good times, man, good times

Y’know, you could argue the toss about whether that latest band is relevant enough to get a 3.4 or 3.5 on Pitchfork and you could probably have a lot of fun doing it. But it won’t be as much fun as singing along to the chorus of Darlington County.

Enjoy your Sunday, people.

I Fought The Law The Clash Cover ukulele (via UkePunk)

I love it when my current musical obsession meets my current hobby. I’ve enjoyed a lot of the Ukulele Punk’s covers and this is probably my favourite.

Nellie The Elephant - UkePunk (via UkePunk)

Wait. Punk’s supposed to be three easy chords. I’ve been misled.

That aside, I’m very keen to get this one down.

Joe Strummer And The Mescaleros - Johnny Appleseed

Like a lot of people I first came across this song when it was used as the title music for John From Cincinnati, and, like a lot of people, I thought this was the best thing about the show.

I can’t claim to be a big Strummer or Clash fan. I’m familiar with the Clash classics and pretty much all of London Calling, but never really worshiped at the Church of Strummer like a lot of folks. This week has changed that, just a little bit.

On Sunday I picked up Streetcore at the local library and played it and played it and played it. Then I remembered Johnny Appleseed and grabbed the album it came off and played that too. And then London Calling for good measure.

I keep coming back to Johnny Appleseed. This song presses all my buttons: the dum-da-dum of the intro, the “heeeeyy” in the chorus, the general summer feel. Magic.

So yeah, Joe Strummer eh? I don’t know who the Official Bard of Team Joe is, but Joe Strummer’s got to be in the top two or three, right?

Pot-Stickers Ready For Freezing:

I made these pot-sticker dumpling by following the Yasai Gyoza from the Wagamama cookbook.

I usually make up a batch of forty or so dumplings and freeze them for later. Served along with a simple dipping sauce, they make a nice little appetizer or a handy alternative to takeaways when you can’t be bothered cooking.

Storing them is easy. I put a batch into this large container, separating the layers with greaseproof paper and making sure the dumplings aren’t touching. I freeze them overnight then put them into smaller freezer bags - about 6 to 8 per bag. Perfect for cooking at another time.

This is fascinating. In the 20s, Henry Ford built a whole town in the middle of the Amazon, in order to farm and harvest rubber. Naturally, the town was called Fordlândia.

Ford also tried a bit of social engineering. For example, alcohol was banned, and indigenous workers were forced to eat American cuisine.

Of course, the whole thing was a complete failure, finally killed off by the mass production of synthetic rubber in the 1940s. Today Fordlândia is a ghost town. A tourist attraction in the heart of the Amazon.

There’s a longer article on Damn Interesting, too

The Culinary Explorations of Mrs Cake: Burger Wellington: St Johns Bar

GET IN MAH BELLY!

Wait…monkeys usually shave?