Saturday, March 10, 2007

This is so apropos...especially in this world we now live in....

Well Sir....I saw this on Sean Hannity's program today and liked it so much...I felt I had to post it because of it's relevance to the times we find ourselves in....

This is a short video of a speech made by Ronald Reagan in 1964 ( he was not as yet President)....and... although the antagonist he speaks of and addresses has changed...the absolute truth of his message is extremely pertinent today....

APPEASING YOUR ENEMY DOES NOT WORK......

If'n I heard this speech in 64...when I was 20 years old...I don't recall it (I was undoubtedly partying somewhere)....but, IMHO...Ronald Reagan was one of the greatest President's this fine Nation has ever had....

Please take 3 or 4 minutes of your busy schedule, watch, listen and absorb....

Friday, March 09, 2007

If'n ya might have sweet tooth.... and it was a might cold last night...

Well Sir....these here recipe's were sent t'me by my 2 amiga's, Sue Gertson of Eagle Lake, Texas...and Miss Pam frum down Florida way......they look t'be real great tastin.....

OLD FASHIONED APPLE CAKE

4 c. apples, peeled, diced
2 c. sugar
2 c. flour
2 eggs
½ c. oil
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
Cream Cheese Frosting
½ c. butter
1 (3 0z.) pkg. cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

To prepare cake combine apples with flour; toss to coat.

Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Batter will be very stiff.

Bake in greased 9x13-pan at 350 degrees 45 to 60 minutes.Combine frosting ingredients and beat until smooth. Spread frosting over cooled cake.
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Apple Almond Cranberry Pie

1/2 roll (about 3.5 oz) Almond Paste
1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
5 baking apples (like Granny Smith), peeled, cored, and sliced (about 5 cups)
1 cup fresh cranberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon, divided in half
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup uncooked oats
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
6 Tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup chopped almonds (optional)

Preheat oven to 375-degrees F. Lightly butter a 9-inch pie plate and place pie dough into it.

Roll almond paste on a sheet of wax paper to form an 8 to 9 inch circle. Press rolled almond paste into the bottom of an unbaked pie crust.

In a bowl, combine apples, cranberries, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Pour into pie shell.

In another bowl, combine the remaining cinnamon, flour, oats, and brown sugar. Cut butter into flour mixture until crumbs are formed.

Spoon crumb mixture evenly over apples. Bake 50 to 60 minutes, sprinking with almonds (optional) during the last 5 minutes of cooking time.
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CHEWY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

2 sticks of butter
2 1/4 cup of flour
1 tsp. of salt
1 tsp. of baking soda
1/4 cup of sugar
1 1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 Tbsp. of milk
1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla
2 cups of chocolate chips

Melt the butter. Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.

Pour melted butter into large bowl. Add sugar and brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugars. Add egg, egg yolk, 2 Tbsp. of milk and vanilla. Mix well.

Slowly add flour mixture, mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips.

CHILL THE DOUGH for about 30 minutes. This is a very important step.

Once chilled, bake at 375 degrees for about 8 minutes. But check often! You don't want to burn these babies!!PS: I added some chopped pecans to the last half of my batch. They were delicious. I think walnuts would be awesome too! ENJOY!




T'was a might cold last night...-5 degree's below zero...without the Wind-chill factor....Brrrrrrr

Honor amongst the Knights of the Sky.... a good read...with a good photygraff...

Well Sir...my friend "Fish" frum down Kentucky way sent me this here interestin account of an alleged incident that happened in WWII in the skies over Germany...

Fish told me that he couldn't confirm or deny this story...and neither could I... although I was able to ascertain that this event is mentioned in the 8th Air Force Historical Society records.....


Charlie Brown was a B-17 Flying Fortress pilot with the 379th Bomber Group at Kimbolton , England . His B-17 was called 'Ye Old Pub' and was in a terrible state, having been hit by flak and fighters. The compass was damaged and they were flying deeper over enemy territory instead of heading home to Kimbolton.

After flying over an enemy airfield, a pilot named Franz Steigler was ordered to take off and shoot down the B-17. When he got near the B-17, he could not believe his eyes. In his words, he 'had never seen a plane in such a bad state'. The tail and rear section was severely damaged, and the tail gunner wounded. The top gunner was all over the top of the fuselage. The nose was smashed and there were holes everywhere.


Despite having ammunition, Franz flew to the side of the B-17 and looked at Charlie Brown, the pilot. Brown was scared and struggling to control his damaged and blood-stained plane.

Aware that they had no idea where they were going, Franz waved at Charlie to turn 180 degrees. Franz escorted and guided the stricken plane to and slightly over the North Sea towards England . He then saluted Charlie Brown and turned away, back to Europe.

When Franz landed he told the c/o that the plane had been shot down over the sea, and never told the truth to anybody. Charlie Brown and the remains of his crew told all at their briefing, but were ordered never to talk about it.

More than 40 years later, Charlie Brown wanted to find the Luftwaffe pilot who saved the crew. After years of research, Franz was found. He had never talked about the incident, not even at post-war reunions.

They met in the USA at a 379th Bomber Group reunion, together with 25 people who are alive now - all because Franz never fired his guns that day.





Research shows that Charlie Brown lived in Seattle and Franz Steigler had moved to Vancouver , BC after the war. When they finally met, they discovered they had lived less than 200 miles apart for the past 50 years!

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Holy Shit...and how to get even with a "tele-marketer"...

Well Sir...as once stated in the movie Independence Day..."I have GOT to get me one a these"....

I found this story of at Sig's at Signal 94....the Navy has developed a weapon that can cause nausea and INSTANT BOWEL MOVEMENTS....oh ya...I gotta get one...

I can just envision some of the fun y'all could have with the moonbats, Fonda's, Robbin's and other assorted lefty oxygen wasters down at The Gathering of Eagles on the 17th of this month..... there'd be a whole lotta pukin & shittin goin on if'n I had my way.....

OK Lads...set yur phasers to "Shit".......



...and this is how to handle a telemarketer.... you'll love it....
TURN YUR SOUND ON....

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Who says we don't have big fish here on Oneida Lake, NY.....

Well Sir....t'is ice fishin season here on Oneida Lake in upstate NY...and t'other day I was video tape'n a fisherman and caught this event.....

Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Another Tommy Cox video..... Take Her Deep... plus an OBG..

Well Sir....I saw this over at Myrons Random Thoughts.....and I liked it so much... I thought I'd post it as well......



...and my favorite Tommy Cox rendition....Diesel Boats Forever....

Monday, March 05, 2007

Fun things t'do with Girl Scout Cookies.. over 20,000 hits.. and some other humoris stuff...

Well Sir....snowed in agin dammit. I'm definately beginnin t'get a serious case of cabin fever...as may be evidenced by the below post....I think I'll cook up a big batch a poo......

...and The Cookshack went over 20,000 hits since I began postin 13 months ago....




Smart Kid.....



Uh Oh...maybe there is sumthin to this Global Warmin thing....













Vee have our Vays.....





Sunday, March 04, 2007

What do these great ships have in common.??..and some music if'n ya want..

Well Sir...fer all you old "Swabbies" and "Surface Skimmers" out there...here be some history fer ya...

...and "fits"....I don't think you'll like the music.....

The keel fer the first USS New York (BB 34) was laid down on 11 September, 1911...exactly 90 years to the day of the attack on the WTC's.....read on and enjoy......



The U.S.S. New York (LPD-21)

Recycled steel from the World Trade Center was used to build part of a new U.S. warship, according to defense contractor Northrop Grumman.


...and if'n ya want...ya can listen to a nice rendition of the song frum our old alma-mater.....

Click here to play "Anchors Away"


The brand new assault craft with a capability of carrying around 800 marines and equipment is to be named the U.S.S. New York, in tribute to the almost 2,800 people who died in the attacks of September 11 2001.

The steel is set to be shipped to Northrop's shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, for construction to begin in the middle of next year. The 684-foot ship should be ready for service in 2007. The ship will have the motto "Never Forget".

The recycled steel from the Twin Towers, if it meets quality standards, will be used to form the ship's "stem bar". That is part of the ship's bow, where the vessel cuts the water.

New York authorities have the awesome problem of disposing of the 1.62 million tons of rubble that went to the nearby Fresh Kills landfill from the World Trade Center site.

Some memorial sculptures made from recycled steel have been commissioned by the city, and tribute sculptures have now been erected in many civic, and private facilities throughout the country.


The projected 12 San Antonio (LPD-17)-class amphibious assault ships are the Navy's top expeditionary warfare priority. The USS New York will be LPD-21.
Operating forward, from the sea, America's Amphibious Ready Groups (ARGs) and their Marine Expeditionary Units (Special Operations Capable) [MEU (SOC)s] are multimission crisis-response "tools." They are a mix of highly-mobile air and ground firepower with self-sustainable forces, that can quickly project compelling power, withdraw rapidly, and then reconstitute to re-deploy for follow-on missions. The LPD-17 class will be a fulcrum for future naval expeditionary operations.

The San Antonio class is being designed and built to fight. Its warfighting capabilities include a state-of-the-art command and control suite, substantially increased vehicle lift capacity, a large flight deck, and advanced ship survivability features that enhance its ability to operate in the unforgiving littoral environment. The deployment of LPD-17s will provide each naval expeditionary force with greatly enhanced operational flexibility. The LPD-17 can operate as part of an Amphibious Task Force - the "workhorse" of a three-ship ARG - organized to accomplish a broad range of military objectives; or as an element of a "Split-ARG" that has the LPD-17 detached and operating as a single ship, supporting lower-risk operations.

The USS New York

BB 34

Her Keel was laid down 11 September 1911 by Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York and launched 30 October 1912. It served in both World Wars.

During her World War I service, New York was frequently visited by royal and other high-ranking representatives of the Allies, and she was present for one of the most dramatic moments of the war, the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet in the Firth of Forth 21 November 1918. As a last European mission, New York joined the ships escorting President Woodrow Wilson from an ocean rendezvous to Brest en route the Versailles Conference.

In 1937, carrying Admiral Hugh Rodman, the President's personal representative for the coronation of King George VI of England, New York sailed to take part in the Grand Naval Review of 20 May 1937 as sole U.S. Navy representative.

From America's entry into World War II, New York guarded Atlantic convoys to Iceland and Scotland when the U-boat menace was gravest. Submarine contacts were numerous, but the convoys were brought to harbor intact.

New York brought her big guns to the invasion of North Africa, providing crucial gunfire support at Safi 8 November 1942. She then stood by at Casablanca and Fedhala before returning home for convoy duty escorting critically needed men and supplies to North Africa. She then took up important duty training gunners for battleships and destroyer escorts in Chesapeake Bay, rendering this vital service until 10 June 1944, when she began the first of three training cruises for the Naval Academy, voyaging to Trinidad on each.

New York prepared at Pearl Harbor for the planned invasion of Japan, and after war's end, made a voyage to the West Coast returning veterans and bringing out their replacements. She sailed from Pearl Harbor again 29 September with passengers for New York, arriving 19 October. Here she prepared to serve as target ship in Operation Crossroads, the Bikini atomic tests, sailing 4 March 1946 for the West Coast. She left San Francisco 1 May, and after calls in Pearl Harbor and Kwajalein, reached Bikini 15 June. Surviving the surface blast 1 July and the underwater explosion 25 July, she was taken into Kwajalein and decommissioned there 29 August 1946. Later towed to Pearl Harbor, she was studied during the next two years, and on 8 July 1948 was towed out to sea some 40 miles and there sunk after an eight-hour pounding by ships and planes carrying out full-scale battle maneuvers with new weapons.New York received 3 battle stars for World War II service.

13 Days and countin.....



"Let us make it clear, we've all come here
To defend our long-dead brothers;
And understand you ain't layin' a hand
On our Wall you leftie mothers."

....and this here Cookie wants to express my profound gratitude to all those who offered to go to this Gathering of Eagles in my stead.....

SEMPER FI..........