La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
I made the mistake yesterday of unquestioningly upgrading to Mac OS Tahoe 26.2. These upgrades usually come with problems and this one has given me a headache since yesterday afternoon. Things seem to have finally settled down this afternoon and I’ve been able to reply to comments and put this post together.
Tilt in the title refers to the first bar photo below. That is not a place I’d enjoy having a drink. The world would be on tilt before I even started. Then there’s SPAM. SG had plenty of SPAM when he was growing up and he liked it. In the age of the microwave oven, his grandfather loved to “fry” a slice (slab?) of SPAM topped by Velveeta. I may have added the Velveeta in my head, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
For those of you unfamiliar, Velveeta is a “pasteurized processsed cheese product” (similar to American cheese which isn’t real cheese either) popular in many parts of the USA. That wasn’t on my family’s menu either.
But back to the SPAM: One day when we were out for a very good Spanish lunch with Matt and Lindy here in Córdoba, we were served a free tapa before the meal. The restaurant usually serves a great selection. This time it was primarily “sticks” of processed meat. Matt tasted it and said, “It’s SPAM-ish.” That did it for me. He grew up in South Dakota and he knows SPAM. I think he became a chef to overcome his childhood.
Thus ends my random post that includes photos taken in recent weeks and never shared. The golden man in the top hat above stands on the uppermost level of a parking garage along the river. He’d be novel to have around the house.
Ayer cometí el error de actualizar sin pensarlo a Mac OS Tahoe 26.2. Estas actualizaciones suelen traer problemas, y esta me ha dado un dolor de cabeza desde ayer por la tarde. Parece que la cosa se ha calmado esta tarde y he podido responder a los comentarios y escribir esta entrada.
El “tilt” (inclinación) del título se refiere a la primera foto del bar de abajo. No es un sitio donde me gustaría tomar una copa. El mundo estaría alborotado antes de que yo empezara. Y luego está el SPAM. SG tenía muchísimo SPAM de pequeño y le encantaba. En la era del microondas, a su abuelo le encantaba “freír” una rebanada (¿o un trozo?) de SPAM con Velveeta por encima. Puede que haya añadido el Velveeta en mi cabeza, pero esa es mi historia y me atengo a ella.
Para quienes no lo sepan, el Velveeta es un “producto lácteo procesado” (similar al queso americano, que tampoco es queso real) popular en muchas partes de los Estados Unidos. Eso tampoco estaba en el menú de mi familia.
Pero volviendo al SPAM: Un día, cuando salimos a disfrutar de una comida española buenísima con Matt y Lindy aquí en Córdoba, nos sirvieron una tapa gratis antes de la comida. El restaurante suele tener una gran selección. Esta vez se trataba principalmente de palitos de carne procesada. Matt los probó y dijo: “Parece SPAMecito”. Eso me convenció. Creció en Dakota del Sur y sabe lo que es el SPAM. Creo que se hizo chef para superar su infancia.
Así termina mi post aleatoria que incluye fotos de las últimas semanas y nunca compartidas. El hombre dorado con el sombrero de copa de arriba se encuentra en el nivel más alto de un estacionamiento junto al río. Sería una novedad tenerlo en casa.
• 17th-century monument to Archangel Raphael, the eternal guardian of Córdoba. See next image.
• Monumento del siglo XVII al Arcángel Rafael, eterno guardián de Córdoba. Ver siguiente imagen.
• Me encanta la palmera de mármol. A primera vista, pensé que el caballo pastando era un rinoceronte. Mezquita/Catedral a la extrema derecha.
• Visto cuando Matt y yo estábamos caminando por el río una tarde.
That cat has “What you doin’ here, bud…” written all over his face.
wickedhamster:
That’s exactly what I thought.
PS: Thoise meat sticks look a heck of a lot better than Spam, i.e., they look like they really are meat.
wickedhamster:
Yes, they were real meat. I didn’t like imagining SPAM.
Indeed! The Top Hat fellow could make a great coat rack in our front hall.
Spam makes me squirm.
Jim:
I agree about Top Hat man. What a conversation piece. SQUIRM could be another name for SPAM.
SPAM, a salt lick wrapped in a vomit inducing overcoat of gelatinous fat. It’s up there with beets and brussel sprouts on my loathing list. I do, however, love Velveeta. What can I say? I’m just a cheesy, or faux-cheesy person. Don’t judge.
Deedles:
You have such a way with words. I’ll remember that if anyone asks me what SPAM is. But I LOVE Brussels sprouts. I trash Velveeta, but I used to eat American cheese. What’s the diff?
Deedles, I will never ever eat spam or beets. Brussel sprouts should burn in hell. Some dishes must be made with Velveeta. I have an open box in the refrigerator.
I used to like SPAM (call me naff, I don’t care), but the Madam opened a tin of the stuff the other day, and it really is tasteless muck nowadays – I can only assume the manufacturers have reduced the salt content, or at least some of the artificial “flavour-enhancers” we liked. I’m sure I have mentioned it before, but it (and our UK equivalent “luncheon meat”) was invented as an attempt to replicate Italian Mortadella, which, despite its pretentions and its pistachios, is more-or-less the same in its composition – pulped pork – if not in its taste)…
The SPAM-ish does look more like pressed ham (terrine), and I am sure it was tasty. Jx
Jon:
What a shame. It sounds like they made SPAM healthier (well, less unhealthy). I just couldn’t do it. And, yes, those meats imitate mortadella, but not well.
Yes, I would eat the spamish. I buy Spam a couple of times a year, and eat it out of sight and smell of my sweet bear who is horrified by the concept. The French do all kinds of amazing spamish terrines.
David:
SPAM-ish can be much less offensive than SPAM. I’d be horrified, too.
Velveeta is a poor relation of Chez Wiz. I’ve seen carved marble mantlepieces that reminded me of spam and its relatives, head cheese, pressed meat, all that. Reddish with inclusions!
Boud:
Wow! I could never imagine anything being described as a poor relation to Cheez Whiz. That’s one sad family tree!
Man, I was raised on Velveeta and Cheez Whiz! I don’t miss Velveeta but I still do get an occasional hankering for Cheez Whiz, goddess help me.
Debra:
Admittedly, there was a time, the munchies phase of my life, when I enjoyed Cheese Whiz. We once had a guest at our hotel, a steroid-loaded guy with an attitude to match. He had boxes of Ritz crackers and cans of Cheese Whiz all over his room. It seemed he lived on it until he went out in the late morning. I could never look at Cheese Whiz again.
My laptop wanted me to upgrade to Tahoe yesterday and I was on the verge of doing it. Now I’m not so sure.
Rotel dip using Velveeta is a party staple in my neck of the woods.
Okay…. I’ve been thinking (obsessing) about it and I need to know what kind of problems you experienced. Had you already done the recent phone update? (which also uses that “liquid glass” effect that I’m not fond of). I didn’t see anything in Tahoe that I particularly wanted, but sometimes they have security updates so I’m hesitant to skip them.
Kelly:
Everything seemed to have re-find itself when I started working. So things took forever. Then there were network problems, only on my iPad and Imac (the only machines upgraded), no problems on SG’s machines. Things appear to have settled after I reset the modem. I’m the same as you when it comes to the upgrades. I don’t to miss security updates and bug fixes.
This page should tell you whether you need to upgrade in order to get the latest security updates: https://support.apple.com/en-us/100100
Kelly:
Thanks. I’ll save this link.
Kelly:
You’re not the only one to mention Rotel dip. I had to look it up (and that was enough for me).
I do believe there may have been some Spam in my childhood but when you consider that bologna was almost an everyday staple, the Spam was sort of a treat when fried. I believe Velveeta would have been better than the cheese my mother bought which was orange and tasted of just about nothing except random oily fat. And I’m with Kelly- queso dip made with Velveeta and a can of Rotel tomatoes is a treat with tortilla chips. My kids always tease me about loving it but they love it too so…
My friend Liz went to the Spam museum in Minnesota last summer. I asked if there were samples and she said, yes, there were, and in fact they were pretty tasty which shocked her.
Ms. Obviously I Have Gourmet Tastes Moon
Ms. Obviously-I-Have-Gourmet-Tastes Moon:
Do you remember Underwood deviled ham? I used to see billboards for that. Isn’t that similar to SPAM? It’s interesting that I’m so high and mighty about Velveeta. I used to buy a huge block of American cheese at Costco!
I do remember Underwood Deviled Ham but can’t recall ever eating it. I think it may have been different from Spam in that the “ham” was pureed with mayonnaise or something. I don’t know. Do you remember Vienna sausages? Fishermen often packed saltines and a can of those for their lunches. Truly disgusting little…things.
My grandmother used to buy cheese spreads, including pimento, that came in little glasses you could use as juice glasses after eating all the spread. Back when a serving of juice was about four ounces. I loved that stuff. The cheese spread, that is, although juice is good too.
Ms. Moon:
Underwood deviled ham ingredients: Ham (Cured with Water, Salt, Brown Sugar, Sodium Nitrite) and Seasoning (Mustard Flour, Spices, Turmeric).
I remember Vienna sausages. Another thing my family never served.
Being English and growing up in the 70’s spam sandwiches 🥪 with English mustard was a staple food. I survived to progress to a better cuisine. 😂
Karen:
With English mustard, so elegant.
I also thought the horse was a rhinoceros! Love the cat on the blanket in the tree. I guess we know why Full Tilt got its name!
Steve:
Oh, thank you, regarding the rhino! I thought I was the only one.
When I lived on Maui I learned that SPAM was one of the number one imports to the island and I still passed on it!!!
Bob:
Yes! SPAM became a staple of Hawaiian food. Hawaiian restaurants in California had loads of Spam dishes. When did you live in Maui? My best friend from Boston lived there and we visited.
I was there off and on in the early to mid 90s; my longest stretch was two years and a few months.
Spam and Velvetta cheese. American cuisine at its finest. (NOT)
Michael:
I read that Velveeta had originally been made with real cheese. Imagine!
We have a small laptop but I don’t use it anymore. I do envy a Mac though, that’s a sweet computer 🖥️
Adam
Nekorandom.com
Adam:
I had been in the graphic arts so started off using Macs. We each have an iMac, iPad, iPhone, and MacBook. The MacBooks are so old, though, that they’ve been retired and will not be replaced.
The gentleman in the top hat looks as if he could be made of butter. He could pose next to the butter cow at a state fair in the Midwest. As far as my mother was concerned, cheese was Velveeta. She made delicious macaroni and cheese with it, and a dip with Rotel tomatoes that we only had on Christmas Eve. I don’t think we ever had real cheese in the house.
Love,
Janie
janiejunebug:
It reminded me, too, of a butter sculpture. I was wondering what color I could paint it if I brought it home.
Neon colors
I think I’ve had SPAM a few times over the years. Just too many chemicals in it (gee… why was it a shelf-stable product for soldiers in WWII?) for my preference.
As for the Mac iOS upgrade; if you really get frustrated with the operating system, I recently upgraded to Zorin Linux 18 (Pro) which replaced my Windows 11 OS. I like it a lot! And they have an iOS version, too! I don’t miss the bloat of Windows. My laptop runs so much smoother now. Zorin comes with the LibreOffice suite (replaces word, Excel, etc.), and all of those .DOC, .PPT, etc. files open just fine on LibreOffice. Been using Thunderbird Mail for several months now (replaced Outlook). Just a thought.
Rade:
Now that sounds scary to me, installing a pseudo-Mac upgrade. Apple might send their zombie hunters to destroy it.
I had SPAM when we went to Hawaii and I liked it.
I don’t know about Velveeta tho.
And I love that statue!
I keep my Mac up to date always. I also read MacNews to learn about the quirks. That’s how I avoid surprises.
XOXO
Sixpence:
Yeah, I try to stay ahead of the upgrades and know the issues. This time, I simply said, install. But all is well now.
Yes it is SPAM or Corn Beef. Why would it be served in Spain, that is a mystery. It does not pair well with red wine.
larrymuffin:
There are all different kinds of cured sausages and meats here. Also good with beer.
Yes indeed the Spaniards are very good with cured meats, a top product.
Haven’t had Spam since I was a kid. Can’t remember if I liked it or not.
Kirk:
Well, I’m guessing you at least didn’t mind it. If you hated it, you’d remember.
Spam and Velveeta was never on our menu growing up either. Back when I was doing the river guide thing, the 3 day wilderness canoe camping through boquillas Canyon in Big Bend, we never really discussed the meals at the pre-trip meeting with the guests. On the way to put-in one time someone inquired about the meals, which were really pretty good, food can make or break a camping trip. Anyway, we joked, telling him the it was Spam. Spam for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I don’t think he quite appreciated our joke.
That marble palm tree looks a little the worse for wear.
ellen abbott:
The palm tree looks a bit storm-tossed.
It gladdens me to know SPAM is there for all to partake.
Urspo:
I’m thankful, we weren’t served real SPAM.