The Eclipse, ANZAC Day and Vermeer

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THE TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN

Now you see it and then you don’t! Did you see the images of the eclipse of the sun on 20th April? We live in Perth, about 1 300km (808 miles) south of Exmouth, the ultimate place to view this eclipse. For a second or so the sky darkened a little in Perth as if a cloud passed the sun, but the effect was spectacular in Exmouth.

Image PIXABAY

The actual movement of the moon passing across the face of the sun takes about three hours. During this time, the sun is completely obscured (eclipsed) by the moon for about a minute.This was seen most completely in Exmouth and was witnessed by people from all over the World who traveled there to view the event.

Actually, total solar eclipses happen about every 18 months but are usually only visible at sea. This one on April 20th, was clearly visible from the coast, at Exmouth. Normally a township of about 2 800 people the population swelled by more than 20 000 visitors. Best known for fishing and the North West Cape Naval Communications Base, Exmouth is also the northern gateway to the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Park.

Beach at Cape range national park in Australia royalty free stock photos

The beach at Exmouth. Image DreamstimeANZAC DAY

Anzac Day, celebrated on the 25th of April, commemorates the Australian and New Zealand involvement in all wars and conflicts. (ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. Historically we have tended to fight and drink together.) It is a public holiday in Australia. Traditionally we gathered at local memorials for a formal service of remembrance but Covid changed how we commemorate Anzac Day. These services acknowledge the bravery and sacrifices of all servicemen and women in all countries and all conflicts.

Image IStock

During Covid we were unable to attend the usual service at our local war memorial. The compromise was for people to stand at the end of their driveway with candles, listen to the Last Post being played on the radio then stand in silence for one minute. We did this along with our neighbours.

A new way of remembrance was established. Afterwards one neighbour brought out coffee, we all brought fold up chairs and sat on the verge chatting and sharing Anzac biscuits, made to celebrate on the day. The next year we met on someone’s driveway, commemorated with the Last Post and a minutes silence then shared breakfast with my husband acting as the barista. He makes the best coffee!

Image iStock

Actually, the same group of neighbours host evening get togethers every few months and they are such lovely evenings, sharing food and news. We are very lucky!

JOHANNES VERMEER (1632 -1675)

This year the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam presented the largest Vermeer exhibition ever seen. Many of the paintings were loaned to the museum from private collections and have not been seen by the general public for many years. Unable to visit this amazing exhibition, we went to the cinema to see ‘Vermeer: The Greatest Exhibition’ a film showing the exhibition with the director of the Rijksmuseum and the curators involved in presenting the exhibition providing the commentary.

Image Wikimedia Commons

Vermeer was a Dutch Baroque painter known for his paintings of middle class domestic interiors. His first paintings were based on Bible stories and mythology but he soon specialized in paintings of interiors. Generally, the paintings feature light coming from a window, seen or not seen, on the left of the room and usually the subject is a female. For example ‘The Milkmaid’, ‘The Music Lesson” and many other works.

Image Wikimedia Commons

Within the close Calvinistic society of the time, it would have been difficult for Vermeer to find female models so historians assume he relied on his wife and eight daughters to sit for him .His wife was a Catholic. Unlike so many other famous artists, we know very little about Vermeer’s life as he didn’t keep a journal nor are there recorded any letters by him.

Image Wikimedia Commons

His works are significant also because there are no apparent brushstrokes. He developed a style which create smooth finishes. He is also known for using white dots to create highlights. Probably his most famous painting “Girl With The Pearl Earring” demonstrates this technique at its best.

Ninety minutes packed with information and beautiful pictures. I really enjoyed it!

We’d also gone to the cinema recently to see Living starring Bill Nighy. I’d read rave revues and the lines went out the door when we were at the cinema to see the film about the Mary Cassatt paintings. So we went one night. Neither of us enjoyed it. The acting was good, the close, intimate settings, such as a train carriage, an office, a cafe or dining room were well done, the acting convincing but the story? So predictable and tedious and obvious. Nothing was left unsaid. It has many five star reviews but not from me.

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Surprising New Packaging, Ripening Fruit and Growing Bay Trees

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REDUCING PLASTIC PACKAGING

I’m a big fan of grazing platters as there’s always something to appeal to everyone. There’s so many flavours and colours and textures. Cheese, crackers, nuts, grapes and strawberries, cold meat and of course, dips! Dips are packed with flavour but usually they are packed in plastic, too. I’ve made dip using fresh ingredients and cream cheese packaged in foil wrap, but I really like the variety of dips you can buy so easily but not the plastic packaging.

So a big surprise for me at the supermarket this morning. A good surprise, too. I found a dip called NUFFIN Chive & Onion Dip made from natural ingredients and packed in a biodegradable and compostable tub with a kraft paper label. It’s made in Australia from 99% Australian ingredients, so ticking all the boxes. Pretty keen to try it. It was really good. So good it was all gone by evening.

Just fresh ingredients.

Dip is really versatile, too. Not just on crackers but also in baked potatoes, on toast and even stirred through pasta. I’ll be looking to see if this product comes in other flavours, too.

Rinsed out the tub the dip came when it was empty and poked holes in the base using a skewer. Why? Instant seed planter.

Filled it with potting mix. added stock seeds, covered the seeds with more soil then watered them in.

Added a label using a recycled bamboo fork. Eventually the tub will end up in the compost.

RIPENING ORANGES

A few weeks ago I tried ripening not quite ripe lemons by putting them in a bowl next to a window so they got the morning sun. The lemons with yellow on them ripened, the two which were mostly green didn’t change at all. So I picked two nearly ripe oranges and put them in a bowl in the sun, too. I picked them because a cyclone was forecast and the orange skins split in heavy rain. We had massively heavy rain!

After two weeks both oranges looked ripe, so I made an orange cake. Like the window ripened lemons, I felt there was less juice, but enough to make the cake and icing. I also grated peel to add to both.

The peel felt quite thin when I was trying to grate it to put on the top of the cake so I grated leftover Crunchie solid Easter eggs and scattered that on the icing. I only thought to take an ‘after’ photo of the cake when I was cutting it! It tasted very good.

Lovely orange cake with orange flavoured icing and grated leftover Crunchie Easter eggs.

PROPAGATING BAY TREES

My son wants a bay tree so when a friend mentioned she grown one for her son I decided to try it, too. I snapped five small branches from a tree. I prepared them by stripping off all but three or four leaves, cut the ends and squashed them before putting them into rooting powder.

Then I poked them into well drained soil, watered them and covered them in a little greenhouse. Actually, the greenhouse is a thick plastic bag held up on recycled chopsticks which needed further tethering when the cyclone came down the coast. No signs of growth but the cuttings are still green and healthy.

Bay leaves feature in so many recipes from all over the world. To dry them, pick leaves in summer and discard any with holes in them. Choose the best then wash them in running water. I dry them on baking trays lined with paper towel left somewhere well ventilated for about seven days then turned over and repeat the process. When they are dry the colour will be faded and the leaves feel brittle.

The leaves can also be dried in the oven. Place them in a single layer on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and put in a slow oven. Turn them over after about 20 minutes and check again after 20 minutes. They may take longer, just keep checking until they are brittle and fragrant.

Although I have only ever air dried bay leaves they can also be dried in a microwave oven. Place them in a single layer and cook for two minutes, then turn them over and cook again in 30 second bursts until they are brittle. Store the dried leaves in an airtight jar.

In other gardening news, the gardenias are beautiful. I have several gardenia bushes and they are covered in blooms. What’s blooming in your garden?

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The Happiest Countries in the World and Easter

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THE HAPPIEST COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD

The WORLD HAPPINESS REPORT for 2023 has been published. Again, the Finns are the happiest people in the world. They top the list for the sixth consecutive year in a row. Participants self report on six key factors. The key factors are social support, income, health, freedom, generosity and absence of corruption. Interestingly, despite the world wide pandemic, global life satisfaction remained at the same level as pre – pandemic years.

The Finnish list nature, lifestyle, food and sustainability as major satisfaction factors. The first ten countries on the list are 1.Finland, 2.Denmark, 3.Iceland, 4.Israel, 5.The Netherlands, 6.Sweden, 7.Norway, 8.Switzerland, 9.Luxembourg and 10.New Zealand.

Both Finnish images Pixabay.

Australia ranks 12th, America 15th and The United Kingdom comes in at 19th. More information HERE.

PANCAKES

While so many other people who celebrate Easter sat down to fish on Good Friday our family had pancakes. I looked for a recipe to use the sourdough ‘discard’ as I made bread today, too. The recipe is not included as they didn’t turn out like traditional, thin pancakes. These were thick and fluffy. Instead of eating three or four, two of these were enough. We decided they were more like pikelets. Luckily, the sourdough bread was very good.

Also on the topic of food, which has been foremost in our minds all weekend, autumn vegetables are beginning to appear at the F&V shop, so Easter Sunday’s roast was accompanied by potatoes, butternut pumpkin, carrots and onions, all roasted in duck fat, plus some peas. All this roasting resulted in very good gravy.

Australia enjoys foods from many countries so we’ve eaten sushi, a traditional roast and vegetables, several Indian curries and cold meat and potato salad during the Easter season. Obviously, we also enjoyed a mountain of chocolate and hot cross buns!

A favourite Australian food has just turned 100! I’m talking about Vegemite. First made after WW1 to replace Marmite which was in short supply, Vegemite is manufactured from brewer’s yeast. Invented by Dr Cyril P.Callister in 1923 it was not an immediate favourite but over time Vegemite became a standard spread on toast at breakfast and in school lunch boxes. Strongly flavoured, we like to offer it to visitors from overseas who seldom react enthusiastically! The trick with Vegemite is to spread it thinly. Rich in B vitamins and stable over time it is a pantry staple in Australia.

To celebrate the 100th birthday of this richly flavoured favourite, the Royal Australian Mint will release a one dollar coin featuring a jar of Vegemite.

Toast and Vegemite…..delicious.

Many Australians immediately recognise the Vegemite jingle referring to Australian children as Happy Little Vegemites. Some call the jingle a second national anthem.

I remember being very cross when Vegemite replaced the iconic yellow metal screw cap in the early 90’s with a plastic lid. The jar remains an attractive jar for storing food stuffs or whatever you like after you’ve scraped it clean.( Lots of people swish hot water in the almost empty jar and pour the resulting Vegemite flavoured stock into soups or casseroles).

LITTLE JOBS

I made a barrier from cut up school rulers to protect a mosaic from constant wash during rain or when the reticulation was running. The mosaic is precious as I used chips of blue and white china found where there had once been a rubbish tip on the farm where I grew up. I collected the chips over many years as wear and tear and the weather revealed more pieces and eventually I had quite a few. I used some to make this piece. I was worried the constant water running over it would damage it.

The white barrier, made from old school rulers, works really well.

Using old plastic school rulers, indicating our son’s progress through primary and secondary school ( I knew they’d be useful one day!) I chose two which were very similar in height, my son cut them to length and I glued them together to create a slightly raised barrier. When the glue was dry I pushed them in and packed sand behind the barrier to keep them securely in place. A few hours later we had very heavy rain and the barrier did its job!

Some time ago I restored a rusty, chipped and faded panel to hang on our fence. When I was working on it I realised it had once been a gate. The hinges had been cut off. I intend to grow plants against this panel. I used brackets to attach it to the wall.

To begin, I taped over the parts of the brackets which would be screwed on the wall, knowing it would be better to paint them in situ, covering the screw heads. Sprayed the raised centre of each bracket black which would be on the panel using black spray paint inside and out.

These little grow pots and soil ‘circles’ which become potting mix when wet, came from one of the supermarkets who offered plants, soil and grow pots as a reward for spending a set amount of money.

After the panel was attached to the wall I planted hollyhock seeds in little grow pots and began removing tree roots from the soil. An apricot tree had been previously espaliered to the wall. Unfortunately, the wildlife wouldn’t share the fruit with us, so, sadly, the tree was removed. I’ll plant the hollyhocks when they are ready.

Hollyhock seeds can take ages to germinate.

I hope your Easter break was calm and enjoyable. I hope you found Easter a time to do things you like with the company you like, too.

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April All Sorts

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APRIL FOOLS DAY

Pixabay

Were you caught in any silly pranks on April Fools Day? Interestingly, the food loving French celebrate April 1st differently. Called “Poisson d’Avril (April Fish) the reasons are lost in history. Two suggestions are this date marks the end of Lent or this reflects the anger of the French in 1564, when King Charles IX (1550-1574) changed the date marking the beginning of the year. The citizens didn’t like him meddling with their calendar, but the reasons for paper fish celebrating April 1st as Paper Fish Day have been lost in time.

Nowadays, French children stick coloured paper fish on as many backs as they can manage and run off laughing and calling out “Poisson d’Avril! To celebrate this special day, the shops are full of beautifully wrapped chocolate fish.

So when I saw a report claiming the Eiffel Tower (330m high) had a baby and saw photos of the two side by side, I assumed it was a prank. The media worldwide enjoy publishing trick reports on April the first and I assumed this was a prank. Further research actually revealed the second, much smaller tower ( 30m high) came from Vendée and was ‘visiting’ Paris until 10th April for repairs. The miniature is next to the original Eiffel Tower on the Champs-de-Mars in the centre of Paris.

THE BREAD KNIFE

Do you have a favourite object that does a great job, but not as intended? Ours is the bread knife, which was sold as a watermelon knife evident from the colour and images on it! Actually, it is about 8 years old and the best bread knife we have ever used. We eat a lot of home made sourdough or bought artisan loaves so a good knife is imperative. And it’s easy to locate in the drawer.

VINEGAR

There’s a noticeable resurgence of sites online promoting white vinegar as a good cleaning product. This might reflect the rate of inflation and the squeeze on household budgets or a move away from highly aromatic, manufactured and expensive cleaning products. Vinegar is very economical, effective and the smell disappears quickly after use.

Vinegar is made by a process of fermentation, resulting in acetic acid. Vinegar is a blend of water, acetic acid and small amounts of minerals and vitamins. Most commercial products are also made of water with added harsh chemicals. Vinegar is edible and biodegradable and will not kill the good bacteria in septic tanks.

Despite all those good things, acetic acid will etch natural stone surfaces (granite, marble, limestone* as counters or floor coverings) and will eventually damage rubber, such as washing machine door seals, dishwasher seals and oven door seals. It will also damage the teflon surface on irons and the finishes on smart phones and computer screens. Don’t use vinegar on timber floors, either, as it will remove the protective finish and the exposed wood will be easily stained and damaged. Vinegar is great for cleaning glass shower doors, diluted and put in a spray bottle (try 1:1 vinegar /water mix) Otherwise, apply diluted vinegar with a microfibre cloth.

* The best cleaner for natural stone finishes is hot, soapy water and a microfibre cloth. Most natural stone sold for domestic use have been sealed with special finishes.

READING

Just finished Claire Keegan’s masterpiece,‘Small Things Like These’ Not a word is wasted in this novella about family life in an Irish town during the depression of the 1980’s. This story is about the Magdalene Laundries, run by Catholic nuns, the last of which was closed down in 1996. Now recognised for using girls and women as unpaid labour; these baby farms and laundries used the incarcerated women as slave labour. Records have been destroyed or concealed so the number of women and babies who died in these ghastly institutions is unknown, but the deaths are in the thousands.

Sorry about the terrible photo!

The activities of the convent become evident to a father of four daughters delivering coal and fire wood. Brought up by a single mother himself and treated kindly by his mother’s employer and other staff he is shaken when making a delivery to find a young girl locked in the coal shed, distraught because she is not allowed to see or feed her baby. The convent run by the Catholic Church is powerful, prestigious and prosperous and he is warned not to interfere.

Eventually, on Christmas Eve, he returns to the coal shed and rescues the girl, despite dire warnings from other people in the town. He takes her to his family. The title ‘Small Things Like These’ suggests small things can make a difference. This is a haunting but powerful account of an awful event in recent history.

EASTER

Easter seems to have arrived very quickly this year! Our son will be here and we will spend a day with my Mother. Limited decorations this year! Do you decorate and make special foods for Easter? I think it is different if you have small children involved who love the decorations and egg hunts, but mostly the chocolate.

Wishing you a lovely EASTER

however you like to celebrate!

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