Cooking with Ryan: "Genuine" cheeseburger

All right, so I've mentioned the snooty-ass cookbook I got for my birthday last year? Well, I cooked a crispy fish salad once, and have now taken on the "Genuine" cheeseburger from said cookbook. How does one make a snooty cheeseburger? Let me tell you. It requires ground chuck, mixed with ice water, which makes the burger juicier, because the moisture seeps into the meat as it steams. Then, you take the meat and lightly mold it into a ball. Not too tight, otherwise you get a tough burger! Season with salt and pepper, drizzle with canola oil, slap it on the grill and smoosh it with the spatula and cook.
Sounds simple, right? It was tremendously simple, but using the chuck was a revelation, and ensuring that I sued thick cut toppings made the whole thing a stacked, juicy delight. I didn't even get out of the kitchen because I ate the first one so ravenously. I made 4, and they are all gone already. Every homemade burger I've ever had has been tough and dry, until these. So make the same changes and stop going to McDonald's, because this was flat out better. Look! Precarious!

Links of the Day 1/27/12

The Super Bowl is now 9 days away. Are we still stuck with Patriots-Giants?

The NHL Fantasy Draft was sort of stupid, but a little entertaining.

Now calling a team the Cougars is offensive.  Somebody is saying something about it. A real hero.

MTV recently filmed an episode of MADE at Roseville. A teacher recounts what it was like from his end.

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
IPFW 75, North Dakota State 66 - NDSU is not playing as well as they were earlier this season.

The NBA and hero worship

I think one of the reasons I don't really care for the NBA is how individual players can sway the balance of the league by themselves. Consider: The Colts are anticipating the loss of one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the league, but instead of this being backbreaking, it's simply a bump in the road on the way to rebuilding. Of course, the team needs defense and younger skill players, but that's the point. They need to build an entire team. There are 22 players that need to be capable starters.The St. Louis Cardinals will be fine despite losing Albert Pujols, and the Angels are better, but not the class of the league because they signed him. The NHL makes roster moves like I change underwear, underscoring the relative lack of importance of an individual as it compares to the team.
If you look a the roster of an NBA team, they have 12 players total. Look at the tumult that was created by Lebron James leaving for Miami. Look at Cleveland without him. Look at the to do surrounding the contract given to Kevin Love. Look at what happened when the last Kevin, Garnett was traded to Boston. One player is 20% of a starting lineup. That's 4 people on a football team.
So given that, I guess it's more justified going after Lebron for his decision, because one player is so important. It also makes a player like Dwight Howard, calling his shots in trade, seem a little tasteless. He will likely lead to the vast improvement of one team (especially if he can get a friend to join him, meaning he accounts for 40% or more of the new roster) and the destruction of his current team, the Orlando Magic.
And that's the rub, I think. How can anyone really say they are a fan of one team, when really, that team's fortune's ride on one or two players? Aren't you just cheering for one player at that rate? You're entitled to like what you like, but I don't think I can ever quite get into the NBA.

(This post has been inspired by a random tweet. Follow me @victoriawxtimes so you can keep up on stuff like this)

Links of the Day 1/26/12

It's my brother's birthday today. His GOLDEN birthday. How about that? Happy Birthday, buddy.

Here is a video of a collapsing roof at a Slovakian ice arena. Look out, Richard Zednik!

If I got into a standoff every time I was speeding, well.... I should stop myself there.

The White Sox throwbacks are just foul.

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
Michigan State 68, Minnesota 52 - For the first game I have seen all year, the Gopher's opponent just looked better, rather than just smarter. Note that I haven't seen every game this year.

How does the rotation look?

I visited my brother for his birthday today, brought him some beer, some pizza, and he lamented the state of the Twins rotation. He was "sick of it" he said, in someone more colorful verbiage. I have long preferred a strong offense, because that means one has a deeper team. If you rely on pitching, injuries are much more problematic. This is why I I loved the Garza-Young trade at the time. Trading a pitching prospect for a hitting prospect. Too bad the Twins don't really develop hitters, pure hitters. Torii Hunter never would have had the chance to find his bat if he couldn't hit. Morneau and Mauer can play the field, otherwise they wouldn't be up. The Twins needed a right handed bat after Hunter left, but they couldn't put up with shaky fielding.
ANYWAYS.
I am here to ask whether or not the Twins rotation is really all that bad. In my opinion, Scott Baker is an ace pitcher if he can pitch at Target Field. It's perfect for a flyball pitcher, and especially one that has Denard Span and Ben Revere playing every day.
Next is Carl Pavano. He's just... old. No, he's not bad, or wimpy or anything like he has been accused of before. He's just wearing down. If you look at his peripherals since he has arrived in Minnesota, his stats indicate that he should perform about the same as he did last year, and probably should have in 2010 as well. He doesn't strike anyone out, which will eventually come back to get him, and is becoming more of a ground ball pitcher, which, while typically good, isn't so great with the Twins.
The third stalwart is Francisco Liriano, who has been on a steady three year rotation. Awesome, injured, struggling with a comeback. Last year was "struggling". This year, he should be coming back with an awesome year. Healthy Liriano gets a lot of strikeouts, AND allows some fly balls. He is a more groundballing, higher strikeout version of Baker. Maybe not perfect, but certainly a more attractive pitcher to other teams than anyone else on the roster, if we are talking about trade candidates.
Nick Blackburn. Ugh. He doesn't strike anyone out, and last year, he started walking people. He get's a few ground balls, I guess, but is mostly a fly ball pitcher. It's just that in the past couple of years, his fly balls went really, really far. He can't possibly be as bad as he was in 2011. Or can he? I would rather see Duensing in the rotation.Well, maybe not quite that, but at least he's there.
Then, of course, there is Jason Marquis. Carl Pavano Jr.? No no, Jason Marquis. He is sort of a blend between Pavano and Blackburn, really. Groundballs, a few strikeouts. He won't be BAD, so long as we realize he is just the 5th starter. So, Marquis fits. The problem is the ground balls, of course.
That said, what if, on days Marquis was on the hill, we move the better defensive infielders into the lineup and maybe give Ben Revere an off day on those days? We'll probably need the help.
I guess, what I'm trying to get at is that the Twins rotation isn't a disaster. I think a lot of the Twins problems can be mitigated with the right defense depending on the pitcher. Is Ron Gardenhire smart enough to plan this way? We will certainly find out.

Links of the Day 1/25/12

I finally saw the Social Network today. Much better than I expected.

Get cable, jerks!

The Colts have hired a new coach, Chuck Pagano, former Ravens D-coordinator.

Tennis player is whiny, petulant, acts like a tennis player.

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
Michigan 66, Purdue 64 - Purdue can't win two games in a row. The other teams in the Big Ten are getting better, the Boilermakers aren't. Simple as that.
NHL
Minnesota 3, Colorado 2 - The Wild are back in the playoffs, thanks to goals by Justin Falk and Carter McMillan. Just like we thought at the beginning of the season.

Denard Span plumbs the depths of Minnesota demographics

I don't know, Denard. I just don't know.

Links of the Day 1/24/12

It's going to be an interesting, chubby season in Detroit.

The Tigers won the Prince Fielder sweepstakes. 

All other politics aside, Mark Dayton is a man after my heart.

Justin Morneau... how's he doin'?

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
Mercer 75, Jacksonville 65 - Jacksonville is the "Dolphins". The more you know.
Kansas 64, Texas A&M 54 - With the Aggies shift to the SEC next year, it really cuts down on Kansas' opponents that have ampersands in their name.

I hate this Super Bowl

I hate the pending Super Bowl for three primary reasons. 1) The Patriots. 2) The Giants. 3) The Patriots playing the Giants. Oh? Expound? Surely.

1) As a Colts fan, the Patriots have been the biggest nemesis for the past decade or more. They are from Boston and were the first step in unleashing Boston sports arrogance to the masses. I mean, people used to LIKE Boston. Cheers! Now? Screw Boston. Screw the Patriots. Screw Tom Brady. Screw Bill Belichick. Screw their ruthless efficiency. I do not care for the New England Patriots.

2) Excuse me for saying it, but I am sick of the underdog. The underdog has lost it's luster, because in the NFL, the underdog wins a LOT. Look at the last 4 years. Three different times, a team that played Wild Card weekend made the Super Bowl, and twice, that team won. If the underdog can reach the Big Game 40% of the time, they aren't really an underdog, are they? And if they win that Super Bowl 2/3 times they make it, they aren't a freaking underdog! So I'm sorry, New York. You had a crappy season and got lucky in the end. That doesn't mean I can root for you.
Also, what about my being a Colts/Peyton Manning fan compels me to vote for Eli Manning? Just because Eli is Peyton's brother doesn't make him any less of a whiny twit who begged his way out of San Diego. What kind of douche wants to get out of San Diego?! You made Philip Rivers look good! So no, Eli, you and your Giants... no.

3) The networks really like to sell the Boston-New York rivalry when they get a chance, no matter the sport. It's compelling television, to be sure... if you are from Boston or New York. I'm sick of hearing about these teams. I feel ill that one of these two teams will be heralded as the best team in football all next season. I hate that the ticker tape parades and everything will last so much longer next year than they should, or at least, they will be covered in the media for much longer than they should be. I hate that this is a rematch, which is the most boring plot of any sporting event in the land. Just ask LSU and Alabama.

I hate this Super Bowl. But on the other hand, it's almost impossible for next year's game to be any worse than this. Bring on the bean dip!

Links of the Day 1/23/12

Happy Monday. I slept until 2.

Interesting coaching option for the Colts. Tressel's problems were with college athletes accepting payment, an issue that doesn't apply in the pros, I guess.

A preview of the Minnesota Twins. First one I have come across, anyways.

Kyle Williams, who had two key turnovers in yesterday's NFC Championship game, subsequently received death threats.

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
Minnesota 75, Northwestern 52 - The Gophers took Northwestern behind the woodshed. Northwestern is really bad at shooting behind the woodshed.
NFL
New York Giants 20, San Francisco 17 - Tough game for the 49ers. Not the result that I would have liked to see, nor the one that Steve preferred, I'm assuming. Also, this is the last NFL game of the season.

Yeah, OK, so these picks are late

I will be completely honest with this one. I thought the Ravens will win the AFC Championship game, and I had thought that before the game began, because the Patriots haven't played well against good teams all year. The Ravens, on the other hand, have played to their opponent all year. With 8 minutes left in the game, I will continue to say the the winner of the AFC championship will be  the Ravens.

(Moments after typing this, Brandon Spikes got a backbreaking INT for the Patriots. Oops.)

In the NFC Championship game, I have to pick the 49ers. It's an easy pick, really. It's going to be rainy in San Francisco, and the Giants aren't a good enough running team to endure the inclement weather. The 49ers, at home, can rely on the West Coast offense. No deep drops should negate the Giants pressure, and Frank Gore is going to be able to run on the Giants just enough. I actually think this is going to be a pretty bad game.

Links of the Day 1/22/12

Watch the roads out there, folks. A little slick today.

Joe Paterno passed away early this morning.

How will Big Ten Hockey look when that starts in 2013?

Yep, this is... not me. I do not train elephants.

SCOREBOARD
NCAAB
Kansas 69, Texas 66 - The Jayhawks win a tough game on the road. It's always fun to see Texas lose.
Mercer 69, North Florida 58 - The Bears keep on winning. They are sitting first in the Atlantic Sun.
South Dakota State 91 (OT), North Dakota State 88 - The Bison losing a tough game in overtime. SDSU is a game out of first, and the Bison are in third.
NHL
Minnesota 5, Dallas 2 - The Wild figured everything out just in time for Hockey Day in Minnesota.

Prepare for the Kevin Slowey show

I have been saying for a while that Kevin Slowey, a fly ball pitcher with a great K/BB ratio would have been a great addition to the Twins rotation last year, especially when the aggressively terrible Nick Blackburn held down a spot, and the underqualified Brian Duensing also managed to crack the opening day rotation. Slowey was branded as a bad influence on the team and a malcontent because he was smart enough to realize that moving him to the bullpen was a terrible thing for the Twins as a team and Slowey as a professional.
Well, you don't question the dumbass decisions Ron Gardenhire or the front office make without repercussions. Because old people with money are the principle source of revenue (see: season ticket holders in the really pricey seats) and they tend to listen to people like Sid Hartman and Jim Souhan, rather than stone cold logic or facts, there was no way that Slowey was ever going to be accepted as a valuable member of the Twins organization. So, Slowey was getting forced out.
To make the humiliation complete, the Twins sent him to Colorado, the place where flyball pitchers go to die. It looks like the Twins, in their bullheaded attempt to crush any insubordination had won this battle.
Alas, this was not to be. First off, let's point out that Kevin Slowey, given the chance to play against the AL Central and his away games at places like Detroit, Minnesota and Kansas City will be very successful. He has a decent outfield behind him which should bring down his BABIP, and he will start in the rotation, meaning no transition to the bullpen to throw off his chi.
Also, another aside from the whole Slowey fiasco. The Twins drove Slowey's value down to the point that all they could get was a never going to make it reliever. With a nominal some of cash, Slowey was sent to the Indians for Cleveland's 10th best prospect (according to Baseball America), Zach Putnam, a guy who is expected to join the bullpen right away. Colorado didn't drive down the value, despite having 35 starting pitchers on the roster, including Jamie fricking Moyer.
So, bang up job all around, Twins front office.

Links of the Day 1/21/12

Hey, yesterday was Steve's birthday. He's 67. Happy birthday, Steve!

The Australian Open has it's first hero.

Major League Soccer, for some reason, is not nearly as popular as international soccer on American TVs.

Is the NFL really trying to move a team to London?

SCOREBOARD
Random Soccer game
Byasen 1, Rosenborg 0 - RBK lost a friendly to crosstown, lower (3rd division) team, shortly after loosing long time defenseman Michael Lustig on a transfer to Celtic.
EPL
Everton 1, Blackburn 1 - A draw and a QPR win puts Blackburn perilously close to the relegation zone again.
NCAAB
Michigan State 83, Purdue 58 - Oof.