spaghetti sauce

yum yum yum, I'm one of the very few people that I know that will make spaghetti sauce from scratch, and no not from canned tomato paste but from actual tomatoes (or canned sliced if I'm too lazy to pick up fresh tomato)

what you need
-tomatoes 1-2 per person
-bell peppers
-basil
-garlic
-thyme
-sage
-salt (optional)
-peppercorn (or ground pepper)
-roughly a pound (give or take for preference) of ground beef or tiny beef chunks, or meat balls yummy
-what's in your fridge that might taste good (lol)

-spaghetti

Most of this is to taste as I don't actually have a recipe for this, it's basically a way for me to use up what veggies I can from the fridge and have something different each time.

Fry or bake or boil (I like frying) your meat until cooked

-Squish your tomatoes, or puree or blend, toss in a pot on the stove and bring to a simmer

-Add; basil, thyme, and sage. (add to taste but remember that this taste may increase over time, start with a small amount as it is possible to add more later but impossible to subtract later)

-Stir often and let simmer until it starts to thicken (max I have seen it go is 40 minutes if you want to speed it up then corn starch or a little flour can help)

-Add you chunks of bell peppers and either slice, grind, or add whole the garlic.  (add to taste but remember that the taste of garlic will increase over time, start with a small amount as it is possible to add more later but impossible to subtract later)

- Right before serving but while still on the stove add meat then salt and pepper to taste.

I'm sorry I couldn't give precise measurements for this RHY but honestly it changes based on mood and what's in my fridge and what spices are on hand...though I can tell you that marjoram will make it much hotter when combined with garlic.

I plan on making this either Monday or Tuesday.

Blessed Be
~Flaming

feels naked

Well I had to drive L to work early this morning so since I was out I decided to head to Mac Island early ~10am to read and drink coffee until yoga at 11. I got into mac island parking lot then I felt it, I felt naked. Why?

Because I didn't put on my necklace this morning. I usually take off my pentacle and dragon necklace when sleeping for 2 reasons. 

1)the chain isn't all that sturdy

2)it's pointy!

So yeah I felt naked.

But that's ok because I'm home now.  Yoga it turns out was cancelled by the instructor because she's sick. 

I was still drinking coffee and reading for about an hour between 10 and 11, the coffee wasn't the best because their machine has been down for almost 3 weeks now and they have the pump thermos canisters. I'm not a big fan of those, I find they make the coffee taste off. 

And I also returned a bunch of books to the library today so I'll have to update my list on what I've read and what is next. 

Apparently there's a read-a-thon going on at the end of this month. 

I might join it though I have a few things personal going on around the same time...my birthday and all won't leave much time for reading. Though if anyone wants to check it out then go to

Just a heads up the banner won't link right away because I suck at html... 

Blessed Be

~Flaming

Partial lunar eclipse

Just a heads up guys that on June 3rd and 4th there will be a partial lunar eclipse that will be visible in north america. Fully visible in Alaska and Hawaii, and only partially visible for the western and parts of central north america.
So us here in the western part of Canada and the states should be able to see a partial view of both the penumbral and umbral eclipse (sp?) 


I don't know much more about this but I figured some people might be interested in the info.


Blessed Be
~Flaming

The strawberry moon AKA rose moon, sun moon, or hot moon

So since it's roughly 5 days until the next full moon  I figure I should say my little part on this up and coming moon. For those living in fort mcmurray the time I believe will be 9:36 at night this Friday the 5th. For those outside of town the times will vary, if you need help finding the time reply with your area and I'll see what I can do.

I know it by 4 names but I only know the story for 2 of them. So if anyone knows the story of the hot moon or the sun moon then go right ahead in the comments and tell me about it.

The strawberry moon story is fairly simple, the native tribes where strawberries grow knew to pick the strawberries after this full moon as the fruits would be just ripening hence the name strawberry moon.

Sadly I live far enough up north that the strawberries won't be completely ready but I am grabbing a strawberry plant from a nursery tomorrow, maybe even a tomato plant as my plants last year didn't fair so well from seed.

For those in the European countries where strawberries are not native, roses usually are native and are starting to show/bloom. There is where we get the name rose moon.

Blessed Be
~Flaming

Peppered steak a day late

Sorry RYH
I couldn't think of anything to cook last night so we had leftovers, But I do plan on making peppered steak in the next few days so I'll give you the recipe here.

The basics
-Crushed mixed peppercorns (you can buy whole and crush them yourself with a hammer and a few plastic bags)
- 2 steaks or like my mother uses when she's stuck stew meat
-garlic
-olive oil (or any oil really)

On the bbq?
mix your peppercorns and oil together (you can add water as well to make it less oily ) and then crush garlic into the mixture, rub on both sides of the steak and let sit for no less than 10 minutes. Then BBQ time.
Seriously that easy

fried on stove with stew meat or cubed steak? What I'll be making
Cut your meat into chunks, make the same mixture as above and mix with the chuncks, let site for no less than 10 minutes. fry on stove in pan.

add more?
-bell peppers or any other pepper.
-corn on the cob
-potato
-rice
- you can marinade your steak overnight for better flavor
-mushrooms
-onions
-celery
-beans
-anything in you fridge almost can be added



Oh yeah and salt and pepper to taste (though I normally don't use any for this recipe)


See ya in a few months RHY!

~Flaming


edit: I forgot you wanted a picture from last week

New toe shoes and socks! (personal review)

In case people haven't read my post on grounding in my KSO's I'm just going to say. If I can't go barefoot I find it easier to ground my energy when I feel the ground beneath my feet and vibrams are usually perfect for that as they simulate a barefoot feel with the added protection. Yes other minimalist shoes will probably work just the same but I own vibrams because I like them. The website for vibrams is here.
http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/index.htm

My new Jaya's from vibram fivefingers came in yesterday as well as my smartwool toe socks from sportschek and I have to say I'm loving the socks but the shoes are going to take a little getting use to.

I've been wearing my KSO's for about a year now and with the strengthening of my feet I have actually outgrown them somewhat. I stretched them so I can still squeeze into them but they are tight. Remeasuring my feet again I am still surprised to have found that I went up 3 vibram sizes.
So I bought the Jaya's in plum/pink/white,  L said to try a new style and they're not bad.

The Jaya's are large enough to fit with the socks on but not too large to be uncomfortable without the socks, it feels weird but I quickly got over that feeling after I realized that I wasn't getting sweaty like I normally do.





Surprising enough the smart wool socks act just like their packaging said they would. Kept me cool during the midday heat when the rest of my body was roasting and now early in the morning when I'm freezing they are keeping my feet relatively warm. I hand washed them so I could wear them again today for Yoga in a few hours (That studio gets freezing). The price tag was a bit out there so I might start to look for cheaper alternatives if I feel the need to get more toe socks. (about $25 Canadian for a pair yikes!)

I was warned that the Jayas were a bit different in that the bottoms were meant for inside use, looking at them now I see that the white stuff is a foam like material and the plum disks are a harder type of rubber which is meant for grip. I'm not very fond of the foam but it does make them very light on the feet I forgot I was wearing them last night, though I prefer the feel of the ground which was a little muted when in comparison with my KSO's. Maybe after a wear down period they will have a better barefoot feel but as of now I'm not that impressed with the bottoms of these.
Lighter than KSO's but not as sensitive.

The colour selection of these is fantastic, normally I can only say that I like 1 or 2 of the colour variety when it comes to vibram but the Jaya's are the exception. I love the style though was a bit sad to see that the vibram website did not have any in my size, I had to order through sportschek. I have small feet but I still would love it if they restocked their north america site more often.

How are they to expect to sell more product if they don't restock is beyond me but I watched their site for 2 weeks (nearly 3 weeks) before going to sportschek and this is not the first time I have noticed or people have told me about vibram not restocking.
(hint hint, Vibram you have people wanting to buy but can't because you never have stock!!!) *snickers* I doubt vibram will look at this blog anyway, just google them and see the massive amount of blog posts they have mentioning them.

Putting these on was an easy task in comparison to putting on the KSO's which seemed like a chore in itself some days (worth it though). I have yet to find any hotspots on the Jaya's and hope to soon wear them down so that they are more flexible. Don't get me wrong, they are still fairly flexable but I'm use to year old KSO flexable where I could roll them up and stuff them in a coat pocket. I can't fit my Jaya's in a coat pocket yet.

All in all I'm left with a good impression on the socks and an ok impression with the Jaya's.
The Jaya's are meant for indoor activity and I will probably use them as a lounge wear and for quick outings to the store or friends. I will probably wear them to yoga today as well.
However since the pricetag on vibrams is so high I may have to wait 6 months to a year to buy my next pair to replace my KSO's for more active outdoor wear.


Yeah disclaimer time
These are personal opinions, smartwool and vibram did not pay me or supply me with anything that I did not buy myself. I spent over $120 so now I'm kinda broke for now.
All pictures are of my own feet while sitting at my computer.


Ah and yes I do remember that today I'm supposed to post a recipe of the week for RYH. I'm working on that, I just don't know what to make I'm just lazy today.



Blessed Be
~Flaming



Big edit after Yoga
these Jaya's are excellent for yoga, better than the KSO's
good grip without ripping into the mat and less foot sweat.

recipe of the week. meat&potato casserole

The first recipe of the week as requested by my friend RyH who wants my cooking across a Provence.
ok first I'll explain the basics and then give other options to add to the meal.
Sound good?
Awesome.


Basic meat and potato casserole as made by me when I'm lazy.

needed

-ground beef (about a pound)
-condensed cream of mushroom soup (a can)
-potatoes (4 cups sliced)
- onion (1 cup chopped)
-salt&pepper
-water

First fry the ground beef on medium until no longer pink, keep stirring or it will burn on. Add salt and pepper to taste (a few shakes).
Chop up your onion thinly and mix with the mushroom soup and roughly 3/4 cup of water.
Then mix in 3/4 of the mixture with the beef. Add               this beef mix to the casserole dish.                                  
Peel the potatoes and slice them.
Mix the potato slices with some mushroom and onion mix then add them to top of the casserole. an even layer is preferred.
Bake covered for an hour at 175 °C (or if you prefer 350°F), then uncovered until browning starts (~10 minutes)

There should be enough for 4 people.

now for the options!

-celery chopped can be added with the onion (1/2 cup onion 1/2 celery)
-chicken or fish can be used instead of beef
-chicken broth can be used instead of mushroom soup and milk instead of water to maintain the creamy(ness)
- you can add garlic to the mix or use garlic salt instead of regular salt.
-peas can be added as well as bell peppers
- most veggies chopped can be added experiment with taste.
-basil, rosemary, chives, and other herbs can be successfully used (add to taste)
-you can use different types of onion to gain slightly different flavors.
-mix the potato in with the beef then use pie crust for the topping
-add cheese to the top or throughout
-after completing the basics there are literally hundreds of new combinations to experiment with.
-tomato slices, chunks and sauce can work as well

Want more difficulty?
you can still make the cream of mushroom soup.

Have fun!

~Flaming