How to build a 6-pack while sick

Hi there! I’m back! Today I thought I would talk about getting those nice beach-ready abs, even when you are stuck on the couch with a chest cold. 

Now unlike most exercise routines, achieving an exact position isn’t that important… just make sure that at least half of your time is spent in the most uncomfortable position you can attain, and at the least convenient time, IE just as you are drifting off to sleep. Now if you are one of those people who insist on stretching BEFORE you start exercising, you can always start with reps of 6-8 mild coughing fits and sniffle blows. Before slowly working your way up to 3-4 minute increments of extreme ab-busting coughing, and snot stifling. 

Now, if you are ready, let's begin! After you have warmed up, preferably to 100 or so degrees, you should sit yourself down on the couch with approximately 25 pillows under your back and head, and begin to hack; make sure you are doubled over whilst you choke on your own phlegm, and make sure that you continue until you gag or pass out. Never work out without a gallon of orange juice, and a full coop's worth of chicken noodle soup, if you are vegan/vegetarian you can substitute with a safe alternative. If the body aches, headaches, and fever get to be too much for you, you can always take a fever-reducing pain killer, but remember: no pain, no gain! 

Repeat this routine for approximately 10 days, and you should be beach-ready just in time for the next thunderstorm… Oh well, I guess you can’t have everything.

1920s Bakeday

Hello again!

Do you remember a post I made a while back, in which I recreated a day's worth of Victorian meals? Well, I decided to roll up my sleeves and do it again! This time however I was recreating meals from the 1920s, 1921 to be specific, almost exactly 100 years ago.  

After the problems I had with timing last time, I chose slightly simpler recipes this time round, and had LOTS of help from my delightful kitchen elves, (also known as my mom and brother.). I maintained the same rules from last time.

1. As much as possible, keep to tools that were already around, IE I needed to use my stove and oven, but the rubber scraper? (as I’m not sure when that was originally invented) Not really a need no (Although I COULD use the mixer now!).  

2. Use authentic recipes as much as possible. Being one of two vegetarians, with two people with gluten sensitivities as well as living in a house FULL of lactose intolerances, some things did need to be tweaked slightly.

Also just like last time to keep as much authenticity as possible all the recipes were taken from the Atlanta Woman’s Club Cook Book, copyright 1921. Got it? Ready, set, go!

For breakfast, we had scrambled eggs and egg bread. I meant to put carrot marmalade on top of the bread, but I put off starting the marmalade until this morning, and it cooked for about 45 minutes, (15 more than it was meant to) so it wasn't set, or cooled in time for breakfast, so I used butter instead, although strangely enough, it smells like ORANGE marmalade! The eggs were good, but nothing out of the norm, although I admit this may have been “user error” as it didn’t technically say to mix the eggs while they were cooking, but instead has you mix them BEFORE they hit the heat, and I just couldn’t leave them unattended. The bread was disappointing, “egg bread” was far less accurate than “baking soda bread” and other then that flavor it was quite forgettable.

For lunch, we had a very colorful meal composed of chicken salad, potato puffs, stuffed baked tomatoes, and “For a summer draught” (basically retro homemade lemon soda). The chicken salad was simple enough to make, but tasted absolutely amazing, although I did cut the mayo by a half a cup, for fear of drowning the poor vegan chicken which I used in favor of real chicken. As I looked through the cookbook, I noticed that it seems as though you could get away with labeling anything as “salad” so long as you served it on lettuce, in the 20’s odd right? The potato puffs were great, although we had a short moment of panic as breakfast was cooking; “Oh shoot, we’re going to need pre-mashed potatoes to make the puffs!’ after we had thought of that, the rest of the recipe was simple enough, and they tasted just as you would expect; like mashed potatoes with eggs. As you may remember, I did a stuffed tomato last time as well, although this one was SO different it felt like an entirely different dish! Rather than eggs, which could have refused to cook like last time, this recipe was cabbage based, leaving the end product oddly like coleslaw stuffed in a tomato. Although it was quite good! I should note that both I, and one of my marvelous kitchen elves did cheat slightly, using the blender which wasn't invented till 1922, but as it was a cheat of a single year, I have no guilt over this. As for the “Retro lemon soda” it was not only delicious it was also super fun to make! I thought you may enjoy this process almost as much as I did, so I have a video for you.

For dinner, we had Welsh rarebit, alligator pear (avocado) salad, sweet peach pickles, and fruit punch. The Welsh rarebit was a bit of its own adventure, as it had NO liquid in it at all! So after chasing a bit of half-melted cheese around the bottom of a hot pan for a minute or two, my mom walked over and said “shouldn’t there be some milk in there?” and although the recipe may have said no, we went with it anyways, as I had no idea what else we could do, this worked quite well I would like to note. It tasted quite good, although it was blander then I had expected, but I did replace the cayenne powder with chili powder since we don’t keep cayenne on hand, so that may be on me. The alligator pear salad was amazing, but being quite a simple recipe it tasted as you may expect, the dressing, however, was so good, we have already made plans to remake it later. The sweet peach pickle, although we assumed they would be amazing, due to the ingredients, and our love of pickles, were SO strong with spice and vinegar that they tasted medicinal, and made my mom’s tongue go numb. The fruit punch was unlike any punch I can remember having, as it had a tea as one of the main flavors, although it was too sweet, it was also amazing, and we are planning on making it again at a later date.

For dessert, we had Chocolate milk floats, and peppermint (candy cane) ice cream. The chocolate milk float was great, just as you would expect, I did use soy, vs dairy milk in the floats, but with real ice cream, I figured that would probably be for the best. The ice cream was another mini-adventure, I started it freezing about lunch-time (1:00) and by 10-11ish it STILL wasn't fully frozen, now I didn’t use any kind of ice cream churn, and the book was especially strange about this, as it did say in another section that you should have an “Ice-cream freezer”, in this recipe in particular however, it just said to “freeze” it, plus what is an ice cream freezer anyway? No, honestly I can’t find this online! So I winged it, and just chucked it in the freezer, as we don’t keep an ice cream churn, let alone a vintage style one! Flavor-wise however, it was great, being flavored with candy canes it is just as good as you would think it should be.

So there you go, another experiment completed, this time with significantly fewer brain cells fried in the process. Although I am leaving this experiment very tired, physically and mentally, I can honestly say I enjoyed this one MUCH more than the last one, the food was better for the most part, and the workload much lighter. Not to mention much easier recipes, and how nice it was to be able to use the mixer! Much like last time, it was super informative and I am continuing to gain respect for the ladies who spent so much of their time in the kitchen, and still had time left for cleaning, and tending other tasks, not to mention maintaining their lives as well! I truly can not explain how much I feel for them while standing over a hot stove and turning small frazzled circles in the middle of the kitchen, it is almost like stepping into such a tiny part of the lives people used to live, it is absolutely surreal and really neat.

Thanks for the read!

Understanding EDS

Hey all, I know that I said I wouldn't be posting 'till later this week, but I thought I could share this post on life with EDS. As you probably know, this is by my mom, and although I may not have all of the same issues as her, nor the same level of issues as her, due to simply being younger, I am progressing much more quickly then she did at my age... and the issues I do have will be compounded by time.


https://mamahousemouse-rambles.blogspot.com/2019/05/chronic-pain-neglected-partner-of.html?fbclid=IwAR0UwL4fJm8j3yO2YxWey5WVN91HWkKyWEdLkH1mj2f795IIP9vCPmRMXWs

My top three pieces of Classical music

Hello there!

I know that I’ve been apologizing for late posts a lot lately, (my actual goal is to have each post live by 6:00 AM Monday mornings.) and I’m afraid I’m doing it again, sorry, just kept putting it off this week, although I haven't been idle, I’ve been planning for next week's post! So here it is, just in time for the weekend!

I listen to a LOT of “Classical” music, not really a specific period, IE, the Romantic era, just generally classical sounding, instrumental music, sometimes even by modern composers! I find that it helps me to focus when I REALLY need to, so I thought this week I could recap my top three favorite classical pieces of music.

I did set three rules for this list. 1. Each piece needed to actually have some age behind it; being at least old enough that the composer behind it wasn't still alive. 2. Due to overplaying, and constantly hogging all the good ratings on lists such as this, I am excluding all music by Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach. 3. Each individual “piece” had to be ONE piece! So I couldn’t say The Four Seasons, for instance, I would have to pick just one season. I should note here that I am rating these based on my personal opinions, NOT public perceptions of the pieces, and although I would love to put these in some sort of order, I just can’t rate them that easily, it’s like apples, oranges, and bananas.

First up we have Gymnopédie No. 1, by Erik Satie.

I’m willing to bet you probably don’t know this piece by name, but I’m also willing to bet you have heard it before. It is definitely the slowest piece that I am listing today, and it has a deep, almost brooding feeling to it. Due to the slow tempo of this piece, it has a good length to it, not too long, but not so short that you are looking for more. I find that It’s great for focus, although it’s probably not the first piece you will want to turn on, I find that it’ll help to keep and sharpen focus assuming you already have your brain in motion.

Next up we have Reaper’s song: July, from The Seasons by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

“Wait… The seasons? You mean Vivaldi right?” Nope, Vivaldi's composition is called The Four Seasons and is organized by season, whereas Tchaikovsky’s composition is called The Seasons, and is organized by month. Now, I love all of The Seasons, but I had to pick one month in particular, so after sorting through all twelve months I decided on July. This piece is bouncy, with a joy to it which you may not expect from classical music, it is quite quick, both in tempo, and due to being quite short, but if you listen to it with the rest of the Seasons you’ll barely notice that. Focus wise, it may distract you slightly, but it is sure to put a smile on your face.

And last, but far from least, we have The Swan, from The Carnival of the Animals, by Camille Saint-Saëns.

Have you heard this piece before? Almost definitely. Did you know it by name? Quite possibly, but I just couldn’t leave it out. I have a special affinity for this piece, I truly believe that it is the most beautiful piece of classical music ever composed. There is a gentle melancholy in the lilting violin, and you can’t argue that it is far too short, as much as I also love the Aquarium, I couldn’t even consider including that over The Swan. In terms of focus, however, I can’t manage to focus on my work AT ALL when this piece, as I am drawn in entirely, and just want to sit back and listen.

So there you go, three pieces of classical music that you should DEFINITELY listen to, assuming you don’t know them already, can you pick a favorite out of them?

I’m gonna apologize here for next week’s post being late, but I promise that it should be worth it!

Thanks for the read!

2 Hands, 1 week

Hello there, and welcome to a rather odd blog post.

Sorry, I know this is kinda late, but today I have two “guest” writers: my own hands have their own tale to tell this week, and so I am handing over the keyboard to the same two who always help me to type anyways!

Hi! This last week we and your typical writer, whom we shall be referring to as “Rock Face” decided that WE should do the “talking” this week, and so without any further ado, here is our week.

Here we are, day 1, all fresh, clean and prepped for the week, freshly trimmed, with some clear-coat on top to make us look shiny and beautiful.

Day 2: today we decided to mix up some delicious chocolaty goo, it was well enjoyed, although Rock-Face complained of “Too much sugar”.

Day 3: today, presumably as a punishment for the sugar of yesterday, Rock-Face decided to plunge us into chilly damp dirt, or “soil” as she calls it. Although we often have a kind mistress, who rarely puts us through any undue strife, she does have a fascination for growing things, and we often have to take a plunge into the icy dirt to satiate her odd fascination. We fear this may be hereditary as her female kinfolk share it, and therefore, we fear, it may not be curable.

Day 4: today it was decided that we had been sitting idle too long and that we would have to exercise. After Rock-Face played with a giant circle and declared herself “warm”, we were forced to help flex with the purple heavy things, which are so fittingly called “dumbbells”.

Day 5: remember that thing we said about the dirt and growing things? Rock-Face is definitely suffering from a terminal fascination for dirt, and green things, she even made us move worms! Definitely, need to talk to her about this…

Day 6: today, we took the day of rest very literally, and relaxed on a lovely soft blanket, after Church.

Day 7: no photo today I’m afraid, we kinda missed our deadline and forgot to take one.

So there it is, one full week’s adventures, filled with mud, madness, and LOTS of typing!

Thanks for reading!

A strange type of pixie

Hello again, and welcome!

Today I thought I could talk about an invisible pest who serves as both friend and foe to artists of all types around the world, I am of course talking about my elusive friend: the muse.

“A pixie?” You ask, “I thought the muse referred to a series of Greek goddesses!” Well technically you may be right, but that’s not how I view this ethereal force. The muse by definition is a strange force of inspiration, what that doesn't tell you is that it is never around when you need it. Think about it this way, you may be able to wax poetic about your dinner, or the way your day went, but if you were asked to write about these things in a composition, you may find that your inspiration quickly wanes. You may struggle with this in your day-to-day life, but more than likely you don’t need to worry about this invisible force very often. I, however, am working on a book at the moment, and therefore unfortunately do.

I personally find that the muse attempts to pester me when I should, by all rights be sleeping, to be fair though it does make a good excuse, as I am also a night owl: “But I can’t go to sleep now, there is a pixie invading my brain!” When I try to sit down and focus on the page, however, I find myself thinking about things like writing this blog post, or making lunch, or doing my exercises, or looking up the definition of muse!

Now you may be asking when I am going to give you some advice on how to set up a pixie trap for this tiny yet ever so important creature, but I’m afraid I have none to give. Some people will say that you have to power through it, but that doesn't necessarily bring the pixie to you, it only helps you to work anyways. As for capturing this flighty beast, I can only recommend that you work fast while it is there, focus hard, and don’t stop until it either leaves you, or you absolutely have to do something else. If you have any tricks that you know work for you absolutely do them! Music gets those wings in flight? Turn it up!

Now, why do I think of the muse as a pixie? That’s just how I imagine it honestly, but consider this, this is a tiny little creature who holds great power, and always seems to be flitting around your head, just out of sight, and buzzes around your ear when you need it least, this is either a trouble-making pixie, a flying Leprechaun, or a gifted mosquito, and I’m going with the pixie.

Thanks for the read!

Winter into Spring

Hello again!

As you can see I’m back! Sorry about that break, I know that it’s been a while, but the spring air brings colds, which I’ve already had more than my fair share of. Plus in all honesty, I just got distracted and kept forgetting to write. Don’t worry though, I’m back with no intention of leaving anytime soon!

Speaking of spring, in the midwest it often proves elusive, and even comes and goes as desired, just two weeks ago we had a HUGE snowstorm, and now we’re back to those promised “April Showers”. So I thought I would share a few images of that shakey journey into springtime, some were taken last month, while some were only taken a few days ago.

With our ever-changing weather, we’ve got a shocking ability to deal with what we’re given, already the warmer temps (staying around 50-60°F lately.) have been “thinning our blood” such that the 0°F days are FREEZING (No pun intended.) At the beginning of the thaw however, we were still very hale and hearty, so going for a walk in the park, through the snow and ice, hardly even made us blink.

Although I’ve lived here all my life, I have NEVER seen a snowdrift melt like this!

With the changing months, we started our garden! Which I’ll be showing you in much better detail in a month’s time, (when we’ve got it in the ground!)

Now spring is officially here! Isn’t it beautiful?

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little peek into the strange weather and lovely changes in it that we endure in the midwest!