Voted Off the Island

Turn Your Weber Into a Pizza Oven

Saw this today on Serious Eats.  Brilliant.  "Need" this.  After dreaming of a wood-fired pizza oven, this may have to do. Pricey at $79.95 + shipping, but it comes with a thermometer, which would be handy even when grilling other things. 

The Pizza Kettle ($79.95) is an aftermarket insert that turns your Weber Kettle grill into a sort of coal-fired pizza oven. It basically "extends" the height of your grill enough to give it an oven mouth that you can slide pizzas in and out of. The lid stays on, with the idea being that the temperature stays high enough inside to cook the pizzas under the same intense heat that the best wood- and coal-fired ovens reach.

Massachusetts inventor Al Contarino makes the Kettle Pizza Oven and sells it from Main Street Hardware in North Andover, Massachusetts. It's $79.95. You can also buy it online via eBay.

Bye Bye Baby. . .Goin' to College

His bags are packed.  We're ready to go.  I'm standing here outside his door.  I hate to wake him up to say, "let's go." But the Jetta's waiting, his flight's at 2:00. . . what's an empty nest mom gonna do?"  

I knew this day would come, but not so fast, not so fast!

College Packing List 2010

When I went off to Beloit College as a freshman back in the 1970's, I shipped a trunk of clothing and bedding ahead. I flew to Chicago . . . alone. I took a cab to the Greyhound bus station, then hopped the bus to Beloit, Wisconsin, and walked up the hill to campus with my typewriter in hand and a backpack strapped to my back.  Safely ensconced in Whitney Hall, there was a pay phone in the hall, a tv in the downstairs lounge, and the big innovation was the keycard -- a liberating electronic key that broke the old "parietals" system and allowed you to come and go in and out of your dorm at any hour instead of having a Proctor let you in.  My dorm was co-ed by floor - this was considered very liberal.

Hey, I'm no virgin. And I sent a child to college 6 years ago, so there are no stars in my eyes.  Admittedly, this child was a boy, so the coordinated comforter/towel/rug/curtain thing didn't apply.  I know that times have changed. But now I am sending his brother to the same college, and excuuuze me, but I think the packing list has lost its mind. My kid is going to George Washington University, in Washington, DC.  It's a major metropolis, and they have EVERYTHING he needs in the goddam CVS drugstore, which is part of his G-World "swipe" system -- Eat, Study, Consume.

Below is a major Helicopter Mom's (Southern version, to be sure) packing list for UGA (University of Georgia) freshmen. OK, OK, I bought some stuff for my kid -- the only things he specifically asked for were French Press Coffee Maker (IKEA 4.99) and an "egg crate" (foam mattress protector) to make the bed more comfy. I bought him some extras that make me happy, like over-the-door hooks, towels and multi-plug surge protectors, and new XL sheets, comforter cover, but nothing like this insane list:

Room stuff

1.     Moving cart- beg , borrow or steal one- you will need this.

2.     Desk lamp( can’t be halogen)

3.     Small microwave or refrigerator (or order [email protected]

4.     Rug- optional since room is carpeted

5.     TV

6.     Xbox  for games and dvd’s

7.     Multi plug with self contained surge protectors

8.     Extension cords ( extra long for tv)and Ethernet cable/ cord

9.     Dust buster- maids will not clean their carpets if there is stuff on the floor. There will always be stuff on the floor.

10.  Desk chair-  Container Store/ Target=bungee light weight chair can also be used for gaming and TV

11.  Large trash can- boys never take out trash. Room comes with a small one and there is one in the bathroom.

12.Fan/air purifier-optional but Brian asked for one and I had it sent from Sharper Image.

13.Bed risers- This is the only way you can lift bed to fit stuff underneath. They will sell them on moving day or buy them at container store/bbb

14. Mattress Pads/allergy liners. I got mine at Costco.

15.board for outside dorm room-optional not sure if boys use this or not will need marker and erasers

16.mirrors- this may not be necessary since there is one in bathroom. Need to check and see if there is one over their sink in their rooms. They might like a full length mirror but I am not sure where they would put it.

17.doublet closet doubler from Container Store. If they put their bureau in their closet they will need this.

18.underbed storage boxers/containers- Container Store

19.reading light and alarm clock. Most kids use their cell phones but if phone is lost or not charged it’s a nice back up.( or if you have a deep sleeper)

20.-(2 )sets of regular twin sheets, pillow cases, comforter, 2 pillows (backrest optional)

21.blackout shade and tension rod(36’’)-optional but blinds break and if they are on the sunny side of Granville- it is bright.

Bath

1.     Shower curtain-optional since Granville provides liner.( I have a shower curtain they can use)

2.     Bath mat- one that can go in washer/dryer ( ditto I have this also)

3.     Towel rack for door ( may not be necessary since picture shows a rack not sure if every room has one)

4.     Extra toilet paper

5.     (3)Towels, wash cloths (1)beach towel

6.     Liquid soap

Office supplies

UGA calendar- at bookstore with important dates included.

Printer cartridges and paper

Stationary, stamps, addresses

Files- important numbers, credit card, insurance, copies of everything in their wallet..they will lose it…passport… they will need it….

Command tape and hooks-container store/office depot

Can opener

Calculator and batteries

Lap desk-optional

Flashlight

Wall clock-optional

Chargers for ipod, phone

Tool kit

Hanging file set

Pens, pencils, notebook paper, stapler, paper clips, note cards, scissors, hole puncher, highlighters, post it notes, tape and duct tape, white out

Dictionary and thesaurus from home

Receipt for book preorder- need to show to pick up books.

UGA maps, class list/schedule- high school calculus book? Summer reading book.

 Medicine

Advil

Tylenol, benedryl, Claritin, tums, vitamins first aid kit from target. ermergen c- whole foods, Zpac/amoxiclyin, Neosporin

Acne medicine

Personal items and toiletries

Shampoo/conditioner

Video games/poker chips

Liquid soap/hands

Cooler and stadium chairs ( store underneath bed) I have 2 UGA chairs so Brett does not have to bring unless he wants more.

Tooth paste, tooth brush, shaving cream, razor, after shave, nail clippers , deodorant, brush, comb, hair dryer( winter)sunscreen, chap stick, mouth wash, goldbond, soap (dove moisturizing)

Grocery Store- move in day-location

Trash can liners (need size)

      Water, Gatorade and Coke

      Snacks ( let him pick these out- they will surprise you).

      Can opener- you will forget this

      Kleenex, tp, disinfectant wipes (probably the only cleaning supply they will use) 

      Lightbulbs

       Laundry detergent and supplies ( quarters)- although laundrymen service is a luxury             item we used for brian and will use again with drew.  Drycleaning is extra. You can             prepay on line by semester.

 Clothing

Boxers- (14) even with laundry service. On short weeks over fall holiday and thanksgiving there I s no pick up.

Shoes. Something comfortable since they have never really walked before and they will complain their feet hurt wearing their rainbows to class.

Rain jacket. 100% waterproof and breathable. Luxury item but worth it.

Tuxedo- optional now and may wait but they will need one in the spring. JBanks and men’s warehouse has good prices. Without a car its hard to get this in Athens.

Sports jacket, ties, dress slacks and shirts for cocktail parties.

Khaki pants, jeans, buttoned down shirts ( more than you think)

Fleece- most likely the only winter jacket they will wear . although it snowed several times last winter and they will need after Christmas to go bring back winter gear.

Swim suit

Umbrella

Sports equipment- tennis, bb, fb, golf, cleats, tennis shoes, bb shoes

     

      

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wonders of the South: The Bottle Tree

 

That's a bottle tree, shot on my phone today at Slotin Folk Fest 2010. This is an annual folk art show that I dearly love, but generally miss, because I'm usually up in the Adirondacks and Berkshires at this time in August. 

I'm fascinated by bottle trees, and by southern folk art -- which for me is the ultimate intersection of southern weirdness, mental illness, faith and fancy. 

What's a bottle tree, and why do I want one as garden art?  

It's pure hoodoo. African folk magic. The shine and color of bottle trees are meant to attract and then trap evil spirits.

According to Texas folklorist, Dr. Mary Jo Clendenin, "the color blue wards off evil and brings good luck. Some folk go even father to capture the spirits by greasing the throats of the bottles with fat to better entrap the evil spirits. Once sucked inside, it is believed that the spirits cannot escape, the morning sun seals them inside. When a strong wind whips through the bottle tree causing it to emit a low whistle or moan, that signifies the death of the imprisoned spirits. During the 1878 yellow fever epidemic in Memphis, Tennessee, families where the disease was raging hung blue medicine bottles on tree limbs outside their homes to ward off spirits associated with the plague.

Even Eudora Welty writes about bottle trees: 

"Out front was a clean dirt yard with every vestige of grass patiently uprooted and the ground scarred in deep whorls from the strike of Livvie's broom. Rose bushes with tiny blood-red roses blooming every month grew in threes on either side of the steps. On one side was a peach tree, on the other a pomegranate. Then coming around up the path from the deep cut of the Natchez Trace below was a line of bare crape-myrtle trees with every branch of them ending in a colored bottle, green or blue. There was no word that fell from Solomon's lips to say what they were for, but Livvie knew that there could be a spell put in trees, and she was familiar from the time she was born with the way bottle trees kept evil spirits from coming into the house--by luring them inside the colored bottles, where they cannot get out again. Solomon had made the bottle trees with his own hands over the nine years, in labor amounting to about a tree a year, and without a sign that he had any uneasiness in his heart, for he took as much pride in his precautions against spirits coming in the house as he took in the house, and sometimes in the sun the bottle trees looked prettier than the house did." --- Eudora Welty

Shangri La Botanic Garden, Orange Texas (photographs by Greg Grant)

Enchanting isn't it.  What a great way to recycle your glass. This Squidoo page has great information about bottle trees, including good instructions on how to make one using a real tree, a tree branch, or rebar -- the material favored by folks in the modern south like Bottle Tree Bob in Alabama.