Saturday sky

(between snowfalls)

tot playing in today's snow...
about 4 inches of the stuff.
Holly wants to play too....
Hugo wants to play w/Holly.
(he plays so hard in the snow!)

no eggs... wondering if Holly isn't eating them.
The goose is limping again.

Now for the finished knitted items from January

Drop Stitch Moebius cowl
yarn used: lion brand trellis
this is an ick!

a Coffee corset
(free Ravelry download)
knitted with Malabrigo
(wonderful stuff)
Fire in the Head fingerless gloves
(erratas in the pattern)
yarn used: was some previously dyed w/Kool Aid
used US 6 dpns and got a child's large size
My grandmothers slippers
yarn: 2 strands of Dusty Rose Red Heart
size made: child shoe size 9

To Russia With Love....
Pattern: Scrappy Hat (archived)
yarn: 1 strand of fun fur and 2 of grey/black boucle
has been donated and already snatched up as a
chemo cap.

Sunday Quotes

I was just thinking, if it is really religion with these nudist colonies,

they sure must turn atheists in the wintertime.
~Will Rogers
though this link will take you to winter nudist attire.
(link is rated M)


Saturday sky last Saturday...


and my dead ice field.
i dump the ice just outside the door.
(there is a few more blocks now).
have lost 2 water dishes and a bucket this year already.
another bucket is frozen deep in the ice.



Hugo relaxing in the hallway.

Tweedledum scratching Holly's back.

sometime in this next week i will be
posting images of all projects started and
finished in January.

this blog was supposed to be
updated on Sunday
but the comp crashed in the middle.

So Thing 2 doesn't live here anymore.
therefor his bedroom is in dire need
of being mucked out.
There is some serious funk odor
emanating from the room.

First step: Remove all shoes- esp. 2 pairs of wrestling shoes. Nope.
Second step: wash all laundry- 4 pillows, 2 comforters and sleeping bag. Nope.
Third step: clean mattress- wasn't the bed blue and white? now it is brown.
Steps to cleaning mattress:
first: lightly spray with vinegar and cold water mixture,
blot with paper towels.
Open window to air out room- vinegar is powerful smelly.
Second: stand up on end to dry both sides of mattress.
Third: after airing put bed back together and liberally sprinkle with baking soda.
Allow soda to sit
then vacuum.

While mattress is airing,
vacuum up debris under bed.
what is that burning smell?
oh well continue cleaning.
put bed back together and generously apply baking soda.
(did you know that with enough baking soda in the air
it can be tasted?)
now to vacuum the closet...
what is burning?
uh oh bad sound from vacuum.
black stuff underneath vacuum.
take apart... nope not the belt.
how in the world did i burn up the beater bar?
now to replace bar, 7 to 10 days shipping.
Cool. but i still have soda all over the mattress.
now what?
hmm...
shop vac.
plug it in and turn it on.
aw bugger it!
whoever used it last did not remove water.
it smells like mildew.
oh well can't be to bad.
proceeded to remove soda from mattress,
then finished the room,
behind bookcases, dressers and door.
then looked down hallway.
I will just get the hay while i have this out.
oh lookie at all the black dog hair.
finally stop cleaning.
DH comes in and says:
"What is that smell? it stinks in here".
now to air out the whole house.
thankfully it is about 30 F outside.

So to get funk smell out of one room,
we went to vinegar,
burning plastic,
mildew.
best one of all of those was the vinegar.
yes there were little melted bits of plastic in my carpet
they were removed w/scissors.

Sunday Quotes

"Winter is the time for comfort-
it is the time for home."
Edith Sitwell

no pictures still.
DH worked on the comp but
no drivers and now no volume either.
So my audio cd is not going to be listened to.
the Guernsey Literary and Potato peel pie society

Lily got out yesterday and was discovered in the
chicken coop.
Holly is sleeping with the geese in their hovel.
Still no eggs. Cooked up some beans to
jumpstart the chickens for protein.
didn't work.
Plan B is to start butchering!


our temps have been above normal
but am not understanding the 18 or so degree difference
from Kenai to Soldotna. (the towns are about 10 min apart!)
Kenai 21 F
Soldotna 3 F.
very strange!
wonder what we have here.
but we are now upto 4 hrs of daylight a day.

knitting: am about 3 repeats away from being done
with my moebius scarf.
then onto mittens for me...
or the hat.

that is all
folks.
thanks
for sticking with me w/o piccies.

Wine Tasting Saturday

this Saturday Night DH and I went out.

A friend invited us to a wine tasting evening.
Only requirement was a bottle of wine from the Northwest region
(Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington)
and a food to go with it.

So I purchased a bottle of
Chateau Ste. Michelle Gewurztraminer Columbia Valley 2008
and cooked up a Japanese Yakatori Stir fry.

The foods that were brought were
cheese, crackers and meat trays,
smoked salmon dip
sushi rolls
Fudge
and a Swedish Apple pie.

The wines were
(the ones i remember)
Delish ones from
Bear Creek Winery Homer Alaska

Blue Zin
Black Raspberry (oh this one was Super good).

A wine from Idaho
wasn't very good- to dry.

Snoqualmie (wasn't very good)
even though it was a white

several reds
never did find the blush
and there were several whites.

(next month i will write them all down
with proper notes).

Sunday Quotes

"It wouldn't be New Year's if I didn't have regrets."
by William Thomas

I missed having the
Sunday quotes.

So my resolutions
for this year:

Blog more frequently.

Spend less time playing FB games.

Take time for myself each day
and enjoy the simple things in life.

The knitting under the tree this
last Christmas was nonexistent.
So once again i have joined the
Harry Potter House Cup
over in Ravelry.

And have finished one
assignment
DADA (Defense Against the Dark Arts)
which is to make something
that depicts our resolutions.
And i made a Coffee Corset.
out of malabrigo.
using a different technique that didn't work.
when my camera card cooperates w/my
computer i will post piccies.

so that is one thing done for the
1 project a week for 52 week challenge.
(we will see how well i do this year!)

recipes

wanted to post piccies...
but my new laptop
isn't communicating with my pic card.
so no pictures of
Holly
our new Nigerian Dwarf goat.
(who is a pain!)
on Christmas we drove around the block
to find her.
today she figured out how to
open up the chicken coop door
to eat the chicken feed.

The Female Tweedles isn't doing
very well. She has blisters on her webbed
feet. I have been keeping them penned
up due to ice and the goat eating their feed.





Recipe 1

Chocolate Truffle Tart

of course there are modifications....

Crust:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup ground walnuts
6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Baking Cocoa

Filling:
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 (9-ounce) package NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
2 oz squares of unsweetened baking choc.
1 t of vanilla
1 cup sweetened whipped cream, (optional)
1 cup fresh raspberries, (optional)

1. For Crust: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. Beat flour, powdered sugar, nuts, butter and cocoa in large mixer bowl until soft dough forms. Press dough onto bottom of a springform pan.
3. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until puffed. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
4. For Filling: Combine cream and sugar in medium, heavy-duty saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes just to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in morsels and choc; let stand for 5 minutes. Add vanilla and Whisk until smooth . Transfer to small mixer bowl. Cover; refrigerate for 45 to 60 minutes or until mixture is cooled and slightly thickened.
5. Beat for 20 to 30 seconds or just until color lightens slightly. Spoon into crust. Refrigerate until firm. Remove side of pan; garnish with whipped cream and raspberries.

Makes 8 servings.

Estimated Times
Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Cooling Time: 45 mins refrigerating

Wacky Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup cold coffee

In a 8 x8 square pan, sift together flour, sugar, cocoa, soda and salt. Make three wells in the flour mixture. In one put vanilla; in another the vinegar, and in the third the oil. Pour the cold water over the mixture and stir until moistened. Bake at 350°F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until it springs back when touched lightly.

sprinkle with powdered sugar or frost... this last time we cut it in half and filled mascarpone cheese.

Lowbush Moose Project weekly update

Obi has been visiting the last few days.

i took him outside w/me to look
for my cell phone in the car.
whilst i was rummaging around my car
i felt a nose against my leg.
(the car port is dark)

Realize that my phone must be inside after all.
i say to obi "come on then lets go inside".
after walking out of the car port into the lighted
drive, i turn to look- cause the dog is taking awhile.
and out of the car port walks this thing
with a long grey tail and skinny white legs.
i think to my self "how did that happen?"
then quickly realize "wait it is a cat!"
obi was right behind the kitty.
so i bring the kitten inside
to look it over.
soon realize that it is extremely hungry,
and not very old.
somebody dumped the thing and it made it over here.

then realize no wonder the rooster was cackling at 6 pm.
it must have been over by the garden and set the animals off.

so since no body has come looking for it and
nobody has called to say they want it.
i have to drop it off at the shelter in the am.

(here it moved)



and now a better shot w/flash.
all other critters are doing well.
the temps have been warm in the 20's F.
we are getting about 4 eggs a day.
with a light for 14 hrs a day.
houdini keeps dropping eggs onto the floor at night.
think she is having trouble- as her eggs
are the size of a duck egg.
(she is a smaller bird)