Fresh and Local

A pretty productive morning all in all. Completed my basic morning housekeeping routine from top to bottom. The weather has been cool enough here for the past few days that I've been able to leave my bedroom window open 24/7. What a relief to feel that fresh air circulating around my apartment again...

I had to make a last minute change in my breakfast menu as yesterday's meal was a semi-disaster. When I did my marketing last weekend, I was surprised to find that there wasn't a single grapefruit in stock at the supermarket. So I tried something very 1940s - they were fascinated by the idea that anything could be canned --- canned grapefruit sections. Ack! They were awful - rubbery, fibrous, and the flavor was all off. I'd been planning to finish the can for this morning's breakfast, but couldn't bear the thought of this sad excuse for grapefruit a second day in a row. From this day forth, it's fresh grapefruit - or I'll settle for juice.

We're so spoiled in this modern age. I haven't a clue where they ship fresh grapefruit from at this time of the year. I'm just so used to seeing it there every time I shop. One thing I'm just beginning to become more aware of these days is where my produce is coming from. The melons in my market this time of year are being grown right here in the Southwest, so they're super fresh. The berries are from California, but only the raspberries are truly tasty these days. The strawberries and blueberries are past their prime. The oranges are coming all the way from Australia. Still not quite sure about the grapefruit.

My vintage breakfast menus do a nice job of shifting with the seasons. Summer's berries and peaches are giving way to winter's dried prunes and apricots. I do think these menus from the past could be improved by shifting a bit with the produce that's local to your region. Let's face it: fresh, local produce is always tastiest and least expensive. But it does require a kind of flexibility that our modern appetites have gotten a little lazy about. Just like anyone else, I get used to being able to enjoy the same meals, the same treats year-round. So I'm feeling a push here to make some improvements along this line. To get to know better the kinds of produce being grown in this part of the world where I make my home. What's fresh and local during the various seasons and how can I incorporate that in my diet - if only for a few months while it's at its best?

This kind of awareness would probably have come quite naturally to a '40s housewife who made her home outside the city. If she lived in an area where orchards were loaded with apples and pears during the fall, then apples and pears would find their way into many of the meals she served her family that season. There are plenty of ways seasonal fruits can be preserved to be enjoyed during another time of the year, but that invariably requires some additional time and labor. Being able to shift your tastes with the season seems like a skill that's good for the wallet and good for the earth.

Back to the Basics

I've been off caffeine for four days now. You know what? It hasn't been half bad. A long nap on Sunday morning, lots of yawning on Tuesday morning, a fever/chills thing goin' on today - but no headache, no jitters. I'm surviving. Without that kick, decaf isn't even very interesting to me these days. So I spent some time looking at herbal teas at the grocery store this evening and finally settled on a box of vanilla honey chamomile. I do like nursing a hot cup of something in the a.m., so maybe I'll try out a few of these herbal teas...

This has been a tough fall. Ever since my boss went on vacation in September, I've been floundering a bit when it comes to The Experiment. And I can't seem to get my legs back under me. My crush really isn't doing me any favors either. Curly and I are definitely becoming what I'd call "work buds" --- which has been great, don't get me wrong. He's a wicked neat person and I'm enjoying getting to know him, but I'm also wildly attracted to him and I can't tell for the life of me whether it's mutual or not. As heady as it feels on the days I see or talk to him, I feel just as crushed as can be on the days I don't. It's got me in a tailspin. I thought a crush would be kinda nice in the beginning, but it's been a mixed bag lately and I hate that it's having a negative impact on my housework, etc.

What I'd like to do is to revisit some of my most basic missions and see if I can't pick myself up and carry forward with this thing. (I've still got so far to go!) Beginning tomorrow morning, I'm going to continue doing all that I've been doing, but there'll be no "hit or miss" when it comes to the specific tasks listed below. No excuses. I'm going to focus for the next seven days and make sure I've got my morning housekeeping routine back in place from beginning to end. This time without the caffeine.

Open window in bedroom on arising, for free circulation of air.

Throw back bed covers, including top sheet.

Carry soiled clothing to the hamper. Hang up other clothing. Put away any personal possessions out of place in the bedroom.

Prepare and serve breakfast.

Clear away dishes and misplaced articles from dining room, after breakfast.

Operate ventilating range hood while scraping, rinsing, and stacking dishes in the dishwasher. Leave pots and pans to soak in sink.

Put away food.

Make bed.

Close bedroom window if air conditioning will be used during day.

Switcheroo

If this lump is indeed just a false alarm, caffeine may play a part in the fluctuation of hormone levels that lead to the development of these kinds of things in my breast tissue. Both my mom and older sister cut most of the caffeine out of their diets long ago --- now it's my turn. This shouldn't be a hardship in most ways. I haven't touched chocolate since about one-third of the way into this reducing regimen. I'm not accustomed to drinking tea or soda. And it's way too hot in this part of the world to savor a cup of cocoa! What is definitely going to be tough is making the switch in my morning coffee.

Was decaf available in the 1940s? Apparently so. The process of stripping the "caffein" from coffee beans was developed in Germany in 1903. A brand called Dekafa was introduced in the U.S. in 1909 or 1910, but it wasn't until General Foods began distributing Sanka (French for "without caffein") nationwide in 1928 that the concept took off. By the '40s, Sanka was available in an instant variety, too.

Of course, the big selling point in those days was not any kind of link to fibrocystic breasts, it was the idea that caffein-free coffee could prevent the "jitters" and sleeplessness that came along with a nightly cup of coffee. Judging from my American Woman's Cook Book (1945), coffee or tea were still a tradition at the evening meal, so I wouldn't be surprised in the least if insomnia was a problem for lots of people - especially those who drank coffee with a late dinner! Here's what my cookbook has to say about decaf:

CAFFEIN-FREE COFFEES - Coffees from which most or all of its caffein has been extracted are on the market. These are sold under trade names. Together with cereal beverages they are used by those who prefer them to coffee or who may find coffee too stimulating.

Day One of the Switcheroo: I made myself a pot of decaffeinated Eight O'Clock and promptly took a 90-minute nap. Eeesh. Will I be able to stay awake at work tomorrow morning?

44 + 1 = 45

I've lost a pound this week - and gained a lump in my breast.

Which I'd happily trade for the pound.

Chances are it's nothing serious. Both my mom and my older sister have had false alarms, so I'm optimistic that my breast tissue is just as prone to these things as theirs. But boy does it feel like I've got a live grenade strapped to my body. And the powerless feeling is unfortunately very familiar. I remember it well from the illness I suffered during my late 20s.

So I've got to wait until the Monday after next for my (first) mammogram and breast ultrasound. Nine days. The only strategy I can think of for getting through this is just to throw myself into my housework and my fitness routine. Whatever it takes not to have time to dwell. It's actually kinda nice to have so much on my plate right now. Comfort food? I'm craving it like crazy, but these are things I have control over these days. I'll take what I can get. I'll be back later today with a more upbeat post, I promise!

Something to Dust

Dust high objects if necessary: mantels, high shelves, window frames and sills, tops of bookcases, secretary, highboys, etc.

In the living room - just as in the bedroom - cleaning is a top-to-bottom kind of business. The Manual advises starting by cleaning the hearth and laying a new fire. It's the messiest job of the day by far. The housewife works from the top down --- dusting the highest objects in the room on which dust might settle, dealing next with upholstered and other "low" furnishings, then finally the carpet. For now, I don't have a stitch of high furnishings to dust. The only item on my list here is the frame around my living room window. Everything else is shorter than I am!

As much as I love having one less thing to do, I'm hoping this won't be the case for long. I've been feeling nest-y lately and my apartment badly needs some redecorating. I should make that "decorating," because I've been just kinda perched here since moving to the Southwest two years ago. My sister had recently gotten married and had some older furniture she needed temporary storage for - so it's worked out nicely for us both. I got a few pieces to fill my little place with and she got some space she so desperately needed with a baby on the way. Ever since then, I've been unsure how long I'd stay here, so didn't want to stock up on fabulous furnishings and things that I'd have a hard time moving cross-country again. Fast forward two years... My parents have just purchased a small home here where they're planning on coming for the winters. (Can't resist those grandbabies!) So I guess I'm here for awhile.

One nice thing about living in a city this size is that there are lots of places to shop vintage. Including at least three large-ish vintage furniture stores within a fifteen-minute drive. I've got some shopping to do! In the meantime, how 'bout a little furniture porn. I'm aiming for a late Art Deco/moderne look when it comes to my living room. Here's some of the inspiration that makes me weak in the knees...


Pair of Skyscraper End Tables (1928)
Dynamique Creations, Grand Rapids, Michigan




Coffee Table (1930s)
Modernage Furniture Company, New York City




French Reclining Club Chairs (1930s)




Danish Secretary





American Club Chair and Sofa Set (1930s)



...and since money isn't an object while I'm fantasizing - check out this piece of cheesecake!


French Cabinet (1930s)

Sleuthery

I've got not so good news from the scale to report this morning, ladies. I weighed in at 150 today - just like last Saturday - which makes it the first weigh-in since early August which hasn't been a success. Well, at least I didn't gain anything... Truth be told, I was a bit sloppy about my eating earlier this week and I haven't been drinking my full 64 oz. of water each day. But as I looked down at this scale this morning and saw the very same numbers that flashed across the scale last weekend, I felt a renewed commitment to my reducing and fitness plans. After all, 117 is still a looooooooooooong way off and there isn't any time to lose!

Maybe it's the change in seasons. This is the first week I've been able to turn off the air conditioning at home. Yesterday, I actually got to open the windows in my apartment and leave them open all day long. I got home from work and everything just smelled so much fresher when I walked in the door. It's much, much darker on Monday mornings when I get up early to do my weekly wash. Darker mornings and cooler temperatures are messing with my workout schedule a bit, too. Instead of having to be at the park by 6 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, I need to wait until at least 6:30 or 7 unless I want to be freezing in the dark! And it's just about cool enough to be able to walk outdoors again at lunchtime on weekdays. Temps only hit the 80s - sometimes low 90s - these days. Autumn in the Southwest.

A friend and I were talking about my blind date last week and I realized something that still makes me laugh. My self esteem is so healthy these days that it never even occurred to me that the emailer wouldn't be totally into me. Isn't that crazy? I was so focused on whether I liked him or not, that it never even entered my mind that he wouldn't be crazy about me! So when he didn't contact me soon after that coffee date, it caught me completely off-guard. Just to give you an update, he emailed me three days later. A quick email about a book I'd mentioned when we met each other. I wrote him back the next day - which must have been several days ago now - and I haven't heard from him since. I do believe I've been fizzled!!! This is perfectly okay, but it's just funny to me that I didn't remotely expect this kind of disinterest from my blind date. That's what losing 44 lbs. will do to a dame, I guess! Dangerous, blinding self-confidence.

Ooh, before I forget, here's a picture of the beauteous plum-colored dress I bought a few weeks ago when I first got into a size 12. It's uber flattering just exactly in the places where I need a little extra flattering. Best part? I can wash it on the delicates cycle, dry it on a hanger in my bathroom, and it's ready to go. No iron needed. Now that's fashion a housewife can appreciate.

This is the dress I was wearing on Thursday when I saw Curly for the second time last week. (I paired it with some strappy gold heels, purple beaded earrings, and gold bracelets on both wrists.) Once upon a time, I used to see Curly maybe once every month or two. Over the summer, it was once a week. These days, I'm running into him a few times a week. Which is absolutely fine with me! The man is smokin' hot. He's actually started using the men's room in the hallway right outside my office - there's a men's room just outside his office downstairs - and he came up to use the kitchen in our office suite twice last week. Now, clearly my judgment is a bit impaired these days (see Exhibit A above) so I'm trying really hard not to read anything into all these Curly sightings. But by the third day in a row last week, I started feeling a little intoxicated. Maybe there's something wrong with the men's room downstairs? Maybe he was around all the time before... Did I just never notice him?

*sigh*

Where's Nancy Drew when you need her?

"crushed paper, dry kindling, and logs"

Happily, there's one item among this list of chores for the living room that I don't have to worry about. The hearth may still have been the heart of the typical 1940s living room, but there isn't any in my circa 1989 apartment.

Even for the vintage housewife, a daily cleaning of the fireplace would only have been a job during the season that it was being used. She must have cheered out loud each spring when it was warm enough that a fire in the evenings could be dispensed with. I've been reading the diaries kept by a woman in northern New York in this era. She lived in a farmhouse without either central heat or electricity and the coal stove in her "parlor" was regularly used from about late October/early November until sometime in May. (Imagine the work it took to maintain one of those cast iron coal stoves!)

We have the best of both worlds today. If you have a fireplace in your living room, it's probably something you only use - and have to clean up after - when a fire seems cozy on a chilly evening at home. Here's the "morning after" ritual recommended by The Manual:

Each morning the hearth should be swept and ashes emptied into the ash pit or disposed of safely. A new fire should be laid on the grate, with crushed paper, dry kindling, and logs...

Once or twice a year, special cleaning is necessary to remove smoke stains...

The wood box should be brushed out each time it is to be refilled. If insect life is discovered in it, prompt action should be taken.

And a stern word of caution for houseguests tempted to use the fireplace as a trash can:

Need we say that the fireplace should never be used as a wastebasket or a place to dump the contents of ash trays? When this happens the fireplace is most unsightly when no fire is burning, and a match touched to the litter and debris may create a fire hazard.

Week Forty-seven: The Mission

My sister is headed home to New England tomorrow with Kitten and Poppet. They're off to spend two weeks visiting family and friends - and enjoying some of that crisp autumn weather I'd love a taste of myself! (My babies will be so far away!!!) I've resolved to keep myself busy while they're gone with a whole new mission. It's time to take it back to basics and finally add that living room to my weekly housekeeping routine. The only real housework I've been doing in my living room since starting The Experiment has been to give that room a little daily tidying. It was ten months ago that I began giving the following treatment to my living room every evening before bed:

Put living room in order.

• Open windows top and bottom for free circulation of air.
  
• Pick up and replace small articles belonging in the room, such as books, magazines, music, games, victrola records, cards, etc.
  
• Gather up on tray to be taken out: used ash trays, articles belonging in other rooms, plants or flowers to be tended. Collect trash in waste basket.
  
• Carry out tray.

Remember those chores? They're super easy when you live in a small apartment and you're only home two days a week! It only takes me about five minutes each night and makes the living room a much nicer place to wake up to in the morning... Well, it's time to expand that routine a bit. Once each weekend - probably on Sunday afternoons - I'm going to give the living room some weekly attention.

Now, the authors of America's Housekeeping Book (1945) suggest that the housewife give each room in the house a daily cleaning shortly after breakfast. Once a week, she should return to each room and clean it more thoroughly. (The day of the week doesn't matter very much, but they do recommend once in passing that living rooms be cleaned on Fridays.) Since I work outside the home full time, I can't clean each room every day. Instead, I aim to give each room a weekly cleaning (with the chores recommended to the '40s housewife on a daily basis) and then - once a month - do the chores recommended to the '40s housewife on a weekly basis, rotating between the four rooms in my apartment so that each room gets the white glove treatment once a month. Without further ado, here's my new barebones once-a-week housekeeping routine for the living room:

1. Bring in cleaning equipment: hearthbroom (if not kept at fireplace), carpet sweeper or vacuum cleaner (according to need), dust mop, cleaning basket.

2. In season, clean out fireplace, lay fire, sweep hearth.

3. Dust high objects if necessary: mantels, high shelves, window frames and sills, tops of bookcases, secretary, highboys, etc.

4. Dust radiator covers if necessary.

5. Brush upholstery if necessary. Straighten covers. Plump up pillows.

6. Dust furniture and low objects if necessary. Treat stains or blemishes as they occur.

7. Dust exposed wood flooring with dust mop if necessary. Use carpet sweeper or vacuum cleaner on rugs or carpets.

8. Final touches: Straighten draperies, shades, curtains, etc. Take out cleaning equipment and waste basket. Return clean ash trays, accessories, flowers and waste basket. Close windows if desired.

41 + 3 = 44

It's gotta be all kinds of wrong to celebrate another 3 lb. weight loss and simultaneously rave about my new Butterscotch Biscuit recipe! Nevertheless, I've got to do both this morning. In fact, we've got a lot to catch up on. Let me put a pot of coffee on first...

I weighed in at 150 this morning which means I've lost 44 lbs. since beginning this vintage reducing and fitness routine in April! 1 more lb. and I can officially visit a doctor's office without the nurse having to move that slide on the scale up a whole 'nother notch. You know the slide I'm talking about? That great divide between weighing 100 something and 150 something - or 200 something, for that matter. (Been there!) My mini-goal of 145 is just 5 lbs. away now, so I'm upping the ante. I've got to make it by November 7.

My breakfast this morning is clearly not going to be contributing! The Butterscotch Biscuits were tres delicieux, but not the kind of treat to be enjoyed on a regular basis. These biscuits just melt in your mouth --- which is never a good thing for a reducer! I'm packing the rest of this batch into the freezer as soon as they're fully cooled. They were fairly easy to make. Took me about 20 minutes - and only 10 minutes to bake. Start by mixing up a batch of Baking Powder Biscuits dough. Here's where things get interesting:

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BUTTERSCOTCH - Roll dough to a rectangular sheet and brush with softened butter. Sprinkle with brown sugar and roll up like a jelly roll. Cut into 1-inch slices and place cut side down on greased baking sheet or in greased muffin pan.

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So I had my first date in six years on Thursday evening. And lived to tell the tale! I thought I might perish from nerves about 15 minutes before I left the house. My first instinct was to eat something sinful, but I ate a banana instead and it did the trick. As soon as I met the guy and could see how nervous he seemed, it calmed me down. One of us had to be relaxed, right? We met for a cup of coffee at this restaurant which serves dessert only. (No dessert for me, thanks!) The emailer was more handsome than he looked in in his pictures. Tall and slim with a pianist's fingers. He was soft spoken with a careful, deliberate way of talking. But still... very little interest it seems in actually getting to know more about me. He's never even asked me the easy questions. You know, the kind of stuff you'd ask a new co-worker or somebody you just met at a cocktail party. Instead he showed me all the apps on his iPhone. Yep. His iPhone. Is that the 21st century equivalent of showing a potential mate what you've been able to club and drag back to the cave?

I'm not sure what happens next. I shook his hand good-bye and told him I'd had a nice time. He didn't suggest seeing each other again and neither did I. (I didn't suggest that he call on my mother, either!) I'd be open to a second date, but he hasn't emailed me since Thursday evening. And I haven't a clue what he thought of me. Couldn't even hazard a guess. He was very guarded. Perhaps I'd better reach for my New American Etiquette (1941). What kind of advice on "dating" does Lily Haxworth Wallace have to offer this week?

No girl or young woman should ever visit, upon his invitation alone, the home of a man who lives with female relatives. Before she can go, she must have an invitation from one of the ladies.

One of the most troublesome questions that has arisen because of the modern freedom of relations between the sexes is whether or not a girl or young woman may visit a man in his apartment alone.

The answer is almost invariably "No" but there can be many circumstances that make it seem proper. A girl from a small town, on a visit to the city, might call upon and have dinner with a man from her home town. Where is the harm in that? A bride-to-be would certainly be in no danger if she visited her fiance in his rooms? Dozens of other similar examples could be given.

According to the rigid rules of etiquette, it must not be done. There are many conservatives who would severely disapprove and certainly Mrs. Grundy can be expected to take full advantage of any such "goings on." According to the same rules of proper living, it would seem that whether it is right or wrong depends entirely upon the girl. When a girl considers going alone to the man's apartment, she should ask herself just one question:

"Would I do this if I knew my mother, Mrs. Grundy, and everyone I know sees me enter?"

If the answer to that question is "Yes," where can the harm be? If the answer is "No," the visit had better not be made.

It is even considered improper for two or three girls to visit in a man's rooms unless an older woman - a chaperon - is present.

Neither can one girl with another young couple make the visit with any more propriety than she could alone.

At any party given by a bachelor in his apartment, older persons, who will serve the purpose of chaperons, should always be present.

It is perfectly all right, however, for two girls to take tea with a college man in his rooms.

If you are willing to make the visit and thus dare Mrs. Grundy, make it a point to leave early. Do not remain after nine o'clock or, at the very latest, ten. If you go during the day, do not stay long. Mrs. Grundy only needs to have a man and woman together for one minute to tell some dreadful tales. Three or four hours might keep her busy for a year. Be sensible about this matter. Do not give people any excuse for gossip for only a few minutes of fleeting pleasure. Weigh the scales well to determine whether more good or harm may come to you because of the visit.