Stumbled across this recipe while looking up something on Albini for a Staple mag article on Die!Die!Die! due to come out in the next issue. Turns out the man has a lot to say about food, the cheffing abilities of US underground rock figures, and is typically acerbic, informed and entertaining on the subject.

Anyone who's tried it will know how difficult but potentially rewarding it is to try and make mayo at home, but I hope this inspires a few brave souls to try. Do it right, and you'll never go back to Eta.

Here is a recipe anyone can use to make a wonderful Sauce Mayonnaise:

Into a stationary blender, crack one egg. Add an extra egg yolk, one garlic clove, a strong quarter teaspoon of cayenne (or a teaspoon of white pepper ground very fine) and either a slight teaspoon of salt or a tablespoon of Tamari soy sauce. Blend at high speed until the garlic is finely divided and the egg begins to froth. With the blender still running, trickle in good olive oil until the mayonnaise thickens and will accept no more oil. (this will vary, but will usually be about a cup.) Stop the blender and add a tablespoon of good vinegar OR the juice of half a lemon. Fold the mayonnaise once or twice with a spatula, which will loosen it considerably. Pulse the blender until the thick consistency returns. Taste If the mayonnaise tastes oily, add more acid (vinegar or lemon juice only. Never combine the two, as this makes for a weird bilious aftertaste). Chill covered for at least 15 minutes. I often add a tablespoon of fresh or dried dill or thyme at the beginning of the process. Don't add the acid at the beginning, as this can prevent the eggs from emulsifying.

Albini may be a freak but he don't f*ck around when it comes to quality and he knows how to get the basics right. Trust the man. Mayo is art.

Finally bought an MP3 player. Not an ipod. A notpod. A Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra. Not as snappy sounding as an ipod, not as pretty as an ipod (not even close), but 40G of music all the same. And a fraction of the price. One half, to be precise.

Plenty of mac-o-phile self-justification on salon and hardnews last week. Get over it - they look incredible, they cost a lot, end of story. PCs are cheap and ubiquitous and Microsoft sucks. End result: when you use a PC you have to endure with spam and viruses and bloatware, but the hardware is half the price and you seldom have to pay for software (wink wink, nudge nudge). File 'sharing' is more fun with PC apps cos there are more users, therefore more files to 'share'. There's pluses and minuses either way but I find the whole mac-user moral high ground thing tiresome as hell. It's mostly product design and marketing and the benefits of belonging to an elite fringe of users versus the great spammy beigebox unwashed.

So anyway, I'm now able to access all the 40GB of music I've downloaded over the last few years in this one little box. Lord knows how many months that'd keep me going if listened back to back.

Not surprisingly, there's a ton of stuff I've found that I'd forgotten about. One tends to obsess over getting a certain track, album, mix whatever, then move onto the next 'must-have' before even listening to it. Kinda like insatiable retail therapy but no money involved, heh heh. Muziklust.

(Prompted by the ramblings of National Justice spokesperson Richard Worth who, among others, believes we should change it cos people protest on Waitangi Day...)

1. Like it or not, the Treaty is our founding document, so it's the logical day to celebrate our 'nationhood', more so than any other. The other candidates just don't make sense. Anzac Day commemorates dead army guys, but also signifies military-strategic ineptitude, colonial subservience, and it's just a downer. Worth suggests 24 May, the day in 1852 that New Zealand was granted responsible government. That is, when settler politicians took over the administration of the colony from Britain. (Actually, from a Treaty point of view, this wasn't much to celebrate.) It's also, as Worth helpfully points out, Queen Victoria's Birthday. 'Nuff said - surely we can do better than that...?

2. I agree with Hone Haraiwra - peaceful protest on the national day is not a problem. Protest brings positive change and, as Harawira points out, it has a valid place in Maori and Pakeha society. It's a debate, man... So things aren't perfect, people exchange views, fer chrissakes - what is Worth afraid of? We're still negotiating our colonial past. It's fine that this happens in New Zealand - c.f. the Hallmark patriotism of national days elsewhere. Debate is OKAY. Ditto for the cultural vs gender stuff - tikanga of women on marae etc - I don't believe there's one correct answer to those issues - but it's sure a good thing that they're getting aired publicly.

3. It's hot actually hot most parts of the country in February, so it's usually a good day to have off.

4. It's also close to Chinese New Years - adding a multi- as well as bi-cultural touch. Come to think of it, maybe we should change our New Years to be the same as the Chinese one (again, for meteorological reasons - ref. point 3).

5. It's also Bob Marley's birthday, which is cool, and we know our country has long a 'thing' for reggae.

6. It's been our national day for a long time since the 60s at least, so it's already traditional, and the force of inertia favours leaving it where it is.

So - why don't those flag guys devote their efforts to having Waitangi Day Monday-ized?