Eleanor's Closet Opened

Or at least new to me.  I had never read Terry Pratchett before, so when I saw Men at Arms on the bookshelf  at home I grabbed it for the trip.  I have to get the rest of this series.

"Ever had any previous convictions?"

"I used to very firmly believe that a penny saved was a penny earned."

"You're hired."

I fell out.  The play on words and thoughts was great.   A very welcome relief from looking at yet more waste accumulation points.  Sigh.

8 days to go.  

Kuwait had a dust storm yesterday.

Guess which fool was out in it? 

Right now I'm working at my computer, in my air conditioned hotel room eating real hummus with pita and real tabbuleh.  Gotta love it.

I'm so excited!

I knew I had Bradford Pear trees.  While the flowers are lovely after a long winter, they stink!  The trees themselves are also somewhat flawed in that they have a tendency to split.  Ours seem to be doing okay, but I guess I should be planning on replacing them eventually.  Plant something now and maybe it won't look so barren when the old ones come down.

  
I'm so excited that one of my trees in front has pink flowers.  Carla has this type of tree in her front yard and it's just beautiful covered in pink flowers.  When the flowers fall, you then have pink snow on your yard.  I'm ignoring the clean-up part.  



And I have tulips in my back yard.  A small bunch of them.  I'm debating whether I'm going to keep them or move them in the fall.  There's lots more stuff I'd like to plant.



So I'm excited.  The pear tree I planted last month seems to be doing well.  There is some new growth on it.  I planted some sunflower seeds and they're slowly coming up.  Squee!

I still have to plant my elderberry bushes.  I really need to accomplish that today and then buy some hose so Jim can keep them watered when I'm gone.  

And has been for awhile.  I've been really busy at work getting ready for my next TDY.  Kuwait and Qatar again.  I'm not looking forward to it as it looks like we'll have to stay in barracks this time around.  

Anyway, back to the pea bread.  I found on line at Bob's Red Mill some pea flour!  I was surprised anyone would offer this, but apparently it's the fast way of making pea soup.  So I've ordered some, but experiments will have to wait until I'm back from my trip.

Carla and I are contemplating doing some period cooking research/experimental archeology at Pennsic this year.  We're pretty jazzed by the idea of brazier cooking so we want to play.  Of course, everyone gets to participate as food critics.  We'll have to work this out as we may use it to supplement the food plan.  We'll see.

Jim got sick over the weekend, and now I've got the creeping crud.  

Don't really have time for this.

What a busy weekend. Saturday we were overbooked with participating in a Irish/Viking event at Havre de Grace - Clontarf 1014 during the day and a birthday party in the evening.  The event was such a nice event. Small, interested public, a few other viking or Irish groups were there and a couple of merchants (Ironwood Studios Yea!).  It was nice and Carla and I were able to try out a few new early period recipes.   The birthday party was a costume party so we were lame and wore our viking clothes.  Jim bought a horned helmet and a Thor's hammer and went as Thor.  So Carla and I figured we were either the Valkeries or groupies.  It depended on your frame of mind.

 

This weekend was fun cooking at Jamestown during their Military Through the Ages event.  Carla and I decided to try pea-flour bread.  Last weekend at the Tudor Kitchen presentation they discussed bread and its importance in the Tudor diet.   In several of my medieval cookbooks there are references to breads made with flour that is not wheat.  Even today we have oat cakes and corn cakes.  In times of a bad wheat crop, rye, pea, lentil and other grains or legumes were used in place of wheat. 

Apparently dried peas heartily resist being ground into flour.  Richard Fitch (from the presentation) mentioned that trying to pound them in a mortar pestle resulted in peas being shot like bullets around the room.  So, I used my food processor at home before heading to Jamestown.  Peas heartily resist the food processor as well.  I got three cups of pea flour and mixed it with three cups of whole wheat flour.  

The traditional bread recipe is flour, salt, yeast and water.  Sticking to that we, mixed approximately 4 cups of flour with 1 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of yeast and about a teaspoon of salt.  I decided to feed the yeast a little bit sugar as well, since it wasn't going to get a whole lot of gluten in this flour mixture.  I kneaded the flour for about 10 minutes and let it rise for about an hour.  After that I divided the dough into about a dozen rolls and let it rise for about 2 hours.  or so.  Then in exaperation I handed them over to the ladies at the Devon oven and let them bake them.

The result?

I didn't take pictures.  Small, faintly green rolls that actually are edible.  They still tasted of peas. They were better warm than cold.  I think I'm going to try this again in more controlled circumstances at home and see what happens.  The bottom line - if your hungry, you'll eat these.  I think also that perhaps they would cook the peas to much with the barest amount of water possible and then use that as the start for making bread.  You wouldn't need to actually grind the dried peas to flour, which is very difficult.  Another aspect for experimentation. 

It was fun!

 I was back in Georgia last week, at a different post.  What a week!  Lots of work, lots of extra hours.  Topping it off was the trip back home on Friday night.  We (I was travelling with a co-worker) didn't get in until Saturday morning at 3 am.  Then it was up at 7:00 am to make it to the Reconstructing the Tudor Kitchens at Hampton Court Palace presentation.  Cool presentation, and apparently it's worth a trip back to HCP especially on first Saturdays of the month when they are ACTUALLY COOKING!!!!

Yep.  Gotta go back.  

Has anyone heard the term Experimental Archeology?  That was their approach to re-doing the kitchens.  All I have to say, is How Awesome is that? and What a phenomenal budget!  

There is a book that explains the reconstruction.  I looked online and HCP sells it for 5 pounds.  However, shipping is 9 pounds.  Anyone else interested in purchasing a copy to make the shipping charges worthwhile?  

Anyway, I'm going to write an article and post it to the forum, and Diane can use it for the FDBBQ.  

____________

Edit:  I was flipping through my notes and was reminded that the painting "Field of Cloth of Gold" is now back on public display at Hampton Court.  Another reason to visit.

 

I spent last week in Georgia, a combination trip of work and visiting friends.  The work part wasn't so fun, but went well.  The friends part was relaxing and fun.  I did miss out on the Training Weekend in Jamestown, but I don't get to see these friends all that often.  Jamestown is still there.

Besides, the weather was much nicer in Georgia.

Giacomo is very excited.  He doesn't have to wear the brace anymore (not that he was wearing it much) and he is allowed to pick up things weighing less than 10 pounds with his right arm.   He has another 6 weeks of physical therapy to develop his strength.  He can also go back to work on light or administrative duty.  Yea!

G has been off work since 18 December.  I cannot imagine how things would have been if he didn't have about 900 hours of sick leave.  That's what it is there for, but it takes years to get to that point.  I'm sort of considering short term disability for Jim until balance is built back up, but I haven't researched how to purchase this or how expensive it might be.  

Topic of conversation during lunch-time walk was the first Gulf War:

Co-worker A (preparing for a trip to Kuwait):  "So, the oil well fires were just burning off excess oil/gas, right?"

Rest of us:  "No, they were deliberately set by Saddam as part of his scorched earth method of war."

Co-worker A:  "oh"  

Rest of us:  "How old were you"

Co-worker A:  "About six"

Rest of us:  "oh"

I know I don't need to eat bread, especially white bread, but I did.  I came across the ad hoc broetchen recipe I'd worked out and decided that since I have a few more bread baking years under my belt, I'd take another crack at it.  

Not quite there yet, but getting closer.  

Broetchen is something G and I both really miss from Germany.  I remember on cold Volksmarches stopping at the mid-way point and having a roll with a slab of cheese on it.  It was the best thing I'd ever eaten.   I have another fond memory of having breakfast with broetchen, butter, and strawberry jam.  Nothing better.

But, that was sort of the last blow out before I take losing the "Holiday Pounds" more seriously.  Eating white bread with butter will blow your points very quickly.  

It was good, tho.

 From Elizabethan embroidery to 10th Century Vikings.  

We've been drafted to help out with a Viking versus Irish event ocurring at the end of March.  Should be loads of fun and I get to research a different period.  Of course I could just cheat and order complete outfits from Historic Enterprises as they have started selling Dark Ages clothing.  But I have fabric and I'd rather spend my money on house things right now.

I really need to make a list of projects, especially for Pennsic.  We're definitely going to Pennsic this year.   Every time I get dressed for either a Jamestown or Gardners event I remember all of the little things I need to fix.  Like put a new hem in the blue linen skirt.  I've had this skirt for 12 years?  The hem is wearing away.  I really need a new pair of bodies and get rid of the Trigger cloth and Ridgelene boning corset I've been wearing for 12 years (or more).  I know what I need, I even have most of the documentation and appropriate materials for it.  I'm just lazy until motivated by deadlines.  Like Pennsic.  

Yesterday I forgot my project bag at work and actually had an hour in the evening I could have worked on something.   So, I rummaged in my sewing room and found some cotton yarn and a crochet hook and started on a dishcloth.  

Today I forgot my walking shoes at home, so I can't walk at lunch time.  

Crap.  Someday I'll get my act together.

The business trip went well, I didn't get snowed-in in Kentucky (yeah!).  I don't mind getting snowed-in - I just want to be home when it happens.  

The Plimoth Plantation embroidery kit arrived before I had to leave for my trip, which made me very happy.  I was able to start on a couple of the stitches while I was away.  I do enjoy learning the stitches, but I'm not certain I'll be able to make a trip up there and participate in a session.  I don't think my travel schedule is going to allow such a trip.  But the kit is excellent with great fibers, detailed instruction, and I'm learning something new.

Giacomo's physical therapy is going well.  His therapist is pleased with his progress in flexibility.  Hopefully soon he'll be able to start some strength training with weights.

Yule went very well, I thought.  It was sort of on the small side in attendance, but the mystery was solved rather quickly and the group carried on with gaming and singing.  I think we called the evening around 10:00 or so.  Good food, good company.  

Yesterday G went to the orthpedic surgeon and the soft cast was removed.  Yea!  He now has a brace that makes him look like the rocket man, but only on one arm.  He can start PT on Wednesday.  The doc was happy with how things are progressing and Giacomo is being careful.   

Despite having to pack on Saturday, I'm hoping I can get some sewing done.  I need to get some creativity back into my life.  I'm going on travel on Sunday, so I'm taking some things with me.  I ordered the embroidery kit from Plimouth so I'm hoping it will come in before I leave, but it it will be close.  I have plenty of other hand-work projects I can take, tho.  

Last weekend I got one valance done for the living room and I'm really happy with it.  I need to get more ribbon to finish up, but the valance really makes the room feel more finished.

Today is the first day I've felt settled enough to feel like I can do my regular routine.  I get up early enough to walk for 15 minutes, walk at lunch, and hopefully do some weights or pilates in the afternoon when I get home.

Now I have to get my eating back under control.  Since about September my eating and exercise routine has been tragically disrupted and my clothes are telling me enough is enough.  I haven't been on the scale yet because this week is the week I gain weight.  Next week, after being good this week, I will weigh myself and start the countdown.  Hopefully it won't be too shocking.

In other news, Giacomo is healing but it is taking more out of him than he would admit.  Thursday the soft cast comes off, and the brace goes on.  I don't know if he'll be able to start PT right away, but I think they will start slowly stretching that muscle back out.  Jim's hoping he can start sleeping in bed again.

Saturday we had a lovely evening with friends, a sort of small housewarming party.  It was quite nice, Giacomo barbequed hamburgers and brats, and we had salad and veggies and such.  Dessert was fudge and ice cream.  Nothing bad for you, right? :)  It was really great to see everyone since we feel we haven't been in touch since we started the whole house buying business.