HP PSC1500 printer to replace the otherwise faithful 722c. I got the 1500 out of the box, set it up, and started the instal process (software on a CD to use the printer). 90% done with installing the software, I get an error message, saying a driver for CD burning software I have on my computer is incompatible with the printer software. The suggestion made by the printer software was to uninstall the "offending" software, continue with the printer installation, then upgrade the cd burning software. Like some sort of lemming, I followed the software's instructions.

What I didn't know until it was too late was that the CD burning software was bundled with the drivers that enabled my computer to recognize, and thus use, my 2 cd drives. For the next 36-48 hours, I tried deleting unnecessary files and backing up others by e-mailing them to myself at my office. Removing that CD software also screwed-up my Arial font, which is system-wide.

I downloaded the latest version of the CD burning software today, and TADA, I have my CD drives back. I tried installing the printer again. It gave me the same error message I had before, but this time, I deleted the offending file, and the install finished just fine. So, now, I've got my CD drives back and access to a new printer, but my Arial font is still screwed up. Tried today to download a new copy to fix that problem, but all I can find are web sites to buy the Arial font. Pardon me, but no.

BBQ Sauces, recipes and such

Here's a concept logo I did for the BBQ sauces I've been making (and posting on this blog). I'm working on a cookbook, and I would LOVE any recipes you could submit. I'm hoping to get a coookbook together to promote on my radio station, the proceeds of which would go to a local charity (the local battered women's shelter, for example).

I've posted a few recipes on this blog over the past few months, here's your chance!

Another Awesome Recipe

This time, the recipe is Chinese Stir Fry with Chinese Brown Sauce and Sesame Noodles. Easy prep, and lots of flavor!

I don't want to hog up the blog with tons of text for those who might not want to see the recipe, so I have links for the recipe for you to download.

As a Windows Word document.
As a PDF file.

Enjoy!

New BBQ Sauce

Well, I've tried out a new BBQ sauce that differs significantly from the "regular" sauce I make, in that it uses water instead of vegetable oil and beer, and uses onion soup mix and a touch of maple syrup in addition to the ever-wonderful brown sugar. It's a very tasty sauce (I'll post the recipe later) - I used it on some giant steaks a couple of nights ago, and the results were well above par.

Yesterday, I slow-cooked a moose roast for dinner (Wifey and I had our 8th Wedding Anniversary yesterday). As we have done in the past (with country ribs and my other two BBQ sauces), the roast was drenched in sauce and cooked on "low" in the crockpot ALL DAY. I love BBQ sauce, and I love moose meat in any form, but I would recommend to anyone thinking about using the "new" sauce with moose... don't do it. The flavors in the sauce just didn't marry well (hehe, "marry well"... Anniversary dinner...) to the flavor of the moose. I think, though, that this "new" sauce would work very well with pork or chicken (again, it's fantastic with beef).

I'll get the recipe for the "new" sauce up on the site soon. Try it when you get a chance to!

Awesome Chicken Recipe

Got inspired last night to make dinner for Wifey and I, so she would have a hot meal when she got home from teaching dog obedience. I was pleasantly suprised with the results...

Give this one a try, it's pretty easy...


Radioguy's Sweet Baked Chicken


Ingredients

• 1 cup light soy sauce
• 1 cup brown sugar
• garlic powder, to taste
• onion powder, to taste
• 1 pinch ground ginger
• 1 dash lemon, lime, or orange juice (optional)
• chicken wings (or drumsticks), enough to fill a 9x9 inch glass baking dish

The trick is to combine the soy sauce and brown sugar in proportion to the amount of chicken you're using. Last night, I used 6-8 chicken wings and a couple of chicken legs (whatever I had in the freezer, that is). If you use more chicken (if you are cooking for more than two people), use a bigger backing dish and try more of the soy/brown sugar combination. Chances are, though, the proportions above should be sufficient.

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Place chicken pieces in a baking dish.
• Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl - mix well (until brown sugar has dissolved).
• Pour mixture over chicken.
• Bake chicken for 30 minutes, remove from oven and turn chicken pieces over, spooning the "sauce" over the chicken.
• Bake for another 30 minutes, remove from oven and turn chicken pieces over, spooning the "sauce" over the chicken.
• Bake for another 15-20 minutes and remove from chicken. Let cool for 5-10 minutes.
• Serve with salad or rice. Very tasty!
  

If you end up with additional "sauce" after the chicken is done, you can reduce it for a thicker "sauce". Just be careful while reducing it, as it has a lot of brown sugar, which can burn easily. The ginger gives the dish a slightly Chinese flavor - for a different flavor, try leaving the ginger out and adding some mild chili powder (for example). Experiment with it, and have fun!

Let me know if you get an opportunity to try this recipe!

A Wish For All the Difficult People In Your Life

I can't remember who sent this great picture to me, but the picture is appropos.

An open letter to bulk mailers, spammers, and off-shore e-mail distributors

Dear Sir or Madam:

I would like to thank you for the e-mail I received from you today. It is comforting to know that you (and others like you) consider me (and millions of others like me) a possible consumer of the product/service you are selling. However, I will not be purchasing the product/service that you (and others like you) are offering to me (and millions of others like me) today, and there are specific reasons why. Allow me to explain.

• I have no interest in purchasing Viagra, Cialis, or related products, and my “personal relations” with my spouse are none of your concern.
  
• I do not intend to purchase pharmaceutical products from Canada, thank you.
  
• Small cap stocks? I think not.
  
• Visit your pay-by-credit card porn site? No thank you, I’m not interested. And if I were, there are terabytes upon terabytes of pornography on the World Wide Web that does not require a credit card, let alone valid identification.
  
• Refinance my home loan? I (and millions of people like me) either rent or have already refinanced my home loan, through a reputable, local, financial institution. So, no thank you.

While I (and millions of people like me) will not be giving you our business, some people may. To improve the chances of obtaining those clients, I have five recommendations.

1. Before you send an e-mail, please obtain a grasp of the English language, and how to use it in the printed form. For example, the subject line of your e-mail should read, “Discount offer on Viagra,” not “dude, she likes iT bigGer. Cheap ViAgrA noW.”
2. Please learn to spell. You may have better results if your e-mail’s subject line reads, “Opportunity to make money in the stock market with a low initial investment,” not “small cap St0cks.”
3. Make a concerted effort to know who you are sending the e-mail to. If my name was - for example, Jerry - why would you send me an e-mail with a subject line that reads, “Look at this, Julie”???
4. I (and millions of people like me) would be more inclined to look at your e-mail if the name of the person sending the e-mail doesn’t make me (and millions of people like me) giggle out loud. It’s difficult to take an offer to refinance my home loan seriously when it is sent by “Humungous G. Pointless,” “Foolish R. Investment,” or “Spanky Foofernickel.” If your name IS Spanky Foofernickel, forgive me – you’re still on my ignore list, and you should sue your parents for years of counseling and lost revenue potential from mass -emails.
5. Finally, consider changing the domain/e-mail provider to better match your name. If your e-mail says it’s from “Katherine Smith,” and the e-mail address says “frank_jones@aol.com,” I (and millions of people like me) will give your offer a sideways glance. E-mails from foreign countries always raise a red flag for me (and millions of people like me) – basically anything that does not end in “.com,” “.net”, or “.org”. May I suggest becoming a client for a reputable American Internet Service Provider?

With “hindsight being 20/20,” perhaps you should consider giving up on the e-mail efforts and concentrate on more accepted forms of advertisement? Chances are that I (and millions of people like me) would be more apt to take offers by you (and others like you) seriously. A free market is a wonderful thing, if done correctly!

If you would like to send me feedback, or if you would like to send me additional offers, please send e-mail to “Frankly T. Enormodrome” (todd_jones@jkllirhs.dk) or “Y. R. U. Botheringme” (allan_smithy@freddyfredsuperfreddyfredrickson.bz)

Buy American! Shop American!

Yours truly,

RaDi0gUy (and millions of people like me)!

Poor Man's Pizza

Another recipe from the mind of Radioguy...

Wifey and I are on the low-carb diet thing, and have been for a few years now. "Believe you me," - it really isn't that bad. Smart substitutions for everyday ingredients make the low-carb lifestyle very easy. Thursday nights are our "low-carb pizza nights," that is, we get a low-carb pizza each Thursday night from Pappa Murphy's. Well, I am a big pizza fan, so I came up with something to tide me over until Thursday nights...

POOR MAN'S (LOW-CARB) PIZZA

INGREDIENTS

• 4 slices of bread (or 2 flour tortillas)
• pasta sauce
• onion, chopped
• green bell pepper, chopped
• cheddar cheese, shredded

This one is an easy-cooking meal. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spritz a cookie sheet with vegetable oil. Place the bread (or tortillas) on the sheet, and spritz them with oil. Thinly spread pasta sauce on top of the bread (or tortillas). Add toppings, witht the cheese on top. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until bread (or tortilas) are crispy and easily removeable from the cookie sheet. Serve hot.

This recipe is a winner, I think. Much more "family friendly" than the "fried spaghetti" or "burnt weenie sandwich" recipies I've been tossing about.

ANOTHER GREAT BBQ SAUCE

Here's another sauce for you BBQ nuts... This one is different from the "regular" sauce I cook/use, most notably that it does not use tomato paste or beer, and that it uses mustard as a key ingredient. I haven't got a disctinctive name for the sauce yet. For now, it's just "Radioguy's BBQ Sauce with Mustard."

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon gound thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon gound black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt or salt substitute
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 cup blackstrap molasses
• 1/2 cup yellow mustard
• 1/2 cup dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation

Combine dry ingredients in a food processor and mix/grind until the mixture obtains an even consistency (ground pretty fine), then place dry mixture into a medium-sized saucepan. Add the wet ingredients and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionly (so as the molasses and sugar don't burn the bottom of the saucepan). Pour into a glass jar (I use an empty 16 oz. beer bottle with a ceramic stopper).

This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three months. It is great with chicken, hot dogs, ham, etc.

BBQ Season is almost here!

With the coming of BBQ season, I wanted to share a homemade BBQ sauce recipe for any and all to enjoy...

RADIOGUY’S SPICY BBQ SAUCE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup catsup
• ½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 1 tbls. Vegetable oil
• 1 tbls. Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce
• 12 oz. tomato paste
• 12 oz. Beer, any brand
• 1 ½ cup onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

DIRECTIONS

• In a 2-quart saucepan or pot, combine the catsup, brown sugar, lime juice, vegetable oil, Worchester sauce, tomato paste, and beer.
• In a food processor or spice grinder, mix the onion and garlic, then add to the sauce.

Heat all ingredients to boiling; reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Yield: about 5 cups of sauce.

(for a spicier BBQ sauce)

• ½ tsp. Chili powder
• ½ tsp. Cayenne pepper
• Jabenero pepper sauce (to taste)

For a spicier BBQ sauce, mix the optional ingredients in a food processor/spice grinder, and add to the sauce (I recommend preparing the sauce AS IS, adding the “hotter” ingredients to taste).