text:
In the 7 breads we have made so far, I have found that I enjoy working with soft dough. While I still enjoy the feel of the stiffer doughs in my hands, there is something about these softer doughs that I just find fun. And this ciabatta dough was no exception. The stretching, pulling and folding was just fun; even though I'm not convinced I did it quite right.
I used a bit of my regular sourdough starter and some poolish that I had left over from another bread project. As I set out to begin I pulled the starters out of the fridge, measured them, and was going to leave them out to come to room temperature while I just straightened up about the kitchen a bit. Well, the straightening up turned into hand washing everything that had been left in my dishwasher while we were gone for a week... unwashed.
Yes, "Ewwwww!" is right.
Needless to say that with the two hours that my starter set out while I had to scrub the kitchen and all my dishes that were in the dishwasher and run them all again, it was definitely room temperature.
Sort of at the last minute I decided to add some parmesan that I had left over from something else and some fresh rosemary from my herb garden. I had already done the first stretch and fold, so I just added them in for the 2nd round.
For a homemade couche, I used one of my flour sack dish towels that I had attempted to use for a similar purpose for sourdough a while back. The only problem was that the dough stuck and now I have all these dark little balls that are stuck to it no matter how many times I wash it. However, with Reinhart's suggestion to spray it with oil and then dust with flour, I had much better non sticking results this time.
It was very hot around here on Saturday when I was making this bread. I think the outside temperature was at least a few degrees above 100 F and I considered just setting my loaves outside to cook. But with our old air conditioners and the added heat of the oven, it was, in turn, warm inside my house and I was afraid that I had overproofed my loaves because they proofed so quickly.
I moved the first one over to my peel and it deflated quite a bit and I decided to re-stretch and fold and let it proof again since, clearly, it was not going to take long with as warm as it was. The 2nd loaf I moved also deflated, but I decided to just cook it and see what happened.
See? No big huge beautiful holes. And I had such high hopes with the unexpected oven spring that I got that puffed it back up after deflating.
These pictures are of the first loaf that I baked. I did not photograph the one that I re-folded and let proof again because it was no better & maybe a little worse.
However, it was all good because I loved the flavor - especially the saltiness that the parmesan added and the rosemary just added a gorgeous flavor to it.
My man didn't agree.
But hey... what does he know.
This ciabatta is a great bread to show off and take to a friend's house. I took a loaf with us to dinner with some friends on Saturday night and the rustic beauty of it impresses. It makes me look like I know what I'm doing.
Overall Impressions:
Ciabatta was really fairly easy. I'm just not sure where I went wrong to not achieve the big beautiful holes.
I'm not sure about you, but I made a huge mess in my kitchen with this one with all the flour dusting in between stretches and folds. I had flour from one end of the kitchen to the other by the time I was done.
Will I make this bread again? Yes. But apparently I won't be adding rosemary to it again if I want my man to enjoy it.
Monday, June 29, 2009
BBA Challenge #7 - Ciabatta (with Rosemary & Parmesan)
In the 7 breads we have made so far, I have found that I enjoy working with soft dough. While I still enjoy the feel of the stiffer doughs in my hands, there is something about these softer doughs that I just find fun. And this ciabatta dough was no exception. The stretching, pulling and folding was just fun; even though I'm not convinced I did it quite right.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 11:19 PM 5 Comments Links to this post
Labels: BBA Challenge, Food
Mama Braggin' Monday - Time at the beach
Mondays are the day of the week that I shamelessly brag on my kids here on the blog.
To see my original post about Mama Braggin' Monday, go here
So, join me if you like. I'd love to see what awesome things your kids are up to. I am no longer adding the Mr. Linky, but please leave a comment and brag on your kids. Or you can brag on mine. Either way.
We had a wonderful time at the beach and I just wanted to overall brag on my kids for how well they did. They snorkeled, rode the waves, went on a boat and generally tried just about anything we threw at them.
And in the midst of it all, they understood and responded with quick obedience when I needed them to the most.
Now it's your turn. Go ahead. Brag on your kids. It's fun!
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 9:01 AM 0 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, Mama Braggin' Monday, Travel
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Divine Appointments
You may have picked up from some of my posts this last week that we went on vacation. We went to the beach in Destin, Florida.
We planned this vacation back in January. Those of you who read here regularly know that we are at a difficult time financially since Mike lost his job and the projects for his contract work have been slow to come in. I remained open, but honestly never sensed God tell us to not go once all of the news about our job and financial situation became reality. Just to be clear, we do not go on this trip alone as my mother in law travels with us and does help with the expenses. If it were not for that, we probably would have cancelled it immediately. However, it was not until the day before we left that I started thinking that we needed to cancel the trip.
I had suddenly become concerned about how it would appear to everyone who knows our current situation that we were going on vacation. I thought that we would appear irresponsible by going out of town to the beach for close to a week.
And then, at some point, it dawned on me that if all I was concerned about was appearance then I just needed to get that out of my head. Being concerned about how something appears to another is not a good reason to change plans. I then sensed God calming my spirit and saying to me that maybe He had a plan for us this week while we were gone.
That plan became apparent very quickly as it seemed that almost every day (5 out of 7 to be exact) we encountered someone that needed help; someone that we could minister to.
On Friday as we were driving on our way from Dallas/Fort Worth toward Shreveport, we were coming around a truck and noticed a car stopped with two women outside of it. By the time it registered with Mike and he said, "Should I stop and help?" it was too late to do anything. But neither of us could get it out of our heads. So we exited at the next exit which was a mile or so down the road, turned around, drove back, exited and turned around again only to find that some one was helping them. It may have been one of their husbands that they had already called on their cell phones. Who knows. But our minds were at rest that they were taken care of, so we continued on… only to come upon someone else stopped with her hood up who wasn't there the first time we drove by.
She was clearly not as well off as the other women we passed. She was alone. She had no cell phone. Her car was overheating and the radiator had finally bubbled over and I could see the puddle of water underneath her car. There was nothing, not a gas station, fast food restaurant or anything around for miles. It was hot and we could not let her wait there by the side of the road for her parents to come from Tyler, easily an hour away. We rearranged some things in the car, shuffled some seats, made room amidst all our junk and brought her into our car and gave her a ride to a gas station in Canton which was a good 15-20 minutes by car.
She was absolutely the sweetest thing ever and it just boggles my mind that she is who we were supposed to help. God put the other women on our hearts who likely already had someone on the way to help, but this woman is who He had in mind for us to help. I love him and His sweet provision.
On Saturday on the road from Jackson, MS as we headed toward Mobile, AL we stopped to help another woman who had a blow-out. We stayed until some police officers showed up because they were going to have to figure something out has her lug wrench wouldn't fit the bolts on her tire. The bizarre thing with that situation was that it was a brand new car and brand new tires.
On Monday it was the situation I wrote about in this post.
On Wednesday, we had decided to take a family and kid oriented 3 hour cruise and fishing trip. A little boy cut his thumb (on something he shouldn't have been messing with) and I was able to help him and his dad get it bandaged up as his mom had her hands full with a 4 month old. We also were able to offer him an ice pop (popsicle) which very much helped his tears to disappear.
As it turns out, it was a miracle that I had band-aids at all. Among the million other things that I forgot to take on this trip was our first aid kit, so I bought some band-aids at the Wal-Mart when we did our grocery shopping for the week. I happened to see them as we were leaving to meet the boat and put them in my bag because you just never know.
And can I just give myself snaps for a moment that I helped bandage up a bloody finger without passing out? I didn't once even feel light headed. I was proud of myself.
On Thursday as we were on our way back up toward Jackson from Mobile, we witnessed a single car wreck. We were headed north and all of the sudden, right in front of us, we saw was this car veer off the road, catch a tire in the center median ditch, flip over and land facing south in the southbound lane of traffic. Mike immediately stopped to help and I grabbed the phone to call 911.
Amazingly, the two probably college aged girls got out of the car and walked away from it. It was a sweet sight to watch one of them as she opened her door and stepped out of that car. The bad thing was that I had little to no idea where we were, but the 911 operator was so sweet and kept asking me questions about what we had passed and what I could see around me. The girls were okay and Mike got them a couple of bottles of water from our ice chest. Several other people had stopped as well and police were on the way, so we were able to head on our way.
It seems like we were around a lot of drama this last week. But looking back, I believe these situations were divine appointments. They were opportunities for us to step out of ourselves and help other people; and to do so in front of our children. I believe that was the plan God had for us this week and we would have missed it if I had acted on my concern about appearances.
As I sit here at home and look back on the week, I am newly mindful that God has a plan for us and wants to bless us through that plan. What is His plan for you today? Have you sought it? Are you going to miss it because of superficial concerns?
Be open to whatever He has for you even if it takes you off of your intended path. You will be blessed.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 8:33 AM 5 Comments Links to this post
Thursday, June 25, 2009
He called my bluff
We are on our way home from the beach (Destin) today. Nathan has been mercilessly kicking the back of my car seat our entire trip that began last Friday afternoon. You know how as moms we sometimes make ridiculously empty threats? Well, this morning I'd had enough and this is how the conversation went down.
Mom: NATHAN, if you don't stop kicking my chair, I'm going to cut your feet off!
Nathan: But Mom, there aren't any scissors, or knives or swords for you to cut my feet off.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 9:20 AM 3 Comments Links to this post
Labels: The Darndest Things, Travel
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Bread Machine Focaccia
Please welcome with me my friend Lisa from the blog Stop and Smell the Chocolates where she encourages us to slow down and enjoy the richness of life. While at her blog, you might have Tea for Two-sday. Or she may ask you, "Would you like chocolate with that?" She may just be a little silly or serious. You just never know. But I do know that Lisa is a sweet soul who loves Jesus, her family and chocolate - and probably in that order... maybe.
When I knew I would be writing a guest post for Donna, I thought it would make sense to write about food (though her blog is about so much more than that). She's been showing all that beautiful bread lately, so it was on my mind! I happened across a bread machine cookbook in a thrift store a couple days ago and then I knew! I am too intimidated to make bread all the way from scratch - that is way more homemade than I am used to! But I have a bread machine and I do know how to use it - a little. So here is my little more homemade bread. :)
I decided to try making focaccia bread. It sounded a little easier, quite yummy, and the recipe called for fresh herbs - I have an abundance of fresh rosemary in the front yard. Fresh Herb Focaccia it is!
Hi bread machine! Long time, no see!
Got it all dusted off and then proceeded. I put the ingredients in the pan in the order listed.
Liquid Ingredients
1 cup, plus 2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon olive oil
Dry Ingredients
3 cups bread flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
2 ¼ teaspoons Active dry yeast
I set the machine to the Dough setting. When it was done, I had to punch the dough down by shutting off the machine and restarting the kneading for just 60 seconds. Then I removed the dough and let rest for 5 minutes.
Then I had to do the hand-shaping: Sprinkle hands with flour. With fingertips, spread dough evenly into a 13x9x1 in. lightly oiled baking pan. Cover with a clean kitchen cloth. Let rise until doubled in height, about 30-60 minutes.
Almost done: Preheat oven to 400 F. Make light indentations with your fingertips in the surface of the risen dough. Brush with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with up to 2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher or sea salt) and fresh ground black pepper to taste. Add ¼ cup chopped fresh herbs, if desired. Bake on bottom rack of oven (oops - I missed that part!) for approximately 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool in pan. Cut into 12 equal pieces and serve at room temp.
I have to say that this bread is yummy! My son already told me he wanted to eat the whole pan! And once hubby gets hold of it, I think I'll have more requests to make bread.
Thanks Donna for inspiring me to step outside of my comfort zone and try to be a little more homemade!
Lisa @ Stop and Smell the Chocolates
You can also find Lisa blogging at her Healthy blog, Stop Eating all the Chocolates and on twitter @stop4chocolate.
Bread machine focaccia works for Lisa and I'm thinkin' it's gonna work for me. To find other works for me posts, visit Kristen at We Are THAT Family.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 10:04 PM 5 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Food, Works for Me Wednesday
BBA Challenge #6 – Challah: The Spiritual Side of Bread
I love it when things like faith and food come together for me in meaningful ways. That happened last week when I made Challah.
If I may quote Peter Reinhart:
"Challah, the braided Sabbath bread of Judaism, is a European celebratory loaf symbolic of God's goodness and bounty. The braids traditionally separate the loaf into twelve distinct sections representing the twelve tribes of Israel. The use of eggs in the bread was probably a way to use up excess eggs, as harvesting is one of many activities considered work in Orthodox Jewish communities.
…. garnishing the loaves with seeds, such as poppy or sesame, symbolizes the falling of manna from heaven and the covering of the challah with a cloth as it is served at the Sabbath meal represents the heavenly dew that protects the manna."
I honestly did not know these symbolic aspects of the challah loaf. But it got me to thinking about it. And then I got into a bread discussion with a co-worker who enjoys making bread in his bread machine for himself and his kids.
The thing is, that bread is spoken of throughout the Bible and is a food that has many spiritual implications for us. The Passover consisted of a Festival of Unleavened Bread where the Israelites were to remove all yeast from their houses (Exodus 12:15). Manna was called bread from heaven (Exodus 16:4). There was a table for the bread of the Presence in the tabernacle (Exodus 25:30). Christ quoted the Deuteronomy 8:3 when he rebuked the devil and stated that man does not live on bread alone (Matthew 4:4) and referred to himself as the Bread of Life (John 6:35). I know my list could have gone on and on, but I wrote the bulk of this in the car and the rest of it without my chain reference Bible.
I have mentioned this video of Peter Reinhart before. It is worth a watch.
I know that we have "traditional" ways that we spiritually look at some of the elements of bread making, but hang with me here for a minute.
Think about this for a minute… as Mr. Reinhart points out, when we get the wheat into our hands, it is dead. Then, we introduce the yeast and it introduces life. Then, in the process of baking, the yeast dies to bring a transformation.
I know we normally view yeast as bad stuff (see Matthew 16:5-12), but can we think of it in a good light for a moment? Like the yeast, Christ came to bring life to us and gave up his life so that we (the flour), who were once dead in our sins (flour is technically dead wheat) could be transformed into a new creation (bread).
I don't know about you, but the entire bread baking process is just amazing to me, much like salvation. One of the most amazing things is the wild yeast in a starter, but that's another post for when we do sourdough. But just the thought that the yeast must die in order for there to be transformation from dough into bread just as Christ had to die for there to be transformation in my life from unrighteousness into Christ's righteousness… it's mind boggling.
Anyways, I know that's a much heavier topic than just talking about the bread itself for this post, but it's what has been on my heart from the time I began reading about this bread.
So on to my experience with the challah.
Mine didn't turn out as pretty as I had hoped. I had a hard time getting the kind of stretch that I wanted to achieve the window "pain" test. And then, I may have braided my loaves a little too tightly. Therefore during proofing, at least one strand ripped. Then during baking and with a pretty decent oven spring, several more strands ripped and or broke.
We ate some with our evening meal one night. I also made French toast one morning for the kids and that was pretty good. In the past, I have purchased challah to make my Chocolate Bread Pudding so I'm looking forward to being able to make my own bread for it now.
Overall impressions:
I have purchased challah loaves that were much softer with a more tender crust. I'm not sure what is more authentic and I'm not saying that it might not have been baker error that caused mine to be drier than it should be.
Will I make this again? Yes, but I may look around at other formulas and try some different ones. Do you have any suggestions?
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 12:08 PM 6 Comments Links to this post
Labels: BBA Challenge, Faith, Food
Monday, June 22, 2009
Sometimes you are a witness to something and are forever changed. There are images that are stuck in your head forever. Some are happy images, others are not.
Last year was a happy image of a mother reunited with her son who had been missing on the beach for a period of time one day.
This year falls in the category of not.
We are curently in Destin, Florida on vacation, in case you didn't know. Our morning started off just as normal as it could be. I went for a mile walk, had some quiet time on the beach, morning coffee and Cookie Crisp for breakfast. After our normal thirty-minute ordeal of slathering SPF 2000 sunscreen on my poor fair skinned daughter and husband (and my not so fair skinned son and self), we headed toward the sea green umbrellas, beach chairs, white sand and waves.
Sarah was having a great time in the surf with her boogie board. The water was rough and the waves bigger than yesterday, which made for some good boarding. But it also made me a little nervous as a mom. So rather than hanging out in the sun and watching from the beach, I was right out there with her the whole time. And we were having fun.
Then I noticed a woman about my age asking some people if they were strong swimmers. Someone was in trouble. Some men headed out to help. After he realized that something was going on, my man was one of them.
He was floating.
His tube was drifting away.
He was face down.
My first thought was to get my children out of the water. They were so excellent. They sat right down on our beach chairs and stayed there so well.
They pulled him from the water.
They were calling 911.
The rescue crew arrived.
I sat with my children trying to distract their attention away from the commotion, but it was difficult. And I noticed the young woman again.
She was worried.
She needed to call her husband.
He was her husband's dad.
I hadn't taken my cell phone with me down to the beach for fear of it getting lost or taken into the water. She needed to get back to her children, so I gathered up my children to run to the room to get my phone for her. As we ran back down I left them sitting on the steps to the condo to keep them out of the middle of it. It was a bad situation.
I had seen him floating.
I had seen his face.
I had seen them performing CPR.
I had seen no response.
She already had found a phone to use but didn't know whose it was. I took it and told her not to worry about it; I would find its owner. She asked me if they had revived him. Not knowing what to say, I said I didn't know. I told her that they had just taken him up the beach access to an ambulance.
She said he all of the sudden was having trouble breathing. He passed out.
And then her husband arrived.
I didn't see her again.
Mike was holding his head in his hands to turn it to the side as CPR was performed.
Another man I talked to helped bring him in.
We all assume he had a heart attack or something.
At this point I don't know for sure the final outcome, but it's likely that everyone that was on our stretch of the beach today witnessed a man die.
It was a while before anyone got back in the water.
I know that those images are forever in my mind.
And I'm probably not the only one.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 3:53 PM 5 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, Grief and Loss, Mullings, Travel
Friday, June 19, 2009
My Boy's Birthday Cake - Fire Truck Cake & Cookies
I wonder if my son knows that there are other things to ask for besides a fire truck birthday party. Click here and here to see last year's fireman themed creation.
When he originally asked for a fire truck cake this year, I thought that I would do a standing up 3-D fire truck cake.
But I lost my nerve.
I decided that I wasn't confident in my ability to make it actually look like a fire truck. And I didn't have enough time or money to spend on making sure that it did look like a fire truck. So I gave up that aspiration and went with a flat cake, but cut it up to make it fire truck shaped.
For being a "fly by the seat of my pants" design, I was pleased with how it turned out.
I didn't take any step by step photos this time, but I can tell you that I did all of this out of a single 9 x 13 yellow cake. I iced it in red butter cream and covered the majority of it in red marshmallow fondant.
When I realized, though, that I didn't have enough red fondant to cover the whole thing, I decided that it was okay and used what was leftover from my daughter's cake to do the bottom portion in a different color like a road.
The piping was done with a combination of butter cream and royal icing. The wheels are thinned royal icing (like for flooding cookies). The light on top was Wilton fondant (neon colors).
Since we were doing coordinating cookies to go with my daughter's cake, we decided to do the same with Nathan's and also send them home as party favors.
I'll admit that the yellow cake was not as big of a hit as the chocolate one I did for my daughter, but it was some of the best yellow cake I've ever tasted or made.
Here's to cake NOT out of a box - the WAY more homemade style!
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 6:00 AM 2 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, Food, Let's Celebrate
Thursday, June 18, 2009
My Girl's Birthday Cake - Butterfly Garden Cake & Cookies
When Sarah and I first began talking about her birthday cake this year, she mentioned a Cinderella cake. I have to admit I wasn't excited. We've done the princess party and castle cake... twice. My first thought, honestly, was, "Not again."
Then, out of nowhere she piped up with, "OH wait. I want it to have butterflies. Flowers and butterflies."
This was a theme I could get with.
I immediately began to design it in my head and I have to admit, I'm a little amazed that it came out so close to how I imagined it.
I iced the cake with blue buttercream and used blue marshmallow fondant to cover it. The flowers are a combination of free-hand, cookie cutter, and templates made by my Cricut and are cut out of Wilton fondant (neon colors). The grass and stems/leaves are piped buttercream & royal icing.
The cake is chocolate and she decided that she wanted a chocolate filling between the layers.
I already had some chocolate ganache leftover in my fridge from a while back that I had been looking for a reason to use up. I used some of it to mix with the royal icing to do the bodies of the butterflies.
Then, I mixed what was left of that together with some butter cream and did a base for my filling, then added the rest of the ganache on top of that before adding my second layer. Oh my... it was heaven.
The butterfly cookies on top led us to decide that making coordinating cookies to send home as party favors would be a good idea.
Who needs goody bags when there are cookies to be had, right?
And I'll toot my horn and say that it all tasted good. The chocolate cake was all gone except for one little slice that we took home and shared. But that's the way I like it.
Edited on 7/16/09:
I have added this cake to the Birthday Cake Roudup over at Life as Mom.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 10:00 AM 12 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, Food, Let's Celebrate
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Provision? or Blessing?
As I look back over my adult life, each major life experience has brought me to know God and certain attributes in a real and personal way.
After two miscarriages in two months in 2001, I came to know Him as my Comfort when no one on earth could possibly comfort me.
In 2004 when we moved to a different state, I came to know him as my Friend when I had to leave friends and family behind and had no friends to speak of nearby.
Also in 2004 I came to know him as my Strength when I was gripped by fear after finding out I was pregnant again.
In 2007 I came to know him as my Rescuer as I found myself thrust into a pit of depression and wallowing in self pity.
And now, in 2009 I am finally coming to know him as my Provider.
I never dreamed that I would find myself in the position I am today. My husband has lost his job and we have only my little bitty part-time income. But the Lord is providing for us.
As I mentioned in this post, Mike has a job doing contract work. Of course the catch is that he doesn't get paid until he has a project to work on and the client pays the fee. Just in case you were curious… that hasn't happened yet.
He is also pursuing a business that he has been looking into and planning to eventually get into for a year or two now. He is working to fulfill all the requirements to get his dealer's license to buy and sell used cars. My man, the used car salesman. HA!!
It will mostly be an Internet based business and we believe, with him being such the car guy that he is, that this will be something he could potentially really enjoy while providing us some extra income. However, there are a lot of hoops to jump through to get the license and he is in the process of checking off that list.
So here we are in June. It's been over two months since getting the news that Mike was losing his job and two months since his last day.
Where are we today, you ask?
We are trusting God and his leading. I believe that we are right where he has told us to be and that is huge for me. I'm a person that has historically had a problem with trust and it is very easy for me to try to take things over. But I have been spurred on as I have seen God's sweet provision for us as we have taken each step to continue to trust His plan.
In short, you might say technically employed but with no paycheck. But in reality, I would say completely depending on God to provide is where we are.
And providing for us, He is.
Here is a list, although no where near complete, of some of the ways the Lord has provided for us recently.
He has provided:
* a direction for Mike to take before he even had his last day at work.
* this time in life for Mike to pursue some other business interests besides the field of his training and vocation.
* a computer for Mike.
* office space at a very reasonable rent (one of those requirements for the dealer's license) that he can split with a friend also in need of office space, thus making it even cheaper for us.
* a great deal on some office furniture for Mike.
* money to pay for Sarah to go to camp this summer through our garage sale last week.
* money to pay for the kids' birthday party through our garage sale last week.
* a book that I had wanted to read but couldn't afford to purchase.
* a partial scholarship for tuition for our kids' school.
* a delay in paying tuition for Nathan's school for next year so that it and our paying the daycare didn't overlap.
* for my car to miraculously start working again after being "dead" all week and allowing my man to take back the $450 - $500 in parts.
* a network of supportive family and friends who are faithful to pray with us and for us as we walk through this season of life.
* and the list, I'm sure, could go on and on.
You know, I keep telling Him, "Thanks God. Just don't forget that we also need a PAYCHECK!"
I believe He will provide that, too. We are excited that Mike has some project possibilities on the horizon.
My friend Keal said to me just the other day, "I think sometimes that God works on the principles of 'just in time' accounting."
I get nervous because our "just in time" is coming pretty quick.
But you know what, I think she might be right.
And I believe much of what we are experiencing goes far beyond just provision. I firmly believe we are in blessing territory here.
How has God been providing for and blessing you recently?
Make a list. Tell me in the comments.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 6:34 AM 2 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Faith, God - He is GOOD
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
BBA Challenge #5 - Casatiello
This week's bread was Casatiello. It's a brioche type bread but it is an Italian variation on the brioche theme. Therefore there is meat and cheese involved. Specifically salami.
Upon seeing this is when you hear my man say, "AWWW YEEEAAAHH!"
Just suffice it to say, he likes him some salami. I can't even begin to describe how he salivated as I read him the formula for this bread. And the day that I came home with the salami from the grocery store, I had to hide the salami from him. Needless to say, he was looking forward to me having leftover salami for him to eat.
My favorite part is the cheese. I chose Gouda for this bread because I don't hardly ever get to use Gouda. And it's SO Gouda. (OH can you blame me? I couldn't resist. Really.)
I made several different sizes. Some shredded, some small cube and some larger chunks.
During the mixing stage, I found that I flipped back and forth between paddle attachment and dough hook. The consistency of the dough changed so dramatically at several different stages that switching back and forth just made sense.
I used the paddle to mix together my dry ingredients and also as I added the wet ingredients and mixed them together. The dough quickly became too thick for the paddle.
I did have some dry flour at the bottom that did not mix in. I simply took a little milk (maybe 1 - 2 teaspoons) and warmed it in the microwave just to take the chill off. I then added poured the milk right on the dry part of the flour and it incorporated in to the ball of dough immediately.
This is what Mr. Reinhart describes as a coarse ball of dough.
I switched to the dough hook and let it run for another minute or two and it worked into a smooth ball. At this point it, and the Kitchen Aid, got to rest for 10 minutes or so.
After rest time (excuse the mommy-speak) I began adding butter. I switched back to the paddle after the first piece of butter was added and pretty well incorporated. Once all the butter was added it reminded me of cookie dough consistency.
I worked the dough with the paddle attachment for several minutes and then switched back to the dough hook as it seemed to get more elastic. Working with the dough hook, it did eventually pull away from the sides of the bowl pretty much on its own just like Mr. Reinhart said it would. I did help it along with a little sprinkle of flour just to be sure but it was no more than 1 - 2 teaspoons.
After adding in the good stuff.
And now it's time to ferment.
Poof. That's a lot of dough.
I thought very seriously about trying the paper bag in the coffee can baking method, but I just really didn't get the point. And the only coffee can shaped dish I have is a Pampered Chef stoneware crock that I use for storing utensils. I've baked beer bread in it before but honestly, I didn't think it would turn out as pretty as some of the pictures and blog posts that I have seen so far using the round cake pans.
Even still, I was digging through my cupboard full of baking pans just hoping I'd find something that would let me do something a little different with this dough. I found these little tart/quiche pans that turned into the perfect size for some casatiello rolls/buns
The rest I put in an 8" round cake pan.
And so, here is the final product.
On Sunday, I took a "kind of" page out of Big Black Dog's book and while we didn't make Eggs in a Nest, we did put a fried egg on top of a sliced open small roll/bun. It made for a tasty breakfast.
I also made sandwiches on the buns using some leftover salami and mozzarella. I cut open and buttered the insides of the buns and heated them on the griddle while also heating the salami and mozzarella. That was a tasty variation of a grilled cheese sandwich.
Overall Impressions:
This is a really very easy dough and bread that packs some punch with the meat and cheese involved. I think it could be made even better with some herbs (like maybe oregano) in the dough as well.
Will I make this again? If my husband has anything to say about it I will. :)
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 6:05 AM 6 Comments Links to this post
Labels: BBA Challenge, Food
Monday, June 15, 2009
Mama Braggin' Monday - Swim Lessons
Mondays are the day of the week that I shamelessly brag on my kids here on the blog.
To see my original post about Mama Braggin' Monday, go here
So, join me if you like. I'd love to see what awesome things your kids are up to. I am no longer adding the Mr. Linky, but please leave a comment and brag on your kids. Or you can brag on mine. Either way.
Now, that's a face only a mother could love!
Oh and I do!
Nathan took swim lessons at a local swim school once a week over the last couple of months. The swim school is rather pricey, but well worth the money to have him exposed to swimming over a long period of time and in order to be ready for our vacation to the beach next week.
He has been doing so well. He doesn't particularly like to float on his back and has a hard time rolling over to his back, but I've yet to meet a child who liked floating on their back.
Of course, one of the most important skill learned is jumping in and being able to swim unaided back to the side of the pool and get out.
And they also get to slide down the slide at the end of each lesson. It's always their favorite part.
Way to go my little "fish boy"!!
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 6:32 AM 2 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, Mama Braggin' Monday
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Hello Thursday
Do you mind if we just fast forward on to Friday?
If you didn't realize, we live in North Texas (which by definition includes two major cities that I would prefer to go un-named). And if you saw any news or the Weather Channel at any point since Wednesday evening, you might know at this point that we had some nasty thunderstorms come through here Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
When it all was said and done, we had no damage, just some tree limbs down from some pretty high straight line winds (several very large ones in our neighborhood).
Our electricity went out at 11:30 pm on Wednesday night.
My little man was awoken by another loud thunderstorm in the middle of the night and ended up in bed with us because... there was still no electricity.
I was awakened to a wet bed because little man had an accident while he was in bed with us and... there was still no electricity.
I was late to work, took a shower in the dark and dried my hair at my office because... there was still no electricity.
We called our babysitter and told her to not come because... there was still no electricity.
We talked to our babysitter later that morning during what was torrential downpour of a storm and found out that their house had water coming into it and... we still had no electricity.
Our phone at home which is connected to our digital cable doesn't work because the modem's backup battery only lasts a couple of hours. So don't call our home phone because... there is still no electricity.
My man is now trying to salvage a few things out of our fridge and take them to his dad's house because... there is still no electricity.
The likelyhood of a Foodie Friday post tomorrow is pretty slim because... you guessed it, there is still no electricity.
You know, I think I wouldn't be so bothered if we had a lot of damage, or if our entire neighborhood or community was without power. But it is just a few houses in our little neighborhood. Do you have any idea of how low on the priority list that makes us? My guess is pretty low.
So now I'm off to figure out if the bread dough I mixed last night it still any good to bake today, how to clean my mattress and figure to out where to sleep tonight as it doesn't look hopeful for our electricity situation.
On the upside, our usage and subsequently our bill will be a little bit lower.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 2:31 PM 7 Comments Links to this post
Labels: Family, The Randomness of Me
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
BBA Challenge #4 - Petites Brioches à Tête
Whenever I think of the word, "Brioche," I envision Hugh Jackman. Not a bad association, huh?
The reason is because of this line from the movie Kate & Leopold that he did with Meg Ryan.
As Leopold, he says, "Ah yes, you mock me. But perhaps one day when you've awoken from a pleasant slumber to the scent of a warm brioche smothered in marmalade and fresh creamery butter, you'll understand that life is not solely composed of tasks, but tastes."
Oh, here. Just watch the first couple of minutes of this clip of the film & you'll see the whole scene.
Do you see how the word "brioche" just rolled off his lips?
In the BBA book, there are three "levels" of brioche that we could choose from to make. Rich man's, middle class and poor man's. The delineations are made based on the amount of butter found in each as the upper class would have historically had more access to butter than the middle or poorer classes.
My initial feeling was that I would make the poor man's brioche because, well, we're feeling pretty poor these days. But I was having a hard time carving out the single block of time that the poor mans would have taken (as it appeared to me that it did not require the refrigeration time that the other two required. So, in consideration of the small amounts of time that I had available sporadically through the day and my man convincing me, I decided on the middle class brioche with only 2 sticks of butter as opposed to the 4 sticks in the rich man's brioche.
Sunday morning, I mixed together my sponge, set out my butter and eggs to come to room temperature and off to church we went.
The formula specifies 30 – 45 minutes of fermentation for the sponge, but we were gone to church and I didn't get back to it for about 1 ½ hours and it was absolutely fine. It was nice and puffy and fell when I jiggled the bowl a little bit. Perfect.
I whisked my eggs in a bowl, then added them to the sponge and mixed with the paddle attachment.
I whisked together the flour, sugar and salt.
Then I added the dry ingredients to the wet and continued mixing with the paddle attachment.
Then I began to wonder… are we making cake or bread? And I thought of the Marie Antoinette references in the book about how she may have likely actually said, "Let them eat brioche."
And I began to add the room temperature butter a large pat at a time.
Wait. How did that one get in there? Oh, no bother. It's a cute picture anyways of my kids playing with my son's new bow and arrow set. He wanted to teach her how. ;)
And this is what it looked like after adding all the butter. It was very soft and like a batter.
I spread it on a lined baking sheet and refrigerated it until…
...that evening.
I shaped my petite brioches à tête without using the little fluted tins. I don't have any and can't spend any money right now to purchase. So, we just went free form with them.
I had originally made a video of how I shaped them, but Pinch My Salt, our BBA challenge hostess posted a much better one that is far more correct than mine. See it here.
After proofing for 90 minutes.
Many of them lost their shape as they baked. Looking back I think it's because I didn't press the "head" down into the "body" enough. But no matter; they were so good fresh out of the oven with a little orange marmalade or strawberry preserves.
Overall Impressions:
This recipe is a little fussy in the shaping step as all the butter melts and the dough becomes a little difficult to work with. You have to work quickly or just keep all the dough in the fridge and take only one piece out at a time to shape.
Mostly, however, it was a fairly easy bread to make.
I have serious plans for some things I can make with this dough.
Would I make it again? Absolutely, yes.
Posted by Donna @ Way More Homemade at 2:30 PM 8 Comments Links to this post
Labels: BBA Challenge, Food


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Economy through the prevailing monetary system is used as a deadly weapon , as deadly as bombs
The Survival of Humanity. Economic Warfare against the World
Letter to Sergej Glaziev
Shortly before Christmas I wrote the following letter to Mr. Sergej Glaziev, one of Russia's top economists and economic advisor to President Putin. Sergej is also a member of the Greek Delphi Initiative.
As Professor Michel Chossudovsky so aptly writes, western corporatism is waging an economic war against the world accompanied by increased militarism carried out mainly by the Pentagon and its minion European allies, NATO.
Stopping this criminal western imposed economic supremacy, all based on dollar fiat money, controlled by FED, Wall Street and the Basle (Switzerland) based BIS (Bank for International Settlements), also called the central bank of the world's central banks, must be the world's Priority Number One. The BIS was created in 1930 with the objective to help with the settlements of loans related to the reparation payments by Germany after WWI. It later took over the role of coordinating and gradually controlling central banks around the world and the flow of funds between them. The Rothschild – Rockefeller families were instrumental in setting up the institution and are still today among the major shareholders of an entirely privately owned international monetary institution.
The BIS is one of the most secretive and obscure institutions in the world that helped the FED finance Hitler's war against Russia during WWII. Yes, for those who don't know, Washington had already then talked and walked with a forked tongue, playing both sides, as they do now with ISIS. But despite this satanical act – which the failing empire is repeating at nauseatum around the globe, killing millions – the Soviet Army defeated the Nazis, as my friend Andre Vltchek so eloquently says in his latest piece comparing Syria with Stalingrad, no matter how cowardly Washington's deceit, Russia will not be defeated, nor will Syria, nor will China – nor will the world that loves freedom. People who love cannot be defeated.
The western immoral, nefarious monetary system forces starving people to death by sanctions, by IMF strangulations, by creating unemployment through corporate privatization of public and social services, by greed – is bound to provoke revolutions, perhaps slowly, but surely. That's why militarization has to go hand in hand with economic warfare, so that any potential public upheaval can be oppressed by bloody military and police violence before it can rise.
Economy through the prevailing monetary system is used as a deadly weapon, as deadly as bombs and canons. Beating the economy of war with an economy of peace, may be one way of conquering and subduing Humanity's Enemy Number One – the Anglo-Zionist Empire with seat in Washington – and its spineless lackeys in Europe – who seamlessly after self-provoked and instigated terror attacks in France, Lebanon, Egypt, Mali – to name just a few – and fabricated terror warnings throughout Europe, now also in Munich, are terrorizing the European people into literally asking for a military clamp-down – 'please protect us – we gladly give up all our civil liberties'. This has already happened in the US, where the American people have lost 90% of their civil rights since 9/11 through the Patriot Act and varies subsequent iterations of it. The US today is nothing but a militarized police state. In no time Europe will be the same.
These thoughts have prompted me to write to Sergej Glaziev, a brilliant economist and fellow-member of the Greek Delphi Initiative. The Delphi Initiative is an inspirational and internationalized movement of thoughts launched in June 2015 by a group of Greek intellectuals to seek alternatives to the troika (ECB, EC, IMF) caused Greek breakdown, to the US-NATO sponsored Ukrainian civil war and to seek an independent Europe of solidarity.
* * *
19 December 2015
Dear Mr. Glazyev,
Please allow me to write to you with one simple but monumental concern: The survival of humanity.
Washington follows a foreign policy of constant provocation for constant conflict. It is a monster with more than 1,000 military bases around the world, spanning its tentacles into every region of the globe, creating friction, for conflicts, for military interventions, for 'regime change'.
Six Anglo-Saxon Zionist-dominated giant media corporations are controlling 90% of the 'news' consumed by the West. They spit out endless lies, double-talk, hypocrisy, manipulating public opinion seeking consent for the empire's evil interventions in sovereign nations' internal affairs.
For the media's propaganda and mind control campaigns no cost is too high. Why should it? – Fiat money is produced at a mouse click in the billions if necessary to manipulate public opinion into voting for neoliberal candidates in so-called 'democratic elections', from Greece, to Argentina to Venezuela to Spain and all over the 'western' world, including Japan and Australia. It would be against all odds that a majority of people who suffered for years under drastic austerity measures imposed by their neoliberal governments, would out of free will vote again for their hangmen. It is hardly coincidence that in Europe, not one out of the 28 EU members has a left-leaning government.
The illusion that Europe could become at least an economic counter-force has vanished long ago. Europe, the harbinger of hundreds of years of atrocious and murderous colonization of Africa, Asia and the Americas is hardly the ethical and moral power to resist the new neoliberal Anglo-Zionist empire with headquarters in Washington. The so-called European Union and even non-EU members have long ago conceded most of their national sovereignty to Washington.
The EU, with the US behind its creation, was never conceived to become a political union. In such a scenario, a common currency, the Euro, was and is a sham. Lack of EU solidarity was exemplarily demonstrated in Greece. The EC, folded into the US (Wall Street, IMF) dominated troika, ruthlessly demolished Syriza. The concepts of ethics and solidarity do not exist in the EU, certainly no more than in the self-proclaimed hegemon of the world. Their blackmailing Greece into submission is a criminal act by any international standards of law – if there was still a court that would uphold such standards.
It is fundamental to unequivocally understand that the United States has one goal – and one goal only – seeking global military, financial and economic hegemony; or as Washington's strategists call it, Full Spectrum Dominance. There is NOTHING, no diplomacy, no negotiation that could detract them from their course. Peace is not in Washington's cards – and has not been for the last 200 years.
The objective to reach absolute power was set latest at the onset of WWI; it was intensified in the lead-up to WWII, when the FED via Wall Street and the BIS (Bank for International Settlement), conveniently located in Basle, Switzerland, bordering Germany, financed Hitler's war against the Soviet Union. The objective for absolute power was eventually solidified with the Pax Americana, later converted into the PNAC (Plan for a New American Century), written during the artificially created Cold War, by Zionist-led Washington 'think tanks' (sic).
The fall of the Middle-East and North Africa (MENA) and the gradual encroachment of Russia and China was decided well before 9/11 – see also General Wesley Clark (NATO Commander Europe 1997-2000)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSL3JqorkdU –
Today more than 50% of the US GDP is generated by America's war machine and related industries and services. US/ NATO instigated conflicts, wars and proxy or mercenary wars in the last 15 years have left behind a death toll of 10 to 12 million people; and a chaos of destruction and misery contributing a considerable portion of refugees to the worldwide flood of at least 60 million refugees (UNHCR), seeking shelter, food and security in the very nations that destroyed their economies, homes and families.
While the dollar monetary system commands the (western) world, one of the three key instruments of oppression and dominance (the other two being war and propaganda), the death toll and destruction will further proliferate – unless – UNLESS, the monster is forcefully stopped in its tracks.
No matter what diplomatic efforts Russia and China may make, no matter what concessions the US and its European and Gulf State minions may appear to make – the PNAC's objective of Full Spectrum Dominance will not change.
Why do I tell you this? – Most, if not all, you probably already know.
Thanks to the wisdom of Mr. Putin and his team, the world has so far been saved from a WWIII scenario. Mr. Putin's speech on 28 September at the UN General Assembly and Russia's subsequent, fully legitimate intervention in Syria to fight the Western terror creation ISIS / Daesh, has started making a dent in the world's public opinion. There is some awakening taking place. The tectonic plates may have started shifting. At the same time however, Washington is upping the ante, by intensifying its aggression and provocations around the world.
There is no doubt that the Russia-China force-de-frappe is superior to that of the US and NATO. The concern is bloodshed, and possibly annihilation of mankind.
My credo from one economist to another – There is another, possibly bloodless way to conquer the monster: economics.
Russia and China, together with the other BRICS and SCO countries hold the keys:
Rapid expansion of the Russia-China alternative payment systems, fierce promotion of dollar delinked energy trading;
reducing dollar reserve holding below the 50% mark, by encouraging the Chinese Yuan – now officially admitted in the IMF's SDR basket – as viable alternative reserve currency.
Reducing demand for the fiat dollar, and offering an alternative international payment system, will break the west's fraudulent dollar grip on the world's economy; freeing humanity from criminal 'sanctions', currency and commodity manipulations.
Once a critical mass is on board the new system, an unstoppable sea-change may take place, breaking the dollar hegemony – and Washington's path to Full Spectrum Dominance.
A dying beast may still attempt to destroy whatever it can find on its way to oblivion, even committing nuclear suicide – in which case I trust in the Russian-Chinese defence tactics and especially in Mr. Putin as the world's top geopolitical chess player.
With my best wishes for the Holidays and most certainly for a more peaceful 2016.
Peter Koenig is an economist and geopolitical analyst. He is also a former World Bank staff and worked extensively around the world in the fields of environment and water resources. He writes regularly for Global Research, ICH, RT, Sputnik, PressTV, CounterPunch, TeleSur, The Vineyard of The Saker Blog, and other internet sites. He is the author of Implosion – An Economic Thriller about War, Environmental Destruction and Corporate Greed – fiction based on facts and on 30 years of World Bank experience around the globe. He is also a co-author of The World Order and Revolution! – Essays from the Resistance.

subset: commoncrawl


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As Good Friday approaches, I was recalling something I learned a few months ago when my youngest daughter was sick for over a month and doctors couldn't find what was wrong with her. This literally gave me the strength and faith to proclaim her healing through his sacrifice on the cross. I hope this is an encouragement to anyone battling sickness.
I'm not too familiar with the Old Testament, but as I read Hebrews 9 and was sensetive to the Spirit I was in tears as understanding came to me.
Verse19 When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people.
I was like, wasn't hyssop what they used for Jesus on the cross? So I looked it up and yes, right before Jesus said, 'It is finished' and took his last breath on the cross (John 19:28-30), the roman soilders offered him to drink wine vinegar on a sponge at the end of a stalk of hyssop.
So I looked up hyssop and apparently it is a plant/herb from the mint family that has cleansing, medicinal and flavor properties.
Then I looked up references in the Bible and these are a few that came up. The branches were used in the Passover to put blood on the post (Exodus 12:22), as well as in ceremonial cleansing of healing on a person healed from skin disease (Lev 14:1-7), and also used to purify a house that contained mold (Lev 14:33-53).
I believe that it was symbolic that when Jesus was on the cross as our blood sacrifice they used hyssop then he says 'it is finished', because the sacrifice was complete with hyssop. Not only because it was used on the lamb sacrifice like in the passover but, this was a sign of purification for us, not only for our sins, but for the healing of our souls and bodies. With his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).
In our life we may have gotten spiritual mold, but he renews us and makes us whole spiritually and physically. We don't have to be cast out or isolated with guilt or pain, like the people with leporsy did, we are made whole. This was Our ceremony of cleansing and healing.
God is good!


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He's Jamaican it!
A Jamaica-born Brooklyn chef who was once told he might never walk again is not only cruising around the kitchen again, he just achieved his dream of opening his own eatery, unlocking the doors to an island grill in Fort Greene last week.
"I knew from the first day I started in the culinary field I always wanted to open my own restaurant," said Canarsie resident Lancelot Brown, who is now the proud owner of Jamaica Grill on Myrtle Avenue between Hall Street and Washington Avenue. "It's one of the dreams I wanted to accomplish and accomplishing it is a momentous achievement for me."
Brown — who moved to a public housing complex in Canarsie from Jamaica 19 years ago — has two culinary degrees, and has worked in eateries across the island and the Big Apple.
But Brown's goal of commanding his own kitchen was nearly sliced and diced when he broke his back in a 2004 accident, and doctors told him he might never be able to stand in front of a stove again.
Brown refused to take the prognosis lying down, however, and after years of physical therapy, he was back on his feet and aiming to make it big.
"I wanted to do something more, because I knew I could do more," he said.
He enrolled in the inaugural class of New York City Housing Authority's Food Business Pathways program, where he learned how to run a business and got help securing the permits he needed to open Jamaica Grill.
At his new eatery, Brown is serving up dishes from his home country that he said are rarely done well in the concrete jungle.
"It's one of those cuisines that you either have to go to Jamaica to have it or find somewhere that prepares it really well," he said.
Brown said diners go wild for his vegetarian pasta, made with jerk-spiced butter and tofu — a recipe he created himself — as well as more traditional Caribbean fare such as jerk chicken and curried goat.
Taste it for yourself at Jamaica Grill [474 Myrtle Ave. between Hall Street and Washington Avenue, (718) 272–6382, www.jamai


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Mommyish Gift Guide: Big Ticket Items That Aren't Worth The Price
When I saw the Justin Bieber Tour Bus and Concert Stage gift on this year's "Must-Haves" list, I cringed. Not just because I'm intensely sick of hearing the pop sensation's name. And not just because those Justin Bieber dolls look seriously creepy. I was cringing because this toy has a $80 price tag. (And that's on sale.) This chintzy tour bus with fold-out stage isn't very big and it doesn't even include a Bieber doll. Its "bells and whistles" include a light switch, a small wheel in the stage that your sold-separately-doll can spin in circles and an MP3 plug-in. I'm sorry, but you can throw a mini-speaker in just about anything these days. It's just not all that impressive.
Even if you aren't scaling back your gift-giving budget, we all want to make the most of our money this holiday season. I just don't think you're going to do that with an $80 tour bus that doubles as the least exciting Transformer ever. At most, this toy should cost $30. And ya know what, Bieber's "Backstage Experience" isn't the only toy that doesn't deliver for it's hefty price tag. Here's some other toys that Santa wouldn't dream of sending.


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Disney Infinity video game series discontinued
Disney is leaving the video game publishing business, the company announced Tuesday, marking the end of its Disney Infinity game series.
The company is shuttering its internal game studio, Avalanche, which debuted Disney Infinity in 2013. The action-adventure series combines story-driven game play with physical character figurines from Disney and Pixar franchises like Toy Story, Frozen, and Pirates of Caribbean, as well as the Marvel and Star Wars films.
Instead, Disney will shift to a licensing model, said John Pitaro, chairman of Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media, in a statement. Pitaro cited high development costs and a lack of growth in the "toys-to-life" market. "This was a difficult decision that we did not take lightly given the quality of Disney Infinity and its many passionate fans," he said.
Disney Infinity's final releases include new characters from Alice Through the Looking Glass later this month and a Finding Dory playset set to launch in June, according to a Disney Interactive blog post from Studio Vice President and General Manager John Blackburn, who cofounded Avalanche in 1995 and helped negotiate its acquisition by Disney in 2005.
"From the beginning, Disney Infinity was built for you — our fans — and I wanted to take a moment to thank you not just for your support over the years, but for creating a community that made Disney Infinity more than just a game," Blackburn wrote in the blog post. "Our goal for Disney Infinity was to bring the best of Disney storytelling to life in homes around the world, and with your support we accomplished that. We hope you had as much fun playing the game as we had making it."


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Our Deplorable Health Care
National Healthcare Choices Day aims to assist folks across the U.S. comprehend the value of advance healthcare arranging. Even so, it is fantastic to see West Virginia leading the way on finish of life care arranging 49{290dc11735182163adce5d78f2b80fa75d595f7e691955657b4f2cc1fe31bcb7} of West Virginians have filled out at least one particular advance directive – the highest among all states reporting these statistics. The Standard Precautions are a guide that assists health workers and visitors know how to treat certain areas of the facility. A healthy IT marketplace would favor disruptive innovations (straightforward merchandise and solutions that initially serve the bottom of a industry and then move up to displace established competitors) for improving patient engagement, communication, and care coordination. If individuals seek care outdoors the network, they need to pay a higher percentage of the price. Customized health care is also an method to far more properly lessen disease when it develops.
At the exact same time, I began developing a well being IT system that uses spreadsheet models in innovative methods to manage a lifetime of physical and psychological well being data, and provide actionable details and guidance to clinicians and healthcare buyers/sufferers, in order to increase healthcare high quality and efficiency. I contend that the impunity of leading leaders in health care, in finance, and in other spheres has led to increasing health care and societal dysfunction. It may take numerous doctor's visits or prescription refills prior to the insured particular person reaches the deductible and the insurance firm starts to pay for care. As sleep apnea can outcome in long term a lot more extreme overall health troubles, it is advisable to see your doctor for a solution that is to your advantage.
HILTON HOTEL Hotel Canada isnow recruiting new workers whose careers suites into these categories listed. Some believe patients must have granular control of who gets to see their well being data and, if de-identified and aggregated for population health study, that the patient ought to be compensated financially for authorizing such use of their information. Since of the higher costs of caring for patients with complications, some local overall health commissions will not offer routine surgery to sufferers who are obese or smoke cigarettes. As the use of specialty merchandise expands and insurance plans shift far more of the burden to the patient, the out-of-pocket expense is making the expense of drugs untenable for some customers. The net result is that several injured workers will no longer have access to medical care.
The findings are primarily based on a survey in Spring 2016 that asked people if expense had triggered them to defer health care or medicine in the preceding 12 months. IV.A.three.d. If hands will be moving from a contaminated-body internet site to a clean-body internet site during patient care. This social health insurance coverage model that France makes use of has created France the World's ideal health care provider.
The plans need to offer these lists to their in-network providers and to all of their subscribers and consumers. And most of all, health care is too pricey because politicians need to spend back for their last campaign, and raise cash for the subsequent. For instance, private health savings accounts are fine (this is about shifting some expenses for routine stuff from insurance coverage to people). But appropriate treatment can be a rarity, specially in the American health care insurance coverage program which categorizes therapy of psychological and psychiatric problems as elective.


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Gluten-Free Apple Pie Recipe
2 1/2 cups Gluten-Free Flour Mix
2 tablespoons Powdered Sugar
2 teaspoons Xanthum Gum
1/2 teaspoon Salt
12 tablespoons Butter, cut into cubes, very cold
2 Eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon Water, cold
1 teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar
5-6 Golden Delicious or Mutsu apples, peeled, cored, and cut into pieces
2 tablespoons Honey
1/2 cup packed Brown Sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2 tablespoons Cornstarch
1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground All-spice
1/4 teaspoon ground Nutmeg
2 tablespoons Butter, cut into small pieces
1 Egg, lightly between with 1 teaspoon cold Water
To make the pie crust, combine all dry ingredients in a bowl. Using a pastry cutter, blend the butter into the dry ingredients until pea size pieces remain. Stir in the eggs, cold water, and apple cider vinegar until dough comes together. Knead the dough to bring together fully. Divide the dough into two even discs, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour before rolling out.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, grease a 9" pie pan.
In a bowl, combine honey, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, all-spice, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine. Add the apples, tossing to ensure they are fully covered by mixture. Set aside.
On a lightly floured surface (using gluten-free flour) roll out the first disc until it forms a disc 14" in diameter and 1/4" thick. Work gently to ensure the dough remains pliable. Place the dough in the pie pan, cutting off any excess and patching where necessary. Add the apple filling to the pan, mounding slightly in the center. Dot with butter.
Roll out the second disc the same way as the first. Cut into 1" wide strips to form a lattice top. Crimp the edges of the pie with your hands or a fork. Brush the egg wash over the top of the crust and sprinkle with sugar.
Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Turn the temperature down to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue cooking 50 minutes to 1 hour. If the crust begins to get too dark on top, cover with aluminum foil. Let cool slightly before serving.
Click here to make a regular apple pie recipe or try the gluten-free cherry pie.
Photographed by Alli Shepherd.


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Tyrant alum Keon Alexander has been tapped for a heavily recurring role in YouTube Red's upcoming action drama series Impulse, directed and executive produced by Doug Liman (Bourne Identity), from Universal Cable Productions and studio-based Hypnotic (Suits).
Based on the third novel in the Jumper series by Steven Gould, Impulse features a rebellious 16-year-old girl, Henry (Maddie Hasson) who has always felt different from her peers and has longed to escape from her seemingly quaint small town. She soon discovers she has the extraordinary ability to teleport.
Alexander will play Dominick, a teleporter who has been on the run for years after escaping a laboratory experimenting on him and his teleportation abilities.
Named a Rising Star by the Toronto International Film Festival, Alexander is known for his role as Rami Said on the second and third seasons of FX's Tyrant. On the film side, he'll next be seen in Simple Wedding starring Rita Wilson and Shohreh Aghdashloo. He is repped by Gersh, Authentic and GGA.
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With beginnings as one of the most important company towns in the South, Wilson, Arkansas, is a small town with bold ambition. Located in the heart of the Mississippi River Delta region just 45 minutes north of Memphis, Wilson is home to a distinct culture of education, arts, food, history and agriculture. The fertile landscape has bred a community dedicated to innovation and sustainability that stays true to its unique Delta heritage.
Lee Wilson & Company owned and operated the town for 125 years, when it eventually became one of the most important cotton empires in the country. Now, Wilson is a prime destination for visitors interested in Delta life, culture and history.
Wilson, Arkansas was looking to share its story with others. With a vision to become a booming tourist attraction, Wilson partnered with Designsensory to promote the town's unique offerings.
Designsensory combines a fresh perspective with historical tradition to tell the story of Wilson, Arkansas. We've utilized our technical, design and media expertise to drive public interest in the cultural hub that's located just 45 minutes north of Memphis.
Wilson wanted to update its brand and introduce Southern history to the digital age, and called on Designsensory to help. Our team refreshed Wilson's website design and increased visibility through drastic search engine optimization improvements. With a combination of compelling content, bold design, interactive elements and technical expertise, Designsensory renewed Wilson's digital presence.
We launched successful public relations and media campaigns to spread awareness of Wilson's small town charm. Designsensory's public relations team made sure Wilson, Arkansas, was featured in major publications in the region, while our design team got to work creating award-winning marketing materials. To further support the promotion of Wilson, the Designsensory team developed print and digital advertisements, as well as informational brochures and booklets.
Designsensory continues to support Wilson, Arkansas's efforts to become a major visitor attraction for those wanting to experience true Delta culture.


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According to a report by Mizan, Australian Minister for Trade and Investment Steven Ciobo is in Tehran at the head of an economic and trade delegation in a move to prepare the grounds for promotion of Tehran-Canberra trade ties.
"I'm leading this delegation to open doors and to explore the Iranian commercial terrain – that's about creating a pathway for Australia businesses to engage," Ciobo told AAP.
"It's obvious why Australia is so keen to get back on track."
"For companies selling mining equipment and expertise, Iran is the jackpot: seven per cent of the world's mineral resources are located there and with operations in arid and isolated regions not dissimilar to Australia," he noted.
"Iran also holds some of the world's biggest oil and gas reserves and wants to boost those exports."
"And with its population of over 80 million, education, food, healthcare and water sustainability are lucrative areas for Aussie firms."
"Now that the relationship is moving towards being on the right track there is of course significant potential there," Ciobo noted, adding that Australia isn't the only one to find a business bonanza.
The minister believes competition will be strong among other countries keen to make inroads into the once-economically isolated nation, including the US and UK.
But it's thanks to a historically strong trade relationship that Canberra has maintained – including keeping an embassy open amid decades of political tension – that he's confident Aussie firms will be well positioned.


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Mary Arline Zurhorst (1878-1926)
The National School Of Domestic Arts and Science was an ingeniously-conceived institution in which young women were to receive practical instruction––and be trained to instruct others––in home economics.
The school's founder and principal was Mary A. Zurhorst; her business partner, Charles Francis Wood, was its architect. The design was on a grand scale, and was extensively covered in the press. Zurhorst and Wood envisioned a school where young women would learn to keep house in eleven communal residences while attending classes in home economics, interior decoration, music, languages, and elocution. The campus would have greenhouses and conservatories overlooking Wisconsin Avenue, and tennis courts at the back of the property for the students' recreation.
It is possible that the plan was spoiled by the United States' entry into the First World War, and a sudden abundance of jobs for young women; but more likely, it fell victim to a combination of unrealistic projections and architectural overreach. The project was scaled back––only five of eleven buildings were built––and within months of its opening a portion of what had been completed was being put to use as the Mount Alto Inn. In the end the government purchased the National School Of Domestic Art and Science, and converted it to use as a public health service hospital for veterans (which remained in operation until 1965).
The property had been acquired by Benjamin F. Hunt after the Civil War. In 1909, when Hunt's widow Martha died, the property passed into the hands of developer Amzi Barber––"The Asphalt King"––who died soon after that. Barber's widow, Julia Langdon Barber, died in 1912. In 1915 it changed hands again.
"Georgetown has the distinction of having furnished the largest sale of the week, although the property is so far out on the extreme northern point of the city lines as to be generally regarded as county property. For a consideration indicated by the revenue stamps as $120,000, William S. Minnix conveyed a large unimproved tract on Wisconsin avenue and Tunlaw road to Charles F. Wood. The property is said to have been purchased in the interest of a Catholic educational institution, although the purchaser declines to discuss the plans and name of the institution. The land is described as lots 293 to 305, 263, and part of lots 262 and 264, in square 1300, and is located on the west side of Wisconsin avenue, with the Tunlaw road forking for its north and western boundaries." ("Biggest Sale In Georgetown", Washington Times, May 22, 1915)
Construction of the educational institution––which turned out not to be Catholic––began a year later. The enviable location was to be the grand new home of the National School Of Domestic Arts and Science, which had been founded in 1903 as the National Cooking School, by Mary Arline Zurhorst, the daughter of a family that had been undertakers on Capital Hill since 1857. A few years later it had expanded at a new location. "National School of Domestic Arts, 1756 M St. N.W. (Formerly National Cooking School).––Practical Classes in Cooking, Sewing and Tailoring." And although courses in music, languages, and elocution were to be added at the new location, there is no doubt that home economics would still have been the strong suit of a school whose degree in Household Engineering equipped its bearer to go out and teach on her own. (Star, September 23, 1906.)
A New Campus
"New School Group To Be Built Here––Eleven Structures to Go Up on Estate Facing Massachusetts Avenue Heights.––Wisconsin Avenue Hill Is Picked Out As Site––Buildings Will Resemble Continental Memorial Hall and Washington's Home, Mount Vernon.––The secret of the purchase last spring of the old Barber estate on Wisconsin Avenue, facing Massachusetts Avenue Heights, was revealed today when workmen began to break ground for a number of tennis courts and a "rest house" at the rear of the seven acres comprising the property, and it was ascertained that a group of white stone buildings is to be erected on the estate for the National School Of Domestic Arts and Science. The owners of the school said today that the investment involved will be a little inside of $1,000,000. The buildings will cost about $500,000, and between $240,000 and $500,000 is understood to have been paid for the land last spring."
"Mr. Wood is widely known in government circles. He built the West Point Cadet barracks, some of the barracks and the officers' quarters at the Naval Academy, and has designed and built forts, power plants, reclamation projects, lighthouses, etc., all over the United States."
"The old Barber estate has been kept out of the real estate market for years, brokers today said, because of the high bluffs at points of the property, and the fact that much of it is a big, sloping hill, which would have necessitated much extensive grading before it could have been sold in building lots. It faces Massachusetts Avenue Heights at Davis street, just above where the old Tenleytown car barn stood."
"The powerhouse will be in four or five stories, the upper floors containing apartments for gardeners, engineers, etc. As the point at which the powerhouse is to be situated is below a bluff fifty feet high on the Tunlaw road, the workmen's apartments will be practically one flight up from the campus. One floor below there will be a big garage, the story below that will be a big coal vault, below that there will be boiler rooms and below that will be ashrooms."
"All this is to be built in the side of the hill. Coal will be hauled in on the street level of Wisconsin avenue and the ashes will come out on the Tunlaw road, all the handling being done by gravity."
"Perhaps the most interesting feature in connection with the new institution will be the arrangement under which the dormitories are to be conducted. Each will practically be a house to itself. They will hold eighteen students, of whom six for a certain period will be in charge of housekeeping and operation and the other twelve guests. Those in charge of housekeeping, operation and entertaining will do all the marketing, planning of menus, etc., for the prescribed period, for the other twelve. At the end of a certain period those who have been guests will take their turns as housekeepers, marketers, etc. The institution will be a sort of little village, the principal serving as a sort of mayor and the teachers and instructors as a sort of city council."
(Star, October 9, 1915)
Beyond what appeared in his press releases, little evidence of Charles Francis Wood's professional activity can now be found. The 1897 directory of Wayne, Pennsylvania, lists Charles F. Wood, of the Philadelphia Steam Heating Company, which had contracts in Washington a the Old Post Office, and at the Washington Asylum. (Washington Times, May 15, 1897, p.3; August 15, 1897, pt.2, p.13.
Wood was also a partner in a second firm specialized in government contracts; in the 1910 census Charles F. Wood––now living in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania––is listed as vice president of a "Breakwater mfg." company; the Philadelphia Breakwater Company were contractors for river and harbor improvements.)
There is no reason to doubt that the Philadelphia Steam Heating Company––"power, heat, light, plumbing, piping, ventilating and general mechanical equipment"––participated in construction at the military academies; but Wood's claim to have "built" these buildings seems misleading, as the principal architects of those turn of the century projects were Ernest Flagg, at Annapolis; and Cram, Goodhue and Ferguson, at West Point).
(That Wood saw himself as an authority on government building projects may be guessed from the title of a pamphlet he issued: The first epistle of Charles to the Congress of the United States of America: Our Building Bureau and its Results, Charles Francis Wood, Wayne, Pennsylvania, 1900, 16 pages, Library of Congress.)
Domestic Arts School to Cost $500,000.––First Work Done On National School. Colonial Style of Architecture To Be followed in Massive New Buildings.––"On the site of the Barber estate, at Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues, ground has been broken for the series of buildings of the National School Of Domestic Art And Sciences. Charles Francis Wood, a consulting architect of Washington, designed the buildings, which are to cost about $500,000 between $250,000 and $500,000 is to be paid for the land. Mr. Wood is to be the joint owner of the school, with Miss Mary Arline Zurhorst, its founder."
"The main science hall and administration building, to be one of the most elaborate, will resemble Memorial Continental Hall. This building will be 129 by [40?] feet, front on Wisconsin avenue and will enclose a large open court. This court is to be roofed over with glass and beneath this will be an indoor swimming pool."
"There will be six dormitories, an infirmary, a principal's residence, a power-house, a teahouse with a stage in front of it, and an amphitheater, where there will be plays and school exercises."
Potomac stone will be employed. The dormitories will resemble the Washington home at Mt. Vernon. Bowling alleys and a gymnasium are to be provided. An auditorium will seat 600 persons. There will be accommodation in the school for 400 pupils at first and a chance to enlarge the capacity to 600 pupils."
"The dormitories will contain suites, each two girls having a study and a sitting-room in common. With each there will be a sleeping porch and a private bath. Each dormitory will accommodate eighteen pupils and two teachers. There will be a teaching staff of forty."
"The school, founded twelve years ago, now occupies seven remodeled houses in the vicinity of Rhode Island and Connecticut avenues. Its membership has increased to 250 pupils, for whom there are sixteen instructors."
"The site is one of the most beautiful that could be found."
(Washington Times, October 12, 1915)
"Scenes At School Of Domestic Art And Science.––Big School Grows On Wisconsin Ave.––Four New buildings on "The Balcony of Washington" Are Completed.––Domestic Sciences To Be Taught By Novel Plan.––From the Connecticut Avenue bridge, the Long bridge over the Potomac river, the Speedway of Potomac Park, from the Mall, the Washington Monument grounds and from other vantage points affording vistas, the observant Washingtonian these days notices an imposing group of buildings being erected on the heights of Wisconsin avenue near Massachusetts avenue.
They are the buildings of the National School Of Domestic Art And Science, springing up by night as well as by day, for the work of erecting them is going on by electric light after nightfall, to crown what an Argentinian diplomat residing in the neighborhood recently described as "The Balcony of Washington," namely, the ridge on the west side of Wisconsin avenue from Garfield street down, to below Davis street, where the recently acquired school property begins. From this 'balcony' the capital lies outstretched in the valley below, like a map unrolled at one's feet, and, at the back, like a panorama, are the foothills of the Blue Ridge of Virginia."
"…a novel system of training girls in the domestic arts and sciences which heretofore has centered in a smaller way in the city neighborhood of Connecticut avenue and Rhode Island avenue is to be carried out in a group of community buildings (which will number seven by next year and eleven by the year after), the whole to occupy seven and a half acres and to represent an investment of $1,000,000."
"The four main buildings cannot be called "dormitories", although they are to house the pupils, for the reason that the new system of training young women in the domestic arts and sciences requires that the girls themselves shall "keep house" in a "model house," demonstrating in a practical way in their individual school homes, which are small apartments, the lessons they study in the classrooms."
"…the administration building––the old Hunt mansion––[will] be put under rollers and moved to the back of the property, to make way for a big stone building…"
"Half a dozen tennis courts have been built at the back of property, and the school will eventually accommodate 200 boarding and 400 day scholars, although it will not be possible to build before bad weather sets in this year enough structures to house more than eighty boarding and 200 day scholars. Plans were made by and the building work is being carried out under the general supervision of Charles F. Wood, vice president and secretary of the school, Miss Mary Arline Zurhorst being president and treasurer, besides presiding as principal of the education department."
(Star, August 27, 1916, part 5)
("The old Hunt mansion," moved to the back of the property to make way for construction of the school, later became the residence of the veterans hospital's director. Lowered, and stripped of its front steps, shutters, porches, and balustrades, it presented a forlorn appearance, but survived into the sixties. Washington Star Magazine, November 26, 1961, p.4)
National School Domestic Arts and Science, 2650 Wisconsin Ave. N.W.
One-Year Courses: Home Economics, Interior decoration.
Two-Year courses: Domestic Art, Domestic Science, Interior Decoration.
Three-Year Courses: Household Engineering.
Special Departments: Music, Languages, Elocution.
Degree AB or BS.
Large Faculty. Model Equipment. Beautiful Campus. New Buildings.
(Star, September 24, 1916, part 1)
"Friends Visit New Girls' School Home: National School of Domestic Art and Sciences Embodies Many Novel Ideas.––Scores of Washingtonians who for years have been following the progress made by the National School of Domestic Art and Sciences attended a reception held by the officers and directors of the institution yesterday afternoon in the new buildings." (Washington Times, October 15, 1916, p.13)
The Hunt-Barber parcel was enlarged to the north and to the west (as the present outline of the Russian Embassy compound makes clear): "Real Estate Transfers.––Cathedral Highlands––Charles J. Bell, surviving trustee, to Charles F. Wood, lots 1 to 5, 17 to 28, square 1812, and lots 18 to 25, square 1932, $11,000. Resurvey on Lucky Discovery––Edward Brooke et ux, to Charles F. Wood, part of tract described, $10. (Washington Post, November 13, 1916, p.4)
[Building Permit issued to] National School of Domestic Arts and Science, owners; Charles F. Wood, architect; to repair building, 2650 Wisconsin avenue; cost, $550. (Washington Post, April 29, 1917, p.R2)
National School of Domestic Art and Science,
Mary Arline Zurhorst, Principal
2650 Wisconsin ave. n.w.
15th year opens October 4, 1917
Special Home Courses
A Substitute Course for High School
Normal Courses, preparation for teachers.
Degree Courses for High School graduates.
Catalogue on request. Ph. Registrar, West 1900.
Model Class rooms. Beautiful Campus. Athletics.
(Star, September 9, 1917)
Gives 77-Cent Banquet––Domestic Science Class Entertains Notable Company.––"A practical attempt to reduce the high cost of living was made last night when the seniors of the National School of Domestic Art and Science, 2650 Wisconsin avenue, dined the District Commissioners and a half hundred others prominent in social life at a cost of 77 cents a plate.
Following is the menu: Hors d'oeuvre, American butterfly, cream of cress soup, filet sole, string beans, biscuit, chicken timbale, macedoine, vegetable, roast ham, dandelion greens, dasheens, romaine salad, apricot cream, coffee, and wafers."
(Washington Times, March 15, 1917, p.8)
In the end, Mary Zurhorst's school felt compelled to change its mission. "With the end of the commencement exercises last week the National School of Domestic Art and Science assumed its new name, the Mount Alto School for Young Ladies." ("Degrees Awarded In Household Arts: Students of National School Appear in Greek Pageant", Washington Post, May 19, 1918, p.17)
When Charles Francis Wood sold out to the government he may have recouped a portion of his costs; the school on a grand scale that had been Mary Zurhorst's life's work was gone. In the 1920 census she is shown as a boarder living at 3100 16th Street NW, where a much smaller school called The Abby was briefly located.
Home Economics. Domestic Art. Domestic Science. Modern Practical Methods. The Abby, 3100 16th St. N.W., Corner 16th and Irving.
Mary Arline Zurhorst, Prin.
(Washington Post, September 28, 1919. p.19)
Despite the failure of the National School of Domestic Arts and Science, Mary Zurhorst's relatives recall that she and Charles F. Wood remained business partners, and even appeared to be successful; in fact, Zurhorst's relatives believed her to be wealthy.
Before her death in 1926, Zurhorst willed her entire estate to Mrs. Charles S. Zurhorst––the Washington sister-in-law who had nursed her––and to Mrs. Zurhorst's children. After Mary Zurhorst died––and after Wood took his life––the promised wealth was found to have evaporated. (Died: Zurhorst, Mary Arline, Washington Post, December 18, 1926, p.3)
(Photo courtesy of Mary Zurhorst Gray, 301 East Capitol: Tales From the Heart of the Hill, 2012, Overbeck History Press)
The Mount Alto Inn
Only five or six of the eleven planned buildings of the National School of Domestic Art and Science were ever built, and, by 1917, some had been put to a new use; for about a year the National School of Domestic Art and Science––now called the Mount Alto School for Young Ladies––operated alongside the Mount Alto Inn. Both were presumably under the direction of Arline Zurhorst.
"Mount Alto Inn––A House of Individuality––The City's Most Beautiful Resort––10 Minutes Away, 10 Degrees Cooler––New, Unique, Exclusive––High Breezy Delightful––On the Balcony of Washington. Wisconsin Avenue & Davis St. N.W.––Booklet on request. Telephone West 1900."
(Washington Post, June 14, 1917, p.7)
The most celebrated guest of the Mount Alto Inn was evangelist Billy Sunday, famous for his Prohibition sermons ("Get On the Water Wagon"). In 1918, however, Sunday was taking to the pulpit to preach for war: "I tell you it is [Kaiser] Bill against Woodrow, Germany against America, Hell against Heaven".
"Billy Sunday 'Groggy', But He Will Resume Fighting Kaiser and the Devil Today.––Reports from Billy Sunday's "training camp" at Mount Alto Inn, where the evangelist's personal staff is quartered, last night were to the effect that Billy was a little groggy from his three-round bout with the devil and the Kaiser the day before, but that he would be back in the ring again this afternoon and tonight. Monday is Billy's rest day after three strenuous sermons on the Sabbath, and yesterday he took a real rest on account of his voice, according to his personal representatives. It was announced that he was treated by a throat specialist, and remained in bed practically all day." (Washington Post, January 15, 1918, p.5)
"Billy Sunday had conferences with secretary of the Treasury McAdoo and Postmaster General Burleson yesterday, but otherwise spent the day resting at Mount Alto Inn, which is his home while he is in Washington." ("Billy To Help War Savings Stamp Sale", Washington Post, February 5, 1918, p.4)
January, 1918. Washington, D.C. "Billy Sunday tabernacle." A temporary meeting hall built near Union Station for a three-month series of revival meetings held by the famous evangelist. (Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative, Shorpy)
Billy Sunday, at the White House, 1922
In January 1919, while her father was stationed in France, nine-year-old Justine Davis arrived at the Mount Alto Inn with her mother. Justine––who attended John Eaton School through May––recounts in her autobiography that Lt. Commander Albert Cushing Read, who commanded the first aircraft ever to make a transatlantic flight (May, 1919) was one of numerous military guests at the Mount Alto Inn (and probably one of the last who stayed there before it closed). (Justine Davis Randers-Pehrson, For My Father: The Story of My Life (1910-2000): Volume One of an Autobiography, 2004; thanks to Mark Collins.)
Mount Alto Veterans Hospital
After the National School of Domestic Art and Science, and its successor, the Mount Alto Inn, had closed, Arline Zurhorst's campus of domestic residences was taken over by the government and adapted for use as the Mount Alto Veterans Hospital.
In 1922 the Mount Alto Hospital still consisted of the six communal residences, in a horseshoe configuration, of the National School for Domestic Art and Science. (Army Air Corps aerial photo, 1922)
Mount Alto Hospital, 1965; just to the right of the Carillon House, at 2500 Wisconsin Avenue, the old Hunt house can be seen, which had been moved from its former location at the crest of the hill. (Archive of the U.S. Naval Observatory)
One of the original communal residences of the National School for Domestic Art and Science, designed by Charles Francis Wood. (Washington Post, Times Herald, September 26, 1967, p.B1)
Carlton Fletcher
The citation and acknowledgement of my research is greatly appreciated.
All rights reserved.
Questions and corrections may be directed to
The support of the Advisory Neighborhood Council (3B) is gratefully acknowledged.


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Erin Kjaer is the Curator and Co-Founder of Nest Collective and Studios located at Queen and Dufferin in Downtown Toronto.
What do you do?
I run Nest Collective and Studios. Nest is an artist collective located at Queen and Dufferin in Toronto. As the Director of the collective, I keep the wheels turning at the studio while also trying to find ways for us to engage with the community at large. For example, right now we are part of a residency with Artscape Youngplace, where we've had four exhibitions so far, with two more in the Fall. We're going to be running a series of workshops and lectures throughout the summer months which will ideally be headed by members of the collective, but we are open to reaching out into the community as well.
Basically, the way that I describe myself is as a curator and facilitator. In my personal practice as a curator, I am writing, researching and working on various projects with artists both in and out of the collective. On a day-to-day level, I am facilitating the goings on at Nest. As a facilitator I try to manage the studio environment and make sure everyone has what they need, while also trying to facilitate the artists individual goals for their practice and the goals we all have as a collective. That's anything from making sure that no one has to deal with property management, or insurance, and all of the paperwork that goes with being an artist: helping people write artist statements, grant applications, setting up residencies and providing opportunities for artists to show their work.
How did you end up getting into working in a collective?
I've always been really interested in curatorial practice and the idea of collective culture, but that wasn't necessarily what I built my education and career towards. I was in the New Media program at Ryerson University and while in my third and fourth year my studies began to steer things more towards a curatorial focus. When I moved back to the city after being gone for a while I was lucky to stumble across a friend who was opening up a gallery and collective, called Creatures Creating. I asked him if he needed help and I started out interning for Creatures, helping with events and other things related to the gallery. Eventually I was doing all of the administrative work and by the following April I was working as the Director there, managing mostly the collective and the things happening inside the space.
There was a really unfortunate break-in at the space and some of the artists work had been stolen, which eventually led to Creatures closing. When that happened, myself and the artists who I had connected with during my time there decided to try and set up a new space. About a year ago now, along with the help of one of our members and co-founder Stella Cade, we started the initiative that would become Nest.


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Interswitch Unveils Three New Campaigns
Interswitch, one of Africa's most ingenious integrated digital payments and commerce firm, has unveiled three new integrated brand campaigns to consolidate its positioning as the trusted enabler of choice for digital payments and electronic commerce across the continent.
The three campaigns, which are Television Video Commercials are themed "Long live the curious", "Special People" and "Beyond the big picture."
"Long Live the Curious" is designed to show how curiosity is helping Interswitch change the landscape of digital payments in Nigeria and beyond.
'Special People' brings to light how Interswitch keeps the vision of its customers in mind, developing solutions that help them stay ahead of the curve and promising to always be there ahead– wherever their imaginations lead them.
'Beyond the Big Picture' is about the foresight to seek out the opportunities that lie on the fringes of the big picture. It's about not just accepting the given reason for the "why" but pursuing the "why not".
Speaking at the media launch in Lagos, the Marketing Manager of the company, Olawale Akanbi, said the campaigns become necessary to cater for the various needs and aspirations of its diverse customers, spread across the African continent.
According to Interswitch, these advertising materials are products of many months of research and insight generation from consumers and concept testing. This was to ensure that these campaigns align with the brand promises, which connect and resonate with the company's target markets.
Interswitch built Nigeria's transaction switching infrastructure and connected all the banks in the country just over 15 years ago with the strategic objective of becoming a truly pan-African electronic transactions business. In 2014 the company announced a partnership agreement with Paynet, East Africa's leading multi-institutional payments provider, creating an unrivalled payments infrastructure spanning nine African countries.