Last night we were watching TV when we caught a commercial for The Bill. “Why the heck do the English call the police department ‘the bill’ anyway?” I wondered. Snookums didn’t know, so he fired up Google. After several minutes, he found this Word Detective column (second entry from the bottom). Turns out it comes from a comic strip that ran during the First World War. It had a character named “Old Bill” who was a grumpy veteran with a big droopy mustache, and the strip was so popular that “Old Bill” became slang for any man with a walrus-like ‘tache. They’re not quite sure how it then came to be applied to policemen, but the speculation is that coppers are/were likely to sport such facial hair. Interesting, huh?

The Magic of Lace Blocking. Very pretty photos over on Claudine’s site…

Hahahaha… This is the funniest, BEST article I’ve seen so far about the MacBook Air. Suck it, haters.

Last night’s culinary experiment was Jamie Oliver’s Lemon Roast Chicken, as inspired by the gorgeous photo on this blog post. (I didn’t get a chance to take a photo of mine before we tore it apart!) I splurged on a free-range, organic chicken from the butcher. In the morning before work, I gave it a rinse, patted it dry, and rubbed it with salt and pepper. (This wasn’t easy. For some reason, whole raw chickens give me the heebie-jeebies. I’m fine with cut up chickens and with other joints of meat, but somehow picking up a whole chicken makes my skin crawl a little bit. I mean, once it’s cooked it’s a beautiful roast and I’m fine with that, but when it’s raw I’m just acutely aware that it’s a DEAD BIRD CARCASS, and I hate birds.) Anyway, I left it in the fridge all day to, I dunno, brine or something. When I got home, I fired up the oven and started cutting up potatoes. I boiled the potatoes, lemon, and garlic as directed, then shoved the (stabbed) lemon and garlic up the chicken’s bum. Forty-five minutes of roasting later, I put in the potatoes and rosemary and tossed them around. I also put a bit more olive oil on top at this point, as the skin on top was looking a little dry. (I would’ve used bacon as in the recipe, but SOMEBODY ate it all.) Another forty-five minutes in the oven and it was done. It ended up being delicious! The meat was moist and I could taste the lemon and thyme in the breast meat. I think when I do it again I might add a little duck fat with the potatoes to make them extra crispy (as this chicken wasn’t that fatty). But in terms of reward for effort, this is a pretty easy way to make a “proper” dinner that will impress just about anybody.

Attention, Hoosiers: Just in case you missed the comment, somebody named “Goldar” has tipped me off about an episode of Happy’s Place over on YouTube. It’s from 1988. Is that the original Happy? In 1988 I would’ve been 11, so I doubt I was still watching it on a regular basis. He looks like the original guy to me, but the voice doesn’t quite match my memory.

If any of you sewing-types want a commission, I absolutely LOVE these vintage-type aprons, especially the ones with the big appliqué flower on the front. And since those are FORTY QUID each, I’d much rather pay somebody over here to make one for me! (Link courtesy of my new co-worker Susi.)

Italian Tuna and Pasta
Oh my, I made a beautiful dinner last night, if I do say so myself! The recipe is from epicurious: Artichokes, Capers, Olives, Lemon Zest, and Italian Tuna on Pasta Shells. (Yeah, it really needs a catchier name.) I followed the recipe pretty much exactly, other than adding a few grape tomatoes as well. It was sooo good. I had to restrain myself from eating it straight out of the bowl while the pasta was cooking. The shells were a little overly large, but it still worked. YUM.

Beware of Peculiar Cat. We definitely need one of those! (Photo taken by Other Andrew and pointed out to me by Bex.)

“A scrapbooking career in shreds.” Fascinating story, even though the stupid website won’t let me read the end of it. More details are over on Jezebel, including the oh-so-delicious quote: “I, seriously, was like the Lindsay Lohan of scrapbooking.” The knitting world hasn’t had a really juicy scandal since that whole Sew Fast So Easy SnB debacle a few years back…

Note to self: Knit these Converse Baby Booties for my nephew Isaiah!