Irene, Tornado, Looking Good at 83.

I was talking to friends in North Carolina yesterday, they are making provisions for a visit from Hurricane Irene. Earlier Irene was only a Category 1 but is forecast to strengthen to a 3. There have been 7 named storms already this year, but this is the first one which has actually developed into a hurricane. The maximum sustained winds late last night were 120 KT which is about 138 mph and expected to become stronger. Looking at the curve of the projected route, the eye may well miss the Carolinas altogether but even a glancing blow at that ferocity is likely to cause a lot of damage. At the moment Irene is likely to come ashore in New York or further north. I think the Canadian Maritimes may feel quite a bit of the storm. The software on my laptop shows a slightly more eastern path. Anyway, I hope, for my friends, it will not be too bad. I believe it didn’t do the Bahamas a lot of good last night according to reports, but the map above hasn’t changed on the internet although on my programme it still looks more eastern.

Meanwhile back at the ranch yesterday, we had tornado warnings for our area, but they dissipated and in the afternoon we had quite a pleasant day however, later in the evening we had one hell of a thunderstorm with lots of lightening but, round here certainly, we didn’t get a tornado thank God. I was feeling somewhat nervous though as the skies close to sunset looked pretty threatening. This morning you would hardly know it even rained although a lot of people had their power knocked out by the storms.

A report on GMA today about an 83 yr. old woman who had a breast enhancement. Why not? Apparently some of her family were dead set against it, probably worried about their inheritances!! She looked good and felt good which is what its all about. If you can afford it, go for it. And, she did look good.
I like beans, I like rice, what more can I say. I’ve never heard of vegan Worcestershire sauce, but I wouldn’t use it personally.

Baltimorean Beans and Rice

By The No Meat Athlete
WebMD Recipe from Foodily.com

Rice and beans come together to make a simple way to get both complex carbohydrates and protein in a single vegetarian meal. Throw in fantastic versatility at pennies per serving and you've got yourself not just the backbone of the vegetarian diet for runners but also a universal staple food. In this recipe, black-eyed peas take the place of beans.

Ingredients

1 cup dry brown rice
4 cups black-eyed peas
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cups chopped kale
2 tsp cider vinegar
2 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce (can substitute with regular Worcestershire sauce)
1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 tsp Old Bay, or any Chesapeake-style seafood seasoning

Instructions

Put brown rice and water together in a pot with a lid. Use the ratio of 1.5 cups water to 1 cup rice. Set the heat to maximum, and bring the rice/water to a boil uncovered. Then put the lid on the pot, and reduce the heat to low/simmer. If your lid has a steam valve, keep it closed. Let the rice simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat, and let the rice sit in the covered pot for another 10 minutes.
Heat up the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat and fry the onion for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for an additional 5 minutes. Stir in the peas and heat through. Fry the kale with the peas and onion mixture for a few minutes until wilted. Add the cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and corn, heat through. Sprinkle rice with the Old Bay seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the pea mixture with the rice.
Total Servings: 4

Nutritional Information Per Serving

Calories: 396
Carbohydrates: 99.5g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Fat: 0 g
Saturated Fat:
Fiber: 41.2g
Sodium: 126 mg
Protein: 37.7 g
Have a great day and keep away from hurricanes.