Thank you Tracey, FOAS and Ann. I too will have to agree with FOAS. I have forgotten about Jasmine rice, which does have a distinct aroma. Long time ago I read that there are fake artificially flavored jasmine rice, so I have stopped buying them. Ann, the idea of my making wild rice risotto is not to see how close I can get to imitate Arborio risotto. I see wild rice risotto as a separate recipe that shares the same technique as typical risotto making. Wild rice risotto is not my invention by any means. If you Google, you will find over two million hits about wild rice risotto. There are many other people who like the taste and texture of wild rice cooked in the risotto style. There is a difference, however, in the way that I make wild rice risotto. Because it is very difficult to get wild rice to be creamy, most recipes just use Arborio rice and mix it with wild rice. I have been able to make wild rice risotto without any Arborio rice, and make it to any degree of combination of creaminess and al dente quality. I have always been interested in the manipulation of food textures. Likewise in the making of the chicken, I have tried to resolve the dilemma of how to cook chicken to ideal meat temperature (texture) throughout with no overcooking or undercooking, regardless of how thick or thin the meat is, and still mange to get the skin actually crispy. I mean âÂÂPeking duckâ skin kind of crackling crispy. I am always amused by all the TV cooking shows by famous chefs. They canâÂÂt seem to know the difference between browned skin and crispy skin. The sous vide method can get the meat 100% perfect, but the skin is a problem. So many just peel off the skin and fry the skin separately and use meat glue to glue the skin back on the sous vided chicken. By the optimization of balance of exact temperature and timing, as you can see, the chicken is 150F juicy cooked and the skin is crispy and practically grease-less and still attached on the sous vided chicken. dcarch

Kelly, I will celebrate by making a quilt of my choosing!!!! (And perhaps a margarita...). Though I always start out griping when I make a quilt for someone else based on THIER prefs, then always end up liking it. (Thanks in large part to all of you saying kind things about it!!!!) Maybe my first love is complaining, not quilting. LOL! Stitches -- OH! Thank you for that idea. (Coloring light quilting stitches that are not where they belong.) I have my big cow and tree quilt to do next and I'm finding it's NOT SO EASY to quilt even a straight line when you are shoving a behemoth quilt through a tiny machine. I plan to use cream thread on that one. Better go get some brown pigma pens for where I land on the cows!!!!

I can be a hot head......ok ladies, you may pick yourselves up off of the floor and stop laughing now!!!! I would have been upset too. Like you said, it is hard enough to get off of work as it is. Plus this time of year is soooooo stressful even if you just stick to the Christmas stuff let alone the rest of the crap that the world throws at you. Did any of the other parents tape the program???..... May I share my little meltdown with you??? In August I had a root canal. Now mind you I have lived with A LOT of pain in my life but this was hideous! I did not get pain meds until the day after and it was hydrocodone....which makes me sick. This was all the dentist would give me so I took them as long as my body would allow and when I started vomiting I quit taking them. For months I have suffered. Monday I went in with all of us thinking that I would have to have it redone only to find that the tooth next to it had a large crack in it and so I had a crown done. No payment plan so I end up paying $360.00 that I hadn't planned on. That ticks my off. By the time I get home and my mouth is no longer numb, I am in extreem pain. I think the nerves in my mouth are probably in shock after all of this time and they are on fire. My DH calls the dentist, dentist calls in the meds, DH picks them up and guess what????? The same damn meds that make me vomit. I decided since it is evening now that I will take one and call my doctor in the morning and get a refill of my darvocet that I have for when my sciatic nerve is at it's worst. I have been very careful not to abuse my meds. I think I've taken 6 or so in the last year. Long story short. Pharmacy calls dr.'s office to alert them that I just got a prescription for hydrocone and now I want darvocet. Dr.'s office won't give me darvocet now and dentist won't give me anything else. All of discussion taking place in front of customers at drug store. When I get home I call the dentist and the dr. and chew out the assistants. Who are speaking for their bosses. Still no meds. To bad the dentist had just sent me an survey to fill out on line. I wouldn't take calls from either office the next day and cancelled my appointment for my diabetes check for today. I'm just still pissed. I am doing Advil round the clock to kept the pain bearable. I am looking for a new dentist and I'm going to take the pills into the dr's office and give the 11 out of 12 to him and tell him that I don't appreciate being treated like an addict. I even offered to take the pills into the pharmacy and give them back so that I could get some thing that helped me. What the h3ll!!!!!! STRESSSSSSSSSSS! and then it's Christmas and my DD is still being stalked, I'm in pain, DH is sick, SD10 is a pain in the butt because she is so excited about Chrstmas and there are so many things going on at school, DS is stressing about finals but working so hard since I have had to play bad cop with him and now he is my buddy along with my little black dog. Other than that the rest of world can just suck eggs. SD30 had to have her dog put down and now I feel bad about being upset with her...found a sympathy card to send to her for her little doggie. I'm with you mom1stm2.....If I still drank I'm sure I'd feel better.

I haven't been here for quite some time so haven't read your previous posting re: economic struggles. Sounds to me like you've got it together & are doing great. The kids won't care their new cars cost a dollar OR the coats, etc came from Goodwill. They WILL remember they fun they had & they were warm & loved. A friend, now deceased, told me several times of a Christmas when their 5 were small. No funds, etc. Someone gave them a tree - the largest they ever had. Parents bought necessities .. toothbrushes, combs, gloves, etc. and wrapped each item & placed some on the tree. When the kids were grown & parents, every Christmas they got together, THAT was the Christmas they all remembered with love. The same will be true of your kids. So for those who say they don't believe in going to church or that those of who do shouldn't have problems or wish only good things for others, it's sad. Ignore them. Love those little ones, build the memories. Those are gifts money cannot buy & will last a lifetime!