The Fun Theory....

I saw this on someone's blog and then found it on You Tube. Volkwagen started this initiative and I think it's very cool. I love stuff like this.



Upon further grueling research, I found two more....


And this....


As a teacher, I KNOW that making things fun is so much more productive.
Even for me!
That's one reason I love my Mr.Downeastdoingstuff....he's FUN !

It's my Birthday!!

This picture just about says it all....(sigh)

Who'da thunk it?

"Cheese is nutritious food made mostly from the milk of cows but also other mammals, including sheep, goats, buffalo, reindeer, camels and yaks. Around 4000 years ago people started to breed animals and process their milk. That's when the cheese was born." (excerpt from cheese.com)

Yes, I did !

I needed some Farmer Cheese for a recipe I had, and I used to be able to find it once in a while in the supermarket. Lately, though, Farmer's Cheese must be out of fashion. So I had to take matters into my own hands. Again.

With my bff, the internet, I found many recipes to make my own Farmer Cheese.

Who knew? Who knew you could make cheese? Not me.

The above photo shows what it looks like when it's finished. Pretty cool.

Here's the recipe. (from www.eHow.com)

Farmer's cheese is made from basic kitchen ingredients. It is common on dairies, yet it is sometimes considered a gourmet cheese. If made from goat's milk, it is known as chevre. The French call it fromage blanc or white cheese. This cheese can be used as you would use cream cheese or cottage cheese.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 2 quarts Whole Milk
• 2 cups Buttermilk
• 1 tbsp. White Vinegar
• Salt
• Colander or Strainer
• Clean Cheesecloth
• Heavy Pot
• Large Pot or Bowl
• Storage Container with Lid

1. Step1

   Put 2 quarts of milk in a large pot and bring it to 180 degrees over low heat, stirring frequently.

2. Step2

   Add 2 cups of buttermilk and stir, then add the vinegar and stir. Turn off the heat and stir slowly until the mixture starts to separate. (This is what's called the curds and the whey. The whey is the watery stuff.)

3. Step3

   Let it sit for 10 minutes. Do not disturb the mixture during this time. While waiting, line a colander with at least two layers of cheesecloth. (Who knew that cheesecloth was used for making cheese!)

4. Step4

   Using a large spoon or ladle, put the curds (the solids) into the cheesecloth-lined colander.

5. Step5

   Let the curds drain for at least an hour. Occasionally gather up the cheesecloth around the cheese to apply some pressure to the cheese to help it drain. You can also tie the cheese up in the cheesecloth to keep pressure on it.

6. Step6

   Transfer the cheese to a storage container, add salt to taste, and store covered in the refrigerator for up to five days.(actually will last a little longer...But it's usually gobbled up by then.)

7. It was soooo easy !! Try it!
   

Tips

• Sweeten with sugar or flavor with fresh herbs. Use as a sweet breakfast alternative to yogurt or spread on bread or toast. Add berries for a tasty dessert. (spreads better when it's warm.)

I wanted to make a nice spread for snacking.

(Snack*ing: verb. 1.) An essential activity, scheduled every couple of hours, involving placing delicious food inside your oral cavity.

2.) A ritual to avoid death and/or boredom, whichever comes first.

So I used this recipe to achieve the above picture.

Farmer's Cheese with Honey, Raisins, Cinnamon and Toasted Walnuts

Recipe courtesy Dave Lieberman

Warm cheese is a comfort food if ever there was one. If it hadn't occurred to you, just think of Mac and Cheese and you should be on the same page with me.

Prep Time:

5 min

Inactive Prep Time:

--

Cook Time:

18 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
• 1 pound farmer's cheese
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 cup raisins
• A couple dashes cinnamon
• A couple pinches salt
• Crackers or bread, for serving

Directions

Preheat oven 400 degrees F.

Lay walnuts on baking sheet. Roast and shake once or twice to insure even toasting. Roast until a shade darker and aromatic, about 15 minutes.

Remove walnuts and set aside to cool.

Turn the oven to broil.

Place farmer's cheese in large mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and the toasted walnuts. Mix thoroughly. Transfer mixture to a small baking dish (aluminum disposable is fine).

Place under broiler until brown and bubbly on top, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Serve hot or at room temperature with crackers of any kind or slices of crusty bread.

Apparently, using something called Rennet, you can actually make your own mozzarella cheese!

Cottage Cheese and Ricotta are similar to farmers cheese. Cottage Cheese isn't drained as much.

AND THEN.....

You end up with a ton of what's called WHEY left over. You can drink it or use it in recipes.

I found a recipe for bread using Whey. Any recipe where you use milk, you can use up the Whey.

I made 3 loaves of bread this weekend using 4 C of the whey.

It's really quite amazing what a person can do. Even me.

And a-whey we go......

Screen cleaner...

Y'all have probably seen this before. Someone just sent this to me and although I have seen this before, it still cracks me up.  Click here.

Moose, Meeses and Mooses......

Last weekend we went on a one day roadtrip up to Greenville, Maine. Once know as T9R10NWP (NOT kidding...), Greenville is on the southern tip of Moosehead Lake. Called Moosehead Lake because it supposedly looks like, you guessed it, a Moose's head. It sorta does and it is home to many, many, many Moose, and Mooses and probably some Meese, too.

Moose are big. Moose can be trouble for your car and for you, too. 

(Actual moose crash cars pictured below.) 

Your car is trouble for them.


Moose average 6 to 7 feet high at their shoulders and the males can weigh 380 to 720 pounds or more.

They can do a job on your car if you should make contact with one.

Traveling up the Maine Turnpike, we got off on Route 201 toward Skowhegan (I love that name).

This is the sign that greeted us to Greenville. Note the moose....

Cresting a hill, Moosehead Lake suddenly came into view. Nice. (See how it looks like a Moose Head?*&^%$#@)

In Greenville, you will find many, many, many, many, many things named after the Moose.

We stopped and got Mr. Downeastdoingstuff some take-out grub at the above place.

Then we found a nice picnic table on the shores of the lake to have our lunch. My pathetic coffee yogurt is in that red bag. The mister is eating a club wrap with, get ready, CHIPS ! (Not in my diet, I'd like to say.) (As long as I don't place said chip into my mouth.)

A girl on a moose...

A fabric store named after the moose.

I have no idea what this moosin' around store sells....

Roadkill, I guess. But it's for sale!!

If you can figure out the rules, you can go on a Moose Watch! 

Main Street in Greenville. 

We roamed the street and visited shops up and down Main Street. We almost stopped for icecream, but I was too full from having my coffee yogurt for lunch. (yeah, right.)

And on we went to our next adventure in my next post............

By the way, we did not see one real moose. Probably for the best.

Lost in Space....

Upon driving home from parts unknown, my son calls me up at 12:30 AM sounding like he just had the bejesus scared out of him. He was smart enough to inform me within the first 2 sentences that whatever he was going to say, however bizarro, everything at the moment was OK. (At this point 4,000 scenerios were flashing through my mind at lightning speed, none of them good.)

It seems that some foreign object fell out of the night sky right in front of his car, illuminating the entire Eastern Seaboard and going 347,000 miles an hour, careening out of control and into a field on his port side. It did not crash in a spectacle of sparks, but extinguished itself moments before hitting the ground. No other cars around....no surveillance videos......just him. 

He described it as  a large, brilliant white fireball that glowed green in the center, had a long white tail blazing behind it and was undoubtedly  launching itself from the far reaches of outer space. He said it came in at about a 40 degree angle. Incredulously, he knew that he was looking at an actual meteor...out of the sky....right in front of his own eyeballs.

So here I was, bleary eyed, up on one arm, having been suddenly woken up from a hot Johnny Depp dream I’m sure I was having, heart beating out of control (Johhny Depp) listening to this Twilight Zone story. He was already within 2-3 miles from home and I'm sure speeding onward at breakneck speed to escape the alien creatures that may have disembarked from their UFO and were now on his tail. (That’s MY version of the story in my warped, tired mind.)

I, for some unknown reason, told him on the phone that I would meet him at the door to let him in. (He DOES have a key and there really were no aliens chasing him.) But, being a Mom, there I was....at the door.

His car pulls up to the far side of the driveway where he normally parks and I truly expected him to race out of the car, breathless and into my safe arms.

But no.

Car lights go off. No one gets out.

I wait.

Nothing.

Wait some more.

Nothing.

By now I’m positive that the aliens have already examined and re-programmed his human body inside and out,  and that he is currently sitting there in an embodiment of Jabba the Hut or  Elvis Presley, with little or no recollection of the incident. Just waiting for the likes of me to come out there and ask whaz up? 

What do you think he was doing? Huh? KNOWING, I say KNOWING  I told him that I, his real birth mother,  would be up waiting for him? He was talking on his iphone  telling someone the entire story again in  Cinemagic 3-D detail. 

Just when I got the nerve to actually go out and nab my now brainwashed eyewitness alien child, he nonchalantly strolls in looking none the worse for wear.

(Cue in: Breathe a sigh of relief.)

The story actually doesn’t end there. After we chatted for a while I went to bed, convinced that my son was his normal self. Well, as normal as he is.

Long story, short.....he called the local police department the next day and the person there quickly told him that there had been a launch of an experimental Nasa rocket in Virginia that evening and that people had reported seeing lights in the sky in the northeast.

Relieved to hear that it was not an invasion, he still wondered about it. That was not a good enough explanation for him.

So, do you know what he did?

He called NASA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I didn’t know you could CALL NASA!!   Just like that?? So what is it? 1-800-NASA ???

They took a message and then yesterday someone ACTUALLY CALLED HIM BACK and talked to him about space stuff and phenomena for 10 minutes! They came to the conclusion that from his description, it actually was a meteor and not a hunk of spacecraft from the launch because the rocket did NOT fall apart as he was led to believe. The whole experiment was over the ocean hours earlier, he was told & that there were some conflicting stories in the press. _(ya think ?)

That’s my boy!

Do chores? Nah            

Write thank you notes? Nope, well not for a few months.

Clean your room or car?  No way Jose.

Call NASA ?    “I’m right on it, Mom!”

Sometimes I wish “I” had little or no recollection of incidents.

A hairy first day of school....

I started school when I was four years old. I am now....well....much, much older.

I have never had a September where I didn't go to school since then.
(That's actually a lie....I took a year off maternity leave 23 years ago.)

Apparently, I like school.

So the first full day of school, the first class, I, the teacher, had a lot to say.

In fact, I talked most of the period.......with.....a......'hair'.....on my tongue.

(or something.....maybe it was cat fur....)

It creeps me out just thinking about it.

20+ darlings looking at me trying to keep my composure.

The hair kept moving around.

I kept talking.

I wanted to puke.

We all were indoctrinated on swine flu prevention already, doing the 'dracula' sneeze/cough, (in elbow....think about it) and were told to never, I say NEVER put your fingers into your mouth!

So there I was. Hair on tongue. No drink in sight and no way of plucking out the offending object without possibly infecting myself with a deadly virus.

Nearly killed me.

See....that's probably the explanation for this photograph, doncha think?

OK, I've been disgusted enough.....

When it gets to the point that even I can't stand looking at my own blog entry....something's gotta give. (See previous post.....if you dare.)

So, let's see. What could I show you?

Well, I did make some napkins. My school is big on recycling and it's ilk, so in a fit of being a responsible citizen, I decided it was a big waste using paper napkins. At least that day I thought it was.

So I took some remnants of fabric, hemmed them (by hand) and voila! Napkins. Some might argue that they have to be laundered, thus using water and soap, but you know...they are so light and practically take up no space in this universe, it doesn't matter. Throw them into the washer with other stuff.

Then, for special occasions, I made 8 napkins that are lined. You can see the pins holding the lining in place below...

Here they are, all sewn together...

There now, isn't that better than looking at a cat's butt, even if it wasn't a cat's butt?

No comment necessary....

Gives belly button lint a whole new meaning.

(Ugh, this is grossing even me out...)

I've been painting and painting and painting...

and painting.....for 1  1/2 weeks. 

This is a large mural (55" x 91") I will put up in school outside of my classroom to welcome the kids back to (gulp) school.

 

Every year I pick a movie that is popular in the summer, and make a poster using it's theme, and then change it up. I've been doing this for more years than I care to think about! (Home Alone was my first one....)

This one's based on the kids movie "G-Force". Apparently it's about some Gerbils that are planning to save the world or something. 

Don't know. Didn't see it.

I just hope it's not R rated by some sadistic, wicked twist of fate. I probably should check that.

But it's back to the drawing board tomorrow......sob.....

Hey, teachers like summer vacation, too! ... and it's all over after today. sob. sob. sob.

It's noon and I'm still in my P.J.s watching Paula Deen add a stick of butter to something.

Wish me luck!!

Sob.

End of summer day trip...

Can one be a tourist if they are not 'from away'? According to the dictionary....

(1 : one that makes a tour for pleasure or culture)......YES YOU CAN!   So we did.....

Living in Maine is picturesque no matter what you do. But there are some places that are so beautiful, I almost feel like I see it for the first time, even after the jakillionith time.

The other gorgeous day we took a day trip to Ogunquit, Maine. Drive up or down route one, turn toward the ocean in the center of Ogunquit and head to Perkins Cove.

Parking is limited IN Perkins Cove, although you can try. It's $3 an hour there. Or you can do what we did and park in a gravel parking lot just before the entrance to Perkins Cove. It cost $8 for as long as you want. You can walk anywhere from there, to the Cove or back onto the main street.

Here is my personal travelogue.....I hope you enjoy it. Come to Maine!!

Welcoming sign to Perkins Cove.

The first restaurant you see entering the Cove itself is Barnacle Billys. Great seafood. They do have valet parking. I do believe that is the actual valet hunk standing there under the 'brella.

This is the second Barnacle Billys food place. Tables for their ice cream service. Both restaurants are right on the Kennebunk River. This river is heading into the ocean, which is right there. The river part of the Cove is what creates the harbor.

Some of the boats in the river. NOTE THE LITTLE BRIDGE IN THE BACK. (click on photo to englarge.)

This is the view from up on that little foot bridge. But, what to do when this sailboat wants to go under it?? The bridge is NOT taller than that mast. Problem.

Well, not really a problem if someone notices you. You see, it's a do it yourself draw bridge. Except you can't do it yourself  if you are actually on the sailboat. You have to count on the good graces of someone standing on or near to bridge to go up there and push a button!!!!

This guy was the self appointed button pusher designee. He was so excited to do it he was talking about quitting his day job! The sailboat cruised through unscathed.

I guess if you're a practical joker, you could possibly walk away at this point, separating families from each other forever that have become stuck on either side of the bridge.

But, having a heart, this bridge operator pushed the button again and let the bridge down.

One way folks get around from all the hotels and resorts is by trolley for $1.50. You can go up and down the main street, to the Cove or to the large sandy beach on the other side of an inlet.

This is a view of a street in the Cove area.
There are lots of food establishments. We chose this one situated right on the water. It was called Jackie's Too.

All the tables right on the water's edge were full, so we were one row in. After we sat down for 5 minutes, a table right next to us became vacant. But it was OK, we were close enough.

I splurged on a Lobster Roll. ($14.95)

After lunch we decided to stroll down Marginal Way, an absolutely gorgeous walkway along the ocean's edge between Perkins Cove and downtown Ogunquit.

It's a well maintained path meandering along the Atlantic.

The waves have calmed considerably from 2 days before, when Hurricane Bill rolled through.

There are many benches along the way to rest and contemplate.

Check out the little rock sculptures would be artists create along the way. (Click on pic to enlarge...)
The Patriot's Day Storm in April, 2007, did a lot of destruction in Maine. (Ask ME, lost everything in the cellar and insurance wouldn't cover the supposed 'flood'....but that's another story.) (We are NOT in a flood zone and on a hill. It still was deemed a flood...) (Not that I'm still pissed about it or anything.....grrrrrr....)  (Know your insurance policy!) Anywho.....

Enlarge this photo....people sunning themselves on the nice, soft rocks.

A lot of improvements were made after the 2007 storm, such as these stairs to the water and nice, level areas made for all the benches, etc. 

Marginal way comes out behind several resorts, and onto the main drag. A quick walk up to route one presents you with lots of shops and restaurants.

We strolled into this place....

And got this.

This is 3 Muskateers icecream. Seems like coffee icecream with big chunks of chocolate and some syrup that looks like motor oil mixed in.

Delish.

A wonderful, wonderful day.