NIP WATCH 2023 !!!!!!!

[bishoptf 698]

and another Heat dome for the midwest....St. Louis area

 

 

Edited August 21, 2023 by bishoptf

[aubiefifty 16,919]

if the temp hit 104 i wonder how hot it is in the stadium. is it not like ten or more degrees hotter? there was a time they would bring that up. if i am close i am not sure i could walk across the field. we need the nip desperately.kinda like a bat signalor something to get this thing going.

[I_M4_AU 8,004]

They are advertising the NIP now:

 

Notice the Book By 8/24.  It’s got to be right around the corner.

[WarrrEagleHey 268]

My son lives in the PNW. This is just bizarre 🌡️🔥

[stoic-one 1,549]

 

 

[toddc 13,194]

7 hours ago, stoic-one said:

 

 

I keep clicking the picture but it won’t enlarge??? 😝 

[WDE_OxPx_2010 5,318]

9 hours ago, toddc said:

I keep clicking the picture but it won’t enlarge??? 😝 

That's a personal problem. @augolf1716has some pills

[WDE_OxPx_2010 5,318]

Nip felt in central NC this morning. 66 and breezy.

[SaltyTiger 7,864]

3 minutes ago, WDE_OxPx_2010 said:

66 and breezy.

Premium nip weather in East Alabama this time of year.

[AUBwins 10,088]

My youngest had College Colors day in school today.  Nip is here already in Kentucky.  Just waiting for the official word. 

[toddc 13,194]

2 hours ago, AUBwins said:

Just waiting for the official word.

That’s not what we’re waiting for.

Edited August 25, 2023 by toddc

[Auctoritas 2,828]

I hate washing dishes.

But, as one must do when your wife works late and your daughter is...indifferent...about what sort of surface she will eat off of and approaches utensils as a mere formality, I found myself last night washing up before cooking dinner. I lie; really, I don't mind doing dishes, mainly because with a little bit of music in the background, it becomes this very zen thing, where my actions exist in the moment while my mind wanders freely.

I stared out the kitchen window last night into the middle-evening dusk into a world suffused with molten amber. This time of year is magical. As I washed, in my minds eye, I was 16 again, in high school on a Thursday night at our evening marching band rehearsal (always 7-9 on Thursdays) prepping for the show on Friday night. I was 10 years old, on the youth soccer practice field. I was 22, walking home from one of the first night classes of a semester. I could (in my mind's eye, at least) feel the wisps of cool breezes and smell someone's first feeble, premature attempt at a fall campfire. A golden hour where light, sound, scent, and feel combine into liquid gold.

I know they say that Spring is the time of renewal, when new growth buds forth from lately-dormant trees and bushes, and baby birds and squirrels poke their heads out to explore life. Nonsense. To me, FALL is renewal. Fall was always when school started again. New friends to be made, new teachers, new activities. There was always excitement and trepidation, particularly at times of upheaval or transition. Even now, as an adult, in my mind the "year" starts in the fall, and ends at the end of the world's summer vacation. Fall is also, for a lot of people, particularly our forebears, a time of preparation. Cooler temperatures bring relief, followed by a rush to prepare for a long winter.

I kept scrubbing, my mind wandering as it tried to plan the next few weeks. Going down to help my parents, spend some time to prepare their house for fall. I've made it a point ever since I became an adult (a real adult) to, unless I'm not in the state, go every game day to watch with my parents. My dad comes from the school of "it's all going to crap" so we spend most of the day - before the AU game, during, and after - pointing out all of the things that could be better, that are about to go wrong, that (particularly the last couple of years) ARE glaringly wrong. But I love it. In the past 10-15 years, it included bringing down the grandpups - they both passed this last year, but I've got a new one that I can't wait to inculcate into the tradition. I go down, I plan and cook dinner (sometimes smoking some barbeque or ribs or chicken, or maybe chili). I started thinking about Week 1's menu - Brunswick Stew, I think, my own recipe and I smoke all of the meats I use myself, and I'd put it up against anyone's and I believe my dear, departed uncle would have given it his blessing. Means that, let's see, need to go to the store to get...

I shook myself out of my reverie. The day had darkened and instead of molten amber, the remaining daylight turned everything a burnt orange, and a few lone wisps of clouds lent tiger stripes of blue. I smiled to myself and felt the nip.

I'm going down this weekend to my parents to help them out, maybe catch some of the week 0 action, get some practice in at pointing out the foibles, enjoy some time with my parents. I'll leave later that night, well-fed and happy, knowing that Week 1 is, once again, only a few days away.

War eagle.
 

[AUpreacherman22 3,891]

On 8/22/2023 at 5:21 AM, aubiefifty said:

if the temp hit 104 i wonder how hot it is in the stadium. is it not like ten or more degrees hotter? there was a time they would bring that up. if i am close i am not sure i could walk across the field. we need the nip desperately.kinda like a bat signalor something to get this thing going.

Yesterday in MS it was 104.  On the turf of our football field one of the coaches used the laser gun thermometer and it measured 138 degrees on our turf!!!   It literally felt like touching the stove!!!

[LPTiger 5,173]

6 hours ago, Auctoritas said:

I hate washing dishes.

But, as one must do when your wife works late and your daughter is...indifferent...about what sort of surface she will eat off of and approaches utensils as a mere formality, I found myself last night washing up before cooking dinner. I lie; really, I don't mind doing dishes, mainly because with a little bit of music in the background, it becomes this very zen thing, where my actions exist in the moment while my mind wanders freely.

I stared out the kitchen window last night into the middle-evening dusk into a world suffused with molten amber. This time of year is magical. As I washed, in my minds eye, I was 16 again, in high school on a Thursday night at our evening marching band rehearsal (always 7-9 on Thursdays) prepping for the show on Friday night. I was 10 years old, on the youth soccer practice field. I was 22, walking home from one of the first night classes of a semester. I could (in my mind's eye, at least) feel the wisps of cool breezes and smell someone's first feeble, premature attempt at a fall campfire. A golden hour where light, sound, scent, and feel combine into liquid gold.

I know they say that Spring is the time of renewal, when new growth buds forth from lately-dormant trees and bushes, and baby birds and squirrels poke their heads out to explore life. Nonsense. To me, FALL is renewal. Fall was always when school started again. New friends to be made, new teachers, new activities. There was always excitement and trepidation, particularly at times of upheaval or transition. Even now, as an adult, in my mind the "year" starts in the fall, and ends at the end of the world's summer vacation. Fall is also, for a lot of people, particularly our forebears, a time of preparation. Cooler temperatures bring relief, followed by a rush to prepare for a long winter.

I kept scrubbing, my mind wandering as it tried to plan the next few weeks. Going down to help my parents, spend some time to prepare their house for fall. I've made it a point ever since I became an adult (a real adult) to, unless I'm not in the state, go every game day to watch with my parents. My dad comes from the school of "it's all going to crap" so we spend most of the day - before the AU game, during, and after - pointing out all of the things that could be better, that are about to go wrong, that (particularly the last couple of years) ARE glaringly wrong. But I love it. In the past 10-15 years, it included bringing down the grandpups - they both passed this last year, but I've got a new one that I can't wait to inculcate into the tradition. I go down, I plan and cook dinner (sometimes smoking some barbeque or ribs or chicken, or maybe chili). I started thinking about Week 1's menu - Brunswick Stew, I think, my own recipe and I smoke all of the meats I use myself, and I'd put it up against anyone's and I believe my dear, departed uncle would have given it his blessing. Means that, let's see, need to go to the store to get...

I shook myself out of my reverie. The day had darkened and instead of molten amber, the remaining daylight turned everything a burnt orange, and a few lone wisps of clouds lent tiger stripes of blue. I smiled to myself and felt the nip.

I'm going down this weekend to my parents to help them out, maybe catch some of the week 0 action, get some practice in at pointing out the foibles, enjoy some time with my parents. I'll leave later that night, well-fed and happy, knowing that Week 1 is, once again, only a few days away.

War eagle.
 

Thanks for this!   Do you write for a living?  I'm going to show it to my bride and daughter so they can better enjoy dishwashing.... Mind sharing the Brunswick Stew recipe?  I made some several months ago that was pretty good.   I cut the corn off the cob.   I used fresh snap peas.  I smoked some chicken thighs and used a butt I smoked the weekend before.   The real difference seemed to be I cooked down an entire onion (sliced) and used it from the start.   Do you use a BBQ sauce in it?

[gulftiger66 166]

On 8/22/2023 at 9:52 PM, toddc said:

I keep clicking the picture but it won’t enlarge??? 😝 

That’s because there is NO nip…….yet. 

[Duder 238]

On 8/22/2023 at 9:52 PM, toddc said:

I keep clicking the picture but it won’t enlarge??? 😝 

Try TRT. 

[Auctoritas 2,828]

17 hours ago, LPTiger said:

Thanks for this!   Do you write for a living?  I'm going to show it to my bride and daughter so they can better enjoy dishwashing.... Mind sharing the Brunswick Stew recipe?  I made some several months ago that was pretty good.   I cut the corn off the cob.   I used fresh snap peas.  I smoked some chicken thighs and used a butt I smoked the weekend before.   The real difference seemed to be I cooked down an entire onion (sliced) and used it from the start.   Do you use a BBQ sauce in it?

You're quite welcome - I do write sometimes for work, but not like this (I work for the gummint, so either it's health communication or legalese or talking to congress).

The recipe is kind of convoluted because it really relies on what you're putting in it, and I ascribe to the school of "If I am going to make it, I'm going to make a mess of it so I don't have to do it again later" so its a big pot. I use a smoked pork butt in the 3-4lb range (I have an extremely good rub I've developed, and I smoke it on a Traeger now with apple wood and put a pan with some hard apple cider, apple cider vinegar, and coriander in it until it's at 195, then pull it using a pulling sauce of 1c apple cider vinegar, 1/4c brown sugar or leftover rub, and 2Tbsp of red chili flakes, and doing a very rough chop if the pull is too long), a smoked half beef brisket 1 1/2lb(?) (salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, a little brown sugar, I use hickory for the wood, sliced and chopped), 2 whole chickens (I modify my rub by adding a lot of herbs), spatchcocked and smoked with apple, then deboned and roughly chopped - mainly use the breasts and thighs, and just eat the wings as a snack. (I've also just done bone-in breasts and it worked just fine), and about a 1lb and a half of ground beef (not smoked).

Once the meat is done, do 1-2 sweet onions in a course dice. Brown the ground beef and drain and set aside, then cook down the onions in 3 sticks of butter until softened. Throw the chopped meat and the ground beef in there next and up the heat and stir around to get some extra caramelization for a few minutes. Then, it's sort of up to the meat and how much tomato it takes, but I've used up to 8 cartons of tomatoes (3:1 for every diced, a carton of puree) and a carton of beef stock and a carton of chicken stock. I also (and this is where it gets weird) don't use peas - I use 4-5 cans of Bush's Southern Pit Barbecue Grillin' Beans for the base (although I keep a bag or 3 of frozen baby butter peas if someone wants a more toothsome bite or traditional feel). I've never tried cutting the corn directly from the cob - I tend to use canned steamed sweet corn, and I wish I could give an amount on it: the meat is going to suck up some amount of liquid and I kind of have to go by sight (as in, does that look like enough corn?). Final thing is around a half bottle of Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet BBQ sauce and about 1/4c of ketchup (don't laugh - nothing else has that pop of tomato umami sweet), a healthy squirt of yellow mustard, and a 1/4c of hot sauce. Oh, and salt and pepper, but don't overdo that - it's going to reduce down and that could make it oversalty.

One of my childhood memories of my uncle was him sitting on my grandparents porch out in Coosa County making a pot of camp stew and him rapping my fingers with a spoon because I just about ruined it by committing the cardinal sin: stirring it more than 1 direction. I have no idea why it would work, that's not science, but that rule has never steered me wrong, so clockwise stirring only it is.

Let it come to a simmer and cook for around an hour, hour and a half, or until the diced tomatoes have cooked down. Then it is tasting time - it may need some more sweetness (more BBQ sauce or another can of beans), more depth (Lots of options here - I swear by the Better Than Bouillon Ham Stock Paste, but Worcestershire or soy can work, or you can splurge and buy some tomato powder just don't overdo - or just turn the heat up a bit and let it cook down some more to concentrate the flavors), more brightness (apple cider vinegar does the trick). Salt, pepper, hot sauce to taste.

Final trick if you want the consistency to be thicker vs thinner (and there's no wrong answer there!) - go pick up a bag of Xanthan gum from the baking section of the store. It's powerful stuff - but it is the best thickener on the planet. It's what gives ketchup its "shear" instead of it being runny. (Its amazing for homemade salsa too - keeps it from running off a chip). Ladle out a half-bowl of the stew and sprinkle some of the xanthan gum on top (it doesn't take much, but will also depend on how much stew you made) and whisk it in, then dump the bowl back into the pot and cook and stir.

[LPTiger 5,173]

5 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

You're quite welcome - I do write sometimes for work, but not like this (I work for the gummint, so either it's health communication or legalese or talking to congress).

The recipe is kind of convoluted because it really relies on what you're putting in it, and I ascribe to the school of "If I am going to make it, I'm going to make a mess of it so I don't have to do it again later" so its a big pot. I use a smoked pork butt in the 3-4lb range (I have an extremely good rub I've developed, and I smoke it on a Traeger now with apple wood and put a pan with some hard apple cider, apple cider vinegar, and coriander in it until it's at 195, then pull it using a pulling sauce of 1c apple cider vinegar, 1/4c brown sugar or leftover rub, and 2Tbsp of red chili flakes, and doing a very rough chop if the pull is too long), a smoked half beef brisket 1 1/2lb(?) (salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, a little brown sugar, I use hickory for the wood, sliced and chopped), 2 whole chickens (I modify my rub by adding a lot of herbs), spatchcocked and smoked with apple, then deboned and roughly chopped - mainly use the breasts and thighs, and just eat the wings as a snack. (I've also just done bone-in breasts and it worked just fine), and about a 1lb and a half of ground beef (not smoked).

Once the meat is done, do 1-2 sweet onions in a course dice. Brown the ground beef and drain and set aside, then cook down the onions in 3 sticks of butter until softened. Throw the chopped meat and the ground beef in there next and up the heat and stir around to get some extra caramelization for a few minutes. Then, it's sort of up to the meat and how much tomato it takes, but I've used up to 8 cartons of tomatoes (3:1 for every diced, a carton of puree) and a carton of beef stock and a carton of chicken stock. I also (and this is where it gets weird) don't use peas - I use 4-5 cans of Bush's Southern Pit Barbecue Grillin' Beans for the base (although I keep a bag or 3 of frozen baby butter peas if someone wants a more toothsome bite or traditional feel). I've never tried cutting the corn directly from the cob - I tend to use canned steamed sweet corn, and I wish I could give an amount on it: the meat is going to suck up some amount of liquid and I kind of have to go by sight (as in, does that look like enough corn?). Final thing is around a half bottle of Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet BBQ sauce and about 1/4c of ketchup (don't laugh - nothing else has that pop of tomato umami sweet), a healthy squirt of yellow mustard, and a 1/4c of hot sauce. Oh, and salt and pepper, but don't overdo that - it's going to reduce down and that could make it oversalty.

One of my childhood memories of my uncle was him sitting on my grandparents porch out in Coosa County making a pot of camp stew and him rapping my fingers with a spoon because I just about ruined it by committing the cardinal sin: stirring it more than 1 direction. I have no idea why it would work, that's not science, but that rule has never steered me wrong, so clockwise stirring only it is.

Let it come to a simmer and cook for around an hour, hour and a half, or until the diced tomatoes have cooked down. Then it is tasting time - it may need some more sweetness (more BBQ sauce or another can of beans), more depth (Lots of options here - I swear by the Better Than Bouillon Ham Stock Paste, but Worcestershire or soy can work, or you can splurge and buy some tomato powder just don't overdo - or just turn the heat up a bit and let it cook down some more to concentrate the flavors), more brightness (apple cider vinegar does the trick). Salt, pepper, hot sauce to taste.

Final trick if you want the consistency to be thicker vs thinner (and there's no wrong answer there!) - go pick up a bag of Xanthan gum from the baking section of the store. It's powerful stuff - but it is the best thickener on the planet. It's what gives ketchup its "shear" instead of it being runny. (Its amazing for homemade salsa too - keeps it from running off a chip). Ladle out a half-bowl of the stew and sprinkle some of the xanthan gum on top (it doesn't take much, but will also depend on how much stew you made) and whisk it in, then dump the bowl back into the pot and cook and stir.

Thanks to you that 11 o'clock, no breakfast hunger pain just exploded in my gut!!!!!   It is clear you know your way around a key board and a kitchen.   I swear I will never stir counter-clockwise again!!!! 

[Auctoritas 2,828]

Just now, LPTiger said:

Thanks to you that 11 o'clock, no breakfast hunger pain just exploded in my gut!!!!!   It is clear you know your way around a key board and a kitchen.   I swear I will never stir counter-clockwise again!!!! 

If it helps, you aren't alone, I was dying by the end of typing it out...might have to go break out my last quart of frozen stew from the last time...

[AuburnNTexas 7,174]

Today in Allen, Tx. It hit 110 so it is difficult to say the NIP is here. Good news is high Monday is only going to be 95.

That said HS football season has started. Sadly Allen got blown out last night.

[McFU 205]

Went for a walk this morning and it wasn't as suffocating as it had been. The cloud cover seemed to help along with the breeze.  I have noticed with schools now going full swing that it must be getting close to the time for the calling of The Nip.  We are having our first Den meetings of the new Cub Scout year and only have 2 more recruiting events this week until we fill out our Ranks. After that, it will feel like we are at the precipice of Fall between school, Scouts, and Football!

[NewYrkTiger 68]

On 8/2/2023 at 2:26 PM, toddc said:

Turn up the air conditioning and get this girl cooled off quickly.

I agree with this well thought out and reasonable plan. 

[alabastertiger 617]

I had to push mow my mother-in-law's yard saturday in Huntsville.   They said the heat index was 109.   It felt hotter than that in the shade ...

[AUloggerhead 2,253]

On 8/26/2023 at 8:50 AM, Auctoritas said:

... One of my childhood memories of my uncle was him sitting on my grandparents porch out in Coosa County making a pot of camp stew and him rapping my fingers with a spoon because I just about ruined it by committing the cardinal sin: stirring it more than 1 direction. I have no idea why it would work, that's not science, but that rule has never steered me wrong, so clockwise stirring only it is.  ...

I believe there is some sciency-stuff associated with it.  Probably has to do with the Coriolis effect -- clockwise in the northern & counter-clockwise in the southern hemisphere or something like that.  In any case, where the heck is @WarTim with calling the Nip?  Are you gonna wait til the last possible second?  @stoic-one get that glorious photo ready!  

[WarTim 3,457]

1 minute ago, AUloggerhead said:

I believe there is some sciency-stuff associated with it.  Probably has to do with the Coriolis effect -- clockwise in the northern & counter-clockwise in the southern hemisphere or something like that.  In any case, where the heck is @WarTim with calling the Nip?  Are you gonna wait til the last possible second?  @stoic-one get that glorious photo ready!  

Nobody is more anxious than me. Hang in there. The Nip draweth near.