Rate your current mental health level out of 10

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by blankall

I just got an airfryer. It does chicken well.

If you like nachos, cook them in the air fryer.

You’re welcome.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

If you like nachos, cook them in the air fryer.

You’re welcome.

What is this? A nacho serving for ants?

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by Wormius

What is this? A nacho serving for ants?

We make two servings of nachos in a medium-sized air fryer. My wife stacks them - chips with toppings then another layer of chips and toppings on top. It’s usually too much for us, and I can eat a lot if there’s a football game (Grey Cup!). If you’re cooking them at home, the air fryer can’t be beaten for crispness. Try this and report back. I recommended this to a friend who says he’s never going back to an oven. Also, if you have leftovers they’re best warmed in the air fryer.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

If you like nachos, cook them in the air fryer.

You’re welcome.

I just got it yesterday. So this fits with my current motif of making healthier bar food. I will try this. The air fryer takes about the same amount of effort as using a microwave, slightly more cleanup, but the basket is pretty easy to clean.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

We make two servings of nachos in a medium-sized air fryer. My wife stacks them - chips with toppings then another layer of chips and toppings on top. It’s usually too much for us, and I can eat a lot if there’s a football game (Grey Cup!). If you’re cooking them at home, the air fryer can’t be beaten for crispness. Try this and report back. I recommended this to a friend who says he’s never going back to an oven. Also, if you have leftovers they’re best warmed in the air fryer.

Oh, I am sure it’s good. Even plain tortillas given a little time in the toaster oven or under the broiler are way better than straight out of the bag.

I don’t know what the interior space of a medium air fryer is. I don’t think our Phillips one would fit many chips.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

The majority of recipe results on Google now residing on poorly disguised and almost indistinguishable-from-each-other content farms has to be a detriment to anyone trying to start cooking for themselves more regularly. What a ####ing nightmare those things are.

I find it's not quite as bad if you use a desktop. From your phone though, yes, it's hopeless. Filtering through all the AI generated crap is a huge chore.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

The majority of recipe results on Google now residing on poorly disguised and almost indistinguishable-from-each-other content farms has to be a detriment to anyone trying to start cooking for themselves more regularly. What a ####ing nightmare those things are.

I generally just use youtube now. Once you learn who a few of the good people to follow are, it's just so much easier. Even if you don't watch the video and just read the recipe

Originally Posted by blankall

I just got an airfryer. It does chicken well.

Hell yeah, best thing I've bought in years. Gets used every day

[afc wimbledon]

at the risk of derailing the thread into a cheap cooking lesson I will get the economy packs of chicken thighs at costco for 30 odd bucks and marinate them in garlic, smoked sweet paprika and a mild hot sauce overnight, I favour an indonesian Sambal Olex or Manis paste but any hot sauce would do, roast them up in the oven at 350 on a bed of chopped onions and a bag of frozen peppers (add some oil to the bottom of the roasting pan and a bit over the onions and peppers as well) I use the 'taco' mix from the frozen veg section basically red and green peppers chopped and frozen.

Give it an hour in the oven so the chicken is cooked through, I then wait for them to cool and shred them with the peppers and onions into a sort of pulled chicken, divide them up into 1lb packets and freeze in zip lock bags, anytime I want a quick meal I will defrost a bag and add it to a nearly cooked pot of rice or microwave it and serve it on a bun, as a baked potato filling, just a good all purpose protein option to keep in the freezer

[Geraldsh]

CBC news : Canada has a new hotline (988) for mental health. Available 24/7 just like 911 . My advice if you are feeling 4 or lower call now.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by btimbit

I generally just use youtube now. Once you learn who a few of the good people to follow are, it's just so much easier. Even if you don't watch the video and just read the recipe

Youtubes for the win.


I generally get the gist of the recipe then go from there, often putting my spin on it as a get lazy or forgetful or experimental or whatever

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

at the risk of derailing the thread into a cheap cooking lesson I will get the economy packs of chicken thighs at costco for 30 odd bucks and marinate them in garlic, smoked sweet paprika and a mild hot sauce overnight, I favour an indonesian Sambal Olex or Manis paste but any hot sauce would do, roast them up in the oven at 350 on a bed of chopped onions and a bag of frozen peppers (add some oil to the bottom of the roasting pan and a bit over the onions and peppers as well) I use the 'taco' mix from the frozen veg section basically red and green peppers chopped and frozen.

Give it an hour in the oven so the chicken is cooked through, I then wait for them to cool and shred them with the peppers and onions into a sort of pulled chicken, divide them up into 1lb packets and freeze in zip lock bags, anytime I want a quick meal I will defrost a bag and add it to a nearly cooked pot of rice or microwave it and serve it on a bun, as a baked potato filling, just a good all purpose protein option to keep in the freezer

We do something similar but use the slow cooker, bang it all in let it rock for the day

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

We do something similar but use the slow cooker, bang it all in let it rock for the day

used to do it in the slow cooker but I prefer the 'roastier' slightly less broken down texture from the oven, the chicken has the crunchy bits around the edges and is more 'chickeny'

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

used to do it in the slow cooker but I prefer the 'roastier' slightly less broken down texture from the oven, the chicken has the crunchy bits around the edges and is more 'chickeny'

Ah kinda like a carnitas vibe, which I also do in the slow cooker but finish under the broiler.

[TorqueDog]

These days? It's pretty damned good, I'd say a solid 9.

This year was a lot of ups and downs for the first six months; started counselling, moving out and divorcing my spouse, lost some friends in the process (without them even talking to me). There were some tough times, to be sure.

For the first time in five years, I'm feeling like myself again and I'm at ease. I've learned (or perhaps remembered) that I really like myself. Who I was before my marriage and who I am now are the same person, and that person is pretty damned awesome. They're friendly and kind, happy and personable, generous, nonjudgmental, reasonable and open-minded, and dependable. I did not like what life became over the last several years (and what I became by extension) and it made me miserable. Life is really great now and it's poised to get even better.

I credit a few things for the improvement.
- Getting out of a bad relationship situation. Life's too short to be unhappy, so choose to be happy. I did, and though it was a painful, difficult, and emotional journey, the destination offers the sunniest of days and bluest of skies.

- Finding a good counsellor. This can be easier said than done but I managed to hit it right on the button the first time and found a great fit with who I see. Game-changing.

- Learning how to communicate and 'argue' a bit better. Some of this was just me getting a handle on what things trip me up, and some of it was some insight I found from -- of all places -- a lawyer on Instagram. Never thought I'd say that.

- Filtering what I'm exposing myself to in terms of current events, news cycle, other 'drama', etc. We all have a certain amount of bandwidth for stuff in a day, and I was usually overrunning it substantially by paying way too much attention to stuff that didn't merit my attention. If I have no influence or control over something, then knowing what it is will suffice, I don't need regular updates, and I don't need to jump into the discussion about it. To quote timun from the "How much damage did Covid do?" thread, "the last three years has consisted of a rapid-fire succession of causes célèbres". I'm out of f-cks to give for topics where the most I can contribute is "down with this sort of thing". If I can't vote for or significantly influence change, it doesn't earn nor deserve my bandwidth.

This year, I'm visiting my family over Christmas for the first time since 2016. That sounds completely mental to say aloud, but it's true. They're getting up there and I've committed to spending more time with them for whatever time they've got left, at least three times a year if I can help it.

I've reconnected with a bunch of friends I was worried were lost, and things are as good as they have ever been, and I've made plenty of new ones too. There's a lot of reasons to be pretty damned happy about life these days.

So yeah. 9/10, definitely pleased with where things are at these days.

[Traditional_Ale]

It flips between a 1 and a 10.

10, being that I've been sober over a year now and have had so many miracles happen because of it that life is an exciting challenge again that I look forward to.

1, being that I've been sober over a year now and come to realize and accept that I absolutely hate Calgary, Alberta, and pretty much all of Canada except Newfoundland. And that this isn't a projection, or a drunk depression, or any of that. I really well and truly do hate this country. And being a dual citizen with the UK, my ticket is booked and I am getting the eff out of here for good. Plastic fake country with worthless money and absolutely no remarkable achievements VS the epicenter of culture for the entire western world.

The door won't be hitting me on the ass as I leave. I'll have kicked it down, clean off its hinges.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by Traditional_Ale

It flips between a 1 and a 10.

10, being that I've been sober over a year now and have had so many miracles happen because of it that life is an exciting challenge again that I look forward to.

1, being that I've been sober over a year now and come to realize and accept that I absolutely hate Calgary, Alberta, and pretty much all of Canada except Newfoundland. And that this isn't a projection, or a drunk depression, or any of that. I really well and truly do hate this country. And being a dual citizen with the UK, my ticket is booked and I am getting the eff out of here for good. Plastic fake country with worthless money and absolutely no remarkable achievements VS the epicenter of culture for the entire western world.

The door won't be hitting me on the ass as I leave. I'll have kicked it down, clean off its hinges.

About the UK, bit of a dumpster fire right now

[jayswin]

Yeah, I was going to say, if you think things have gone downhill here....

[Traditional_Ale]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

About the UK, bit of a dumpster fire right now

With a minimum wage in real money worth more than a third year skilled trade here. With free museums and galleries housing priceless works. With a live music scene that is the envy of the world. With people who take pride in their towns, and genuinely feel a part of a community. With goddamn rent controls.

Just look at the pathetic fallout over something as simple as the Peace Bridge. By Calgary logic, London should tear down Big Ben to save on the cleaning bill. A city of 1.5-million people and no nightclubs? Berlin as a city in and of itself makes 2-BILLION euros a year from their nightlife.

There is nothing for anyone to aspire to in Calgary outside of only making money, because there is absolutely nothing else here anyone values at all. There has not been one single new legit museum or gallery built in Calgary in almost FOUR GENERATIONS.

If I'm going to be a broke nobody struggling to survive while continuing to pursue my dreams, I'm going to do it in a place where there are reasons to actually make it worth while.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by Traditional_Ale

With a minimum wage in real money worth more than a third year skilled trade here. With free museums and galleries housing priceless works. With a live music scene that is the envy of the world. With people who take pride in their towns, and genuinely feel a part of a community. With goddamn rent controls.

Just look at the pathetic fallout over something as simple as the Peace Bridge. By Calgary logic, London should tear down Big Ben to save on the cleaning bill. A city of 1.5-million people and no nightclubs? Berlin as a city in and of itself makes 2-BILLION euros a year from their nightlife.

There is nothing for anyone to aspire to in Calgary outside of only making money, because there is absolutely nothing else here anyone values at all. There has not been one single new legit museum or gallery built in Calgary in almost FOUR GENERATIONS.

If I'm going to be a broke nobody struggling to survive while continuing to pursue my dreams, I'm going to do it in a place where there are reasons to actually make it worth while.

I love the UK, mostly because its such a brokedown ramshackle craphole but there are no rent controls and no one gives a flying toss about their communities, people dump crap anywhere.

I cannot imagine being anywhere better when I was a drunken teenager going to see bands, we Brits can party better than anyone else on the planet but that is all we can do

[jayswin]

the grass is always greener?