It’s not too early to start prepping for dazzling friends and family with the perfect St. Patrick’s Day beverage. Insanely Good Recipes has got us covered. Green beer and 22 more. We’re going with the Shamrock Sour. Essentially it’s Irish Whiskey and lemon and lime juice with a little simple syrup. Oh, and green food coloring. For all the recipes click here.
In a perfect world, we would lose weight while gaining lean muscle mass. But says Livestrong.com it’s best not to focus on weight. Rather, focus on body composition.
“It is possible to lose weight while strength training in a calorie deficit and even increase your lean muscle mass. However, aiming for fat loss, rather than total weight, is a better indicator of your progress and overall health. Improving your body composition with consistent, progressive strength training and protein-focused eating habits can help you feel better in and out of the gym.”
– Jet Cannon
Oklahoma’s legislature voted against legalizing recreational marijuana. Not to worry. Ten percent of the population already has a medical marijuana card which is legal. Oklahoma City alone has over 400 medical marijuana dispensaries. Oklahoma has over 7,000 pot growers which is about quadruple the number of growers in California where recreational pot is legal.
So if anyone needs weed in Oklahoma, just ask a Baby Boomer with a “bum knee” or “sore shoulder.”
-Jet Cannon
Eager to join yet another weight loss fad, we checked the InterWeb for help with intermittent fasting. One article compared nine different fasting plans. NINE. Some 30,000 studies later… whether fasting works or which method is best… all depends. Thanks.
There does seem to be some evidence that, besides possibly prompting weight loss, intermittent fasting may reduce risks for diabetes, Alzheimers, cancer, and heart disease. Of course the benefits come with warnings for individuals with other health issues. So nothing is certain or easy. Anyone who says weight management is fun or easy is selling something. Here’s a pretty good article from U.S. News. Good luck!
– Jet Cannon
Heading back to the gym post-Covid? Things may look a little different. CNN says folks are doing more strength training so you may see more dumbbells and fewer treadmills.
Remember Jack LaLanne? “People thought I was a charlatan and a nut.” The founder of the modern fitness movement, who first opened a club in Oakland, California, in 1938 and later hosted a popular TV exercise show. “The doctors were against me — they said that working out with weights would give people everything from heart attacks to hemorrhoids.”
We going to have a hard time getting that thought out of our head when we pump the iron.
– Jet Cannon
National Mulled Wine day is March 3rd. If you feel like warm, spiced wine… fine. We don’t. But that’s not to say we’re not willing to try adulterated wine. A Taste of Home shared this:
“If you say Spain to most people, the beverage that jumps to mind is sangria. But the reality is that Spanish people do not drink a lot of sangria.”
“Instead, Spaniards opt for a different type of cocktail made with wine and soda, the most famous of which is the kalimotxo. A kalimotxo (or calimocho) is a mix of red wine and Coca-Cola.“
Leftover wine? Or wine that wasn’t so great to begin with? Here you go.
Kalimotxo Premium
Ingredients
To read the whole Taste of Home article, click here. Mixing this concoction up for your wine-loving friends will be worth it for their likely stunned reaction.
– Jet Cannon
Photo: GQ
On this day in 1983, the last episode of M*A*S*H aired and was watched by about 106 million people. Hawkeye and Trapper often enjoyed a martini made from their still but occasionally they went out for a drink.
“I’d like a dry martini, Mr. Quoc, a very dry martini. A very dry, arrid, barren, desiccated, veritable dustbowl of a martini. I want a martini that could be declared a disaster area. Mix me just such a martini.”
– Hawkeye Pierce
Photo: The Temp Track
We suppose this is good news. Coffee is apparently good for us and so is olive oil. Yeah, let’s mix them together! That’s what Starbucks is slowly rolling out across their 36,000 stores. For example, try an Oleato Golden Foam Cold Brew!
Starbucks’ Howard Shultz said he started adding olive oil to his coffee and found it produced an “unexpected, velvety, buttery flavour that enhanced the coffee and lingers beautifully on the palate”.
Best not to bet against Starbucks.
– Jet Cannon
We recently read in the news about Russia stepping away from the New START nuclear treaty which reminded us of the Cold War and the constant threat of being really toasted. Luckily that day, the Bartender’s Choice at a local watering hole was their Manhattan Project. The real Manhattan Project was the secret little experiment that lit off the whole nuclear weapons thing. The bar’s Manhattan Project was essentially a Black Manhattan. Black substitutes Averna amaro for sweet vermouth found in a typical Manhattan. “Averna has a mouth-coating and bittersweet taste, carrying hints of orange and licorice, balanced with notes of myrtle, juniper berries, rosemary, and sage. It stimulates the senses, instantly transporting you to Sicily, and making Averna not just an amaro, but an authentic Sicilian experience.” There. That took our mind off nuclear anniliation.
Manhattan Project
– Jet Cannon
Photos: Cocktail Society, https://lucyjanesantos.com and Liquor.com
Leave it to Men’s Health to test mattresses best for sex. Once again, we weren’t asked to be a tester.
“Have you ever tried moving around on a memory foam mattress? It’s like quicksand.”
What we’re told we want will “provide support, a little bit of spring, and a whole lot of durability” (emphasis ours).
Read the article here.
– Jet Cannon
Trivia question. What year was “Margaritaville” released by Jimmy Buffett? Doesn’t really matter. What matters is that February 22, smack-dab in the middle of winter, is National Margarita Day. A lot of the country is due for a heat wave so… perfect!
-Hey Dad, why is my sister called Margarita?
-Because your mom likes that drink.
-Oh. Thanks dad.
-You’re welcome Bud.
– Jet Cannon
An elderly gentleman, smartly dressed, hair well-groomed, expensive-looking suit, smelling slightly of Montblanc cologne, presenting a suave image, walks into a fancy cocktail lounge. Seated at the bar is an elderly looking lady.
The gentleman walks over, sits beside her, orders a Martini, takes a sip, turns to her, and says, “So tell me, do I come here often?”
– Jet Cannon
Depends on who you ask. We were hoping it would be a Rat Pack Martini, a Marilyn Margarita, or a Dean Martin Old Fashioned. Something like that. The InterWeb suggests it’s a date shake. They are pretty good.
The Reef Bar & Grill says it’s a Palm Springs Punch. We asked our bartender if that is the Palm Springs Official Cocktail, as stated on their drink menu, or did they just make that up. “We just made that up.” Whatever. Their primary ingredients are Blackheart Spiced Rum, Triple Sec, Creme De Moyaux (???), and pineapple juice. We’ve seen other recipes use bourbon and ginger ale so it seems you can make it anyway you want. We wish we could ask Frank.
– Jet Cannon
Per their Twitter, “60 years ago, a group of North London lads got a band together…today they’re one of the greatest bands in British history. The Kinks are launching a 60th Anniversary Celebration of their vital importance to popular music.”
Rolling Stone adds, “The Kinks — then the Davies brothers and the late bassist Pete Quaife — were founded in 1963, with drummer Mick Avory joining soon after. The following year, the band released their first-ever Number One single “You Really Got Me,” which was followed by “All Day and All of the Night” and another Number One, “Tired of Waiting for You,” quickly establishing the Kinks as one of the preeminent acts of the British Invasion.”
“The Journey – Part 1 — due out March 24 on 2LP and 2CD — spans from those first singles to similarly iconic tracks plucked from Kinks classics like The Village Green Preservation Society, Face to Face, Arthur and Lola Versus Powerman. The anthology also includes personal track-by-track notes about the songs penned by the Davies and Avory, who happens to be celebrating his 78th birthday today.”
“A second volume of The Journey, likely focusing on the back half of the Kinks’ immense catalog, is due out later this year. “A host of global events and activities” are also planned over the course of 2023 and 2024 to mark the Kinks’ 60th anniversary, with those plans to be announced at a later date.”
Photo: Variety