Acorn Pies

Talk to Your Kids About Art School

2011-12-15T03:07:00.000-05:00

Look at this great new campaign for art school, which encourages families to "talk" about art school using imagery and language reminiscent of the DARE anti-drug program. Click on the title of the post or google breakingcopy.com to see more of the campaign!

L'Escalade: The Patriotic Festival of Geneva

2011-12-11T14:48:00.018-05:00

On December 12, 1602, Charles-Emmanuel, a Frenchman, le Duc de Savoie, attacked Geneva with 2000 men. He wanted to make Geneva his capitol north of the alps. He had chosen the longest night of the year, and attacked in the dead of night. The attackers placed huge ladders against the great walls surrounding the town. ("Escalade" means "the scaling" of the walls.)

The townsfolk were awakened by the shot of a musket. Soon the bells of St. Pierre tolled the alarm. The town was under attack. Soldiers and townspeople rushed to defend their town. People tossed furniture out the windows onto the attackers below.

According to legend, Mère Royaume, who lived near the Porte de Monnaie, grabbed a "marmite," (a three-legged cauldron) of vegetable soup and threw it out the window, killing one of the Savoyard soldiers.

The Genèvois killed 54 enemies and captured 30. The rest of the attackers fled. Many of the prisoners were of high rank, and all were hung the next day as "brigands and thieves" by the town executioner. Eighteen Genèvois were killed.

"To Our Valiant Ancestors. Here during the night of the Escalade the 12th of December of the year 1602 the people of Geneva repulsed the enemy and saved Independence and the Republic. May their memory dwell imperishable in our hearts."

Every year since 1902, the patriotic and proud Genèvois have celebrated their victory with a festival of re-enactions and parades.

Throughout the city, in pastry and candy shops, chocolate "marmites," red and gold wrapped candies, and marzipan vegetables appear in the windows. On the day of the celebration people of the town put a chocolate marmite in the center of the table at dessert time, stack their hands above it and declare,

"Et c'est ainsi que périrent les ennemis de la République!" (And thus perish the enemies of the Republic!) Hourah!

More Felt Love

2011-12-01T07:52:00.000-05:00

Another ornament...is Easter coming? This is what I felt like making, a leaping rabbit, breezes and sunshine and flowers! The ornament is wool felt and the embroidery is done with silk embroidery ribbon and thread. This is fun.

Swiss Chalet Ornament

2011-11-28T07:13:00.001-05:00

I sat down in my new studio for the first time since our move and made a little ornament for the little tree we are going to get. It's made of wool felt, and is hand sewn and embroidered. I can't wait to show it to my little boy when he gets home!

Week Away

2011-11-21T14:40:00.000-05:00

I'm going to be busy with a visiting friend this week. Hooray! See you next week, with lots more Swiss fun! love, Beth

The Fondu Pot

2011-11-18T11:55:00.000-05:00

I saw it among the many fondu pots at Manor, the department store. It was the "caquelon" I liked best. I wanted one with cows and a herdsman, but it was expensive, like most things in Switzerland. I hemmed and hawed. I could pay less and get a plain one. But I plan on using this pot a few times a month for a long time, I reasoned. It would be fun to use with guests. It is Swissy, and since although I am an American and new to Switzerland, I adore anything Swissy, anything with a Swiss flag or Swiss imagery of any kind. I almost have a sort of Swiss patriotism. I "buy Swiss."

I discussed it with my little boy.
"You should get it, Mom. I'll help pay for it. I'll pay 5 francs." How could I refuse that sweet offer? Of course I said yes!

We bought it and then went straight down to the fabulous Manor food hall to buy a baguette and some cheese. We were able to get a bag of delicious fondu cheese, a mixture of vacherin and gruyere, already grated. Did you know that some Swiss have a fondu room in the basement? Some gardens have a little fondu building in them.

It is customary to have hot tea or white wine with your fondu.....

and to kiss everyone at the table if you drop a piece of bread in the cheese.

Mmmmm. Delicious school night dinner in Switzerland.

Villages of the Valais

2011-11-17T02:09:00.001-05:00

This past weekend, we explored a little part of the Valais, and the villages of Vissoie, St. Luc, Grimentz, and Ayer.

These beautiful, ancient towns are full of little houses made of "madrier," solid, squared blocks of wood which notch into one another on the corners like Lincoln logs.

These are granaries in the picture above. Many of the granaries, and some of the houses, are built on stilts, sometimes with flat stones on top of the stilts, to keep out mice.

Since this is a traditionally Catholic area, there are many roadside shrines and crosses. This beautiful little roadside shrine carries a carving of Mother Mary carrying baby Jesus. Carved at the bottom are the words, "Notre Dame de La Route, Protege Nous," or, "Our Lady of the Roads, Protect Us." And we do need protecting on the narrow, cliff-edged roads of this area.

The wood on the old houses has turned black with age and exposure to wind, rain, snow, and sun.

Some of the streets are too small for cars, and are pedestrian only.

Some of the buildings are decorated with hand carving.

This area was settled by farmers who herded their cows into the mountains for the summer, to eat the fresh grass and herbs of the alpage, made cheese with the milk, and tended their vines in the Fall after coming back down into the valleys with their herds.

I like the weathered wood on the old granaries which line the cobbled streets.

I wonder what this kettle was used for. Making cheese?

We saw a wonderful garden with a miniature village carved by a grandfather who lived in the chalet where we stayed. We were fascinated by the time and care which he put into creating the little buildings.

Christmas Crafts on Acorn Pies

2011-11-14T04:28:00.003-05:00

Make an Advent Wreath
Make a Pine Cone Swag
Make a Wooden Robot Ornament
Make a Grass Reindeer
Make a Tea Cozy
Make a Lovey
Make a Snow Child Toy
Make a Fall Swag
Make a Pomander Ball with a Small Child

While replenishing my links I came up with some good Christmas Crafts. Catholics among you will want to try the Advent wreath. A pine cone swag makes a beautiful decoration for the house, and small children can help make it. Children can also make wooden ornaments, like the robot my son made last year. Grown-ups can tackle a grass reindeer ornament, or make a tea cozy as a very special present. A lovey or a snow child would make wonderful handmade presents for someone you love. Tiny children can make a pomander ball with help from a parent, and both child and parent will feel tranquilized (in a good way) after doing it. A pomander ball is a sweet-smelling present which can be from a child. Americans looking for a great Thanksgiving craft the whole family can do together, check out the Fall Swag. It's gorgeous, easy, and fun, and I've been using mine for about 10 years! Lots other Fall and Winter crafts I've listed would also be fun at Christmas is you are looking for some handmade fun. See links in the right hand column.

Native American Crafts on Acorn Pies

2011-11-08T01:33:00.000-05:00

I have been replenishing my links and have put up some Native American crafts from the Acorn Pies archives for those of you interested in doing Native American crafts with children at home or at school or with scouts. Check out the right hand column for instructions on How to Make a Trail Kettle, How to Make a Paper Model of a Trail Kettle, Grinding Corn, and Bead Weaving with Children. Have fun!

Campfire Baked Apples

2011-11-06T15:36:00.001-05:00

We climbed from a parking lot near the Auberge de Sonchaux, which is already closed for the season, to a wonderful lookout on the mountain above. We gathered firewood, which some park workers had helpfully piled up nearby just for that purpose.

My boy whittled some tinder from some dry kindling. Unlike in the picture above, we piled the kindling log cabin style to make our fire. (See How to Make a Campfire, in the column to the right.)

My husband got it going wonderfully well. He had some Alpine dried beef on baguette for lunch. My boy and I toasted some gruyere cheese on baguette next to the fire. The cheese didn't melt, but the bread got hot and crunchy.

When we had some good embers, we put in the apples for baking. I had prepared them at home. I dug out the middle of some baking apples using a knife, (leaving the bottom intact.) I filled the cavity with some crumbled homemade sugar cookies and some plain tasting cookies (like English digestive biscuits,) from the store, and some butter. You could also use wheat germ, or crumbled bread, or oatmeal, and then butter and brown sugar. Don't add sugar if the filler is sweet. I wrapped them upright in a double layer of aluminum foil, sealed them tightly, and made a little handle out of a pinch of foil at the top.

While the apples baked, and we started to hear some sizzling, my boy used a magnifying glass to melt some gummy bears on a piece of foil.

I think we waited about fifteen or twenty minutes. I gave a hot apple a little squeeze with my pot holder. It was soft enough to eat. We let them cool on the edge of the fire for a few minutes, until we could touch the foil without getting burned.

The apples had collapsed, making a tasty and juicy mess, with the cookies in the middle.

I remembered to bring forks to eat them with. There were some dark brown spots on the skin of my apple, but I ate the whole thing. It was delicious. And there were some sweet juices to drink in the bottom of the foil, too.

It was so beautiful up there. I want to go into the mountains every weekend for the rest of my life.

We watched clouds roll in to the valley from Lac Leman, far below.

We walked further up the mountain a ways after putting out the fire. I am always behind. I like to stop to take pictures. Look at the beautiful little ferns growing from between the rocks below.

We walked up to a cave we knew about. It was farther away than we thought. In this picture, I think my husband is trying to get my boy to go into the cave, saying something like, "Bears aren't hibernating yet, at this time of year. At least, I don't think they are."

We went inside about 40 feet, lighting matches. It felt like an adventure! Next time, we are going to bring flashlights and go a little bit further.

Then, as the light started to fade, we went home again.

Colonial Crafts and Games on Acorn Pies

2011-11-04T03:54:00.002-04:00

I posted fall and winter activities on Acorn Pies today, and have a special section for Colonial Crafts and Games, since many American primary school children study the pilgrims every fall. Look in the right-hand column for tutorials about:

How to Make Bayberry Wax
Making a "Tin" Lantern
Making a Paper "Tin" Lantern
How to Make an Oil Lamp
Quill Pen
Make Butter
How to Play Nine Man Morris
How to Play Troll My Dame
Weaving with Children

Have fun experiencing a taste of Colonial days with your children, students, or scouts.

Swiss Chalets and Ogres

2011-11-01T07:58:00.007-04:00

The Switzerland of fairy tales is real...

gingerbread porches...

little villages perched in the mountains...

flower-covered chalets,

shutters and ancient wood......

and ogres.

Photo from the website Valais: Les Alpes Source. Click on the title of this post to see more.

The mask in the picture above is the stuff of fairy tales. It is a traditional hand-carved Carnival mask. In the Valais region of Switzerland, between Candlemas and Ash Wednesday, men put on hand-carved masks, some of which have real teeth in them, and are fringed with hair, and become Tschäggättä. They pad their shoulders, don huge wigs and clothes made of the fur of chamois, fox, or sheep, hold a staff, and tie a cow bell around their waists with a broad belt. They run through the village chasing those brave enough to go out after dusk! I would love to know the origins of this ancient celebration. I found a fascinating video of the event, which I have posted below. I got it from a website about the celebration in Loëtschenttal, and it features an interview with a mask-carver. The video is in Swiss German, I'm afraid, but the imagery of monsters chasing laughing children through the ancient village streets is unforgettable!

This building is probably a mayen, a summer dwelling place for cowherds and their families, although it is in a village now. Mayen are the most rustic alpine dwelling places for people. The stable was frequently connected to the house. The word "mayen" might come from the word "mai," which is the month of may in French. In May, the cowherds drove their herds into "l'alpage," the high mountain pasture, to eat the fresh grass and herbs all summer. While there, the cowherds made cheese and butter out of the cows' milk, bringing it down to the villages to sell in the autumn. The descent of the cowherds and their cows in the Fall is called the Dèsalpes. I wrote a special story about it last month.

I like to look at the things which people hang on their chalets and mayens, the ladders, wheels, ancient scythes, (people still use scythes to cut hay on the steep hillsides,) antlers, and pine cones. At this time of year, the outsides of some chalets are covered with piles of wood, in preparation for snowy times ahead.

Happy Halloween Swiss Style

2011-10-31T05:09:00.000-04:00

I wish you a Happy Halloween with scherenschnitte, a wonderful traditional Swiss craft from the German part of Switzerland. My little boy and I designed this one, but if you want to see some scherenschnitte by an accomplished comtemporary paper cutter, look at this blog site... http://papercutting.blogspot.com/ For traditional scherenschnitte by a contemporary artist, see http://main.nc.us/openstudio/MHGrabman/

Build a Little Dam

2011-10-21T16:00:00.000-04:00

Build a little dam!

First, put down the big rocks, then fill in the holes with some smaller ones.

It's starting to make a pool!

Now find some muddy clumps of leaves. There usually are some around the edges of streams. They are good for blocking some of the leaks.

Put some gravel and sand on top of the muddy clumps of leaves, and you should have a pretty good dam. Watch the little pool fill up!

Swiss Labels

2011-10-20T09:24:00.010-04:00

Swiss products usually have a little Swiss flag on them, which makes it easy to support the producers of food in this wonderful little country. Did you know there was such a thing as Alpine salt? Some day, we'll visit the salt mines at Bex and see what it is all about.

Naturally, there are beautiful scenes of the Swiss countryside on many of the packages. This one has a little ibex in it. Other wild animals of the Swiss mountains are the chamois, the mountain goat, the roe deer, the elk, the marmot, and the recently reintroduced lynx. Wild wolves, which were wiped out in Switzerland long ago, have begun to migrate back into Switzerland from Alpine Italy.

The Terrasuisse label means that a food was produced by a nature and animal-friendly Swiss farmer, thereby encouraging biodiversity.

I find it hard to resist any food which has a picture of Heidi on the label.

This is the half and half which I put in my coffee every morning. Printed on the back of the Heidi products is a quote from the book....

"'Oh! The cute little creatures! Oh! The pretty little cats!' she repeated over and over, jumping around the basket...."

Tete de Moine is a strong cheese which has been cut into long delicate slices which ruffle together like a flower bud. "Tete de moine" means "monk's head."

Mmmmm...fromage blanc. I'm going have to learn how to make it!

Jambon cru is a wonderful, tender, salty, cured raw ham, sliced thinly, like prosciutto. There is the beautiful castle in Gruyere on this label.

I also adore all the Swiss cows I see in meadows on the mountainsides, and in paddocks sprinkled in neighborhoods and villages everywhere, and love them on the milk labels.

This is a picture of a Swiss race of milk cows, the Brown Swiss. There is a another race of cows, the Hèrèns, which fight to establish the heirarchy of the herd. I haven't seen a cow fight yet, but festivals are held in the Valais region to watch the cows push one another back and forth until one is declared queen of the herd. It is hard to imagine, and it sounds kind of funny, especially since if a cow isn't in the mood to fight it is alright if she just stands there or walks away. There is also a cow race in Flumersburg every October. Some of the cows actually do run, and some walk because that's as fast as they go. That also would be something to see!

L'Armoire Magique ll

2011-10-10T08:40:00.001-04:00

I completed the refinishing of the magic wardrobe. Appleshoe, one of my readers, pointed out how nice it looked cleaned up, but not painted. I realized I liked it that way, too. So I scrubbed and sanded it some more, until it was as fresh and smooth as I could get it, and

then I rubbed it with beeswax furniture polish.

I love the pretty color and soft sheen. It smells wonderfully of honey.

Inside the door there had been an old string, perhaps for ties, as another reader suggested. I replaced it with a piece of colorful ribbon.

I painted the shelves sky blue, and finally put away my son's clothes, which have been sitting on his desktop these last six weeks. I'm already thinking of refinishing another piece of furniture, an old chest which someone pickled.

Making Spelt Bread Using a European Recipe

2011-10-07T11:15:00.002-04:00

I was looking for bread flour and this is what I found at one of our local groceries. When I got home I found out that epeautre is spelt. Today was cool and cloudy and my housework was calling to me. It was a perfect day to make bread instead!

I found a recipe for spelt bread on the back of the package. I've never used a recipe in French before, but have been wanting to try.

I had to use a scale to measure dry ingredients in grams.

The recipe called for 1 cc. of salt. A cc. is a cuillère à café. I used a European teaspoon, and leveled the salt when I measured it.

A cs. is a cuillère à soupe.

I used fresh cake yeast, and measured it using my scale. Do you see how everything is written in three languages on the food packages? The main languages of Switzerland are Swiss German, French, and Italian. Romanche, a fourth official language of Switzerland, is spoken by about 60,000 people.

The yeast had to be dissolved in warm water. To figure out how much water to use I used a conversion table I found online.

The recipe called for sunflower oil, but I use virgin olive oil for just about everything, including pancakes.

Out came my mixer and the dough hook. I kneaded for a while, and added some extra flour, but the dough stayed very, very sticky. I finally decided to just let it stay sticky.

Here is the dough after it rose in the "moule à cake" for about an hour. I removed some plastic wrap about halfway along. It stuck to the dough and made some little waves on top.

After placing the bread in the cold oven and then baking at 200 celsius for about fifty minutes, here is the result. The crust is very crisp and crunchy. The interior is airy and chewy, and it is delicious,

especially with la buerre à gros sel des Alpes, (butter with chunks of salt from the Alps.) Did you know salt is mined in the Alps? I didn't, until I moved to Switzerland. This afternoon I brought my boy a snack of spelt bread with a slice of chocolate sandwiched inside. He loved it! Wouldn't you?

The Dèsalpes in Saint Cergue

2011-10-03T11:33:00.001-04:00

We went to St. Cergue to see the Dèsalpes, the descent of the milk cows from the summer meadows to the valleys for the winter. The best milkers wear flowery headdresses and their enormous festival bells, and the sound is deafening.

Lines of cowherds kept the cows from veering off the road, and controlled the pace of the herds. The pace was brisk, and I'm sure they came far. A friend of ours joined some cowherds for the Dèsalpes one year, and he walked 18 km. to get down from the mountains.

Many of the cowherds wore traditional white blouses and puff-sleeved black velvet jackets.

A fruitière is a fromagerie, a place where cheese is made.

The cows were nervous and the roads got very messy. My son's reaction: "I hate cows."

This man is carrying an alpine milking stool on his back. Why do you suppose the milking stool only has one leg?

That's right, so the milker can balance on a hillside, like this boy is doing.

These people were getting ready to play the alpenhorn.

After watching the dancers for a few minutes I was overwhelmed with an urge to put on a costume, learn folk dancing, and be Swiss.

We saw many beautiful bells.

Some of them had elaborate leatherwork, embroidery, and hand painting on the collars.

These men are preparing raclette. After the heaters melt the cheese, they scraped it off onto potatoes, and served it with cornichons and mini corn.

These men are competing to see how far they can throw a heavy log of wood.

We saw food stands with garlic, sausages, cheese, beer, wine from the Canton of Vaud, homemade fruit liquers and traditional clothing.

To make up for the cows, we got our son some Barbe à Papa. Barbe à Papa means Papa's Beard in French.

Hiking Near Les Avants

2011-10-01T12:12:00.000-04:00

I want this house.

My husband is using an app on his iphone. He and my son wanted to see if this beautiful water trough was level.

I love finding out where Centaurea Montana grows wild. We're going to come back to these meadows next spring to see the wild narcissus.

Doesn't this look like a nice place to stroll? Well........

Actually, it was scary. There was a cliff on one side. We had to hold on to a wire in some places where it was especially steep, and the path particularly narrow.

My husband showed my son how to click his fingers that day.

I got to taste my first beechnuts. Where we lived in Rhode Island, the beechnuts were always hollow. Perhaps they were never pollinated.

Do you recognize this nut? I'd love to know what it is.

My boy is demonstrating how important chocolate is during our hikes. He's having Kinderschokolade. It has a milk filling, which I guess is supposed to make parents feel like it's healthy!

Gruyere

2011-09-29T02:34:00.002-04:00

La Grue is the crane. It gives its name to the beautiful little village of Gruyere, and the cheese which is made there.

It's fun to look for the many images of cranes which you can find in Gruyere. How many do you see?

The Mini-Kiwi

2011-09-23T02:17:00.001-04:00

I had a challenging week, but there were bright spots, and here is one of them...the mini-kiwi!

I bought them at the Farmer's Market. The Farmer let me taste one. I loved it. When they yield to a gentle squeeze, they are ready.

You pinch the ends off,

then you pop the whole thing into your mouth. Do they grow mini-kiwis where you live?

Riex

2011-09-21T05:49:00.001-04:00

This is the beautiful Lavaux wine region on Lac Leman. It is a World Heritage site.

This area has been continuously occupied since prehistory. Romans may have planted the first vines. Cistercian monks built many of the terraces and stone walls about a thousand years ago.

And this is Riex, a beautiful medieval town in the middle of the Lavaux.

It was a hot day when we visited, and the village was shuttered and very still.

Every where we go in Switzerland, we find cool fountains. As long as there is no sign saying, "Eau non potable," you can drink from the spout,

or make boats out of flowers.

My boy chased, and caught, a lizard.

My husband and I went to Riex on Friday night, and tasted Riex wines sitting on a little terrace below the ancient clock tower. Then we strolled to Epesse, and had dinner on a terrace overlooking gardens and vineyards below. I glowed with happiness. Hills of ripe grapes, beautiful old buildings, the sun sinking over the lake and mountains, my husband's warm hand in mine, tasting the wine which comes from this very soil. I want everyone I love to experience this, too.

L'Armoire Magique

2011-09-18T06:22:00.000-04:00

I have read this book many times in English, as a girl, and as a mother, to my children. Knowing the story well helps me read it in French. It's by C.S. Lewis. The illustrations are by Pauline Baynes.

Here is an illustration of the wardrobe which takes Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy to a magic land called Narnia,

and brings them back home again after a wonderful adventure.

Here is my own magic wardrobe. I bought it for my son because his room doesn't have a closet for his clothes. It's a junktique. It's nothing special, at least, not yet.

It has a key. Turning a key is the way adventures sometimes begin.

After I scrubbed the horrible black attic dust off of it, the wax turned white. I kind of like the way it looks.

The inside holds three shelves, which I removed for cleaning.

This string was stapled to the inside of the door. I wonder if someone hung notes or cards inside. What do those penciled numbers mean?

Did cups hang from the large hooks in the ceiling, or clothes hangers?

I'm going to paint it sky blue and perhaps use this painting I did in acrylic, (copying a fairy tale illustration by Russian illustrator Boris Zvorykin,

and changing the people in it into my husband and daughter.) For me, this beautiful place is the Valley of Love and Delight, which we sing about in the Quaker hymn, 'Tis a Gift to Be Simple.

It also looks a lot like Switzerland.

Or, perhaps I will paint Robert the Bruce or another wonderful armored hero for my son. I think he would like that.

Grindelwald

2011-09-15T14:51:00.002-04:00

One of our first trips, once we got to Switzerland this late summer, was to Grindelwald.

The river in this dramatic gorge is fed by a melting glacier.

Water rained down from high above.

The forests around the gorge were lush.

We eventually climbed to the top of the gorge and looked down.

We were tired after our long hike, and stopped in this little inn for some drinks.

My boy drank Ribella, which is a drink made out of whey.

On our way back down the mountain, we saw that a nature artist had wrapped twigs around tree trunks.

We love Switzerland, and already feel at home!

Moving!

2011-06-27T12:52:00.000-04:00

I haven't been tending Acorn Pies much recently. We are in the middle of our move to Switzerland. Once I get settled for the summer, I should be able to post a bit more, and then things will be back to normal in September. Now go outside and play! Have a wonderful summer. love, Beth

Go Letterboxing!

2011-06-20T07:44:00.001-04:00

Off into the woods we went with a young friend, to try letterboxing for the first time. What is a letterbox? A letterbox is hidden "treasure," and there may be a letterbox right in your neighborhood. We looked online and found that there are quite a few letterboxes in our state. Some of the letterboxes required that we puzzle out some clues. We chose some with storybook themes, recognizable starting points, and straightforward directions.

Unfortunately, three out of the four letterboxes for which we searched were missing, probably because they were too close to a well-traveled path, and had been purloined!

Then, inside a hollow tree, hidden behind some rocks and pieces of rotting wood, we found the fourth letterbox! It was a firmly-sealed tupperware container.

My little boy opened it to see what was inside.

It contained a little book to sign, an ink pad, a dragon stamp, a geocaching medal, and some pens. Geocaching is letterboxing using a GPS.

Each of the letterboxers pressed the dragon stamp into his own little letterboxing record book, and wrote the name of the letterbox with it, and the date. Apparently, many letterboxers hand-carve unique stamps, but this was a store-bought one which suited the theme of the letterbox.

Then each added his stamp to the record book in the letterbox, and

a note or signature, and the date.

The boys repacked the letterbox, resealed it, and rehid it well in its special place, so others could have the fun of finding it. I'm thinking of planting a letterbox in Switzerland some day!

What To Do With a Maple Key

2011-06-16T17:43:00.000-04:00

I saw an adorable girl sporting maple keys on her nose the other day. Soon my son was doing it, too. I remember reading about wearing maple keys as silly nose ornaments in Judy Lovejoy's book "Sunflower Houses." Is this a garden memory of yours, too?

Wild Iceland, by Guest Writer Cammie Curtin

2011-06-10T12:07:00.004-04:00

Why go somewhere warm for spring break? (Part II)

After spending a few days in Denmark, I set off for Iceland, where my friend is studying abroad at Listaháskóli Íslands, an art school in Reykjavik. I took a bus ride from the airport to the city across moss-covered lava fields. Already, it was clear that Iceland's landscape is other-worldly.

Although it is a small city, Reykjavik is home to about 2/3 of Iceland's 300,000 inhabitants. Below are some of my first views of the area. Although it was an overcast day, Mt. Esja, situated across the water from Reykjavik, can be seen in both pictures.

We embarked on an adventure to find and swim in the hot springs near a small town called Hveragerði. As we walked out of town towards the wilderness, Iceland gave us a taste of its fickle weather-- clouds, misting rain, hail, and heavy rain. As they say in Iceland, "if you don't like the weather, just wait 5 minutes". Finally, the clouds gave way to blue sky and a little sunshine. Look at the beautiful colors-- black, green, blue, and tawny brown.

We got bored with the road, climbed over some fences, and headed for the hills. Who needs the trail? Or the map?

We followed the steam rising in the distance. We came across a piping hot rivulet, green with squishy algae.

Soon, the little stream lead to a river. There, we found many more hot springs feeding boiling water into the river. But, due to lots of chilly rain and melting ice, the river was too cold to for swimming. We didn't mind, though, because our ramble had been quite the adventure. Look at how my friend matches the landscape.

On a day when my friend had class, I went on the Golden Circle Tour to see some of Iceland's famous natural sites. Our first stop was Thingvellir National Park, the site of the first parliament of Iceland. The park is set in a rift valley where the North American and European continental plates meet. Actually, they are moving apart a little bit every year, so the valley is growing. Here is a picture of the North American continental plate.

As we walked along the side of the North American plate, we came across a new fissure which had just been found the previous day, right on the tourist path. It was hundreds of feet deep, but all covered up with wood (phew!). There were many older fissures in the area too, full of rain water...

...and covered with moss, lichen, and little plants.

Next, we stopped in Haukadalur Valley, full of boiling geysers. The word "geyser" comes from the name of one of the largest in the area, Geysir. It doesn't erupt anymore, but it still steams.

All around, steam rises from the ground, floating up into the grey sky.

Some of the geysers were bubbling joyfully, like this one.

After watching Strokkur, an active geyser, erupt, we headed to the next sight, Gullfoss waterfall. It was huge, powerful, and icy.

Little bushes poked out of the snow near the waterfall.

Look at the patterns in the ice. And the footprints.

Our last stop was Kerið, an explosion crater. An explosion crater is similar to a volcano, only it has only erupted one time. Look at the colors: blue ice, soil red from iron, and green rocks.

Here are some views from Kerið. On the bottom are some rocks from around the crater. On the top, you can see the barren landscape with an iron ore deposit in the distance. Notice how few trees there are in Iceland. In fact, the only native tree to the island is juniper, which is short and stubby, like a bush. Icelanders have a saying: "If you are lost in an Icelandic forest, just stand up".

On my last morning in Iceland, my friend and I wandered around Reykjavik. The sun was shining and the sky was clear, so Esja was visible, rising up above the city across the blue water.

There was some sort of festival going on in the city. We saw girls dressed in traditional Icelandic costume...

... and lots of Icelandic horses.

Architecture and Sculpture in Denmark, by Guest Writer Cammie Curtin

2011-06-03T08:34:00.005-04:00

Why go somewhere warm for spring break? (Part I)

Indeed, with friends studying abroad in Denmark and Iceland, why would I spend my spring break on a beach somewhere? The nordic countries are way cooler. So, with places to stay and people to show me around, I set off for a few days in Copenhagen, followed by a stint in Reykjavik. Guided by my friend who studies architecture, I explored the urban landscape in and around Copenhagen.

One of the first things that struck me were the brightly colored buildings.

On our first big excursion, we visited Kronborg, the castle which inspired Shakespeare's Elsinore in Hamlet. It was originally built in the 1420s.

Here is the entryway to the ramparts. Can you find the monogram of Christian V? All around Copenhagen, buildings are adorned with the monograms of the monarch who built them. Especially common is the monogram of Christian IV.

There is a small chapel inside the castle, Slotskirke.

On our way back into the city, we stopped at the Louisiana, a museum of modern art. Surrounded by beautifully landscaped grounds on the water, the most stunning part of the museum was the sculpture park.

"Reclining Figure no. 5 (Seagram)", Henry Moore. We stared at this sculpture for a long time, but we didn't quite see the "reclining figure".

Work by Alexander Calder.

We came across a metal pathway embedded in the ground, marked "Self Passage" by George Trakas, and followed it down to a shady platform by the water.

Finally, we made our way back to Henry Moore's reclining figure... and there she was.

Another day, we wandered around Copenhagen while my friend showed me some of his favorite sites. We walked through the archway around the courtyard of Christiansborg Palace.

The Black Diamond Library reflects the sky.

Inside, the lines of the building echo the flowing river on which the library sits.

In Gråbrødretorv Square, we found cheerful houses. Later that evening, we returned to the square to dine at Peder Oxe, a traditional Danish restaurant.

Finally, we climbed up Rundetaarn (Round Tower, built by Christian IV!) to see the city from above. There are no stairs in the tower-- only a spiral ramp, large enough for a horse-drawn carriage to ascend to the top.

On my last day in Copenhagen, while my friend was in class, I found my way to Assistens Cemetery. It was a grey day, perfect for a visit to a graveyard. Knotty trees rose above the tomb stones.

Angels danced on rusting fences with peeling paint.

But, after all this urban exploring, I was ready to spend some time in nature. So, I said goodbye to my friend and to Denmark, and headed for Iceland.

A Day for Us

2011-05-31T11:11:00.000-04:00

Like two accomplished ladies in a Jane Austen novel, we painted flowers in watercolor one day, my girl and I.

It was a day for us girls, and we loved it!

Renee and Jeremy

2011-05-19T08:29:00.003-04:00

I hope Robert and all the other sweet babies like hearing this lullaby by Renee and Jeremy!

Memory in the Fingers

2011-05-16T11:23:00.002-04:00

When I spin I dream of my ancestor. She is sitting on a rich green hill in Ireland, the cool, wet wind blowing through her long hair, spinning. It is ridiculous to think of spinning outside in the mizzle, but this is what comes when I spin. Learning to spin came so naturally to me, I felt that there was "memory in my fingers" as Elizabeth Zimmerman calls it.

I was recently reading Elizabeth Zimmerman's book the Knitter's Almanac, and found that she had a similar experience when she was knitting an aran sweater from a genuine Irish pattern. She had a "strong feeling that my fingers knew quite well what they were about, and welcomed the chance to be about it again after a long lapse of time. I knew then that I had been through this before, with younger fingers in a ruder boat, rocked on the salty summer waves on the Atlantic off the Irish coast. Silly? No."

About handspinning, which she taught herself, she writes, "When the fed fibers threaten to become suddenly too thin, my left thumb and forefinger give them a quick extra twist to keep them together until they are safely on the spindle. Why is this? I certainly never cogitated on the matter; my fingers doped it out for themselves. I can only think that centuries of genes have given fingers inherited skills of which we wot not."

Are there memories in your fingers?

After Easter Craft: Eggshell Mosaic

2011-04-25T20:13:00.000-04:00

A toddler has a sticky good time making mosaic out of dyed eggshells in this great after Easter craft! Just click on the title of the post to see the whole posting!

Egg Colors

2011-04-24T12:13:00.000-04:00

Follow the trail of egg colors through my house and garden!

Detail of a painting by Wendyll Brown.

Detail of a painting by Beth Curtin.

Happy, Happy Easter, my friends!

Make an Easter Pussy Willow Tree

2011-04-22T22:28:00.004-04:00

Marcy and John created Easter pussy willow trees today which can be saved and reused every year, as long as the puppy doesn't chew up any more of the twigs! They had seen some like them in Grasmere, a beautiful shop in Barrington, Rhode Island. They used terracotta pots, pussy willows, cement, and dry moss.

Their eldest son got a turn mixing the cement.

Marcy protected the edges of the pots with masking tape. John filled the pots with the wet cement, leaving a few inches of space at the top for the moss.

In this picture, John is giving the pot a shake to level the cement.

They started putting in the pussy willow twigs right away. The cement hardened quickly.

Marcy spent some time arranging the pussy willows the way she wanted, and then she held them in place for a few moments.

After the cement began to firm up, Marcy covered it with the dry moss. Then we went off some for adventures for a few hours. When we came back, the pussy willow trees were ready to move inside.

It was time to decorate the trees with John and Marcy's special hand painted egg collection.

Long ago, when John was a little boy, his mother used to paint each of her children an egg every Easter. Marcy has continued the tradition for her three boys.

John's mother always painted the date on her eggs, and so does Marcy.

Marcy loves to paint animals for her boys. She uses watercolor, so the paintings are wonderfully detailed and translucent. If you use watercolor, make sure you always handle your eggs with dry hands.

I adore Marcy's grasshopper.

Look at the sea turtle and the flowers!

Look at this beautiful amanita which John's mother painted. What a treasure!

And look at Marcy's beautiful Beatrix Potter bunny!

Marcy and John have also collected some goose eggs painted by artists. Do you recognize the illustrations on this egg?

That's right, it's the root children.

Amazing!

Look at this mallard, so carefully painted.

This might be my favorite, with its wildflowers and busy insects.

What are your favorite Easter holiday traditions? Share them with us! And you can visit the Grasmere shop page by clicking on the title of this post.

Our House

2011-04-20T17:54:00.001-04:00

It is decluttered, neat as a pin, and sparkling clean, and ready to show to house buyers! Heidi Piccerelli took some beautiful pictures of the house. It is looking its best in every way. If you want to see more photos of the interior, click on the title of this post to link.

This wonderful old house, which was built in the 1850's by a sea captain, is brimming with happy memories, sunshine, and color. I have loved living here!

Heidi's web site is: http://www.heidipiccerelliphotography.com/

Our Switzerland

2011-04-13T16:56:00.000-04:00

After days and days of hard work, trying to make our house look as neat and perfect as an untidy artist can manage, it is a tonic to look at these pictures again and think of where we will be living in about four months! There are many hills to climb and many joys and sunshiny days and fun times with friends and family to celebrate before then, but one day not too far off, I will be standing on this mountaintop again, my arms spread wide, my spirit soaring.

Big News!

2011-04-08T08:01:00.000-04:00

We are moving to a beautiful place far, far away! Can you guess where? If you have been reading this blog for a while, you might remember this picture.....

The Young Engineer

2011-04-07T08:51:00.000-04:00

An electrician was working at our house yesterday. He let me take a picture of some of the beautiful thingamajigs which he uses in his work. I loved the primary colors of the different do-dads separated into little compartments. While he was here I showed him the broken doorbell. He said that the button and plate needed to be replaced, and that my husband could do it himself. The wires are very low voltage. The electrician showed me that it is safe to touch them, and told me that it is a simple job. I decided that my son could do it with my assistance.

My youngest has been taking things apart since he was two years old. He loves to figure out how things are put together and how they work. Instead of an art table in the kitchen, he had an electronics table. It was always piled a foot deep with dismantled mechanical and electronic things. When he was in kindergarten, his teachers supported his interest by asking parents to bring in broken things which the students could disassemble and explore.

Toys have two lives in our house. First, they are played with. Later, when they break, they are dismantled and studied, and recently, sometimes repaired and reassembled.

In this pictures he is pressing the screwdriver onto the contact points to make the doorbell ring.

The project took a long time because we were learning. We saw how the doorbell works. We chiseled the hole in the wood to make it the right size for the new mechanism. My boy found the wire stripper, because the wire broke a couple of times when we were trying to wrestle it back into the hole. We stripped the wire, wrapped it around the contacts and tightened them in place. He brought the portable electric screwdriver/drill, drilled pilot holes, and put in the screws. There was a lot of exploring and investigating and experimenting. Every time I went to look for a tool, he would make the loud old-fashioned mechanical bell jangle non-stop, making my teeth rattle.

I love to watch children concentrate. My son was gloriously absorbed and completely lit up with the excitement of repairing something our family needs. His intense expression in this picture reminds me so much of my husband.

In this pictures he is telling me all about it. He loves to tell us what he is learning and how things work, very much like a little professor.

In this pictures he is popping up and down like a jack-in-the-box to make it hard for me to take a picture! That's why he is smirking.

What a joy to watch talent develop and unfold.