Steven Savage – Page 555 – Writer, Agilist, Elder Geek

Link Roundup 10/25/2013

October 25, 2013 by Steven Savage

Entertainment weekly on how to save ‘Agents of Shield’. It’s not good when someone is giving you pointers on saving your show. I don’t feel it’s come together myself, so want to see what happens – since maybe the Marvel Movieverse touch won’t extend to TV.
MAKE is hiring. You know what to do. If you don’t CHECK THE POSTINGS AND SEND A RESUME.
Netflix has studios addicted to their cash. They’ve thrown out a lot of money. Makes me think that was the point – build a (semi-virtuous) cycle by throwing in a lot of cash, making it back, and making studios interested. It also would appeal to risk-averse Hollywood. Insert Walter White joke here.
Agile development in gaming is proving to be a problem; here’s how it can be addressed. If you’re not familiar with Agile Development, it’s really been growing in popularity for awhile – indeed, I’ve practiced it. But it does have it’s issues. WELL worth reading if you work in gaming or use Agile. Or both.
Interesting economic news. Trends in long-term unemployment around the world are interesting – and some countries are really screwed right now. Americans are also racking up debt faster than retirement savings. OK when I said “interesting” I meant “depressing.”

– Steven “Really Sad He Made A Breaking Bad Joke” Savage

Cooking: Containers Are For Eating

October 26, 2013October 25, 2013 by Steven Savage

OK, I know the image of eating a reheated meal out of a container is not exactly dignified. It conjures up imagines of someone who can’t cook, is too rushed, or just has no dignity.

I beg to differ.

See, I cook and freeze a lot of food. I live alone, I like to experiment with cooking, and I like to pace out what I eat so it’s not the same thing four days in a row. Needless to say a lot of what I eat spends its time in a glass container in the freezer.

In turn, that container may not be reheated at home. A lot of food I make is reheated at work, even though we have a great cafeteria (I’m a cheapskate also).

In all these cases, if I reheat food, unless I really need to (like, say, pouring out curry sauce) do I really want to reheat something then dump it into another dish or bowl? Hell, I just eat it out of what I reheated it in.

Why?

First, it’s faster. I don’t have to go around getting something else to eat out of.
Secondly, it dirties up less dishes. Like I really need to mess up the food container and another dish (or a paper one and waste it).
Third, I don’t have to pack or find other dining ware. I just use what I have.
Fourth, a good container is multi-use. It’s not just for freezing – I use mine to store vegetables, side dishes, etc. Saves me a plastic bag being thrown away.

Do I do this at home? Absolutely. I don’t need to make more of a mess. So yes, in stereotypical bachelor fashion, I eat out of the reheating container.

But as far as I’m concerned? It’s worth it. It’s simpler, faster, and neater. It’s not undignified – it’s precise.

(Besides, I think most of my food is pretty damn classy, thank you!)

If you shop around you can also find some great storage containers that make excellent dining ware. I myself favor the Ziplock glass containers, which come in multiple sizes, have nice-fitting lids, and are pretty sturdy. Also being glass they look a bit more dignified to eat out of.

So go on. Eat out of the container!

– Steven Savage

Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach. He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, nerd and geek culture at http://www.nerdcaliber.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at https://www.stevensavage.com/.

Curry Diary 10/24/2013

October 25, 2013 by Steven Savage

OK a quick update on my quest for the best Japanese Curry.

I’ve been playing with Milestone Curry #4 for awhile, trying to find how to get the balance of tastes – mostly as the addition of red wine made it complex but a bit too sweet.

I think I got it to a near-milestone again – by cutting the wine to 1/3 a cup and giving up on using the Broth substitute. The Broth substitute is nice, but I tried home-made vegetable broth and it seems to add a little extra something. I’ll probably use regular vegetable broth (made at home) for the rest of my experiments.

(It’s not like it’s hard to make)

So I’m going to try a few of the stored servings to really get to know the subtleties of the new taste. I think I’m close to a new plateau, but it’s more subtler than the last one – all the tastes in balance. From here I think it’s a matter of improving a mix of richness but keeping balance.

The red wine was actually very revealing. I’m starting to realize the power of fermented foods and taste. Several of them – soy sauce, wine, and vinegar – are big parts of my cooking. In combination they’re quite powerful (my experimental vegetarian Cincinnati Chili, which isn’t ready for prime time, uses all three). Consider other similar foods such as beer or cheese, and the richness they bring.

Well, I’ve got two more servings of this curry to eat, then I’ll think about the next stage . . .

– Steven Savage