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Happy Thanksgiving! We had a team fry 46 turkeys and two ducks yesterday for the "hood". I roasted a piggy Cuban style for the masses. Fun day. HS

Pie mode, engage.

Special Slow Post, 50% off act now!

Quick update: purchased a Matrix Audio Mini-i pro 3 via Ebay for 400€. Good bang for the buck I suppose and option to upgrade the dac in de future.

Chicken Taco Soup (🐔 🌮 🍲)

https://folkways.si.edu/pete-seeger/the-complete-bowdoin-college-concert-1960/american-folk/music/album/smithsonian

Chicken Taco Soup (🐔 🌮 🍲)

ZZ Top - One Foot in the Blues

I'm driving to my Brother's house for Thanksgiving. My ailing Mother recently moved there to live with him and his wonderful wife. I'm worried this may be her last Thanksgiving and absolutely have to be there. My Mother is very excited about my visit and has volunteered me to cook Thanksgiving dinner. There is historic reason for her to do so. I cooked Thanksgiving dinner in Texas for almost 20 years. Most years for around 20 people. My Mother tells everyone that I make a better Thanksgiving dinner than she ever did. That's not really true, but I thoroughly enjoy doing it and do a pretty good job of it. I cook my turkey upside down. You don't get the Norman Rockwell photo opportunity, but it is so much juicier and tastier. And I always make my homemade macaroni. I consider it my best dish of all time, and somehow my Brother has never had it. So that'll be fun. So I actually do make quite a few good dishes. But I fully admit that I can't make a better pumpkin pie than Costco, so I know where to put my efforts and where to offer Costco $7.99 for money well spent.

Speaking of Kodak, for all those 8mm/Super 8 shooters, they have you covered (provided you have $5,495). https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/22/23972513/kodak-super-8-film-camera-lcd-screen-price-release-date-specs-features

I'll stop after this post, but Ezra Klein & NYTimes did a couple podcasts recently, one from the Palestinian and one from the Jewish Israeli perspective. I clarified on the latter as 1/5th of population of Israel is Arab, a group possibly pulled in multiple directions, though obviously there are diverse opinions on all sides. The goal of the podcasts, as stated, is not to pick who won, but, if possible, to understand some of both. If you don't have any interest in that probably best to skip. Why Palestinians Feel They’ve Been ‘Duped’ The Palestinian policy analyst and writer Amjad Iraqi on how Gaza’s past, present and future look from his eyes. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/07/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-amjad-iraqi.html What Israelis Fear the World Does Not Understand The writer Yossi Klein Halevi talks about why many Israelis see the ongoing conflict as an “existential war.” https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/10/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-yossi-klein-halevi.html (also on Apple, Spotify, etc.)

from scratch chicken and dumplings

You use the verb "making" the same way my sister-in-law uses it for holiday dinners. For me, unwraping the plastic and warming in the oven is not the same as "making". But then I am no Jose Andreas.

I too am making a pie for Thanksgiving. And by making I mean I bought it at Costco and will drive it to Arizona.

I used to work for an Israeli company, I loosely keep in touch with several folks there. The "average" Israeli, according to most of them, wants peace and would gladly accept a two state solution. The key as to why many still hesitate, and don't want to just make a formal state of Palestine, is that the Palestinians have proven NOT to be able to push out the violent part of their population. There is a history in Jordan, Kuwait, Egypt, and I think even Saudi Arabia, where Palestinian populations - or that extreme element at least - incited violence, caused strife, and celebrated local Arab deaths. There is a reason that Palestinian refugees are not being taken in by other Arab countries.... These Israeli's I know agree that Israel will gladly give land for peace (TBD about Netanyahu), but still would need proof that Palestinians would be peaceful before allowing them to be a formal state. Self-govern is indeed one thing, and in the case of Gaza (which has self-governed since about 2005) it has not proven peaceful at all. One person I know was in tears over the bombings, for the civilian lives lost, and as Iain says will be propaganda for Hamas recruitment. But he also echoes others' thoughts that Israel almost has no choice. If they give in too much without the promise of peace, they will be seen as weak, and others will repeat what Hamas has done. I just saw a picture by Banksy which showed a small Jewish and (I assume) Palestinian child watering/caring for a small tree that seemed just planted. That made me sad...if one generation can be taught that peace is an option, there can be hope. But so far, I'm not seeing it....