Monday, June 29, 2015

Cajun Pesto Chicken

Do what?  Yes, it actually worked out very well, and it's one of those quick-and-dirty 10-minute recipes that you can pull off on short notice.

Serves two, multiply the ingredients as you see fit.

Take a chicken breast and slice into strips about the size of those on a chicken salad.

Season with Zatarain's or your favorite Cajun spice mix.  Cook thoroughly in a couple tsp. olive oil--about 3-4 minutes on high heat.  (Strips don't take much time.)

While this is going on, boil up a pot of water and drop in about 8 oz. of pasta.  I had some spinach linguine lying around, but you can use whatever style and flavor you prefer.  Even plain pasta will work--I promise I won't track you down and set your house on fire if you use it.  (If you're into Miracle Whip, however, we're gonna have us a talk.  Repent now.)

Once the pasta's done and the chicken's seared, drain the pasta, throw it and the chicken back in the pot and toss them with pesto.  Serve.

Sorry, no pics.  I came home from work and had to throw dinner together at the last minute, since my wife was doing something frivolous like pursuing her Bachelors' degree.  I know, I know, what a waste of time.  But this really turned out well, and I'd recommend giving it a shot if you have nothing better to do.

Friday, June 12, 2015

Should have done this in the first place

Well, Annie is now equipped with Kuryakyn forward controls, which I should have bought from the get-go instead of screwing around with that bargain-basement crap.  Still decent on the price, but much better quality.



It was also time for the 5K service, so while I was changing the fluids, I took the opportunity to replace the chrome primary cover with a wrinkle black one($150 on eBay.  Good deal).


I just didn't like the black inner primary coupled with a chrome outer.  Go all chrome or all black, but not half-and-half.  (I feel the same way about chromed Softail swingarms.)  For that reason, I also replaced the raw aluminum clamp that rests on a black riser...


...and the aluminum levers protruding from black control perches.



(Yes, my garage is a mess.  First World Problems.)

It may seem like a contradiction to leave the chrome access plate and derby cover, but it's not.  Those are accent pieces, not one half of a unit.  Once I get around to installing a belt primary, I'll probably do something interesting with those bits, but one thing at a time.


Sunday, April 19, 2015

You get what you pay for...

So, as I posted a while back, I got myself a Harley.  She was beautiful when I bought her...


...but I wanted to make a few changes.  The turn signals are gone, replaced by integrated mirror LED lights...


...the barn-door windshield has been replaced by something sportier, the bars are now black T-bars with Avon grips...

...the wimpy Fox shocks were ditched in favor of stouter (and lower) Progressive Suspension units...





...the taillight is now a smoked LED box and the rear signals are smoked red LEDs at the ends of the fender struts...





...and I have forward controls.  Or, I should say, I had forward controls.





I figured they were a great deal.  About $280, and they'd bolt right up to my Dyna.  Yeah, well, they did bolt right up, but that was the best thing about them.

A couple of weeks after I put them on, I was riding to work, went to downshift and...nothing.  The lever went right down and stayed there.  Oh, crap.  I nursed it into the Maverick station with much swearing and clutch abuse, parked it and tried to figure out what happened.

OK, the pinch bolt on the lever worked loose.  No big, I'll just get that sucker tightened up.  I had a set of 4" grip pliers, so I clamped them on the bolt and gave it some muscle.  They did nothing but chew the bolt up.  I couldn't get enough grip to close up the gap properly.  I'd find out why later.

First things first, I had to get to work.  So I grabbed the linkage, put it in second and headed for the hardware store, powershifting by hand all the way and getting there seven minutes before they closed.  My tool bag now has a complete set of allen keys, which I should have had in the first place.  I cranked the bolt down, finally getting enough purchase, and headed to work.

So now the pinch bolt looks like the north end of a southbound dog.  I figured I'd get a new one and replace it.  This was the point where I should have left well enough alone.  Here's what these cheap Chinese pieces of junk ended up looking like.  Not only did the threads inside the lever strip out, but the splines rounded right off the inner lever!!





See all those dents?  That happened when I was desperately trying to close the gap by smacking the lever with the only tool I had:  a cheapo 4" monkey wrench.  I could see scratching the chrome, but flat-out denting the thickest part of the lever??  And now, looking at those splines, it's small wonder I couldn't get the freakin' thing to grip.

This is not metal.  This is chrome-plated cheese.  Until the Chinese get a handle on how to make actual steel, I'm buying American, thanks.  New forwards are on the way, and I'll post an update when they're on.


Monday, February 9, 2015

How penguins fly

Yes, in a sense, they actually do fly.  By supercavitiation--creating a tunnel of air around themselves underwater.  Amazing little critters!


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(HT BRM)