Under a Blue Moon

 

I am having a battle, no, a WAR, with my oven.  I have a love/hate relationship with my range.  It is a Thermador Professional Dual-Fuel range.  I adore the gas cook-top but HATE the oven part.

The thing takes forever to heat up and I have to trick it to heat up to the temperature I want.  Say I want to bake a batch of molasses cookies at 375 degrees F.  I have to set it to 425 degree F, wait an hour and a half, check the oven thermometer I have inside, quickly toss in my pan of cookies, lower the temperature to 400 degrees F. and then ruin the first batch anyway.

I think the oven needs a sacrifice before it will entertain the idea of cooking even remotely properly.

This range does not come cheap, either.  Fortunately (or maybe not…) Rick is in the kitchen design business so he got it at a professional discounted price.   We have talked to a number of people with the same range and they have similar problems with it, particularly that it takes a coon's age to heat up.

We have calls into a couple of repair places and hope to have someone come out and look at it next week.  Seems like Thermador should pick up the tab if it is a common problem.

Anyway – on to other things. 

I am obsessed.  With a certain candle.  It has the perfect fresh, clean smell that isn't over-powering and just makes your house smell like a breezy Spring day.  It is Yankee Candle's Country Linen.  It doesn't have that faux dryer sheet smell most candles with the word "linen" have in their name.

I make a pilgrimage to Yankee Candle every couple of months and stock up.  Imagine my dismay when the last time I went in they told me it had been discontinued! 

Now I am actually going to have to clean my house in order for it to have that fresh, clean smell.  I have a friend that knew of my plight and she emailed me a week or so ago and said that Bed, Bath & Beyond's on-line store had that particular scent on clearance.  

So I bought them out.  Every last one.  I don't have to start cleaning for a month or two.

 

 
Lonny Magazine

There is a new online magazine making its debut – Lonny Magazine.  By some of the good folks of the dearly departed Domino Magazine.

Those of us that lamented the demise of Domino will be thrilled with the familiar content and layout of this online version of a decorating magazine. 

I had a little bit of problem with the pages loading this morning but I imagine as the word gets out they are getting a ton of traffic.

I'm sure they'll get it ironed out and I wish for them much success! 

October’s Party

by George Cooper

 

October gave a party;

The leaves by hundreds came.

The Chestnuts, Oaks and Maples,

And leaves of every name.

 

The Sunshine spread a carpet,

And everything was grand,

Miss Weather led the dancing,

Professor Wind the band.

 

The Chestnuts came in yellow,

The Oaks in crimson dressed;

The lovely Misses maple

In scarlet looked their best.

 

All balanced to their partners,

And gaily fluttered by;

The sight was like a rainbow

New fallen from the sky.