A Dude's Guide. . . to everything

A Failure To Comminucate

By Richard
So there I was, relaxin’ and having a blast on a cruise ship off the shores of Mexico. Aand that’s when I discovered just how much fun it can be to be stranded and sick in a foreign country.

Yep. Turns out I had a bleeding something in my stomach or intestines and needed medical care.

Short version: I’m back in Charlotte and on the mend. Relatively. Anyway, this goes a way toward explaining the radio silence. I’ll be back with more soon.

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Earth Day 2011

by Richard

Today marks the 41st anniversary of the celebration of Earth Day, a day we set aside to honor the earth. Well, not so much honor as we try to do something to make the physical world a better place.

That might be something as simple as picking up trash alongside the road or making sure that Coke bottle goes into the recycling bin rather than the trash, to something as profound as planting a couple of trees native to your area or volunteering to clean up a natural area near your home.

Earth Day isn’t some hippy-dippy, patchouli-stinking love fest here, my conservative dude friends. It’s a good idea. Seriously. We only have one earth on which to live. (For now! Fingers crossed) Doesn’t it seem like a good idea to try and keep it around and habitable for a while?

Earth Day is becoming one of the most important hallmarks in the world of conservation and recycling. It carries with it powerful connotations of ecological responsibility and taking ownership of our planet; after all, it is the only Earth that we have, and taking steps to lessen the impact that you and your fellow man have on it is nothing short of revolutionary.

Earth Day gives those people who have not taken part in recycling the opportunity to make changes to their lives and their community that they will cherish for a lifetime.

Personally, I think it’s in our own self-interest to start working on these things. I mean, it’s a fact that the planet’s oil reserves will eventually become exhausted. We need to be working on alternatives. It’s not hippy, my friends, it’s smart.

All-electric cars are just a start. We need to be able to consistently — on a massive scale — generate power from renewable and sustainable sources. That means wind, solar, geothermal. All those goodies that people have tried to politicize.

When the oil runs out, and it will, we need something to replace it. And if we’re not already far down that road when the oil stops flowing, we’re in massive trouble. I know we, as a people, have a hard time actually looking to and planning for the future. Especially politicians, who can’t look beyond their own narrow self interest and the next election cycle. But this is important.

This is the good future you want for your kids. And their kids. And all the rest of the young dudes not here yet. And it’s for us. We want our lives to be comfortable and, without a relatively inexpensive and renewable source of energy to power our gadgets and geegaws, we’re in for some hurting down the road.

Take the time today to put aside politics and try and think of the good of the species. I really want to be able to use that iPad 39 when I’m 90 years old. Is that so wrong?

But we need to start now. Here. Today. Join me?

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Dude Food: Tia’s Green Salsa Soup

by Richard

I’ll take a good recipe anywhere I can find it. And today I bring you a recipe from an unlikely source. My sister, Tia. Well, we call her Tia because that means aunt in Spanish and she’s fluent in Spanish.

One day, I’ll tell you the story of how she became fluent by spending a year in Spain and study *coughcough*drinking and partying*coughcough* ing near a university in Salamanca. But, as I said, that’s a story for another day.

What I’m talking about today is her actually cooking. And not having people bumrush for the toilet with green color and sour expressions on their faces. Kidding, Tia. Just kidding.

Tia’s actually a pretty good cook and I always look forward to her sharing her latest inventions. She likes to take simple recipes from other sources, make them even easier to use and then customize them to her audience, Dutch, Crusher and Boo.

Anyway, she sent along a great recipe for an easy-to-make soup that’s delicious. You dudes are going to love it. Also, you’re going to love how easy it is to make and how easy it is to pretend that it was a lot harder than it was. Things this delicious shouldn’t be this easy to make.

Here’s what you’ll need.

1 lb lean ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
2 (15-oz) cans great northern beans, drained
1 (16-oz) can green salsa (a.k.a. salsa verde)
1.75 C low-sodium chicken broth
1.5 tsp cumin (or more to taste)
olive oil

Get a good sized pot out and ready to use. Throw in the turkey and onion, along with 1 Tbsp olive oil, and brown the turkey and onion. Once that’s done, add in the two cans of beans and the green salsa.

Finally, add the broth and cumin. Then just cover and let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes.

It’s fragrant, delicious and very easy to make.

You can customize to your heart’s delight by adding more or different kinds of beans, maybe some chopped yellow bell peppers, stuff like that.

Serve this with some yellow rice, maybe some warm tortillas and you’ve got a great, quick meal.

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