RePost: The Witch Tree

This one had been posted on a long deleted blog, and it is one of my favorite shots of a tree I photograph quite often, when I visit it. Which I am supposed to, next weekend. We will see how she looks then.

The First Virginia Green-Energy Power Plant

Not only did our fair city of Suffolk turn blue for Obama on November 4, we now officially have the distinction of hosting the first green-energy power plant in Virginia. The plant will convert the methane gas 'exhaled' from decomposing garbage in our landfill into electricity and steam.

Read the full article here.

The creation of jobs in the city is icing on this cake. The cherry on top?... the deal may well save many area jobs by helping to lift up the sinking SPSA, which has been in financial straits lately.

It's a great time to be in Suffolk!

Simple Goodness: Oatmeal

G-man went playing with the Queen's son yesterday and as they were running through the tall grass, they got ate up by some type of insect or another. Be it chiggers or skeeters, G's poor legs are covered with bites this morning, so I ordered up a dose of antihistamine and an oatmeal bath.

Oatmeal bath: put a cup of uncooked whole oats in a nylon sack (like the footies you use in the shoe store) and tie a knot at the top to close it. Run a tub of warm water and get in with the oatmeal. Relax. As the oatmeal gets wet it will leach out a milky starch into the water. It will help with itchy skin. Good for insect bites, poison ivy/oak/sumac, and other skin conditions such as chicken pox. Bonus, your skin will be so soft.

As I was making G-man's bath sachet, I had a hankering for some real oatmeal, not the instant stuff. So this was breakfast.


Maple Cinnamon Oatmeal for Two

1 3/4 cups of water or milk (or a combo of both)
1 cup of whole 'old fashioned' oats
optional dash or two of salt
Brown sugar
Cinnamon
Maple syrup

Preparation:

Bring water/milk to a boil, add oats, cook five minutes. Remove from heat and let stand a minute.

Add cinnamon and brown sugar to taste with a tablespoon or two of maple syrup and stir it together in the pot.

Put into two bowls and, for easy clean up, immediately run water into the pot and let set.

Sprinkle on a touch more cinnamon and sugar, add a small dollop of fresh butter and a drizzle of maple syrup. Share with a beloved.

Trying to keep up with a fast paced life makes it easy to forget the simple things. Taking five minutes to whip up whole oats is better for your health and keeps packaging waste down when you stop yourself from reaching for the instant individually packaged stuff. I'll bet whoever gets the second bowl will sure appreciate it!

Keep Virginia Green, slow down, and get some sweet simple goodness.