OMG, Cajun Crawtater Zapp's! Drooooooool

Any flavor Zapps, actually! Although I'm most partial to the plain -- just potatoes, grease, and salt! Drooooool indeed!

I hope the new job is better than the old job. Not that that would be difficult, considering that I worked for the Psycho Bitch from Hell. I was practically dancing on my way out the door!

You worked for Assaroma?
Oh, wait, you probably worked for a different PBfH. Her name was Maureen, right?
If it wasn't, please don't tell me. I can't deal with the notion there are that many PBfHes running around.

No, her name was (and still is, unless she changed it in the last week) Edie.

And yes, I hate to destroy your innocence, but there are many, MANY PBsfH running around this world. The one I worked for wasn't quite as openly a case of NPD as Assorama, but definitely one sick puppy. Ignorant and stupid, too. But again, she's not alone in that, alas....

I was in NY on Saturday and walked by the CBS store so I went in planning on causing a riot if they didn't have any TAR stuff for sale. They did, so I didn't need to cause any trouble.

On a sad note, the Manhattan Chili Company, site of TARCON2 has gone out of business. It was also a little sad - a couple of other long time Theatre district restaurants have also closed.

Hi, all! I keep dropping in here every month or so to say "I miss you all!" and finally everyone is back and keeping up a healthy ongoing discussion. It is time to join.

First, let me say that I'm drinking my morning coffee out of a mug I found in our break room. I normally have this really nice thermos/mug that I use, but I took it home this weekend to run through the dish washer and forgot it. So today I'm drinking out of a pretty dark blue mug labeled with Engerix-B! The new Hepatitis B Vaccine. Wha? We sell audio/visual products. Where on earth did this creepy mug come from, and why do I continue to drink out of it? Eek.

Thanks, MamaTiger, for mentioning Zatarain's. My hubby and I had found their awesome Shrimp Scampi Pasta Dinner Mix while at the beach a few weeks ago and haven't been able to find it in the grocery stores. I have now placed an order for that and a few other savory treats!

So, as a reminder, I got married last summer and made you all suffer listening to the details of planning my big day. It went off with a bang (almost literally, when a groomsman nearly set the reception building on fire, but that's another story...) and was awesome. Hubby and I live in Knoxville, TN, and he commutes 2 hours to law school in Nashville. Not. Fun.

But, as of a month ago, I got promoted! And the promotion is in Nashville! And as of two weeks ago, we bought our first house! It's been a busy spring! So... we're moving in four weeks. Four very short weeks. Four veeeeeeery short weeks. And the best part is my best friend was offered a job teaching at the high school in the same small suburb of Nashville and she's buying a house less than 2 miles down the street. Ah, all is well.

Oh, and I have been offered a second interview with a highly reputable pharmaceutical company doing pharma. I know, I know... it's an annoying job and there is much hate for everyone in that profession. But they pay VERY well (seriously...very well) and it sure would be a nice change from my current position. [whisper] I'm considering it. Don't hate me. [/w]

Oh! And I finally got through Harry Potter and just the other day I finished The Order of the Phoenix. Amazing. Wow. Not what I expected. And a big 'Word' to everyone who said those books just keep getting darker and darker. Any clue when the next installment can be expected?? At the rate (and length) she's going, it could be five years and seventeen hundred trees later... geez those are long kids' books (though I personally don't think they're appropriate for some age groups).

Anyway, good to see everyone back. Hi!

DariaG, I told my husband what you said about fading red hair, and he said, "Yeah, that's what Mom's hair has done." Duh! I completely forgot about my mother-in-law, who has red hair, except she's in her 50s now, so it's pretty faded. (I think it's extra-faded, too, because she spent 15 years or so living in West Africa about 6 degrees from the equator.) I didn't meet her until her hair was fairly well faded, so I tend to forget that it was originally quite red. Now I feel really stupid.

Mama Tiger, I love Zatarain's! I always felt bad about using the mixes, though, until I went with my husband to the National High School Finals Rodeo (he and a friend ran the computer scoring system). The Louisiana group was always really friendly and invited us to dinner a lot. Their cook, Mister Billy, just made a big pot of something and, come to find out, used Zatarain's. I imagine at home, he might make more from scratch, but the mix was better for traveling. I figured if it was good enough for him (and I'm told it was -- I had a hard time understanding him), it's certainly good enough for anyone I know.

At the same place, there was a food vendor from Louisiana with really good crawfish etouffee and sweet tea. They got a lot of business from all the southerners dying for some sweet tea.

After your post, Mama Tiger, I was wondering about what Zatarain's mixes we don't get here in Oklahoma, so I finally went to the website, and there's a lot -- of mixes and other things. We only really get the jambalaya, gumbo, red beans and rice and dirty rice and some frozen stuff, but that only at Wal-Mart. I had no idea you could get cornbread stuffing mix or chow chow (although it doesn't look like the chow chow my grandfather made).

Now I'm hungry. Some day, I'm going to New Orleans just to eat.

Not a test market thing, we've had dill pickle chips here ever since I was little. Potato chips is mainly what I send to my friends in the U.S. We have a lot of flavors here that you guys don't have down there. Seriously, how do you people survive without ketchup chips??!

Oh! In case anyone cares or just wants to revel with me in the excitement of purchasing my first home, I just whipped up a quick webpage with photos (I used geocities, the "cheap ass" webpage maker - be patient if you get the "too full" message). Here is my new house!! (Well, I hope so, at least. Assuming there are no problems with the loan or the closing). Isn't it cute? And by cute, I do, indeed, mean "small yet adorable enough for a husband, two dogs, two cats, and someday at least one child."

Oh, and as you'll see if you read the little notes by the photos, we're considering adopting my BIL's dog. He's in England in law school and his 3-year-old Weimaraner/chocolate lab dog is stuck at my MIL's house. In the laundry room. With two schnauzers. I swear, it's animal cruelty. But anyway, we already have two kitties (Phoebe & Chandler) and a beagle (Biton). Any suggestions on how to make our disjointed family work? I know there was a lot of talk months ago about adapting, but we're talking about adding a large, loud, crazy, active dog to our subdued famly. How does that tend to work out? And should we be worried that Silar (the W/CL mix) will get over our garden-height fence (approx 3' tall - both the dog and the fence!)?

erinjsnark, I'm surprised that your mother-in-law would cage up a Weimaraner/chocolate lab with two schnauzers around. From my personal experience with schnauzers (check my username, for heaven's sake), they love to play and the schnauzers I have had love to play with the bigger dogs and vice versa. If you mother-in-law has a fenced yard, it ought to be possible for them all to get along, unless there's some other emotional problem in there somewhere (that could be since the lab's human companion is not around).
Anyhow, I read that in your post and it puzzled me a bit so I thought I would ask.

Oh, I suppose I should have clarified... all three dogs are locked in the laundry room at all times. Heaven forbid she gets dog hair on her hardwood floors. *sigh* They get along fine, but it's pretty ridiculous. I mean, we're talking about a 6'x6' room for a LARGE dog and two smaller ones. It makes me sick.

As for the yard? Not fenced in at her house, so the dogs just get their walks down the street however-many times a day, and that's all the outdoor play for them. Sad, huh?

Sorry rachael, I wasn't clear--I'm in Wisconsin, and I kept hearing about Dill Pickle chips from my Canadian friends, so Lay's may be test-marketing in the US. Still no sign of ketchup-flavored chips, though.

Yippee! for erinj & Mr snark Happy moving. About the dog, I don't know. I'd have a strong inclination to take him, myself, just to get him out of the laundry room, but then I almost dognapped an Irish Setter the first time I went to see Mr Rabrab. He was across the alley, chained up to a doghouse that was too small for him, on a chain that was about eight feet long, and as I was getting ready to leave at the end of the weekend, I started over there a couple of times, fully intending to unhook him and put him in my car and take him home with me. I'm still not sure I shouldn't have taken him.

First, congratulations and welcome to Weds. I remember getting such a kick out of your wedding photos, but I had no idea that you had moved to Colombia! And you wouldn't be a true TAR fan if you didn't have a certain affinity towards Namibia. I'm having some travel envy over here.

You all have me curious about these Canadian chocolates and I think I've found something that will help to facilitate an international junk food exchange...

Do you have these? Cause the hot wings version are the best new "bad for you" thing I've had in a while.

I think I may have a chance since the ad calls them "An Amercian favorite". [But they're new though...how much of a 'favorite' can they be? I mean, I like them, but still.]

Re: New Orleans, every time I'm there, I make sure to stop at the grocery or drug store (not the souvenir shops!) to get some seasonings and mixes. Man, I could tear up some crawfish bread right about now!

Thanks for linking to your photos, erinjsnark. I think the way that DC real estate is going, that same house would be worth roughly $8 gazillion here. Give or take.

Now why do those sound just freaking AWESOME to me, LovelyRachelRSL? I'm not so much with the plain potato chips, but funky flavored varieties (i.e. dill pickle and Old Bay)? Are my freaking DOWNFALL. YUM. I know what I'M leaving room for in my bags next time I visit Our Neighbor to the North!

Also: Congrats, erinj-- that's fantastic!!! No thoughts on the dog issue, since I live in NYC and am constantly horrified by the huge dogs some people keep in their apartments, but the house/promotion/interview news is GREAT!!

[ETA: Mmmmmmmmmm... Cadbury. But it has to be the Cadbury stuff sold in Canada/England/Ireland, cause the Cadbury products made and sold in the US? Are pale, assy imitations of the real stuff. Blech. But mmmmmmmMMMM... Crunchie...]

I used to have a friend who went to Toronto often and would bring me back treats of the candy variety. Made me a devotee of the Cadbury line of chocolates. Mmm. Sadly, she broke up with her Canadian lovah and so there are no more candy-smuggling expeditions. And actually the same friend went to New Orleans and brought me back a box of beignet mix and chicory coffee from Cafe du Monde. Seemed pretty exotic to me in Chicago, so to a Canadian, maybe even more so?

I caught Globe Trekker on PBS this weekend and they were wandering around Paris. Made me nostalgic for the good ol' times of watching people run around foreign cities trailed by TV cameras. Also really made me wish I was planning a trip somewhere.

I NEED those. Man, just one more reason to go visit my mother. I was finally getting over my snack envy now that Canada has those Guacamole Doritios. now this....Damn.

How sad for our American friends that they don't have Dill Pickle chips and Coffee Crisp chocolate bars. Oh, the many secret pleasures of being a Canadian! (If we told them all they wouldn't be secret).

I am just glad that we don't have Tim Tam cookies here, as I got addicted to them when I was in Australia and if we did have them here, I would weigh about 400 lbs.

I can live without the Guacamole Doritos, I was really excited to try them and then... meh. Not as good as the super-spicy ones. But when are we getting the Rollitos!?!?!? They sound amazing - I always search the Dorito bad for the bent ones.

Mmmm, Cadbury Chocolate. I can't believe you guys don't have it! A Curly-Wurly is about the most fantastic thing ever. Not to mention all the Willy-Wonka themed stuff.

Hey, Suga! Still haven't forgiven you for making me sing "Genie in a Bottle" at KaraokeCon. I take fully responsibility for my table dancing and moneypants, however.

I've been in Colombia since October. We're going to Sarajevo next, so it's like we're on a civil war world tour. Bogota is lovely, and we managed a trip to the Galapagos and Quito in March. Sarajevo will be great for culture (lots of film festivals) and cheap skiing - a one-day lift ticket is about $9, and a year membership at the 1984 Olympic course is $150. We've always got a spare room for TWoPers!



Speaking of Australian sweets, try Violet Crumble bars if you can find them (my mom's a Sydneysider and mails them to me). They're honeycomb crunchy with a chocolate coating.

As for potato chips, regular salty ones are hard to come by here, but they have chicken flavor and mayonnaisse flavor! It's even yuckier than it sounds.

erinjsnark yay!! Nashville! My mom and dad live in Mt. Juliet. I was just down there! How exciting and the house is really really cute! I love how there are trees all over the place there.

Just so you all know, last Wednesday night, I went to my grad school class and turned in FIVE copies of my Master's thesis. And then my entire cohort went out and partied. (well...as much as a bunch of teachers can party) We are done! We are done!!! two years of classes. research. ignorant instructors. intelligent instructors who don't know how to teach (which is a scarlet A when you are teaching teachers!). done done done. Next week is our exhibition, so I still have to put together my pamphlet and my display board. but YAY!!!!

bad news for our gloating Canadian friends...but I just saw Dill Pickle chips at my local Kroeger. Here. In East Peoria, Illinois. so nah nah! we have themtoo!!

auntlada, when you do, bring pants with an expandable waistline. Very expandable. :-)

Suga Wuga:I just don't know how you all could have talked about Canadian chocolates for so long without mentioning Smarties. (For the Americans who have never had Smarties from Canada, they are not like the tiny chalky candy that come in rolls, wrapped in thin clear plastic or the candy on a necklace. They are Nestle's version of M&M's, but really, really good.)
Then there's also the so-so Aero bar, which I've only seen a couple times here in the States.

erinjsnark:This sounds like a song that David Cross would sing on Arrested Development. :)

While I thought they were fairly tasty, I couldn't quite get over the idea that they looked like a biology experiment gone wrong (or like something that had been left in the bottom of the fridge for a really long time). That thin fuzzy-green layer just looked kind of fungal to me...

Speaking of fungi, I'm hoping there are some plant enthusiasts in the group - a couple of my potted plants started growing suspiciously fungal-like spots (on the soil, not on the plants themselves - one had more spore-like spots, the other pot had a lovely yellow film). I scooped out the yucky-looking stuff, but if it comes back, does anyone know how of good ways to kill off the fungi without killing the plant? should I wash and replant them?

Back to the food discussion ....
Are Mars bars a Canadian thing, too? They're one of my favourites, and I'm not a huge fan of mass-market chocolate products.

Kanuck!

I don't think so. The Mars candy bars I've seen are made by the same company that makes M&M candies. The company is located in Mars, Pennsylvania.
Unfortuately for me, I can't eat them these days (whether you're speaking of the Mars bars or the M&Ms.)

The Mars company is one of the largest privately owned companies in the U.S. Not much is actually known about them (relative to other companies) because the owners are so secretive. I don't know which generation of ownership they're on, but I believe it's still 100% in the founding family.

Why is it that every time I check in here, I end up wanting a snack? Excuse me while I go find a bag of chips and some chocolate.

As long as you make that Zapp's chips, Cubbie, I'll join you.

And just to make everyone madly jealous, yesterday for lunch I had chicken and andouille (local sausage) jambalaya and chicken filé gumbo. Yummm.......you know, it's no surprise that the population of New Orleans generally has the physical dimensions of a beached whale. A very large one. :-)

Mars Incorporated also makes Snickers and Twix, and other stuff that's not even remotely related to chocolate bars. And when I say "not even remotely related", I'm not referring to their Uncle Ben's rice, their lines of drinks, or even their pet food. I'm talking about their Electronics and Information Technology. Still, the fact that Mars makes other US bars doesn't prove that Mars doesn't sell the Mars bars exclusively in Canada, since Nestle has Canada-only products. Having said that, I can't remember not having been able to buy Mars in the US.

If it were possible for me to have beignets, jambalaya, gumbo, etc. on a daily basis, I would have a serious problem...unless powdered sugar became an acceptable clothing accessory or something.

For piperdown and anyone else that's up for an exchange, these mentioned items sound interesting to me:

• Coffee Crisp
• Smarties
• Curly-Wurly

If you're fiend-ing for Rollitos, those addictive Cheez-Its, or whatever, let me know. Plus, in my area we have Utz. Crab and Red Hot chips are worth a try if you've never had them and want something regional. I also have Tagalongs within yelling distance.

I just realized that I have not seen a Mars bar in a loonnnngg time. Do we really still have them in the US? When I looked it up, I did come across this potential delicacy though. $1 to the first person who actually tries it. Does this help?

And while we're on the topic, an interesting study.

And I've figured out that Mars has simply changed the packaging a little from when I was a kid. Plus, no one I know eats them. I don't think that I've ever had one. Mystery solved.

(You know the funny thing is that I don't even keep junk food in my house and rarely consume it. This thread is getting me all excited to break the rules.)

Edited to mention that I've had dill potato chips once...and I remember that I really liked them. I was 13 at the time and they were they were part of the refreshments offered at one of those awkward 8th grade dances. I'm pretty sure that we have ketchup chips here too, but, honestly, you can find lots in the inner city that you can't find in your average suburb.

Pants? Waistline? I was planning on wearing some sort of caftan. A side benefit is that it will be cooler than pants.

I had Smarties recently at a friend's house. I'm not sure how they got them, although possibly one of her relatives in England mailed them to her. I still like M&M's better. The Smarties were OK, although surprising, since that wasn't what I thought they were, but not quite as good. I'm not sure why.

My favorite chocolate is from Finland, though: Geisha bars from Fazer. Each square of the bar has a creamy hazelnut filling. I stock up whenever we go to Estonia, since although some Fazer stuff is imported into the U.S., Geisha bars are not. I still have some from when my pastor went over last August. I still had some Estonian money, so I gave it to him and told him to bring back as many Geisha bars as he could. No idea why they're called Geisha bars.

Hubby and I were at Walmart last night and stumbled across our favorite taffy treat (ok, that's a lie, we spent thirty minutes in the candy aisle). Check out Willy Wonka's Sparkling Taffy. It's got little candy crystals in it. Man it's good stuff.

As for chips, I don't really care about the flavor as long as they're kettle cooked. Man, I loves me some deep fried potato chips. Nice 'n' greasy. Mmm. My favorite is the Cape Cod brand, especially their Golden Russet.

Urf. I'm currently in a snack-free period of my life, and you guys are killing me. But, for the record, I think the best S & V chips are Miss Vickie's sea salt and malt vinegar. Mmmmm.

You owe me a dollar then, because I actually did have one the last time I as in Scotland. It was damn good. Honestly, well worth a try. Let it cool a little though, as molten hot caramel and chocolate are not good eats. Good at melting off your skin maybe, but eats...not so much.

And Suga I'd be more then happy to set up a snack exchange. Let me know what you would like, and I'll send it your way.

When I was in NY on Saturday, I stopped in a grocery store to pick up some candy and wound up buying a box of Mallomars cookies. I am trying to make them last long enough for when my parents visit but somehow doubt that will happen. I am just afraid that the chocolate will melt :-)

Ooh delta888. Those Miss Vickie's salt and vinegar chips are sooo good! They'll melt your tounge right off and you'll love every second of it.

My favourite way to eat a Mars Bar is frozen. Mmm.

Oh for the love. Read every word of that Ebay listing. It's frelling hilarious.

I'm with you 100% on that one. A co-worker is from Australia and brought me a box when he returned from his holidays. To. Die. For.

I buy the ketchup chips occasionally. They sort of taste like BBQ, but every once in a while you get one loaded with ketchup flavor. I am one of those annoying people who usually make snack foods last a long time (I'm a hoarder), but I eat the 5.5 oz bag of ketchup chips in two sittings. Once I start, I absolutely cannot stop. Usually it's PMS that causes me to make the purchase.

I loved the guacamole doritos when I bought a small bag before seeing Starsky & Hutch (I never buy movie theater food - major ripoff). However, when I bought a normal sized bag, it just didn't do it for me. Small doses for that flavor.

M.Darcy, there's no Mallomars in DC? I thought they were a northeast thing, I guess they're not. I'm proud to say I haven't bought one box this year, and it used to be my cookie of choice. Lately when I do break down and buy cookies, it's been the Dare chocolate fudge sandwich things. They're just like the Fugdetown cookies of my youth, only bigger.

For anyone wanting to counteract all the food talk, read on - otherwise skip the rest of this paragraph. I got sick at work yesterday and left early. Man, it was ugly. I was drinking a lot of water to try and stem the tide of nausea, but to no avail, and I didn't quite make it all the way into the stall. There is nothing worse than getting sick at work.

erinjsnark, you have made my day. I am sending that link to everyone, including my mother and my SO. He's bitterly divorced, so I'm sure he'll have some lovely comments to add.

iMissEthan, you're right, there's nothing worse than getting sick at work. I got sick at work once. (spoiler tags for gross discussion) We had an on-site nurse. Nothing she did helped, so she sent me home. Fortunately, the taxi only had to pull over once, and once in the house, I made it to the bathroom. My entire digestive system emptied itself of all substances. When I returned to work, I learned that a male co-worker not only had the same symptoms, but had passed out on the floor of his office. But his digestive system kept busy emptying itself, both ends. I don't know how the poor guy got home (he was the handsomest guy in the company, too, so all the women felt extra sorry for him). They ended up replacing the carpeting in his office. Hmm, that was bad. Not as bad as my oral surgery tale of some months ago, but bad nonetheless.

IMissethan, I hope you are feeling better - try drinking ginger ale if you are still feeling sick. I was having a reaction to my migrane medicine a few weeks ago and felt nauseous for about a week. The Dr said the best thing is ginger ale.

Once in a while you can find Mallomars in DC but I haven't seen them in a while. Plus, the NY ones just taste better. Its the same with Entemann's donuts.

Yeah, M.Darcy, I swear I've seen Mallomars at Harris Teeter. Or maybe I was just hallucinating.

Oh my. DariaG, there are no words. He passed out? And then? Gah.

Heh, the line about his carpet needing replacement made me laugh.

Maccadict, thanks for the heads up about Harris Teeter - Giant hasn't had them for a while, I'll have to check HT

I will certainly take your word for it. That cross-section left much to be desired.

Cool! re: the snack exchange. I'm totally down. We have to set a strict limit though. Otherwise I'm going to have to ask for all the clothes back that I gave away since I won't be able to fit what I currently have anymore. Maybe I'll just have an international snack party so that I'll be forced to share. Or not. E-mail me.

Aw, feel better, iMissEthan. And ew, DariaG. I can't even imagine what that must have been like. Did you all ever find out what that ailment was?

Oh holy hell that E-Bay link is HIGH-larious!!!

The day before, we'd both had the same special at the Ethiopian restaurant across the street. I know 24 hours seems too long for the onset of food poisoning, but that was the only thing we could come up with.

I am looking forward to having my very first beignet in just over a week. So. Very. Excited. But I'm not a huge fan of the spicy stuff, so I don't think I'm going to be loading up on the gumbo...

Well, I had a nice bowl of shrimp chowder for lunch today, but I'm afraid one of the shrimp was a bit off. I ended up getting really nauseous about 4:30. Papa Tiger was meeting me downtown so we could go to (yet another of New Orleans') free music festival down by the river, but I ended up coming home, drinking ginger ale, and eating Tums. I feel better now, but remind me not to get the shrimp chowder at the coffee shop downstairs any more!

But tomorrow all I have to do after work is walk outside the back door of my building to Lafayette Park there in downtown New Orleans and meet Papa Tiger for yet ANOTHER free music festival, the latest in a summertime series of Wednesday evening free concerts. Tomorrow is Marcia Ball. Man, living in New Orleans is TOUGH! <g>

Nigella batter-dipped and deep-fat fried something resembling Mounds bars once. Here I thought we Southerners were the only ones who fried everything that didn't run away...

Hi y'all. I haven't posted on this MM in ages, but do check in. Quickly, the wedding dress guy was supposed to be featured on the "Today" show in the 3rd hour - I caught Katie's Teeth giving the 3rd hour run down while waiting for the weather.

Also, there are a few places in NYC that are owned by Brit ex-pats that deep fry Snickers, Mars, etc. One is A Salt & Battery (two locations, East & West Village) and there is another shop in Brooklyn.

The Scots (and maybe the brits) will, honestly, deep fry anything. I saw deep fried pizza, deep fried hard-boiled eggs, Haggis, if a batter will stick to it, it will be deep fried. I lived off of fish and chips when I wass there. The only time I had something else was at Pizza Hut (Yeah, Yeah, I was in a big hurry and was eating alone). Never did that again though as with the excange rate I think I ended up paying $15 for a personal pan pizza. I quickly went back to fish and chips after that.