Michelin

 I have noted with some amusement the attempted furore over the Michelin Guide rating some New Zealand restaurants.

I have some experience in restaurants, working with some excellent chefs.

Not one of those will on the Michelin list; They were, to a man and woman, brilliant chefs who knew their customers needs and wants and filled those with culinary delights.

The Michelin people, meantime, want pretentious wankers who set out to create crap that suits them (the chef), for pretentious wankers instead of the regular customer. 

Many of those pretentious wanker customers regularly stop at Maccas on the way home for a real feed. 

If you want a real, chef prepared meal, go to your local that has a good reputation. If you want to impress someone with a great meal, do likewise. The local guys and gals are bloody good at what they do.

If you want to pretend while masturbating socially, the Michelin crowd are for you. Enjoy - if you can. 

 

Give It A Miss!

 Time to pull the pin?

 A satellite image showing Tropical Cyclone Tam on its way towards New Zealand in April 2025.

 The NZ Herald, on the main page overnight, has the above picture and a column telling us about projected cyclones for the season ahead.

A normal NZH-type climate column; Lots of shock-horror, lots of "warmer oceans" type rhetoric.

The story is about the calamitous (based on the tenor of the column) prediction that there will possibly be between 5 and 9 cyclones this season.

The story then tells us, almost as an aside before charging ahead with the calamity theme, that the long-term average is 9 i.e. there will probably be less cyclones this summer. 

The story is to serve one purpose only: to hammer the lie of global warming causing harmful weather.

The tactic and general theme is to try and scare anyone who doesn't read the full column or, given current education standards in Godzone, the many who have no comprehension of the English language

Surely it is time this sort of bullshit reporting ceased and news organisations returned to reporting news. 

 

Royal

 Randy Andy is being stripped of his entitlements and honours for shagging a (based on contemporary photographs) prostitute.

Andy was, at the time, divorced, therefore single and free. 

Meanwhile, in New Zealand a significant sized group of racists, communists, thieves, fraudsters and country destroyers run around flaunting their "sirs" and "dames" completely unhindered by officialdom.

And, yes; the lack of capitals is deliberate. 

Guilty or Innocent?

 The headline intrigued me:

 

2025 Trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial Test series set to get underway

No mention of the charges the dogs face and a few questions remain unanswered:

Does New Zealand or Australasian Law specifically cover sheepdogs or are all animals subject to it?

Will the dogs face a jury of their peers? Dogs or just sheepdogs?

Will the trial be bi-lingual and, if so, who will translate?

What punishment do the dogs face if found guilty?

Will there be an appeal?

Test series? What's it a test of? Do they mean internationals?   

Bean There

 Last summer/autumn I had too many chillis. I had purchased two types on special that had been mis-labelled and the seller only knew they were chilli plants and no which type.

They turned out to be a long (4-6") one and a small round ball-type, both very hot.

I loved both when added to my food.

I froze some - with fresh chillis just wash whole fruit in clean water, freeze separately on a tray and the bag, they last for at least six months.

Still with left-overs I sterilised a jar, filled it to the brim with cheap Pinot-Gris and shoved in one large chilli. I then threw the jar in the back of a cupboard and forgot about it.

I found it this week, six months later.

I had just cooked a bean mixture (red, white and black beans with peas) so made a bean salad by adding capers and some of the pinot-gris. After mixing the salad I put in a sealed container and refrigerated for 24 hours. 

Had some with cold meat (beef and salami) last night for dinner. 

The best bean salad I can remember tasting. 

 

Snow

 

 

From here:  NewstalkZB 28/10/2025

PUT THE CARBON (CO2) BACK YOU BASTARDS! 

Sorry Sir

 The headline:

 Geopolitical analyst talks ahead of possible Luxon and Trump encounter

It's not often I feel sorry for The Don. 

Update: The Don got lucky.