Broder

One of the great ones is gone.

David Broder, the longtime political reporter and columnist for the Washington Post, died at the age of 81 from complications of diabetes.

Broder was one of my idols in my days as a political reporter.  I used to watch him in his television appearances on Washington Week on the Public Broadcasting Service.  He always seemed calm and full of wisdom.  I read in the many tribute pieces appearing everywhere that he was the consumate reporter, spending many more hours than any other reporter knocking on doors and listening to the average voters across America.  He was not real good with technology, his colleagues say, coming late to computers and the Internet, preferring instead to use his manual typewriter.  Lots of young reporters today don't even know what a typewriter is, not to mention never having seen or used one.

All things come to an end.  Typewriters.  Hard-working political reporters.  Nowadays it is just too easy to put on some makeup and appear on television.

I think that's too bad.

So long David.  Some of us will miss you.

Tumbling Along

The wind is blowing and in my neighborhood the tumbleweeds are tumbling.  This pair almost kept up with the traffic.

Change

What is it in us that demands change? 

Someone wiser than I once said "the only constant is change."  I remember learning that decades ago and using the expression ever since.

But is it dissatisfaction with our lot?

If it is winter, there will come a time when there is too much snow, too much cold.  If it is summer, it will soon be too much hot.  And we growl or whimper - "when will this damnable weather change?"

Generations ago people lived where they were born, pretty much their entire lives.  But . . with some exceptions . .  new generations seem to move around the country, even the world, as often as they change their clothing.  It would take me a long time to figure out how many homes I've inhabited in my 70 years but I do know that I have lived in two countries, five different states, and 15 communities.  Some of them more than once.

Maybe I'm the exception.  A friend of mine once told me he had taken to writing my address and telephone number down in pencil because it changed so often.

Well, so it goes.

This is written to explain why, if you've visited this blog before, the colors and perhaps some of the layout and my picture have changed since your last visit.  And undoubtedly it will change again in the future.  Only one thing has not changed.  The author.  Good old Catalyst.

Oh, one other thing.  I've thought about this for a long time and finally made the plunge.  You will now see my real name up there by my photo.

Now put your hands together for the late Harry Chapin.

Cat habits

What are you going to do when you have a home with three resident cats and only one door that opens to a screen door?  Normally you just sit back and watch what happens.

When I opened the inside door this morning Jazz was the first to make it to the screened viewing position.

But that was short lived.  Blackwell, now sometimes known as The Big Cat, soon showed up hoping to take a spot next to her.  But Jazz is not big into togetherness.  When a snarl didn't scare him off, she left.

A little hostility doesn't faze the big one and he settled down into the place of dominance.

But that left Muggles, the oldest but most nervous of the three.  She crept up behind Blackwell, thankful to peer over his shoulder.


But that only lasted for a moment and she soon fled the room as well.  Blackwell settled in for a session of watching whatever moved outside the door while the other two pouted.

Cats.  Can't live with 'em.  Can't live without 'em.

Protection?

I noticed this decal on the front fender of a car adjacent to mine in a parking lot this morning.

And I wondered.  Does this guarantee any special protection?  The little fairie, or whatever it is, doesn't seem real war like.  But who knows what hidden powers she may have.

I do know one thing.  She made that white car appear to be blue in my photo!

Recipe

As I said in my previous blog posting, I have no idea where this recipe originated.  I just found it in a file and made the (delicious) cake last night.  For all of you who, like me, don't give a damn about calories and sugar . . here it is.

Banana Chocolate Chip Upside-Down Cake

If you live somewhere where sour cream isn't available, you can use buttermilk, plain whole milk yogurt, or fromage blanc.

For the topping:


1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons (100 g) packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter; cubed, at room temperature
3-4 ripe medium bananas
a few drops of lemon juice


For the cake:


1 1/2 cups (210 g) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar

2 tablespoons (30 g) melted butter, salted or unsalted
2 large eggs
1 cup (250 g) banana puree (about 2 bananas)
1/2 cup (120 g) sour cream, regular or low-fat
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup (80 g) chocolate chips or chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate


1. To make the topping, place the brown sugar and butter in an 8-inch (20 cm) square cake pan. Warm the pan directly on the stovetop over low heat, stirring until the sugar is thoroughly moistened.   Stir until the sugar is moist and bubbling, then remove from heat. (It won't melt completely smooth, and there may be a few bare spots, which is normal.) Let cool to room temperature.


2. Peel and slice the bananas in 1/4-inch (1 cm) slices. Arrange them in slightly overlapping rows over the melted brown sugar. Sprinkle with a few drops of lemon juice.


3. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).


4. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl, making sure there are no lumps. (note from Catalyst: you will notice there is no salt in the list of ingredients.  I considered this for awhile, then threw in about half a teaspoon.)  Mix in the granulated sugar.


5. In a small bowl, mix together the butter, eggs, banana puree, sour cream, and vanilla.


6. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and stir in the wet ingredients until almost combined. Do not overmix. Gently fold in the chocolate pieces.


7. Scrape the batter into the pan over the bananas, then use a spatula to carefully spread the batter over the sliced fruit.


8. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the cake feels just set in the center when you touch it.


9. Cool the cake for about 20 minutes, then run a knife along the edges of the cake to help it release from the pan. Invert the cake onto a serving platter.  It should look something like this:

There's a picture of my whole cake in my previous blog posting.

Serving: The cake is best served warm with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or by itself as a snack. If made an hour or so in advance, it can be inverted on the serving platter, and left with the cake pan over it, to keep it warm. Otherwise it can be rewarmed in a low oven, covered with foil. Or enjoyed at room temperature.


Storage: The cake can be made up to two days in advance, although it is best the day it's made. To freeze it, wrap it securely in plastic wrap; it can be frozen for one to two months.

Bon appetit!

Sweetness

I don't know where I found this recipe.  It just turned up in a file when I was looking for something else and tonight I made it.  It's a Banana Chocolate Chip Upside-Down Cake and it's delicious.  Especially warm with some whipped cream.  Yum!

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Now for something less sweet.

It seems like the news is full of total bull goose loonies these days.  On ABC, Christiane Amanpour interviewed Libyan strongman Moammar Gaddafi today and he laughed!  Repeatedly.  When she asked him about his forces killing protesters he absolutely denied it and said there are no protesters, that everyone in the country loves him.  And on and on.  The U.S. government says Gaddafi is delusional and he certainly seems it.

Then there's Charlie Sheen, who seems like he's just visiting from some alien planet.  Piers Morgan is interviewing him on CNN as I'm writing this and he has said that Charlie should be able to act out his life however he likes as long as he shows up for work on time and does his job.  There are some questions by reliable people about his conduct, whether he's on drugs, whether he's got a mental problem of some kind or just what the heck is wrong with him.  I just can't figure it out.

And finally there was a report today that Ponzi specialist Bernard Madoff made a collect telephone call to a New York magazine writer to tell him that he's discovered he's a good person through prison psychiatry sessions.  Madoff, you may remember, swindled thousands of investors out of billions of dollars but he doesn't seem to have any guilt about it.

What is going on?  Is there something in the water? 

Maybe these guys all need some of my Banana Chocolate Chip Upside-Down Cake.