Ponderings from Theodore-the Early Years

Theodore has always been a thinker--meaning long after I have moved on from a subject, he is still pondering it. Occasionally, we are going to visit some of his questions and observations from his earlier years. 

    
    Mama, can God count to infinity?

Puzzles

Ward loves to work puzzles. When the weather turns cold, the puzzles come out--several a week if other responsibilities don't interfere.The reason he likes to work them so much is that he's good at them. The rest of the family can put a few pieces in after studying a puzzle for a while, but Ward can put pieces in almost as fast as he can pick them up.

And the cats can take them out almost as fast as he can put them in. You see, the cats love puzzles too. Puzzles provide lots of "toys" for them to play with. The cats bat loose pieces off the table. They pick them up with their mouths and carry them to the floor. They take their paws and remove pieces that have already been put in. And the list goes on with many possibilities. So much fun for our feline friends.

And so frustrating for Ward. Fortunately, he's good at reworking puzzles too.

One of our feline friends (Leo) at work.

Food Waste Friday--January 27, 2012

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. 

Here it goes for this week.

We didn't have any current waste* this week. However, it's been about six months since I have carefully investigated the condiments on my refrigerator door. Here's are some of things I found when I gave it a look.

Two jars of strawberry preserves. I combined these into the smaller jar.

Six jars of hot sauce. My son seems to think that we need another one every time we go to the store. I'm going to remind him to look in the refrigerator before we buy any more.

2/3 of a jar of tahini. We got this to make hummus. However, there's a lot more here than we need for our hummus making. Does anyone have any good suggestions for using tahini other than hummus?
I would like to use it up before it goes bad.

This mayonnaise was just too old, so it went down the drain. I can never seem to use up a jar even when I buy the small ones.










*Current waste--I use current waste to mean no leftovers or produce or food that we fixed went bad this week.

A Second Look--January 25, 2012

This week, we had weather that made the outside pretty to see but miserable to visit. Therefore, I stayed mostly inside and watched the world through our windows. One of the things I discovered while doing this is that the tufted titmouse can raise and lower its tuft just like a cardinal can. I saw both a tufted titmouse and a male cardinal with smooth heads at our feeder this week.

Recently, I have been enjoying a Second Look (even from the inside) because I am learning such interesting things about birds. Without the Second Look, I'm not sure I would have spent long enough watching the feeder to notice the subtle differences I am seeing.

Here's What I Saw This Week

Snow and ice in the upper backyard.

Chickadees

Pieris japonica

Squirrel enjoying a treat on icy ground

Something opened the door and ate the entire suet cake. See above picture for prime suspect.

Female and male cardinals. Notice the male cardinal's crest is down.

Tufted titmouse--one smooth and one tufted. It can raise and lower its tuft like a cardinal.

This week's pictures were taken through my windows because it was too cold for me outside. Also, I didn't want to slip on the ice. Gotta protect my new camera, you know.

"Cutting for Stone"--a book club discussion

 This month my book club read Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. The book is a sweeping saga about identical twin boys who were raised in Ethiopia during a time of political strife to adoptive parents after their mother (a nun) died in childbirth and their father abandoned them. (How's that for a one sentence summary of a long and complex book?) Medicine dominates the book as all of the main characters are doctors, and details of medical procedures, diseases, and patient treatment are woven into every part of the story. The book is well loved by critics and the public alike. It came out in 2009 and is in its second year on the New York Times best seller list.

Without giving too much away, here's what my book club thought about Cutting for Stone.

(Ward says that I am being too careful about not revealing the plot of the book. Go here if you want to know  more.)

--We agreed that the book was rich with detail especially on the medical front. Most thought this made for interesting reading especially the two medical professionals that we have in the group. However, some thought the detail made the book too long and tedious to read at times.

--Generally we thought that the characters were well developed and you could understand the motivations behind their actions. Although, some thought the book seemed contrived at times.

--Most thought the book was well written even if they didn't like all parts of the story.

--We wondered what could be left to be explored in Verghese's second novel since this book has so many things happening in it.

Besides talking about how the book was written, the story led to general discussions about:

--The doctor-patient relationship, and the pros and cons of advancement in medical technology.

--The similarities and differences between identical twins.

--Treatment of animals today and 40 years ago.

--Which books have translated well into movies and which ones haven't

--Trends in teenage fashion and hair. Oh wait, we were sidetracked on this one.

What do I personally say?

Read this book. It is a powerful moving story. Aunt Martha recommends it also. However, be forewarned that there is a lot of explicit medical detail that you will be exposed to.

 

Food Waste Friday--January 20, 2011

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money.

Here it goes for this week. 

I didn't have any waste this week unless you count the stuff that I didn't count. Confused? That means we did well enough with the big stuff that I thought I'd see how much waste we had that was so small I wouldn't normally count it. What did that include?

Squished cherry tomato

1/2 of a baby carrot that was rotten

2 potato ends that were going bad
I actually consider these part of a success. I put the rest of the carrots and potatoes into a shepard's pie before they went bad too.

1 squished cherry tomato--This one rolled off the counter and I stepped on it when I was looking for it to pick up.

6 kernels of popcorn--These fell on the floor when the hard-to-open bag of popcorn "popped" open. 

My conclusion from this experiment, "Don't sweat the small stuff."

Tastes so good

Theodore used his creative skills to make a very tasty supper tonight. He made one of those things that tastes so good you just know that its bad for you. And it was, but we didn't care.

 He started making grilled cheese sandwiches which somehow morphed into bacon and tortilla sandwiches. (Some might call them quesadillas.)

After frying up bacon, he browned two tortillas in the bacon grease that was left in the skillet.








 

Then he added Swiss and cheddar cheese along with bacon between the two tortillas and fried the tortilla sandwich until the cheese was melted.

That resulted in crunchy tortillas on the outside with soft melted cheese and crispy bacon on the inside. This was served with sweet, juicy apple slices.

Perfect.

A Second Look--January 18, 2012

See what I found this week during a Second Look.

Parsley

Teaberry

Fungus on fence post

Poison ivy vine on maple tree

What is wrong with this picture?

Groundhog hole

Nandina berries

Bird Fascination

Bird watching is a relatively new activity for me and I am fascinated by it. I watch the birds outside our windows. I read about them and study their pictures. I discuss them with Aunt Martha. I fret when they are absent from our feeder. I even dream about them. Despite all of that, they remain an enigma to me because they seem to be full of contradictions.

When I assumed that we are the cold place that birds migrate from in the winter, I learn the junco migrates to here to be warm for the winter. When I thought the cardinal is the one bird that the whole family could identify because of its color and crest, I find one with no crest. (Apparently, they can raise and lower their crest at will.) When I generalized that all of the birds that eat upside down on our suet are woodpeckers, I see a white-breasted nuthatch that is doing the same thing. And the list goes on and on. 

Slowly, but surely, I am learning about our fine feathered friends, but in this case, the saying, "The more you know, the less you understand,” certainly applies.

 Good resources for bird information:
--All about Birds from Cornell University
--Aunt Martha

Food Waste Friday--January 13, 2012

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money.

Here it goes for this week.

We had Chinese takeout this week which included sweet and sour pork. This is the lovely sauce that came with it. That is, it was lovely the first night, then I think it started glowing in the dark. It didn't seem like something that would be good for us to eat, so down the drain it went. I will have to admit, it did taste good that first night with the pork and veggies and made a colorful presentation contrasting with the peppers and pineapples.

Otherwise, we're going to have to be on our toes next week because the refrigerator is starting to build a good pile of leftovers and produce. Wish me luck.

A Second Look--January 11, 2011

Other than a couple of inconsequential flurries, we haven't had much snow this winter.*  Although I appreciate the beauty of the snow, I rather enjoy the starkness of the winter landscape. The grays and browns make a nice backdrop for any bit of color that is present--like the dandelion I found while doing a Second Look this week.

See what I found this week.

Dandelion

Peeling bark on silver maple tree.

Dried Hydrangea blossom

 

Moss (Theodore says that I need more of an explanation., so I'll try again.) Moss--green spongy stuff.

Azalea buds waiting for spring.

Dried sedum blossom

Looking at the lower half of the yard. (Nothing like a shadow to put a little height on you.)

*We did have a little snow in October, but I don't really count that since the flowers were still blooming when it melted.

What are you reading?

Recently, Shelley in her Intermittent Farm Report examined what she had been removing from her pockets at the end of each day. She had an interesting collection of objects and they gave good insights into what her daily life is like. It made me curious about what other things we have and what they might say about us. With that in mind,  I thought I'd take a look at our family and what we read. To narrow the selection down a bit, I just looked at what we had on our nightstands.

Take a look at the current books that Theodore, Wally, Ward, and I have on our nightstands. See what conclusion you would draw about us from them.

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Ward

4 sudoku books, 5 Scientific American magazines, 4 woodworking magazines, 4 books: The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould, The Man Who Forgot by Clarence E. Macartney, Cold by Bill Streever, and Commentary on Luke by Ray Summers

So what do you think?
If you concluded that Ward likes logic and nonfiction you'd be right. But more importantly, he never met a word that he didn't want to read.

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June

3 crossword puzzle books,  1 Cat Fancy magazine, 3 books: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese, At Home by Bill Bryson, Weeds by Richard Mabey

So what do you think? 
If you concluded that I like to have a few different things to read depending on my mood, you'd be right. But more importantly, I didn't realize that I had 3 crossword puzzle books on my nightstand. I need to look at the bottom of my pile more often.

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Wally

1 book: Blind Man's Bluff  by by Sherry Sontag and Christopher Drew

So what do you think?

If you concluded that Wally does not want a picture of his room on my blog and he does most of his reading on his laptop, you'd be right. But more importantly, Wally likes to read on his bed because there is always a cat who wants to join him.

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Theodore

1 book: Hidden Order: The Economics of Everyday Life by David Friedman, 

So what do you think?

If you concluded that Theodore also does not want a picture of his room on my blog and he does most of his reading on his laptop, you'd be right. But more importantly, he likes to read by the sunlight in his room which is just right from 1-3 in the afternoon.. 

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Food Waste Friday--January 6, 2012

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money.

Here it goes for this week.

I'm glad to be back at Food Waste Friday. For the couple of weeks that I didn't post, I was a lot more lax about using up leftovers. Apparently, I am motivated by public approval because I'm back on the bandwagon.  This week, we only had some moldy bread that didn't make it. Just one of those things, I guess. 

Happy New Year to one and all!

A Second Look--January 4, 2012

I did my Second Look this week from the window because it was very COLD outside. Luckily, I was able to get a few pictures before my camera had its unfortunate accident. 

Here's what I saw this week.

Blue jay

Red bellied and downy woodpeckers

 Blue jay

Female cardinal

Male cardinal

Fat furry grey "bird"

Happy New Year--2012

Happy New Year! 

Some years I make New Year's resolutions and sometimes I don't--usually because it takes too much effort to think them through. This year the work has been done for me. I found a list of  Woodie Guthries' New Year's Resolutions for 1942 and I think that I've found a pretty good list to work from. He covers every topic from "Take bath" to "Stay glad" and they are all (almost all) things that would be good for me to do. I'm going to start simple and work up to the whole list. Today I am going to change my socks (#11).

 

(Click picture to enlarge.)

 Hat Tip: boingboing via Science of Heroes

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But Wait, There's More!

What song is Woodie Guthrie best know for?

This Land is Your Land