There ought to be one day - just one - when there is open season on senators.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Almost two quilts later . . .
As promised, the air conditioning people were done early today. They vacuumed up their debris and showed us how to operate the new unit. Let me tell you, things have changed a lot on this type of machine from 30 years ago! Go figure, huh?
Since they were in and out of all the rooms in the house, I only had my sewing corner to hang out in along with my sewing machine, fabric, quilt patterns . . . Well, as you can discern, it was a really terrible day for me . . .not! Nothing like having a legitimate excuse to do nothing but sew all afternoon. I finally finished the quilting on one quilt and have the final pinning done on a second one.
Dinner is cooking and I even had time to peel, slice, and prepare today's harvest of tomatoes for the freezer. Rice cookers are a blessing as the rice is taking care of itself and giving me a few minutes to catch up on the rest of the day.
The new air conditioning unit is set at 80 degrees which might sound too warm but given the fact that we have made due with 85-90 degrees in the house, we are very happy. Hey, it even has a finder feature if we misplace the remote control for the thermostat.
I was amazed to hear about the relatively big earthquaked experience by the East Coast area. I have friends and relatives on that side who have always told me, "Oh, how can you bear living in California with all those earthquakes!" There was also a quake in Colorado the day before. If it is God getting fed up with our world, one can hardly blame Him!
I was talking to a friend, today. We were bemoaning the fact that our 'babies' were already back at college and our houses way too quiet. I wondered how we could possibly be the mothers of such old children. She told me that children age faster than parents. It made sense to me.
Since they were in and out of all the rooms in the house, I only had my sewing corner to hang out in along with my sewing machine, fabric, quilt patterns . . . Well, as you can discern, it was a really terrible day for me . . .not! Nothing like having a legitimate excuse to do nothing but sew all afternoon. I finally finished the quilting on one quilt and have the final pinning done on a second one.
Dinner is cooking and I even had time to peel, slice, and prepare today's harvest of tomatoes for the freezer. Rice cookers are a blessing as the rice is taking care of itself and giving me a few minutes to catch up on the rest of the day.
The new air conditioning unit is set at 80 degrees which might sound too warm but given the fact that we have made due with 85-90 degrees in the house, we are very happy. Hey, it even has a finder feature if we misplace the remote control for the thermostat.
I was amazed to hear about the relatively big earthquaked experience by the East Coast area. I have friends and relatives on that side who have always told me, "Oh, how can you bear living in California with all those earthquakes!" There was also a quake in Colorado the day before. If it is God getting fed up with our world, one can hardly blame Him!
I was talking to a friend, today. We were bemoaning the fact that our 'babies' were already back at college and our houses way too quiet. I wondered how we could possibly be the mothers of such old children. She told me that children age faster than parents. It made sense to me.
Really explains all the flash mob riots of late . . .
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.
The final act . . .
The weather worked with our air conditioning installers, yesterday. It didn't get up to 100 degrees which was great for them as they were doing most of thier work in the attic crawl space. They were quite productive and got more done than originally anticipated. If all goes well, today, our air conditioning/heating unit will be in place by two this afternoon and the workmen will be off on another job.
Amazing how these worker have the system down to a fine art. When they left, there wasn't a bit of mess. They set up the vent screens in each room and have them ready to put into place today. The major components of the system are installed and they just have duct work to complete. All the bits and pieces were hauled up to the attic before they left.
Meanwhile, my husband has discovered a computer site from our electric company where you can follow your power usage from minute to minute. We are hoping to discover where we are using the most enegery and if there is a way we can cut back on it.
And, the evening weather report told us we had picked the best time for making this improvement in our house . . . the temperatures are soaring into the 100's - plus for the next seven days. One of the air conditioning workers joked that they come in, install the units, get the customers homes cooled down, and then they leave before they can enjoy it and go on to their next, hot, sweaty job.
Our dog spent the day in the garage with all the company and treats she could ask for except all she wanted was a taste of these strange people in her house.
Amazing how these worker have the system down to a fine art. When they left, there wasn't a bit of mess. They set up the vent screens in each room and have them ready to put into place today. The major components of the system are installed and they just have duct work to complete. All the bits and pieces were hauled up to the attic before they left.
Meanwhile, my husband has discovered a computer site from our electric company where you can follow your power usage from minute to minute. We are hoping to discover where we are using the most enegery and if there is a way we can cut back on it.
And, the evening weather report told us we had picked the best time for making this improvement in our house . . . the temperatures are soaring into the 100's - plus for the next seven days. One of the air conditioning workers joked that they come in, install the units, get the customers homes cooled down, and then they leave before they can enjoy it and go on to their next, hot, sweaty job.
Our dog spent the day in the garage with all the company and treats she could ask for except all she wanted was a taste of these strange people in her house.
Oh, especially the quote about computers!
"Boxing is just show business with blood."
-- Frank Bruno
-- Frank Bruno
"I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars."
-- Fred Allen
-- Fred Allen
"Imagine if every Thursday your shoes exploded if you tied them the usual way. This happens to us all the time with computers, and nobody thinks of complaining."
-- Jef Raskin
-- Jef Raskin
Mushroom Soup
One of my favorites is Mushroom Soup. I do not, however, care for the canned variety as it is more white 'mush' than tasty mushroom. I discovered in my quest for good soup that it isn't all that difficult to make.
8-16 ounces firm white mushrooms, cleaned*
1 medium lemon
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
2 Tablespoon minced shallots
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Dash of chili flakes
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 Cups heavy cream
2 Cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 teaspoon of water
1 Tablespoon minced parsley
Sprinkle the mushrooms with lemon juice. In a food processor, coarsely chop them. Melt the butter in a heavy sauce pan and lightly sauté the shallots. Add the mushrooms, thyme, chili flakes, and bay leaf and sauté over moderate heat for 20 minutes, or until the liquid disappears. Add the salt, pepper, cream, add chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and continue the simmer for 20 minutes. You don't want to scorch or curdle the cream in the soup.
Add the cornstarch to the soup and continue to simmer 10 minutes longer, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with minced parsley.
*Some people like more mushrooms while others prefer the essence so you decide how many mushrooms you want in your soup.
8-16 ounces firm white mushrooms, cleaned*
1 medium lemon
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
2 Tablespoon minced shallots
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Dash of chili flakes
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 Cups heavy cream
2 Cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 teaspoon of water
1 Tablespoon minced parsley
Sprinkle the mushrooms with lemon juice. In a food processor, coarsely chop them. Melt the butter in a heavy sauce pan and lightly sauté the shallots. Add the mushrooms, thyme, chili flakes, and bay leaf and sauté over moderate heat for 20 minutes, or until the liquid disappears. Add the salt, pepper, cream, add chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and continue the simmer for 20 minutes. You don't want to scorch or curdle the cream in the soup.
Add the cornstarch to the soup and continue to simmer 10 minutes longer, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with minced parsley.
*Some people like more mushrooms while others prefer the essence so you decide how many mushrooms you want in your soup.
Christian Charity!
I'm treating you as a friend asking you to share my present minuses in the hope that I can ask you to share my future pluses.
Waiting for the weather to get crispy!
When I was a child, I always wondered why people wanted the air to get crisp! According to my grown up people, it meant it was getting cooler. From then on, everything time I heard 'crisp', I thought of cold . . . even when crunching down on crisp potato chips. It is funny what and how we take things from our childhood!
Anyway, even in California, we have hopes for crisp weather which means apple season. We have a favorite grove where we buy interesting types of apples and then spend the next few months scenting the house with all things apple. One of my fast recipes that goes well with just about anything is chunky applesauce. It goes with pork. It is tasty instead of syrup on waffles or pancakes. It is fun over a scoop of ice cream. I even like to have a small dish of it to finish off a sandwich lunch at home.
Homemade applesauce begins with six to eight apples, peeled, cored and chopped coarsely. Green apples work best but using a combination of different varieties makes a unique and equally delicious applesauce. If you are like most busy mothers, the contents of your cupboard don’t always reflect what you might want or need come meal preparation time. Combine the prepared apples in a saucepan with the juice and zest of one lemon, ½ cup water, 1/4 to ½ cup sugar, tablespoon of brandy (if you have it), one generous teaspoon of cinnamon, dash of powdered cloves and a bit of nutmeg. Simmer gently on low flame until apples soften. Stir ever so often to prevent scorching. Also makes a good snack by itself
Anyway, even in California, we have hopes for crisp weather which means apple season. We have a favorite grove where we buy interesting types of apples and then spend the next few months scenting the house with all things apple. One of my fast recipes that goes well with just about anything is chunky applesauce. It goes with pork. It is tasty instead of syrup on waffles or pancakes. It is fun over a scoop of ice cream. I even like to have a small dish of it to finish off a sandwich lunch at home.
Homemade applesauce begins with six to eight apples, peeled, cored and chopped coarsely. Green apples work best but using a combination of different varieties makes a unique and equally delicious applesauce. If you are like most busy mothers, the contents of your cupboard don’t always reflect what you might want or need come meal preparation time. Combine the prepared apples in a saucepan with the juice and zest of one lemon, ½ cup water, 1/4 to ½ cup sugar, tablespoon of brandy (if you have it), one generous teaspoon of cinnamon, dash of powdered cloves and a bit of nutmeg. Simmer gently on low flame until apples soften. Stir ever so often to prevent scorching. Also makes a good snack by itself
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