The Impossible Dream

There are times, especially here, when you think, why can't I find a good bagel? Bruegger's is, at the closest, 2 hrs. away in Omaha. Local places just don't have as high of bagel standards as I do, likely because nobody around here has really had a true, chewy, crunchy, don't-have-to-toast-it, slathered-with-cream-cheese-oozing bagel. The closest we come around here, is bread dough shaped into a donut/bagel shape.

However, 文大猊's mom found a recipe for pumpkin bagels in a magazine, and we tried our hand at bagel-making when we visited this weekend. One batch was made by hand and one batch in the bread machine. Each batch made nine bagels. After the bagels were shaped and well-rested, they were boiled in water and molasses, brushed with egg white wash, and sent to the oven for 20 min.


The result is what can only be described as Pure Heaven. Slathered with a maple-walnut cream cheese (also made from scratch), the bagels were perfect--crunchy on the crust and chewy in the middle. The pumpkin and spices made for an interesting flavor combination.


It was the highlight of my weekend, and was not as difficult as the huge bagel conglomerates would lead one to believe. It's even better when one of the home bakers previously worked for a huge bagel conglomerate, and he can share some of the secrets of the trade.

-吴碧芙

New Knits

I finally finished the second shawl, having given the first away to a friend. It turned out, but I had to order a whole new skein of yarn from Des Moines in order to finish the last 2 inches.


Having finished one project, I decided to try and finish the hat and scarf my cousin asked for ten months ago. The scarf took almost this entire time, but the hat, with my full attention on it, took only 1 week, even with a lining. The grey and dark brown is wool/mohair, rust is wool/alpaca, and tan is wool/soy. The mohair tends to make things itchy in my experience. It's Whitney's 70's Ski Hat, and it has an interesting technique.


The hat is lined with a merino/cashmere blend yarn (Knit Picks Capra Yarn, Color: Timber). Hopefully, it will be warm and non-itchy.


-吴碧芙

Di San Xian

I got some free bell peppers from my friend who works with a person who has a garden. Whenever her coworker brings vegetables, my friend brings fresh vegetables for me...because I'm a vegetarian. It works out nicely. One week she brought a cucumber and 2 zucchinis, all as big as my forearm. Then, shopping in SF, I found an Asian eggplant. I knew I had to make "three fresh things" or "three treasures of the earth," a dish that I ate almost weekly in China at the Banyan Tree restaurant.


As I told my friend, who lives in China, about this little excursion, she informed me that the Banyan Tree has been gone for almost as long as I have. Even if I lived in China, I would still have to make my own di san xian. However, luckily before I left, some other teachers were able to receive the revelation of the recipe, and translated the ingredients and directions into English from the laoban (the boss) at the Banyan Tree. However, I'm still bummed that I can't go back to China to eat all of the delicacies and risk my life by eating food in their sketchy facility.

-吴碧芙

Can't take my eyes off you...

Somewhere between me organizing the shelving unit and starting school, Roscoe found a favorite spot on top of the microwave, next to my red tea basket. I suppose at one moment he looked down, bent over all the way, and noticed some sparkly numbers on the microwave.

When I noticed him noticing the numbers, he was so mesmotized (mesmerized+hypnotized) that I could not gain his attention...for FOUR minutes. (I know this because I was also watching the numbers while trying to get his attention. Also, it is an exceptionally long time for a bird, especially for Roscoe.) Even when I took five pictures, I could not distract him. I thought he was having some kind of attack. I thought the change of the numbers would frighten him...and yet he gazed.

"And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!" --Edgar Allen Poe


-吴碧芙

Cracking the Tea Code

One year ago, my aunt brought out her "tea wallet," which is a little travel accessory for tea bags. We discussed how we might duplicate the design. One year later, nobody has offered a prototype, until today. I searched the internet, and found a variety of designs for "tea wallets," some of which are for sale on Etsy. There are very few of these "tri-fold" designs, but I did find a tutorial for making one. Then I logically changed a few details to make the design a little easier and more intuitive for me.

Lacking proper cutting, measuring, and sewing tools, I created a prototype, which a better, faster seamstress, with more advanced tools, might be able to perfect (cough...Mom...cough). When the wallet is folded and fastened, the button looks entirely off-center, urgh.


But the most important thing is that it's functional. (Am I right, or am I right?) The pockets hold 6 tea bags, and there are 5 inner pockets for sweeteners, or other condiments. The 5 inner pockets exist between the two layers. There are actually six spaces, but I sewed the ribbon into one of the pockets.


-吴碧芙

Something Green

Over the break, I started the Sheer One-Piece Shawl from the book Modular Knits by Iris Schreier. I carried it around during the birthday extravaganza and all over Iowa. I finished it today, and it turned out rather cute and green.




It is made in one continuous piece, starting with the middle diamond, adding a diamond on each side, and adding the smaller triangles on each end.


Now I am project-less again, and will be forced to work on the rust-colored scarf. If I finish the scarf, I will be adding a rust-colored hat.

-吴碧芙

Exposure

"The C.J. Albrecht wing features the Bremer County native's equipment, relics, and taxidermy from his career as a world-renowned taxidermist at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.

"A world-traveled explorer and naturalist, Albrecht led expeditions to the Arctic, Siberia, and Ethiopia. He built this addition and donated items he used and gathered during his travels for some of the best known museums in the country."

My mom took me to the Bremer County Historical Society when I was little. I was traumatized by the heads, but I suspected that it was actually only one head that I had dreamed into more. Unbelievably, my memory of the original event was accurate.

We were back at the museum as a part of the family history tour, which included the old cemeteries where ancestors were buried, the home place of a great-grandma, and the historical society, where the log cabin from the family farm is on display.

However, I used the opportunity to also prove that my memory was correct. Although I don't find the photo scary, being there to take the photo triggered an anxiety attack that neared "10" on the continuum of severity, and I could not enter the room. Everyone was inside the room and looking around at the time the photo was taken, and you can see the backs of all of my relatives.


-吴碧芙