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Monthly Archives: December 2018

Barley biscuits and barley gravy

Saturday, December 29, 2018

Barley biscuits One of my kitchen projects at present is figuring out whether it would be possible to entirely replace wheat carbs with barley carbs without hating what we eat. We all know that wheat carbs, though addictively delicious, are not the healthiest carbs in the world. Whereas barley carbs have lots of health benefits. […]

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Yes, cats understand television

Friday, December 28, 2018

Lily often snuggles up beside me while I’m watching a movie on the television. She rarely pays attention to what’s on, though. She hates loud soundtracks. The only two things I’ve watched in the past few months that held her attention were “Watership Down” and “Kedi,” on the cats of Istanbul. “Kedi” is a documentary, […]

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Rethinking the unthinkable

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Those of you who recognize the quote in the image above will guess the subject of this post: thermonuclear war. The quote is from the 1983 classic film “War Games” starring Matthew Broderick. First of all, I’m not the only person with a renewed concern about nuclear weapons. It seems to be in the zeitgeist […]

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Watership Down

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

I watched the first episode of Watership Down last night on Netflix. It’s the best thing I’ve watched in a long time. This is a new production of the Richard Adams novel by the BBC. There are four episodes. Watership Down was originally published in the United Kingdom in 1972. The American edition was published […]

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Merry Christmas from Acorn Abbey

Monday, December 24, 2018
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A smaller take on lemon cake

Monday, December 24, 2018

I haven’t been able to get lemon cake out of my head. I am working on the third novel in the Ursa Major series, and I just wrote the scenes in which Rose, the Scottish cook, sees Jake again. She wastes no time making one of Jake’s favorites — her lemon cake. But it’s just […]

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The white matriarch

Friday, December 21, 2018

A troupe of five does passed through the yard this morning, with the white deer in the lead. She has been around for at least three years now, so she seems to have become a matriarch. I don’t worry too much anymore about her getting shot. It’s my understanding that all the hunters in the […]

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Turning points in right-wing propaganda

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Source: Axios. The red components were added by me and are explained below. This morning, Axios has an optimistic piece with the headline “Trust in the media is starting to make a comeback.” The article reports on several polls and studies, including a study by the Knight Foundation released in September 2018. Axios says nothing […]

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Low-carb winter feasting

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Walnut pâté, mashed rutabaga, and Brussels sprouts gratin Rutabaga loves Brussels sprouts. Brussels sprouts love Roquefort. Roquefort loves walnuts. There you have it. A menu for a snow day. It’s amazing what you can get away with if you banish carbs. Not only have I maintained the summer diet that got me into shape for […]

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How do the birds know that snow is coming?

Saturday, December 8, 2018

Photo update: Snowmageddon arrives: A file photo taken here in March 2014 — a cardinal While looking out the upstairs windows with Lily this morning, it was apparent that the birds were unusually active and agitated. The traffic into and out of the arbor vitae trees was particularly busy, as though the birds are laying […]

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