I am almost done doing my taxes. Still need to do a fair copy of all the pages, make a note of which pages need how many xeroxes to send in with which forms, and, of course, ride my bike to the copy store and then to the post office tomorrow to mail everything in. This year the various Oregon forms were rather astoundingly poorly written and confusing, unlike in all previous years. Or perhaps it was in not having the instructions neatly written out on a paper pamphlet to set down next to the forms and the calculator. I suspect that I am dating myself, and than no thoroughly modern person even bothers with paper forms any more. C'est la vie.
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time in the tinyworld:
The small drawers at the base of the bookcases needed handles. Rather than the expedient of simply gluing beads to the drawer fronts, I decided to use the eye portion of hook-and-eye sewing notions. A bit of effort with small pliers reshaped the eye to something more closely resembling a drawer handle (and not incidentally something that I could manage to grasp). time in the tinyworld:
In order to attach them to the wooden drawer front, eschucheon pins would stand in for tiny bolts. After measuring the pin stems with a wire gauge, and marking where they needed to be located, I chose a matching drill bit to create the holes. The escutcheon pins were trimmed to the same length as the drawer fronts were thick, and a bit of Tacky Glue encouraged the whole thing to become firmly attached. The drawers now embody my aesthetic that combines a modicum of realism with a generous helping of diminutive and whimsical "use what you have"...
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"Don’t be silent but make your art as an antidote to the poison out there. Fill up the spaces with your creativity, your joy, your beauty, your intelligence. Let’s do this thing."
- Shawna Lemay
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I am attempting an experiment: meringue cookies. I have been told that they are incredibly easy. And indeed they only have two basic ingredients: sugar, and eggwhites. We shall see. The recipe my sister sent me has you preheat the oven, and once the meringues are plopped down on their parchment paper cookie sheet, they are placed in the oven, the oven turned off and left closed overnight. Which is why they are called "Forgotten Cookies". I am a bit concerned since I only had normal granulated sugar, not fancy caster sugar, since I had to use an eggbeater (as there is no stand mixer here at Acorn Cottage), and since it is actually raining, and supposedly meringues are happier if the weather is dry. Oh, and I also used rosewater to flavor them instead of vanilla. Because I like it better. My intent is to eat one as dessert tomorrow, with some fruit topping, and to have a few to share with my visitors on Sunday.
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April SMART goals (x=extra)
April SMART goals (x=extra)
| # | THINGS MADE | THINGS FIXED | THINGS GONE |
| 1 | tiny Euphorbia | jacket snaps added | yard waste bin |
| 2 | tiny moth orchid | moar wood chips in planter | recycle bin |
| 3 | Countess scroll | weight closer for back door | - |
| 4 | Laurel enamel | tiny drawer handles | - |
| 5 | sunflower enamel | - | - |
| 6 | x | x | - |
| 7 | x | x | - |
| 8 | x | x | - |
| 9 | x | x | - |
| 10 | x | x | x |
| 11 | x | x | x |
| 12 | x | x | x |
| 13 | x | x | x |
| 14 | x | x | x |
| 15 | x | x | x |
today's gratitude - My friend Karen, who kept me video company all afternoon while I whinged and tore my hair out over the taxes. And my vintage eggbeater, which I got at a yard sale years ago, and which works really really well!
Time of Isolation - Day 760
I wish you well on the meringue cookies. I use my mother's recipe, which makes perfect meringue cookies, at least in this dry climate and high altitude. She made them in a humid climate at lower altitude. If your recipe doesn't turn out well, I can share my mother's recipe with you. Formed a bit larger and spread a bit thinner, they make wonderful bases for fresh fruit & whipped cream.
ReplyDeleteMy cookies were a failure, in terms of what I was hoping for. I would love to try your mother's recipe. I had intended exactly what you describe, a thin and delicate meringue base for fruit and whipped cream. Fortunately, fruit and whipped cream are lovely on their own as well :)
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