Where's Waldo

Operation Gummy Abomination

2010-08-11T17:40:00.003-06:00

So some of you have asked (okay, nobody has) how I accomplished such a daring feat of science as to create giant gummy bears that weigh in at 3/4 of a pound each. Well, it's surprisingly simple!

Get Lots of Gummy Bears: Brand name probably doesn't matter much, but it should follow that a better quality bear will lead to a better end product. I should note that you don't *have* to use Bears, but they tend to be more prevalent in bulk. You could use any gelatin-based candy, like worms, swedish fish, probably even Sour-Patch Kids, but the choice is really up to you.
Get Some Molds: Just like with Jello, chocolate, or any other substance that can be melted and reformed - anything can be a mold. The obvious choice here was a bear shape, and the easiest mold to use was a plastic honey bear. No, I didn't empty out dozens of honey bear bottles for use in my little scheme. A simple Google search turned up a few sites that sell the bottles in bulk, and relatively cheap. I got mine (8oz LDPE bottles) from Wasserstrom Restaurant Supply. The bottles were $0.45 each plus shipping. Whatever you choose, just make sure you have an exit strategy for the finished product - see below.
Sort it All Out: This is technically an optional step, but you can have some fun with it. If you melt unsorted bears you'll end up with a funky brown color with a very mixed fruit flavor. But you can mix and match to get a color or flavor combination that you want - cherry & orange, lemon & whatever the clear bears are, etc.
Prep The Mold: One thing I found is that molten gummy is possibly one of the stickiest substances on earth; it even made a good show of clinging to a nonstick pot. Cooled off, it can usually be peeled off whatever surface it adhered to, but it's best to give yourself some insurance and aid in extraction by giving the bears a spritz of nonstick cooking spray, or shaking in a few drops of vegetable oil (neutral flavor here is best). Let the bears drain over a paper towel after you've lubed them up to let keep the excess from pooling up in the bottom.
The Melting: Now, I am not the first person to attempt this horrid experiment. But I'd like to think I refined the process a bit. My first two attempts at melting the gummies were in a small pot on the stove over low heat. While they did end up melting, it took incredibly long at a safe temperature, and at higher temps introduced bubbles into the gummy. After a little experimentation I found that you can melt them in the microwave. I almost filled a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup with gummies and put in the nuker for 2 minutes at 50% power and got great results. If you're worried about air bubbles you can pack the gummies into the cup, but most of the bubbles will get drawn out after you...
Pour: CAREFULLY. I cannot emphasize this enough. Molten gummy is not only extremely sticky it also gets very hot - not a good combination, as there's the potential for burns if you mess up and get a good amount on your skin. This highlights another advantage of using the microwave and a measuring cup - you get a lot better precision in pouring. The bears I poured using stove-melted gummy had globs going everywhere when I missed the mouth of the bottle or it poured too fast.
Cool: Where you do this is up to you. The gummy will solidify at room temperature, but will take a good amount of time to do so. Once the bottles are warm enough to handle, you can stick them in the fridge and they'll be ready for extraction much sooner. I'd recommend putting the caps on as well just to keep them from picking up any funky fridge flavors floating around.
Extract: Once the bears are cooled, time to contemplate how to get them out of the mold. Now, gummy is pretty resilient stuff, so score marks will rebound for the most part. I used a clean X-acto knife to slice down the back of the bear from the neck of the bottle to the base, and then pulled the bears out of the slit. Once I pulled them, I rinsed them under cold water briefly and then dried them off with paper towels to get any lingering oil off of them.
Enjoy!

Of course you can fix any imperfections you want - I cut off the "crew-cuts" they had from the bottle necks with a knife, which left some score marks on the head. You can experiment with whatever looks good for you.

So how do you eat one? Any way you can! My best advice is to take a bite and pull. I think you'll find that the finished gummy will actually taste better than the original "raw" gummy bears did!

Happy melting!

Long time no post...

2009-02-05T09:00:00.002-07:00

There must be a phrase, meme, jargon, something that can truly express your level of connectedness to the digital social network. Maybe some unit of measurement of your onlineosity? There's potential here, I think...a whole new lexicon to help describe your shareable 1s and 0s and everyone's interactions with said bits.

I wonder because when I hit "Publish" on this, within an hour or so, twitterfeed will scrape this post from the RSS feed for this little corner (niche? crevice?) of the blogosphere, and put up an announcement on my very own (and ever-so-slightly more popular) Twitter feed. This will then be sucked from Twitter and broadcast to all my friends on Facebook via the twitter FB app. I'm sure there are more iterations of broadcasting things out to even more networks (if I were so inclined to use them), but to be honest, I'm kind of babystepping into this realm. How very ungeeky of me.

New clicks and music!

2006-01-22T07:57:00.000-07:00

Couple of quickies:  Added a link to my flickr stream (with images!  Pretty!)  You can also follow this link to go to this site.  If you’re a friend or family member, email me (link anonymized – add the appropriate symbols post-clickage) and I’ll send you an invite to the super-secret backroom photos.

Also, I’m on a TMBG kick lately, recalling the halcyon days of my youth…or, you know, some of them at least.  They’ve got almost their entire catalog available for download at their e-commerce site for $0.99 a song, or about $9.99 an album.  Notable exceptions are “Flood” and “Apollo 18”.  Wonder if Elektra still holds the distribution rights to them.  Anyways, they’re good quality 256kbps MP3s (which is better quality than I usually rip at) and also have live recordings from every one of their stops on their last tour!  So, yeah!

Photos and phunny.  I mean funny.

Iran is (developing) da Bomb!

2006-01-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

Hmm…Sen. Lott(R) and Sen. Layh (D), both of the Senate Intelligence Committee on CNN talking with the inestimable Wolf Blitzer in a segment regarding a nuclear capable Iran. Hmm. Ooh! And a poll! What’s the best way to deal with Iran’s nuclear decision?

Diplomacy

Sanctions

Military Action

Guess I better start learning Farsi…might come in handy on my next deployment.

(Disclaimer: My observations and comments do not reflect official government policy or planning, but rather just my own morbid, cynical attitude. Mr. Stewart would be proud.)

Linkages

2006-01-11T08:43:00.000-07:00

Some links worth following, in my estimation:

Tell your congressman to block Judge Alito’s nomination – Our country deserves better

Feeling guilty about driving a tank to work? Help clean the air, get a Terrapass for your particle mode of vehicular pollution. The purchase price goes to help fund clean-air energy technologies and reduce the overall amount of carbon emissions nation-wide.

Rants, raves, and more importantly good information on the progressive movement in American politics: Daily Kos

On the materialistic tip: Amazon’s got the wishlist game down to a science these days. But TheThingsIWant let’s you make a wishlist from any item you find on any webpage in a couple of clicks. Create a wishlist for yourself, or an “I gotta get that for them!” list for your friends and family.

That’s all for now…laters…

What is the (new) Matrix?

2006-01-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

What does it say about how much time I have on my hands when I end up pulling a Diesel Sweeties reading marathon?  All almost 1400 strips – I’m beginning to see things all…pixelly…Add to that the fact that I pitched in a transcribed a bunch of them, as per Emperor r. stevens’ edict, and I’m a virtual font of DS knowledge!  Heck, I even felt the need to edit the wikipedia entry for the site!  (How could they not include the venerable Shockwave in the list of guest characters?!?)

On another tangent, I’m all for this Web 2.0 thing everyone is clamoring about.  I have no idea what’s going on, but I’m excited!  What I’ve managed to distill out of the various references to said phenomenon is that Web 2.0 is about information convergence and interconnectedness.  The importance of Web 1.0 (if we can call it such) was information access and openness.  All of a sudden, with the public explosion of internet access, the world all of a sudden (relatively speaking, of course – Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the LoC wasn’t digitized overnight) the world had nearly every piece of information at their fingertips.  The Dot Com days (or, what could be called Web 1.5) gave people interaction with that information.  Not only could you see Domino’s menu, but you could order a pizza to boot!

But all the information in the world is a useless distraction if you have no meaningful way to interpret it.  The true meaning of a piece of information relies on its interconnections and relations, and being able to see and understand those connections.  To see what I mean, try a little experiment in learning.  Go to wikipedia and pull up any random article until you come up with something you have no familiarity with – the more obtuse the better (it shouldn’t be difficult, there’s a large amount of very in depth and technical content there).  Start surfing back through the reference links in the article, again especially the obscure ones, and eventually you will find an article that fits within your frame of reference.  Once you’ve read up on that subject, you’ll be able to make your way back to the previous topic with your comprehension thus expanded.  Continue this process ad nausea (or ad completion – whatever the Latin is for that) and eventually you will have an understanding of the original subject.

Now, what does that mean for Web 2.0?  Well, it’s about being able to form those frame of reference expanding links, but about any piece of data you can put your hands on and finding out what else you can accomplish with it.  Upload a photo to flickr, tag it with a keyword, use those tags to find similar images, which in turn link to a blog, which links to a service, which sells copies of that very piece of sculpture or art you photographed in the first place.  Now this sounds like a lot of work, but the real breakthroughs behind Web 2.0 is not the links themselves, but how they are engineered and created.  Web technologies such as web syndication, open source communications protocols, and AJAX have opened up new means for web-based groups to provide access.  Previously access to certain types of information was limited to what you could read in a browser or download via a specialized program to pull and process specialized information from the internet .  More and more that functionality is being made available on webpages.  A case in point would be web-based email.  Early incarnations were little more than a series of text boxes, where a user could only punch in plaintext email, and maybe upload a file to attach.  Later versions allowed users to use HTML tags to spruce up their email or add links.  Now, webmail programs such as gmail put that functionality directly into a point and click interface, making typing a richly-formatted email nearly as simple as using a word processor.

So, before I continue to ramble on incoherently, that’s my take on Web 2.0.  Enjoy!

Spamspamspamspam

2006-01-01T05:03:00.000-07:00

While I realize there's about, oh...zero readership out there (certain individuals excepted, of course...hi, honey!), in an attempt to clear out the crap comments (spam) from actual intentioned messages, I turned on the word verification. Bots-be-damned!

My thanks for your patience.

The Golden Goulds

2006-01-01T02:13:00.000-07:00

Found a great chestnut over at The Daily Kos with some laughable (and frighteningly enough, real) arguments against evolution. Some highlights:

Fossils are made of tar in factories in China
There's no way a fish could've evolved lungs before it died on open land
Let's have a discussion about this, but you have no proof and I'm not going to listen to you
Terrorists teach evolution in their "madroseos"
"Most mammals contain DNA similaities because mammals eat other mammals. "

It boggles the mind, really that...k, I got nothing, my mind is too boggled right now.

Of note, this comment, presumably by a former colleague of Stephen Jay Gould. A perfect example of a responsible politician.

To all those who wish well...

2005-12-25T01:28:00.000-07:00

To all those who wish well, welcome.

Just a quicky…it’s now officially Christmas day over the continental United States – wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe Holiday season, and want to thank all my friends and family for their support and well wishes.

Adam

Boing Boing: No Xmas for Sony protest badge

2005-12-01T07:19:00.000-07:00

Anyone who's been keeping up on music or tech news (and beyond) should know about Sony/BMG's questionable use of faulty DRM software on certain CDs in their catalog, and the resulting gaping security holes it left in users' computers. But the movement blogged by boingboing seems like a bit of overkill.

People don't seem to realize that "Sony" is not a monolithic entity with the corporate head having complete control over its multitudinous arms, like some hideous cephalopodic Kraken. In reality, elements like SCE, Sony/BMG, the Vaio line, Sony-Ericcson, etc. operate largely independent from each other, with one division rarely feeding in monetarily or mentally into the other. I'm all for a boycott from Sony/BMG due to their legal and technological missteps which have shown a disdain for their means of income, the consumer. But a boycott of the Sony brand as a whole is going to have little to no effect, and is a largely reactionary tactic which will be hard to sell to the masses at best, and marginalize the intent at worst.

Reading of the Sony Rookit Roundups (Part I, Part II, & Part III) is recommended.

How long...

2005-12-01T01:10:00.000-07:00

From my submission to /.:

I'm sure everyone knows the story about the life expectancy of an fresh, unupdated PC once it's connected to the internet, but what about a PC which just hasn't been updated in a while? I've been deployed to Iraq for the last 9 months, and haven't been able to hook up my laptop to the internet to get updates (I do HAVE access, just can't hook up a personal laptop, gov't only). Before I deployed, I would update my software (system, anti-virus, firewall, anti-spyware, etc) regularly, but as I get closer to coming back to the states and my broadband connection, I'm beginning to wonder what the life expectancy of my PC will be. What's the lifecycle of a security exploit, hack, virus, etc - between discovery/release, propagation, and extinction (or a state approaching extinction)?

Wanted: Literary Agent

2005-11-27T04:30:00.000-07:00

I’m published!

Okay, well, not really…about as much published as I am here. But it’s out on a big-timey website!

Of course, what I contributed became an edited chunk of the article, but hey! Rock, rock on!

Writings on Musings on Writings

2005-11-27T04:08:00.000-07:00

So you know how your mind wanders around and around when you have absolutely nothing to do – like, say, you’re sitting on a jumpseat in the back of a Blackhawk, flitting around the night sky of Northern Iraq and just watching the little islands of light skim by below you.  Well, my mind was apparently flitting along with it, and it flitted back to my occasional attempts at writing.  Do I really have what it takes to write something serious, something possibly salable, or that people would at least enjoy?  It’s really about finding the time, and having the motivation to get something down on paper – or digits in this case.  The former I seem to have plenty of these days, the latter may take a little work.  It’s not as if there’s a lack of inspiration out there.  Neal Stephenson, William Gibson, Bruce Sterling, David Eddings, Cory Doctorow, all      have really gotten my gears going in one form or another.

Of course, that may bring me one step closer to taking over The Daily Show from Jon Stewart.  I can see it all now…

/fluffly clouds and wavy lines/

Wow, that was a fun dream sequence!

I once heard somewhere that the hardest part about writing is deciding what to write.  I think that the level of difficulty in choosing a topic is daunting, but is a relatively insignificant portion of the overall problem.  So is his to be the great American Novel?  Should I write my experiences of war (or lack there of)?  Write the fantasy novel that’s been lurking in the background for years?  A new-wave stab at the near-future?  Or something totally different…hmmm…

Random Reminders...

2005-11-13T10:25:00.000-07:00

Just an extremely strange (and kinda funny) reminder on how it's good to be the king: At about 2015 (10:15 AM MST, I think...) who should come over the Command net (radio, that is...) but the Commander - and what urgent message, what vital orders, what timely bit of information is he going to put out to his loyal troopers?

He's going to wish one of his commanders a happy birthday.

And not only that, but he sings "Happy Birthday" (with everyone following along, of course).

No word yet on whether he cleared ASCAP rights or not.

2005-10-24T03:27:00.000-06:00

This is Cocoa - a Cypriot dog who lives in Dahuk, Iraq now. Friendly as can be.

2005-09-20T01:43:00.000-06:00

But it is a tad blurry.

2005-09-20T01:42:00.000-06:00

It's not as painful as it looks...

2005-09-13T15:15:00.000-06:00

My lovely wife (with a worried puppy)

Okay, been a while

2005-09-13T14:55:00.000-06:00

...since I've mentioned anything here. Been in Iraq for 6 months now, a little different than last time. We're outside of Tall Afar (Talafar, Telafar, or with a '), enjoying the good life.

At least it's bearable outside during the daytime.

Been on leave - not trying to make this a military blog now, just something to keep notes in.

The Bestest ever!

2004-10-20T14:35:00.000-06:00

Soon it will be mine. The Inspiron XPS. Oh yes. Thanks largely to Techbargains for letting out on a $750 off coupon for the fine products at Dell. But even largelier to my lovely and understanding wife who blessed off on this wondrous purchase in exchange for a simple dish of sweet potatoes and marshmallows. Yes, that's right, marshmallows, those fluffiest of goodies. Is there nothing those little darlings can't accomplish when they put their frothy, pneumatically induced minds to it?

I don't think so.

W

Anger, Fear, Hatred

2004-10-20T14:19:00.000-06:00

Yes. I am a Star Wars fan. But that's okay, I've come to accept it.

(The force is strong in this one!)

But what's really cheesing me right now is peoples apparent inability to multi-task on certain projects, then stacking up said projects as close together as possible making their execution a trial in patience, willpower, and resourcefulness. When everything is last minute, nerves have a tendency to get frayed, etc. etc. etc.

But instead it's last-minute throw shit together, leaving gaps here and there.

Oh well.

10 days to go.

Military Family

2004-09-14T22:07:00.000-06:00

I highly recommend giving a listen to NPR's story about a military family freshly reunited. I served with Todd in Iraq and met his brother Scott (they'd be twins if they hadn't been born a few years apart) recently.

Anyways, the piece sort of details what it's like for a family to spend their life with the military, and how they cope with deployments.

W

Bebbies

2004-09-14T21:51:00.000-06:00

While they are, apparently, the other-other white meat, I was mildly surprised (meaning, it jogged a memory of this event being noted before) to learn that one-half of the dynamic duo at Penny Arcade was the proud father of a brand spanking-new boy (appropriately enough named for his dad's alter-ego). Being a future father (one would hope) myself, I was delighted by the photos being tossed up for perusal, especially the one showing young Gabe in a jumper which states quite plainly: "I can't read". The amusement this garnered from me quickly drew an arched eyebrow from the lovely wife (who, for reasons nigh inexplicable, is looking for various bits of Sigmund Freudery).

Even more to my delight was the appearance of another photo on PvP, showing the kid clutching a Skull the Troll doll, very similar to the one which will be in my possession in the near future, I'm sure.

So anyways, congratulations to the Krahulik family.

And where's my Troll, Kurtz?

W

Welcome

2004-09-14T21:41:00.000-06:00

Yes, it's another blog. Not sure yet what this one'll turn into, maybe interesting, or maybe I'll forget all about it and it'll become just another abandoned waypoint on the inter-web and fade into the background radiation of Google's massive crypt 'o servers. Or maybe people'll read this! We'll see.

W