>In a fine example of upcycling, a nearby charter school made bottle cap necklaces to sell as a fundraiser. I bought a daisy, of course. It’s just my style in so many ways.
This is the back. We’ve asked around and Hubs even did a cursory Internet search, and we have no idea what kind of bottle this cap adorned.
A cone-head style guy saying, “Pop My Top.” Well, readers, ideas? Is this a regional item? A soda/pop bottle, or something else? I’m listening — chime in!
>It’s the end of March in Wisconsin. That means…well, it can mean anything. For a gardener, it means Don’t Get Too Eager; We Could Still get Snow!” I can get started thinking about it – planning, not planting.
I ordered plants from my local environmental charter school. I’ll pick up those tomato and pepper and herb plants on Mothers’ Day.
I’ve heard of another unique source of plants. It’s called Free Plants by Mail, and it’s an organization that finds new homes for overstocks and extras: plants grown for nurseries and greenhouses and then not needed. Heard of animal rescues? This sounds like a plant rescue to me. It sounds rather tempting, too. Proceeds go to the Nature Conservancy.
For more on my own garden planning, go to Green Spot On, where I guest post most Mondays.
>It was on our local news today and in the morning paper; members of Congress being threatened after voting to pass the health insurance reform bill Sunday night.
My congressional representative, a doctor, was victimized by a threat and one of the clinics that still carries his trademark had the word “kill” painted over his name. Another Wisconsin representative received death threats at his office in Washington.
Worst of all, the president was threatened through a Twitter exchange.
People, when will this end? Whatever happened to respecting the office, if not the officeholder? Whatever happened to respecting the dignity of the House?
Freedom of speech has its limits. Vandalism, threats of bodily harm or death, discussing assassination of the elected leader of the free world — all are WRONG. Clearly and simply wrong. Spreading hatred, encouraging violence, pumping up the anger levels of an already-conflicted world: not only wrong, but also dangerous.
Someone, somewhere, somehow will take this too far. And then? Irony of ironies, that person will end up in prison – losing their right to vote, and gaining free health care sponsored by the taxpayers of the good old U.S.A.
Wait. Something’s wrong with this picture.
But isn’t that where we started?
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Each door was painted in school colors, expressing their excitement. The elementary school down the road sported a big sign congratulating their “alum” on the team. 
They lost on Friday night. The team played well; the opposing team spoke highly of them, complimented our players on forcing them to change their defensive strategies in order to pull ahead and then stay there.
>I may have posted this earlier – most likely last June when blueberries were in season. It’s a classic recipe, easy to make, and just as delicious with frozen blueberries as with fresh.
Blueberry Muffins
from my go-to source for recipes, the Good Home Cookbook.
2 cups all-purpose flour (or 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups (1 pint) blueberries
1. Prepare a 12-cup muffin pan.
2. Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamy and light. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. then beat in the milk and vanilla extract until well combined. Add the flour mixture and stir just until moistened. Fold in the berries.
4. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, until golden brown.
6. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan, and cool briefly on wire rack. Serve warm or cooled.
Great with milk or (you guessed it) coffee.
>This time of year, I’m watching the daffodils and tulips come up and marveling at the way a simple bulb can put forth new growth every year.
The bulbs I’m testing now, however, are the electric kind, not the organic. They are, however, more environmentally friendly than past light bulbs and more user-friendly than early CFLs. I’m reading by the light of a Sylvania halogen Supersaver Light Bulb.
Unlike early energy-saving bulbs, this light bulb resembles the typical lamp bulb and fits nicely in a lamp. It’s bright enough to illuminate my book while using much less energy. It turns on immediately, without the warm-up or flicker of energy-saving bulbs of the distant past. In short, it works. The halogen supersaver bulb uses 43 watts, but provides as much light as a standard incandescent 60 watt bulb.
One strong point in favor of this Sylvania halogen supersaver light bulb is this: it contains no mercury. When it’s done (after 1000 hours of light, according to the package), I can dispose of it easily with no worries about contamination or toxic waste.
In the headline grabbing storm of other legislation (i.e. Health Insurance Reform!), even my eco-conscious readers may have lost sight of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) which will phase out the traditional incandescent light bulb over the next four years in favor more efficient lighting products. The timing of Sylvania’s halogen Supersaver bulb will help consumers replace their older energy-hogging light bulbs with the new style sooner rather than later.
So far, it’s a winner. This bulb looks good, fits my lamp, and provides enough light for me to read my books and see the keyboard of my laptop. It uses less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs, and it promises to last a long, long time.
If only it grew flowers, too. I guess I’ll leave that to the tulip and daffodil bulbs.
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of SYLVANIA and received products necessary to facilitate my candid review (two light bulbs). In addition, I received a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate.
>It’s not really warm enough, but I pulled on a pair of capri pants today instead of my weekend jeans. Oh, the glaring white skin of winter! It’s blinding.
It’s not really warm enough, but I went outside (in galoshes to protect from the mud) and looked over the new garden plot designated for tomatoes. I determined it needs a layer of mulch and a layer of topsoil.
It’s not really warm enough, but I took my Brewers baseball attire out of storage and thought about Major League Baseball.
It’s not really warm enough, but I brought out the lightweight jackets. I haven’t put away the winter coats; it’s highly likely that we’ll need them again before the garden is planted.
It’s not really warm enough yet, but…. fill in the blank and leave a comment!
>I read a featured blog titled “Babies in Bars” on Work It Mom. The blogger talked about bringing her baby to bars to hear her husband’s country band perform. She talked about putting ear protection on the baby to muffle the din, nursing a young baby in a discreet corner, bringing an older baby’s own tippy cup for juice or other beverages, and in general, taking care to make the trip safe and appropriate for baby and for other customers.
It’s Lent, season of the Wisconsin Friday Night Fish Fry. Fish fry events can be in supper clubs, family restaurants, church halls, and yes, taverns or bars. I’m sure there are little ones following their parents into the pubs and the taverns or waiting in the bar areas for the fish fry to be ready.
Is there a deep meaning to all this babble? Maybe, maybe not. If I go to a downtown bar for lunch with Amigo (now age 18), we’re not drinking. He’s too young, and I’m probably driving, so alcohol with our fish fry or cheese curds doesn’t make sense. Would we mind seeing a baby at the table next to ours? Not a bit.
It’s all about responsibility, really. If the parent at the next table is exercising moderation and good judgement, is taking good care of the child, and both parent and child are behaving well, it’s not a problem – at least in my neighborhood.
And isn’t the main responsibility of anyone present in a drinking establishment just that: responsibility?
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And the Powers That Be? They’d better listen.
Illinois legislators, listen up — if you can. Deaf Mom tells you why hearing aids should be covered and why they’re more important than (are you ready for this?) Viagra. I’ll second her motion; without my hearing aids, I wouldn’t be teaching. Thanks to my hearing aids, I’m earning a living, paying taxes, stimulating the economy, and staying politically active.
New York Times, you have officially alienated women who blog. Punditmom has one of the best responses to the article “Honey, don’t bother Mommy; I’m too busy building my brand.” I might have thought the article neutral had the author left out the condescending remarks. Describing a blog network presenter as having the “good-natured sass of a sorority social chairwoman” and suggesting that “… you, too, might get 28,549 views of your tutu-making tutorial!” Get real, NYT. I don’t post tutu-making tutorials. Rain barrels, maybe. So – what’s your point?
MOMocrats (Raising the next generation of blue) always have something valuable and current posted: Here’s a post discussing the status of women and the way that status affects a country’s peace, security, and prosperity.
Meanwhile, my inbox includes communication from Organizing for America (OFA) reminding me that it’s time to make phone calls and send emails to remind our representatives to get rolling on health insurance reform. My OFA neighbor asks:
“Could you also let your readers know that they need to pick up the phone and call their member of congress to vote “yes” for reform? There are members of Congress whose votes are movable if they hear from enough of us. If callers leave a message, they need to leave their name and address, so the member of Congress can verify that the caller is a constituent. There could be a vote in the House of Representatives before the week is out.”
Stick together, women and men of the blogging world. The mainstream media may disrespect us, but they’ll come around. They’ll have to.