sine qua non

I heard someone use this phrase last week, and I wasn't sure what it meant or if it was even a word....

sine qua non: Without which, not; an indispensable condition (cited)

sucanat and other "sugars"

Sucanat - shortened form of "sugar cane natural," an unrefined sugar that still contains molasses, and has less sucrose than table sugar, also contains some minerals

raw sugar - unrefined as well, so it still contains molasses, but it is crystallized, has less sucrose, brown sugar, (Turbinado, Demerara)

(brown) rice syrup - (made from rice), high in maltose --> low glycemic index

maple sugar - straight up boiled map sap, and deeeelicious

coconut syrup - just what it says

cane juice - crystallized & less sucrose than table sugar w/o added chemicals

agave - one of my favorites, from the cactus, mostly fructose, low glycemic

Jaggery / palm sugar - unrefined sugar, common in India, palm tree sap

When baking & cooking, sweetener equivalences differ....so look it up!

vena cava filter

So, a question came up recently in causal chit chat about vena cava filters. Here's my understanding of the filter and clotting. This by no means is any kind of certified information, solely my understanding from what I have read, so please don't take this as any kind of medical advice because it's not!

a (heparin coated metal) filter put into the vena cava (which is a large vein that returns blood to the heart from the body) to "catch" clots so as to prevent a pulmonary embolism which occurs when a clot travels to the lungs through the circulatory system and cuts off blood supply to a part of the lungs. You may wonder well what happens when the filter catches all these clots? Does it get all clogged up? The body naturally absorbs clots. Well then if the body naturally absorbs clots, why do we worry about clots? We worry about clots getting lodged somewhere and reducing blood flow or cutting off blood supply to an organ. There is platelet aggregation & the clotting cascade, which is quite complex, but basically involves factors --> factors & prothrombin --> thrombin --> fibrinogen --> fibrin --> clot. Clot formation is limited to the need for a clot. When it is time for dissolution of the clot, "fibrinolysis:" plasminogen + factors --> plasmin --> breaks up the fibrin meshwork leaving what are termed fibrin degradation products. Then other enzymes in the body work to dissolve these leftover products. Prostacyclin is also produced, which does not allow platelet aggregation to occur.

On the natural health front, nattokinase (found in natto (Japanese), fermented soybeans) is thought to be a natural enzyme that can be taken to reduce blood clotting...some claim that it dissolves clots...

broccolini vs. broccoli rabe - demystified

In the past year, I discovered broccolini, a most wonderful vegetable. When trying to explain broccolini to those who haven't discovered it yet, I am often given baffled looks or directed to the broccoli rabe section of the grocery store. So, here is some clarification.
Brocolini is a cross between broccoli and some Chinese vegetable ( I have heard it's Chinese kale as well as chard, and also that it is a relative of bok choi...nonetheless, broccoli is crossed with some Chinese vegetable). The part I am interested in is the appearance and the Taste! It has long stalks with bushy heads that look like broccoli florets. The stalks are said to resemble asparagus, but I don't see that resemblance :o) It also has long thin leaves.
Istockphoto has some nice images:








Broccoli rabe, on the other hand, looks like a big bush: image








So, the motivation for writing about this was that I fell in love with broccolini, and I saw some broccoli rabe at the Italian deli, and I thought, hmm, that would be good, relating the two in my head. Well, broccoli rabe is broccoli rabe, and it hasn't changed: it's still bitter with that weird taste. Broccolini falls somewhere in between all these green vegetables, taking the texture of broccoli as well as the texture of asparagus stalks with an un-bitter taste all of its own.

My favorite broccolini recipe is boiling the broccolini in just enough water to cover it to soften it. Pour off the water. Then heat up olive oil & garlic & roll the broccolini in it until it coats it. Add some S & P and whatever else you like, and there you go!

nepotism - word of the day

showing of favoritism toward relatives, based upon that relationship, rather than on an objective evaluation of ability or suitability (wikipedia).

(Potassium) sorbate

So, Trader Joe's sells these non-sorbate pitted prunes, which begs the question: what's with the sorbate? Apparently, sorbates are used to preserve food & inhibit mold & yeast. I still don't understand what the big deal is with sorbate? Anyone know?

hidden trails of Wenonah...nature girl strikes again!

(backdated)
nature girls & their fearless leader, Meadow











After a long journey in the car to find the "hidden trails of Wenonah" (who knew there could be trails in flat south jersey?), we parked the car at South Princeton & East Willow St* alongside someone's home and ventured out. There appeared to be a pathway (the entrance perhaps?) through the woods, so we went, Katie & I following our fearless leader, Miss Meadow. Alas! We found some steps, dangerous steps, but we proceeded onward...you would think the steps would lead somewhere, right? We get to the bottom of the steps, and it appears as though we have lost the path. Yes, we have lost the path already, map in hand, and we've been at this less than a minute, minus the hour car ride to the destination that should have been 10 mins away. So, as Katie & I are looking at the map, our fearless leader explores. All of the sudden she sinks into the ground! Quicksand, I think! I start pulling on her leash, yelping Meadow, c'mon! Katie is dumbstruck as well, thinking quicksand. Why would there be quicksand, we aren't anywhere exotic...

>>>>honestly i was thinking " great vanessa's gonna jump in and then i have to jump in after vanessa" <<<<<

so, we get the dog out, but she is now half black and half blonde. She looks similar to the victims of the Exxon Valdez oil spill tragedy, and she STINKS!

So, to recap: in the middle of nowhere, one hour car drive, 2 minutes on the path, one stinky dirty dog, and I am ready to quit. Katie and I are puzzled over the map and what to do with the dog, and these people emerge out of the trees. They explain how the trail goes...well, I guess all I heard was that you don't go down the steps b/c I don't remember what they said, so we started off to the right...Meadow in the lead, of course. The next point of interest would be the house that we came to where we tried to decide if it was a "real" house or if it was somehow part of this escapade --> real house. So we trample through what seems like their backyard, yet what also seems to be part of the "hidden trails of..." That is when we saw the sign: "BEWARE of snakes in rocks!" Yes, indeedie, that said snakes IN rocks.
And we also discovered that the quicksand like mud pile that Meadow sunk in was part of a lake:


The rest of the story is that we walked in a giant circle, met some more people that seemed to appear out of nowhere & continued to explain that the trails actually went somewhere other than around the lake. When we got to a certain point, I asked Katie where we were, and she said we were where we started (apparently).

...the Prize of the day was this "Tea House:"


**Wenonah Trails to be supposedly attempted again in the "spring" when you can actually see where you are going. I think there will be much better places to venture to & adventure through!

This is a copy of the map I printed from some website explaining the trails:

Paterson, Day 2

(backdated)

So troubling to get here :o)

I have been experimenting with the camera as I haven't been photographing for a few years now, so there's dome decent pictures and some crappy pictures. I don't think getting them developed at Walgreen's has helped much...


same scene, longer exposure times (but i don't have anything sold to rest the camera on (a tripod is way out of the question) so it's just luck if the camera doesn't shake!):

from the other side:


and...

Buttermilk Falls, William Patterson U, Wayne

(backdated)
...and we didn't find them. There are a lot of trails around the university for exploring, but we were on a hunt for falls, so we left.

Wetumka Falls, Watchung/Plainfield, NJ

washed away 10 years ago...reported to me by a police officer. I think I made his day with that one!

bushwhack is a real word

1. to make one's way through woods by cutting at undergrowth, branches, etc.
2. to travel through woods.
3. to pull a boat upstream from on board by grasping bushes, rocks, etc., on the shore.
4. to fight as a bushwhacker or guerrilla in the bush.
–verb (used with object)
5. to fight as a bushwhacker; ambush.
6. to defeat, esp. by surprise or in an underhanded way: They bushwhacked our high school team when they used college players.

- courtesy of dictionary.com

Paterson Day 1 - Nov 23, 2007

We drove for at least 45 mins to get there, and then I remembered: no film. There was nowhere to buy film though...

this blog's existence & other fun dilemmas

i like figuring things out. like those problems that give you a major headache - i think it's fun because when you solve it, it's an awesome feeling, so I guess we'll see how long this blog continues to puzzle me. My commitment is to make halfway decent posts till I figure out enough about it that I get bored I guess. halfway decent includes pictures...

tales from a gypsy: ...and there was Vermont!

finally, all that talk, and I ventured to Vermont...Nov 18-21

The drive up was a long one as we hit traffic on the NJ Turnpike. Gas station stops were particularly nice because people spoke English and the bathrooms were free to use, so pumping your own gas seemed as small price to pay for their kindness. We took 87 up straight through NY, and as soon as we crossed the border into Vermont, I was distracted by the stars. They were so brilliant and so seemingly close I had to stop the car. People passing by must have been miffed by the "stupid tourist who has to stop to look at the stars." We stayed up quite late chatting away and catching up...


The morning started bright and early with a hike up to the clearing, which was beautiful. The girls (Stella & Meadow) played nice with sticks. It was such a clear morning, but no pictures :o(

Then, we headed to Burlington.
We took a detour and visited the quarry:



We hung out at a nice coffeeshop and walked around. I was so excited to get a map of the area with a red star on it from the nice woman at Old Gold:


We spent some time paling around the next day as the snow fall was pretty heavy.
Peanut butter parties so Meadow would take her medicine:



"kitchen dog!"

Stelly in the Sun. she didn't seem to like to have her picture taken.


Meddy on the porch with snow on her nose - how cute!

Despite the snow, Megan took us on an adventure that started with seaweed salad, olive chips (they are soooo good), and garlic hummus, oh, and of course, some apple cider vinegar (gross). We ended up in Middlebury which turned out to be really nice, and we checked out the Vermont Soap Factory and Soap Museum. We picked up some great soaps and shower gel, and made our way through Middlebury. We bought some overly expensive maple candies, hot drinks, and VT jam, and headed home before the roads froze over. Just before home, we stopped in a General Store, where I had a nice long chat with the owner and was able to buy Orville's Light popping corn that you can 't seem to get anywhere nowadays. Megan showed me the first half of making lotion.

The last day, Thanksgiving Eve...what a day to travel: rain, sleet, and snow!
We finished the lotion. We hiked beside the water until we realized Meadow looked too much like a deer, and the little orange tie wasn't going to do much for her!








On the way down the hill, we took some great pictures of us sliding down, but they didn't come out :o( I even wiped out!

So, then came the challenge of getting down the hill without slamming into the guardrails that just looked way to small to help keep us from swimming in the river.

We made it though! Little did I know that was a small feat compared to what was to come.

Meadow & I adventured all through Vermont: we visited the Bowl Mill (Granville), where wooden bowls are carved. There was a little old man who seemed overjoyed at having a visitor! The bowls and cutting boards were gorgeous. Then we went across the street to Michael Egan Glassblowing Studio & Gallery. Michael blows glass as he talks to his visitors. We continued up VT-100 N , stopping at Moss Glen Falls:

We headed up North on VT-100 through Warren. I looked for Warren Falls, and I thought I saw the entrance, but it was too cold and too wet to take an unsure adventure. We drove on Covered Bridge Rd

We found a potter studio / store on the side road. Warren Village Pottery maybe? I parked and ventured up ot the house. No one was home, but I let myself in and looked around. There were instructions for how to purchase items and run the credit card machine, but I did not see anything that I fell in love with. Next, I parked at the municipal area, and visited across the street at The Creator's Shop, where I found my pottery purchase. Everything the store sells is crafted by local artists. Of particular interest were these maple leaves made of porcelain that looked like real leaves. In fact, I asked if they were real before I touched them. When I learned that they were not in fact real, I thought, "What a dumb question." Then the store keeper said that everyone asks that, and no, he was not patronizing me! They were beautiful, but I was trying to be realistic - I don't know anyone who puts things in their windows. So, I guess worth the mention, but not the buy.

I passed this sign on a tree and had to take a picture, too cute:


We pumped our own gas and headed toward Waitsfield to stop at the health food store, Sweet Pea, in the hopes of getting more seaweed salad - no such luck, so we picked up the all important dog treats, and other snacks. In fact, I bought these Chia cracker things that were pretty good. They kind of tasted like sweetened cardboard, but they were good enough that you wanted another one...

...and they're all gone, so that says something!

So, we headed up on 17 North, which looked like a major highway on the map. Instead what we discovered was a ginormous mountain that we had to climb with ice and sleet and snow and limited guard rails. Then, halfway up, when there was no sign of turning back, I realized we would have to make it down the hill, which I did not think was going to be possible. I saw a hitch-hiker on the way up, and I had a fleeting thought to pick him up - maybe he could help me? maybe he would kill me? Either way, I was too afraid to let the car stop moving! so I said a prayer, please God let somebody pick that poor guy up b/c he looked pretty sad when I passed him by. Downhill, I really thought we were not going to make it. I took a picture through the windshield, without focusing, in case we didn't make it. I think this was it:



Staring down this mountain, I kept thinking how is the car not sliding out, but we made it to the bottom, and I felt the need to take a picture: the "we made it" picture.


We made it to the "bottom," and we were still in a big cloud!





Onward on 17 to Bristol, but there was another detour! I had this address written down, but not the name of the place, and the road we would be traveling on had parts of it that were marked as not safe for traveling / closed in winter...Since we had made it down the mountain, "What could be worse?" I thought. The road was bordered by a river and some more falls and of course another covered bridge. We drove & drove until we arrived at 220 West River Road, which was Lincoln Pottery -- another unoccupied home.

We drove back out westward to Bristol. I popped in Honeylights to check out this beeswax candle making place, but I couldn't stand the smell of the beeswax. I felt bad because they were nice, but I headed straight for the door! Then I went across the street into a little knick knack store where I picked up some chutney that was absolutely delicious! Off to Middlebury, again. This time I popped in to Yak Adventure which sells some interesting items from the East, including Tibetan singing bowls. Then I got some fancy sort of chai tea (at Carol's), loaded it up with cinnamon, and took Meadow for a short walk.

Carol's Hungry Man Cafe
Happy silk chai that I can't pronounce
Fogged up windows with hearts
you can see through
Plans for a band
and peculiarly strange strangers
It's all granola, here.

Then I checked out Vermont Beads & Fibers, which was pretty cool if you have money to spend &a project in mind & less un-completed projects at home & knew what you were doing with knitting needles. On the way out, I hit up ****where I got this really cool lip balm and freshly made jam.

Next we headed south, through Brandon and Rutland, taking Route 7 all the way south to the outlets at Manchester Center straight through to Bennington, and then across to NY. We stopped at a bunch of places on the way. I attempted to find Candles & Things Gift Shop, but Horton Street was hiding from mew, and I wasn't going to fight the rain and fog and thanksgiving day traffic. Another lost cause was Sara's Scribbles in Brandon - I found 16 Carver Street, but the house really looked like a home, not doubling as a store/studio/home.

I also stopped somewhere in some state to return some Kohl's items that I had in my car...

Me & Meddy in the car :






Best of all, I got to spend some quality time with an old friend and our dogs. Oh, you are so special!

I think this one was Vermont, too:



1/10/08 - And I just found these babies:

I placed these on the Franklin Stove to warm them up...and they burnt :o(