Jimmy Carter at 100

 

Former President Carter celebrated his 100th birthday yesterday with a gathering of family and friends at his home in Plains, Georgia. Since leaving the presidency in 1981, Mr. Carter has lived out his Christian faith by engaging in numerous charitable and social projects, most notably through the nonprofit Carter Center in Atlanta, dedicated to advancing human rights and alleviating human suffering around the world. He is a very fine man indeed, and has set a shining example for all who aspire to the White House. God bless him.

And of course, as has often been said, behind every great man is a great woman.  Rosalynn Carter was a stalwart partner to Jimmy who also left her own mark on his White House years.  An excerpt from an interview with the Carters on the occasion of their 75th anniversary in 2021:

-----

The Pork Boys Do M.P.'s Birthday

Owing to spells of illness and sundry domestic crises, we had to put off M.P.'s birthday dinner until last Sunday, which turned out to be a nice, peaceful day here in Texas, the temperature outside merely a balmy 90 degrees.

As per our custom, M.P. - resident cook and chef extraordinaire - asked your Head Trucker to prepare the birthday repast, featuring a childhood favorite of his:  Cajun chicken fricassee over rice, accompanied by sweet peas in butter sauce, fried garlic corn, and toasted garlic bread.  And I am always glad to have a chance to cook for M.P. who, as my longtime truckbuddies know, routinely serves up so many delicious meals for me.  M.P. really loves to cook; he thinks and plans and even dreams about it all the time.  It's his glory and chief delight in life, and he is entirely self-taught.

Your Head Trucker's talents in the kitchen, as in all other areas of life, are few and small.  But I believe I can safely say now that I have mastered the fricassee.  When I first made it for M.P. a couple of years ago, he pronounced it delicious, saying it was just like his mama made it.  But this time, after I've improved the recipe a bit, he declared it excellent and perfect.  He even said with a guilty grin (shhh!) it was better than his mama's!  You can't get higher praise than that.  So now he has given yours truly the accolade of Honorary Cajun with Two Stars, which I shall bear proudly.

Enough talk, here's the pictures - I do wish I could hand you boys a plate.  It's plain cooking, all right, but it will fill you up.  Click the pics to enlarge.

M.P. likes to use a seashore theme for our summer Sunday dinners.  This week, he crafted a whimsical lighthouse out of empty seasoning jars.

Our pretty Sunday dinners, not to mention birthday and holiday meals, always feature wine and candlelight and some festive theme of M.P.'s devising.

Sweet peas and butter on the left, gen-yew-ine Cajun chicken fricassee on the right.  If any of my truckbuddies want the recipe, let me know in the comments and I'll post it.  (First you make a roux . . .)

Fried garlic corn topped with parmesan cheese on the left, plain white rice on the right, fluffy and moist.  And just so you know, the stovetop was spotlessly clean when I started cooking, three-and-a-half hours before this picture was taken.  I can cook or clean, but not both at the same time.

Toasted garlic bread, hot out of the oven, ready to serve.

Lightouse on the rocks.

Alas, your Head Trucker's talents do not extend to cake decorating.  But it's the thought that counts, right?  M.P. was delighted with the strawberry cake, the cream cheese icing, and the watermelon wine.
(Try it, you'll like it!)

----

The Queen's 96th Birthday

A photograph released today of the Queen with two of her ponies,
exemplifying her love of horses.

Her Majesty the Queen, born in 1926, today celebrated her 96th birthday quietly at her Sandringham estate in Norfolk.  As is customary, the big celebration of her Official Birthday will be held in early June, this year combined with four days of festivities to mark her seventy years on the Throne, the Platinum Jubilee.

Her Majesty's lifelong devotion to duty and service to her people, as well as to the other 53 nations of the Commonwealth around the world, are beyond the measure of human acclaim.  Your Head Trucker can add only his humble admiration, and wishes for her every happiness.

God Save the Queen.

Bonus:  For a comprehensive, behind-the-scenes look at the Queen's public and private life, I highly recommend the BBC's beautifully done Elizabeth R, filmed in 1990-91 with Her Majesty's full cooperation - before the unpleasant events of the annus horribilis:

-----

Prince Charles at 70

The Prince of Wales turned 70 yesterday, and celebrated the milestone at a glittering private party in the ballroom of Buckingham Palace with his extended family, including some more distant relatives from among the royal houses of Europe.

The Queen, age 92, and 66 years on the Throne, made this heartfelt toast to her son and heir:

It is a privilege for any mother to be able to propose a toast to her son on his 70th birthday.

It means that you have lived long enough to see your child grow up. It is rather like —to use an analogy I am certain will find favour — planting a tree and being able to watch it grow.

My mother saw me turn 70, of course. And she was heard to observe that 70 is exactly the age when the number of candles on your cake finally exceeds the amount of breath you have to blow them out.

Over his 70 years, Philip and I have seen Charles become a champion of conservation and the arts, a great charitable leader — a dedicated and respected heir to the throne to stand comparison with any in history — and a wonderful father.

Most of all, sustained by his wife Camilla, he is his own man, passionate and creative.

So this toast is to wish a happy birthday to my son, in every respect a duchy original.

To you Charles. To the Prince of Wales.

The official YouTube channel of the British Royal Family has posted this video montage of scenes from the Prince's life:




I admire the PofW very much, and add my congratulations and best regards to those from many other well-wishers around the globe.

Catching Up with the Pork Boys: Spring 2018

In this episode, we find M.P. rapidly returning to full culinary strength for a scrumptious Easter dinner; with the coming of spring, he renews his interest in the lawn and garden; and finally, we celebrate my birthday in full festive style.  Click on any photo to enlarge.

Our Easter hors d'oeuvres began with rainbow-hued Easter-egg cookies - M.P.'s gay improvisation  on "melting moment" cookies, a kind of shortbread.

But that was not all - he made our old favorite deviled eggs in all the colors of the rainbow, too!  And at left, you see a platter of finger sandwiches (homemade pimiento cheese filling), while at top right is a bowl of tasty tandoori meatballs.

Continued below the jump . . .

Trooping the Colour, 2016

Embed from Getty Images

The official celebrations of Her Majesty the Queen's 90th birthday began yesterday in London with a service of thanksgiving at St. Paul's cathedral; and as it happens, yesterday was also the 95th birthday of her consort, HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Embed from Getty Images

Today, the annual Queen's Birthday Parade, also known as Trooping the Colour, took place, with the Queen taking the salute of the Coldstream Guards on Horse Guards Parade, followed by a balcony appearance with the rest of the Royal Family and a splendid fly-past put on by the Royal Air Force. The precision flying of the Red Arrows, seen at the end of the third video below, was surely a breathtaking sight to see.

Happy Birthday, Your Majesty

To mark the Queen's birthday, Royal Mail today issued this set of stamps displaying the line of succession to the Throne, including 
little Prince George in his first philatelic appearance.
Click to enlarge.

Queen Elizabeth II today celebrates her 90th birthday, enjoying sunny skies for a walkabout at Windsor Castle, where she was greeted by many loyal well-wishers and presented with a specially commissioned birthday cake.  Royal salutes were fired in London and other places about the British Isles and the Commonwealth to mark the monarch's birthday.




As is always the custom, the official celebrations will take place on the Queen's Official Birthday in June, but the Prime Minister, Mr. Cameron, filmed a special tribute to his Sovereign, which was released by 10 Downing Street today.




The ITV afternoon news broadcast in Britain was largely devoted to coverage of today's rather low-key events, all but the part from 13:00 to 17:15.




Rarely has the world seen such a splendid example of unwavering public service and steadfast devotion to duty throughout a long and eventful life - truly she is herself the jewel in Britain's crown. The Queen is the only notable person for whom your Head Trucker has undimmed respect and admiration, not to mention affection, and I say with all my heart:  May God bless her - long may she reign!

British Cocktails

This one goes out with Cheers! to my truckbuddy Tim, for today is his eleventy-first birthday - or something like that.

Birthday Quiz

A guest post by my truckbuddy Tim from England, now resident in Spain :

Happy Birthday, Bubba!

Russ turned a certain age this week. Knowing he likes a bit of class, here are six classy studs, one for each decade - plus one to grow on. And just to keep that old brain box ticking over, some questions as well.

1.  First of all, a wash and brush up for the birthday boy, but whose pool is this?

2.  Next, some gentle exercise, Texas style! Ride ‘em, Russ! Name the piece and artist.

3.  Some light refreshment next, a young wine, nice full body! Where is it?

4.  Well, you might not be a Superman, Bubba, but you do seem a decent sort. Name the artist.

5.  I have this image of Russ, wise, magisterial, master of all he surveys. Red suits you! Who and by whom?

6.  After a long hard day, a relaxing snooze, you’ve earned it, Russ, but where are you?

7.  Finally, a beautiful bronze, but what and by who? That patina is so warm, like mahogany, you want to run your hands over the torso!

Many Happy Returns, and many more of them!


Thanks much, Tim - readers, feel free to leave your answers in the comment box below. (Tim says I scored about a 75, which ain't bad for an old peckerwood from Texas.  I tell you what.)  I'll post the answers on Monday.


Update, 6/1: Quiz answers are now posted in the comment box.

The Pork Boys Do My Birthday 2015

My best friend M.P. outdid himself this week with not one but two superb dinners in celebration of my birthday.

First, a totally scrumptious meal of fish and chips, Southern style:  fried tilapia breaded with corn meal, homemade french fries, hushpuppies made from scratch, and a can of Bush's best homestyle baked beans (that was my humble contribution).

For the second night's dinner, the entree was a sort of "pork wellington" - i.e., a succulent pork loin tenderly baked in homemade puff pastry, accompanied by some sultry Cajun gravy:

For a side dish, M.P. dreamed up a festive casserole of potatoes, rutabagas, carrots, sauteed onions, and Ro-Tel tomatoes in a pink bechamel sauce - yummm is the only word to describe it:

Our other vegetable was a homely dish of fried green beans with black pepper mayonnaise on the side - if you haven't tried it, you don't know what you're missing:

The combination of all the above made a very pretty, very delicious plate:

The piece de resistance was M.P.'s own invention, which he calls a Tiger Butter cake - the inside contains stripes of buttery, spicy, sweet and moist cake, topped with a luscious buttercream icing made from scratch; words fail me in attempting to describe how damn good it is. Simply the *best*cake*EVER*** - take my word for it, boys.

And so a good time was had by both, and how sweet it was!

The Prince of Wales at 65

Prince Charles, who was born on November 14, 1948, at Buckingham Palace, celebrated his 65th birthday yesterday in a modest fashion at the British High Commission (read: embassy) in Colombo, Sri Lanka:




After years of wholly unjustified criticism about his opinions on organic farming, environmental awareness, and even the ugliness and dehumanizing effects of modern architecture, among other things, it seems the world - or at least the mainstream media - have finally come around to his way of thinking, judging by the many laudatory articles that have appeared lately in the British press.

Your Head Trucker has always thought the Prince of Wales a very fine man: highly intelligent, conscientious, and deeply concerned about people and the earth. He will make a fine king when the time comes. He is not, and never has been, just idly sitting around, twiddling his thumbs until the crown plops down on his head; as this interview with the Duchess of Cornwall reveals, the man hardly ever stops working on projects to benefit others - which the mainstream media rarely bothers to report on.

The business about Diana, well - all that is over and done now, and life goes on. So I send a birthday cheer of good wishes to HRH from Texas, and I hope all my truckbuddies will join in.