Lost and Found - Part 7

Here at last is my final found treasure. It’s a small booklet that I found hidden between two books at an antique store. I am amazed that after 88 years, such a small, ephemeral item still survives, and in quite good condition.

 

This is an example of a time-honored tradition, the church cookbook. In 1925, the Phoenix Central Christian Church Women put together this booklet and sold it at 25 cents each for the church.

There are several pages of household hints, many of which were new to me.

 

Imagine using crystallized cyanide for ant control! And putting your ostrich plumes in the oven to get them to curl. (But watch carefully so they don’t burn!)

 

 

The advertisements are short, simple, and appealing.

Check out the gorgeous typeface for JC Penneys. And the illustration for Pilcher Optical could fit right in to Dr. Eckleburg’s billboard in The Great Gatsby.

On another page is a barber shop that offers marcelling for $1 and permanent waves for $15.

 

Finally we come to the recipes, and there are a lot of them. It looks as though the editor wisely decided that every submission should be included, rather than trying to select one or two from each category.

Thus there are five recipes for Gingerbread, eight for Devil’s Food Cake (!), and other similar multiples throughout the book.

It’s interesting that many recipes omit the actual cooking or baking instructions. Also, there are no oven temperatures.  A slow, moderate, or quick oven were the options, if any guidance was provided.

A recipe that no church cookbook should be without is, of course, the Bible Cake.

  

Another special find was inserted between the pages – a map of Phoenix dated April 1924. I find it utterly amazing to see the entire city squeezed into a tiny space that we consider a small part of the downtown area today.

 

The quaint charm of this map will probably be more apparent when you see the difference between Phoenix of the 1920s and Phoenix today:

The tiny black spot on the map on the left corresponds to the 1924 map above.

 

This amazing piece of history is the last of my found treasures, for the time being.

Have you discovered any treasures recently?

 

Katrina

Pollen Nation

Pollen is here.

 

 

And it’s here.

 

It’s in the water.

 

And it’s definitely in the air.

 

Every tree, shrub, and grass is in flower here.

 So pretty to look at, so painful to breathe.

 

In the early part of the 20^th century, Phoenix was known as a haven for people with allergies and respiratory ailments, due to the clean, dry air. One hundred years and a million people later, we are known for the poor quality of our air, which seems to be comprised mostly of ozone, dust, pollen, and other large and small “particulates.”

I don’t think I’ve taken a normal breath since late February! Zyrtec, which has worked reliably for me for the last ten years, barely makes a dent in this season’s allergies. I’m steadily working my way through the pharmacy shelves, trying a new combination of antihistamine and decongestant every two weeks, hoping for the magic formula.

I studied pollination ecology a few years ago (thus the title of the post, from a very confusing phone conversation with my aunt). One of the many things I did was photograph these microscopic particles. Pollen is actually a beautiful thing, when it’s not wreaking havoc on your nasal membranes.

The pollen was dyed before mounting on a slide, to create contrast between the structures on the outer wall of the grain. Presumably this assists in identification, although I never got very good at the ID part of the job.

If you want to see some really beautiful photos of pollen, just Google “pollen photos” or “pollen microscopy.” You may have seen some in Nat Geo or similar magazines. The pictures taken with electron microscopes (very different from what I used) are fascinating.

I hope you enjoy your flowering season with minimal sneezing and wheezing.

Katrina

The Farm at South Mountain

My camera refused to do anything but flash a “memory full” message at me, so I finally uploaded everything. This led to a realization that I’m at least a month behind in posting photos. Also that many things that are so fascinating at the time are just not that interesting when viewed weeks after the event. And that I compensate for poor camera skills by taking dozens of shots of each subject.

pecan tree leafing out

Out of the photographic chaos I was able to extract some decent pictures of a recent trip to The Farm at South Mountain, a former cattle ranch/pecan orchard which is now a combination organic farm, restaurant, and outdoor activity area.

Maya's Farm

Maya’s Farm takes up the center of the property, growing organic vegetables for restaurants and farmers markets. Needless to say, the farm is always my main interest when I visit.

 

rows and rows of beautiful lettuce

 

fluffy, feathery dill

At various times of the year there are gardening classes, plant sales, farmers markets, even wine tastings. There's a small shop with a well-edited selection of cooking and garden items. I love the casual restaurant where you can pick up a sandwich on freshly baked bread, a salad made from farm vegetables, and imaginatively decadent desserts to carry out for a picnic under the century-old pecan trees.

rustic gateway

It was unusually crowded the day we visited (it happened to be Easter Sunday), but it was still like a trip out to the peaceful countryside instead of only a 10-minute drive from the center of downtown Phoenix.

 

a simple and lovely vignette at the shop

As it heats up here and my garden shrivels to nothing by early summer, Maya’s Farm will somehow keep on going. I’ll go there and walk among the rows of tomatoes and peppers and wait for fall.

 

Katrina

The Carnivore’s Conscience

Warning: today’s post may be disturbing to vegetarians or animal lovers.

Warning #2: today’s post may be very long.

As of Saturday, we have approximately 150 pounds of beef in our freezer. While this may seem excessive to you, imagine how shocking it is to me, a former vegetarian.

Alton Brown's beef map, source

How did we find ourselves in such strange circumstances? It was a long road. In the past few years, the Piemaker has gone from the all-American, 3-squares-a-day, meat-based type of diet to a single meal each day consisting of a huge salad. He usually eats a meat dish once a week at the most.

I’ve gone in the other direction. I have come a long way from my Diet for a Small Planet days, circa 1975, when I gave up meat forever (forever turned out to be 3 years) for political and humanitarian reasons.

Today I eat meat regularly, but I do still believe that the mass production of animals for food is one of the most cruel and unhealthy activities that humanity engages in, and that the resulting meat reflects the terrible conditions that the animals endure. I also still believe that the growing population of the world cannot be fed adequately by animal protein and that at some point, if we are to survive, humans will have subsist on plant or manufactured proteins.

That said, if one shifts from a global view to a local view, there is still the possibility for communities in some areas of the world to provide a healthy, varied diet to their populations, if they follow socially responsible food production and consumption principles. Sharing is the most obvious one of these, and is the reason for the success of community gardens throughout the ages. My best example is a simple one: here in the low desert we can grow huge amounts of citrus and some herbs in the winter, while our friends in Northern Arizona have no citrus at all, but they are overrun with tomatoes every summer. Sharing the wealth with each other and many other friends and neighbors creates ripples of benefits through a large community. Soon everyone is exchanging bundles of fruits and vegetables (and once in a while, a plate of cookies!) over fences.

Double Check Ranch steer having a snack, source

Yes, I am going to get back to the beef eventually.












When I read The Omnivore’s Dilemma a few years ago, it just reinforced many aspects of a philosophy that had been slowly forming in the murky recesses of my mind.

My philosophy basically condenses down to one central concept: I want to know what is in my food and where it came from before I eat it.

As you may know, taking a personal interest in in your own health or that of food animals can make it difficult to eat! We all went through the days when organic vegetables were nearly impossible to find and exorbitantly expensive if available. Now it is the animal products. Cage-free eggs are getting easier to find, but they are three times the cost of regular. Grass-fed beef is available at some grocery stores, but it’s twice the price of the alternative. I think you can only get the pork equivalent direct from the rancher, unless you find a seller at a farmers market.

When I learned that our incredibly talented farming friends were raising steers, I knew it was the best way to for us to go. I visited the animals and saw them running around in the meadow, enjoying their varied grassland. I knew that they were never exposed to illness or cruelty.  The small local processor was able to kill the animals humanely (although this always sounds like an oxymoron). And, because of friends and friends-of-friends, we could all share the cost and get a large amount of food for significantly less than we would pay at the grocery store.

And so, the neatly-wrapped packages stacked in the freezer represent one quarter of a healthy animal that ate good food, got lots of exercise, and had a pleasant, if short, life. Have I made peace with eating him? I am working on it!


What experiences have you had in this brave new world of food sourcing, food scares, and so much food information?

Katrina

An afterthought: I probably should have put this above, but I didn't want to goof up the fomatting.

Here is link to a website which lists grass-fed ranches and similar operations in the US and Canada. It's exciting to see that the number of listings has almost tripled in the last couple of years.

Eat Wild - Find Your State

 

[I don't know anything about these ranches, I just loved the pictures]

Lawton Family Sugar House grass-fed cattle in Massachusetts, source



Fruitland America grass-fed cattle in Missouri, source

Inspiration at the Museum

This past weekend offered the opportunity for free museum passes, so we went to the Phoenix Art Museum to see what was new since our last visit in September. We looked at some photos and a lot of southwestern paintings, but I purposely left the Fashion Gallery until the end, knowing I would be there for a long time. Once I got in there, I almost couldn’t leave.

The current fashion exhibit is “Modern Spirit – Fashion of the 1920s.” Where do I even begin to describe this incredible collection? The colors! Yes, the colors. Surprisingly subdued, the colors in the room were mostly earthtones. Rust, camel, salmon-peach, black, and ivory made up the majority. There were also a few dusky versions of jewel tones like jade and plum, and dark blue appeared once in evening wear and once in a suit. A brilliant scarlet red was the exception to all this restraint, and it stood out in several areas of the exhibit. 

Although no photos were allowed in the museum, many of the exhibit pieces are from the Arizona Costume Institute, and these images are from their online gallery.

1928 dresses

The textiles were utterly amazing. Each piece was dripping with embroidery, beading, ruffles, rhinestones, or sequins. Several of the dresses were covered with thousands of glass beads individually sewn onto silk tulle or lace. How does the fabric bear that weight? How does the garment survive 90 years?

Three evening dresses by Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel. 1928, 1925, 1925.

One of the most luxurious-looking effects was the voluminous, gathered and rolled velvet collars of the evening coats, which were shaped very much like the Poiret cocoon coat. Even the velvet was embellished with beads and embroidery, and in one case, fur.

Folkwear Pattern 503, The Poiret Cocoon Coat. Source

I could go on and on, but without photos, I feel I can’t really do justice to the other pieces.

I will leave you with the last one that I do have a picture of, which was the simplest design, and also my favorite. It’s a Vionnet, of red silk crepe chiffon. The narrow silver edging is a lamé binding. For the sewists reading this, can you imagine trying to stitch a long strip of lamé to a fluttery, tissue-thin expanse of silk, on the bias, without snagging, tearing, shifting, or even creating the tiniest hole?

The epitome of elegance

A history of Madeleine Vionnet and her design techniques that we still use today is here. Also, Coletterie did a nice writeup on Vionnet here.

I was very inspired by my visit. I won't be sewing up any 20s-style evening gowns, but it certainly boosted my creativity.

What has been your source of creative inspiration lately?

Katrina

all photos from the Arizona Costume Institute, http://www.arizonacostumeinstitute.com/ACI/The_Collection.html

 



The Other November Holiday

What holiday? It’s Arizona Leafy Greens Week, of course!

 

You didn’t know?

Neither did I. In fact, I missed it - it was two weeks ago.

 

Leafy greens

This year the state celebrated its third annual Leafy Greens Week. From a press release: 

“In recognition of the bountiful harvest generated by Arizona’s abundant lettuce industry, Governor Jan Brewer has proclaimed Nov. 11-17, Arizona Leafy Greens Week.”

Leafy greens migrant worker (upper right)

All this excitement is due to the fact that Arizona provides 90 percent of the country’s greens during the months of November through March. The category “leafy greens” includes many different types of lettuce, cabbage, chard, kale, and spinach. During the summer months, California takes over as the primary producer for the country.

More leafy greens

Our garden is a miniature reflection of this reality: we supply 90% of our own greens (and reds and oranges, sometimes purples) during the winter, and become completely dependent on imports in the summer.

 

 

So we’ll celebrate our leafy greens every day that we can!

Katrina 

Seeds for Hurricane Relief

I hope any of you who were in the hurricane path made it through safely! I was awestruck by the images of waves in the middle of New York City and the terrifying rooftop rescues throughout the Atlantic states. Now that the immediate crisis is over, the difficult recovery starts. The numbers coming up on the news - in the several millions - of people without power, are simply inconceivable to me.

After one of these disasters I usually think of donating to the relief efforts, but to be honest, I do not always get around to it. It's a disgrace, but I guess people who are comfortable and secure find it too easy to forget about people who are in trouble.

Thankfully there are lots of reminders out there for people like me, and today I got an especially good one. It was an email from one of my favorite organic seed companies, Seeds of Change.

They are offering to donate $1 for every seed packet purchased through November 15 to the American Red Cross for hurricane victims.

Now I have an easy way to donate someone else's money (and get lots of seeds), and there is no excuse for not making my own donation to the Red Cross.

If you would like to check out the Seeds of Change catalog, here is the website.

If you would like to make a donation to the American Red Cross, you can do so online.

Katrina

Raptors in Rehab

This past weekend we got to take a tour of a rehabilitation facility for injured raptors (birds of prey), called Wild At Heart.

 

Wild at Heart is quite a large place, housing about 175 birds, but it’s well hidden among desert trees and cacti in Cave Creek, just north of Phoenix.

The sights and sounds instantly took me back 35 years, to when I worked at a similar facility as a teenager. A soft flap-flap-flap-thump repeated back and forth in the falcon flight cage. When I looked through the wires of the Great Horned Owl cage, fourteen identical brilliant yellow eyes stared back.  Baby Barn Owls silently swayed and bobbed in their nest box. The kee-kee-kee of the Kestrels created background music to everything else.

A nice facility for recovering birds and hardworking volunteers

The facility is run entirely by volunteers. Veterinary services are donated, as are the materials for the aviaries and flight pens. The layout seems quite well-designed, the cages are very clean (advances have been made in cage materials since the 70s), and the birds are certainly healthy, aside from the specific injuries which necessitated their rescue.

Harris Hawks – healthy and very noisy

The people at Wild At Heart also coordinate several important programs: captive breeding, species recovery, foster parenting, and relocation.

Burrowing owls frequently need to be relocated due to human encroachment or other problems with their dens.

I worked at a wildlife rehabilitation center all through Junior High and High School, and then worked at a raptor center similar to this one during college. That was a very large part of my life then, and it made a big impact on me.

Yet I ended up not being a veterinarian or a bird biologist, or working with animals in any way. Is it possible to suffer from burnout at age 22? Because I think that’s what happened. The physical challenge of the work was no problem for me as a young woman, but the emotional drain of trying to help hundreds of suffering animals day after day broke some part of me that would have been required to keep going. When I think of it now – standing in the treatment room, attending to any given crisis: the broken wing, the hungry baby, the oiled feathers, the gunshot wound, the blind eye, it goes on and on and never ends – I still feel a painful wrench of something inside that tells me I’m still not quite ready to go back to working with hurt animals.

So I’m thankful to those who have the guts and determination to keep doing it for years on end, like the people at Wild at Heart. There is a lot of interesting information at their website here.

What did you do on the weekend?

Katrina

Finally, Some Good News Here

I am usually so discouraged by the local news that when I see something positive I like to grab onto it with both hands and dance around a little.

Two years ago, the Phoenix library system was experiencing severe budget cuts, along with everyone else, and they reduced their hours so much that you could barely find an open library.

Burton Barr Central Library, very retro-looking but built in the 90s. photo source

I felt badly for the librarians whose hours were cut and whose jobs were consolidated. In the age of instant access to information from any location, I think the role of the archivists and information experts has become even more important. Let’s not put any more librarians out of jobs, nor discourage any more students from becoming librarians!

interior, source

But it was the customers who were really hit hard by the library closures, even if it was only a matter of shorter hours. We have thousands of jobless and/or homeless people who use the library for daytime shelter from the heat, while spending their time constructively in online job searches, studying for classes, or just getting lost in a good book for a short while. We have thousands of immigrants who use the library services to learn English, contact family members, find jobs, or involve their children in reading groups. We have thousands of old-school (pun intended) students, like me, who want to pull every book on a subject, spread them out all over a table, and spend an entire day in research.

waiting for the doors to open, source

Phoenix needs its libraries!!!

Anyway, my little snippet of good news appeared last week, in a small article on an inside page of the paper. The libraries are expanding their hours again! Only a few of them, and only by six hours. Still, it’s extremely good news. The main library will open its doors earlier in the morning, while others will stay open later.

Here’s a bit of the article:

Bookworms and Internet users have residents and a faith-based organization to thank for the longer hours. Earlier this year, Valley Interfaith Project and several residents who support the libraries told the Phoenix City Council they were disappointed to see the city's budget proposal lacked additional funds to restore after-school programs and lengthen hours for swimming pools and libraries.

The city had reduced those services during the recession.

In response to the residents and advocates, city officials amended their proposed budget to spend $6 million more on public services, including $500,000 to extend hours for some of the libraries. The City Council supported the increase.

So it turns out that citizens actually can do something to improve their community! Maybe I should stop sitting in my room and whining. Maybe I should go talk to the City Council next time I have an issue.

Maybe.

Katrina