TheSnackHound

Okay, readers.  It is time for a “talking to.”

I am spending some time in the “old country,” the area where I was born.  It is actually still part of the New World, it is just that the ways in this part of the United States might seem a little peculiar to people in other parts of the United States.  In fact, when I go to the east coast, they tell me *I* am the one with the accent.  Wait a minute, I sound just like the newscasters, don’t I?

I digress.

At any rate, the “new thing” that is actually only a new thing to ME apparently is selling candy corn and peanuts together, all mixed up in one box or bag and calling it a snack.   This is not an excuse, apparently, to get rid of candy corn.  I have only met a few people in my whole lifetime who actually liked and SOUGHT out candy corn.  The other few people that ate candy corn did so when it was in a meddly of halloween candy and didn’t want to leave it out, or ate it “because it was there,” but wouldn’t normally.  It is kind of like having beer goggles.  You wouldn’t normally “do it” unless the circumstances were right…I should rather say when circumstances are very “wrong,” but a scientist or meteorologist would say “right” like how conditions were “right” for the Perfect Storm, even though it was really “not a really great thing to have happened.”   Just ask Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio.

How did I find this out?  I went to a Cider Mill and they had the plastic snap tight boxes filled with the stuff.  It was only $4.50 but they had marked it down to half off, as they weren’t sure if it was Thanksgiving-y enough.  Well, at that price, I guess it is time to start a holiday tradition.   Just recycle the halloween candy at Thanksgiving.  They certainly would have had minu 1″ pumpkins and corn at the first feast, wouldn’t they?  This is merely just a candy interpretation.

A side note: I always wonder why they show pumpkins on the table when people recreate the first Thanksgiving in artistic form.  They are either on the table or somewhere else for decoration.  Did the Pilgrims slice them like giant apples and serve them?  I would have assumed that the pumpkin would have been made into different things already and wouldn’t have appeared as full pumpkins.  Maybe the artist or director thought that we would want to know what the pie or the bowl of stuff was made out of and the pumpkin was there to make us remember that there were pumpkin ingredients.  Not sure about that one.

Anyways, back to the candy corn/peanut thing.  I thought that they invented at the Cider Mill, but then my mom and a few other people said, “Mmmmm….those are good together” when the subject was brought up, like some kind of convergence was happening where a roomful of people mysteriously agreed about something and knew about it for a long time at the very bottom of their soul.  Yikes.  I just can’t fathom it.  And then someone offered,” SPANISH peanuts and candy corn taste even better!”   It is understood that there is sometimes a desire to have something both salty and sweet, but are candy corns really sweet?  I always thought they were kind of blah.  I mean, they technically have sugar in them, but that is their only claim.

So, there may be some of you who think that the sensation of flavors is just great.  I admit that it is a good way to recycle, but I am not jumping on the bandwagon with you.   My least favorite candy doesn’t get better by adding something to it.

Thanksgiving is coming very soon, and it brings to mind countless happy family gatherings. My grandparents, immediate family, aunts, uncles, and cousins all get together. In the past eight years, a few children of my cousins have been added to the mix.

The tradition also involves two other things.  The first is cramming ourselves all in to a house that we would be over the capacity for. The second is Grandpa’s report. If you are far away and live out of town, you can call in for it. Grandpa always gives a blow by blow report about what was served, but he focuses on the desserts primarily. You will find out if the staples of apple pie and chiffon cake with whipped topping were trotted out.  Pretzel Jello is also something else that shows up in the mix quite frequently.  Grandpa and I always joke about him sending me a piece in the mail, and he always said it would be an envelope of smashed up yuck by the time it got there.

For the record, Grandma sent me a cake once in the mail. She sliced the pieces up and wrapped them individually and sent it by priority. When I opened it up, it was still fresh. I don’t think I shared it with anyone.

We almost lost Grandpa about seventeen years ago. He had stomach cancer, and he lost part of it. He recovered fine, but now, he has to eat as if he had lap-band. He cannot eat lare meals, and eats just a little at a time. Of course, he still finds a way to sample the desserts by taken a very small amount of each, or saving one piece for another day.

I always wondered if people had to go on a liquid diet after having an elective Bariatric surgery rather than what Grandpa had, but it dawned on me that Grandpa basically has the same diet.  He never had a weight problem, so his smaller stomach causes him to be more slight than he used to be, but we are very happy to have him around.  Grandma just makes sure to make servings small and to also include fruit if Grandpa had his fill with dinner and wants dessert but can’t stomach one of his old favorites.  In fact, he has more fun having a little bit of everything versus the rest of us who approach gluttony on our favorite and have no room for anything else.

This Thanksgiving will probably be similar to last, except I will be there for the first time in a few years.  I won’t have to call in for the report.  I will be court side!  Actually, more properly, I will be tableside.

(Above: Too much for anyone to handle, Miss Alice in Dairyland and Miss Honey meet!  It is almost like when the cast of the LoveBoat ends up on Fantasy Island.  It is just way too much excitement overload.)

When I was a kid, more specifically a fifth grader, we had the usual Math class, English Class, History Class, but instead of any sort of Sociology class, we had Wisconsin class.  Wisconsin class?  Yes, you heard me right.  Come walk with me while I take you on a journey…or in Wisconsin-ese, it would be “I’m gonna go on a trip, wanna come with?”

In this class, we learned how fur trappers portaged across rivers.  That is when you go so far that the river gets really shallow and ends and you have to carry your canoe and put it in the next river.  Literally, you ran out of water.  We learned to identify the various breeds of cattle.  I can still go to a fair and id them with the best of them.  Oh, and of course we learned about cheese.  At one point in the year we had a feast of Wisconsin Foods.  You can bet it involved heavy cream, and about fifty kinds of cheese.  The crackers were Ritz, and not made in Wisconsin but the rules were bent.  Ritz Crackers are honorary or naturalized citizens of Wisconsin.  I think we wore costumes.  Either way, if any kids were lactose intolerant, which nobody seemed to be back in my day, which was not too long ago, they would be in trouble.

If we were really lucky, the winner of the Miss Alice in Dairyland Pageant would have been an alum of our school.  That was held at the state fair and all contestants had to make their own bathing suit, be talented, and milk a cow.  The young lady got to wear a crown and sash and be Miss Alice in Dairyland until the next state fair.  It was far more prestigious than being Miss Wisconsin or anything obscure like that.

Ah, memories.

You prob’ly liked this entry, hey?

The Sproutwells are featured in a series of cartoons on YouTube.  It is a fish out of water story about a mild mannered family of vegetables doing their best to live in a human neighborhood.  They are ambassadors for FreshFunds.com, a site that rewards you for buying specially marked healthy products.

The neighbors are a little suspicious of all the packages they are getting.  It makes me wonder, though.  The Baby obviously has a shopping addiction that needs to be contended with.  However, how do the Sproutwells get to participate in the program? I mean, do they get points from being themselves?  Or do the vegetables actually buy vegetables to eat?  That doesn’t seem right, does it?

I have signed up for the freshfunds site and it is really easy. You just look for point emblems on specially marked Fresh Express salads, as well as a Chiquita product or two. You can use the points to win prizes or bid auctio-style on some pretty cool stuff. What’s more, is you can use your points to donate to charity! Staying healthy is everyone’s goal, and getting more vegetables in your diet is definitely one of the ways to do it. Just don’t leave your computer running while the fridge is open. Your radishes and cucumbers might start ordering things.

What exactly is Faygo Rock and Rye? I know it is a soft drink, but what gives it the flavor? The typical ingredients list is similar to any other soda, and the true flavor combination that causes the distinct taste is a true mystery, perhaps only known by one person at the bottling company.

Until the 1950s, Faygo pop was only available in Michigan because it would spoil. That is when they discovered there was something in the water causing that, and from there on out used a water filtration system. Through strategic marketing during Tigers games in the 1960s, and with the longer shelf life, the brand expanded to be a regional one.

I remember the commercials from the 80s

Remember when you were a kid?
Well part of you still is
That’s why we make Faygo…
Faygo Remembers…

Now, Faygo Red Pop, Cola and others have popped up around the country. Still, I have not been able to find Rock and Rye Faygo anywhere but in Michigan. There was actually an alcoholic drink called Rock and Rye. That R and R was liquer made from rye whisky with citrus flavors added, plus a piece of rock candy. I have never tried this so do not know if it was what the flavor of the Faygo version was based on, but it sure is not like any other flavor of soda that other companies carry, as far as I have tried.

Is there any other regional beverage or food you have been craving but cannot get anywhere else?

It has been a little while since I dove into the tumultuous sea of Ebay as a buyer or a seller.  Back in the day, I found that the key was, unless you had something rare (of course it couldn’t be SO rare that no one knew it existed so no one could be looking for it), you really had to market yourself and specialize. I did respectable, if not gangbuster business.

However, I always envied the person with a feedback of “5″ who sold a plastic container of hurricane wind or a haunted walking stick for gobs of money.  Why did I spend so much time retouching photos of condiment receptacles with the meticulousness of a graduation photo photographer erasing zits? My hours seemed like a waste.

Now, the big controversy is that Ebay has done away with allowing checks and money orders as a payment method.  Much rending of garments has happened.  I will say, as a seller, my best customers were those that sent checks and money order, but on the other hand, sometimes they took forever to get.  It was easy for someone to say “the check is in the mail” and then it never comes.  Meanwhile, you could have sold the item 10 times over.   The change in policy may actually speed up the process for a seller, but there is still a kink.  There is a rating system for speed of delivery, and if a seller cautiously waits a few extra days for a check to clear, they could risk getting a low rating.  These days, it seems that unless the buyer is reasonable, if you don’t practically teleport the item, you could risk getting knocked down a peg.   As it always seems with changes, people stomp their feet and threaten to leave and come right back, or a whole new crop of people give it a whirl, so it doesn’t seem to cause Ebay to pause and reflect.

Overall, if you are thinking about Selling on eBay, I recommend a few things

- Market yourself, spread the word about your own auctions
- If you plan on doing it for a length of time, specialize so that you can market to past customers for repeat business
- Don’t waste your time with $5 items on ebay.
- Or come up with something really bizarre.  Get out the toaster, or toss that $1 garage sale plate against the wall and see whose profile the broken edge looks like!
- Oh, and you better like to gamble.

A little while back, I mentioned that Ivory was a new color in Fiesta Ware this year.  I also hinted in the post on the new Fiesta Christmas dishes that chocolate would also be making a debut.  The new chocolate color starts to ship this month.  Look for it available in retail outlets and websites in the coming days.  When I first mentioned it, I did not have a photo, which wasn’t fair to mention it and not show it, but now that more information is readily available, I have one.

In the past few years in home decor, a chocolate brown and turquoise color scheme has popped up here and there, so I can’t help but think that this is meant to not only mix with neutral ivory but to be used with the stalwart of the Homer Laughlin Fiesta family, turquoise.   Maybe it is not shown as a “serving suggestion” so to speak, but I am sure some will do it.   Maybe the cutting edge designers are moving on to another color palette, but there is a trickle down for accessories.  Typically, someone keeps a sofa or an area rug for a number of years and so the colors usually stick around in accessories and low to midrange furniture over the next few years of a color palette being introduced.

For more information on past postings about fiestaware, click HERE.

I went to Kmart a few weeks ago with my aunt.  I had no idea that some Kmarts still had the cafeteria.  We were going to get dinner in a couple hours, but I was absolutely starving, and I couldn’t decide between a hot pretzel and ice cream.  As you might have guessed, I hemmed and hawed for a little while.   The pretzel was chosen, but a not even ten minutes later I went back for the ice cream.  Usually I am not such a glutton.  It was the whole “salty or sweet” dilemma.  Actually, I was trying to balance the salt content with some calcium.  Yeah, that sounds good.

The other thing that I didn’t know was that there was still Kmart Lay-Away.  I guess I had taken it for granted, with all the changing around.  Some Kmarts are now Sears stores and vice versa.  Layaway is a great option for people who want to budget, grab an item while they see it, and avoid using credit.  When I was a teenager, I remember that there were more stores that offered Layaway and I could shop for the holidays without having a credit card, but that is no longer the case.   Kmart seems to be in the minority.

One of the best small appliances that I think was ever invented was the Toaster Oven.  I have burned out several in my lifetime because I use them so much.  Microwaves make things kind of soggy sometimes, and if you are cooking for one or two people, or are making some sort of a side item that doesn’t need a lot of room, it is more economical to fire up the Toaster Oven than turning on the stove.   Also, you don’t have to wait for it to preheat.   I have baked small batches of cookies, reheated pizza, and made different finger foods in my last one.   When I was a kid, my grandparents had one right on the kitchen table and we’d make our toast as we ate breakfast.  For under seventy bucks, they have a pretty deluxe one that I would pick. I would have a nice clean new one to enjoy in a few weeks.

On the Kmart’s site, you can enter in your zip and find out which locations offer layaway. Just don’t go to mine and take the last Toaster Oven. It would make me sad.

Besides Kool-Aid Ecto Cooler, I was sort of ingrained with the idea that you just don’t drink anything that is green.  You can eat it, but you just don’t drink it.

Back in the day, which was only a few years ago, I frequented a grocery store that had a juice bar. A number of people would show up their everyday, hold their nose, and get a shot of wheatgrass juice.   Wheat grass fed cows live a lot longer than cows fed commercial feed or regular old run of the mill grass and hay.  Wheatgrass has Vitamin C and Iron in it, but what else it does for humans is debated from curing cancer to just being another vegetable to add for variety.  What’s not debatable is that it is an acquired taste.  A small amount of people love it, the rest of the world thinks its quite simply ghastly.  I am in the ghastly camp.

I was surprised to see Odwalla juice at Costco.  Buying a big 64 oz jug was only twice as much as the tiny little individual bottles, so it was definitely a good buy.  I don’t know what possessed me, but I bypassed the Mango Smoothie and other pleasingly colored juices and went for Superfood which is the dark color of a Haas avacodo.  More properly, it is like when you make guacamole and it sits in the fridge for a few days and the top layer turns really dark.  Maybe its closer to grass after the gray slush melts off of it.  A two year old using every single crayon at once is also a good analogy of the color.  In otherwords, it can’t possibly taste good.  My decision to buy it was the dollar value and based on the nutritional value.  Oh, and the fact that apple puree was listed higher than wheatgrass.  That should be a taste buffer.

I let it sit on the bottom shelf of the fridge for a week, hesitant to try it.  Yesterday I finally did, and I am happy to report that it does not taste like seamonster bath water.  It is actually good and slightly sweet tasting, but slightly thick so someone won’t steal it and chug it down right from the container. It was met with hesitance when I got a few other people to try it.  They were psyched up to think it was disgusting, so tasting it was an anti-climax.  I recommend Superfood.  Even if it won’t turn you into a superhero, it won’t give you that bizarre reflex you get in your digestive system the first time you drink straight wheatgrass.

Once you have your kitchen/dining/living room great room decorated, you can’t just stop there, right?  In older homes, where the floor plan is divided up into smaller rooms, it is almost expected that every room can be radically different.  In an open floor plan, everything has to flow more or less.  The bedrooms, even though divided by a door, are usually no exception.  Many times, you find yourself taking a chair from the bedroom and bringing it in the living room for additional company.

One day, my aunt-in-law came over and liked the concept of being able to mix and match the furniture. She took it to a little different level than I would have. She suggested we take the bedroom furniture and put it in the living room, as the bedroom would make a much cozier setting for tea and a tete-a-tete in the winter. “We aren’t Ma and Pa Ingalls with a woodburning stove in the living room,” I said.

Metal Beds can go with about any decor. Watch the color. If the rest of the house tends to have brass, or nickel fixtures and hardware, or if you have a wrought iron look going on in the kitchen, it may dictate which bed you choose for the guest room.  The Hillsdale Furniture has a variety to choose from, and bar stools to match.  Having matching barstools may have convinced aunt-in-law that her decorating ideas were justified.

There is a website called Home-and-Bedroom.com that you can pick out your headboard and sometimes other case pieces online. What are case pieces? They are wooden pieces like nightstands, and end tables. The Fashion Bed Group has even more metal and wooden frames to pick from from the traditional to the contemporary.  Since you don’t have to sit on a bed frame to determine if it is comfortable, something like that can be ordered with confidence online.  For those that hesitate on the concept, you would have no problem ordering from a catalog, right?  Just think of it is a catalog with far more selection than what’s in print.

I learned something new today. Did you know that there as such a thing as sick glasses? When your parents used to harp on you to wash your dishes before sitting down for dinner, perhaps they were not concerned about crosscontaminating the food with your 5th grade science project or the nose you just wiped. Perhaps they were more concerned that you did not infect the glasses in any way, or somehow spoil them.

Of course, I am being facetious. Unless your parents’ Obsessive Compulsive Disorder involves making sure no one touches a glass with dirty hands. Actually, I am not trying to make fun of folks with OCD, of which I know several, but that would be the only logical explanation being that a crystal highball or a sippy cup just doesn’t seem to be able to contract disease. They can carry them from wiping your snotty nose touching hands on them, but for them to get sick themselves? Just a carrier only. There are illnesses that can jump species but I have never seen one jump to an inanimate object. Disney Studios, of course, would disagree. Just ask 3/4 of the cast of Beauty and the Beast.

On a serious note, Sick Glass Syndrome is very real.

Q: What is a sick glass?

A: I am glad you asked!  A sick glass is typically crystal, but it can also be a cheap juice glass too.   Dishwasher detergents and mineral deposits leave a cloudy film.  Mineral deposits come form hard water.  These detergents and deposits eventually scratch the glass.

There is hope for sick glasses that don’t involve any antibiotics.  You can test an area with vinegar, and if you see a little ray of hope shining through, proceed to douse the rest of the glass in vinegar.  Many glasses can sparkle like the day they were purchased, cleaned, and placed on the shelf.  Be sure to rinse the vinegar off when complete, or your whole cupboard or kitchen is going to smell like salad dressing.  On the other hand, if you were HOPING that your kitchen was going to smell like vinegar, you may want to check out the salad dressing recipe from the archives HERE.