Planet SpaceAge

"... and the Home of the Brave !"

2011-05-09T22:27:00.000-07:00

Some of America “Gets’-It”

FWIW :

I’d like to tell you about an Experience I recently had at the Dallas / Ft. Worth Airport terminal. I had finally, after an extremely grueling year and a half of being unemployed & looking for a decent job, I went to a week of a very intense Company Sales Training Program at the American Airlines Training Center in the Dallas Texas area for the Company that had hired me.

The Plane ride there started out as expected and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I had a “window” seat … I was equally or moreso disappointed to find out that 32A on this flight meant looking through a window only to see the skin of the Jet-Engine that was to be less than 36” from my left ear all flight, after all my seat did NOT recline and I was up against the bathroom wall. As I looked at the skin of the engine housing I could see that over time there was a fairly wide “gap” in the metal and the small sheet metal screw heads were bulging up and had been painted over by a 3rd grade class with a thick gooey paint. I snapped a pic with my phone camera so at least there would be SOME evidence at the scene of the crash ! The ride to the AA training center was just short of a ride at an amusement park… the shuttle bus driver was thinking he was at NASCAR event and was behind …

The training was very intense, almost a “boot-camp” of sorts…but I was there to learn, and that I did as well as I could. The facility is used to train many different companies and many different nationalities. There were many Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, guys with turbans on their heads, There was Spanish, French and Louisiana speak all around. … it was truly a loud experiment in a cultural sense just sitting in the cafeteria at lunch time was as loud as that darned jet engine.

At the conclusion of our training we all went our separate ways to various shuttles and flights to head home. Once I had received my boarding pass after having cleared the TSA, I set out for the train / shuttle to my Airline area, I had temporarily put the pass in my lips as I was holding a very heavy briefcase and Duffle-Bag fully loaded. As I pulled the pass out I felt the sharp pain on my lip … the pass had sucked out the moisture on my lip and I had pulled the skin off of it. I tried to place my water bottle to my lip and blood was dripping by now. DOH ! After walking the entire length of the Dallas airport it is very obvious why everyone else had this little rectangle flight suitcases with the folding handle and WHEELS !

So let me get to the point of my writing about this … Generally speaking, when I see a person dressed in Military uniform, I simply look them straight in the eyes and say a pleasant “Thank-You” … it is the least I can do … I thought it was probably unusual to have repeated this phrase almost 15 times or so by the time I reached my gate of departure. When the time came to board, the speaker crackled out something about first class passengers could start lining up … then an interesting thing happened … The female announcer said something like “ We have several of our Military with US today, that are returning home from their service in Afghanistan and Iraq, we would like to let them on first.” The entire group of people separated like in a movie, the First Class customers moved over and about 20 Young Men and one Young Woman all in uniform, started for the gate / ramp … there was an extreme muting of speaking and almost As in a surreal scene, everyone raised their hands and started clapping. It was not a muted clapping but a loud sincere clapping. It was a very moving experience. We quietly boarded the plane. On our final descent for Sky-Harbor Airport in Phoenix, the crackling came across the loudspeakers, that we were in final approach and, we’d like to recognize the returning military aboard this flight that are with US… The entire cabin broke into applause …

God bless those brave young Men & Women and that serve this Great Country & God Bless America.

By : Dan Rose

05/06/2011

Gardening with Jenna

2011-04-13T20:08:00.000-07:00

Jenna helps her "PaPa" around RoseBud Farms.

Farmin' is hard work , ...time to rest !

PaPa said to put a spoonfull of this Gypsum / Sulfer in each hole ... OK ,... whatever PaPa !

This Watering Can is HEAVY PaPa ...can you help me hold it up ...?

All Work and no Play ...??? No Way !

PaPa says: "It's Time to go see the Horsies" ...

Another long Day at RoseBud Farms comes to an end. Squashes were planted, Horsies were pet, GrandDaughters were Loved.

Meet The Tomatoe Monster !

2010-10-02T16:09:00.000-07:00

You've heard of Cookie Monster ... right ...?

Meet Tomatoe Monster™

Jenna has 4 teeth and she knows how to use them !

We had set her on the counter when her Mommy had come to pick her up and she saw a bowl of Tomatoes from the garden and figured that it was her job to eat them! Camera Phone to the rescue !

Ginettes’ Tortilla Soup

2010-09-30T12:13:00.000-07:00

Gather Ingredients : )

1 can 48 oz Swansons’ Regular Chicken stock

1 can 28 oz Las Palmas Mild Red Enchilada Sauce / 2 matching cans / water

2 cans regular Campbells tomato soup / 1 can water

3 TBSP Butter

handful of chopped Cillantro leaves

2 limes – quartered

36 pack of white or yellow corn Tortillas , sliced in thin strips ½” to 3/8” thin = 3” long

1 LB grated Mozzarella Cheese ( or better , get fancy with Mexican cheese )the one that crumbles and tastes a bit like Parmesan & use both

Crisco Shortening ( NOT Vegetable Oil )

( Optional : Green Onions / Scallions , Avocado , Sour Cream )

In a large Pot add the stock , sauce and soup bases with water indicated , also add Butter and Cillantro , bring to a boil , turn down to simmer .

Fry thin pre-cut tortilla strips .

To serve , select LARGE soup bowl , 1 large handful of tortilla strips ( 1+ Cup) , handful of grated cheese ( ½ Cup ) , ladle over soup from pot . squeeze 1 or 2 of the quartered limes into the Soup just before eating it . ENJOY ! This is a spicy Soup !

Presentation is awesome with all extra ingredients , The Green Avacado slices with the White Sour Cream or Cream Cheeze dollop with a few Cilantro leaves on top of that melted Gooey Cheeze in the Dark red Soup and a few lime quarters on the small bowl/plate makes for a Mexican Flag colored presentation!

Everyone that has had this RAVES about it.

Optional items may include diced green onions , avocado slices , a dollop of Sour cream , additional Cillantro , a pickled hot pepper( I like to add those little yellow ones called Chilitos Encortidos' ) ( sp) , or make it a meaty soup by adding some shredded chicken meat.

( This recipe was tested and Certified to be Rose-Family approved and published on 5/13/2007 ) I should also disclose that this is a copy-cat of The La Parrilla Suiza Restaraunt chain )

Jenna The Cutie-Pie

2010-08-24T08:50:00.001-07:00

Grandaughter Jenna is Growing up fast! Cute as a button in this pic. She's walking , running all over the place. WE had a Rooster in a portable cage by the front door , and when he'd crow she'd try to say Chicken and point out the door, so cute!

Her "Doggie" is Yegger the dog, she loves him and chases him around with his toys and she laughs and falls over and is laughing so hard she cant get back up….

For such a young tyke she has developed quite the palette, From Scrambled Eggs to Tomatoes ( from GrandpPas' Garden ... well PaPa Dans' Garden )and she loves pasta salad with olives and feta cheese… she loves all food , must have some Greek in her !

Salsa Verde'

2009-09-05T22:00:00.000-07:00

Salsa Verde'

I borrowed a neighbors antique tractor today and "accidently" grabbed hold of a Tomatillo plant and ripped it out of the ground ...

So ...

~2 cups small Tomatillos
5 cloves garlic
6ea red Itallian onions ( small scallion size )
4 small cherry tomatoes knocked off plant
~1 TBSP Coarse Kosher Salt
2ea Jalapenos
1 ea Hatch Hot Green Chili
~1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
~3 TBSP diced Cillantro
1ea Lime juiced
1ea Avacado
1 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp Chili De Arbol ground powder
~2TBSP Olive Oil
~1tsp Red Wine Vinegar

all blended to a puree in a mini processor ...

= Totally Killer Salsa Verde'

__________________

Remembering Michael

2009-08-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

Comming Soon ...

Remembering Michael ...

GrandPa gets "Hug-Time"

2009-08-15T22:20:00.000-07:00

I got to hold Jenna this evening. What a treat !

Dans' B.P. Salsa & Canning Directions ...

2009-08-11T12:15:00.001-07:00

Basic Canning: Step-by-Step Directions ... >

I had posted this on the weekly Food Preservation: what's cookin' this week? Aug. 9-16 thread in the Recipes and Food Preservation Forum , that as newbies you may not be reading in there. When I read through it , it looked worthy of being placed here as I see 3 or 4 times a week a question about basic water-bath canning & How to do it types of questions ... I hope this helps Newbies that have not yet ventured forth into Basic Water Bath Canning as it is very rewarding , and really completes the cycle of Gardening to the end result , something you can eat that you grew yourself, that is "custom made" to your taste. Although the recipe below is specifically tailored for a "wing-it" Salsa I made on Monday , the basic steps in canning are there in the correct sequence with basic explanations of why to do certain things. BP stands for Bell Pepper , obviously if you are NOT a pepperhead and don't like things to be hot & spicy you could eliminate the Cayenne , Serrannos and the Chili De Arbol completely ... if you wanted just a little tiny bit of "spice" to your basic stripped down BP salsa , when you are done and just about to can the sauce , start sprinkling a little cayenne at a time and stir , test and add more till you get to your threshold of heat.

http://idigmygarden.com/forums/showt...609#post332609

Dans’ B.P. Salsa

3 Quarts , 6 Pints and 3 half-pints of Salsa. ( ~ 7 Quarts )

3ea large Bell Peppers ( Yellow Orange Red )diced to 1/4" cubes
10 Serranno Chilis mince / pulverize in Food Processor
20 Chili De Arbol ( dried ) de-stemmed *
2 TBSP HOT Cayenne Chili Powder( raise or lower amount here for heat level )*
1 TBSP dried Basil*
1ea large bunch Cillantro ( ~ 1 cup chopped )
1ea whole set Garlic ( ~ 12 cloves ) mince / pulverize in Food Processor
1 tsp Garlic powder *
1 tsp fine ground black pepper *
1ea Large white Onion mince / pulverize in Food Processor
1ea bunch green onion scallions cut to 1/4" pieces
1.5 TBSP Coarse Kosher Salt*
2ra TBSP minced Sun Dried Tomatoes
Oil - Olive Oil or your choice
Lemon Juice
Lots of Vine Ripened Red Tomatoes / skinned / quartered to fill pot

*add all dry ingredients together in bowl & mince / pulverize in Food Processor

Pretend you're on a cooking show on TV , pre-prepare everything in Cereal bowls in advance. You'll thank me later for this tip ! Grind all dry ingredients in a small Food Processor into a powder > small bowl set aside

In a large ~8 quart Spaghetti pot
pour oil in pan to cover bottom, add garlic & White Onion ... Turn on heat / flame to pot on medium heat , stir with giant wooden spoon as bubbling / cooking begins for 1 min add Bell & Serranno chilis' , turn down to minimum flame / low low heat. Now the really messy part begins , In a hot boiling pot able to hold a dozen large > medium tomatoes at a time ( 8 Qt ) ¼ full of water , a XXL large bowl with Ice-water , a plate or pan with raised edges for skinning & a XL large bowl for “waiting” and a large FP bowl for dumping ~ 4ea tomatoes quartered into a LARGE food processor . OK here we go , drop 10 > 12 tomatoes into full hard boil water , stir with large Hole Spoon w/ long handle for less than 1 min pull ea out and drop in Ice water for 30 seconds , pull & place in “waiting “ bowl to air cool , To skin , with a fine serrated knife cut / core out top stem thingie , place upside down on plate with raised edges and place both hands on skin and squeeze & pull up skins will usually pop right off & may need a knife slice at top point to release , quarter and put in F.P Bowl. When ~4ea have been skinned & quartered drop in FP and blend fast-slow fast slow about 3 times , you want a few small chunks but not full quarters , you’ll get better at gauging this as you start pouring into the cooking pot. Keep the production line going, it helps if you have competent helpers. Tip : If the tomatoes are too hot to handle when you are trying to pop off the skins you’re either leaving them in the hot water too long or not long enough in the Ice water. I tried doing this all by myself, If I would have had a helper I would break it down to 1st person washes , de-stems and drops toms. In boiling pot , retrieves and adds to XXL Ice bowl , retrieves and adds to “waiting bowl keeping track of which ‘mater went first etc … 2nd persons cores, skins quarters, FP’s, and adds to cooking pot stirring every addition completely. Because the pot has been on low/ low the entire time being stirred it is pretty warm by finishing time .Last step , add Cillantro & stir.
Once pot is near full close down production line & clean-up the whole staging area, you’ll need a clean sterile area for the canning process now, washing out your Heat the skins pot and re-filling ¼ the way with hard rolling boiling water , this becomes your jar & lids & rings water.
I wash all jars with dishsoap and a sponge every time, even if I think they were clean , old & new get the same cleaning.
I use a set of tongs to lower & turn & remove each jar one at a time, place next to cooking pot. Drop in 1ea lid & 1ea ring in boiler pan. Place Funnel in Jar.With a large ladle I add Salsa / Sauce to the top where the threads start on the neck of the jar. Remove funnel. I pour about 1 TBSP of oil on top and add 1ea tsp of lemon juice. Check surface of glass for clean & dry, use awesome magnetic thingie from Ball canning accessory kit to PU lid & place on jar apply ring lightly, set on table.
Repeat till jars are all full, when you get to the end where there’s not enough to fill another jar, that’s your sample bowl !

Fill Water bath canner to 2/3 full of water, place lid and crank as high as you can on the heat/ flame. Tighten all rings on jars at one time to insure you didn’t miss one. When at full boil, lower jars into canner with handy dandy Ball Jar lifter gizmo, be careful, steam is really hot and you don’t want to drop a jar at this stage. Add water if needed to : canner is full of jars w/ at least 2” of water over the tops of the tallest jar, place lid on pan and when it comes back to a full rolling boil start timer. I’m above sea level so I add 5 > 10 minutes to the typical 30 for a 35 > 40 min timing. Remove jars & wipe lids dry and set in an area to slowly cool , avoid breezes, airconditioning flows and fans till cool ( couple of hours for Qts. ! ) You’ll hear the lids make a thuuuuuck ! sound when the vacuum is complete on the jars. Label with the date you made it and what it is.

Tip : I place my Ball canning “Kit” and all fresh lids in my cleaned-out dried canner, so I can find them next time I want to do some canning.

Space'

Jenna Prays

2009-08-04T07:06:00.000-07:00

Grandma Went to see Jenna on Sunday. Jenna was praying to the angels. Isn't she beautiful ...?

Dans' Killer Salsa ...

2009-07-30T19:05:00.000-07:00

I was hungry for some REAL Salsa this afternoon ...

So I went out in my back Yard and picked vine ripened dark red Tomatoes , got my favorite small size shovel out & dug up a couple onions , snipped some Cillantro ... and I came up with this ...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dans’ Killer Salsa

10 REAL Tomatoes ( tennis ball size )

6 Serranno Chilis’ ( or Hot of your choice )

3 yellow Fresno Chilis’ ( or yellow or orange Bell )

5 cloves of Garlic ( or more , hee hee )

1 medium onion

6 Dried Chili De Arbol Chilis’

1TBSP Cayenne Chili Powder

1TBSP Coarse Kosher Salt

¼ tsp cumin powder

1/8 cup knife diced Cillantro

1 Lime

Fresh cracked black pepper

Olive oil

On a cutting board Smack the garlic open w/ a BIG Chef Knife . In a mini food processor add garlic & mince, add onion & mince, put in big bowl. De-head all chilis & blend till minced. Skin tomatoes by dipping in boiling water for 1 min and big spoon w/ holes into ice water , core tip and pull off skins , blend to puree and add to bowl. When hand dicing Cillantro leaves remove as many stems as feasible and blend stems & put in bowl with hand diced leaves. Add Cayenne , Salt , Cumin , add juice of 1 Lime, ~ tsp of fresh cracked Black pepper … stir mixture add ~ 2 TBSP Olive Oil , stir mixture … taste test … add more Coarse Kosher salt as needed , adjust heat with more Cayenne as needed … chill in jars labeled “Fresh – Keep refrigerated , use by _____” ( within 3 days )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

...of course , there's no real need to put the "eat this right-away sign" on it ... it usually doesn't stay in the frige long enough to chill ;)

Meet Jenna Rose Horner

2009-07-26T23:29:00.000-07:00

Meet Our newest GrandDaughter !

Born on 07-26-2009 @ 8:48AM in Safford AZ

Jenna Rose Horner

7.0 LBS x 18"

Jenna Rose Horner

Mom & Dad are resting after a 4 day labor !

Mom is our Daughter Recbecca ( Rose ) Horner and Dad is Daniel Horner.

Jenna Rose Horner was born 3 1/2 weeks early on July 26th at 8:48am by c-section, weighing 7lbs and 18in long. It started out on July 23rd I was at the hospital for a NST ( non-stress test) due to high blood pressure and headaches. After doing a 24 hour urine test the day before it showed up with protein and they decided to admit me for observation due to the starting signs of pre-clampsia. After several hours and increased blood pressure and headaches the doctor decided to induce me slowly. At 2 am Friday morning I was at 0 dilation and 50% effaced. Cyotec , a small dissolvable pill was placed on my cervix to help with dialation. Through the morning I was having mild contractions and was given more cyotec I was then 1 cm dilated. They decided to start the pitocin slowly and then the contractions started increasing and becoming closer together I felt like I was for sure making some progress. After being checked again I was only at about 2cm dilated. At this point I was so discouraged but I didn’t want to give up. I so badly wanted to have her naturally. I asked if I could walk, but because I was hooked up to the monitors to watch the baby they wouldn’t let me, so I sat up in bed and tried to let gravity take its course. I had good family support, Daniel was there along with my mom and his mom and my sisters. I received the epidural, they thought it might help me relax and rest a bit. Around 7 pm Saturday night the doctor checked me and I was still at 2cm and only 60% effaced. He told me a c-section would be in my best interest but after begging him he gave me a few more hours to keep trying, the baby was still looking good on the monitors. At 11pm the doctor broke my water and I was almost 3cm. Pitiocin was still going and I was still having contractions very close together. At 7 am Sunday morning he came and checked me. I had not made any progress and during that night the baby's heart rate was dropping some. He said its time. They prepped me for a c-section. I have never been more scared in my life. Everything was happening so fast. I was overwhelmed with fear and excitement of finally getting to meet our daughter we have been so long waiting for. Daniel was by my side and at 8:38 am the started the procedure. That 10 minutes felt like a life time. Jenna was sunny side up and her head was wedged in the right corner, she was stuck so badly in the corner they had to use a vacuum to get her out. She was not crying immediately but after a few seconds a little faint cry was let out. She was perfect and healthy. It was the best moment in my life. Since that moment my world changed and I was finally a mom.

Wave Your Flag !

2009-07-26T19:12:00.000-07:00

Photo Courtesy of The Wood Shop™

Here's a link to The Wood Shop Guitar Shop page :
http://blog.azdesertmesquite.com/2006/11/12/the-guitar-shop.aspx

Time to make Spaghetti Sauce ...

2009-07-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

Photos' Courtesy of RoseBudFarms™

Today I canned some Home-Grown Spaghetti Sauce from my garden. Ripe Red Tomatoes , onions , Garlic , Basil ... yum yum yum ... Let's see if the pics work here ...

OK , so far so good ... here;s the freshly picked Tomatoes ...

And the bubbling pot ...

and the cooling Jars !

And on the 8th Day ...

2009-07-26T17:59:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my Planet . It's really not that far away. A few clicks here & there and well here you are.

I'll play around with this thing and see what she'll do !

"And on the 8th Day , AlGore invented The InterNets."