Virtual Reality

Apparently I've been busy. Not quite busy enough to practice work avoidance by getting online and whining about being busy, but too busy to be online.

I finished up two Civil War-era Norwegian morning caps.

#1

#2

I have traded #1 for some reproduction Civil War-era beadwork garters from Kelly of Backward Glances.

Kelly surprised me with the gift of a third garter. "Just in case," she said.

I went to Springfield, IL to take a ribbonwork workshop.

LB asked me out on a date to to hear a fabulous Hungarian dance orchestra. This was the best video I could find of them. It's a terrible video, but the sound is really good and it was filmed two days after I saw them. If you want to see the dancing better, do a YouTube search for "Ignac Kadar."

We went to the Pride parade, where I forgot to take my camera. My friend Matt of the Unceasing Fabulosity was handing out chokers he'd made and gifted me with this one, modeled by Yma, who, being a cat, is always proud.

I made granola in the slow cooker (oats, oat bran, wheat germ, sunflower seed, pumpkin seeds, coconut, and other stuff I forget).


I went to a bacon party. Rachel (the best knitted glengarry designer ever!) wins the prize for the ingenious idea of a bacon potluck. Years ago, friends would put on a Blue Moon party. We'd rent a dance hall, play blues, swing dance, and eat blue foods (blue corn chips, blueberries, blue candies, etc.) Blue food is hard. Bacon, however, is genius.

My humble contrbution was the following recipe:

Chili-Bacon Grissini (aka Bacon on a Stick)

30 breadsticks

Ingredients:

30 thin slices bacon

30 grissini (thin Italian breadsticks)

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 c chili powder

1 t cayenne

NOTES: The recipe works best with very thin bacon. Although it seems counterintuitive, go for the cheap stuff! To get 30 pieces, you'll need about 2 lbs. of bacon. One box of grissini should have 30 sticks, but invariably you'll get home and find that half of them are broken. Buy an extra box or two.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Let the bacon stand at room temperature for about ten minutes to let it soften slightly.
• Gently wrap one bacon slice in a spiral around each breadstick, leaving part of the breadstick exposed on one end. Place the breadsticks on a baking rack and set aside.
• Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and place the backing rack on top of it.
• In a tray or long, shallow dish, comgine sugar, chili powder, and cayenne. Stir until they are combined well, breaking up any lumps.
• Roll each breadstick gently in mixture, coating the bacon well. Arrange the sticks about 1/2 inch apart on backing rack.
• Bake about 20 minutes or until coating is caramelized and bacon is a rich mahogany color.
• Carefully loosen breadsticks and cool on rack for about 15 minutes.
• Bacon will become crisp and breadsticks will harden as they cool.
• Serve at room temperature.