I Think

Yes people can make somebody's condition worse, for example Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza was possibly autistic, and was under tremendous pressure by his airhead mother and daffy school authorities to "be normal" which made him crack.
Wiki- Lanza had "significant mental health issues that affected his ability to live a normal life and to interact with others.."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Hook_Elementary_School_shooting

I took a stroll through the new posts before coming here. All quiet on the cyber front.

I worked in the back yard, where the poison ivy grows. By the time I was ready for bed, my feet were fiercely itching. Took my shower, paying special attention to cleaning the itchy spots. Then I checked for some H3O. Out, all but the diluted stuff I drink. So, I wet it all down with that. Then put some DMSO over that. By the time I crawled under the covers, the itching was gone. Still okay this morning.

Did you notice that Obama did a bait and switch on the Republicans. He had some Social Security cuts in his new budget, so he said. This helped the House to pass the debt limit bill. Now it has been noted that he dropped the cuts from the budget.

Listening to Judy Collins this morning. Love that lady.

mrs edgarblythe is having severe joint problems these days. She saw a doc a while back, but must return.

I never thought about the cost of asparagus before I started eating it regularly. That stuff can be expensive. I suspect that the California drought will make it cost still more.

"Good puzzle would be to cross Dublin without passing a pub" So thought Leopold Bloom in James Joyce's Ulysses. Almost a century later, the puzzle has been solved by Rory McCann - after a number of unsuccessful attempts.

It's not a puzzle ed. It's a test.

EdgarB - I don't remember if you eat bread at all, or cook much unless you have to.
I have to tell you, though, about my latest effort at making crackers. I like crackers, and they are one of the items I forgo in grocery stores, as in money going to preservatives and packages.

So, today I was making one of my always varying ricotta tarts. This one had an olive oil crust, a 15 oz. container of ricotta (can't get the real stuff nearby), 4 eggs, some left over cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, some chopped frozen green beans, some spicy sauteed eggplant, some 'mediterranean mix' olives, some chopped spanish onion, oh, and some previously marinated mushrooms. Pepper added. The tart ends up giving me 6 to 8 slices for breakfasts; I freeze the slices in packages.

The oil crust - this time I added cumin seeds, some green chile pepper, some black pepper. I always make too much of it on purpose, first so that I make sure to have enough for the glass pie plate, and second, since I've figured out how to make crackers.

Roll the extra trimmings of dough out with a smidge of flour on the tile (I use floor tiles, cleaned natch, for pizzas and bread, et al); I roll it as thin as I can. And put the tile into the oven that is preheating for the ricotta pie, which is sitting in the refrigerator getting cold before I pour in the filling, so it doesn't get soggy.)

This time, I threw a lot of turmeric on the top of the rolled out dough on the tile, spread it around, added more black pepper, and smidge of salt.

Not only are the crackers delicious, but they are a beautiful golden yellow.

(Next time I'll skip the ricotta business and make a big batch of crackers)

I post all this since I know you like turmeric.

You make ricotta pie?
Yum

I like how you make crackers. I have been eating only the low sodium. I had looked for bread with barley/wheat and this was the only kind I could get, without baking my own.

The first recipe sounds great, but I don't eat much cheese, if I can help it.

Ads for that bread have been stalking me.

I bought a great round pan/bowl to fill with water for Rocky to play in. When he saw that I was connecting the hose, he went insane to get that hose away from me. I had to hold him off to even screw it on the faucet. As the water spurted into the pan, he kept himself in the flow. But, when I cut off the water, he failed to get in there. I rolled up the hose and put it where I had been keeping it, then went in the house to turn on the coffee pot. When I came out to check on him, Rocky had the hose in the yard and had already chewed off an end. I put the hose in the storage shed (fending off the dog the whole way). Now, he licks at the water in the yard, but has not figured out its to play in.

I'll write up the cracker recipe - it's so easy you won't even believe it. You can use whatever flours you want.. I do. Doesn't need kneading at all, hardly any mess.
Back in a bit..

easy and also easy to figure out what to put in it - your basic refrigerator or freezer clear out. I've got the recipe on a2k a few times if you want to look up ideas for it - just search ricotta torta or tart and it'll show up. Or follow what I said in that post (I cook it at 350 until done, which at this altitude is about an hour until the top is firm-ish, or a fork stuck in it doesn't drip..). At sea level, probably 50 minutes. You can add meat too. Um, sliced bratwurst?

And edgarB - without cheese - you could make baked eggs (as if scrambling them, adding, for each egg, 1/2 an eggshell of water). Butter the pie plate, add the beaten eggs, add stuff to the egg mixture, cook in oven. It comes out like a custard with goodies in it. Depending on the size of the eggs, I add six or seven eggs plus the water. You don't need a crust.

Rocky is so funny!

Thanks osso.
I saw some flecks of mud on Rocky's muzzle, a while ago. Went to see why. Seems he has learned to play in that water and has splashed half of it out, already.

Once again I thank what's his name for starting this thread

Okay, here's the olive oil crust recipe - should make a fair amount of crackers, let's guess four or five round discs that you 'crack' to pieces. (You can use canola, etc.)

pre heat at 350

for one pie crust or several thin discs:
- 11 total ounces of flour, or if you are not going to weigh it (I don't), use 2.5 cups. I tend to use whole wheat and AP flour, but have used spelt, sometimes adding a little buckwheat. Haven't tried barley flour, but why not..

1 1/4 tsp salt if you use salt
1 1/4 tsp dried herbs (here I play around - basil? fennel seeds? cumin seeds? rosemary? savory? thyme? black pepper?)

add to flour and herb mix -
75 ml of olive oil (.31 cup, I just used not quite a third until I got a measuring cup that had ml. markings)
150 ml cold water ( not quite 2/3 cup)
gather into a ball, mush it around a little to get it well mixed if it doesn't seem to be

sprinkle a little flour on work surface,
divide up the dough since you aren't making pie dough - maybe 4 0r 5 smaller balls
roll out one of the balls as thin as you can; place it on a pan or stone or whatever; the oil in the dough makes it fairly easy to lift from the work surface - also I've never needed to oil the pan/tile.
Add more seeds or turmeric or pepper to the top, press down a little bit on that if using seeds.

Put pan in oven - the last disc I made took about twenty minutes, but I'd just turned the oven on. I'd check it at ten..
it'll be done when you can tell it is fairly dry and crispy

Repeat with rest of the dough balls.

Work day #1.
I think Wednesday I will begin to cut the tree. I will use the small ladder at first, to cut the limbs it allows me to reach, then do the same with the extension ladder. I still have to get some rope and a few items to work with.

You must be off your head ed!!! A chap your age tackling a job like that seems like crazy-cook stuff to me. Especially when there's a book to write.

Or is this the book? A Proustian venture into no-man's land for the reader who need only click on your u/n to read the lot one after another, in the order they were written, with references but a click away. Impressionist literature for the cognoscenti.

An authentic slice of life in another time and place for the reader to get his head around.

You should get one of those slings you can sit in fastened to the trunk. And a chain saw.

Is that one of the 40 foot pines, Edgar?