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2020-12-19 Thoughts (from Blog )
Dec 19, 2020
I reached a tentative compromise with Facebook. It is potentially important to me for business. At the very least for using their advertising platform. Not an ideal solution but it’s where I am in business right now. If I could make all my living off of consulting on email that would be a different story. So I signed back into Facebook and unfollowed nearly everyone. Notifications are still off. I think I get notifications from FB Messenger but I’m not quite sure. [Read More...]

Goodbye Facebook (from Blog )
Dec 13, 2020
Earlier this week I was realizing I was feeling a bit down due to my reading Twitter and general stupidity on Facebook. I had also been thinking about building a future online discussion group for select clients of mine. For discussion / community purposes, I’ve considered Facebook Groups in the past. These days, though, I’m re-thinking about the tradeoffs between “free” online services and the damage they do to society by everything from tracking and selling our information for advertising and government intelligence freelancing to societal damage from manipulating dopamine in our brains, encouraging grevience, and acting as an accelerant to enable further stupid by the current president. [Read More...]

Successful Clients (from Blog )
Dec 13, 2020
I had a 2 hour business call yesterday afternoon. Yes, on a Saturday. A potential client and I had been discussing over some weeks options for how she could work with me, what the business opportunity is that she is building, and other details. I had inadvertantly gone quiet for a few days earlier in the week and she really wants to get started. It was a good meeting. We still don’t have the details worked out but the potential money is very good and looks possible. [Read More...]

Gingerbread Cookies (from Recipes )
Dec 13, 2020
This is originally from Disneyland. It has every quality I think of when I remember the gingerbread of my youth. Which probably means it’s informed by the gingerbread house I discovered and illicitly nibbled upon as a toddler… Ingredients Gingerbread Ingredients 1/4 cup unsalted butter 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup “fancy” dark molasses (not cooking, blackstrap, unsulphured, or lite) 3 1/2 cups flour 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp ground cloves (optional) 1 tsp ground cinnamon 3 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp ground cardamom 1/2 cup water Royal Icing Ingredients 1/8 tsp cream of tartar 2 egg whites 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar Instructions In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. [Read More...]

Crème Brûlée Base (from Recipes )
Dec 5, 2020
I never really understood the allure of Crème Brûlée. I think what it comes down to is I don’t care about the sugar crust on the top. For many, I understand, that is the best part. To me, I want the creamy part underneath and I’m not interested in playing with a blow torch. Despite this, a year or so ago I started playing with the custard part of crème brûlée and doing different flavorings. [Read More...]