A Brandy Alexander - See below for Copyright

These 8 delicious cocktails using chocolate based liqueurs, like Crème de Cacao, Kahlua and Royal Chocolate Liqueur, are lovely drinks for any party or celebration like Christmas, weddings, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, etc.

Brandy Alexander
1 fl oz of a good brandy
1 fl oz of dark Crème de Cacao
1 fl oz of heavy (double) cream

Put all the ingredients into an cocktail shaker and shake well. Pour into glasses and sprinkle with nutmeg and cocoa powder.

Chocolada
2fl oz white rum
1 fl oz coconut cream
2 tsp chocolate syrup

Stir all the ingredients together with crushed ice then serve. Garnish with sliced fresh pineapple.

Chocolate Coffee
¾ fl oz good brandy or Cognac
½ fl oz dark Crème de Cacao
½ fl oz chocolate syrup
4 fl oz hot coffee
1 fl oz milk
Whipped heavy (double) cream

Put all the ingredients except the cream into a pan and heat but do not boil. Pour into glasses or mugs, top with whipped cream and dust with cocoa.

Chocolate Martini
3 fl oz vodka
1/2 fl oz dark Crème de Cacao
Splash of triple sec

Put all the ingredients with crushed ice in a cocktail shaker and shake then strain into glasses.

Chocolate Rum
1 1/2 fl oz dark rum
1/2 fl oz Crème de Cacao
1/2 fl oz light cream
1/2 fl oz white Crème de Menthe

Put all the ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake well and then strain into a cocktail glass.

Grand Fizz
1/2 fl oz Crème de Cacao
1/2 fl oz Grand Marnier
Champagne

Stir the two together then top up the glass with champagne. Add a twist of orange peel to garnish.

Spiked Chocolate
1 tbs hot water
2 tsp drinking chocolate powder
1 fl oz Tia Maria
1 fl oz white Curaçao

Dissolve the drinking chocolate in the hot water. When the mixture has cooled, stir in the Tia Maria and Curaçao together with some ice. Use whole or half strawberries to garnish.

White Russian
1 fl oz vodka
1 fl oz Crème de Cacao
1 fl oz cream

With ice, place all the ingredients in a shaker and shake well. Strain into a glass over more ice.

Picture above: Copyright © Jason Lam,  Creative Commons License

Tree Wearing Its Autumn Foliage

Here in England November came in like a lion. This morning I woke to the roaring of the wind and rain lashing the windows. Autumn is well and truly here and winter might be close behind.

October has been lovely – sunny and warm for the time of year. Today is a reality check, November is here. It reminded me of this poem by Thomas Hood.

November

No sun – no moon!

No morn – no noon -

No dawn – no dusk – no proper time of day.

No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,

No comfortable feel in any member -

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,

No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds! -

November!

Corrugated cardboard and some silver and/or gold spray paint together with beads, glitter and ribbon can make striking and original decorations for your Christmas tree.

Draw stars, Christmas trees, moons, etc onto the cardboard then cut out the shapes. You might like to make the shapes in different sizes.

Spray them with the silver or gold paint – do this in a well ventilated room. Leave them to dry.

You can glue glass beads or pretty buttons to some of the shapes. You can also coat them with a thin clear paste and then sprinkle glitter on them.

Make a hole in the top of each shape and thread ribbon or thread through so you can hang them on the tree.

Gingerbread Christmas Tree

Traditionally, this recipe is made into gingerbread men but you can use different shaped cookie cutters to make it into stars, Christmas trees or other shapes. Before cooking, remember to pierce a hole at the top of each one so you can thread ribbon or strong coloured thread through them to hang on the Christmas tree. Makes 25 cookies.

Ingredients
12oz plain (all purpose) flour
6oz soft brown sugar
4oz butter
1 egg
4 tbs golden syrup (corn syrup makes a good substitute)
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
2 tbs ground ginger

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 190 deg C (375 deg F) and line two baking sheets (cookie trays) with baking parchment.

2. Sieve (strain) the flour, spices and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl.

3. Rub in the butter till the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs then stir in the sugar.

Gingerbread Man

5. Warm the golden syrup slightly, must so that it’s a little more runny, then beat in the egg. Cool, then beat into the flour mixture until it forms a soft dough.

6. Turn out onto a floured board and knead lightly until it’s smooth. Roll out to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters – don’t forget to make a hole in each one.

7. Put the shapes onto the prepared baking trays and cook for around 7 to 10 minutes. They should be golden brown when done. Leave them to cool on the baking trays for about 10 minutes then cool off completely on cooling racks.

You can decorate them with a simple icing. Beat an egg white until frothy, not stiff, then gradually add sieved (strained) icing (confectioners) sugar. Beat after each addition and stop when the icing is stiff. Add colouring if required. You can spread or pipe the icing onto the cookies.

Thread ribbon or strong thread through the holes and hang on your Christmas tree.

Recommended Book

A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies – Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk

Saffy the Springer Spaniel

None of the humorous pieces below are original. Most of them have been circulated by email and posted in forums and other websites.

A Dog’s Property Laws
1. If I like it, it’s mine.
2. If it’s in my mouth, it’s mine.
3. If I can take it from you, it’s mine.
4. If I had it a little while ago, it’s mine.
5. If it’s mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way.
6. If I’m chewing something up, all the pieces are mine.
7. If it just looks like mine, it’s mine.
8. If I saw it first, it’s mine.
9. If you are playing with something and you put it down, it automatically becomes mine.
10. If it’s broken, it’s yours.

Dog Rules
1. The dog is not allowed in the house.
2. Okay, the dog is allowed in the house, but only in certain rooms.
3. The dog is allowed in all rooms, but has to stay off the furniture.
4. The dog can get on the old furniture only.
5. Fine, the dog is allowed on all the furniture, but is not allowed to sleep with the humans on the bed.
6. Okay, the dog is allowed on the bed, but only by invitation.
7. The dog can sleep on the bed whenever he wants, but not under the covers.
8. The dog can sleep under the covers by invitation only.
9. The dog can sleep under the covers every night.
10. Humans must ask permission to sleep under the covers with the dog.

Holiday Rules for Dogs

Be especially patient with your humans during this time. They may appear to be more stressed-out than usual and they will appreciate long comforting dog leans.

They may come home with large bags of things they call gifts. Do not assume that all the gifts are yours.

Be tolerant if your humans put decorations on you. They seem to get some special kind of pleasure out of seeing how you look with fake antlers.

They may bring a large tree into the house and set it up in a prominent place and cover it with lights and decorations. Bizarre as this may seem to you, it is an important ritual for your humans, so there are some things you need to know: Don’t pee on the tree – don’t drink water in the container that holds the tree. Mind your tail when you are near the tree-if there are packages under the tree, even ones that smell interesting or that have your name on them, don’t rip them open – don’t chew on the cord that runs from the funny-looking hole in the wall to the tree.

Your humans may occasionally invite lots of strangers to come visit during this season. These parties can be lots of fun, but they also call for some discretion on your part: Not all strangers appreciate kisses and leans – don’t eat off the buffet table – beg for goodies subtly – be pleasant, even if unknowing strangers sit on your sofa – don’t drink out of glasses that are left within your reach.

Likewise, your humans may take you visiting. Here your manners will also be important: Observe rule number 4 for trees that may be in other people’s houses. Respect the territory of other animals that may live in the house – tolerate children – turn on your charm big time.

A big man with a white beard and a very loud laugh may emerge from your fireplace in the middle of the night. DON’T BITE HIM!

This poem is for Henry who died 2 weeks ago

Henry, our cavalier King Charles spaniel, died two weeks ago on September 25th. He had a stroke and was unconscious. The vet said there was nothing that could be done for him so the kindest thing was to put him to sleep so we gave our permission for it to be done.

This poem is for Henry because we miss him so much. He was a sweet, gentle and loving dog.

There is sorrow enough in the natural way
From men and women to fill our day;
And when we are certain of sorrow in store,
Why do we always arrange for more?
Brothers and Sisters, I bid you beware
Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.

Buy a pup and your money will buy
Love unflinching that cannot lie—
Perfect passion and worship fed
By a kick in the ribs or a pat on the head.
Nevertheless it is hardly fair
To risk your heart for a dog to tear.

When the fourteen years which Nature permits
Are closing in asthma, or tumour, or fits,
And the vet’s unspoken prescription runs
To lethal chambers or loaded guns,
Then you will find—it’s your own affair—
But . . . you’ve given your heart to a dog to tear.

When the body that lived at your single will,
With its whimper of welcome, is stilled (how still!).
When the spirit that answered your every mood
Is gone—wherever it goes—for good,
You will discover how much you care,
And will give your heart to a dog to tear.

We’ve sorrow enough in the natural way,
When it comes to burying Christian clay.
Our loves are not given, but only lent,
At compound interest of cent per cent.
Though it is not always the case, I believe,
That the longer we’ve kept ’em, the more do we grieve.
For, when debts are payable, right or wrong,
A short-time loan is as bad as a long—
So why in—Heaven (before we are there)
Should we give our hearts to a dog to tear?

If you want to know more about Henry, you can read about him on a page I wrote in happier times – Henry’s Biography: A Small Dog’s Tale.

$10,000 in $100 bills

About a month after I got my first connection to the internet I decided I wanted to build a website. I had no burning ambition to share information, I just wanted to see if I could do it. Bearing in mind I have the technical capabilities of your average goldfish and things weren’t so easy back in 1998, I found it difficult but eventually I did it.

Of course, being somebody who can turn shopping into an Olympic sport, I wanted to make some money from the website. Now, that was really difficult! In those dim and distant days, there were very few opportunities, the main one was Amazon and then it was only Amazon.com.

Now the picture is completely different. There are thousands of affiliate opportunities with all kinds of companies so, today, there is no reason why anybody who has a reasonably popular website, getting a couple of thousand visitors a week, shouldn’t make at least enough from their site to go shopping. Some people are so good at monetising their site or sites, they have made a career from it and have been able to give up the day job.

So how can you make money from your website?

You could try one of the get rich quick schemes advertised all over the web but, remember, if it sounds too good to be true, you can usually bet your life it is. There aren’t that many people making big money from these products and those that do are probably the ones who came up with the original idea. If you want instant wealth, try entering a lottery – your chances are probably better!

More sensibly, you could build a site or write a blog about something that genuinely interests you. If you keep it updated and build up good traffic, then you could find you can earn money from it.

Choosing Your Subject With Money in Mind
One factor is that some subjects are more commercial than others. For example, Ancient Russian Pottery is obviously not a hugely commercial subject whereas a site on popular subject like football or Lord of the Rings or some aspect of travel probably would be more profitable. A popular subject might get more visitors and there are a huge number of specific items and services for sale on these topics. The downside is that you will come up against stiff competition from an enormous number of sites on the same subjects varying from those belonging to big corporations to those of fans.

Amazon.co.uk Warehouse, Glenrothes, Scotland

If you want to earn money from your website, this is something you need to consider.

Think Laterally
With less mainstream subjects, you have to think laterally. OK, Ancient Russian Pottery won’t attract a lot of visitors because it is so specialised but you would need to make the best of those who do come. Books on pottery of all kinds could be offered, travel to Russia is another possibility, perhaps even a language course might be available. So just because your site might not have obvious opportunities for monetising, try thinking outside the box and you might be surprised at what you can find.

Position Ads to Get a Sale
When you put ads on your website, think about how YOU use the internet. Don’t assume that you are the only person that won’t scroll down to look at ads – most people won’t. You need to put your advertisements high up on the page so that people see them (sometimes called ‘above the fold’) even if they don’t read the whole article.

If you mention a book, a DVD or video, or any other product, in an article, put an affiliate text link to it and use the relevant words in the article as the link. You’ll be surprised at how many you can sell and, don’t forget, this will go on working for you long after you wrote the article. This isn’t an invitation to drag the names of all kinds of products into articles because that will be a turn-off to many visitors, but rather to capitalise on natural opportunities.

Book, Movie and Other Reviews
These are interesting for visitors and a natural way for you to put in links to products. Put a link to the item reviewed right at the top of the article and then again at the bottom. Don’t forget to link to Amazon in any countries where the product is available.

Once your site is well established, you can email the marketing department of publishers and ask for review copies. It is best if you do a few reviews first (use your own books or those from the library) so that you can include a link or two to them in your email to show you are serious.

These methods can bring in anything from small, occasional amounts of money up to a good, regular income.

A bride in her wedding dress with bouquet

For some people, their wedding is the most expensive event of their lives. If you don’t want to spend a fortune on just one day, no matter how important, here are a few budget tips to help you keep costs down.

The Wedding Dress

Start looking for the dress as soon as you have set a date. That way you won’t be under pressure and can look for the one that suits you at a price that doesn’t blow your budget. Don’t forget that shops selling wedding dresses have sales too so keep a look out for a bargain. Also look in dress agencies (shops selling good quality second hand clothes) and charity shops which sometimes get wedding dresses.

Generally, simple dresses cost less than those with lots of frills, beads, lace, and you can add these yourself if you want them.

You can save money by renting a dress or borrowing one. Perhaps your mother still has hers and, if you like it and it suits you, she would probably be touched that you want to use it. Alternatively, a sister or friend might have a dress you could borrow.

Wedding Reception

Don’t plan your wedding for the most popular months, April to September, and you might find that rates for reception venues are lower during the autumn and winter.

Instead of using a hotel or restaurant for the reception, consider hiring something like a church hall. If you do, check on the facilities.

1. Is there a kitchen?
2. Is there a stove for heating food?
3. Are seats included in the price and are there enough for all the guests?
4. Are tables also included and are there enough?
5. Are there any special conditions of use attached to the hall?

If you choose to use a hall like this, you will then have to decide whether to use caterers to supply the food or whether to do it yourself, hopefully with the help of family and friends.

If you decide on caterers, get several quotes before you decide on one and also see if you can check with past customers to see if they were happy with the food and service.

When it comes to choosing the food, whether you use caterers or do it yourself, go for the less expensive options. Don’t consider fillet steak, think of serving chicken instead. A buffet is also less expensive than a sit down meal because you won’t need to pay waiters or waitresses to serve it.

If you are preparing the food yourself, a buffet is ideal because all of it, except perhaps for hot sausages or similar items, can be prepared well ahead of time and frozen.

A Traditional Wedding Cake

The more tiers and decorations your cake has the more expensive it will be, also consider making it yourself. If you make a traditional British wedding cake, you can buy the enormous quantity of fruit required over a number of weeks so making it less of a burden. You can then get it professionally decorated if you can’t do it yourself and don’t know anybody who can.

Buy your own drink as it will work out a lot cheaper then paying the caterers or venues prices.

Finally, there is a great temptation to invite many people to your wedding that would not be at all offended if they weren’t invited. Casual friends, very distant relatives don’t always want to come. Keep your guest list to family and friends that are close to you and your parents. Every extra guest is another mouth to feed and you will overspend your budget!

Photographs

Here are some suggestions to save money on the budget for the wedding photography.

• Compare hourly fees and package deals to see which is more cost-effective for you.
• Give disposable cameras as wedding favours. Then you can get copies of the days events from family and friends.
• Have a professional photographer take the formal pictures and shoot the ceremony; have guests take all reception photos.
• Visit your local college’s photography department and check out some of the students’ portfolios. They will do your photography a lot cheaper and can be just as good as a professional.
• Ask friends and family to video the big day for you.

Flowers

Some tips for staying within your budget for the wedding flowers:

• Use flowers that are in season and/or locally grown as they are less expensive than out-of-season flowers that must be shipped to your area.
• Have a bouquet with just a few large flowers, like orchids, tulips, lilies, or sunflowers, tied with a ribbon.
• If you are marrying at Christmas or Easter, your church may already be decked out beautifully.
• Arrange to share the cost of ceremony decorations with the couple marrying directly before or after you that day.
• Use silk or dried flowers instead of fresh ones in table centerpieces.

Music

DJs are less expensive than live bands.

Ask a family member or friend’s child to sing at the reception.

Hire music for the evening reception only. People are usually to busy chatting to notice any way.

Ask at the local college/university for young musicians.

Invitations

Make your own invitation cards. They are cheaper and more personal.

Transportation

Limousines are cheap enough to hire for an hour. Find out in advance how long the ceremony will take.

Only hire a limo for the bride and groom; have attendants driven in relatives’ cars, or have them drive themselves in groups.

Metformin tablets

There are two kinds of diabetes, type 1 and type 2. Although there is a description and list of symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes, this article is really about Type 2, the most common form.

Type 1 Diabetes
This is also sometimes called juvenile diabetes because it often starts in childhood but not invariably.

This type of diabetes is usually an auto-immune disease where the body’s antibodies start attacking some part of itself, in this case the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin. It is thought that in some cases a virus can also affect and damage or destroy these insulin producing cells.

Symptoms

• Increase in urinating as the kidneys attempt to remove excess glucose from the body
• Feeling excessively thirsty to compensate for all the fluid loss by extra urination
• Weight loss because the body can’t access the glucose it needs for energy so starts using fat and muscle
• Feelings of constant hunger because the person is literally starving as the body can’t use the food it is being given

Type 2 Diabetes
This form is sometimes called late onset diabetes and it is becoming much more common nowadays. Although it seems there is a genetic component in whether or not somebody develops it, the most important factor seems to be our modern lifestyle.

Our bodies are not ideally designed to cope with lack of exercise and an excess of fatty and sugary food. Unlike Type 1 diabetes, people with Type 2 are making insulin, it is just that their bodies have become resistant to it and their pancreas cannot make enough to compensate for the resistance.

Symptoms

• Increase in urination, just like in Type 1
• Increased thirst as Type 1
• Tiredness because your body can’t access glucose for fuel
• Changes in vision as blood glucose levels change
• Genital itching because of the excess sugar in urine, various yeast infections can occur
• Infections and wounds take longer to heal because the cells in blood that fight infection don’t work so well when there is excess glucose
• Loss of feeling in feet – this is serious and means that the diabetes is long established. Called neuropathy, it can result in amputation if left untreated and extreme and irreversible damage occurs. If you have this sympton, go to the doctor NOW.

Treatment
Type 2 diabetes is one of the few illnesses where the treatment and results are almost entirely in your own hands. Stick to the rules and get your blood glucose levels under control and you might never need to inject insulin or even take pills.

Depending on how early the diabetes is diagnosed, the doctor will put you on one of three treatments:

• diet and exercise alone
• pills like the Metformin pictured above
• insulin injections

Even if you are on pills or insulin injections, watching your diet and taking exercise will still be an important part of controlling blood glucose levels. Get these right, lose weight if you need to, and it is possible to come off
either pills or insulin injections and still control the diabetes.

Even if this happens, you will still be diabetic and need to remain vigilant about your diet and continue to exercise. If you fall back into bad habits of a high fat, high sugar diet and inactivity, blood glucose levels will soar.

It isn’t all doom and gloom, though. If you have spent years of battling with your weight, diabetes will give you the incentive to lose the excess and the diet to control diabetes will give you the means. Following a diabetic diet, which is really just a healthy diet, will enable you to keep the weight off too.

When you hit the diabetic blues after diagnosis, just think how much better you will feel when you have gone down several sizes and can buy the kind of clothes you could never buy before.

There are a number of advantages of organic gardening:

• You can make your own compost from garden and kitchen waste
  All home grown fruit and vegetables are free of chemicals and safe to eat
• Chemical pesticides can kill benefits insects like ladybugs that prey on aphids and bees that pollinate garden plants, fruit and vegetables
• Using natural bulk compost and manure keeps the physical structure of the soil in good condition so ensuring on-going fertility
• Improvement in soil structure encourages beneficial creatures like worms which again lead to increased fertility
• Chemicals lead to a loss of bio-diversity in the garden because they kill creatures never intended to be affected by them, for example, slug pellets can kill birds and toads if they eat a poisoned slug or snail
  There is an additional danger from slug pellets to children and pets

If you have decided you want to garden organically, the articles below will help.

1. Ten Tips for Organic Gardening
2. Make Your Own Compost
3. Crop Rotation for the Vegetable Garden
4. Know Your Garden Soil
5. Garden for Wildlife
6.