45 thoughts on “June 23, 2020: Poking The Hornet’s Nest”

      1. I came to your rescue, meat. You can now vote to reestablish the tie. If you are a monster, that is.

  2. On Sunday Jelle premiered the 2020 Marble League. Opening ceremony and 1st event. There was also a qualifiers and friendly match uploaded earlier, plus a special 6-event "Last Marble Standing" competition to help you fill the gap until next Sunday's 2nd event.

    My kids and I all have a couple of favorite teams, and I'm seriously entertaining getting shirts or hats for my family of the various teams that we support. What silly fun this is.

    2. I became a Savage Speeders fan before I knew they had won anything. As it turns out they're the most decorated team. But I still like them and their Twitter account.

      Also rooting for the Oceanics after they fired their coach mid Olympics last year. That was hilarious.

      1. Team Galactic (this year's hosts) and Team Chaos are among my favorites - I like the clear marbles with swirls on the inside, apparently. I also really like Team MoMo. Because they're just all sorts of fun.

        Definitely rooting for Oceanics after last year too. What a wreck they were.

  3. A structuralist question about sandwiches:

    What characteristics of the exterior layers of a prepared food in order for it to be considered sandwich? What is necessary, and what is merely sufficient for these ingredients to create a sandwich? I’m thinking not merely in terms of ultimate orientation, modification via slicing, and so on, but the actual type of material, formulation, and preparation of these ingredients.

    For example, can a biscuit serve as the exterior layers of a sandwich? How about bagels, banana bread, corn bread, or cookies? Or lavash, lefse, naan, or tortillas? Cooked plantains?

    1. I'm yay on ice cream sandwich (cookies, e.g.) and breakfast sandwiches (english muffins, bagels). I guess for me it's something I grab with both hands that has no closed ends. So the material doesn't matter, other than it has to be sturdy for this composition. So two pieces of lettuce wouldn't work because things would easily fall out unless I make it a wrap.

    3. I agree with Beau. Can't be wrapped or folded, and needs to be sturdy enough to at least attempt to eat it without utensils without the innards spilling out.

      IMO, the top and bottom layers should be the same material of construction. So, biscuit or roll sliced in half is ok. Two pieces of rye, good. Grilled cheese sandwiches on top and bottom? Sure.
      However, if you only have one slice of one kind of bread and end up using something else that is sandwich-compatible, it's still a sandwich. White bread on top and an english muffin on the bottom? Sandwich. Whole wheat bread on bottom and a piece of cheese on top? Not a sandwich.

      I don't completely agree with this cube rule, but then, half of you are already wrong about if a hotdog is a sandwich, so I may as well share it. I like the food designation according to the starch location, but I feel like a sandwich exists as a combination of the layers and the preparation, so some of their classifications don't work for me (I'm looking at you, lasagna and slice of pie).

      2. I’m following what you & Beau are saying. I’m curious about “pita pockets” (in reality, probably khubz arabi). It meets the criteria of same material & construction, but it’s not sliced all the way through. If one were place lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and either falafel or shwarma inside the pocket/between the layers of flatbread, is this a sandwich?

        1. That's definitely a close call. Is the pita strong enough to be used as a traditional sandwiching exterior, or is the pocket form a necessity in order for it to hold things in place?

          I feel like I've had both... it seems weird to put one on one side of the line and the other on the other, but maybe that's how it should be?

          1. given the frequency with which the starch envelope tends to fall apart in the face of very wet interior fillings, I'm not gonna buy the "pocket form a necessity in order for it to hold things in place" exclusion. Sometimes a sandwich is so big and/or unwieldy that it begs to be eaten with utensils. Can still be a sandwich.

            clearly, we are fighting about cultural issues here. Wraps, burritos and tacos all are examples of fillings restrained by some sort of edible exterior that is not bonded to itself or to the fillings. I can accept some taxonomy that recognizes the relationship between western sandwich conventions, open-face or split-roll sandwich or sandwich-like concoctions (e.g., Phillys, hot dogs and other sausages-on-bun, etc.), latin american-inspired wraps, burritos and tacos, and then the more distant relatives like empanadas, pizza rolls, calzone, etc. , or the even more questionable relatives, such as loaded flatbreads, pizzas, tostadas, and bruschettas.

            I would still contend that the American hamburger is not a sandwich per se -- speciation has occured. It's similar to a sandwich in structure, but is its own thing.

            1. given the frequency with which the starch envelope tends to fall apart in the face of very wet interior fillings, I'm not gonna buy the "pocket form a necessity in order for it to hold things in place" exclusion. Sometimes a sandwich is so big and/or unwieldy that it begs to be eaten with utensils.

              So basically your position is that, because sometimes people over-fill their sandwiches or use too-wet ingredients we have to agree to call more things sandwiches?

                1. sometimes, a picture is worth only two words!

                  [technically, four words in the review, I guess 😉 ]

              2. If a French dip gets soggy from the jus, an Italian Beef gets sloppy from the gravy, or a soaky goes mushy from the marinara sauce, does it cease to be a sandwich?

                2. Yes. [narrator: "No."]

                  But a Philly that gets soggy from the grease is just expected. 🙂

                3. I don't think so. I think sandwichness needs to be independent of what happens to the item. Just like turning a sandwich sideways so stuff doesn't fall out, doesn't invalidate it being a sandwich. Sandwichness precedes these developments.

            2. I feel comfortable classifying doughs that are filled, then folded upon themselves, and sealed in some fashion as turnovers. That category can span cuisines, starchy dough types (bread-y, puff pastry, wonton, or other), and sweet/savory fillings. I think it encompasses things like empanadas, samosas, pirozhki, calzones, gorditas, knishes, pasties, & strudel.

              I think there’s probably an evolutionary connection between turnovers and baked, encrusted dishes like pastilla/bastilla, spanikopita, pirog, as well as the myriad styles of dumplings: pierogi/varenyky, pel’meni, momos, bao, bourek, egg rolls, kibbeh, flautas, ravioli, and the like. Dolma are questionable relatives, resembling the form, but utilizing non-starchy exteriors. Casseroles may resemble relatives like pastilla/bastilla or spanikopita, but seem to combine elements of those dishes with others, including pies & stews.

                1. I'm sleepy.

                  Two nice slices of delicious, homemade rye bread with herbed turkey, cheddar, bread-and-butter pickles and a slather of mayo and mustard mixed together. I'm very full.

  4. Imagine a new game with the same rules as baseball, but each team has a 15-player roster instead of a 25-player roster and every slot in the 9-man batting order has to pitch the corresponding inning of the game. No DH. Would this be a fun game to watch and/or play? Would it be feasible to play a 162-game schedule under these rules? Which current baseball players would be least suited to this new style of play?

    1. Kind of reminds me of Decathlon. Likely few people are better than the best but it's cool to see well-rounded players.

      I think you would see mostly hitters join this league. Many have strong arms and could throw heat and you'd just need to find some that can be taught an off speed pitch. But getting the current pitchers to hit well doesn't seem as likely. Like Buxton could start pitching again more easily than Kershaw could hit.

    2. I think the coolest part about this would be watching teams construct a roster without any history to support their approach. Lots of market inefficiencies to pursue the first few seasons.

  5. Today is turkey, provolone, and mixed greens (from our garden!), with a southwest mustard on classic white. Curry Potato Salad for a side.

    2. I'm waging a one-man war with B-R's OOTP simulation to get him playing everyday instead of Adrianza. He's played 3 of the last 4 games, going 7-16 with a walk, after playing in less than 10 games up to that point, and his BA is higher than Ehire's SLG. I think we've turned the corner.

      1. This is why Im not very enthusiastic about Baseball, and really team sports in general, coming back.

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