Emergency Cooking Substitutions

For 1 Tbsp fresh herb use: 1/3 to 1/2 tsp dried herb (of the same kind)
For 1 clove garlic use: 1/8 tsp garlic powder
For 1 egg in baking use: 1 tsp cornstarch plus 1/4 cup water
For 1 whole egg use: 2 egg yolks plus 1 Tbsp water
For 1 cup whole fresh milk use: 1/2 cup evaporated milk plus 1/2 cup water, or 1/3 cup dry milk plus 1 cup water
For 1 cup buttermilk use: 1 cup plain yogurt, or 1 cup sour milk (4 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice plus milk to make 1 cup -- let sit for five minutes before using)
For 1 cup sour cream (in baking) use: 7/8 cup buttermilk or sour milk plus 3 Tbsp butter
For 1 cup sour cream (in salad dressings, casseroles) use: 1 cup plain yogurt or 3/4 cup sour milk plus 1/3 cup butter
For 1 cup cream use: 1/3 cup butter plus 3/4 cup milk
For 1 cup corn syrup use: 2/3 cup granulated sugar plus 1/3 cup water
For 1 cup brown sugar use: 1 cup granulated sugar plus 2 Tbsp molasses
For 1 3/4 cup confectioners sugar use: 1 cup granulated sugar, packed
For 1 cup margarine or butter (in baking or cooking) use: 1 cup hard shortening or 7/8 cup vegetable oil
For 1 square unsweetened chocolate use: 3 Tbsp cocoa plus 1 Tbsp oil
For 3/4 cup cracker crumbs use: 1 cup bread crumbs
For 1 cup cake flour, sifted use: 7/8 cup all purpose flour, sifted (1 cup minus 2 Tbsp)
For 1 tsp baking powder use: 1/3 tsp baking soda plus 1/2 tsp cream of tarter, or 1/4 tsp baking soda plus 1/3 cup sour milk
For 1 Tbsp cornstarch for thickening use: 2 Tbsp flour
For 1 Tbsp flour for thickening use: 1 1/2 tsp corn flour, arrowroot, potato flour, or rice flour; or 2 tsp tapioca

As always, for lots of hints, tips, and of course recipes, check out Granny Green!

Have a Headache?

Did you know a headache is often the first sign of dehydration? Hydrating your body may relieve your headache. You’ll need to be adequately hydrated in order to feel good and perform well, especially when you work out. The best way to take care of this is to drink fluids all day long. And, remember to replace fluids after any exercising!

What I Learned at the Grocery Store This Week

I’ve recently been out doing some heavy-duty grocery shopping (2 ½ hours at one store!) and discovered something new. See, after all these years, I’m still discovering something new at the grocery store….
These shopping trips are really “information gathering” trips, in preparation for my classes to be presented this spring—there will be one class on buying groceries.

Anyway, I discovered two of our local stores (haven’t researched the other two yet) have two grades of store-brand items! One is inexpensive, and the other is cheap. I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed it before, but it just didn’t connect until I started writing it down in a notebook. I’m putting together a Price Book to demonstrate at my classes. I’ve always kept my price book in my head, especially now that there’s not so many people to feed at home….so to do it right, I have to work on it a little at a time and I didn’t want to be doing it at the last moment.

An example: At SuperSaver, Kraft Miracle Whip was on sale for $2, but the Best Choice brand was $1.98 and the Always Save Brand was $1.58.

Check your own favorite stores and get back to me—it will help with my research! Do your stores have two grades of store brand items?

Love, Mom

TOO BUSY TO WRITE!

Wow! I have been too busy lately to add to this blog—sorry ‘bout that!

But, I did get Granny Green off and running…well, Granny doesn’t exactly run, but she does get things done. I’ve talked to Steve White downtown at the NTV office, I’ve talked to Tricia at the Convention/Visitor’s bureau, and of course I did the short 5-minute piece on laundry detergent on TV Monday morning! Did you all get to see it? It’s probably still available: http://www.nebraska.tv/Global/story.asp?S=9205141

I’m gearing up for Granny’s classes to be presented this spring. One for sure will be on grocery shopping. I spent over 2 hours at HyVee yesterday taking notes (while picking up a few bargains) and setting up a price book. I’ll do that with the other grocery stores in the area, too.

I’ve also been adding to Granny’s website:

http://www.granny-green.com All suggestions welcomed!

Love, Mom

Got Bugs?

Good-bye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass fill it ½’ with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid, mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

Get Rid of Ants: Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it ‘home,’ can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed! (Also try dry Grits, when the ants eat the dry grits, the fluid in their stomachs will cause the grits to expand blowing up the ants and the colony.)

If We Could Shrink the World--Just 100 People

If we could shrink the earth to a village with a population of precisely 100 people with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, there would be...

57 Asians, 21 Europeans, 14 from the Western Hemisphere, both North and South, 8 Africans
52 would be female, 48 would be male

70 would be non-Christian, 30 would be Christian

70 would be non-white, 30 would be white

89 would be heterosexual, 11 would be homosexual

6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth and would be from the United States

80 would live in sub-standard housing 70 would be unable to read 50 would suffer from malnutrition

1 would be near death1 would be near birth

1 (yes only 1) would have a college education and 1 would own a computer

When we consider our world from such a compressed perspective, the need for acceptance, understanding and education becomes glaringly apparent.

It you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture or the pangs of starvation - you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you can attend a church meeting without fear, harassment, arrest, torture or death you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep - you are richer than 75% of the world.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet and spare change in a dish someplace - you are among the top 8% of the worlds wealthy.

(Found at the Eden Project)

Money

Canadian Road Sign

Another odd picture I found on the Internet: I get confused easy enough without something like this. It's a good thing we don't live in Canada!

How to Avoid an Attack

I found this article—it’s a good reminder for us all….

A group of rapists and date rapists in prison were interviewed on what they look for in a potential victim and here are some interesting facts:
1) The first thing men look for in a potential victim is hairstyle. They are most likely to go after a woman with a ponytail, bun, braid or other hairstyle that can easily be grabbed. They are also likely to go after a woman with long hair. Women with short hair are not common targets.
2) The second thing men look for is clothing. They will look for women whose clothing is easy to remove quickly. Many of them carry scissors around specifically to cut clothing.
3) They also look for women talking or texting on their cell phone, searching through their purse or doing other activities while walking because they are off guard and can be easily overpowered.
4) Men are most likely to attack & rape in the early morning, between 5:00am and 8:30am.
5) The number one place women are abducted from/attacked is grocery store parking lots. Number two is office parking lots/garages. Number three is public restrooms.
6) The thing about these men is that they are looking to grab a woman and quickly move her to another location where they don't have to worry about getting caught.
7) Only 2% said they carried weapons because rape carries a 3-5 year sentence but rape with a weapon is 15-20 years.
8) If you put up any kind of a fight at all, they get discouraged because it only takes a minute or two for them to realize that going after you isn't worth it because it will be time-consuming.
9) These men said they would not pick on women who have umbrellas or other similar objects that can be used from a distance, in their hands.Keys are not a deterrent because you have to get really close to the attacker to use them as a weapon. So, the idea is to convince these guys you're not worth it.
10) Several defense mechanisms he taught us are: If someone is following behind you on a street or in a garage or with you in an elevator or stairwell, look them in the face and ask them a question, like what time is it, or make general small talk: "I can't believe it is so cold out here", "we're in for a bad winter." Now you've seen their face and could identify them in a line-up; you lose appeal as a target.
11) If someone is coming toward you, hold out your hands in front of you and yell STOP or STAY BACK! Most of the rapists this man talked to said they'd leave a woman alone if she yelled or showed that she would not be afraid to fight back. Again, they are looking for an EASY target.
12) If you carry pepper spray (this instructor was a huge advocate of it and carries it with him wherever he goes,) yell I HAVE PEPPER SPRAY and holding it out will be a deterrent.
13) If someone grabs you, you can't beat them with strength but you can by outsmarting them. If you are grabbed around the waist from behind, pinch the attacker either under the arm (between the elbow and armpit) OR in the upper inner thigh VERY VERY HARD. One woman in a class this guy taught told him she used the underarm pinch on a guy who was trying to date rape her and was so upset she broke through the skin and tore out muscle strands - the guy needed stitches.Try pinching yourself in those places as hard as you can stand it; it hurts.
14) After the initial hit, always GO for the GROIN. I know from a particularly unfortunate experience that if you slap a guy's parts it is extremely painful. You might think that you'll anger the guy and make him want to hurt you more, but the thing these rapists told our instructor is that they want a woman who will not cause a lot of trouble. Start causing trouble, and he's out of there.
15) When the guy puts his hands up to you, grab his first two fingers and bend them back as far as possible with as much pressure pushing down on them as possible. The instructor did it to me without using much pressure, and I ended up on my knees and both knuckles cracked audibly.
16) Of course the things we always hear still apply. Always be aware of your surroundings, take someone with you if you can and if you see any odd behavior, don't dismiss it, go with your instincts!!!You may feel a little silly at the time, but you'd feel much worse if the guy really was trouble.

Interesting, isn't it?

WHAT IS A BILLION?

A Billion seconds ago it was 1976.

A Billion minutes ago it was 106 A.D.

A Billion hours ago it was the Old Stone Age.

A Billion Dollars ago in Washington is 4 hours ago.

Makes you stop and think, doesn't it?

FATHER GOOSE IN SATURDAY'S PARADE

This guy was leading his geese as part of the parade on Saturday. I was amazed at how they followed him right down the street, even though it was lined with noisy people. Each goose had its own neck scarf. It was one of my favorite parts of the parade.

These pictures were taken by Steve White, local NTV news personality….he gave me permission to use the pictures. (Isn’t it nice to know a “celebrity?”)

RANDOM HOUSEHOLD TIPS

Clogged drains: Denture cleaning tablets work great to remove that icky grease build-up from kitchen drains. Just drop a couple denture cleaning tablets down the kitchen drain, along with a cup of hot water. Another idea: if your drain is clogged with grease, pour one cup of salt and one cup of baking soda into the drain followed by a kettle of boiling water. This should do the trick!

Dusting the TV: Here is a great tip about dusting! Don't you ever get tired of dusting your TV 3 or 4 times a week? Well, here is what you do! It's simple and easy too! All you need to do is take a fabric softener sheet that has been used in your laundry and after cleaning your TV, rub it all around the area that you don't want to dust anymore! It's a guaranteed success! Instead of attracting dust, your TV repels it!

Homemade Cleaner: Instead of buying all different and expensive cleaning products, take a spray bottle, and mix one third pine cleaner, one third ammonia, and one third warm water. It will clean everything from kitchen counters, to the bathroom floor, and everything in between. For tough grease stains, let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes.

Sharpen scissors: Take your dull scissors and cut through three layers of tin foil ten times. Cut some paper to test. Repeat if not sharp enough for you. Or... cut a sheet of medium-grade sand paper into small pieces! Another tip for sharper scissors is to cut a SOS pad or Brillo pad in half with the scissors. This sharpens the scissors and also gives you two pads instead of one. Just try it but be careful not to cut yourself!

Quick air freshener: Add one quart of water, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and some orange rinds into a pot and boil on low heat. When the water is gone, your house will be home sweet smelling home!

Chelsea Marched in the Parade Today

Here's a picture of Chelsea in the Harvest of Harmony Parade this morning. There were 87 bands marching down 3rd street. Many had their Cheer Squads leading the way...our's included.

This parade was once in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the most bands in one parade. It was in 1996 and was featured for having 126 High School Bands in one parade...

Today's weather was just perfect: not too chilly and not rainy!

Talk to you later! love, Mom

HOME-MADE DANDRUFF RINSE

I just wrote another eHow article: How to Make Home-Made Dandruff Rinse. Check it out!

WHERE TO BUY THE CHEAPEST GAS ?

MSN has an interesting resource for finding gas prices. You put in your zip code and it tells you where the cheapest gas is. They update every night so it should be reasonably accurate.

I was actually surprised when I entered my own zip code. I thought I knew where the cheapest gas was found here in town, but I was a little bit taken aback!

Check it out: gas prices

Love, Mom

What Goes Around, Comes Around

His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog.

There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death.

The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman's sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved.

"I want to repay you," said the nobleman. "You saved my son's life."

"No, I can't accept payment for what I did," the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer.

At that moment, the farmer's own son came to the door of the family hovel. "Is that your son?" the nobleman asked.

"Yes," the farmer replied proudly.

"I'll make you a deal. Let me take him and give him a good education. If the lad is anything like his father, he'll grow to a man you can be proud of."

And that he did. In time, Farmer Fleming's son graduated from St.Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known. Throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin.

Years afterward, the nobleman's son was stricken with pneumonia. What saved him? Penicillin.

The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill. His son's name? Sir Winston Churchill.

Someone once said: What goes around comes around.

OCTOBER LISTS

It’s October already! What happened? I thought it was June just a couple of days ago…..

OK, time to make notes to self:

Whose birthdays come this month? Noah (the 17th) and Grandma O (the 19th)—buy cards!

Big Parade is this week-end. Chelsea will be marching with the Cheer Squad. She says they are close to the last part of the parade, though, so that’s good for me (I won’t have to go downtown so early….).

Still have to get organized for Thanksgiving….

Clean the basement—too much stuff!

Keep writing—I’m trying to contribute to the eHow site once a day.

What do you have to do this month?

Love, Mom