Palindrome Week 2014

Palindrome...a word, line, verse, number, sentence, etc., reading the same backward as forward. Familiar examples include Madam, I'm Adam and racecar.

Bring on April 2014...the 4th month and the year 2014, which in a standard dateline format is 4/14 and right there is a palindrome. Add in the dates that have ones in them (10 through 19) and there you have datelines that are reversible.

It seemed like lots of people were all abuzz about palindrome week but there were 10 days of palindromic dates in April. A bit of heaven for those of us who savor symmetry!

Some cool tidbits for April 10 through April 19:

April 10 is written 4/10/14 but can also use the entire year to make yet another palindrome: 

4/10/2014

Yep...look at that and it's the same going forward and backwards. Pretty cool...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

April 14...4/14/14...it's the 4th month, the 14th day, in the year 2014. Lots of 4s in that one. Maybe the "palindromiest" day of the year?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

April 15...4/15/14...an eventful day: last day to send in taxes on time, a lunar eclipse and a spring snowfall (hopefully Mother Nature's last hurrah until next winter comes around).

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

With this series of reversible datelines comes some math fun, too. Adding up every digit in that day's dateline equals the same number as that day of the month. For example:

4/17/14: 4+1+7+1+4 = 17

Try it with any of the dates. It works. And it's the only month every 100 years that does that.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So those named Hannah and Anna and Bob were totally on the "level" when they celebrated these palindrome dates by listening to ABBA. 

Leaving you with one last palindrome...

Taco cat

Daffodilmania

This past winter was long and brutally cold. The dogs did not want to go out and romp in the snow. Ice crystals decorated the windows in the house. I lost count of the number of times the driveway had to be shoveled and I thought my ugly UGGS would be permanently molded to my feet.

"No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow."  

The earliest burst of spring color, daffodil yellow, trumpets spring's arrival. This is no caution light; spring is here...good bye winter. And in beautiful Oakwood, 1 1/2 acres filled with over 160,000 daffodils scream, "Hello Spring!" to the winter-weary.

What a beautiful sight this is for tired-of-looking-at-winter-grays eyes! It's a sea of sunshine. Cars drive by slowly to catch this happy yellow moment, walkers stand at the curb and take in the dramatic yellow landscape.

But spring in Ohio means one day it can be 80 degrees, people wear shorts and cut the grass, then it snows the next...

Under the giving snow blossoms a daring spring. ~Terri Guillemets

The snow was short-lived, but here long enough for people to take some beautiful snow photos. After one day of snow, the daffodils popped back up strong as ever to have people once again slow down in their cars and for the walkers to congregate along the curb. As William Shakespeare said, "April hath put a spirit of youth in everything."

Beer Cookies

A little while ago, my brother gave us a growler of Mad River Milk Stout from the Dayton Beer Company. Mad River Milk Stout is a very good beer: it won a gold medal in the recent Best of Craft Beer Awards competition in Bend, OR (January 2014).

A growler is a lot of beer...64 ounces...a half gallon. We shared it with friends and still a little was left over. And it went flat. And I could not dump this prize winning beer down the drain.

Sooooo, what to do with flat beer?

It was close to St. Patrick's Day and those leprechaun voices kept whispering, "Do something with that flat stout in your fridge!" By the luck of the Irish, I found a cookie recipe that combined beer and pretzels, chocolate and caramel into one luscious cookie. 

Sweet, salty, soft, crunchy. Perfect.

The batter is good enough to eat just like this...

The caramel icing...so easy, so good

Everyone who eats these thinks that you are the most wonderful cook in the world!

Chocolate Stout Cookies with Salted Caramel Frosting & Pretzels
http://cravingchronicles.com/2012/02/01/chocolate-stout-cookies-with-salted-caramel-frosting-pretzels/

I used Snyder’s Butter Snaps pretzels. Dip the frosted cookies into the crushed pretzels – that way you pick up more of the salty pretzel flavor on the cookies.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon dark cocoa (such as Hershey’s Dark Cocoa)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
6 ounces stout beer 
1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips

1 batch Easy Salted Caramel Frosting (below)
1 bag of salted pretzels

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powders, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

Beat butter with sugars with a mixer using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla and egg and beat to combine. With the mixer on low, add flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the beer. Beat just until combined. Fold in chocolate chips with a spatula.

Chill dough in the fridge for about 15 minutes, or until firm enough to scoop.

Using a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350°F for 15-17 minutes or until tops spring back lightly when touched. Cool on pan for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire wrack to cool completely.

To Assemble
Crush pretzels into small pieces using your hands or a food processor. Spread pretzel crumbs out in a pie plate or on a small baking sheet.

Only frost cookies once they have cooled completely. Working with warm frosting still in the pan, spread frosting on a few cookies at a time. Dip each cookie frosting side down in the pretzel crumbs, pushing lightly to make sure they stick. Frosting will dry as it cools, so work with only a few cookies for best results.

Easy Salted Caramel Frosting

The trick with this frosting is to not add too much powdered sugar or it will be thick, stiff, and too sweet. Add only as much as you need to make it spreadable without being runny. Leave the frosting in the warm pan as you frost the cookies to make it easier to spread, as it will set up when it cools.

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
pinch of salt
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup + up to 4 tablespoons powdered sugar

Directions
In a medium saucepan, melt butter, salt and brown sugar over medium heat, stirring to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Boil unstirred for 1-2 minutes.

Remove from heat and immediately whisk in cream. (Careful! Hot caramel may spatter.) Whisk in vanilla. Cool 5-10 minutes, then stir in 1 cup powdered sugar. Whisk briskly to smooth out any lumps. If needed, add powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time (up to 4 tablespoons), whisking briskly between each addition, until frosting is firm enough that the whisk tracks don’t sink all the way back into the frosting.


Spread frosting over cooled cookies.

Grammar Nerd!

I am a 90% Grammar Nerd according to this chart...

1. Yes, I use standard spelling, capitalization, and punctuation when I text. The acronyms are acceptable but fml if I use "wut" for what, "u" for you, "ur" for you are or your, "y" for why, "2" for to, or "4" for for. It goes against every fiber of my grammar being! 

2. I may proofread my friends' posts but I keep my mouth shut, unless they ask for advice.

3. I effectively know how to use "affect" and "effect."

4. I have been known to correct poorly written signs. When I taught 8th grade, I corrected lots of signs that were hung in the hallways (and never got caught!)

5. Yes, posting a writing error online does mortify me. There are a lot of grammar nerds out there and someone will notice that glaring error. Always take pride that you're putting your best work out there. It reflects on you.

6. I do have an opinion on the Oxford Comma and I support its use.

7. This is the one that knocked me from a perfect score. I do not follow Grammarly on FB (even though this sign is from that page) and I don't tweet.

8. Double negative = scratching the blackboard. 

9. I do mentally correct publications while reading: typos and grammar errors jump right off the page!

10. Amen. 

New Things to Do in My 56th Year List

On my 56th birthday back in September, I decided I was going to do 57 new things before I turned 57. Since March marked my half birthday, it's time to post my progress.

One of the things I want to do is visit all 19 of the MetroParks in Dayton and I have gone to the following:

1. Adventure Central/Wesleyan MetroPark

2. Riverscape

3. Wegerzyn

4. 2nd Street Market

5. Hills and Dales

6. Sugarcreek

7. Deeds Point (bitterly cold winter day...had cabin fever and had to get out of the house!)

In the athletic arena:

8. Ran the 10K in the Air Force Marathon

9. Signed up for the half marathon in the Air Force Marathon

10. Attended my niece's last collegiate field hockey game at MIT/Jack Berry Field. The       Engineers beat Babson College 4-2.

11. Attend the NCAA Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games in Memphis and cheered for the Cinderella bracket busting Dayton Flyers!

Arts:

12. Took a Zentangle class

13. Learned how to make Guatemalan worry dolls at Art Street

14. Admired beautiful photography at the Citizens of the World photo exhibit at Art Street

15. Attended the Shades of Greatness exhibit at Sinclair Community College. This exhibit celebrated the the Negro League Baseball.

16. Took at Wine and Painting class at Gallery 510

17. Attended the Bruce Munro: Light exhibit at Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus

Academics:

18. Took a class on using the iPhone. Thanks to my kids, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I knew!

19. Class on the history of the University of Dayton

Travel:

20. Memphis, TN

21. Key West, FL

22. Going over the 7-Mile Bridge on the way to Key West

23. Watching the beautiful Key West sunsets at Mallory Square

24. Visiting the smallest post office in the United States at Ochopee, FL

Restaurants:

25. Wheat Penny Pizza (Dayton)

26. Rendezvous Ribs (Memphis)

27. Onlywood Pizzeria (Key West)

Family:

28. #4 and last child finished college in December. Graduation ceremony in May.

29. First child turned 29 in October. Can't believe I'm going to be the mother of a 30-year old this year.

30. First child also bought his own condo

Just fun stuff:

31. Visited the Yellow Springs sunflower field

32. Visited the Caesar Creek Winery

33. Attended an ribbon cutting ceremony for the opening of the Eudora Brewing Company.

34. Took a photowalk in Downtown Dayton

35. St. Patrick's Day at Fifth Street Brewpub

36. Went to Warped Wing Brewery

37. Took a tour of Stivers School for the Arts (Dayton)

Just gotta keep expanding my horizons...it's a good way to stay young!