Greetings and Salutations!
WOW!!!
A guy takes a break and MAN do the comments go full on explosive! Right now as of this typing, there are, no shit 109 comments regarding my situation…
Funny that… there’s a parable in there with that particular number and expulsion maybe? I might be getting a ‘Hint From On High’ maybe?
I mean really?
109 on the nose…
Sheesh… even plain statements and I’m making a ‘statement’ it would seem…. the Editor said:
Only 3?
Those are rookie numbers… I got to pump those numbers up!
Seriously tho… But for all the concern and advice I greatly appreciate it and y’all who took the time to offer me support and/or advice. Much love for y’all for all the ‘stuff’
No worries though
Everything is cool. The cathartic aspects was that we didn’t have any serious “must kill each other” issues… no yelling, no serious fights… which is ALWAYS a plus… and Ricky? Well Ricky essentially told her she was lucky AF to have me as a husband… that she should be the wife that a guy like me deserved.
Hence it being Cathartic for me right?
So. THAT was what I was referring to. It was a good weekend. I mean I did find out that her Dad AND Mom BOTH took a header recently. Like some serious header(s) which they should have been hospitalized for, if only for observation and their own good… and DC is, per usual, worthless. In this case the excuse is/was she has ‘Covid’ and therefor can’t help Mom and Dad lest she ‘infect them’.
Meh.
Not my circus anymore.
Whew
I really feel bad to a certain degree.
Dad was kinder to me than my own Dad to a point.
He deserves better, but I used to tell him, and I did tell him this (and I wasn’t joking) that he needed a stronger ‘Pimp Hand’ with Mom, as she’s not making the best decisions as she tends to run the show, and is not properly rational (in my eyes) due to the early onset of Dementia/Alzheimer’s anymore…
Add on that the major problem is than NONE of them are willing to state the obvious, and that’s that they no longer have the ability to care for themselves. This is ALSO why Ricky-The-Saint came into play… he’s a retired RN like Gretchen’s Mom, and offered to be a neutral third party IF her Mother went full retard in refusing help… as I recall he said something that “Nurses can talk to nurses, and we listen to each other professionally, and it might help!” and gave us his phone number to call IF she needed backup so to speak.
See… Gretchen’s Mom is ‘sliding down the dementia rails’ if you will. However, BECAUSE she was a nurse, well… as in many instances, the Nurses know as much, as if not better than some of the harebrained Croakers out there, so trying to tell Gretchen’s Mom anything vis-a-vis her mental state or her inability to care for Dad, welp…
Just like a typical Whammenz, she takes it as a personal attack when we question her choices, and that BECAUSE she was a Nurse, she knows better, and refuses to listen to ANYTHING we try and tell her, even to the detriment of Dad and herself.
Hence the dilemma.
BUT
Like I said and told Gretchen, I’ll be a shoulder to cry on, but as far as me being a performative assistant?
Nah.
Hard Pass.
I mean tonight I am making her Dad a batch of Molasses Cookies as they are his favorite, but as far as me stopping my life, dropping everything, and jumping in the car to be Captain Save-A-Hoe, the (highly unappreciated) White Knight Wonder?
I’m noping the fuck out there.
It’s not personal,
It’s business.
Anyways, I hope that give y’all a bit better understanding of the situation. I mean I saw for myself that Gretchen said point-blank that she’s “…enjoying her freedom!” and that “… she has options.” so she’s got all of that going for her, and I wish her nothing but the best and wish her well with ALLLLL that freedom, and what it entails.
Now…
Last night’s dinner:
I think I’ve mentioned that we have what I call “the never-ending spaghetti sauce” pot. Meaning I’ll make a great meat sauce and as it gets used, I keep adding more of ‘whatever’ we need to keep it going. I got the idea from a video I saw some time ago of a noodle vendor in either Korea or Japan where the noodle soup traces it’s origins back like 200+ years… Meaning the original batch was cooked, and as the time rolled on, well, the pot never emptied as the shop just kept adding to the pot, keeping it fresh, hot and always full.
The never-ending sauce here rolls along the same lines.
When the meat starts running out, I season and cook another couple of pounds and add it. When the sauce-sauce (the tomato part) starts getting low, I add a couple of quarts of sauce. And occasionally, I’ll randomly throw in some diced tomatoes with either onions and peppers, or even a can with chili peppers that would normally be used in a chili.
So last night I cooked up a batch of meatballs as well as a 2.4 pound batch of ground beef. The ground beef was an Aldi bought cheap 80-20 blend. I found is deep in the back of the extreme deep freezer in the garage. The label on it was very interesting in that the meat had been in storage since late April/early May of 2024. I took a pic and you can see the deep freeze in this picture:
$4.09 a pound.
WOWSERS!
The cheapest beef I could find at Publix tonight was this:
You might not be able to see it, but that’s $5.49 a pound on sale from $7.07 for a 75-25 split, which is waaay crappier than the 80-20.
Which also brings up another thing.
I had forgotten this particular pile o’dead cow flesh. It was completely and utterly buried in the back of the deep freeze, next to a turkey Sapper got from work from a few years back. I practically had to do the “Ice Man” thing to chisel it out. Surprisingly, ZERO freezer burn and it came out fresh as the day it went into the deep cold.
Now all of you know I’ve always been the ‘primary cook’ here at El Casa del Grande Campisino. I cook with enough regularity that I notice different effects of various ‘things’… and I’m mad at myself for not getting a picture, but after I defrosted the Aldi 80-20, and started cooking it, well… the amount of ‘liquid fat’ that I needed to drain was far less that the 80-20 meat I’ve been cooking as of late.
Like 1/4 of the amount of liquid.
A LARGE and NOTICIBLE difference!
Meaning the meat I’ve been cooking as of late which has been and is generally ‘fresh and recent’ I personally think that despite the “80-20 blend” claimed on the label, the amount of liquid fat leads me to believe it’s more like a 70-30 or even a 65-35 blend… THIS batch had like waaaay less liquid fat that needed to be drained off before being added to the Endless Sauce…
It makes you wonder if they’re ‘adulterating’ the meat with a higher fat content, as the majority of ‘normies’ wouldn’t know nor understand the difference. The only reason I took notice is since I cook ALL the time, that the ‘leavings’ meaning the liquid fat was far less than I was used to.
Considering just how fake, corrupt and ghey we’ve discovered the world really is I have ZERO doubts that I’m correct in this. Add on I plan to PROVE it in that this want the only package of the meat I found.
There’s an identical pack that was bought and then frozen at the same time. My intent is to buy a ‘current’ pile of ground beef which is labeled 80-20, cook both batches separately, and measure exactly how much fat I drain from each batch.
I’m curious as to what I find out.
Any bets that the ‘new meat’ versus ‘last years meat’ shows a significant difference? I’m not taking any sucker bets I think…
I’ll poast it when I do it.
It should be entertaining.
Otherwise, I’m back to the normal boring grind. I do have a minor bit of good news however. I’m going back to finish what I started with that Lee Enfield Mark 3 (SMLE). All the emotional baggage and distractions made it hard for me to focus on doing and participating in my passion, the restoration process. I ask you to forgive my reticence, and tell you to watch out as I plan on getting this one done shortly.
It’s going to be something else as the barrel is ‘like new/used’ with a lot of surface pitting, but the rifling is pristine, which means WHEN (not if) I get this done, I’m going to have a 1921 Short Magazine Lee Enfield that’ll (if I have my way) shooting MOA. I also have the stock repair parts, and the cleaner, so stay tuned. Good things come to those who wait.
So More Later
Big Country
I have noticed the higher ‘liquid content’ in the 80/20 as well. I also noticed a texture change. I personally suspect that more ‘meat filler (IE Pink Slime)’ is being added to maintain the ratio. Since the processed collagen product does not absorb fat as well, it would result in less fat being being retained.
Try and find a local butcher for your meat. We have one the next town over and he’s usually a little cheaper than the grocery store and his meat is 10x better. I can’t eat the grocery store meat anymore, it tastes like garbage compared to the butcher’s.
Regarding your father in law, that’s one of the hard things about divorce. I was really fond and close to my ex’s Mom and Step Dad. After the divorce she forbade me from contacting them because they are HER parents and I’m nothing to them. She then told them if she caught them talking to me, she wouldn’t let them see their grand children (our kids).
I still on the QT talked and do talk to them but when her Step Dad passed 5 years ago, I was forbidden from going to the funeral. 😡
It’s hard and sucks but I’m really glad that you have no intention of reconciling with her.
You scared the shit out of us hinting at that hence the 109 posts. 🙂
Thanks Jimmy.
Everything is Cool For R/N
No idea what the future holds…
It is what it is….
Scorpion: i have options.
Frog: does your dad need any cookies?
Go radio silence bce. That chapter in your life is over. The only communications should be through lawyers.
Hey Jimmy. I had a somewhat similiar situation but fortunately my ex wasn’t completely batshit crazy. We had a “good” divorce”, which I paid for, still sucked. Loved my MIL, she was an extreme sweetie. My FIL was a semi drunkard grumpy old bastard, owned the local body shop, who approved of my young dumb ass for some reason, probably because I stepped up and actually married his daughter and maintained a job. All of her brothers were good friends, especially the one that was in my older brother’s class in high school. He told me that I should cap the bastard ex-friend that had moved in on her.
Her sister was the bitch, she was a main instigator in the divorce. My FIL told my ex she was being a dumbass for wanting a divorce. In laws and one of the brothers are unfortunately gone now, I miss them.
Oh, and BC? Good to hear from you my man and glad you are back in the groove. We were concerned. I’ll be paying a lot closer attention to your stock and metal refinishing so that I can restore my beat up BPS once I get it out of hock. It needs minor stock repair and some bluing work too. Gotta strip that stupid Browning plastic finish off first, got to be something out there that will do it.
Shooter
most of all the beef we buy is local. yeah, the butcher in the back room. I try to buy the ground beef
in 10 pound packs and break it down and cook it up to make it last longer in the freezer.
get a little of juice or fat off the 80/20 than gets cooked down into tallow.
great for cast iron pans !
I still think you should move though. say, some small farming area ? hill country?
and maybe get someone to go with you when you do drop off the cookies too. do not walk into that
alone. I understand the dad in-law thing, had a good one myself, but the mom and daughter ?
nah, run away.
Iirc, the Latin definition of catharsis is that clean, empty feeling you have after taking a huge shit.
I wish you had a US Foods Chef Store nearby (looks like Augusta is closest.) I just bought a chub (those 10 lbs tubes) of 80/20 for ~$4.50/lbs. If you are willing to buy whole food service primals packaging, you can get entire NY strip or ribeye primals for like $15-18/lbs. The real deal is the 15 lbs sack of teres major. They are little 12-15 ounce steaks shaped like a little tenderloin, but really beefy and $9/lbs. I go there to refill the deep freeze. (You will want a food saver to vac pack them.)
BC, good to have clarification on the domestic situation. Ya’ had us all worried out here that you were gonna get suckered into being done up extra crispy. Enough about that, anyway.
On the subject of ground beef, I suspect you may be on to something. I usually stock up heavily when my local grocery here puts a bunch of one or two pound vacuum pack blocks in the closeout case because it’s too close to its sell by date.
Typically I buy ground chuck or ground sirloin if they have it, my last trip to the store they had a bunch of 80/20 ground beef. Oddly, these were 1.25 lb packages, which is not their typical way of selling it. I bought all 10 that they had in the refrigerated case on close out for $4 a shot and threw them in the deep-freeze. I just used the first package last night to make myself some burgers on the grill. I made three burger patties from 1.25 lb (so more than a 1/3 lb each patty), and after cooking them medium well on the grill the fuckers shrunk like George Costanza’s pecker in the pool, by almost 50% I figure. That remark should earn this post your 4th out of 5 anti-semitisms, as rated by the ADL.
It right pissed me off when I saw the finished product, and this is not a bargain grocer, its a local chain that is A bit better than your typical Kroger etc. grade store, but not as fancy/expensive as Whole Paycheck, so I generally expect better of them. Of course, the way things are headed maybe I should just be grateful I can still get (and afford) ground beef instead of ze bugs.
Glad your head is still where it belongs and little head has not skewed things. Yes, there are always peripheral relations that can be hard to leave but as you talk about it now I think you are on the right track.
As to the 80-20 I would expect some slewage. Course where I live I am closest to the best beef on the planet. So ground beef is just that.
Dude, sorry I was entry 110. Still be careful you’re going to get sucked back in one cookie at a time. As to the meat, it’s not fat but water being added to add weight. Use a clear glass measuring cup and let the liquid sit for a while and decant the fat. It will most likely be less than 20%. Look up the Florida standards on ground beef. It will be enlightening.
Spin
Glad to hear things are as amicable as possible right now.
That whole “ options” thing…
Hoo- boy 🙄
Looking forward to seeing the latest Enfield
So… you’re not considering getting back together, right?
FREEDOM! (In her best Braveheart voice) Was unaware she was being held captive.
Find a good butcher and buy in primals. Do your own trimming, cutting & grinding and vacuum pack it; why pay someone else to do that? Any decent butcher will have beef fat as well, usually for a buck or two a pound. Do the math and mix your own grind as coarse or fine as ya like. I’ll get 1# ground game packs from any of the usual sources and stuff those with ground. They pack solid, end up about the size of a softball and stack well in the chest freezer. I can get a couple hundred pounds of ground moose into a standard family sized deep freezer. I’ll buy full pork bellies, cure & smoke them up for bacon. Works out to about 3 bucks/lb that way. Takes a bit more time, but you know what’s going into what. A decent homegamer grinder isn’t spendy and if you don’t have a vacuum packer already we can’t be friends.
Back when I used to do high doses of psychedelics, we used to have a saying “Ain’t nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile”. Basically that meant we were prepared for and willing to accept whatever came next but still “hold on to our shit”…if that makes any sense. The implosion of my marriage did not end well….almost died twice. But I rode the ride and came out the other side a bit better.
Sounds to me you’ve gotva solid plan. Godspeed, good sir.
I feel like the 80/20 is just an eyeball reference, myself, and subject to the same dumbification now that butchers largely are retarded 3rd world illegals or minimum wage wetbacks, rather than, you know, butchers.
I was shocked at how far off the mark from everyone else that my post was. I really am proof of it beimg better to be lucky than smart I think.
Now, my wife is an Alzheimer’s nurse, and works privately for wealthy families. Her patients mostly don’t know they’re losing their marbles, and the families dealing with a loved one with Alzheimers have a real dilemma as to whether or not to tell them… for my part, depending on the stage they’re in, and how often they’re lucid, it can be a positive thing but painful to tell them if they’re often aggressive, violent, unwilling to accept help, or hysterical. Some are, some aren’t.
I did like the idea of a professional having that conversation with someone unwilling to hear it otherwise… but it’s a brutal, brutal talk. My wife *usually* has that talk, when it happens, with the family present. It’s one of the few things that upsets her in her work.
I’d say that’d be worth a shot, but of course, not your circus… but maybe the right thing to do anyhow.
Maybe not the best advice but she did it once she will do it again. Been there, done that.