New stuff.

Posted on November 22, 2009

After lots of frustration tonight rolling out Postini for another client I had a realization.  I’m always sending my videos and such to a handful of family/friends and I should just link to them here. So in the midst of my techno trance I’ll post my first video link to a FANTASTIC remix of a pretty special…uhm… artist.

I smoke.

Posted on November 19, 2009

Sorry for the last rant, some days are better than others. I believe pretty strongly about parenting- especially investing in your own offspring. So my latest endeavor… where did it begin… oh yes at the Lueck’s house. Since we don’t have TV (something we pride ourselves on) we were over on a Saturday night which means automatic football on the tele. I might’ve sounded crazy (actually I’m sure I did) because a “Messin with Sasquatch” commercial came on and I was laughing out loud (the whip cream in the hand episode- so funny. Well that commercial was for Jack Link’s Beef Jerky. I might have beef jerky every 2 or 3 years and man it sounded good. Then I researched some review sites and decided not only was it all too expensive ($1.50- $3.50 PER OUNCE!!), but also I think I could do that myself. Where to next? YOUTUBE! First i came across this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1IiUAtoNBk and thought that’d be an interesting way to die. They also had http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sl8_x39QO3w which is exactly what I wanted. I’ve always thought one needed to have a food dehydrator (of course from RONCO) and was pleasantly surprised to see the BBQ Pit Boys method of normal grills/smokers.
A year or maybe even two I took the plunge to purchase my Big Green Egg. I love it- so fantastic. The key to the jerky is low and slow (around 140-150) for several hours. This is where the Egg excels- since it is a ceramic smoker/grill I can choke it and it’ll stay at the temp I choose for almost as long as I want. Ok my recipe:
Bottom Round roast was on sale at publics for 3.99/lb this week- got 2lbs
3/4 cup Worcestershire
3/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
2 tsp red pepper
I marinated that on accident for 2 days because my electric grill starter that I “fixed” wasn’t working. Then I took it back apart and a wire connection came loose. It is important to dab off the excess marinade with paper towels, started up the lump charcoal and choked the mess out of it to get it from 300 to 150ish. Then low and slow for just over 5 hours. To be honest I forgot about it until after I put Abby down and realized it was still going.
Results: Amazing! Exactly what I hoped for- I’ll post some pictures soon! Even better is the price- even with the cost of the marinade (no idea- stuff we had) it was probably a pound and a half for under $10 or $.44/oz. Faaaantastic!

Pre-Chi-Town

Posted on October 30, 2009

Since we’re expecting our second, my wife and decided to get away for a bit. We narrowed down places we’d like to go and were a bit limited in the time we could go and of course budget. It came down to Boston and Chicago. Both cities I love and you can’t lose with either. We’ve tried (and failed miserably) to get away with Katie and Jimmy (some friends from our old sunday school class- now reside in Chattanooga) years ago and scheduling never seemed to work out. This time we planned better and actually got the ball rolling.
*Side note (actually this turns into a rant)- Jimmy and I are notoriously selective spenders. Ok we’re pretty cheap. BUT we have no problem spending money if it is worth it. We went on a snowboarding trip to Snowshoe almost two years ago and had a blast- only spending about $450 out the door for a long weekend. Half the fun is getting a super value- and sure we don’t mind spending a tad more if it’ll make an actual difference. I guess that is the other part- we both make pretty good money but don’t want to burn it. Also, we’re pretty well aligned when it comes to our faith and values. There are a lot of bonding points between all of us a couples. First our faith, second our family values, third we enjoy the outdoors (in moderation), and we like nice things/experiences. Now this may seem pretty mundane but it truly isn’t. I find it more difficult to find people who want to invest in their family more than their comfort. Read more

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