Hey! Another quick TV post.
From Doctor Who: "Donna, by the way, Donna Noble since you didn't ask. I'll have a salute."
Move over Rose Tyler. You've just been replaced as the Best Companion Ever.
Yes--I liked Rose, I'll enjoy seeing her again.
But Donna... Donna is amazing.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Babylon 5
Still watching Babylon 5. I admit, I've gotten hooked. They've pretty much stopped the whole "LOOK! HERE IS THE MORAL OF THE STORY!" stuff (I think the greatest sin an author can commit is not trusting the reader to get it), and they've developed a genuine sense of humor (Marcus helps a lot there). The story arc is just as intriguing as people said it would be.
My big fuss right now is the way the great Minbari-Human War got started. Oh, I love the idea of the mistake-that-starts-the war, and I love the way it was introduced, the parallels to King Arthur's final battle were brilliantly done.
But. The mistake itself is unbelievable. After all, this was not the Minbari's first contact with another species. They'd been out there for a long time with other races. You'd think that somewhere, sometime in the last thousand years (or so), someone would have told them "You know that thing you do with the gun ports? Don't."
I mean, really, open gun ports as a sign of honor? And no one before the humans had ever mistaken it for a threat? I don't think so.
My big fuss right now is the way the great Minbari-Human War got started. Oh, I love the idea of the mistake-that-starts-the war, and I love the way it was introduced, the parallels to King Arthur's final battle were brilliantly done.
But. The mistake itself is unbelievable. After all, this was not the Minbari's first contact with another species. They'd been out there for a long time with other races. You'd think that somewhere, sometime in the last thousand years (or so), someone would have told them "You know that thing you do with the gun ports? Don't."
I mean, really, open gun ports as a sign of honor? And no one before the humans had ever mistaken it for a threat? I don't think so.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
*Bounces
Blake's 7 might come back!!!
There are so many things that could go wrong....
And so many remakes that haven't happened.
But Doctor Who gives me hope.
Though I admit, I'll miss the amazing wooden ship and the invading kitchen appliances. A bit.
Oh, and don't you hate the way that every single article about the show summarizes the final episode? When I first saw it (the one and only time PBS aired it in our area), I had no idea what was coming. It made for quite an impact. Now... everyone will know, poor souls.
There are so many things that could go wrong....
And so many remakes that haven't happened.
But Doctor Who gives me hope.
Though I admit, I'll miss the amazing wooden ship and the invading kitchen appliances. A bit.
Oh, and don't you hate the way that every single article about the show summarizes the final episode? When I first saw it (the one and only time PBS aired it in our area), I had no idea what was coming. It made for quite an impact. Now... everyone will know, poor souls.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Rose Beads--An Illustrated Guide
A few people have asked me about making rose beads. I found out about it by searching for something else entirely on google (I cannot even remember what), so there are other sites, but, hey, I feel like writing up the instructions anyway.
1) Pl
ant lots of roses. Grow them without systemic pesticide (do you want to give your friends poison-laced necklaces? I thought not). Alternatively, you can beg petals off of environmentally minded friends or relations, but that isn't nearly as much fun.
Or, you can ask total strangers, but they tend to give you funny looks when you start inquiring about the amount of poison they use.
2) Gather roses off of the bushes and from vases around the house. You do have some in the house, right? If not--why not? Leave some roses for the bees (they've had a rough few years), add some to the vases. I'm told the best time to gather the roses is in the morning when they are at their most scented; I haven't done a comparison.
3) Spread the roses out and admire them. Notice how the patterns on the petals vary and how many colors there are. Do not omit this important step.
4) Start tak
ing the petals off the roses so you can grind them. I've used a food processor in the past; a mortar and pestle is quieter but takes much longer. These days, I'm using the blender which grinds more finely but takes more water. Both blender and food processor require some water in order to grind, something the sites I visited did not mention. Please to note: I have a super-strong blender and it does strain sometimes. It's a good idea to keep a close eye (or rather ear) on the motor to make sure you don't kill it. After all, you'll want it for smoothies later.
5) Grind them very, very fine--much finer than in the picture. Store them in a jar in the fridge until you are ready for step 6.
[Interlude:
After you have ground the roses, use some of the rose water to make something tasty. Rose cookies are good--you can follow an official recipe or you can make sugar cookies & substitute rose water for the vanilla and some of the liquid.
I like to leave a bit of the ground rose petals in the blender, add some rose water, and make a smoothie. Chocolate and roses are a perfect pair, but I should imagine citrus and rose would work as well.
Sit out in the shade, preferably under a tree with rustling leaves, with the smoothie and a good book and enjoy a few minutes of peace.]
6) Here's where there starts to be options.
a) You can heat them on the stove; keep them at a very, very low temperature so that they don't boil. Apparently, the Victorians did this for days.
The modern method is to put them on for an hour every now and again and store the mush in the fridge between times. If you want black beads, add some rusty iron--nails work fine--to the mix. Otherwise, you'll get brown beads, no matter what color the roses were to start with
. One possible exception is red--theoretically, red petals ground and heated in a non-reactive pan will dry red-black. I haven't had enough red roses to try this so far.
b) The other way, the way I'm trying now, is to grind the petals very find, put the mush in the fridge, and then grind them again the next day, adding any new petals. Do this for a few days in a row, then drain the petal-clay. The beads still come out brown, but it is a slightly warmer brown, and there is more scent left.
c) You may want to add salt to your final mix to help preserve them and to keep them from growing mold before they dry--I had to throw away one batch because they did not dry fast enough. Leaving them out in the sunshine each day seems to help. Probably they could be dried in an oven at a low temperature, too.
7) Drain the bead/clay in a fine sieve. Lining it with a double layer of paper towel helps. The mush in the picture is iron-laced; it does produce nice beads, but it also makes the rosewater unusable, which is a shame.
8) Shape the beads.
9) Cover a piece of cardboard with wax paper; pin the beads to the paper.
10) Leave them somewhere to dry. Here, where it is humid, it's important to get them out into the sun (see 5c for the reason).
1) Pl
ant lots of roses. Grow them without systemic pesticide (do you want to give your friends poison-laced necklaces? I thought not). Alternatively, you can beg petals off of environmentally minded friends or relations, but that isn't nearly as much fun.Or, you can ask total strangers, but they tend to give you funny looks when you start inquiring about the amount of poison they use.
2) Gather roses off of the bushes and from vases around the house. You do have some in the house, right? If not--why not? Leave some roses for the bees (they've had a rough few years), add some to the vases. I'm told the best time to gather the roses is in the morning when they are at their most scented; I haven't done a comparison.
3) Spread the roses out and admire them. Notice how the patterns on the petals vary and how many colors there are. Do not omit this important step.
4) Start tak
ing the petals off the roses so you can grind them. I've used a food processor in the past; a mortar and pestle is quieter but takes much longer. These days, I'm using the blender which grinds more finely but takes more water. Both blender and food processor require some water in order to grind, something the sites I visited did not mention. Please to note: I have a super-strong blender and it does strain sometimes. It's a good idea to keep a close eye (or rather ear) on the motor to make sure you don't kill it. After all, you'll want it for smoothies later.
5) Grind them very, very fine--much finer than in the picture. Store them in a jar in the fridge until you are ready for step 6.[Interlude:
After you have ground the roses, use some of the rose water to make something tasty. Rose cookies are good--you can follow an official recipe or you can make sugar cookies & substitute rose water for the vanilla and some of the liquid.
I like to leave a bit of the ground rose petals in the blender, add some rose water, and make a smoothie. Chocolate and roses are a perfect pair, but I should imagine citrus and rose would work as well.
Sit out in the shade, preferably under a tree with rustling leaves, with the smoothie and a good book and enjoy a few minutes of peace.]
6) Here's where there starts to be options.
a) You can heat them on the stove; keep them at a very, very low temperature so that they don't boil. Apparently, the Victorians did this for days.
The modern method is to put them on for an hour every now and again and store the mush in the fridge between times. If you want black beads, add some rusty iron--nails work fine--to the mix. Otherwise, you'll get brown beads, no matter what color the roses were to start with
. One possible exception is red--theoretically, red petals ground and heated in a non-reactive pan will dry red-black. I haven't had enough red roses to try this so far.b) The other way, the way I'm trying now, is to grind the petals very find, put the mush in the fridge, and then grind them again the next day, adding any new petals. Do this for a few days in a row, then drain the petal-clay. The beads still come out brown, but it is a slightly warmer brown, and there is more scent left.
c) You may want to add salt to your final mix to help preserve them and to keep them from growing mold before they dry--I had to throw away one batch because they did not dry fast enough. Leaving them out in the sunshine each day seems to help. Probably they could be dried in an oven at a low temperature, too.
7) Drain the bead/clay in a fine sieve. Lining it with a double layer of paper towel helps. The mush in the picture is iron-laced; it does produce nice beads, but it also makes the rosewater unusable, which is a shame.
8) Shape the beads.
9) Cover a piece of cardboard with wax paper; pin the beads to the paper.
10) Leave them somewhere to dry. Here, where it is humid, it's important to get them out into the sun (see 5c for the reason).
11) Once they're dry, they'll be nice and hard and ready for making into jewelry. So far, I've only made bracelets, but then, I discovered rose beads in the late fall--not the best
time for gathering rose petals. They'll keep some of their smell, too. Rumor has it that the smell lasts for centuries, but I have no way of testing that.
time for gathering rose petals. They'll keep some of their smell, too. Rumor has it that the smell lasts for centuries, but I have no way of testing that.Saturday, April 19, 2008
Roses! Oh, and other flowers too.
I'm completely and thoroughly tired, much too much so to write that long, elaborate, and extravagant post about gardening I was going to write (guess how I spent the day?). So, instead, I'm going to deluge you with photos of my beautiful babies.I'm not even going to do anything fancy with formatting. You'll have to settle for pretty flowers, all in a row.
Pink and white rose. It's quite exciting watching them unfold. I only wish I remembered which kind they were. I'm sort of hoping that the person who planted them will remind me.
Someone asked me what a disgruntled bee looks like.Well, I don't hang around to take pictures of them, but if you look closely here, you'll see a gruntled bee.
Nutmeg scented geranium.
Red Sweet Peas
Japanese Iris.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Not Just Roses
Yes, we grow things other than roses in the garden.
Also, I'm finally starting to figure out how to use the Macro setting on my camera. One thing I finally figured out: It will not work on the Auto setting.
Also, I'm finally starting to figure out how to use the Macro setting on my camera. One thing I finally figured out: It will not work on the Auto setting.
A Rosy Day
Yesterday was a rose-filled day.
I started by stripping all the fully-open roses from the bushes to make beads.
But, before I ground them up, I had to stop and admire the way the Fourth of July roses are all different. Hundreds of flowers on one bush, all streaked, speckled, and spotted in unique ways.
After admiring them--and dragging in family members to also admire them--I took a picture.
Then, I got busy and ground them up, simmered them for a few hours, and drained them while I shaped beads from the previous batch & put them out to dry.
I also used the rose-water from the bead-making to scent some soap.
While the rest of the rose-water was used to make a rose-apple crumble (yummy!).
Incidentally, gathering large batches of roses at once confuses the bees, or so I judge from their behavior around the fourth of July bush. All day long, they had been coming to the bushes, gathering nectar, and going home to dance their dances, assuring others of flowers and food. All of the sudden, there was nothing there, save the bees, flying around where the flowers ought to be, bumbling into the buds hopefully, and then flying off with disgruntled looks on their little faces.
There are also plenty of roses left around the house, floating in bowls or standing in vases.
Not all of the bushes are even blooming yet--some of the bare-root roses have only just started to discover that they are bushes at all.
I may eventually run out of things to do with roses--beyond admiring them, that is.
I started by stripping all the fully-open roses from the bushes to make beads.
But, before I ground them up, I had to stop and admire the way the Fourth of July roses are all different. Hundreds of flowers on one bush, all streaked, speckled, and spotted in unique ways.
After admiring them--and dragging in family members to also admire them--I took a picture.
Then, I got busy and ground them up, simmered them for a few hours, and drained them while I shaped beads from the previous batch & put them out to dry.
I also used the rose-water from the bead-making to scent some soap.
While the rest of the rose-water was used to make a rose-apple crumble (yummy!).
Incidentally, gathering large batches of roses at once confuses the bees, or so I judge from their behavior around the fourth of July bush. All day long, they had been coming to the bushes, gathering nectar, and going home to dance their dances, assuring others of flowers and food. All of the sudden, there was nothing there, save the bees, flying around where the flowers ought to be, bumbling into the buds hopefully, and then flying off with disgruntled looks on their little faces.
There are also plenty of roses left around the house, floating in bowls or standing in vases.
Not all of the bushes are even blooming yet--some of the bare-root roses have only just started to discover that they are bushes at all.
I may eventually run out of things to do with roses--beyond admiring them, that is.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Malaika
Still seems to be doing ok.
He doesn't seem to be pining, and he doesn't seem to be ill.
He is still bossy, still wants to shred all the paper in sight (especially if it's books), and still loves to have his head scratched.
May he stay that way!
He doesn't seem to be pining, and he doesn't seem to be ill.
He is still bossy, still wants to shred all the paper in sight (especially if it's books), and still loves to have his head scratched.
May he stay that way!
I'm Here!
So, the other day I was sitting in the back quietly reading when the doorbell rang.
Still thinking about other things, I headed to the front planning to pick up whatever package UPS had dropped off or to fend off the students selling candy to buy textbooks or whatever.
I opened the door & looked vaguely out. "Am I at the right place?" the man asked.
I hardly knew.
"Is this [address]?"
Yes, it was.
"Well," he announced. "I'm here!"
"That's nice. Who are you?" was my puzzled (and judging by the look on his face, puzzling) reply.
-----
The rather prosaic ending:
"I'm the [don't remember the company name] floor man!"
We were expecting a floor man?
"Um. I guess I'm here to see [someone else]?"
He was. We were, as it turned out, expecting a plumber. But no on had told me that.
Everything got sorted out, and I returned to my book in peace.
Still thinking about other things, I headed to the front planning to pick up whatever package UPS had dropped off or to fend off the students selling candy to buy textbooks or whatever.
I opened the door & looked vaguely out. "Am I at the right place?" the man asked.
I hardly knew.
"Is this [address]?"
Yes, it was.
"Well," he announced. "I'm here!"
"That's nice. Who are you?" was my puzzled (and judging by the look on his face, puzzling) reply.
-----
The rather prosaic ending:
"I'm the [don't remember the company name] floor man!"
We were expecting a floor man?
"Um. I guess I'm here to see [someone else]?"
He was. We were, as it turned out, expecting a plumber. But no on had told me that.
Everything got sorted out, and I returned to my book in peace.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Zebrina by any other name...
Whatever you do, do not plant Commelina zebrina aka Tradescantia pendul aka aka Zebrina pendula aka Wandering Jew aka Giant Inch Plant aka Speedy Jenny aka Chain Plant in your garden--at least, not if you live in a frost-free area.
It makes a great houseplant with lovely, glossy leaves, pretty flowers, and an undemanding nature. Once in the garden, however, it goes feral--ragged, dusty-leaved, and flower-less, and by any name it is a nuisance. We took ours out three or four years ago, and I got up every morning afterward for weeks and pulled out little Zebrina sprouts, first thing. Guess what?
I am still pulling out starts.
It makes a great houseplant with lovely, glossy leaves, pretty flowers, and an undemanding nature. Once in the garden, however, it goes feral--ragged, dusty-leaved, and flower-less, and by any name it is a nuisance. We took ours out three or four years ago, and I got up every morning afterward for weeks and pulled out little Zebrina sprouts, first thing. Guess what?
I am still pulling out starts.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Pictures of the birds
I don't actually have many pictures of the birds. They tend not to pose well. Still, I've a few.
Peek-a-boo
I see you!
The two of them really liked the bike helmet.
Malaika playing King of the Cage.
So far, he still seems to be ok. He's sitting on my shoulder now wanting his head scratched. So, I'm going to finish this and oblige.
Peek-a-boo
I see you!
The two of them really liked the bike helmet.
Malaika playing King of the Cage.
So far, he still seems to be ok. He's sitting on my shoulder now wanting his head scratched. So, I'm going to finish this and oblige.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Antique Roses
These are antique roses. What I cannot remember is what kind of antique roses. They might be apothecary's roses--or they might not. Whatever the name, the smell is sweet.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Sadness
One of my birds just died.
Rafiki.
He was fine this morning when I took them out of their cage to clean it.
He seemed fine.
I've not spent as much time with them as I should lately--it's hard when I also have a dog now--but I'm sure I would have noticed.
But then this afternoon, he just sat there. And there wasn't even really time to think of a vet, much less take him to one.
I'm not sure if it would have made a difference.
He was thirteen, fairly old for a lovebird.
But it was so sudden. And I don't know what happened. He can't have eaten anything--there's nothing in here, I'm very careful about that.
And Malaika is calling for him.
Rafiki.
He was fine this morning when I took them out of their cage to clean it.
He seemed fine.
I've not spent as much time with them as I should lately--it's hard when I also have a dog now--but I'm sure I would have noticed.
But then this afternoon, he just sat there. And there wasn't even really time to think of a vet, much less take him to one.
I'm not sure if it would have made a difference.
He was thirteen, fairly old for a lovebird.
But it was so sudden. And I don't know what happened. He can't have eaten anything--there's nothing in here, I'm very careful about that.
And Malaika is calling for him.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
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