patrick.net

Robert,

Very good article and an interesting perspective. The article mentioned that Walmart does not pay delay its bills, but I've heard several different stories about Walmart toying with its smaller suppliers. Maybe Walmart is too savvy to antagonize its larger suppliers, but they don't seem to have that scruple when dealing with smaller suppliers, esp. in China.

The other problem is that Walmart is not particularly cheap for most stuff. They have things like the $3 Jar of pickle loss leaders to draw people in and make believe its really cheap. And their non name branded stuff is really poorly made. Cloth that pills in two washes & tennis shoes that last less than a month. The brand name stuff that I could actually trust (mostly P&G or other major brands) are quite expensive (esp. compared to Costco's huge sizes).

Isn't it common belief that investment bankers (and HFers and VCistas) are not paid for their performance but based on the size of their extended family (whom they've sold to the devil in return for their pay packages)?

We finally joined Costco after checking out their seafood department. They sell king crab legs for less than $12/lb!

Capitalist (or feudalistic or plantation style) exploitation workers have been happening forever. But too much oppression and those oppressed masses gets restless or messianic. The rich Republican donors like the Waltons may think they got the oppressed masses controlled by religion and fear, but that can be a risky move.

I didn’t read the whole thread.. but having fixed mortgages at 4.8 - 5.5%, I would agree with the man. My 401k and my CD accounts yield more than that.

When fixed mortgages were at 4.8 - 5.5%, CDs were paying less than that.

If you have fixed your rate at 4.8%, of course you can invest at a higher rate now.

If I had purchased MSFT in the 80's, things would have been quite different for me. :)

"They sell king crab legs for less than $12/lb!"

Is that cheap? Are they any good?

The rich Republican donors like the Waltons may think they got the oppressed masses controlled by religion and fear, but that can be a risky move.

The oppressed people are oppressed by themselves - their own oppressive mindset and thinking.

Is that cheap? Are they any good?

I have not tried yet. :(

But they also sell lobster tails for about $25/lb. Not cheap, but reasonable.

Their lines are too long though. I can only tolerate going their on weekdays. Luckily, there is one near my office.

"If I had purchased MSFT in the 80’s, things would have been quite different for me. "

Why didn't I buy Berkshire Hathaway shares in the early 70's?!?!?!

What are your favorite ways to cook seafood?

How about wine poaching?

I'm not a big seafood person. For shrimp and fish I prefer to dredging in tapioca flour and pan fry in canola. Steaming for all crustaceans, lobster, clams, and crayfish. Salmon and trout are salted and pan broiled.

I've never wine poached anything. I'm still trying to figure out what wine poaching is (though I assume it does not involve carrying a gun into a vineyard).

I’ve never wine poached anything.

Something like this:

http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=recipe790024

RE: seafood

When in doubt, eat raw. :)

* Not dietary advice. Consuming raw or undercooked seafood can be harmful to your health.

I am having a vision of king crab risotto with green pea puree. Perhaps I should cook that soon...

That sounds good. Though it'll be while before I can afford to test out such a dish (I may have to take up the other kind of wine poaching to afford this wine poached scallop).

I've only had good scallops once (nobody bothers to take to good seafood restaurants), that was in Dalian. It was live and 60 cents a kilo, we steamed it and it turned out really good. Otherwise, it doesn't do much for me.

That sounds good. Though it’ll be while before I can afford to test out such a dish (I may have to take up the other kind of wine poaching to afford this wine poached scallop).

I think Trader Joe's has some good scallops. You do not need too many of them.

However, you may also want to try searing the scallops.

I heard that Dalian is a seafood heaven.

Do you like oxtails? I am also thinking of combining an oxtail soup recipe into one with risotto.

Wouldn't risotto be kind of waste for king crab? I find dungeness crabs to be very good and cheaper. It's not as sweet as blue crabs, but much easier to eat.

I like eating shrimp (or some other white fleshed sea fish) with hot rice congee. That cooks the shrimp quickly and compliments the delicate texture of the shrimp.

I tried TJ frozen seafood once. Never again!

I may have had oxtail once, but I don't remember what it tastes like. Tails and necks are too much work.

Wouldn’t risotto be kind of waste for king crab? I find dungeness crabs to be very good and cheaper. It’s not as sweet as blue crabs, but much easier to eat.

Not really. King crab meat is quite firm so it should do fine. Dungeness crab meat is quite delicate and it can "disappear" in the rice. :)

Blue crab is sweet!

Congee is a good way to cook seafood. Adding clams is the easiest way to bring more flavor to the soup.

I tried TJ frozen seafood once. Never again!

Costco has good scallops too.

Tails and necks are too much work.

Meat should fall off of the oxtails and it is quite tender. I do not usually eat neck.

My fellow Patrick.net bloggers,

I could use your help/ideas . Patrick is now interested in doing a CafePress-style storefront to merchandise Patrick.net themed T-shirts, hats, mugs, etc., but is not too keen on on the per-unit price CafePress charges. The "base price" (CafePress's cut) on each t-shirt is $8.99.

Does anyone out there know of another merchandising/storefront site that does the same thing but takes a slightly less gargantuan cut? I'm new to this game and any constructive suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks.

HARM, have you tried iprint.com?

Clams are good. Though a good chunk of my family got Hep A through an unfortunate batch of raw clams once. So we always get a little paranoid around clams. We do cook with mussels a lot.

Have you ever tried really small softshell clams? They're called sea melon seeds and they're the size of pumpkin seeds. It's good beer food.

"Costco has good scallops too."

Thanks for the tip. They have good frozen dungeness crabs and mussels too.

@Peter P,

No I haven't, and thanks for the tip!

Clams are good. Though a good chunk of my family got Hep A through an unfortunate batch of raw clams once. So we always get a little paranoid around clams. We do cook with mussels a lot.

I believe there is a vaccine for Hep A.

Have you ever tried really small softshell clams? They’re called sea melon seeds and they’re the size of pumpkin seeds. It’s good beer food.

Perhaps I have tried that in miso soup, but I am not too sure. I usually cook clams in a wine/beer/sake broth. I do not prepare raw seafood at home.

They have good frozen dungeness crabs and mussels too.

I will try. I saw them at $4/lb. It takes some work to get the meat out though. A hammer would be useful.

It was about twenty years ago in China. And I do try to keep my Hep A and Hep C vaccines current when I travel to China, just in case.

I haven't had sea melon seeds raw. They're good sauteed with a little rice wine, scallion and ginger.

I don't have much trouble with dungeness crabs. A seafood cracker might be helpful. The blue crabs are a pain though, especially the claws.

I haven’t had sea melon seeds raw.

I only had cherrystone and littleneck clams raw. They taste very good with mignonette sauce.

The blue crabs are a pain though, especially the claws.

I had blue crabs once but I was more interested in the crab roe.

There seems to be a positive correlation between cholestestrol and taste. :)

Blue crab roe is yummy. East Coast blue crabs taste a lot like Yangtze hairy crabs. The roe gets used like truffle, they use it to flavor many meat and vegetable dishes. Late September and October are very good times for crabs.

Blue crab roe is yummy.

Yes. The roe was so good that forgot the crab had claws.

how are crabs and housing alike??

At this time, they both walk sideways.

When management asked people to stay late and work weekends, the H1-B’s always obliged fearing about being sent home. So, then I have to work the extra time because the H1-B’s will seldom say no, I’m not mad at them I came here on a visa also.

You do not have to do what they do. Perhaps you need another job. One should not have to put up with abusive management. You know, expectation does not necessarily have to be fulfilled.

When management asked people to stay late and work weekends, the H1-B’s always obliged fearing about being sent home.

One can also have two cellphones and turn off the business line after work. The most overworked employees are not necessarily H-1Bs. They tend to be people who do not see a purpose in themselves. Consequently, they think work is all they have.

Go to a sushi bar and you will know there is more beyond work. :)

One of the cafeteria’s at work had oxtail soup just last week. I had never had it before, so I took some. I won’t be trying it again.

Huh? Do not judge food in a cafeteria. It should be presumed bad unless proven otherwise.

But now, I don’t care anymore, a job is just that, read the CNN/Money blog about how people got fired, sad stories but abusive management are alive and well.

If you have politically savvy bosses, you will not be laid off.

I am glad that you have realized "a job is just that".

“I’m sorry, but I forgot that you’re on the list also”

So what? This just illustrates that it is important to have enough saving to survive a temporary setback. Once that stress is gone, it is much easier to approach things.

It is just that I didn’t like the oxtail soup myself.

Perhaps. It is... different.

Record foreclosures in Sydney: doubled since 2002...

Left with an empty feeling

"At Annandale, a "mortgagee in possession" house, bought 18 months ago for $750,000 was up for auction. But only a handful of interested parties went looking for a bargain.

The Susan Street home passed in at auction without attracting a single bid. Before the auction, Century 21 City West principal Matthew Meynell expected the three-bedroom, two-bathroom strata home to sell for about $550,000.

Afterwards, a potential buyer offered a mere $330,000."