GMA Train, Tests

Good Morning America is doing their whole week's broadcast from a train next week. Hey that means we probably won't see it. The logistics of this broadcast are absolutely incredible. We wonder what it is going to cost ABC News. If you want to read more about it click here to get to the GMA web site. Of course it means nothing to those of you who are not in their broadcast area, but it really is an incredible undertaking involving helicopters picking up broadcasts and feeding them to satellite links and so on. We will have to try and catch some of the programme whilst we are on the road. Governor Palin is being well and truly attacked today. All kinds of scandals being brought up. Bound to happen, especially as she had pushed McCain's ratings up to equal or surpass Obama's. What a fiasco this all is. The latest accusation is she abused her power as governor to fire a top security guy. Of course today is also September 11 so there is lots on the news about the attack on the World Trade Centre. A new memorial is being dedicated in the Pentagon and they are going to have a moment of silence in remembrance. I still have the video of those attacks. A friend called me that morning and told me to turn on the TV. We all thought the first was an accident. Matt was out golfing and knew nothing about it until they reached the club house. I still would like to know about the plane that was supposed to have been shot down, I never heard any more about it. I wonder if it was a false report or what. I went for my blood tests finally this morning, Tuesday night I forgot to start fasting and was still eating cookies at 9:30, not a good idea. I didn't bother to put a coat on forgetting I might have to stand outside the clinic for a while. It was chilly but not bad, a crisp fall morning.. There were people with jackets on who were standing there literally shivering, not just one either. What are they going to do when winter comes? Today is shopping day, but I don't think we will have to buy very much, we won't be home after Monday morning. I do have to get some of the ingredients for my Jambalaya which I am making for the birthday party on Saturday. But generally, we don't need much at all. Matt got the car all tuned up ready to roll. Last night we tried some barbecued ribs which we bought from M & M's Meat Market. They tasted pretty good, but weren't really enough. One would have to buy two packets and that would work out to be fairly expensive. I've never made ribs as Matt normally doesn't like chewing bones (well he didn't chew these, he cut the meat off them) but just thought I would like to try them. When we first came to live in Canada, there was a restaurant quite close to us called The Knotty Pine. It was a very busy place and had an upstairs casual eatery and a downstairs more formal dining room. I would love to have owned a couple of shares in it, must have made a fortune. Unfortunately many years later, it was taken over by the son who ran it into the ground (or so we were told, it was while we were in the States). In the upstairs restaurant, they served a wonderful bean salad which I wanted the recipe for, but never did manage to get hold of. The following is the nearest I have ever come to it. Five Bean Salad Source: World Wide Recipes Servings: 8 - 12 1 cup (250 ml) extra virgin olive oil 1/3 cup (80 ml) balsamic or red wine vinegar 1 Tbs (15 ml) Dijon-style mustard 2 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 1 can (16 oz, 450 g) garbanzos (chick peas) 1 can (16 oz, 450 g) red kidney beans 1 can (16 oz, 450 g) black beans 1 can (16 oz, 450 g) green string beans 1 can (16 oz, 450 g) yellow wax beans 1 medium-sized onion, chopped 1/2 cup (125 ml) fresh parsley leaves, coarsely chopped Combine the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper in a blender or food processor and process at high speed until emulsified. In a large colander drain and rinse the canned beans. Combine with the dressing and the onion and parsley in a large bowl, tossing to mix ingredients thoroughly. Chill for at least 2 hours. Have a great day.