Our fearless leader has been hard at work redesigning our homes at RedEagleSpirit. You’ve seen a couple of skins for my blog, and today I discovered that I am back to my Halloween look. I really needed to design something new for summer, but time has been in short supply for a while.
I’m still very much “in the weeds,” but I think things will ease in about nine or ten days. My family and I have meetings or doctor visits every day of this week. Elegante Mother had her eyes examined on Friday, and Dear Husband and I see the same doc on Tuesday afternoon. EM has a follow-up visit with her doc to be sure she is still doing well. We need to talk to him about a muscle problem in her shoulder.
I am desperate to get into my gardens. I’m very seriously considering trying to sneak in one hour between 5:30 and 6:30 in the morning each day this week. I have to be up, anyway. Perhaps I can get organized enough to garden when it’s cool, and not have to put this off for a week.
Soooo…things are busy for a bit, but I’m going to try to make the rounds of the blogs today to see what you’ve all been up to. Stay cool!

The herb garden has been in sad shape for several years. Dear Husband constructed it for me as a wedding present about seventeen years ago. The timbers he chose did not stand up well to the test of time, so this time he decided to work with cedar.
This is what the northwest arm of the garden looked like before he got started:

The fifteenth of April, DH started ripping out the old timbers and rebar. Second Son got the chore of moving all the crumbing wood out of the work site. The timbers had to be measured, then cut to the right length, and then drilled so they could be dropped down over the existing rebar. Here’s a shot of DH drilling away:

There are still two long timbers that need appropriate underpinning. The top timber has been measured and dropped into place, but we need to improve the foundation for the timber. A great deal of water flows through the herb garden during spring melt, and DH feels that we need to consider either brick or block foundations for these two areas. When we are done with the repairs, we’ll truck in a load of tailings or chat, and resurface the walkway, so it’s likely the underpinning will never show.
The herb garden is much safer now, so I’ll be able to let visitors walk through it. With that in mind, I have one entire arm to replant, and several other areas to renovate. Dear Husband gave me a hand with the weeding while he was working on the bed. Unfortunately, one of the things he “weeded” was lavender that I’d been babying for several years. I teased him about it. The lavender wasn’t happy there. It likes drier soil that isn’t as fertile, so I was going to have to move it anyway.
I may use part of that northwest arm for tomatoes this year. I’m also renovating the veggie boxes this year, so I might get tomatoes sooner if I use the established garden. Tomatoes from my own garden…… sounds like a bit of heaven!

…or was it salsa?
I have the Betty Crocker New Dinner for Two Cookbook, that was first published in 1964. I probably bought my copy in 1970 when I was first married. It has a number of basic recipes that many people would call “comfort food,” today.
One of the sections talks about “All-American Favorites,” and gives you suggestions for regional cooking. My section of the country is the Upper Midwest, and this is a list of the foods that they say are common to the area:
Bacon and Eggs
Cherry Pie Cobbler
Corn of the Cob
Green String Beans
Honey and Biscuits
Mashed Potatoes
Mushroom Gravy
Pork Chops
Pumpkin Pie
Roast Beef
Roast Turkey
Rutabagas
Smelts
Steak and
Sweet Cider
I’ve never eaten smelts or rutabagas. But, I HAVE eaten food from the other four regions. We consider ourselves to be fairly open to a variety of American cuisines. One of my English friends commented that she was surprised that I thought there was “American food.” I should have specified that I was talking about the food of my childhood…in the American Midwest. We have endless cuisines now, all based on region or ethnicity.
From the Far West we’ve had Apple Dumplings, Bean Sprouts, Eggs Foo Yung, Jack Cheese, Orange Juice, Walnuts, and Water Chestnuts.
From the Southwest: Barbecued Beef, Chili Con Carne, Grapefruit, Hot Chocolate, Lettuces, Melons, Summer Squash and Tortillas.
The South: Baked Ham, Baking Powder Biscuits, Deep-Dish Peach Pie, Fritters, Shrimp Gumbo (or in our case, almost ANYTHING Creole),and Watermelon. (Actually, I’d move watermelon to the Midwest, because I remember the fields along the Mississippi.)
The New England area has meals that you read about in books: Anadama Bread, Boston Baked Beans and Brown Bread, Boston Cream Pie, Broiled Lobster with Drawn Butter, Clam Chowder, Codfish Cakes, Cornmeal Pancakes and Real Maple Syrup, Cranberry Sauce, Gooseberry Tarts, Indian Pudding with Nutmeg Sauce, and Succotash.
I’ve missed out on the Anadama bread, the codfish cakes, cornmeal pancakes, gooseberry tarts, Indian pudding and succotash, but I’ve had all the rest.
I’m sure a lot of what we consider standard fare in the Midwest came to us from pioneers moving through our area to the west, and even more came from immigrants who decided to settle here. When I was a child, my mother served “mush” at breakfast. It was browned in butter in a fry pan, and served with maple syrup. I think they call it “Polenta” now, but that was a meal that had to have come from the pioneers. Beer and cheese and dairy are pretty standard in Wisconsin, and probably came from the Germans who settles there. The Great Lakes give us fresh fish. Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Missouri are states known for corn-fed beef. Some of our heavier meals must have been developed at a time when men and women worked off more calories, and needed to eat to be able to work. And most of those meals were made out of what could be grown in the garden and canned.
We eat a much lighter diet now than our fore bearers used to. There are fewer courses, and the choices are lighter in calories, but we still fall back to some of the comfort food. I find fruits and veggies at the summer Farmer’s Markets to be a form of comfort food. In the freeze of the winter, pot roast or macaroni and cheese might call to me.
I suppose the biggest difference in my cooking over the years is the use of herbs in these basic recipes. I have an herb garden, so I can grow fresh herbs, and I can harvest those herbs for winter use. Basil and dill, fresh or dried, are my all time favorite seasonings, but I love a little thyme and bay leaf in beef stew. How about a little minced chives in scrambled eggs or egg casseroles? Or a bit of salad burnet (tastes like cucumber) in your salad.
Yes, I use herbs, and some spices, but my cooking plan is still very simple. I don’t mix in twelve ingredients when three or four will do. I thought my cooking was very simple until I met Cop Car. She’s the Queen of simple meals! But I think I may have “turned” her with the tomato-garlic-minced onion mixture for the bruchetta! She ate it (leftover) for BREAKFAST! *G*

I’m sure that I have blogged about this before. I feel that English should be the official language of the United States. We’re living at a time when this attitude is being challenged. In the past, immigrants have come to our shores and those who successfully integrated, learned to speak English.
Choosing not to learn English forces you to depend on others for information about social services, medical assistance, shopping choices, directions on the road, or for every aspect of your life. If you don’t speak the language, you’ll need an interpreter to seek health and welfare help, to apply for citizenship, to read a bus schedule or to pay bills. You might be at the hands of people who stand to gain through your ignorance.
Not speaking English forces you to live among people who speak your native language. It isolates you and prevents you from enjoying all that the United States has to offer. While there is comfort living among family and friends, do you want them to have to handle every aspect of your life?
I feel so strongly about the issue of English as our legal language that I am willing to devote my spare time to teaching English as a second language, and teaching reading. I have a teaching certificate. It wouldn’t take me that long to re-train formally, but I can assist now through the literacy groups that are available in my area. I have several acquaintances who have done this, and I know others who are willing to teach. All it takes is a willingness on the part of our newcomers to want to learn.
I’ve been reminded of this issue by an e-mail which crossed my desk this weekend. Theodore Roosevelt had this to say on the subject, in 1907:
“In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person’s becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American…There can be NO divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn’t an American at all. We have room for but ONE flag, the American flag… We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language… and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people.”
We have SO much to offer. Why limit yourself to a small portion, when you can have the whole pie? Teddy Roosevelt was right. If you choose to come to the United States, be prepared to become and American, and only an American.

I am truly blessed with wonderful sisters! I’ve always felt that they were there for me, but this past year has really brought that into focus. When I hurt my knee they acted as chauffeurs and cooks and housekeepers and gardeners. One in particular kept saying “GO SIT DOWN!”
They took care of me off and on for several months, as the need arose.
It’s usually momentous occasions that make us treasure our sisters, those memorable moments in our lives that become part of the family lore. But, this weekend didn’t start out to be one of those memorable occasions. It was just going to be a laid back visit, a “mini-vacation.”
Nan, My-Sister-The-Blogger, who wears ninety thousand other hats: MOM, Lt. Commander, teacher, principal, confidant, church lady, band uniform mother, gramma, scrap booker, gardener (you get the picture), attended a seminar in Gary, Indiana on Friday. Since she was in the Chicago area, she decided that she would come to visit us for the weekend. She’s always welcome. She knows she doesn’t have to ask, but she did, rather than just appearing on my doorstep.
Dear Husband and I lead a very laid back life. Since he’s become an avid sailor, we have fewer and fewer winter weekends where we are away from home. This weekend happened to be one of two for the year that had been booked with something that couldn’t be postponed. I told Nan that DH and I would be away Saturday night, but that she was more than welcome to visit with Elegante Mother and make herself at home.
She did just that. While we were away Saturday night, she folded my laundry, washed my dishes (things left from Friday dinner that didn’t fit into the washer), and kept my cat company. I suspect that I need to check to see if my ironing was done, too.
She did all of this without a word, fitting right into the household seamlessly, and when I realized that she had done the dishes, and marveled about it, she merely poo-pooed the recognition.
I had a lovely day with her Saturday. We were at an amazing mall, and we both wished we could have stayed to shop until we dropped. I have the feeling that we might do that one day, but we were other directed Saturday. We paved the way for EM to attend the Red Hat Lady luncheon, and then Nan kept her company in the evening when Dear Husband and I went to Orchestra Hall.
What started out to be a mini-vacation for my sister, turned out to be “the same old thing” but at my house, not hers. Not much of a vacation, in my mind, but she seemed to enjoy it, and I certainly enjoyed her company and help.
Despite the simplicity of the weekend, I think it’s going to become one of those memorable occasions. It isn’t often that we get to share times like this with our siblings, once we have reached this stage in our lives. I think that makes this time with Nan all the sweeter.
I hope I said it when you were here, but if I didn’t, “Thank you, Nan! I really enjoyed your visit. Let me know when I can return the favor.” *S*
P.S. I REALLY like the new layout that our fearless leader is creating for you on your blog. The light house is a great choice!

Bogie! I saw a sign at a nursery in Florida, saying they were selling KNOCKOUT ROSES! I wouldn’t have known what they are if you hadn’t mentioned them.
I was in the grocery store/pharmacy today, picking up a few items to get us through the weekend, when I discovered a huge display of seeds! I’m SUCH a sucker. I bought two large packets of mixed seeds for plants that butterflies like. I hope to scatter sow the seeds in an area along the north end of the driveway. I’ll have to see if dear husband will till a strip for me over there so I can be sure the seeds are in contact with soil.
We had a rainy morning, with temperatures rising to the 50s. There’s lots of melting going on. I was taking down the Christmas swags and bows when I discovered that four pots of Iris are drowning. The pots are sitting on the soil in an arm of the garden that is next to the opening of the garage door. The ice that covered the top of the pots from Sunday’s storm is melting, but there’s nowhere for the meltwater to go, because the bottom of the pots are encased in ice. I dug one of the pots out, but I think we can safely say that these Iris are kaput. Still….I’ll leave them, just to make sure that I am right.
I have dozens of plant and seed catalogs flooding my home. I think it’s time to look for romaine and spinach seeds. I used to plant a wonderful French bean, but the bunnies and deer all feel that the bean starts are a delicacy. They leave me bare stalks. I’d have to wrap the garden with chicken wire for the first month or so….and they still might eat the beans!
I bought morning glory seeds! Remember last year, when I discovered that the reason I couldn’t grow morning glories was the bunnies? I have several rings of chicken wire already in place. I’m going to plant LOTS of morning glories and see if I can get them to climb like crazy. Now that I know what was eating them, I might be able to get some to grow.
Are any of you going to attend Flower and Garden shows? We have one coming up in Chicago on Navy Pier. It’s always so jammed with bodies that you can’t stand back and see the effects the designers had in mind, but you get to see some wonderful new plants. Maybe we’ll get there this year.

Well, I lied. We’ve seen LOTS of wildlife in the past week, but no lions or tigers or bears.
We saw an amazing number of egrets as we traveled through central Florida, and there was one big old grey heron at the golf course in a dwindling water hole.
Sunday and Monday I was treated to pelicans, storks (we think), and a short sandpiper-like bird at the shore. The storks were white with black-tipped wing feathers…..very dramatic looking birds!
I was surprised to see an amazing number of hawks circling the urban areas. I would have expected to see them over the drier areas of the marshes, but we saw groups of three where there were large concentrations of homes and businesses.
We came home to cold weather following a snow storm that left at least four inches at our doorstep, maybe more. I took pity on the deer, raccoon and the possum and set out ears of corn. Of course, the squirrels and raccoons and bunnies claimed a portion of it. Everybody is hungry, with all the grass and plants covered up. I saw a bunny pruning my sage plant the other day.
I put up a bird feeder that is a cylinder of hardware cloth with four wood ribs, a wood platform and a wood lid. I think the raccoons have been getting a diet of wood at night. Today when I checked the feeder, I found that half of two of the wood ribs have been eaten away. I think Dear Husband can create replacements so I can rebuild the feeder, but it’s aggravating to have to do this kind of maintenance.
Edward Scissorhands missed me while we were away. My-Sister-The-Nurse tried to get him to sit on her lap, but he said it just wasn’t the same. Rather than getting the cold shoulder when I returned, I had a cat glued to my body, asking to be loved up. Ed is fifteen, and this past year has been hard on him. Our vet asked me to try to shift him to either Iams or Science Diet foods. Ed informed us in no uncertain terms what he thought of that. Rather than starve him, we’re going to let him have the food he wants. I think this is likely to be our last summer with Ed.
Soooooooo…that’s the fur and feather news for the day!

I know that sounds like heresy, but I no longer wish to celebrate non-religious holidays just because the candy shops and flower markets and restaurants want to make more money.
I love the idea of Valentine’s Day. What woman wouldn’t want her husband or boyfriend to give her gifts and tell her how much she’s loved? I love the idea of getting dressed up for a special date with someone I love. I love the romance of the day. But, the cost has taken the joy out of it, at least for me.
I’m incensed that a dozen roses are more than double what they cost the rest of the year. Even mixed bouquets of flowers are more expensive. You have to make reservations six weeks ahead for your favorite restaurant, and then you’re likely to have shoddy service because the waiters see you as a captive audience, or they are so overwhelmed with the number of diners they have to care for they can’t do their job well.
It just doesn’t sound like fun to me. I’d rather Dear Husband asked me out on a day when just the two of us could celebrate. I’d rather have flowers when it’s unexpected, not when it’s a duty. I want to be told I’m loved throughout the year, not just on the day when it’s said because it’s the custom.
I’m a romantic. I just want the romance to be on my terms. I want loads of romance in my life, not just one day. And I want that romance to be spontaneous.
Yesterday, I saw a quote that I should have written down. Probably one of my readers will be able to help me with this. It had to do with the idea that we will be known by the little things we do, not by great achievements. I’d rather share a little bit of love every day, than go all out for just one day. Forget the chocolates, the jewelry, the flowers, the sumptuous dinner, the dress up clothes, and the cards……and just love me.

Auld Lang Syne
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
And here’s a hand, my trusty friend
And gie’s a hand o’ thine
We’ll tak’ a cup o’ kindness yet
For auld lang syne

Bod, my sister is the one who loves kohlrabi, so I can’t tell you how it tastes, but I can surf for information so that you’ll know what it is. The one she bought last weekend was a small round pale green globe with leaves growing out of the sides and top. Although it’s a member of the cabbage family, she eats it as though it was an apple. BECAUSE it’s a part of the cabbage family, it’s probably a very good addition to her diet!
This is how the University of Illinois describes kohlrabi:
Kohlrabi is a part of the cabbage family. It was first grown in Europe around 1500 and was imported into America 300 years later. It has a turnip like appearance, with leaves standing out like spokes from the edible portion, which is a rounded, enlarged stem section growing just above the soil line. Kohlrabi is sometimes misclassified as a root vegetable.
Here’s another site, with more information. It seems that kohlrabi is native to Europe, and has only been introduce to the US in the last two hundred years or so.
Wikipedia has a good picture of kohlrabi in their entry.
And here’s a site that offers recipes!
Bod, I hope this helps. Kohlrabi are readily available here, but since I don’t see huge displays of them, I suspect they are used sparingly. I’ll have to ask my sister how she came to know about them. She’s the only one in my family, to the best of my knowledge, who eats kohlrabi.