Thursday, August 26, 2010

What a difference the sun makes !!

The sun is out this morning, the springs flowers are blooming and all's well with the world ! What a difference it makes ! We've had a remarkably dreary winter here in NZ, so this is very welcome ! DH is even out there mowing the lawns ! I have a bunch of daffodils smiling at me and the washing is blowing on the line. I am a happy chappy...

We have just had three days away (which also has contributed to my sense of well being !) We went to Hanmer, a small settlement in the mountains, known for the hot thermal pools. We figured that even if the weather was miserable , we could soak in the pools and be warm ! We went with friends and, as good fortune would have it, the weather was great. The two men went off and enjoyed a game of golf and the ladies enjoyed a soak and a leisurely walk around the few touristy shops there. Altogether, a very relaxing time. The pools are in the open air so it was rather special to sit there, up to the neck in hot water, and gaze at the surrounding snow-capped mountains...

All is well on the home front. The DD's are busy with their lives and their children, and my sister in U.K., rang this morning , for a "catch up". My DBIL is approaching his 80th bday but that doesn't seem to have slowed them down any . They have had a summer travelling through England visiting, school friends, university friends, work friends and family. She did sound tired but what a great summer they have had.

Must go now and walk around the garden to see what else is emerging from the soggy soil..

Enjoy the day.
Marion.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Irene, I think you may hide your light

under the guise of a quilter when your training may be elsewhere. Thank you for the suggestion but I'm wondering if heating the pan up more might have led to some sort of 'sausage' explosion?? I don't like the teflon covered pans anyway. This came with my set of pans that I purchased few years ago after I'd burned the bottom out of my former ones by forgetting that I had eggs on to hardboil numerous times. Those explode too aside from burning the bottoms out of the pots. I have a friend who checks her church's flea market sale every year for me for the old electric fry pans and they are like old workhorses to me...they work well and the old ones aren't covered in teflon.

What an adventure just getting breakfast out for B&B guests. At least they were good sports about it all.

Rosey

Monday, August 23, 2010

Frying pans

Sounds like an ordeal to me. Glad you threw that thing away.
Get yourself a cast iron frying pan. They never warp, heat evenly, and will last for years.
Lodge is a good brand, can be bought in a Wal-Mart. If you want to get fancy Emeril has a line out.
Doing laundry after 2 and 1/2 days at Daytona beach. Very hot, late afternoon thunder storms, quite a lightning display.
DH wanted to drive over to Orland to the Florida mall on Sat. Yuck. Everybody and their brother were there for school stuff, etc. It was quite a collection of people, from teens in skimpy, tight clothes to a woman in full black burka. After seeing myself in the 3 way mirror of a dressing room, it's back to the exercise and salads for me. Double yuck for 3 way mirrors.
JANE-I won't be there for the quilt show, but would love to be up there now. The humidity is zaping my energy. I pulled weeds for 30 min. this morning and thought I would melt. The sweat was running in my eyes, so desided to call it quits.
I understand there is a new tropical storme out in the Atlantic, Danielle. I'll have to get on a weather site and check it out.
All for this Monday.
Sara in Fla.

pot lids

Just put the pot back onto the heat. After just a few seconds the pressure inside increases and the lid comes off. Easy.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Aha, Jane, I failed physics in school but

I had exactly that same thought and ran the pan and lid under cold water...wouldn't budge. The lid was sucked on their tighter than a witch's tit. So out it went onto the side porch off the kitchen and when my guests came downstairs for breakfast, I told the first gentleman my sad tale of woe. He said: no problem, I'll have a go at it. He is 68. He couldn't move it. The next gentleman came downstairs, D. Boon by name, Daniel, that is...and said: I'll have a go at it. Couldn't budge it. But, he had an idea. Do you have a blunt hammer, he asked. So we searched through the garage and found one. Do you care about the pan, he asked. Nope, just the lid, said I. And so with great gusto and lots of noise, he hammered the frying pan out of shape and lo and behold, the lid popped a bit. We got a screw driver, wedged it into the side of the pan..and voila...out popped the lid. He took pliers, bent the lid back into shape and the sausages and pan are now sitting in my garbage bin. Hooray. I never liked that frying pan, anyway. They've all just left and Daniel Boon is my hero of the day. Very nice folks and why I'll regret ever giving up 'doing' the B&B.

Now the work...washing dishes, washing bedding and towels. And himself is likely at his destination and how will he get from his daughter's apt. to the bus stop when she has a cast on her right foot...hmmm.... I'm not as tight-a**ed as my friend at art college said I must be because I wore flannel nightgowns to bed...???....but I do find being organized with my life helps to sometimes, not always, avert potential problems...so, a cast on the driver's foot....I'll learn the answer to that one when himself arrives back home.

Rosey

ROSEY

Heat expands metal and my guess is that while the metal was expanding the moisture along with air was escaping in the form of steam and that you created a nice strong vacuum seal. Try putting the pan under the faucet in cold water and the metal will shrink back to it's normal size thus allowing the air pressure in the pan to normalize.

Okay, anyone out there who remembers high school physics better than I is free to correct me. I'm not too smart about such matter.

Jane

Life's little annoyances

I wonder, after 18 years of 'doing' bed & breakfast why I need some of the aggravations that go with it. This time, I caused it.

I'm cooking sausages for four guests this morning (7:30 a.m.) and which, in my final stages, I added water and put a lid on the pan which wasn't meant to go on the pan because the pan came without a lid but the lid from my big pot fits it and now, the lid is stuck, I cannot get it off. I am going on the theory that cold shrinks metal and running cold water on the pan and lid. I am having no luck budging the lid off the pan. I have a feeling that the garbage men are going to be inspecting what looks like a perfectly good frying pan going into the garbage and if they get the lid off, they'll find cooked sausages inside. Fortunately, I had some bacon which has now been partially thawed and is on cooking and I'm trying to regain my passive, pleasant demeanor which, given the himself has taken off early this morning to drive a car three hours to his daughter's place to leave it there for her to drive (she crashed her last one; crashed her bike, has a broken bone in her foot) and then will proceed to take a bus back to the city and bus north to the small town where he's left his car. My head is spinning; he's off like a rocket thoroughly enjoying his disorganization. So, back to my sausage pan. Any suggestions? I can't even wedge a knife or screwdriver into the lid. It's on as tight as a Scotsman's purse.

Rosey