Tonality

Today I took the Tonedeaf test.

Jake Mandell, the developer of the test, is a musician and medical-school graduate. He's the developer of several tests, including the one I took today. According to the Website:

While working at the music and neuroimaging lab at Beth Israel/Harvard Medical School in Boston, I developed a quick online way to screen for the tonedeafness. It actually turned out to be a pretty good test to check for overall pitch perception ability. The test is purposefully made very hard, so excellent musicians rarely score above 80% correct. Give it a try!

The test was very simple. There were 36 sets of musical phrases. For each set you had to decide if the phrases were the same or different. Some of the sets were played by single instruments and some had a more orchestral feel. Each set began immediately upon the completion of the last, so you really had to pay close attention.. At one point during the test my phone rang. As much as I tried to ignore it, I couldn't, so I'm pretty sure I got all of those phrases incorrect.

My score wasn't even close to that of an excellent musician! However, I did score above the "Possible pitch perception or memory deficit" category.

Hooray!

There's going to be a wedding in our family next year!

Son Brian and girlfriend (now fiancee--I love that word) Nicole are engaged!

He called on Sunday to tell us the news. Since they live out of town, it will be a couple of weeks before we can see them. I can't wait.

A Brownie By Any Other Name...

I needed to bring some treats to work this week, but didn't want to put a whole lot of effort into it. The only quick and easy thing in the pantry was a box of brownie mix.

I LOVE brownies. They're easy to make, but not the easiest thing to serve. If I cut them at home, I have to deal with a mess. My brownie-cutting skills aren't very good; they always stick to the knife and I end up with crumbly pieces instead of nice squares. I also have the problem of finding a container that's big enough to hold them. If I take the uncut pan of brownies with me, I need to remember to bring a knife--one extra thing to carry with me on a busy morning.

Today I took the easy way out and I made cookies from brownie mix.

The recipe:
1 box brownie mix
1 egg
3 T water (I substituted coffee for a richer flavor)
1/4 cup oil

Mix all ingredients together, and drop by tablespoon onto a greased pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 5-6 minutes.

Unfortunately, I got an important phone call just as I was putting the pans in the oven, so I didn't watch them as closely as I should. They cooked a bit longer than they should have, and ended up being a bit crunchy, but I sampled one and they still tasted wonderful.

I put the cookies on plates and slid the plates into bags. They'll be easy to take with me on my way out the door.

Sound Off

I think the biggest hot-button topic today is health care reform. Everyone has an opinion about what should happen, and I've seen people get angry when someone doesn't see things their way. Today I tried to express my opinion in a reasonable manner when I sent a message to someone I disagree with.

The recipient was the author of a column that appears in a community newspaper that gets mailed all the houses in our area. Although the newspaper is conservative-leaning, I usually give it a few minutes of my time before I put it in the recycling bin because there are often articles about my city that don't make the main metropolitan paper. Sometimes I read the columns and letters to the editor because I like to examine ideas from different points of view; I try to take away some thought-provoking tidbits.

In the latest edition of the paper, one of the columnists made some points about health care that I completely disagreed with. Usually when that happens, I get annoyed and toss the paper. This time, though, I felt the need to express my views. When I wrote, I gave all the reasons why I disagreed with his assessment, and I tried to make my points in a reasonable manner. It doesn't help to bash the author!

I felt better after I hit the 'send' button. I have no expectation that my short message will cause the author to change his thinking, but hopefully he'll read my opinions with an open mind.

The Preschool Fitness Plan

I couldn't make it to the gym today, but I managed to get in a good exercise session while at work:

• I got my aerobic workout by dancing the "Hokey Pokey" and doing the motions to "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes"...twice. When I was outside later in the day, I corralled several students from the far corners of the playground and brought them back to the main area. I also played catch with someone who wasn't a very good thrower and spent a lot of time running after balls.
  

• I strengthened my core muscles by physically removing a recalcitrant child from the group and placing her in time out. It was even better than lifting weights, because the child was wiggling in my arms trying to get out, so I really had to work hard!

• My arms got the attention they needed when I pushed several students on swings multiple times during the day.

• Every time I had to get down to preschooler eye level, I made sure I did a squat instead of bending over. My legs are really feeling the exertion!

• I increased my dexterity by quickly weaving my way through a group of children on the floor to reach someone who was about to fall off a tricycle!
  

Put A Shine On It

I got my set of copper bottom cookware for a wedding present oh-so-many years ago, and the bottoms of the pots are now discolored and dull. Today, I experimented with cleaning the copper bottom of a pot to see what would happen.

It was an easy job to do, and required just a few ingredients. I mixed one tablespoon of salt with a cup of white vinegar and stirred it until all the salt was dissolved. Next, I soaked a rag in the solution and placed it on the copper portion of an inverted pan. I let the whole thing set for ten minutes, then checked to see if anything had happened.

Wow! Check out the difference in the picture. The pot on the left has uncleaned copper, and the one on the right is shiny. I've been so used to looking at the dirt and oxidation on the copper bottom that it now looked unnaturally clean. I used a scrubber pad to remove the last of the residue from the copper, then rinsed the pan and dried it. The bottom of the pan gleamed.

The copper is clean now, but I didn't have time to remove the heat discoloration stains above it. I'll be tackling that project, and the rest of the pans, very soon.

The Same But Different

I had a wonderful experience today when I went to a gospel Mass at St. Alphonsus Liguori Rock Church.

The Rock Church is on Grand Blvd., not far from the Fox Theater. The beautiful Gothic-style church was dedicated in 1872. It was nicknamed the "Rock Church" by the construction workers who built the church and the rock wall that surrounds it. The church continues to draw people from the immediate area and all over the city.

Driving north on Grand, we could see the tall church steeple a couple of blocks before we saw the building. We found the parking lot and were directed to a space, then we followed the stream of people entering the building.

The Gothic-style church is beautiful. Stained glass windows line the sides of the building. The ceiling was painted a wonderful sky-blue color. There was a awesome high altar, but a simpler African-decorated one has been placed in front of it. The baptismal font, which was in an area halfway up the main aisle, had the same African motifs on it.

Before Mass started people were milling around talking to each other. Since we didn't know anyone, we sat in a pew about a quarter of the way up and spent the time looking around. There was a diverse group of people in the congregation...old, young, black, and white. When the piano in the corner by the choir started playing lightly everyone started taking their place.

The church practices Catholicism in the African American tradition. Although the mass lasted almost 2 hours, it didn't seem near that long. Some differences I noticed between St. Alphonsus and my regular church:

• The choir was outstanding! It certainly added more energy to the Mass. We had a sheet with the words to all the songs, but most of them were very simple and easy to learn. Often a soloist would sing a phrase which was repeated by the entire group.

• If someone was moved something, they'd let out an 'Amen'. Clapping and swaying to the music was common.
  

• Although I saw a few teenage boys in jeans, most people were dressed nicely. Several woman had on dresses and hats.

• The opening procession was like nothing I've ever seen. First in line was a woman carrying a bowl of incense, who swayed to the music as she walked. When she got halfway down the aisle, two sets of young people, dressed in servers robes and carrying candles and a cross, started their trip. Each group waited until the previous group was almost to the front before they began. The presiding priests came last.
  

• There were no missal books in the pews. Instead, during the readings I noticed most people opened the Bible they brought with them and read along.

• When the offertory gifts were brought up to the altar from the back of church there was another wonderful procession. Seven people-two pairs of teenagers, two adults, and an usher-took part. The teens swayed to the music as they walked up; the adults carrying the gifts were more solemn. The usher carried a large woven basket containing the offertory money.

• The Sign of Peace, which takes just a couple of minutes in our church. lasted at least 10 minutes today. Everyone left their pew and mingled through the church hugging and exchanging greetings with other people. Even though they didn't know us, several people came up and gave us a hug.

Even though there were a lot of differences, in the end it was the same; I was at a Mass. I prayed the same prayers and listened to the same readings. When the priest gave the final blessing I realized that I had gotten a lot from this incredible experience.

In A Pickle

At lunch today Tony and I were talking about dill pickles, and how they just naturally go along with certain foods. My mind, in one of its strange segues, jumped from dill pickles to sweet pickles. I'm not a huge fan of the sweet variety, but every once in a while I get a taste for them. As a result of our discussion I wanted some, but there weren't any in the house. Trying to brainstorm the easiest way to take care of my craving, I thought of the watermelon that was sitting on the kitchen counter from today's shopping trip. I could use some of the watermelon rind instead of composting all of it as I usually do. That's how I happened to be in the kitchen this afternoon making watermelon pickles.

I'm sure I have a recipe for watermelon pickles somewhere in my voluminous cookbook collection, but it was quicker to find one on the Internet. I ended up using a recipe for Refrigerator Watermelon Rind Pickles, because it was easily scalable. I'll be the only one eating them, so I didn't need a whole lot.

The recipe was very easy. In addition to the watermelon rind, I used sugar, apple cider vinegar, cloves, and a cinnamon stick. I cut the peel and all the flesh from the rind, cubed it, and added it to the pot with all the other ingredients. After the mixture boiled, I turned down the heat and let it simmer for an hour. Partway through the cooking process I went outside to check the mailbox, and when I came back in there was a wonderful smell emanating from the kitchen!

When the cooking time was up, I poured the pickles and liquid (which had turned syrupy) into a bowl and put it in the refrigerator. The recipe said to allow 12 hours for the flavors to blend, but I tasted one of the warm pieces. It was good now, and I suspect it will be even better later.

Pretty In Pink

It's tomato season! The plants I put in the ground a couple of months ago are starting to bear fruit. This year I planted my old reliables (a Roma, a grape, and a cherry) and a couple of heirloom varieties. I've been picking the smaller fruits for a couple of weeks and keeping an eye on the big tomatoes as they grow.

One heirloom variety that I'm trying this year is Mortgage Lifter, a pink fruited beefsteak tomato. According to the nursery pot label, these tomatoes are large (1-3 pounds) and pinkish-red in color. They're supposed to have very few seeds and a meaty texture. The plant has done well in the humid St. Louis weather, and now several large fruits are hanging on the vine. I've checked them each morning for the past week, because I'm looking forward to the first perfectly ripe slicing tomato of the season. Yesterday the biggest fruit showed just a bit of green, so I was pretty sure I'd be picking it today.

After breakfast I went outside to throw some scraps in the compost pile and check on the garden. This is what the tomato I planned on picking looked like:

Gaaa! I'm guessing the culprit was a squirrel, because nothing else has been able to get over (or under) the garden fence. Whatever it was it must have been hungry, because this was more than one bite. Or maybe the tomato was so tasty that the first squirrel took a bite and sent out word to the whole squirrel family, who all came and took a bite. Doesn't matter who or why. My fruit wasn't perfect anymore.

That wasn't going to keep me from trying it, though. I brought the damaged fruit in, washed it, and cut off the section that contained the bites. Even with the imperfect area removed, it still weighed close to a pound. I cubed the remaining tomato and added it to my lunch for today. I would have preferred a big slice of 'mater on my sandwich, but the cut-up pieces definitely were the high point of the meal.

Now I have my eye on a couple of other Mortgage Lifters that are getting close to maturity...

Use It Or Lose It...

Your brain, that is.

Last week I was leafing through a magazine while sitting in a doctor's waiting room. One of the articles in the magazine caught my eye; it was about brain fitness in baby boomers. According to the author, to keep your brain nimble you need to keep learning. When you challenge your brain with new skills and ways of doing things, it increases connections in the brain and improves its effectiveness. Sounded interesting to me, so today I tried doing a normal activity in a different way when I brushed my teeth with my right hand instead of my left.

I'm a confirmed southpaw. Some things I've learned to do right handed, like using a computer mouse. However, most activities are awkward and it takes me longer to do them if I use the "wrong" hand, but I was willing to have the job be a bit more challenging than usual today and use my opposite hand if it meant that I was exercising my brain.

When I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth after breakfast, force of habit caused me to take the brush out of the holder with my left hand. I realized preparing the brush was part of the process, too, so I put the brush back and picked it up with my right hand. I also tackled the toothpaste tube with the opposite hand--my left. It was very awkward; even though I was squeezing the tube with my dominant hand, I ended up with a too much toothpaste on the brush.

Brushing with my right hand was a unique experience. It was actually easier than I thought it would be to do the outside surfaces and tops of my teeth, but the inner surfaces threw me for a loop. I couldn't get the right angle to get everything cleaned. When I was done, I had toothpaste on my chin and all over my lips.

Just to make sure I'd gotten rid of all the plaque-forming materials from my teeth, at the end I switched back to my left hand and did another once-over on all my teeth. I'm not willing to risk a cavity for the sake of exercising my brain!