Political Systems Made Simple

Brigid over at Home on the Range posted a great take on explanations of various political systems. Go give it a read. Got bacon?

Canning Lids

If you've been wanting to try Tattler reusable canning lids, then you should check out Bi-Mart if you live in the Pacific NW. Bi-Mart stores are in WA, OR and ID. I was at Bi-Mart the other day and they are carrying Tattler lids and rings. The lids were selling for $9.99/dz. I love these lids and have never had a problem with them. I picked up a box and would have bought plenty more but I can't spend all my money in one place when we have water damage in the bathroom to fix, not to mention the exhaust and muffler on DH's pickup are rusted clear through and hanging by a thread. It's always something, isn't it?

Chick Pics

Here are the baby chicks at one week old. The darker chick had a very pasted vent earlier this week, but seeing mom wasn't going to take care of it, I did. The chick seems to be doing very well.

I would also like to welcome Joy, from Granny Mountain. She has a cool blog, so go on and check it out. Thank you for joining me.

Pun fun

A friend emailed this to me.

I changed my i Pod name to Titanic....It's syncing now.

When chemists die,they barium.

Jokes about German sausage are the wurst.

A soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray

is now a seasoned veteran.

I know a guy who's addicted to brake fluid.

He says he can stop any time.

How does Moses make his tea ? Hebrews it.

I stayed up all night to see where the sun went.

Then it dawned on me.

This girl said she recognized me from the vegetarian club,

but I'd never met herbivore.

I'm reading a book about anti-gravity. I can't put it down.

I did a theatrical performance about puns.

It was a play on words.

They told me I had type A blood- but it was a Type- O.

A dyslexic man walks into a bra.

PMS jokes aren't funny, period.

Why were the Indians here first? They had reservations.

Class trip to the Coca-Cola factory. I hope there's no pop quiz.

Energizer bunny arrested. Charged with battery.

I didn't like my beard at first. Then it grew on me.

How do you make holy water? Boil the hell out of it!
Did you hear about the cross eyed teacher who lost her job

because she couldn't control her pupils ?

When you get a bladder infection, urine trouble.

What does a clock do when it's hungry? It goes back four seconds.

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger.

Then it hit me !

Broken pencils are pointless.

I tried to catch some fog. I mist.

What do you call a dinosaur with a extensive vocabulary ?

A thesaurus.
England has no kidney bank, but it does have a Liverpool.

I used to be a banker, but then I lost interest.

I dropped out of communism class because of lousy Marx.

All the toilets in New York's police stations have been stolen.

Police have nothing to go on.

I got a job at a bakery because I kneaded dough.

Haunted French pancakes give me the crepes.

Velcro - what a rip off!

Cartoonist found dead in home. Details are sketchy.

Venison for dinner? Oh deer!
Earthquake in Washington obviously government's fault.
I used to think I was indecisive, but now I'm not so sure.
Be kind to your dentist. He has fillings, too.

Never fall in love with a tennis player because to a tennis player,

love means nothing.

Chicks and Ticks

Yesterday I must have gone out to the chicken barn (as I call it) and checked on BO (mother hen) and her chick progress about a dozen times. She did not take kindly to all my curiosity and was highly protective and secretive. Other than the one glimpse of three chicks under her, I got nary much else to gawk at. DH gently reminded me that I should leave her alone and let her get used to her new role. Well, what do you think I did the second I got out of the shower this morning (after putting clothes on, of course)? Before I even poured my cup of coffee. Before I even turned the coffee pot on. Before I said my morning prayers. Yep, you sure guessed right. And here is what I found.

Her nest where she has spent the last six weeks nurturing and turning her lovely eggs was empty with some telltale signs of hatched chicks and two that were not as fortunate. And here she is!

Okay, I see one baby chick, I know there are more...

Five chicks! Aren't they cute? It looks like those two in front of her may be quarreling and she is breaking it up, doesn't it?

Okay, enough of my parade about the new additions to our household. Good grief, what will I be like when I'm an actual grandmother of humans?!

Well, yesterday, DD19 came out to the house and she was petting our lovely dog, Cooper, who by the way is no longer limping.  She petted a lump. What kind of lump? The kind that grows and swells with blood. Disgusting! It is going to be a tick year for sure. This is his third tick and it is only mid-June. After the first two, I put that flea and tick medicine on his back that is supposed to spread out on his body and repel ticks. Apparently it doesn't spread to the face. Here you can see it on his jowl. It's as big as my thumbnail!

DH is braving holding the tweezers and pulling the thing off.

Cooper is not too sure about all of this.

There it is...

Baby Chicks!

Do you see the little baby chick poking our from under her chest? I knew it had to be close because this morning I went out to check on her and feed and she was growling at me! I have counted three chicks, but we are trying to not bother her and upset her so this was the only pic I could manage to get. That board in from of her is not laying flat and we don't want the chicks to get caught up underneath of it so I was trying to step on it and flatten it down. Also, you can't really tell in the picture but to the left and right of the front of the crate there are gaps we want to get filled in so the little chicks don't wander off into predator land of the big, mean, cannibal chickens that live next door. I will post more pictures soon and update you on her progress.

Pina Colada Meets Monkey Butter

A while back while I was visiting Kris Watson's blog, Simply Living,  and I came across a post of hers about Monkey Butter. I had never heard of it, but I am curious and have a wide palate so I ventured to the link she provided at Learn to Preserve,  and found this recipe. Now, I have to tell you that I love bananas, pineapple and coconut and if you like Pina Coladas, than this version of jam is for you. It is a nice change to have on your shelf when all you are staring at are various versions of red and purple jams on the shelf. This is bright and cheerful. It will be great on toast for a nice change, as an ice cream topping, or on pancakes. I thought 3 cups of sugar might be too much, but after the flavors had blended, it was just about right. Enjoy!

Here's the recipe from Learn to Preserve.

MONKEY BUTTER

Makes ~ 2-3 pints, or ~ 5 half pints

2 lbs medium-size perfectly ripe bananas (about 5, with no brown spots)
2 cups fresh pineapple chunks (or 20 oz. can)
1/4 cup of flaked coconut, any kind (natural or sweetened)
3 cups of white sugar 
1 fresh lemon, zested  & juiced

1.) Peel and slice bananas, then put banana slices, along with remaining ingredients in a large preserving pan.
2.) Bring to a boil, stirring often, and then reduce to a simmer for the next 10 minutes.
3.) Cook until thick, which may take as few as 10 minutes; but it may take as many as 20 minutes or more. (Water content varies in bananas and pineapple.)
4.) While the mixture is simmering, use a potato masher, or large sturdy slotted spoon, to periodically mash the fruit down, between bouts of stirring to prevent any preserves from sticking.
5.) Ladle jam into clean hot jars, leaving 1/4" headspace.
6.) Using a chopstick or plastic knife, pop any air bubbles you might see in the Monkey Butter.
7.) Wipe rims spotlessly clean and place a sealing lid on top the jar. Next, screw a band onto the jar until it's "finger-tight".
8.) Process jars in a Boiling Water Bath for 10 minutes (half pints) and 15 minutes (pints).
> If jars lid seals it will easily keep for one year in a cool, dark place. If jar doesn't seal, place it in your refrigerator and eat within 3 months, or within one month of opening.

School's Out for Summer!

I haven't had much to blog about lately, and have been busy with end of the school year activities and preparations. I have not had much motivation to do anything and our garden has suffered for it. We planted some tomatoes, peppers, onions, carrots, radishes, lettuce and what not back in April. We had such cold, wet weather, than only the onions sprouted and survived, even though they were in the greenhouse. I put them in the garden about a week ago to keep the volunteer onion sets that sprouted up company. I think it is going to be one of those years, you know, not as productive as you had hoped. It seems already that we are fighting an uphill battle with weather and insects and plant diseases. I am really wanting to get some canning done and had hoped I would be canning more of our home grown food rather than the local farmers market.

 

We did manage to put 20 potatoes in the garden and I finally planted some green beans and peas today. Yesterday, DH and I put some boards along the bottom of the fence and strung up some string for the beans to climb. We had corn in there last year, but failed to thin it and had stumpy corn. I salvaged what I could, and I hope the green beans and peas do better. One section is next to the mint, so I am hoping that the mint will not cause any kind of growing problems for the beans. I think mint has a bad reputation, and I don't want to find that our for myself. I have no idea what kind of yield to expect. We eat a lot of green beans that I can up and freeze. I usually buy a 25# box at the farmers market and can them. I guess I planted about 40 seeds.

As you can see my strawberries are starting to come on. I've noticed that some of the leaves are turning blackish-brown. Not sure what causes this or how to remedy it. Suggestions?



My rhubarb was prolific last year and started coming up just fine and in the matter of about a week to 10 days, the leaves are full of holes, reddish and dead or dying. I can only find some ants and some flying things that look like little  ants with wings. I read that ants can eat the roots of rhubarb, but the damage seems to come from above ground. Ideas anyone? I will miss my rhubarb this year.

Thank You and Welcome!

I would like to thank Trucker Mom for hitting my follower button. Also, Rina who has two blogs, A Shack in the Country and Our slice of Heaven. Check out her blogs. I appreciate your interest and I will reply to your comments. Happy Monday!

A Warm Welcome

I want to thank some wonderful ladies for hitting my follower button. Blogger friends, please go check out these ladies blogs. Rhonda over at If You Do Stuff shares some great recipes and craft ideas. Lana's blog, Farm Life Lessons, shares her ups and downs of country life. And welcome to Chars for joining, as well. . I hope you enjoy reading, leave a comment and I will happily respond.