…there was Gil Elvgren, the king of pin-ups. And just like Photoshop, he didn’t always succeed in making girls prettier: Gil Elvgren’s Real Life References.
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Fiat Slug
16. April 2011 — cohu
It’s the famous Banana Slug (even though it doesn’t have the typical bright yellow color)! Probably the most popular – or should we say: the only popular – slug in the world. Ariolimax californicus even beat a much more photogenic Sea Lion in a popular vote on the official mascot of the University of California, Santa Cruz sports teams:
“The chancellor considered sea lions more dignified and suitable to serious play than Banana Slugs. But the new name did not find favor with the majority of students, who continued to root for the Slugs even after a sea lion was painted in the middle of the basketball floor. After five years of dealing with the two-mascot problem, an overwhelming proslug straw vote by students in 1986 persuaded the chancellor to make the lowly but beloved Banana Slug UCSC’s official mascot.”
“The Banana Slug even figured in a court case involving campus mascots. Judge Terence Evans, writing the opinion for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, stated: “We give the best college nickname nod to the University of California, Santa Cruz. Imagine the fear in the hearts of opponents who travel there to face the imaginatively named ‘Banana Slugs’?” (Crue et al. v. Aiken, June 1, 2004)” (UCSC.edu on the Banana Slug Mascot)
Banana slug fan gear is available here – how about some Slug Slippers?
Another bit of Laurie
15. April 2011 — cohuIt’s like chocolate and bacon. No, it’s like kittens and boobs. No, it’s like Grannies and Obama. Anyway, it’s one very good thing combined with another. It’s Hugh Laurie and the Blues!
The album, “Let Them Talk”, will be released in May – here’s one of the songs to look forward to:
I wonder whether this will also be on it:
Jicama – [ˈxikama]
13. April 2011 — cohuAmong the many exotic vegetables and fruits in the Monterey Market’s second-last aisle, this amorphous blob was the least frightening. I picked the smallest one (as big as a cantaloupe, but heavier).
Its taste has been described as a “somewhere between an apple and a potato”. Disgusting, but I went ahead and bought it anyway! I am fearless!
The fibery peel reminded me of a Kohlrabi, which, by the way, are also available here, but at prohibitive prices, as a “European specialty item” just like white asparagus. Have I mentioned that (green) asparagus tips are cheaper here than whole asparagi? I buy them for 1.69 a pound! Madness! Back to the root:
To the refined palate, raw jicama tastes like a cross between a daikon radish and an apple – completely lacking the bite of radishes, less sweet/sour than an apple, but more crunchy than both. The consistency seems to be the main advantage. It tastes good dipped in Hummus, or made into a slaw (I put it in cole slaw instead of apples). Needs some lemon/lime juice. Very refreshing. A+++ would buy again. Would not cook/roast, however, because it probably risks turning into some kind of rubbery mega-rutabaga.
Who’ll hatch first?
1. April 2011 — cohuEagle Nest Cam – “First hatch is imminent. It could occur anytime today.”
If, like me, you’ve always thought birds of prey are a bit silly, I have yet another link for you:
Hummingbird nest cam. At the moment, the couple is sitting on its nest together, like a good Orange County hummingbird family should. OC values! I bet they vote Republican.
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