thisendoftheswamp

We gathered ourselves into a heap, and did the same with the wash, then headed up to the laundromat. Got all that under control and came back to hang most of the things outside. Today was a perfect day for laundry – not too warm, low humidity, and a good breeze. Things smelled s-o-o-o  good when we took them back inside.

We had a couple of errands to run in the afternoon – The Squire had an appointment with the dermatologist, and we needed to go ‘up the country’ to pick up some things for a local homeless shelter. While he was in the doctor’s office I stopped in Wegman’s for cheese; they sell grated sharp cheddar in 5 pound bags, and the way we go through it, it doesn’t last long.  I was looking for matzoh, and discovered they had some Violet Crumble candy bars in the International section. Oh, I do love me some Violet Crumble! These are made by Nestle, but only available – for the most part – in Australia. Other than Wegman’s, the only place we’ve ever found them is in an educational/tourist park called “Kentucky Down Under” which is a bit far to go for a couple of sweets. Never did find the matzoh, though.

When I was walking up to the house to collect the stuff for the shelter I nearly stepped on a tiny baby bird. Poor little mite fell – or was blown – out of the nest. His eyes aren’t even open yet, and The Squire doesn’t think he’ll survive. “Well, you’re probably right, but you know how your wife is.”

“I do, and I’m glad.”

When we got home I fed the bird three little ‘smusches’ of wet cat food on the end of a sliver of wood, while The Squire started taking down the laundry. I’ve fed the bird twice since then, and it seems to be surviving, but we’ll see what the morning brings.

Now that some of the beaches have been opened, and the weather is not yet too dreadfully hot, Penny has taken off for Biscayne National Park in Florida.

The first thing she did was go visit the lighthouse, which was built in 1825, and served, with some interruptions, until it was decommissioned in 1990. It has survived many hurricanes, and even a battle with the Seminoles. Now, it is a museum.

In honor of the occasion, Penny wore a pair of red slacks and a pretty print blouse, with sea shells and star fish on it. She takes great pride in always being dressed appropriately.

Penny isn’t much for swimming or snorkeling, but she did get a chance to go out in a glass-bottomed boat and watched the fish swim around the coral reef.

Penny thought this was all very interesting, and after she gets a chance to catch her breath, she’ll be off on another adventure.

Betty White is one of my favorite people. Somebody once asked her how she stayed so fit in her old age. (They probably didn’t say “old age”, but she’s 98, and has well and truly earned the title.)  Her answer was “I have a two-story house and a bad memory”.

And, boy! Do I know that feeling.

Working on Austin’s dollhouse has really been a case of “a two-story house and a bad memory”. When I was working on this house for Austin’s dad, we still had the old “work horse” table in the dining room, and the power saw was next door in the laundry room. Now, I’m working up stairs in what was once the nursery, but is now a junk room, not to put too fine a point on it. Every step of the way means trotting up and down the steps.  I did get the kitchen done, and am well into the living room. I still have to find a picture to go over the mantle, put on one more piece of molding between the front door and the stairs, and hang the curtains, but the room is beginning to shape up. I’m still hoping to get it done before Austin graduates.

When my oldest daughter was little I made a carry-box for her Penny Brite doll, using one of my dad’s cigar boxes. I found the box, and the doll, in the attic about a year ago, and decided to refurbish the box and make some new clothes for the doll.

I’ve had a ball! I bought scrapbooking paper at A. C. Moore to line the box, made drawers and inserted a clothes rod. I even hung a mirror!  I downloaded some patterns from the internet, and set to work making the doll a wardrobe.  I bought Barbie® hangers and snipped off the arms so they would fit both the clothing and the box.

Recently, I found a huge book with photos of America’s National Parks, and Penny has gone on a tour.  We’ll keep you posted on her travels.

I have been trying to clean and straighten my sewing room, and I swear Bartholomew Cubbins is living in there someplace, but it’s not hats he’s throwing around; it’s fabric. No matter how much I sift and sort, there is always just as much – nay, more! – than when I started.

I’ve collected all of my Fat Quarters, and got a little basket at the Dollar Store to corral them. Where I had two that matched, I’ve made a Bitty-Baby doll dress; my great-niece and our great granddaughter will have some very well-dressed babies. When I only had one piece, I made a dress for a Wellie-Wisher or a Penny Brite doll.

I’ve made masks for both The Squire and myself. I’ve even mended, for goodness sake! I’ve cut cards and wrapped up miles and miles of ribbon, bias binding, and lace.

I have made no dent in the mess at all.

I swear, it’s the Loaves and Fishes all over again.

I received this from a trump supporter.  Yeesh.

Back over on Arlo and Janis someone remarked that the snakes that seem to hang around here might at least keep the mouse population under control.

Probably just as well.

Our cats are pretty much useless when it comes to catching mice. For the most part, almost every cat we’ve ever had considers mice to be just another one of Mum’s pets. “Oh, look! A mouse.” “Are you gonna get it?” “Nah. Do you want it?” “I’d have to get up.”

And so it goes.

We did have one cat – Roxie, I think – who would catch a mouse and carry it around most of the day. When it was dinner time, she’d sit the mouse on the floor beside her, much the way a lady puts her purse on the table, and then look around in astonishment when the mouse was missing when she finished eating. Sugar – a big white blimp of a feline – would hold a mouse between her paws. Every once in a while she’d pick up one paw or the other, as if checking to see it the critter was still there. She never tried to eat it or play with it. The Squire thought she might be trying to hatch it.

Eddie has been with us since around 2006, and to the best of my knowledge has only caught two mice.  One was in the house, and he left the rib cage in the middle of the living room floor.  I picked it up and marveled at how tiny the bones were, while The Squire had a fit. That’s the trouble with medical people – we are just fascinated by all of this.

We did have one cat who was a fabulous mouser – a little grey vixen we named Mosby. She was bound and determined to be an outdoor cat, only zipping inside long enough to eat and using the litter box, and then sitting by the door and yelling the house down. You have NO idea how loud a determined cat can be. But every day, when I came home she would have five or six little bodies laid in a row on the mat.  She was running across the yard to meet me one morning when a hawk swooped down and carried her off.

It was like watching – and hearing – a crucifixion.

After a week of hide-and-seek temps, with the days being in the upper-50s or low-60s and nights with freeze warnings, it seems to be Spring.

It started to sprinkle Wednesday afternoon, and the rain just smelled differently from what we’ve been having. And we’ve been having a lot. It rained all Wednesday night and most of yesterday, but this morning is warmer and the rain has cleared. It is 56-F at 3:00, and the forecast is for mid-60s all next week, and 72 for next Sunday.

Of course, we all know how much faith to have in forecasts, but it certainly looks good! It would be nice if it stays dry long enough to mow the lawn.

Or, just the bread.

Two of the blogs I follow have been discussing homemade bread, and I thought I’d post the two recipes I make most often. The Squire is very fond of these – one is all-round excellent; the other makes wonderful sandwiches. I’m not going to bother telling you how to mix, knead, and punch down. All bread is made the same way. I will admit that I use my bread machine now instead of doing everything by hand. I turn out the dough after it has risen the first time, shape it, and put it into loaf pans to bake. At least it looks as if I’ve been working hard.

And now, on with the show!

Onion Dill Bread
2 1-pound loaves – use 8 x 4 pans
Warm in microwave:
•¾ cup cottage cheese, •¾ cup sour cream or full fat yogurt
•3 Tablespoons sugar •3 Tablespoons minced dried onion
•2 Tablespoons dried dill weed, •1-1/2 Tablespoons butter, •¼ cup water
Put warm mixture into bread machine or large mixing bowl. Add:
•3-1/2 cups flour, •¼ teaspoon baking soda
•1-1/2 teaspoons salt,  •1 unbeaten egg
•1 package yeast,  •1-2 Tablespoons vital gluten (optional)
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, then until it registers 190-F internally.
The original recipe called for dill seeds, but The Squire doesn’t care for them, so I tried it with the dill weed and we really like it that way. Full fat yogurt gives the bread more of a tang, but that’s a matter of your choice. Don’t substitute “diet” yogurt. You need the fat content to make the bread work. The extra gluten makes the dough easier to work, but you don’t need it if you have bread flour.

Rich White Bread
2 1-1/2-pound loaves – use 9×5 pans
Warm in microwave:
•1-1/2 cup milk,  •¼ cup honey,  •¼ cup butter
(Pour the milk in a 2 cup measure, then add the honey, so you don’t have to dirty the ¼ cup measure.)
5 to 5-1/2 cups flour,  •2 eggs
•2 teaspoons salt,  •1 package yeast,  •2 tablespoons Gluten, if desired

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, or until it registers 190º-F internally. This is an excellent loaf for any purpose. Toasts nicely, and makes divine jelly bread