JC Goes Green, Well Kind Of

So I have been watching a lot of different programs on our new channel Planet Green. I really enjoy Renovation Nation, Greenovate and Living With Ed. While I was doing some research, I came across a great little product called the Hot Water Lobster. This little device gets rid of a major problem we have in our house and that is what I call hot water lag. These large home building companies on the East Coast spend very little time taking these types of concerns into account when they design their floor plans. Our master bathroom is located two flights up and at the opposite end of the house as our water heater.

Hot Water Lobster to the rescue! This device can be described as a water circulator. The basic operation entails opening and closing a valve to circulate water through your pipes, which allows hot water to be available almost immediately. The best part about the operation of the "HWL" is that it is totally mechanical (no electricity required), silent and comes with a 10 year warranty. The HWL is also basically idiot proof when it comes to installation. If I can install this thing anyone can.

As part of the install I ran the recommended test to check the hot water lag. Before my install, it took 48 seconds for the shower water to warm up to a comfortable temperature. Take that number times the number of showers per year and you can really see how this little device can save you some major money and do something good for the environment. I did not time the lag on the sink faucets prior to the install, but I know from experience that it takes even longer for them to warm to a comfortable temperature. "The American Manufacturing Association has determined that a family wastes approximately 12,000 gallons of water just waiting for warm water."

The unit costs $180.00 and they were very fast at shipping the product out to me. I highly recommend this device to anyone looking for an economical way to combat the "Hot Water Lag Blues!"

Their website; http://www.hotwaterlobster.com/



Jenna was excited about our new toy.

"In The Shadow Of The Moon"

Tonight I watched a wonderful program called In The Shadow Of The Moon. This was released to a limited number of theaters last year and just aired on television for the first time. It is an amazing movie about the Apollo Space Program and the men that walked on the moon. I have watched quite a few movies about this over the years, but this movie presented the material in a completely different and unique way. I highly recommend watching this program.

http://intheshadowofthemoon.com/


Dad how do I get this stupid thing in gear?

Pork Shoulder

Today was my first time cooking pork shoulder on the Weber. If you don't recognize this cut of meat I guarantee you have probably had some to eat before. It is what is commonly used for pulled pork sandwiches. I cooked this hunk of meat at 225-250 for seven hours. That's right, I said SEVEN hours. I could of left it on for another hour or two, but I was hungry and it was 2:00am and I was tired. It is best to let the meat rest after cooking to allow it to cool down slightly before trying to pull it apart. I was very happy with the end result. The meat was juicy, tender and very flavorful. I also got good reviews from the toughest 1 year old critic. She actually likes Daddy's cooking.

The wooden plate that the finished product is resting on was also a gift for Father's Day. This particular one is sold at Restoration Hardware and I give it two thumbs up. It is very versatile and easy to clean. It will give your cookouts that extra little flair.








It is usually not a good omen when the dinner guests reach for medicine after you serve the main course.


Jenna couldn't tear into that bottle fast enough.

Hungry Yet?

Today I experimented with some baby back ribs on the Weber. I did learn a few things as this was my first time cooking ribs on a gas grill. The grill needs a very hot pre-heat so that the smoker chips are smoldering before you put the ribs on. I was shooting for a temperature of 225F, and at that temp on a gas grill the chips will not start smoking. I had to take the ribs off the grill for a short period of time while I got the chips smoldering. I ended up smoking the ribs for 6 hours. They turned out extremely tender and moist. They were a little salty so I may have to adjust the BBQ rub or my sauce basting.



The chips soaking in water.



The rib prep.


Ah cooked to perfection.


Jenna really enjoyed some of my chicken while I was cooking the ribs.

Another Party.

It has been a crazy week of parties and cook outs for baby girl. We cooked up some roadside chicken, garlic bread and garlic mashed potatoes for her party. It seems like everyone liked the food which is good. The weather ended up hanging in there until the very end of the party which was a nice bonus. Our new Ipe deck held up well for our first big party. We initially thought the deck would be too small with a group of 10 people, but actually it worked out very well.

The roadside chicken

Enjoying her cake.

She is a very smart little girl. We showed her one time how the B-Ball hoop worked and she immediately copied us.

Cousin Olivia liked the cake as well. Or was it just the frosting?

Beer Can Chicken and Jenna Driving Under The Influence.

Today we had some beer can chicken on our new grill. This is the first time I have had chicken like this and it won't be the last. My beer of choice, Yuengling of course!! I have recently also discovered a dry rub from Salt Lick BBQ in Texas. The dry rub adds a tremendous flavor to the skin of the chicken. I also bought a smoker box today and used some Pecan wood to add some smoke flavor to the chicken. This entire process is fairly easy to follow and only takes 20 minutes of prep time. The chicken is roasted at 400F for 60-80 minutes and comes out very flavorful and very tender.







Raw bird ready for his bath.



Just look at this final version. MMMM!! Yummy!!






After Jenna had some chicken and her standard after dinner libations, she wanted to go for a drive. Bad idea, she got pulled over for DWI and an open container violation. Man one year old and already making a name for herself.








After we bailed her out, it was time to celebrate with a muffin.

New Grill.

I was finally able to get my new grill put together that I bought two weeks ago. I purchased a Weber Genesis S-320 stainless steel gas grill. It took me nearly five hours to piece this monster together. Weber has really improved their products over the years and this grill has gotten many great reviews from different sites.







Somebody really wanted to help Daddy out with the cooking.

Harbor HDR shots.

These were taken at the inner harbor in Baltimore. I was not able to take the time to set the shot up the way I wanted because a pint sized person was making it known that she had no patience for Dad to take all day taking photos. It was also very windy which makes HDR photography even harder with no tripod.

What A Lucky Uncle!!!

With these three cuties can I get any luckier?

Consumer Reports And More Party Pics.

I was just reviewing the new "Consumer Reports" magazine today and was surprised to find two interesting reviews on decks and digital cameras. I guess I did some good research in picking out two items that we purchased this year. The Nikon D300 was the top choice for advanced SLR's. This camera has received a ton of press coverage this year and Nikon did a very good job with this upgrade to the D200. Most of the photos you see on my blog these days are taken with my D300. Props to Iceman for introducing me to it.

While I was researching deck materials last year I came across Ipe. This is a beautiful Brazilian wood that is just stunning for a deck. In the wood category it received the top pick. CR had a few issues with color change and staining. The color change can easily be corrected on Ipe if you use the correct products. As for staining, a light sanding will remove anything on the surface of the wood. This wood is so hard that stains will not penetrate it.

We have had a few visitors over lately and all of them really liked our Ipe deck. If you are planning on building one I would highly recommend Ipe.


Now where is that beautiful baby?

I just love Jenna's expression in this picture. She just looks overwhelmed with all of her toys.





Cousin Ikey getting ready to temp the slide of death.

Deck Completion And Beautiful Baby!!

Today, George finished building out the bottom part of our deck. The heavy duty lattice really gives our deck that professional custom look we wanted. It was trimmed with Ipe wood which is what our deck was built with. I never really noticed how funny a deck looks that is four feet off of the ground with nothing but rocks or grass below it.






Of course I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a picture of a lovely young lady that was admiring my deck.

Triumph The Insult Dog

In case you missed it on Conan, Triumph went to Hawaii for the American Idol auditions. The clip is 10 minutes long and just hilarious.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=mfYNwUvY6Qs

Birthday, Baptism And Sightseeing Oh My!!!

This last weekend was very busy. We celebrated Jenna's birthday, baptism and went sightseeing with family to Washington D.C.

This young lady can already 'Ham It Up' when needed.

Listen dummy I'm driving! Any questions, talk to my phone!

We visited Arlington Cemetery.

This cute little soldier boy posed for me. Wait I know him. It's the "Tower Of Power" himself! Mister C.J.

Smithsonian Info Center

Dinner Time. We had lunch at the Chop House & Brewery. The food and service was excellent. I highly recommend the cheese burger and of course a glass or two of their custom brewed beer.


Ikey waiting for his meal.

Some of you might recognize John Walsh from America's Most Wanted. We got to see this taping live at the Crime and Punishment attraction on 7Th street in D.C. They were shooting this episode for the next weekend.