Author: pat frederick

DIY: Spring Garden Projects

Spring is the perfect time to begin lawn and garden projects!  This article from thegardeningcook.com shows you how to get started.

From thegardeningcook:

These early spring garden projects will get a jump start on your garden and will get you outside too! From lawn care ideas to tips for growing perennials in the spring, i’ve got you covered. I know that in most parts of the country, the ground is still covered with snow, but as any good gardener will tell you, “it’s never too early to start thinking about spring gardening!” Spring is just around the corner and daylight savings on the horizon, so now is the time to think of getting our gardens ready. Are you like me in the late winter?  As soon as the sun starts to shine and the temps go up a bit, I seem to feel that urge to get out there and do something. Many times though, it’s far too early to plant anything. However, there are lots of things that you can do to get ready. 

Get your garden ready now with these early spring garden projects

1. Prepare for early lawn care

This is at the top of my early spring garden projects for a reason.   A lush, green lawn is such an important part of a great garden.  We all enjoy entertaining in the summer, and a wonderful lawn adds so much to the atmosphere of your garden setting.  Early spring is the time to take stock of the condition of your lawn after a winter of it not growing.  It will show what needs to be done to get it ready for spring when you can easily see the problems lurking there. I have a lot of lawn area and the back yard has quite a few weeds growing.  It definitely needs some TLC in the spring. I’ll start by raking my lawn early in the spring to remove dead grown and winter debris.  This brings light as well as air to the soil, which encourages the grass to grow.  Now is the perfect time to care for your lawn.  Don’t wait until the heat of summer hits.  When you are hosting a barbecue party in summer and your lawn is lush and green, you’ll be glad you started now.

2. Clean and repair birdhouses

Some birds visit us all year round here in NC and many really start visiting when the weather starts to turn warm.  Now is the time to check the birdhouses.  Make sure they are firmly mounted. Clean bird feeds and fill them with fresh seed, once they are dry.   Consider creating a pile of nesting materials in your yard where the birds can easily take stuff to make their nests. This little bird house needs a makeover this year.  It belonged to my mother who died last year and I will treasure it once I fix the damaged parts.

Now is the time to clear away the junk

One of my most needed early spring garden projects is cleaning up after winter.  Winter can be hard on a garden.   All sorts of garden debris and other refuse seems to gather everywhere around the yard.

3. Clear away refuse

Check the drainage ditches and walk around your yard to see what can be gathered and put out for garden refuse pick up. Our local authority allows me to put yard debris out every week and I have a whole row of old trash cans just waiting for this job.  Plants and lawns grow best in soil that drains well, so gather up those leaves, gather the weeds, and clean out the drainage ditches!  If you have a compost pile, even better.  I use a rolling compost pile. It is not very pretty, as this picture shows, but it is VERY easy to turn and all that yard refuse will turn into “black gold” that will work miracles in my garden and on my lawns. This pile is just LOADED with rich hummus under all the refuse.  Dumping my winter time yard refuse on this pile makes the clean-up part quite easy.

4. Tend to the bird baths

My bird baths are often discolored by the end of the winter.  They all need a good cleaning and scrubbing and then need to be refilled with water.

5. Think spring bulbs

Many spring bulbs start sending up leaf shoots during some warm winter days and then suffer a bit from a cold snap by getting brown edges to the leaves. The bulbs are just fine, they need the cold before they start sending up the flowers, but you can trim the leaves a bit to tidy things up.   While you are at it, make a sketch of where the spring bulbs are and put it in your gardening planner.  Once they have stopped growing, it will be hard to know where to plant your perennials without a sketch showing you where the bulbs are underground.

6. Check your mulched areas

This job is at the top of my must-dos of early spring garden projects. I have 9 large garden beds so I spend a lot of time (and money) on mulching every year.  And no matter how nicely the mulched areas looked last fall, there are still areas where the mulch has degraded or (it sometimes seems) just plain disappeared!  Add composted leaf mulch to the bare areas so that the weeds that we all know are lurking there won’t be able to grow as easily.

7. Check your outdoor seating areas

Last year, I bought new patio cushions for my seating area which rests under a huge Magnolia tree. By mid-winter, the cushions were a green mess and I honestly thought I would need to throw them away. But I threw them in the washing machine with some spray on stain remover (it took two washes) and they look almost like new.  Note to self:  Next year, put the patio cushions in the shed in the fall!  One of my summer projects for this seating area is going to be to sand the seat and bench and give it a fresh coat of paint in a dark green color. Stay tuned for the transformation.

8. Touch up yard decorations

Of all of my early spring garden projects, this one is my favorite.  I love to add decor to my garden.  Do you have some yard decorations that will need a touch up to look their best for spring and summer?  I have an old mail box that I salvaged from a make-over that I did last summer.  I plan to use to hold my gardening tools, and have a garden decoration too.  It’s very rusty, but will make a great project for early spring when I can’t actually be gardening. I plan to paint it and stencil on the side. It will make a lovely yard decoration when done.

9. Cut back ornamental grasses

I let my Japanese Silver grass get very tall in the winter because it sends up beautiful plums above the plant. But early spring is the time to cut it right now to about 6 inches to encourage lush growth during the spring and summer. If I leave this plant for even a few more weeks, ALL of these fronds will be covering my garden bed.  Now is the time to prune them.

10. Scrub those clay pots.

Clay pots get very dirty if they are left out over the winter. Now is the time to soak them so that they will be ready for the plants when the weather is warm enough for them to be planted.  

11. Cut back perennials

 Sometimes I do this in the fall, but more often, I leave this chore for the early spring, to keep some seed pods for winter birds. Perennials can be cut back almost to the ground level in most cases without hurting them at all.

12. Prune your roses

 In most cases, you will be pruning your roses just as the plant will be breaking the winter dormancy.  In warm climates, like NC, this will be fairly early in the year, just after the last frost.  Roses bear flowers on last year’s wood.  Trim off any old, dead canes. Be sure to prune so that the center of the bush is open for best air circulation.  

13. Remove dead wood

This goes for roses but also for other trees and shrubs too. Nothing will grow from dead wood, so get rid of it.  This goes for most suckers too. They sap the life from your plant and should be removed.

TIP:  If it is too early for you to prune shrubs, you can still inspect the plants. Take some ribbon with you and tie it where you want to prune once the weather warms up. So get out those garden gloves and your pruning shears and get rid of the dead wood. You’ll be glad you did come summer time.

14. Spring weeding

Even though I have it listed as #14, weeding is at the top of my list for early spring garden project. Weeding can the bane of my gardening life, if I let it be. Each year, I say that I am going to pull up weeds during the winter on warm days, and each year, I neglect this. But early spring is a good time to weed as long as the ground is not too wet, AND it’s the best time to do this job. The roots of the weeds are shallow and they will come out easily this time of the year.   This border that I planted late last summer looks as though it needs some TLC l right now, but those weeds will be out in less than a half hour and the bed will be beautiful.

15. Early spring Vegetables

Many vegetables thrive when planted in the early spring because they love the cooler weather. Some popular ones are English peas, broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts. Here in NC, these plants don’t do well in the summer at all, so early spring is when I have to plant them if I want to grow them.  See my list of cold hardy vegetables here.

16. Check your lawn edges

 Inspect plastic lawn edging to see if it needs replacing.  If you edge manually with trenches, now is a good time to tidy these up so the edges will be ready when the lawns start to grow. Doing it early means that the edges will only need cutting into soil, not into lawn that is encroaching into the borders.

17. Start seeds indoors

Get a head start on spring but planting seeds for flowers and vegetables indoors.  I have a large plant stand that sits outside during the spring and summer. During the winter, it sits in front of my glass sliders and gets southern sunlight. It is the perfect spot for my plant cuttings and seed starting efforts.

18. Divide perennials

One of my favorite early spring garden projects is to divide my perennials.  Early spring is the perfect time to divide perennials. Many of them really benefit from being divided for best growth. Either plant the divisions in another part of your garden, or share them with some of your plant loving friends.

SOURCE:  THEGARDENINGCOOK.COM

The Triangle Shirtwaist Company Fire

On March 25, 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Company factory in New York City burned, killing 146 workers. It is remembered as one of the most infamous incidents in American industrial history, as the deaths were largely preventable–most of the victims died as a result of neglected safety features and locked doors within the factory building. The tragedy brought widespread attention to the dangerous sweatshop conditions of factories, and led to the development of a series of laws and regulations that better protected the safety of workers.

The Triangle factory, owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, was located in the top three floors of the Asch Building, on the corner of Greene Street and Washington Place, in Manhattan. It was a true sweatshop, employing young immigrant women who worked in a cramped space at lines of sewing machines. Nearly all the workers were teenaged girls who did not speak English and worked 12 hours a day, every day. In 1911, there were four elevators with access to the factory floors, but only one was fully operational and the workers had to file down a long, narrow corridor in order to reach it. There were two stairways down to the street, but one was locked from the outside to prevent stealing and the other only opened inward. The fire escape was so narrow that it would have taken hours for all the workers to use it, even in the best of circumstances.

The danger of fire in factories like the Triangle Shirtwaist was well-known, but high levels of corruption in both the garment industry and city government generally ensured that no useful precautions were taken to prevent fires. Blanck and Harris already had a suspicious history of factory fires. The Triangle factory was twice scorched in 1902, while their Diamond Waist Company factory burned twice, in 1907 and in 1910. It seems that Blanck and Harris deliberately torched their workplaces before business hours in order to collect on the large fire-insurance policies they purchased, a not uncommon practice in the early 20th century. While this was not the cause of the 1911 fire, it contributed to the tragedy, as Blanck and Harris refused to install sprinkler systems and take other safety measures in case they needed to burn down their shops again.

Added to this delinquency were Blanck and Harris’ notorious anti-worker policies. Their employees were paid a mere $15 a week, despite working 12 hours a day, every day. When the International Ladies Garment Workers Union led a strike in 1909 demanding higher pay and shorter and more predictable hours, Blanck and Harris’ company was one of the few manufacturers who resisted, hiring police as thugs to imprison the striking women, and paying off politicians to look the other way.

What Started The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire?

On March 25, a Saturday afternoon, there were 600 workers at the factory when a fire began in a rag bin. The manager attempted to use the fire hose to extinguish it, but was unsuccessful, as the hose was rotted and its valve was rusted shut. As the fire grew, panic ensued. The young workers tried to exit the building by the elevator but it could hold only 12 people and the operator was able to make just four trips back and forth before it broke down amid the heat and flames. In a desperate attempt to escape the fire, the girls left behind waiting for the elevator plunged down the shaft to their deaths. The girls who fled via the stairwells also met awful demises–when they found a locked door at the bottom of the stairs, many were burned alive.

Those workers who were on floors above the fire, including the owners, escaped to the roof and then to adjoining buildings. As firefighters arrived, they witnessed a horrible scene. The girls who did not make it to the stairwells or the elevator were trapped by the fire inside the factory and began to jump from the windows to escape it. The bodies of the jumpers fell on the fire hoses, making it difficult to begin fighting the fire. Also, the firefighters’ ladders reached only seven floors high and the fire was on the eighth floor. In one case, a life net was unfurled to catch jumpers, but three girls jumped at the same time, ripping the net. The nets turned out to be mostly ineffectual.

Within 18 minutes, it was all over. A total of 146 people were killed by the fire due to severe burns, smoke inhalation, falls from great heights and injuries sustained during the incident.

The fire helped unite organized labor and reform-minded politicians like progressive New York Governor Alfred E. Smith and Senator Robert F. Wagner, one of the legislative architects of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal agenda. Frances Perkins, who served on a committee that helped to set up the Factory Investigating Commission in New York in the wake of the fire, would later become Roosevelt’s Secretary of Labor. The workers union set up a march on April 5 on New York’s Fifth Avenue to protest the conditions that had led to the fire. It was attended by 80,000 people.

Despite a good deal of evidence that the owners and management had been horribly negligent in the fire, a grand jury failed to indict them on manslaughter charges. To settle lawsuits against them, they eventually paid $75 in compensation to each victim’s family—a fraction of the $400 per death that they were paid by their insurer.

Still, the massacre for which they were responsible did finally compel the city to enact reform. In addition to the Sullivan-Hoey Fire Prevention Law passed that October, the New York Democratic set took up the cause of the worker and became known as a reform party. Both were crucial in preventing similar disasters in the future.

SOURCE: HISTORY.COM

Harry Houdini Revealed

In honor of the great Houdini’s birthday, I present an article revealing some of Harry’s better illusions and tricks.

From: METRO.CO.UK:

The seemingly impossible stunts performed by master escapologist Harry Houdini have confused and delighted generations. Breaking locks, escaping submerged boxes, getting out of straitjackets, the fiendish Chinese Water Torture routine – his feats were simply astounding. Yet magic always has a simple explanation and, in Houdini’s case, his methods were in fact far more ingenious and impressive than the trick itself. The 52-year-old died on Halloween 1926, possibly as a result of one of his most famous stunts going wrong. The explanation of his methods has caused outrage among the magic community, with many saying they still perform some of the tricks. But, hey guys, some of these are more than 100 years old. Don’t you think your paying audience deserves some new material?

At the risk of being sawn in half by the Magic Circle, here are ten of Houdini’s greatest stunts – and how he did them.

1. Handcuffs: Harry Houdini could get out of any set of handcuffs. He often added a river or lake to the escape trick to spice things up a bit. People came to his stage shows with elaborate sets of their own, and the local police were encouraged by Houdini to try to keep him restrained. Twice it took him over an hour to free himself, but none ever succeeded in keeping him cuffed. Even specialty one-off handcuffs with a single bespoke key could not hold Harry.

What really happened: Many thought that he had trick-release stage cuffs but the truth was more simple – Houdini studied picking locks from a very early age. Sometimes he could just hit the handcuffs, at a certain angle and with enough force, for them to spring open. Other times a thin piece of string was enough to pull a screw from the locking mechanism and open it. Most times, however, he had a skeleton key hidden in the palm of his hand or sleeve. For the specialty handcuffs with only one key, Houdini would ask to inspect the cuffs and the key, secretly handing the key to an assistant – who would go back stage and choose a similar-looking key for Houdini’s vast collection. Houdini would simply hand back the lookalike key before miraculously escaping using the real one.

2. Hanging Straitjacket Escape: Straitjackets are purpose-made to restrain people, so it was an eye-popping feat to see a man wrapped up in one, dangling high off the ground from a rope tied to his feet. Houdini was famous for this stunt, regularly performing a jacket escape while hoisted up in front of the theatre where he would be putting on his evening show. He did the stunt in public in a bid to swell audience numbers, and it worked.

What really happened: When the jacket was being put on, Houdini would: cross his arms so his dominant right arm was on top; breathe in a huge gulp of air to make his chest bigger; and pinch and grab the material of the jacket to take up any slack before it was buckled. Breathing out and letting go of the slack gave him a lot of room to maneuver, but it was a matter of using brute strength to pull his right arm over his head. Once he had both arms in front of him, he would undo the straps and buckles with his teeth, or a cutting tool he had ‘palmed’ before the jacket was put on. Hanging upside down, while seemingly making the stunt more dangerous, actually helped Houdini perform the trick, because gravity worked in his favour. If all else failed, Houdini could create more room inside the jacket by dislocating his shoulder – but it’s not something he wanted to do a lot.

3. Milk Can: This was Houdini’s most enduring and dazzling escape. After audience members examined his milk can for sturdiness and any trick escape mechanisms, and watched it filled with water, Houdini asked the audience to hold its breath as he climbed inside and allowed the top of the milk can to be locked in place – many times with locks that audience members had brought with them. This took about a minute – a lot longer than most audience members could hold their breath. A curtain was pulled and, in what seemed like an impossible three minutes, a soaked Houdini would appear and show the can, its locks still in place.

What really happened: The top of the can, while made to look like it was riveted in place, could easily come away – but only when pushed up from the inside. Locks through eyelets in the top of the can would not be undisturbed while Houdini got out and put the top back on. He then waited a dramatic amount of time before revealing himself. Despite the relative simplicity of this illusion, it did mean that Houdini had to hold his breath inside the can for as long as a minute as the locks were being put in place.

4. Underwater Box: Combining a number of Houdini’s strengths – handcuffs, locks, holding his breath – this stunt involved a handcuffed Houdini being put into a wooden packing crate. The lid was nailed shut, ropes and chains were added and locked in place, and then the crate was craned into a river, where it immediately sank. After what seemed like an eternity, Houdini would bob to the surface – free of the box and his handcuffs.

What really happened: Houdini was out of the handcuffs before the box was even nailed shut. The box not only had holes drilled in it so it could fill with water and sink quickly, it also had a hidden panel on one side which opened to allow Houdini to escape once the box was in the water, and then it was a matter of how much suspense he wanted to build before he surfaced.

5. Chinese Water Torture Cell: There’s no evidence to suggest the Chinese ever used this as a torture method, but the title certainly put bums on seats. Houdini would be hoisted above a water-filled tank, his feet locked in wooden stocks, and lowered inside. The stocks were locked to the top of the tank, a curtain was drawn, and assistants then looked increasingly frantic as the seconds ticked past. Eventually, when all hope seemed lost, a damp Houdini would appear free from all bonds.

What really happened: It was more a matter of gymnastics than magic.The stocks ‘restraining’ Houdini were rigged so he could free his feet once the curtain was drawn. They were also hinged so he could get out of the tank and set the stocks back so it looked like they were still locked in place. On October 11, 1926, an accident while hoisting Houdini fractured one of his ankles.

6. Iron Stomach: Houdini famously said he could withstand any blow to the abdomen, and regularly invited audience members up to give him their best shot. No matter how hard they wailed on him, he seemed totally unfazed.

What really happened: There was no real trick to this. Houdini could prepare his stomach muscles to take the blow, and it was a combination of muscle control and fine acting to make it look like he was unaffected. The trick may have contributed to his death. On October 24, 1926 (13 days after fracturing his ankle) Houdini suffered a ruptured appendix when a fan repeatedly hit him before he had prepared. At the time, Houdini was in his dressing room lying down – not standing, as he had always done to prepare himself – because of his fractured ankle. The ruptured appendix led to the peritonitis that killed him a week later.

7. Metamorphosis: A breathtaking illusion performed by Houdini and his wife Beatrice. Houdini’s hands were bound, he was put in a sack that was tied shut at the top and put inside a box that was strapped and padlocked shut. Beatrice would draw a curtain around the box and clap three times, at which point the curtain would fly open to reveal Houdini standing there. The box was unlocked and unstrapped, and the bag undone to reveal Beatrice inside, her hands tied.

What really happened: Houdini was a master with ropes and locks. His hands, and the sack holding him, were tied using simple slip knots. He was free of the ropes and sack while his wife was locking and strapping the box where he was ‘trapped’. When the curtain was drawn, he slipped out of a panel at the back of the box and helped tie his wife’s hands and the sack before she got inside. The audience thought it was Beatrice clapping her hands but it was actually Houdini before he opened the curtain. While he was undoing the straps and locks of the box, Beatrice made sure she looked as though she was trapped and bound inside. Harry and ‘Bessie’ practiced this trick so often they got their switch time down to an astonishing three seconds.

8. The needle/razor trick: It wasn’t all about breaking locks and holding his breath. In a potentially lethal stage act (the needle version was mystically called the East Indian Needle Trick), Houdini would get audience members to examine as many as 50 sewing needles or razor blades and a length of thread before he put them all on his tongue and drank the lot with a glass of water. Following a bit of abracadabra-ry, he would regurgitate the needles/blades, perfectly strung along the thread – to the amazement of the crowd.

What really happened: Before the trick Houdini placed a packet between his cheek and teeth. The packet contained the needles/blades already attached to the thread with knots either side, so they came out evenly and did not accidentally stay in his mouth. The real trick was what to do with the loose needles/blades that he put in his mouth at the beginning of the trick. He would either spit them into the water as he pretended to drink, leaving enough water in the glass to hide the needles/blades – or deftly moved the needles and blades with his tongue between his other cheek and teeth until the end of the illusion. Needless (no pun intended) to say, it took a lot of practice to get it right.

9. Walking Through Walls: Houdini would perform his usual tricks as a team of bricklayers built a solid wall on stage. The wall cut the stage in half, was high and wide – it was impossible for Houdini to simply climb over or run around the front or back of the wall without the audience seeing. The wall was built on a large carpet that prevented the use of a trapdoor, and Houdini called up genuine audience members to hit the wall with hammers to prove it was solid. When the audience members sat back down, Houdini would position himself on one side of the wall and screens would be wheeled in. Almost straight away they would be wheeled back to reveal Houdini on the other side of the wall.

What really happened: Anyone who watched the recent Houdini TV drama starring Adrien Brody on Channel 4 will know how this one was done. The rug, instead of preventing the use of a trap door, actually hid a long trench in the stage. Once the trap door was opened, Houdini could pass under the wall via the sagging carpet and to the other side. The art was doing it quickly, so the audience literally did not have time to think about how it could be done.

10. Making an elephant disappear: Houdini did this incredible feat only once, but once is enough. Performed on January 7, 1918, at New York’s Hippodrome Theater, Houdini had an elephant brought on stage and led it into a large cabinet. The cabinet was turned around so that the audience could see there was no escape route large enough for an elephant to get through and then, with Houdini suddenly firing of a stage pistol, the elephant simply vanished.

What really (possibly) happened: This one actually is a bit of a mystery, because the elephant cabinet, the Hippodrome Theater, and Houdini himself no longer exist. But those in on the trick – and, when an elephant’s involved, there has to be a few – suggest that the stunt was all about audience perspective. The stage of the Hippodrome was very large, and the elephant cabinet was positioned at the back. Even those in the front rows didn’t have a close-up view. The cabinet was supposedly square but was actually an oblong shape, and material that exactly matched the back curtain of the cabinet was connected by wires to a powerful spring-loaded roller that almost instantly pulled the material up to conceal the elephant behind it. Stage lighting helped to fool the audience’s eyes, and when Houdini fired the pistol without warning, it distracted the audience enough to miss the material being pulled into place.

SOURCE: METRO.CO.UK.COM

Alternate Uses for Plastic Lids

We all know the struggle: You’re cleaning out your food storage drawer and somehow have way more lids than you do containers. If you can’t find the bottoms to those tops, don’t throw them away! Surprisingly, there are many uses for plastic lids, besides being just a container cover, that can help you around the house. From moving furniture to outsmarting batter splatters, these toppers and more. Keep scrolling for all of the brilliant ways your plastic lids can save you time and money around the house.

1. Avoid a plant watering oops

The new houseplant you picked up is a beautiful addition to your home. The only problem? The hole at the bottom of the pot keeps dripping water all over your windowsill. Dodge the mess by placing a plastic storage container lid under the pot. The lid’s ridge will catch any drips and keep water from spilling onto your windowsill.

2. Uses for plastic lids: Move furniture sans scratches

You want to rearrange your living room after getting a new chair but worry about the legs scraping your floors. What can help: Place a plastic lid under each leg of the furniture before moving it. The lid lets you slide it easily without harming the floor. Bonus? This works on carpet too!  “Using a plastic lid as a slider is an excellent way to save money and your back,” says Sara McDaniel, an interior designer, home renovation expert and owner of Simply Southern Cottage. “Furniture sliders are quite popular, but plastic lids would serve the same purpose and you likely already have them in your pantry.”

3. Tangle-proof a ball of yarn

The last time you knitted a scarf, you ended up with rolls of tangled yarn. Next time: Cut an X in the center of a plastic storage container lid, then thread the yarn through. When you pull the yarn, the slit in the lid will help loosen up any tangles and keep new ones from forming. Or, if you have a leftover iced coffee to-go cup, just use the lid’s straw hole! Easy!

4. Uses for plastic lids: Clog-proof your bath drain

Whenever you bathe Buster, his fur gets caught in the drain and you’re worried about an eventual clog. Don’t have a drain cover? Poke a few small holes through a plastic lid and place it over the drain. Turn on the water and hold the lid until it is suctioned to the tub’s surface, then wash Spot as usual. The holes allow the water to drain while the lid catches your dog’s stray hairs.

5. Easily corral earrings

If you’re tired of digging through your jewelry box to find your favorite hoop earrings, leftover plastic lids can help. Simply grab a sewing needle, poke several holes in a plastic lid, then slide the end of each earring through. You’ll be able to find the pair you need in no time!

6. Uses for plastic lids: Paint without messy drips

“As a home renovator, paint is a big part of all of my projects and I’m always getting paint in places it shouldn’t be,” sighs McDaniel. Her secret to making any paint job neater: Cut a slit in a plastic storage container lid large enough to slip a paintbrush through. “As you paint, spills and splatters will be caught on the lid, keeping the paint contained and reducing messes.”

7. Ward off any rust ring stains

While deep-cleaning your shower or tub, you notice rust rings left from a shaving cream can. To avoid them from forming in the future, just place any plastic lid under metal cans you keep in your shower. The lid will act as a buffer between the tub and the canister, so there are no unwanted stains left behind.

8. Uses for plastic lids: Slice food in half the time

You love adding fresh grapes to your chicken salad, but cutting each one individually takes so much time and effort. “Every day we are looking for ways to save time while cooking without compromising quality, and this tip will help,” says Gabriela Pollack, owner of New York-based chocolate shop Brigadeiro Warehouse: Carefully arrange them close together in one layer on a plastic lid. Then cover with another plastic lid of the same size. Gently hold the top lid down to keep the fruit in place, then slide a knife between the lids. “Just make sure to use a sharp knife,” she warns. Remove the top lid and voilà — you’ll have perfectly sliced grapes for your salad in seconds. No hassle required!

9. Scrape away frost in a flash

Nothing is worse than losing your scraper while your car windshield is covered in frost and you’re running late. To the rescue: a plastic lid! Use the side of the lid to scrape the frost off the window. The soft plastic won’t scratch the glass as it quickly clears away the frost, making your winter mornings a breeze.

10. Uses for plastic lids: Outsmart batter splatters

Using a hand mixer to whip up cupcakes saves you time and energy, but one little misstep means you’re covered in batter, and so is your counter. Shield it all by using a plastic storage container lid. Just cut two small X’s in the top of the lid, then slide the mixer’s attachments through the slits; attach them to the mixer’s body. The lid will act as a shield and keep batter from getting on your clothes and counters.

11. Protect breakables in the dishwasher

You were so careful when you placed your wineglasses in the dishwasher, but somehow one broke during the cycle anyway. To keep this from happening again: Slide a plastic lid between each delicate glass in the dishwasher. The lid will stabilize the glasses so they’re less likely to shift, plus act as a barrier in case other dishes move.

12. Uses for plastic lids: Outsmart sticky honey drips

Even though you wipe your honey jar before putting it away, dribbles sometimes go unnoticed and leave your cupboard shelf sticky. Prevent this by placing a plastic lid underneath the bottle after each use. The rimmed lid will catch any drips, ensuring your cabinet stays clean.

13. Ward off accidental hammer dings

Oops! Last time you hung a photo, you missed the nail and left a dent in the wall. Next time, cut a hole that’s slightly larger than the nail in the center of a plastic lid, then slide the nail into the hole and start hammering as usual. If the hammer slips, the plastic will protect the wall. When you’re done, simply slip the lid off.

14. Uses for plastic lids: Securely close a ­garbage bag  

When you can’t find a twist tie — and there isn’t enough room at the top of the trash bag to tie a knot—enlist the help of a plastic lid. Using a knife or scissors, carefully cut a small X into the center. Twist the top of the bag, then slide it through the slit until it can’t go any further. The lid will bind the plastic together so the garbage bag will stay closed until pickup.

15. Safely scrape nonstick pans

When food particles get stubbornly stuck to your “nonstick” cookware, try using a plastic lid to scrape off the mess. Push the lip of the lid downward against the pan and repeat until all of the cooked-on food is removed. The firm plastic along the edge will get under the grunge so it easily comes off without damaging the pan’s finish.

SOURCE: FIRSTFORWOMEN.COM

What Shall We Make Today?

Today’s offering is Peanut Butter Fudge Ice Cream Cake!

Ingredients

3 cups chocolate crisp rice cereal (such as Cocoa Krispies)

1/2 cup salted dry-roasted peanuts, finely chopped

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

4 cups vanilla ice cream, softened

Cool Whip

Hot fudge topping

Coarsely chopped salted dry-roasted peanuts

Directions

Stir together cereal, finely chopped peanuts, and butter in a medium bowl. Press mixture into bottom and up sides of a lightly greased 9-inch glass pie plate. Freeze until solid, 15 to 30 minutes.

Microwave peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl on HIGH until melted and smooth, about 30 seconds. Let stand at room temperature 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Place ice cream in the bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer; beat on medium-low until smooth, about 30 seconds. Drizzle peanut butter into ice cream, beating on low just until incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Spread ice cream mixture into frozen pie shell. Cover and freeze until firm, 8 hours, or up to 24 hours.  Before serving, remove pie from freezer, and leave out at room temperature 10 minutes. Spread whipped cream evenly over pie. Drizzle with fudge topping, and sprinkle with coarsely chopped peanuts.

ENJOY!

Keys to the Kingdom

Barron Trump played a pivotal role in his father’s reelection last year, but not a lot is known about the youngest son of Donald Trump.  His parents, particularly his mother Melania, prefers to guard him closely.  Will he follow in his father’s footsteps, inheriting the keys to the kingdom?  Who knows.  But he is already influencing events and drawing attention.  I found this article about him on Biography.com.

From Biography.com:

Growing up, Barron learned to speak English and Slovene, the language of his mother’s home country, Slovenia. He is fluent in both tongues and also speaks French.

Barron was raised inside his father’s New York City high-rise Trump Tower, where he had an entire floor to himself. Accordingly, Barron has always known a life of luxury. In an interview with Parenting, Melania revealed Barron really liked planes and helicopters when he was little and that, as a hands-on mom, she cooked his breakfast and prepared his lunches. She also believed in encouraging his creativity—even when he would draw on the walls. “His imagination is growing and important,” she said. “If he draws on the walls in his playroom, we can paint it over.”

Although it’s unclear if he’ll follow his family into the real estate business, Barron did like to build cities and airports using Lego bricks and Magna Tiles growing up. He also has his own aesthetic. “He likes clean and white,” Melania told Parenting. “He builds big projects. He has a big imagination, and it’s very impressive. He loves to build something and tear it down and build something else. He is very detailed at drawing. We travel often, and he remembers everything he sees.”

Melania also told the magazine she calls Barron “Little Donald” because his personality is so similar to that of his father. “He is a very strong-minded, very special, smart boy. He is independent and opinionated and knows exactly what he wants,” she said.

She also noted that Barron spent a lot quality time with his father, mostly at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, where they played golf, ate dinner together, and enjoyed family time.

Donald Trump’s election to the U.S. presidency in 2016 brought a new level of exposure to the family, already well-known for Donald’s real estate holdings, reality TV series, and other business ventures. But Barron didn’t immediate follow his father to Washington D.C. after the inauguration. Instead, the boy stayed at Trump Tower with his mother for almost the first five months of his father’s presidency in order to finish his studies at the Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School on the Upper West Side. He and his mother moved into the White House on June 11, 2017, and Barron began attending St. Andrew’s Episcopal, a prep school in Maryland.

Barron became the first son of a president to reside in the White House since John F. Kennedy Jr. in 1963. Although he stayed out of the spotlight for the most part, he did turn up for some of the White House’s holiday-themed events in 2017, including the annual Easter Egg Roll in April, where he joined his parents in signing cards for members of the American Armed Forces. He also supported his father’s pardoning of the turkeys before Thanksgiving and, soon after, stepped out with his mom on the North Portico to receive the official Christmas tree from Wisconsin, which went up on display in the White House’s Blue Room.

On October 14, 2020, Melania confirmed that, like her and Donald, Barron tested positive for COVID-19. Although Barron initially tested negative, the first lady revealed that her “fear came true when he was tested again and it came up positive.” Melania continued: “Luckily he is a strong teenager and exhibited no symptoms. In one way, I was glad the three of us went through this at the same time so we could take care of one another and spend time together. He has since tested negative.”

After leaving the White House in 2021, Barron moved with his mother and father to Mar-a-Lago. In August 2021, it was announced that Barron had enrolled in private school at the Oxbridge Academy in Palm Beach, Florida. Both of his parents attended his graduation in May 2024.

Soon after, his father said in an interview that Barron was still considering multiple schools to obtain his undergraduate degree. “He’s applied to colleges and gets into everywhere he goes. He’s very sought after from standpoint,” Donald said. According to People, a source said it’s possible that his mother, Melania, “will follow him wherever he goes to school.” Barron ultimately selected New York University and is studying in the Stern School of Business. He began classes there in September 2024 and reportedly lives off-campus. He commutes to campus from nearby Trump Tower.

Barron towers over both of his famous parents and, according to his father, stands at 6 feet, 7 inches tall. Donald has attributed Barron’s impressive frame to all the food his late grandmother Amalija Knavs cooked for him. He has also remarked about Barron’s potential future in sports. “I said you’re gonna be a basketball player. He said, ‘Well, I like soccer, dad, actually,’” he said at a 2024 campaign event. “I thought… at your height, I like basketball better, but you can’t talk them into everything.”

Barron’s 18th birthday in March 2024 led to debate about how the media should cover him now that he is a legal adult. However, Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, has defended Barron, saying he has a right to privacy. “I think he’s a private citizen. I feel so strongly that if you are a private citizen, you have an unimpeachable right to privacy, and I think the media should leave him alone,” she said.

In May 2024, news broke that Barron had been selected to serve as an at-large delegate for the state of Florida at the Republican National Convention later in July, which would have marked his first foray into the political realm. However, the office of Melania Trump announced two days later that he “regretfully declines to participate” at the convention because of prior commitments.

SOURCE: BIOGRAPHY.COM

RED

One of my favorite actors celebrates his birthday today—Bruce Willis!  Born in 1955, Willis has created many memorable characters and iconic comedic lines. (“Welcome to the party, pal!”) Mental Floss had an article detailing some fascinating facts about him.

From: Mental Floss:

 On March 30, 2022, Bruce Willis’s family members, including ex-wife Demi Moore and their three daughters, posted a joint statement to their social media accounts announcing that Willis would be retiring from acting due to a recent health diagnosis.

“Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” the statement read. “As a result of this and with much consideration, Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.”

From his turns as unlikely action hero John McClane in the Die Hard series to smaller supporting roles in 1994’s Pulp Fiction and 1995’s Nobody’s Fool, Willis has consistently surprised audiences with his eclectic career choices. For more on Willis, including his recording career and how he made movie history with 1988’s original Die Hard, keep reading.

1. Bruce Willis was born in West Germany.

Walter Bruce Willis, the son of a military man, was born on March 19, 1955, while his father was stationed in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany. Just two years later, parents David and Marlene Willis moved to Carneys Point, New Jersey, where he spent part of his time in both high school and at Montclair State University trying his hand at acting. After his sophomore year, Willis decided to leave college and head to New York City to pursue a performing career.

2. Bruce Willis may have been one of the best bartenders in New York City.

While auditioning for acting roles and scoring the occasional break—he appeared in an off-Broadway play, Heaven and Earth, in 1977—Willis tended bar at Chelsea Central on New York City’s Upper West Side. According to actor John Goodman, who knew Willis before either of them became famous, Willis was notable even then. “Bruce was the best bartender in New York,” Goodman told The New York Post in 2017. “He kept an entire joint entertained all night. He just kept the show going. He was amazing.”

3. Bruce Willis was cast in Moonlighting even though ABC thought the role was “uncastable.”

Willis had done only some stage work and bit parts in movies like 1980’s The First Deadly Sin with Frank Sinatra and 1982’s The Verdict with Paul Newman before he went in to audition for ABC’s Moonlighting, a send-up of detective dramas. At the time, the role of David Addison was proving so difficult to cast that the network was looking to pay creator Glenn Gordon Caron, director Bob Butler, and co-star Cybill Shepherd to abandon the project. Then Willis auditioned, beating out 3000 other hopefuls and securing the part. The series ran from 1985 to 1989.

4. Thanks to Die Hard, Bruce Willis changed Hollywood salaries forever.

While doing Moonlighting, Willis spent his hiatus shooting feature films like 1987’s Blind Date with Kim Basinger. But it was 1988’s Die Hard that cemented him as a big-screen attraction. The action film about a New York City cop trapped in a Los Angeles skyscraper with his estranged wife and a group of terrorists was a hot commodity, and 20th Century Fox agreed to pay Willis the then-astronomical sum of $5 million for the role. (Richard Gere and Clint Eastwood were also considered.) At the time, major stars like Tom Cruise and Michael J. Fox were getting roughly $3 million a picture. The payday for Willis had other performers taking notice, and salaries reportedly went up as a result.

“It was an enormous amount of money at the time,” Willis told Entertainment Weekly in 2007. “And I was a TV actor! The day after I signed the deal, every actor in Hollywood’s salary went up to $5 million.”

5. The Bruce Willis movie Hudson Hawk was based on a song.

Following Die Hard, Willis was a proven box office commodity that could help projects get made. In 1991, he starred in Hudson Hawk, a critical and commercial disappointment about a jewel thief with a love of music who is hired to steal from the Vatican. The film was based in part on a song written by musician Robert Kraft in 1981. Kraft knew Willis, then a bartender and actor, and shared it with him. Over the years, the two continued to shape the song, adding characters and stories. Eventually, it wound up in the hands of screenwriters Stephen De Souza and Daniel Waters.

6. Bruce Willis all but disappeared in Nobody’s Fool.

In contrast to conventional wisdom of the era, Willis parlayed his success as an action hero into opportunities to work with actors and directors he found interesting—even if it meant taking a small supporting role. (Willis spent just 22 minutes onscreen in 1994’s Pulp Fiction as boxer Butch Coolidge.) For 1995’s Nobody’s Fool, he passed on his normal $15 million fee to take $1400 a week since it meant working with Paul Newman. (Newman had forgotten the then-unknown Willis was a bit player in Newman’s 1982 film, The Verdict.) Because Willis felt so strongly Nobody’s Fool was Newman’s film, he opted out of having his photo included in the press kit and his name wasn’t in the production notes.

7. Bruce Willis had his own cartoon series.
In 1996, Willis lent his voice to Bruno the Kid, a syndicated animated series about an 11-year-old spy named Bruno who convinces his handlers he’s really an adult. “Bruno” was Willis’s nickname growing up as well as the name of his musical alter ego. In 1987, Willis released an album, The Return of Bruno, along with a cable special. The cartoon lasted one season.

8. Bruce Willis never finished shooting one of his movies.

In 1997, Willis started shooting Broadway Brawler, a romantic comedy about a washed-up hockey player falling in love. Just 20 days into shooting, Willis used his powers as producer to fire director Lee Grant, Grant’s husband and producer Joe Feury, cinematographer William Fraker, and wardrobe designer Carol Oditz—all reportedly over creative differences. The problems continued even after replacement director Dennis Dugan was brought on board. Rather than continue to waste money on the $28 million movie, studio Cinergi opted to shut it down. Cinergi’s parent company, Disney, absorbed the production costs in exchange for Willis agreeing to star in three Disney movies: Armageddon (1998); The Sixth Sense (1999), Willis’s biggest hit to date; and The Kid (2000).

Happy Birthday Pal!

SOURCE:MENTALFLOSS

New Jersey State Mammal: Horse

I couldn’t find a specific breed of horse for New Jersey, just the general term “horse” due to its importance in agriculture and economy.  So, I decided to focus on New Jersey Horse Rescue.

South Jersey Horse Rescue is a 501c3 non-profit horse rescue and rehabilitation facility.  Our mission is to provide a loving sanctuary to abandoned, neglected, abused, and slaughter bound horses. 

Donations pay for food, medicine, and veterinary services. We also use donations to buy horses at auction that would otherwise be sold to kill brokers, people who buy horses to sell them for meat in Mexico and Canada. About 90% of the horses that go through the slaughter lot are in perfect health.

What We Do

We evaluate and rehabilitate then re-home the horses we rescue. We do have some permanent residents, but strive to adopt out as many animals as possible to loving forever homes. We are 100% volunteer run and operate solely on donations.

We have been chosen for Secret Santa powered by our friends at Special Horses, Inc.

Please see link and donate to our rescue horses’ letters to Santa

https://specialhorses.company.site/South-Jersey-Horse-Rescue-c26120097

The rescue may have to close and our equine residents need your help!

Want to help us save the rescue? We are raising money to buy our property from the bank. We have made a great deal of progress with the help of our supporters just like you! We have had slow and steady negotiations. Fingers crossed we will be able to work this out and buy the property. We hope to have good news soon for those of you who have volunteered, donated, and sent well wishes. Any bit of support means the world to those who are here daily caring for our lovely rescues. We will do anything to keep providing a safe landing for those animals who need us most!

We have been at this property doing our life saving work as a rescue for over 14 years. Our fearless leader Ellen and her trusty staff have helped adopt and rehome over 400 horses, ponies, and donkeys. We are still rescuing animals and will do anything it takes to save our beloved rescue.

WEBSITE: https://www.southjerseyhorserescue.com/

Happy St.Patty’s Day

I found a great article on thefactfile.org website detailing amazing facts about St. Patty’s Day. 

From: thefactfile.org:

St Patrick’s Day is celebrated each year on March 17th. The day is the observation of the death of St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. With these 30 St Patrick’s Day facts, let’s uncover more about this great festival which is celebrated all over the world.

1. St Patrick was born in 385 AD in a place believed to be Banna Venta Berniae, a town in Roman Britain (his exact place of birth is however uncertain). He died during the fifth century in the year 461 AD at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland.

2. St Patrick’s Day commemorates the arrival of the Christianity in Ireland. It happened in the year 432.

3. Patrick was born to Roman parents (Calpurnius and Conchessa). He was not Irish, instead, he was English. His given name was Maewyn Succat. Thus, technically we would be celebrating “Maewyn Day” instead of the “St Patrick’s Day” if his name was not changed. He wrote a book–Confessio–during his last years.

4. At the age of 16, St Patrick was kidnapped and was taken to Ireland. He was kidnapped by a group of Irish raiders who were attacking his family’s estate. He worked there for 6 years tending sheep and then escaped and became a priest.

5. St Patrick’s Day is also known as the ‘Feast of Saint Patrick’ and the ‘Day of the Festival of Patrick’. Patrick studied and received his training in the religion for more than 12 years after he escaped from the captivity of the Irish raiders.

6. Saint Patrickused Shamrock (a young sprig of clover) to teach the pagans about the Holy Trinity. The shamrock is now the official flower of Ireland. It is associated with St Patrick.

7. St Patrick’s Day has been observed by the Irish asa religious holiday for more than 1,000 years.

8. ‘Blue’ was the color associated with St Patrick before the adoption of green as the color for the festival. The color blue was featured both in the royal court and on ancient Irish flags. In 1798, the color green became officially associated with the day.

9. The first Patrick’s Day paradewas held in Waterford (the oldest and the fifth most populous city in the Republic of Ireland) in 1903.

10. More than 100 Saint Patrick parades are held across the United States. Almost 12% of Americans claim Irish ancestry. More people of Irish ancestry live in the United States than in Ireland.

11. One claim in history deeply associated with St Patrick is that he banished all the snake from Ireland. However, this claim is not true because it has been discovered that the chances of survival of snakes in Ireland are minimal because of the cold conditions of the region. However, some say that the snakes represent the pagans he converted to Christianity.

12. In 1762, the first New York City parade took place. With over 150,000 participants, the St Patricks Day parade in New York is the world’s oldest civilian parade and the largest in the United States. And more than 3 million spectators line the parade route which is 1.5 miles long. The parade takes more than 5 hours to come to an end.

13. On this day, Catholics attend church in the morning and then watch a St Patrick’s Day parade.

14. The Chicago River (the system of rivers and canals has a combined length of 156 miles) is dyed green on this day (since 1962). However, the first year when the river was dyed green, 100 pounds of vegetable dye was released into the river. This kept the river green for almost a week. However, today, they use only 40 lbs of the green dye to color the river for the day to keep the environmental damages in check. Now, the dye lasts for about 5 hours.

15. Guinness (an Irish dark beer that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness) sale almost doubles on St Patrick’s Day as compared to the regular days when 5.5 million pints of it is sold.

16. The200th anniversary of St Patrick’s Day was marked in Sydney Opera House by making it green.

17. Thefirst St Patrick’s Day celebration in the United States was held in Boston in 1737.

18. On this day, people usually eat corned beef and cabbage, and they wear green. However, corned beef is an English dish and not Irish.

19. Wearing green attire or shamrock is also a St Patrick’s Day tradition. It is one of Irish tradition to pinch someone who is not wearing green on the day.

20. Between 1903 and 1970 most pubs in Ireland were closed because St Patrick’s Day was a religious holiday. However, the holiday was reclassified as a national holiday and the nation started drinking even on this day. Drinking on this day has become a strong St Patrick’s Day tradition.

21. St Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in both Ireland and North Ireland. It is a provincial holiday in the Canadian province of Newfoundland.

22. World’s shortest St Patrick’s Day parade is held in Arkansas, which runs for a total of 98 feet.

23. More than 450 churches are named for St Patrick in the United States. And 5.5 million tourists visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City every year.

24. St Patrick’s Day is one of the most celebrated festivals in the world. Others may includeLa Tomatina — Buñol, Spain; Holi — Celebrated by Hindus Around the World; Carnaval — Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Lantern Festival — Pingxi, Taiwan. 

25. St Patrick’s Day parades began in North America in the 17th century but they did not spread to Ireland until the 20th century.

26. St Patrick’s Day is not celebrated on March 17 when it falls within the Holy Week (the week just before Easter, Holy Week in 2018 will begin on Sunday, 25 March and ends on Saturday, 31 March). This once happened when the day coincided with Palm Sunday in 1940 and then again in 2008. The celebration of the Day is adjusted in such a scenario. In 1940 it was observed on 3 April and in 2008 it was observed on 15 March. Now, until 2160, St Patrick’s Day will not fall under the Holy Week.

27. St Patrick’s Day is celebrated in countries including Canada, Australia, Japan, Singapore, Russia and other countries of the Irish Diaspora (refers to Irish people and their descendants who live outside Ireland).

28. More than 1 million people take part in the St Patrick’s Festival (between March 15th and 17th) in Dublin every year.

29. John Fitzgerald Kennedy the 35th president of the United States of America worn a green tie for photographs when Ireland’s ambassador to the US, Thomas Kiernan, turned up at the White House with a bowl of shamrock on 17 March.

30. Finding a four leaf clover on St Patrick’s Day is considered lucky as you only have one chance in 10,000. Generally, you will find a three leaf clover.

SOURCE: THEFACTFILE.ORG