What's in a ñame?

     As I previously wrote, only Martha Stewart could convince me to purchase the exotic looking tuber, ñame.  I always study those aliens to my diet; they reside in the grocery store bins next to equally foreign looking plant parts like aloe spears (salads?), cactus pads, yucca roots, and chayotes.  Back in 1993, I lived with a family in Mexico for 6 weeks and the señora cooked a lot of chayote and it was fabulous but try as I might, I couldn't make it taste the same in my home kitchen.  

  

     So I bought a small ñame and looked up a recipe on the internet.  I was directed to cut it up like chips, season it and cook it in the oven until it browned.  The recipe also alerted me that ñame was "jucier" than a potato so I should use caution when slicing it.  I discovered that "jucier" actually meant "sickeningly mucous-y"; not the same as juicy at all.  There was some serious okra-style shite going on in my kitchen.  

     The finished result looks and tastes ok and while I appreciate earning kitchen cred for preparing it, I don't need to do it ever again.  

     Out of curiosity, I Googled "true yam" to see if the ñame appeared in Indian cuisine and was directed to a recipe for "elephant yam" and warned that this yam could make my fingers itch for days.

I don't even know what to say about that except that I WON'T be preparing elephant yam, ever.

     Now is a good time to post this picture:

     I'm the first to admit that I spent over half my life reviling football.

Then I moved to Florida with a former college football player and decided I might try to enjoy the game a little.That's when I looked at the TV screen one day and realized: Tom Brady is handsome, tall and athletic; I love this game!

     But I digress...

     More uses for the ladder rack on my 1995 Ford Ranger:

    Keeps the dachshunds in a holding pattern while I arrange their travel bed on the front seat.

    And now for a photo of the most perfect chicken butt EVER:

     This might seem like a strange thing to post but since Pearl spends much of her time running away from me I've had ample opportunity to study the beautiful arrangement of feathers on the back of her tail and it really is perfect.  

     The temps are cooling and I suspect the frog sightings will lessen for the winter but this little guy was hanging out by my front door yesterday, waiting for the bugs to gather around my porch light.

     I found this amazing looking caterpillar on my mango tree.  While I appreciate its unique beauty, I appreciate my mangoes more so I removed it from the plant.  It made some kind of an irritated sound every time I moved it.  

     And a fishing picture:

     No, it's not a very exciting fishing picture but it was a beautiful day on the Indian River in Oak Hill, Florida.  The stepsons, who normally lose interest is fishing after the first cast, all insisted on having their own rod and since I only packed 3 rods, as it's never been an issue before, I ended up buying cheap cane poles from the bait shop for the girls to use, thus avoiding more male drama.

     I figured out how to successfully "cast" a fairly long line from the thing but my cane pole days started and ended on that dock.  Next time, I'll pack MORE than enough rods and reels.