Knight and Day

If you’re living in the United States you’ll want to turn your clocks back an hour tonight before you head off to bed. In the UK we did this exactly seven days ago. So for the past week we’ve been only six hours ahead of our family and friends in Utah, instead of the usual seven. We won’t be messing with our clocks tonight. We have far more interesting things to do with our evening. Tonight is Guy Fawkes Night, or Bonfire Night. After sunset we’ll walk to the Stray where there will be an enormous crowd, even if there is pouring rain (as there usually is). Harrogate is expecting at least 11,000 people to show up, rain or no rain. There will be a huge bonfire and fireworks to celebrate the failure of a plot to blow up the House of Lords in 1605. Doesn’t that sound like fun?

Magnolia Court

We learned just last night that we’ll be moving back to the States a bit earlier than we’d originally planned; the first week of January rather than the first week of April. I’m so pleased. It will be wonderful to be back with my kids, my siblings, my mom and especially my grandson. It will be nice to return to the land of ubiquitous public rest rooms, wide straight roads and free parking lots. But there are several things about England I’ll be sorry to leave. I’ll miss the year-round green trees and green grass. I’ll miss being called, “Love” by nearly everyone I meet. I’ll miss seeing a price tag on an item in the store and handing exactly that amount to the cashier. Most of all I’ll miss the friends I’ve made here, especially the ones I quilt with one Thursday a month.

Housewife

Here’s a thought for National Housewife’s Day: When I was a child my friends had stay-at-home moms. I grew up thinking it was normal for mothers to be there when school let out. My kids had a stay-at-home mom, but many of their friends didn’t. Now that I’m a grandmother I know very few young parents who feel they can manage without two incomes. It’s sad, because they’ll never know how much they’re missing until it’s too late. They’re letting strangers raise their children. They’re sending a very vivid message that things (like a nice car, a big TV, dining out, etc.) are more important than people (like their own children). It takes courage, but becoming a stay-at-home mom is possible if you have a supportive husband, if you’re committed to being the most important person in your child’s life (at least for the first dozen or so years), and if you’re willing to sacrifice a few things for this very important goal.

Homespun

November 2nd is National Deviled Egg Day. So today’s post is obvious:

Classic Deviled Eggs

6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and cut lengthwise
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon mustard
1/2 teaspoon vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Paprika or cayenne for a garnish

Remove yolks from egg whites and press them through a sieve into a bowl. Add mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Spoon yolk mixture into a zipable sandwich bag. Seal and cut a small corner off the bag with a pair of scissors. Squeeze the yolk into the egg white halves and sprinkle lightly with paprika or cayenne. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Eat within 24 hours. Makes one dozen deviled eggs. If you have any leftover yolk mixture after you’ve filled all the egg white halves, it makes a good sandwich filler.

Antique Tile

The first day of November is Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead. It’s celebrated in many Spanish-speaking countries, particularly in Mexico. It’s a day to remember and to pray for your ancestors, both distant and otherwise. In Mexico it’s celebrated with sweets that are shaped like skeletons or skulls. Mexicans typically observe Dia de los Muertos by visiting the graves of their ancestors and leaving gifts of flowers and food. Marigolds are usually the flower of choice, but I’m not exactly sure why. If you’re a parent or a grandparent, today would be a good day to tell the young people in your life what you know about your parents and your grandparents. If you’re not, it would be a terrific day to ask your parents and your grandparents to tell you about the people who came before them.

October

Are you ready for your bedtime story? Here’s a nice one by Edward Gorey: A is for Amy who fell down the stairs. B is for Basil assaulted by bears. That’s nice. It rhymes. C is for Clair who wasted away. D is for Desmond thrown out of the sleigh. What clever pictures. E is for Ernest who choked on a peach. F is for Fanny, sucked dry by a leech. Why are you making that face? G is for George, smothered under a rug. H is for Hector, done in by a thug. Calm down! It’s just a story. I is for Ida who drowned in the lake. J is for James who took lye by mistake. Are you sure you’re alright? K is for Kate who was struck with an axe. L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks. You know what? I think we should save this book for another time. Sleep tight. Don’t let the bedbugs bite. Happy Halloween!

Economy Block

October 29, 1929 the New York Stock Exchange crashed on what came to be known as “Black Tuesday.” Most historians point to this day as the beginning of the Great American Depression. It’s said that anyone who bought stocks in 1929 and held onto them would see most of his or her adult life pass by before getting back to even. My grandmothers were teenagers in 1929. They completed their educations and began families and careers during the decade that followed. I asked them what that was like, and they said it taught them to be frugal. They both raised vegetable gardens, sewed their own clothing, and bottled fruits, pickles and jellies. If company came to visit, it was an excuse to make a roast and dinner rolls, not an opportunity to go out to eat. They lived by the adage, “Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”