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By Janet Evans
Monday, Sep 1 2008, 05:15 PM
I’ve mentioned before that my son and daughter-in-law live in Colorado (transplants from Franklin, by way of Pittsburgh) and that they brew beer. They grew their own hops this year and just brewed some Pale Ale with them.
I had never seen fresh hops and when I visited them earlier this month found the pods, growing like ivy on their back fence, to be beautiful.
They sent me photos last week of the ripe pods.
Here is some information on hops, in case you are unfamiliar with what you have been drinking in that beer...
"Hops are the female flower cones of the hop plant (Humulus lupulus). They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, and also in other beverages and in herbal medicine. The first documented use in beer is from the eleventh century. Hops contain several characteristics favorable to beer, balancing the sweetness of the malt with bitterness, contributing flowery, citrus, fruity or herbal aromas, and having an antibiotic effect that favors the activity of brewer's yeast over less desirable microorganisms. The hop plant is a vigorous climbing herbaceous perennial, usually grown up strings in a field called a hopfield, hop garden or hop yard. Many different varieties of hops are grown by farmers all around the world, with different types being used for particular styles of beer."
"The first recorded reference to hops was by Pliny the Elder in his Naturalis Historia. The first documented instance of hop cultivation was in 736, in the Hallertau region of present-day Germany, although the first mention of the use of hops in brewing in that country was 1079. Not until the thirteenth century in Germany did hops begin to start threatening the use of gruit for flavoring. In Britain, hopped beer was first imported from Holland around 1400; however, hops were initially condemned in 1519 as a "wicked and pernicious weed". In 1471, Norwich, England banned the plant from the use in the brewing of beer, and it wasn't until 1524 that hops were first grown in southeast England. It was a further century before hop cultivation began in the present-day United States in 1629. " from Wikipedia
Early season hop growth in a hop yard in the Yakima Valley, Washington with Mount Adams in the distance
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By Janet Evans
Monday, Aug 11 2008, 11:50 AM
Pearl Street, Boulder, CO
I just returned from a week in Boulder, Colorado. I’ll be spending some time writing about some of my experiences there off and on during the week.
On Saturday’s there is a beautiful organic green market. The produce is out of this world. The colors fabulous. We found the freshest all white corn…which I haven’t see around here in ages. Carrots in shades of orange, red, yellow and gold. Beautiful, ripe, juicy peaches. Honey that looked like it was just scooped out of a hive from inside a tree, with comb included. Every type of green and herb you can think of and a beautiful array of wildflowers.
Many, many people in this area ride bicycles. It’s a way of life. And talk about clean. It looks like someone scrubs the landscape everyday. It’s spectacular.
One of the things I noticed while I was there was that there are a lot of what I’ll call free spirits. A lot of people doing their own thing. I like that very much, to an extent. Boulder is full of very artistic people. Pearl Street runs through a section of downtown. For blocks it is an outdoor festival of people, day and night, seven days a week. There are all types of shops and restaurants, which have outdoor seating. It is a very casual and inviting environment. It just draws you in. If you have any type of talent (or even think you do) you are welcome to set up in the middle of one of the squares and show it off, and hope to make a few bucks while you are at it. You’ll find all sorts of talent…jugglers, piano players, violinists, guitarists, Australian didgeridoos, American Indian wind instruments, acrobats, every day…all day.
Ah, yes…free spirits…a section with one of those fountains that has holes in the pavement where you don’t know when the water will pop up. With children running through having a great time. Mom’s sitting on park benches watching the children…people all around. Some mom’s breastfeeding off to the side. People, as usual, talking on cell phones. Tourists with cameras.
Then I see it…The three-year old looking little girl running through the fountain, back and forth over to the benches to her mom, who was near the crowd. And I cringe. This is not a back yard. This is a very public place. This is Boulder, Colorado…where the unsolved murder of JonBenét Ramsey is still lurking. Yes, this is free spirited Pearl Street, with the free spirited mom, who isn’t thinking about the internet age, and the cell phones with cameras as her little girl, naked, is running through the water in the fountain. Innocent? Of course. Just a little girl on a hot day…but this is not a commune. This is not a back yard.
Young moms and dads…you can’t be so free spirited when it comes to your children, not in public places…not anymore. You are watching your child, yes. But you don’t know what evil person is also watching. You don’t know who may have, in one split second, taken a photo of your little girl or followed you home.
This is where I am glad I am most conservative of all. I just have to ask, “What were you thinking?”
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By Janet Evans
Saturday, Jun 28 2008, 09:36 AM
Hot Mom's Club - Alex Woodard
It’s one thing to want to have children and look your best, eat healthy, be as fit as you can, and be happy. What woman wouldn’t want that? That can only make you a better parent.
Lately, there seems to be too much attention given to the fad of “hot moms,” “hot mamas,” “sexy mamas,” you name it.
O.K. you want to go out with dad, and dress up and look sexy…nothing wrong with that.
But do you need to look like a “hot mom” when you are going to the PTO meeting, too?
When you are sitting with your 12-year old son at a teacher’s conference, is that how you want to portray yourself?
Or would you want your child wearing a t-shirt at the meeting that said my mom is hot? Do mom's really buy this stuff for their kids to wear?
I’m just wondering.
I don’t get it.
Perhaps it stems from Hollywood celebrities who are having children.
It’s one thing to feel good about yourself, or to want to make your husband proud to be with you, and especially to be proud of yourself, but it’s another to make your children embarrassed to walk with you.
I find a music video where a child is telling their mom that she’s a “hot mom now” a little odd.
I've got news for you Alex...most mom's aren't "hot." And their kids love them.
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By Janet Evans
Wednesday, Jun 25 2008, 05:37 PM
I happened to come across this blog regarding 12 Beers You Should Only Drink In College and noticed that there are three or four Milwaukee beers on the list.
“Everyone loves college. You live in a building full of your friends and the opposite sex sans parents for months, with a veritable smorgasbord of food, parties and alcohol to distract you from worthless schoolwork. But the sacrifice is that you’re broke. Still, you have to get drunk. What do you buy? Here’s a list of beers that encourage you to do your homework so you can afford the good stuff after graduation. But for now, you drink these purely out of circumstance.”
Ð
That’s what the “Campus Squeeze” says……
It’s a scary place, parents….be afraid…be very afraid….
It was just easier before their were blogs and websites...it was easier when you asked your college student how things were going and the just said, "Fine, can I have some money?"
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By Janet Evans
Tuesday, Jun 3 2008, 11:35 AM
 "There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone."
Pampered Princesses ç here
Is this just a Southern problem or is this nationwide?
Beauty pageant moms living through their daughters is bad enough.
But to waste time on this is beyond comprehension.
Yes, we want to teach our children to take care of themselves. Doing that in today’s world means first and foremost exercising, eating right, and getting enough sleep. And, as a parent you should be spending quality time with your children. There are a lot of better ways to do that than making a Stepford child by sitting in a spa all day. These moms must be planning that their daughters will marry wealthy men and they will have maids and cooks and never have to lift a finger.
Somehow I think an afternoon of making a favorite recipe with mom, learning how to repair or build something around the house with dad, camping, hiking , biking, volunteering, anything...is going to help these girls learn to "take care of themselves" better than a day at the spa.
How sad for these girls.
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By Janet Evans
Tuesday, May 27 2008, 07:30 PM
My twenty-something son dated and married his lovely high school sweetheart.
My thirty-something daughter didn’t. She dated in high school and dated in college, too. She had a relationship after college. Life was busy, work was hectic. And Mr. Right was nowhere to be found. At least, not in plain sight.
When she told me some of her friends had tried internet dating and she was considering it, I wasn’t happy about it. Too dangerous, I thought....and I still do. But she, just as at least one of her friends that I’m aware of, met her husband during the process.
So, why is it so difficult to meet that “someone special” if you don’t meet them in school or in the workplace?
If you're single would you, or have you used an online dating service?
If you're a parent, would you be worried if one of your children used one?
I'm still not crazy about the fact that my daughter used one, but I'm crazy about my son-in-law. Funny thing is, it ends up that he didn't live too far away from my daughter, and some friends in her work circle new him, and never thought of introducing them to each other. Go figure.
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By Janet Evans
Sunday, May 11 2008, 05:00 AM
"The Mom Song" (sung to the William Tell Overture)
Get up now
Get up now
Get up out of bed
Wash your face
Brush your teeth
Comb your sleepyhead
Here's your clothes and your shoes
Hear the words I said
Get up now! Get up and make your bed
Are you hot? Are you cold?
Are you wearing that?
Where's your books and your lunch and your homework at?
Grab your coat and gloves and your scarf and hat
Don't forget! You gotta feed the cat
Eat your breakfast, the experts tell us it's the most important meal of all
Take your vitamins so you will grow up one day to be big and tall
Please remember the orthodontist will be seeing you at 3 today
Don't forget your piano lesson is this afternoon so you must play
Don't shovel
Chew slowly
But hurry
The bus is here
Be careful
Come back here
Did you wash behind your ears?
Play outside, don't play rough, will you just play fair?
Be polite, make a friend, don't forget to share
Work it out, wait your turn, never take a dare
Get along! Don't make me come down there
Clean your room, fold your clothes, put your stuff away
Make your bed, do it now, do we have all day?
Were you born in a barn? Would you like some hay?
Can you even hear a word I say?
Answer the phone! Get off the phone!
Don't sit so close, turn it down, no texting at the table
No more computer time tonight!
Your iPod's my iPod if you don't listen up
Where are you going and with whom and what time do you think you're coming home?
Saying thank you, please, excuse me makes you welcome everywhere you roam
You'll appreciate my wisdom someday when you're older and you're grown
Can't wait till you have a couple little children of your own
You'll thank me for the counsel I gave you so willingly
But right now I thank you not to roll your eyes at me
Close your mouth when you chew, would appreciate
Take a bite maybe two of the stuff you hate
Use your fork, do not burp or I'll set you straight
Eat the food I put upon your plate
Get an A, get the door, don't get smart with me
Get a grip, get in here, I'll count to three
Get a job, get a life, get a PHD
Get a dose of,
"I don't care who started it!
You're grounded until you're 36"
Get your story straight and tell the truth for once, for heaven's sake
And if all your friends jumped off a cliff would you jump, too?
If I've said it once, I've said at least a thousand times before
That you're too old to act this way
It must be your father's DNA
Look at me when I am talking
Stand up straighter when you walk
A place for everything and everything must be in place
Stop crying or I'll give you something real to cry about
Oh!
Brush your teeth, wash your face, put your PJs on
Get in bed, get a hug, say a prayer with mom
Don't forget, I love you
And tomorrow we will do this all again because a mom's work never ends
You don't need the reason why
Because, because, because, because
I said so, I said so, I said so, I said so
I'm the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom!!
Ta da!!!
by Anita Renfroe
"On this 100th anniversary of Mother's Day, the woman credited with creating one of the world's most celebrated holidays probably wouldn't be pleased with all the flowers, candy or gifts. 
Anna Jarvis would want us to give mothers a white carnation — she felt it signified the purity of a mother's love.
Jarvis, who never married and never had children, got the Mother's Day idea after her mother said it would be nice if someone created a memorial to mothers.
Three years after her mother died in 1905, she organized the first official mother's day service at a church where her mother had spent more than 20 years teaching Sunday school.
Today, the former Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church is the official shrine to mothers around the world. On Sunday, the shrine will celebrate the 100th anniversary, giving each mother attending a special service a white carnation."
[...]
"According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 83 million mothers in the United States. More mothers now work out of the home and the number of single-mother households has tripled to more than 10 million since 1970. What has allowed Mother's Day to become celebrated on the second Sunday in May in 52 countries is "everyone has a mother," said Sally Thayer, a trustee of the International Mother's Day Shrine in Grafton. "It's a wonderful thing to celebrate."
from Yahoo News
Mother's Day Celebration Celebrates 100 Year Anniversary å here
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