Sad......

I was hunting around on the internet for something, which led me to think of looking up something else, and finally in a roundabout way I ended up at the newish fan site for Outlander, the "Viking Meets Predator" film that Darrell and Dave had been making specialty props for.

However, after poking around there I also came up with photos, (of EXTRAS mind you) in costume. So sad. Yes, often extras are just texture in the background, and you don't see the details. But I don't think I wanted to see these details! They look like [bad] SCA costumes, the ones that have been dumped in the Gold Key, when their owners moved on to better...

http://photos1.blogger.com/photoInclude/blogger/3857/1565/1600/Outlander%20Extras%202.2.jpg

I'm sure (hoping and praying) that there will be better out there. After all, the costume designer on this film, Debra Hansen, who I knew from last century, also did Beowulf and Grendel, and while the women's costumes on that were...shall we say...odd?, on the whole the costuming wasn't truly offputting and wrong. (Well, except for the women's costumes. Maybe Deb has a mental block about women in history?)
Admittedly, this *IS* a 'science-fiction' film, not a historical film, so I have to cut them a bit of slack. But still, how it looks, and how much I can believe in how it looks has a strong impact on how I actually view and enjoy a film...

Well, have to wait and see, I guess.

Anti-V

Ghost of Christmas....?

The phone rang yesterday evening.

When I answered it a small voice said "Hi, Mom...."

Of course, I promptly replied "I think you have the wrong number", and they
just as promptly hung up.

nah, I'd have noticed something like that along the way...

anti-v

Breaking with Tradition?

Or maybe just not going where habit wants to take you?

For a bunch of my adult years, I've been trying to create some Christmas
traditions. I had some a couple of decades ago. Admittedly they were simple
post-University ones. Not major hand-on-able traditions. And since I don't
have kids, and the cats don't care, I don't suppose I really need a legacy
to pass along.

Instead, my Christmas traditions since the 80's seem to have become more of
a struggle with time, made complex by my paranoia with winter. When I worked
in the advertising agency, Christmas was synonymous with year end (although
the varying clients had year ends scattered throughout the year) and usually
merely meant more, more, more in terms of last minute work. The more
responsibility I had in the department, the more frantic that last minute
chaos became.
And while I'd moved to Ontario with my own 'tweak' on Christmas
entertaining, which involved some festivities (and food) on Solstice, I
started to run into competition for the date. So, that fell by the wayside.
But because I was so busy, eventually, with the agency job, I got over
worrying about that.

And when I got married, I sort of envisioned that we'd start our own little
round of traditions. Except that at first they involved fitting in with our
other friends and hobbies. Which was okay. But when we moved away from the
city, that fell by the wayside too.

And every Christmas we end up trying to coordinate some get-together with
his family, but that involves enough brothers that it's seldom concrete or
planned very far ahead. (And is at the very teeth-clenchiest time of the
driving year!)

So, really the only Christmas tradition we seem to cling to, is
food-related. And even there, we're negotiable. Some years I've cooked a
duck. (We have a real fondness for a duck!) More often than not, we have NOT
done a turkey. Until recently, there weren't a lot of turkeys that were
two-person sized. And while I don't mind leftovers, in fact, I could get a
lot of enjoyment out of them, most turkeys just seem way too huge.
But chicken or turkey, if that's what we have, we've always stuck to our
favourite route: sage stuffing with nuts and raisins, and now cranberries,
gravy, mashed potatoes, and brussel sprouts. [sigh. When I think of how much
Dad loved brussel sprouts when we were kids, and how often they were served,
and how much I hated them!!!]

I suggested this year that maybe we should be wild and crazy. And even if I
roasted a chicken, if maybe we should just be untraditional, and do
something different.... (I can always do it again, the way we're used to,
for New Year's!)

I think, when I started the conversation, he got a bit nervous... but when
I finished my proposal, he seemed up for it.

It's hard though. Hard to break from habit. I thought to myself, hey, maybe
I can track down enough info about that turkey that Jed Bartlett was cooking
on West Wing, that he called the Butterball Hotline about. Maybe I could do
that! I thought that surely in an internet search I'd find the recipe. Or
someone's interpretation of the recipe. Nope. A few incomplete quotes was
all I could find. Then I thought, no problem, I'll watch the episode, and
make notes of everything said on the subject. Nope. Season 2. We've loaned
seasons 2 to 6 to a best friend. But not one who just lives down the street.
(Not that you get many friends living down the street when you live in the
country!)

Anyway, I got a small turkey. (So small, actually that all the recipe info
I can track down doesn't even recognize it as a real turkey! Recipes for
cooking a turkey BREAST speak in comparative terms!)
And I thought I'd brine it. And do a sausage stuffing with cornbread.
(Maybe next year I can actually get Jed Bartlett's recipe....) And make a
different kind of gravy, with rosemary and sherry. And mashed sweet
potatoes.

Of course, this is weird and scary and will probably make it an even
whackier Christmas than I usually have.
But there's always New Year's. I can make it the correct way on New Year's
if I need to. We like roast chicken. It won't be a hardship!

But it does feel a bit like preparing to jump off a cliff! That's West
Wing-like....

anti-v

The Weather

The fallback topic of conversation for polite Canadians everywhere...

But goodness, is it ever freaky!

This year we had an early and solid onset of winter. And it grudgingly
retreated. Then we had another pummelling, and a backing off. And for the
bulk of the production time for 'Twas, it was pretty amazing. (Not I want to
run out and play amazing, though there were a few nice days, but definitely
easier for commuting to the theatre shops. Though there was some pretty
impressive fog.)
Then, as we rolled into the final moments, the preview day, and the day of
opening, (with its extra school matinee), it got all crappy. Opening day
dawned (?) after a night of freezing rain. I managed to get out of our area,
and in Shelburne, instead of ice it was rivers of rain gushing down the
streets, but freezing rain again in Orangeville.

I'd really planned to get the show going into the matinee, and then head
home for a nap, a shower, and to wash my hair, before donning clean, and
preferably spiffier clothing for the opening performance.
Instead, partway through my wrangling that morning's choir into costumes, I
was told I had a call from home about the weather.
Darrell said it was worse, and if I got through, I might not get back, but
that our power had gone out around 11 am.

Hence, even if I made it home, there'd be no shower and hairwashing. And I
might miss the opening. (Note: last year I missed the opening of the
Christmas show, Kringle's Window, because we had a major snow storm happen
around 5 pm.) So, instead I opted to hang around the theatre, sew some more,
go to the dollar store for a towel and shampoo, and the thrift store for a
new shirt.
And as it turned out, Darrell did make it down for the performance. And we
made it home. But while I was sleeping out the weekend, our world vanished
under a layer of white. Deeper and deeper, until my regular snowboots didn't
quite cut the mustard.
And there we've been since then.

I was quite excited this week when we had enough of a mild break that the
poor crunkled up ice-coated trees melted enough to stand up again.That's
been a week and a half of touching toes. Most of ours are young and
flexible enough to have bounced back. Literally. Though there's been a fair
bit of damage to the older trees around here.

And today when I got up, the temperature is 5.6 C above! and the feet of
snow on the deck have dwindled to a couple of scruffy clumps. And the fields
out the windows are brown again. Well, brown and white. I won't exaggerate,
but still, from a wasteland of winter to be back into fall? That's
impressive. Mind you, it sounded like it was raining a lot of yesterday
evening. (All this metal roofing is a giveaway!) And rain would have helped
the process a lot!

And not that I put unswerving faith in the weather office, but they have
been continuing to predict an unusually mild weather curve for the next week
or so....

Not that it ever seems to feel warmer indoors. Why is that? Anyway, here's
hoping for a brown Christmas. Be almost like taking an exotic holiday!

anti-v

A review!

(From the Orangeville Banner)

'Twas -- an enchanted holiday play
In the Spotlight

ASHLEY GOODFELLOW, Banner Staff Writer

'TWAS

THEATRE ORANGEVILLE

If you're willing to open your mind to a tale about Christmas that doesn't
follow the traditional festive story lines, I highly recommend the world
premiere of Eric Woolfe's fantasy-meets-holiday production 'Twas.

Unprecedented and mesmerizing are just two words that define this story and
set it apart from other Christmas classics -- like A Christmas Story and The
Grinch Who Stole Christmas, for instance.

Now, don't get me wrong; those long-running holiday favourites deserve the
accolades they've attained over the years, and they are definitely two of my
favourites. But, I can certainly see 'Twas sparking an entirely new genre of
Christmas plays and movies -- and even, with some time, becoming a cult
classic for the holidays.

'Twas doesn't focus on the theme of belief; none of the characters question
the existence of Santa or the legitimacy of Christmas. There are no holiday
naysayers here.

'Twas looks at Christmas through an entirely different lens.

It makes up a wonderful story about the origins of Christmas and the
evolution of the Jolly Old Elf himself -- and I can guarantee it's nothing
you've heard before. I don't want to give too much away, but it's a journey
you won't soon forget.

In 'Twas, there are clever but subtle references to how many holiday
traditions we enjoy today came to be -- such as hanging stockings, setting
out cookies for Santa, and why the man in red comes down the chimney.

Woolfe does a superb job marrying fantastical features into the story --
such as the squawking, squeaking, sweeping Gargravens (my favourite), the
conjoined trolls, the Bodach and Dogman, just to name a few. Puppets and
masks are a magnificent touch to the costumes -- which are both fascinating
and fanciful -- and help to guide the audience through a story stocked with
characters.

The set is nothing short of brilliant; Steve Lucas deserves a standing
ovation for his inventive and functional design. He takes you from an
orphanage to an impassable ice wall to a castle in the North Pole, all
through smooth, slick transitions.

I have to mention here, too, that the live magic performed in the story by
Darren Keay, who plays Crimson Nick, was an enchanting and exciting
accent -- I know that the children watching will especially revel in this.

Keay, whom I always enjoy watching on stage, is spectacular. He plays the
world's best cat burglar "since the inception of deception." Crimson Nick is
slick and sly but you can always see a glimpse of his soft spot, a twinkle
in his eye. He's absolutely charming, and the audience is immediately taken
with him -- despite his knack for criminal activity.

All of the actors in 'Twas portray multiple characters in the play -- some
playing as many as five, such as Burgandy Cole, who is a definite asset to
this production. Cole is masterful at switching her roles, and always comes
on stage with a fresh and animated enthusiasm.

Also brilliant is Douglas Chamberlain, as the toy maker Pop Hoffman and
Julebukk, king of the thieving elves. Chamberlain is a perfect fit for both
roles, and delivers a flawless performance.

In fact, all of the actors, including the five youngsters, are amazing and
deserve kudos for a job well done. It will be difficult, I imagine, for
other theatre companies to follow Theatre Orangeville's production of
'Twas -- especially in casting.

That said, with a new production, there are always a few wrinkles to iron
out. In 'Twas, I felt the only part that needs work is the way the ending
rolls out; it seems just a little too neat and tidy -- but it's certainly
the ending you want.

In years to come, I predict this play will be very much sought after by
theatre companies across the country -- it will be a holiday staple in live
theatre.

Meanwhile, kids and adults in the Orangeville area have the opportunity to
see it here first.

I say, enjoy an early Christmas gift and treat yourself to the world
premiere of 'Twas. It really is a delight to watch.

'Twas runs until Dec. 23 at the Orangeville Opera House. For tickets, call
519-942-3423.

More snippets about 'Twas

Oh, and another story in the O'ville Banner:

Fantasy meets Christmas in Theatre Orangeville production
Centre Stage

DAVID NAIRN, Special to the Banner

Welcome to the world of Crimson Nick, flying Gargravens, conjoined trolls,
singing orphans, an evil Ice Queen and magical elves!

It's a world in which magical books are created out of thin air, reindeer
fly headlong through the skies of our imaginations and the stage becomes,
well, whatever you want: a forlorn castle somewhere at the North Pole, an
impassable ice wall, a toy shop full of delightful wonders. Our Theatre
Orangeville family Christmas tradition continues this year with the
'fantasmagorical' world-premiere production of 'Twas, written by Eric
Woolfe. It is our dearest hope and wish that this universe, where fantasy
meets the magic of Christmas, will both enthrall and delight you and your
family while warming your heart with the spirit of the season. Young area
acting sensations Elizabeth DuBois (Hockley), Cameron Kennedy (Erin),
Carleigh Knudsen (Orangeville), Hannah Manzi (Tottenham) and Aiden O'Brien
(Palgrave) are joined onstage in this production by Douglas Chamberlain
(Little Women, Dear Santa, Stratford Festival), Darren Keay (Outlaw, Mary's
Wedding) and Theatre Orangeville newcomers Burgandy Code, Mike Nadajewski
and Janet Porter. Order your tickets today by calling the Theatre
Orangeville box office at 519-942-3423.

From the Orangeville Banner

Only now having a chance to start looking for coverage....

This is from the Orangeville Banner on Nov.24th.

"An original Christmas tale
Theatre Orangeville premieres 'Twas

ASHLEY GOODFELLOW, Banner Staff Writer

"Fantasmagorical" is the buzz word for this season's Christmas production at
Theatre Orangeville, the world premiere of Eric Woolfe's 'Twas.

With magic tricks, comedy, romance and fanciful creatures like trolls, elves
and an evil ice queen, the play expertly brings together all of the elements
that make an extraordinary holiday story.

'Twas is a Christmas tale that's never been told before, and Orangeville
audiences will be the first to hear it.

"It's about the evolution of Christmas," says Aidan O'Brien, an 11-year-old
who appears on stage as three different characters.

"It's not like any other Christmas play," adds Cameron Kennedy, 13, who
takes on two of the story's characters. "It's the exact opposite of what you
already thought of how Santa came to be. It's the true story of Santa
Claus."

The story begins when Santa Claus himself is a child, "before he was fat and
jolly," and takes audiences on a whimsical journey on the making of Santa.

It's set in a mock 1930s era -- reminiscent of Dick Tracy days -- while
blending in some romantic trimmings of the 1800s.

Not only is it a story about Christmas, it's a story about love.

"I don't think it really has any slow parts," Hannah Manzi, 12, says of the
pace of the story.

"Well, only in the hot moments," says Kennedy, laughing, referring to the
romantic scenes.

The set, explains Theatre Orangeville's artistic director David Nairn, is
challenging because of the many different locations the play features, like
the top of a castle, the chimney, the evil furnace and an ice cliff.

"We're doing stuff we've never done before," says Nairn. "There will be
sliding walls and things moving -- it's really been very demanding."

The costumes will be spectacular, adds Nairn.

"Everybody will like it," says Carleigh Knudsen, 12.

"Teenagers who might not believe in Santa will learn they should believe,"
says Kennedy.

"And adults might like the romance aspect," adds Nairn.

The youngsters say the best part about starring in a main stage production
at Theatre Orangeville -- besides missing school -- is the opportunity to
work with professional actors.

Each of the five youth take on two to three different roles, and switching
between characters makes their experience more interesting, they say.

And, they won't be the only youth performing in the play.

The TOYS choir, which usually opens for the Christmas play every year, will
be performing in 'Twas.

"The whole first scene is actually built around TOYS," says Nairn. "They are
much more incorporated in the play."

'Twas runs Nov. 30 to Dec. 23. For tickets, subscriptions and information,
call 519-942-3423."

Going To Hell In A Handcart

...and the wheels just fell off!

Well, it was bound to happen. It happens every time we get to this point in
the production. We move to the theatre from the rehearsal hall, and are
suddenly faced with a different space, real sets instead of tape marks,
different lighting, depth, space for movement. And yes, things always take a
turn for the chaotic.

Of course, this time it's a whopping huge show, with involved sets that
transform, in a stage space that really isn't much space at all. We need
wing space. We need fly space. Exits from both sides, and not just a
crossover. And of course, we don't have that.
For a redesigned space that once was the old opera house, we're doing well.
But for something like what we're trying to do? Ha!

So, tomorrow was already going to be nightmarish. They want all the costume
pieces that are involved in quick changes, which is practically all. And the
few that weren't needed for planning changes, well they wanted those for the
photo shoot! So, essentially everything...

Mind you, now the director wants to do some reblocking because the physical
set works less easily than the imaginary one from rehearsal. (Quel
surprise!) So we gets us a teeny bit more time in the morning to sew, in
exchange for a later night tomorrow. Oh well.

But it's definitely time to start building the voodoo doll of the
playwright!

vandy

TWAS

I'm sincerely hoping that at some point, we can get far enough along to
actually look at what we're doing with this show, and see progress...

Mind you, we're 9 days in, counting Equity days off, and have only 7 till
the photo shoot!

Twas. It's the Christmas show at Theatre Orangeville. Specially written for
the theatre by a warped little playwright named Eric Woolfe. Actually, it's
a great play. I loved reading it. I think it could be a captivating
production with a lot of appeal for all ages.

But it would make a great movie. With CGI.

As it is, the theatre has gone crazy wild and has hired TWO costume
designers on this! (which means there's two of us to also find, alter,
build....) And as well as the ten actors playing 28 roles, (with a gazillion
quick changes,) we're having to costume about 88 more kids as orphans, when
the TOYS choir joins in for the first two scenes!

Argh!

Needless to say, I must be brief, because I have a mountain of stuff to get
to. But maybe I'll be back later to talk about the conjoined trolls, or the
dogman, or the Julenisser....

v

Another Techno-Rant

Sigh. I feel there are far too many of these hogging room on this blog.

At long last, I have my old, but renewed, computer back. There's a new
motherboard, and a slightly faster processor, and we'd moved in a clean hard
drive and done a brand new installation of the operating system. A blank
canvas.

So I slaved in my old HD with programs and data, and swapped back the best
of the RAM, and started consolidating life. Of course I've got bits and bobs
of it all over the place now. Because the whole thing started with an email
problem, there's a trail of different email programs and oddments of mail.
There's six months of life on a 2 GB drive that I'd like to fetch back. And
varying programs and data to move around.

Some of it worked slick as a whistle. It's here on the slave drive, now
it's there on the main. Whee! Easy peasy.

Other things not so simple.

I thought, gee, here's my chance to try networking, and I'll be able to
move the six months data in a nice straightforward fashion. I moved the 2GB
to another machine with an Ethernet card. I set up the drivers. I got a
crossover cable. Then I had to Google and Google and Google to find
instructions, because oddly, while it's something that *everyone* is
supposed to do these days, families all networking together for maximum
value, it appears that there's no real How-To's that are easily accessible.
Windows Help tends to skip over the details of how to get there, and just
tell you how to enjoy it once it's working. Their trouble-shooter walks you
through a few steps and then assumes you'll get the IT guy to fix it.

It's a teeny bit like being a woman with a car. Sure, we'll accept the fact
that you might be able to fill the windshield washer, and maybe even change
a tire, but after that, step aside and let the MEN take care of it. (Really,
I don't WANT to know how the spark plugs work or how to change them, but I'd
like to have a better sense of when it's THEM not working, and what's
involved. Is that a betrayal of my gender?)

I mean, I don't really WANT to take computers apart. I'd prefer it if they
worked. But since they often don't, I'd also like to be able to understand
the small stuff. I don't have a computer repair fellow on call, and couldn't
afford it if I did!

Anyway, after some head-banging, I achieved a network! I transferred one of
the files as proof, and then decided I'd run out of playing around time, and
would have to get back to it in a day or two.

Of course, the network went away, and I've not been able to find it again.
And wiser heads than mine have looked at the info I've given them and said
"that should work". Sigh.

So, by now, in between failed attempts, I've mostly copied the obvious
files onto floppy disk and transferred them that way. There's still some
more obscure stuff scattered around, and one really big thing that won't fit
on a disk, so I guess I'll have to try something else. At some point.

Because it would be nice to be done with the 2GB HD machine and make a nice
new home for the xpoodle* machine a friend just gave me. (With the proviso
that I was NOT supposed to take it apart and tinker; just use it!)

*I call it the xpoodle, because it's so cute and tiny and compact, smaller
than my breadmaker, like a toy poodle, and is running XP. (Heck, I won't
need to take it apart to make myself crazy; just try to understand how to
use it!)

vandy

and still more on Green Tomatoes

Because I don't type very fast, and the cat keeps coming and wanting to
cling, and I'm an even worse typist with a cat balanced precariously on one
shoulder and down my arm, which I then have to hold out horizontally, to
keep her from sliding off and tearing the flesh from my bones with her
desperate limpet claws....

Green Tomato & Apple Chutney

3 LB completely green tomatoes
2 LB firm, tart apples
2 cups raisins
1 1/2 cups diced onions
2 tsp. finely minced garlic
2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. pickling or other fine non-iodized salt
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar, plus a little more if needed
3 to 4 Tbsp. finely minced fresh ginger, to taste
1 1/2 Tbsp. mustard seed
2 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. finely minced fresh hot pepper, 1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes, or
1/4 tsp. (or to taste) Cayenne pepper

1. Rinse and drain the tomatoes. Cut out the stem scars and any blemishes
and cut the tomatoes into 1/2 inch chunks. You should have about 8 cups.
Place the tomatoes in a preserving pan.

2. Peel, core, and cut the apples into 1/2 inch chunks; add them to the
tomatoes. Add the raisins, onion, garlic, sugars, salt and vinegar. Mix the
ingredients well and bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce the heat and boil the mixture slowly, uncovered, stirring it often,
for 30 minutes.

3. Add the ginger, mustard seed, coriander, cinnamon, and hot pepper. Return
to a boil, adjust the heat, and continue to cook the chutney uncovered at a
slow boil, stirring it often, until it holds a mounded shape when lifted in
a spoon. Taste it carefully, remembering that the balance of flavours will
improve as the chutney mellows in the jar; add, if needed, more vinegar,
sugar, and/or salt.

4. Ladle the boiling hot chutney into hot, clean pint or half-pint canning
jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Seal the jars with new two-piece
canning lids according to manufacturer's directions and process for 10
minutes in a boiling water bath.
Cool, label, and store the jars. Let the chutney mellow for a few weeks
before serving it with a curry, cold meat, or any other dish needing an
uplifting accompaniment. [I like that phrase!]

More Recipes for Green Tomatoes

Green Tomato, Apple, & Pear Mincemeat

(Straight from the jar, a pint will fill an 8-inch pie adequately. With the
addition of diced fresh apple, some nuts, perhaps a few snipped dried
apricot, and an added tot of rum or brandy, a pint will fill a 9-inch pie.)

3 quarts coarsely chopped completely green tomatoes, scrubbed and trimmed of
stem scars
1 Tbsp. non-iodized salt
1 1/2 quarts diced, peeled, and cored firm, tart apples, the firmer the
better
1 quart diced, peeled and cored firm, slightly underripe pears
2 1/2 cups dark seedless raisins
Grated zest and chopped pulp of 1 large or 2 medium oranges
Grated zest of 1 1/2 large lemons
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup undiluted frozen apple concentrate, thawed
3 1/2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 cup dark rum, preferably Jamaican

1. Stir the chopped tomatoes and salt together, then scrape them into a
colander and let them drain for two hours.

2.Combine the drained tomatoes with the rest of the ingredients, except the
rum, in a preserving pan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
Lower the heat and cook the mincemeat, uncovered, stirring it often, until
it is thick enough to mound in a spoon when a sample is dipped up, about 1
hour. Be careful to stir often enough to prevent sticking toward the end of
the cooking.

3.Stir in the rum and ladle the boiling-hot mincemeat into hot, clean pint
canning jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace; remove any air bubbles. Seal
the jars with new two-piece caning lids, according to the manufacturer's
directions, and process them in a boiling-water bath for 25 minutes. Cool,
label, and store the jars. Let the mincemeat mellow for a month before using
it.

Alternatively: Store the mincemeat, covered but unsealed, in refrigerator.

Yield: about 8 pints

Green Tomatoes

I didn't manage to get any tomatoes planted this year, so I don't have green
tomatoes to deal with, but Karen does.

Years and years ago I had access to green tomatoes, and made this chutney.
In fact, it was one of the reasons I ended up special-ordering a copy of the
cook book for myself. And a few years ago a friend had more than enough
green tomatoes in her garden to give me some, and I made it again.

Green Tomato Chutney
(It's a British cookbook, and I'm useless for spontaneous understanding of
measurements, so I'll include everything they list.)

4 LB (1.8 kg) green tomatoes, washed and chopped
1 1/2 LB (700 g) shallots or onions, peeled and chopped
1 LB (450 g) cooking apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 pint (575/600 ml) vinegar
8 red chilies
1 oz (25 g) dried root ginger
8 oz (225 g) seedless raisins or dates, chopped
2 tsp salt
1 LB (450 g) sugar

Put the chopped tomatoes, shallots or onions and the apples in a large,
heavy-based pan with half the vinegar. Bring to a boil, then simmer gently
for about 30 minutes until tender.
Tie the chilies and root ginger in a muslin bag, bruise with a hammer, and
add to the pan with the raisins or chopped dates. Cook, stirring from time
to time until mixture thickens, after about 1 hour.
Add the salt, sugar and the rest of the vinegar, stirring well until the
sugar dissolves. Continue cooking, pressing the bag of spices occasionally
with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick. Remove the muslin bag
before potting and sealing. Leave to mature for 6 weeks.

Blech!!!

Our deck. October 12th, 2006.

Infidelity

I'm feeling consumed with guilt.

Awkward about my feelings.

I've always been very much a one-anything woman. It seems to be the one
aspect of life I'm focussed in. It's not that I can't be caring of other
people, other things, other situations, it's just that when my emotions are
really involved, it's a single focal point.

There's been a kind of quandary for the last number of years anyway, but
I've found ways of compartmentalising it, and maybe justifying it. Somehow
making it okay, and not hurtful to the parties involved. (Or so I tell
myself.)

But these last few months have been really tricky.

Way back in the beginning of May, Coco arrived. Stray cat. Kind of neat
stray cat. Great big extra thumbs, like she's wearing black oven mitts. I
call her Lobster Paws sometimes.
Turned out she'd wandered here from a nearby farm, where she'd recently
been adopted from an animal shelter as a barn cat. The lady was all excited
that we might give her a chance at being a housecat again. (Coco is a four
years + cat, who apparently has been constantly returned to the animal
shelter as a "bad" cat with inappropriate bathroom habits, though I've now
heard that's one of the *code* phrases used when people just don't want to
keep an animal.)
She was neutered and had her shots, and we'd had her around for several
weeks before we found Mary, who'd given her her most recent home.

So we decided to give it a try.

*NOT* that we needed a cat! We already have three. In fact we already have
one more than we'd planned on having. When the kittens were born about 8
years ago, (of an abandoned mom), we arranged for a home for the mother,
decided we'd keep a kitten each, and proceeded to find homes for the other
two kittens. The last kitten was slow to find someone, and by then we were
getting fond of him. So when his new people brought him back a day later
because the husband didn't want to inconvenience his dog while introducing
the kitten, we were secretly happy.

And Bear turned out to be a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of cat, who didn't
mind being shared, and while infinitely loving, didn't seem to need the same
single person devotion the other two wanted.

But, so I already have a bit of guilt about Bear.

Then along comes Coco into our lives, and damned if she doesn't turn out to
be one of the sweetest, most charming and amusing cats it's been my luck to
know!
It's a little bit like someone (aliens?) were watching us and our cats, and
secretly recording all the things about our cats that most amused and
charmed us. Then they programmed it all into this little alien cat with
thumbs. And they planted her here to conquer us.

And she really is appealing. And seems to care for us.
I still can't see why no-one along her path seemed to feel she was worth
trying to keep. She seems one of the better-behaved cats I've met in life.
(Except for being just a teeny bit bossy, and terrorising our other cats.
"what big hands you have!" "all the better to smack you with....")

She has a little muttery voice, and wanders about to check on us, making a
little rolly mrrrr sound. And her purr is HUGE! It's almost scary how loud
her purr is. And I love her big hands. I've been trying to take some
pictures of her, but black cats are really hard to photograph. And what
pictures I have taken are trapped on a different computer. Maybe at the end
of the month, when my old computer comes home again, I'll manage to post
pics once more.

But I guess I'm just doomed now to spend all my days trying to not look
like I'm playing favourites. That I don't love any cat more than another. Or
that I love them for different reasons, and there's no competition involved.

And I wonder how winter with four cats is going to be. This house already
seems small in winter! (And they're making that nasty 'S'-word prediction
for the Dundalk highlands in the next day or so. Sigh....)

Wish me luck.

v

OHMIGAWD!

Larry has a hot tub!!!!

That's what he was trying to bring in the other day. The mystery toolbin or
wood storage is actually a hot tub.

I just peered out the back door because there's the annoying buzz/din of a
solar radio not quite tuned in vibrating through my office wall, and there
was the grey bin thing not moved inside or anywhere else, and there was the
naked upper portions of Larry, peacefully steeping and reading a book!!!

(My god and brrr! It's about 8 celsius out! He may be warm where he's in
the water, but all that exposed flesh above.....? Brrrrr!)

At least he may not be out there too long, because the radio noise is
really very bothersome...
As long as he remembers to turn it off or take it in with him!

v

The Larry Report

Actually, it was far quieter next door this summer. Less yarkie dogs
yarking, less Lawnmower Man chewing up lost civilisations.... I think they
went up to their trailer or cottage or whatever near Wiarton or Walkerton or
somewhere 'W'-y a lot.

Though he's had a sudden burst of end of summer energy. (Much like Charv on
his winter-fattening killing spree!)(Well, okay, not "much like".)

There was the House Tweaking van and sign, as all their woodworky bits got
repainted from the greenish of old to a dark brown. A little metal toolshed
seems to have bloomed in the back 40. The little wood Mennonite-made
toolshed from last spring has suddenly been stained dark brown. (KInd of
ugly. Neither a thick enough coat, not a thin enough coat, and kind of makes
me think of that Goodwill Brown that all furniture items had been painted
when you got them from Goodwill. That you then had to strip back off.)

Now, today, they've been trying to back a truck and trailer around the side
yard, which is far less possible now that he's filled it with little bricks
paths and gazebos and tree benches and stuff.... And it looks like they've
offloaded some kind of grey storage bin/box/toolsheddy thing. Not sure if
it's maybe to be a woodshed by the back door? Though they have a backdoor on
the otherside, which has a more level access, rather than down and around
the slope. Far easier to get wood to.

Or maybe it's a wee outbuilding for the Yarkies for winter? Larry did go
all crazy putting in a more permanent fence around their dog-run. (Once
David Rankine's little nature garden with wild sassafrass and wild ginseng
and native flowers.) I know that one of the Yarkies had a reputation for
being able to escape their old compound.

Admittedly, we've had our house-battening moments too. Darrell caulked the
roof of the Wendy-house. And we've had firewood delivered, wettish wood, so
Darrell's been shifting the remains of our dry stock forward so the newer
wood can be stacked at the 'back of the line'.
I dug my potatoes. (No way near Grondzilla-sized!) A lot of Barbie-doll
potatoes, and a small bunch of decent sized ones, and some in between.

Mostly it's being so wet that any outside job keeps being postponed. And
because it's cooler, even a dry bright day doesn't really dry things up
much. It's far easier to dig potatoes when you're not trying to dig in a
soggy mudpit.

I still have dyeing paraphanalia scattered around to gather up too. And
gardening bits and pieces. Essentilly, I still need some good old summer
weather!

v

Missing in Action

Yes, I should have at least posted some words in all this time. I set things
up so I could email blogs, because I thought that would make it easier. And
yes, it does. I still just don't say anything!
Perhaps it's because when I do sit down in front of the computer I'm so
frustrated by its sluggishness, 400 Mhz and almost zero RAM and a
2.something MB HD.... (Though I've functioned on this as a back up machine
before.) Or maybe it's because our dial up speed has dwindled to tin cans
and string speed.... (No, really. Messages tied to the leg of a snail would
be faster. Except I don't think snails have legs...)

We've harrassed good ol' Ma Bell so much they know us personally now. It
seems very likely there's some fault in the seals of the local junction box,
because ever since spring, it if rains, the service drops off. Sometimes
even quits. Our neighbours have given up on the idea of internet totally.
We're the only poor eejits still perservering! And of course, when the local
on-contract guy pops by to check it out, it's a day or two later, and the
rains are gone, and everything seems fine.
We've tried four different computers; two different styles, Mac and PC;
four different phone outlets; two different phone lines; even two different
ISP's, just for overkill's sake! Nothing helps. The last thing we can try,
which will be time-consuming and awkward so gets put off, is to replace all
the phone cabling in the house and all the jacks.

We don't even have the option of paying the big bucks for high speed - it
simply isn't available. We're in one of those little black holes where
no-one is supplying it. Sigh.

So, that hasn't helped my literary mood.

And when I finally did get a version of my computer back so I could access
my nice little camera again (really mine now, I've worked off the trade!),
it turns out the email problem is still there, and I probably have to load
the OS from scratch, so I'm still running life from the Village Idiot
computer.

And then, my old old computer was having a second chance at life, with a
new motherboard! (Thanks Russ!) Well, I haven't been able to manage to
collect it yet. Won't see if for a month. sigh.....
And with my luck, when I finally do get it home, I'll be up to my eyebrows
in the Christmas play at the Theatre, and not get a chance to really sort it
all out.

Thing is, there are solutions to all of this, and not just the simple but
more expensive one of just buying a new system that works. But a number of
them require me to figure them out, and that probably means doing some
research on the web (cause we got no libraries up here at the end of the
world) and then I'm back to being annoyed at my dial up speed.

Vicious circles.

But here, let's end the techno-whine before it makes Karen grumpy!

v

Inferno

Which is the special circle of Hell which involves over-caffeinated and
sugared teens in a tiny space at high speed? And for whom is it reserved? Do
I qualify?

Obviously I must. For my sins, that's where I am.

Yup, our Young Company production of Trevor Nunn's Peter Pan, (a truly
charming adaptation) was designed and rehearsed for the outdoor 'bowl' at
Hockley Highlands, a large natural amphitheatre depression in the parkland
of the resort and conference centre.
The audience was to be seated, in awe and wonderment, at the base of the
bowl, and the play to transpire, in dizzying circles, around them on the
slopes. There are natural features we've been taking advantage of, trees and
hills and dips. It was still going to be a whirlwind of a show, but a
natural for an outdoors production.

However, Nature seems to have taken a scunner to us, and suddenly, after a
hot sunny summer, we've suddenly hit the rainy season. We had to mive
yesterday's dress rehearsals indoors, and there's a good chance that today's
shows will be inside as well.
Now the indoor space is rather attractive, but not at all designed for
theatre in the round as played by galloping teenagers!
It felt much like the first exciting days of Earthquake! in Sensurround
must have felt to movie-goers.

(Yes, the earth moved for me.)

The volume, the movement, the blurring speed of it all! Ack!

Combine that with the usual mind and soul-numbing chaos of 24 teenagers
trying to find their costumes (even when sorted and hung neatly on a
well-labelled costume rack) and trying to figure out how to put them on
(remember when I mentioned last year that human clothing seemed to be a
great enigma to these kids?), and then add the post-apocalyptic aftermath of
them removing said costumes.....

Well, I can only assume I must have been a sinner of phenomenal
proportions!

So, from the Circle....
This is Anti-V saying.......

"help me, hhheeeeelllllpppppppp meeeeeeeeeeeeeee"

No Matter Where You Go....

there you are!

http://www.cdli.ca/CITE/v_childhood.htm

vandy

Second to the Right, and Straight On Till Morning

Yes, it's Theatre Orangeville's Young Company time again, and this year,
Peter Pan!

And yes, that means two dozen kids. Again. Ack! For a non-kid-lover, I seem
to be ending up spending a lot of time with kids!

The program is open to young people ages twelve to seventeen, but I have no
idea yet, what the mix is. Maybe by the end of the production I'll have a
better sense, but currently I'm devoting my time to just getting them sorted
out!

I did the first run of fittings yesterday, all but the actors playing Pan,
Wendy and Tink. And for the most part, it went pretty well. Minor
alterations, lots of tweaking, and a number of pieces I haven't even started
yet. But there should be something to 'cover their nekkidness' for all, and
that's a very good start!

Of course, the really great perk of the Young Company shows is that the
program runs for the entire month of August, so that makes for a HUGE
production period. (In relation to all the other TO mainstage shows!) So,
I've actually had some time to think about this production, and to shop for
bits and pieces to make up their base costumes, and time to actually have
already started building some pieces. That's great. And really gives me a
headstart.

Of course, it doesn't get me past the fact that these kids, even the ones
who've been doing theatre for a while, seem to be totally unaware of how
clothes fit. Last year, on Twelfth Night, none of them knew how to tuck in a
shirt! At all. Even in the most rudimentary way!

And again, this year, there's still the perplexed questions: do these pants
come up to my waist? They feel funny.
Because of course, teens of this day and age don't wear clothing between
the hips and ribcage. (How do they survive Canadian winters???) And they're
all still in that growing stage, so proportions are different than they
eventually will be, and they're still growing into their bodies.

But I would have expected, at least from the experienced kids, a little
more familiarity with costume, and expectation that it would be different
from what they wear everyday. I know it was that way for me, as a kid in
theatre.
But oh well....
Back at it.

Vandy

Better Living Through Science?

I'd had an idea to stretch some leftover curry for tonight's dinner, and was
thinking of making some pakoras, using a new concept I'd had, and utilising
some tinned chickpeas in the batter... (Up here, we do NOT have exotic
flours for such purposes!)
And I'd discovered, lo and behold, I had no tinned chickpeas. Which
actually surprised me, because for some inscrutable reason they've ended up
on Darrell's regular grocery radar....

On the very slight offhand chance, I thought I'd check the supplies in the
trailer. No chickpeas. What I did find, and hastily offer up to the pond
fish, was a bag with two cheese-flavoured English muffins, dated from
August. *NOT* the kind of thing one thinks of as a long-term storable
staple!

The scary thing was that not only were they still squeezably "fresh", they
weren't mouldy, either.

Not that I'd have dared to eat them...I only hope it doesn't kill my fish!

vandy

Not Dead Yet....

Still semi-computerless.
(This back up is slow and has only 64 Mb of RAM, and can multi-task about as
well as I can these days! And no USB for camera or printer or.....)

Turns out my *real* computer has fried part of its motherboard. Maybe when
the CPU fan died? But essentially, it's frelled enough to not be worth
poking at anymore.

(Though I feel really guilty, because it seems that the message from the
fellow working on it, which explained how much he'd already tried, and that
he had another system he'd GIVE me if I said the word, ended up in the ISP's
Spam folder.... So instead of saying 'thank you, thank you, please do
that!", I made him try a few other, probably unnecessary, things first.)

So, maybe there's an ending in sight, but not sure when....

Instead, let's offer up a lovely quote:

"There'll come a moment when you'll have the chance to do the right thing."
Elizabeth Swann
"I love those moments. I like to wave at them as they pass by." Jack Sparrow

The Frolic

Wow!

This past week my two oldest and dearest friends took me on a 'mystery
frolic' to celebrate an upcoming BIG birthday.
What a day!

I'd been commanded to appear at the nearest one's house at 8:30 am, (later
amended to 9), with some satin, a dive mask and three cloves of garlic.
I had a lovely drive over, although the route I'd intended to take turned
out to be closed for construction, (maybe paving the one last small stretch
of gravel? Or just digging new potholes?). and I had to detour back to the
highway by a sideroad I've never taken, and start to wonder where it was
really taking me....

So, then we headed down to one of the friends' regular rendezvous spots, a
Chapters and Starbucks, for the first lattes of the day!
And a browse.
Then off to a lakeshore park, with a view of the horizon like we were at the
sea, and a lunch of champagne and baguettes, smoked salmon and cream cheese,
complete with sliced onion and capers, and mango and blueberries for
dessert.

Then back into the car, and back up to a HUGE mall for a birthday shopping
spree, with a time limit! (And let me tell you, I am vastly out of training
for shopping! I'm sure I was a great disappointment that I didn't scamper
from store to store, trying things on. I did warm up as we go, and started
finding more things to touch or hold up against me. Really I came into my
own when we finally hit Williams-Sonoma, a fabulous cooking store. Now THAT
was like being a kid in a candy shop!)
Good thing they'd told me to wear comfy shoes...

In the end, after a restorative cup of coffee, we started to head back for a
final circuit, and another look at the several treasures we'd come across; a
grill pan in W-S, a marvellous suede jacket, maybe some shoes, or a silk
cotton sweater, and some frivolous items, and then we passed through one
last store, and found some heavenly linen clothing in delicious colours and
shapes and sizes that just called to me.

So I ended up with a deep coral overblouse, a grill pan, and a copy of my
latest favourite magazine, Cooks Illustrated. (I now own TWO issues, and
have been given a subscription to their immense and informative website from
another dear friend!)

But had the excitement ended? Not yet.

We heaped ourselves and my purchases back into cars, and drove down to King
West and the theatre district, and dined at a wonderful little Italian
restaurant, on the patio, watching Toronto saunter past.

And yum, lovely food. We had a wonderful shiraz, and an antipasto plate,
then seafood risotto for me, and gnocchi and angel hair pasta for the other
two ladies, and shared a pair of desserts.

Then....(yes, it keeps coming!) they hustled me out of there, making me
grab the last bite of chocolate pecan tart and wrap it up and stuff it in my
purse, and we trotted of down the road, elbowing our way through the theatre
crowds, only to be abruptly pivoted and marched into the Princess of Wales
Theatre to see Lord of the Rings!

Wow!

I'd been wanting to see this, regardless of the variety of reviews, partly
because I just love theatre, and stagecraft, and partly because I love Lord
of the Rings. I'll admit I was prepared, we all were, to give ourselves up
to just admiring the production and effects, if the play itself sagged a
bit. But as it turned out, the time flew by.
As an interpretation of Tolkien, it's light-weight. It really skims along
and is kind of the Readers' Digest condensed version, or the Best of..., but
it also doesn't really make any glaring mistakes, and perhaps omission is a
much more acceptable sin.

If I had to say who I'd considered the "star" of the show, it would
probably be a toss up between Michael Therriault as Gollum, and the staging
itself.
The staging is a marvel! Of course, this is the theatre that was built to
fly a helicopter in, so there's certainly height! But some of the magical
elements worked so well. My favourites are probably the Black Riders,
Gandalf's fall in Moria, which seemed, to me, to be utterly effective and
terrifying, the transition into Lothlorien, and Shelob.

And most of the music worked beautifully; the weakest bits were the
ordinary music, that just sounded a bit too much like something off the
radio. But the hobbit music, sort of Celtic-y folk music sounding, the
Tibetan-sounding chanting, and the Elvish music, which sounded very much
like a choral group I'm fond of, which is a choir from Bulgaria.

But what a day! And I never did use the garlic, satin or dive mask. Am I
disappointed? maybe not.

vandy

A Different Kind of Food Blog

So, this is a different kind of journey.

We were debating about day-tripping to an event with the SCA, not a really
close thing, but Darrell had some ironwork to deliver.
Of course, he didn't announce the decision until we were driving HOME from
the trip to town and the grocery store! So, I had to think fast about some
picnic-y food to take, that would be somewhat period.

Fortunately I had two last boneless chicken thighs. (And having served two a
few nights ago, NOT as part of a larger dish like I somewhat do, had raised
the comment "rationing?", so wasn't at all concerned about using them up.)
So I decided to make Icelandic Chicken. Although this is a later period
dish, 15th c?, without looking I can't quite remember, it's very simple and
very tasty. Chicken wrapped in bacon with sage, baked in a flour and water
pastry crust.

And I had some radishes. (Those who know me, know just how required are
radishes in any menu of mine!) And the tail end of a tin of whole black
olives.
I'm not really in love with tinned black olives, but I'd been making a
pizza a while back....and then I'd used some in some spaghetti sauce... And
since it's not that easy to get REAL olives in town.... So, I took the
olives and mucked about. Bit of olive oil, bit of salt, lemon juice, garlic,
pepper flakes.

I still have some smoked cheese left from smelt weekend, that we'd never
even got around to opening, and a couple of tail ends of other cheese.

There's a bit of smoked fish in the freezer. And I'll haul out a loaf of
bread and muck up some butter...

Then there's some dried fruit and nuts, and some fresh fruit.

That was still seeming a bit sparse, so I've done up some carrots and beans
with an herbed oil and vinegar dressing; dill seed, celery seed, coriander,
& mustard seed.
And right now I'm thinking I could do a couple of little mushroom tartlets
because I still have five little tart shells in the freezer. So, right now
I'm making up some mushroom tartlets a la Menagier de Paris.

(Of course, somewhere in here I have to think up something for our dinner
tonight!)

But on the whole, for not having done any specific shopping for this, and
it having to be easily transportable and servable, I'm reasonably impressed
by how much not unperiod food I'll have, without ripping my hair out at all!

Now, of course, if he'd mentioned this on the way TO the grocery
store.......

anti-v

Period Food Blog 2

[Since I’m currently limping along on an older computer, without my scroll mouse and the keyboard I’m used to, and no access to my exciting new camera… maybe I’ll do a wordier blog.]

Actually, since a question just came up on the SCA-Authentic Cooks list about a book I have, it’s sparked another flurry of thought about period cooking.

The book in question was Mary Savelli’s Tastes of Anglo-Saxon England.

Part of my disappointment with it is my own fault. I foolishly, and without any possible reason, allowed myself to hope that it would be, could be a resource for early period cookery the way Le Menagier de Paris or Le Viandier de Taillevant are for later periods.
I was even willing to accept a conjectural approach if I could see the roots for the result, the way you can in books like Pleyn Delit, where the period recipe is given alongside the redacted one suggested by the authors.

However, I feel that instead we’ve ended up with a publication that appears to owe much to conjecture, little to archaeological evidence, or even logic, and is clothed with the perception of being the word on Anglo Saxon food.

I did a workshop with Mary Savelli a few years ago and got far more of the subtext from that session, than I did from the book. Apparently it was her publishers who suggested she write a cookbook, because cookbooks sell, and while it wasn’t something she was particularly familiar with, she thought she’d see how she could translate her research into Anglo-Saxon period leechbooks into a cookbook.
But it is the process, from leechbook to her ideas of a recipe that are more interesting and more useful, and unfortunately, are not much included in this publication.

Ever since getting this book though, I’ve had urges to have some real conversations about some of her ideas. Because I know that since she’s based them on period information, even if it was medicinal rather than culinary, I feel there’s value in here. I just can’t think that it’s ‘face value’. And it may be that more could come from some discussion and debate than from even just reading or discarding the recipes.

But, living rurally, and not being tied in anymore to a network of like-minded people for pursuing these discussions, or because the people who might want to participate in the chat, aren’t as accessible by email these days, I thought I’d just have that little discussion out loud, in here by myself. (Yes, signs of insanity, I'm sure…)

Though if anyone of my audience of two or three or accidental wanderers-by want to rebut, or offer additional thoughts, feel free.

Let’s pick one to start with. In fact, let’s start with the one she talked about in her workshop:
“Wyrtig Briw (Vegetable Soup)”

[If nothing else, knowing if these would really be the names of such things, and whether that’s just straight translation into Old English of whatever dialect, would be nice to know. Having names, even the simplest of words to describe foods, in the tongue of the day, is great.]

 Anthimus tells us “barley soup is, as anyone knows who can make it, good for healthy people and those suffering from fever.” This soup is based on a brew for lung disease, calling for sweet-flag, radish, carrot and barley meal. Cress is added to take the place of one of the other leafy herbs in the original, lesser celedine, as it has a similar texture and was also used by the Anglo-Saxons.

 40g (1 ½ oz; ½ cup barley
 440 ml (16 fl. oz, 2 cups) water
 770 ml (28 fl. oz, 3 ½ cups vegetable broth
 3 radishes, chopped (1/8 to ¼ cup)
 2 Tablespoons general purpose vegetable oil
 3 carrots, diced (2 cups)
 2 Tablespoons cress, chopped
 ½ teaspoon salt
 ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

 1. Soak the barley in 2 cups of water for four hours. Drain out the water and put the barley in a large saucepan. Add the broth and bring the water to a boil. Cover the pan with a lid; simmer for 45 minutes.
 2. Sauté the radishes in oil in a frying pan. Add the radishes, cress, carrots and seasoning to the barley.
 3. Return the soup to a boil then reduce the heat. Cover the pan with a lid; let the soup simmer for 10 minutes or until the barley is tender.


So…. That’s her recipe. At the very least it fills me with questions. In another kind of culinary book, where there was an inclusion of an extant receipt, this would be the author’s redaction. I would be able to look back and forth and compare the two, see where the author had made changes, and either be told, or try to intuit, why, and make a decision about the differences, and the suggestions of process.

Because there isn’t an actual Anglo Saxon recipe to compare against, the mind has to go in a lot more circles. (Well, my mind does!)

Anthimus tells us about barley soup. Well, there. That’s a good start.

[Anthimus. De obseruatione ciborum (On the Observance of Food) Translated and edited by Mark Grant. Totnes, Devonshire: Prospect Books, 1996.]

Now her bibliography doesn’t give me a clue about exactly when this is from. Oh, drat. Turns out he’s a sixth century Byzantine Greek, and his treatise on food reflects Byzantine and Frankish tastes. Durn. I was hoping it was one of the Anglo-Saxon writers. This changes it a bit. I was thinking we at least had proof that Anglo-Saxons ate barley soup, right from a local period source. Oh well… Let’s steam along.

If nothing else, soups are likely. They had pots. We have archaeological evidence. They had barley. Barley needs cooking to soften it. So barley soup isn’t a real stretch.

Her “brew for lung disease” is from Bald’s Leechbook, and unfortunately, try as I might, I can’t pin down a real date on this. However, there are mentions of it in the context of Anglo-Saxon leechbooks and health handbooks, so that’s hopeful.
And mind you, while what is considered medicine may not necessarily be considered food, it at least tells us some items they had access to. And certainly radish, carrot and barley also do duty as foodstuffs.

I haven’t been able to track down too much info about either ‘sweet-flag’ or ‘lesser celedine’. At least, under those names. Sweet-flag might be Acorus calamus, or Calamus Root, and while I can find a tiny bit of medicinal info about that, it wasn’t much, and only one reference that suggested it as a febrifuge. But since that might be a strictly medicinal plant, I wasn’t too worried. I did find mention of its use as a substitute for cinnamon or ginger. And I also have a vague memory that Mary Savelli said that was why she had included cinnamon in the recipe.

Mind you, if it was more a medicinal herb than a culinary one, that might be an interesting choice to make, but maybe not the most logical.

Lesser Celedine might be Chelidonium minus, which is the same as Lesser Celandine. I did find some mention that in Sweden it was used as a salad herb, but the reviews of its taste weren’t too glowing. Again, perhaps the lesser celedine is a medicinal herb rather than a potherb, but I see no reason to not assume that any potherbs in common use might not be possible for this recipe. Cress is as likely as any other.

I wonder about the suggestion to soak the barley. Yes, this would soften it and shorten the cooking time, but my experience in cooking over a fire in a cauldron, is that it’s a ‘leisurely’ process anyway. It would be just as simple to add the barley dry, early on in the making. However, in a redaction for use in a modern kitchen, perhaps it makes sense.

Likewise, maybe, the substitution of vegetable broth, for a flavour base that would develop naturally in the cooking process. Now, I have to wonder what would make a likely combination of ingredients for that base. Since, even in my modern kitchen, I’d be more likely to make this soup that way.
Onions? I’d imagine some form of onions. Maybe wild leeks, wild garlic. Perhaps charnock or wild mustard, dill, wild celery, or sorrel. And nettles, perhaps.

She suggests sautéing the radishes in oil in a pan. My instincts, based on cooking with period implements, suggest that if something like this were really done, it would only be in the kitchens of the rich, best outfitted with all the “mod cons”!
If cooking over a small firepit in the floor of a simple house, then a cauldron hanging from the rafters is a likely object. Using a smaller pan or griddle, just to sauté some radishes to then include in soup, seems a waste of activity. And a metal pan would have been a luxury item if the common household already contained a metal cauldron (hweras or an cetel). Such a pan is more likely to have been used for bread or fried dishes.
I imagine it would be more likely that the carrots and radishes would simply be added as the vegetable broth was developing, to further enhance the flavour. And any tender greens added closer to the end.

But even that may be a modern perception. It’s very hard to turn off all one’s personal sensibilities, or to know if or when you’ve succeeded!

I find that one of the most helpful things in giving me a better sense of how an early culture might have cooked, is to work with their technology. That gives me more of an understanding of what is easy, what makes sense, what is practical, and what, farfetched. And then, if I’m drawing from a more appropriate list of ingredients, there is more chance that my final product may have a better chance of being something that wouldn’t be entirely unrecognizable in period.

So, this recipe from Savelli’s book may not be as improbable as others; representing more, perhaps, the approach that might be taken in a modern kitchen to produce a period-like dish. For myself, it led me to sit down and thumb through a handful of reference books to answer (or try to answer) some questions that it raised.

Though I still keep hoping that someday someone unearths and translates some lovely volume of early period cookery!

~vandy

Discovering the Camera

So, I'm reading the manual, and trying to understand. (And occasionally being defeated by very silly little things...) Obviously I have to work on better grokking the macro and focus features. I managed an amusing blurry shot of a chive flower. Quite transcendental, but not really a good record of the bloom!

But here's a not too bad shot of one of the blossoming 'feral' columbine in my forest garden. One of the nifty side effects of this camera is that you can tip it to odd angles, like under a flower looking up into a drooping bloom, and still get a sense, thanks to the display screen, that you're even aiming the right way. With my old digital, or my 35mm camera, I'd have had to be lying face down in the garden, and playing contortionist, to photograph this!

Major excitement!

I've inherited Neil and Karen's old digital camera, as they upgrade to bigger and better, and while so far it's taken me a day to sort all the books and instructional handouts into piles of English and non-English, useful and non-useful, and to install the batteries, and load the software... (okay, either I'm a very slow learner, or I'm still a bit stunned from the Smelt Weekend!) But wow! what a great picture, and on a single try. I'm so impressed. With my little old free camera, it took several rounds of shots and uploading them to the computer, just to find out they were useless.
This is exciting. Makes me want to actually TRY to take some really impressive shots!

anti-v

Ah, Woad is Me.....

(or, good grief, what do I really have growing out there?)

The thriving weld I’ve been so excited about, and telling to flourish and replenish my yard and subdue it…well, maybe it’s not weld after all.

I’ve never had an upfront and personal relationship with weld in the growing phase, only in the dyeing.

And even that was long enough ago that I’m remembering only a few details.

I was just out staring at my plant, and the one detail quite clear in my head from both my experiences with weld, and my ancient experiences growing woad, is that weld has little flat seed cases, and weld has little round clustery seed pods.

And now that the plant has flowered and is starting to make seeds, what do I see? Flat seed cases!

And now that I look at it some more, and sadly, all my reference books have drawings not photos, I’m really starting to be sure this is WOAD, not WELD!

Which means full circle.

When I put the two bedding plants in last year, in their two individual spaces, I’d thought this one was the woad. But neither did much of anything all season.

And when this one came back this year, I waffled, unsure again, and all the earlier photos and attempts to identify and behaviour, seemed to say weld.

But now, I’m really thinking Woad again.

(Don’t get me wrong. It’s growing, it’s wonderful, I’d still like to see if flourish and subdue the rest of the useless tall crap in my yard…. I just wish I could get my head sorted out and keep it sorted out. It also means, that if it IS woad, it’s second year woad, and probably won’t be useful for dyeing…)

I wonder how quickly weld might germinate? Not that any of the weld or woad seeds have done anything at all so far….

Note to Self

Leek season in Wareham is drawing to a close, at least for above-
ground greens.

Too bad, because I was hoping for a few more salad-y green
leek tops. Also wanted to try drying and crumbling them as a
'spice'.
Of course, the bulbs are now getting to a goodly size for the
pickling thereof. Which I also want to do more of.

Last year I'd tried two style of leek pickles; a ginger one, and a
mustard one. Both good, though I think the mustard one was
best. That may just be because I'd had a jar of wonderful wild
leek mustard pickle years ago, and have longed to recreate it.

But as to season length, I know we went gathering leeks around
the 10th of June last year, though it was less tops and more
bulbs. So it might be the same timing as last year, or maybe just
a bit short.
It does seem to mean that I can use the leeks in my forest
garden as a gauge, though, since they've started yellowing and
falling over, as well.

Oh, and note: first gathering happened weekend of May 6th.

anti-v

A Puppy Blog

Chai




Not because I’m into dogs, being more of a crazy cat lady myself, but because my brother’s new puppy, Chai, appears to be so cute, and because some of my friends enjoy a good puppy pic!

with her family

EEK!

Now this was a bit weird.
I came home from a rather exhausting stretch of meetings with
the Theatre today, about the Young Company production of Peter
Pan, for which I'll be designing costumes, and as I walked into
the garage with an armful of stuff, I heard an odd sort of noise.
Odd enough that I stopped and listened.
At first I thought it maybe sounded a bit like the hissing you
might here if some airline was leaking a bit.
Then it sounded like maybe Darrell had left his shop radio on,
but that it was extremely distorted. Then it sounded closer. In
fact it sounded like it was coming from ME!
I looked down to see what I was carrying, and down by my foot,
there was...a squirrel. Sort of a tiny-squirrel like creature, in a
kind of splayed attitude. I sort of backed away, partly for a better
look.
And damned if he didn't kind of scuttle at me. Well, no maybe
he lunged. Certainly he hurried in my direction. I backed up
further, towards the forge and the door into the house. Squirrel
came too. Faster. And making weird noises!
I darted around him and out of the garage, turning around as I
went. He was coming after me....

At this point, heart pounding, I timmied out totally and trotted
around to the back of the house and up to the deck and in that
way. And kind of gasped my story out.

Kindly Darrell went down to investigate.

No sign of anything, but yes, there was the strange faint little
noise. And then more sound. He pulled the garage door back
from where it was folded back against the wall, and there, on a
cross-board and in the coils of an extension cord, were two
young squirrels!

Out came the heavy work gloves, and squirrels were re-located to
the woodpile. (Of course, their not so subtle shrieks and cussing
drew the attention of Bear, one of my cats, and as far as I know
he's still sitting sentry duty on the chopping stump!

And actually, after skulking around in the garage, I think there
may be other young'uns still hiding behind a pile of anvils and
blacksmithing gear!

I feel a bit silly now. But he put on a really good threatening
show!

Wisdom from the Dead Dog Cafe

"It is the wise man who knows the difference between a peach
and an opinion."

Jasper Friendly-Bear

First Camping of the Season

Well, it's come and gone.
And for all the not-inspirational weather, it was a relatively
pleasant weekend.

Every May long weekend, we head over to the season opening of
the Ameliasburgh Museum, near Belleville, and take part in a
rendez-vous.
This is demo camp of varying folk of the Black Powder &
Buckskinner persuasion. Depending on the annual mix of
attendees, there can be French & Indian War re-enactors,
mountain men, 1812, Butler's Rangers, with a goodly mix of tipis
and wall tents and suttlers and settlers.

After a number of years of playing on the periphery, (too many
interests, not enough weekends,) we finally settled on the
Louisbourg time period, 1750's, which is also pretty much the
same time period as Last of the Mohicans.
Mostly, it was in an effort to help us coordinate our gear. Coming
from a Canadian Pioneer Museum background, we have a lot of
1850's stuff, and interests in earlier time periods, and indeed, in
all things old, has led us to have a large collection of bits and
pieces. Way more than we ever take. Plus, we fall into that trap
of getting a great deal on something 'old' to take to rendez-vous,
and then hesitate, and say, gee it's old, what if it gets broken, so
it stays on the shelf!

But it's nice, when one actually does plan a lighter load, to have
some specific things to choose from. [We no longer ever bother
taking kerosene lamps.Works for later, but not for 1750.]

Of course, then this necessitates being able to sort and store
your belongings by time period! Funny how quickly you can fill
and overfill a drive shed!

Anyway, the weather was cooler than some other years, and
wet. Though we've seen colder and wetter, so we can't complain.
Of course, it does remind us that we have a few repairs to make
to the wall tent, and that all our canvas could probably use re-
waterproofing....

We'd taken our Shaker stove in case it got really nasty, but
ended up using the firepit for all our cooking anyway.
I made a surprisingly tasty venison stew one night. (Surprising,
not because I can't cook, but because I don't recall actually doing
much to it.) My brother-in-law and I had kind of frittered away the
afternoon adjusting tarps and canvas for maximum rain and wind
protection, and I lost track of time. When it suddenly occurred to
me to check, I was about an hour and a half away from the
potluck! So much for slow cooking! However, the venison turned
out to be quite tender, so that helped.
As I recall, I chopped some onions and browned them and the
venison a bit. I'd brought the rest of my first harvest of wild leeks,
and some of those went in. I was fairly certain I'd back some
bouillon packets, but I guess not, so I had one veg broth cube I
added, and some cooking beer. And pepper.
But an hour after I started, I took a taste and decided we should
either jump the queue at the potluck, or announce that it was
puppy dog stew. Because it was awfully good, and I was
determined to get a taste.
As it turned out, there were a number of very good hot dishes,
and we did indeed get some of mine without resorting to fisticuffs.
But there weren't leftovers. Or even seconds.

Oh well, I have more of that same batch of venison. And must go
over and dig more leeks.

vandy

Stray Cats, part deux

(a testing of the blob via email!)

So, our abandoned cat turns out to be a lost cat after all! Well, that's
helpful towards my opinion of humankind, if not towards my estimation of
intelligence in cats!

We got a call because of the notice in the Post Office. Apparently, a
couple of miles down our road to the east, and across the county road, is
where our poly-puss has come from. She's a neutered 4 year old named CoCo.
And ostensibly, a barn cat. Though she sure has all the savoir-faire of a
practiced house cat. She knows all the secrets!

So, we're going to have a trial week, and see just how much our own crew
hate her, at the suggestion of her owner. (She started out life as a house
cat elsewhere, and I guess her lady wouldn't object to her being able to
be a house cat again.)

The boyz aren't impressed, especially when she announces that ALL
bowls are HERS! But they seem able to ignore her.
Lily, on the other hand is pretty miserable.

Mind you, since this isn't a homeless cat, but a reasonably well-loved
barn cat, even if she does live in a barn, I'm not so filled with angst
about her future. If she can fit in, okay, we'd been getting used to the
idea we'd have to offer her a home. But if she can't, then I guess it's
back to the chorus line for her. Obviously her current people care enough
about her to have called and be concerned for her well-being...

But she is a charmer!

anti-v

TV Blob 2 - West Wing

Heck, if Karen can mention West Wing on her blog, so can I!

It does seem kind of numbing, realizing that was the last episode ever. I’ve followed lots of television shows from start to finish, some running longer, some running less time. Some were probably important in my life at the time, some less so.

I don’t know if the end of any ever seemed quite so gut-wrenching.

West Wing was a special entity. It was real life. But it was a fantasy. (Even more so after the election of George W.) It was intelligent and literate and informative. (I never knew as much about current political situations, and American politics – and actually, never knew less about American politics than I know now!) It has to have had some of the finest writing and acting that I can recall in any television series I’ve ever watched. (And I’ve always had a bit of a love affair with the television. It fascinates me and repels me. Intrigues me, inspires me, bores me.) I love books passionately, but I love theatre even more, and television is sometimes like a tiny captive theatre. Not always! But sometimes.

West Wing had passion and great beauty. Oh, it had silliness and humour and stupidity and anger. It made me go away and look things up. It rootled about in my memory and pulled up quotes and references I didn’t even know I had stored away. It made me far more aware of current events.

They lost their way a bit when Aaron Sorkin left the show, though he’d left them with a crisis to carry them along a bit, the abduction of Zoe Bartlett. However they seemed to find their stride again in season 6, and by season 7, although it was a very different show, it was a comparable one.

I think I’d have been perfectly happy if it had carried on to become whatever new show it was destined to be, during the tenure of President Santos. I think it would still have been very good TV.

But I don’t think I can ever be as innocent in politics again, having seen West Wing. Oh for the likes of President Bartlett! Yes, it was a fantasy, but what a fantasy!

How Not To Have A Stray Cat

A number of years ago, some friends had a stray cat show up at their place and start hanging around. Another friend sent us all a list of rules for How Not To Have A Stray Cat.

The only one I can recall, which may have been repeated in the list, was something about feeding them.

[Aha! Found it! http://www.xmission.com/~emailbox/strays.htm ]

And yes, my friends no longer have a stray cat. Instead, Elvis is the master of the house now. (Well, he was till the kitten came. Now they sometimes take turns. Some days she lets him be master again!)

Our current trio of tossers weren’t stray cats, but they were the offspring of a stray cat. Or perhaps I should say, a “dumped” cat. We don’t so much get stray cats here as we get abandoned cats. Sad truth.

There was John Thomas or Hamish, a gorgeous big orange fellow. Who announced his arrival by getting his head stuck in a tin can from the recycle box and cycloning around in the garage, never touching the ground, while trying to get his head out. It was an impressive entrance! He was an amazingly nice boy. He stayed here for a week or so, and about the time we were thinking we might just talk ourselves into keeping him, he moved on. I think we were always a bit sad about that.

There was a lovely little tabbyish cat, who made her entrance by excavating through a partially constructed wall, (we’d been planning a doorway), and joining us in bed, purring. I eventually found her a home with a co-worker in the city.

There was another cat another time, who eventually got trod on by a cow, and had to be put down.

There was a charming, very young, ocelotish kitten, who fortuitously got adopted by one of the other families in the neighbourhood. (Meaning NOT by us!) George, our next door farmer has taken in countless abandoned cats. And there was Miss Kitty, who arrived here in 1999, I assume abandoned because she’d gone into heat, which turned her from someone’s amusing little pet into a responsibility. Sadly, not yet wise to the ways of the world, she got herself in the “family way”, and eventually gave birth to our crowd.

We’d joked with our neighbour that whoever’s yard she had the kittens in, would take them. However, David’s stepdaughter was extremely allergic to cats. So, when Miss Kitty had her kittens under one of his shrubs, we generously hunted them down and brought them back to our place.

We found Miss Kitty a home, and a home for one of the four kittens, (there’d been five, but one was too fragile to make it). We thought we found a home for the third, but they brought him back! Husband didn’t want to shut his dog up for the two weeks it might take to introduce a cat.

[We’re now just realizing how lucky we were that the nice lady brought the kitten back, five hours worth of driving the round trip, and didn’t just dispose of him down there in some way.]

And of course, none of these cats ever arrived at a time when we weren’t already being owned by several cats. In fact, I don’t know that my husband and I have ever been single cat owners, while we’ve been together. It’s always been cats. Plural.

So, bringing in a new cat is not an easy decision, and definitely not a peaceful task, once the decision has been made.

And now there’s another one. Been here a week now. No-one seems to know anything about her. (I’m thinking “her”, but ever since I made a mistake about the sex of one of the kittens, I’m a bit less sure.) And she’s actually kind of distinctive; she’s a polydactyl cat. She has thumbs! Her front feet are like mittens. But none of the local vets have a mitten cat as a patient. No-one’s responded to any of the posters or notices. She’s a (mostly) well-behaved, extremely friendly, gentle cat. And pretty.

The Poly-puss

[That’s the odd thing about all the abandoned cats: they’ve all been the most desirable of cats. Attractive, friendly, clean, good-natured. But, I guess, just not cute kittens anymore.]


Now, we already have three cats. That’s a lot of cats. One of the things that’s made it work out alright is that they’re all siblings. So they’re the same age, and more or less the same level of energy. Bear likes Charv. Charv likes Bear. Charv likes Lily, and Lily likes Charv. Lily hates Bear some of the time, because he picks on her. But he does it in a good-natured way. She’s just his little sister, and that’s what she’s there for! But they’re the three most good-natured and endearing cats that I’ve ever lived with in my entire life of living with cats!
And I really don’t want to upset the status quo.

Not to mention that another cat means another vet bill. More cat food. More cat litter. More cats to worry about. More cats to share the bed with. (Oh no!)

But then, when she wasn’t out in the workshop last evening when I went to bed, I worried. And was glad when she was back again this morning.

Sigh. We’re such suckers!
Charv and Bear



Lily

The TV Blob

Because I’ve been promising to do it. (And someone mistyped blog as blob on a list I get, and I so liked the term I’ve started to use it from time to time. Sometimes they just feel more like “blobs”.)

Yes, I’ve been meaning to write a rant about tv. Not really sure why. It’s not like my life so revolves around TV. Though, admittedly, in winter when we turn back our thermostat because we have ineffective and expensive electric heat, it does seem that the only room suitable to hanging about in is the living room, and the warmest spot is huddled under the down quilt on the couch. And since we both desperately need new glasses, reading books is starting to become less of a long-term option.
Hence the TV.

And it’s NOT like we don’t have enough videotapes and dvd’s to sink the Titanic, because we do. So, in a normal evaluation, I’d say we’re far less hostage to what’s on offer.

But because I seem to feel so passionate on the subject, I had to analyze my reasons.
-yes, I’m older and slower and live in the country, so don’t have as many ‘going out to do’ things. At least not so many I’m actually prepared to drive to get to.
-and, okay, after spending fifteen years doing a long commute that left me pretty much useless in the evenings, I may have just developed habits.

But I think that some of the reasons I’m intensely concerned and frustrated about television also have to do with things like: increase of choice, but decrease of choice.

-yes, there are so many more channels out there now, but in reality there’s so little choice. We ended up having to get satellite because our ‘natural’ signals, which had started out fairly weak and limited, eventually dwindled to nothing one summer. We spent that summer watching videos, if we watched at all, but eventually decided to get a small satellite package. [Note: we’re also outside the real signal range for CBC radio, in the gap between different towers, so we have to pull radio in via the satellite, too.] But really, the longer and closer you look at what’s going on in the broadcasting world, and I have more awareness of it, having worked in the world of advertising, you see that for all the channels that may exist out there, there’s really only a couple of signals being passed around.
This is something that has infected all the media. It used to just be a bit of an annoying laugh at work, who’d bought up whom this week, and what address databases would have to be tweaked.
But now I’m really noticing just how little diversity there is in the media world.

And really, it’s pretty sad. It’s not like there’s variety. It’s not like there’s a range of viewpoints. Pretty much anywhere you turn, it’s the same thing.
Now there are cases where consistency is a good thing. It is (or was, as I’m currently discovering) a nice thing to know that a Tim Horton’s one place, was the same as a Tim Horton’s someplace else. Or that on a long trip you could stop at a Wendy’s or a McDonalds along the way, and pretty much know what you were going to get, when you didn’t have the time or inclination for experimentation.
But I don’t stop at Tim’s and the Golden Arches for every meal! Heavens, no!

And I really hate getting my media fixes in repetitive doses, either.

I also think that there was a point in the life of television viewing, and it may not have been that long ago, though perhaps it’s just my memory failing, that you could turn on the boob tube, and whatever was on offer might be something you’d watch. Or not. But somehow I recall it as more possible. Yes, it’s always seemed that there’s a higher percentage of programming geared for “not me”, aimed at the lowest common denominator. But these days it seems that the lowest common denominator must have dropped drastically, because I’m sure it’s not that my IQ has gone up. Can’t have. I’m sure we had lead pipes in my youth, and lead paints and radon gas and asbestos insulation, and we played in building construction sites and sewer pipe excavations, and lumberyards at night…. It didn’t kill me, but there’s surely no way it’s improved me!
So, why does it now seem that there’s programming on TV that not only do I not want to watch, I have to hastily and actively flip away from!
And it’s always been the case that shows which seemed to be good, and even had a following, get cancelled. So I guess there’s always been an “inexplicable” factor. Look at Star Trek! T least one can make the case for Star Trek, that it was an unknown quantity to the people running the game. They didn’t know what it was, they didn’t understand the genre, had never even met the genre before, so simply couldn’t understand or believe that it might develop a fan base. Now it’s an empire.

It’s just that now it seems that the dumb shows have got dumber, and the few other shows have become more vulnerable.

And even in the last couple of years, we’ve had that new mutant baby, the “reality TV” show. Brrrrr. Scary stuff. In a paraphrase of one of the Mythbusters guys, “I deny your reality!” Sorry, that reality is no reality I’ve ever met.
The very first time that Survivor was coming on, without having seen any advertising or heard much about it, I thought, oh neat. Get a handful of McGyver people together and see them do all nifty things in the wilderness. A really keen and enjoyable idea for a show I thought.
OOPS! Was I wrong! And since then, based solely on unavoidable commercials, since that’s as close as I let it get to me, it has even dwindled from the game show to soap opera and now, it seems, beyond Jerry Springer and into…what? Bedlam? (In the original definition of the word.)

I understand how this “new” form of TV may be cheaper to make. No actors to pay. No real directors. No visual values or effects. The biggest cost is prize monies or locations. But keep it as far from me as possible!

On the other hand, it’s been immensely satisfying when the odd show has turned out to be intelligent, well-written, well-acted, well-crafted, and despite that, becomes a hit! (e.g. House with Hugh Laurie. Holding its own at about number 8.)

But I think what I’m finding so perplexing (and therefore irritating) is that even when I find a show I’d like to follow, it becomes almost impossible to do so. Never mind that serial TV can really muck with scheduling your life, of the several shows we’ve even been trying to follow, (that haven’t been inexplicably dropped because they were too intelligent for your average bear, and there was something vaguely similar but dumber out there competing,) we’ve found that TV networks and stations don’t seem to follow that old concept of letting the public know when the program is on, and urging them to stick with it. No, now the process seems to be more like a game show – guess what night or what time it’s on! Or, if you figure that out, we’ll trick you by sticking in a random repeat. Or the latest trend, and extra special episode that just kind of recaps what’s going on. The kind of info we wouldn’t need to have recapped if the episodes just ran in regular order at a regular time and night!
And then, even given that you have to be a dedicated sleuth and follow ALL the clues, catch ALL the ads and promos, check the stations’ websites almost daily, if not more frequently, they still like to weed out the weaker, by posting conflicting info.
Perhaps all this additional thinking and puzzling is supposed to tire out our brains so we’ll be more complacent about what’s on offer?

And of course, this always harks me back to the ad agency days, when a lot of what went into planning a media campaign had to do with demographics, and target audiences. Ideally, a campaign is pitched at a specific market, which is often categorized by the time they’re watching and the type of programming. If no-one can ever figure out where the shows they want to watch will be on, how in heavens can the advertisers hope to find them? So, it’s perplexing indeed. In fact, I can’t really figure out who the winner is in this case.
The television programs fail to win the necessary ratings to continue, because their audience keeps losing them. The advertisers either can’t tell when the heck their ads are running, or don’t manage to find their proposed audience more than once every couple of times. The stations and networks themselves lose support.
I was regularly amused by the fact that on CTV’s website, a message forum had regular discussions about West Wing episodes over the last year, while everyone was actually watching it on NBC, because CTV had the rights to show, and couldn’t be bothered. No-one was actually watching CTV! And were regularly commenting that on the CTV forum.

Sigh.
All of a sudden I understand the amazingly fast turnaround on dvd releases!

Anti-V

(Canada’s NOT watching CTV!)