Derek has always been a random moderator (good word, Jesse), and as I've told him before, very bad at this kind of thing. At times, he gets people mixed up and admonishes somebody for something somebody else has done (or he may have done himself). It's a bit like Lucille Ball at the helm: lovable, but ditzy.

On the other hand, I don't think Brian's deletion here was random at all. I think some buddy of his put him up to it.

“Random” AND “very bad”? Thanks, Walt. Appreciate the Lucille Ball comparison as well. I’ve always fancied myself more the Desi type, but as you’re wont to say, wtfdik? The funny thing in the Capece case* is that I wasn’t even “moderating”, randomly or otherwise.

Also appreciate the stab at a conspiracy theory, but I’m pretty sure Brian will have little trouble debunking it.

Please see above for yet another entreaty.

*Sounds amusingly like a Maigret whodunit file.

I was going to suggest a "Bags Complaints" area, so I'm happy see this.

re: Digressions. Personally I look at Bags in a little different, maybe more formal, manner than I do Jazz Corner (for example), at least in regard to commentary on reviews of discs. Not with regard to the review or its author really, but more out of respect to the musician(s) being written about. It just strikes me as common courtesy to refrain from the kind of childish banter (not that that's a bad thing) that's perfectly appropriate in the semi-chat room atmosphere of JC.

Though I'm sure we all have varying opinions on where the line is drawn between amusing repartee and childish banter...

Other ideas welcomed.

Occasionally there is a problem opening the front page, but its rare and usually disappears at the second attempt. I just get "page not found" messages or something similar, no biggie though.

Uploading comments however continues to take foooooorever.... I usually find that I've forgotten the subject altogether by the time my post appears :)

Agreed. Uploading seems to take forever.

I assume this works for everyone, not just me, but even though the upload does take forever (for reviews too!), once the process begins, you can freely go elsewhere. It's not necessary to see it through 'til the end, twiddling fingers or other twiddleables.

*Sounds amusingly like a Maigret whodunit file

especially since Sankt Olewnick didn't edit out Mr. Pinell's simmering sauce reference. It's getiing close to roux and gumbo.

I’m a fan of digressions. I love it when a thread mutates in all manner of unpredictable directions. It’s the snide stuff I can do without. Often, the poster thinks he or she’s being clever & it ends up just reading jejune. Walt’s a great guy in person & correspondence, but his online persona (or “shtick” as Jesse aptly called it) can occasionally be a chore, IMO. He’s self-aware enough to know it & has admitted so on various occasions. As for me periodically cracking the wrong skulls: Guilty as charged. Though in my defense I’d argue that Walt/o is a narrow distinction to the naked eye (particularly one as myopia-prone as mine).

I wish I had the technical wherewithal to make a "Complaints" section a permanent feature on the main page. Like a “sticky” at the bulletin board forums. But people are probably past tired of reading me harp about this. Go read a technical manual already, Taylor, and put a sock in it!

“Random” AND “very bad”?

Right. Random as a moderator and bad as a mommy.

As for my "shtick"--as I've said before, while I usually have some point to make (and sometimes "snide" does that pretty well IMO), but occasionally I just like to be silly. I'm afraid that's my personality, but I'm pretty set in my ways at this point, and I probably won't change. So, if you prefer I don't post here, just say so.

I've got JC and my blog--it's not like I'm desperate for a forum for my glorious insights (or foolishness or whatever).

Thanks for the feedback on the tech side, gents. I think the gummed up load speeds are a function of the antiquated version of Moveable Type the site uses. It’s several generations old and the process for downloading & then uploading the whole works to a new version is quite involved (ie. beyond my scope).

As Brian mentioned, one click of the submit button is all that’s necessary for your words to pirouette through the ether & land in the commentellen hopper. The gears and gizmos eventually catch-up. Every so often a post is flagged for “administrator approval” & doesn’t make it to a “published” state. I haven’t been able to figure out the specific species of filter that adopts this watchdog role or what its criteria are, but I’m working on it.

Uli, if you’ve got a recipe for decent roux or gumbo I’d love to have it. Soup season is swiftly approaching.

Sorry for my superfluous "but" above. ;>}

Site's too slow to bother editing anything.

Oh, and "tao-tze dung" and "shintonalism" remain the shizzy if you ask me.

I’m not asking you change, Walt. Or stop posting.

Hey, the gears & gizmos seem to be working in well-oiled fashion this morning.

sorry, derek. I make a decent soupy beef stew using a Marcella Hazan cookbook, so. I can give you that if you want.

How about posting it here :)

Stufinato di manzo con i piselli

for 4 to six

4 tbs vegetable oil
9oo g (3 lb) boneless chuck steak
35 ml (1/2 pint)stury red (barbera)
45o g small white onions
60 g butter
8 tbs olive oil
4 medium carrots
4 meaty celery sticks
680 g fresh peas or 450 g frozen petits poids
salt
freshly ground black pepper

1. brown meat (2 inch pieces) well
2. Add juices from browning, wine, butter olive oil. peeled and quartered onions and meat in casserole. cover an simmer 15 minutes.
3. add carrots cut to sticks (i use baby carrots)
4. add celery sticks cut into 3 inches after another hour.
5. add shelled or thawed peas after another 35 minutes.
6.salt and pepper and coninue simmer until meat is tender when picked with fork.

Derek, please. The style guide may decree that numbers be spelled out, but the phrase "Catch-22" should not be, as it is an idiomatic coinage.

:D

Now I shall go twiddle elsewhere for twenty-two minutes while this silliness uploads...

Thanks, Uli, that sounds absolutely delicious. I may have to abstain from adding the onions as I have a strong aversion to them (leeks & scallions too). It’s a curse, but one I’ve done little to lift.

Tom, I’ve got a .22 you can catch right here, w/ your teeth! Your trumpet chops being what they are, it shouldn’t be a problem :)

Derek: THIS, is what they call discourse, in the Land o' Lakes 'n' firepower? HAH! I spit ze bullet back in your face, Gopher-Stater!

Far as I’m concerned, gophers are filthy animals. But Charlton Heston (favorite son of Evanston, IL) IS the patron saint in these here parts, so what can I say? Hey, speaking of Chuck, there’s heartfelt tribute to the man over at Arbogast’s that every self-respecting, ape-hating homo sapien should read. He’s also got a nifty frame capture sequence of the eyeball impalement scene from Fulci’s Zombie: now there’s a Halloween-worthy trick that’s also a treat, depending on your stomach for such.

Hey, where the hell did Walt go? We break out the cans of silly string & he goes & leaves the building!

Speaking of problems with posting comments, does Bags have issues with Safari?

when I post from work, using Windows XP/Explorer, no problem;
when I post from my place, using Windows XP/Opera, no problem;
when I post from my ex's place, using OSX/Safari, I get a message that says my comment is being held for review...and then it never appears on the site.

Right now, I'm trying to post from my ex's place, using OSX/Firefox. If U can read this...

my guess would be that walto is off thinking of some more gems....

After the beef stew, may I suggest:

Banana Cream Pie

INGREDIENTS

* 1 (9 inch) baked pie shell
* 3 tablespoons cornstarch
* 1 1/3 cups water
* 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk)
* 3 egg yolks, beaten
* 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 bananas, sliced and dipped in
* lemon juice from concentrate and drained
* Whipping cream, whipped

DIRECTIONS

1. In heavy saucepan, dissolve cornstarch in water; stir in sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
2. Remove from heat add butter and vanilla. Cool slightly. Arrange 2 sliced bananas on bottom of prepared pie shell. Pour filling over bananas; cover.
3. Chill 4 hours or until set. Spread top with whipped cream; garnish with remaining banana slices. Refrigerate leftovers.

Hah! Looks like the Bags bulwarks have been breached by a bit of graffitti. We have over two dozen active author accounts, some dating back years, so I’m pretty sure it was a inside job (was it you, Walt?). Trouble is, I got a chuckle out of it & it does sort of go with the tone of this thread, so I’m a little reluctant to whitewash the brick, esp. considering the ruckus the last stab at “moderating” stirred up. What do other people think?

Daniel, that looks like the perfect dessert follow-up to Uli’s savory stew. I might bake a few extras to lob at deserving parties. ;)

Bill, I’m not sure about Safari. I did try to access the site yesterday afternoon and got the dreaded “Server Not Found” message. A quick call to our host revealed that the Bags server had been down for a spell. I had immediate visions of Enron-induced rolling blackouts, but the tech on the line assured me that there was nothing nefarious at work, just routine maintenance. I’m still not completely convinced.

never trust the corporate types, derek

Hah! Looks like the Bags bulwarks have been breached by a bit of graffitti. We have over two dozen active author accounts, some dating back years, so I’m pretty sure it was a inside job (was it you, Walt?).

Not only was it not me, I can't even find it. Where is this graffitti, anyways?

It's scrawled on the brickwork above. Somebody went in & replaced my original image. Anyone known for using the alias "Ignacio"?

Thanks. I wish I had any clue how to do stuff like that....

I could have done it, but didn't. Wish I'd thought of it!

Derek, I have experienced the same posting-from-Safari problem as Bill.

it was not I

"Oh, and "tao-tze dung" and "shintonalism" remain the shizzy if you ask me."

didn't spot that till just now.

right on......

http://www.freejazz.whi-music.co.uk/voltwo.html

free free music

Anyone known for using the alias "Ignacio"?

Derek, I'm sure that "Ignacio's" was simply a handy bit of text with the initial I, the purpose being to assemble three words whose initials are EAI.

(Hello, all; I dropped in to browse around.)

Thanks for stopping by, Rita.