Blog Tag - Five Things You Don't Know About Me

The Moth tagged me, so now you'll find out more than you wanted to know about me.

1. I scream like a 7 year old girl when I see a cicada bug.
In 2004, Brood X cicadas overran the eastern United States. Three days a week, I had to get in and out of an office building surrounded by swarms of cicadas. At first, I was curious about the bugs. Curiosity turned to terror. After one week, I lost all traces of rationality. I started to think the bugs were carnivorous space aliens who wanted to crawl inside my ear and eat my internal organs. The security guard at the building once wanted to call for an ambulance to pick me up. The guard though I was having a cardiac arrest - I was only trying to shake a cicada off my shoulder.

2. My crab cakes are the best ever!
In school I needed to make money for, um, books - that's it, so I had some formal training in the kitchen and logged quite a few hours as a line cook in a steak house. I still love cooking. One of my specialties is crab cakes.

Scott's Crab Cakes Recipe

1 lb. Backfin crabmeat
1 large egg
A touch (~ 1 tsp) of Worcestershire sauce
A touch (~ 1 tsp) of dry mustard
A heavy touch (to taste) of Old Bay seasoning

I combine all the ingredients in a bowl and gently mix with my fingers. I then shape the mix into 6 firm cakes. Cooking without filler and breadcrumbs can be tricky, but to me those ingredients ruin the taste of crab. If the cakes are firm enough, and the pan (with very little butter) is just the right temperature, I can make nice, brown crab cakes in about 10 minutes, and without the cakes falling apart.

3. I almost went to school to be a musician instead of an engineer.
Not an uncommon occurrence in the software world, it seems. I still play the trumpet and flügelhorn in the occasional community theater production. I wish I had the time to practice more often and keep my chops up enough to play a tune like Maynard's Chameleon. RIP, Maynard - we miss you.

4. The K stands for Kenneth.
My parents named me after an uncle who passed away before I knew him, but they wanted me to be called by my middle name of Scott.

5. Retirement Plans
I'm thinking of one day retiring in Goa. I might open a small jazz club with a dining area. Maybe I'll call it Ken's.

Now I have to tag 5 others to see if they'll play in this meme and tell us 5 things we don't know about them. In no particular order:

Phil Haack
Rick Strahl
Anil John
Sahil Malik
Milan Negovan