Here We Come a Wassailing
For the Newbies and Lurkers and Regulars!
I’ve opened the early evening Solstice Eve Lounge…a place to ritually let go of something that bothers you…come on by…
Wassail with Apple Cider
4 litres apple cider or juice
1 orange, chopped
1 lime, chopped
1 lemon, chopped
4 cinnamon sticks or 1 t. ground cinnamon
1 inch-square piece of fresh ginger or 1/4 t. ground ginger
1 t. cloves, allspice and/or star anise…heat all and simmer in an enamel pot (aluminum can impart a metallic flavor) on low for an hour, then serve to cold, caroling folks. I use an enamel crock pot – 1 hour on high then shift to low…simmer all day.Brandy or rum for adults, optional addition as it is being served.
Traditional Christmas Wassail
4 cups brown ale
1 cup dry sherry* or dry white wine
3 oz. brown sugar
4 apples
peel of ½ lemon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground gingerWash the apples and peel them just around their “equators.” Place the apples, brown sugar and 4 tbsp. of the brown ale into an ovenproof dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the apples are tender. Remove the apples and add the remaining ale, sherry or wine, lemon peel, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger. Simmer gently for a few minutes. Add the apples and serve with a toast of “Wael hael!”
What’s your favorite afternoon hot drink in the winter??
Welcome to the afternoon lounge!
For those still working hot drinks, optional with alcohol, are being served. Anyone out there goofing off…pull up a cozy chair and drinks will be served!
continued here.
What’s your favorite cheese?
Irish Cheddar or Brie
Both are very different…but yummy!
Favorite cheese? You mean there’s more than just Velveeta?
Jarlsberg but provolone (real provolone, not that awful mushy bland stuff impersonating it) is awfully close behind.
Fresh, marinated mozzarella. And some good summer tomatoes to go with it.
That sounds so good! I just got some grape tomatoes…
With some fresh basil in between… pure and simple bliss!
… makes a delicious pasta dish. Mmmm.
Brie, melted on potato scallion bread. Mmmm.
Feta crumbled on tomatoes with garlic and fresh basil. Mmmm.
I will eat any cheese but Swiss. Nothing personal against the Swiss.
The cultural icon of jackpine savage survivors is “commodity cheese” (which may also be a known cultural reference to anyone else who’s intimately familiar with the welfare line, but which has special significance to the Indian community): it has served me well–in fact, was the key factor in being pulled from the “lost and found” bin of living relatives on the Rez (who recently called and sang me a wonderful drum song on the phone, saying (as always), “when you gonna haul your ass back home.”
So, every time I do make it up to the rez, I insist that my hosts fill me with commodity cheese and frybread lest I forget my real roots.
But, to be honest, I miss the Raclette (thinly sliced please), miss the Jarlsberg, the aged Gouda, the Gorgonzola, the Emmentalers and the Gruyezers…just as much as I missed the Cheddar for the duration of my stay in Europe: the cheese is always cheesier on the other side of the pond, eh?
and something fishy smelling in the bowl for my fat friend here who has been waiting patiently since dawn.
You and that cat must have an incredible affinity because you take such great pictures of her.
I believe she is the feline equivalent of me. Except she luxuriates in her flabbiness, while I curse mine. But we both seek out patches of sunshine to nap in and spend inordinate amounts of time waiting for our next meal.
What a great picture. If there is heaven for cats, this is surely it.
Hello, hello. Popping in quick to say hello. Lovely Cafes today SallyCat! Just came from reading the one from this morning. 🙂
Yum, thanks for that snack, Indy. I recently discovered he has a hairy chest, so I like him much better fully clothed.
James Irvine Trail in Prairie Creek State Redwoods Park
That is gorgeous Andi. So lush and green and dark red earth. Thank you for posting this!
for something other than white and bare trees (which is what I see out my window when I’m sitting here all day at my computer).
This is the second* most beautiful state park I’ve been in and its hiking trails are outstanding.
BTW, the correct name of the park is Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park.
*Koke’e State Park on Kauai holds top honors.
I can understand that completely! I’m looking out at gray — gray and blah and snow. That looks so … ALIVE!
You don’t happen to have any pics of your top honour, do ya? 🙂
I remember the endless variations of gray that make up a typical Cleveland winter. Sometimes you’d swear you were looking at a B&W photo. My oldest son told me recently that he had seen the quintessential Cleveland winter scene: a barren field of days-old snow, brown with car exhaust, bare winter trees, leaden gray skies, and, on a fence post, a lavender bra blowing in the wind off the lake. It was the only thing reminding him that there was color in his world.
… sounds like an excellent photo waiting to be catured SN! 🙂
One of the worst things about winter is exhaust-dirty snow. Yuck.
I was lamenting that he didn’t have a camera with him. It sounds like a great photo.
Oh yes my friend! You just made me homesick for Kauai. Koke’e State Park is awesome. From the highest point looking down into the kalaeui valley, the innermost tropical rainforests and the marked trails that lead to breathtaking veiws of the Waimea Canyon(the Grand Canyon of the Pacific) and magnificent waterfalls. Oh, I miss the ina.
Hi Aloha, yes me too, one of the most beautiful spots on earth in the middle of the most beautiful state, I met a man who was born in the valley when I was there and he spoke of taking donkey rides out of the valley to go to towns and maybe school, cannot rem. exactly, but he loved it so down there in that valley.
I tried to find a good pic of canyon to post, pics however do not do it justice, anyway readers can find some pics herethat show the majesty of this unexpected beauty in the middle of an island.
is getting the good part of the Pineapple Express. It is balmy, around 78 degrees and the surf is roaring in at about 9-15 feet. It is glorious.Reminds me of Kauai today. Sorry to those shoveling snow today.
on that trail right now — then again, I just wore myself out making the damn bed. Seems to take longer making a queen than a double, and the blankets are heavier too… 🙁
Now I need a shower and to get out of here…just realized I need a cooling rack and one more cookie sheet before I do the baking tomorrow (and my hand mixer just gave up the ghost 🙁 ).
This is my favorite photograph in the world. It feels like home to me.
{{Andi}} Thank you.
the picture is farther north but definitely close enough to call home.
You can see a bunch more Northern California images here. Click on image to see the larger version of any particular one or do the slideshow to see them all one at a time.
And I hope you are getting as little work done today as I am 😉
Thanks, I’ll follow that tonight.
Right now I’m looking for clipart of Ben Franklin. We’re getting ready to celebrate his 300th birthday. I need stuff that looks good at 130px wide.
(yawn)
As long as we a paying homage to Europe – I must instead on Belgian and French Dark Chocolate being included….
This one has Hazelnuts among other things! Yummy…and about 67% dark chocolate (IIRC)!
I had to go to Brussels for work for a couple of weeks and over a weekend I went to Bruges and brought my husband back dark chocolate swans (swans figure into a Bruges legend). He and his fellow chocoholic team teacher said it was the best chocolate they had ever had.
A friend just came back from doing a degree there, and he brought back some chocolate. It was unbelievable! (And I, like your husband, am a chocaholic).
And dark chocolate can be eaten guilt free as more/more studies say it is good for the heart.
Very dark. I just got one, I haven’t bitten it yet, though. More as it becomes available on this developing story.
Well, so maybe this aint’ the place, but I don’t know where else to put this inquiry.
First of all, can anyone remember and remind me who it was in this forum who coined the term “401K liberals” (am working on a new blog entry and want to give credit where credit is due).
Also, now that James and Ductape have helped me figure out how to add links, have been sprucing up the blog (which, alas, still hasn’t been added to the list of Frog Stalkers, oh well).
I’m hoping to avoid overlap, but am looking for well-written, progressive, radical, far-left bloggers who ARE NOT necessarily listed here or on the other links I’ve now got posted, the thinking being, if someone goes say to Ductape’s blog, they can follow Ductape’s links, same with James, etc. — I’ll be adding more Bootribbers soon…
Any suggestions/candidates for inclusion would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks….the Nutcase.
I can’t recall who it was that came up with that – sorry no help to you with that.
I’ll take a look at your blog tonight when I get home, and see if there are any bloggers that I know that you don’t have listed and might interest you. I’m sure you know about LSF?
Thanks. I’m sure if I went through my own comments, I’d be able to find it, too. At any rate, no huge hurry–I work on “Indian time” not “internet time” (he.) 😉
because I’m not sure of what your definitions are. All of these qualify as well-written, they are certainly progressive, maybe far left, probably not radical. They all are feminists but for some that is there primary focus and for others it is secondary.
So I’ll just list some and you can look to see what you think.
I Blame the Patriarchy
Shakespeare’s Sister
World O’Crap (a satire site)
Alas (a blog)
Echidne of the Snakes
HEy ANdi, Thanks. Picked up Alas (a blog)–had been eyeing that one for awhile.
What I’m trying to do is avoid this endless list of choices which is about like standing in the fucking “feminine hygiene products” section of your local grocery store or all purpose buy everything in seventy-two thousand different versions–like jeezus h christ what happened to the days when the only thing you had to chose from was tampax and playtex–because of course Kotex was never an option! lol.
So I’m not looking for “supermarket-like” variety–but am searching for blogs that offer links to other magical and mind-boggling destinations.
So Alas (a blog) does the trick on that score (particularly liked the business about de Beauvoir and the translation issues there!). Many thanks, you’re such a mensch.!
Everyone keep em coming….there’s still room for more.
If you haven’t been to Echidne, I think you might want to take a look at that site. She is an economist, a European now living in America, feminist, and a very, very good writer and thinker. And she does tend to do linking.
Yeah, well her link to Pinko Feminist Hellcat was a good sign. LOL!
Hate to admit it, but as an old-school radical feminist who’s since been screwed, dissed, disparaged and destroyed more by women (who dare to call themselves “feminists”) than by men….I’ve developed a certain skepticism toward anything containing the “F-word”–but will take a closer look.
At any rate, won’t be overloading the site with heavy-handed feminist stuff.
After years as a staunch and radical feminist, = came back to this country only to find that women became my WORST backstabbing enemies.
In my performance activities have since developed a policy that I will NOT share my stage with women–the men I work with are much more supportive, respectful and appreciative of what I do and who I am (and yes, it is MY stage–I am the artistic director and the motor behind the thing). If you feel “upstaged” by my presence on my stage: go back to the practice room and get those chops up, but don’t project your inferiority complex onto me! (yeah, long story, sorry to lay it on you outta nowhere).
Best I can figure is that this shit boils down to a bizarrely and perhaps uniquely American ethics of jealousy and resentment. Dunno. Only know that it’s not working for me anymore.
Never had that problem in Europe where 90 – 90% of my students and ALL my fellow performers were women (i.e., I worked almost exclusively in all women’s bands).
As I said, I’m still open to the “exceptions” –but since my return to the US in 92, I’ve said to myself again and again, “if THIS is what feminism has become, count me out.”
But these are good links, thanks for them, I’ll take more careful looks at them later.
about feminism because I am staunchly, unabashedly, and unapologetically a feminist.
I was an “old-school” feminist–founded the Student Feminist ALliance in college, helped establish Women’s Studies programs both in the US and in Germany, ran and held office as a feminist candidate in Germany, worked for many years with Radical Feminist philosopher Mary Daly; my first book translation was a book by a feminist author named Heide Goettner Abendroth (The Goddess and her Heros), did my dissertation on an Austrian woman author named Ingeborg Bachmann who, after her death, was “resurrected” by the German feminist movement and is probably on a par with Virginia Woolf (w/ re output, outlook and decidedly “feminist” thought), am currently working on translations of one of the single most “prestigious” radical feminist authors in the world (Nobel laureate Elfriede Jelinek), am in fact the recipient of several awards for my research on Gender and Women’s Studies….but I just don’t see the American “feminist” movement living up to the standards of practice that we “old-school” feminists (70s-80s) put forth AND practiced, nor to the standards for the same that I saw in Germany. I see a lot of theory, very little practice and a helluva lot of nasty backstabbing.
As I said, the most egregious exploitations and disrespect of my work since I returned to this country in 1992 have come from WOMEN–women who consider themselves “feminists”. Don’t get me started, but it’s the truth.
Even in the Stark Wars–look at the people who were most vicious in their attacks on me–women who dared to call themselves “feminists”.
Uhuh. If that’s what feminism is, I ain’t a feminist. Not anymore.
Course my track-record, my actual practice and everything about me tells a different story, but that’s beside the point…;-)
I don’t have your academic credentials and don’t operate in academic sphere at all but I have been actively involved with feminism since the late 60’s. Your experiences aren’t mine which is not to say that yours aren’t valid but I would disagree that they somehow represent everything there is to say about feminism in this country. In the first place, feminism is hardly a monolithic movement and anyone can call themselves a feminist, regardless of one’s actual beliefs (ifeminists being, to me, an exemplar of this). I certainly have run into feminists with whom I don’t agree and feminists who are complete assholes but there isn’t an -ism where that isn’t true. You don’t want to be considered a feminist, I’m fine with that but I can’t agree with the idea that the experiences you have had can be said to represent the sum total of American feminism.
Andi, in many ways, my statements must be taken with a grain of salt, and to some degree, “tongue in cheek”–though I won’t deny my profound sense of disappointment at the things I have experienced in this country (and in fact deep woundedness, especially being dissed and dismissed by “younger generations” of “feminists” who don’t seem to realize that, were it not for our pioneering efforts, they’d still be studying the sons of educated men and nothing else). Nor is has feminist activity ever been restricted to “academics”–I am a highly reluctant academic, an anti-academic with a degree (walking contradiction). In fact, most of my feminist activism and engagement has been at the grass-roots level, seeking to improve the lot of women like my mother (American half-breed welfare mom with an 8th grade education).
Yes there are assholes in every group: as Buffy St. Marie once said it, “Windigo…they run in every race.” But I have been ruthlessly exploited by women in this country from every sector–from the welfare class, to “hip” alternative-wicca-hippy-types to aca-Dames–I believe it has more to do with the Americanism that surrounds them than with “feminism” per se.
When it boils down to it, I still support feminist causes–even the causes of feminist women who have directly done things to sabotage my work–when I’ve felt their cause was “worthy.”
Remember Mary Daly’s famous statement: Even if I were the LAST feminist on the planet, I still would be a feminist.
That holds true for me–but I can no longer accept the label because it has come to represent things which, for me, are not “feminist” in the sense I understand the term. You cannot have worked intimately with Dr. Dr. Mary Daly for years and years and NOT be a feminist at your core. 😉 It’s just that my feminism has assumed a different form of expression–and I have no need to call it “feminism”–if people don’t recognize it as being inherently and in fact flagrantly feminist, oh well.
To this day, I consider the works and working with Daly the single most influential force shaping my thought.
But my understanding of what feminism is is largely shaped by years of experience in the German feminist movement–I can’t erase those years of experience and can’t help but “dare to compare.”
So please don’t misunderstand me to be an “anti-feminist”–and there will definitely be a strong feminist voice on my blog, but it’s not going to be the focal point. 16 times bitten, twice shy. 😉
Afternoon everyone…I voted for the hot coffee and… with the and being Kaluha with lots of whipped cream on top. Then again I have to say that’s my preferred drink year round barring a few good margarita side trips.
I voted for hot chocolate. No marshmallows, no whipped cream, but sometimes w/ Baileys. 😉
How are you doing?
Hi Olivia…I’m trying to make myself step away from the computer and get some more baking done. My sister/husband are going to my nephews for Christmas in Arizona(he has 5 kids) and I am just not up to the trip..but promised my nephew I send along some of his favorites that I bake every year.
Have to have it all done by tomorrow as they are leaving very early Friday morning. That and get two small platters of goodies for two of the older ladies here in this apt. complex in reciprocation for the homemade jam and stuff they give me.
And if anyone is wondering, 99% of my holiday baking involves chocolate recipes.
That sounds good. Happy baking!
I apologize to everyone for the multiple pictures but I couldn’t do just one.
That is stunning. I can’t imagine what it was like in person. Wow. Thanks Andi!
We can’t really be FenceSitters when it comes to giving the thumbs up on these amazing photos can we Olivia?
You’re right about that CI. The photos BTers post are really quite something.
You’re welcome.
It’s amazingly diverse place. It has cliffs along the ocean, rain forests, a beautiful canyon (Mark Twain called it the Grand Canyon of the Pacific), an swamp filled with abundant plant life (you’d go crazy for the flowers and the ferns), and a dead volcano that is the wettest place on earth.
My sister and her son leave tomorrow for 8 days in Hawaii, courtesy of the Make-a-Wish foundation. I don’t know their itinerary but they were supposed to go to that state park for one of the days. It looks beautiful.
Oh it is too beautiful for me to have any words to do it justice. Even the pictures just give the barest idea.
Just the drive up to the park is great and there are several really good overlooks for the cliffs and the canyon. So he’ll be able to see a lot without having to do much walking.
And tell them that Jo-Jo’s in the town of Waimea is famous for their shave ice (which is “made by shaving a block of ice with an ultra-sharp blade, which results in ice as thin as frozen powder. The shave ice is then saturated with a sweet syrup.” It can be had alone or on top of ice cream.)
now you’ve really done it. I am sitting in my office tearing up from veiwing those pics. You are right though, they do not do the Park justice. I so miss my island. Those were the best and worst eight years of my life. I went through a devasting divorce but found myself there. The island is a very healing and gentle place. I could spend hours talking about my “special” places. One special place is Polehale State Park Beach….fifteen miles of white sand beaches and the most incredible place to camp for three days.
If you get the shaved ice it really is yummy with the ice cream on the bottom. Thanks for posting these wonderful pictures Andi!
Well, I’m sorry to make you tear up (esp. at work) but I’m glad I could help bring back you some great memories for you. I don’t think I could ever get enough of Koke’e. Another place that we just loved was the Kilau Ridge Trail — it just seemed to epitomize peacefulness.
We loved Polihale. We were staying in Waimea and we would go over and with a little picnic dinner to watch the sunset.
Sunsets and Moonsets were incredible. Watching the humpback whales and dolphins play. It is heaven on earth. The kalaleua trail is a whole nother world. I have only hiked the first couple of miles but intead on going back soon and doing the whole 11 miles. It is very narrow and treacherous(or so I have been told). What is hard to imagine is that before the missionaries came that valley was where everyone lived and the population was around 500,000. Now it is only about 58,000 for the whole island.
We got a permit to do the trail but it was really muddy and was being badly torn up by the amount of traffic on it. We don’t like crowds and we hated to contribute to the harm being done to the trail, so we turned back and went and hiked a chunk of the Powerline trail instead and had it all to ourselves.
Good for you. Powerline is incredible for sure and one of the little known trails to tourists. It is so much fun to chat with someone that loves the island as much as I do. Gotta run. Baking cookies and wrapping presents. Have a great night.
Favorite afternoon (and evening) drink on a cold day: Hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps.
But I ususally have tea. Sigh.
[adds peppermint schnapps to grocery shopping list…]
Got about an hour and a half before I have to high-tail it out of here…since I’m having dinner solo tonight I figure I’ll leave late, eat first then brave the crowds for one last day (other than tonight when the spouse and I have to go to Best Buy to get a DVD for the bro-in-law). Trying to decide if I should bring the wheeled daypack or not; I’m not getting a whole lot, but better to be safe than sorry…
You’re going to Best Buy? On December 21? You don’t need a daypack, you need a stick to fight your way through the crowds.
I was there two weeks ago and thought I was going to be killed!
I thought I’d take a minute here and tell everyone who posts all those gorgeous pictures and the humorous ones also that they are a soothing balm for me when I’ve read too much heavy political stuff during the day..I come here knowing I am going to not only have fun reading what people have posted but knowing I’m going to be transported if only for a few seconds to some snowy retreat, or secret garden, a wonderfully foggy shoreline or burrow into a beautiful flower.
Thanks to everyone who makes the Cafe such a welcome and visual retreat.
I totally agree. I don’t say it often enough — I don’t ever have words that are as grand as the photos I see here.
So, I say thank you, but it doesn’t seem like enough.
I suppose now’s as good a time as any to tell you how much I enjoy the puffs of “blue air” you leave behind whenever you go off on a high quality rant, Chocolate Ink. ;p
fucken nice of you to say that…..can’t have a good rant without lots of blue air as far as I’m concerned. Of course with bushco it’s really hard not to simply rant all the time but I try to pick and choose unless I’m just having a cranky day. Then any little thing might set off a rant.
It’s good to know the photos do for other people what they do for me. I love looking at photos of just about anything and I’m so glad to have so many people here have such great ones to share, whether they are high art or low laughs.
And I’m equally happy at anything I do to help you get through the day because I know that means you’ll be back with your posts (whether rants or straight-up) that always give me lots of things to thing about.
Anytime anyone writes/posts anything that makes someone stop and think is always, always a plus in my book. I suspect my posts don’t necessarily say anything new but may state ideas or feelings in slightly different way to make someone stop and think for a bit.
So enough seriousness, time for that kaluha/coffee.
Best when served after finishing an hour of shovelling.
Since I’m not old enough to drink. 🙂
…there’s no age limits for chocolate!
An hour of shovelling, eh? That sounds like a lot of snow!
As a matter of fact, it is going to be in the fifties here this weekend. But when we got over two feet back in ’03, I did spend an hour shovelling it all. With help. Not fun, but my heart can take it (maybe not if I drink too much cocoa).
Froggy Bottom Lounge – Solstice Eve has been opened…
Remember to unrecommend this diary and recommend the new one.