Tomatoes

Oh, wow.  I was visiting my friend in town, and had just been reading a FaceBook post that MSG (monosodium glutamate) should not be avoided, because it is naturally found in our food, e.g. in tomatoes.  Now that I find hard to believe, but there's no doubt that it isn't the most synthetic chemical we eat.  I shouldn't condemn that statement (that it's found in tomatoes) without evidence, but it's Thursday, and I don't have the energy. 

Anyway, my friend had obtained a tomato from somewhere, and we decided to slice it up and èat it, while the leftovers were heating in the oven.  Oh man; that was one fantastic tomato!  It wasn't bright red, like we would expect a fantastic tomato to be; it was just, you know, red.  I ate four pieces, and I could still eat more!

I happened to drink some diet Pepsi after my third piece of tomato, and then ate the fourth piece.  To my surprise, the tomato actually tasted salty!  I think that was due to the Pepsi, but still.  I had always known that a good tomato had a balanced taste, with tartness, sweetness and a little salt.  But this chunk was definitely salty.  I do love salt, so I was really pleased. 

The tomatoes are in peak flavor, around here, so if you live near north-central PA, go out and get some tomatoes, and just eat them.  You'll thank me later. 

Kay

P.S. Oh dear.  I learned that my friend had actually sprinkled a tiny bit of table salt on the tomato chunks!!!  Boo!  Salting fresh tomatoes is sort of SOP in many homes, and I had simply forgotten.

Kk

Iran

Dear citizens of Iran.

It is treason to provide comfort to the enemy.  However, there is no consensus among US citizens about whether Iran is an enemy to our nation.  Many of us shudder to learn about the death tolls from this latest round of attacks.

Arch

OMG. Peak / Peek Strikes Again

Not one but TWO instsnces of authors who haven't screwed up anything else, confusing Peek with Peak!!!

Peak is a hight thing.  Peaks of mountains.  Peak of someone's fame.  Peak of popularity.

Peek from behind a curtain.  Peek-a-boo.

Come, people, it's not that hard. 

Kay

P.S.  Jeeze.  'Gate' and 'Gait'.

Gate: a door set into a garden fence, or garden wall.

Gait: the style of motion, of a person, or a horse.  Gallops, and Trots, are two gaits of a horse.

I'm so depressed. 

Position Paper

Just this morning, I saw a post under Ron Howard's image; that implied that he supported what it said—and I thought he had written it, until someone clarified that it was written by a woman in 2018.  I have forgotten her name, but it really is a wonderful piece of writing.

It clarified a lot of the loose terminology that MAGA politicians like to throw around; especially what liking and supporting various Government services would, or would not imply.  Gratitude and admiration to both the original author, and Ron Howard for bringing the piece to our attention.

Kay

Added later:

I am a liberal, by Lori Gallagher Witt - by Nat Pernick https://share.google/BlNWJ0a5MXbeh2gIb

Death Tolls

I'm typically insensitive to large losses of life.  Though I feel sadness at deaths in school shootings, they don't set me back to the point of being unable to function.  But somehow, the news of deadly floods in Nepal are horrifying. 

In retrospect, I'm beginning to feel the scope of the killings in Gaza.  Israeli soldiers are responsible for these massacres, and they are terrible to contemplate.  The psychic consequences for the adults are going to be vast.  I'm not an expert in psychology, but I know that inflicting cruelty and horror is traumatic for the culprit as well.

I know that I'm conflating two types of disaster: natural, and human-inflicted.  But they're horrors anyway, and we feel the pain.

K

Rhiannon Giddens

Just got back from Chautauqua, NY, where The Silk Road Ensemble was performing, originally curated by Yo Yo Ma, but now under Rhiannon Giddens.

Thr basic idea of the Silk Road performances is to present  a sequence of (folk) performances from a variety of cultures, transitioning smoothly from one piece to another.  They feature nearly a dozen expert musicians—African, European, Oriental, Asian, Indian, and so on; I could not identify them all.

Featured instruments were a Cello, an Accordion, several Violins, a Flute, Marimba, a Banjo-like instrument, a guitar, and several Drums of different sizes, from different traditions, including a Tabla set, a pair of Indian drums.  There was also a digital keyboard, that provided a drone background.

Rhiannon Giddens led a column of the performers, right through the aisle, leading a sort of audience participation routine.  (The chant she got the audience to join in sounded vaguely African, which made me wonder who this woman was.  It was only later I learned who it had been.)

Kay

Peak vs. Peek

This is a repeat.  I've already written about this pair of words. 

OK.  The word should have been 'peek.'  You don't sneak a peak.  It's peeks you sneak.  Sneaking a peek at the television screen.  Don't let me hear you making this mistake again.  <grumble, grumble.>