I’m three weeks late to the party on this one, the result of bookmarking things that interest me with abandon and then having to go back and wade through them all. But more importantly, this is wonderful news from Albany: New York State money will no longer be spent on the insanity that is bottled water. The nail on the head:

“Taxpayers have spent billions of dollars to ensure that we have clean drinking water supplies,” said Governor Paterson. “If we are going to make such significant investments, we should reap the benefits and use that water. Our efforts will serve as an example for local governments, businesses and residents to follow.”

The press release as a whole is well worth reading. And just to hammer that nail home, here’s one of my favorite images.

There’s full information about the genius of the q-drum and its designers on their website and on the Cooper-Hewitt Museum website.

(Image hoiked entirely without malice from the newspaper article where I first read about the q-drum, details of the source lost without trace, and no disrespect intended in its totally unauthorised use.)

fruit and veg, pickled eggs, and shoppers (hi Mum!) in Sarf London

Maybe it was because I’d been deprived of Real Bacon for over a year (don’t start - it’s a cultural thing), but I may have met the love of my life while I was in London. Ladies and gentleman, allow me to introduce sandwich perfection:

the chef d’oeuvre of Maria’s Cafe: liver, bacon, onions, rocket and mustard on a bap

When the lady working the flat top asked me if I wanted onions, she fixed me with a look that would have made Vinnie Jones stand up straight. I said “yes, please”, and added an “of course”, at which point she smiled and proceeded to chat with my mum about god-knows-what for the next ten minutes while I wolfed down this piece of culinary perfection. Dazed and delighted, I went on to buy Arbroath smokies, black and white pudding (see after the jump), some Real Bacon, and … I dunno, there were probably some vegetables in there too.

Click through for pictures of Henderson’s Butchers, but be warned that they are Not Safe For Vegetarians:
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woof: birthday not-really-cake for the fabulous GiGi and her dachshund* obsession

Left-over experimental brownies (v2.8.1) taking up space in freezer: $0.
Chocolate, cream cheese and Bonne Maman cherry preserves lying around: $0.
Crabby mood in need of light relief: $0.
Squeals of delight when she finally opened the cake box at 3am: priceless.
(Overworked meme: because you’re worth it.)

*Don’t ask me to call it a wiener dog - that just makes me want to head to Gray’s Papaya.

I was stocking up on basics when I spotted an amazing selection of organs and offal, fresh from Peter McDonald’s farm in Romulus, NY. Tongue is one of the few offcuts that can make me a little squeamish; it lies in a no-man’s land between the basic tenets drummed in to me by my dad (”If you kill it, eat [all] of it”) and the kind of intriguing colloidal chemistry that some dishes require you to exercise.

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Recipe for success: a bunch of friends, a sunday afternoon, a four bar crawl with mac’n'cheese cook-off, and free samples. Who won? Who knows. But I’m looking forward to the next one.

Miss A demonstrating with her usual élan the perfect balance of macaroni and monogram during the Great Greenpoint Mac Off.