Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Black Friday

     "Why is it called Black Friday?"  my husband asked.  "Is it that miserable?"  He was contemplating buying frenzies at Big Box stores.  He only likes Antique Malls.  There he is an indefatigable shopper.  
     "No," I replied, "It's about being in the black, financially."  And I thought about what I had said.  The stores would be in the black, making a profit, but what about us, the buyers?  Would we be in the black?
     According to the early morning National news (3:30 am) credit card debt is up and so are defaults on credit card payments.  So no, we wouldn't necessarily be in the black.  More likely in the red, trying to right the economy on borrowed money.  Then I saw an item on the computer, spam most likely, saying "boycott shopping on Black Friday. Instead, make it a no-buy day."  And I thought, "That would keep us in the black!"  I really like the idea.  It fits right in with my buying diet.  Not that I'm so good at it.  We went to the Southport Antique Mall last week.  I didn't spend much but I did buy.  Not new stuff but that doesn't really get me off the hook does it?

Character Doll, Old woman with glass eyes.
The Basket Seller
     I can't make out why the old Woman is dressed in a pinafore like a little girl.  Of course, she is naked at the moment and I have done major surgery on her, giving her elbows, knees and wrists, so that she can be posed.  I've been to Joanne's and gotten snippets of purple and red to make her a dress and hat.  The basket lady's face is faded but I don't intend to strip her down.  Maybe a little judicious face painting is in her future.  What fun!
     
     As I mentioned previously, we are back on the once a month grocery shopping schedule.  Last month I bragged that we had saved $50 doing that but now I have to report that I spent that money on sale meat and things we ran out of, such as butter, white bread and soft drinks for my Husband.  This month I spent over the allotment but after all it is Thanksgiving.  And Christmas is coming up.  The little house is full of food and goodies.  One of the things I did was to buy bones and make beef broth.  I saw it done on the Victorian cooking videos I saw on youtube.
     It wasn't a short task, in fact it took two days to finish.  The meat and vegetables were first roasted in the oven, then cooked all day, cooled and skimmed, then, the next day reduced a bit.  I got 4 pints of pretty but rather carrot flavored beef broth.  For what I spent, I could have bought the most expensive bouillon available!

  
The recipe recommended throwing the meat and vegetables away but I couldn't bring myself to do that, but minced up the meat and using some of the broth made an excellent Strogonoff for Sunday dinner.  On Monday I had not planned anything nor taken something out of the freezer so I hurried to make some tomato soup (tomato sauce, canned milk, some tomato paste, dill weed) and grilled some cheese sandwiches.  I felt guilty about it just until Bill sat down and rubbed his hands and said "Oh, good, one of my favorite meals."

     Eliyah and I went to May's greenhouse to look for miniature plants and found many to choose from.  They didn't cost much either.  So we chose miniature palms, frittaria and a small fern.  Here are the terrariums we made"

       We are cooking at home alone for Thanksgiving.  A difficult choice but we plan to eat out for Christmas.  We did the same thing for our Birthday and Anniversary, ate out on one and at home the other.  After all, I make good feasts.  In fact, Bill insists that my food is better than any restaurant's, although he loves to eat out.  My menu is entirely predictable, though I won't be eating the mashed potatoes, I'll have a dab of sweet potato plain.  Also only a dab of stuffing.  No cranberry sauce but I'll be making a cheesecake out of Victoria Magazine with a glaze of cranberry juice  thickened with geletin and using sweetner rather than sugar.  So carbs but not unlimited carbs.  Now that I limit carbs, I find not much need for sugar, it's far too expensive in carbohydrates!  That surprised me but I confess that there are many proteins that I actually like better than sweets.  This week I made Pate' or chopped liver, if you willFlavored with sour cream, dill and spring onions, it is a delicious snack.
     I am reading a book, "Disaster" about the history of Earthquakes, floods, plagues and etc. 
I have to say, it is making me very thankful this week.  My petty complaints don't mean much beside catastrophes which do away with 90% of the population!  Nothing like being put in one's place.  A very Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

The Birthday Week

     It's not just the Birthday Week, it's also the Anniversary Week, the part of the year we celebrate most seriously  We were married 11 years ago just a week before our Birthdays.  This year we had a lovely week indeed.  On our Anniversary we ate a nice Stir-fry at home after spending the day out shopping, reading at our favorite Non-lending Library, Barnes and Noble, and having a quick lunch at McDonald's.  On our Birthday we opened presents at breakfastThen we had a quiet day reading and went out to Outback for a festive dinner.  There were lots of calls and e-mails and Happy Birthdays on Facebook.  I wore all black with Mother's jade necklace shining on my neck.  Even on Sunday we went to a party, a Christmas event at Elegant Options Antiques.  They were swamped with people, eating their elegant snacks and standing in line to buy Christmas ornaments and presents.  We chatted with friends and acquantancesNot too early for a Christmas event evidently!
 
 Here are some of the gifts I received.  The little jewel box is reminiscent of Laura's box and I was overcome to get it.  Note the tiny book for Abe Lincoln.  I loved the lazer cut card from Bill and the preying mantis oneAnother favorite is below:
 From my Daughter in Seattle and her Husband.  Who wouldn't want to be addressed as Super-Mom?

Here is how the book looks on Abe's desk.  It is beautifully bound.

You remember how I longed for a fan for Mary.  We found this one at Oolitic Antique Mall.  It was a charm from a necklace.  Bill cut off the little loop.    On Monday we were quite unready to resume normal duties.  But on Tuesday I mopped the floors and straightened up for Eliyah's usual visit.
     We read the last Chapter of The Long Winter on our Birthday.  And neither of us could resist a few tears:

"The table looks some different from what it did a few days ago" Pa said as he heaped Mrs. Boast's plate with turkey and stuffing and potatoes and a large spoonful of cranberries.  And as he went on filling the plates he added, "It has been a long winter."
     "And a hard one," said Mr. Boast.
     "It is a wonder how we all kept well and came through it," Mrs. Boast said.
     While Mr. and Mrs. Boast told how they had worked and contrived through that long winter, all alone in the blizzard-bound shanty on their claim, Ma poured the coffee and Pa's tea.  She passed the bread and the butter and the gravy and reminded Pa to refill the plates.
From "The Long Winter" by Laura Ingalls Wilder