Put on Your Mushroom Eyes

It's now the wonderful time of year in Creekistan when everyone gets a little mushroom crazy. The Morel mushrooms are coming up! In some places in Appalachia, they are called "Molly Moochers."

We have a great spot for these prized mushrooms on our property. So prized, in fact, that we have to scare away mushroom hunters all the time. People around here tend to stop their car and start roaming the forests for mushrooms. I don't think they care if they are on private property or not. But I care! We value these mushrooms and use them for ourselves.

The whole family goes mushroom hunting, except for the dog, Bandit. Aptly named, Bandit will eat the mushrooms if he finds any. So we have to keep him tied up and barking when we hunt for morels.

First, we put on long pants and boots. Some of our property used to be a glass dumping place for long-gone former residents. We try to stay away for that area, but protect our feet from broken glass anyway. Then we grab mesh bags that we've saved all winter--the kind that onions or some fruits come in. Mesh bags allow proper ventilation of our precious mushrooms. Last, but not least, we put on our mushroom eyes.


Mushroom eyes help you to focus and see the mushrooms that have the magical ability to hide in plain site. You can be looking right at a morel and not even see it! But once you've used your mushroom eyes and had seen a mushroom, then you can see even more. It's like they magically appear!

We're going out, right now to see if we can find some. Even if we don't return with mushrooms, it's still a good excuse to explore the forest and enjoy nature.

Wish us luck!

Now I Feel Like A Heel

As readers of my blog may know, I occasionally have to deal with stray or dumped dogs appearing on my doorstep. I can't believe that some people--rather than deal with unwanted puppies, old dogs, or random strays--would drive to the middle of nowhere (aka Creekistan) and just leave these dogs. Cats too. I've dealt with several such homeless potential pets that I've become a little hardened to it. I would love to take all of these animals into our home and hearts, but we simply can't.

The most recent story is of Red, a young adult mutt that almost found a home here. It started out as this wild dog appearing in the distance to play with my dog. The two dogs seemed to get a long. Eventually, Red warmed up to me and allowed me to examine him. He seemed okay to me, and we even discussed keeping him. He was a mix of a lot of things, including German Sheppherd, Lab, and possibly Pit. The Pit gave me pause. But he seemed really nice and even knew how to sit and give me his paw. Yep, someone abandoned him.

But Red fought and injured Bandit, probably over food. Any funds that might have been used to neuter Red were utilized to hospitalize our beloved Bandit. That was it for Red. I tied him up and called the Dog Warden on Monday. I called the Dog Warden on Tuesday. I called the Dog Warden on Wednesday before I went to the vet to get Bandit out of the "hospital." I had to keep Bandit in the house 24/7 in order to keep him away from Red as well as nurse him back to health. Red, in the meantime, started to think that he was ours. He started to protect the house and bark whenever someone came to visit. But he was too intimidating.

I called every day, trying to sound frustrated, sad and pathetic about having to be stuck with this stupid dog and why isn't someone coming out to get this dog that attacked my dog?

Finally on Friday the Dog Warden came and got Red. I felt bad--the kids watched as Red, tail between his legs and fighting the entire time, was taken away and put into a truck to go to one of the worst dog pounds in the state. But I was mad, too, that it took five days. The dog warden apologized profusely, and I even gave him a can of Coke, but our interaction was brief.

Then, on Saturday, I saw the headline of the weekend paper:"Dog warden injured avoiding dog." Seems that the dog warden was driving down the road and had an accident trying to avoid a stray on the road. Well, that explains why he was late. Now I feel like a heel.

My Significant Other

Thursday Thirteen #83

March 20, 2008, which would have been Mr. Rogers' 80th birthday, is being promoted as "National Sweater Day" in his honor. As a tribute, everyone should wear their best sweater next Thursday. If you have a sweater or two that you don't want or need any more, be sure to donate it.

13 Beautiful Things about Fred McFeely Rogers:

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1. Mr. Rogers studied music composition in college and wrote all the music on the show.

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2. In 1963, Fred was ordained a Presbyterian minister.

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3. In 1969, Mr. Rogers testified in front of the Senate to help save funding for Public Television. He said that shows like his are an alternative to less positive messages on network television and encourage children to be come happy and productive citizens. By 1971, PBS funding was increased from $9 million to $22 million.

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4. Mr. Rogers also testified in front of Congress, defending the use of VCRs to videotape shows. He said that by by taping shows, working parents could watch the shows with their kids at a more convenient time.

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5. Koko the Gorilla was a fan of Mr. Rogers. When she met him, she gave him a big hug, and helped him take off his shoes.

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6. When his car was stolen, it made news all over town. Within two days, it was returned to the exact spot it was stolen with a note reading, “If we’d known it was yours, we never would have taken it.”

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7. He was color blind--he couldn't see blue. So basically, he didn't know what he looked like with the blue sweater on.

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8. All the sweaters on the show were hand-knit by his mother.

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9. A red cardigan sweater belonging to Rogers hangs in the Smithsonian.

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10. MISTER ROGERS' NEIGHBORHOOD is the longest- running program on public television. It started in 1967 and the last original episode aired in 2001.

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11. In 1998, Mr. Rogers met the Dalai Lama. I can't think of two kinder men. Think of the karma in that room!

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12. In 2002, President George W. Bush presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, recognizing his "contribution to the well-being of children and a career in public television that demonstrates the importance of kindness, compassion and learning."

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13. Mr. Rogers died in his Pittsburgh home on Thursday, February 27, 2003 after a brief battle with stomach cancer. He was 74.

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Thursday Thirteen #82

Thursday Thirteen: Mayhem in Creekistan

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1. The 3-year-old boy that I watch 3 days a week freaked out Monday morning and didn't want to be at my place. I had to hold him down for about 20 minutes so that he wouldn't run out the door and down the street. He was kicking and screaming the entire time, and even pissed himself. I kept my cool, because I knew that no matter how stubborn he is, I'm more stubborn. He was much better on Wednesday.

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2. Monday was warm outside, so I started on the gardening stuff. At least I found the shovel and the hoe. But I noticed some annuals starting to get green.

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3. The spring flowers are starting to come up.

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4. I'm waiting for my new digital camera to arrive. Hopefully it can take much better pictures than my old one.

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5. Speaking of spring, there is an old abandoned house deep in the woods that, every spring, is completely surrounded by beautiful daffodils. We call it the Daffodil House. I'll take pictures.

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6. The spring peepers (frogs) are peeping. I love the sound and will stop my car, roll down all the windows, and listen for a while.

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7. I got a call from a company that I interviewed with around November last year. They are finally interested in looking to hire me, but lost my resume and want me to send it again. Do they really think I would want to work for a company that disorganized? Besides, I think I like this stay-at-home thing. At least for now.

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8. I did call that company back and found out that indeed, the executive had lost my resume and contact information. He made his assistant track me down. Eventually she spoke with someone at my son's elementary school and found me.

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9. I felt sad that they went through all that trouble just to find me and then I didn't want to work for them! So I'm working out a freelance/consultative agreement with them instead. Work at home and bill them the hours.

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10. I've also become very busy doing postcards and posters for local arts organizations. It's fun work, but they are the toughest customers!

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11. Our dog Bandit keeps bringing home deer bones and leaves them on the porch or driveway. My 3-year-old daughter grabbed my hand one day and said that I had to see something. She pointed them out and said, "Look, dinosaur bones!"

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12. One day in the car, my daughter started repeating a phrase over and over. I couldn't figure it out at first. I asked her what it was and she said "Austin Powers". I finally figured out was a phrase from Austin Power's Goldmember: "Twins, Basil!"

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13. We may have a new dog. One that has just been hanging out but would run away as soon as he saw people. But yesterday I was able to pet him and feed him. Bandit likes him except when I give him attention. But I think the new dog is going to stick around. I'm afraid to name him.

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Alphabet MeMe

Here’s how it goes: Rule #1: Copy all the links below and replace a single link under the appropriate letter of the alphabet. If your domain name, or even the title of your blog, starts with an “A,” you’d replace the link under that letter and put the replaced link at the bottom. Also, don’t forget to credit the tagger, or where you got the list from, at the end of the list with a full URL of the post so that a pingback gets generated.

A. Amy the Black

B. Blogging with Cent

C. Cricket's Hearth

D. Dane Bramage

E. Everything and Anything

F. Fond of Snape

G. Gone to Plaid

H. Holiday Bizarre

I. It's Like she's Raising Animals!

J. Jen's Horde

K. Kabalyero

L. Loose Leaf Notes

M. Mommy Mandy

N. Not Just Mama

O. Original Mx5

P. Peapod Squad Stuff

Q. Q Weddings

R. Rowdigrl

S. Scribbit

T. The Rock Chick

U. Utada Online

V. Valmg

W. Wicked Babylon

X. Xavier Media

Y. Yimto

Z. Zbudapest

Replaced Links: An Ordinary Life
DadThing
Forum Finder
Happy Keg
I’m Running To Win Two
Julies Journal
Ladylike4
Shirleys Delight
Not Just Mama
The So Called Me

Thanks to Cricket's Hearth for tagging me.

Sorry, I'm not going to tag anyone. But if you want to volunteer, go for it!

The Oscars 2008

I love to follow the Oscars. I used to stay up late and watch. When they used to be on later in March, sometimes they'd even land on my birthday! But those days are over.

Since I don't have TV, I followed the Oscars by Live Blogging. Yep, someone at the awards ceremony with a computer blogged the night away. Every so often I'd go to my computer, hit "refresh" and find out something new. It doesn't replace seeing the awards, but I still find out who won.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to see any of the movies up for Best Picture. In fact, I didn't see most of the movies nominated for any category! But now I know what to put in my Netflix queue.

I'm Now An Artisan Bread Baker

A huge shout out goes to fellow blogger SusieJ, who wrote a Thursday Thirteen about the book "Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day." She inspired me to get the book, which I did. In fact, I paid extra for overnight shipping and thanked my husband for the Valentines Day present. But because of this stupid Flu and Bronchitis, I was not able to make my first batch for a week.

I have to say, this is wonderful. The dough was easy to make, and the baking was easy, too. The only difficult part was waiting for it to cool before we had our first bite.

Now that the loaf is almost gone, we'll have to discipline ourselves to wait until tomorrow to make another one. Otherwise, all this weight that I lost while sick will just jump right back on.

I highly recommend: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
by Jeff Hertzberg

Thursday Thirteen #81

Thursday Thirteen: Life in Creekistan

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1. My son and I were listening to NPR this morning in the car. The station wasn't coming in very good and we would lose the signal with a buzzing sound. So we pretended that the people on NPR were actually flys with giant heads, buzzing around a microphone.

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2. We wanted to watch the lunar eclipse last night, but it was too cold. So we sat in the car and watched from our driveway.

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3. We already received our Girl Scout cookies, and half are already eaten.

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4. With being sick these past two weeks, I've come to realize that Pirates of the Carabbean At Worlds End makes a great movie to put in while you're taking a nap. It's so long, that I can usually fall asleep during the beginning, take a nice nap during the middle, and wake back up in time to see the end.

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5. We've been watching a lot of Star Trek lately. Mainly Voyager and Deep Space Nine. Great science fiction crust with a wonderful morality play center. Yum.

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6. Since we were all sick on Valentines Day, we didn't get to celebrate. We've decided on a new holiday: Go Crazy at Jungle Jims Day. You wouldn't believe this store if you haven't seen it. Check it out here. We're planning on traveling there and spending the day. I have to make a giant shopping list, first.

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7. I've decided that when I grow up, I want to be a Script Supervisor. I'm always spotting continuity problems in movies.

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8. When I told my son the above fact, he said, very delicately, "Um. . . . but you are grown up." Then we argued: "No I'm not!" "Yes you are!" "Not" "Are" Not" "Are" "Not infinity."

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9. Whenever I move my front passenger seat up so that my son can have more leg room, my husband accuses me of having someone else in the car. I tease that I'm having an affair with a midget.

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10. I still can't teach my daughter knock knock jokes. I say, "Knock Knock," she says "Who's there?" and no matter what I say, she just starts laughing before I get to finish the joke.

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11. Speaking of my daughter, she's been wanting to wear pretty dresses all the time. I don't have many. But it is cute when we go out because she also wears rubber boots. She's such a country girl.

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12. I recently found out that sometimes, late at night when me and my kids are asleep, my daughter will get up and go downstairs to spend quality time with my husband. They snack, watch a movie, and cuddle on the comfy chair.

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13. My husband can play "Tubular Bells," the theme from the movie "The Exorcist" on the toy xylophone. Creepy.

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Thursday Thirteen #80

13 Things I Did Twenty Years Ago

I vividly remember February 12th, 1988 because it was my first date with my future husband. Once we're over the flu, I'm sure we'll celebrate this 20th anniversary.

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1. February 12th, 1988 was a Friday before a 3-day weekend. Sunday was Valentine's Day, and Monday was President's Day. As a bonus, school was called off on Friday because of snow.

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2. Although I had not seen him in a few months, I was talking to FH (future husband) on the phone a lot. We talked a lot on the phone that day, and agreed to meet at a local mall.

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3. I was fairly new to the area, but I could navigate by malls. Unfortunately, on my way to the mall to meet with FH, I missed the exit.

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4. I finally got to the mall and we met near a pet store. The pet store has since been replaced by a food court. Makes me wonder . . .

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5. We went out for Chinese (Golden Buddha) and brought it to a friend's babysitting job to eat. My friend is responsible for making sure we got together. My school was having a Sadie Hawkins dance--girls were supposed to invite boys. I could only remember FH's name and the school he attended. She researched it in the phone book and actually found his number, dialed it, and forced me to talk. He wasn't home.

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6. I took him home to meet the parents. I'm not sure what they thought, since FH had safety pins stuck all over his pants in a semi-punk style. But my Shi-Tzu puppy loved him and nipped his nose.

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7. We went to a movie that night. What romantic movie did we choose for our first date? Fatal Attraction.

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8. By the time we got back from the movie, it was late. We sat in front of the fire and kissed for a while. We looked at the clock and it said 1:11. From then on, every time we see that time, we kiss.

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9. With permission from my parents and FH's mother, he stayed on the couch.

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10. I brought him coffee in the morning in my "Amy" cup.

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11. We hung out the next day with my friends. We had our typical Pop-Tarts, Root Beer Float and Fencing party. Seriously! We'd have junk food and spar with swords.

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12. We had to take FH home Saturday night. He lived across town, about 45 minutes away.

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13. But I did get to see him again on Monday, President's Day. We hung out at his Mother's house and watched the Talking Heads movie, "Stop Making Sense." I love the '80's!

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For Valentines Day: Porn for Women

(click on the photo to see the larger image.)






Porn for Women
by Cambridge Women's Pornography Cooperative
Available on Amazon!

Thursday Thirteen #79

13 Famous Rats


1. Today, 2008, starts the Year of the Rat, according to the Chinese calendar.

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2. Rats are charming, passionate, charismatic, practical and hardworking.

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3. William Shakespeare, and Mozart were born in the year of the rat.

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4. More modern famous rats are Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Affleck, Samuel L. Jackson, Carmen Electra, Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Avril Lavigne, Kelly Osbourne, Bono, David Duchovny, and Hugh Grant.

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5. Let's not forget about the rats in the the movie and book "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH". . .

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6. . . . or Templeton in "Charlotte's Web" . . .

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7. . . . or Rizzo the rat from The Muppet Show . . .

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8. . . . and especially Ron Weasley's rat, Scabbers, in the Harry Potter books who turns out to be the big rat Peter Pettigrew (aka Wormtail).

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9. The newest rat on the scene is Rémy, a rat that would rather be a chef in the movie, Ratatouille.

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10. The last Year of the Rat was a very good year for movies. 1996 was the year of Jerry Maguire, Fargo, and my favorite, The English Patient. It was also the year for Beavis and Butt-Head Do America, Independence Day, Twister, and Mission: Impossible.

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11. The Year of the Rat, 1984 was a very significant year. The first MTV Video Music Awards are held in Radio City Music Hall, New York City. It was the year of Ghostbusters, The Karate Kid, and Footloose . . .

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12. . . . . and when Happy Days finally ended after jumping the shark.

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13. In 1984, Andy Kaufman made his final performance.

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The Ungodly Coin

In my crusade against misinformation being sent through e-mail, I wrote this article this morning, hoping to end the debate.

Rumors have been spreading for years about the fact that the new U.S. Mint coins are omitting the phrase "In God We Trust," thus indicating a government plot to "phase God out of America." This rumor has some in the the Christian community in an uproar, with some religious people indicating that they'd refuse to accept or spend these "atheist" coins.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Well, actually, there is a little sliver of truth, about the size of the edge of a $1 coin. In early 2007, the U.S. Mint admitted that an unknown amount of George Washington dollar coins were minted missing the "In God We Trust", which should have appeared on the edge of the coin.

Truth is, the phrase was never intentionally omitted. This new series of $1 gold coins, similar to the popular state quarter program, are to honor U.S. presidents, starting with George Washington. These coins feature a new bold design with the figure of the honored president much larger then in previous designs. In order to make room for this large design, the phrases "In God We Trust" and "E Pluribus Unum" were moved to the edge of the coin. Some people, seeing only a head-on photograph of the coins and not seeing the edge lettering, might have become outraged and spread the rumor through e-mail.

The government has taken measures to help make heads and tails of the situation. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008, that was signed by President George W. Bush on December 26, 2007, changes the design of the coin. H.R. Bill number 2764, Section 623 "Modifies the edge-incused inscription on $1 coins minted and issued honoring each of the Presidents of the United States to remove "In God We Trust." Requires the design on the obverse or the reverse of the coins to bear such inscription." In other words, the phrase "In God We Trust" will be required on the front (obverse) or back (reverse) of the coin.

Starting in 2009, the $1 coins will have "In God We Trust" and "E Pluribus Unum" printed on the front or back of the coin instead of the edge. Hopefully this will satisfy some in the religious community that the government is not trying to phase out God. But if you do happen to stumble upon a coin with the Ungodly error, they are worth a lot more than $1!


References:

http://www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/$1coin/index.cfm?action=Washington
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17501178/
http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/dollarcoin.asp
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-2764

The New Hair

For those of you curious, Amy the Black may have to change to Amy the Black/Red/Blond. I can't be Amy the Red because it's taken! Redheads have the most fun, huh Sandi the Red?