Thursday, August 28

[zip2play]

Good morning everybody.

Nothing new here. I'm going to toddle over to STAPLES and buy a new modem. The new V.92 standard will allow a single phone line to be answered without losing an Internet connection. I need Call-Waiting but then can drop Call Wave and Call Forwarding on Busy....save a couple bucks a month and get the calls instantly rather than 10 seconds delayed and then having to disconnect and call back....of course, my current system skips all the junk calls too....hmmmmm, maybe I'll rethink this!

More 'puter stuff. Anyone with WIN 98 still (like Loretta). MAKE SURE to go to Windows Update and get all the Updates for your system. I just read that all support for Win 98 will CEASE in January 2004 (5 years I guess.) After that NO UPDATES WILL BE AVAILABLE.

Linda,
Did you install the Hewlitt-Packard yet (Lazybones [me] on this end hasn't)



Shawnee, when I'm out in the woods and I find sweet black/deep-purple knobby fruit, I eat my fill and wander in far enough nibbling that I need a bottle of caladryl for the toren up legs afterwards.
They LOOK just like the expensive things that are sold in the stores. Hey, If it walks like a rasperry and quacks like a rasperry, it MUST be a duck (or something)

Ohhhh, Roast Pig....I'm slathering all over the keyboard!

Susan,
Blessings to you from this old atheist. Let us know as soon as you get home how it went.

Ginny,
I hope you are getting the three day weekend off?? Rain predicted for our area.

It's a lovely cool day.

My friend Rich is out of the hospital and back at work...no pacemaker....yet!

Later gaters!...or L8er, G8ers!

A svelte blonde enters a store that sells curtains. She tells the salesman
"I would like to buy a pink curtain in the size of my computer screen."
The surprised salesman replies:
"But, madam, computers do not have curtains." And the blonde
said:
"Helloooo.... I've got Windows!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BTW...the same day NJ had the earthquake, Hilo, Hawaii had a 5.8. Connections? My theory, look for a BIG one soon!

[shawneesioux]

Mornin, Y'all

Quack-quack, ZIP...LOL, while you're picking and eating and getting ripped up...keep your third eye peeled for ol' Brother Bear
There are so many varieties of Raspberries, Blackberries...natives plus hybreds...Here, we associate the medium red as (commercial) Raspberries (see pic on right)....the wild blackberries here are the commom Himalayas and the Cascades...we also have wild Salmonberries and Huckleberries, Salal berries, Oregon Grape, etc...a real Bear's Buffet.

http://www.tonytantillo.com/fruits/raspberries.html

Here's stuff about our wild and cultivated varieties

http://gardening.wsu.edu/library/smfr002/smfr002.htm

Susan, you are very much on our minds and in our hearts today

Jacki, have a wonderful time

Suzy is calling; wish she would only visit me once or twice a week, the ol' pain in the patoot...she's a slave-driver, never satisfied.

To all, be safe and well.

Shawnee

[Loretta V]

Good Thursday morning/ make that early afternoon now.

Thanks Zip for that info on the windows updates for this old pc. I though something like that might happen. I just got used to this system as it is. The technology just keeps on going much faster than I would ever want to catch up with.
One year I collect some wild blackberries when on vacation here and then I made some jam. That was the seediest jam I ever ate. Thanks for the update on your friend.

Shawnee yes do try out that bread and let me know what to change. I want to try it in my muffin top pan and use it for my Sunday bread with my eggs. I had one recipe that I ended up liking a lot for bread and it was on the sweet side but do you think I could remember which one it was Your pig roast sounds like a real treat to me. What time did you end up eating dinner?

Susan it should be done with by now and you are waking up. Good thoughts and blessings are with you.

Julie you are probably really busy now that bowling has started. Will you still have time for those lunches?

Linda yes the family up there is ready for our visit too. It has been quite a while since we made the trip. I used to stock up on rye bread and wine. But now I have found it just as cheap here to buy the wine if we get a case of it and I have quite the rye bread altogether except for what I make. My DS plans on barbequing some ribs for us when we get there.

Ginny gal those pups and orkids are keeping you hopping. You are going to have to work less.

Jackie have a great time and be careful.

I hear Suzy calling also. That took me a minute or two to sink in Shawnee. I thought you were complaining about a neighbor. Just call me ROSE today.

L8ER !!!

[Jewels]

Morning gang, (at least for another few minutes it'll be morning)

Roger, in our parts of the world, when we gather blackberries, we cover all our exposed parts so we don't get all scratched up. We look funny but the result is wonderful. If you get the small berries, they aren't so seedy. I love them. Out camping this week, we had blackberries all around our campsite. Picking and picking and we all had our fill. Soooo good!!

Roast pig!!! One time years ago, we dug a hole in the ground and wrapped a weiner pig in lettuce leaves (no ti leaves like the Hawaiian use) and cooked it all day. Put round hot rocks in it's belly. It fell apart and was extrodinare!!! Did have a little sand on the rocks, hard to get them hot and then brush them off. LOL

We have 2 wild huckleberry plants by our garage and get tons of berries every fall. They are so good in muffins and the (ex) pancakes. Harder than he!! to clean but worth it.

Shawnee, kick that ole Suzy in the a$$ and grab a book and relax. It'll be ther tomorrow.

Susan, hopeing all went fine and you'll be back with us soon.

Loretta, I'm only bowling on Tues. and Fri. Walking the other days. Really getting back to this exercise. Maybe help me maintain. Bad month August was!! Too much of the legal things.

Hi to Linda, Ginny, Jacki and Pam.

[OrchidCactus]

Hey y'all,

*yawn* I made it through last night *stretch* got a good sleep and will hopefully be wide awake shortly. Tonight shouldn't be too bad, usually pretty light workload from Thurs. night to Fri. morning. Just hope the guys before me get most of the work done so I can take it a little easier. Got into the bed at 6 this a.m. after a large cup of coffee for the drive home and had NO trouble sleeping If I ever had to, I could acclimate to 3rd shift easily....

Susan, hope all went easily for you today re surgery! Waiting patiently for you to feel up to posting.

Shawnee, know what you mean about the blackberries. Some friends of ours have them growing wild in their 'back 145' acres, and of course the best ones are in the MIDDLE of the thickets! They bushhog through a patch periodically so they can get to them!

Jacki, have a fun camping trip!

Julie, that bowling sure sounds fun. Don't think I can do that anymore with the elbow and wrist trouble in right arm....so bowl a good game for me!

Linda, reckon you're gonna have to start watching out for bears soon? Must be getting close to their fall 'stock up' time on body fat!

Loretta, I don't like travelling on a holiday weekend either. Too much traffic, and too many inebriated individuals behind the wheel for me to want to go much of anywhere. I prefer to travel at night when the roads are less populated, worry much less about driving with big trucks as cars.

Zip, yes I'll have a 3 day weekend...looking forward to it too! I'm sure we'll take one day to just veg out, or at least I hope so!

Well, all, better get my butt in gear soon!

[shawneesioux]

Hi Again, Y'all

Hey Goddess, ....so ya pulled a Graveyard shift, huh? Lots of 3-shift work here, with the Mills especially...tho some have gone to 12 hr, 4 day a week schedules...
Absolutely too many nuts on the road this weekend...my trips will be close to home.....but come to think of it, the 2 accidents I've been in during the last 30 years were within a couple miles of home...guess there's nuts everywhere, all the time.
Those Blackberries sure make good Cobblers...that Nuker one I made last week sure hit the spot. Had some SF Vanilla Ice Cream topping Enjoy your long weekend Hugs to FurBalls.

Julie, I'd gladly ignore ol' Suzy, if she wasn't staring me right in the face.....LOL Those Huckleberies sure make pretty wine, as well as jelly.

Loretta, ya gotta strain those Blackberries for Jam, they are too seedy otherwize.

JUST for you...LOL..I made that Flax Muffin / Bread stuff. I used waaay less sweetener, and its still plenty sweet to use for breakfast bread or snack.....I don't think I'd want it for a steak sandwich, (hehee)...but would go ok with Bacon or Ham.. but best with butter and jelly. I have a baking pan that has 4 Mini-loaf forms in it, with braided design indents on the bottoms. When I got it last year, Jacki had to keep up with the Joneses (me) and get one also.

Anyhoo, the texture is rich, rough, moist ...not a "bread " feel . I added Cardemom for Bob, and made a few alterations. He has been snacking on it as he goes thru the kitchen.

I'll post the Origional, and my changes in boldface.
************
spongebob's flaxmeal bread

dry
===
2c flaxmeal (I use Bob's Red Mill)
1c nuts/etc. * 3/4 C almonds, coarsely chopped
1/4 C Gluten
1/2c Splenda (box, not packets)TWO TBLS Splenda
1tsp baking powder
1tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Salt
Optional: 1 tsp Cardamom


*i usually use chopped almonds or pecans (can't remember which right now!) that net out at like 1ca per 1/4c - take a look, you'll find them! i also sometimes will mix 1/2c nuts with 1/2c unsweetened coconut (also lc!). get creative here!!!

wet
===
5 eggs (beaten)4 is plenty, don't wanna get too egg-y
8T sf syrup w/Splenda **1/2 C DaVinci; I used Dulce de Luche
5T vegetable oil (i use canola)2 TBLS Bacon Grease plus 3 TBLS Macadamia oil; going for FLAVOR!


**so far i've tried hazelnut or banana, depending on what i use above for nuts/etc.

pre-heat oven to 350F

mix together all dry ingredients in a bowl, then in a separate bowl, mix all wet ingredients. fold dry ingredients into wet and mix well (don't beat like crazy, but be sure it's mixed well or the eggs do funny things!).

immediately transfer batter to Pam/etc-sprayed loaf panI use Bacon Grease to goo the pan (i've had better results not waiting the 5min. i've seen suggested - baking soda is active immediately when wet, right?).

bake at 350F for 35min. or until it passes the knife/toothpick/etc. test. the 4-Mini-loaf pan was done in 20 minutes

remove from pan immediately and cool before slicing. i slice into 16 as follows: slice lengthwise down the center, then cut each half into two equal halves on the short axis and then in half again.

[Loretta V]

Thanks Shawnee, I knew you would give it a try. Do you think it can be toasted. Is it firm enough to hold together? That was a problem I encountered with one of my "breads". I'll make note of your changes.

[shawneesioux]

Loretta...about the Bread: If you like Cardamom, please use some in it, delicious. Bob just told me to hide the rest of it...LOL..I left bite-size buttered pieces on the counter, and he has just about wiped them out I told him not to PIG OUT on it, that Flax is like Ex-lax...haha, that got his attention ....

Its very firm, but still slightly crumbly. I wouldn't really wanna put it in a regular Toaster as it may become more crumbly when dried out..., maybe stick it under the Broiler or use a Toaster-oven thingy. Glad I made it, and will keep the Recipe...and play with more modifications along the way: cream cheese, ...coconut...hhhhmmmmm...

....afterwhile, crockadile...( Lordy, did I type that???)

Shawnee

[Jewels]

Shawnee, thanks for trying out the recipe. I too wanted to make it but like Loretta, I want a bread I can toast. Know of any?

See ya later .... J

[Loretta V]

I have a toaster oven. But one of my breads fell apart when I was trying to get it out. My paper napkin caught on fire . That is why I thought I might try it in the muffin top pan to get a better grip on it. Shawnee I have not tried cardamon ever. You know me. Lowcarb man was raving about the Green Apple flavor the other day. I'll stick to splenda, diabetasweet and add vanilla or almond flavors.

[shawneesioux]

LOL, Loretta...you are HOT STUFF in the kitchen I finally figured out (duh ) what the Flaxbread texture resembles: Cornbread!
OK, I'm off your case re the Cardamon; I'm already waaay proud of how far you've come with your blind leaps of Faith, using new recipes.

Julie, I made up some Yeast Muffins last winter...they could be made in a Loaf pan, just take longer to bake. They have a more breadlike, toastable texture...and more carbs.....(sorry, I just make up recipes, I don't do counts )


*********************
YEAST-BREAD MUFFINS
2 paks Rapid rise yeast, 1 C warm water, 1 tsp real sugar ( I used Brown)...mix up, set aside to bubble for 5 or so min.

( I forgot to add in the Xanthan Gum like I'd planned, worked fine without it..but it helps "plump and bind")

Stir together in big bowl:

1 1/4 C. Vital wheat gluten
1/2 C. Oat flour ( can grind regular oatmeal in coffee grinder)
1/4 C. Wheat bran
1 TBLS Splenda
1 tsp Xanthan Gum (optional)
1 tsp Salt
1 TBLS Bacon grease (oil/butter)
1 Egg, slighty beaten

Add the yeast mixture, egg, and oil to the Dry stuff, mix well by hand. Turn out onto floured board, kneed for about 3-5 minutes..
Separate dough ball in half.....form 3 dough balls from each half.
Place balls into greased Big 6 hole Muffin pan.
Set pan, covered with clean tea towel, in WARM place for about an hour; dough will double in size.
Bake at 375* for about 30 min.

Crispy, chewy outside with a moist and tender inside




************************************
another one:


Whole Wheat & Oat Muffin ( Biscuit substitute)

1 C Whole wheat flour
1 2/3 C Oatmeal, ground into flour
2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp baking Soda
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Onion Powder (optional)
1 tsp Splenda
1 C Buttermilk
1 C water
1 Egg

by hand, mix all dry ingredients together, add in egg, water and buttermilk....blend well...dough will be GLOPPY!
Spoon into a well-greased 12 cup muffin tin.
Bake at 375* for about 30 min.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[LoveMontana]

Long day here. I made the mistake of going to Wally world about 1pm and found a great parking place. After about a 1/2 the thundering herds of college students and parents invaded the place. It was a total MAD house. Waited in the check out line for almost a half hr. Highway was a mess too with so much out of town traffic. Oh the joy of fall.

Stain is going on nicely and only one coat is needed this time.

Roger, we installed the printer as soon as we got it. Very easy and no trouble at all. I love it.

When we had webtv we had call waiting and loved it. Well, except when we were in the middle of something , it would cut out the webtv connection. Through Verizon it was only $5.88 a month. Much less expensive than an extra phone line.

Shawnee, we have a lot of blackberry bushes around here growing wild but last year and this year they don't have many berries at all on them. Last year it was so HOT and DRY and this year, cool and wet. I took a picture of a newer one growing near a clump of trees and will post it if it came out ok. LOL I didn't want to wander up by the pond to the big patch in case the bears were around.
Apple tree is full of apples but they are doing rather poorly too. They have what looks like bird bites or a fungus on them. Darn!

Thanks for that last recipe. Gerard is in the kitchen right now trying it out.

Julie, Did you get your pop up stopper installed and working well? How do you like it so far.

LOL, we cover up too when out in the woods picking berries. Those darn thorns HURT!

Don't you just love pig roasts? My sister in law's dad used to have one every year. Pig on a spit roasted slowly overnight and half of the next day. Everyone would bring a covered dish and we would all pig out, drink beer and camp out. It was way the hell out in the back woods of Pennsylvania. Oh the memories.

Ginny, those grave yard shifts aren't much fun. I had to do one every few weeks for two weeks when I worked for 911. UGH. I had to put foil over the windows to be able to sleep.
Hope this won't last too long for you.

This year, I've only seen one bear but some of the neighbors have seen them. We keep the garbage can in the garage now and don't put food scraps in a compost heap anymore.

Loretta, you are going to have a wonderful time visiting your son. Hey, get his BBQ sauce recipe and share it.

Try putting your "bread" under the broiler for a few minutes. It really comes out nice that way.
We have a Black and Decker under the counter space saver toaster that I try every so often. You just put the bread on a little self thingy and close the door. It looks like a mini toaster oven. That works well too.

Susan, hopefully you are feeling somewhat awake and not in pain. Please check in when you feel up to it.

Jackie, hope you have a wonderful time. Take lots of pictures.

Pam, where the heck are you girl?

Off to catch up with a ton of e mails.
Later

[Jewels]

Shawnee, thanks for the recipes today. Have been looking for a good one for toast but chicken to try some of the recipes out there.

Linda, I did get both pop up stoppers and spybot too. Today when I clicked on your site for the partial hydrog. oils, a pop up!!! Went back and double checked and for some reason the one pop up didn't show up. I reloaded it and went back to the same site and it didn't pop up again. I still can't find it. The others showed up on my desktop. I assume it's there.

Susan, still thinking about you and hoping everything is ok and you're not in too much pain.

[LoveMontana]

Julie, does the little green bar show up on the lower left of your screen? That one is one of the best but doesn't show up on my desk top either. The other one does though.
Hope it's working for you now.

[Jewels]

Linda, the icon that shows up on the desktop are Spybot an Ad-aware. The other one I can't find in my programs or elsewhere. It said it was loaded though. Just don't know where...

[LoveMontana]

Yeah, I can't find it in my programs either but that little green bar about 3/4" x 1/8" shows up on the bottom left of the screen. Can you see it? If it's there, rt. click on it and it will show you where to get updates and such.

[LoveMontana]

Julie, I found it!! I went to the control panel then add/remove programs. It was there but only the remove option. Needless to say, I didn't touch it.

[Jewels]

Well. DA%&!!!! Yes, it's in the Add/remove program and i didn't touch it either. BUT, I don't see the little green bar. What should I do?

[LoveMontana]

Gosh Julie, I don't know. Did you go to FAQ and see if it may be of help?
http://www.endpopups.com/faq.html

Perhaps you need to run spybot or ad aware to clean anything up that may be on your hard drive.