Productivity Online & Offline
Sep 20th
I enjoy reading how others stay productive (this causes my productivity levels to decrease BTW), so I have decided to share some tips that I use to stay productive through the day.
Offline:
- Take notes
- When you are done with a document immediately put it back from where it came.
- Clean your desk
- Get your 8hours of sleep a night
- Stay away from caffeine, if you are an addict, slowly get off it and watch how much better you feel (after the shakes and cold sweats stop)
- Turn off the TV
Online:
- Kill your IRC/IM/Chat window
- Check email, once an hour at most
- Ideally close or minimize all applications that you do not NEED to use currently. This helps you stay focused, and there is less need for multitasking.
Either:
- Walk away. Leave whatever it is you are doing for 5-10minutes an hour unless you are really into the flow. Otherwise walkaway, get something to drink, step outside for some frsh air, or grab a snack.
- First thing in the morning, plan out your day. Do not read the news DO NOT check your email. Sit down at a piece of paper or on your computer and schedule your entire day with as much detail as possible. This will help you stay on task and remember what it is you should be doing.
- Listen to music, I listen to stuff with little to no words and a semi-repetitive beat, this helps my typing get into a regular rhythm. Try to stay away from anything new.
When you have free time check out the following site:
43 Folders
GTD Wiki Entry
Todays Recipe — Roast Chicken
Sep 17th
Roasting a Chicken today, making a salad and some sort of potato.
My own recipe this time:
1 (5 1/2 pound) chicken
1/2 bunch each fresh oregano, thyme, and parsley
1/4 pound unsalted butter, softened
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, quartered
1 head garlic (this would be one of those huge garlic balls)
1 medium white onion, halved, plus 1 on
1cup of white wine
6 strips bacon
1 can of chicken broth
1.)Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2.)Remove the giblets from the chicken, rinse the chicken with cool water, inside and out. Pat it dry with paper towels (this helps give a crunchier skin).
3.)Divide the herbs, keeping 1/2 of them whole. Finely chop the other half. In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the chopped herbs, until combined. Rub the herbed butter under the skin, as well as all over the outside of the chicken. Season the bird all over with salt and pepper.
4.)Stuff the cavity with the lemon, garlic, 1 onion, and the remaining herbs. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine to help hold its shape. Place the chicken, breast-side up, in a roasting pan.
5.)Put the remaining onion into the pan, which will help color and flavor the sauce. Lay the strips of bacon across the breast of the chicken and roast for 1hour.
6.)Remove the bacon and baste the chicken with the drippings and cook for another 25 minutes to brown the skin and until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.
7.)The chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer reads 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest part of the thigh (the legs of the chicken should wiggle easily from the sockets too.)
8.)Remove the chicken to a platter and let stand for 10 minutes, cover with foil to help retain heat (so the juices settle back into the meat before carving). Meanwhile, remove the softened onion from the roasting pan.
9.)Tilt the pan so the drippings collect in 1 corner, skimming off as much fat as possible, and leaving the drippings. Place the roasting pan on top of the stove over medium heat and take a wooden spoon to scrape up the flavor from the bottom of the pan. Stir the flour into the drippings to make a roux-like paste. Pour in the chicken broth in stages; continue to stir to dissolve the flour evenly to prevent lumps. Stir in the wine and season with salt and pepper.
Recipe of the Day 9/12/06
Sep 12th
This is taken from Giada De Laurentis’s TV show Everyday Italian. I changed up the recipe some from hers. Actually, I wish I would have taken a picture of mine, since mine looked better than the picture of hers online.
Recipe:
6 (3-ounce) chicken cutlets, pounded to evenly flatten
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 paper-thin slices prosciutto
1 (10-ounce) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 (14-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Butter
Place chicken boned side up between 2 pieces of saran wrap. Working out from center pound each lightly with meat mallet to approximately 5 x 5 inches. Remove saran wrap. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Lay 1 slice of prosciutto atop each chicken cutlet, prosciutto is very salty so be careful when you season.Let the spinach defrost, or place it in the microwave for approximately 5minutes. Squeeze the frozen spinach to remove the excess water, its easier if you grab small hand-sized balls of the spinach to squeeze. Season the spinach with pepper. In a small bowl, toss the spinach with 1 tablespoon of oil to coat.
Arrange an even, thin layer of spinach atop the prosciutto slices. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over each. Beginning at the short tapered end, roll up each chicken cutlet as for a jellyroll. Secure with a toothpick.
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side. You will have to take the toothpick and replace when you roll the chicken over. Add the chicken broth and lemon juice, and scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium. Place the butter into the liquid and let it melt down, while stirring. Cover and simmer until the chicken is just cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Simmer the cooking liquid over high heat until it is reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Season the cooking liquid with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove toothpicks from the chicken. Drizzle the reduced cooking liquid over the chicken and serve immediately.
Related links:
Sam & Max Strike Back
Sep 8th
So word on the street today is that Sam & Max will have a sequel. The new game will be released in episodes which is similar to the new Sin game. I havent played it nor have I downloaded it. However they release different episodes over time keeping consumers coming back for more. The first episode of Sam & Max will be available from GameTap starting October 17th, and available elsewhere online for purchase November 1st. the first game was simply awesome. The original was made by LucasArts using their old Scumm game engine which has been ported to both Xbox and the Nintendo DS.
It contained:
Worlds Largest Ball of Twine
MiniGolfing over Alligators, with Max as the Club.
A Bigfoot Convention.
And Carnies.
IGN Exerpt: “Just under a year ago, indie studio Telltale Games acquired the rights to make games based on the underground comic Sam & Max: Freelance Police. The news was a godsend to many old-school gamers who loved the first game the comic inspired, 1993′s Sam & Max Hit the Road, and lamented the 2004 cancellation of its sequel, Sam & Max: Freelance Police.”
A fun and interested interview with one of the designers from TellTale, who worked with LucasArts for a longtime.
Relevant Links:
TellTale Blog
Official Sam & Max Site
GameSpot
Slashdot
Unofficial Sam & Max SCUMM Emulator
Vanished
Sep 5th
I dont normally watch any television outside of the History Channel, Food Network and the Travel Channel. However I happend to see a commercial for a new Fox show called, ‘Vanished.’
Related Links:
Watch the First Episode for Free
Vanished Boards
The first episode is definately worth the watch, the forum, maybe not so. Awesome show. The show is on Monday nights on fox at 9pm(est).
The offcial summary of the show:
“This FOX drama centers on the search for Sara Collins. She’s the wife of Senator Jeffrey Collins. Sara vanishes and the FBI lead by Agent Graham Kelton is on the job, but before they can find her they need to find out who she really is.
The mystery surrounding the disappearance is seen through the eyes of the FBI, members of the family and a reporter trying to get the story of her career.
The search for Sara will expose many secrets. Nothing is as it seems. Everyone is a suspect because of their secrets.”