Our garden

After last year, I wanted to continue making a garden. We didn’t plan it very well last year, planting in (I think) July – way to late and ended up with tomatoes in the middle of October – not the best time.

So this year, we actually thought about it and started planting on the 2nd week-end of April:

• Tomatoes
• Green Beans
• Pumpkins
• Zucchinis - they didn’t take
• Butternut Squash
• Cucumbers… that’s a lot of cucurbitaceae

We started by using old Ovaltine jars. We chopped off the top and drilled holes in the bottom. We put soil and seeds in them, watered and put the lot on an old lid

That’s what it looked like:

We placed the lid in the small bay window in the living room. This window is oriented East so it gets plenty of sun in the morning. The dog keeps an eye on them too, just in case.

Sprouts started popping out after 2 weeks. On the 2nd week-end in May (we had planned on the 1st, but it rained) we planted everything outside.

In addition, we put carrots, radishes and corn. Since we didn’t temper the plants – ah, yes, we were in such a hurry, we didn’t let the plants get acclimated to being outside. The butternut squash did not like this at all and died. The cucumbers had a few ugly-looking days, but are back now.

The plants have been outside for 3 weeks now and are looking good. I’ll post pictures this week.

My Take on: Presidential Election – Part IV: Election Day

This is Part IV in this series on understanding the election process.

If you haven’t yet, I suggest that you read
Part I : What is a Caucus?,
Part II : Delegate and Superdelegate, and
Part III : After the Primaries.

(I welcome comments, and corrections to my previous posts)

Today, we are going over Election Day. So, we’re at a point where both Republican and Democratic parties have had their Conventions and have each nominated on a candidate.

What is Election Day?

On the 1st Tuesday in November (that will be November 4th this year), people will go and vote for the candidate of their choice.

Investopedia (Bi-)Weekly Roundup

After a little debating with myself, I have to admit that keeping up a weekly summary isn’t convenient for me – I already have a hard time keeping up the regular blog posts as it is.  I’m going to make the Investopedia a bi-weekly round-up.

Here are the interesting article I grabbed from Investopedia for the past 2 weeks:

• Avoid The “Generation Debt” Trap
  What is the “Generation Debt”, how it happens, and most interesting, how to get rid of it (the debt) or avoid it altogether.
• History Of Capitalism
  Super interesting article on, you guessed it, the history of how capitalism came to be.
• Rate Cuts Don’t Guarantee Great Returns
  Explains the effect of Fed rate change on the stock market moves
• How Much Social Security Will You Get?
  After last time’s article about “Ten Common Questions About Social Security”, you can find out how much you might be getting
• What is the highest achievable FICO score?
  In case you didn’t know, your FICO score can theoretically reach 850. In practice, not so much…
• Ten Ways To Save Energy And Money
  Focus on energy and electronics. No new concept or idea, just the good ‘ol solid proven ways of saving money from lowering thermostat to buying Energy Star appliances
• Five Ways To Fund Your Retirement
  There are ways of funding retirement outside of the more traditional IRA and 401(k)

As usual: Enjoy!

Memphis school principal outs gays… OUT-RA-GEOUS!

I am usually not the one to take side on this blog. I had decided that I would make it a place for people to learn things and not a place to push my opinion or beliefs, but this just made my blood boil.

Daphne Beasley, a school principal at Hollis F. Price Middle College High School in South Memphis, made teacher and staff give her a list “all student couples, “hetero and homo,” because she wanted to monitor them personally to prevent students from engaging in public displays of affection.” (ACLU Report) She promptly posted the list in her office for everyone to see.

Two male students who had wished their relationship to remain private, all of a sudden, found themselves being harassed, insulted and verbally assaulted in their school.

Ms. Beaslay also thought it to be wised to call one of the boys’ mother to let her know her son was gay. Adding that she did not like gay people.

To top it all, one of the two boys was scheduled to go on a field trip to New Orleans to help in the rebuilding efforts. He was told he was not going to go anymore because “some faculty were afraid he might “embarrass the school” or engage in “inappropriate behavior.“

People!!!!! What is this all about?!?!?!

Although I am not naive enough to think the world as a pretty pink place (yes, in my utopia, the world is pink!), I am just speechless when I read stories like this one. I wish their was a way for this woman, and all the people who participated in this, to be utterly humiliated and striped of their public servant – or whatever kind of status public education workers have – status. Pensions taken away, and all! She should be tarred and feathered, like they used to do in the good ol’ days.

Another amazing thing: a search for “Daphne Beasley” on CNN.com yielded… NO RESULTS! I’m not saying CNN is the authority on news, but if even CNN won’t even mention it, how will people be made aware??

More articles and info:
ACLU Report
The Harry Potter Alliance – Let’s Stick It To Dolores (For Real)!!!
Want to do something about it?

Investopedia Weekly Roundup

I’m subscribed to Investopedia’s RSS feed. A lot of articles come in: from earning releases to more general Personal Finance ones. I’ve decided to compile a list of my favorite articles for the week. Without further ado, I give you… My Investopedia Weekly Roundup Articles:

1. Measuring The Benefits Of Home Ownership:
   “Quantifying some of the tangible benefits and costs of owning a home”
2. Ten Common Questions About Social Security:
   While it is still actual, let’s look at some common questions you might have. From eligibility to amount perceived, you’ll get some of basics down.
3. Harvard MBA Indicator
   A definition to the term. I was just surprised about it. Never heard it before.
4. Get A Free Ride From Credit Companies
   Exactly what it sounds like. A few tips and tricks on how to use credit cards to YOUR advantage. This is not a “big secrets revealed” type of article. Just down to Earth advice.

How to Stop Receiving Donation Solicitations

I give to a few charities every year. Not a huge amount (about $40 to $60 to each). My three favorite charities are:

• The MSCPA (Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) – Charity Navigator Profile
• The HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) – Charity Navigator Profile
• The WWF (The World Wildlife Fund) – Charity Navigator Profile

I like giving, but I hate receiving solicitation from other charities to donate. I understand why they are doing it, but I have enough address label stickers to last me 2 or 3 lifetime right now!

I went on the hunt to find out how to get my name removed from shared mailing lists. I found an article on the Charity Navigator’s website, How To Stop Solicitations By Mail.

The bottom line is, in most cases, you have to pro-actively tells the charity NOT TO share your information. All of them should have a Donation policy page where you will be able to find where to write to request to be opted-out.

My Grandma’s Cooking: Potato Gnocchis in Heavy Cream

Continuing on the “Grandma’s Cooking” series and the not-so-healthy-but-yummy recipe trend…

I posted my Grand Ma’s version of Gratin Dauphinois (Potato Gratin) earlier. This week, it’s Gnocchis time! (which is my mum’s recipe)

Potato Gnocchis, if you are wondering, are little squishy lumps of a potato-based batter. I find them either in the frozen section or in the World Food section (in air tight container – sort of like fresh pasta) of my grocery store. However, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can try and make them yourself: ella at foodpluspolitics.com posted how to make gnocchis from scratch. I’m tempted to try.

Hubby doesn’t like Gnocchis. Why? “Because they look like big worms!”. He doesn’t know what he’s missing, that’s all.

Gnocchis can be cooked with an assortment of sauces, herbs and sauces. My favorite is with heavy cream and shredded cheese (that’s where the “not-so-healthy-but-yummy” comes in!)

The directions are super simple.

What you’ll need:

• 1 box of gnocchis (about 1 lb.)
• Heavy cream
• Your favorite shredded cheese (Mozzarella is a good choice is you don’t know where to start)

What you’ll need to do:

• Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil
• Pre-heat your oven to 375°F
• Empty the box of gnocchis. They are cooked when they all reach the surface, which should take 5-7 minutes
• Drain the gnocchis and place them in a loaf dish
• Pour some heavy cream… just until you start seeing the liquid through the gnocchis (the idea is the same as with the potato gratin, you do not want to cover)
• Sprinkle the shredded cheese
• Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes – we just want the cheese to melt and turn a nice crispy golden color
• Enjoy!

Photo: taste.com.au – Baked four-cheese gnocchi with walnuts