Yearly Archives: 2008

12/25/08

The Turducken Experiment

33 pounds of Turducken. Estimated cook time: 15 hours @ 185F. Start time: 11:30pm Christmas Eve. Below is my smoking log:

Smoking using the Minion Method using a mix of apple and cherry wood (5 pieces total).

  • 11:30pm – 57F internal temp. Smoker temp: 200F. Vents @ 25%, 25%, 25%
  • 12:30am – 58F internal temp. Smoker temp: 190F. Vents @ 0, 0, 0
  • 1:30am – 65F internal temp. Smoker temp 190F. Vents @ 0, 0, 0
  • 2:40am – 79F internal temp. Smoker temp 190F. Vents @ 0, 0, 0
  • 4:45am – 103F internal temp. Smoker temp 170F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25 *
  • 5:05am – 106F internal temp. Smoker temp 180F. Vents @ 25, 25, 0
  • 6:15am – 115F internal temp. Smoker temp 185F. Vents @ 25, 25, 0
  • 7:20am – 123F internal temp. Smoker temp 200F. Vents @ 25, 0, 0
  • 8:40am – 133F internal temp. Smoker temp 185F. Vents @ 25, 0, 0 *
  • 10:00am – 139F internal temp. Smoker temp 175F. Vents @ 25, 25, 0
  • 11:00am – 143F internal temp. Smoker temp 175F. Vents @ 25, 25, 0 **
  • 11:45am – 144F internal temp. Smoker temp 170F. Vents @ 25, 25, 100
  • 11:50am – 145F internal temp. Smoker temp 195F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25
  • 12:00pm – 145F internal temp. Smoker temp 175F. Vents @ 0, 0, 0 ***
  • 12:30pm – 147F internal temp. Smoker temp 210F. Vents @ 0, 0, 0
  • 1:00pm – 148F internal temp. Smoker temp 175F. Vents @ 25, 25, 0 (re-opened top vent 100%)
  • 1:30pm – 150F internal temp. Smoker temp 185F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25
  • 2:00pm – 152F internal temp. Smoker temp 235F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25
  • 2:30pm – 154F internal temp. Smoker temp 230F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25
  • 3:00pm – 156F internal temp. Smoker temp 245F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25
  • 3:30pm – 158F internal temp. Smoker temp 245F. Vents @ 25, 25, 25 (added unlit coals)
  • 4:00pm – 160F internal temp. Smoker temp 260F. Vents @ 100, 100, 100
  • 4:30pm – 162F internal temp. Smoker temp 275F. Vents @ 100, 100, 100
  • 5:00pm – 166F internal temp. Smoker temp 290F. Vents @ 100, 100, 100
  • 5:30pm – 170F internal temp. Smoker temp 290F. Vents @ 100, 100, 100 Removed from smoker!
  • 6:10pm – 176F internal temp. Resting…
  • 6:30pm – 178F internal temp. Started carving & eating.

* Added water
** moved coals around to remove ash
*** Added 1/2 chimney of hot coals & cold water since the original coals were on their last legs. Smoker temp jumped to 250+, but quickly started going down after closing the vents. Also closed the top vent 50%.

Graph of progress:
Temperature over Time

Other then taking 3 hours longer then planned, the turducken was great. There was enough smoke flavor that you could taste it, without it being overwhelming and complimented the spicy sausage based stuffing that was used. The meat was very moist and the outside layer of skin had a crispness to it that I didn’t expect and nice deep smoked color. Everyone seemed to think it was well worth the wait.

Here’s some photos:
img_43841
img_43871
img_43912

11/20/08

I just can’t leave it alone…

For some reason, probably due to a sever mental defect, I actually enjoy writing C code. Yes, there are plenty of other languages which have plenty of aspects which are better then C, but I just don’t find any of them as satisfying to actually write code in. Ruby comes the closest, but as languages go, it’s still a little wet behind the ears while C is mature. What does that mean? I’ve been working on tcpreplay again- even after I claimed I was putting it away for the foreseeable future. Continue reading →

11/19/08

Free your mind

So I’ve just got into this whole mind-mapping thing. Mind maps are basically a way to organize thoughts and take notes in a graphical form, where you break things up into simple and short comments and link them together in a graph. The same hierarchy can of course be represented in the same way using nested bullet points, but the visual representation of the mind map really is more intuitive and makes your thoughts much easier to digest mentally. Continue reading →

11/16/08

House for Sale!

Well after weeks of hard work and scheduling contractors, our townhome in San Jose is finally on the market! I’m really happy with how the new paint, flooring, fixtures and many other small changes really transformed the place. It really helps flush out the remodeled kitchen and master bath.

Anyways, we have an open house today (11/16) from 1-4pm. Feel free to take a look at the online tour and swing by to take a closer look!

11/4/08

08-09 Sharks Schedule (or converting .csv to .ics)

Every year I end up manually inputting the entire San Jose Sharks schedule into iCal because the Sharks organization doesn’t provide an industry standard .ics file (instead they support Microsoft Outlook). This year, I finally decided to figure out how to convert the .csv file to .ics.

Anyways, long story short, if you’re looking for a schedule of the San Jose Sharks in .ics format you can download it here.

But here’s how you can convert any Outlook compatible .csv calendar export into .ics:

  1. Download/export the .csv
  2. Login to Google Calendar
  3. Create a new Google Calendar under Settings->Calendars (I called it “San Jose Sharks”)
  4. In the left side tool bar, under “Other Calendars” choose Add->Import Calendar
  5. Choose the .csv file and the new “San Jose Sharks” calendar
  6. Go back to Settings->Calendars and click the Export My Calendars link
  7. After downloading, extract the .zip file
  8. Find the .ics file corresponding to your new “San Jose Sharks” calendar.
  9. Import it into your calendaring app of choice (Apple iCal, Mozilla Sunbird, PHP iCalendar, etc)
10/17/08

Either way you’re breaking the law

The comic xkcd makes the point that when you “buy” DRM’d software, music or movies that you’re really at the mercy of the company who controls the DRM and they can effectively revoke your access for any reason just as Walmart threatened to do recently. Of course, once the company locks you out of the content you paid for you either have to pay for it again or break the law by bypassing the DRM. Hence, you’re probably better off pirating the software, music or movie in the first place- if you’re going to break the law there really isn’t any point paying for it in the first place since laws like the DMCA don’t care if you paid for it or not.

10/17/08

Linky #2

I’ve been sitting on these interesting articles and I figured I’d share:

Warren Buffet explains in the New York Times why now it is the time to buy stock in US companies.

Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Stanford Law School, and co-founder of Creative Commons writes in the Wall Street Journal, In Defence of Piracy.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation reports on the NSA Spying on Americans again, but this time it’s our service men & women calling home to their families and organizations like Doctors without Borders.

Update: Stephen Colbert has this to say on the subject:

A scathing article on the “security theater” going on in American airports and how it does nothing but stop the “stupid terrorists”.

And how the TSA’s no-fly-list is preventing US Air Marshals from protecting commercial flights in the US.

Respected investigative reporter Seymour M. Hersh reports on the Bush administrations’ subversion of the law to attack Iran.

And finally, on a happier note, I give you South Park’s Imagination Land.