Oct. 27th Post - too many cakes

Something's going on with the photo of the birthday cake.
In Firefox, there is one cake photo with two tiny rectangle outlines underneath the photo.
In IE, there are THREE photos of the cake.
I don't know what the problem is, and I don't feel like editing the HTML.

I fixed it by opening it up in IE and editing it there - backspacing out two of the photos.
That must be why those little rectangle outlines were at the bottom of the photo (in Firefox).
Maybe I should do all the editing in IE.

Muscats

I forgot to mention ...

Muscats are raisins which have had their seeds removed mechanically, leaving little holes in them.
Seedless raisins never had seeds to begin with.

Best Fruitcake Recipe

Fruitcake

Mix the following ingredients together in the boiling water, turn down and simmer for 20 minutes.
Let cool.

1 1/2 C. muscats - forget finding them at the store, but you can order them in bulk from Sun-Maid. I use the regular Sun-Maid raisins.
1 1/2 C. chopped, pitted dates
2 C. sugar
2 C. boiling water
1/3 C. shortening

In a bowl, mix together:

3 C. flour
1 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. ground cloves

Add the cooked ingredients to the dry ones. Mix thoroughly.
Add 1 - 3 ounce package of the following candied fruits: orange peel, lemon peel, pineapple, citron and cherries.
Add 1 C. chopped walnuts

Bake in one, greased and floured, 7.5 inch by 12 inch pan
Bake at 325 degrees for about 90 minutes.
I use empty coffee cans, or mini loaf pans, which will bake about 5 small cakes.
The batter will be heavy and sticky.
They will rise about an inch, or so.
*I tried adding the fruit & nuts to the cooked dates & raisins BEFORE adding the flour mixture. I like it better - it's easier to mix. - Dec. 15, 2007

When they're done, let them cool on a rack, then wrap them in brandy soaked cheesecloth, wrap in aluminum foil, and store for a few days, week, etc. Best to cool them in a cool place.

Updates:
http://deskdiva.blogspot.com/2008/11/time-to-think-about-fruitcake.html

http://deskdiva.blogspot.com/2008/11/first-batch-of-fruitcakes.html

Fave Books of 2006

Here's the list, not in any particular order:

Wild Fire - Nelson DeMille - extra fun because it takes place in the north country of NY state

Mayflower - Nathaniel Philbrick

Possible Side Effects - Augusten Burroughs

The Cold Moon - Jeffery Deaver another Lincoln Rhyme

The Messenger - Daniel Silva

Happy 29th Birthday

Exhibit

I'm having my own little exhibit at the library!
Very exciting. The title is, 'Pinellas'.
I had to think of a theme, and the only one I could come up with
where I have a fair amount of decent photos, is Pinellas.
They're all framed and ready to go.
When I look at them now, they look boring and crooked.
I wonder if I should put prices on them.
One has already been sold, and to someone I don't know,
which makes it more legitimate.

Here's a sample.

Books and Music

Stellar season for books and music ...

All the Roadrunning - Emmylou Harris and Mark Knopfler. I think Love and Happiness for You, is my favorite.

Pay the Devil - Van Morrison Van's gone country on this one.

Modern Times - Bob Dylan Faves - Spirit on the Water, Thunder on the Mountain, When the Deal Goes Down

Face the Promise - Bob Seger - release date Sept. 6 Everything he does is great.



Possible Side Effects - Augusten Burroughs

The Cold Moon - Jeffery Deaver another Lincoln Rhyme

The Messenger - Daniel Silva

Wild Fire - Nelson DeMille - not until November!

I Feel Bad About My Neck, and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman - Nora Ephron - disappointing

BMI

Here's an easy way to figure out my BMI.
http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

The formula: dividing a person's weight in pounds by his height in inches, squared, and multiplying that total by 703.
I must have done it wrong- it was in the 100's.

Here's the report on my state -

http://healthyamericans.org/reports/obesity2006/release.php?StateID=NY

Summer Project

What I Did on My Summer Vacation



thanks, Picasa

It's Hot

Wouldn't it be nice to have just one day of snow?
Just a light flurry?
It used to be that we'd only need the AC for a total of a week for an entire summer.
Now, the AC is on more than it's off.

Identifying Stephen King 1sts

Leave it to a daughter to bring this to my attention:
Identifying First Editions of Stephen King's books.

http://www.stephenking.com/IdentifyingFirstEditions.pdf

Excellent!

Ahhhhh

Quench it ...

Poolside, it's going to be ...

Saranac Ginger Beer

www.saranac.com

Saratoga Sparkling Water in the cobalt blue glass bottle

www.saratogaspringwater.com/index.html

I can't wait. Maybe tomorrow.

PC World's 25 Worst Tech Products

PC World Magazine's List of the 25 Worst Tech Products
by Dan Tynan, May 26, 2006

http://www.pcworld.com/resource/printable/article/0,aid,125772,00.asp

(printer friendly version)

I figured AOL would be on the list, but I was surprised that it was listed as # 1.
That's kind of mean. AOL did serve a purpose.
It got new users online.
For a long time, it was the only ISP easily available.
There was a sense of community in the early to mid 90's.
I'll always have a soft spot for AOL.

Clinton Square

When you're too tired to go anywhere - too tired to even go downtown.

http://www.syracuse.com/clintoncam/

Waikiki Beach

When you want to get away right this very minute ...

http://www.co.honolulu.hi.us/cameras/waikiki_beach/waikiki.htm

Challenge Continues

Bedbugs can be extremely tenacious. I can't bear to put a photograph of one here. They're too disgusting for words. I should point out that there are no bedbugs in MY house. Anyway, if you call on ORKIN to do the job, make sure they come back often for rechecks and second and third treatments. Make sure they don't damage your furniture. If they do, point it out to them, get it repaired, and send them the bill.

You might also want to try Diatect stuff. It's at www.diatectresults.com
The active ingredients are Pyrethrins (African Daisy extract), Diatomaceous Earth (silicon dioxide), Piperonyl Butoxide (synthetic sassafras oil). They've got a very informative Website, and they send nice emails to you offering lots of encouragement.

And, put Vaseline on your bed's legs, and a piece of packing tape (sticky side up) underneath each bed leg.

Launder, or dryclean all your clothing, bedding and linens. Another option is to place stuff in sealed bags and put them in the freezer, but they have to be in there for TWO weeks.

That should do it. Remember, this is war. They aren't going to win. Creepy little critters. Worse than spiders.

Stumbled Upon - April 2006

April, 2006 Looks like they're all libraries. That's ok. Next time you're out, stop at the library and browse.

Carnegie Libraries of Scotland
http://www.scotcities.com/carnegie/index.htm

Clifton Park - Halfmoon Library, New York
http://www.cphlibrary.org/index.shtml

Brunswick Community Library, Eagle Mills, NY
http://www.brunswicklibrary.org/

Seymour Public Library, Auburn, NY
http://www.seymourlibrary.org/

Saratoga Springs Public Library, Saratoga Springs, NY
http://www.sspl.org/

New Challenge

Harvard School of Public Health on Bed Bugs

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/bedbugs/

Booklist Online

ALA, the American Library Association, finally put Booklist online. So far, I'm not impressed.
I'll have to look at it more carefully, but looks and feels like nothing more than a teaser. I'd love to subscribe to the print version, but I can't afford $ 295.00 for a one a year subscription. That's why I was so excited to see it was going to be available online.
I wonder why they feel it's necessary to include a blog. It's written by Keir Graff.

Here's a link to the official blog: http://www.booklistonline.com/blog/

Here's the link to the practice blog:
http://alaboldev.ctt-inc.com/default.aspx?page=general_info&id=55

Ho-hum.

Complaint Letters

Instead of complaining to friends about things, I'm going to start writing letters.

So far, I've written to Senators Hillary Clinton, and Chuck Schumer. I received decent replies within two days from both of their offices. Schumer's staff sent the same form letter twice.

I was going to write to Rep. James Walsh with lots of complaints, but his record at Vote Smart isn't that terribly bad. He does have a scary stand on abortion, however. He thinks they should only be legal if the life of the mother is in danger. He probably carried that over from Catechism days.

I wrote to Kohler about their lousy Staccato sink. Model K-3361-3. It's too deep, the edge in the back is too small, the bottom of the sink is completely flat. It's such a dumb sink. I wonder if there were any women on the design team. I am not going to stand on a stool to use it. Maybe some high wedgie shoes would work.

Next was Jessica McClintock to complain about the lack of sleeves on wedding dresses. You cannot find a wedding dress with a sleeve. They have a couple in the Women's sizes. Not every bride wants to have a strapless, or halter gown. David's Bridal doesn't have any contact or feedback form. Figures. Alfred Angelo has one, and it's pretty. I'll have to write and tell them.