iPod Roulette - February 2011

Normally when I play this game I use my regular iPod which currently has more than 3600 songs on it. In contrast, I only have 260 songs loaded into the iPod on my phone. I had such fun listening to the music on my phone recently that I decided to use it to play iPod Roulette this month. That playlist is fairly heavy on Classic Rock, but I still came up with a little bit of variety.

1. Crawl (Kings of Leon) - My younger daughter introduced me to this group. I have several of their songs in my iTunes collection.

2. Tom Sawyer (Rush) - My nephew, who is only eight years younger than I am, use to make fun of this group. Now he's a bigger fan than I am.

3. American Pie (Don McLean) - My first two years of college were at a small Liberal Arts school. Don McLean performed there during that time and I remember it was rumored that he never did this song in concert. Wrong. He did and it was wonderful!

4. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (Elton John) - I received this album for Christmas the year it came out. Ages ago!

5. He Still Loves Me (Beyonce and Walter Williams, Sr. of the O'Jays) - There is so much good music in the movie this comes from! (The Fighting Temptations)

6. Skin (Ephraim Lewis) - I made an entire blog entry about this guy. Such a shame we won't get more from him!

7. Hungry (Kathryn Scott) - Also known as Falling on my Knees, I first heard this song when a girl sang it at my church. I loved it and had to track it down for myself.

8. Sitting (Cat Stevens) - Catch Bull at Four is my favorite Cat Stevens album and this might be my favorite song from that album.

9. Europa (Gato Barbieri) - I'm pretty sure Carlos Santana wrote and first recorded this song. Donna Sue (who never blogs anymore) had this on her blog as an example of "as sexy as music can get". She was spot on with that observation.

10. Hand Me Down World (The Guess Who) - If I'm remembering correctly, this song was on one of the first albums I ever bought. (The first was a Tom Jones album - Green, Green Grass of Home)

11. Whispers in the Dark (Skillet) - Contemporary Christian Metal. Some might consider that an oxymoron.

12. Swayin' to the Music (Johnny Rivers) - Also titled Slow Dancing, I had to download this as a single from iTunes. Believe it or not, it isn't on his "greatest hits" album which I already had. I think it's his best song by far.

13. And the Cradle Will Rock (Van Halen) - As much as I enjoy AC/DC and Aerosmith, Van Halen has always been my favorite Hard Rock band. And before you ask.... David Lee Roth over Sammy Hagar.

14. Bring the Rain (Mercy Me) - They performed in my hometown last year and were outstanding!!!

15. Seasons in the Sun (Terry Jacks) - I'm happy to leave you with this one. If you recognize it, it will probably be stuck in your head for the rest of the day!

Shadow Shot Sunday #17

Hosted by Hey Harriet
(click above image for more photos)



Tiny Tree Shadow

Duck & Mushroom Stew

This is a recipe rehash from my old 360 blog. I made it recently and realized I'd never posted it here.


Duck & Mushroom Stew

4 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1-1/2 cups sliced fresh carrots
1 cup sliced celery
1 6-oz. pkg. long grain & wild rice mix w/seasoning packet
6 cups beef broth
approx. 3 ducks, breasted
bottled italian dressing

Marinate ducks in the refrigerator for a day or two in the italian dressing.

In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker place mushrooms, carrots, celery, and rice mix with seasoning packet. Place ducks on top of vegetables. Pour broth over all.

Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4-5 hours.

If using whole ducks... remove meat from the bone when done, cut or tear into bite-size pieces and stir into mixture before serving.

Ponderings #3

First, let me state something for the record. I do not believe in reincarnation.

But......if I did, I think I know what I might have been in a former life:

A monk in a scriptorium!

I came to this conclusion while working the crossword puzzle one morning. I spent hours in college hunched over a drafting table with pencil in hand (the same pencil that I still use to work the crossword each day) printing the alphabet. I still get a sense of satisfaction in filling the puzzle grid with neatly printed letters.

Give it some thought. Any ideas what you might have been?

Elephant Stew

This recipe appears on the same page of our 1974 church cookbook as the Lazy Girl Stew I shared yesterday.


Elephant Stew

Secure 1 large elephant. Kill, clean, and cut into small cubes. This will take about 2 months. Put in large kettle and simmer over kerosene heat at 465 deg. for 14 weeks. Make gravy to cover. This will feed 3,685 people. If more meat is needed, add 2 rabbits. But use only if necessary, as few people care for hare in their stew!

Reprinted from W.S.C.S. cookbook
Salem Methodist Church
St. Louis, Missouri

Lazy Girl Stew

Isn't it fun when you rediscover an old recipe that you'd forgotten about? Although I continued to prepare meat dishes for my family during the eight years that I was a vegetarian, this is one of the recipes that fell by the wayside. It comes from the cookbook our church music department published in 1974. The church organist at the time contributed this recipe. I'm so glad I remembered it!


Lazy Girl Stew

2 pounds cubed stew meat
1 can small peas (drained)
2 or 3 carrots, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 tsp. salt
Dash pepper
2 cans tomato soup
1/2 can water
2 potatoes, diced
Bay leaf

Throw it all into a Dutch oven and bake for 5 hours at 275F, or cook it 8-10 hours in a crock-pot.
(we like to serve it with a scoop of white rice)

Shadow Shot Sunday #16

Hosted by Hey Harriet
(click above image for more photos)

One star, three shadows.

Favorite Five - Trees

I'm tired of Winter and that turns my thoughts to "Springy" things. It was around this time last year that I did a Favorite Five - Flowers post. This time it's Trees.


1. Dogwood - There's no surer sign of Spring and the approach of Easter than blooming Dogwoods. Our woods are full of them! (not blooming yet, of course) I can't see their delicate white flowers without thinking of the Legend of the Dogwood .

2. Magnolia - I think Magnolia blossoms are absolutely beautiful and they make a wonderful centerpiece for a dinnertable. My aunt had a huge tree in her front yard and it was a nice, cool hiding spot in the heat of summer. The only drawback was that mosquitoes also loved it. The broad leaves hold water and make a perfect breeding ground for the pests.

3. Gingko - My aunt (a different one) had one of these trees in her backyard. I love the little fan shaped leaves and they turn the most wonderful golden yellow in the fall! Watch out, though...one big gust of wind and they all come off!

4. Oak - I know that's a generalization, but there are several types of Oak tree that appeal to me. I might like Water Oaks (a type of Red Oak) best, but other varieties have much better acorns for making whistles.

5. Tulip Poplar - My husband moved one of these from a friend's house to our backyard shortly after we built our house. It grew quickly and became my favorite spot for hanging birdfeeders. Sadly, it ended up storm-damaged and we had to cut it down.

Here are a few others I like: Red Maple, Sweet Gum, Loblolly Pine. What about you? What are your favorites?

Jade Lady Burning by Martin Limón

Jade Lady Burning by Martin Limón takes place in South Korea sometime in the 70s. As the story begins we are introduced to George Sueño and Ernie Bascom, two soldiers with the CID detachment of the Eighth United States Army. A local prostitute has been murdered in a horrific manner then burned in her hooch. Sueño and Bascom are thrust into the investigation in an effort to quickly find a suspect - or scapegoat - to satisfy all the "powers that be".

I really enjoyed this novel which had a gritty, almost noir ambiance to it. I found Sueño and Bascom to be quite likable despite, or maybe because of, their shortcomings. Not a part of the world that I'm familiar with (other than old episodes of M*A*S*H) I felt it probably offered a good representation of the time and place. I would recommend Jade Lady Burning to those who enjoy a good police procedural.

This was my first book read for the Asia portion of the Global Reading Challenge.

Mindless

A few years ago I completed a volunteer workshop at our local Hospice facility and would occasionally help with mailouts, filing, and other office tasks. It had been quite some time since I'd helped out when I got a phone call recently from the director. She asked if I was still interested in volunteering and if so, in what capacity. I decided it was time to jump back in and told her at this point I still preferred office work. She hesitantly asked if I'd be willing to do some shredding. It obviously isn't a very popular job. I jumped at the opportunity! There are times in life when something rote and mindless is just what you need!

Seeing the huge stack of paperwork-filled boxes to be shredded, I quickly realized it wouldn't get done in one session. Undaunted, I popped in my earbuds, plugged into the iPod on my phone, and set to work. Four hours later I'd gotten through more than half the stack and best of all, thoroughly enjoyed myself! I think the iPod on my phone must have a better "shuffle" feature than my regular iPod since I listened to such a wonderfully wide variety of music. Classic Rock, Pirate Metal, Rap, Country, Jazz, Pop, Classical, Hard Rock, R&B.... you name it, I heard it! It's not often I have the chance to listen to music without distractions. My only fear was that I'd embarrass myself by forgetting where I was and start singing out loud or dancing!

Pictured above is the Gardenia plant my husband gave me for Valentine's Day. It will look nice in our backyard.