Crazy as a Bessie Bug

Mr. Jolly popped his head into the kitchen to inquire about what I was cooking that smelled so good. I replied "nothing."  He looked at me as if I  was "crazy as a Bessie Bug."  This is a saying my mother always used when she thought things weren't just right.  I still don't know why a Bessie Bug is referenced, since I know what a Bessie Bug looks like.  I used to play  with them (maybe torture a little), when I was a kid, and they were kinda mean if you riled them.  Their pinchers were intimidating, and I know a Bessie Bug will fight with another Bessie Bug until death.  I guess that could be considered crazy,

if it was just a territory fight between bugs.

Getting back to Mr. Jolly's question what smelled so good, I grinned and was ready "to let the cat out of the bag." Another saying that I am fond of.  My wonderful smell was this

I'm cleaning my copper whatca-my-gig with Worcestershire Sauce

Makes a nasty job...EASY!  Just soak paper towels, or rags in the sauce on top of the container, and let it sit in your sink on a piece of wax paper.  The above picture was about 5 minutes with the sauce on it.  The copper had not been cleaned in several years.  So, since I was on a roll, I decided to clean up some small sliver spoons in  buttermilk. Since only the rims of the spoons had tarnished, I only needed for them to soak
for the afternoon.  Most of the time you should put your silverware in a glass container, and cover with buttermilk or sour milk and leave it over night.

Mr. Jolly saw that I was like a chemist in her lab, so he decided to head back down to our Studio to work

on a website for our company, and I headed for the bathrooms.  Armed with my favorite cleaning products,



I'm ready to tackle the ever present hard water ring in the commodes.  Pour the borax into the bowl and then the vinegar, and let it sit. My least favorite thing about our country home is we have iron water.  It will turn everything orange, but especially the commode.  Borax and vinegar  take scrubbing out of my vocabulary, and I all most feel like someone is cleaning my house for me.  Mix, pour, let it sit, and come back later and its clean! 

All of these old time cleaning supplies are certainly less toxic (EPA should give me a green star) and almost do all of the work for you. Just a little country wisdom ... and you should jump on these like a duck on a Junebug.  Just had to add one more Southern saying!





This is April, isn't it?

 

 Well,  I had the fireplace roaring this morning while I cooked breakfast for Mr. Jolly.  It was a very chilly 37 degrees, and the wind swooshing down from the Blue Ridge Mountains made me run for my hoodie, turtleneck and sweatpants.  I'm so glad these were not packed away.  Just hoping the weather does not bring a spring snow.  I am already planning a big pot of soup for dinner tonight!












Old Navy Hoodie





Lands' End Sweatpants

I am kinda feeling like my friend, Hillbilly Debutante when she is in her Preppy Mood sans the red cowboy boots.  If you have not visited the Hillbilly Debutante Blog, please do and check out her newest book, Hillbilly Debutante Cafe.

The author, Kathie Truitt, aka Hillbilly Debutante, takes you to her small hometown of El Dorado Springs, MO with  a cast of hometown characters reminiscent of Mayberry.  Oh, I almost forgot to mention that my dear friend dedicated her book to me.  Such an honor!



Hello Cupcake

Today it is raining and chilly for April , so I have decided to make cupcakes instead of cleaning the house.  I have always hated making cupcakes, but they are loved by everyone now a days.  I found these little wrappers at Ikea, and they are really cute. Cute enough to inspire me to test my recipe. This is my first post, and my first in teaching myself to take pictures. I can not believe that's my shot!  My husband is great with taking pictures, and knows all the technical settings.  He just passed by the computer, and is muttering "Beginner's Luck", and a few other inaudible comments.   OOPS forgot to include another "beginner's luck" pic of my new cupcake baking tin.

I made two types of icing, cream cheese and coconut pecan for my chocolate cupcakes.  The new cupcake tin made the cupcakes look like mushrooms. I thought they were really ugly, but my hubby loved them.  I like the more traditional shape cupcake with the cream cheese icing.

I have been laughing each time I pass by these cupcakes on the kitchen counter.  Ugly, Ugly!

Now that's a cupcake!