A SPOONFULL OF CINNOMON

When I was small (boy, was that a long time ago) my mother would mix Cinnamon and sugar together and give it to me on a spoon.  I guess because my sister and I always had bad colds finally had our tonsils taking out.  I remember that it tasted good-like candy and that I was willing to be dosed up with it.  I don't know the exact measurements, but it was probably about one to one.  One teaspoon of sugar to one teaspoon of  Cinnamon.  A while back I mentioned that she would make us Cinnamon Toast.  I liked that, too.

Like, who knew back then that Cinnamon was good for you and has many health benefits?  It must have been a Mother's intuition combined with old fashioned herbal folk lore and medicine.  Anyway, I am still here and I still like Cinnamon Toast and Cinnamon on a spoon.  I am going to list some of the good things and benefits of Cinnamon.

1. Culinary of course, in so many foods we eat and flavor.
2. Candida/yeast infections.
3. Colds
4. Diabetes with Diabetes medication.
5. Ingestion and indigestion.
6. General
7.  Health.
8. IBS(irritable bowel syndrome)
9. Influenza
10. Insect Repellent
11. Nausea

A whole host of other benefits that are being studied. All this and  more you can find through the Internet.  You can find where to buy Cinnamon, where it comes from and how to use it.  It is interesting to read about. Hey, I'll bet you didn't know you had all the medicine hiding in your kitchen cabinet, filed under "spices." Oh, life is full of the mysteries that our mothers and grandparents knew that has been lost under cobwebs and time.

A Day At The Beach...or Misting The Widows..or Aluminum Foil...take your pick for a title for this:

The heat is extreme.  It has been a long time since the temps. have been 100 F. or the humidity around 90%.  It has been a long time since I have done the following and here is the reason why.

My back porch is concrete.  The back store room has a concrete floor.  The patio is concrete.  They are very effective heat sinks, pulling in the high temps. and holding them from early morning until late night.  The back porch has a glass storm door.  The store room has two windows.  No, I never bothered with curtains because you can not see into the house.

This morning I misted the windows and applied aluminum foil over the damp windows.  The mist holds the foil like glue, but you can easily remove the foil.  It reflects the heat outward and makes a big difference in your comfort level. 

The backside of the house get the full sun in the morning and usually I like to look out the back door and watch the birds in the bird bath.  Not today.  The front side gets the high noon and setting sun and becomes very hot.  I didn't mist or cover the windows on the front because it faces the street, but I am tempted! 

You know, it is just too hot to write, even with two A/C's and fans going flat out.   Here is where I stop.

 END

OOLONG or WU LONG TEA

I am a tea drinker.  I have been a tea drinker since I first met my former, deceased sister-in-law, Leona.  I was a kid, but looked upon her as a walking, talking Godly person.  In fact, that was what she was called on the day of her funeral..."a Godly Mother," and she was.  I wanted to do as she did, and one of the things she did was drink tea.  That's how I became a tea-aholic.

The best tea that I have run across is OOLONG TEA.  I guess I first drank it while at the Chinese Buffet, thinking that it was the best tea I had ever tasted.  When I went to pay my bill I asked the manager about what kind of tea it was and how could I find a place to buy it.  He sold me a large bag of loose leaf tea right then and there.  I love the stuff.  Here is what I know about OOLONG TEA.

Helps promote strong metabolism.
Helps maintain cholesterol level in normal cholesterol.

Good for skin and complexion.Contains  10-15%  of caffeine of a cup of coffee.

 Also, referred as a Weight Control tea.

You can buy this tea online and it isn't too expensive.  I was just lucky enough to get mine at the buffet.  There are several verities to chose from, but I like the plain tea.  I would love to buy a cast iron tea kettle and benefit from the iron mineral that is released when boiling the tea water, but they are a little pricey. 

Red Beans and Rice!  With a can of Tuna thrown in. That was supper, and pretty good, at that.  I haven't had rice in quite a while.  The tuna, Chicken of the Sea, used to be a good name brand.  Now the cans are smaller and contain a lot of fluid-oil or water.  You get less, but pay more.

I'm about 3/4's through another book.  It is "TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH," a novel of the Byzantine Empire by T. Davis Bunn.  It is really a good book and is Ecumenical in nature.  It is a historical novel about the early church's persecutions and trials and a little proper romance for flavor.  It is well worth reading.  I think anyone of any faith would enjoy this book.

I bought a gallon jug of milk today; more than I wanted, but it is cheaper in the long run.  I have an empty 1/2 jug so I will fill that and put it in the freezer.  I also bought some hard cheese.  As long as the packages are unopened and kept cool they will last a long, long time.  I am trying to re-stock slowly.  Hopefully, next month will be a better month.  Gosh, next month will be August already.  Where did the time go?

This is the last night that I will send this post to Facebook.  If anyone wants to read it in the future they will have to go directly to my website.  Thus, says me.

 END

GINGER TEA

This morning I mentioned on Facebook about making some Ginger Tea for a funny tummy.  I made my own with a tea bag, some Ginger spice from the cabinet and hot water.  You can add lemon, sugar or honey to taste if you want to.  It does makes a nice, hot drink and yes, it did help my funny tummy.

You can buy Ginger Tea at a health store if you have one or order capsules or tea on line.  Or you can make it yourself, as I did.  Some of the health benefits follow.

1. It is good for colds
2. Angina or heart pain
3. Nausea or motion sickness
4. Menstrual cramping(don't need that no mo!)
5. Morning sickness(don't need that either!)
6. Headaches and some migraines
7. Digestion(did I eat too many Oatmeal cookies last night?  Probably!)
8. Flu
9. Inflammation of lungs or joints
10. Fibromyalga(sp?)

These are just a few of the health benefits listed.  Remember what your mothers gave you for upset stomachs?  Ginger Ale!  Be sure to go on the Internet and check out dosages and any possible side effects, which seem to be few.  Keep in mind everyone is different and may have different reactions to different herbs or spices.

I was intending to go to a free computer class in the morning, but now there is an ozone alert up for this area, and it is gonna be hot; a little sticky around the edges.  So I guess it is inside for me accept that I need milk and the cows didn't come home.

We had a lot of rain last night.  Around four inches and broke a record.  I didn't hear it.  I was tired from my book reading marathon and went to bed early.  I got up early, made my home made Ginger Tea and went back to bed.

Tonight I really didn't want to cook so I boiled a couple eggs and made egg salad on crackers.  I still have one egg that I may eat later if I get hungry.

I am thinking that Saturday might be my last blog on Facbook.  No one is reading it, therefore it is wasted time and effort.  I will still blog, but not on Facebook.

END

YARD CORN

I mowed the front yard today.  There was corn growing in the front lawn.  The man  across the street feeds the squirrels  and they carry it over here  and drop the kernels in the grass.  As I haven't mowed the front in a couple weeks the corn grew very fast and about a foot tall.  If I had planted corn in the garden it would never have taken off like that!

I went out and dug up a few more small potatoes; enough for a meal, and got some meat out of the freezer to thaw out.  That was supper and it was good.  The Lord said "Feed my sheep," so I did.   Baaaah.

I put the tired, blemished, old potatoes into a box this afternoon and covered them with green grass clippings.  I wonder how they will do.  I tried growing potatoes in a bucket last year, but had pretty poor results...and I was very attentive to them

Wonder of wonders!  There are real blossoms on the tomatoes and some coming on the pepper plant.  It is so late.  I won't have enough to can so I will have to hit the Farmer's Market.  At least I should get some for the table.

The Pear tree has a few pears on it, but they look small.  We had some late frost so there are only a few pears on one side.  The Plum tree is crazy, dropping half ripe plums on the ground every time the wind blows.  The ground is covered with half ripe plums covered with ants and flies.  Makes me mad that all that fruit is going to waste.

I finished reading the book I mentioned  yesterday.  It made me cry toward the end.  I definitely cleared out my tear ducts and sinuses.  It was a most improbable story, but a good tale in all.  Since I stayed up until 4 Am to finish the book, worked a little and now have a full tummy, I guess I will take my self off to bed.  No books tonight, good or otherwise.

END

HARDLY WORKING

This  afternoon I made a pasta salad using the tomatoes I bought yesterday and some of the burp-less cucumber.  It seems to be as they say...burp-less cucumbers.  These Asian Cucumbers are very long, probably a foot long or more, solid and tasty.  I think just a few of these plants would produce a lot of cucumbers.  If...and I say if, I will plant some next year...if I plant.

I tossed out a few bad potatoes and they may be developing roots.  If they do I will put them in an old cardboard box, cover them, and see if they grow. If they start to grow and the season gets late, well, I have enough old windows in storage to make a little greenhouse for them.  The potatoes in the picture are the ones I dug up last week.  Of course, they are gone now, along with a nice juicy steak.

The book I am reading right now is THE ACCIDENTAL POPE.  It is a little far-fetched and highly improbable, but it is entertaining.  It is about an ex-priest, widower with children who "accidentally" becomes nominated to the Papacy.  It is a little dated, but at the same time it is timeless as history does repeat itself.  It is an interesting novel in the light of human foibles and errors.

I bought a one gallon jug of Dawn Detergent they other day.  It is slightly cheaper by buying it by the jug.  I then pour it into the smaller, empty Dawn bottle and set the big jug aside.  I may save about 20 cents, but I am more interested in saving time and trips to the store.

I have not bought bathroom tissue in months, but I have opened my last package, so it is time to start stocking up again.  I will not want to go out in the winter time.  I hope to start my re-stocking next month.

I guess tomorrow I will try to get the "lead out" and  get busy.  When I have a good book, all else fails.  Life takes a swing to the rear and I sit on my rear and read.  LOL!

 END

Lazy Me

I needed to go to the library today to return some books as they were due today.  On the way I stopped at the Farmers Market and bought a few tomatoes for a salad.  They had long Asian cucumbers that are supposed to be "burp less."  I bought one to try out.  The lady at the booth said they had put out over 500 tomato plants this spring-that is a lot!

I checked my tomato plants and I think I see a few blossoms.  The pepper plants may be having a few blossoms, too.  As I went to close my back door this evening I spotted a fat rabbit right in the middle of the back yard.  Lucky rabbit.  Can't fire a gun in town.

I didn't do much today other than vegetate near the A/C.  Tomorrow I need to get busy.  The humidity is still high.

I am happy with how much better my old Dell Computer is doing.  It took some time to scan, clean, defrag and get rid of old, unused programs, but it is worth the effort.  I have a few things that I wish to keep on the old workhorse Dell, that I don't want on this little laptop.  The Dell was a used machine/tower when I got it.  I think it may have been an office computer from the looks of some of the stuff I got rid of. 

The library is giving a bunch of free computer courses on Saturday.  I think I might sign up to learn how to use flash drives and memory sticks.  The more you learn, the more you know.  Not that I don't know, but I can fine tune my understanding.

There isn't much going on, so I guess I will go back to my book.  I went back to reading as the eye Dr. says it makes no difference.  So says he.  Anyway, what does he know...he's only a Doctor.

END

This is a happy cat.  It is not the stray that lives under my old motor home, but looks just like it except the cat that likes my front porch, the shade of the vehicle, and the birds it tries to catch, is a very thin cat.  Today that cat is a little happier.  I gave it an almost full can of spam.  The cat ate until I thought it would burst.

I have mentioned before that that cats are frequently abandoned from renters and the section 8 housing around the corner.  At one time I bought cat food for the few cats that showed up on my property.  Now, I put out what I have and Spam is what was in the refrigerator.   I don't like Spam, but once in a while I will open a can if I don't want to cook.  The cat loved the Spam and to my mind it is the next best thing to cat food.  Spam is like offal...er...I mean awful.  If you knew what it was made of and how it was made...you would call it offal, too.  I will eat it rather than starve.

We got a lot of rain.  It started getting dark Sunday afternoon and then the wind began to stir.  Around 6 PM the rains came.  It was not a violent storm, but the rain a good soaker.  It rained on and off through the night and into this morning.  It cooled down to 68 degrees overnight.  It isn't all that hot today, but oh, is it humid.  One good thing about the rain and humidity is that it will dampen the fireworks  and drinking a little bit.  It looks like rain for most of the week and hotalot-a new word for-hot a lot.

I spent a few hours cleaning up my old Dell computer by defragging, correcting errors, and registry errors.  Hope to have it as a backup for a long time "though it is a bit slow.  Even the speed is better now.

The cat didn't come back to finish what was left of its spam dinner.  It is probably sleeping it off somewhere.  Drunk on Spam?

I didn't work outside at all.  The ground is wet.  The woman next door mowed her wet grass; a good way to clog a mower.  Well, she didn't need to mow much as her back yard is about the size of a small drive way.  I doubt that you could park two cars there,  They also have  long access area that they use as a dog run.  It could be used as an off street parking driveway. The grass there is getting high and needs to be cut.  You can't buy a house here unless it has an access to the back ally because that is where the trash pick up takes place.  Or it is all over the place due to stray cats.  Cats gotta eat, too!

END