This is what I did today. I was in the kitchen preparing to make Banana Nut Bread. I had recently used a recipe from the Land O' Lakes butter web site and I went upstairs to my computer to print the recipe again as I could not readily locate it in the kitchen.
I sat down at the computer and thought...hum...I will just check out a few of my favorite blogs and perhaps the news and read my email and fiddle around a bit.
One hour later I was merrily traipsing down the little yellow brick Internet road, enjoying many posts and comments and adding comments of my own and then;
I went back downstairs to the kitchen and remembered:
I did not even look for the recipe for Banana Nut Bread so here I am back at the computer and printing the recipe for the BN Bread
I might as well share it with you since I am here and it may be too late to bake the bread and besides. it is such a beautiful fall day here I think I will just go for a
wonderful walk instead
Oh Yes...Here is the recipe:
WALNUT BANANA BREAD
This banana nut bread is just like the one Mom used to make. It is a great way to use overripe bananas.
Preparation time: 15 min Baking time: 1 hrs
Yield: 16 servings
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup LAND O LAKES® Butter, softened
2 eggs
2 medium (1 cup) bananas, mashed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Heat oven to 350°F. Combine sugar, butter and eggs in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Reduce speed to low; add banana and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Stir in all remaining ingredients by hand.
Spoon batter into greased and floured 8x4-inch loaf pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes; remove from pan. Cool completely.
TIP: Banana bread is best the second day. Wrap cooled bread tightly in plastic food wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
TIP: Walnuts can be omitted.
TIP: Use no-stick cooking spray that contains flour to easily coat loaf pan.
PS I use one more banana and more sugar andcome vanilla and a little cinnamon.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Small World ; Isn't it.
Some months back I had been enjoying reading Roger B's blog, "There's Always Something", when in response to something Roger posted about his home in Arizona, I commented about Atlanta, my home.
Roger emailed me and said "Atlanta?--- Perhaps you know several friends of mine who now live in Atlanta. I went to Vanderbilt University with them."
He mentioned 4 people that he knew in his college years at Vanderbilt. As you know the Internet is filled with probably a million interesting people like Roger, a retired minister. The odds of my knowing someone he knew over 50 years ago are what? A million to one? Atlanta is a city of close to 5 million souls now. And the odds of my happening upon Roger's blog among the thousands of blogs are also astronomical.
When I read the names I could not believe my eyes. My husband and I know all those Roger mentioned. One of the three men, was the father of my daughter's first boyfriend. The other is a distant cousin and a friend who belongs to the same golf club as my husband. The third, a woman, is a dear friend along with her husband, who is also a member of the same golf club.
Well, I emailed Roger and told him the news and he was speechless. He remembered one of them, BSH as the "prettiest girl at Vandy. She sat next to him in German class.
Roger later married a pretty coed from Kentucky.
None of these four long ago friends of Roger's are computer literate and have no idea what a blog is so I had not called and mentioned this remarkable coincidence to them. I did not quite know how to explain to them the sequence of events that had led me to Roger and his "blog." Then one day recently my husband was having lunch at the golf club with three of them and he mentioned Roger and the remarkable coincidence. They remembered him fondly and even recalled that Roger was the president of their fraternity pledge class.
I emailed Roger and told him how delighted his friends were to hear from him and they sent their best wishes across the miles and the years.
I still marvel at this turn of events.
What a small, small world we live in. We are all connected one to the other in some unexplainable, cosmic way.
(Six degrees of separation is the hypothesis that anyone on Earth can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances with no more than five intermediaries)
PS: click on Title above to travel to Roger's blog
Roger emailed me and said "Atlanta?--- Perhaps you know several friends of mine who now live in Atlanta. I went to Vanderbilt University with them."
He mentioned 4 people that he knew in his college years at Vanderbilt. As you know the Internet is filled with probably a million interesting people like Roger, a retired minister. The odds of my knowing someone he knew over 50 years ago are what? A million to one? Atlanta is a city of close to 5 million souls now. And the odds of my happening upon Roger's blog among the thousands of blogs are also astronomical.
When I read the names I could not believe my eyes. My husband and I know all those Roger mentioned. One of the three men, was the father of my daughter's first boyfriend. The other is a distant cousin and a friend who belongs to the same golf club as my husband. The third, a woman, is a dear friend along with her husband, who is also a member of the same golf club.
Well, I emailed Roger and told him the news and he was speechless. He remembered one of them, BSH as the "prettiest girl at Vandy. She sat next to him in German class.
Roger later married a pretty coed from Kentucky.
None of these four long ago friends of Roger's are computer literate and have no idea what a blog is so I had not called and mentioned this remarkable coincidence to them. I did not quite know how to explain to them the sequence of events that had led me to Roger and his "blog." Then one day recently my husband was having lunch at the golf club with three of them and he mentioned Roger and the remarkable coincidence. They remembered him fondly and even recalled that Roger was the president of their fraternity pledge class.
I emailed Roger and told him how delighted his friends were to hear from him and they sent their best wishes across the miles and the years.
I still marvel at this turn of events.
What a small, small world we live in. We are all connected one to the other in some unexplainable, cosmic way.
(Six degrees of separation is the hypothesis that anyone on Earth can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances with no more than five intermediaries)
PS: click on Title above to travel to Roger's blog
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Remember to set your clocks back tomorrow night
This article from a British newspaper should make you feel less burdened when you reset all your clocks, microwaves,car clocks, watch etc. And besides we get an extra hour's sleep. :)
LONDON (AFP) - Britain puts its clocks back one hour at 2:00 am (0100 GMT) on Sunday giving most people a welcome extra hour in bed -- but two cuckoo clock enthusiasts will have precious little time on their hands.
Brothers Roman and Maz Piekarski have more than 500 clocks at their Cuckooland museum in Cheshire, northwest England.
And the task of winding back the mechanisms in the antique German clocks is going to take them all weekend.
"It is not as simple as changing a battery-powered clock because they are antiques, with all sorts of complicating factors," said Roman Piekarski, 54.
"It can put you in a real spin after a while, and I have been known to change dozens of clocks before realising I had already done them.
"It is a mammoth task but it has to be done, and it is a labour of love."
The museum, which hosts one of the world's largest collections of cuckoo clocks, also features clocks which mark the hour with quails, trumpeters and monks.
Meanwhile, those who suffer from the winter blues as British Summer Time ends and darkness sets in during the mornings and evenings are being given something to cheer them up.
A telephone helpline of "inspiring" sounds from the mountains and shorelines of the tranquil Lake District in northwest England has been set up to help those feeling depressed as the number of daylight hours dwindles.
It includes a reading of William Wordsworth's poem "Daffodils", the sound of Lake Windermere lapping against a jetty, the crisp crunch of leaves on a country walk, and Cumberland sausage sizzling in a pan.
LONDON (AFP) - Britain puts its clocks back one hour at 2:00 am (0100 GMT) on Sunday giving most people a welcome extra hour in bed -- but two cuckoo clock enthusiasts will have precious little time on their hands.
Brothers Roman and Maz Piekarski have more than 500 clocks at their Cuckooland museum in Cheshire, northwest England.
And the task of winding back the mechanisms in the antique German clocks is going to take them all weekend.
"It is not as simple as changing a battery-powered clock because they are antiques, with all sorts of complicating factors," said Roman Piekarski, 54.
"It can put you in a real spin after a while, and I have been known to change dozens of clocks before realising I had already done them.
"It is a mammoth task but it has to be done, and it is a labour of love."
The museum, which hosts one of the world's largest collections of cuckoo clocks, also features clocks which mark the hour with quails, trumpeters and monks.
Meanwhile, those who suffer from the winter blues as British Summer Time ends and darkness sets in during the mornings and evenings are being given something to cheer them up.
A telephone helpline of "inspiring" sounds from the mountains and shorelines of the tranquil Lake District in northwest England has been set up to help those feeling depressed as the number of daylight hours dwindles.
It includes a reading of William Wordsworth's poem "Daffodils", the sound of Lake Windermere lapping against a jetty, the crisp crunch of leaves on a country walk, and Cumberland sausage sizzling in a pan.
Friday, October 27, 2006
Parts unknown
Karr left for parts unknown, dad says
By ADRIANNE MURCHISON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/28/06
"John Mark Karr has apparently left his father's Sandy Springs home, driven away by pressure from neighbors, his father said Friday.
His departure came about a week after an e-mail announcing the arrival of Karr — the man brought back from Thailand as a suspect in the slaying of 6-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey — circulated through several neighborhoods in north Atlanta and Sandy Springs."
I received this email and we have all breathed a sigh of relief around here. Karr had moved in with his father who lives a short distance from two schools and near a park and children's playground. The neighborhood was truly agitated about Karr's arrival here in Atlanta. He was a short distance from my daughter and her young children and my grandchildren. Even though Karr had not been convicted of any crime, California dropped the child porn charges because they "lost the computer evidence" and, given the notoriety about the Jon Benet Ramsey case, and Karr's supposed involvement in it which later turned out to be untrue, we are all glad he is gone to "parts unknown"
By ADRIANNE MURCHISON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/28/06
"John Mark Karr has apparently left his father's Sandy Springs home, driven away by pressure from neighbors, his father said Friday.
His departure came about a week after an e-mail announcing the arrival of Karr — the man brought back from Thailand as a suspect in the slaying of 6-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey — circulated through several neighborhoods in north Atlanta and Sandy Springs."
I received this email and we have all breathed a sigh of relief around here. Karr had moved in with his father who lives a short distance from two schools and near a park and children's playground. The neighborhood was truly agitated about Karr's arrival here in Atlanta. He was a short distance from my daughter and her young children and my grandchildren. Even though Karr had not been convicted of any crime, California dropped the child porn charges because they "lost the computer evidence" and, given the notoriety about the Jon Benet Ramsey case, and Karr's supposed involvement in it which later turned out to be untrue, we are all glad he is gone to "parts unknown"
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Jimmy Carter
Goldendaze-ginnie has a post about a letter she sent to ex President Jimmy Carter and the gracious reply she received. Her post got me reminiscing.Click on title of this post to take you to Ginnie.
REMEMBERING JIMMY
My husband and I knew President Carter personally when he was Governor of Georgia and then later as President. Also I had made several campaign trips as a member of Carter's " Peanut Brigade, as his volunteer group was called
. .
We lived not far from the governor's Mansion in Atlanta during his years as Governor. Amy Carter, who was then just a little girl used to come to our nearby street on Halloween to "trick or treat". She was always accompanied by a state trooper, but she still looked frightened
My husband's company did some work for Governor Carter and later for President Carter so we were given passes to attend the Democratic Convention in New York City when Carter was nominated. Even from the balcony, for a political junkie like me, this was an occasion to savor history being made.
During the convention festivities we attended a reception for JC's mother and family at the "Windows on the World" restaurant in the WTC. We met and chatted with Miss Lillian and others. It gives me shivers now to remember this and the other tower were demolished on 9/11 by those suicide bombers.
We also were invited to a reception at the White House after the inauguration and to several parties during his administration..
What a thrill that was and like an out of body experience to actually stand in the East Room or the Map Room where FDR gave his fireside chats which I am old enough to remember.I had to pinch myself.
One party in particular was great. It was the Newport Jazz Festival performers . Beautiful night, wonderful jazz and Jimmy Carter and Rosalyn were hospitality itself. VP Fritz Mondale was there as was Merv Griffin and many, many others.
Another time during Carter's years at the White House was a Valentine's dance. Imagine me and Mr H dancing at the White House in the East Room.
Then there was a reception the year the hostages were being held in Iran. This was in October before the election in November. President Carter was hopeful that some good news would arrive before the election about the release of the hostages. But no. The hostages were released at high noon just exactly when Ronald Reagan was sworn in as President. I have always questioned such timing.
We also got to visit the White House once more while Ronald Reagan was President. We were in the reception line ; you told the uniformed guard your name as you approached the President. As I shook President Reagan's hand I smiled and introduced myself To President Reagan as JH from Georgia. He smiled and said "Well" That was his favorite expression back then. We have our individual pictures taken of us individualy shaking hands with RR.
Part of this time my husband was working in Washington for his company and we were commuting back and forth.This was a most interesting time of our lives and makes for most excellent memories.
REMEMBERING JIMMY
My husband and I knew President Carter personally when he was Governor of Georgia and then later as President. Also I had made several campaign trips as a member of Carter's " Peanut Brigade, as his volunteer group was called
. .
We lived not far from the governor's Mansion in Atlanta during his years as Governor. Amy Carter, who was then just a little girl used to come to our nearby street on Halloween to "trick or treat". She was always accompanied by a state trooper, but she still looked frightened
My husband's company did some work for Governor Carter and later for President Carter so we were given passes to attend the Democratic Convention in New York City when Carter was nominated. Even from the balcony, for a political junkie like me, this was an occasion to savor history being made.
During the convention festivities we attended a reception for JC's mother and family at the "Windows on the World" restaurant in the WTC. We met and chatted with Miss Lillian and others. It gives me shivers now to remember this and the other tower were demolished on 9/11 by those suicide bombers.
We also were invited to a reception at the White House after the inauguration and to several parties during his administration..
What a thrill that was and like an out of body experience to actually stand in the East Room or the Map Room where FDR gave his fireside chats which I am old enough to remember.I had to pinch myself.
One party in particular was great. It was the Newport Jazz Festival performers . Beautiful night, wonderful jazz and Jimmy Carter and Rosalyn were hospitality itself. VP Fritz Mondale was there as was Merv Griffin and many, many others.
Another time during Carter's years at the White House was a Valentine's dance. Imagine me and Mr H dancing at the White House in the East Room.
Then there was a reception the year the hostages were being held in Iran. This was in October before the election in November. President Carter was hopeful that some good news would arrive before the election about the release of the hostages. But no. The hostages were released at high noon just exactly when Ronald Reagan was sworn in as President. I have always questioned such timing.
We also got to visit the White House once more while Ronald Reagan was President. We were in the reception line ; you told the uniformed guard your name as you approached the President. As I shook President Reagan's hand I smiled and introduced myself To President Reagan as JH from Georgia. He smiled and said "Well" That was his favorite expression back then. We have our individual pictures taken of us individualy shaking hands with RR.
Part of this time my husband was working in Washington for his company and we were commuting back and forth.This was a most interesting time of our lives and makes for most excellent memories.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
How I narrowly missed the Federal Pen.
I remember when I first got my Social Security Card a long time ago. I was 14 and my two girlfriends and I wanted to work in a dress shop weekends in the summer. In order to be hired I had to be 15 so I ("lied" "yikes" )on my SS application. Back then a baby was not issued a SS number at birth as is the custom now.
OK. All the ensuing years I "worried" that when the time came to collect my Social Security and the government found me out I would be hauled off to the poky.
When the big day arrived my sweet husband took all the forms down to the local SS office for me ( he is 9 months older and had already signed up for himself, knew the ropes ). The helpful SS agent looked over all the forms and said that I could have signed up the preceding year. Hubby explained that there was a "mix up" in my birth date when I signed up many years prior. She looked at him as if to say "Yeah. Right. Your wife has been lying about her age to you all these many years?"
He produced my birth certificate and the agent corrected my DOB and all was well.
But I guess I narrowly missed the "Federal Pen
Now Hurry on over to Ronni Bennett's Time Goes By blog.
She has written a delightful piece on her experience signing up for Social Security and the significance of this act for her.
http://www.timegoesby.net/
OK. All the ensuing years I "worried" that when the time came to collect my Social Security and the government found me out I would be hauled off to the poky.
When the big day arrived my sweet husband took all the forms down to the local SS office for me ( he is 9 months older and had already signed up for himself, knew the ropes ). The helpful SS agent looked over all the forms and said that I could have signed up the preceding year. Hubby explained that there was a "mix up" in my birth date when I signed up many years prior. She looked at him as if to say "Yeah. Right. Your wife has been lying about her age to you all these many years?"
He produced my birth certificate and the agent corrected my DOB and all was well.
But I guess I narrowly missed the "Federal Pen
Now Hurry on over to Ronni Bennett's Time Goes By blog.
She has written a delightful piece on her experience signing up for Social Security and the significance of this act for her.
http://www.timegoesby.net/
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Down memory lane
I was born in 1929, so the 1930's was the decade of my childhood. While reminiscing I did a Google search and came across this information which brought back many pleasant memories, especially of the radio shows we listened to and the movies and board games.
Do you remember any of this? I do.
"By the 1930s money was scarce because of the depression, so people did what they could to make their lives happy. Movies were hot, parlor games and board games were popular. People gathered around radios to listen to the Yankees. Young people danced to the big bands.
Franklin Roosevelt influenced Americans with his Fireside Chats. The golden age of the mystery novel continued as people escaped into books, reading writers like Agatha Christie, Dashielle Hammett, and Raymond Chandler.
Radio reached its zenith of popularity in this decade. In 1939 about 80 percent of the population owned radio sets. Americans loved to laugh at the antics of such comedians as Jack Benny, Fred Allen, George Burns and Gracie Allen, Amos and Andy, and Fibber McGee and Molly.
The soap opera dominated the daytime airwaves.Our Gal Sunday began each episode with the question, "Can a girl from a little mining town in the west find happiness as the wife of a wealthy and titled Englishman?' Many a woman's ear was glued to her radio every day in hopes of learning the answer. The heroics of the Lone Ranger, the Green Hornet, the Shadow, and Jack Armstrong, all-American boy, thrilled listeners both young and old and sold countless boxes of cereal.
News broadcasts by commentators like H. V. Kaltenborn and Edward R. Murrow kept the public aware of the increasing crisis in Europe. Franklin Roosevelt used the medium in his "Fireside Chats" to influence public opinion.
One of the most dramatic moments in radio history occurred on May 6, 1937, when the German airship Hindenburg burst into flames as it was about to land in Lakehurst, New Jersey. The horror of the incident was conveyed live by the reporter Herb Morrison. His reaction to what was happening in front of him still enthralls today.
On October 30, 1938, a twenty-three-year-old Orson Welles' broadcast on his Mercury Theater of the Air the H.G. Wells story War of the Worlds. Despite the disclaimer at the end of the program, the tale of a Martian invasion of Earth panicked a million listeners who mistook the play for a newscast. Such was the influence of radio in this its golden age.
Hollywood turned out movie after movie to entertain its Depression audience and the 30's are often referred to as Hollywood's "Golden Age". Movie goers wanted mainly escapist fare that let them forget their everyday troubles for a few hours. They swooned over such matinee idols as Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Greta Garbo, and Errol Flynn. They laughed at the likes of W. C. Fields, Bob Hope, and the Marx Brothers. America fell in love with the little curly headed moppet Shirley Temple and flocked to see her tap dance and sing to the song "The Good Ship Lollipop".
Busby Berkeley's elaborate dance numbers delighted many a fan. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers tap and ballroom dancing across the screen enthralled the audience. Notable writers like William Faulkner and F. Scott Fitzgerald penned screenplays.
Not all movies were fantasy and lightness. The picture version of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath brought to film the story of the Joan family and its migration from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma to the agricultural fields of California.
One of the top money makers of all time Gone With the Wind debuted in Atlanta, Georgia in 1939. Walt Disney produced the first full-length animated movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937."
Do you remember any of this? I do.
"By the 1930s money was scarce because of the depression, so people did what they could to make their lives happy. Movies were hot, parlor games and board games were popular. People gathered around radios to listen to the Yankees. Young people danced to the big bands.
Franklin Roosevelt influenced Americans with his Fireside Chats. The golden age of the mystery novel continued as people escaped into books, reading writers like Agatha Christie, Dashielle Hammett, and Raymond Chandler.
Radio reached its zenith of popularity in this decade. In 1939 about 80 percent of the population owned radio sets. Americans loved to laugh at the antics of such comedians as Jack Benny, Fred Allen, George Burns and Gracie Allen, Amos and Andy, and Fibber McGee and Molly.
The soap opera dominated the daytime airwaves.Our Gal Sunday began each episode with the question, "Can a girl from a little mining town in the west find happiness as the wife of a wealthy and titled Englishman?' Many a woman's ear was glued to her radio every day in hopes of learning the answer. The heroics of the Lone Ranger, the Green Hornet, the Shadow, and Jack Armstrong, all-American boy, thrilled listeners both young and old and sold countless boxes of cereal.
News broadcasts by commentators like H. V. Kaltenborn and Edward R. Murrow kept the public aware of the increasing crisis in Europe. Franklin Roosevelt used the medium in his "Fireside Chats" to influence public opinion.
One of the most dramatic moments in radio history occurred on May 6, 1937, when the German airship Hindenburg burst into flames as it was about to land in Lakehurst, New Jersey. The horror of the incident was conveyed live by the reporter Herb Morrison. His reaction to what was happening in front of him still enthralls today.
On October 30, 1938, a twenty-three-year-old Orson Welles' broadcast on his Mercury Theater of the Air the H.G. Wells story War of the Worlds. Despite the disclaimer at the end of the program, the tale of a Martian invasion of Earth panicked a million listeners who mistook the play for a newscast. Such was the influence of radio in this its golden age.
Hollywood turned out movie after movie to entertain its Depression audience and the 30's are often referred to as Hollywood's "Golden Age". Movie goers wanted mainly escapist fare that let them forget their everyday troubles for a few hours. They swooned over such matinee idols as Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Greta Garbo, and Errol Flynn. They laughed at the likes of W. C. Fields, Bob Hope, and the Marx Brothers. America fell in love with the little curly headed moppet Shirley Temple and flocked to see her tap dance and sing to the song "The Good Ship Lollipop".
Busby Berkeley's elaborate dance numbers delighted many a fan. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers tap and ballroom dancing across the screen enthralled the audience. Notable writers like William Faulkner and F. Scott Fitzgerald penned screenplays.
Not all movies were fantasy and lightness. The picture version of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath brought to film the story of the Joan family and its migration from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma to the agricultural fields of California.
One of the top money makers of all time Gone With the Wind debuted in Atlanta, Georgia in 1939. Walt Disney produced the first full-length animated movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937."
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Magnolia
Isn't this a pretty flower. I created it over at http://www.typogenerator.net/
When you go there this is what happens:
"how does typogenerator work?
the user types some text; typoGenerator searches images.google for the text and creates a background from the found images, using randomly chosen effects. then it places the text, using random effects too."
I kept playing around with typo generator using the word "magnolia" until I got this image
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