Elly and I Hosted A Community Garden Meeting Today

Elly and her Sustainable Shepherdstown group, along with local impressario Peter Corum, are organizing a Community Garden in cooperation with Peter’s Morgan Grove Market project just down the road from out house. Today, we hosted an informational meeting for interested parties… we had 12 in attendance (there were several who were interested and called to say they couldn’t make the meeting, but they want in.) Everyone seemed pretty excited.

Yesterday, Peter arranged to have the 100 square feet set aside for the set of 10′ x 10′ garden plots roto-tilled and fertilized. This was done with volunteers and by calling in some favors.

The weather held out well to get everything done.

Here’s the group who worked the land:

Anyone interested in getting involved in Sustainable Shepherdstown’s Community Garden (at a cost of $20.00 for a 10 x 10 for the whole season) should go to http://sustainableshepherdstown.org or send an email to esmithart30@yahoo.com.

Me? I’m assigned to watering our plot.

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I’m Packaging 300 of my Web Poppers which I will make available next week…

Several of my readers have asked me where I get the little 72 x 72 pixel images I put in some of my posts…especially the ones I use to describe events in my own life. I call these little guys Web Poppers and they are all quality JPEG images that are easily placed onto blog posts (in WordPress I just use the “add an image” button at Upload/Insert).

For 25 years I have been developing picture fonts (many of you have purchased one or more of the monthly promotions over in the next column that I use to fund this blog) and have built up thousands of images over the years. Some are abstract decorations, some are food oriented, many are people doing activities…and more. As I have perfected some of these and converted them to small JPEGs, I have been finding all kinds of ways to use them (such as I am doing on this post.)

Next week I will be releasing a CD with 300 of the best of these images, the ones I use the most, which I will be selling for $39.95, which includes shipping and sales tax. There are no limitations on how you may use them… I would hope, however, that you don’t sell them to someone else, but send them your friends to me. The funds I receive from this offer will help keep Under The LobsterScope going into the future.

Look for the release ad next week.

– Bill

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March 26, 2011: Rally for the Right to Know!

I’m passing this on to you all out there because it is so important. I’ve written about chemical poisoning in our gardens and on our food for a couple of years now…and Elly and I discover as we go on and on that it is getting harder to be sure organic produce is actually organic. This thanks to Monsanto and the seeds that they distribute.

Anyway, if you can get to D.C. for this one, please do:

The national Millions Against Monsanto campaign staff is gearing up for a nationwide day of action on World Food Day, October 16, 2011, pledging to make it the biggest action on genetic engineering in US history.

In the meantime, to help raise awareness for the campaign, Millions Against Monsanto activist Trish Wright has sent out a call for a demonstration at the White House on March 26, 2011, and has urged other activists around the country to “Rally for the Right to Know” locally.

Learn More and Join in!

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When was the last time you had an $85.00 Dinner? – Bill’s Restaurant Review of Potowmack Farm.

Elly and I, you must know, are not rich folks. Oh, we do all right, but I’m a retired graphic designer/web designer and she is one of the New Criminal Class – she’s a teacher. So when Elly pulled out the coupon she had planned to give me for Chanukah, but put it away and forgot about it, which was good for $25.00 off if we ordered two dinners at a restaurant in Northern Virginia called The Restaurant at Potowmack Farm, we decided to have a nice Friday Evening out. It’s about a 45 minute drive from our home in Shepherdstown.

We didn’t bother checking the menu on their web site, but only checked on the driving directions…it’s back country and up in the Catoctin Mountains, and, of course, we should have. The reviews of this place were excellent, and whenever reviews focus on the Chef (Christopher Edwards), we get curious. We’re hooked viewers of television shows like Top Chef and Chopped and all the restaurant makeover shows. We rarely get to eat at places with acclaimed chefs (there are very few, none actually, in our local area), and this seemed like an opportunity we couldn’t resist.

This is a lovely restaurant, located way up near the top of a mountain with a grand view of the Potomac Valley and the countryside below. We got there just before sundown and had a chance to see the spectacular view… if you go there, the view alone is worth attending a daytime brunch. The main dining room looks like a greenhouse, however this is a matter of design, it was obviously built directly for this use and has never been used as a place to grow vegetables. I should add, however, that Potowmack Farm is an organic food grower, maintains a commercial bakery and focuses on regularly changing local foods (they also buy a lot of their non-grown-there foods at Common Market in Frederick, where Elly and I love to shop for organics.)

The place is the cleanest restaurant I have ever been in…this would never be one of Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares. The staff is courteous… sometimes to an extreme… and provides exceptional service. Our waitress was Rachel, and she explained the menu as she poured water. The menus, by the way, are single sheet pieces, well laid out and typeset with our name at the top (actually, it said “Menu for the Smith Party” on top… Elly had reserved in her maiden- and professional name, Ellen Smith.)

One side had an ala carte list, the other had the Prix Fixe description. Rachel recommended, since we were new at the restaurant, that we try the Prix Fixe, as it had samples of everything they do.

And then we looked at its price: $85.00 per (an additional $55.00 for wine with courses… it;s a good thing we are not drinkers.) This was going to be an expensive night, even with the coupon, whose $25.00 would be eaten up in the tip!)

So we had a starter, an appetizer, another appetizer, a main course, a dessert series, and coffee. And, I have to admit, the things we were served had the beauty that you see on shows like Top Chef – everything was artfully laid out on fine, white plates…oversized compared to the food and acting like a frame… and sided with sterling silverware.

Now for the down side (it’s not that bad, so don’t look for something outrageous). Portions are extremely small. We expected small, based on our television experience and having eaten at very good chef-oriented restaurants like Volt in Frederick, but  this was really teeny.  Given all the courses, we didn’t expect to be hungry when we left. We were.

The other problem we had was the amount of salt used in some of the items… oddly enough in the sauce under a dish of raw vegetables which, I guess, was a salad (it was lovely to look at), and on the extremely tiny piece of smoked beef in the grand entree. The beef we also found somewhat tough and chewy (although the rare center was quite tender and not salty… I wish there had been more of that.)

The desserts were wonderful, though also small. My favorite was a dessert souffle that was larger than most of the items served.

I think Chef Christopher is an excellent visual chef and I wish he had a greater sensitivity to salt content on some things. Their bakery puts out lovely small cakes and muffins and grand breads. And just knowing that everything is organic and local is very satisfying. We are certainly interested in going again, most likely for a Sunday Brunch where we think we can enjoy Potowmack Farm for about half the cost of the Prix Fixe. We give it our Thumbs Up.

Potowmack Farm is in Lovettsville, Virginia. For current menus, reservation info and and driving directions, go to http://www.patowmackfarm.com.

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Speak out on Monsanto… Tell the President…

Monsanto's Poison

Dear Friend,

Over the past 12 days, the Obama administration has recklessly and unnecessarily chosen to approve two biotech crops, Roundup Ready genetically modified (GMO) alfalfa and Roundup Ready genetically modified (GMO) sugar beets. While the planting of both these crops had been temporarily halted due to court decisions, Obama’s recent approval of them will allow them to be planted as early as this spring, despite widespread acknowledgment that these crops are certain to contaminate both conventional and organic farmers‘ non-GMO crops. Their approval only benefits one company — Monsanto.

These decisions are a devastating blow to our democracy and the basic rights of farmers to choose how they want to grow food on their land and the rights of consumers who increasingly choose organic and sustainably grown food for its positive health and environmental impacts.

Let them know that you care about organic integrity by following this link from Food Democracy Now!, then please pass this on. Please join me in telling President Obama that it’s time to stand up to Monsanto and reject these GMO crops today!

http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/sign/obama_goes_rogue_on_gmos/?referring_akid=.271844.qz2xd8&source=taf

Every voice counts!

Thank you!

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Chinese President Hu Jintao in China’s first state visit since 1997.

Obama kicked it off with a State Dinner at the White House kast night. All the important people were there…except of course for John Boehner. Mr. Speaker declined his invitation.

Here’s the guest list for the White House State Dinner:

THE PRESIDENT and MRS. OBAMA

HIS EXCELLENCY HU JINTAO

The Honorable Madeleine Albright, Washington, D.C.
Ms. Alice Albright

Ms. Christiane Amanpour, ABC News, New York, NY
Mr. James Rubin

The Honorable David Axelrod, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor
Mrs. Susan Axelrod

Mr. Jeffrey Bader, National Security Council
Ms. Rohini Talalla

The Honorable Elizabeth Bagley, Washington, D.C.
Mr. Kevin Frawley

Mr. Steven Ballmer, Microsoft, Redmond, WA
Mrs. Connie Ballmer

Ms. Bette Bao Lord, New York, NY
The Honorable Winston Lord

Mrs. Denise Bauer, Belvedere Tiburon, CA

The Honorable Howard Berman, Representative from California
Mrs. Janis Berman

Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Dr. Jill Biden

The Honorable Joseph Beau Biden, III, Attorney General of Delaware, Wilmington, DE
Mrs. Hallie Biden

His Excellency Zheng Bijian, Chairman, CIIDS

His Excellency Dai Bingguo, State Councilor

Mr. Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs, New York, NY
Mrs. Laura Blankfein

The Honorable Antony Blinken, Deputy Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor, Office of the Vice President

The Honorable Stephen Breyer, United States Supreme Court
Dr. Johanna Breyer

Mr. Greg Brown, Motorola, Schaumburg, IL
Mrs. Anna-Louise Brown

The Honorable Dr. Zbigniew Brezezinski, McLean, VA
Mrs. Emilie A. Brzezinski

The Honorable Kurt M. Campbell, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
The Honorable Lael Brainard, Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs

The Honorable James E. Carter, former President of the United States
Mrs. Rosalynn Carter

Mr. Jackie Chan, Beverly Hills, CA
Mr. Phillip Button

The Honorable Elaine Chao, Washington, D.C.
Dr. James Chao

His Excellency Wang Chao, Vice Minister for Commerce

His Excellency Tung Chee Hwa, Vice Chairman, CPPCC, former Hong Kong Chief Executive

Mr. John A. Chen, Chairman, Committee of 100, New York, NY
Mrs. Sherrie Chen

The Honorable Chris Christie, Governor of New Jersey, Trenton, NJ
Mrs. Mary Pat Christie

The Honorable Judy Chu, Representative from California
Ms. Chiling Tong

The Honorable Steven Chu, Secretary of Energy
Mrs. Jean Chu

The Honorable Hillary R. Clinton, Secretary of State

The Honorable William J. Clinton, former President of the United States

The Honorable James E. Clyburn, Representative from South Carolina
Mr. John Clyburn

The Honorable Richard Daley, Mayor of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Mrs. Maggie Daley

The Honorable William Daley, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff
Ms. Bernadette Keller

His Excellency Chen Deming, Minister of Commerce

Mr. Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan Chase & Co., New York, NY
Mrs. Judith Dimon

The Honorable Thomas Donilon, Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor
Ms. Cathy Russell, Chief of Staff to Dr. Jill Biden

The Honorable Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education
Mrs. Karen Duncan

Mr. James Fallows, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.
Mrs. Deborah Fallows

Mr. Xie Feng, Director General, MFA

Mr. Thomas Friedman, The New York Times, Washington, D.C.
Mrs. Ann Friedman

The Honorable Michael B. Froman, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economic Affairs
Ms. Nancy Goodman

His Excellency Wan Gang, Minister of Science and Technology

The Honorable Robert M. Gates, Secretary of Defense
Mrs. Becky Gates

The Honorable Timothy F. Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury
Mrs. Carole Geithner

Mr. Mark Gilbert, Boca Raton, FL
Mrs. Nancy Gilbert

The Honorable Chris Gregoire, Governor of Washington, Olympia, WA
Ms. Courtney Gregoire

His Excellency Zhu Guangyao, Vice Minister for Finance

His Excellency Zhang Guobao, Vice Minister for NDRC

Mr. Herbie Hancock, Los Angeles, CA
Mrs. GiGi Hancock

The Honorable Dr. John P. Holdren, Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Science and Technology

The Honorable Robert Hormats, Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business, and Agricultural Affairs

The Honorable Steny Hoyer, Representative from Maryland, Democratic WHIP

His Excellency Wang Huning, Director of the Policy Research Office of CCCPC

The Honorable Jon Huntsman, U.S. Ambassador to China
Mrs. Mary Kaye Huntsman

Mr. Robert Iger, The Walt Disney Company, Burbank, CA
Ms. Willow Bay

Mr. David Ignatius, The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.
Dr. Eve Ignatius

Mr. Jeff Immelt, General Electric, Fairfield, CT
Mrs. Andrea Immelt

The Honorable Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement

His Excellency Li Jiaxiang, Vice Minister for Transportation

His Excellency Yang Jiechi, Minister of Foreign Affairs

His Excellency Ling Jihua, Director of the General Office of CCCPC

Mr. Robert Kagan, McLean, VA
Ms. Victoria Nuland

Mr. Michael Kempner, East Rutherford, NJ
Mrs. Jacqueline Kempner

Mr. Muhtar Kent, Coca-Cola, Atlanta, GA

The Honorable John F. Kerry, Senator from Massachusetts
Mrs. Teresa Heinz Kerry

Mr. Robert King, UAW, Detroit, MI
Ms. Julie Kushner

The Honorable Ron Kirk, United States Trade Representative
Mrs. Matrice Ellis-Kirk

The Honorable Henry Kissinger, New York, NY
Mrs. Nancy Kissinger

Mr. Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times, Scarsdale, NY
Ms. Sheryl WuDunn

Ms. Ellen Kullman, DuPont, Wilmington, DE
Mr. Michael Kullman

Dr. Zhang Kunsheng, Director-General, Protocol Department

Ms. Michelle Kwan, Torrance, CA

Mr. Lang Lang, New York, NY
Mrs. Zhou Xiulan

The Honorable Jacob Lew, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources

Ms. Maya Lin, New York, NY
Mr. Daniel Wolf

Ms. Limin Liu, Reno, NV
Dr. Hugh Shapiro

Mr. Andrew N. Liveris, The Dow Chemical Company, Midland, MI
Mrs. Paula Liveris

The Honorable Gary Locke, Secretary of Commerce
Mrs. Mona Locke

The Honorable Christopher Lu, Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary
Ms. Kathryn Thomson

The Honorable Richard Lugar, Senator from Indiana
Mrs. Charlene Lugar

Mr. Yo Yo Ma, Burbank, CA
Ms. Jill Hornor

The Honorable Capricia Marshall, Chief of Protocol, Department of State

Mr. W. James McNerney, The Boeing Company, Chicago, IL
Mrs. Haity McNerney

Mr. Evan Medeiros, Director for Asian Affairs, NSS

His Excellency Jiang Mianheng, Vice Chairman, CAS

Mr. Mel Monzack, Wilmington, DE
Mrs. Ann Monzack

Admiral Michael G. Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Mrs. Wendi Deng Murdoch, New York, NY

Mr. James Murren, Las Vegas, NV
Mrs. Heather Murren

The Honorable Thomas Nides, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources
Ms. Virginia Moseley

Mr. Paul Otellini, Intel, Santa Clara, CA
Mrs. Sandy Otellini

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Representative from California, Democratic Leader
Mr. Paul Pelosi

His Excellency Zhang Ping, Minister of NDRC

The Honorable David Plouffe, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor
Ms. Olivia Morgan

Mr. Tom Pritzker, Pritzker Organization, Chicago, IL
Mrs. Margot Pritzker

His Excellency Wang Qishan, Vice Premier of the State Council

Ms. Jean Quan, Mayor of Oakland, CA
The Honorable Edwin M. Lee, Mayor of San Francisco, CA

Ms. Azita Raji, JP Morgan Securities, Inc., Belvedere, CA
Mr. Gary Syman

The Honorable Ben Rhodes, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting
Ms. Ann Norris

The Honorable Susan Rice, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, New York, NY
Mr. Ian Cameron

Mr. Robert Roche, Shanghai, CN

Mr. Kenneth Roth, The Human Rights Watch, Washington, D.C.
Ms. Annie Sparrow

The Honorable Pete Rouse, Counselor to the President
Ms. Courtney Chapin

Mr. David M. Rubenstein, The Carlyle Group, Washington, D.C.
Mrs. Alice Rubenstein

Mr. Kirk Rudy, Austin, TX
Mrs. Amy Rudy

The Honorable Brent Scowcroft, The Forum for International Policy, Washington, D.C.

The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services
The Honorable Gary Sebelius

The Honorable Susan Sher, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to the First Lady
The Honorable Neil Cohen

Mr. Robert Sherman, Boston, MA
Ms. Kim S. Sawyer

His Excellency Chen Shiju, Chief of the President’s Office

The Honorable George Shultz, Stanford, CA
Mrs. Charlotte Shultz

Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, Culver City, CA
The Honorable Phil Gordon, Mayor of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ

The Honorable Gene Sperling, Assistant to the President for Economic Policy & Director of the National Economic Council
Ms. Allison Abner

The Honorable Jim Steinberg, Deputy Secretary of State
Ms. Sherburne B. Abbott

Ms. Barbra Streisand, Malibu, CA
Mr. James Brolin

The Honorable Tina Tchen, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Public Engagement

Mr. John Thornton, The Brookings Institution, HSBC North America, Palm Beach, FL
Mrs. Margaret Thornton

His Excellency Cui Tiankai, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs

Dr. Stanley Toy, Jr., Pasadena, CA
Ms. Lana Toy

Mr. Luis Ubinas, The Ford Foundation, New York, NY
Dr. Deborah Tolman

Mr. Jose Villarreal, Commissioner General, Shanghai Expo, San Antonio, TX
Ms. Sara Villarreal

Ms. Vera Wang, New York, NY
Mr. Arthur Becker

Mr. Steve Westly, Menlo Park, CA
Ms. Anita Yu

Ms. Anna Wintour, Vogue Magazine, New York, NY
Mr. Shelby Bryan

Ms. Patricia A. Woertz, Archer Daniels Midland, Decatur, IL
Mr. Kelvin R. Westbrook

Mr. B.D. Wong, New York, NY
Mrs. Roberta Wong

Mr. Charles Woo, Mega Toys, Los Angeles, CA
Mrs. Ying Woo

The Honorable David Wu, Representative from Oregon
Ms. Anna Kopperud

His Excellency Xie Xuren, Minister of Finance

His Excellency Zhang Yesui, Chinese Ambassador to the United States
Madam Chen Naiqing

His Excellency Sun Yibiao, Vice Minister for Customs

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Christmas Eve and we are anticipating snow this weekend.

Elly and I will be going over to my daughter’s house this evening to have dinner with her and the boys (and drop of Xmas presents)… then will come home and wait for Santa to fill stockings.

I’m starting to get worried about the weather report (which I pulled down from the weather bureau this morning while broadcasting “Winners and Losers” on WSHC). It seems that snow will start tomorrow in the late afternoon and then it will continue snowing on Sunday and Monday. I have to head for Virginia Monday morning to pick up my Mother and bring her to a family get together at Penny’s house that evening and I worry that the driving will be horrible (although my new old car is an “All Wheel Drive” vehicle which should cope with whatever I encounter.)

My other daughter, Cassandra, and her family are supposed to be coming down from Connecticut, as is Buddy and his intended, Rachel, who are spending Xmas with Cassandra, Matthew and Milo this year… but bad weather could keep Cassandra from traveling (Buddy has no choice as he has to get back to work and school in DC and Rachel has to catch a plane for Wisconsin.)

I hope everyone out there has a nice holiday. I’ll be online from time to time and will check in, but the blog will probably be operating at a minimal effort. Next week we’ll be operating in full regalia!

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At the Food CoOp…

I’m down in Frederick, MD, at the Common Market Food CoOp (where seniors get a 5% discount on Wednesdays), having lunch before I shop the grocery list Elly and I put together this morning. Traffic coming in was extremely heavy as soon as I got off the highway, so I guess I’m in the Christmas shopping rush… although Common Market is not as busy as the roads. I may do a little more stocking stuffer shopping while I’m down here, but this kind of crowd situation is something I usually avoid.

There are things here I just can’t get in Shepherdstown… like the locally grown beets that I really like, and a wide range of organic bulk foods, flours and nuts. The prices are usually pretty good, too, given the fact that organic foods at our supermarket level at home are always priced higher than the chemically contaminated stuff. This and the 5% discount makes it worthwhile to come down here on a Wednesday… usually something I do once a month on Social Security payout day (like today).

This is a very relaxed shopping environment, which makes it all the more enjoyable. It allows me time to look around and think about trying new things. This is where we first discovered the flavored stevia drops which, with straight seltzer, has replaced sugar/flavored sodas in our diet (also great for adding extra flavor to coffee or tea.)

While I was driving down I played a few Bob & Ray tapes that I haven’t listened to in a long time.  Here we had two extremely funny guys who never had to use bad language or violent subject matter, but created amazing humor from ordinary situations. Al Franken has noted many times how Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding influenced his comedy writing and performing back in his SNL days… and I know they influenced a lot of other major performers (including their own decendants) as well.

One of the things it made me think of was looking into the possibility of buying rights to do a community theatre presentation of Bob & Ray skits… and do it like a radio show with a sound effects guy and microphones. I’d have to find two really talented guys who could do the kind of low-key stuff that B&R did.

OK, Lunch is over… time to go shopping and get back home.

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We’re having folks over for Chanukah this evening…

… and we’ve been cleaning and cooking for two days now. Penny and the Boys and some friends are coming over and Elly has made Ruggalah and a few other goodies and I made two pies. People will be here in about 5 hours and we’re still cleaning and cooking.

I don’t think we’ve invited people over here who were not just family since we moved in 2+ years ago. This is a test, I guess, of our hosting capabilities. I’m not sure how much to hope for… this has not been one of our specialties since we lived on Cape Cod over 30 years ago and had Fine Arts Work Center artists over for parties.

Before I get too depressed over all of this I have to put the trash we’re creating out. More later.

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The Holiday Is Here…

In 1860, American artist and illustrator Winslow Homer did a cover for Harpers Weekly depicting “The Two Great Classes” at Thanksgiving, the Rich and the Poor. This was made when the country was getting over the Depression of 1857 and rolling inevitably toward what would become the Civil War. I’m not sure Homer was very impressed with Thanksgiving where some had “more Dinners than Appetite” and some had “more Appetite than Dinners.” In a way, we are there again.

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This cartoon picked up at All Hat, No Cattle:

Saturday Nite…

Elly is at a movie with her friend Joan and I’m home with the dogs baking a recipe I found on line: Death By Apple Pie. It doesn’t look like an ordinary apple pie (it has a non-rolled out crust that doesn’t meet at the edges and a lot of apple shows through the holes.

Pretty soon (about 15 minutes) it will be done and I’ve just finished cleaning up all the dishes from the last couple of days. I’m hoping to get everything straightened out before 2 episodes of Doc Martin are on Public Television and I can sit back and watch.

My dogs are lying around sleeping now…but they’ll want their “evening shorty,” which is their nighttime walk, when my wife gets home. Right now they don’t want to be bothered with toys or anything else (although Nestle will jump up when I take the pie out of the oven… just the presence of food triggers his 11-year-old snoot into thinking he’s about to get more to eat.

I’ve avoided the political blogs all day (although I did post my Cartoon(s) of the Week which I had been building up since last Sunday.) Perhaps I’ll get back to politics tomorrow, but it was nice taking a break today.

OK…just took Death By Apple Pie out of the oven and it has to sit and cool off… it looks a lot like the picture that was on the recipe (except that I used whole wheat flour on the crust because it’s what I had in the house…we use very little white, all-purpose flour) and it smells great.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a nice evening. I know I will.

I’m having a cup of coffee at Mellow Moods post radio show…

John and I had Karen Valentine and Laurel Parker from Source, the new inter-cooperative business on Princess Street in Shepherdstown. A little political and VERRRY local (pushing hard at “buy local” for as many things as you can), they have established themselves as a recycling source (where else can you bring your dead batteries and old panty-hose around here) and a sales area for local crafters, farmers, soapmakers and others.

They are having an opening blast on Sunday at 3:00 and I expect that Elly and I will get there for it. Hope you can, too.

John couldn’t make it to the Mood today, but I needed to say hi to Phil and friends and have a cup of coffee with everyone. Then I’ll get home and work on cleaning the junk out of the cellar.

The future starts today, more or less…

Today I am cooking hors d’oeuvres for the Green Room at the ACFF tonite…vegan dumplings and falafel balls that I’ll deep fry and put in a Sterno tray. I have to bring them over to the Men’s Club by 3:00 PM, so I’ll start cooking at 11:30. It is raining outside (the dogs and I got soaked on their walk) and I’m not sure how the rain will effect ACFF attendance. We’ll have to see.

It’s nice to have the ACFF this weekend… it will help take my mind off the Tea Party Travesty which will put our government into a non-working freeze… or, perhaps, a couple of years of Presidential prosecution as the subpoena-powered Republicans go after Obama and his Administration on any grounds they can. Not since the rise of Newt Gingrich will we see two more hideous years of political destruction.

It does give me an impetus to start working, soon, on the 2012 campaigns… although West Virginia is probably the worst place to begin. As Democratic venues go, the Eastern Panhandle is not like the rest of the State, where existing Democrats are as conservative as New England Republicans… and Republicans are so far to the Right that they are about to fall off their flat Earth.

The blogosphere will be the initial battleground for 2012… it doesn’t cost much to play and there is really no other place to make National connections in such an easy way. I guess I’m warning you folks who don’t want to get politically involved so soon to ignore the posts… but don’t stay away. I’ll keep up the arts and local news coverage and report my feelings and thoughts as well. As well as I can do it, there will still be something for everyone.

Onward and upward.

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Bill 1 – Groundhog 0

OK… today I scored in the Groundhog Trapping game. Before I get all caught up with myself I have to admit that the creature was very, very small. I can’t believe that this is the beast who tunneled down next to our back foundation… nor did it seem big enough to have eaten all that cantaloupe that was outside the trap yesterday.

That must mean that this critter is a child and still has parents down in the hole. Elly recalls that when our tenant over in Hagerstown had a groundhog problem last year, he ended up trapping three of them (not, of course, at the same time.) So I’ve rebaited the trap and set it again and I’ll see if there’s a new animal caught tomorrow.

Before I did that, however, I had to deal with the little fella I caught. Putting the trap in the back of my new old Subaru, I drove about 5 miles from my house to the Opequon Creek Fishing and Wildlife Area, Federal land where wild beasts are welcome, and turned the groundhog loose. It ran off so fast that in a split second it had vanished. I hope it is happy there…I didn’t want to kill it and I didn’t want it to get near any other houses. When I catch the rest of his family they will go there, too.

So now the trap has fresh (albeit rotten) cantaloupe in it and the spring trigger is set. Now if I can just keep our smaller dog, Byron, away from the trap and the groundhog hole, I’ll feel much better.

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• Interesting Groundhog Facts (brighthub.com)

Outwitted by a Groundhog…

I don’t know if I mentioned it before, but we have  a groundhog (at least one) living in our back garden with a hole right at the foundation of the house. Bummer. This isn’t good for the garden, of course, so we ordered a Havahart trap which I put out yesterday. The plan is to catch the groundhog, then put the trap in the back of my old new Subaru and drive it out into the woods (far enough away so it won’t find its way back), then release it in the woods. I don’t have to kill it, which satisfies my particular feelings, and it can have a lovely new life in nature.

However… the groundhog made me look stupid when I checked the trap this morning. It had eaten the bait trail right up to the trap’s open door, but did not enter the trap to get to the bait inside… just past the trigger mechanism. Double Bummer.

OK, I rebaited this morning, putting only a few pieces of delicious rotting melon (a favorite of groundhogs) outside the trap door, and put more pieces inside the trap leading up to the trigger mechanism with the bug feast on the far side. If this doesn’t work, I’ll have to change strategies.

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• Interesting Groundhog Facts (brighthub.com)

Waiting for the refrigerator man… Fighting Fruit Flies.

The repair guy from GE is coming this morning some time (they said between 8 and Noon and we’re well into that now) to look at our noisy freezer that’s dripping water into the refrigerator section below. I tried defrosting (which on a frost free machine is hard to do) and that didn’t solve the problem. I have a feeling that there is a fan part that needs to be replaced. We’ll see.

Meanwhile, it is raining out, so I’ll have to get wet walking the dogs. They don’t mind, of course, but I do. It’s cold as well (my back deck thermometer hasn’t hit 60° yet), so this is going to be an uncomfortable walk. Still, of course, without a car until tomorrow when we go down to Linda’s to pick it up. So I’m trapped in the house again today.

I have been battling with fruit flies for the last week or so… they pop up everywhere… drains, fruitbowl, cutting board area… and, since we don’t use any poison sprays, getting rid of them was a real problem. Until I did my research, of course, and discovered how to make “fruit fly traps” which have worked so well that you hardly see any of the little bastards around.

How does one make a fruit fly trap? Simple. Start with a good, widemouthed jar (we always have plenty of old Ball jars around which we use for canning) and put in about an inch or two of warm water with a squirt of dishwashing soap. Then add a shot of apple cider and a shot of red wine. Cover the top of the jar with a piece of Saran Wrap and use a rubber band to keep it tightly sealed at the neck of the jar. Now comes the tricky part… you have to punch a few very small holes through the plastic wrap… small enough for the fruit flies to get in but not so large that they can go right out again. I use a nut pick to punch the holes, but a fork could do it, too.

Then all you have to do is put the jar wherever the greatest number of the pests have been spotted. I made four jars and put them in various places in my kitchen. Now all you do is wait. In about an hour or so you will notice a distinct reduction in the bugs. The next day when you check the jars you will find they are full of little drowned fruit flies. Amazing!

I change the liquid and reseal the jars every few days and my fruit-flies are now nowhere to be found (on the first refill day there were much fewer of them caught in the traps, so we are succeeding quite well.)

I think I’ll post this bit about my fruit fly traps over at Panhandle Vegan… I know my friends over there could probably benefit from the strategy.

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Looks like I’ll have my new car on Friday…

Elly and I will be driving down to Silver Spring to get it right after the radio show with John Case is over at 9:00 AM. Interestingly enough, Friday is also our Anniversary (32nd) and we will be stopping off around Gaithersburg for a great Vegan restaurant we found last year. Anyway, we’ll be back Friday night when, I believe, the Sustainable Shepherdstown movie is End Of Suburbia.

Having been car-strapped for three weeks, I am really looking forward to getting the Subaru…I know my wife is getting tired of me borrowing her car for Doctors’ appointments and shopping needs. I’ll just be glad not to be stuck in the house for the better part of each day.

Noodle Research… the new project.

My wife has been involved in Sustainable Shepherdstown, our local “what the town needs to do to survive if it becomes impossible to go anywhere else” organization. One of the ideas she has had for a business to set up that we can do locally, fulfill our Vegan eating requirements and be remotely interesting to do is a Pasta Making Company. So I’ve been researching all kinds of pasta shapes and noodle making machines and recipes.

So far I’ve found over 100 pasta and noodle shapes and product made from every kind of grain and non-grain that you can think of. Of course, a good many of the recipes use eggs, which are a Vegan no-no, or dairy products (which all can be replaced by soy or nut-milk products)… so before I can experiment with some of these, I’ll have to know what’s available locally or near-locally.

Then there are the machines, both electric and hand-cranked, which would be important for mass production. They run from the really inexpensive to the very expensive manufacturing giants. Setting up an original budget list for this project is going to require an armful of business costs, so all of them have to be considered and compared with potential earnings to see if this is really a profitable proposal.

In reality, this is just the first of many project ideas I can see Sustainable Shepherdstown instigating. But for a retired guy, it’s something to do.

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OK…”Thurber Carnival” is over and the stage has been cleared off.

And we’re all putting things away or getting them stacked in places to be carried home by the various owners who donated props and furniture. Shutting down the light booth was about the easiest part of the gig. Those that eat pizza (the non-vegans) are eating the delivery from Dominoes and things are winding down all over.

I don’t think I’ll be working another show until February… I’m not going to work on “Christmas Carol” in November as I have some conflicts (it opens the day after Thanksgiving which is also the day after my Wife’s birthday and we will probably be making plans since she has a couple of days off from teaching at that time. Anyway, I’ve informed the powers that be that I won’t be doing lights in November.

Now I’m just waiting for John Case to give me a ride home… I know my dogs are waiting to be walked as Elly is out at a meeting and won’t be back for a couple of more hours. I’m sure they’ll be jumping all over the place when I get back.

Something new you didn’t know you needed…

A Star Trek Pizza Cutter:

Why it’s important that we get behind Senator Byron Dorgan…

Dorgan (D – North Dakota) is the Senator who introduced legislation, S. 260, to shut down a tax loophole that rewards U.S. companies that move U.S. manufacturing jobs overseas. The legislation would close the loophole that allows U.S. multinational companies to defer paying income taxes on profits they make from the U.S. sale of the products manufactured in foreign factories, until those profits are returned to the United States, if ever.  Manufacturers who remain in the United States receive no similar subsidy.

While passage of this law has obvious benefits for the U.S., it has been something Dorgan has been trying to get through for ten years.

You may not believe it, but when a U.S. company closes down a U.S. manufacturing plant fires its American workers and moves those good-paying jobs to China or other locations abroad, U.S. tax law actually rewards those companies with a large tax break called deferral. The tax code allows these firms to defer paying any U.S. income taxes on the earnings from those new foreign-manufactured products until those profits are returned, if ever, to this country. If a company making the same product decides to stay in this country, it is required to pay immediate U.S. taxes on the profits it earns here.

– Senator Byron Dorgan

Examples of products that used to be manufactured in America but now are being made in China or Mexico or other countries? How

No longer Made In America

about Nabisco Fig Newtons, which are now made by 50¢ per hour workers in Mexico. Or Huffy Bicycles, formerly made in Ohio, now made in China by 33¢ per hour workers. Or Etch-a-Sketch. Or La-Z-Boy furniture. Or Fruit of the Loom underwear. The list goes on and on.

And we support the outsourcing of products in two ways. When we go to Wal-Mart or K-Mart (companies that demand our products at the lowest prices) and purchase them we give tacit support to the throwing away of American jobs. But that isn’t the only way we support major corporations who screw Americans out of their jobs…we give them tax breaks for doing it! These are called “Deferrals” and they are totally legal.

We have lost so many jobs, especially in the 8 Bush years when close to 750,000 jobs a month disappeared as work making everything

Made In Mexico

from solar panels to Radio Flyer Wagons went to China, Mexico, and other countries where child labor at 50¢ per hour for 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, can create products for minimum corporate expense. It will be extremely difficult to bring jobs back, but without changing the law so that tax breaks go to those who remain in America to carry out manufacturing and not to those who rob us of jobs and send the production overseas.

The Senate is debating the issue today. Needless to say, no Republicans are stepping up to the plate yet and Republican leader McConnell (R-Kentucky) has stated that no problem exists. The President signed legislation today to make $50 Billion Dollars available to banks for loans to small businesses. Hopefully, this will create employment and perhaps see new products manufactured in our country.

One could hope.

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Cartoon(s) of the Week – Perhaps Reality Will Set In…

Rex Babin in the Sacramento Bee:

Perhaps the Teabaggers are suffering from shortness of view…

– and –

Chan Lowe in the South Florida Sentinel (reprinted from 2009):

Perhaps McCain can tell…

– and –

Matt Davies in The (Westchester NY) Journal News:

Perhaps the Congress will get back to this after the election…

– and –

Joel Pett in the Lexington Herald-Leader:

Perhaps real Americans are uneducated and closed minded…

In case you missed Stephen Colbert testifying yesterday…

…here he is before the House Immigration and Agriculture Subcommittee:

So now there is a debate as to whether this was effective or merely entertaining. It sure got a lot of people looking at the migrant fieldworker situation.
________
UPDATE:

Watching CNN this morning, the opinion of the newsman was that this was a bad move by Zoe Lofgren, the subcommittee chair who invited Colbert to appear.

And, of course, Fox News has weighed in with this statement:

His “testimony’ was an embarrassment to himself, his country, the Congress and the entire issue of immigration reform. It amounted to nothing more than a bad comedic monologue.

My opinion, of course, is that Colbert was right on and Congress was a little more interesting to watch yesterday… and the point was made.

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Not everyone is happy that Stephen Colbert is testifying before the House Judiciary Committee…

I’m over doing “Winners and Losers” with John Case right now (WSHC 89.7 FM). I can’t wait to get home to check this out on C-Span (this from RollCall):

clipped from www.rollcall.com Comedian Stephen Colbert is sure to draw plenty of media attention Friday morning when he testifies before a House Judiciary subcommittee about immigrant farm workers. But at least one Democrat on the committee is not happy about the prospect of treating the Comedy Central host as a policy expert. “I don’t think he should be here. It commercializes the committee,” Rep. Steve Cohen (Tenn.) said. Colbert plans to testify about his role in a United Farm Workers campaign called “Take Our Jobs,” an effort that invites U.S. citizens and legal residents to replace undocumented immigrant field laborers. The goal of the campaign is to build momentum for passing legislation that would give undocumented farm workers the right to earn legal status by continuing to work in agriculture. The comedian spent a day in August working on a New York farm to highlight how demanding the work is; he will feature the experience on his show, “The Colbert Report,” on Thursday night.

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