Know Your Onions...

I received the following information in an email a few days ago. I'm not sure what to think of it. I've never received food poisoning, much less from onions, but it is an interesting read. Please note: none of the following (in italics) is me talking. I actually don't know who is talking.

In 1919 when the flu killed 40 million people, there was a Doctor that visited many farmers to see if he could help them combat this flu, as many of the farmers and their families had contracted it and many had died. The doctor came upon this one farmer and, to his surprise, everyone in his family was very healthy. When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different, the wife replied that she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then). The doctor couldn't believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and place it under the microscope. She obliged and when he tested it, he found that the onion was riddled with flu virus. It had obviously absorbed the bacteria and therefore, kept the family healthy.


I heard this story from my hairdresser: she said that several years ago, many of her employees were coming down with the flu and also many of her customers. The next year she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop and, to her surprise, none of her staff got sick (and no, she is not in the onion business).


So the sensible answer would seem to be, buy some onions and place them in bowls around your home. If you work at a desk, place one or two in your office (under your desk or even a windowsill). Try it and see what happens. We did it last year and none of us contracted the flu. if this helps you and your loved ones from getting sick, all the better. If you do get the flu, it just might be a mild case..

Whatever, what have you to lose? Just a few pennies on onions!!


Now there is a P.S. to this, for I sent it to a friend in Oregon who regularly contributes material to me on health issues. She replied with this most interesting experience about onions: "Thanks for the reminder. I don't know about the farmers story, but I do remember that I contracted pneumonia and,needless to say, I was very ill. I came across an article that said to cut both ends off an onion, put one end on a fork and then place the forked end into an empty jar, placing the jar next to the sick patient at night. It said the onion would be black in the morning from the germs. Sure enough, it happened just like that.. the onion was a mess and I began to feel better.


Another thing I read in the article was that onions and garlic placed around the room saved many from the black plague years ago.They have powerful antibacterial and antiseptic properties."


Here is another point: LEFT OVER ONIONS ARE POISONOUS!!


I have often used an onion which has been left in the fridge and sometimes don't use a whole one at a time and so save the other half for later. Now with this information, I have changed my habits and buy smaller onions!


I had the wonderful privilege of touring Mullins Food Products,makers of mayonnaise. Mullins is huge and is owned by 11 brothers and sisters of the Mullins family. My friend, Jeanne, is the CEO. Questions about food poisoning came up and I wanted to share what I'd learned from a chemist.The guy who gave us our tour is named Ed. Ed is one of the brothers and a chemistry expert who is involved in developing most of the sauce formula. He's even developed a sauce formula for McDonald's. Keep in mind that Ed is a food chemistry whiz.During the tour, someone asked if we really needed to worry about mayonnaise.. people are always worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed's answer will surprise you, as he said that all commercially made Mayo is completely safe. "It doesn't even have to be refrigerated- there's no harm in refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary", he explained. He said that the pH in mayonnaise is set at an environmental point that bacteria could not survive in and he then talked about the quintessential picnic, with the bowl of potato salad sitting on the table and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick. Ed says that when food poisoning is reported, the first thing the officials look for is when the victim last ate onions and where those onions came from (in the potato salad?). Ed says that it's not the mayonnaise (as long as it's
not homemade Mayo) that spoils in the outdoors, it's the onions and/or the potatoes (ever seen a potato go black? Thought so..) He explained that onions are a huge magnet for bacteria,especially uncooked onions. You should never plan to keep a portion of a sliced onion and he says it's not even safe if you put it in a zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator, it's already contaminated enough just by being cut open and exposed to the air for a while and can be a real danger to you (and doubly watch out for those onions you have put in your hot dogs and burgers at the vendors!).. Ed says that if you take the leftover onion and cook it like crazy you'll probably be OK, but if you slice that leftover onion and put it on your sandwich, then you're asking for trouble. Both the onions and the moist potato in a potato salad will attract and grow bacteria faster than any commercial mayonnaise will take to even begin breaking down.

Take it for what you will. I (the author) am going to be very careful about my onions from now on. For some reason, I see a lot of credibility coming from a chemist.


And another point: dogs should never eat onions. Their stomachs cannot metabolize onions.




Please remember it is dangerous to cut onions to cook the next day. They become highly poisonous even if just left overnight and create toxic bacteria which may cause adverse stomach infections because of excess bile secretions and even food poisoning.

Ok, it's me talking now. I have to say I have never had food posioning or any problems with onions - that I know of. So I sorta wanna discount this as "it won't happen to me." But it does make me think... So what do you think????  Leave a comment and let me know...

To cut or not? That is the question....

So my mom and I were talking about how hot hair is and she said something like, "I can't believe Lewlew doesn't wear hers up more in the summer." And then I said something like, "She just doesn't want the hassle." Then my mom said, "We should cut it." So I asked Lewlew if we should cut her hair. She said yes. So last night I was looking at pictures of her with her hair shorter trying to decide what length I should cut it. Yep, I said I should cut it. What do you think? Keep it long???

Or cut it short?

It actually ended up shorter in the back. More like an A-line cut. And she parts it on the side. She can't stop looking at herself in the mirror - I think she likes it!

Grandma's Quilt

Since I didn't make this, I can post this pic on this blog instead of my Brag Blog.

My grandma pieced this quilt YEARS ago. I'm pretty sure she didn't cut all of these pieces out. I'm pretty sure she ordered the kit and then sewed it together.

I'm also pretty sure she didn't hand quilt it all by herself. I'm pretty sure she helped her friend Mavis quit it - although I'm not sure how many others helped. Mavis would put up a quilt in her living room and quilt for hours. If you helped her with hers, then she'd help you with yours. I really have no idea how much, if anything, my grandma paid her.
Note: the quilting is on both sides of each seam.

It really is a beautiful quilt - even if it's not my favorite colors. The stitching is gorgeous! I can't imagine how many hours it took to quilt this king size quilt. I don't think I could do it - I don't have the patience for hand quiting. But I'm glad to have this one...

Awards!!

For August's Pack meeting, Buddy received 9 award pins, a compass badge, and 2 compass points! This kid's amazing!


He only has 3 more pins and he'll have all 20. According to his Cub Master receiving all 20 doesn't happen very often. 2 of the 3 he'll get quite easily before the next pack meeting. The last one is the Aquanaut. It's going to take some work but we'll be able to get it I'm sure! In October he'll be awarded his "Arrow of Light." This is one of the only badges that you can wear on your Boy Scout Uniform. He's really doing well and is enjoying it! (It must be in his blood!)

Skirts

Click here to see the latest skirts I made and also this year's Americana outfits!

A Camping We Will Go

Last weekend we went camping. We love to go camping! We left early Thursday morning while Mister was working. When we got there, the kids jumped right in and helped me set up camp. Not being sarcastic - they really were a big help. I could not have set up the tent without them! We had fun but I can't even say what we did. We just did and the time went too fast! Bestie and Taylor came up Thursday afternoon. Then later, Mac, and Nana came up for dinner. Usually Bestie stays with us, but she hurt her back and didn't feel like she could sleep anywhere but her bed. She should have just brought it with her! So Thursday night, it was just me and the kids. A little nerve racking but not too bad.

On Friday, Bestie and Mister Bestie came up afternoon and played games with us. Early evening, Mister, Mac and Kimball came up for dinner. Then everyone left except for Mister. On Saturday, we got up, had breakfast took down camp and came home before it started raining.

We had performances on this rock by Lewlew,

S'mores - Bestie's recipe,



we played in the fire, A LOT,


And had a really great time! Can't wait to go again! We took Maggie, but I don't know where she was for this picture. Probably Hooverizing the camp - making sure she inhaled every single morsel available!

Retirement

Last month my FIL retired from a local university. He worked for 30 years (I think) as the Auxiliary Maintenance Foreman. He loved his job and was good at it. There are literally countless projects he has complete over the years. We are going to miss him working there. But he has set up a decent shop in his basement so at least his talent won't be wasted just because he retired.




A nice dinner was held for him. Steak, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes with bacon and cheese cooked in a dutch oven, rolls. For dessert, dutch oven cobblers - peach, apple, and berry. Everything was supreme!!! Afterwards there was a reception for him. Lots of friends and family attended. There were yummy desserts there too!

These are most of the staff Eric worked with.

They presented Eric with a clock that one of his "team" made for him. The man who crafted this clock was unable to be there.

The carving on the bottom is similar to the Norman Rockwell Scouter painting. The detail on this clock is unbelievable - especially considering it was hand made.

What's up Bud...

Normally at some point throughout the day, I'll sit down to read or watch T.V. and Maggie is always next to me. This way she can take one of her 12 daily naps. She sleeps so much I wonder if she's really a cat trapped in a dogs body. But she's a people dog. Even when she's asleep and won't know if someone is around or not, she still wants someone by her. That someone is usually me. She'll settle for Mister or Buddy and once in a while Noodle - never Lewlew. I think Lewlew just loves Maggie too much. At any rate, Maggie gets zero sleep if Lewlew is too close. Anyway, one day I was busy doing house stuff and wasn't paying much attention to Maggie. When I went into Buddy's room, there Maggie was - sleeping on his bed. At least someone loved her this day. Poor little picked on dog.

Buddy went fishing with Mister. He put sunscreen on himself. Uhhhh, I think he missed a spot! He did catch 2 fish.