Dreaming about dahlias

By Marta Gouger | Published: March 13, 2010 | 0 Comments

It’s Saturday afternoon and I should be doing any number of things. Forget about cleaning, I need to prepare craft kits for junior worship in church Sunday and I have not one, but two wallhangings and a quilt to finish.

 

But our master gardener’s story about virtual garden tours gave me a rude awakening. It’s March 13th and I didn’t order any dahlias.

 

Yes, I thought about it January, but I was waiting for sales and discount codes.

 13yellow

After a frantic search of my email I found one $25 discount off a $50 order for Brecks, one of my favorites for dinnerplates. This a basic collection with a few solid colors, but it has our favorite, a Kelvin Floodlight yellow variety.

 

I was one click away from starting to quilt when I started thinking about other types and before you know it was searching all over the Internet for dahlias.

 

I found a new site, American Meadows which was having a sale on spring bulbs. Woo hoo! Now we’re talking. I found Kelvin Floodlight yellow dinner plates sold in packs of two, so in a click of the mouse I added two to my cart.

You can’t just order one thing. Shipping will kill you.

13whte

Look, here’s a white one I never had before. Click.

How about a mixture? I have one purple and white cactus. Could use some more. Click.

Wait, I don’t have a discount to that site. 

My wise aunt taught me that before you order anything online you should search for a coupon.

 

Thanks to Google, I found two, a $5 discount on $30 in merchandise or a $10 for $50 in merchandise.

 

Oh, but what about pom pom dahlias? I like those and I don’t have any right now.

 13gitts

 I did a search and found Swan Island. That’s dahlia heaven. Most companies offer 20 or so varieties. Swan Island has more than 300. All gorgeous. Hmmm, I could order more colors. The home page features a pink one called Gitts Perfection.  It has giant 10″ blooms in a soft delicate pink, which blend to white in the center. The blooms last a long time.

I am so in love.

 

13enchantAnd then there’s the tab for 2010 introductions.  Breathtaking. Just breathtaking. Here’s the description: 5” blooms of a white and fuchsia blend. Held on an extremely strong 4 ½’ tall plant. Superb cut flower. Very striking color. Sure to brighten anyone’s day.

Who can resist?

And that’s how I lost an entire afternoon.

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Just like Johnny Appleseed, you can start a tree

By Marta Gouger | Published: March 7, 2010 | 0 Comments

The snow is melting and it’s time to think about what you’re going to plant this year.

If you like fruit and you have some room, you might want to think about fruit trees.

When I was growing up, my mom decided that she loved apricots so much that she was going to plant a tree. Going out and buying a tree wasn’t an option so she saved a pit, put it on the window sill to dry out and then planted it.

I don’t know if my mom followed all the steps to germinate seeds, but the tree started growing. We never saw it bear fruit because we moved a year or two after it was planted. Trees don’t start bearing fruit for two or three years after they are planted.

 

I don’t know if it ever bore fruit, because now I’m reading that you need at least two trees and cross-pollination for an apricot tree to bloom.

 

But, what a novel idea to use seeds from a fruit that you enjoy to start a tree.

 

It costs you nothing to try.

 

Or you can go out and plunk money down to buy a tree.

 

Imagine apricot tarts, apple pie or cherry turnovers. All from your backyard.

 

Definitely has potential…

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Enough already! Bring on the flowers.

By Marta Gouger | Published: February 28, 2010 | 0 Comments

O.K. I admit I’m not the one who shovels snow around the house, but all this white stuff is really upsetting me. Last Tuesday it took me 1 1/2 hours to get home and the rest of the days were no picnic either. This seriously cuts into my sewing time and even my cleaning time. Ha!

 

But here’s the good news. The first bulbs of springtime are poking their way out of the ground in my yard.

 

The Olympics are over and it’s time to really concentrate on flowers. If you haven’t bought seeds and summer bulbs, you better get started.

 

If you need ideas, there is no better place than the Philadelphia Flower Show flowershowgoing on now. With a theme “Passport to the World,” the show features unbelievable exhibits, a marketplace and seminars.

 

Some hints:

The show gets crowded. Go on a weekday, preferably later in the day. The buses go first thing in the morning so you’ll have more elbow room later in the day.

 

You can eat there, but you can also take your own food. It’s pretty expensive and you want to save your money for plants and seeds and stuff you can’t get anywhere else.

 

That’s the next point. Don’t buy run-of-the-mill marigold seeds. Explore the  variety of plants you can’t get anywhere else.

 

More than 60 major exhibitors set up incredible displays. However, if you know plants at all you’ll see some combinations of plants that would never be in bloom at the same time.

 

And that’s OK. What you’ll see is incredible landscapes. At worst, you’ll pick up some interesting ideas and color combinations. At best, you’ll see gardens of your dreams.

 

And if just a few of those dreams turn into reality, you are on your way to a great summer.

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Chocolate makes love grow, it does

By Marta Gouger | Published: February 12, 2010 | 0 Comments

If you think about chocolate for Valentine’s Day, or any day for that matter, we have treat for you.

 

We have information from the Culinary Institute of America about dipping chocolate and you can dip just about any food. Some common ones are strawberries, bananas or marshmallows. I prefer pretzels, love the sweet and salty combination. Love just about anything with salt and just about anything with  chocolate.  You just can’t go wrong.

 

If you’re in the mood for adventure you can try these Chocolate Cherry Nut Candies, one of my mother’s favorites. Hint, you need to add a lot of powdered sugar and make sure the dough is superchilled before you roll into balls. Then freeze the balls in a single layer before you dip in chocolate. You can add coconut. It’s yummy.

 

Cherry Nut Candy

1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese

¼ lb. butter

2 boxes powdered sugar or more

1 tsp. vanilla

19 to 20 maraschino cherries

½ to ¾ cup chopped walnuts

Chocolate wafers for dipping

 

Mix cream cheese, butter and vanilla. Cut cherries into small pieces and drain on paper towel. Put mixture in the freezer until it’s very cold. With powdered sugar on hands, roll into balls. Freeze. Melt chocolate in heat-proof glass over a water bath. I use an ekctric frying pan with about 1 ½ inches of water. Dip balls in chocolate and drop on waxed paper or into candy cups. Makes about 100 pieces, depending on the size of the candies.

Posted in Cooking, Valentine, chocolate | 0 Comments

Gougers’ last stand

By Marta Gouger | Published: February 7, 2010 | 0 Comments

What does easy-to-assemble mean?

Not much, it turns out. We spent the weekend wrestling with a new TV stand.

 

We had one of those great old-fashioned entertainment stands. One that fit our 27-inch 11-year-old TV perfectly. We bought it at a yard sale for just $50 and it worked for years.

But now it’s time for a new one. I saw a sale in the Pocono Record  so I looked at the stock online and found one that would work with our TV and would at least be able to fit half the junk I hoarded.

So we called around, found a store that stocked it and picked it up with just five minutes to spare before the store closed.

 

My husband spent the day Friday trying to assemble to easy-to-assemble stand. It was rough going but he was making progress. Until he came to the cracked piece. You know how these sturdy these ”wood-products” are.

 

Well, off he went to the store to get a replacement. We put the TV on a cedar chest in the meantime.

Day 2 of the easy-to-assemble stand wasn’t any better.

Ronnie spent three hours and came to putting the last piece in place. It was the back of the stand. As he lifted it into place, we saw on tiny message on the underside. There was a weight and size restriction.

And we didn’t make it.

And no it didn’t say it in the instruction book or on the box.

Now we have to take it back. And no, we are not taking it apart.

No, we haven’t stopped crying. No, we haven’t found a replacement.

And now the weekend is over and it’s time to go back to work. Sigh.

Posted in Christmas, gadgets, television | 0 Comments

Why some people can’t wear white (or how to remove any stain)

By Marta Gouger | Published: January 29, 2010 | 0 Comments

Some people I know are a magnet for stains. Yes, I’ll stand and admit I’m one of them.

I have numerous white turtlenecks with tea stains. O.K., maybe I need lessons in finding my mouth with my tea cup, but what I really need is to be able to remove stains.

I was inspired a few weeks ago by a woman named Amy who works at a  physical therapy center I go to a few times a week to help my left knee and my right elbow. Yes folks, arthritis and tendonitis have set in faster than you can say chocolate stain on my new khaki pants.

Anyway, Amy has young twins and she said she is a stain freak. She rubs and scrubs her children’s clothes to get the stains out.

My husband Ronnie and I must make Amy cringe. We wear our worst clothes to work out. I’ll admit I own no stain-free sweatshirts. And if I did, why would I want to sweat in them?

The latet catastrophe: On New Year’s Day I dumped ham broth on my best yard sale jeans. Not intentionally of course.

I threw them in the laundry and didn’t realize the stain had set until I wore them to work one Friday. Bad move. I could hardly concentrate on work because I kept trying to hide the stain that went the length of my thigh to my knee.

I wondered, what would Amy do? She’d get the stain out.

So I did, with dishwash detergent. I let it soak in and then laundered. It was gone!

Do I now feel inspired to get tea stains out of my turtlenecks? No, I feel inspired to buy a new sweater to throw over the stains.

I did decide to find some stain removal guides.
Here’s a common one: ballpoint pen ink. Try rubbing alcohol for this one.

And I found plenty of remedies for removing tea stains. I always try to go natural so I’m going to try this one with baking soda. It’s certainly cheap enough.

But I don’t want to get too crazy with this stain removal phase. After all, I want to get a new sweater.

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Just can’t get enough…vinegar

By Marta Gouger | Published: January 22, 2010 | 0 Comments

Less is better when it comes to cleaning.

No, I am not talking about cleaning less frequently (though I have been known to do that).

 

 I’m talking about the least toxic chemicals we can use to get the job done. I’ve been a big supporter of this theory because I’m allergic to most smells and I’m cheap.

 

The Penn State Extension Holiday Program featured Lyn Garling talking about this very subject and it’s worth paying attention. 

For years I’ve been using baking soda and vinegar to keep my sink drains clean. Whenever it starts to drain slowly, I pour in some baking soda, dump a little vinegar (it fizzes like Alka Seltzer) and then let it set a few minutes. Then I rinse with hot water. Works like a charm.

 

Rather than cleanser I clean burnt pots with a baking soda paste. And that’s all I ever use in the oven. I bought oven cleaner once and thought it stank and it was scary. Not that I use the oven much but when I do make a mess, I put some baking soda paste on it. Yeah, you might have to use some elbow grease, but you pay to go to the gym don’t you? What’s the difference?

 

We have one of those water conservation heads so we don’t get much water output to start with. Add to that some soap scum and you could get a better shower by waiting for the ice to drip off your roof. I had been reading about cleaning the shower head with vinegar so I finally gave it a shot. I put vinegar in a plastic bag and secured it over the shower head and left it go for a few hours. When I came back I just had to rinse and it was good as new.

 

We have tips for other natural cleaners and here’s a whole list of uses for vinegar.  Don’t take my word for it; try it. What’s the worst thing that can happen? You’ll smell like a salad. When you compare that to the benefits of not using chemicals, you are way ahead.

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The first robin of the year

By Marta Gouger | Published: January 16, 2010 | 0 Comments

My neighbor Curt Detrick was looking out from his porch in Gilbert on Wednesday and spotted somethinig unusual for January: two robins. He called his wife Shirley who confirmed, but they couldn’t get a photo. Then they called me. I was in Stroudsburg so I couldn’t do anything but I was definitely intrigued.

 16junco

We had thick frost on the windshield Friday and as I write this I see Junco birds on my deck. Juncos are “snow birds” and they are only here in winter. That’s why they’re called snow birds. Sometimes their paths cross with robins before they head north but I’m wondering if we’ll have an early spring.

 

The groundhog has not yet spoken. This year he’ll send you a text.

 

We also have our own Pocono groundhog. Yes, we do.

All the reporters and photographers fight for the chance to get out of bed early and head to the West End on a cold February morning.

And I sure haven’t seen any dead skunks so a robin-sighting is completely out of character.

 

Seattle dahlia

Seattle dahlia

What I have seen is seed and flower catalogs. Just got a special offer from Breck’s yesterday for dahlias for a Kaleidoscope dinner plate collection.  They have the yellow one we saw when we were in North Carolina in the fall. It’s called a Seattle dahlia.

 

Dutch Gardens also has spring collections at “reasonable” prices.

 

They’re all beautiful and you can likely fit some into your budget — if you wait.

Oh, start looking now. But keep your credit card safely tucked away. Do not order yet. On each site you like, you should sign up for e-mails about products and discounts. Last year I received offers for free shipping (which can cost 10 bucks or more) or $25 off a $50 order.  They rarely sell our of the products you want, so it pays to hold off. You can’t plant them until May anyway.

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No home is complete without a pet

By Marta Gouger | Published: January 9, 2010 | 0 Comments

When does a house become a home? When you add a pet to the mix.

 

Our dear cat Mutombo had a stroke Thursday night and we had to put him to sleep Friday night. He lost the use of his hind legs on one side and though he tried, he could only walk two steps before falling. He was having other issues too so we had to make the awful decision to say goodbye.

 

For almost 10 years Mutombo was always right by my side. After my Laser died, we went to the SPCA for a cat. I had another one in mind, but this black and white tuxedo cat reached out the cage and grabbed me. Who can resist that? We named him after our favorite 76ers player at the time, Dikembe Mutombo.

 

Just like his namesake, our Mutombo loved people. And we loved him.

 

Mutombo wasn't supposed to hang out in my dresser drawer, but anytime a door or drawer opened anywhere in the house, he just had to check it out.

Mutombo wasn't supposed to hang out in my dresser drawer, but anytime a door or drawer opened anywhere in the house, he just had to check it out.

When I came home from work he greeted me at the door. And it wasn’t just because he was hungry, though at 20 pounds, he usually was.

 

If I was working at home, he’d be right at my feet and even try to jump up and sit on my arm. He wasn’t allowed on our new furniture so I’d quickly shush him down. His feelings wouldn’t even get hurt. He just settle down where he could stare at me.  No, he didn’t make me a better journalist, but he sure made me a happier one.

 

If I was sewing, he was always in the room. His favorite spot was under the sewing machine table. If I had to get up for something and he’d jump on my chair.

 

If we slept, he did too. O.K. he was a cat, he slept 20 out of every 24 hours. He was always looking for an opportunity to sleep, anywhere.

 

We have a big hole in our lives today. We lost our friend, our family member.

 

For those readers who don’t understand the bond between a human and a fur ball, let me enlighten you.

 

A cat (or dog if you must) gives you a reason to get up in the morning. After all, you have to feed the little guy.

You never have to be sick alone. Cats don’t care if you sniffle or smell. They love you anyway. Mutombo actually knew when we didn’t feel well. If my husband Ronnie wasn’t feeling well or was in pain, he’d go to bed. So would Mutombo. Of course, he’s a cat. He didn’t care where he slept, just that he could sleep.

A cat (or dog if you’re so inclined) gives you a reason to put up a Christmas tree.  After all, a cat batting around ornaments makes your tree a moving feature in your living room.

 

A cat (or dog if you really have to) gives you a reason to vacuum all the time.  You will have hair all over the place and love it.

 

Most of all, a cat (yes, and a dog) gives you unconditional love. And let’s face it. We all need that.

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Don’t get stuck in a storm without these items

By Marta Gouger | Published: January 1, 2010 | 0 Comments

When I was a youngster our electricity went out so my mom showed me how to make a piece of toast over a candle. It was slightly burnt and only OK, but it sure was an adventure.

 

My guess is that other people have memories similar to this and that’s why they flock to the grocery store whenever they hear a forecast that includes a flake or two of snow. Milk, bread and eggs are the top items. Now why wouldn’t they have those on hand anyway?

 

If you have a well-stocked pantry, life is so much easier when you come home late from work or when you get snowed in.

 

The obvious items are spaghetti sauce and dry pasta. They don’t spoil and you can do just about anything with them. If you can top a plate of spaghetti with garlic bread, life is even better.

 

TLC Cooking recommends dry beans. I use dry beans but recommend canned. Life is so much easier when you don’t have to soak beans for a day.

 

I think canned black beans are the best. Our favorite quick meal is chicken chunks sautéed with onion, garlic and green peppers. Season with cilantro, chili powder and a splash of lime juice and serve on top of salad or on tortillas.

 

By the way, you can chop green peppers and freeze them. You can put them in chili or any other heated recipe.

 

Black beans can also be combined with canned tomatoes and broth for soup. The possibilities are endless.

 

Oh yeah, that’s another staple. Canned tomatoes can be used in soup, on top of pasta and in many recipes.

 

TLC recommends peanut butter as another staple. You can do plenty of things with it, including spreading it on your burnt toast after you heat the bread over a candle.

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