Gifts, Part II

Next category is . . .

GIFTS FOR the KITCHEN

A hotdog cutter. Just ... why?

Why would anyone cut up a hotdog in the first place? The little round pieces would roll out of the bun. Plus they would be a choking hazard for small children.

Whatever.

If this one is too plain, there is another one shaped like a dachshund with a cup for catsup dipping on the end of it.

.

 

 

Next we have a cutting board handmade from USA grown maple and designed so you can "safely use your phone or tablet while making meals" without spilling on it.

 

This deluxe model is also reversible.

 

Now here is one good idea, a popcorn bowl that seperates out the unpopped kernels (known as Old Maids in the Dark Ages when I was a kid but we're probably not allowed to say that anymore).

If only we had had one of these this summer when I broke the corner off a tooth eating popcorn. I could have saved a lot of money. $30 for the vs $1000 to have the tooth capped.

 

 

Here we have an "ooma bowl," a double serving bowl. Folks, it's ergonomically designed! Because, you know, of all that repetitive motion of passing the bowl around the table and moving hand to mouth repeatedly for a bite.

According to the ad, "when held in one hand [it] keeps your wrist in a comfortable, neutral position".

Or you could just set your plate on the table.

 

A sponge keeper keeps your "good sponge" and your "evil sponge" from getting mixed up or commingling germs. I was relieved to see that the good sponge, which I assume is for wiping countertops and such, is stored above the evil sponge,which in our household is used for wiping up dog messes and spills from the floor. Come to think of it, I still think they are too close together for comfort.

 

 

 

 

 

Come back tomorrow for my final category ...

MIscellaneous

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For Those Hard-to-Buy-For Relatives and Friends

 

I've been doing some Christmas shopping on line this year and have come across some items that might save you, my dear readers, some valuable time in locating the perfect gift for Uncle Wally or Aunt Myrtle. Most can be found right there on good old Amazon, so have your credit card handy.

In fact, I have found so much good stuff I'm going to do this post in a couple installments.

Let's begin with

THE DRINKERS ON YOUR LIST . . .

I was looking for a plain little woven bamboo basket tea strainer, the kind that cost less than $3 and bobs in the mug. But hey, look at these!

How about a submersible Yellow Submarine tea infuser from the Beatles song,

or, with a similar underwater theme -- a dolphin and a manatee to hang on your glass? (But isn't it a little, um, disconcerting to see a dolphin or manatee expelling yellow liquid from their nether regions into your tea glass? Ah, well, never mind.)

And my personal favorite In the tea drinkers department, the very versatile robot.

His arms and hands adjust to grip the top of ANY mug or teacup and keep him from sinking to the bottom of your cup.

And he comes with his own drip tray to place him on when your tea is ready. Neat, huh? No more tea puddle on your saucer.

 

 

 

 

Prefer coffee? Here's a mug that will solve that tricky problem of carrying your cookies, drink, and newspaper to the table in the same trip. Beware: the little storage compartment only stores two-inch cookies.

 

How about a coffee mug that lets you know when you have poured your hot coffee in it by changing from a black sleepy face to a white wide awake one. You know, for those mornings when you pour your coffee before you are awake and can't see what's in your cup?

 

And then one for the wine drinkers on your list, musical wine glasses (etched with major scale calibration). Guaranteed to liven up any evening when you have friends in and the conversation lags. Jazz things up! Get it?

 

 

 

Well, that's it for today. I'll be back tomorrow with some more of my finds.

 

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Rrrrrribet!

I was out in the woods cutting greens to make our Christmas wreath and saw this gorgeous camellia tucked into a bush. What a beautiful surprise!

 

 

 

 

I cut it, carried it into the kitchen, and started to put it in a vase.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From deep in the petals out popped this little guy!

He gingerly climbed onto my hand and I escorted him back outside.

He is about two inches long.

 

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Oyster Roast

 

I love a new experience!

On Thanksgiving we went to an oyster roast, something new to this northern girl.

Here's how you do it.

First someone goes out in the water and gathers up a big bunch of oysters at low tide and washes off the mud.

Meanwhile, someone else builds a fire and places an old sheet of tin roofing on top of some cement blocks over the fire and gets it nice and hot.

The oysters are loaded onto the tin with a shovel.

 

 

 

 

A burlap bag soaked in the water is laid over the oysters to steam them.

 

While they are steaming, people gather around the oyster table to visit, don gloves, and claim an oyster knife. Dogs and cats, familiar with this process, take their places beneath the oyster table.

 

 

 

The hot oysters are delivered to the table on the shovel, spread around, and everyone grabs a cluster.

 

The tin lid on the right covers a hole in the table where the shells go when all the oysters are out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The native oysters here are small but there are several oysters in each cluster.

 

They are served with a sauce to dip them in made of shrimp cocktail sauce and plenty of horseradish, along with a soda cracker.

Bon appetit!

 

 

 

 

Don't worry -- Houdini got his share of the feast!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(P.S. Marie B., they taste a lot better steamed than raw!)

 

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Thanksgiving Eve

Tomorrow is a day I love, a whole day set aside to appreciate all that we have!

Before that though there was a whole lot of work to do in preparation for the Thanksgiving feast.

 

Our contribution to the meal tomorrow Is ready -- four loaves of nut bread and a big apple pie.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner tonight we went down to the old train trestle bridge to watch the moon rise over the water. The sound of the waves lapping at the shore made a lovely accompaniment to moonrise.

The photos didn't turn out great but the reflection of the full moon was hauntingly beautiful and a wonderful way to begin a holiday celebration.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

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Recycled Armadillo

An armadillo lived under our deck where, over the years, she raised several families. She had a curious sense of entitlement and determination. The dogs would go berserk when she strolled in from a night in the woods, yet she would remain oblivious to them and to us as we ate our breakfast on the porch. She strolled. She waddled. Nothing, not our presence nor the dogs sounding as if they would tear her limb from limb, ever caused her to move an iota faster or change her path one inch.

That was her undoing.

 

I am sure she had that same attitude when the car or truck headlights bore down on her Saturday night.

Yesterday morning we found her dead at the edge of the road, hit by a car on a road with almost no traffic at all.

I made plans to bury her when the rain stopped.

 

Meanwhile, the local Highway Department /Recyling Division Crew Got the memo and began to arrive on the scene.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...AKA

black vultures.

Or buzzards as we like to call them here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

An hour later the rain had stopped,

the buzzards were gone

and so was every last armored bit of mama armadillo.

 

 

We're going to miss her. So will the dogs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Armadillo, from Wikipedia

 

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Choosing to See Goodness and Beauty

I have found it difficult to move along with life since world events over last weekend. My heart still hurts for those who are recovering from physical wounds, the families of those who lost loved ones, those who have lost trust that their everyday lives will be safe.

But life goes on, there is still beauty and goodness to be found if you open your heart and look for it.

*********

My bloggy friends who have been with me for awhile will remember my large, delicious, and beautiful garden and fruit trees in Minnesota. This summer has been most humbling in my new home in South Carolina.

I have lost my green thumb!

Or at least left it somewhere north of the Mason-Dixon Line.

Here is attempt #3 to grow something (anything!) beyond a few tomatoes in pots on the deck!

 

The first two plantings disappeared when the plants got an inch tall. The garden store lady, a real Southernor (her accent tipped me off) told me it was the mushroom compost I used. It burned the roots.

Oh.

I dug out the mushroom compost and replaced it with plain organic soil and these plants seem to be taking to their new home.

I have chard, kale, lettuce, and some basil plants from a pot on the deck that have now lived for over two weeks. Nothing has keeled over or evaporated and they actually seem to be putting forth new leaves. That's progress!

Here's our invention to keep the deer from snacking on our produce. The frame is light and tips over easily to tend to the bed.

 

It can be covered to protect the plants from frost and freezes should we get them this winter, and we recycled most of it from other projects.

 

I was a little more successful in the flower garden. I lost plenty to deer, but the morning glories have been ... well,

GLORIOUS!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll leave you with a little smile because the world certainly needs more of those this week.

 

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