Dear Frankie

I've been a fan of Gerard Butler ever since I saw him in Mrs. Brown. He's a great actor! I also ♥ Judi Dench! I've also loved him in The Phantom of the Opera. That movie was AWESOME! I spent over $200 watching it in the movie theater. lol Anyways, I came across another favorite movie of his "Dear Frankie" which I'd like to introduce to you all.

Dear Frankie is a story about a deaf boy, Frankie, his mom Lizzie, and her mother Nel. They are constantly running from one home to another to avoid her abusive ex-husband and his family. They’ve recently relocated in the Scottish seaside town of Greenock. Lizzie starts working at a local fish and chips shop owned by her friend Marie and enrolls the boy in school.

Frankie maintains a regular correspondence by mail, with someone he believes is his father. His mother told him that he is a merchant seaman working on the HMS Accra. The letters he receives are written by his mother, which is a way to understand what her son is thinking and a way to keep from telling Frankie about his real father. In the letters, Frankie's father (his mom) tells him about his adventures in exotic foreign lands, and Frankie collects the stamps she sends in an album and tracks the ship's progress around the sea on a map pinned to his bedroom wall. Lizzie panic when she finds out that the Accra is scheduled to dock in his latest hometown. Frankie is anxious and waits a reunion with his father, who he has never met.

Lizzie decided to hire a man to impersonate Frankie’s father. She fails to find someone at the local pub, so she asks for Marie's assistance. Marie arranges for her to meet an acquaintance of hers who coincidentally is passing through town at the same time the ship arrives. He agrees to spend a day with Frankie in exchange for the scant payment Lizzie can offer him. When he arrives at their home to pick up Frankie, they immediately bond. The man and Frankie have a great time hanging out with each other, so he proposed that they spend the following day together along with Frankie’s mother, who unwillingly agrees.

Check out the movie to find out what happens!

Caption This!

OMG! A vintage Martha Stewart! WOW eh? She's actually quite pretty and skinny! Love the hair!

Watch this video of her cooking segment with Cookie Monster. I love where Martha actually gets pissed at Cookie Monster and yells "Cookie Monster, you made a mess in my kitchen!" LMFAO!

Part 1

Part 2

An Early Thanksgiving

I hosted my annual Thanksgiving Dinner a little early this year. I love Thanksgiving. I love the warm cozy feeling I get when I think about the food and the time I can spend with family and friends. Not only the food, but I enjoy the atmosphere. The spicy aroma in the air as I'm preparing the pumpkin pie, the sound of boiling potatoes, popping of cranberries, the smell of sausages and sage all attribute to the warmness and it's somewhat relaxing. Well, so much for that this year! Everyone seemed to enjoy the dinner, but the soiree was way below par... This was by far the worst Thanksgiving I've had in my life... 

Anyways, I won't dwell on the myriad of executions that went wrong. At least the menu was decent. We had turnip soup for starters, citrus miso green salad, honey glazed onions with balsamic vinegar, green bean casserole, roasted vegetables, corn pudding, turkey with onion gravy, cranberry sauce, bread, apple sausage stuffing with sage and celery, pecan pie and pumpkin pie with cinnamon cream. The soup was fantastic I must say. It's by far one of my favorite soups. Will upload the recipe sometime. 

I enjoy celebrating Thanksgiving, spending hours decorating my home and table to create a festive Thanksgiving ambiance, cooking up the perfect turkey feast... In retrospect, I think I worked so hard on Thanksgiving striving for perfection that all I could think about was getting my aching feet up on an ottoman at the end of the day instead of enjoying myself in the process and the company of loved ones. Lesson learned.

This year I decided not to use any flowers for my centerpiece, but used gourds and pumpkins displayed in a decorative urn. The effect was striking. I wanted to also use kumquats, but couldn't find any... This centerpiece is very versatile, you can replace the pumpkins and gourds with some fruits of the season such as pears, persimmon, kumquats, pomegranates. This way, you don't have to spend money on flowers and you can eat the fruits! I think you can even get away with lemons and oranges. Perhaps even better if you include some lady apples with the l&o. Isn't it amazing what you can do with an urn? I highly recommend people to invest in urns! Below is the arrangement I did two years ago for Thanksgiving.

Flower of the Week / 今週のお花

Hellebores

The genus is native to much of Europe, from western Great Britain, Spain and Portugal, eastward across the Mediterranean region  and central Europe into Romania and Ukraine, and along the north coast of Turkey into the Caucasus. The greatest concentration of species occurs in the Balkans. One atypical species (H. thibetanus) comes from western China; another atypical species (H. vesicarius) inhabits a small area on the border between Turkey and Syria.

The flowers have five "petals" (actually sepals) surrounding a ring of small, cup-like nectaries (petals modified to hold nectar). The sepals do not fall as petals would, but remain on the plant, sometimes for many months. Recent research in Spain suggests that the persistent calyx contributes to the development of the seeds (Herrera 2005).

Although the flowers of some species may resemble wild roses (and despite some of their common names, such as "Christmas rose" and "Lenten rose"), hellebores do not belong to the rose family.

ヘレボルス

ヘレボルス（Helleborus）はキンポウゲ科のクリスマスローズ属に分類される植物の総称。ヘレボラスともいう。

「クリスマスローズ」という呼称はクリスマスのころに開花する「ヘレボルス・ニゲル」だけを指した呼称であるが、日本の園芸市場では「レンテン・ローズ」と呼ばれる「ヘレボルス・オリエンタリス」なども「クリスマス・ローズ」の名前で出回る。多くの品種は、クリスマスのころではなく春に開花する。
「チベタヌス」が中国の四川省から雲南省にかけて自生しているのを除けば、15の原種の全てが、東ヨーロッパからバルカン半島からトルコ、シリアに自生している。

品種改良は主にイギリスで進められた。「クリスマスローズ」という呼称も「イギリスのクリスマス」に開花するという意味である。夏は休眠状態となり根は活動を休止し、呼吸しているだけの状態となる。

Reminiscence / 心象風景

The frost were on the pumpkins and Halloween has passed... This years Halloween was pretty cold, colder than usual, so it felt more like the　Halloween I had back in STL. This year I made some fab doughnuts!　It was so good, crispy on the outside and tender and moist inside. I wanted to　experiment with the orange glaze recipe I had, since it wasn't exactly to my liking, so I learned the hard way that adding lemon　juice to the glaze is an unmitigated disaster. lol So, don't try it.

Now that the Halloween decorations are put away, it's time for Thanksgiving! This year, I'm hosting the dinner a week early. I'm still at a loss as to what to serve... I already bought the turkey and sent out　invitations, so that's two thing off the list. So, I really need to plan my menu, think about a centerpiece, take an inventory of my linens, review recipes, thaw turkey, polish silver, make a shopping list etc... So much to do!!

Anyways, the flower of the week reminded me of a book I stole from my sister when I was younger. It's called The Month-Brothers. The illustrations are　exquisite and the story is delightful. I remember just looking at pictures and curious to know what snowdrops were. Here's a nice product description from Amazon. 

Reality gives way to enchantment in the mountains of Bohemia one blustery January night when a little girl is ordered to find snowdrops by her cruel stepmother. The child knows that these delicate spring flowers do not grow in the middle of the winter, but what else can she do but obey? In the frozen woods she comes upon twelve magical brothers who make the impossible happen. 

This charming story about a little girl who sees all the twelve months of the year at once is a retelling of a traditional Czechoslovakian folktale by Samuel Marshak, one of Russia's greatest folklorists. The lyricism of Marshak's language is retained in this sensitive rendering by the distinguished translator Thomas P. Whitney. 

Diane Stanley's dazzling watercolor illustrations enhance the telling. The opulence of her patterned textures, the intricacy of her decorative details capture the flavor of long-ago Bohemia while at the same time transforming the landscape into a world of fantasy in which flowers can indeed bloom in wintertime. This exquisite picture book will enchant readers for many years to come."


今年の秋は寒いっすね～。←でも寒いのは好きなんで嬉しいｗ　10月はハロウィンの飾り付けを紹介すると言ってましたが、忙しくてアップできませんでした・・・涙　今年のハロウィンにはドーナッツを作ってみた。自分で言うのもあれだが本間にうまかったｗ　でもオレンジグレーズがそんなに好みではなかったので2回目はレモン汁を入れたり、ちょっと工夫をしたがそれが逆効果・・・　分離して固まらなかった・・・　でも味はバツグン！　今度は完璧に作ってみる。

ハロウィンが終われば次は感謝祭！　今年は一週間早くするので忙しい（涙）　メニューを決めたり、銀製のカトラリーなどを磨いたり、ショッピングリストを作ったり、センターピースを作るったり、などなど・・・

今週の花を掲載してる間に思い出した絵本があるので紹介します。絵本は「12の月たち」です。絵がとても素敵で小さい頃から綺麗だなっと思ってました。心象風景で残ってるのが草原でよく一人でシロツメクサを絵本に出てくる待雪草みたいに摘んでいるのがまだ想いにありますねｗ ストーリは12の月全部と、一度に出会った女の子の、この魅力的な物語りは、ボヘミアの民話を、サムエル・マルシャークが、再話した ものです。 ふぶきの1月の夜、いじわるなまま母にいいつけられて、女の子はマツユキソウをさがしに、森に出かけました。こんな冬のさなかに、春の花が見つかるはずもありません。ところが森の中で、女の子は、ふしぎな12人の人びとに出会いました。そして、そこで―。絵を見てるだけでもとても綺麗なので一度は読んで見てはいかがでしょうか？

Flower of the Week / 今週のお花

Snowdrop

These are hardy bulbs, originally from Europe and Asia Minor. With Two or three straplike leaves, dark green in color, grow from each bulb. The white flowers bloom mostly in early spring but sometimes in mid to late winter, which makes them the earliest flowering bulb.

Snowdrop's botanical name Galanthus comes from Greek gala (milk) and anthos (flower). Snowdrop has white flowers that look like drops of milk, and it's commonly called the　milkflower. The name snowdrop also refers to a popular earring style from the 16th and 17th centuries. Snowdrop is native to the alpine grasslands of Asia Minor and southern Europe.　Throughout Asia and Europe, snowdrops have been used as a homeopathic remedy for digestive problems, menstrual problems and arthritis by midwives and monks.

スノードロップ・マツユキソウ（待雪草）

ヨーロッパ～コーカサス山脈（イラク）にかけて約１５種類が分布します。どの種も白い花を咲かせ、花びらの緑の斑の位置や葉の幅、全体の大きさで区別をします。八重咲きの品種などもあります。雪の一雫（ひとしずく）を花に変えたような、そんなイメージがある小球根です。寒さに非常に強く雪の中でも気丈に純白の花を咲かせます。

ヨーロッパでは古くから非常に親しまれている花で、カトリックの教会では２月２日の「キャンドルマス（日本語で聖燭祭）」という行事でスノードロップを捧げる習わしがあるそうです。花は一本の茎に一つ、しずくのような形のつぼみを吊り下げます。日中はこの花が開いて緑色の斑の入った花弁が顔を覗かせます。花が開いているのは日中だけで日が落ちて朝がくるまでは花は閉じてつぼみの状態に戻ります。

Cotton Candy

Since I mentioned about cotton candy in my angel food cake post, a few facts!
エンジェルフードケーキのレシピを掲載した際に綿飴に触れたので、ここで綿飴のトリビア！

"Cotton candy was first recorded around Mid-18th Century. At that time, spun sugar was an expensive, labor-intensive endeavor and was not generally available to the average person. Machine-spun cotton candy was invented in 1897 by William Morrison and John C. Wharton and first introduced to a wide audience at the 1904 World's Fair as "Fairy Floss" with great success, selling 68,655 boxes at the then-high $0.25, half the cost of admission to the fair. Fairy floss was renamed to "cotton candy" in the 1920s." - Wiki By the way, the 1904 World's Fair was in St. Louis!! I ♥ STL!

December 7th is National Cotton Candy Day in The United States.

1897年に世界最初の電動綿菓子製造機を製作したのは、アメリカ合衆国テネシー州ナッシュビルの菓子製造業者である、ウィリアム・モリソン(William Morrison) とジョン・C・ウォートン(John C. Wharton)である。1904年のセントルイス世界博覧会において、"Fairy Floss"の名で出展されたこの商品は、一箱25セントで68,655箱も売れたという。

アメリカ合衆国では12月7日を「綿菓子の日」(National Cotton Candy Day)としている。

Martha Stewart presents her angel food cake floating on a bed of cotton candy. Great idea eh?

Also, the Ainu people had their own pavilion at the World's Fair in 1904. I had no idea!

1904年のセントルイス世界博覧会で日本館でアイヌも紹介されてたらしいです。

Angel Food Cake

Angel Food Cake / エンジェルフードケーキ

シフォンケーキのように見えますがエンジェルフードケーキです。卵黄を使っていないのでとってもヘルシーなケーキ。　この卵白だけを使用したケーキは、アメリカでは古くから親しまれてきたケーキです。　このケーキを初めて食べたときはもう本当に"うっとり"でした。笑　とてもふんわり、しっとりしたケーキで食べたことのない味だな～っと思いました。　色々なエンジェルフードケーキを食べたり、作ってきましたがやっと自分好みのケーキを作り上げたので紹介します。僕のケーキはすごくふんわり、しっとりでイメージは綿飴ですｗ！口に入れたら溶ける～みたいなｗ　なので薄力粉の半分を粉砂糖にかえる工夫をしています。簡単に作れるのでいかがでしょうか？Have a go! Enjoy!

Ingredients 材料

薄力粉      190g
粉砂糖　    190g
卵白　       360cc

酒石英　    小2　
塩　         小¼
バニラエッセンス　    小1½
アーモンドエッセンス　小1
グラニュー糖　         220g

Directions

1. オーブンを190℃で予熱しておく。

2. 卵白をボウルに入れて軽く湯煎にかけ、人肌程度まであたためる。

3. 湯煎からはずし、温かいうちに酒石英、塩、バニラ、アーモンドを入れ泡立てる。途中、グラニュー糖を4回くらいに分けて加えながら、ぴんとツノが立つまで泡立てる。ボウルを逆さにしてもメレンゲが落ちないまで。
ふるった薄力粉と粉砂糖を少しずつ加えながら、さっくりと混ぜる。ゴムベラは底からすくうように大きく動かし、ボールは逆方向に回転させる。まぜすぎるを泡がつぶれて生地がふくれないので要注意！

4. シフォン型に生地の約1/3量を入れてゴムべらで隙間ができないようにならし、残りの生地も2回くらいに分けて加えながら入れ、そのつどゴムべらでならす。

5. 190℃で予熱しておいたオーブンで約30～35分焼く（心配な方は40分）。ケーキ型ごと逆さまにして、完全に冷ます（最低1時間）。型から外す。仕上げに粉砂糖をふるっても綺麗ですね。

Flower of the Week / 今週のお花

Ranunculus

The Latin name ranunculus means "little frog". They originated in the The Middle East, hence their alternative name "Turban Buttercup".

In fairy tales frogs are apt to change into princes and it was an Asian prince in just such a story who gave his name to this flower, which grows naturally in swampy ground. The prince was so good-looking that he was loved by everyone. He also had a beautiful voice but this was his undoing. He loved the open country and sang delightful songs in the presence of nymphs. He did not have the courage to declare his love to them and this haunted him so much that he died. After his death he was changed into the flower with delicate tissuey petals which bears his name.

The ranuculus meant "you are rich in attractions" to the Victorians.

ラヌンクルス

英語でバターカップと総称されるキンポウゲ科の花々。近似種が大変多く、約400種類（全世界では約1500種類）あります。同じところに複数の類似種が咲くことがあるので、細かい種の特定が難しい。
 

主に小さな黄色の花で、その光沢のある花弁の色がバターを連想させることから、独語ではブターブルーメ（バターの花）Butterblume ともいわれます。湿度のある森や草原、小川のそばなど、カエルがいるような所によく咲いているので、“小さなカエル”を意味するラテン語のラナRanaに学名ラヌンクルスは由来。スイスではタンポポの後に咲き、同じく黄色のカーペットのように群生する花として一般的です。 

send me a cloud with a silver lining

Went to bed at 10:30, present time, 2:41... Another night of not being able to sleep. Maybe I should consider seeing a doctor? My mind is reeling with crap, you'd think that you'd fall asleep after hitting the pillow, but it's the exact opposite. So, I'm gonna make an exception tonight and rant. Life is SO weird eh? At one one point, everything is perfect, everything just falls into place, but something happens to destroy that and it all falls apart... And you just feel like shit. Doesn't that happen so many times that it's a broken record by now and you'd think we'd me immune to it. So, why is this so different? Why am I not getting over it?

So the up and downs of recent weeks... Quit school and thought I found the PERFECT job yet I quit and I'm back at square one. The amount of thinking and effort I put into my decisions, all down the drain... Did some serious damage to my self-confidence, but I resent this hiccup for damaging my confidence... Times like this are very tiring physically and emotionally... Very vulnerable emotionally as well. The internal juggling is becoming a daily ritual. ugh I'm keeping myself grounded by telling myself that even with all these feeling, it won't defeat my intelligence!

Among others are the family issues which are pretty fucked up at the moment, hopefully we'll get some perspective and resolve the situation. Family relationships are so much harder than normal relationships isn't it? With friendships, you could just leave if you wanted to and not see them again. But that idea doesn't fly with families, at least as far as I'm concerned. It's so strange that 3 siblings can have such vast differences in values even if they grew up under the same roof. Communication becomes arduous... Resolutions anyone?

Enough rantings, hard to process thought into words. Will upload recipes and flower of the week soon, in the mean time, I'll add the lyrics to my fav song at the moment.

"Defying Gravity"

Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes: and leap!


It's time to try
Defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I am defying gravity
And you wont bring me down!


I'm through accepting limits
''cause someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I'll never know!
Too long I've been afraid of
Losing love I guess I've lost

Well, if that's love
It comes at much too high a cost!


I'd sooner buy
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I'm defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
And you wont bring me down!


I'd sooner buy
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I'm defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
And you won't bring me down!
bring me down!
ohh ohhh ohhhh!