GimletBlog

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It was a dark and stormy night (and day) this Halloween.  We missed out on the church’s annual Trunk or Treat party, which was held the weekend before Halloween, but Thing One had a great time at the youth group party earlier this week.  The highlight of the evening was the blindfolded “guess that food” game, only this time the mystery items weren’t innocuous peeled grapes, Jell-O, and such:  instead the teens plunged their fingers into genuine sheep’s tongue, heart, and brains (all of which our YM president, a.k.a. “Igor”, procured at the Pike Place Market).  A pumpkin carving contest, bobbing for apples, and cookie decorating rounded out the evening’s fun.

Thing Two was a monkey this year, from his fuzzy costume to his favorite monkey T-shirt and his Halloween monkey socks.  Now those were a lucky find!  Thing One was a rugby player this year, but Uncle B. thought it was a teenager costume.  While Thing One was at school, Thing Two helped make Halloween cupcakes.  We don’t get many trick-or-treaters as it is, and the rain and cold kept them away this year.  As a result, we have a nearly full candy bowl which ought to keep Team Gimlet on a sugar high until it’s time to bake Christmas cookies.

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Haiku source:   haikuworld, April 2006 Kukai

Emmeline B. Wells (February 29, 1828 — April 25, 1921) was the fifth General Relief Society President from 1910 until her death, the chief editor of the Woman’s Exponent newspaper from 1877-1914, a poet, an early advocate for women’s rights, and a mother of five daughters.
Explore the links below to learn more about the life and accomplishments of this great and formidable lady:

• Wikipedia entry
• List of works
• As featured on PBS’ program New Perspectives on The West
• Women of the West Museum
  (Contrary to the photo caption, Wells is in the back row, on the left.)

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Enjoy this lovely four-minute slideshow of nativity scenes, courtesy of BYU Magazine and photographer Bradley Slade. The slideshow is in QuickTime format. Merry Christmas!

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A hike to Ollalie Lake Pratt Lake best described as “character building.” This hike’s photos were taken with a disposable camera and are pretty dark and grainy; see photos of Pratt lake from somebody else’s much nicer hike here.

We planned to leave at 3:00 p.m. Traffic and slow packing boys thwarted that effort, so we left the city at 4:00 and arrived at the trailhead at about 5:00. In the Pacific Northwest that means it is dark, and with cloud cover – really dark. We turned on our headlamps and started hiking. Our group was five boys (the oldest, age 13; the youngest, barely 12), and four adults. (I was still the oldest for this trip; I don’t know how young the youngest was.) We hiked and hiked and hiked. Ollalie Lake is at about 3500 feet, the trail head is at about 2500 feet. We realized we missed the turn to Ollalie Lake when we reached the saddle between two mountains and the trail started to go downhill.

We thought Pratt Lake would be a better choice at that point and continued on. Our four mile hike in the dark turned into a six mile hike. On the way to Pratt Lake the trail began to be wet — really wet — bog wet — running water wet. We reached the lake, it was high — really high. There wasn’t room for our five tents; we could only set up four. The ground was mushy but at least it wasn’t muddy. We cooked hot meals and got ready to sleep.It was now 11:08 p.m. The ground sloped and we tended to roll into each other in the tents. We were soaked from sweat on the inside of our coats.

At least it wasn’t raining!

About 3:00 a.m. it started to rain. We did not care; we slept. (Well, I was able to sleep. Apparently two of the other, younger, adults couldn’t.) We woke up about 9:00 a.m. and then cooked hot breakfast, broke camp and started to hike out. We left camp about 10:45 a.m. It rained, and rained, and rained. We didn’t care; we knew that if we kept going, we would make it to cars, heat, and home. We reached the trailhead at about 2:00 p.m.

The great thing about this trip was that everybody was prepared for rain and cold. Even with the missed trail we were able to successfully complete a longer than expected hike, camp overnight in adverse conditions, and everybody was safe the entire time. We had the equipment and attitudes we needed. Sometimes trips are more character building than fun. This hike and campout will make us all appreciate the trips next summer when we will be able to see the scenery and enjoy the weather.

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Blackberry season is here! Eleven months out of twelve, the Himalayan blackberry (Rubus discolor) is a thorny, invasive pest, but for a few short weeks the summer air is scented with sun-warmed, fruity goodness. It’s a complicated relationship.

Further reading: Another ode to the Himalayan blackberry from the Seattle Times (2002); King County’s Noxious Weed Factsheet.

Now that I have a new church job and no longer design the Sunday meeting bulletins, I’ve decided to expand the scope of the ivory bits category. I still plan to occasionally post art + quotation entries as before, but will also write about favorite finds of all types — food, books, and other small pleasures.

Valancourt Books. This independent press (named for the hero in Ann Radcliffe’s Mysteries of Udolpho) is a treasure trove of rare and previously out-of-print Gothic goodies, and their web site is well worth a look. I found out about Valancourt when they started publishing the “Northanger Novels”, a list of Gothic titles found in Northanger Abbey. Valancourt’s editions include interesting and useful editor’s notes. Earlier this year I reviewed their editions of Castle of Wolfenbach and The Veiled Picture for AustenBlog.

Vanilla rooibos. Caffeine-free and high in antioxidants, this red herbal tea tastes good and is good for you. I add a tiny splash of milk to make the vanilla flavor really pop. I have it on very good authority that lemon-vanilla rooibos makes an outstanding iced herbal tea and look forward to trying it.

Victoria magazine is coming back! I was a fan of this magazine since college, and I was sorry to see it end. The resubscription invitation assures that the new magazine (debut issue: November/December 2007) will be just as it used to be. Let’s hope they’re right.

Vintage-style jewelry and art by tartx. Necklaces crafted from antique dominoes and optical lens pendants, earrings, bracelets, pocket mirrors, and more. All kinds of literary and design themed collages from which to choose. (Wouldn’t Catherine Morland just love the Gothic Curiosities bracelet?)

Many of you already blog about your favorites, and feel free to share some in the comments!