Kowalski Heat Treating Blog - Kowalski Heat Treating

Wine About It

October 18, 2024/0 Comments/in Friday Afternoon /by Steve Kowalski

As summer gradually draws to a close, farmers nationwide are focused on harvesting – major crops like corn and grains, soybeans, all sorts of apples and of course grapes, not only here in the US, but throughout the world. This annual ritual marks the culmination of months of careful cultivation and anticipation, marked by intensive activity in vineyards, where growers aim to harvest grapes at their absolute peak ripeness. Knowing when things are “just right” takes experience, science and expertise, to be sure the grapes have fully developed and can become part of a wonderful harvest. (Talk about a PIA (Pain in the @%$) Job! – wow. Here at KHT, so many of our processes involve the right temperature and the right timing – come to think of it, I’m sort of a thermal processing “vigneron”, carefully managing time and temperature to make your parts we process “great”… (wonder if my wife Jackie agrees?). I dug into the fall harvest of grapes and found some really fun and interesting facts and trivia I think you’ll enjoy. For those reading after hours, be sure to pour yourself a glass of wine, and celebrate along with the wonderful people and industry that makes this possible. Enjoy!

Live From New York

October 11, 2024/0 Comments/in Friday Afternoon, TV /by Steve Kowalski

Ever since I can remember, and mostly during my teen years, Saturday nights were reserved to watch) Saturday Night Live (SNL), an iconic American television show that has had a profound impact on popular culture, comedy, and television since its debut – it first aired today on October 11, 1975… can you believe almost 50 YEARS!! Created by Lorne Michaels and originally titled NBC’s Saturday Night due to a naming conflict, it was envisioned as a live comedy show that would blend sketch comedy, political satire, and musical performances, presented by a guest host each week. Like many of you growing up, there are SO many skits and characters I’ve fallen in love with. But there’s still something about the original cast, referred to as the “Not Ready for Prime-Time Players”, including comedy legends like Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Gilda Radner, Garrett Morris, Jane Curtin, and Laraine Newman. What they did on live TV had never been done before. They set the standard for what would become a launching pad for comedic talent and a fixture on Saturday nights. As you can imagine, there is a “ton” of information and memories about the show (Wikipedia alone lists twenty separate write-ups broken into 5-year segments. I’ll do my best to hit some of the highlights of the “early” days. Special thanks to Google, Wikipedia and YouTube for the info. Enjoy!!

Cheesy

October 4, 2024/0 Comments/in Cheese, Food, Friday Afternoon /by Steve Kowalski

Cheese, glorious cheese. I think I just about like every cheese I’ve tasted. I like it cold, gooey warm, and piping hot. I put it on top of food, eat it on crackers (nothing quite like a slice of cheese, a piece of salami on a good cracker with a glass of my favorite vino!), love cheesecake, melt big slabs on my burgers and even go for those little corn curls that make my fingers turn orange. Yep, I’m a cheese lover. I did some digging and found it’s one of humanity’s oldest culinary creations. Research says cheese has been around for nearly 4,000 years and comes in more than 1,800 varieties. Here’s a “sampler platter” of facts about everybody’s favorite dairy product. Thanks to interestingfacts.com, youtube.com, Wikipedia, and Facebook for the info – Enjoy!