April Showers

Last Saturday when I got home from running errands there was a plastic bag tied to my front door. It took me a couple of seconds to figure out why it was there, but then I remembered it was April Showers time!

April Showers is a service project for the local Girl Scout troops. They collect personal care items, then distribute them to local shelters and food banks to pass them out to their clients. (Did you know that things like toilet paper, soap, toothpaste, deodorant, and shampoo can't be purchased with food stamps?  Could you live without them?  I couldn't.) 

The project lasts for two weeks.  The first day troops go door-to-door distributing bags. A week later, they return to collect the filled ones. On Wednesday I took my empty bag to the store and filled it, then set it on the table by the front door so I wouldn't forget about it.  This morning I moved the bag to the front porch. A couple of hours later when I looked out it was gone.

What an easy way to do a good deed.

Five years ago today: Don't Throw It, Grow It!

Who Wants To Dance?

Several of my Facebook friends, as well as a couple of businesses that I've 'liked', were kind enough to point out that today is National Pet Day. 

One of them suggested that in honor of the day I might want to give my cats a big hug and dance with them.  I was pretty sure I wouldn't have any takers for that idea, but I think I might be wrong.  Doesn't it look like Pepper's be ready to boogie?  Jackson, not so much.

Five years ago today: The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same

The Non-Addictive, Mood-Alterning Non-Substance

So true!

Five years ago today: D'oh!

Humm....us

A couple of days ago Kenya G. Johnson wrote about her "men" eating all the hummus she'd bought for herself.  I commented that I have an easy hummus recipe, and she encouraged me to post it.  Here you go, Kenya!

Several years ago I found a recipe for "lite" hummus in the newspaper.  The first time I made it I knew it was a keeper.  Now I do it so much I started buying bags of dried garbanzo beans from the ethnic market, which I cook and store in the freezer in recipe-sized containers.

 If you have a food processor, it takes less than five minutes to put together a batch.  The only exotic ingredient is tahini (sesame seed paste), which you'll find in the Middle Eastern aisle of the grocery store.  It's pricy, but important; the combination of chickpeas and  tahini creates a dish with all the essential ammino acids for a complete protein.

This recipe is very versatile.   Sometimes I add a couple of handfuls of fresh parsley or cilantro.  Roasted red peppers make the spread a beautiful red color.  To give it some heat you can include jalapenos or a spoonful of  chipotle.  Any way you make it it's great!

The basic recipe:

• 1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans (2 cups)
• 1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas
• 3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in blender or food processor. Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas and olive oil. Blend for 3-5 minutes on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Five years ago today: The Search Is On

A True Survivor

There are several patches of common orange daylilies (AKA ditch lilies) in my yard. I like them because they're effortless.  It doesn't matter how much or little rain and sun they get, they pretty much grow themselves and the critters don't eat them.

However, sometimes they're too hardy.  Last week I noticed several sprouts coming up in an area under the deck.  This area is covered with a heavy plastic barrier and rock, but the sprouts found a way to get through.   I poured salt on the baby lilies, and most of them succumbed.  One of them, though, laughed at the harsh treatment and continued to grow:

I dumped some more salt on it today. Wonder if it will work this time?

Five years ago today: Walk This Way

Yay! Opening Day

Today was the baseball Cardinals home opener game. In St. Louis, where we love our baseball, this day feels like an unofficial holiday.  Tickets to the game have been sold out for weeks, but even people who don't have tickets rearrange their schedules so they can watch the game and all the surrounding pageantry on TV.

The official Opening Day hoopla started at 10 with a dedication ceremony for the Cardinals Hall of Fame & Museum. That was followed by a pep rally outside the stadium from 11-2, and pregame ceremonies inside at 2:30, leading up to the start of the game at 3:15. However, there were also quite a few unofficial events that started as early as 9 AM, and many downtown bars and restaurants were hosting game viewing parties.  

Today's rainy and chilly weather was less than ideal for baseball.  That didn't seem to matter to the people I saw from my seat at the mall Customer Service desk.  I took an informal survey before lunch; in a ten-minute period 2/3 of the people who walked by were wearing a red shirt or something with the team logo on it.  In honor of the day I got out the Cardinal earrings that had been packed away since October to wear with my uniform white shirt and black pants.  As the day wore on, though, there were fewer 'red' sightings.  The real fans were either lucky enough to have a ticket for the game or were getting ready to watch it on TV somewhere.

I got off work at 3:00, and made it to my car just in time to hear the end of the opening ceremonies on the radio as I drove home. The rain made the field too wet for the appearance of the Budweiser Clydesdales, but the rest went off as planned.  The motorcades of Hall of Famers and current players.  The raising of the 2013 National League Champions banner.  The National Anthem.  The ceremonial first pitch.  Finally, the game.

Hubby Tony got home from work about the time I did. He turned the TV on and we spent the next few hours watching the game.  The final score was Cardinals 5, Reds 3.

Five years ago today: Celebrate Poetry

Happy Or Sad?

As I settled into my seat next to Hubby Tony before Mass tonight I heard noises coming from the pew behind me.  The people sitting there were either laughing and trying (not too successfully) to stifle it or crying.  At first I couldn't tell which, but after a couple minutes I realized there was something they found really funny.

The quiet giggling would stop for a couple of seconds, then start all over again.  I tied to concentrate on studying the week's readings, but I really wanted to turn around and see what they were up to.  That would be rude, though, so I refrained.

Once Mass began they stopped.  When I sat back down after the opening prayer I tried to sneak an unobtrusive glance their way, but didn't have any luck.  It wasn't until the Sign of Peace I could legitimately turn around and look behind me.  The people turned out to be a normal-looking older couple. We shook hands with no mention of what had transpired earlier.

Five years ago today: Hair Fun

Elderly Exercise

As a mall Customer Service desk worker I get to see all types of physical activities going on every day.  The most common are the walkers (some who stroll and some who power walk).  A second type are the groups of mothers that exercise with their babies in the mall.   The young women aren't the only ones doing organized movement, though.  There's another, more sedate group of senior citizens that also gather to get in shape.

Unlike the mommies the elder group stays in one place, setting up shop by a seating area in one of the far edges of the mall.  I only see them if I get a chance to walk around the mall before I open the desk.  In addition to an instructor, there's usually between eight and ten men and women. Most look like they're somewhere between 68 and 80 years old.

The young mothers have been reported to be rough on the mall seating, but the golden-agers are very respectful of it. I've seen them holding on to the backs of the chairs as they do leg lifts and toe stands.  One day they were striking a yoga 'tree' pose, several of them leaning against the seat for balance.  Today I heard the leader telling them to sit on the edge of their chair for tricep dips.

I've never heard any complaints about this group, and based on what I've seen I don't think I will.

Five years ago today: While I Wasn't Looking...

Ten Unsung Siblings

I got this from a friend.  Have you heard of any of these people?

• Bleda the Hun, elder brother of Attila

• Paula Hitler, younger sister of Adolf

• Maria Ulyanova, younger sister of Lenin

• Caspar von Beethoven, unmusical brother of Ludwig

• Gebhard Himmler, eldest brother of Heinrich

• Henrietta Marx, younger sister of Karl

• Feodor the not remotely Terrible, younger brother of Ivan

• Pierre d'Arc, younger brother of Joan

• Mao Zemin, little brother of Mao Zedong

• Omm Omar Hussein, little sister of Saddam

Five years ago today: Coming Soon To A Neighborhood Near You

Mary Kay On The Mezzanine

One of the groups I belong to sponsors a workshop, and this year I'm chairing the organizing committee.  We've already done a lot of the preliminary work through emails and phone calls, and last night we had our first meeting.  The people on the committee live in different parts of the metropolitan area, so we met at a centrally located grocery store that has a community gathering area on a second floor mezzanine.

The area is quite nice.  There's a bar area in the middle, and tables off to the side. In one far end, behind a bank of floor-to-ceiling windows there's a cooking demonstration area, and in another corner a counter with a microwave and sink.

I got to the store early enough to buy some snacks to set out, then headed upstairs to push tables together.  Once everything was set up I got out my laptop to pass the time until the others arrived.  Shortly after I staked out my territory a woman showed up and rearranged the rest of the tables in a long row.  Soon a second woman joined her.  She was pushing a grocery cart loaded with pink and black bags .  When they took their coats off I noticed they had on black aprons with pink trim and the initials M-K embroidered in pink. When they started talking about makeup I realized the M-K stood for Mary Kay. They were saleswomen!

More women showed up and joined them.  Soon all the chairs around the tables were filled. I couldn't tell if it was a facial party or a recruiting event for prospective new consultants, but when the women all lined up at the sink to use the water for hand treatments it looked strange.  I'd choose a less public place!

Once my meeting started I lost track of what the Mary Kay women were doing, but they were still going at it when we wrapped up and I left for the night.

Five years ago today: Observations