For the record, this is from Denise and I’m posting it here for Kris.

• One Duncan Heinz Butter Recipe Fudge cake mix (if you can find it; if not, any chocolate cake mix will work)
• 1/3 cup oil — you might try Walnut oil.  A little expensive but pretty freaking good.
• 2 eggs
• 1 bag Kraft caramels
• 12 oz. Chocolate chips
• 12 oz Heath Bar chips
• 14 oz Eagle Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 1 stick butter

Use a 9 x 14 pan, spray it with Pam or something similar.

Start by  melting together the caramels, butter and condensed milk.  You might want a double boiler but if you don’t have one any pan over low heat will do.  Stir frequently & DO NOT burn.

Mix together the cake mix, oil, eggs, chocolate chips & toffee.  This will be VERY thick and will take some effort.  I have occassionally mixed in an extra egg — tastes fine.

Take 1/2 of the cake mix, and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.  Remove.  Pour the caramel mixture on.  Take the remaining cake mix and crumble it on top of the caramel.  Bake for another 25 minutes.  Remove and let cool.

I like to let it cool and then either freeze it or put it someplace cold — our three season room in winter, for example — and let it get nice and cool before cutting.  Cut into small sqaures and serve.  You should think twice before making a double batch.

OK so yeah I realize times are tough even at the 24 hour news channels but COME ON.  Your advice for small businesses now is to “Get Online”?  Really?  REALLY?  They might as well add “Put your sock puppet on the superbowl!”

IMHO, these businesses that aren’t online, these should be the first fat cut out of the economy.  If this story had been something more like “Why did you business fail?” I would be pretty happy with the saying, “Because you ignored this new fangled thing, the Internet.”

Of course, if by Get Online, they mean using some of the software as a service offerings that are behind my gig, that’s another story and I take back this entire rant.

Other fascinating pieces on CNN this AM: the guy who is literally selling his right testicle on eBay (he doesn’t expect it to sell) and a story about 15 city workers who are splitting a $207 million lottery.  One guys says, “It just goes to show, if you play, you might win.” Makes me want to find a site for people who lost.