Blast from the Past

Finding four woven wicker circles in a storage box I decided to bring them upstairs. In case you can’t guess their purpose, especially considering my lame photo, they support food laden disposable plates. These came in handy at church picnics and family reunions.

Isn't the design pretty?

Finding them available online today made me happy. So does seeing these virtual antiques in use since my husband uses paper plates now and then. Unfortunately my China dishes are too large as I’d hoped we could protect our hands from hot plates. Oh, well.

The plate looks upside down... Weird.

Isn’t it funny how the shadow play creates that optical illusion? Have you seen or used these?

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Polly’s Follies – 3

Our sweet Polly doesn’t cause quite the destruction disruption as her sister Terra, but don’t let her fluffy cuteness fool you. One day I stood before the bathroom medicine cabinet, drawer open off to the side, and heard a scrabbling sound. There was Polly, hanging onto the drawer by her front toenails.

Here Polly poses with my Krotchy doll...
If you're brave, you can read about the
video game character toy here...

Another time my cell phone atop the nightstand rang. The ringing stopped before I had a chance to answer, whereupon Polly knocked it to the floor. ~sigh~ Below she is about to do the same with our garden produce.

Early on I used empty water bottles to divert her from chewing on electrical cords (!) which has blessedly kept her from being electrocuted. After Polly punctured a full bottle I quite storing cases within easy kitty reach. When she found one of my favorite snacks unguarded, the crackling wrapper must have posed too tempting.

The last of my Kind snack bars...

Would you allow such a ferocious beast into your home?

The next video is her fierce attack on a plastic bottle. I cannot believe how much smaller she was in February!

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Tenacious Terra – 2

Ever the athlete, our juvenile kitty Terra continues causing minor trouble. Finished showering, I heard a thump and entered the bedroom to the following sight.

What?

The likelihood that Polly or Jezebel knocked over my bench are slim to none. And this dried pepper from our garden may have been knocked off the counter by Polly but her sister drags all the toys around.

Guess what this looked like in the dark...

One of her favorite pastimes remains shoving a toy mouse beneath the sliding bathroom door. I like to call it ‘mice hockey’.

Can you believe those wicked looking claws have only ever harmed me by accident? And she (grudgingly) lets me trim them?

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My Syrup Returns the Favor

Ginger cookies.... Mmmm...

On the same day as my moldy maple syrup discovery I decided to bake molasses ginger cookies. After assembling, measuring, and mixing all dry ingredients, the butter soft and stand mixer ready to go, one missing item became glaringly obvious. We were out of molasses.

Of all things, I thought. And once again I wasted time and effort by jumping into action before gathering every ingredient.

In a strange twist of fate, real maple syrup makes a respectable molasses substitute. As an added bonus, my husband found and implemented another Internet tip on stopping a stand mixer from bouncing up and down during use. The racket is awful and that movement can damage attachments.

A simple screw adjustment does wonders.
Here is the Youtube video.

If you don’t now, would you ever consider owning a stand mixer? Did you know there are KitchenAid stand mixer attachments for use with fruits, vegetables, and even meats?

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Another Lesson Learned

My husband introduced me to 100% real maple syrup a while back. It’s so superior to the corn syrupy substitute we both grew up eating. So this morning I decided to cook up French toast.

Noticing a strange white papery film skimming the surface, I poured it off and enjoyed my breakfast. Yum!

Well, this last time buying the stuff we purchased a larger bottle. Twice now I refilled the small one due to its easier handling. It needed done today.

To my surprise, obvious mold showed as white fuzzy little islands. Oh, no! This stuff isn’t cheap. I looked closer at the label, which stated ‘refrigerate after opening’. Oops!

Something told me to seek out salvage solutions because maple syrup is mostly sugar, which is mildew resistant. In fact, centuries ago humans learned honey can help prevent wound infection.

A quick online search saved the day. I strained off the fuzzy bits and heated the product to 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Vermonters don’t all take the second step according to the Maple Farmers blog article. With a specific mold allergy I didn’t take that chance.

Are you better than me at reading all product labels? Have you made this mistake?

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Catch of the Day

When my husband showed me the route to a fast food joint he wanted to try I asked about a nearby body of water on Google maps. It turned out to be Armco Park. Driving by the sign many times over the years I thought the name indicated an employee-only company facility. Was I ever wrong. The website told me it’s part of the county park system. And entrance is free! My husband agreed to a quick visit after lunch.

A resident crane.

Amenities include a huge number of shelters, lots of playground equipment, a golf course, baseball fields, hiking trails, and a fishing lake. That last caught my attention. My last fishing trip happened over a decade ago. A daylong fishing pass costs a mere $7. Proceeds from those, various watercraft rental fees, and boat ramp access charges (all reasonable) are said to go toward stocking the lake as you are about to see.

An unhappy grass carp...

It took me several minutes to remember how to thread a fishing reel that Tuesday night. Come Wednesday morning I gathered sunscreen, insect repellent, a little cooler complete with peanut butter sandwich, my tackle box, fishing rod, and headed over. The drive didn’t take twenty minutes. Finding an attendant took almost as long. Instead of being at the boat house like his colleague the day prior, this fellow was busy chatting with a fisherman and completely oblivious of my arrival.

"Come on, human...
Enough photos, already."

Anyway, I got my ‘paid’ sticker and a box of live worms. Around two hours later I relearned some casting skills and caught a single tiny fish. I came home happy. Several worms remain, too, so I plan to return soon. Wish me luck. Perhaps I’ll catch a tasty walleye or catfish large enough to bring home and cook.

"Let me go! Now!"
And so I did.

So those fishy images are all of my catch. ~grin~ By the way, Culvers makes tasty burgers and one of the best root beers we ever drank. Their diet version tastes intensely rich.

Have you tasted root beer soda? Do you like it?

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Jezebel - Old and Wise, Feline Style

Must I speak again. ~sigh~ Okay...

Well, it's Jezebel here again. The delightful Pam asked for my expertise and thus I decided to change my blog title.

But I'll let my human tell this stupid story, long as usual.
~rolls golden eyes~
Darla here, so thank you, Jezzy. Ahem...

As our cat Tilly got older I noticed she liked nestling onto my husband's heating pad, even unplugged. I began turning it on and finally decided to purchase a pet specific unit. Sad to say, the item arrived the day after Tilly passed away quietly at home.

Regarding high temperatures, one year our cooling system failed and the cats left tiny sweaty footprints. We kept plenty of water available and all ended well. So that's all for now. Be well!

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