So, (not that it isn't cute, but) do we think the elephant can actually paint, aka recreate its surroundings, or that it's learned a trick, like putting a hat on a human?

Odd Chicago murder case:

A Lake Barrington man faked his own death by killing an Arlington Heights man and later shot and killed himself in a Missouri hotel room as authorities closed in, Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said Thursday.

Ari Squire, 39, assumed the identity of his victim in an elaborate scheme, possibly to collect on a $5 million insurance policy to pay off a series of debts, Curran said.

A body found crushed under a pickup truck in Squire's Lake Barrington garage on Feb. 23 was not Squire, as authorities originally reported. Instead it was Justin Newman of Arlington Heights, 20, Curran said.

Squire swapped clothes and wallets with Newman and then burned the garage to stage his death, authorities said. Squire then ordered a credit card in Newman's name, and bought blue contacts and brown hair-coloring to match Newman's eyes and hair, authorities said.

The dude's wife was in on it. After his funeral, he emailed her to ask how many people showed up....

[link]

(takes notes) Uh, to write about, not duplicate.

If I have mushrooms, cream of broccoli soup, egg noodles, and some chicken breast, I can make a casserole, right?

I mean, I can just mix this crap together and bake it and it will be like, dinner?

Signed,

Hungry, lazy, and poor

That sounds like an excellent casserole!

I can just mix this crap together and bake it and it will be like, dinner?

Yes. You'll need to add more water for the noodles.

For a casserole, you traditionally want a starch as the base, some other things (meat, veg) so that you don't only have starch, and a sauce (cream soup definitely counts) with either eggs, cream, or cheese to bind it all together. You've got it all covered (and with the formula, you can improvise at will.)

Oh, so do I need to add some parmesan or something to bind it?

I'm sauteeing the mushrooms, shallots, and chicken in a bit of olive oil. Since everything is cooked, I should only have to bake for maybe twenty minutes, I'm thinking?

Chicken breast was on sale, I got a big pack of six for 13 bucks, and I figure the total cost of my casserole is 5 bucks and it'll be good for about three meals, if not more, if I don't share with my neighbor. I also got a bag of salad for two bucks, and i have tomato and feta in the fridge.

So, um, not the healthiest of meals, but cheap and good for a few dinners and/or lunch.

Oh, so do I need to add some parmesan or something to bind it?

Nah, I meant that the cream soup will do the job -- basically, it has to be a liquid/sauce so that it'll mix with everything in a way that dry ingredients just never do, and have some kind of protein in it (the cream in a cream soup will work, but cheese or eggs are the other classics) to make it set up when cooked.

That said, I've rarely met a savory food that wasn't improved by a little parmesan.

I think you have an excellent and tasty plan.

do we think the elephant can actually paint, aka recreate its surroundings, or that it's learned a trick, like putting a hat on a human?

I hope it's a trick. Just because I'm not ready to share space with too much sentience. I think it's between elephants and octopodes, and at least the octopodes are in the water.