Bastet

It was only 2012 (when they finished with a 9-7 record, the same as the year before when they won the Super Bowl, although in the '12 season that wasn't enough to make the playoffs). The 2013 season was the Giants' first losing season after an 8-year streak of .500 or better. The last losing season prior to that had been Coughlin's first year as head coach. Coughlin has one more year on his contract, after signing an extension last year. He ties with Bill Parcells for most post-season wins by a Giants coach.

McDonald's using its signs to preach at me now joins the long list of reasons I won't eat there. WTF?

Yeah, the point of that one is completely lost on me. It's not funny, it's not anything (except annoying) -- it goes nowhere.

Oh, dear - I hadn't thought of it in eons, but I must admit I like it, too. (And, according to the internet [like you, I remembered it was weird, but not where exactly the apostrophe went], it's Michel'le.) That squeaky voice from the spoken parts of the song, rather than the normally-pitched voice from the sung lyrics, is how she speaks - I came upon an interview back in the day, and just about fell out of my chair. I like that song, too; it still makes me laugh, thinking about all the clueless kids (and their parents) who had no idea what they were singing about when they sang along to this song in the car. LOVE this song. It's awful, and I'm not even a big Footloose fan, but I will listen to it any time it's on. I'll blame Bonnie Tyler's voice for my irrational love (although nothing will ever top Total Eclipse of the Heart -- I love that song unreservedly ... which does not stop me thinking the literal video version is one of the greatest things to ever happen to music).

The first time I saw A League of Their Own, I thought Dottie had dropped the ball on purpose (I think it's the slow-mo that gives that feel). This so enraged me - thinking Dottie screwed over her entire team to coddle someone who needs to grow the hell up - I didn't watch the movie again for years. But then the film came up in an online conversation, and whether the drop was intentional or not was a big focus, with opinion split about 50/50. I watched it again the next time it was on TV, and realized if I viewed the drop as being a natural consequence of the collision, the scene didn't ruin the entire film for me. I still hate that Kit won, and like someone upthread I will skip over that scene to spare my blood pressure, but for all these years since that switch in perspective I have been able to enjoy the film as a whole. (Thankfully, because other than that one moment, I just love it.)

I agree, but it's odd, as if there's an injury we don't know about, because these past eight weeks have looked like more than a guy getting long in the tooth. I don't like the Broncos, but like Peyton Manning. I'm fine with the Colts, but have an irrational level of dislike for Andrew Luck. So this was another "who do I dislike least?" game for me. As much trouble as Denver has been having offensively lately, I thought Indy's defense would be bad enough for the Broncos to squeak by and lose next weekend in New England. Shows what I know. The Colts stand a better chance of beating New England, but I don't think it's going to happen. So the Seahawks really need to win so I have someone to root for if the Patriots go to the Super Bowl, rather than holding my nose and rooting for Green Bay.

Whew. I think the possession/control rule about completed passes is utter bullshit on the whole, but under that rule Dez Bryant no more made that catch than I did, so when it was ruled a completed pass I was hollering like such a madwoman my cats took off for another part of the house.

Didn't one of the chefs chose based on which student looked like a stoner?

The pizza guy. And the guy who tried to get the BO out of Elaine's hair on Seinfeld. Fifty seven. Fucking cancer.

I figured Seattle was going to win, but you just never know, so I'm relieved to still have the one team I'm actually rooting for still in the playoffs. Go Seahawks! I knew the damn Patriots were going to win that game, and I also knew it was going to be a close game, one that I'd have really enjoyed watching if it wasn't being played by two teams I hate. I may have to watch the Denver/Indy game on mute to avoid hearing all the Luck vs. Manning crap. Dallas in the NFC championship is something I just cannot abide, so as much as I dislike the Packers I will be fervently hoping they win. And then get crushed by Seattle.

"Not a bad guess"?! Who are you, and what have you done with Alex? And can you send the real guy back, because if ever there's a time for pretentious snarking, it's when a J! contestant offers up Truman for a clue referring to someone who died in 1910. Same here, and the Jimmy Johnson clue cracked me up.

Oh, jeez, I've just realized I remember dialogue from that episode: Boner and Mike seeing people going to the bathroom in pairs, and thinking it's a rich people thing rather than a "we're going to snort a line" thing," and thus Mike getting home to the dad saying Boner left a message to tell Mike "I didn't go to the bathroom." And then some cheesy "It means a lot, Dad. It means a lot" (or similar) moment when Jason asks what that means. Sweet Jesus, why is this in my brain?! In syndication, do they show the tag at the end with Kirk Cameron addressing the audience?

Yum. Stuffed Artichokes Fontecchio from The Silver Palate Cookbook is my favorite stuffed artichoke recipe.

Right? When I was a kid, my mom would sometimes cater to me by fixing artichokes as a side for a main dish I wasn't overly fond of, because the fun of eating one would blunt my disappointment. They grow nearly year-round here, so I eat a lot of them. I'm making spinach, artichoke and cheese dip as tomorrow's game day snack, too (but with cheese). I have no idea where one would find pre-made cashew cream -- in the dairy aisle near the sour cream, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc.? Or maybe in the specialty aisle or deli with the store-made hummus, guacamole, etc.?

Since I hate cream cheese, but like all the other ingredients that were listed in the other recipe, I look forward to seeing yours.

Cybill went longer than that, Curtis (and was hilarious). As a tidbit, he was in the pilot of that series (along with "MacGillicuddy," Jack Blessing). Wrong. Yes, I loved Miss DiPesto, but as a secondary character. The Agnes episodes were disappointing because I tuned in to see Maddie and David, not Agnes. It had nothing to do with Herbert Viola. She could have been teamed with my favorite actors playing fabulous characters, and I'd have still wanted to get back to the regular show. The endless repeats, then we finally get a new episode and it's a clip show, or an Agnes episode. Ugh, I'm having flashbacks to the mid '80s, when being a fan of this show was such a frustrating experience.

I didn't hear Greg's malapropism to know what he was trying to say, but this weekend my best friend twice said "emancipated" when she meant "emaciated." She knows the difference; her brain just had some sort of misfire going on that day. When she made her mistake the second time, I pointed it out, and she asked, "Is that really what I said?" She thought she'd said "emaciated" and had no idea she'd actually spit out something different. Maybe Gregory similarly misspoke rather than not knowing the meaning of the word.

I'd find it pathetic for someone to purposely give me a not-quite-right recipe in order to feel superior because my version didn't come out as good as theirs. To my knowledge, no, I have never had that happen. What an odd thing to do, especially to do to one's own offspring - and I join you in shaking my head at that being published as a heart-warming tale.

Yes, which was rather disappointing recently when the Dish program guide said I'd be getting the episode with Jean. I don't remember what aired instead, and it was probably an episode I like very well since we're on the early seasons, but that's one of my favorites.

I cannot stand how fake this show is, with contestants straight out of Central Casting, so I generally just tune in for the final episode to see the food, but I saw this season premiere and had seen last season's, too. In the last one, a contestant called Anne "Boo" and in this one someone called her "Hon." Both times, she shut that crap down immediately. I loved it. I also liked in this one when she picked a blonde woman whose name I can't remember, saying, "I don't like her cheerleader, princess personality, but ..." We agree on that, too, Anne. See y'all after the finale.

You could do something with mustard. I've never tried that myself, as I hate mustard, but I've seen it done. Or a lemon juice/olive oil/white wine base with whatever flavors you want to add - that I have done, and it's tasty. Garlic and chiles are good. A salsa verde might be a nice pairing, too. This recipe does use butter, but just a tablespoon for 4 artichokes worth of sauce; it's mostly wine and garlic.

I guess Mei doesn't hold a grudge over Melissa stealing her clams in the last challenge. That opening segment made me think one of them was going home, and I figured that would be Melissa. Nice fake-out, show. It's about time for immunity to be off the table. Beyond time. And with immunity no longer being conferred, I was fine with such a silly QF challenge occurring this late in the competition. Their reactions to the students' pantries were funny, and the college photos of the cheftestants even better. If Andy Cohen hadn't been there, it would have been great. Gregory's ramen cracked me up. (And made me want Doritos.) Melissa's looked boring, but sounded like the best one to eat, so I wasn't surprised by her win. Apropos of nothing, ramen was never my cheap food staple; that was Kraft mac & cheese. I still like it from time to time. Ah, early 20s metabolism, how I miss you so. I love Julia Child and Jacques Pépin, so I like the idea of a "Make a dish in homage to Julia Child" challenge on its face, and to be able to sit there and chat with him about her over wine ... fabulous. As a side note, when I used to visit a friend in Santa Barbara, we'd go drink at the same place Julia frequented. We largely left her alone, but did chat a few times. That woman was aces. While I agree with Melissa that Julia Child would not have used a pressure cooker to prepare short ribs (or veal shanks), I disagree she'd have "taken the risk" of braising them in three hours. She'd have made something that could be done right in the time allotted. When will these chefs learn? She's lucky to have survived. Didn't Tom or another judge pitch a fit in a previous season when someone (Casey?) didn't use a 100-year-old rooster for coq au vin? No such grumbling here with Gregory. I won't eat foie gras, so I wasn't sad to see Doug's dish fail even though I generally like his food. At first I figured Melissa's failure would loom larger, because his dish was more ambitious. But once they talked about how seriously undercooked the middle was (I think someone described it as raw), I thought it might be him.

Apparently, yes. I was just coming back in the room when the clue was being read, so I didn't hear the beginning; I heard something about the baby Jesus figure inside it and then "this [something] observed on January 6th." In looking at the archive, you are right. The clue read: The king in king cake refers to the three magi who visited baby Jesus, himself represented by the baby hidden inside a slice, all in homage to this Christian festival observed on January 6th. So, I guess one bites into king cake carefully.

I suspect people peeling off outerwear in freezing temperatures would prefer to do so indoors, and would prefer to leave those items indoors - where they can dry and warm up - without having to drag them through the house or drip on the nice carpet or wood floors inside the door, so I can see why a mud room would be preferable to a porch in certain climates.

Susan Blommaert (Mrs. Paddock) played a judge in an episode of L&O: SVU I watched a few minutes of while going around the dial the other day, and she kicked all kinds of ass in a two-minute scene. I had to go to IMDb to get her name, and apparently she appeared (as that judge) in eight more episodes after that, so they knew a good thing when they saw it. Also, am I the only one who didn't know/remember Mrs. Paddock's first name was Phyllis? There's really no point to any of this, other than when I was going around the dial and saw her, I squealed, "Mrs. Paddock!" I love Mrs. Paddock. That is all.