Tastes Great!!!

This is my very, special and delicious Valentine's Day cake that was made for me. It was very good, but the culinary artist responsible for this masterpiece forgot to complete one of the old tricks of the trade.



Made with soooo much love.



Brandon's Culinary Tip: Always grease the pan prior to pouring the batter for baking. Also, make sure FLOUR is in the pan to prevent the cooked cake from sticking. If you forget... this is what happens. It doesn't affect the taste, just the look!



If you find yourself using this advice, please send your payment to me... just kidding. For all other inquiries on how to fix a delicious cake contact the The Culinary Artist (seen below).

Let the games begin...

Bryant Gumbel's Thought's on the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino/Turin:

"Count me among those who don't like them and don't watch them. In fact, when Thomas Paine said, 'These are the times that try men's souls,' he must have been talking about the Winter Olympics.

Because they're so trying, maybe over the next three weeks we should all try, too. By trying not to be incredulous when someone attempts to link these games to those of the ancient Greeks, who never heard of skating or skiing.

So try not to laugh when someone says these are the world's greatest athletes, despite a paucity of blacks that makes the Winter Games look like a GOP convention.

Try not to point out that something's not really a sport, where a pseudo-athlete sits and waits in what's called a 'kiss and cry area,' while some panel of subjective judges decides who's won.

And try to blot out all logic when announcers and sports writers pretend to care about the luge, the skeleton, the biathlon and all those other events they don't understand and totally ignore for all but three weeks every four years.

Face it, these Olympics are little more than a marketing plan to fill space and sell time during the dreary days of February.

So, if only to hasten the arrival of the day they're done, and we can move on to March Madness, for God's sake, let the Games begin."

Commentary from HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel

I like the snow... and curling.

FVSU Winning Coach Resign?

A group of alumni and students at Fort Valley State University is asking for the football program's head coach to resign or be fired.

They say Coach John Morgan has make no progress with the program, despite his three winning seasons.

The group gathered Friday on campus and announced a list of reasons why the coach should be let go.

Among the reasons cited-- failure to sign "blue-chip" recruits, lack of respect of Fort Valley traditions, and the controversial firing of a popular assistant coach.

The group says their top expectations of the a head coach is for him to win a conference title, beat Albany State, and compete for a national championship.

http://www.wmgt.com/articlecontent.asp?pkid=264

I had several questions about this story and whether it was something that was a widespread thought OR if the people who are speaking out are just a vocal minority.

I am an alumnus of The University of Tennessee. This was a rough football season for us... it was a losing season... we even lost to Vandy. Alums at Fort Valley have celebrated winning seasons for the past three years under their coach and they aren't satisfied.

I admit, I'm an still an outsider in a lost of ways... but I don't get the rivalry between FVSU and Albany State. UT has rivalries with Florida, Georgia, and Auburn (the bigger ones now) and we have losing streaks. UT alumni call for big coaching changes, but rarely get them... this year was an obvious exception. The point is: do alumni value a strong winning program that offers stability and structure for recruits, players, and athletic donors... or are just winning the big games most important?

I don't have the answer, and I'm not passing judgment. I just question the seriousness of rivalries and acclaim in sports, because FVSU needs advocacy in a lot of other academic areas before discussions should go too far about the athletic program. That's just me.

Unsure Feelings

Over the past couple of days my emotions have varied about what I now know is a shooting and not a murder. First, news was that an 18 year old (Carlos Garvin) had been murdered-- shot in a drive-by in a part of town that has a record of gang activity and violent crimes.

Instinct said this is a gang shooting. Digging deeper, the young man's family told a different story, as is usually the case. But, this was different. The family was flanked by the youth minister from his church and his Christian basketball coach.

They all talked about him being a pretty calm and boring kid. It made me think of myself. My view of the victim changed. Sympathy set in. He was no longer a dead gangbanger. Sadly, he was a young man with great potential. He could have "come up" from his surroundings and contributed to society.

But why were he and his friend playing with a gun?

Political Science

So I'm trying to talk to a scientist, and he tells me he can't do an interview unless he gets clearance from his boss... because its political. I understand when you're dealing with a government agency there are political considerations; I don't understand why people who are qualified to speak on a subject aren't allowed to and encouraged to freely, especially when they work for a government agency-- i.e. "the people". I guess everyone doesn't see it that way. I'm working on it.

Say Cheez!!!

Harris County, Texas must have a contract with Olan Mills or some other photography studio to take mug shots. This looks more like it should be in a Congressional yearbook. Why are people suspected of committing white collar crimes treated so differently than other criminals? Are white collar crimes considered lesser crimes because offenders prey on the poor and powerless? Think Martha Stewart.


I don't blame him for smiling though. The gaggle of reporters were waiting for him to come to the courthouse in Austin. There's no video of "Teflon Tom" coming in or coming out of the courthouse. What a shame, we didn't get to see the reporters trip over each other for the story (the booking process) that would have lasted at most an hour. Don't get me wrong... I'm not saying he's guilty. I do, however, believe that our elected officials should be held to the highest standard, especially when it comes to ethical questions that could have direct influence upon elections. To try to influence an election by controlling the campaign finances of state officials, in the hopes that they will be elected, and then draw U.S. Congressional Districts that are favorable towards one party and unfavorable to the politically ignorant and powerless serves no one, except one's self. I hope he's found not guilty, and more importantly actually is not guilty because I want to be able to trust elected officials.

But, I still have to ask questions. I'd smile too.

A Return to Therapeutic Blogging?

Could this be the return to my blogging experience?

I can't help but to comment on the Hurricanes that have targeted the U.S. this year. We've gone through the list and now we're at the end with Wilma. The last time I blogged, I was talking about Hurricane Dennis. I thought about returning to blogging after Hurricane Katrina, but I decided better. My commentary would have been endless and still would not have encapsulated the feelings I felt by watching the horrific images and my words would have only comforted me. That's selfish. I'd rather spend that time praying... as I'm doing now for people in the path of Hurricane Wilma-- the strongest hurricane EVER to form in the Atlantic Basin. Unbelieveable.