THE UNCOLLECTOR

Stuff. It’s what makes a collector’s world go around. They go to shows, garage sales, search online and a host of other places to acquire “stuff.” Then they put the “stuff” on shelves and in display cases and it sets there…forever.

I have never understood this. I am not a collector, but rather a creator. I paint, I take photographs, I make new “stuff” so it can set there. Even though the end means is the same, this part I understand.

Now I have ventured into the new realm of the un-collector. Instead of stuff, I want space which means getting rid of stuff. This is not the same as just not collecting, instead it is not buying but rather, finding a buyer.

Easier said than done. No matter what the projected value of an item is, it is really only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, a fact that changes with the times. A collectible item when purchased does not mean it will always be a collectible item.

So, what are my options? I tried the yard sale route…never again. People come to yard sales with the intention of getting something for a buck or two which is fine for what-nots but not so good for true collectibles. Then there is the issue that, even though 99% of the people are respectful, there is always that one percent that feels they are free to pick up anything in your yard, go in barns and look around and basically make themselves to home. I don’t think so. On top of this, you always end up with stuff no one wants, including you, that has to be hauled away. Nope, no more garage sales.

So, I tried the route of hauling it away in the first place…to an auction. The only saving grace here was that I got rid of stuff, but with very little to show for it. It’s like rolling the dice, you take your chances on who is going to show up and what they want. Many collectibles sold for a little of nothing because the true collectible crowd wasn’t there. Nope, done with that too.

After going through these trials, I have found a better way. Be warned though, the new way can be and is addictive. It is Marketplace through Facebook.

It is about the easiest thing I have ever done. You research the item that you want to sell on E-bay and get a general price range, depending on condition, for your item. Then you go to Marketplace, choose a category, upload a picture and name a price. Basically, anyone on FB can see it.

Then, to make sure that even more people see your item, you list it in more groups and more groups. There are local groups in each town and city that has their own online selling groups, the list basically goes on forever.

Then you wait. Folks message you about the item, you dicker sometimes on price and when you agree, both parties decide on a meeting place (usually a public one unless you know the buyer) and you get rid of the item and have cash in hand.

Now, there is a little more to it than that. Sometimes it means a couple trips into town in a day. Once in a while it means mailing it to someone further away. But, for these minor inconveniences, there is a bigger payoff. You actually get rid of stuff and have a little loot to boot.

Jim was the ultimate collector. Instead of choosing a select few categories, he would collect anything and everything. It was against his nature to part with anything. I even found plastic grocery bags inside of boxes tucked away in cabinets (you just never know when you might need one). He kept everything in pristine condition, in protective sleeves inside of hard plastics inside of showcases. Many collectibles had never been opened.

At first, I felt bad letting go of things that he had put his heart and soul into keeping. But some things I had no idea what they were or where they came from. They were just things. Then my niece Michelle made it all right. She told me that up until now the things were just setting in the basement, packed away neatly where no one could see them or enjoy them. When they went to a new home, they were bringing someone else joy. I like this outlook, the “stuff” could stay with someone who shared his passion for collecting.

A perfect example happened the other day. I had two decorative biscuit tins that were made in England. I had no idea where he even got them. Within an hour of listing them, two people messaged me. One was Ron’s cousin who had a similar one that she remembers her grandmother using for pineapple cookies. She had never seen another one. A friend from Minnesota saw the other one and she thought it would go perfectly with some of her Dad’s things on her mantle in her new house that she and her husband had built in the country. Needless to say, they both found new homes where they could be appreciated and bring others joy.

My snowmen are another example. At one time I had over 100 of them. It was Jim’s and my thing to set them out each year. It would take over two days just to unpack them and then two more days to pack them back up. This year I chose my special few and set them out in an hour’s time. The rest I let go to new homes. I’m OK with that.

Once in awhile I find something that I truly like. This is the case with a small crystal pumpkin bowl. It caught my eye, I like it. I will keep it.

I am liking this new addiction and it does work both ways. Not only do I list my stuff but I also check out what others are selling. You can find anything on Marketplace from collectibles to household items to services. There is an administrator somewhere out there in the cosmos that keeps an eye on what goes on there and there are some items that are not appropriate like guns and knives.

 

Sometimes I wonder why they flagged my salt and pepper shakers as being against their terms and yet someone list a pack of tampons…seriously! You just shake your head and move on.

I am liking this uncollectable person that I have become. For one thing, I have more space and the place is less cluttered. I also have come to realize that I am letting go of the stuff, not the memories. Less really is more.

FUN LITTLE FACTS THAT YOU NEVER NEED TO KNOW

It’s a great big world out there with lots and lots and lots of facts about lots and lots and lots of stuff. I once wondered how long it would take a brain to know everything about everything. Even though this would be impossible, it makes you realize just how vast the world we live in is.

So, human nature dictates that each of us learn all we can about things that we are interested in. However, sometimes it is fun to learn something about our world that we will positively never ever use in our lifetime. Here are a few of those:

*There is a stress hormone called cortisol that is concentrated in tears. We literally “cry out” out stress.

*Humans are innately born with two fears, loud noises and falling. We learn every other fear.

*Good news for looooooog hugs. Hugs that last over 20 seconds release chemicals in the body called oxytocins that make you trust someone more.

*If the human eye were a camera, it would have 576 megapixels. By the way, did you ever think just how many images our eyes capture for us every day? No camera on earth can do justice to the pics that our eyes capture.

*Next time you see a little one go on a tirade and hold their breath, remember that crocodiles have no lips and can hold their breath for an hour. No, this won’t make your little one’s tirade any easier to control, just something fun to know.

*So, while the munchkin is having a fit, eat a banana. It is a happy fruit. Eating just one can help you relieve irritable emotions, anger or depression.

*A tiger’s tongue is so rough it can lick paint off buildings and strip the skin from the bones of an animal…ouch!

*Elephants can smell water 3 miles away.

*It is estimated that our brains produce as many as 12,000 to 50,000 thoughts per day depending on how deep of thinker you are.

*Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete.

*OK, all you spud lovers, you can survive entirely on a diet of potatoes and butter. Between the two, they provide all the nutrients that the human body needs. So much for the saying that “man does not live by bread alone”!

*If humans killed each other at the same rate that we kill animals, we’d be extinct in 17 days. Uhh, don’t watch the news, because some days I think we are sadly catching up to that.

*There is a road in France that can only be used twice a day, and then only for a few hours. Then it disappears under 13 feet of water. I would choose my traveling times VERY carefully!

*There is a lake, Lake Hiller, in Australia where the water is naturally pink.

*Think your pinky finger is only for wearing rings on? Without it, your hand would lose 50% of its strength.

*The most littered item in the world is cigarette butts, with an estimated 4.5 trillion littered annually. Each butt can take 4.5 to 400 years to break down.

 

*Giraffes will spend about 70% of their day eating.

*That dust under the bed is mostly your own dead skin…yuck!

*Bananas are curved because they grow against the pull of gravity. They start growing downwards but, as they grow, they turn upwards to get more sun which results in their curved shape.

*Cows have best friends and get stressed when they are separated.

*Want to visit a unique “island”? On the west side of Sydney there is a 102-year-old ship that has been turned into a floating forest.

*Rainbows appear as full circles when you are in the sky. They only appear as half circles from the ground because there is no rain below the person viewing it.

*Did you know that talking to yourself is actually good. It helps you maintain focus while completing a task.

*India is the only country in the world confirmed to have both lions and tigers in its wilderness.

*Good news for beer drinkers. Beer reduces the risk of developing kidney stones by 40%.

*Germany has officially abolished college tuition fees, even for international students. Now, this fact may come in handy!

*We surmised this one for a long time…humans have more empathy for dogs than they do for other humans.

*In Japan, students don’t get any exams until the fourth grade because the goal for the first three years of school is not to judge the student’s ability to memorize, but to establish good manners and develop their character. Japanese scholars teach manners first and foremost.

*There is a village in the Netherlands with no roads. The only form of transportation is by boat.

*Baby elephants suck their trunks just as baby humans suck their thumbs, and for the same reason: comfort.

*A cockroach can live several weeks with its head cut off.

*Swans only have one partner their entire life. If their partner dies, they could pass away from a broken heart.

*The average dog is as intelligent as a two-year-old child. They can understand up to 250 words and gestures.

*If you cut out the brain of a tortoise, it can survive another 6 months.

*After water, tea is the most consumed drink in the world.

*Iceland is the only country in the world that has no mosquitoes, snakes or other reptiles and very few species of spiders, which are not harmful to humans.

*A little history of the Lamborghini: once a tractor company owner was insulted by the owner of Ferrari. Enzo Ferrari’s worlds were, “You may be able to drive a tractor, but you will never be able to handle a Ferrari properly.” Today that tractor company is known as “Lamborghini.”

*When two people kiss, they exchange between 10 million to 1 billion bacteria…yuck!

*There is a naturally occurring black rose. They only grow in one place, a small village in Turkey called Halfeti. They only appear black in the summer months.

*Some folks have a “natural alarm clock” which allows them to wake up when they want. This is caused by a stress hormone.

*A tiger’s legs are so powerful that they can remain standing even when they are dead. Sometimes when they are shot, they bleed out and die while standing still.

*Ants never sleep and don’t have lungs. They have tiny holes all over their body where oxygen enters and carbon dioxide leaves.

*Everyone has a unique smell, unique fingerprint and unique tongue print.

*25,000.000 of your cells died while you were reading this sentence.

OK, so your brain is packed full of these fun facts that you probably never use. By the way, these tidbits came from K4KNOWLEDGE. Hope you enjoyed some.

GOOD GOLLY GERTIE, THAT'S GOOD GRAVY

Gravy…it’s still what accompanies many dinners in many households. There is that certain something about gravy that puts that finishing touch on a meal. Having gravy at a meal was just a given staple for folks in my generation.

Ron remembers his Grammy having gravy sometimes three times a day. Yea, that may be a little excessive but it just shows how gravy was what pulled the meal together. It was also a way to stretch the food dollar when you had a lot of folks to feed. You could throw leftover meat, potatoes, veggies, etc. together, cover it with gravy and have a casserole to feed many for a couple more meals.

Although making gravy is an important kitchen skill for any home cook, it is still somewhat of an art form. The term “gravy” was actually used first in Middle England as “grave.” It is derived from the French since the word was found in many medieval French cookbooks. In the late 14^th century, their interpretation of gravy was “it consisted of natural cooking juices from roasting meat.”

As any chef will tell you, there are certain distinctions between gravies, sauces and jus. A sauce is defined as a thick liquid served with food, usually savory dishes, to add moisture and flavor and is not necessarily meat-based. Gravy is a type of sauce made from the juices of meats that run naturally and are often thickened with wheat flour or corn starch for added texture. Jus is made from the same juices but have been refined and condensed to a clear liquid that is naturally thickened. Jus is a reduction and gravy relies on a thickening agent.

The usual thickening agents are flour, corn starch and arrowroot. They all make good gravies, but with different properties. Flour will clump when dropped into a hot liquid and, if not careful, will make a lumpy gravy unless it is added slowly and steadily. Corn starch doesn’t clump but will thicken over a course of a few minutes. It also thickens as it cools so, if too much is added, the result will be gel-style gravy. Being pure starch, corn starch is a more powerful thickening agent than flour so you only need half as much. The rule of thumb is to use one tablespoon of corn starch for each cup of gravy.

Arrowroot can also be used as a thickener. Obviously, corn starch is made from corn whereas arrowroot is made from tropical plants. Corn starch will leave the gravy slightly cloudy and adds a bit of taste to the product. Gravy from arrowroot is clear with no added taste.

Regardless of the thickening agent used, there are generally two different camps when asked how you make gravy. You either start with a roux or a slurry. The end result is the same, it’s just how you get there. Many families today still use whichever method that was passed down from earlier generations.

Ron’s Grammy was in the roux camp. Basically, a roux is a 1:2 mixture of fat to flour…and with this method, the thickening agent is almost always flour. The fat is often butter but oils, margarines and bacon fat can also be used and is melted and combined with pan drippings and simmered for a bit to let all flavors mesh together. Then the flour is added into the mixture. When that is all combined, the liquid such as milk, broth or water is added and whisked in until all is thickened, which makes the gravy.

I, on the other hand, was raised using the slurry method. This way uses a mixture of flour (or other thickening) and water or stock which is combined before adding to the boiling broth and fats. It is slowly added until the gravy reaches desired consistency.

Besides what you grew up with, each method works better for different applications. When making gravies from roasts and other cooked meats, the slurry method is the one of choice but, when making sausage gravy, steak gravy or others from pan drippings where the meat has been fried, the roux works better.

All gravies are not created equal and there are many variations from the traditional meat gravies that we think of when we eat mashed potatoes and gravy.

Southerners like their red-eye gravy. This is nothing like your traditional brown gravy. Black coffee is added to the drippings which creates the unique appearance of the gravy in a serving bowl. The dark coffee and meat sink to the bottom leaving a layer of grease visible on the top. This resembles the appearance of a human eye which is where this southern dish gets its name.

Sawmill gravy is another specialty. Another southern dish, it gained its fame in logging camps. It was made from bacon drippings, corn meal and salt which was browned in a pan before milk was added. Often it would be coarse and thick which made the lumberjacks accuse the cooks of substituting sawdust for cornmeal, hence the name.

Another specialty gravy will surely please all the chocoholics out there. Originating in Appalachia, mountain people prove that not all gravy comes from meat drippings. The name comes from an old southern practice of using the word “gravy” to describe any roux-thickened sauce that is made in a skillet. It can be sweet or savory. Some refer to chocolate gravy as “soppin chocolate” since it is usually served over fresh-baked biscuits which are used to “sop” it up.

Sometimes it is started from all dry ingredients with added butter for the fat. Other times, the fat comes from the drippings of fried bacon. Either way, it is a sincere chocolate experience that proves you can have your chocolate for breakfast!

Most of us never give gravy a second thought, it is just a staple part of our diet. Different regions of the country have their own variations which proves that gravy isn’t just gravy.  It has been said that a cook can make gravy out of nothing. No wonder then that, when it comes to gravy, Ron’s saying, “Good golly Gertie, that’s good gravy” rings true!

CHOCOLATE GRAVY

¼ cup cocoa powder                                       2 cups whole milk, warmed

1 cup sugar                                                         4 Tbsp butter, cubed and chilled

3 Tbsp flour                                                        hot biscuits

Pinch salt

*Sift cocoa, flour, sugar and salt in large skillet

*Whisk continuously, adding warm milk in slow, steady stream until smooth

*Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously with heat-proof spatula until gravy thickly coats spatula, about 8 minutes

*Remove from heat, add butter, stir until butter is melted and serve over biscuits.