So I have not done a post in what 6 months or so????

I am doing a post so people who do not follow me on Facebook know yes I am still alive and well! Getting ready for a big move to Florida in September! I guess I have to change my heading as I finally am moving to FL, just not the keys.....but someday. Life is crazy right now as we are trying to sell, give away, throw away most of our worldly possessions so we can fit what we are taking into our new 32 foot Rv we purchased. Well let me rephrase that it is new to us but not new....its a 1986 Allegro 32 foot class A. This is going to be an adventure if I do not lose my mind first.

I plan on taking pictures of all the states we go through and blogging about our adventures. I am nervous but God willing we will make it there safely.

I'll be back :)

112 Best Free Downloads, Sites, and Services: The Full List

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Full article.....this is very useful I use a lot of these sites :)

112 Best Free Downloads, Sites, and Services: The Full List

Here's our entire collection of the best free downloads, sites, and services available today, sorted by category.

Adam Pash and Rick Broida, PCWorld

PCWorld's 112 Fantastic Freebies

• 21 Free Utilities to Customize and Upgrade Windows »
• 15 Free Security and Backup Utilities »
• 19 Freebies for Smart Web Browsing, Social Networking »
• 20 Free Ways to Manage Video, Music, and Photos »
• 11 Free Efficiency Enhancers for the Office or the Road »
• 16 No-Cost Tools to Improve Productivity, Collaboration »
• The 10 All-Time Greatest Free Downloads and Services »
• 112 Best Free Downloads, Sites, and Services: The Full List »

Want to correct Windows problems, make your PC or mobile phone more capable, and get things done faster online--all without opening your wallet? Check out these 112 incredibly useful, incredibly free downloads, sites, and services.

This year, we divided our picks for the Best Free Stuff into 17 categories, listed below. If you can't decide where to start, take a look at the greatest hits--some of the classics we've spotlighted over our 15 years of picking free apps, services, and sites. Or try a few of our favorite social networking and video assistants, programs and services we couldn't have even imagined that long ago.

Of course, we also have selections in popular categories such as PC customization, security, and productivity, as well as photo and system utilities, lifestyle enhancers, timesavers, and more.

For a more detailed look at our Fantastic Freebies, see the stories listed in the box to the right.

All-Time Greats

• Ad-Aware Free: Stops spyware
• Audacity: Records and edits sound
• BitTorrent: Easy online file sharing
• Dropbox: Online file syncing
• Evite: Fast party planning
• FreeConference.com: Unlimited conference calls
• IMDb: Movie facts and trivia
• OpenOffice.org: Microsoft Office alternative
• The GIMP: Tool-rich image editor
• Trillian Basic: Chat with friends on many instant messaging services

Antivirus Utilities (Tested By PCWorld)

• Alwil Avast Home Edition: Capable and thorought malware detection
• AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5: Excellent detection and disinfection
• Avira AntiVir Personal: Good PC disinfection
• Microsoft Security Essentials (beta): Nearly perfect in disabling infections

Audio Apps and Services

• AudioTag: Easily ID songs you can't name
• Buddha Machine Wall: Calming music source
• Grooveshark: Great place to listen to music
• Mp3Tag: Universal tag editor for audio
• Myna: Advanced audio editing
• Speakershare: Share your best PC speakers with your other computers
• TunesBag: Access songs from any browser

Backup Utilities

• Backupify: 1GB of storage, weekly backups; download backups to your PC
• Comodo Time Machine: Backup utility protects files, folders, and programs
• Macrium Reflect Free Edition: Images your hard drive for PC restoration
• SDExplorer: Access 25GB of online storage from Windows Explorer
• SpiderOak: Gives you 2GB of online backup; saves selected files when changes detected
• SyncToy: Easy home-network syncing
• Todo Backup: Images your drive or a partition

Browser Add-Ons, Apps, and Utilities

• CeeVee: Online résumés with custom sharing
• Lazarus: Recover info typed into Firefox
• MailBrowser: Manage Gmail contacts, attachments, and more
• MyBrainshark: Add narration to a presentation by speaking over the phone
• PDF to Word: Turns PDFs into edit-ready docs

Collaboration Services

• LogMeIn Express: Secure screen sharing (great for troubleshooting your dad's PC)
• MiNeeds: Connect with and receive bids online from local contractors
• Tinychat: Disposable chatrooms
• Yammer: Facebook-like communications features for businesses
• Zoho Discussions: Add a feature-rich discussion forum to any online destination

Desktop Customization

• BumpTop: 3D desktop that allows you to pin up notes and photos
• DeskHedron: Create up to nine 3D desktops that you can flip through
• Fences: Organize desktop icons and make them disappear when you want them to
• InterfaceLift: PC wallpaper library
• Krento: Rotating 3D circle for app launching
• Rainmeter: Attractive, seamlessly embedded desktop overhaul
• StandaloneStack 2: Animated shortcuts for easy access to folder contents
• T3Desk: Minimizes programs to the PC desktop

Mobile Apps and Services

• BlueRetriever: Helps recover lost gadgets
• Connectify: Turn your laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot
• Instapaper: Bookmark Web pages; strip them to text-only for easy mobile reading
• OverMyMinutes: Helps you stay within your cell-phone plan allotment
• Xpenser: Track expenses via the Web

Photo Utilities

• Easy Poster Printer: Print small to giant posters from your digital images
• The Golden Hour Calculator: Find the best light to shoot photos
• Paint.Net: Lightweight Photoshop alternative
• Phoenix: Web-based image editor
• Shrink Pic: Autoresizing of digital images

Productivity Tools

• DoPDF Free PDF Converter: Fast and simple PDF conversion
• Drop.io for Outlook: Share large files in Outlook
• Ecofont: Special design allows this font to consume less ink
• Everything: Thorough indexing and fast search of your desktop
• FlockDraw: A Web-based "cocktail napkin" for shared ideas
• Fonolo: Gives you access to phone menus for customer service numbers
• iCurrent: Free news site with personalization
• Liaise: Outlook add-in keeps tabs on all of your important action items
• MakeSomeTime: Keeps tabs on invoices, projects, and billable hours
• ScreenToaster: Create and e-mail or upload a video of a screen that explains something
• Tom's Planner: Easy Gantt charts

Security Utilities

• KeePass: Organizes and protects all of your important passwords with just one password
• OpenDNS: Protects kids from online violence, pornography, and other unsavory Web material
• SuperAntiSpyware: A robust malware fighter
• Web of Trust: Vets the links you click in your browers for security issues

Self-Improvement Assistants

• BudgetSketch: Track where your money will go before you spend it
• DailyBurn: Presents charts and graphs to track your fitness program
• Habitforge: Train yourself in new habits with the help of daily reminders
• Learn10: Ten new foreign-language words daily
• RunKeeper Free: Use your iPhone to keep track of your jogging sessions
• YouTube EDU: Videos of Ivy League lecturers

Social Networking Tools

• Brizzly: Performs a makeover of the Facebook and Twitter interfaces
• FacePAD: Download photo albums from Facebook, via Firefox
• FriendShopper: Shop online with friends
• Microsoft Silverlight 4 Beta Client for Facebook: Better photo-upload tool for Facebook
• OutSync: Copy friends' Facebook photos into your Outlook contacts records
• PhotoGrabber: Download photos of you found in other users' albums
• Splitweet: Tweet to single or multiple accounts at the same time
• TwInbox: Outlook add-on brings Twitter tweets to your inbox, and more

System Utilities

• Better Paste: Autostrip formatting from text with a keyboard command
• FixWin: Easy repairs for common PC annoyances
• Ketarin: Keeps your third-party apps up-to-date
• Portable Ubuntu Remix: Runs Linux applications on your Windows machine
• Teracopy: Fast file copying on the PC
• Ultimate Windows Tweaker: Optimizes all areas of Windows 7 or Vista
• Win7 Library Tool: Add the contents of networked folders to libraries, and more
• Wizmouse: Makes your mouse's scrollwheel work with any window it hovers over

Timesavers

• Belvedere: Automated file manager works with the rules you set
• Cache My Work: Autoreloads the apps running when you restart your PC
• Ninite: Installs your all favorite free apps in the background, after a Windows reinstall or anytime
• PhraseExpress: Monitors your typing for shorthand text and expands it to larger snippets
• Read It Later: Mark material for later enjoyment in Firefox or on your smartphone
• Rescue Time: Monitors your apps and sites and provides graphs on how you spent your day

Video Tools and Services

• Boxee Beta: Plays back PC and Web-based media on your HDTV
• Classic Cinema Online: Watch classic films
• Clicker: Aggregates Internet videos
• DoubleTwist: A great iTunes alternative for media
• Hulu Desktop: Desktop app for Hulu's video
• Jinni: Select movies and videos to watch based on keywords such as plot or mood
• Libox: Private network to share large media files
• ShowMeWhatsWrong: Lets people record and share screencasts of what's ailing their PC

Windows 7-Style Features for Older PCs

• AeroSnap: Let Windows XP and Vista utilize the Aero Snap features of Win 7
• Seven Remix XP: Gives XP's icons, box, buttons the look of Win 7 graphics
• Taskbar Shuffle: Reorder XP and Vista taskbar items with a simple drag and drop
• Windows 7 Shortcuts: Add Win 7 time-saving keyboard shortcuts to XP and Vista
• WinShake: Brings Win 7's Aero Peek and Aero Shake features to earlier versions of Windows

Useful Link Thursday

Hi Everyone,

Hope your week is going well. For all my snowbound friends just think it will be spring in a few short months.....no more snow!

I did get a few comments that people like the useful links I have posted in the past so I figured I would try to share some new ones weekly. If you know of a great site please let me know what it is and I will be happy to share it.

One thing I do to save money is to print my own personal bank checks. The cost of 1000 checks was only $19.99 at Office Max. I just use software for check printing and Voila no more stupid fees for bank checks. The software that works wonderful and always remembers the last check number you printed is called Verscheck presto (just click on the link for the FREE download). You just install the software and then using your bank information from one of your checks just fill in the banking info. You can choose from a variety of checks plain or fancy.

Now for the problem I encountered last night that had me cursing like a sailor is that I ran out of checks so I tried to print some more and my printer was out of ink! Now the printer I have uses very expensive ink, it never fades and 2 years after getting the printer the ink still cost $75 to refill if I buy it from a store. But as I love to save money I get ink online and never pay full price at www.ABCINK.com. Just so you know how much you can save my ink at the online store is only $32 for all 6 ink cartridges versus the $75 I would of paid in the store! Shipping is free and I have used them numerous times with now problems.

Those are your helpful links of the day!

Sunday Scramble...a little early

Perfect Eggs while camping

One of my favorite pics I took at my aunts pond

My new Eyeshadow

My new Movies, yes I am a big kid

Little Delilah when she was a kitten

I am playing along with Justine and doing the Sunday Scramble. You just write about what ever pops into your head or post random stuff I guess. I payed $50 bucks for corel video studio software and it is so complicated I can not figure it out without reading the manual.....groan I do not do manuals! So I went back to windows movie maker, it is easy and its free!!!!

Image via Wikipedia

I was looking through some old videos and I found a camping one and I just did a review of
Urban Decays Alice in wonderland eyeshadow palette so I posted those.

My feet are hot and my body is cold....I am weird.

They found some old pictures of Marilyn Monroe that where never released before. I have always loved Marilyn Monroe imagine if she did not die.






This is when Dave went to Vegas for work. I love Vegas it is hot though. They say but it is dry heat, what the heck does that mean???? Yes 104 degrees of dry heat is much more refreshing than 104 degrees of muggy heat?




My brain hurts I do not know what else to write.........toodles

http://isittheweekendyet2.blogspot.com

In search of the perfect Chicken wing...just in time for Super Bowl!

Hey Everyone

I wanted to share this post I found at while perusing www.lifehacker.com: http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/02/the-best-baked-buffalo-chicken-wings-in-oven-not-fried-appetizers.html

If you love Chicken wings like I do this is a must read, Enjoy!

The Food Lab: In Search of the Best Oven-Fried Buffalo Wings

Note: It's time for another round of The Food Lab. Got a suggestion for an upcoming topic? Email Kenji here, and he'll do his best to answer your queries in a future post. Become a fan of The Food Lab on Facebook for play-by-plays on future kitchen tests and recipe experiments. —The Mgmt.

Clockwise from left: wings ready to be baked, a comparison of different wing treatments, really good oven-fried buffalo wings [Photographs: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

Really Good Oven-Fried Buffalo Wings

Here's the recipe! »

Anybody who thinks that eating a baked buffalo wing is any healthier than the deep-fried real deal is about as delusional as Luigi thinking he's got a shot with the Princess while Mario is still around.

A buffalo wing is a piece of skin-coated, bone-in chicken fat that's deep-fried and doused in butter before being dipped in mayo, blue cheese, and sour cream. It's fat on fat on fat on fat on fat on fat on fat. Is taking one of those fats out of the equation really going to make a difference? Unlikely. Want to allay your unfounded guilt? Load up on negative calories by eating an extra celery stick or two and call it a day.

That said, there is a large percentage of the home cook population hesitant to heat up a few quarts of oil in their kitchen (I'd be willing to wager my negligible income that the Venn Diagram of people scared of frying and people who own well-seasoned cast iron woks looks like two non-overlapping circles). It's a group of people who have had to be content with one of two categories of "oven-fried" chicken wings:

• The flour-coated kind that stays crisp and absorbs sauce, but is more akin to KFC in texture than the thin-skinned original.
• The naked kind that is juicy and tender but lacks the blistered, crispy crust that crackles under your teeth and retains sauce so nicely.

Neither method is bad per se. Indeed, if Blake taught us anything with his recent Baked vs. Fried Wing Taste Test, it's that depending on how you like your wings, these methods can actually be better than their deep-fried counterparts.

But is it possible to make Buffalo wings in the oven that are not "different but just as good," but actually indistinguishable from the deep-fried version?**

**Hint: if it wasn't, I wouldn't be writing this right now.

Now, I'm well aware of the fact that by definition, anything other than deep-fried wings tossed in a mixture of hot sauce and butter can never be called "Buffalo Wings. So if you're the type of person who needs to point out authenticity rules like that, you might as well stop reading right now, and find something more interesting to do.

I hear that the no-beans-in-chili folk and the no-cottage-cheese-in-lasagna crew are having an infidels'-recipe-burning party. Maybe you can crash.

For the rest of you, read on.

Wings and Prayers

My first step: set a benchmark by deep-frying and analyzing a batch of wings.

Fried wings: crispy, blistered, and ideal for saucing

As you can see, the key characteristic is the well-rendered, blistered, bubbly, crackly skin, and the moist, fatty meat underneath. Without this ultra-crisp skin, the wings would quickly become saturated in sauce and soggy. At the same time, blistered skin boasts much more surface area than smooth skin, leading to better sauce adhesion, and packing more flavor into each bite.

A baked wing, on the other hand, has a problem:

Baked vs. Fried chicken skin.

Despite near hour-long cooking times for some recipes, the skin never blisters in quite the same way—it stays smooth and tight. What little sauce can adhere to it rapidly causes it to turn soft and soggy.

So what does it take to get skin crisp? There are a few factors involved:

• Dehydration and Rendering. The crisp skin of a fried wing is made up of a hardened matrix of proteins with some amount of liquid fat trapped in the interstitial spaces. Before this matrix can crisp, two things must happen: the water must be fully driven from it, and the subcutaneous fat from the chicken must liquefy, some of it draining out, some of it soaking into the meat, and some of it taking the place of the liquid. Frying, which takes place in an environment well above the boiling point of water accomplishes this rapidly. Hot oil also transfers heat much more rapidly than hot air in an oven, causing this dehydration to proceed at an accelerated rate.
• Browning. The Maillard reaction—the complex series of chemical reactions that create "brown" flavors and colors—occurs at a heightened rate at higher temperatures. In a pot of oil, this takes about 12 minutes. In an oven, it can take over an hour.
• Blistering. As the chicken cooks, small bubbles of air or water trapped in the skin rapidly expand due to the heat. As this happens, it causes small protein-reinforced bubbles to form. Some of these bubbles are lucky enough to simultaneously finish cooking and hardening as they are formed, increasing the skin's surface area, and creating the familiar nooks and crannies on a well-fried wing.

So clearly, in order to achieve baked chicken wing perfection, my goal should be to find ways to increase the rate all three of these reactions occur.

My first thought was simple: why not fry them in the oven? To this end, I pre-heated a rimmed baking sheet with a half cup of oil coating the bottom in a 450°F oven.

What's the point of oven-frying if it ends up even messier than stove-top frying?

Once it was hot, I placed the chicken wings directly into the oil, where they immediately started sizzling, then placed them back into the oven. One flip, and 25 minutes later, I had a batch of perfectly fried wings—along with an oven interior coated in grease, and an array of microscopic burns—from hot oil spitting out of the pan—all along my arms. What's the point of oven-frying if it ends up even messier than stove-top frying? I'd need to find a better method.

Blistered, Browned, and Burnt

So what factors can affect browning? Well, temperature and time are the most obvious answers. But I know that pH also has something to do with it.

For instance, adding a bit of extra baking soda to pancake batter—thereby making the batter more alkaline—improves its browning capabilities. Would the same trick work on my chicken wings? I baked five batches of wings on a rack set in a rimmed baking sheet.

The first straight out of the package, the second tossed in salt before baking (hoping the salt would help draw out some of their moisture), one tossed in baking soda, one tossed in baking powder, and one soaked for two hours in a baking soda and water solution.

Wings baked after various treatments.

As you can see, there is something to the notion that adding baking soda to raise the pH (and thus making the wings more alkaline) indeed does help with browning—the baking-soda treated wing in the center is significantly browner than the plain wing on the left. The baking powder-treated wing is similarly browner, though to a lesser degree (baking powder is made of baking soda mixed with a powdered acid, and has an overall makeup that is only slightly alkaline).

Unfortunately, the baking soda wings had a very distinct metallic bitterness that immediately eliminated them as an option. Baking powder was promising for its effect on browning, but did nothing to aid rendering or blistering.

What about a different cooking method? Would broiling work? Perhaps coating the wings in oil or butter in order to more efficiently transfer heat to them? What if I simply extended the cooking time until the damn things were crisp?

15 different treatments of wings, none of them any good.

Well, extending cooking time doesn't work. Turns out that it is possible to overcook chicken wings—even wings (that were brined in salt water) dried out to a state beyond edible by the time the skin had crisped significantly. Broiling on its own led to wings that were burnt on the outside, and raw in the center.

Desirable for an Oreo maybe, but not for chicken wings.

I tried slow-cooking the wings in a low oven followed by broiling, but it proved nearly impossible to get the wings to crisp evenly—all I got was wings that were crisp on the top and bottom, but soft around the edges. Desirable for an Oreo maybe, but not for chicken wings. SImilarly, brushing the wings in oil or butter proved to ultimately have a negligible impact on the end result.

The real problem? Moisture and fat loss. Well into their baking, the wings steadily release steam and drip rendered fat, showing absolutely no signs of browning until around 40 minutes in when all the moisture and fat is finally expelled. I decided to shift gears: my goal would be to eliminate as much moisture and fat as possible before baking them.

A Rendering Bender

Fans of Alton Brown (including myself!) may have seen his buffalo wing episode, in which he suggests steaming the wings over a pot of water before drying, chilling, and baking them.

Very clever, Alton.

The goal? The steaming process supposedly helps some of the excess fat render out of the skin, decreasing the time they need to crisp in the oven. Also, when the hot wings fresh out of the steamer are placed on a rimmed baking sheet, their retained heat helps their moisture evaporate, leaving you with wings that are in fact drier than un-steamed wings fresh from the package. Very clever, Alton. I compared these wings to plain baked wings, and for good measure, I also included a batch of wings which I gave the Peking Duck treatment: pouring a hot pot of boiling water over them prior to drying, supposedly to achieve similar goals.

I was very hopeful about this method—after all, hordes of internet followers blogging about their success can't all be wrong, can they?

Alton's method sounds promising but fails to deliver when tested side-by-side.

While Alton's methods are always interesting, and often spot-on, my guess is that none of the supporters of the steam-and-bake technique actually performed a side-by-side test. When push came to shove, all three batches were virtually indistinguishable from each other.

Giving it a Rest

It was time to call in the big guns. Sure, it'd be nice if I could pick up a package of wings on game day and have them ready for dipping in blue cheese a few hours later*, then again, it'd also be nice if my book were done written, if my wife was as understanding as she is beautiful, and if I could remember her birthday each year.
Wishing it ain't gonna make it happen. As I rediscovered yet again, good results require careful thought, a bit of work, and plenty of time.

*side note: I have a friend whose admirable resolution this year is to discover more ways to dip cheese into cheese. Mozzarella sticks into blue cheese dressing works, as does a Shake Shack cheeseburger into their cheese fry sauce. Any other suggestions?

I decided to use a method that works wonders on whole birds and red meat roasts alike—air-drying. Hopefully, allowing the wings to dry on a rack overnight will dehydrate them enough that rapid browning can happen in the oven.

I set three new batches of wings on a rack set in a baking sheet and placed them uncovered in the refrigerator overnight, one tossed with baking soda (a smaller amount than what previously gave me a bitter aftertaste), one tossed with baking powder, and one plain.

The next day, I removed the desiccated wings and baked them in a 425°F oven, on the same rack that I'd dried them on. The results were even better than I expected:

Both baking soda and baking powder help improve skin texture.

Check out the hole structure on that, baby!

the baking powder and baking soda-treated wings showed markedly more bubbling and blistering

Although the baking-soda laden wings still had an off-flavor, both the baking powder and baking soda-treated wings showed markedly more bubbling and blistering than their untreated counterpart—just as much as a regular fried wing, in fact!

Could such a dramatic difference be attributed merely to improved browning because of the Maillard reaction? That's part of the answer, but some research revealed that most likely, it's a combination of factors.

Raising the pH does indeed improve browning, but it also creates an environment that weakens the peptide bonds naturally present in proteins. In theory, this means the proteins can break down more easily into shorter pieces, creating a texture that is less leathery or papery, and more crispy. Is it true in reality? Well, my teeth tell me "yes,* but my lack of an electron microscope tells me "maybe."*

*Note to Editors: The Food Lab could use a budget increase, a small key-card secured loft, and a hazardous materials license.

One final advantage from the baking powder: During its overnight rest on the chicken, it soaks up some of the protein-laden chicken juices from within. As it heats, it forms carbon dioxide gas in the same way that it would in a cookie dough or cake batter, inflating these juices into bubbles, which are then naturally hardened by the heat of the oven, and as we all know, extra bubbles means extra surface area, which means extra crunch!

A plate of perfect crisp and juicy wings.

Yummy Food entry

Hi  Everyone

 

Well I am home sick day 2, nasty cold but I am sure I will live.  I have pictures to share……YAY!  This weekend Dave made home made beef stew and yesterday he made Justine’s Artisan bread oooo boy I feel the inches going to my hips!

 

The stew in the slow cooker….Roast beef, onions, tons of seasonings, water, beef broth, celery, carrots, onions and potatoes.

Dave is like stop taking my picture!

 

 

The finished product!  He cut everything really big so it would be real chunky!

 

And next thanks to Justine’s wonderful 5 minute Artisan bread recipe he made this yesterday.  Go to by blogger buddies page for the wonderful and easy as pie recipe:  http://www.stupidisassisterdoes.com/2010/01/tuesdays-at-table-with-cole.html

 

This is a wonderful easy bread recipe, and there was left over dough we put in a zip lock bag in the fridge, it says it will stay good for 2 weeks but I am sure we will make more by then.  I am pretty sure the recipe calls for 6 cups of flower, 2 packs of yeast, and water.  After mixing you just let the dough rise for 2 hours, then you pull off the grapefruit size section you want to cook put it in the pan you are going to cook it in and let rise and additional 40 minutes.  Oh ya be sure to put corn meal or flour on the bottom of the pan so it does not stick.  Oh yes you have to score the dough so it does not crack while cooking.  It is a heavy wonderful bread that is really filling, again thanks to Justine for this!

 

  Gratuitous kitty head shot while she was snuggled between us on the couch, she has it so hard!

 

 

We had a beautiful full moon the other night the sky was so blue and starry.

Well I hope everyone has a good week and hopefully you wont catch any cooties like I did!