Movies, H1N1,

I have been enjoying myself lately by watching movies which I have either bought or rented from iTunes. Sunday night I watched The Dark Crystal which is a youngster's story I guess, told you Matt says I am the biggest kid on the block, and I thoroughly enjoyed it once again. All the elements of magic and mystery with a bit of a love story thrown in, what more could I want - well maybe a dragon. I have also downloaded The Dark Night, I have never watched a Batman movie and this was highly touted by everyone so I thought, why not? The other day I watched Prince Caspian which was one of the Chronicles of Narnia - I am now wondering if they are going to make another - and also the second Ice Age movie. The other day, when I called the ambulance for Matt, one of the ambulance guys recommended 'ovguide' for movies, the only problem there, you have to decide when you want to see them and then start them streaming, with the iTunes rentals you have 30 days to watch. Of course if you buy them, you have forever. I have just Googled and the next Narnia film will be The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It is due out in 2010 so I will be looking out for it. They are doing a pretty good job on these stories and sticking to the books quite well. It appears that the clinics giving Swine Flu shots yesterday were very full with thousands lining up for theirs, particularly parents bringing their children. One of the 'at risk' criteria is having diabetes; my local clinic is taking place on Nov. 3 you can be sure I will be there, Matt too. We have apparently ordered more vaccine from Australia, so I hope you guys in Oz have enough for yourselves. Marilyn (French Marilyn) in Paris tells me she doesn't know anyone who is having the shot. As for side effects, in china four out of 39,000 had some muscle cramps and/or headache. I get muscle cramps all the time, so ........... Anyway, I think it is probably safer to get the vaccination. I haven't published any potato recipes for a while, so here is one I found on Cooking.com yesterday. I've always enjoyed baked potatoes but I don't eat them very often. Potato Gratin with Parmesan and Caramelized Onions Source: Food & Wine INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes 1 teaspoon canola oil 1 teaspoon olive oil 2 medium onions, thinly sliced 1 small garlic clove, minced 1/4 teaspoon minced rosemary 1/4 teaspoon minced sage 1/4 teaspoon minced thyme Vegetable oil cooking spray 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces) 3 large egg whites plus 2 large whole eggs 3/4 cup skim milk 3 tablespoons nonfat dry milk 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg DIRECTIONS In a steamer basket, steam the potatoes until tender, about 20 minutes. Let the potatoes cool slightly, then peel and cut them into 1/4 inch-thick slices. Meanwhile, heat the canola and olive oils in a medium skillet. Add the onions and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to moderately low and cook, stirring, until caramelized, about 15 minutes; add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water if the skillet is dry. Stir in the garlic, rosemary, sage and thyme and season with salt and pepper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan with cooking spray. Arrange half of the potato slices in the pie pan, overlapping them slightly, and season with salt and pepper. Top with the onions and half of the Parmesan cheese. Cover with the remaining potato slices. In a bowl, combine the egg whites, whole eggs, skim milk, dry milk and nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. Pour the custard over the potatoes and sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top. Bake the gratin for about 45 minutes, or until the custard is set and the top is golden. Let the gratin rest for 10 minutes before serving. Have a great day.