I guess I’m going back to school

So now I’m going back to school.  We’re starting a minor remodel on our house, with a bigger remodel to follow.  Dealing with contractors on developing a plan, and getting permits, has been the hardest part.  I’m sorry, I got that wrong.  Paying for all this is the hardest part.  The plan and permits are the second hardest part.  Anyway, I figure that if I study architecture for at least a couple years, I’ll be a lot better equipped to deal with both the contractors and the building department.

So I took my assessment (last college class was 42 years ago) last week, and began my classes this week.  I was fortunate to get into English 150 and Math 103 a few days into the term.  Now all I have to do is pass the classes!

This is very different from my previous college experience.  At Kings Point in 1968, you didn’t “sign up for classe”, or “get a parking permit”, or “buy textbooks”.  You showed up, they shaved your head, they issued you a sea bag full of uniforms and a huge stack of books, assigned you a room (and a room mate), and the next morning you “mustered” in Barney Square to march to class.  Man!  Those were the days!

Now I have to get started on my homework, so I’m signing off.  Wish me luck?

G’day all, and may God continue to bless America!

8/22/2012 update

Disclaimer:  This update is provided for informational purposes only and should not be used in making any investment decisions.  The author has no qualifications, experience, or certifications pertaining to investments.  You are reading this for your own entertainment only!

I’m sick of this market.  The whole thing is responding to government interventions … gaming the monetary and fiscal policies of both governments and central banks.  I feel as though we’re headed for a correction, taunting the Fed, taunting Congress to do something (throw Wall Street a bone).  So I’m going fully defensive:

L Income:  100%

I’m not going to jump completely out of all equities and bonds, the L Income fund leaves about a quarter of my portfolio exposed to the total F/C/S/I spectrum of equities and bonds.  I don’t think this is the end of the world, just another nasty little ‘correction’.  So I’m gonna’ see if I can get on the right side of things, this time.  Ha!Ha!Ha!

G’day all, and may God continue to bless America!

Entrée Sautéed Farro

Since having the side dish version of sauteed farro at PastaPomodoro, I’ve become a huge fan of this type of dish.  It’s similar in concept to Asian fried rice … simple, easy.  With few ingredients, it makes a wonderful side.  The other night, I decided to make it as an entrée.

Oh, wait!  What’s farro?  Apparently, it’s an ancient form of wheat.  Pearled farro cooks in about 15 minutes and yields a tender but substantial grain with a delightful nutty flavor.  It also has good nutrition, but check the gluten content if you’re sensitive.  Basic cooking: 1 cup of farro in 2.5 cups water or broth, simmer for 16 minutes, test (should be al dente).  Drain and rinse.

So for this sautéed farro entre, we start with these ingredients:

Here we have, clockwise from top: black pepper, garlic salt (I know, I know, but it’s easy), EVOO, a great big handful of arugula, about 10 shrimp (16-20’s), browned bacon, shrimp shells, a couple eggs, some sliced green onion, vegetables (corn, purple onion, red bell pepper), and finally in the plastic bag, a cup of dry farro, cooked and chilled.

Before we start cooking the farro, let’s put a 3qt bowl in the oven at 150-160 to hold the finished farro sautee, and a green salad to serve on the side.

Sautee the shrimp shells to flavor the bacon drippings:

When fragrant and the shells are all pink, remove and discard.  Then add the vegetables:

I let the vegs go to fragant, softening, and the corn gets a bit of color.  You’ll know, it’s not rocket science.  Then add the farro:

I want medium high at this point, we want to get the whole shebang pretty darned hot and toasty.  At this point, I season with garlic salt and ground black pepper.  Now, add the shrimp and bacon:

Sautee like crazy, until the shrimp are nearly cooked, then fold in the arugula:

When the arugula is wilted, add the green onions and sautee to combine and warm , then transfer to the warm bowl to hold while you fry a couple eggs:

I didn’t get any pics of frying the eggs, which is OK because I just fried two of the worst eggs I’ve ever friend.  In this spot, imagine a picture of frying an egg.

To plate, a big mound of the farro, topped with a fried egg, and a green salad on the side:

 

This was one of the truly great “comfort food” dinners I’ve ever made.  When we were finished, we just sort of sat there and smiled.  Well, a better looking fried egg would have been nice, but wouldn’t have tasted any better =8-/

If you shop for ingredients, this can be a very economical dinner, too.  It’s red bell pepper season, so I got 3/$0.99.  The pearled farro is a bit price, around $4/lb at Whole Foods.  I included shrimp in this dish because Safeway had 16-20 shrimp on sale for $6.99/lb.  On another day, it might have been scallops, or something else.

Like fried rice, this dish is almost infinitely adaptable.  I suppose that with a few of the basics, you could use it to clean out the old fridge’ when too many bits and pieces stack up.  And I enjoy the sauté experience, cook for a minute, flip, cook for another minute, shake.

Oh, you can add toasted nuts, too!  YumYum!  Enjoy.

G’day all, and may God continue to bless America.

Why we should want an amoral (but just) government.

Morality is powerful stuff.

I’ve read claims that government is a source of morality, an enforcer of morality, an arbiter of morality, or somehow has something else to do with morality.  It’s not so.  Government is amoral, it needs to stay that way, and here’s why.

Morality is about free choice.  If there is no option, there is no morality.  Without options there is instinct, or obedience, or impulse, or whatever.  Morality must be founded on the option, the choice, to select one path over another.  Note: interestingly, a wolf can’t be moral or immoral, it can only be a wolf.  Only humans can be moral or immoral, because only humans have free will.  Okay, back to the topic at hand.

Government truly does derive it’s just authority from the consent of the governed.  Once established, government becomes a monopoly regarding coercive force.  There’s nothing optional about government.  Government is the arbiter of justice, and justice is based on laws, police, prosecutors, courts, jail and other penalties.

Justice might possibly claim to be ‘informed’ by morality, but for the reasons already stated, justice is not morality.

Only institutions composed of one or more people who’ve made the free will decisions to associate can arbitrate morality.

In the past, we had government involved in morality through a legal association and bond with the Church.  That worked badly and led to much suffering.  So when the Founders established the United States, they made sure to erect a wall of separation between Church and State.  They established a system of government that would restrict itself to justice, and leave morality to the individual.

G’day all, and may God continue to bless America!