The big screen is still down this week when you enter the Conference Room.

On the screen is pretty much the same view as the last time though a few things have changed. There are now two cats nursing Lethal, one from the back of his chair, the other monitoring him from the arm of the chair barely discernable from under a portion of the blankets which cover what presumable must be Lethal given the Notre Dame cap on the head and the green leather and fleece slipper on the foot sneaking out from under the blankets.

The other difference is the message scrolling across the bottom of the screen…

“I’m slowly getting better but currently still too sick and its too cold here to travel. Antibiotics are helping, the swelling and inflammation are slowly going down, but they make me want to sleep and run a fever all the time. Plus Doctor wants my leg up 20 out of 24 hours a day.

Start the issue yourselves when you’re ready. Daimen or Ginny know how to do it. Catch you more hopefully next week. Don’t worry if I don’t respond to comments or emails right away, I’ve been spending minimal time online, about an hour or so every other day.”

Molly does, that is part of the reason I love her so. We have an arrangement, she brings me coffee and I bring here serious chocolate.

Imbloc (Candlemass, Imblog, Imbole) – February 2nd

Pronounced: EE-Molc

Incense: Rosemary, Frankincense, Myrrh, Cinnamon
Decorations: Corn Dolly, Besom, Spring Flowers
Colours: White, Orange, Red

This holiday is also known as Candlemas, or Brigid’s (pronounced BREED) Day. One of the 4 Celtic “Fire Festivals. Commemorates the changing of the Goddess from the Crone to the Maiden. Celebrates the first signs of Spring. Also called “Imbolc” (the old Celtic name).

This is the seasonal change where the first signs of spring and the return of the sun are noted, i.e. the first sprouting of leaves, the sprouting of the Crocus flowers etc. In other words, it is the festival commemorating the successful passing of winter and the beginning of the agricultural year. This Festival also marks the transition point of the threefold Goddess energies from those of Crone to Maiden.

It is the day that we celebrate the passing of Winter and make way for Spring. It is the day we honour the rebirth of the Sun and we may visualize the baby sun nursing from the Goddess’s breast. It is also a day of celebrating the Celtic Goddess Brigid. Brigid is the Goddess of Poetry, Healing, Smithcraft, and Midwifery. If you can make it with your hands, Brigid rules it. She is a triple Goddess, so we honour her in all her aspects. This is a time for communing with her, and tending the lighting of her sacred flame. At this time of year, Wiccans will light multiple candles, white for Brigid, for the god usually yellow or red, to remind us of the passing of winter and the entrance into spring, the time of the Sun. This is a good time for initiations, be they into covens or self-initiations.

Imbolc (February 2) marks the recovery of the Goddess after giving birth to the God. The lengthening periods of light awaken Her. The God is a young, lusty boy, but His power is felt in the longer days. The warmth fertilizes the Earth (the Goddess), and causes seeds to germinate and sprout. And so the earliest beginnings of Spring occur.

This is a Sabbat of purification after the shut-in life of Winter, through the renewing power of the Sun. It is also a festival of light and of fertility, once marked in Europe with huge blazes, torches and fire in every form. Fire here represents our own illumination and inspiration as much as light and warmth. Imbolc is also known as Feast of Torches, Oimelc, Lupercalia, Feast of Pan, Snowdrop Festival, Feast of the Waxing Light, Brighid’s Day, and probably by many other names. Some female Witches follow the old Scandinavian custom of wearing crowns of lit candles, but many more carry tapers during their invocations.

A mom texted her late son. You won’t believe who answered

Unless you’ve lost a child in the line of duty, you can’t imagine what this mom is going through. Her son was a state trooper who lost his life protecting the innocent. So when she texted his phone after he died, she never expected to get a reply, much less from someone who might actually understand.

Cream Cheese Swirled Banana Zucchini Bread

If there is anything you should know about Impish and my culinary predilections (aside from the fact we both like to cook and eat) its that we’re both gaga over Banana Bread. When I found this recipe I immediately shared it with Impish who in turn immediately volunteered to test drive it. Look for his comments on the recipe Saturday.

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 50 mins

Total time: 1 hour 5 mins

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
• ½ cup canola oil
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• Cream Cheese Swirl:
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup flour

Instructions

1. Preheat over to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5 inch loaf pan. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another small bowl beat the egg, bananas, oil and vanilla extract. Stir into the dry ingredients until just moistened. Fold in zucchini. Pour half of the mixture into your 9×5 inch pan.
3. To make the cream cheese swirl: Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, egg and flour until smooth. Pour evenly over the bread. Top with remaining batter.
4. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top is golden brown. If the top starts to brown too fast, tent with foil at about 30 minutes. Allow bread to cool for about 15 minutes before cutting.

Slow Cooker Beef on Rice

Slow Cooker Beef on Rice – Savory beef and gravy slow cooked to tender perfection and served over rice!

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 8 hours

Total time: 8 hours 5 mins

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef chunks (aka: stew meat )
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 2-3 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
• 1 teaspoon black pepper ( or to taste)
• ¼ cup cold water
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• 4-6 cups cooked white or brown rice

Instructions

1. Add beef, broth, and chopped onions to slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
2. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.
3. About 10-15 minutes before serving, Transfer slow cooker contents to a large stock pot and bring to a boil. Whisk together cold water and corn starch, add to pot, and stir until thickened. Serve over rice and sprinkle with chopped parsley if desired. Enjoy!

I add mushrooms to mine. Sometimes just white button or Crimini mushrooms. Other times I can get a package of mixed mushrooms from my produce guy.

Also I add a few splashes of Lea & Perrins Original Worcestershire Sauce or aged Balsamic Vinegar but never both at the same time.

Other liquids can be substituted for a portion of the broth (Beer, Guinness, or Red wine) though I would recommend making such substitution 1/2 cup at a time until you learn how it will effect the outcome’s overall taste.

This also goes well over (garlic) Mashed Potatoes, Polenta, Gnocchi or Biscuits

Parsley or snipped Chives should be used for garnish to brighten it up.

Huh, maybe the ‘chemical contrail’ conspiracy theorist have something after all! No, wait. My bad that’s just Shamrock One under full magical thrust!

Actually in reality its somewhere in between the first and the last panels. Though my clients DO seem to think I sit amid several million dollars of cutting edge computer gear just waiting for them to do something dumb.

Speaking of work….

Work happened for me today. I’m still chuckling over this one.

So I got a call from a Client complaining he can’t get to a website after I updated their security over the weekend. Well all that I updates as their antivirus definitions and the DNS host file used to block sites like Facebook, Porn sites and job hunting sites.

I show up at 8 AM and I’m conducted to one of the bigwigs offices (no name on the door) where I proceed to cool my heels for 20 minutes waiting for him to arrive. Hey no worries- I get paid by the half hour from the time I leave my house. He arrives all grumpy at me and brings me in side his office.

I ask him to demonstrate the problem to me while I watch. He types in a Celebrity’s name with the word ‘nude’ after it into the search bar and while I’m watching I see all these porn sites courtesy of his Google Auto-predict function. He clicks to go to the site and of course the DNS host file is blocking it because its porn. Nudecelebs .com.

I tell him its’ blocked because its’ Porn and that looking at Porn while at work is prohibited by the company and could get him fired. I also tell him that this is going to come to light when I have to turn my bill in. This guy looks blankly at me and says ‘but I’m the owner!’

I was damned near struck dumb. The best I could croak out was “Oh your the XXXXX behind XXXX Company. Nice to meet you. I can certainly remove that from your computer  for you then.”

He says ” Thanks. I really need something to keep me going through out the day…..”

I always thought stories like these we urban legends of the trade.

I’m also never shaking his hand again.

Freddy Fangs, one of the Ninja Kitties all dressed up and hard at work manning (catting?) the reception area in the lobby along with Tuesday.

Hmm…I wonder if Impish hears something along the lines of “Remember Dragon thou arte leaf and to leaf they shall return” on Ash Wednesday?