Monday, April 08, 2013

Cat-Vexing

     Rannie-the-cat is convinced thwarting her innocent desires to do simple, pleasant things like steal bacon, shrimp or steak,* merely grope about on a plate of people food any time she thinks you're not paying attention or sleep in the bathtub at people-showering time is something humans do for the sheer joy of it. 

     Yes, Rannie.  Yes, we do.

     Or not.
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* First grilled steaks of the season were served up Sunday night. Oh, that hardwood lump charcoal!

13 comments:

  1. Evidently, according to common reports around this house, the only purpose to my life is to thwart the desires of my cat.

    Oh, and fail to fill the food bowl on command.

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  2. Yum! I've used the lump charcoal too. Since I mostly heat with wood now, I usually just use firewood now. Black cherry is a surprisingly good choice for grilling, as well as heating. Hardwood chunks split to about 1x1 or 1x2 pieces started with a generous squirt of lighter fluid are ready for grilling quicker than regular charcoal.

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  3. SBYL Rannie. You know how hard it is to find good help.

    (wv: rmsworks. Yes. Yes it does.)

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  4. LOL, just one of many reasons you "have" to be a cat person to put up with them...

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  5. The sheer joy of thwarting human activity.
    Explains a lot of leftist actions, does it not?

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  6. Rob, lighter fluid? ::sigh:: One has one's methods -- with charcoal, a build a little tipi of twigs with a wadded-up sheet of newspaper inside, then make a loose stack of charcoal on it. Usually takes one or two matches. Wood would take a lot longer to catch, I suspect.

    Windy: yep.

    The rest of yez: Cats! They are what they are. One either likes them or not.

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  7. I know, I know, but by the time the fire is ready it's all burned off. A corn cob soaked in kerosene works really well too. My wife has a phenomenal sense of taste and smell, and she's never complained of any off flavor.

    And I love cats.

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  8. Rob, ;) I was just making the Usual Complaint; with wood, you've got more of a challenge making a large-ish hot area rapidly. This calls for innovation.

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  9. "a challenge making a large-ish hot area rapidly"

    Oh, that's easy! I tried the jellied 'petrol' route but definitely favour the rust/aluminium powder more (although it takes a bit of practice to gauge the correct amount - yes, I'm on my fourth barbie set! But, well, because I can! And that hole in the patio really works well as a conversation starter - once I've helped them out of it at least!

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  10. with wood, you've got more of a challenge making a large-ish hot area rapidly. This calls for innovation.

    Get things started, and then feed in some straight O2 from the oxy-fuel cutting rig... then spread that around and pile more wood on top of those coals, and give it another sniff of the pure quill. Wood fire. Right now.

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  11. ...with wood, you've got more of a challenge making a large-ish hot area rapidly

    I have not had any problem with that. Like I said, if you split the wood into roughly 1 inch by 1 or 2 inch chunks, and then build a "log cabin" with lots of air space, it "goes like a house a-fire". That kind of fire lay always gives me a cooking-ready fire quicker than charcoal ever does. That's with decently seasoned hardwood. No need for accelerant other than the initial start-up. I've used propane to push charcoal along faster. I haven't needed it with dry split wood.

    And the outside cats always like to come around making a nuisance of themselves, hoping for a treat.

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  12. I'm surprised nobody's mentioned LOX yet. Or is that too last-century?

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  13. LOX? Too dangerous and too expensive! And your cat will just eat it right off your bagel when you're not looking.

    A friend of mine who worked with/for George Gobbels at Purdue told me this story. They went to a bar one night and George decided the beer wasn't cold enough, so he went out to his van and returned with a flask of liquid nitrogen which he then poured into their beers.

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