I don’t have much to say about the Rose Parade. It’s a made for TV event. It’s not nearly so glamorous up close. The fun part was being part of the scene.
We got on a tour bus in Lancaster way before sunup. I woke up on the bus just as we were about to exit the freeway in Pasadena and saw a glorious pink sunrise with monkey shinny up trees in black silhouette. (That’s what we used to call the palm trees in LA when I was a kid.)
The bus parked about a block from our reserved bench seats. It was fun being part of the crowd. We would have been doing good to get up to 5 mph. It was great letting someone else do the driving!
We were surrounded by red. People from Ohio. They occupied their time by doing cheers from one side of the street to the other.
Everytime any horses were in the parade, which was often, they were followed by a pooper scooper team. The ohio people cheered the loudest whenever a scooper team went by. Often the scoopers would do a little dance of some sort for the cheering crowd. It was great.
A photogenic dog.
It was quite a scene!
I tried my best to get us on tv but to no avail.
We were way up close
On the way home we stopped and took photos of this Lutheren Church in Mojave. It has cool stained glass windows.
My flight to LA last week-end went really well. I sat next to a pilot who was heading home. It was great because he knew some of the landmarks we were passing over, so I could sort of tell where we were.
The sky was clear for most of the way, so I was able to see the geological formations really well. It made me think about Phyllis crossing the country on her bike. I couldn’t even see cars down there, let alone bikes. It gave me an even better appreciation for the enormous distance she traveled.
When we were crossing New Mexico, I asked the pilot if he had ever seen anything strange and unidentified in the sky. He said no and laughed.
Then he told me he had been flying at night awhile back during the big meteor shower. He said it looks really different from that high up. He actually saw meteors that didn’t burn out until they were lower in the sky than the plane was. Apparently they looked like they were falling straight down rather than in an arc.
I loved the view over what I think was Phoenix. The pattern created by the tile roofs in subdivision patterns made a very cool mosaic.
I had several hours to layover in the LA airport.
Boots are in. Very tall boots with very high heels. Wear them with tights, skirts, dresses, pants, but they must be very, very tall, just barely below the knee.
There was a Wolfgang Puck restaurant near my gate. Yumm. I splurged and got the roasted veggie pizza. It was very good!
I brought it back to eat at the gate waiting area. The restaurant was too busy. A tiny space packed with chairs and a huge tv showing football with constant commercial interuption. Too much!
I sat down across from 3 guys. When I started to eat they started to laugh and talk amongst themselves. Even though it was spanish, I could tell it had something to do with my food. They got up and left and 15 minutes later they came back with a pizza box each. I think I should get a commission! It really was good and not more expensive than fancy pizza would have been in a more normal place.
There were some really creative methods people were using to transport their children. I saw a little girl about 3 years old go by, riding in her child carry seat which was attached to the rolling suitcase her father was pulling. Earlier I saw an older girl, maybe 7 or 8, again riding on her dad’s rolling luggage but this time she was astride the suitcase facing forward like she was riding a horse. Very creative.
The flight out of LA was one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen of a city from above. We flew out over the ocean and then circled back. It was very dark out by then and the lights lining the coast sparckled and twinkled. Didn’t take long to get to my destination on the high desert. It was a wonderful reunion with my sister I haven’t seen in a really long time.
Here are some pictures of the birds outside a window in my home away from home.
This one perches on top of a little fir tree.
Several others congregate in a pomegranate tree.
My sister is always finding pictures people took where they didn’t notice the background, and something like a telephone pole will be perfectly aligned to where it looks like it’s sticking out of the top of someone’s head.
I added this photo for her benefit. I couldn’t have aligned the pomegranate shell more perfectly if I had tried. It looks like this little bird is wearing a cap.
I love sitting out in the warmth of the high desert sun.
I just harvested the first lettuce from my fall garden.
Food always tastes better when you grew it by your own hand.
Its interesting that the woman in this video, Bonnie, says that when your life is simple you have more time. I thought all those devices we work so hard to pay for were supposed to be saving us time! So how is it that she grinds the wheat for her bread by hand and yet she has more time?
I agree with her that something has gone out of whack here. She says it all started with electricity. Hmm. Will be pondering on that for awhile. Couldn’t survive in this house long without electricity. Its not built to withstand the summer sun.
She has the same kind of wheat grinder my mom used. I remember my mom grinding up pomegranate from the little orchard of trees on the place we rented. She used the juice to make jelly.
Penny and I used to pick out the seeds from the pomegranates and put them in one of those great big jars like you can get pickles in. We put about 5 sweet to 1 sour and shook it up to mix. Yum!!!!
I was looking for videos on youtube showing how to play the flute / recorder and somehow I ended up here:
The introduction to musical vegetables, apparently carrots work best.
The introduction was great, but this is even better. Notice how he eats the shavings from the carrot and the delicate care he takes in making precise cuts.
Here is my Library DVD pick for the day. The Pied Piper of Hamelin, 1957.
It’s a funky sort of musical that is set like a stage play with Dr Seuss type rhyming, except that none of the words are made up and the musical arrangement is more like a symphony.
All the men wear tight pants, is that historically correct for the time period? I don’t know, I guess Shakespeare is always depicted in tight pants.
Here is a quote from a scene where the daughter of the mayor asks her husband to be, the hero, not to go against her father, so he won’t try to prevent their marriage.
The hero says:
“Would you … deprive me of my sight? To see the world through but one eye, half the truth and half a lie? It would be as if you say, love me every other day. Would you have my heart, in part?”
It’s a wonderful production, with many morals to the story that would apply to our day and age. But, the sun is shining, its a beautiful day, and I’m not feeling in a preachy mood, so see for your self if it has any meaning to you.
I’m off to ride my bike to the farmer’s market and then the library.
Start the syrup first so it will have time to simmer and cool before the pancakes are ready.
Fruit Syrup
2 cups fresh or frozen fruit
Note: If fruit is fresh, mash down to fill 2 cups, if frozen, over fill measuring cup, it doesn’t need to be exact)
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup sugar (or less to taste)
Bring water and fruit to a boil in a good solid sauce pan. Add sugar, stir, and reduce to simmer. Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally with a fork or wire whisk to break down fruit. The longer you simmer, the thicker the syrup will become, just don’t let it burn if you want it really thick. I like it thin so the juice soaks down into the pancake.
Will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks. Freeze to keep longer.
Cinnamon – Yogurt – Whole Wheat – Pancakes
Mix liquid ingredient together well until smooth:
2 eggs
1 cup (8 oz) yogurt
1 cup water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses
Note: Measure oil first then the molasses won’t stick to the measuring spoon
Now for the dry ingredients. You can mix these in a separate bowl, then add to liquid.
I prefer to just let the dry ingredients float on top of the liquid until I have all the dry ingredients in the bowl. Then I stir up the dry on top to mix them a little before I mix it all together. It saves me washing an extra bowl.
Whichever method you prefer, the main idea is once you start mixing the dry into the liquid, stir as little as possible. The more you stir at this point, the more tough the pancakes will be when they are cooked.
Dry ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour, stirred but not sifted
Note: stir the top few inches of flour in the package, measure out a cup, stir again, measure out the second cup
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup powdered milk
Note: If you don’t have powdered milk, you can use regular milk or soy milk instead of water
Once you have gently mixed the dry ingredients with the liquid ingredients, you are ready to cook the pancakes.
I make my pancakes huge. About a cup of batter per pancake. If you do that, it will only make 5 or 6 pancakes, but you will spend less time cooking them, but its trickier to get them done without burning. One pancake this size is plenty for one person, unless you are in training for a cross country bike ride, then you might want two
Its easier to make smaller ones, so if you use about 1/2 cup batter per pancake, you will get about 12.
I like to put plenty of oil in my cast iron skillet before I start to cook the pancakes, because I like them crispy on the edges. Just make sure your pan is warm enough that a drop of batter forms bubbles right away.
Once your pan is ready and you have added batter, spread it out some with your spoon so it won’t be too thick in the middle. This batter is fairly thick, so it won’t spread much on its own.
My mom used to make little designs with the batter. She would make our initials with the batter first, backwards, let it cook for a second, then add more batter. When the pancake is done, you can see the outline of the initials in the middle of the pancake.
You will be able to tell when its time to turn over the pancake by looking at the surface. The bubbles will have popped and the upper surface will look more solid, or somewhat cooked. Don’t wait too long or it will start to burn on the bottom side. If you turn it over too soon, the pancake might fall apart some, but it won’t hurt anything. Better too soon than burnt, you can always turn it multiple times until its cooked and browned to your satisfaction.
½ cup butter
½ cup honey
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon cloves
1 cup grated raw carrots
1 cup seedless raisins
¼ cup peanut butter
mix butter & honey; add & mix eggs; mix dry ingredients separately & then add to batter; add & mix carrots, raisins, & peanut butter; spoon into greased casserole dish; bake at 350º for 25 min or until fork comes out clean.
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 chopped onion
5 cups water
1 cup lentil
1 sliced celery stalk
1 sliced carrot
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon tumeric
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon ground ginger or 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup parsley (optional)
sauté onions in olive oil in soup pot until onions are translucent; add water, lentils, & vegetables; bring to boil and turn down to simmer; add spices when lentils are tender (~ 45 minutes); simmer for about 15 more minutes & remove from heat; add parsley.
Red Velvet Cake
2½ cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
1¼ cup melted butter
4 eggs, beaten
½ cup milk
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup shredded beets (cooked or raw)
mix dry ingredients; mix wet ingredients & add to dry ingredients; add beets & mix; pour into greased casserole dish; cook at 350º for 40 min or until fork comes out clean; frost with cream cheese frosting when cake is cool; refrigerates well.
Cream Cheese Frosting
6 Tablespoon cream
6 oz cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch salt
½ lb powdered sugar
mix all ingredients with beater
½ cup oil
1 cup sweetener (honey, sorghum, molasses, and/or maple syrup)
10 cups of grains (rolled oats, rolled wheat, rolled rye, puffed wheat, and/or puffed rice)
1-3 cups dried fruit (raisins, currents, dates, cranberries, and/or apples)
1-3 cups nuts/seeds (cashews, almonds, walnuts, pecans, flax seed and/or sunflower seeds)
Optional
½ cup peanut butter
1 Tbl vanilla
¼ cup milk powder
2 Tbl nutritional yeast
1 Tbl grated orange or lemon peel
1 cup wheat germ
1 cup coconut
Heat oil, sweetener, and peanut butter (optional) in a large pot until thin. Remove from heat. Stir in remaining optional ingredients if desired. Stir in grains. Dried fruit & nuts/seeds may be added now or after cooking. Spread mixture into ungreased cookie sheets with sides or casserole dishes. Bake at 250°F for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Cool. Store in an airtight container.
Variation
To make granola bars, reduce grains to 6 cups and press mixture into two 8 inch square pans. Bake at 300°F for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Cut while hot, but cool before removing from pan.
½ cup butter
½ cup sugar
¼ cup molasses
2 eggs
¼ cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
½ cup dry milk powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 cups rolled oats
½ cup dried fruit
½ cup nuts
Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter, sugar, eggs, water, & vanilla in bowl until smooth. Add flour, dry milk powder, salt, baking soda, & spices; mix well. Mix in oats, dried fruit, & nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown.
It was great letting someone else do the driving!
