Newsletter - April, May, June 2001

Something New!

Quarterly Newsletter
April, May, June 2001

Recipes, hints, ideas, new books, whatever...

Rhubarb Torte

2 cups flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 cup butter
Mix well. Pat into 9 x 12 pan. Bake 10 minutes at 350°F.
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup flour
4 beaten eggs
4 cups rhubarb, chopped fine
pinch of salt

   In large bowl mix sugar and flour. Add beaten eggs. Stir to mix. Wash rhubarb and remove any tough strings. Chop into small pieces. Add to mixture. Stir thoroughly and pour over hot crust. Bake 35 minutes at 350°F. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

— From the pantry of Dorothy Haase, Juneau, WI

April 2001

Hello!

   Spring arrives on farms in the Midwest bringing a need for outdoor cleanup. The livestock has built up a layer of manure on outdoor platforms that has been frozen to the cement for months. Now that thawing is taking place the manure must be loaded into the manure spreader and hauled to the fields for a layer of fertilizer before working the land for planting. Depending on the number of animals, this job can take one man several days to accomplish.
The yard and lawn needs to be raked clean of leaves and gravel thrown by the snowplows over winter. Flowerbeds packed with last year’s remnants wait patiently for me to lift the old growth away to reveal new lilies and tulips. Seed catalogues arrive daily inspiring grand plans of landscaping for a colorful summer garden.

   Indoors I feel pressed to begin washing the winter from my windows and the corners of my home. Everywhere I look I see clutter where before Christmas I saw a new decorating scheme! Now is the time I purchase paint and wallpaper and make an old room new. I put away a few knick-knacks and replace them with something light and living.
For my birthday this year our son, Rudy, gave me a lovely clear glass vase filled with water, colored marbles at the bottom. A living Peace Lily plant sits in a small plastic cup at the top of the vase, roots growing out of a hole in the bottom of the plastic cup flowing down into the water. In the water lives a beta fish, with beautiful plume-like fins in bright colors. The fish lives on the roots of the plant, and 1/3 of the water needs to be changed weekly. As the roots of the plant grow to fill the vase I trim them back a bit to give the fish room to swim. Beta fish like tight spaces and do not like other fish, so he is happy all by himself and makes a great centerpiece for my coffee table. (Drives the cats crazy!)

   This year’s spring projects include new paint for my family room/office. I will begin with choosing new colors for the walls and woodwork. As I have a brick wall behind our wood stove, I have chosen to match the golden beige of the mortar for the wall color, and a soft terra cotta from the bricks for the woodwork.

   To make the room altogether new for me, I plan to rearrange the furniture. I spend a little time making pieces of paper to scale for each major piece of furniture, then draw a scale picture of the room marking all doors and windows. I can then play with different arrangements without actually moving the furniture and save myself (or my husband!) a lot of physical effort.

   One corner of my family room is also my office and workroom, so I have a copier in here that I would rather not see when I am not at my desk. I came up with a screen made of old wainscoted cupboard doors I found at a flea market. I painted them to match my walls and connected three together with hinges. I place the screen in front of the copier to hide it from view, separating my office from the rest of the room. I can fasten shelf brackets to the screen and display small collections or books if I desire.

   Recently while listening to public radio I learned of a clever spring project for you to share with your children or grandchildren.

   After all threat of frost is passed till a 6’x 9’ rectangle of soil for a seedbed. Plant tall sunflowers about 8 inches apart along the borders of the rectangle leaving a 16inch space for the door. Plant morning glories close together in the same row with the sunflowers. Leave the inside of the bed empty. In one week or so you will see the plants begin to grow. Keep the center of the playhouse weeded. In a month the flowers will be about 2 feet tall. By midsummer you will have a sunflower house for your children to play in!

   This makes a wonderful learning project for the children as they help to work the soil, plant the seeds and wait for them to grow.

Spring Tips

Do you have an aquarium? Save the dirty water when cleaning the fish tank, and use it to water your houseplants. The fish emulsion makes an excellent fertilizer.

Use my Morning in the Woods soap before gardening to help keep mosquitoes away.

Run your fingernails across a bar of soap before digging in your garden to prevent dirt from collecting there. After gardening just wash away!

Use newspaper when washing windows to dry the glass. No streaks!

Wrap paintbrushes in plastic, pressing out air pockets, and put them in the freezer when you have to stop before the job is finished. To begin again just take from freezer and unwrap, let sit a minute or two to warm up and you’re back to painting.

When storing unused paint after a project, label the paint can with a marker stating which room the paint was used in. This makes finding the paint so much easier when a touch-up is needed.

If your paint can shelf is getting full, consider making a list of paint and which room they are used in on a clip board to hang near the shelf. You will know at a glance what is stored.

Sticky dresser drawer? Rub soap on the bottom of the drawer where it slides on the frame and slide drawer back into place.

One week before Easter cut a small branch of lilac and put in vase with water. Hang with your favorite Easter ornaments. The branch will green out in time for Easter Sunday!

If you need to disconnect your computer or stereo system when cleaning and rearranging things, use post-it notes to label the cords of each appliance before disconnecting to save you time when putting all back together.



		Something New! Quarterly Newsletter April, May, June 2001 Recipes, hints, ideas, new books, whatever... Rhubarb Torte 2 cups flour 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar 1 cup butter Mix well. Pat into 9 x 12 pan. Bake 10 minutes at 350°F. 1 1/2 cups sugar 1/2 cup flour 4 beaten eggs 4 cups rhubarb, chopped fine pinch of salt In large bowl mix sugar and flour. Add beaten eggs. Stir to mix. Wash rhubarb and remove any tough strings. Chop into small pieces. Add to mixture. Stir thoroughly and pour over hot crust. Bake 35 minutes at 350°F. Allow to cool completely before cutting. — From the pantry of Dorothy Haase, Juneau, WI April 2001 Hello! Spring arrives on farms in the Midwest bringing a need for outdoor cleanup. The livestock has built up a layer of manure on outdoor platforms that has been frozen to the cement for months. Now that thawing is taking place the manure must be loaded into the manure spreader and hauled to the fields for a layer of fertilizer before working the land for planting. Depending on the number of animals, this job can take one man several days to accomplish. The yard and lawn needs to be raked clean of leaves and gravel thrown by the snowplows over winter. Flowerbeds packed with last year’s remnants wait patiently for me to lift the old growth away to reveal new lilies and tulips. Seed catalogues arrive daily inspiring grand plans of landscaping for a colorful summer garden. Indoors I feel pressed to begin washing the winter from my windows and the corners of my home. Everywhere I look I see clutter where before Christmas I saw a new decorating scheme! Now is the time I purchase paint and wallpaper and make an old room new. I put away a few knick-knacks and replace them with something light and living. For my birthday this year our son, Rudy, gave me a lovely clear glass vase filled with water, colored marbles at the bottom. A living Peace Lily plant sits in a small plastic cup at the top of the vase, roots growing out of a hole in the bottom of the plastic cup flowing down into the water. In the water lives a beta fish, with beautiful plume-like fins in bright colors. The fish lives on the roots of the plant, and 1/3 of the water needs to be changed weekly. As the roots of the plant grow to fill the vase I trim them back a bit to give the fish room to swim. Beta fish like tight spaces and do not like other fish, so he is happy all by himself and makes a great centerpiece for my coffee table. (Drives the cats crazy!) This year’s spring projects include new paint for my family room/office. I will begin with choosing new colors for the walls and woodwork. As I have a brick wall behind our wood stove, I have chosen to match the golden beige of the mortar for the wall color, and a soft terra cotta from the bricks for the woodwork. To make the room altogether new for me, I plan to rearrange the furniture. I spend a little time making pieces of paper to scale for each major piece of furniture, then draw a scale picture of the room marking all doors and windows. I can then play with different arrangements without actually moving the furniture and save myself (or my husband!) a lot of physical effort. One corner of my family room is also my office and workroom, so I have a copier in here that I would rather not see when I am not at my desk. I came up with a screen made of old wainscoted cupboard doors I found at a flea market. I painted them to match my walls and connected three together with hinges. I place the screen in front of the copier to hide it from view, separating my office from the rest of the room. I can fasten shelf brackets to the screen and display small collections or books if I desire. Recently while listening to public radio I learned of a clever spring project for you to share with your children or grandchildren. After all threat of frost is passed till a 6’x 9’ rectangle of soil for a seedbed. Plant tall sunflowers about 8 inches apart along the borders of the rectangle leaving a 16inch space for the door. Plant morning glories close together in the same row with the sunflowers. Leave the inside of the bed empty. In one week or so you will see the plants begin to grow. Keep the center of the playhouse weeded. In a month the flowers will be about 2 feet tall. By midsummer you will have a sunflower house for your children to play in! This makes a wonderful learning project for the children as they help to work the soil, plant the seeds and wait for them to grow. Spring Tips Do you have an aquarium? Save the dirty water when cleaning the fish tank, and use it to water your houseplants. The fish emulsion makes an excellent fertilizer. Use my Morning in the Woods soap before gardening to help keep mosquitoes away. Run your fingernails across a bar of soap before digging in your garden to prevent dirt from collecting there. After gardening just wash away! Use newspaper when washing windows to dry the glass. No streaks! Wrap paintbrushes in plastic, pressing out air pockets, and put them in the freezer when you have to stop before the job is finished. To begin again just take from freezer and unwrap, let sit a minute or two to warm up and you’re back to painting. When storing unused paint after a project, label the paint can with a marker stating which room the paint was used in. This makes finding the paint so much easier when a touch-up is needed. If your paint can shelf is getting full, consider making a list of paint and which room they are used in on a clip board to hang near the shelf. You will know at a glance what is stored. Sticky dresser drawer? Rub soap on the bottom of the drawer where it slides on the frame and slide drawer back into place. One week before Easter cut a small branch of lilac and put in vase with water. Hang with your favorite Easter ornaments. The branch will green out in time for Easter Sunday! If you need to disconnect your computer or stereo system when cleaning and rearranging things, use post-it notes to label the cords of each appliance before disconnecting to save you time when putting all back together. Sign up to receive my quarterly Newsletter —