Take Me Down to the Riverdance

One of the perks of living in a college town is being able to take advantage of the cultural events. My daughter is required to attend some of these events as part of her college education, and she nicely asked if I would like to attend Riverdance with her and her friend (with me paying, of course!).

We arrived early at the IU Auditorium. This is the infamous Showalter fountain that depicts the birth of Venus. The fish surrounding Venus have been known to 'disappear' in protest of events or to celebrate national basketball titles.

And this is the reason we are here. I can't wait to see this live.

As we arrived very early, we went for a walk. Fortunately, the weather cooperated with us.

And here we have the Jordan River. As you might be able to see, this is just a creek, so the designation of 'river' is a bit of a joke. The creek was named after a former IU president, David Starr Jordan, who once joked that he'd like the creek that runs through the campus to be named after him. Well, he got his wish.

My daughter and her friend wanted me to take this picture of the large sculpture that sits in front of one of the buildings. It certainly is an experience to wander around with two 19 year old girls. And no, you really don't want to know some of the things they were saying.

Finally, the show started and I really enjoyed the show, despite the fact that I had the misfortune of sitting behind a human bobblehead. I suppose I must thank my daughter for taking the program away from me so that I couldn't swat the idiot upside the head with it. So, despite that annoyance and distraction, I really liked the show.

Oh, and did I mention that they have a racket going? Between the cost of tickets and the cost of refreshments, there are also the very overpriced souveniers. So, $45 poorer, my daughter had her own copy of the program and a DVD of the Best of Riverdance.

And we lucked out again: the rain held off until we got in the car. Then we got to sit in line and watch the lightning flash and the rain fall.

IU Aditorium at night.

The IU Art Museum at night.

Orchids - A Practical Lesson

A few weeks ago, I was asked a question about orchids and whether dying blooms also signalled the demise of the plant. Indeed, some orchids bloom for such long periods of time that it may seem that the flowers are a permanent fixture (for instance, this particular orchid had been blooming for over six months). So, now that I too am faced with the loss of these blooms on this orchid, I thought I would offer you the chance to actually see how to convince the orchid to quickly re-bloom. Please note that this method only works with Phalaeonopsis Orchids.

Here are the blooms of this particular Phal (or Moth) orchid. This picture was taken in October of last year. Since the orchid name was not provided, I have dubbed it 'Blushing Ladies'. I think that is appropriate.

And this is that same orchid in a picture taken this morning. Notice the stake and clips that secure the stalk.

The long oval leaves identifies this as being a Phal.

Well, look at this. Apparently the plant couldn't wait and began growing a new shoot off the old flowering stalk. The obvious choice here is to cut the stem at an angle just above the new growth. Had this not been present, I would have found a node (joint) that seemed alive and would have cut just before that.

And now we wait for the new stalk to grow and begin blooming.

Phals do not like to be wet all the time and benefit from allowing the soil to dry out between waterings. And if you see whitish-green roots above the soil, don't panic. Those are the aerial roots that allow the orchid to gain moisture from the air. As with many orchids, Phals are epiphytes (that is, they grow on other plants but do not damage the host plant), and these roots are vital to the health of the plant.

In addition, orchids seem to enjoy being pot-bound. A good orchid potting mix (bark and regular potting mix) is also essential. If you purchase an orchid that is potted with moss, please do yourself and your orchid a favor and re-pot it as soon as possible. I have found that the moss is either soaking wet or bone dry, neither of which is good for the plant.

Orchids grow naturally in dense canopies of trees and do not want nor need direct sunlight. While they enjoy bright light, the sun should never directly reach the plant or the leaves will be damaged and black spots will result. As most of my available window space is south facing, I keep my blinds down to filter the sunlight.

I do hope that you give these beautiful, low-care plants a chance.

What Do You Mean There's No Turkey in Turkey?

My dear daughter agreed to accompany me on another culinary excursion. Although, she may have been severely regretting her decision as after a 20 minute drive and then another 3o minutes of circling, swearing, strategizing, and we were still no closer to finding a much coveted parking space any where near our target zone. But, I'm just sayin'. Deep breaths. So, finally, I maneuvered my Honda Accord into a tight spot (have I ever told you that I managed to drive for 20 years without ever having to park my car in a parallel parking spot? And that I now have to do that quite frequently, several times a year here in the "we hate cars" capitol of America?).



So, after a severely edited version of our arrival at Anatolia, we set about to relax and enjoy our first foray into authentic Turkish cuisine. As has become my habit, I innocently ask my host or hostess what they might suggest for an innocent to their cuisine. I was very pleased by the helpfulness of the owner today. I guess it really didn't hurt that he was kinda cute...

While we waited for our server to arrive, I asked my daughter to count the number of seats in this small eatery. She quickly counted 22 regular seats and 12 seats on pillows on the floor. And no, we did not eat down there. Why? Did you hear of a crane being called in suddenly in Southern Indiana?

My soup was the 'white bean soup'. The funny thing is, as the owner pointed out, the red lentil soup, which my daughter chose, is lighter in color than my white bean soup.

My daughter and I chose the Tabuli as our appetizer. Hey, we wanted the real experience. And it was good, if not a bit dry. But the bread was to die for...

Well, okay. The tabula was very good too. I like this. I really liked this.

And I had the Adana kabab:
Ground beef and lamb mixed w/ vegetable
juice and spices; skewed and charcoal
grilled; served w/ rice

My daughter decided upon the:

Chicken Shish Kebab
Boneless chicken breast cubed and marinated;
charcoal grilled and served w/
rice…

And can I tell you how good the rice was? Or how good it all was? Now, I am not sure that we will be searching this cuisine out regularly (because of the damned parking issue), but I would gladly eat this food again.

And I most certainly would recommend Anatolia Turkish Restaurant and Kebab House (And no, I gain nothing by suggesting them and they have no idea that I am recommending them - don't ya just love these circular arguments?).

Spring Moments

Okay, if you are anything like me, you are on the edge of your seat, at the end of your rope, ready to do serious harm to all around you (just give me a reason why!). So take a deep breath, try to relax and let go of those hateful thoughts. Just remember: those sorts of thoughts are very unhelpful and can kill karma in a single moment. So instead, I offer these early spring-time pictures to help lower your blood pressure.

If you have ever carefully watched the crocuses bloom, you would know that first the yellow, then the purple, then the white/purple streaked and then the white crocus bloom. Unfortunately, my yellow crocusses have died out, leaving only the other blooms to carry out the important duty of announcing the herald of spring to Southern Indiana.

At last my daffodils are blooming. Oh shush, these blooms went into a pitcher soon after their photographic session. And just in case you are wondering, you cannot put any other cut flowers in the same water as cut daffodils. It would seem that daffodils are rather petulant and refuse to share the spotlight. Oh, all right. Cut daffodils secrete a chemical substance into the water that inhibits other flowers from being able to continue to bloom after being cut.

This is a new plant for me. It is a Regal Geranium (Pelargonium). I like it already.

Tripping Down Memory Lane, Part I

Traveling down to the Tailwater released a long-forgotten memory of another overly-wet spring just a few years ago (2oo2, to be exact). I wondered: had I taken my film-laden camera with me when we drove down there that day? Why, yes I had. Let us now go back in time six years. And enjoy some of the other old-fashioned photographs I also discovered.

The water roars out from the bottom of the dam. In May of 2002, Lake Monroe was at its highest ever level and was declared to be at 105% capacity. For the first time, water flowed over the overflow spillway (designed to protect the dam). I, like many others, drove down to take a look at history. Along with a very soggy landscape, I also spotted a Copperhead snake. Now, I like snakes, but I know better than to try to befriend such a creature.

It's fascinating, really. The background remains the same, but the scenery changes every second. The roar of the water was unbelievable. We had to shout to hear each other. My understanding is that they had opened the valve just about all the way in order to relieve the lake and the dam of the pressure.

I notice that no fishermen were present this day.

Hmph, now I need a coat. You may find me odd, but I don't really mind the squirrels raiding the bird feeders. After all, they provide quite a bit of entertainment in return for their meal. The raccoons however, just steal in the middle of the night, grr. Fortunately, they don't seem to start hitting the feeders until March.

Ouch, that hurts just watching him, er her? Eh, whatever.

Ah, I remember this. We were driving back to Indiana after having visited The Great Darke County Fair.

Oh, Rosie? Do you perhaps recognize this vignette? Too bad I hadn't 'met' you back in 1996 when we were here.

That's right! We had visited The Elizabethan Gardens on Roanoke Island, North Carolina. You know, I do think that that was our last true vacation. Imagine that...

Lake Monroe Update

Just because I know you are interested. Well, maybe not, but listen up anyway.

And an interesting fact. If you sidle into town and try to blend in with the locals, we will know you are a fake right away once you refer to our major lake as Monroe Lake. While the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (which technically owns the lake) has named it Monroe Lake, we locals always refer to it as Lake Monroe. So if you want to blend in, talk like the locals. Another interesting side note: Why do we need artificial lakes? So we can have drinking water. As we are in the heart of limestone territory (do you want to know where the limestone for the Empire State Building, and many of the buildings in Washington D.C. - including the Pentagon - comes from? Yep, right here.), it is nearly impossible, or at least economically infeasible, to drill through many, many feet of solid limestone in order to reach a reliable water source.

This is the upper reaches of the lake. Picture taken March 23, 2008.

And now this report from our local paper, The Herald-Times (author unnamed):

Lake Monroe will be full with 2.2 more inches of rain

Lake Monroe isn’t full yet.

That’s the word from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns the lake that’s been the area’s water supply for the past 40 years.

The lake was at 553.1 feet — or 80 percent full — Monday, the Army Corps of Engineers said. That means the reservoir can hold about 2.2 more inches of rainfall before it is full.
If the lake reaches its highest level of 556 feet — making it 100 percent full — guidelines mandate that any inflow will be passed through the flood protection system as outflow, the Army Corps of Engineers said. If the area gets more rain, the dam’s spillway would serve as a bypass for water so the dam isn’t overtopped. Then, water from the spillway would re-enter Salt Creek downstream of the dam.

For more info, log onto www.lrl.usace.army.mil. On the left, click on “lake/river reports” then click on “daily lake reports” in the center of the page.

What a Day!

I was a busy girl on Saturday. I needed to get an onion so I could make some turkey stock and some corn on the cob for dinner on the grill (grilled turkey legs, too), so I decided to load up the trunk of my car with some of our recyclables and I packed my camera.

First, I headed east to see how high the lake would be at 12.6 feet over pool level. I couldn't even get to the lake as one of the streams had flooded the road (I do NOT drive through flooded areas). So I carefully turned around and headed to my local nursery, where I bought some herbs, some onion, shallots and garlic, a very striking pelargonium and a tomato plant. I then headed south and found my way to the tailwater (the dam and the stream below the dam). I got out and took some pictures and then drove up to the overlook and took more pics.

Then it was on to the grocery store and the recycling center. I had to wait in line at the recycling center, but finally got to park and unload. And then I drove home, started my turkey stock, got some lunch, planted some of my pots, and then caught up with my internet addiction. Whew! Hoping y'all had a very happy Saturday.

Rats. My way is blocked this way.

The southern end of Lake Monroe, as viewed from the overlook.

The dam.

And now we are below the dam.

Looking down at the outflow from the dam.

We seem to have lost some of the steps.

Some fishermen are taking advantage of the tailwater.

I formed a recipe for grilled turkey legs. I had earlier brined (water, salt, sugar, black pepper corns and dried red pepper flakes) the legs as I was unsure as to what method I was going to use to cook the legs and I wanted to ensure that they remained moist and tender.

I later decided to first boil the legs until they reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees and then grill to crisp the skin. I added sugar, lemon juice, sliced onion, black pepper corns, dried red pepper flakes and hot sauce to the water.

I inserted a probe thermometer into the thick end of one of the legs and set it to beep at 165 degrees. This took about 20-30 minutes.

While the turkey legs were boiling, I made a grilling glaze. One tablespoon of steak sauce and two tablespoons of honey are mixed together and will be brushed on the legs later.

The legs and corn on the cob go on the grill.

After about 15 minutes on the grill, we are ready to eat. I want to try this with turkey wings someday.