Take a picture once a day, whether you need to or not

[naum]

I've always been a fan of Lodge cast iron stuff, though their enameled cookware is also sourced from China.  

Still using a Lodge cast iron skillet that's >20 years old…

[Fraeg]

Yeah the Le Creuset stuff is very pricey, and yes a good chunk of that is brand name.  However it is very good stuff and given that I will be cooking with it for the next 4 or so decades I think it is worth it.

That said, I am totally on the same page as you all when it comes to kitchen knives.  There is no need for german steel Luftwaffe grade sword knives.  For all my kitchen knives I have spent well under a hundred.

oh: here is a photo of me freezing my ass off by Gallup NM

[Sky]

Such dainty gloves. I suddenly miss my face mane, though.

[Signe]

Having been to Gallup, New Mexico, I can't imagine anyone going there on purpose!  Everyone I saw there was drunk and scary.  I couldn't get out out of there fast enough!  

My aunt has a lot of Le Creuset, some of which she got for a wedding gift like a million years ago or so.  She's always cooked a lot  and it still looks perfect.  It's expensive but I've seen far more expensive cookware, especially in France.  They seem to be the home of pricey pots.  

[Pennilenko]

Such dainty gloves. I suddenly miss my face mane, though.

Those gloves are probably some sort of super high tech thermal things.

[apocrypha]

Everyone I saw there was drunk and scary.

How do you know Fraeg isn't both in that photo? 

We've got 1 Le Crueset casserole pan that was a gift, and it's fantastic. We've also got a couple of cheap cast iron pots which are useful, but nowhere near as good. The main difference is that the Le C is soooo easy to clean. Stuff just doesn't stick to it. It is by far our most used pan.

[Signe]

Poor old Fraeg.  I didn't mean to get people to pick on him.  He's very sweet.  And he has holly jolly cheeks.  And a button nose.  I think he's fibbing, though.  There is definitely an icy ocean behind him, just like near the You Know Where Pole.  He obviously goes to Switzerland every year for virgin monkey piss injections to keep him young and vibrant looking. 

I'd like diamond shoes for Xmas, and one of those giant Rasta hats with the hair attatched.  Just sayin.

 

[NowhereMan]

I've got a knock off Le Creuset pot that I really love. I have however managed to crack the enamel on it but I don't blame the pan, I blame electric hobs. It's far too easy to forget they're on and your pan's getting hot before throwing stuff in it and now I have to make sure and oil those bits after washing or they get rusty

fakeedit: Closer to on-topic, went diving last weekend by the Farne Islands with seals. One of the girls on the trip got some awesome photos of the seals we were diving with that I'm trying to get hold of (gave her a memory stick but haven't seen her again yet). When I get it I'll give you some cool pics, they looked really adorable up close. The big ones with huge teeth looked slightly less adorable really up close but it was pretty awesome all told. (I'm worried this is starting to actually make me into they guy who starts talking about sea-life in every thread).

[Fraeg]

Poor old Fraeg.  I didn't mean to get people to pick on him.  He's very sweet.  And he has holly jolly cheeks.  And a button nose.  I think he's fibbing, though.  There is definitely an icy ocean behind him, just like near the You Know Where Pole.  He obviously goes to Switzerland every year for virgin monkey piss injections to keep him young and vibrant looking.  

I'd like diamond shoes for Xmas, and one of those giant Rasta hats with the hair attatched.  Just sayin.

  

Thats a big 10-4 can do.

The gloves are Nitrile, for collecting soil samples.  and no they are not warm at all.  I have thin liner gloves underneath then XL nitrile gloves on top.  Nitrile gloves are used instead of latex gloves for sampling because they are stronger and more resistant to solvents and such.  
I can buy warm stuff for my feet, my head, legs, torso... but I have yet to figure out how to keep my hands warm when collecting soil or water samples.

*edit* yeah Gallup is a funky place I am actually working about 7 miles due east of Gallup.  As for the drunk and scary part, I have already done twice something I have never done before which is to call in drunk drivers.   I had read and heard about just how bad alcohol abuse is with Native Americans, but seeing just how extreme it is first hand is pretty shocking.  On Sundays you can't by booze in Gallup, and you see people buying like 3 bottles of mouthwash instead to get their fix 

[Righ]

I am actually working about 7 miles due east of Gallup.

Google says you're working on the Fort Wingate cleanup.

[Fraeg]

I am one of many many people out there.  25 square miles of what was at one point in time the worlds largest munitions dump.  Pretty much anywhere you go you have to have an Ordnance and explosives person with you because there are still some things around that go boom. 

[apocrypha]

Nitrile gloves are used instead of latex gloves for sampling because they are stronger and more resistant to solvents and such.

Derail! Nitrile gloves also don't cause latex allergies, and latex allergies are bad! (ps. condoms are made of latex).

[MahrinSkel]

I have some gloves that are nitrile soaked on the palm side (the base material is a few grades coarser than t-shirt weave) I use when I need a really solid grip on a tool or part, but finer tactile sense than I would get from the heavy latex-soaked canvas gloves, or the leather-palmed ones I use for the heavier tools.  Probably not going to meet your needs (they have nothing on the back side), but it seems like it should be possible to make jersey-knit gloves faced completely in nitrile that would be warmer, stronger, and equally good at protecting from contamination.  Or is it better to have something where a small hole or tear spreads quickly, so you know your protection is compromised?  You don't seem too worried about minor persistent contamination, given you're not wearing a bunny-suit.

--Dave

[Brogarn]

This reindeer greats you as you enter Lights on the Lake in Liverpool NY. I don't think they were going for creepy but that's what I got out of it:

[apocrypha]

Dear god that is indeed creepy. Very Donnie Darko.

[rattran]

Cameltoe reindeer.   

[Mosesandstick]

Finally got my photogrpaher shit together.

[nurtsi]

Cool. That's some funky moves the green firework up there is doing.

[NowhereMan]

As promised, pic from diving up at the Farne islands.

[bhodi]

Welcome to Virginia. 2 feet and climbing. I was going to shovel out my car, but then I cleared one side, saw there was really no where to put the snow, and went back inside.

[Signe]

Righ's sister is in Fairfax and she sent pictures some time ago.  It was already 20 inches or so and very drifty.  I can't tell how much we have right now.  Lots but not as much as you.  Yet.  I'm glad to have a garage!

[Strazos]

I don't have a camara, but the snow here in Crystal City/Arlington looks much the same.

I guess I'm taking a train up to NJ for Christmas.

[JWIV]

I don't have a camara, but the snow here in Crystal City/Arlington looks much the same.

I guess I'm taking a train up to NJ for Christmas.

Baltimore looks about the same

[Strazos]

I'm hoping for a warm day in here, somewhere, to take care of this problem for me.

[IainC]

Two views from my study window in opposite directions down the main street.

[Signe]

The roads will be clear by Christmas.  When does it ever take that long?  Streets around here are already mostly plowed and the highways have been clear since early morning.  Sometimes you guys are such old women!

[Yoru]

Goddamnit, I want snow for Christmas. I think I'm living in the only city in the northern hemisphere that hasn't gotten the white stuff yet.

[Samwise]

Goddamnit, I want snow for Christmas. I think I'm living in the only city in the northern hemisphere that hasn't gotten the white stuff yet.

I assure you you'll get it before I do.  Not that I'm complaining.   

[IainC]

The snow is still coming down but the OMG WHITEOUT from earlier has abated. It's bitterly cold still and the snow has the consistency of ice powder.

[Signe]

Very pretty, though, Iain.

[Teleku]

Took these while shopping last weekend.  Christmas decorations at the mall in San Fransisco:

[Strazos]

The roads will be clear by Christmas.  When does it ever take that long?  Streets around here are already mostly plowed and the highways have been clear since early morning.  Sometimes you guys are such old women!

I don't think they own plows down here, or road salt.

I'm not sure how much snow we got, but the roads are still down to a single messy lane in each direction. My car is screwed, though...It'll be buried for more than a week, at least.

[RhyssaFireheart]

Very pretty, though, Iain.

I agree, that is a good shot.

Teleku - I love how abstract those first 3 pics look.  Nice shapes formed by the architecture.

[Bunk]

Iain -  that last shot is just perfectly serene.

Teleku - I'm amazed you managed to take that many photos inside a mall without getting tackled by security.

[IainC]

This one reminds me simultaneously of the Galeries Lafayette in Paris and the cover to Swing the Heartache by Bauhaus.