Happiness is learning that antique glass has not in fact flowed

http://pioneercourthouse.org/cupola.html

Here:

The reason for the observation is that in the past, when panes of glass were commonly made by glassblowers, the technique used was to spin molten glass so as to create a round, mostly flat and even plate . . .. This plate was then cut to fit a window. The pieces were not absolutely flat; the edges of the disk became a different thickness as the glass spun. When installed in a window frame, the glass would be placed with the thicker side down both for the sake of stability and to prevent water accumulating in the lead cames at the bottom of the window. Occasionally such glass has been found installed with the thicker side at the top, left or right.

Happiness is Jimmie F. Rodgers singin' "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" and "Honeycomb" from 1957

Here.

Happiness at Easter is Grilled Leg of Lamb

We coated one like this with lemon zest and crushed dried rosemary leaves in olive oil after stuffing knife slits in the fat layer with flat garlic slices made from two cloves. The surface of the whole was also salted with Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

The charcoal fire was made in an 18" Weber grill with the coals to each side behind metal banks specially designed for the purpose by Weber, with a drip pan in the center.

The 4.6 pound lamb leg was roasted in the center of the covered grill, between the coal banks, for 1.5 hours, turned every 30 minutes with a righteous carbon steel pig tail.

It was perfect.

Thanks be to God. 

"For my next flip-flop, get a load of this!"

Happiness is finishing and filing US and State income taxes today, ahead of schedule

No matter how easy Turbo Tax makes it, the hoops you have to jump through to get the scraps with which they leave you is insane.

But between my time and the tax software it still cost me only 11.5 cents for each dollar back, a return on investment of almost 770%.

What a genius am I!

Happiness is Crane Lake Sangiovese

I'm consistently obtaining bottles of this marked 2013 for $5.29, and boy am I lovin' it.

Happiness is Yanni performing Aria, in the Royal Albert Hall, 1995

Here.

The origin is in the "Flower Duet" by Leo Delibes.

An amazing, full operatic version is here.

There's a reason Popeye the sailor man eats his spinach: It ranks better for more nutrients, fewer calories and better palatability than kale and the others

spinach

basil

arugula

broccoli

dandelion

kale

It turns out you could make it on just French Fries, milk, oatmeal and some kale, spinach or broccoli, and lose weight

This story got my attention:

Why French Fries Are More of a "Superfood" Than Kale.

From there I landed on:

Could you survive on just one food?

From which this:

Some years ago a reader wrote to The Chicago Reader advice column, The Straight Dope, asked whether it was true you could live on just potatoes and milk. After all, it's been said that before the Irish Potato Famine, people there were living almost solely on potatoes. Cecil Adams, the erstwhile columnist, claims to have run the numbers with his assistant and found that a whole lot of potatoes and milk would get you most of what you need – with the exception of the mineral molybdenum. But you can get all you need of that by also eating a bit of oatmeal.

Hearing this, [dietician Jennie] Jackson [of Glasgow Caledonian University] laughs. “Oh, that's our diet – that's the Scottish diet from a hundred years ago. That fits right in. Potatoes, milk, and oatmeal, with some kale in there, too.”

Happiness is "The Boys and Me" by Sawyer Brown, 1993

We talk too slow, drive too fast, we're high on life and we're low on gas . . ..

Here.

Happiness is Crusoe the Celebrity Dachshund . . . hunting rabbits!

Here.

Happiness on St. Paddy's Day is . . . 239 bean stew

And why 239 beans you ask?

Because one more and then it would be too farty, if you know what I mean.

Happiness is a grilled pork chop seasoned with Budapest's Best Hungarian Paprika

Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and this stuff, and grill over white hot coals.

It's a magnificent taste of summer in the late winter.

And in the summer it'll be a magnificent taste of the late winter!

How do you say "carbon monoxide" if you're dyslexic?

Happiness is Chef John's roasted Greek chicken thighs with potatoes

Adapted from Chef John at all recipes dot com here.

10 chicken thighs with skin on

1 T kosher salt

1 T dried oregano

1 t black pepper

1 t dried rosemary leaves

1 pinch cayenne pepper

.25 cup lemon juice

.5 cup extra virgin olive oil

6 cloves fresh garlic pressed

4 russet potatoes, peeled and quartered

1. Combine salt, oregano, black pepper, rosemary, cayenne, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic in a bowl. Whisk until blended.

2. Lightly Crisco a large roaster.

3. Dredge each piece of chicken in the spice mixture in the bowl and place each in the roaster. I could have used a little more lemon juice, but .25 cup was all I had. The last two pieces of chicken got shortchanged. Chef John's original recipe calls for less chicken than I used, but mine still turned out just fine.

4. Position the potato pieces around and between the chicken pieces.

5. Preheat the oven to bake at 425F while you tidy up.

6. Roast the chicken and potatoes for one hour.

7. Reduce heat to 350F and roast another 10 minutes.

8. Switch to broil for a few more minutes if additional browning is necessary.

9. Serve chicken and potatoes on a large plate, topped with some of the pan juices if you like, and steamed petite peas and butter.

10. A glass of cold Moscato was perfect with this.

11. OK, two glasses.

Happiness is nonsense verse

Happiness is Camille Paglia, who once ate two steaks during an interview, tearing into Meryl Streep

Noted here:

At last we were seated at a small table a few yards from the first. We would remain there for the next 4 hours and 45 minutes. In the grand scheme of Paglia interviews, mine was brief. When Francesca Stanfill profiled her for a New York cover story, in 1991, their conversation lasted ten hours, long enough for Paglia to consume two steaks: one for lunch and a second for dinner. ...  “I have been on an anti–Meryl Streep campaign for about 30 years,” she said. When Trump called the actress “overrated” in a January tweet, “I wanted to leap into print and take that line but I couldn’t, because Trump said it.” ... In the general election, as a resident of Pennsylvania, she voted for Jill Stein. ... She approved — of all things — of the Women’s March. “I think it’s important that women rediscover solidarity with themselves,” she said. ... Still, the pussy hats: She buried her face in her hands as she discussed them. “I was horrified, horrified by the pink pussy hats,” she said; the pink pussy hats were “a major embarrassment to contemporary feminism.”

Happiness is . . . Der Wunder-Meyer

The Great Encyclopedia for the Educated Classes by Joseph Meyer (1796-1856).

Ultimately numbering 52 volumes, Das Grosse Konversations-Lexikon für die gebildeten Stände was the most comprehensive completed German encyclopedia of the 19th century, also called "der Wunder-Meyer" (The marvellous Meyer). The complete set was reprinted 1858-59. ... The 9th edition, now from Mannheim, entitled Meyers Enzyklopädisches Lexikon in 25 Bänden (in 25 volumes), appeared in 1971-79. Just like the very first, this final Mannheim edition was the most comprehensive German encyclopaedia of the century.

Happiness is John Mellencamp singing "Small Town"

Here.

Four foods doctors prescribe instead of drugs

Read the story here.

to reduce bad cholesterol

to improve sight

to combat dementia

for heart health