Brrr. It’s cold. And what better reason to post to the blog for the first time in (checks) more than a year?

Apparently it’s so cold that it’s even colder than Antarctica. Which sounds cold. Until you consider that it’s summer in Antarctica. So, I was curious, how big a deal is it that it’s colder than Antarctica? And I can tell you that it’s…well, Read the Story on Medium.

Last night at dinner, we were talking (as you do) about how many woolly mammoths would fit inside the Great Pyramid. Never let it be said that we won’t dive deep for answers just because the question is utterly ridiculous.

Read the story on Medium.

By Request…

I don’t usually go around posting recipes online. But this one got mentioned on Twitter, and now someone has requested it, and so I’m going to put it up here. I’m traveling and haven’t really been paying close attention to what’s trending online, and while I did see something about Hot Joy in Dallas, I didn’t look at it. Apparently it’s something about how it’s a terrible Asian fusion restaurant owned by white people. And somehow the result of this is that I, a white person, am going to post an Asian fusion recipe. So…I feel like maybe this is a questionable decision, but, whatever, this is a good recipe.

It’s based on the chicken tom yum recipe in Victor Sodsook’s True Thai. It’s basically the broth from the original recipe with the solid ingredients from a wild rice soup recipe. I’m not entirely sure what inspired me to make this originally, but it worked, and so now it’s a regular part of my repertoire. This is now pretty much the only version of wild rice soup that I make any longer.

A couple of notes: I make this with homemade chicken stock (or occasionally mixed chicken / turkey). If you are a stock maker, then this is what you’ll want to use. If not, then get a high-quality stock from the grocery store. For widely available brands, Kitchen Basics chicken stock is probably the best, but your store may have other options that you like better.

This recipe calls for a disturbingly small amount of chili paste, because that’s what my kids will put up with. It’s a critical flavor, and if you want more, you should definitely use more. If I had no kids, I suspect I’d use a couple of tablespoons. Though, of course, it’s easier to add more if you decide you need it than to remove some if you decide it’s too hot.

I feel like online recipes are supposed to have photos, and I actually have one, though it’s not a particularly good photo. Maybe someday I’ll take a better picture and update this post.

Your Motivational Power Hour! is coming to the Minnesota Fringe Festival August 3-13. Over the course of this week, I’ve been introducing you to all of our wonderful speakers. I’m pleased to announce our fourth and final guest.

Henrietta “Haley” Lune

Henrietta is a student at Lancaster Academy, where she helped start the school’s archery team. Her motivational speaking career began after she rallied her team to an upset victory against the heavily favored New Calais French Immersion School. An avowed Anglophile, she enjoys eating fish and chips, drinking tea, and playing Mornington Crescent.

Your Motivational Power Hour! is coming to the Minnesota Fringe FestivalAugust 3-13. Over the course of this week, I’m introducing you to all of our wonderful speakers. I’m pleased to announce our third special guest.

Nicole Jamie

Nicole was delivered a staggering blow ten years ago when a freak accident left her unable to walk like a normal human being. She wallowed in misery until a chance encounter showed her that her true purpose was to be an inspiration to others. Since then, Nicole has motivated thousands by showing them how to use a good attitude and positive thinking to overcome all odds and achieve their dreams. If she can smile every day — you can, too!

Your Motivational Power Hour! is coming to the Minnesota Fringe Festival August 3-13. Over the course of this week, I’m introducing you to all of our wonderful speakers. I’m pleased to announce our second special guest

Katie Apodemus

Katie once worked as a retail experience designer, telling grocery stores where to move their cheese. A noted authority on change, productivity, motivation, and empowerment, but not too much empowerment, she is a national speaker who is particularly popular with managers who are working with limited budgets and wish to have an outside speaker tell their employees to quit whining and suck it up.

Your Motivational Power Hour! is coming to the Minnesota Fringe Festival August 3-13. Over the next few days, I’ll introduce you to all of our wonderful speakers. And because I have no shame, I’m starting with me.

Credit: Kiera Burke

Ed Burke

Ed worked for two decades in information technology before being fired for throwing a fish (a 19 inch walleye, to be exact) at his boss. He won a landmark lawsuit for unjust termination on the grounds that HR had told him to do this. The company attempted to defend themselves by claiming that (a) while HR had in fact suggested that throwing fish on the job was a good idea, he should have understood not to take this literally and (b) in any case, he shouldn’t have used a live fish.

Well gee, since everybody else seems to be pontificating on what yesterday’s attacks mean for the French presidential election, I might as well chime in. Do I have any special expertise? No. But I do listen regularly to French news programs from RFI and RTL, which means that I’ve been following the election fairly closely.

(ETA: I want to be clear up front that this is entirely a “horse race” post and not a “what’s good for France post.”)

The big theme seems to be that the attack helps Marine Le Pen. Yes and no. Sunday’s election is not winner take all but rather top two advance. Le Pen has consistently polled in the top two. She is expected to advance. Does the attack make that more likely? Perhaps. But frankly, not advancing would be a huge failure. Maybe her victory margin will be a little bit larger, but you don’t earn bonus points for surplus votes in the first round.

How about the other candidates? Currently Emmanuel Macron is the other favorite to advance. Macron is a young, pro-European centrist with no experience in elected office. He served as President François Hollande’s deputy secretary general (I’m honestly not sure what that means…perhaps akin to deputy chief of staff?) for two years and then as economy minister for another two. He opposes headscarf bans and called France’s colonial history a crime against humanity. His youth, inexperience, and tolerance could certainly combine to make him vulnerable after the attack.

If Macron loses enough votes to fall out of the top two, the likely beneficiary is François Fillon. Fillon is the candidate of “Les Républicains,” the conservative party formerly known as the UMP (Union for a Popular Movement – but pretty much only ever referred to by its initials). Fillon is one of the most conservative politicians in his party. He is older than Macron and has served as prime minister. He supports a military and police buildup. And he was the favorite to win the presidency a few months ago who has lost support because of a scandal involving allegedly fictitious employment in his legislative office for his wife and children. If enough voters put aside their concerns about the scandal and move to him because of his experience and hard line positions, then he could certainly advance to the second round instead of Macron.

And that’s where things get interesting for Le Pen. Currently, polls show Macron trouncing Le Pen in the second round, generally by more than twenty points. Fillon also polls ahead of Le Pen but by somewhat smaller margins. And while Le Pen’s stance on Islam and immigration is too extreme for many French people, she could probably beat Fillon in an election that was decided on economic issues. And Fillon’s own positions on Islam and immigration are far enough to the right that some anti-Le Pen voters may ultimately decide that he’s not enough of an improvement to warrant taking everything else that goes with him. I don’t think that it’s likely that Le Pen defeats Fillon in a one on one race, but I think it’s possible. And that’s how the attack could benefit her – not by swinging support to her but by swinging support to Fillon and thus setting up a more favorable match-up.

Before I go, I should note that there is one other candidate with a legitimate shot of advancing: Jean-Luc Mélenchon, representing the left. I’m not sure how the attack really affects his support. Perhaps some left-leaning Macron supporters decide to move to someone older and less enamored with Europe. Seems to me that his chances were slim before and are slim now. If he and Le Pen advance, then polls show him winning handily, and I expect that to hold even if Le Pen picks up some support related to the attack.

New Podcast Episode: An Extra Glance, episode 7: Last Night in Sweden

New Podcast Episode: An Extra Glance, episode 6: The First Resignation of Michael Flynn