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2731. Macnas - 3/9/2005 12:12:21 PM Our water is vile town mains, I take it in coffee and that is all. 2732. alistairconnor - 3/9/2005 12:18:19 PM Town water doesn't even make decent ice cubes. Leaves crystals in the whisky.
Of course, real men don't take ice with their whisky... 2733. Macnas - 3/9/2005 12:21:39 PM No, they take more whiskey. 2734. Magoseph - 3/9/2005 1:05:25 PM We buy our drinking water here--tap water has a funny taste. 2735. PelleNilsson - 3/9/2005 3:15:44 PM The tap water here in Stockholm is very fine coming from a lake. In Gothenburg, where I grew up, it is vile, coming from sources that make hevy chlorinization necessary. 2736. Macnas - 3/9/2005 3:18:21 PM That is the problem here, the chlorine content is way too high for my liking.
In my home place, where we have our own well, the water was and is very potable. 2737. thoughtful - 3/9/2005 4:39:43 PM A fellow i know used to work at a plant that was very heavily regulated by the epa. They literally could not take in city water and release it as it was. Their requirements were so tough that they had to make the water cleaner than what the city input. Makes me wonder what all is in there anyway.
However, the alternative is not good. We are so fortunate that unlike other antibiotics, chlorine has retained its germ-killing ability. So much of the world is so desperately in need of potable water. I guess we should be happy for what we got.
I did see on a tv show that they have now invented a machine that will make drinking water out of humidity in the air...it condenses and filters it and provides sufficient water for a family. Of course the higher the humidity, the more water you get. 2738. arkymalarky - 3/10/2005 1:06:01 AM My dehumidifier fills up daily in spring and summer because the air is so humid, and we water plants with it. It looks clear and it seems it wouldn't take much to develop some sort of system that dehumidifies on a larger scale and makes the water drinkable. They use a lot of energy, though. 2739. arkymalarky - 3/10/2005 1:06:55 AM We get a bit of the copper effect, Alistair. I assumed it was from the water rather than the pipes, but I don't know how much of our plumbing is metal and how much is plastic. 2740. alistairconnor - 3/10/2005 1:48:04 PM If you've got soft well water in your pipes, Arky, then it's dissolving copper out of your pipes.
Water, in its pure state, is naturally acidic, because of dissolved carbon dioxide, which becomes carbonic acid (HCO3-).
Generally, town-supply water (and a lot of ground water) is full of calcium carbonate in solution -- that's the "hard" stuff -- which neutralises the acidity. In fact, I've been told that they often add calcium carbonate to town supply water which is deemed too soft : both to neutralise the acidity, and because it tends to reduce leakage in the distribution system, by bunging up the leaks.
Either that, or it's a conspiracy of washing-powder manufacturers. 2741. PelleNilsson - 3/10/2005 2:56:56 PM You know that you have "hard" water if you coffee machine clogs up rather often. 2742. thoughtful - 3/10/2005 4:03:03 PM When I travel, I can tell whether the water is hard or soft by how the soap and shampoo feel in the shower. When the water's soft it seems to take forever to rinse out. When the water's hard it's difficult to get a good lather. 2743. Magoseph - 3/12/2005 4:15:21 PM Saturday Night Lite
Let me tell you a story to illustrate that we are living in a pusillanimous age. I was in New Orleans last Saturday night, dining with a wonderful group of people at a culinary landmark called Antoine's. Our host had arranged for a remorseless avalanche of delicious food, served in prodigious 19th-century style. There were about six appetizers, including oysters, foie gras and various lobster confabulations. There were main courses aplenty - fish, then crab, then steak.
Then dessert floated onto the table: a meringue pie roughly the size of a football helmet. And with it came coffee, but not just any coffee. It was called "devil's brew." A copper bowl was put in the middle of the table with some roiling mixture of brandy-ish spirits inside. Coffee was poured in and the concoction set aflame.
The waiter thrust a ladleinto the inferno and lifted up long, dripping streams of blue fire, hoisting the burning liquid into hypnotizing, showy cascades. He poured out a circle of flame onto the tablecloth in front of us. It was a lavish pyre of molten, inebriating java and then, when he swung around to where I was sitting, I turned and asked the climactic question:
More…
“I blame the people at the top for setting the tone”
“I blame parents”
“I blame the titans of corporatism”
“I blame the arbiters of virtue.”
“But at least we have New Orleans.”
Brooks says all these things—is he correct to blame these entities?
2744. wonkers2 - 3/12/2005 4:32:24 PM That was one of Brooks's better columns. At least he is willing to poke fun of himself. I remember a family dinner at Antoine's when I was a teen. I didn't really appreciate it then. Two years ago at a high school reunion I tried to relive my earlier dinner at Antoine's but couldn't get in. So we settled for Galatoire's which was quite good. I guess it's the second oldest New Orleans restaurant. I'll link below a related book review column also from today's NYT. 2745. wonkers2 - 3/12/2005 4:37:37 PM Professor Sees Mania in U.S. for Posessions and Status (I especially like the last paragraph) Here. 2746. Magoseph - 3/12/2005 6:27:48 PM Other countries are prey to the same forces, Dr. Whybrow says, but the problem is worse here because we are a nation of immigrants, genetically self-selected to favor individualism and novelty. Americans are competitive, restless and driven to succeed.
I definitely count myself as one of these immigrants "genetically self-selected to favor individualism and novelty", praise the Lord, Jen's Lord, I mean. 2747. wonkers2 - 3/13/2005 4:51:27 AM Aren't we all. Pelle may not agree, but it's well known that all the Swedes worth their salt came to America long ago! 2748. PelleNilsson - 3/17/2005 10:21:39 PM Tonight I made filet de chevaux (sic) flambé stuffed with anchovy butter. With that a finely chopped salad of small premium tomatoes, parsley and garlic served with a tart sauce vinaigrette. No special occasion, I just felt a need to engage in a bit of hands-on creativity. 2749. robertjayb - 3/17/2005 10:56:26 PM Barbarian! 2750. PelleNilsson - 3/17/2005 11:34:39 PM Yes. But medium-to-rare horse is a fine eat.
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