Messages

There are a lot of good tips here.  Giving up soft drinks, eating less salt and more fiber, and the laptop recumbant bike idea have all worked for me.

Be sure to eat a generally balanced diet too.  That means keeping fats and carbs in, but adjusting your intake to your activity level.  If you live in the US like me, you are probably accustomed to eating way too much meat too.  Protein is important to getting into shape, but one or two servings (3-6oz) of meat per meal is all you need, and making sure you take in protein from multiple sources (beans, nuts, fish, poultry, etc...) is really important for muscle growth.  Also, eat a couple pieces of fruit daily, but don't gorge on it to make up for other treats.  If you have to have a substitute, vegetables have less simple sugars and more fiber, so you can pretty much eat the hell out of them.  For any meal, try to have 1 protein, one starch/carb, and a couple veggies.  Finally, for long lasting results, it is always good to cut food with fake ingredients out of your diet completely.  The two big ones for weight loss are monosodium glutamate which dehydrates your body and tricks it into feeling hungry, and hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils which really wreak havoc on your metabolism making it particularly difficult to get into a healthy lifestyle and stay there.

Ok, tirade on food aside, find something you genuinely enjoy doing on a regular basis.  I have taken up carpentry, hiking, and hunting over the past two years, and having something strenuous to look forward to will make you want to get into shape even more to take advantage of whatever it is you enjoy.  You can set up a work out regimen as well, but I find a pysical hobby gives you a more applicable reason to actually stick to the day to day exercise than just the goal of losing weight.  And, if that's not motivation enough, when you start to really get into shape, sex is WAY better.  Honestly, it's hard to even express how much better it is or in how many ways.

Anyhow, hope this post is helpful to someone.  Goodluck

This game had a great feel to it even though I played the silent version a couple weeks ago.  Helluva first game. I look forward to the next one.

I'd really get into this game, but those guys cocks are just way too little.

I just finished this game as well with a pointer on the very last frikken puzzle from Alun.  Fantastic adventure game, I say.  There are a few minor glitches like the ones previously pointed out in this thread, but overall I think the puzzles and immersion level were top notch.  Great art/music/television/history/science references as well.  Thanks for a great play.

Thanks Alun,

Spoiler

For some reason it never registered that the circle was around a brick rather than the walkable area in front of it.

[close]

how foolish of me.  Great game.

This is a fantastic game.  I am so close to the end that I hate to ask for a hint, but it's driving me out of my mind.  I also found a minor glitch.

Spoiler

I have placed all three attractors, activated everything in the silo(all lights lit, used code from mansion basement), set the switch in the lighthouse to connect the red and green wires, and I'm stumped.  The glitch involves the attractor in the lighthouse vanishing if you look at the painting before using the hand icon on it after switching the switch.  I have not been inside the church, and still have duct tape, car keys and the knife along with all sorts of notes.

[close]

Me waiting for midnight mass.




This is an actual Halloween costume.  Photoshop was not involved.

Well done to all three for pushing something out for the deadline though; it's difficult to have the dedication to see a project like this through. 

I concur. Sadly my entry, Murder She Wrote IN SPACE!, will have to be released at a later date.

Would anyone care to try my tiny nuts?

Yeah, those backgrounds rock like rocuronium.  I can't wait to play this one.

Yup, I graduated from college with a worthless degree at the absolute wrong time and have been out of a job for 8 months.  Lately I have been battling the psychological effects of anticipating the sociological effects of moving back in with my parents for a little while.  Depending on whether I can save up any money like that, I may just move out to Costa Rica to teach English if the decline in tourism hasn't hurt the demand too much.

Blake Gallagher and the Window Lickers
Blake Gallagher and the corporate masters
Blake Gallagher and the Juice Caboose (This is my favorite)

Whig and the Torries
Meat and 3 (if you have three band mates other than yourself)
Wolf and the Liars

Tonight, I have recreated the absolute most delicious dish offered by most Chinese takeout restaurants, Singapore Mai Fun. And, I have to say, it turned out perfect!  The last couple times I ordered out for it the noodles were too slimy, there was not enough curry, or it was nowhere near spicy enough, so I took the matter into my own hands.  Not to be arrogant, but it really couldn't have turned out better.

take 6oz rice stick (mai fun) noodles, and boil them for 3 minutes.
simmer 1/2 cup chicken broth, 1 tsp sugar, 1tsp coarse salt, and 3 tablespoons of soy sauce until solids are dissolved.
beat 2 large eggs and soft scramble in 2 tsp oil then set aside
clean pan, then stir fry 1/2cup thin sliced red bell peppers, 1/2cup sliced celery, 4 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon peeled+grated fresh ginger root, and 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (more if you like it extra spicy) in 2tsp oil on med-high for 15 seconds.
add 8oz very thinly sliced chicken breast+2 more tsp oil and stir fry for 2 minutes.
add 8oz peeled raw shrimp and 1.3 tablespoons curry powder and stir fry for 2 more minutes (add more oil if needed)
Reduce to medium heat and stir in noodles, broth mixture, and eggs until everything is hot and well mixed.
Sprinkle with lime juice and inch long pieces of green onion and enjoy the hell out of it.
It goes really well with a gewurztraminer or any sweet fragrant German wine.

Has anyone here ever tried to recreate a favorite restaurant dish?  How did it turn out?   

 I like that one little pirate bread man's hat.  Stylin.

Last night I went out and had some Sierra Nevada Pale Ale on draft and blew 29 bucks at the bar.  At home I roasted a whole chicken with salt, lemon pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme, and a tiny bit of Spanish olive oil.  I also cooked some green beans with bacon on the side, and the whole meal cost less that 5 dollars.  Yeah, so to go out to a loud annoying sports bar where I didn't even enjoy myself was about six times as much as putting together a very tasty meal that, in addition to being enjoyable, was necessary sustenance.

That was quite possibly the saddest ending any text adventure has ever had.  And, what a waste of perfectly good hamster meat. 

Anyone who enjoys talking about beer or wine is welcome to post here as well.  I don't know a terrible amount about wines despite an eager willingness to drink the hell out of them, but I do enjoy a good hoppy brew and have been researching in order to possibly put together a small brewery.

Cayenne pepper is actually the main "fruit of spicy flora" I was talking about in the aforementioned gumbo.  (I'm originally from Louisiana and would probably be lynched if I forgot that.) It does make almost everything better.  I actually made some blackened shrimp, calamari, and baby scallops last night  that were pretty heavy on the crushed cayenne but were even heavier on the delicious.  Lately, I've been combining white pepper with the cayenne for an extra kick without changing the flavor too much.  Man, I'm getting hungry now.

Zabnat, it sounds like you make a lot of sauces.  Do you usually go with rice and pasta dishes, or just accompany the meat with the sauce?  I tend to figure out recipes based on what is fresh at the store a lot too.

He's been waiting under a bridge.

Basically, all of the wacky religious threads popping up lately have got me thinking about what makes me feel the most spiritually fulfilled.  While pondering this a few nights ago, I began stirring flour into a pan of bacon grease.  After four straight hours of vigilant whisking, I stood before a miraculously thick, dark roux.  I then proceeded to mix in the holy trinity of base vegetables(onion,bell pepper, and celery) stirring rhythmically all the while.  Next came the opposing broths,  one black, the other golden.  Wasting no time, I added fried chunks of beast and fowl along with the leaves and fruits of aromatic and spicy flora to appease the broths, that they might exist in harmony, satiated.  I then quickly moved a cover over the mixture, blocking out all light for one hour.  Twenty minutes before the hour subsided, I removed the lid, offered okra for my indiscretion, and stirred vigorously before once again closing off my sacrifice from the world. 

I prepared a bowl and filled it half way with boiled grains of rice.  Finally, the offering was complete, and ready to drown the bland white grains.  I slowly took a spoon, filled with trepidation, and tasted. 

Suddenly, ephemeral rays of sunlight burst through dark clouds above.  The planets aligned and all creation sang out their secret harmony.  Sublime smoky flavors waltzed with gently burning spices, and a sonorous voice boomed down from the heavens.  "Let There Be Food!"     

And, it was good.

So, where are all the foodies, chefs, and just plain hog beasts on this forum?  Gather and share stories, recipes, and opinions about your favorite indulgent delights.

Edit: Also, anyone who has a love for pretty much any kind of booze, beer, or wine is also welcome to mention them here.

I know a guy who used the Necronomicon to put a fire spell on his shoes.

Yeah, and there better be a version with quotes from Anton Lavey.