The opening dancing cracked my shit up. LOVED IT.

Stuff about chocolate:

There are three kinds of chocolate beans: Criollo, Forastero and Trinitatio. Criollo is the original kind, the sort that the Spanish nicked off the Aztecs. This is the stuff that produces the all round best-flavoured chocolate. So, of course, most chocolate is made with the inferior Forastero, which is cheaper, and easier to grow in bulk. Trinitario has a variety of strengths, being a hybrid of the two. (Only 5-10% of the world's cacao is good quality Criollo, or higher grade Trinitario, mostly single estate specialists.)

But let's talk about what we're sold as "chocolate" in this country.

Now, I'm sure many of you are thinking about things like "percentage of cacao solids" and such like as the mark of quality. And I have to admit, I've tended to do exactly that myself up to now. But what Coleman was at pains to impress on us is that what matters, first and foremost is the quality of the ingredients. That the chocolate be made with top quality beans. There's a process of natural fermentation involved in preparing the beans before they are roasted (effectively, the seeds are allowed to sit in their own fermenting pulp for up to five days) that stops the beans from germinating, and imparts most of the flavour to the chocolate. Except that most of the beans in the world are not put through this process, because it takes five days, and requires that the stacks of beans be moved and turned regularly, because, like compost, the bottom of the heaps can get bastard hot. It's slow, and labour intensive, so instead, most beans are just washed in acid, instead, which has much the same effect in terms of stoping them germinating, but imparts much less flavour.

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Lots and lots of info....

Oh the dancing !!!!! It was the funniest and just reminded me why I adore the Burke/Yang , cause it just works.

And now I can't recall what I was going to post about before that.

Oh! The final GA scene was what I was afraid was going to happen on Mile High last year. Mere sleeping with George and then puppy kicking him, I was certain that Jase was going to be used, abused and something else that ryhmes with used but means discarded. My poetry fu is lacking.

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It's still the 19th on board time, right? So there's still time to Happy-Birthday Beverly? And Benno?

I wasn't here yesterday, on their actual birthday, due to a soar throat, and I'm sorry. But at least their new year has only started, so I can wish them a wonderful one without losing much of the blessing.

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Nilly, these were taken today at the Getty. I'm glad you're here to share with!

Aimée, what a wonderful way to start a day! Thank you!

I think my favorite is the one of just the both of you, head to head, smiling, with that soft light. Or the one of the two of you walking. Or the close-up on her gorgeous eyes and adorable smile. Or the one with meara. Or just every single one of them, actually.

And now it's the 20th, which is, according to the Buffista Calendar, Jon B's birthday. Happy birthday, Jon! With lots of wishes for a great day and a wonderful year!

Oh, anytime, Nilly. I love sharing photos of her. I adore her so much, of course I just asssume everyone else does (and should, by gosh) and will!

Gee, are you sure she's Joe's kid?

A friend of mine says that her (similar to yours) opinions of her children are the most objective and unbiased opinions anybody could ever hold on them, because she's the one who has to get up for them during the night, take care of them when they're sick, screaming, annoying or the like. So if she says that they're the most amazing in the world, it has to be true.

Nilly! I'll take the good wishes, any day of the year.

And Happy Belated Birthday to Benno!

You know, with a mother like Eliis Grey, who by the memories she's spouting today was a very distant, removed and disengaged mother, it's no wonder that Mere has trouble seeing, or giving any attention to, anybody's emotions but her own.

Lovelovelove the Burke/Yang. And espectially Bailey bringing the baby in to see the surgery.