Weird Tomato's

Went to the grocery store the other day and I was surprised by the tomato's that I saw.   I have never seen a tomato that looked like this.   Definitely not what I am use to.  

Sort of resembles a pumpkin a little bit in shape.

Just look at this one.   Looks like it is mutated.

Maybe it was grown in Snow Canyon just north of the Trinity test site.   LOL!

It just seems so weird.   The tomato actually looks ugly, if there is such a thing as an ugly tomato.   Looks like a grumpy face to me.   I know, a lot of imagination.   But as a young child in the summer I would lie on the grass and look at the white fluffy clouds and try to guess what they looked like.

There was just a whole basket full of these strange tomato's.   Even yellow tomato's.   Has anyone else seen these types of tomato's?   Eaten any?

Bon apetit.   Lew

Subtitles in Films

Subtitles.   Who likes having to read subtitles while watching a movie?   Not me!   The way that I see it I can either read the subtitles or watch the movie.   How can I watch the movie when I am constantly looking at the bottom of the screen instead of what is happening above the subtitles.    I know that sometimes they like to have the actors speak in their native language.   I see this often in war movies:   the Japanese soldiers speak Japanese, the German soldiers speak German, and the American soldiers speak English.   I realize that this is suppose to add realism to the film, but I still don't like it.   So recently I bought a DVD of the movie Letters from Iwo Jima.   

I get home and, yep, I discovered that it was in Japanese with subtitles in English.  

 

 

The only time that English is spoken is when an American actor speaks which from what I understand doesn't happen very often.   I am planning on readingthe screenplay before I watch the movie to familiarize myself with the movie.  In spite of the subtitles I think that I will enjoy the movie.   How do you feel about subtitles?   Have you seen the movie Letters from Iwo Jima?   Was it good?    Lew

 

 

Fried Bologna

It's Sunday morning and the family is hungry.   You will make eggs, hash browns, and bacon.    The All American Breakfast.   But there is no bacon.   No problem, how about sausage.   Nope, no sausage either.   How about some fried Spam slices.   No Spam either.   OMG (Oh My Gosh) what to do.   Fried bologna.   It isn't bad.   I admit that I would rather have bacon but it is better than nothing.   As a child from time to time my mother would make fried bologna slices with breakfast.  

Now my moms bologna never came out burnt like the bologna in the picture above.  That really doesn't look very appetizing.  Hers was more like the picture below.

I happen to like bologna and so fried bologna was perfectly acceptable to me.   But frying the slices of bologna was difficult because the center kept "puckering" up.

How do you get the whole slice of bologna to lay flat so that it browns evenly.  I think that  my mom held the bologna slices down flat with a spatula and kept turning them.    What I used was one of these inexpensive bacon presses made of aluminum.    It was very light and so I would set an empty glass for weight on the knob to get it to press the bologna flat.

While on the internet I saw pictures where people had cut slits into the bologna.   I have never tried this.   I think it makes the bologna funny-looking on the plate.   Have anyone tried this?   Do you think that it makes the bologna funny-looking?   I must admit, the bologna does appear to be lying flat

So where am I going with the fried bologna topic.   I saw on the internet that they are serving fried bologna sandwiches at the Carnation Cafe in Disneyland.  

It consists of pan-seared bologna, toasted Pullman bread, ailoi, pickles and tomato.   The slice of bologna in the picture looks to be pretty thick and so probably doesn't have that problem with the center and edges puckering up.

I went to Disneyland many times in the past and I always ate at the Carnation Cafe because the Carnation Cafe was inexpensive and it still seems to be inexpensive.   But now I go to Disney World and I did a search to see if there any fried bologna sandwiches here.   The only restaurant that I found that serves fried bologna sandwiches is called the Blue Zoo (an upscale restaurant) and is located within the Swan and Dolphin hotel.    Thanks to the Disney Food Blog I saw a picture of their Fried Bologna Sandwich.

The Disney Food Blog gave praise for this fried bologna sandwich.  It consists of house-made fried bologna which is thick-cut in two slices, and layered with slabs of tomato, creamy mayo, and golden griddle-toasted rounds of bread in a fun stack. 

 The two pictures above show what looks like potato chips being served with the fried bologna sandwich while the picture below of the fried bologna sandwich at the Carnation Cafe in Disneyland shows french Fries being served with the fried bologna sandwich.      

To be honest, I would prefer the french fries over what looks like potato chips.   But the fried bologna sandwich at the Blue Zoo restaurant has two thick-cut slices of bologna.   Which to choose would be a difficult decision but I feel confident that I would choose the Carnation Cafe out of nostalgia.   What has been your experiences with fried bologna?    Would you order a fried bologna sandwich in a restaurant?

I really like the Disney Food Blog for information on both Disneyland and Disney World.    I receive their newsletter and it really keeps me up to date on new foods and restaurants in Disney.   I highly recommend it.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2012/05/27/review-todd-englishs-bluezoo-2/

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2011/04/20/dining-in-disneyland-carnation-cafe-and-interview-with-chef-oscar/

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/disneyland/carnation-cafe/menus/dinner/

Passengers Movie

Our library system in Orlando is great.   I can check-out DVD movies for free.   Really great.    And they have a tremendous selection of movies.   I can go to the library website and search for a particular movie.   The search will even tell me which branches of the library have the particular movie that I am searching for.   And if the library branch that has the particular movie that I am searching for is located on the other side of town, I can request that it be delivered to me.   A driver brings the movie right to the house.   Now how is that for service.   Great.   But we were at our local branch library and looking at the DVD movies available.   We saw one that looked interesting.   It was called Passengers.

It is about a space ship transporting humans in suspended animation.   Sort of like in the movie Alien.  

But in this sci-fi movie there isn't any space monsters or people being shot with laser blasters or hacked on by light sabers......   It is more of a nice quiet movie with lots to think about.

The movie came out in 2016 and I don't know why I didn't see it in the movie theaters.   Movies are always better on the big screen.

If you haven't seen the movie and your local library has DVD's then check it out.   I give it a thumbs up.

And the special effects are really good also.

Get yourself a bag of Wise brand popcorn and enjoy the movie.   Why Wise brand popcorn?   Because I have been eating Wise potato chips as far back into my childhood as I can remember.   And I still eat them preferentially today.   That is why I mentioned the Wise brand.   Just out of nostalgia.  And yes, I agree, the absolute best popcorn is fresh popped popcorn in the movie theater.   And don't forget the salt and butter. What is your favorite brand of potato chips?

Have some fun and make tonight movie night in your household.   Lew

Eastern Lubber Grasshoppers

It's the springtime invasion of the lubbers.   No, not land lubbers but the Eastern Lubber Grasshoppers.   This happens each spring.

There were just so many of them congregated in one spot.   I estimate about 20 of them.   You can see that they have been munching on the leaves.

I guess that these are juveniles since they haven't developed their wings yet.   Just look at the fiery red lines.

They grow up to be quite large.   On the internet they said that they grow to be 3 inches long but I swear that I have seen at least 4 inches long.   Maybe they just seemed that big because of the small 1 inch green caterpillars that I saw as a child while growing up in New York.   This picture of a large grasshopper is from the internet and is definitely not my finger, no way.

Some fanciful diversions on large grasshoppers.

Yeah, this what goes through my mind when I see these huge grasshoppers.  I know, an overactive imagination.

They remind me of the old sci-fi flick The Beginning of the End.   A great movie if you like the old classics in sci-fi movies.   I do, especially from the 50's.

Of course the giant grasshoppers were the result of radiation.   Aren't most of the monsters created by radiation and atomic testing?   It seems that way.

 Has anyone else had giant grasshoppers of 3" to 4" in length?   Have a great day and be happy because spring is here.   Remember "April's showers brings May's flowers".   Lew