Swing Vote

Swing Vote (2008)

I was surprised by how much I liked this film. Sure it's cheesy and improbably, but highly watchable and rather touching. I cried, alright? I'll admit it. And it was more than a one tissue tear-fest. First off, Molly Johnson, a fifth grader, is inspiring and brave and resilient and has a sad life. If her screwed-up dad didn't love her as much as he clearly does, I'd have had trouble watching this film. Here's a synopsis from IMDB:

November, 2004, New Mexico. Bud is a slacker with one good thing in his life, his engaging fifth-grade daughter Molly. On election day, Bud is supposed to meet her at the polling place. When he doesn't show, she sneaks a ballot and is about to vote when the power goes off. It turns out that New Mexico's electoral votes will decide the contest, and there it's tied with one vote needing recasting - Bud's. The world's media and both presidential candidates, including the current President, descend on Bud in anticipation of his re-vote in two weeks. Can the clueless Bud, even with the help of Molly and a local TV reporter, handle this responsibility?

So, this one is no award winning film, but Costner is convincing as a world class screw up and the film brings up issues of politics and the desperate, win at any cost, struggle to the white house. It reminds us of the people who are out there hurting and the faith and hope they place on their leaders to do something good with their position. It reminds me of the current health care issue and how desperately I am praying for some resolution that would provide people I love, both family and friends, with much needed health care that they'll likely never be able to afford independently.

I would recommend this film--it's certainly worth a rent!

Can you believe this Cucumber?

It's amazing what a week can do. It rained so much off an on this week and nothing seemed near to harvest that I neglected to visit my garden daily like I've done so often. My mom made a couple trips out that way but didn't mention that I might want to come and pick that one cucumber...

Here she is a week after I took this picture. Yikes.

My first harvest -- lettuce ready to be spun and devoured.

I planted a Burpee Summerlong Gourmet Mix with features "six tasty varieties." The package reads: "A delicious blend of green and red lettuces includes 20% Four Seasons and Lollo Rossa, 15% each Buttercrunch, Craquerelle du Midi, Black Seeded Simpson, and Salad Bowl."

Raspberries picked in my mom's backyard. This year we ran into a big of a snag. Apparently their border collie likes to rub up against the bushes and bits of his long black hair gets caught on some branches and some berries. We weren't sure if that was the cause of the hair, or if it was more a problem of the wind redistributing some of his hair after backyard brushing. Either way, I have discovered more black fuzzy hairs in my berries and yogurt than I care to even think about. Since then, I've been vigilant about defuzzing the backyard berries before washing them. I've picked and eaten raspberries three times since this unfortunate discovery and it's getting better all the time. Raspberries are too good to let a little dog hair removal stand in the way, as much as that might disgust my readers. On the upside, I don't dare SHARE the raspberries lest I gross someone out with the hairy berries... so that means, more for me!

Wordless Wednesday -- Create

Speaking of Glittering -- Twilight, the movie

I took my time watching Twilight. I guess I was bothered by the casting most of all. Now, I'm not sure why I care because I did NOT love the books, but I did read them all, so I don't have a lot of room to complain. Neither Edward, nor Bella look like they did in my mind. I really SHOULD have a good physical picture of Edward what with all the references to his white teeth and hard, cold body... but I guess I pictured him taller, broader, better looking. I know there are girls all over who swoon at the sight of him, but I can't imagine why. He just seems sort of normal.

The book wasn't great, but it was a better read than film. If I'd not read the book I'm not sure I'd fully "get" what was even going on in the opening sequences.

Glitter be Gone.

About 8 years ago my friend Emma exclaimed while looking at the top of my head (something she rarely does since she's no taller than I am), "Carmyn, you have grey hair!" Apparently a whole crop of greys had sprouted at the crown of my head. Since then they've been showing up with regularity. I used to pull them out, but then I discovered I'd soon be bald and that maybe I ought to just live with it.

About 5 years ago, my student Ali was insistent I do something about it. Mind you, I really only had random white strands here and there. My response? "Ali, those are 'glitter.' I like them!"

Ha. Well, I've decide I have a bit too much "glitter" at my temples and well, pretty much everywhere, so I finally bit the bullet and dyed my hair. My terror was in avoiding the highlighting halo that happens about 2 months after I color my hair. Long hair and hair color maintenance is tough to manage and expensive too and I was so afraid of wrecking my hair and having to cut it short to fix things.

Instead, I cut my hair (at least a few more inches... about 6 or so in the past three months) and layered the heck out of it. I went to Sara at Regis upon referral from my RRVWP pal Brandy. Sara took my concerns seriously. I actually showed her a series of photos from my hairdo past that showed what I wanted to AVOID! Then I showed her pics of other folks with hair that I liked. She actually spent a LOT of time with me on the cut. By the time we did the color, a week later, I was confident she understood my hair and I'm thrilled with the way it turned out. Whew.

How Does My Garden Grow?

I'm afraid my garden is not a rousing success. I've managed to pull all the grass plaguing my plot and discovered only four potato plant survivors and a whole lot of herbs/flowers that didn't come up. But things are surviving and slowly growing. If the frost would hold out until November I just might be able to harvest some of this stuff, eh? Lots of tomatoes on the plants and some bell peppers and cauliflower growing too. Here are a few pictures to give you an idea.

Note the BEAN plants on the right. Seriously?
What on earth? They haven't grown in a month.

banana peppers--I think I can harvest some of these!

cabbage, lettuce
(note the more grassy plots in the background, there go I but for the HARD WORK of pulling out all that crab grass.)

Here's my first cucumber--straight eights.

Wordless Wednesday -- Breakfast Set

Knowing

Knowing, starring Nicolas Cage, is a film I've been anticipating. My brother mentioned it last weekend, my friend Sean wanted to talk about it on Tuesday night, so when mom was up for a movie I rented this one. I wasn't disappointed but I wasn't blown away. It was suspenseful and at times a bit too frightening for me. I'm a giant wimp so I was glad my mum was there to hold my hand (literally!).

Cage plays a grieving professor whose son attends a local elementary school that is opening a time capsule after 50 years. In the time capsule is a drawing filled with numbers which Cage believes are dates of horrific events and disasters, all prophetic when the paper was written by a school girl. Cage believes some have come true and that there are others still to come. This suspenseful thriller served to keep me watching and guessing and a little creeped out by the whispering men with the black stones. (It reminded me of Lost from time to time).

This was pretty decent. I'd give it 3 stars out of five for entertainment value.

Black Bean, Mango and Tomato Salad

Ingredients:
1 large mango diced (about 1 3/4 cup)
3 tbsp fresh lime juice (about 1 1/2 limes)
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup diced tomatoes
1/2 cup diced sweet onion
1/4 cup fresh cilantro (or mint if you prefer)
1 tbsp minced or fresh jalapeno peppers

In a large bowl, mash up 1/4 cup of diced mango with a fork; whisk in lime juice, water, oil, cumin, and salt.

Add remaining diced mango, beans, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and jalapeno to bowl. Toss to mix and coat. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to one day.

Yields about 8 servings at a 1/2 cup per serving -- 2 weight watchers points each.

This is a fantastic zippy salad. It is meant to be eaten solo as a side dish or salad. I tried eating some with tortilla chips, but I suspect that defeats some of the benefits of the weight watchers healthy-ness. Make this salad if you like an explosion of flavor. Yum.

Farmer's Market Fun

The Townsquare Farmer's Market
This week EVERYTHING looked soooo good.

The strawberry ladies
the berries looked so tasty and their outfits were so colorful

Swedish pancakes which looked suspiciously like crepes.
They ran out of batter before I got to try them.

red velvet cupcake from the Dakota Harvest Bakery
(safely packaged so I could bike home with it and not crush it)

fresh wild flowers -- a build-your-own bouquet

honey, lettuce, onion, tomato

fresh produce that was ready before MINE

Bananagrams!

I'd heard Pam talk about this game before but never had an opportunity to try it out until tonight! It's a bit like Scrabble, a bit like Boggle. It uses corny terms like "split" and "peel" for different moves in the game. You can play with two or eight like we did later in the evening.

Each player draws a specified number of tiles (determined by how many are playing). These remain face down on the playing area until the game begins. Then it's a race to turn the letters into words faster than your opponent. You do NOT play on each others' words. Instead you each have your own work space and when you use all your tiles you yell "peel" and you each draw a tile. Placing ONE tile is much easier than however many you might have remaining so the "peel" word gets hollered a lot once things get rolling. Eventually there are no more tiles in the pot and whoever is able to play her last tile correctly and have no more left to draw, wins!

We played this a few times at her house on whim. Decided to go out for pizza at Rhombus guys on a whim. Thought about playing bananagrams while we waited for our pizza but they were fast and we barely got started before we had to put it all away.

After our meal, we stopped at Marci's to drop off a Tupperware bowl and stopped at Anna's to taste her latest culinary treat -- a kind of mango, tomato, bean salad. Yum.

Before we knew it, both Pam and I had set aside our plans for an evening walk and were sucked into some bananagrams family fun at Marci and Dave's and we had Dave, Marci, Marci's mom and all the kids playing too. Too fun.

If you love Scrabble and scoring lots of points you might not like this game dedicated to word play and speed, but you might! It's very portable and sort of funny and everyone seemed to enjoy it and wanted to keep playing it long after bedtime!

Literal Version of the Take On Me Video

Take on Me: Literal Video Version - watch more funny videos

Wordless Wednesday -- The Musical Edition

Frozen Grand Central Station

Improv Everywhere -- 0ver 200 people freeze in place on cue in Grand Central Station in New York. This is one of over 80 missions involving thousands of undercover agents.

Chilled Minted Pea Soup

I don't even like peas, but this soup is divine. Judy served it at book club a couple months ago and I was blown away. This is a fairly straightforward recipe and yet I still managed to screw it up (see notes at the end) but if you can read, I'm sure yours will turn out exactly like Judy's.

Ingredients:
1 pound petite frozen green peas
2 cups chicken broth
2 small green onions, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
14 fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup sour cream

Garnish:
sour cream
fresh mint leaves

4-6 servings

Place peas in the blender. Heat chicken broth to boiling, pour over peas, and puree. Add green onions, lime juice, nutmeg, mint, and sour cream. Blend until smooth. Taste, adjust mint and nutmeg if necessary, and blend again. Chill 3-4 hours. Serve in chilled cups and garnish with sour cream and mint leaf.

What I did:
I used powdered nutmeg from my spice drawer. I am not sure what "petite" frozen peas are so I just used regular frozen peas. I got the mint leaves from mom's garden and they smelled heavenly. I accidentally didn't read the bit about the TWO small green onions. For whatever reason I used the whole bunch. So, I think that was more like 6 small green onions. Hmmm... There is a distinct oniony aftertaste to the soup, but I like onion so it's not terrible. I would advise following the recipe! Sheesh!

The Hangover

The Hangover (2009)

First off, I love Bradley Cooper and after hearing so much good press about this show I had big expectations. I thought all the actors were pretty great, but it was Zach Galifianakis who stole the show.

The film is a Las Vegas-set comedy centered around three groomsmen who lose their about-to-be-wed buddy during their drunken misadventures, then must retrace their steps in order to find him.

The beauty of the film is in the random absurdity of the aftermath of a wild night in vegas. A tiger in the bathroom? A missing tooth? A baby? What the... Yet, somehow it all seemed just a bit over the top for me. My pal Pam admitted that one never quite knew where the film was going so the lack of predictability was a plus in keeping the viewer engaged. Still, I didn't love it nearly as much as I liked. Maybe it's because the whole destruction, waste, and irresponsibility involved in this sort of drunken rampage is counter to every fiber of my being and so I struggled to watch and laugh at things that rankled more than amused. I guess I'm a bit of a party pooper but I kept thinking... how much is all that damage to the room or to the car going to cost? The movie was stressful and while that can be good fun in a suspense, get the bad guys kind of film, in this case I didn't leave the theatre with the same level of relief.

I will add it was shocking to see the level of vitriol in Rachel Harris's character Melissa (girlfriend to Stu--played by The Office's Ed Helm's). Wow. Vicious and more than a little scary.

The final montage of the photos taken during the night, that the men view after the wedding to sort of fill in the gaps were also pretty awful. Don't let your kids watch this, folks. Yikes. It's R for a reason. Maybe I watched the unrated version, no wait... I saw it at the movie theatre. Wowzers. Yeah...

I may be off in la-la land on this one, but I didn't love it like I expected. It's graphic in nudity and drunken lewd behavior and though it has its moments, I'd guess this could be watched as a rental rather than as a rush to the theatre to see it, kind of film.

In the Kitchen with Carmyn

I've been on a cooking crusade this week--exploring new recipes and some I've not attempted in awhile. One was a flop--reuben dip--and I didn't bother to blog it. It turns out the coconut cupcakes were better than I realized and I appreciated them more and more as the week progressed. Yum. I've made these once before and they remind me of summer--particularly summer in California with good friends. Thanks for the sweet treat, BA--I'll be thinking of you.

Beth Ann's Buttermilk Brownies
Bring the following ingredients to a boil and remove from heat:
1 cup margarine (I used butter)
1 cup water
3 tbsp cocoa

Then add and blend:
2 cups flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt

In a separate bowl beat 2 eggs

Add 1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla

Blend well--then add to batter.

Pour into a greased and floured 10 x 15" pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees

Frosting:
Heat the following ingredients over low heat--DO NOT BOIL!!:
1 stick of margarine (I used butter)
3 tbsp cocoa
6 tbsp milk

Remove from heat and the following:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts

Use a mixer/beater to blend.

Sour.

See, now this is video by Sour is sooo cool. All of this is filmed purely via webcams.

via Loobylu

Garage Sale-ing

a black and white creamer
I'm all about black and white
in clothes and now, apparently, in dishes.

A garden claw just like mom's,
only hers is blue and white

a black magazine rack to hold my library books.
It would appear they don't quite fit!
I better get reading...
a Hello Kitty Sewing Machine
Mint Green -- 10 different stitches
I did NOT pay full retail price.

some sewing goodies--zippers, bias tape,
rick rack, elastics all for 75 cents

a colorful bag for 25 cents --yippee!

Dear Cushendall...

via Cup of Jo

In April 2009, Lenka and Michael sent a personal, handwritten letter to each of the 467 households in the small Irish village of Cushendall. They hoped these unsolicited letters would prompt neighbourly discussion, spreading across the town, promoting community curiosity.

I LOVE this idea. It's so cool. You can read all the letters here.

Stop Shouting.

Roger Ebert's article "The O'Reilly Procedure" struck a chord with me this morning. It's at the heart of what bothers me about politics and debate in our world today. Ebert writes:

"What are TV shouters telling their viewers? They use such anger in expressing their opinions. Who are they trying to convince? They're preaching to the choir. Their viewers already agree with them. No minds are going to be changed. Why are they so mad? In a sense they're saying: You're right, but you're not right ENOUGH! I'm angrier about this than you are! Viewers may get the notion that there's unfinished business to be done, and it's up to them to do it.

How can one effect change? By sincere debate and friendly persuasion? O'Reilly sets the opposite example. He brings on guests who represent the "enemy," doesn't seriously engage their beliefs, and shouts: Be quiet! I'm right and you're wrong! I stand for good and you stand for evil! I'm not exaggerating. Sometimes those are the very words he uses."

Ebert specifically targets Bill O'Reilly's methods in his article but also demonstrates how O'Reilly is not alone in his ways of dealing with those who would disagree with his stance. Now, I realize that not everyone agrees with MY political views. And I'm okay with that. Our country grants us each the freedoms to entertain different views. What I'm not okay with is the bitterness, vitriol, cruelty and name calling that tends to go hand in hand with those "different views," televised or otherwise. Ebert's article addresses this issue.

Another slice of Ebert's words:
"There is little comfort to be had from today's polarized shouters. They are discontented, and they think you should be, too. They inspire fear and suspicion. There is a conspiracy, and you are the target. Dark forces are at work. There was a time when ordinary Americans would have been deeply offended by the way O'Reilly speaks about their President--any President."

Also within the article are a number of video clips and some research findings. A team of media researchers at Indiana University studied every editorial broadcast by O'Reilly during a six-month period and Ebert reprints some of their work. They analyzed O'Reilly's editorials for propaganda devices which include:

* Name calling -- giving something a bad label to make the audience reject it without examining the evidence;
* Glittering generalities -- the opposite of name calling;
* Card stacking -- the selective use of facts and half-truths;
* Bandwagon -- appeals to the desire, common to most of us, to follow the crowd;
* Plain folks -- an attempt to convince an audience that they, and their ideas, are "of the people";
* Transfer -- carries over the authority, sanction and prestige of something we respect or dispute to something the speaker would want us to accept; and
* Testimonials -- involving a respected (or disrespected) person endorsing or rejecting an idea or person.

I find this whole piece fascinating on many levels. The recognition of propaganda in what passes for news many days. The acknowledgement that many people are now better informed as to the goings on of Britney Spears than our position with North Korea. The regret that authorities like the New York Times are diminishing in readership. And mostly I like the Roger Ebert seems to get what I am bothered by in humanity in general... that lack of respect for another's view.

Check out the full article here.

I Love Lucy.

Yesterday I had some help in my garden. When I stopped by to see if she was willing to do a bit of weeding, I discovered Lucy with a recipe clutched in her hand, wandering the neighborhood looking for someone with some milk chocolate chips. We stopped at the store when her nearby sources failed to produce that final ingredient. Lucy created some no bake cookies-- a peanut buttery chocolatey delight. Mama Marci was on hand for the tricky bits, and I took pictures and shouted advice from the table. While the cookies were cooling we hit the garden.


It's likely that Lucy won't be so eager to help in the garden again, but she sure did a great job yesterday. I weeded the lettuce and spinach and she did the two rows of glads. I have about 6 rows left and then the garden will be officially grass free... for now!

Globe-y Goodness.

My Uncle Errol dropped by a few days ago with a belated birthday gift. A trio of goodies that made my day. I'd mentioned I was all about the globes lately, one day when he was admiring my studio space. When he saw a couple for sale at a local thrift shop, he knew they'd be the perfect gift. And he was right!


A few years ago when I was writing articles for the Red River Women Today, I wrote and an article on Great Dinners.

Great Dinners is one of the Empire Art's Center's fundraisers. Every 12-18 months a Great Dinners event is held at 10 different host homes all on one night--each host couple serves anywhere between 6-12 guests. The end of the evening activity is a Great Desserts party at the Empire and all the hosts and guests gather to discuss their meals and the experience. Everyone who's done it raves about the experience. Maybe next time around I'll get to be a part of it, instead of just writing about it!

When I was working on the article, I remember perusing the cookbook from the first event. I didn't buy one at the time, and truthfully I probably wouldn't be daring enough to try many of the meals described in the book. However, Errol remembered my article and figured I might like a copy of the cookbook--also a thrifted treasure. I am always touched when friends and family "pay attention" and gift accordingly. It's so meaningful and kind.


The white rack is meant for magazines or books. Something I found in mom's garage. I figure I can use this fixture in my classroom or somewhere in my house. I'm a big believer in books as art! The blanket? A remnant of my babyhood. Just another little something I need to find a way to display.

Coconut Cupcakes

I'm not the biggest cupcake fan in the world, mainly because I don't care for cake. However, this was no ordinary cake mix cake and it had coconut and cream cheese frosting. And let's be honest I LOVE cream cheese frosting. I am ever on the hunt for a frosting recipe that could compare to the Dakota Harvest cream cheese frosted cupcakes I now long for.

Though these were good... but the frosting is still not quite right. It's like I can taste the vanilla and almond or something. Like I need to leave those out. I should just dare to ASK the bakery how they make their frosting or what is in it... but I don't know if that's a major faux pas or just a compliment to the bakery. Oh well.

If you like rich creamy frosting sprinkled with coconut and like that on a cupcake, you might want to try these.


Coconut Cupcakes
1999, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, All rights reserved found here

Prep Time: 1 hr 0 min
Inactive Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 35 min
Level: Intermediate
Serves: 18 to 20 cupcakes (mine made 30 cupcakes.. I guess I have smaller cupcake tins?)


Ingredients
* 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 2 cups sugar
* 5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract
* 3 cups flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 cup buttermilk
* 14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

For the frosting:
* 1 pound cream cheese at room temperature
* 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
* 1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 ounces of coconut.

Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner to the top with batter. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.

Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.

Wordless Wednesday--Peony Style 2009--Take Two

Zen and the Art of Gardening

About ten days ago my town was under a tornado warning for most of the evening. I usually don't worry too much, ignore the sirens (usually don't even HEAR them). But something about this night seemed more real. I put on my bike helmet, grabbed my various computers and harddrives, keys, purse, and book and headed for the basement of my apartment building. There were six touchdowns over the course of the evening, but none of them caused much damage and none were within city limits. What did happen was a TON of rain fell on our area creating flash flood conditions and a lake where my garden once was.

I refused to even go and look at it. Too depressing. My mom kept me in updates and about 4 days later she said it had drained but was really muddy. I was in the final frantic stages of winding up summer school so I waited a bit longer. Finally 8 days after the ridiculous rain, I ventured out to the garden to survey the damage. Where once I had spinach I now had nothing. Not sure if the rain or lack of water for four days did the trick, but it was gone. Some things actually grew more and the grass was thriving.

I'm not sure what the deal is with the grass. My gardening neighbor said he knew the park district filled in the land with extra soil and he said based on the pattern of grass in people's plots one can almost guess the area that the extra soil was added and believe it was laden with grass seed. Sigh. So, there are plots with no weeds, no grass and there are plots that could be cut, rolled up and sold as lawn! I've decided to try to tackle 2-4 rows a visit and to just really weed it well... I figure by the end of the week if I keep up that pace and also do a quick maintenance job with the "done rows" my garden might be weed free before too much longer. It's important, too, for me to take stock and see what is even growing.

On Saturday morning: I managed to weed one row of corn and mom did the carrots and we watered the garden well.

On Sunday evening: I did the other row of corn and both rows of potatoes which basically rotted in the rows so it was me trying to just FIND the plants that didn't... there were four survivors and a LOT of grass... I pulled grass and broke a hoe trying to get the rest of it. Mom planted some cabbage at the end of the potato row where she could tell there weren't any plants so I have four of those plants too. I watered again. It's amazing how dry it can get in 36 hours.On Monday evening I bought a new hoe. Then I weeded the onions, weeded the beans, and hoed around one row of plants. I think it was the cabbage and cauliflower row. Then I watered everything once again. There is rain in the forecast so I hope I'm not overdoing it, but it just seems like they are always wanting water.

Recently a friend suggested this garden was not a good investment--granted this remark followed a detailed description of what's been going on and the plans for the next few days. Apparently it's all turning out to be too much work and the monetary investment and the cost in labor is adding up to some rather expensive produce. Yet, I see a garden is less about the produce, more about the experience. It's just an idea I have.

One should have a garden. the thought of owning property for example has ALWAYS gone hand in hand with the notion of being able to plant a garden on the property. If a house didn't have a yard in which that might be possible or if it was a townhouse (people are forever trying to get me to buy a townhouse--seriously, what the heck?) that didn't allow gardens or any kind of landscaping or "originality" then I wasn't having it. I guess it's just a romantic notion in my head and when push comes to shove it's probably not THAT necessary, but it's there just the same. I can certainly see how this gardening business would be so much more convenient if it was in my backyard!

On Sunday night I had an experience that reminded me of why I wanted to do this. For most of the three hours I was at my garden, I was completely alone on the outskirts of town at dusk. The weather was perfect--the temperature of heaven--a very light breeze, no bugs. In the distance there were some sounds of firecrackers going off... some remnants from the 4th of July. It was very Zen. I loved it. If there'd been more light I think I could have just stayed out there for another hour.

The community gardens are on the outskirts of town. The city is to my east and to the west... there is nothing but a train track in the near distance and beyond that fields. It felt like I was back on the farm. No noise, no commotion, no TV, no phones, no anything. Just me and my garden with a singular purpose or ridding that particular row of its pesky weeds. The garden is a new frontier to tame, to nurture, to create order where there once was none. The whole experience was remarkably satisfying.

The Book Seer

The Book Seer

I LOVE this thing... I thought it would just be like on Amazon with the "people who bought this book also bought this book" feature and in some ways it is.. but it feeds from Amazon AND from LibraryThing, providing links to other books. There's enough variety that, when tested, it actually spit out a few titles that were intriguing to me.

If you are wondering what to read next, here's your oracle.

Last night's Meal -- Day One of Cooking Fun!

(prior to baking)

Pizza with Pepper, Onion, and Feta
Ingredients:
12" thin pizza crust (I bought prepared Boboli crust--a bit pricey)
3 cups chopped bell peppers (red, green, yellow)
1 cup sliced red or yellow onions pulled into rings
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. dried Italian herbs
Salt to taste
Crushed red pepper flakes to taste (optional)
1/4 cup (4 oz) crumbled herbed feta cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Lay crust on a pizza pan.
In a bowl, combine remaining ingredients except feta cheese.
Spoon over pizza crust. Top with cheese.
Bake 10-12 minutes, or until vegetables are crispy tender. Serves 6.


Per serving: 258 calories
8 g protein
30 g carbs.
11.6 g fat (4 g saturated)
2 g fiber
488 mg sodium
bonus: This pizza is loaded with antioxidants in the peppers, onions, garlic and herbs.

A few things worth noting:

• I didn't quite need 3 cups of peppers. It seemed a bit much to try to heap the entire mixture on the crust-- I might go for a bit less.. maybe 2.5 cups peppers instead?
• I didn't bother with a green pepper since I like the other colors better so my pizza has red, yellow, and orange instead.
• I used a purple onion and wasn't quite sure how to measure out 1 cup when they were in rings--I did the best I could and thought it turned out well.
• The pizza was delicious and the only concern I have is how it will fare upon reheating. The peppers make the crust soggy if it's not eaten right away.
• I didn't use dried herbs, instead I used fresh basil, sage, and oregano. Yum! (It smells sooooo good when I'm chopping it up... I could wear it as a perfume)
• I was also thinking fresh mushrooms might have been a nice touch as well... I may experiment with that next time.
• This wasn't exactly a cost saving meal. Instead I think it cost close to $16.00 to make--between the feta cheese, the Boboli ready made crust and the veggies. I may try to figure out a homemade pizza crust option!

Homemade Caramels -- Take One.

My latest candy craze is the soft "Homemade Caramels" sold at Home of Economy. Not sure in whose home they are made, but I could buy those babies by the box. At 25 cents apiece I've been known to invest a few dollars and bring home a heaping handful.

I was itching to drive over there this afternoon and get my fix when I remembered Patti's caramels she brought to work this winter. THOSE truly were homemade. Yum. After finally locating the recipe I discovered I actually had all the ingredients on hand and a candy thermometer which was still in one piece (I tend to break those regularly).

I had only one problem while cooking this candy--which should I follow: the time (12-15 minutes) or the temperature (firm ball stage)? I opted for the temperature but I'm not sure it was the right thing to do.

Here's the recipe:

1 cup margarine
2 1/4 cups brown sugar
dash of salt
1 cup light Karo syrup
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Melt Margarine; add brown sugar and salt. Stir until mixed. Blend in corn syrup. Gradually add condensed milk, stirring constantly. Continue to cook and stir over medium heat, 12-15 minutes, until it reaches firm ball stage. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and nuts, if desired. Pour into greased 9 x 13" pan and refrigerate.

I added vanilla but left out the nuts. I might skip the vanilla next time. I also overgreased the pan, I think--not sure. After refrigerating for a short while, using a kitchen scissor I cut the caramel into bite sized pieces. I started to wrap each individually but lost steam quickly in that endeavor and so I simply used wax paper to layer pieces in a small container.

I think I answered my own question already, it's possible I should have stopped cooking after 15 minutes even though they weren't at "firm ball stage" because they got darker than I remember Patti's caramels being. They taste darker too. Not bad, just not quite what I had in mind.

I'll have to try again when I need my next caramel fix.