Art & Music
Make a Song; An Emerging Artists Showcase
The third and final installment of Art & Music
Make a Song; An Emerging Artists Showcase on will be on Friday April 23rd at The Nutley Museum.
Artists showcasing will include photography by Ken
Miller, painter Caren Frost Olmsted, music by Jillian Tully & Mandy
Heck (Akwarian Sea Rebel), poetry by Devyn Joseph Michael Barat and
Candice Tomlin, and a film to end the night by StrangeDog Film entitled
Kill Your Friend.
Please come and enjoy some great wine, great
cheese, and more importantly, GREAT ART
Date:Friday, April 23, 2010
Time:7:00pm - 10:00pm
Location:The Nutley Museum
Street:65 Church Street
City/Town: Nutley, NJ |
Where we are and where we'll be!
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Sweet and Shy Violet
 It happens every year. The tulips and daffodils come up and begin the brightening of the garden. Then, I spot it. That little purple bright spot. Sometimes it's just in the middle of the lawn. Other times she'll show up under the apple tree. Where I spot it doesn't matter. My reaction is always the same. I smile and giggle and jump up and down like a five year old just given her favorite treat. It's time for the violets.
What I always find so amazing is that some people consider Wild Violets weeds. These spring harbingers are lovely and bright, an early treat for honey bees, and a delight in the kitchen and bath.
Violets represent affection, humility, faithfulness and good luck. And it certainly is lucky to see them.
Violets have been a part of culture for thousands of years. Even the gods of yore admired their beauty. Zeus had a lover named Ione (from which the word viola is derived). His
wife, Hera was jealous and turned her into a white heifer. Zeus created
violets to give her something lovely to graze upon. Violets were worn by the ancient Greeks to promote serenity and sleep.
The violets we're speaking of are wild violets, Viola odorata. Don't try to eat African Violets. They're pretty, but not edible.
Violets are another garden gift that serves many purposes. The leaves and flowers have antiseptic properties and are wonderful poultices to sooth wounds and sores. A tea, which I like to make from the flowers but leaves can be used as well, is calming and sedative. Great to sip before bed on a spring evening.
Violets are also very high in vitamin C. They make a wonderful and light syrup.
Violet Syrup
Collect a cup of violet flowers.
Boil 1 1/2 cups of water.  Remove from the heat, add the violets, and let steep for a few hours. It will be the most lovely purple blue.
Strain the juice and return to the pot.
Add 1 1/2 cups of sugar or 1 cups of sugar and 1 cup of light honey.
Bring to a rolling boil. Let it boil for 5 minutes, then lower the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes to 1/2 hour, until it reduces a little.
Let it cool and pour into a a glass jar or bottle.
Keep this in the refrigerator and use on pancakes or waffles or fruit.
Drop violet flowers into ice cube trays, then fill and freeze. They look really nice floating in a punch bowl.
Young leaves and flowers can be added to salads for a dash of panache.
I love to fold some flowers in to angel food cake batter. They add a nice surprise and dash of spring color.
Gather the kids and go out and collect those lovely little flowers. Whether it's just a bouquet or to use in the kitchen, violets are a wonderful way to celebrate spring.
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No Fooling in April
So much happens in April - besides April Fools Day and paying taxes. It's the month when spring really starts to shine. We start moving outside again, throwing open the windows to the fresh air. What can you do to enjoy all the April goodness?
Go fly a kite! It's National Kite Month! There is a wonderful sense of connection and freedom when you're flying a kite in a spring breeze.
And this week is the perfect time to fly a kite since it's Sky Awareness Week(April 18 to 24). Watch the sky for changes and patterns, and develop your kite flying skills all at once!
Get out with the family, after all it's Turn It Off Week. From April 19th to 25th, turn off the TV, game consoles and yes, even the computer. Exercise, play games, enjoy the outdoors and reconnect with family, friends and the world.
Better yet - make plans to celebrate Earth Day! Even a simple act of planting a tree, gathering recyclables, cleaning up a vacant lot or wooded path - acts of kindness towards our planet add up.
But whatever you do, don't lose your sense of humor! Whether it's crashing kites, rainy skies, to sneaking a turn on during Turn Off week, it's all OK if you laugh at it because it's National Humor Month.
For more interesting days, in April, remember to check our blog, Celtic Chairde Comhrá.
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Hug A Tree -
It's OK It's Arbor Day
The environment is very much at the top of
many people's minds these days. People are now watching the amount of waste they create
and the amount of fuel that they use with an eye towards keeping our
planet healthy and strong.
But before Earth Day, t here was Arbor
Day. Always celebrated on the last Friday in April, it's a day to celebrate one of natures greatest gifts - trees! This
celebration dates back over 100 years. It started in Nebraska, when J. Sterling Morton and his family moved
there from Detroit. They missed their trees, and Morton, through his
job as a newspaper editor, started a movement that has changed the
landscape of the state.
I love trees. My home is only on a small
quarter of an acre, but I have 8 trees on it (and several very large
bushes!). I can't imagine a home without a tree to provide shade in the
summer, or leaves to play in and compost in the fall. It almost hurts
when I drive by construction sites where they've torn up dozens of
mature trees just to plant some dinky shrubs around a field of concrete.
Trees
are so important to the environment. They provide wood for building,
paper, furniture, medicine and so very much more. They act as windbreaks, which help lower heating
costs. They provide shade, which helps reduce air conditioning
costs. They increase home value, as well as provide homes to birds and wild life.
Planting and replenishing our tree supply is so important to the very existence of life on earth. Not only do they help
prevent soil erosion, they purify the air and water. By taking in CO2
and giving off oxygen, trees play an important role in protecting our
planet.
To find out more about Arbor Day, it's history, and the
amazing resource that trees are, go to The Arbor Day Foundation website. Look up at a tree on a warm spring day
and feel your stress disappear. Celebrate Arbor Day by planting some trees for the future. Want to feel even better? Give the tree
a hug. Go ahead, I won't tell.
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