Abetrujillo

Although a good chef's knife is often the sexiest choice when people are asked to name their most favorite kitchen implement, the truth is, a good knife is nothing without a good board to use it on. If you're anything like me, your wooden cutting boards are one of your most used and beloved kitchen tools.

Of course, these boards (and similarly, wooden spoons) need some TLC once in a while. Oil them regularly and they'll never warp or crack.

Here's how to do it.

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(My son is talking to me about one of his Lego ‘Star Wars’ sets.)

Son: “I want to try to build it with you later this week. It’s a model of the escape pod that C3PO and R2D2 use to escape to Tatooine in episode four, and comes with a little Lego C3PO and R2D2!”

(Being a seven year old, he’s not very good at keeping all of his Lego pieces organized. There are little bitty Lego pieces all over my house. So it comes as no surprise that he loses a few pieces after playing for a while.)

Son: “I’m missing the two figurines from the set!”

Me: “They’re probably somewhere around the house; we’ll just have to look for them.”

(My wife chimes in, addressing our son.)

Wife: “I think I saw R2D2 under your bed.”

(My wife goes upstairs to get it, and sets it on the table next to our son’s breakfast plate. My son sits down at the table, picks up the figurine, and looks at it, speaking very matter-of-factly.)

Son: “Mom, this is not the droid I’m looking for.”

(A scruffy looking customer comes into the store. He is wearing his pajamas, bright colored running shoes, and a scarf. He looks like he has not slept for weeks. He walks around the store for five minutes before coming to the line at the register. It is just after midnight.)

Me: “Good evening, sir.”

Scruffy Customer: *mumbles*

(He has three items: anchovies, asparagus in a jar, and bacon-flavored chips.)

Me: “Will with that be all, sir? Do you want a bag for your items?”

Scruffy Customer: “No and yes, thank you.”

(He reaches for his pocket and takes out his car keys, ruffles around other pockets to look for his wallet, and finds nothing. Something breaks inside of him. He puts a hand to cover his eyes and is starting to turn away from me.)

Scruffy Customer: “I am sorry; she is going to kill me.”

(He starts to walk out. Another customer in line speaks up.)

Customer: “When is she due?”

Scruffy Customer: “What?”

Customer: “When is she due?”

Scruffy Customer: “In three weeks or so. How did you know?”

Customer: “Buying strange things in the middle of the night wearing pajamas. That is kind of a recipe for a guy who has a pregnant girl at home.”

Scruffy Customer: “Yeah, I guess so.”

(The scruffy customer starts to walk out again.)

Customer: “Hey, go get your stuff on the counter. I will pay for you.” *to me* “How much is it?”

Me: “Uhh… 76 kroner with my staff discount.”

Customer: “Wow, anchovies, asparagus and bacon flavored chips. She has got it bad!”

Scruffy Customer: “If it’s smelly, spicy or has a strange texture, she has to have it. I think she has tried everything in those categories. Except for shark meat, I think.”

(The scruffy customer smiles, and the other customers at the register give out a laugh. He thanks the customer for paying, and tries to get his information to pay him back. The other customers there start to talk to him, give him advice and try to lift his spirits. He now has a four-month-old daughter, and does not look scruffy anymore!)

If you’ve ever gone shopping for a bra, you know how frustrating it can be. Between bra sizes being a myth and hormone levels changing the size of breasts throughout the month, it’s an uphill battle. Fortunately, this graphic offers a few pointers that may help.

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There’s only one episode of Breaking Bad left. In honor of one of the greatest TV dramas ever made, here’s a collection of crafts based on the show. (If this still doesn’t satisfy your finale fix though, don’t mix our collections of fan art and food inspired by Breaking Bad.)

Warning: There may be some spoilers ahead, but only from past seasons.

1. Say My Name

Michelle Coffee created these adorable plush Walter Whites for the Breaking Bad Art Project show at LA’s Gallery 1988. She has Walt when he first started cooking, after he first took on his Heisenberg persona and after he broke his nose when he intentionally got in a car accident in the hopes of stopping Hank’s investigation.

2. I’m In The Cute-pire Business

Whether you prefer Walt in his briefs or his Heisenberg ensemble, you’re sure to be happy whenever you cuddle up with Etsy seller cyberscribe’s adorable little Walter White dolls.

3. Yo, Cuddle Me…Bitch

For those who would prefer to cuddle with Jesse Pinkman, DeviantArt user DewHeart85 has you covered with this cute plush toy, complete with his own tiny bag of Blue Sky.

4. Yeah Science!

The best thing about Allison Hoffman’s adorable amigurumi Walt and Jesse plushes is that you can actually put them in (and take them out of) their crocheted hazmat suits. Plus, they even have accessories like a bag of drugs and Walt’s hat and glasses.

5. Breaking Bear

There are a lot of Breaking Bad crafts out there these days, but few come close to being as cute as Etsy seller RedCapStore’s amigurumi version of the pink teddy bear from season two.

6. Home Is Where the Meth Is

There’s nothing like a pleasant cross-stitch to brighten up your wall and make your place feel homey—especially when it’s a piece of Breaking Bad fan art. For those who don’t remember the scene referenced in this delightful creation by Wayne Kerr, here’s a link to the video. If you want to make your own “private domicile” cross-stitch, you can get a pattern from Etsy seller OhSewNerdy, but, be warned, it doesn’t have the delightful use of the word “bitch” on it.

7. Evil, Thy Name Is Heisenberg

Not a big fan of motorhomes, but still want a great Breaking Bad cross-stitch of your own? Then head over to Etsy seller togglestitch’s shop and grab this great pattern reminding people to remember the name Heisenberg.

8. Wanna Cook?

For those who prefer more classic cross-stitch themes, this “Kiss the Cook” design with Walter’s face is truly magnificent. DeviantArt user Angie Jane did a fantastic job getting so much detail into Mr. White’s face in such a small space.

9. Afghan Bad

It takes a Breaking Bad super-fan to recognize this crochet pattern as a tribute to the show; Skyler and Walt have an afghan just like this one in their living room. If you want to make your own, you can follow the pattern Sarah London created for it.

That’s not the only afghan in the show either. One of the famous scenes of Walt and Jesse sitting down for a beer after cooking up a batch also has an afghan prominently placed in the background. If you prefer to make that one, The Batter’s Box has the guide.

10. I Am The One That Protects The Furniture

Here’s a craft that everyone can do at home. Just grab a set of Perler Beads, a peg board and an iron and you’re all ready to follow Rebecca Lowrey Boyd’s instructions to create your own Breaking Bad coasters.

11. Hello Heisenberg

It is a whole lot harder to resist Heisenberg when he is also half-Hello Kitty. DeviantArt user UniqueT may have just created the cutest villain in all of history.

12. I Am The Danger

Joshua Lumitao knows how to make a seriously scary jack-o-lantern. Fortunately, it will only creep out the older kids and adults who come trick-or-treating, as they’ll be the only ones who recognize how horrifying Heisenberg is.

13. Heisenpot

Etsy seller GingerPots’ Heisenberg planter is the perfect place to grow your new lily of the valley or castor bean plants. Just be sure to keep them away from children or you might feel the rage of Jesse Pinkman.

14. Tread Lightly

The cracked blue meth design in these custom Vans slip-ons by Off the Wall Art really puts them on a level all their own. Best of all, you can even order a custom pair of your own from their Facebook Page.

15. Keeping It Real (Awesome)

Jon Defreest might just have the coolest Breaking Bad craft story ever. It all started when he came up with a cool design for Breaking Bad Converse that he posted online. Not long after, Bryan Cranston’s personal assistant got in touch with the artist, letting him know that Bryan wanted a pair of the shoes for himself.

While the shoes were originally just a Photoshop design, Defreest immediately set about getting the shoes printed and sent a pair to Bryan, who then called him to thank him, sent a few goodies in return, and invited the artist to come visit the set of the show. While he was getting a great behind-the-scenes experience, Aaron Paul approached Defreest and told him that he also wanted a pair of the shoes.

Afterwards, Bryan Cranston wore the shoes to the IFC Independent Spirit Awards and Aaron Paul carried a pair with him to show off at the SAG Awards. Defreest expressed his gratitude by saying, “In a situation that could have ended with a cease and desist, I have been consistently treated like a friend of the show. I couldn't have asked for a better experience as both an artist and a fan.”

Note: I am aware that shoe designs that start off as Photoshop images might not technically be considered a “craft,” but with a story this cool, it’s hard to resist sharing.

As I’m sure any of you with children already know, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 is coming out in theaters this Friday. In celebration, we’ve decided to compile a bit of info on the book and the movies. Whether you’re a fan of the book or a fan of the movie, you’ll almost certainly find something here of interest.

Similarities and Differences

Obviously a full-length movie couldn’t follow a short book like this one to a tee, so, there are some major differences. That being said, it seems like the writers did work to include as much as the original story as possible. Here are a few of the things that stayed the same:

• The town name. While the movie village is originally called “Swallow Falls,” the mayor eventually renames the town to the name used in the book, “Chewandswallow.”
• The Sanitation Department. Obviously any town that has food fall from the skies will have a serious problem if they just leave the mess all over the streets and sidewalk. Both the book and movie use specialized trucks to clean up the mess, though what they do with the leftovers differs. In the book, they feed the cats and dogs, then throw some in the ocean for the fishes and then put the rest in the ground so it will compost into good soil for flower gardens. In the movie, they make a mountain of food waste that eventually causes a dangerous landslide.
• Specific foods. In the book, the sunset is replaced with a Jell-o mold setting in the west that looks just like the one Flint makes for Sam. Both also feature a giant pancake that lands on the local school. Also, while it’s not a food exactly, both feature an open-air restaurant where patrons can catch their dinner as it falls.
• Danger. You can’t have a story without a climax, so in both tales, the food starts to become larger until it becomes truly problematic.

A few of the things that changed:

• Requests. Imagine having a food allergy in a town like Chewandswallow. If you can’t choose what rains down, you could easily die. Aside from that, you’d likely almost never get your favorite food, whereas in the movie, Flint’s invention allows the residents to call the shots –though that’s precisely what causes the food to start mutating.
• The people. In the book, the only people with actual identities are those in the family whose grandpa tells the tall tale of Chewandswallow. In the movie, the town is presented as a real location and the main characters are all residents of the town.
• Science. The idea of a town raining food naturally is just outlandish, but in the movie, it’s actually happens because a man’s invention that was made to turn water into food flies into a raincloud –turning all the local precipitation into food.
• The ending. In the book, the residents are forced to abandon Chewandswallow, but in the movie, the townspeople just rebuild their town using the giant food leftover on the street. There is one similarity though, the people in the book use a raft made from giant slices of bread and the movie shows the mayor ran away from the town on a boat made from bread –although the obese mayor eats most of his boat and sinks into the ocean.

Despite the differences, the original book's creators were pleased with the movie -though no word yet on how they feel about the sequel.

Cloudy Again?

Speaking of endings, it seems the movie ending ends up not being the whole story as the sequel is said to (I haven’t seen it yet, so I can’t verify this myself) start out with Flint and the rest of the town having to leave their food-filled town. Unfortunately, it turns out that his food machine is still in operation, so while they’re gone, it starts to create dangerous, sentient food creatures. When Flint and his friends return to the island hoping to clean up their mess, they are confronted with creatures such as tacodiles, shrimpanzees and mosquitoasts.

The book also had a sequel, but the movie does not follow this tale at all. In this tale, Pickles to Pittsburgh, the townspeople return to Chewandswallow, not to resume their lives there, but to use forklifts, cargo planes and other tools to ship out the massive foods in the area to the starving people of the world. You have to admire them for recognizing the weather patterns that almost ruined their lives as a great way to solve world hunger. Still, it’s easy to see why this might not make such a great movie –though it’s worth noting that Sony helped market their new movie by providing over 200,000 pounds of food for Feeding America, so in real life, the tale has actually helped feed hungry families.

In fact, that’s not the only sequel to the book. In Planet of the Pies, the family that was originally featured in the first book learns that astronauts landed on Mars –only to find that pie is falling from the sky. As it turns out, Grandpa, the one who told the original tale of Chewandswallow, has had prior dealings with the Martians.

There’s even a Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Cookbook based on the original book with Grandpa offering up his favorite recipes based on the food that rained from the skies of Chewandswallow.

Sound Familiar?

If you watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and kept thinking “I recognize that voice,” you’re probably right. In fact, you might just be amazed how many names you recognize from their list of voice actors. Of course, Bill Hader and Anna Faris are Flint and Sam, and you probably recognized Mr. T’s voice when Officer Earl spoke, but did you recognize James Cann as the voice of Flint’s father, or Neil Patrick Harris as the voice of Steve the Monkey, Bruce Campbell as Mayor Shelbourne, Andy Samberg as “Baby” Brent McHale, Al Roker as the weather station’s anchorman or Will Forte as the redneck Joesph Towne?

While most of these characters will be the same in the sequel, Terry Crews will be replacing Mr. T as Officer Earl and Will Forte will now be voicing Chester V. Fans of Kristen Schaal will be happy to know that she’s also been added to the cast, performing the voice of orangutan Barb.

Image Via Neon Tommy [Flickr]

About the Authors

It’s a bit surprising that as well known as Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs is, there’s surprisingly little information out there about the book’s author, Judi Barrett, and its illustrator, Ron Barrett. It’s not like the book is their only work either. In fact, Judi has published over 20 books, including another popular title, Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing, which Ron also illustrated.

That being said, there is a little information out there about the Barretts. Judi obtained a Bachelor’s degree from Pratt Institute before working as a freelance designer for advertising agencies. In 1968, she started teaching art and woodworking to children.

Ron graduated from the High School of Industrial Art and while still in school, he apprenticed for graphic designer Lucian Bernhard while being mentored by Ervine Metzl, illustrator and President of the Society of Illustrators. He left such a mark on Metzl that the illustrator predicted he "...would either wind up in a mental institution or make a million dollars." Like Judy, Ron started his career in advertising, working as an art director at Young & Rubicam and Carl Ally. Eventually, he left advertising to work as an illustrator, author and puzzle maker. He wrote comic strips for National Lampoon and later worked on O.J.’s Legal Pad with Henry Beard and John Boswell.

At some point, the couple was married, after which they started working on books together, including Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. Even after their divorce though, they continue to work together. These days, Judy continues to teach in Brooklyn and Ron is still illustrating. Most recently, they worked together to release Grandpa’s Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs Cookbook.

Are you guys going to go see the sequel? Personally, I can’t wait, if only because I adore Steve the talking monkey.

Sources: High Beam, Slideshare, Boston Herald, Wikipedia #1, #2, #3, #4, #5

Good medical advice from the Jewish sages of old...

Fasting is good for your health

And may God cleanse your dirty mind...

(There is a customer coming through my line that is wearing cowboy clothing complete with 10-gallon hat, shiny belt buckle, and cowboy boots. There is another customer with a young boy standing behind them. I watch as the boy yanks on his mother’s skirt and points to the man in front.)

Young Boy: “Excuse me, sir; are you a REAL cowboy?”

Customer: *in a thick Texas drawl* “Why yes little man I am, but I only got to be a real cowboy because I ate all my vegetables and listened to my mother.”

(The customer then tips his hat to the mother and leaves. The boy does nothing but gush about his cowboy experience.)

Young Boy: “Mom! Go get more vegetables!”

In the early 1980s, Giancarlo Esposito had a stint on 'Sesame Street.'

At the intersection of bad marketing, inept regulation, and unwitting consumers, you’ll find the graves of young children, just some of the infants who, according to a new report from ProPublica, have become ill over the decades because Johnson & Johnson and other makers of acetaminophen-based painkillers insisted on selling two youth-targeted varieties of the drug while the FDA did what it does best — nothing.

Until 2001, Johnson & Johnson’s McNeil Consumer Products sold two types of Tylenol for parents and caregivers to use with children: Children’s Tylenol and Infant Tylenol. The two products contained different levels of acetaminophen and, surprising to some, the Infant formula actually had a higher concentration of acetaminophen than the Children’s version.

Making matters more confusing, FDA regulations meant that neither product contained specific dosing information for children under two years old, leaving that amount in the hands of the child’s physician. Which would have been fine, if there weren’t two similar products on the market that could be easily confused by doctors and patients alike.

See, if a child’s doctor or nurse assumes that the parent was using Children’s Tylenol, they would likely have suggested a larger dose than if the stronger Infant Tylenol was being used. But when the parents unwittingly bought, or were given, Infant Tylenol and used that higher dose, they put their child at risk for severe, possibly fatal, liver damage.

From ProPublica:

Between 2000 and 2009, the FDA received reports of 20 children dying from acetaminophen toxicity – a figure the agency said likely “significantly underestimates” the problem. Three deaths were tied directly to mix-ups involving the two pediatric medicines. Such errors may have caused some of the other deaths, but the agency has acknowledged that its data lacks sufficient detail to determine the precise cause….

[O]ne small study found that confusion between the two pediatric products was the most common reason for overdoses among kids with acetaminophen-related liver damage. A study conducted by McNeil found that about one child a year on average was hospitalized because of mix-ups involving its drugs.

Such tragic accidents are among the reasons that between 2001 and 2010, there were about twice as many deaths annually associated with acetaminophen than with all other over-the-counter pain relievers combined, according to data from the American Association of Poison Control Centers.

McNeil had asked the FDA for permission to put specific dosing instructions for infants on these products. Without this approval, it had to continue telling customers to get this guidance from their physicians.

Even after it became so clear that confusion over these dueling products were killing and injuring children that McNeil and others switched to a single-product system, the FDA has yet to allow clear dosing instructions for children two and under.

“It’s just not as straightforward as folks think,” a former FDA official explained — in 2002 — about why the agency had yet to approve infant dosing instructions for acetaminophen products, even though it had done so with ibuprofen-containing drugs. “But it is a priority to get done.”

Again, note that he said this in 2002. Eleven years ago.

Of course, instead of waiting for the FDA to do something about dosing instructions, McNeil could have ditched one of the two products. If there was only one product to choose from, then there can be no mix-up between doctors, nurses, parents, and retailers.

Testifying in a lawsuit brought by the parents of a child who died from acetaminophen toxicity, McNeil’s former medical director, Anthony Temple, admitted that he knew confusion between the two products had led to “maybe a couple of dozen, maybe a little more, where incidents of significant liver injury has occurred, and there’s probably a handful of those cases that were fatal.”

The plaintiffs’ attorney then asked, “And for 25 years you’ve elected to continue to offer Infants’ Tylenol in the concentrated form that has led to the death of babies, correct?”

To which, Temple replied, “Yes, we’ve continued to do it.”

Temple has said that the two versions of Tylenol remained on the market for years for the benefit of the children, and that switching to a single product for kids was “a second-best option” to getting those darn dosing instructions from the FDA.

“One death is too many,” PeterMax Miller, pharmaceutical marketing ethicist at the University of Colorado in Denver, and former exec at a competitor to J&J, tells ProPublica. “I would not have had any hesitation at all about yanking it off the shelf overnight. Everywhere. And Johnson & Johnson knows how to do that.”

You can check out the entire ProPublica story here, as well as the site’s even larger investigation into all-things-acetaminophen here.

Android/iOS: Quickoffice is our pick for the best office suite on both Android and iOS, but at $15 it was always a bit expensive. Now the app has dropped to free, and comes packed with 10GB of free Google Drive storage if you login into the app this week.

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Kids are exposed to violence. Where is all this violence coming from? At least the cartoon didn't end with, "It's coming from inside the house!" That's a real horror. Comic by Julia Lepetit and Andrew Bridgman at Dorkly. Link  -via Geeks Are Sexy