Here is a recipe I came across for my favorite treat ever. I am always looking for something simple to put in my hubby's lunch box. He loves to have something sweet to eat when out on the water.
Brownies
6 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa
1/4 Cup Butter
1 Cup Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/3 Cup Flour
2 Eggs
1/2 cup walnuts
Mix all the dry ingredients. Mix the sugar and cocoa. Melt the butter, add the sugar cocoa mixture, then add the the eggs and vanilla. Next, mix in the flour thoroughly and add the walnuts. Put into a greased, floured 8x8 pan, and bake at 325 for about 30-35 minutes.
These brownies are delicous with a mug of tea when you are outside, chilled to the bone. Its a real pick-me-up!
Photo to follow shortly.
Monday, May 4, 2009
My Hubby, the lobster fisherman
You gotta love your hubby when he gets up every morning at 4 am, drives 30 minutes to get to the beach, and spends his day in the North Atlantic, pulling pots, hoping for heaps of the tasty crustacean called a lobster. A good day for my hubby is a catch of 125 lbs or so. 25% of that comes right off the top, to pay my uncle, who is his shareman. He also has to pay for bait, gas, and other expenses too numerous to mention. At the end of the day, he makes a modest few dollars, but nothing we are going to get rich from. The weather this year has been ridiculous. Every day for the last week has had a forecast of a gale warning, so it is a wait and see game. If he gets up and the trees in our yard are not bent over with the wind, he goes. If they are, he doesn't.
Lobster fishing is not what it used to be. I remember as a child, my mother paying well in excess of $6.00 a pound, directly from the fishermen on the beach. It was a spring ritual. Everyone had to have at least one feed in the spring, when the season opened. Now, the price is pathetic...$3.50 a pound. With rising gas and bait prices, it is debatable whether it is feasible to fish.
I hope the price of lobsters rebounds soon. It would be a shame if the men and women who grew up learning this craft at the feet of their fathers have to give it up in order to find alternative means to support their families. Those who do this for a living truly have it in their blood, and would have their spirit broken if they had to work anywhere other than the sea. I know my hubby would be devastated. And so would I.Sunday, May 3, 2009
How to Clean a Bedroom
My bedroom was a mess. I do "gut it out" at least twice a year. Being the 3rd of May, I decided this morning that today was the day. I hate the fact that my mother-in-law, God rest her soul, was right. She always used to say "You have to make a mess to clean a mess."
When I am about to do some major, heavy duty cleaning, I always follow a few simple ritual procedures before I start.
1. Put on some sweats.
2. Put on a pot of coffee
3. Crank up so rockin 80s tunes
The best place I find to start is in the closet. Don't hesitate. Just haul everything out. Once it’s out, you really have no choice. You have to clean it then. Have a bucket of hot soapy water on hand, and wash the walls, ceiling and floor of the closet.
Now, as you start to pack it back, decide if you want to:
A. Keep it.
B. Pitch it.
C. Donate it.
Stuff you want to keep, pack back neatly. I you smoke in your house, you may want to consider running your clothes through the washer first. Make 2 piles for the other stuff, and don't stop until the closet stuff is all done.
Next, I would suggest that you take down your curtains, and grab all your bedding and wash it. Throw an old sheet on your bed, and use it to empty and sort your dresser drawers, one by one - same 3 piles. Have a can of Pledge and some soft rags and clean the drawer fronts before you put them back. After all of the dresser drawers are put back, Pledge the remaining surfaces on the dressers. Pull the dressers out clear of the wall, and clean the floors under them, and the walls above and behind them.
Now, haul your bed and night stands clear of the wall. Clean the floor and wash the walls before putting them back. If you have drawers in your night stand, clean these out as well.
The next thing you should do is grab the Windex, and thoroughly clean your windows. Use newspapers if you have some, and don't use round motions. Clean them horizontally first, and then polish them vertically. This way, if you miss a spot or leave a streak, you won’t see it when the sun's rays are pouring into the room in the morning or evening.
If you have hard floors and a rug, vacuum the rug, and put it over a rail outside to let it air out.
With all the furniture back in its place, wash the remaining walls with hot soapy water. I like to use pine sol or Lestoil because the clean smell lasts for days. Make sure not to forget baseboards, door facings and window ledges. Any wall hangings or artwork should be dusted and cleaned as well.
Now you should clean your floors. Carpeted floors should be vacuumed, and hard floors swept and mopped.
You are just about done. Rehang your curtains and make your bed. With the exception of vacuuming and dusting on a weekly basis, your room is good until you tackle your Christmas cleaning in the fall.
When I am about to do some major, heavy duty cleaning, I always follow a few simple ritual procedures before I start.
1. Put on some sweats.
2. Put on a pot of coffee
3. Crank up so rockin 80s tunes
The best place I find to start is in the closet. Don't hesitate. Just haul everything out. Once it’s out, you really have no choice. You have to clean it then. Have a bucket of hot soapy water on hand, and wash the walls, ceiling and floor of the closet.
Now, as you start to pack it back, decide if you want to:
A. Keep it.
B. Pitch it.
C. Donate it.
Stuff you want to keep, pack back neatly. I you smoke in your house, you may want to consider running your clothes through the washer first. Make 2 piles for the other stuff, and don't stop until the closet stuff is all done.
Next, I would suggest that you take down your curtains, and grab all your bedding and wash it. Throw an old sheet on your bed, and use it to empty and sort your dresser drawers, one by one - same 3 piles. Have a can of Pledge and some soft rags and clean the drawer fronts before you put them back. After all of the dresser drawers are put back, Pledge the remaining surfaces on the dressers. Pull the dressers out clear of the wall, and clean the floors under them, and the walls above and behind them.
Now, haul your bed and night stands clear of the wall. Clean the floor and wash the walls before putting them back. If you have drawers in your night stand, clean these out as well.
The next thing you should do is grab the Windex, and thoroughly clean your windows. Use newspapers if you have some, and don't use round motions. Clean them horizontally first, and then polish them vertically. This way, if you miss a spot or leave a streak, you won’t see it when the sun's rays are pouring into the room in the morning or evening.
If you have hard floors and a rug, vacuum the rug, and put it over a rail outside to let it air out.
With all the furniture back in its place, wash the remaining walls with hot soapy water. I like to use pine sol or Lestoil because the clean smell lasts for days. Make sure not to forget baseboards, door facings and window ledges. Any wall hangings or artwork should be dusted and cleaned as well.
Now you should clean your floors. Carpeted floors should be vacuumed, and hard floors swept and mopped.
You are just about done. Rehang your curtains and make your bed. With the exception of vacuuming and dusting on a weekly basis, your room is good until you tackle your Christmas cleaning in the fall.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Emphysema - a reason to quit smoking
My mother found out 2 days ago that she has emphysema. Actually, I think she has known it for a while, but it finally hit home when the doctor confirmed it. She has been sick for a long time, yet she continues to smoke. I can't say much about it, because I smoke too.
I suggested to her this morning that we both should try to quit, and she agreed. Tomorrow morning will be the big day that we go cold turkey. I am dreading the prospect of giving up my cigarettes, but I know it is something that I have to do. I want to be her support, and the only way I can do that is to stop smoking with her. I know it will be tough, but I will do anything to try to help my 62 year old mother prolong her life and ease her troubled breathing.
I have never tried to quit in the 25 years that I have smoked, but I think its time. She, however, has quit a couple of times in the past, and she is constantly making weak-hearted attempts to quit. She has used the patch, the gum, the inhaler, only to go back to the smokes. My heart breaks for her when she goes into her coughing fits.
I hope that I will be the inspiration that she needs to finally stop. She has to see her doctor in a month. There was some suggestion at her last visit that she may need to quit her job as a customer service representative for the phone company, and go on oxygen. Perhaps by quitting smoking, she may improve enough that she can avoid this.
If anyone has been through this type of issue with a parent, I would love to hear your story.
I suggested to her this morning that we both should try to quit, and she agreed. Tomorrow morning will be the big day that we go cold turkey. I am dreading the prospect of giving up my cigarettes, but I know it is something that I have to do. I want to be her support, and the only way I can do that is to stop smoking with her. I know it will be tough, but I will do anything to try to help my 62 year old mother prolong her life and ease her troubled breathing.
I have never tried to quit in the 25 years that I have smoked, but I think its time. She, however, has quit a couple of times in the past, and she is constantly making weak-hearted attempts to quit. She has used the patch, the gum, the inhaler, only to go back to the smokes. My heart breaks for her when she goes into her coughing fits.
I hope that I will be the inspiration that she needs to finally stop. She has to see her doctor in a month. There was some suggestion at her last visit that she may need to quit her job as a customer service representative for the phone company, and go on oxygen. Perhaps by quitting smoking, she may improve enough that she can avoid this.
If anyone has been through this type of issue with a parent, I would love to hear your story.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Knitting Newfoundland Fishermans Mitts
Having a fisherman for a husband, I have certain duties that most women don't have. The duty that comes to mind is knitting the fishermans mitt. The fisherman's mitt is a creature with a mind and personality of its own!
I remember, nearly 20 years ago, when we first got together, my husband told me he needed some mitts for fishing. I said "Well, why don't you go buy some?" He explained to me that mitts made from sheep wool were the warmest thing you could wear in the boat, and no matter how cold the water in the ocean was, and how wet your hands got, if you had a good pair of sheep wool mitts, your hands didn't get cold.
So, I bought a hank of wool and took a look at the mitts he already had. (ones his mother made him for the year before) They were very small. They barely came to his wrist. So I started knitting. After a day or so, I had one mitten done. He and his mother looked at it, and started to laugh. "Thats too small," he informed me. It didn't look small. It was the same size as the ones he already had. After they were done laughing, they explained to me that sheeps wool shrinks at an incredible rate, expecially after being exposed to salt water, and that I would have to knit them nearly 3 times the size they were now.
I didn't like that. I my younger days, I wanted near-instant results, and I didn't want to spend 2 weeks on one pair of mittens. (I used to knit a lot slower than I do now). I set out to knit the mitts. We have a big family joke now about the one mitt I knit for him the first year we were together.
Recently, I have been knitting mittens. A lot of them. I have adaped my mitten pattern to my Ultimate Knitting Machine, and now, I have fisherman mitts coming out the ying-yang! I love knitting them, both by hand (as a passtime in the evening when I am watching TV) and on my knitting machine (which I use when someone wants some mitts knit in a hurry. I can make 2 pair a day with the machine)
The trick to these mitts is to make them nice and big. They almost look exaggerated when you put them on your hands. Before I give them to the intended recipient, I shrink them down in the washer, in hot water and a bit of suds. I put them in a pillow case and close it with a chip clip and run them through twice, about 14 minutes each time. They magically shrink to the perfect dimensions.
My husband brags that he has the warmest hands on the Bay of Islands because of my mitts. A lot of fishermen now go with the orange plastic gloves, probably for the simple fact that their mothers are gone and their wives don't know how to make them.
I made a pair for my husband's cousin, and he lost the right-hand mitt the first day of the season, so I gave him another pair, for which I was promised 20 pounds of crab! When I get the crab, I will put up another post, with pictures, of how to make the world's best crab-au-gratin!
Gotta go make some more mitts!
I remember, nearly 20 years ago, when we first got together, my husband told me he needed some mitts for fishing. I said "Well, why don't you go buy some?" He explained to me that mitts made from sheep wool were the warmest thing you could wear in the boat, and no matter how cold the water in the ocean was, and how wet your hands got, if you had a good pair of sheep wool mitts, your hands didn't get cold.
So, I bought a hank of wool and took a look at the mitts he already had. (ones his mother made him for the year before) They were very small. They barely came to his wrist. So I started knitting. After a day or so, I had one mitten done. He and his mother looked at it, and started to laugh. "Thats too small," he informed me. It didn't look small. It was the same size as the ones he already had. After they were done laughing, they explained to me that sheeps wool shrinks at an incredible rate, expecially after being exposed to salt water, and that I would have to knit them nearly 3 times the size they were now.
I didn't like that. I my younger days, I wanted near-instant results, and I didn't want to spend 2 weeks on one pair of mittens. (I used to knit a lot slower than I do now). I set out to knit the mitts. We have a big family joke now about the one mitt I knit for him the first year we were together.
Recently, I have been knitting mittens. A lot of them. I have adaped my mitten pattern to my Ultimate Knitting Machine, and now, I have fisherman mitts coming out the ying-yang! I love knitting them, both by hand (as a passtime in the evening when I am watching TV) and on my knitting machine (which I use when someone wants some mitts knit in a hurry. I can make 2 pair a day with the machine)
The trick to these mitts is to make them nice and big. They almost look exaggerated when you put them on your hands. Before I give them to the intended recipient, I shrink them down in the washer, in hot water and a bit of suds. I put them in a pillow case and close it with a chip clip and run them through twice, about 14 minutes each time. They magically shrink to the perfect dimensions.
My husband brags that he has the warmest hands on the Bay of Islands because of my mitts. A lot of fishermen now go with the orange plastic gloves, probably for the simple fact that their mothers are gone and their wives don't know how to make them.
I made a pair for my husband's cousin, and he lost the right-hand mitt the first day of the season, so I gave him another pair, for which I was promised 20 pounds of crab! When I get the crab, I will put up another post, with pictures, of how to make the world's best crab-au-gratin!
Gotta go make some more mitts!
Ginger Tea for Flu Relief
I woke up this morning with a congested, sore chest. I feel rotten and miserable. I am not a person who gets sick a lot. The last time I was ill was over 2 years ago, at which time, I decided to look for a natural solution to get me better, and keep me better. And it worked, until I got lazy and stopped doing it.
My solution is a strong pot of ginger tea once a week. I grate a 2 inch piece of ginger into a teapot, pour boiling water over it, add a bit of honey and the juice from half a lemon and let it sit for about 10 minutes. It is a little spicy, but once you get used to how it tastes, you'll be hooked. But you have to do it once a week. In helping my husband get ready for lobster fishing, I neglected to do this, and after a cold, miserable trip out into the Atlantic Ocean, I am sorry I was not more vigilant.
I have read that there are compounds in ginger that actually kill the flu virus, and I am a true believer. I will be going now, and making my tea. If you have a cold or flu, load up on the ginger tea, and let me know how it worked for you.
My solution is a strong pot of ginger tea once a week. I grate a 2 inch piece of ginger into a teapot, pour boiling water over it, add a bit of honey and the juice from half a lemon and let it sit for about 10 minutes. It is a little spicy, but once you get used to how it tastes, you'll be hooked. But you have to do it once a week. In helping my husband get ready for lobster fishing, I neglected to do this, and after a cold, miserable trip out into the Atlantic Ocean, I am sorry I was not more vigilant.
I have read that there are compounds in ginger that actually kill the flu virus, and I am a true believer. I will be going now, and making my tea. If you have a cold or flu, load up on the ginger tea, and let me know how it worked for you.
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