Latest column is up at the Harlan Daily Enterprise. It's about turkey meat. After it got published in hard copy form, I got an email from a reader correcting me for saying that Shepherd's Pie is made with beef. It's made with lamb. Hence the shepherd part. I'm an idjit. Also, it was trimmed for space a little by my editor. That's never a big deal. I'm always fine with that sort of thing. But in this particular instance there was a bit at the end that got removed that I think made it flow a little better. So if you notice a hiccup, that might be why. Or it might just be that I suck. Jury's still out.

Writing the column has been tough lately. In November I'll have been doing it for a year. A year of weekly columns. At first they just flew out of my head faster than I could get them on paper. I'd write three or four in a day. Now my pace has slowed. I'm bumping up against my deadline every week. I'm still enjoying it but every once in a while a creeping doubt pops into my head, "What if you've said everything you have to say? What if you've told all of your stories?" I don't think that's the case. At least I hope it's not. But I'm having to dig a little deeper than before. Hopefully it's not showing. Thanks to everyone who reads every week. You're all my special snowflakes.


I noticed the column was up the other day. I was wondering why you hadn't mentioned it.

The part about Men's Weekend and the turkey bacon was great!

As far as the Shepherd's Pie thing goes. Most people do make their's with beef. Yes, it's traditonally made with lamb but how many familys eat lamb that often? When I was groing up Shepherd's Pie consisted of layers of beef, mashed potatoes, and corn.

Here is what Wikipedia has to say on the matter:

Shepherds' pie is a traditional English dish that consists of a bottom layer of minced (ground) lamb in gravy covered with mashed potato and (often) a layer of cheese. This is then baked in an oven. Often a favorite dish of institutional cooks keen on feeding large groups of people.

The mince is traditionally lamb (hence "shepherd") although many people prefer to make it with minced (ground) beef. A shepherd's pie made with beef is properly called a cottage pie. A similar dish made with fish instead of meat is called a fisherman's pie.

In North America, shepherd's pie is usually a layer of ground beef, a layer of corn and a layer of mashed potatoes. In Quebec, this variant is called pâté chinois.

So you email that reader back and tell thenm they can go F themselves and are no longer welcome to read your column.  


Sweet validation!

I left the corn out of mine because, while I love corn, I hate it when it's cooked into things. It's an irrational stance and I have no valid explanation for it - but the minute you put corn into casseroles, or salsa, or - God forbid- on Pizza, it becomes an unedible abomination.

Thanks for always reading the columan, Ian. Even when I'm slow getting the links up. That means a lot to me.

Also, it's funny that you mention wikipedia. I've always been nominally aware of wikipedia, but for the last week I've been reading a message board where a comic book creator took exception to his entry on the site and has been waging a really ridiculous editing war on it. He's being really indignant about the site calling itself an encyclopedia when it's obviously open to opinion and hearsay. To which I would reply - that's why it's called an open-source encyclopedia. Anybody who ignores what the site actually is and hones in on one word in it's description is an idiot.  


I can't believe you talked about
Shepherd's pie that much and never mentioned my favorite part of that story.  


I'm the same way with raisins. I can't eat anything that has raisins in it, but I love raisins on their own.

weird.  


Okay, so I made shepherd's pie the other day. As I was sitting down to eat it, there was a knock at the door. I opened the door and there were a bunch of sheep standing outside. I asked them what was up and they said they smelled the pie and wondered if maybe I was a shepherd. I regretfully had to inform them that I wasn't. But then I noticed there sure were a lot of these sheep. I started to count them, "one... two.. three...fou-zzzzzzzz."

There. Happy?  


Ian and I are brothers from different mothers.  


For God's sakes, stay the hell away from the John Byrne forum Patch! It's poison to the brain, and he'll only bring you down with him!!!

By the way, I started a second (actually third, but the other one I abandoned and deleted) blog a few hours ago. Once again inspired by you (which means, I thought: "Hey, it's cool when he does it, I'll do it too!"). I even named it after you...kinda. For lack of something better, I called it Stupid Fiction Blog. I'm interested to see how long I can keep it up. I plan to post once a week, or more if the mood strikes me. We'll see. The first story is up now, if anyone cares to take a look.

www.stupidfictionblog.blogspot.com

-End shameless plugging...  


I love the John Byrne Forum the same way I love listening to talk radio. They both irritate me in an amusing way. And when I turn them off, they disapear and I don't think about them until I turn them on again.

Thanks for telling me that I'm the wind beneath your wings, Logan. I'll check out your new blog. And maybe I should repost some stupid fictin to commemorate. Or write some new.  


Love the Men's Weekend plug with the entire turkey bacon fiasco. That was a debacle. I just want to point out that I bought the groceries, but I did not have any input on what was bought. Like you, I love bacon. Turkey's are good for one thing, and that my frienst is Thanksgiving.

Here is another Turkey situation where I was duped...one of my roommates insists on making chili every other day. I ate the chili and it tasted strange to me. Lo and behold, instead of being American and using beef, he uses turkey. It never has the same consistency each time he makes it, and it never tastes the same. He claims it tastes different cause he added different spices. He lies.

Not to change gears, but after recent visits to the doctor's office, I found out that my heart is a ticking timebomb and I do have to eat healthier. Bacon is cut out of my diet. However, I refuse to use turkey bacon as an alternative. If I can't have real bacon, I won't have anything that resembles it either. My body accepts no substitutes.  


Please don't die. Who'll take care of me. I don't want to go live with Uncle BP!  


If I die, I'll give you my CD collection, which is convienently imported into iTunes.  


Thanks, but I'm not a big NSync Fan. Try BP.  


I don't own any N'Sync albums!!! Just Kelly and Britney...and Madonna.  


merry christmas to me!!!  


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