He stands about 7 feet tall, is black and red, glows in the dark, flaps his wings and breathes fire.
He will reside in our basement until his next emergence.
We fell in love with him, and, well, he’s ours. We can’t let him out when it’s raining or blowing, but it’s quiet weather, and he made his first outing last night.
He’s one of those inflatable creatures with a fan in the base, and he goes out at sundown and comes back in at 9pm, which we consider a nice bedtime for a dragon. He’s not that big when the fan isn’t on. 😉
How fun, maybe you can put Biscotti to work keeping the garden clean of weeds. Just a spit of fire here and there.
Commenting might have asked this before, but can Azi’s join? Also, if a computer passes the Turing test, can it join?
I feel for your plight. Every time I try to log onto The NY Times I have to pick out the squares with cars in them.
Raining to beat the band up here in NH.
Jonathan
We saw a similar dragon on sale at Home Depot. It had flickering flames in its belly! Quite an excellent denizen for your yard… And basement.
NosenDove: it’s alternately spitting and pelting rain here outside Boston. You must be getting hit by the storm first. I’ve heard the wind a bit, but not yet to the level weather forecasters have threatened.
During the late afternoon “spitting,” I was grubbing around my front garden and successfully putting in about 2/3rds of the ~200 tulip, daffodil, hardy gladioli, bluebells, snowbells and crocuses (croci?) bulbs I ordered. I’m sore and kinda tired right now, but satisfied with the progress towards my spring garden.
Now the Night Fury has a companion — or competition?
@CJ Ran across this about corals finding PVC [additives] “tasty” this morning. Thought of you.
http://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Corals-eat-plastic-because-we-ve-made-it-tasty-12317049.php
It reminds me of the story I heard at work about one of the early attempts at using plastic pipe for gas – this one failed because the gophers found the plastic to be very tasty.
Biscotti sounds a lot classier than all those lame inflatable snowmen or Christmas snow globes. I’m sure inflatable dragons were intended as Hallowe’en accessories but for the fantasy/sf community I see year-round applications.
Kitchen Adventure — or — Unexpected Chemistry
I had a slight spill-over of water while cooking the other day, so I went to clean the burner. Not too much of a problem, but the burner cover or pan is not as spotless as I want, so I intend to give it another pass or two, and I see I’m out of vinegar.
The spill-over produced a bit of smoke or volatiles, not enough for me to see, but enough to smell and enough for the smoke detector to go off. Whee! — And this scared Smokey, aka Mr. Assertive the former street kitten, who hid under the bedcovers for the next hour after announcing to all the world how scary and dangerous that smell was. Good kitty, you earned your keep for that, by the way, though making sure after that he was calmed down was, hmm, worrisome. Poor little guy. (His street experience involved an unhappy encounter while hiding in among a van motor, apparently, and that plus his black coat gave him his name.
Ah, but that’s not where the unexpected chemistry adventure comes in. It gets better!
I’ve now been here 8 months, and the stove/oven was new when I moved in. (Still had the peel-off stickers too.) Not the covered stovetops; it has the old-style electric plug-in burners with the pans underneath.
I’d been using the smallest burner for my tea kettle, but it had been boiling over a little, more than I’d realized, it seems. I’ve cleaned all the burners a couple of times since moving in, but haven’t needed to much, fortunately. So when I cleaned the one burner, I checked the others. Two were fine. When I checked the smallest, reserved mostly for making tea — ack! Oh, that’s gotta be cleaned! I didn’t recall getting anything there, so is that only from the water boiling over too often?
Wow, whatever it is, there was black, flaky, carbon residue coating the burner cover / pan. OK, out that goes to clean it. Under there was OK and so was the burner eye itself. But the pan looked like it had never been cleaned. Hmm. OK, apply soap, elbow grease, and a scrubber to the pan, now at the sink. And rinse to see how we’re doing so far, and….
OMG! Is that really…? Yes, around the bottom ring of the pan, where you have the small round opening, the metal had become so stressed by repeated water and any minerals, and the carbon buildup, heating and cooling, that it had become brittle and friable. Oh, that is not good, not good. So I am wondering if I had cooked something else and had it boil over without me recalling it, or if some 8 months of a tea kettle boiling over way more, and more often, than I’ve realized, is what’s done this. I know I’ve cleaned that burner at least twice since moving in, once within the first two weeks I was here, from cooking a prepackaged meal and not yet used to the stove. But still, all told, 8 months of use, every day or two, for water for tea.
Be it resolved that: I shall be _very_ careful not to let the kettle be too full or overflow from now on, and I’ll check that burner every week for a while to see what’s going on.
I’ve ordered new burner covers / pans, the “standard” four, in anticipation, and will likely order another set to put in if/when I move out, which I hope won’t be for some time yet. The affected burner is approx. 7.5 inches across (diameter). Amazon tells me these should arrive by Wednesday, very quick.
There has been some discussion of whether Amazon might target building some sort of distribution or other center in town, but no news beyond that yet. It would make good sense, as that would speed up distribution for Texas and Louisiana, at least.
Smokey, by the way, ate up the extra attention and has been quite pleased with himself since. LOL. It’s turned slightly cooler, so the cats decided last night, the bed was again preferable to the office chair box. (Ahem, I didn’t unpack it last. weekend, so they still have it as a Feline Favored Territory.)
IÂ have not been to the store, and it may not get to happen tomorrow, so any plans to have distributed candy to trick-or-treaters in the apt. complex are likely null and void for me, unless I get by the store tomorrow unexpectedly. (I need to, it’s just not likely to happen on a schedule. :-/ Still dealing with that.)
I’m shocked that the burner could so easily be that far damaged. I don’t recall any instances of something boiling over there and not getting cleaned up, so it’s only from water, minerals, and carbon, via the tea kettle overflowing, and however long it’s been since I’d last cleaned that burner, when it was fine. Note that I don’t then make tea in the kettle. I put teabags in a pitcher, pour in the water from the kettle, and have it steep in the pitcher and cool some before putting the pitcher in the fridge. So I’m alarmed that that much could happen to that burner so quickly.
But — Well, it’s a really good thing I checked that burner, just for a general cleanup. If it had failed somehow, who knows what might have happened? Scary thought. — So that burner will remain unused until the new covers get here, for safety and cleanliness and peace of mind.
Our weather’s cooler but still not truly cold. Just enough to be glad I put on my hoodie before taking things to the dumpster the other morning. I haven’t looked to see what our expected temps are. Sunny to overcast here; we had rain a few days ago; nothing spectacular.
Hmm, the only painting from the apt. complex so far has been refreshing the safety / fire parking markings along the curbs. At least, no other painting around this half of the complex so far.
Nothing yet in the mail; I’m looking forward to it.
I generally end up replacing our burner inserts every 2-3 years. The metal they use just isn’t very heavy duty, and the heat-cool cycles along with the occasional pan overflow (and prolly our salt air) will make them rust out faster than you might think. I’m currently trying out the porcelain enameled inserts, to see if they last longer than the chrome ones. If they fail, no real biggie; they are more to keep that occasional boil over out of the interior of the stove, where the wiring runs, and to give the burner support a place to rest. BTW, if you have the standard two-and-two sizes of stove burners, you can swap the same sized inserts from the less used burners to the more used ones.
It may be worth considering an electric kettle to boil water. People in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, etc. regard them as absolutely essential and totally standard in any kitchen.
– Faster and more efficient than a stove top or microwave.
– Boil as much or as little water as you need, one cup or a large amount.
– Auto shut off when it boils.
– Boil dry protection.
– Cordless kettles are convenient to carry around and put down on any surface.
Glass and stainless steel kettles are available if you want something fancier and more durable than plastic.
A glance at Amazon US shows that plenty are available. Look for cordless, auto shut off, 1500 watt, 1.5 to 1.7 liter.
It looks like the 2000 watt+ kettles which are normal outside the Americas are not suitable for the 120V power supply in the US, so they’ll boil a little more slowly.
I got some replacement burner pans from my local home store (Lowes?) which I think are Teflon–contraindicated if you own a bird.
If you have minerals in your water, then any time you boil water, the minerals are going to deposit at the hot spot, the bottom of the traditional kettle or the heater in an electric kettle or coffee maker. Your kettle or coffee maker should have a procedure for “brewing a pot” using diluted white vinegar (I think) to clean the heating element. But, vinegar is acid; some vinegar is pretty strong acid; still, time and heat beats effort: put some hot water in your sink, drop the pans in, add vinegar, go read; clean pans and sink.
Using a water filter, like Brita or Pur, will take the minerals out of the water. Even if you dislike the taste of filtered water itself, you may prefer the taste of tea or coffee made with it since the minerals can displace tea or coffee. It also solves the mineral deposit problem, at the cost of filters. Like most businesses, the filter makers want you to replace the filters often to get more money; I figure the monthly filter change is for a family of four, so I change about quarterly. Indeed, I can (though usually don’t) just wait until I start seeing mineral deposits then change the filter; the mineral deposits will be absorbed by the boiling water cleaned by the new filter.
Though I drink tea, I use a cheap coffee maker to boil water. (A coffee maker gives me the option to make coffee for guests.) $20 or so at Target. You can just make the tea in the pot/carafe and strain out the dregs (but a coffee filter will clog). I use a press maker, which cools the tea quite a bit; but I’m just not a boiling hot drink drinker. If it gets too cool, I can nuke it.
Seriously, just get a cheap coffee maker: commodity items like that are cheap and functional. You’re more likely to get burned by a chichi maker who changes designs all the time: my father gave me a fancy Krups as a gift–top-rated by Consumer Reports–and the carafe cracked from thermal shock; as did its replacement. I returned it, and got a Mr. Coffee. I forget what happened to it: failure to bounce off the floor? Anyway, I got a still cheaper Sunbeam, which must be over a decade old and whose only flaw is an annoyingly obstructed reservoir and a hard to read fill level. I’d replace it with a Mr. Coffee if it failed. You know, unless you’re trying to make some sort of kitchen fashion statement with your coffee maker.
I loved British teakettles in the hotels…unhappily, American kitchens don’t have 220 sockets. It would be nice. I’ve also contemplated getting a samovar, which is a fancy container that keeps water hot.
Thanks, I’ll look at that. The coffee maker I had is among the other items stuck somewhere in storage, and of course, I wonder if the glass coffee pot made the move to the space intact.
I’m not too fond of my current kettle anyway. The cap at the end with the whistle simply sets in a hinged piece, so the whistle (air hole) is prone to fall out at the most inopportune time, when you cock back the hinge to pour the heated water. I know this is for cleaning, but it seems like a poor design move. It’s an approx. 2 quart kettle.
So an electric cordless kettle sounds like a good idea to save the risk of overflow and damage to the stove. (I’d simply stuck with the kettle on the stove, old-fashioned habit, I guess.) 🙂 There is something comfortingly quintessential in hearing a whistling tea kettle and pouring up water for tea.
Of note: I’ve never gotten a samovar. I’d looked a few years ago but never got one. I’ll look again, but I expect I’ll simply go with a new kettle.
Chondrite, thanks, about the stove burner covers / pans. Yes, what I ordered was a standard set, because the others on offer were shaped differently than what’s there, and I wanted them to be consistent with the original on the stove. Looking again, I think it’s two large and two small burners in standard sizes. If they’re on schedule, I should know tomorrow or the next day how they do.
Man, seeing that one after it’s dry…that’s in bad shape. The other three are fine, but the one I’d cleaned up does need more cleaning to get the remainder of the carbon off. I’ll want to get vinegar too, to have on hand for cleaning.
No appointment today, so I won’t be by to get Halloween candy. I hope that won’t disappoint any potential trick-or-treaters, and I don’t know how much the folks here do that. — It’s equally likely most of my neighbors follow American Halloween traditions or Mexican / Latino DÃa de Los Muertos traditions. (Which I’ve just recalled, I don’t remember enough about. :-/ ) The weather’s very good though, cool, brisk, partly cloudy, not much chance of rain, so anyone who’s out trick-or-treating or partying should have a good time. (Astros fans are preoccupied anyway, haha.)
Upon reflection, I’d wonder if Biscotti prefers small sausages or fruit preserves, peach or cherry(!) or perhaps orange marmalade. (I’ve just heard of Japanese yuzu. I don’t know if that would be a likely accompaniment for a dragon’s tastes. Just trying to keep with the Biscotti theme.
Alternatively, you could consider getting Biscotti a kilt and bagpipes…. Biscotti. Bagpipes. Kilt. OK, it was a reach! 😀
Taiko drums instead?
Or since he’s Biscotti, perhaps something more Italian?
Wait. Biscotti. I have no idea if the Italian word is masculine or feminine, and I’ve just realized I may have also mistaken a dragon’s gender. Ah, I’m not sure how one can tell about a dragon. Oh dear. I do hope I have not ticked off a dragon, even a dragon who views baked goods favorably!
Hmm, now I want to see if Gordon Dickson’s “Dragon and the…” series is available in ebook. 😀
@BCS: Yes it is, I got it from Kobo.
I second the mention above, that too much/too fast heating and cooling is a good way to make (aluminum) metal brittle. I’ve ruined a pair of old metal knitting needles by heating them up in a gas stove flame a few times to poke holes in plastic/acrylic. The end grew brittle and fell off.
Maybe the pan was sitting just a smidgeon too close to the flame? Can you reseat it a bit deeper?
Or alternatively, your new pan might last longer if you turn the gas up a little less high.
Or maybe the slower cooldown if it doesn’t get water boiled over on it might help keep the new one better already. A smith or materials scientist would probably know that sort of thing… maybe someone else here does?
By the way, with 2-6 weeks for delivery, your package could get there anywhere from the end of next week to in a months time.
Obviously if he’s named Biscotti, his robe must be chocolate.
The 1500W electric kettles available in the US are not too bad. I just calculated that it should take a little under 4 minutes to boil 1 litre of cold water in a 1500W kettle. So you can see how long it takes on your stove top and compare. Besides the time, there’s the convenience to consider as well.
I have a built-for-the-US Russell Hobbs kettle (stainless steel), and it does fine. The ones available in many dept stores should do fine – and 1.5 to 2 quarts/liters is plenty for most purposes. (I use only filtered water in it, so it doesn’t get the mineral deposits.)
(I have a hotpot for other uses, like when I need extra-hot water in the bathroom.)
I picked up a secondhand hot pot from our local Sally Ann a couple of years ago, and it has been very useful. It’s not an electric kettle, which heats by induction and has a traditional spout, but is plastic with the entire top able to flip open. It boils water for 2 cups in about 4 minutes, and I have used it to boil eggs as well, heat up canning lids, and a number of other things.
In desperate need NOT to smoke up the newly painted kitchen, while trying to cook with NO vent hood as yet, I have acquired a new George Foreman grill,and they have finally made the improvement I have been waiting for—ceramic plates that go right into the dishwasher, no muss, no cleanup, and they wash clean. The thing also makes panini. A product that actually delivers. When I pulled those cooking plates out of the dishwasher sparkling clean after hamburgers, oh, yes….
If it works to your satisfaction, the new grill will undoubtedly help in your pursuit of healthy cooking!
Before kettle and stove comments — A couple YouTube comments (surprisingly) got me thinking. I had said I was going to reread the US Constitution and Amendments this past weekend, and I did not. But the questions show me I need to, as I was too unsure of the answers. So I have a little homework to do.
@Hanneke — Oh, we have a misunderstanding over what’s going on with the burners on the stove. It is an electric stove and oven. The burners, also called “eyes” on the stovetop plug into their outlets, and they sit in what are called either burner covers or pans. (Why they would be called covers, when they sit under the burner, I don’t know either, lol.) The pans are made of metal or ceramic, generally, and there is a center hole at the bottom and a side hole through which the plug from the eye / burner fits into the outlet in the stovetop. — But yes, what you said about. the metal giving way with rapid heating and cooling, like your knitting needles; yes, that’s essentially what happened. The metal of the pan / cover became weak, brittle, almost like a rusting process. So I am very glad I caught it when I did, before it got worse and the pan / cover failed underneath the burner during heating. I have the idea if it had, it could’ve shattered the pan, sending fragments hitting the burner eye, onto the “floor” of the stove underneath, and so on. And that, I can only think would not be at all good. Seems scary to the imagination. So, thankfully, I found it before any dire results. (Eek.) — It’s easy to see how you read “pan” and I think from that, you’d thought it was a cooking pan of some kind. (Or maybe I’m the one who’s misread your reply! Could be. ::shrugs:: My apologies if so. It’s an easy misunderstanding.)
The kettle — The choices that came up from my search were all either 1 quart, 1.5L, or 1.7L/1.8qt., and listed mostly as 1200 watts, suited for standard US current. Most were from makers I hadn’t heard of. I ordered from the middle of the crowd, but a brand I don’t know. It’s stainless steel and claims to have the safety features one would want. I didn’t want glass, in case of dropping or heating/cooling issues. Steel seemed a better option. It’s an old-fashioned sort of baby blue. Others had various colors, including a very cheery orange. I got the 1.7L/1.8qt. size. — And since where I’m from it’s hot more often than it’s cold, iced tea is more usual. Yes, the Brits and international folks will likely laugh and say that’s uncivilized, but it’s an American thing, lol. There’ll be a pitcher as usual in which the tea will be brewed and then barbarously chilled for drinking.
Ah, I should perhaps add that yes, in cold weather or for special occasions, I of course drink hot tea. 😀 And sometimes, not often, I drink coffee (with milk or cream) or flavored coffee. I love the smell of coffee, but I prefer it toned down to drink it. — For tea, I’m likely to try many things, but my go-to is Bigelow Constant Comment, for its orange-cinnamon-spice flavor. — I dislike the flavor of Bergamot oil, or I’d be fine with Earl Grey tea.
LOL, so far, no trick-or-treater denizens wandering the apartment complex, though a few kids and adults are around and about as usual. 🙂
Wishing you all a Happy Halloween, and hoping everyone will be safe and have a good time if they’re doing anything for the holiday tonight. Have a howling good time!
Oh, it’s started raining now, but people are playing music; about like normal around here. — I feel so fortunate this place is friendly and safe overall, and family/kid-friendly.
Glass kettles actually work well and are very safe. Borosilicate glass is not sensitive to sudden temperature changes like ordinary glass, and won’t shatter.
I had one for about 4-5 years of continual use without any problem, and when it packed up, it was the heating element, not the glass, that failed. They look good, and you can see at a glance how much water is in them.
I think 1500 watts is the maximum for US current.
So what costume could be more appropriate for November than an a turkey, celebrating Thanksgiving. But this year, instead of the original “wild” or bronze, let’s celebrate the “Bourbon Red”, q.v., now classed as a “Heritage Breed” though it’s little more than a century old.
It’s too bad Gravitar overwrites the little graphics. Paul’s monthly Tuxes have been very clever over the years. There should be a gallery somewhere??
There is, sort of; Google finds ’em. I’m taking advantage of the work of others. I don’t have the talent to do those myself. I wish I could always remember to do it on the first.
Love your costumes, Paul!
Dragons are very important for guarding the yard! I bet the Pookster is wiggling with delight to have a new minion!