Lemming Tracks: The Lemming's Taking a Sabbatical, Sort Of

The Lemming's done time in American academia, and grew up in that subculture: so for the Lemming, a "sabbatical" is what the University of Sussex says it is: "A period of time (usually a term) when a faculty member is not teaching, but concentrating on his/her own education or research."

Sussex is on the other side of the Atlantic, the Lemming isn't a faculty member, and doesn't intend to be gone for a term. For that matter, the Lemming's not going to be doing his own education or research. Not entirely, that is.

But "taking a sabbatical" sounded cooler than "taking a break."

Besides, being the company gopher at a convention isn't exactly "taking a break."

"Company?" What Company?

The Lemming's involved with the company that makes Spiral Light Candles. If a picture's worth a thousand words, this half-size video should be a real time-saver. It's a time-lapse of a Spiral Light Candle - the thing takes about two hours to burn.

"Spiral Self Filling Candle"

(shown half-size: full version at YouTube)
Ryan Theis, YouTube (Oct 12, 2012)
video, 0:19

"A candle that burns around a hollow center and fills itself...."

The Lemming's son-in-law is showing the things at a trade show in Philadelphia next week. Just outside Philadelphia, actually: but the Lemming figures you're more like to know where Philadelphia is, than King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

Besides being the company gopher at the convention trade show, the Lemming's going to be handling streaming video - using software that the Lemming didn't know about last week.

Between getting on speaking terms with a new-to-the-Lemming technology, and miscellaneous other preparations, the Lemming thinks it's best to not try posting in this blog - or the Lemming's other 'daily.' Not for the rest of this week. Or, probably, next week.

Return of the Lemming

The Lemming doesn't know what the trade show schedule will be like - and jobs one and two will be gophering and managing a video feed. So the Lemming will either have opportunities to post from Pennsylvania - or not. Eventually, the Lemming plans and hopes to return to central Minnesota, and the small town he's called home for the last quarter-century.

When that's going to happen? Good question - the Lemming's letting someone else do the heavy lifting with those decisions.

It's Not Research, Quite; or Education, Exactly

Since someone else is doing the driving at least part of the way to Pennsylvania, the Lemming's taking along story notes and sketches - and plans to get a little creative time in. There's a project or two that's been on the 'back burner' for - too long, and the Lemming hopes to change that situation.

And that's another topic.

Not-entirely-unrelated posts:

• "Lemming Tracks: The Lemming's Taking the Day Off - Again"
  (May 4, 2011)
• "Lemming Tracks: The Lemming's Taking the Day Off"
  (May 1, 2011)
• "And Now, for Something Completely Different: a Spiral Candle Video"
  (March 16, 2011)
• "Lemming Tracks: The Lemming is Cutting Back"
  (February 21, 2011)
• "Lemming Tracks: The Lemming Took Monday Off"
  (December 27, 2010)

More about the Catholic Marketing Network Trade Show and me:

• "Catholic Marketing Network Trade Show"
  Starting a Small Business Without Losing My Mind

King Tut - In Minnesota

"Enter the Golden World of the Pharaohs"
Science Museum of Minnesota (exhibit ends September 5)

"Time is running out! Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs ends soon.

"It took 3,000 years for them to make it to Minnesota, and in only a few short weeks, they'll be going away. Don't miss your rare opportunity to see priceless artifacts that tell the captivating story of royal life in ancient Egypt. King Tut features dozens of stunning artifacts from the tombs of some of ancient Egypt's most powerful and well-known rulers, including beautifully-crafted statues of Khafre, the builder of the Great Sphinx; Hatshepsut, the queen who became a pharaoh; and King Tut's father, Akhenaten.

The exhibition's final galleries are dedicated to King Tut's famous tomb, including an area devoted to its discovery by British explorer Howard Carter in 1922...."

The Lemming saw a King Tut Exhibit in San Francisco, about a third of a century back. The artifacts on display then were - quite remarkable. The mask of Tutankhamen in particular was a great deal more lifelike 'in person,' than in photos. Whether or not the Lemming will see this exhibition - is a good question.

The Tut exhibit is traveling - so the Lemming put a link to Tutankamon at the end of this post. And in the preceding sentence.

Related posts:

• "Ancient Dodecahedrons, and Crocodile Clocks"
  (June 15, 2011)
• "Egypt: The Lost Capital of Ramses II, Pi-Ramses"
  (February 4, 2011)
• "Anubis at Denver Airport: 'Have a Nice Flight' "
  (June 4, 2010)
• "Cat God Temple Found in Alexandria - The One in Egypt"
  (January 21, 2010)
• "So, You Think the Pyramids and Stonehenge are Old?"
  (November 15, 2008)

More:

• Tutankamon
  The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs
  Arts & Exhibitions International, AEG Exhibitions and National Geographic with cooperation from Egypt’s Ministry of State for Antiquities

Brunost, Ekte Gjetost, and Gamalost - the Cheese with Personality

"Brown Cheese And Birch: Nordic Foods' Appeal Grows"
J. S. MARCUS, Food & Drink, The Wall Street Journal (July 21, 2011)

"The bright-orange sea-buckthorn berry may sound like something from Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. In fact, it's one of Scandinavian cuisine's star ingredients, which are driving adventurous foodies to forage in cutting-edge restaurants, Pacific-Northwest wine bars, local health-food stores and IKEA outlets.

" 'I love the boom,' says Marcus Samuelsson, the Swedish-raised New York chef who helped pioneer awareness of Scandinavian cuisine in the U.S. when he was executive chef at Aquavit, which he co-owns.

"Mr. Samuelsson uses aromatic cloudberries-'the king of berries,' he calls them—in sorbet and serves the sour sea-buckthorn berries with game meats. He sometimes spikes a sauce with Norwegian brunost, a sweet brown cheese traditionally made from caramelized goat's milk whey. "It's like goat-cheese butter," Mr. Samuelsson says...."

Brunost is okay - more than just okay - but the Lemming wonder's if what's sold in the Pacific Northwest is, quite, Brunost. At least one sort of Norwegian goat cheese, packaged for export to the United States, turned out to be diluted - 50% goat cheese, 50% the sort of bovine cheese most Americans are used to.

Sure, it tasted sort of like a half-strength gjetost, which it was - but it wasn't gjetost. Somewhat of an anticlimax for the Lemming, who remembers real gjetost. And Primost.

This, perhaps, really is ekte gjetost - real gjetost:

"Ekte Gjetost 100% Goat Cheese"
CheeseSupply.com

"Ekte Gjetost means pure goat cheese in Norwegian. Ekte Gjetost is a unique Norwegian whey cheese made from 100% goat's whey, its colour is darker than Ski Queen's and the flavour richer. Its texture is firm and it is served in thin slices on bread or biscuits...."

"Ekte Gjetost means pure goat cheese in Norwegian"?? Oh-kay. Sort of. The Lemming would have thought it was more like "real goat cheese" - but what the hey: "Pure" is sort of like "real." And the Lemming would expect ekte gjetost to be 'real' gjetost - not half-and-half.

So, there's brunost, and gjetost - ekte and otherwise. But why is there such a thundering silence on the subject of gamalost? Sure, it's got an aroma you'll never forget: and Wikipedia says it's "a brownish-yellow cheese with irregular blue veins."

But what's a little body odor and a complexion issue to someone who's into cheesy food?

The Lemming could have phrased that differently. Probably should have.

Related posts:

• "Lemming Tracks: Fourth of July Weekend, 2011"
  (July 1, 2011)
  • Check out the cheesy sculpture
• "At Last! A History of the Limburger Cheese Sandwich!"
  (January 27, 2011)
• "A Thought for the Day: About Cheese"
  (January 8, 2011)
• "Pumpkin. Spice. Cream Cheese. What's Not to Like?"
  (January 11, 2010)
• "The Moon, Cheese, Aristotle, and What We've Known"
  (October 5, 2009)