Beer Can Chicken

I have had some strange looks just lately when I have passed on my recent find, which I heard on the radio whilst in the UK. It was a recipe for something which was called Beer Can Chicken.

It's a simple tip that you can do when cooking chicken either on the BBQ or in the oven.
The ingredients go like this;

One whole chicken
One can of lager

That's it and all you have to do is as follows;

Remove the ring pull of the can and have a couple of swigs of the lager.
Stand the chicken upright over the rest of the can of lager, effectively putting the can up the chicken's backside and stand in a baking tray.
Cook in the oven or BBQ, (if BBQ obviously close the lid) until done however long that takes.

You will be amazed, the finished result is anextremely moist and tender chicken.

When I was listening to this on the radio, the reporter went on to say that it doesn't have to be a can of lager, it can be cola, beer, Guinness, even baked beans for a different flavour.

Give it a go, it's amazing and that popular, you can even buy a range of accessories to hold the cans, although these may only be available in the USA or Australia.

Warning, please ensure you use a can and remove the ring pull, do not under any circumstance's use a glass bottle, it could damage the chicken not to mention your oven.

Football Spanish Style

Watched a fantastic game of footy last night on the TV, which proves that I am the master in this house and I can watch anything I like at anytime I like, actually she had gone to bed but don't let that fool you.

Anyway, Barcelona or Barca to those that know these things, were playing Real Madrid in the 2nd leg of the something Super Cup, it was 2-2 after the first leg.

It was football at its best apart from the usual continental theatrics when any sign of physical contact happened. Players fell to the ground as if they had been polaxed by a 50Ib cannon ball only to be racing back up the field when the ball came their way 30 seconds later.
The football was excellent and at one point Barca had 48 touches of the ball all the time going forward without Madrid coming anywhere near it.

What was strange was the time the match kicked off, which was 11 0'clock local time in Spain, I assume because of the heat.

Even stranger was that several players still wore long sleeve shirts with a few having a vest on underneath, probably having been told by their Mummy's, or is it Mummies, not to go out without a vest or they might catch a chill, big wusses.
However, the strange kick off time meant that they started the game one day and finished the following day, never heard of that before.
Luckily it didn't go to extra time, else they would have finished just before breakfast having started at supper the previous day.

Barcelona won 3-2, the chosen one was not very happy.

Nursing Homes

Nursing homes have been in the news a lot just lately and apparently the estimated cost of around £188 (or €180 its pretty similar these days) per day/night, stuck me has being a total rip-off. What's more, it appears that if you are grumpy to the staff, they try to kill you off thinking they may just get a better patient next time who may be senile enough to include one of the nurses in their will.
Thinking there had to be a better way, I made a few enquiries.

Taking the local Holiday Inn as an example;

For a combined long term stay discount and senior discount, it's around £40 per night and I think that without too much hassle you could do better than this.

Breakfast is included, and some have happy hours in the afternoon.

That leaves £128 a day for lunch and dinner in any restaurant you want, or room service, laundry, gratuities and special TV movies if you are still up to it.

Plus, they provide a spa, swimming pool, a workout room, a lounge and washer-dryer, etc.

Most have free toothpaste and razors, and all have free shampoo and soap.
A few tips a day and you'll have the entire staff scrambling to help you.

They treat you like a customer, not a patient.

There's usually a bus stop out front, and seniors ride free.

The handicap bus will also pick you up (if you fake a decent limp).

To meet other nice people, call a church bus on Sundays.

For a change of scenery, take the airport shuttle bus and eat at one of the nice restaurants there.

While you're at the airport, fly somewhere.

Otherwise, the cash keeps building up.

It takes months to get into decent nursing homes anyway. Holiday Inn will take your reservation today.

And you're not stuck in one place forever -- you can move from Inn to Inn, or even from city to city.

Want to see Hawaii? They have Holiday Inn there too.

TV broken? Light bulbs need changing? Need a mattress replaced? No problem.. They fix everything, and apologise for the inconvenience.

The Inn has a night security person and daily room service. The maid checks to see if you are ok. If not, they'll call an ambulance . . . or the undertaker.

If you fall and break a hip, Healthcare will pay for the hip, and Holiday Inn will upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life.

And no worries about visits from family. They will always be glad to find you, and probably check in for a few days mini-vacation.

The grandkids can use the pool.

What more could I ask for?

So, when I reach that golden age, I'll face it with a grin.

To all of you approaching 60

or have already REACHED 60,

think about it.