BHM Newsletter
Volume 9      Number #5

May, 2007
 

INSIDE BHM

New issue

The July/August issue is off to the printer. When it arrives in your mailboxes next month, you'll be reading articles like

• Build a treehouse and give life to a good tree   By Dorothy Ainsworth
• Renovating old walls   By David Lee
• 10 ways to make money on your land   By Anita Evangelista
• Raising rabbits for profit   By Carrie Peterson
• Killer hurricanes   By John Silveira
• Starting over, part 13   By Jackie Clay
• Footloose and fancy-free in the country   By Claire Wolfe
• The healthy kitchen: collard greens, kale, mustard greens   By Richard Blunt

and more.

If you don't currently have Backwoods Home Magazine delivered to you, why not subscribe now so you won't miss any issues?

New server

If the BHM website pages seem to be loading faster these days, it's due to our new, dedicated server. The folks at Vpop.net, our long time ISP, built a new, state-of-the-art box for us and we are very happy with the speed at which it serves pages, even when the website is busiest.

Most improved is the Readers' Forum, which occasionally slowed to a crawl when too many people were logged in at the same time. Members with high-speed Internet connections should notice the pages almost popping into their browsers. And folks with dial-up should find their wait between pages significantly reduced.

Forum changes

Speaking of the Forum, our webmaster just finished combining or eliminating many of the little-used boards. No messages were lost, just moved to new, multi-topic boards.

If you've not been to the Forum lately, please stop by and take a look. And please take a moment to thank our moderators, who are all doing a great job of helping us rebuild.

Coming soon

In the next few weeks, BHM will be launching new blogs. Dave, daughter Annie Tuttle, and Jackie Clay will be the first to start blogging and we hope to add a number of others in the coming weeks and months. Watch for the announcement on the Home page.

SELF-RELIANCE TIPS

Social Networking Sites:
Safety Tips for Tweens and Teens

You've probably learned a long list of important safety and privacy lessons already: Look both ways before crossing the street; buckle up; hide your diary where your nosy brother can't find it; don't talk to strangers.

The Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency, is urging kids to add one more lesson to the list: Don't post information about yourself online that you don't want the whole world to know. The Internet is the world's biggest information exchange: many more people could see your information than you intend, including your parents, your teachers, your employer, the police — and strangers, some of whom could be dangerous.

Social networking sites have added a new factor to the "friends of friends" equation. By providing information about yourself and using blogs, chat rooms, email, or instant messaging, you can communicate, either within a limited community, or with the world at large. But while the sites can increase your circle of friends, they also can increase your exposure to people who have less-than-friendly intentions. You've heard the stories about people who were stalked by someone they met online, had their identity stolen, or had their computer hacked.

Your Safety's at Stake

The FTC suggests these tips for socializing safely online:

• Think about how different sites work before deciding to join a site. Some sites will allow only a defined community of users to access posted content; others allow anyone and everyone to view postings.
• Think about keeping some control over the information you post. Consider restricting access to your page to a select group of people, for example, your friends from school, your club, your team, your community groups, or your family.
• Keep your information to yourself. Don't post your full name, Social Security number, address, phone number, or bank and credit card account numbers — and don't post other people's information, either. Be cautious about posting information that could be used to identify you or locate you offline. This could include the name of your school, sports team, clubs, and where you work or hang out.
• Make sure your screen name doesn't say too much about you. Don't use your name, your age, or your hometown. Even if you think your screen name makes you anonymous, it doesn't take a genius to combine clues to figure out who you are and where you can be found.
• Post only information that you are comfortable with others seeing — and knowing — about you. Many people can see your page, including your parents, your teachers, the police, the college you might want to apply to next year, or the job you might want to apply for in five years.
• Remember that once you post information online, you can't take it back. Even if you delete the information from a site, older versions exist on other people's computers.
• Consider not posting your photo. It can be altered and broadcast in ways you may not be happy about. If you do post one, ask yourself whether it's one your mom would display in the living room.
• Flirting with strangers online could have serious consequences. Because some people lie about who they really are, you never really know who you're dealing with.
• Be wary if a new online friend wants to meet you in person. Before you decide to meet someone, do your research: Ask whether any of your friends know the person, and see what background you can dig up through online search engines. If you decide to meet them, be smart about it: Meet in a public place, during the day, with friends you trust. Tell an adult or a responsible sibling where you're going, and when you expect to be back.
• Trust your gut if you have suspicions. If you feel threatened by someone or uncomfortable because of something online, tell an adult you trust and report it to the police and the social networking site. You could end up preventing someone else from becoming a victim.

For More Information

To learn more about staying safe online, visit the following organizations:

Federal Trade Commission — www.OnGuardOnline.gov
The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

The FTC manages OnGuardOnline.gov, which provides practical tips from the federal government and the technology industry to help you be on guard against Internet fraud, secure your computer, and protect your personal information.

GetNetWise — www.getnetwise.org
GetNetWise is a public service sponsored by Internet industry corporations and public interest organizations to help ensure that Internet users have safe, constructive, and educational or entertaining online experiences. The GetNetWise coalition wants Internet users to be just "one click away" from the resources they need to make informed decisions about their and their family's use of the Internet.

Internet Keep Safe Coalition — www.iKeepSafe.org
iKeepSafe.org, home of Faux Paw the Techno Cat, is a coalition of 49 governors/first spouses, law enforcement, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other associations dedicated to helping parents, educators, and caregivers by providing tools and guidelines to teach children the safe and healthy use of technology. The organization's vision is to see generations of children worldwide grow up safely using technology and the Internet.

i-SAFE — www.i-safe.org
Founded in 1998 and endorsed by the U.S. Congress, i-SAFE is a non-profit foundation dedicated to protecting the online experiences of youth everywhere. i-SAFE incorporates classroom curriculum with dynamic community outreach to empower students, teachers, parents, law enforcement, and concerned adults to make the Internet a safer place. Join them today in the fight to safeguard children's online experience.

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children — www.missingkids.com; www.netsmartz.org
NCMEC is a private, non-profit organization that helps prevent child abduction and sexual exploitation; helps find missing children; and assists victims of child abduction and sexual exploitation, their families, and the professionals who serve them.

National Crime Prevention Council — www.ncpc.org; www.mcgruff.org
The National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) is a private, nonprofit organization whose primary mission is to enable people to create safer and more caring communities by addressing the causes of crime and violence and reducing the opportunities for crime to occur. Among many crime prevention issues, NCPC addresses Internet Safety with kids and parents through www.mcgruff.org and public service advertising under the National Citizens' Crime Prevention Campaign — symbolized by McGruff the Crime Dog® and his "Take A Bite Out Of Crime®."

National Cyber Security Alliance — www.staysafeonline.org
NCSA is a non-profit organization that provides tools and resources to empower home users, small businesses, and schools, colleges, and universities to stay safe online. A public-private partnership, NCSA members include the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Trade Commission, and many private-sector corporations and organizations.

staysafe — www.staysafe.org
staysafe.org is an educational site intended to help consumers understand both the positive aspects of the Internet as well as how to manage a variety of safety and security issues that exist online.

Wired Safety — www.wiredsafety.org
WiredSafety.org is an Internet safety and help group. Comprised of unpaid volunteers around the world, WiredSafety.org provides education, assistance, and awareness on all aspects of cybercrime and abuse, privacy, security, and responsible technology use. It is also the parent group of Teenangels.org, FBI-trained teens and preteens who promote Internet safety.

RECIPES

Fruit, fruit, and more fruit!

With summer coming, we thought the time was right for some unusual fruit recipes.

Blood Orange and Kiwi with Praline

2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons pistachio nuts, chopped
3 strips orange rind, 3" x 3/4"
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 medium blood oranges, peeled each cut into 7 slices
4 kiwi fruit, peeled and each cut into 7 slices
4 teaspoons orange liqueur

Coat a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Place sugar in a small, heavy saucepan. Place over medium-high heat; cook for 3 minutes, or until sugar dissolves, stirring frequently. Stir in pistachios. Working rapidly, spread onto baking sheet; cool.

Break into small pieces; set aside. Cook orange rind in boiling water for 1 minute; drain and cut into thin strips. Pat dry with a paper towel.

Combine orange rind and cinnamon in a small bowl, stirring to coat; set aside. Arrange 7 orange slices and 7 kiwi slices on each of 4 plates; top each with 1 teaspoon liqueur, 1 Tablespoon praline pieces and 1 teaspoon orange rind.

Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Serves 4

Apple Upside Down Pie

3 to 3 1/2 pounds of red apples
unsalted butter for pan
3 Tablespoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/4 cup of unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons of sugar

For the pie crust:

2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
a pinch of salt
3/4 cups of unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup of lukewarm water
cornstarch for work surface

In a large bowl, add all crust ingredients except the cornstarch. Knead well for 10-15 minutes, form into a ball, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for one hour.

Peel the apples and slice thinly, removing seeds. Lightly butter a 14", round baking pan and sprinkle the bottom evenly with 2 Tablespoons of sugar.

Arrange apple slices to cover the bottom (more than one layer, if needed). Sprinkle the apples with 3 Tablespoons of sugar and cinnamon. Dot with 1/4 cup of butter cut into small pieces. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 355°F.

When the crust is cold, sprinkle a work surface with cornstarch and roll out the crust with a rolling pin to a diameter slightly bigger than the pan. Place crust on top of the apples, overlapping the pan edges a bit as it will shrink a bit as it cooks, and bake for one hour and 10 to 20 minutes, until the crust is a solid golden color, and there's no liquid in the bottom of the pan.

Remove from oven and place a serving platter over the pan. Invert to transfer the pie to the platter, and serve.

Grilled Fruit Compote

5 small, ripe peaches, quartered and pitted
6 small, ripe plums, quartered and pitted
1 cup of water
3/4 cup orange-flavored liqueur
3/4 cup sugar
Zest from 1 lemon
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Angel food cake or low-fat vanilla frozen yogurt (optional)

Place fruit pieces in center of cooking grate. Grill for 4 to 6 minutes, just until fruit is warmed through and grill marks have begun to appear, turning once halfway through grilling time. Remove from grill and set aside.

Combine water, liqueur, and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, cut the zest from the lemon and add it in strips to the pan, along with the vanilla. Continue boiling until liquid is reduced and syrupy, about 15 minutes.

Transfer syrup to a serving bowl. Cut grilled fruit into bite-size pieces and add to syrup; stir. Chill at least two hours to allow fruits to absorb the flavor of the syrup. Compote may be prepared a day in advance and kept in the refrigerator overnight.

Serve compote with a little of the syrup spooned over Angel Food Cake or frozen yogurt, if desired.

Makes 6 servings.

Grape Salad

2 pounds red seedless grapes
2 pounds green seedless grapes
8 ounces cream cheese
8 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup sugar

For Topping:
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans

Clean, rinse and pat dry the grapes and place in a large bowl

Mix together in another bowl the cream cheese, sour cream and sugar

Stir the mixture into the grapes

Pour into a 9 X 12 inch glass dish

In another bowl, mix the brown sugar and chopped pecans together

Sprinkle the topping over the grape mixture and pat lightly. (Do not mix in)

Serves 16

Marinated Fruit Salad

Marinade:

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup orange juice
1/8 tsp. salt

Fruit for salad:

2 cups honeydew melon balls
2 cups cantaloupe melon balls
2 nectarines, sliced
2 cups halved strawberries
1 cup blueberries

Combine honey and water in small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add lemon and orange juices and cool completely.

Place all the fruit in large bowl and pour the cooled marinade over all.

Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Serves 8

4th of July Fruit Pizza

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup butter
1/4 cup white sugar
1 3/8 cups cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups sliced fresh strawberries

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 12 inch pizza pan.

Crust:

In a large bowl, mix together flour, butter and sugar; dough should be dry. Spread into pizza pan. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until brown. Allow to cool completely.

Filling:

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Fold in whipped topping. Spread into cooled crust.

Top with fruit to resemble the US flag.

HUMOR

Love Is Rhymed

When a newspaper ran a contest asking for poems with a very romantic first line, but a not-so-romantic second line, they received these among the entries:

Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you
But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead, the sugar bowl's empty, and so is your head

I thought that I could love no other
Until, that is, I met your brother

Of loving beauty you float with grace
If only you could hide your face

Kind, intelligent, loving and hot
This describes everything you are not

I want to feel your sweet embrace
But don't take that paper bag off your face

I love your smile, your face, and your eyes
Damn I'm good at telling lies

My darling, my lover, my beautiful wife
Marrying you sure screwed up my life

My love, you take my breath away
What have you stepped in to smell this way

What inspired this amorous rhyme?
Two parts vodka, one part lime

I see your face when I am dreaming
That's why I always wake up screaming

Love may be beautiful, love may be bliss
But I only slept with you, because I was pissed

What will I be when I grow up?

The Talking Clock

A drunk was proudly showing off his new apartment to a couple of his friends late one night. When they made it to the bedroom, they saw a big brass gong next to the bed.

"What's a big brass gong doing in your bedroom?" one of the guests asked.

"It's not a gong. It's a talking clock," the drunk replied.

"A talking clock? Seriously?" asked his astonished friend.

"Yup," replied the drunk.

"How's it work?" the other friend asked, squinting at it.

"Watch," the drunk replied. He picked up the mallet, gave it an ear-shattering pound, and stepped back. The three stood looking at one another for a moment.

Suddenly someone on the other side of the wall screamed, "Hey, you moron...it's three o'clock in the morning!"

The Smarter Sex

Three women and three men are traveling by train to the Super Bowl. At the station, the three men each buy a ticket and watch as the three women buy just one ticket.

"How are the three of you going to travel on only one ticket?" asks one of the men. "Watch and learn," answers one of the women. They all board the train.

The three men take their respective seats but all three women cram into a toilet together and close the door. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets.He knocks on the toilet door and says, "Ticket, please." The door opens just a crack, and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand.

The conductor takes it and moves on. The men see this happen and agree it was quite a clever idea.

After the game, they decide to do the same thing on the return trip and save some money. When they get to the station they buy a single ticket for the return trip but see, to their astonishment, that the three women don't buy any ticket at all!!

"How are you going to travel without a ticket?" says one perplexed man. "Watch and learn," answer the women. When they board the train, the three men cram themselves into a toilet, and the three women cram into another toilet just down the way.

Shortly after the train is on its way, one of the women leaves her toilet and walks over to the toilet in which the men are hiding. The woman knocks on their door and says, "Ticket, please."

We're still trying to figure out why men ever think they are smarter than women

A guy walks into the local welfare office, marches straight up to the counter and says, "Hi! I hate drawing welfare. I'd really rather have a job."

The clerk behind the welfare desk says, "Your timing is excellent. We just got a job opening from a very wealthy old man who wants a chauffeur/bodyguard for his nymphomaniac daughter. You'll have to drive around in his Mercedes, but he'll supply all of your clothes. Because of the long hours, meals will be provided. You'll be expected to escort her on her overseas holiday trips. You'll have a two-bedroom apartment above the garage. The starting salary is $200,000 a year".

The guy says, "You're joking, right?"

And the welfare clerk says, "Well, yeah...but you started it."
 

OTHER STUFF

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Contact Info:

Editor/Letters - Dave Duffy, editor@backwoodshome.com
Web Site - Oliver Del Signore, webmaster@backwoodshome.com