Wit of the Week

Forget the health food.

I need all the preservatives I can get

Shop Chat 

Hayden says it is just as well he does most of the grocery shopping cause I have expensive tastes and like lots of little treats.  But out the other day we both browsed through an interesting little Indian deli / grocery store.  Amongst other things he buys himself some sort of snack food to eat later that night while I am out playing bridge - they were a bit like cheezles only lots of different shapes and a "hot spices" flavor in a clear see though bag.  I tease him at the time that it is just a bag of chemicals - he teases me later to find out the cashews I bought were produced in Vietnam so might also be full of chemicals. 

That night I googled "cashews in Vietnam" only to find out the chemicals are not the problem but the fact that they use forced labour (usually prisoners on drug charges) and inhumane work practices is a huge problem . . .  So I'll be looking much more carefully where my nuts come from in future. 

Hayden had his own problems  - waking up with a puffy red face and eyes in some sort of allergic reaction - one assumes to his snack food. 

Allergic reactions were actually in the "gothic" news this week as 'NCIS' Star Pauley Perrette's says that her Black Hair Dye Landed Her In The ER with a sudden and severe allergic reaction to a product she has been using for 20+ years!.   

In the News - It's more about the Beatles than magical potions (UK)

FORGET cauldrons, black cats and pointy witch hats.

The modern Pagan apparently prefers a Beatles sing-a-long around camp fire and perhaps a spot of maypole dancing.

Indeed, it was the tired old Hollywood image of a warty old woman demonically cackling around a bubbling cauldron which inspired Pagan Pride founder Esme Knight to set the record straight.

Pagan Pride is an annual event held in Nottingham - with this year's set to take place in August.

The 36-year-old Mansfield Road chef is passionate about Paganism, having felt a strong connection to nature and the Earth as a child.

She said: "My parents are from a Christian background, like so many, but I always had really strong connections with nature and the changing of the seasons.

"The way the earth changes throughout the year is a beautiful thing and I am a part of that.

"It was only when I looked into it more, as I got older, that I realised it had a name.

"But Paganism isn't just one thing or the other. It is a path that is very special and specific to the individual.

"Yes, there are Wiccans or 'witches' but that's not all there is to it.

"People following Paganism may feel drawn to the druid path or the fairies path.

"I have chosen the Shamanic path and feel drawn most strongly to fire within nature which is why I wear a dragon around my neck as a symbol of that."

read the full story 

In the News - Just Druid: the Wallaces are building their own Stonehenge (Aust)

 . . . . .Bywong property owners Robbie and Tracey Wallace have begun constructing a scaled down replica of Stonehenge on their property just off the Federal Highway outside Canberra.

While it might not be the same size as one of England's most famous tourist drawcards, it's certainly attracting plenty of attention from those driving past, promising to become a landmark of its own.

While mystery and countless theories still surround the original Wiltshire formation and the construction techniques used to lift the huge boulders, it's not too hard to see how the modern version got to be there. Mr Wallace said the inspiration came from some perfectly formed rocks he was removing from a paddock in a property at Hall.

He thought they looked just like the famous ones in Wiltshire - right down to the atmospheric moss.

The couple looked up some maps of the outcrop on the internet and set about creating Bywong's not-so prehistoric version of the famous formation. . . . .

Other interesting articles this week

 Spotted online a  spoofy article - entitled "Hot Summer could Wipe Out Goth Population Experts Warn"

Recipe of the Week - Spiced Cashews

Preheat oven to 190 and warm through 2 cups cashews spread out on a baking sheet  (about 5-10 minutes)*

meanwhile melt together in a small pan

1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon butter

2 teaspoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

{or seasonings to suit} 

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