peterms

Preying, Mantis?

Well, you don't, basically. Not on this thread, I would suggest. Have you changed your mind about food so drastically in a week, or has some cheeky scamp logged in with your username?

I definitely heard strains of "Come on, Fulham" at least once, possibly twice. What a strange song. It sounds like something from the days when dads and uncles would take their nippers on their shoulders, swinging a rattle. Is it a local tradition, or is their support mainly the pre-war generation? As a response, I thought "sing when you're offside..." was brilliant.

Nah, they're German. It's a problem of the spread of global capitalism.

I heard that bit on R5 this evening. Immediately before, they quoted a bit from the other adviser (or maybe it was her as well), saying that Straw would reject legal advice he didn't like, saying he would fight it in court. Well, advice is just that, advice, and not something you are required to follow. But if the owner of a firm had taken legal advice on something, ignored it, and chosen a course of action which led to the death of an employee or a member of the public, he would be, to use a technical legal term, well and truly ****. Now, when you ignore advice which is not politically convenient, and choose a course of action which lead to thousands, tens of thousands of deaths, what then?

Really, Jon, I wonder about your recent reading habits. :shock: But seriously, it's a decent summary of what happened. What hasn't attracted much comment up to now, at least as far as I've noticed, is the contemptuous way the cabinet was treated. This article mentions this. It was commented on at the time, as a further step in the trend to marginalise and disempower cabinet which has been under way for some time, especially under Blair's term of office. But it's frightening to think that we were taken to war, and very large numbers of people killed, on the basis of less evidence than a local council would consider when siting a new pelican crossing.

I was wondering about the anchovies as I sent it, they are a "love or hate" taste. I would suggest leaving the anchovies out of the salsa, or else do a red salsa instead (eg red pepper, chili, tomato, chopped onion, lemon/lime). For the chicken dish, try Pollo al Ajillo instead. Saute about 10 whole cloves of garlic in olive oil (take off the papery outer skin, but don't peel), saute chicken until brown, add about 6 bay leaves, chuck in a glass of sherry or wine so it emulsifies with the oil, season, turn down to a gentle heat, put lid on and simmer for 30-40 mins. If you don't drink, you can still coook with wine, just make sure you cook it enough so the alcohol burns off, which doesn't take long. Get a bottle with a screw cap, and it should be ok for cooking for a while, if you can keep your flatmates off it.

OK, working on £3 for dinner, £2 for lunch, here's some suggestions. Not everything is costed, because some things will last over a long period, like olive oil and mayo, so it's hard to break down. However, it's based on good quality ingredients, including free range chicken and wine. You could eat cheaper than this, for example today I had pasta with olive oil, garlic, chili and parsley, with parmesan. Pretty cheap, probably cheaper than any recipe below. It's geared towards finding a couple of key ingredients (in this case chicken, with a subsidiary flavour of anchovy) and working around that. You can do all this without using a freezer or a microwave, though freezing stock is always a good idea. You do of course get to drink all the wine you don't use for cooking. You could leave the wine out of the risotto, but the chicken and anchovy dish works much better with wine. It's a bit long. :cry: Buying: Free range chicken £6 Bottle of white wine £4 Fish £4 Tin anchovies £1 2 tins chopped tomatoes £1 Feta cheese £2 Avocado £1 Refried beans £1 Leeks £1 Head of celery Onions Carrots Garlic Lemons Cooking chorizo £2 (will last you more than a week) Potatoes £1 Pack of 8 wraps £1.50 Tomatoes £1 Cucumber 50p and any stock items you don't already have. Priced items = £27. Say another tenner for various veg and herbs, and contribution to cost of things which are spread over a longer period like rice, pasta, capers, mayonnaise, olive oil. If you start without those stock items, initial cost will be higher while you build up a stock. Haven't tried to allow for things like coffee, butter etc which you will doubtless also be buying, so don't expect a total food bill of £35 - that cost is for the dinners and lunches. You can do it cheaper by not using wine, not buying free range chicken and so on, but it's better like this. The fish is probably the dearest single meal. If you buy anything organic, potatoes are the best thing to get, and work in other veg as budget allows, starting with root veg. Longer term, growing your own herbs in a pot and salad in a box is easy and cheap. Cooking: Do a couple of things at the weekend to get ahead for the week. Take the legs off the chicken and save in the fridge. Put the rest of the chicken in the biggest pan you have (a good stock pot costs around £20), with an onion, carrot, stick of celery, bay leaf if you have one, but no salt. Fill pot with water, bring to boil, skim, and cook on the lowest simmer you can manage, not bubbles, water just barely moving, for about an hour. Take the breasts off, save one for lunches, the other is for the first recipe. When you cook the potatoes for the first recipe, do enough for whatever saute potatoes you will want in a couple of days time, and any you might want for a potato salad as part of a lunch box. Saves a bit of time later. Strip the chicken carcass of all the little scraps of meat (using hands while it's warm but not hot is easiest), save for the risotto. The stock is for soup, risotto, and any left over can be frozen for other soups. Make tomato sauce: soften onions, garlic in oil. Add chili. Add 2 tins chopped tomatoes, simmer gently for 45 mins or so, adding a little more water if it gets too thick. Check it's not sticking. Season. Save for the enchiladas and pasta. Any left over can be used for eg nachos. Make salad dressing. Olive oil, a little lemon juice or wine vinegar, touch of mustard, salt and pepper, in a jam jar. Shake before using. Take to work if you have salad for lunch, because once you dress the sald, the acid will start eating into the salad leaves. Poached chicken with salsa verde Anchovies, capers, garlic, parsley (other soft green herbs like tarragon or basil if available) - blend with a little lemon juice. Add olive oil at end, breadcrumbs optional. Serve with the poached chicken breast, boiled potatoes, maybe broccoli. Penne piccante Soften chopped onion and small cubes of chorizo in oil. Add spicy tomato sauce. Mix with pasta. Risotto Soften chopped onion, carrot, celery, garlic, touch of chili, maybe small amount of chopped bacon or chorizo, in olive oil. Add rice (arborio or carnarole), turn over until coated in oil. Add glass of white wine, wait until absorbed, add chicken stock in small quantities, stirring all the time, adding more when needed, salt and pepper, add chicken and anything else available like bits of chopped peppers, mushrooms. When rice is cooked, turn off heat, add a little butter and grated cheese, mix in. Add chopped parsley and mix in. Use leftovers for a microwaved lunch, or shape into flat rice cakes and fry gently in butter or oil, or else make arancini - shape into a ball, add small piece of mozzarella in the middle, close up the rice ball, roll in breadcrumbs and deep fry, serve with salsa and salad Sea bream with potatoes and thyme (serves 2) Slice waxy potatoes as thick as £1 coin, fry gently in wide shallow pan, turning frequently, add chopped garlic and 1 sliced onion per person, 2 bay leaves, plenty of fresh thyme, lemon juice, glass of wine, salt and pepper, bit of chili if you like it. Put lid on pan, cook gently for half hour. Add whole fish (sea bream, sea bass work well here), replace lid, cook for further 2 mins, test fish by cutting in to it to see if it's done, serve by lifting to half of fish off the bone with a knife and a spatula, then lifting the whole set of bones off the bottom half of the fish. Doesn't really need an accompaniment. Chicken with anchovies and capers Fry chicken legs in butter and olive oil in saute pan until lightly browned, take out of pan. Soften chopped onions in pan, add chopped anchovies, stir until they start to dissolve, add lemon juice and glass of white wine, black pepper (probably no salt, having used anchovies), stir well. Return chicken to pan, put lid on tight, simmer gently for 40 mins. Check occasionally to see it's not sticking, add a little water if needed. Serve with rice, veg if you like. Enchiladas Take 2 wraps per person, lay flat. Soften small amount of chopped onion in oil, add small tin of refried beans per person, fry until warmed through, place in centre of wraps. Add some grated cheese, maybe a little chopped lettuce or finely shredded cabbage, maybe chopped fresh tomatoes if available, squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Roll up the wraps (tucking the sides under while rolling) and place in baking dish just big enough to hold them (lightly oil the dish first so they don't stick), cover in plenty of spicy tomato sauce, maybe add a few thin slices of cheese and some fresh coriander on top, cover with tinfoil, bake in medium oven (160o) for half hour or so. Leftovers work cold, or microwaved. Grilled chicken with mustard Mix mustard with crushed garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, coat chicken Grill under moderate grill, not too close, turning often Serve with baked or saute potatoes, salad. Lunches Greek salad (2 lunches) Half pack of feta cheese, cubed Cherry tomatoes, halved Cucumber, diced Black olives Parsley French dressing - olive oil, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper Leek and potato soup (2 lunches) Soften chopped onions and leeks in oil (chopped garlic and chili optional) Add potatoes, cut into small cubes Add chicken stock, salt, pepper, simmer for 20-30 mins, liquidise Chicken and avocado wrap Chop cooked chicken, chopped avocado, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper, roll in wrap. 1 breast and 1 avocado should do 2 lunches. Mixed salad box Leftover boiled potatoes Leftover penne piccante Cucumber, tomato, salad leaves, maybe some grated cheese Add mayo, or else french dressing just before eating

No, it's not impossible, but it does take a bit of planning. I'll take a look when I have a bit more time and make some suggestions. But of the things in your list above, some are maybe quite expensive for what they are. Chicken fillets - a dear way to buy chicken, which also prevents you making the stock which would keep you in soup for a week. Tinned veg and sauces in jars are for people who need the convenience and don't mind paying more. Pre-packed stir-fry - also dearer than doing it yourself, and the veg will have started to degrade from when they were first cut up. Garlic kievs sound like the ingredient list may have things you don't really want, and anything from Bernard Matthews is 100% guaranteed to contain shite and involve animal cruelty. If you buy some things from supermarkets like big bags of rice and pasta, tinned tomatoes when they're half price (they often are), make sure you always have onions, garlic, carrots, celery in the house, have some basic spices like dried chilli and if possible grow a couple of herbs in pots, then you can manage quite well with buying a bit of meat and some fresh veg as you need it. I'll make some more specific suggestions in a couple of days.

Well, I'm sure there's a lot more expert advice out there than what I can offer, but in the absence of other answers: Beware your camera's auto-exposures. The camera will expose for the snow, in many cases. Sometimes, that will work for your shot. Often, it won't. For example, if you are taking a shot of something darker against a background of snow, the camera may expose correctly for the snow but underexpose for your subject, leaving it a bit dark. So, you might want to use whatever settings you have to control the exposure, and over-expose by one or two stops. My advice is go for fully manual settings, usually over-expose by two stops compared to what the exposure meter tells you, and if in doubt, bracket one stop either way. However, I accept no responsibility if my suggestions result in a totally screwed up photo-session. Sorry about that.

Student loan? Oh my god.

Thanks Bicks, sadly, the kids weren't allowed on the slopes - no doubt someone fearing someone would slip into the icy water and there'd be all sorts of forms to fill in. Brigga - couple of suggestions. First one is potentially quite interesting, as a clash of colours, textures etc. But all the twigs in the background make it a bit confusing. Maybe find a standpoint where there is less background, to make the main subject stand out more? Trees shot is something which can be quite dramatic. The angle you have has started to make them look quite overbearing and threatening. Going in a little closer to the base of a tree would make it more so - and black and white for that sort of shot can work well. The duck is in the centre of the frame, which is where most people place it, and most photography teachers say not to, because it makes the shot quite static, like a mugshot. (I know one of mine above has the subject in the centre, my excuse is that it's because it looks like he's taking a photo). Placing the duck off-centre gives a different effect, worth experimenting with. The plant with snow on is potentially really interesting, in terms of the contrast between the natural shape and texture of the plant, and how it finds itself at the moment, with an alien weight on it. Again, the background doesn't help it, and perhaps confuses the eye by giving lots of extra information which doesn't add to the quality of the image. Try finding a place to stand (or more probably, lie) where you can shoot it against a clear sky, and see if you think it looks better one way or the other. I think that against a clear sky, all the viewer's attention would be drawn to the outline of the plant and the snow. It would be stark, but it would say a lot about the season.

Some seasonal ones: Snowmelt down a window Shapes in the snow Cold river Incognito Stalking

Wrong thread, mate.

Yes, quite a measured assessment.

This was a SIGNIFICANT improvement on the Arsenal performance. In horrendous conditions, there was no shortage of skill, passion and desire to win. MON got the tactics spot on and made, I believe, the correct substitutions. He went to win the match and for the last 20 mins we had Liverpool petrified. Spot on. It's not hard to not be better than the Arsenal game (that match lacked the endeavor we expect of this side), but we weren't bad in this game. We weren't fantastic either, but it was good enough and we deserved something. The difference between us and them was 1 class strike from a world class player, born of a lucky break. Speaks volumes. Onwards and upwards. You honestly thought that was good enough? If you do then I'm envious of you because life must always be good for you. You have some pretty low **** standards my friend. Liverpool were poor and we were worse. What a silly, patronising post. It was a poor game. Not surprising, in the conditions. Both sides struggled to play good football. We showed effort and commitment, and were unlucky to lose a close game. Gazton and Chindie have made good points, and don't deserve your sneering.

Well, yet another viewpoint. Let's start with the unpopular bit. The ref was fine. There is no part of our defeat which was remotely his fault. He tried to keep the game flowing, and largely succeeded. Not booking Song was highly debatable, but was defensible if you want a game to flow and have eleven players each at the end. Booking Delph was entirely down to Delph. He fouled, then got lippy. Part of his growing up is to avoid bookings like that, and you can bet your life that will be made clear to him on Monday. In general, the ref had a good game, and us losing doesn't make it otherwise. Downing was poor. Was he injured? He kept turning inside, like he wanted more time for every move. Young made some good space, as usual, and didn't make much use of it, as usual. Milner was good in parts, but unusually poor in parts as well. And it's in midfield that we lost it, like you do with Arse. The attacking formation worked well first half, but looked tired and stretched second half. Looking back, I would have welcomed NRC coming on to escort Fabregas around the pitch.

I thought it was quite good, if it was original. But truth be told, I suspect it's not. Maybe he'll 'fess up?

Well, merry xmas to you, and good luck with the OU. Couple of points on your posts. First, you make great play of squads. Rightly so, I suppose - we won't get anywhere with a weak squad. But ours is quite a bit stronger than last year, and I think most would agree with that. At the same time, some other clubs are getting weaker. Liverpool, for example, having to sell to buy (yes, a press story, but the known financial facts bear it out) and Manyoo, unable to put together a defence, but not spending the Ronaldo money. In both cases, club forced into debt by speculating profit-seeking new owners. Are their squads adequate? Probably less so than ours, but maybe they can't continue their previous policy of covering the cracks with cheques. Second, and leading on from that, you seem to give too much respect to the other six you mention, and too little to us. I respect Arsenal as a club (but that might all go to shit in the next year as well, with the latest vulture hovering), but the others are either playboys with a new toy, or speculators trying to make a few million quid. Whether the team is up for it is another question, and I think both Liverpool and Man Citeh may have issues in that department. The full season will be a test for us, as you say, but I don't expect all of these to take it easily in their stride either. Third, presenting a different and arguably more balanced view of our club than you is not "getting all Billy Big Bollox". Some people may suffer from hubris as you suggest. Others may just be looking at things as they develop, and drawing different conclusions than you about what may happen over the course of a season, without being arrogant about it. Blandy's posts, for example.

They are. Playing in Europe, getting loaned out to lower league clubs, training with the first team squad, sometimes getting on the bench...would you make them first team regulars?

I think he'll stay. If he stays here ten years, that will be until the standard retirement age. In his position, having had a relatively good managerial career, wanting one more big job before you retire, thinking you could do something like Wenger has done with Arse, then joining us was a good move. And right now, looking at what's happening with other clubs, if you're trying to build something rather than get a few quid in the pension fund and slope off to a beach somewhere, well, where would you rather be than right here? I don't see too many clubs offering long-term support and stability to someone who wants to build. They don't have the patience.

Me too. A bit like people on £10m a year regardless of performance claiming they've "earned" it.

This year, Everton and Fulham have taken the Europa League seriously, and are progressing through the rounds - Fulham are in the last 32 now. This will take its toll on players, and may start to have an effect on Premiership performances. Perhaps it has already done so - who knows? Would you rather be in our position or theirs, right now? Of course being committed to the Europa League doesn't mean you can't do well elsewhere, and as we saw last year, having an early exit doesn't guarantee success in the Prem. It would also be good to do well in a competition, and I suppose if Fulham get through another three rounds of competition, they will be at the same stage in Europa as we are in the League Cup (as I still call it; sorry, sponsors). But you can't do everything, and every club prioritises. Personally, I would go for a strategy of having the fewest games to win an achievable trophy, conserving resources for the Prem, and having reserve strength sufficient to make opposition managers comment on the strength of our bench. We didn't manage that last year, but this year, I think it looks very promising in terms of where we are positioned, what is still to come, and what resources we have to drawn on in the second half of the season. Last year, should he have gambled on putting out a stronger team to win a difficult fixture in unpromising circumstances in order to face several more rounds, or taken a step back to concentrate on the main thing? I'd say the latter, every time. And if we failed in the big aim, does that make the strategy wrong? Absolutely not.

I was actually referring to the incorrect usage of the word, but crack on. You have intrigued me, I thought I had used it correctly? He just means "privy to" means to be included in knowledge. You can be privy to information, not to spending time somewhere. So spending time in the dressing room could make you privy to information. As could hiding in the dressing room toilets and eavesdropping. In other words, spending time in the privy could make you privy to information. But I don't think Risso is claiming to have hidden in that particular khasi, so the point you were making is probably undisputed.

I agree. Right decision at the time, and events turning out as they did doesn't make it otherwise. You can only decide on what you know at the time, not what later turns out to happen.