The Den

This past Thursday was my birthday.
Rather than having anything big and formal or I invited a bunch of
friends over after work for beer and pizza and whisky.  It worked out
great and a fun time was had by all. Pixar folks and non-pixar folks
alike.  We managed to kick the keg of Sunny Day IPA (it was only 1/2
full to start with) and put a good dent in the other beers.  I recieved
some wonderful gifts, including hand-made cards from the kids next
door, and now my alcohol collection is even larger than before!

We finally opened the 25 yr old Talisker that I got
from Ben as a thank-you for some work I did on his mail server. YUM! 
its actually much more subtle than its very complex younger version- it
definitely benefits from a drop of water, which helps to round out its
edges and bring out its full character. Sweeter than most single malts,
peaty without being over powering, big but not brawling like some
Islay's. Excellent after dinner, esp. on one's birthday

Oh, here are a couple of pictures of a loaf of bread I made today (click them to see larger versions):

Based on the no-knead method published in the NY Times in Nov. 06,
you too can make a loaf like this using about 20 minutes of your time
spread over 24 hours. A 6yr old could do it. This method was first
introduced to me by my friend Andrew in Vermont, and he was right- its
really amazing. If you want the recipe, ask me, or just google it, its
been all over the net for a couple months now.   If you make it, let me
know how it works for you!