I shamelessly appropriated this from the Facebook page Fundies Say the Darnedest Things because it made me laugh.
Update: I can't seem to make it so when you click on it it gets full page. I'll try and fix it but no promises. It may be because I got it from Facebook. Update 2: Fixed I think.
March 1st and it is 74F in Atlanta today. Somehow the universe skipped a month and yes Al Gore is still a little heavy. Only had to work until noon today got home and dug out some shorts and I am still hot. Very strange.
My best intentions of getting some garden work done were frustrated by rain so I did the next best thing and started all of the tomatoes. A bunch of heirlooms I got from Seed Savers(all the varieties that have won the annual taste test over the last 8 years. Of course, there are Cherokee Purple as well and seeds from the heirlooms I have saved too. Main season tomato is going to be the hybrid "Celebrity" this year but I have also started some Rutgers(heirloom) as a back up and something to save the seeds from. For my paste tomato I usually plant "Margherita" but this year I decided to go with "San Marzano" they are both heirloom varieties and we'll see how they do here in the South. I also started seed for a ground cherry called "Aunt Molly's", The are supposed to be native to the Eastern U.S. but I've never actually seen or tasted one but they get raves. They have a husk like a tomatillo but are supposed to be sweeter and juicier. Looking forward to trying those.
Still a few weeks away for the rest of the seed starting....melons and okra and cukes.
Finally some actual time off. The part time job took 37.5 hours last week and six straight days. Seriously thinking about losing it and taking the health insurance risk on myself. So anyway, had a dentist checkup yesterday and my first gym session in a week. I also actually got some yard and garden work done but as is obvious no blogging. The dentist discovered that I had a chipped front tooth and partially missing filling on same so this morning I had that fixed. I am off to the gym again in a bit and then some more yard work and garden stuff. Just about time to get some more stuff planted in seed trays. Tomatoes being the big item. All the peppers are doing nicely and are in the greenhouse as are the shallots, leeks and onions. All the winter stuff(arugula, spinach, lettuces are all in the compost to make room for summer stuff. If we don't get significant rain over the next few days it will be time to make the first till of the garden and get it limed. I should also get some potatoes and peas in the ground within the next week or so. Lots of work and not a lot of time.
I have been thinking a lot about the latest assault on women. I had mistakenly thought that(with the exception of the abortion battle) we had put the question of the rights of women to bed. Somehow the bat shit crazy people, in their search for some wedge issue against President Obama, have decided that contraception is the winning game. It is profoundly embarrassing and disturbing to see this happen. It just amazes me that these dirty old men(and a few self loathing crazy women) feel justified in continuing to tell our mothers, sisters, wives, and even grandmothers how they should treat their own bodies. How can they ignore the glorious, magical power of women and their ability to bring new life into the world. How can these jerks insist that this supremely powerful gift of women be turned over to them to do with as they please?
I think it might be high time the women of this country take a lesson or two from Lysistrata.
Somehow the scheduling system has it in for me. I have been doing back to back shifts (closing and then opening the next morning). It basically leaves no time for anything but not enough sleep. I do have two days off coming up after a closing 8 hour shift tonight and another 4 hour closing shift Tuesday. I am also falling behind in my spring preparations for the garden though I do have peppers sprouting as well as shallots, onions and leeks.
BTW the pressure cooking of eggs(hard cooked) really worked. Peeled as slick as a whistle and they were very fresh eggs. Definitely a keeper technique.
I don't why I haven't tried it before but I haven't until today. Got home from the gym hungry but not starving and just wanted a light bite. Rummaged in the fridge and found a whole wheat pita and some Gorgonzola left over from the great pasta the other night. Split the pita and sprinkled a little cheese on one half (not much maybe a 1/4 cup) and put the other half on top. Put in on a hot grill pan brushed with a little olive oil and grilled it on both sides until the cheese melted and there was a little crispness to the bread. Cut it into 6 triangles and ta-da! I must say it makes a tasty little snack. I'm sure you could kick this up with a little fresh spinach or arugula but plain is just fine. I wonder why I never thought of a grilled blue cheese sandwich before! The little wedges would make nice snacks for a party as well.
Now I am off to find a small pressure cooker. I have a big one but I need one in the 5 or 6 liter size. Mark Ruhlman had a post today (by guest Laura Pazzaglia who lives in Italy and blogs at hippressurecooking.com). On how to cook eggs in a pressure cooker. I love hard cooked eggs but since I buy very fresh eggs and they don't hang around long I almost always have trouble peeling them without ravaging them somewhat. Using a pressure cooker is supposed to eliminate the problems of peeling hard cooked fresh eggs. It is also faster than the method I use currently which is bringing the eggs to the simmer and then turning off the heat and let them sit for 13 minutes before rapidly cooling. This method eliminates the eggs getting too hot and developing the unappealing green ring around the yolk. I shall report on whether pressure cooker does the deed.
Oh! If you follow the Mark Ruhlman link above Laura also gives a method of making
Oeufs En Cocotte which is a great alternative to the fried, poached, scrambled dilemma and something I love but never think of when trying to decide how to have my eggs.
Just got back from Madam's little cataract surgery with no problems. I would just like to know why surgery is scheduled at such early hours. We had to be there at 645a and since it is all the way inside the Perimeter off of I-75 we had to leave the house at 545a. I will note that there is not much traffic at that time of day. All's well that ends well but there might be an afternoon nap in the offing.
After years of struggle by people horrified by the cruelty and waste that surrounded the Canadian seal hunt it appears that environmental pressures and the lack of market for seal pelts has finally ended the yearly tragedy. That will be my happy thought for the day.
A good two days off but I start back today 1230p til 915p and worse I'm scheduled for returns which really sucks. To top it off I have to back at 745a Sunday. Best case I'll get to bed by 1030p tonight and have to roll out Sunday morning no later than 5a. Not looking forward to the weekend needless to say.
Everybody have a safe and happy weekend. If you are of a mind try the pasta recipe below as it was fabulous, especially with the fresh made spaghetti. Just note that you should be prepared to add a nice dose of the pasta water to the dish or it will gum up quickly as the cheese and pasta cool.
