Product Review: Fluidmaster Fill Valve and American Standard Tub Spout

Is your toilet broken? When you turn on the shower does the tub spout still leak?
In this economic cry-sis, do-it-yourself plumbing is not only financially savvy, but can provide endless hours of entertainment WITH a pipe wrench in hand.
Let me recommend the following item (my favorite Christmas gift this year!!!) for your future toilet repair needs:
The Fluidmaster!!!!


This product will charm your pants off (but wait until the toilet is fixed!) with it's steel gray and shiny black components. The Fluidmaster is really easy to install! It only took me two hours to read the fourteen steps, find the appropriate tools in our tool-jumble-puzzle-pile, take a few smoke breaks, and clean up all the toilet water off the floor. This is a great product with clear instructions.


If you would like to conserve a little more water, fix your leaky tub spout for around 15 dollars. I used the American Standard Tub Spout. Before you attempt this, make sure and decipher what kind of tub spout you have there are many models out there. This video will show you how to do this:
http://www.expertvillage.com/video/22903_leaky-faucet-removel-spout.htm

DO NOT BE FOOLED!!! It usually requires much more torque to get the spout off then "John the Plumber" at Expert Village would have you believe. Wail on that thing. Just do not rip the pipe out of the wall.

OMG Burgers

Chipotle-Chili Sauce for Burgers (epi)

* 3/4 cup mayonnaise
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 tablespoons minced red onion
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
* 1 tablespoon minced canned chipotle chilies
* 1 tablespoon drained capers

Recommended toppings: Arugula, sliced red onion, tomato

Combine all six ingredients and serve on any type of burger (meat or veggie) or fish/chicken sandwich. Yogurt can be used instead of mayo to make it more healthy.

Also, yesterday I finally went to a Parks and Rec yoga class for $3! Class was excellent. For those on a budget, I recommend you find out what your parks and rec offers. There may be some value-priced fitness in your future.

Peaches or Plums

Thanks to BK for sending this one. It's pretty hot.

Peaches or Plums

by Alan Michael Parker

Oh, how I hate my mind,
all those memories
that have invented their own memories.

Take my first love, for instance,
how after Mass we'd kneel
underneath the back stairs

and kiss and kiss and kiss and.
Were her lips like peaches or plums?
She was Catholic and she wanted

to be bad, and I loved her
more than baseball,
but all the other days

divided us, carry the one,
nothing left over. So strange,
only to kiss on a Sunday,

to hold my own breath again
for a week, another 10,022
minutes of wretched puberty,

until she moved to Iowa
or Ohio or the moon.
Oh, I can still remember

nothing about her,
only kissing, and the impossible
geometry of the descending stairs

that rose to the church kitchen,
her breath like hot nutmeg
and a little like the ocean;

and once, oh my god, she bit me,
a first taste of my body,
blood in her smile.

Alice's Kitchen Cabinet

Alice Waters, west coast culinary pioneer, is urging Obama to create a 'kitchen' cabinet. We'll see what happens with Obama's food policy.

Food talk is everywhere! Losing weight is the nation's #1 new year's resolution and advertisers are capitalizing on this.

Here's my first recipe for 2009. Savory, cinnamon-y and delicious.

Greek-Spiced Baked Shrimp
Gourmet | November 2008 (epi)

These saucy shrimp spiked with cinnamon, allspice, and feta quickly disappeared in our test kitchen. Have plenty of bread on hand for sopping up the juices.

Yield: Makes 4 servings
Active Time: 15 min
Total Time: 1 hr

ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
Pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice, and chopped
1 1/4 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 pound feta, crumbled (2/3 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped dill

Accompaniments: crusty bread or steamed white rice; a green salad

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Cook onion and garlic in oil with 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in spices and cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add chopped tomatoes with juice and sugar and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Season shrimp with 1/8 teaspoon salt, then stir into tomato sauce. Transfer to a 2-quart shallow baking dish and top with feta. Bake until just cooked through, 18 to 20 minutes. Serve sprinkled with dill.

Shopping List:

1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice, and chopped
1 1/4 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 pound feta, crumbled (2/3 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped dill
Bread or rice
Lemon for salad
Greens for salad