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The Opulent Opossum: January 2015
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Wednesday, January 28, 2015. That sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it! 8220;Colorful January.” We usually think of white snow, a scene dominated by blues and cold grays, or else we think of tan, brown, gray, and more tan. At least around here, anyway. But Sue and I have been hiking as much as we can (post-holiday fitness attempts). And we’ve been seeing things. Maybe we’re just being mighty hopeful, looking for signs of spring. Wherever we might find them, and imagining we see them when we don’t. And here...
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The Opulent Opossum: First Post
http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2009/03/first-post.html
Tuesday, March 3, 2009. I guess that everyone who writes a blog begins with a lame "first post" that isn't really intended to be. So here is mine. Don't read this. I'm new to this whole thing, I'm not a computer genius, and as I'm faced with what amounts to "blank pages," I'm feeling that I have nothing whatsoever to write. Whether it "says" anything or not. And don't worry: I'll explain the "Opulent Opossum" thing soon. I've been wanting to begin "Op Op" for a long time. I hope you'll enjoy it. Also, yo...
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The Opulent Opossum: July 2015
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Thursday, July 30, 2015. Switchel, Stichel, Switzel, Swizzle: Ginger Water for Hot Days. Six years ago, in a post I’d almost forgotten about, I talked about our sweltery summertime heat. And that’s where we’re at again: heat and humidity. Well? It makes the corn and the tomatoes grow! I’m dreading it. (Compared to this heat, my hot flashes seem cool! Revisiting that older post I did about “Heat,”. In it, Laura’s mom tells her to make up a bunch of the stuff to take to the laboring men, explaining t...
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The Opulent Opossum: April 2015
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Thursday, April 30, 2015. A New Little Friend! When I was young, Mrs. Crawford across the street used to beckon me over, saying, "Come here! I've found another one of your little friends! She'd be digging around in her roses, usually, and there would be a snake, or a spider, or some other fascinating life-form indigenous to planet Earth. And there I was again, hustling across the street to see what Mrs. Crawford had dug up . . . This is one of those really, really cool. See here in BugGuide. A website I ...
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The Opulent Opossum: A Humbling, Amazing Response
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Thursday, July 9, 2015. A Humbling, Amazing Response. I’ve been putting off writing about this subject, because I haven’t been able to think of words to describe my reaction—but there aren’t. Any Also, this post has two audiences: First, to “everyone,” a.k.a. tout le monde,. Aka “all you kids in Internet-land” and second, to John G (last name withheld, because I’m not sure he’d want to be identified publicly), in Massachusetts. Seriously: He mentioned reading about lebkuchen. And our Christmas tree.
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The Opulent Opossum: Independence Day 2016
http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2015/07/independence-day-2016.html
Saturday, July 4, 2015. Greetings, my friends! It’s the Fourth of July—Independence Day! For me this is a special year. The recent Supreme Court ruling has been more than a validation of marriage—it has seemed like a validation of my rights, in general, as a U.S. citizen, and an acknowledgment of a turning point in public opinion, as well. It has helped me feel more “united” with the United States, and less “divided.”. It always is.) In past years, I have felt somehow “apart” from the goi...Hooray for th...
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The Opulent Opossum: Heat
http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2009/06/heat.html
Tuesday, June 23, 2009. One of the nice things about living in Central Missouri is that we are located on physiographic and ecological borders. Here in Jeff City and in Columbia, we’re technically in the Ozark Border Natural Division, but we’re at the edges of so much more. I usually think of prairies as hot places—in part because some of the best times to see the wildflowers are right when it’s starting to heat up, and also in part because there are no trees on the prairie, thus little relie...If you...
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The Opulent Opossum: Grandma Renner’s Chili Sauce
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Monday, July 27, 2015. Grandma Renner’s Chili Sauce. Here’s another retro recipe for you! But first, I need to make a confession: I didn’t like this when I was a kid, when I had the opportunity to eat the chili sauce Grandma Renner herself had made! Now, of course, I kick myself for being such a little nitwit. Maybe it’s a labeling problem: this really isn’t a true chili sauce. There aren’t any actual chilis in it! You usually think of something piquant, tangy, tomatoey, and just . . . sharp ...Naturally...
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The Opulent Opossum: Treasury of Retro Recipes
http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2009/05/treasury-of-retro-recipes.html
Wednesday, May 27, 2009. Treasury of Retro Recipes. Last night I went delving through my oh-so-intriguing copy of the. Good Housekeeping Cook Book. Note the antique letterspacing) of 1949, one of the genuine treasures I selected from Cousin Marguerite’s kitchen when she moved into an assisted-living place some years ago and invited the family to come and take things we’d like to have. Yet it antedates the worst culinary atrocities of the fifties (documented so well in James Lileks. An added bonus, for se...