A Fig!

Last year I purchased a tiny Chicago Fig tree from the nursery.  

While I have had many dried figs, I have never seen a fresh one 

probably because you don't see too many fig trees near St Louis MO.

They would die from cold in some years if they are not protected.

This variety too will die to the ground when temperatures fall

below freezing as they do here a lot.  The Chicago fig; however,

bears on new growth so when it begins to sprout again, it will 

fruit the same year.  They get to be about 10-12 feet tall and

just as wide when planted outdoors.  I have read that they do well

in containers so I assume they stay under 10 x 10 indoors.

This one has lived in a large pot in front of my full glass back door

that gets full sun in the afternoon.  Our entire back wall is lined with 

windows and plants seem to thrive there.  I will have to plant it outside

because I can't block our hallway with this fig tree which- 

if you look closely has a 

FIG

right in the middle of this photo! I hope this little guy ripens!

Free No. 5 Treadle Update

My Free No. 5 treadle had been sitting in my grandmother's house 

tucked back in the attic dormer area for who knows how many

years.  We brought it home about 33 years ago when we were 

first married and furnishing our apartment.  It's probably around

100 years old and in very good shape.

While my husband is awaiting the next construction job to begin

I asked him if he would get it ready for sewing for me.  It's right

up his alley, if he can't tinker with the tractor, he may as well play around 

with the treadle. He downloaded the instruction manual and started to work.

He started vacuuming and dusting.

There were old needles in the belly of the machine 

that had to be cleaned out.

He oiled all the areas that need oil.

He has it running pretty smoothly so now I need

to read the manual and start to practice.  My 

blogger friend, Missy, uses treadles for her quilting

in addition to all sorts of other machines. I know

I'll be asking her a question or two from time to time.

We have all the original parts for this, except spare needles

which I will need to find.  So between studying for my

ham radio technician's license, work, gardening and this, I will 

have plenty to keep me busy!  

Pork Steak Rebellion

We joined the Pork Steak Rebellion

The EPA is funding a study on emissions from grilling on an open flame, suggesting that your grill should have a special catalytic emissions system and special tray to catch drippings.  One St Louis Senator, Eric Schmitt, started a Twitter Campaign to call attention to this proposal and show the EPA that they should have no authority over our backyard bar-b-ques. 

 Under #porksteakrebellion, the campaign took off, making national news and

probably a nice profit for local groceries as they sold out of pork steaks and other

bbq favorites.  I am proud to say we did our part as did my brother-sister in law when we dined on their deck with perfect weekend weather.   

Pork Steaks

Sliced potatoes wrapped in foil, buttered and seasoned.

Grilled onions with rosemary and sage.

plus a few sides.

We even carried it further, attending a bar-b-que today at our neighbor's house

with pork and chicken legs and plus all the sides.   It was tough, but someone had to do it.

Study Hard

Study Hard - Ham Test Online

I finally gave in and had my husband sign me up for 

the Ham Test Online interactive study course so I can practice 

for my ham radio Technician's license.  

This is an entry level license that they estimate will take 

about 10 hours of study; however,

this is more of a continuous practice test that follows

a brief discussion on a portion of the testing material.

You don't have to memorize over a hundred questions or

dig through a couple hundred page book.  You just

keep working the study guide daily until you are comfortable

with the material and it should begin to sink in.

It is a small charge ($24.95) for a 2 year subscription

that allows unlimited access during the subscription period.

Other license levels take longer and may be priced differently.

Ham Test OnLine  Link

So far I am learning about 

Current (symbol I measured in Amperes or Amps by an ammeter)

Voltage (symbol E measured in volts by a voltmeter)

Resistance (symbol R measured in ohms by a ohmmeter)

Ohm's Law and how to calculate

Circuits and types of circuits

plus schematic symbols and what they mean.

The online study course will keep track of your correct answers

and recognizes where your weaknesses are.  You will find they will

repeat the questions where you provided incorrect answers

and will link you back to the tutorial so you can review the material.

So far I have completed 10% of the study guide with 90% correct answers.

I was less than that yesterday and hopefully I'll be better tomorrow.

There are a limited number of questions on the technician's test

and these study guide questions come out of the pool, or at least

are similar to what will be asked on the test, which I can take 

in about a month.  If I don't pass, I'll just study more and take it again.

This material is so far from anything I've ever studied that

I'll feel no shame if I don't pass the first time.  Additionally,

it's been over 30 years since I was in school!  

My husband is absolutely giddy over this.

He is planning ham field days together, making antennas and

working on electronic projects together and attending

the local ham meetings and go to swap meets.

I can't say that I am super excited to do those activities;

however, they do work with the local authorities and

emergency management officials and that part interests me.

I know a few of you are also interested in getting your license

so check out the information to see if it is a program that

you might like to try.  I better get back to it so wish me luck!

Practical Skills Thrift Store Find

Practical Skills

I love searching out thrift shops for books.  Unless it is truly a collector

item for me, I normally don't pay the cover price; therefore, when

I pass one of the many thrift stores on my hour drive home from work,

I occasionally stop in to check out the shelves.  I'll check for anything

that I am missing in a series, look for great mysteries and then give 

a little peek at the history and non-fiction section.

I came across Gene Logsdon's Practical Skills and thought it looked interesting.

There is a little bit of everything from how to make household items,

sewing and needle work,

building rock walls plus gardening and livestock tips.

I have several books, some dating back to the 1800's.

We find they are still useful today, in fact, we had to refer

to an old cookbook when processing our pork because the

modern recipes were dependent on the pork being already cured.

I would like to make a schedule of Learning To Do activities

from making hardtack to braiding (small) rugs or more primitive

gardening techniques.  One of the bloggers, Sunnybrook Farm,

always amazes me with the skills he has developed.  I love reading

about restoring the old buildings, oxen training, museum exhibits 

and his trips to Black Dog Salvage, somewhere I will make sure to visit 

if I ever get to his neck of the woods.

I saw The Folk School ad in Mary Jane's Farm magazine.  It's too far

from home and out of my reach but it would be so much fun to take a 

week or weekend class.  You can enroll for a weekend or a week long

class in a wide variety of subjects from blacksmithing to rug making, 

needlework, weaving, dance and many other subjects. 

I better get started on that list!

Time to get Busy

I owe a couple of people some packages so I need to get busy

before it's time to get out in the garden.

I've made some more microwaveable bowl hot pads and 

have to send a couple to my mom.  I find my machine struggles

with the thickness of two layers of batting when I have to sew 

the seams together where the darts are, even though I have trimmed 

them. I have to go very slow but I still think I'm not doing it

the best way even if I follow the tutorials.  Regardless,

they are functional.  I have two double thick here for the microwave

and one single batting layer for cold items like a bowl of ice cream.

Then I found an entire set of Betty Crocker recipe cards

that must have been collected a packet at a time.  There are dividers

for each category with the first card in each set listing all

the recipes in that category.  Then there is a main index.

A couple of the sets are not even out of their packaging

so they are in pristine condition.  Looking at the date on

the index, this must have been from the early 70's.

I paid a whopping $1.99- but that's not all-

I donated some clothes to the thrift store and got

20% off the $1.99!  What a bargain.

My husband's brother and his wife are living next door 

in my mother in law's house since she is up at the nursing home

and they have her box of similar recipe cards.  I said we'll have to each

make a 70's meal once a month and invite the other family.

So twice a month we'll be back in the 70's, which for me was

my high school years.  It sounds like fun but I'm a little concerned.

Does this mean we have to learn to play bridge? ???

Today is the St Pat's parade in town.  I'm not attending but my 

husband is there with the Knights of Columbus setting up the BBQ.

He'll be back soon and we're having a family gathering next door 

with corned beef and cabbage.  It is my least favorite meal

of almost all times  (except for liver) but an Usher family tradition.  

They are all excited, filling their bellies every year with a huge feast.  

I have the rye bread and potatoes.  

This year is different- we're bringing mostaccioli!

This is a St Louis favorite and my mother in laws meat sauce is fantastic.  

You start with a chuck roast, homemade spaghetti sauce ingredients

 and a crock pot. It cooks for hours and hours until 

the meat just falls apart and then you mix in the noodles 

and top your plate off with Parmesan cheese.

Crock Pot

2 lb. Chuck roast

¼ cup olive oil

½ cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic

2 Tb sugar

1 Tb salt

1 ½ tsp dried basil

½ tsp fennel seed

¼ tsp pepper

2 lb. 3 oz. canned tomatoes

2 6 oz. cans of tomato paste

1 lb. dried rigatoni noodles

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil. 

Put everything, except the noodles, in the crock pot 

Cook until the meat falls apart. 

I start it off on High and then switch to low later on.

Boil the noodles, drain and add to the sauce.

Stir and serve, topped with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Ebelskiver Find

As I was walking through the aisle of the St Vincent de Paul Thrift

shop looking for more strawberry plates to go with my vintage set, 

I saw an unusual pan sitting on the shelf and rushed over to grab it

before anyone else did.  Someone thought it was egg cookware,

others just didn't have any idea -- but I did.

It's an Ebelskiver pan!

I have been wanting one of these for years.

This one was priced at $3.50 and looks like it has been

on the shelf since just before Christmas.  

It is a Nordic Ware Cast Aluminum pan priced on line at $50.

You can see the Link here

And how to cook on it here 

They are little Danish pancake balls that can be filled with a wide variety

of fillings from fruit to cheese or other sweet fillings.  I can't wait to try them!

Pinterest credit

What Type of Seed Was That?

As the winter weather seems to be breaking it is once again 

time to begin garden planning.  I am not yet set up to start seeds 

indoors so I seed directly in the ground or purchase starts for

those plants that need a head start.  I find that seeds my heirloom

seeds will last several years but I have to be careful to keep them 

labeled properly so I plant them in the proper place.

You just never know what might pop up where you least expect it!

Seriously though, we have hopefully seen the last of our snow.  We

enjoyed sitting outside without coats this weekend although the ground

has become a sloppy mess.   I'm pretty excited to see how the

blackberries and elderberry plant did over the winter and need to 

find a Wyldwood elderberry to pair with my current plant.

Pretty soon I'll be able to work in the garden

and post about how I am fighting squash bugs while complaining 

that the weather is too hot! 

For now it's off to work.

How Do You Make Your Coffee?

I posed this question to my Facebook friends,

Do you reuse your coffee grounds?

I have a 4 cup Mr Coffee because for a long time

I was the only coffee drinker, not by choice but

due to some medical issues, my husband had to stay

away from caffeine for a long while.  I didn't need to

make 8-12 cups for myself and take up more counter space

so the 4 cup made sense.

Now that my husband can go back to drinking some coffee

those 4 cups don't quite make it.  After the initial brew

we add two scoops to the original grounds and another four cups of

water.  The fresh grounds mix in with the once used grounds

to make four cups of coffee.  I use sugar and creamer so I

don't notice any difference.  My husband drinks it black and

seems to think it's OK too. With coffee prices what they are,

why wouldn't we do this since we can't tell a difference in taste?

Most of the Facebook friends either do the same thing

or, if not, they save the grounds for compost.

So how do you make your coffee?

Do you use the spent grounds afterward?

Painting Party

A few of the girls gathered at our neighbor's house for a painting party yesterday.  It was the perfect day for it since we were recovering from five inches of snow.  

We had an inspiration painting to start from and then each of "The Masters" would create their own interpretation of the painting.  

There is no right or wrong, thankfully, just some good times!

We had big leaves, medium leaves, small leaves, a varying amount of trees and all sorts of suns.  We also has some great appetizers!!   It was a pretty nice afternoon, it sure beats plowing and shoveling!

My hard drive finally crashed so I am working with the tablet which takes a whole lot longer.  I also need to figure out how to reduce photo size or I will limit out on space.

I will try to catch up on the blogs but hope we can get a computer soon!!!!