Recent Happenings

[peteyfrogboy]

For those of you not on the writing filter, I've been pretty quiet here lately. I present to you some content, but can't promise excitement.

I got adelavanbrugge a Wii for her birthday, and of course it was as much for me and the kids as for her. Part of me is annoyed by the games and graphics I'm denied by not getting one of the other current consoles, but the rest of me is having fun playing games with my family. We've been having the requisite amount of fun with Wii Sports and Wii Play, and D has created a vast army of Miis of all descriptions. I've stopped trying to keep track.

I got a used copy of Twilight Princess and found it very satisfying. I've gotten bad lately about relying on walkthroughs for games when I get stumped, but for once I was able to get through a game with a minimum of internet tomfoolery. The few times I had to resort to walkthroughs I was simply missing something I wouldn't have ever thought to look for. Most of the time I was able to figure out the puzzles on my own and enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment. I know this puts me on par with your average 12-year-old, but there you go.

I'd been wanting to find a game for D to play that wasn't just kicking out butts at boxing (I have no idea how she does it) or herding Miis, so yesterday I downloaded Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King, which is the longest game title ever but a great value for $15. It's her first resource management game, and so far she's enjoying it , even though she's not making very efficient forward progress. As afar as I can tell, there's no great penalty for dawdling. I've already had to implement some time-sharing policies, since I'm playing too (of course). adelavanbrugge took a crack at it before going to bed last night and was hooked after the first few rounds. Good thing the boy is too young still, since there are only 3 save slots!

We did a good bit of shopping and cooking this weekend, since the fridge was starting to get a bit bare. I made a pizza and a batch of calzones, the former for immediate consumption and the latter intended for lunches. I cut the flour 60/40 white and wheat, which turned out functional but not inspiring. I don't think I'll do that again. Still, everything was edible, though I decided to use the calzones for breakfasts instead of lunches, as they reheat better in the toaster oven than the microwave.

adelavanbrugge made a pasta bake with farfalle (D's choice) layered with scratch-made meat sauce and mozzarella, which smelled good, though I didn't have any myself. Last night she made the recipe from the back of a box of flavored chicken broth, involving chicken breast, diced tomatoes, and couscous, and it was really tasty. It called for artichoke hearts and olives as well, which we didn't have on hand but I think would have been tasty. She added some marinated mushrooms to hers and more power to her. I brought some leftovers for lunch today and hopefully the couscous will have survived without becoming mushy.

Comments

[lorelei01.livejournal.com]

I <3 my Wii. If you don't have it already, you *must* purchase Super Paper Mario. It is so cool! Oh geez! And you have to send me reminders... 'cause I'm ditzy that way... I checked our flasks, and we didn't have any that could accommodate a 4" disk. If you're willing to cut it in half, then there were some that were 4"X6". I've not tried sand casting before, but maybe that would work better than chopping it in half.

[peteyfrogboy.livejournal.com]

I was able to find someone locally who should be able to do the casting for me while he's pouring other stuff. I gave him my wax but haven't heard back from him yet. Crossing my fingers...

[greetpg.livejournal.com]

I've always read that for flaky bakery items, the most wheat you can substitute is really only about 25%. I'm vaguely recalling something you can add to help boost the ratio...but that might not have been for pastry, and I don't remember what it was.

[peteyfrogboy.livejournal.com]

Hm, that's good to know. Pizza crust isn't exactly flaky per se, but there's a certain amount of crispiness that would be preferable.