Fig Flambe
Originally uploaded by webmink

Webmink's Flambéed Figs

• One fig per person (plus one extra per 4 people)
• One tablespoon of butter per person
• One teaspoon of fragrant honey per person
• one teaspoon of balsamic vinegar per person
• one shot of spirits per person. I use 50/50 run and brandy

1. Slice the figs into 2mm slices. You can tell if they are fresh enough because you'll find they just squish to a mush if they are over-ripe.
2. In a large frying pan, melt the butter, stirring constantly. I keep the pan as hot as I can without it smoking.
   
3. Add the honey and stir until it melts and blends with the clarified butter
4. Add the balsamic vinegar.
5. Heat and stir until you have a hot, golden foam.
6. Add the sliced figs and coat them all with the foaming syrup.
7. Add the spirits in a single, fast pour to the centre of the pan so it hits the bottom of the pan and boils. If you tilt the pan slightly, the alcohol vapour should ignite.
8. Serve at once with greek yogurt. We sweeten ours with a little honey and a dash of vanilla essence.

Dear Sharon Bowles, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, Caroline Lucas, Ashley Mote, Peter Skinner, Nirj Deva and Nigel Farage,

I was very concerned indeed to read in the news that some last-minute
"Telecoms Package" amendments could bring the so-called “3 strikes�
approach in by the back door. I understand that a possible
implementation of these amendments could result in any citizen losing
their right to connect to the Internet as a result of three
unsubstantiated accusations of downloading music or video or software
without permission.

The Internet is increasingly the channel through which citizens gain
access to government, to employment, to telephony and to much more in
addition to entertainment. It is as inappropriate for any law to
withhold this connection as it would be to ban citizens from walking on
public highways. To withhold basic access in this way should be a
sanction only used in the most extreme circumstances, ones where basic
liberty of other forms would also be withheld.

As my representative in the European Parliament, I ask you to vote
against any amendment that would result in arbitrary and
disproportionate sanctions such as this "three strikes" approach.

Yours sincerely,

Simon Phipps, FBCS

Could David Davis somehow have stumbled across something the establishment has missed, an untapped anger with what the public sees as a snooping, heavy-handed state that spies on it through speed cameras and CCTV and microchips on its rubbish bins, that tramples its freedoms and makes sloppy mistakes with its private data?

I agree that this is in the continuing tradition of promotion, but I
disagree that web presence is no different. Grateful Dead were able to
remove obstacles to their bootleggers, for sure. But today's artists
have the freedom to be completely label-free in their dealings with
their customers.

I was just reading about how Colby Caillat[1] used MySpace to launch
her career. She needed advice and support from some experienced
experts but she didn't need to mortgage her soul the way her
predecessors had to. Yes, this is promotion, but for the first time in
the modern music industry every artist has the freedom to work
label-free becuase the web provides all the tools necessary.


[1] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VA9MBC/

Well, we all know how phenomenally successful the Celtic Woman
(www.celticwoman.com) tour has been over the past couple of years,
especially here in the USA.

Of course, fans have bootlegged their copyright material onto YouTube, just
as they have for so many other artists.  However, it appears that Celtic
Woman has also taken to YouTube.  YouTube quality (ok, that's a bit of an
oxymoron, but still descriptive) videos from their entire A New Journey DVD,
plus interviews, etc., are available.  And, their major partner in the USA,
the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) frequently airs their concert for free.
We call this PROMOTION.  The point is to sell the goods and concert tickets,
which they've done quite well.  And as good as Celtic Woman are on a CD or
DVD, nothing can compare to attending their live concert performances,
especially with respect to Mairead Nesbitt.

But it is wrong of you to cast this as a case of "paradox of the new
web-mediated market and how some musicians don't seem to get it."  Artists
such as The Grateful Dead knew nothing of the web, but were well aware and
savvy with respect to encouraging the "freeloading" of which you refer, as a
means of growing their following.  Neither cluefulness or cluelessness is a
new concept spawned by the web.

What musicians don't seem to have gotten clued in on yet is that the record
labels are obsolete.  The Internet can be used by musicians to reach and
grown their following directly, without having to go through the pillage of
a record label.  I do not feel that we've seen a great breakout in what will
facilitate the shift, but it is only a matter of time.  Once that happens,
the labels will either adapt or die.

	 --- Noel

I just opened my post and found to my delight that the proposal submitted by Margaret Ross was accepted and I have been awarded Fellowship of the British Computer Society. My word, I do feel old.

-----Original Message-----
From: webmink@yahoogroups.com [mailto:webmink@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of webmink
Sent: Monday, October 29, 2007 2:19 PM
To: webmink@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [WebMink] FBCS

I just opened my post and found to my delight that the proposal submitted by Margaret Ross was accepted and I have been awarded Fellowship of the British Computer Society. My word, I do feel old.

--
Posted By webmink to WebMink on 10/29/2007 07:17:00 PM