The Fall

Day 24: It has been said that democracies have a life expectancy of around 200 years. America did pretty well by comparison, although I had really hoped its demise would not occur in my lifetime. The major flaw in a democratic government is the very thing it prides itself on nurturing: the voice of the people. Yesterday, we witnessed what happens when a society has been dumbed down by the combination of a wishy-washy educational system which insists that "no child be left behind," the entertaiment field and its promulgation of violence and sex, and the bloody effing internet which has removed almost all filters from our social interactions and supplies more misinformation than it does facts. In the end, these factors have rendered a majority of our population stupid, immoral, gullible, and worse, manipulable. According to Natural History magazine, "27 percent of Americans believe in astrology, while in recent years, colleges and universities have graduated fewer than 1,000 Astronomy majors a year." That and other similar exhibitions of an unenlightened mindset are what has brought us to this sorry pass. Our American democracy has proved to be its own worst enemy.

Banding Together

Day 23: I feel like I have been working on these two bands for ages. Rowdy little cats get very curious about moving feet as well as dangling threads and bobbins, and tempting webs of warp entice little paws into all sorts of mischief. That said, I've made enormous progress on both bands over the last few days as I fidget and fuss over situations beyond my control. I don't recall how much warp I put on Jutta (the band on the left) other than that it stretched all the way across my living room. Nelda's is at least thirty feet long, the measure determined by the crackle-weave tablecloth it will eventually adorn. The thread is twice the weight of Jutta's ground thread. As long as I wait until Small Cat is having a nap, I think there's hope that I may finish these up fairly soon.

Half A Tat

Day 22: As if this election wasn't enough to fray my nerves, it has been compounded by having to have the repairman out to take another look at my heat pump which recently stopped working properly. The good news is that it is still under warranty. The bad news is that I will have to keep using the Cadet heater while an extensive parts list is ordered and filled. That list includes the compressor. It will probably be at least a week, maybe more for the work can be scheduled. Even at the best of times, I tend to have the attention span of a gerbil, becoming bored with whatever I've picked up to work on within five to ten minutes and then moving on to something else. Consequently, projects demanding focus and/or time have been back-burnered for the duration. Today was spent hopping between tatting, weaving on two band looms, knitting, working puzzles (anagrams and sudoku), reading and fidgeting. I'm getting a lot done. I'm just doing it in fits and starts. I'm not the only member of the household who was nervous about having a repairman in the house. Merry had to be locked in the bathroom for the duration, and once the technician had left, my poor little catty kept winding himself around my ankles, wanting hugs and love and reassurance. He has worse ahead of him. It's going to take about four hours for the heat pump to be repaired.

In Sync

Day 21: If there was an Olympic competition for synchronized blooming, my cacti would have taken silver, only missing gold because Picotee didn't quite stick the landing. Evidently a little fatigued by putting on a spectacular show, the pink-edged flowers were already starting to fade a little by the time White was in peak form. All three are sitting in my kitchen window at this point, perhaps not completely safe from prying paws, but Somebody has gotten so lardy, I can hear when he jumps up on the counter. He doesn't do it often now, but for a while, I thought I was going to have to find homes for my houseplants. At any rate, my team of cacti are performing excellently this year, albeit a bit early for the holidays.

Baklava

Day 20: I don't make it often, but I keep phyllo pastry on hand (commercial, frozen) for those emergencies when nothing will do but baklava. The question was whether or not there were any walnuts in the freezer as well, although I could have used pecans (another staple) to make it even richer. Digging past pine nuts, the aforementioned pecans and hazelnuts, I found a 12-ounce bag of walnut pieces, just perfect for my 13 x 9 pan and half a box of phyllo. Baklava is so decadent, it's hard to believe how simple it is to make. You don't really even have to stick to a recipe, unless you're aiming for specific proportions. Just mix up some sugar with cinnamon and cloves, and stir in the walnut bits. Have lots of melted butter on hand, and coat the bottom of a pan before layering on the first two leaves of phyllo. After each two, brush butter on the pastry and add two more. Do this a couple of times until you have 6-8 leaves of phyllo on the first layer. Sprinkle on part of the walnut mixture, and then add another 6-8 sheets of phyllo. You'll want at least two layers of walnuts (I usually make three) before adding the last 6-8 phyllo leaves. Butter the top layer, and score the pastry into serving-sized pieces. Bake at 350 until golden brown. In the meantime, make a syrup of 1 part sugar, 1 part water, 1/2 part honey. Mix together, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes or so. Allow the syrup to cool a bit, although you'll want it to still be warm. When the pastry is done, let it cool for about 10 minutes before pouring the warm syrup over the top. Let it set for at least six hours so the syrup can soak into the phyllo. And then...enjoy!

La Ofrenda

Day 19: In lieu of a physical ofrenda which would undoubtedly prove to be way too much temptation for a seven month old, rowdy kitten to resist, I decided to create a digital version. Of course it doesn't include every member of my family who is no longer with us simply because space does not allow, but they are in my heart on this Día de Muertos. Top to bottom, left to right: Cocoa, my Cockatoo, my soul and the love of my life; my father and mother, shortly after their marriage; Skunk, my old grandma-cat, cussedness and love in one furry bundle; Bruce, my husband, who had the best nose for mushrooms of any person I've ever known; Tippy, precious Boy, Spaghetti Monster, my sweetheart; my fishing buddy and his wife, dear friends who "adopted" me into their family; Harry Dickens, brilliant and brief flame; my grandmother, who taught me many forms of needlecraft; Carlo, who would insist that he was "Papa's Parrot!" if he were here to ask. When Memory lives, Spirit endures, for what are we but how we are remembered, alive or dead?

Galerina Marginata, A Portrait

Day 18: Galerina marginata (sometimes listed as G. autumnalis) has several edible look-alikes, but its common name of "Funeral Bell" should give you a clue as to what will occur if you confuse it with any of them. A couple of distinguishing features will help you sort it out, but remember: it's better to throw away an edible species than to consume a poisonous one, so play it safe. If you see evidence of an annulus (ring) or roughness on the stipe (stem) which would hint that a ring might have existed, the 'shroom in question is most likely Galerina marginata. Also examine the gills. If they are lightly decurrent (i.e., running down the stem) or attached to the stipe (as opposed to notched), do NOT add one to your basket to take home for further analysis! Even in small amounts (residual spores, etc.), G. marginata can be deadly. That said, this common species is a potent decomposer, growing abundantly in colonies on rotting evergreen and hardwood, breaking down the wood structure with its mycelium. Even poisonous 'shrooms play a role in the Circle of Life in the forest. Let them do their job.