A Tree Grows In Brooklyn

Yes, the basil tree is still alive and well.  Yesterday I had to remove it from my hydroponic garden and put it into dirt.  I did not have a pot big enough so he ended up in a delivery container and even that is probably not big enough.  The root system on this plant is phenomenal it is probably 1" in diameter and as deep as the pot itself.  We have other plants who are doing great as well, the basil was blocking them and i did not even know that they were alive.  Yesterday I transplanted cilantro, mint, thyme, chives and a second basil plant.  I was unaware of the existence of the cilantro or mint so that was fun to find.  


What shall we do with all of these herbs???  I really do not know, with the warm weather coming we are hoping to get back to basics and focus on our old eating habits which were much healthier than what we are currently doing.  Regardless, they make the kitchen smell wonderful and I love having plants in the house, the next things we are working on growing is salad greens, it would be so much fun to just pick my salad greens from the "salad bar."  we shall see how that goes perhaps I should try for tomatoes too.....


Well here's to the salad bar I suppose.


~CM

How to spot a craigslist scam

At least how to spot a craigslist real estate ad scam.  In New York as many people know there are more rental properties than single family homes so brokers here specialize in rental's generally as their income source.  Now I cannot fault the broker's entirely though through personal and professional experience they are very creative in their ad making and how they attract customers.  We are thinking of moving here in NY and I was doing a little searching and I just keep coming across the absolute worst scams.  The newest one that i have run into most often is one where the person will respond to me questions telling me that i need to run my credit before we go any further......um.....excuse me?  NO!  Sorry bud, that's not how it works bad economic times or not (by they way the recession has ended, maybe i should have mentioned that.....)


Here are a few hints that an ad is probably a scam:
1. Incorrect spelling or grammar (obviously)
2. All caps (this is just a personal observation, either it's a scam or the person on the other end is too stupid to know how to work the caps lock button)
3. Only exterior photos of the house/condo/apartment are shown (because they don't have access to the inside - duh!) this one took me awhile, but it's a consistent pattern.
4. not leaving a real email address but using the craigslist created one also seems to point me in the direction of a scam.


So what can we do about this nonsense?  Flag them - every friggin one of them, let's take craigslist back to its original purpose which was for people to find and exchange goods and services for monetary or barter trade.  

Here is an example of my most recent finding:

$1500 / 2br - Lovely Waterfront Condo For Rent (Long Beach)

---

Date: 2010-02-18, 4:33PM EST
Reply to: hous-fd44k-1607044124@craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

---

LOVELY WATERFRONT CONDO IN LONG BEACH IS CONVENIENT LOCATION NEAR BEACH.
THE UNIT FEATURES 2BR, 1FULL BATH, FDR, KITCHEN, CAC AND PARKING SPOTS.
NO FEE REQUIRED. PETS ARE WELCOME. LEASE TERMS ARE FLEXIBLE. CONTACT TODAY..

• cats are OK - purrr
• dogs are OK - wooof
• Location: Long Beach
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
• Fee Disclosure: credit check
• Listed By:

PostingID: 1607044124
....well this one did have an interior photo but the rest was pretty consistent, so was the response (below)


Hello,

Thanks for contacting us regarding the apartment rental.  We know you must have many questions about the apartment rental.
But before answering any questions, we need to know if you are currently up-to-date with your credit report to save you and I time.

Here is a link to a free, safe and recommended credit report checker : https://secure.keycreditreport.com/?ai=10421

Also, this application will only take two minutes!
The particular reason for this credit check is because, with the declining economy, there has been a large number of defaulting tenants --
we don't have any reason to believe you aren't a good tenant, but we just need to protect ourselves in this economic environment.

Don't forget to email me back after completing the application so we can set up an appointment for you to view the apartment.

Thank you.


........*sigh* so the search continues......


Ta
~CM

Craigslist Post of the day

No joke, i was cruising through craigslist the other day looking for something and stumbled across the below ad.......i am dying to know if anyone replied to this! 


Nude Housekeeper Wanted (E. New York,Brownsville)
Date: 2010-02-17, 7:43PM EST
Reply To This Post

Looking for mature females 21-35 to do nude housekeeping and run errands must know how to cook meals and clean if interested contact email address or leave a message. Room and board available serious inquires interviews will be conducted leave description of yourself and a pic. Good luck on your search.

Soap Smithing

Greetings from Brooklyn, 

Well I have started to make my valentine's day soaps for the masses......well, maybe for family and friends and someday the masses ;) Who cares it's fun and keeps me out of trouble. I do have good news, I had my first online purchase of products! It was exhilarating and terrifying, what if she hated them? And me? Oh geez, what do I do? Mr. Mouse helped out, he said, "ship the order!" And so I did......I want to call her and see how she's doing, how's work and the family and oh yeah how are those soaps? I have resisted the urge thus far, I am aiming to not become a soap stalker of sorts. 

Anyway onto my newest concoctions, I have been sticking to the feminine scents but today I branched out and made something with a more masculine scent which I am just loving. My sister gave me some feedback on scents that she likes and I tried to incorporate some of that into one set, I also had some other thoughts for what valentine's day may smell like to one and have made a soap with that incorporated into it. My vague descriptions must be killing you! 

Alright so my masculine scented soap is sandalwood scented with a hemp base for the guys. I have two other molds setting up and two more in line to be poured. The one I have setting up is lilac scented yum! Oh and it's a pretty neat looking one too. The third that is setting is a cinnamon sugar scented soap (smells like a delicious cookie!) As I said I have more soaps to make but limited molds so they have to be made in cycles, currently I am sitting in my office, microwave in front of me, I know, it's a strange piece of equipment for an office, but hey- the printer is in the kitchen! I am up to my eyeballs in the little hearts and stars I have made to incorporate into my big molds and inhaling the sweet scents of cinnamon, lilac and sandalwood which is surprisingly not a bad combination. After all of this soaping I must have the cleanest hands on the planet, also all my utensils are deliciously clean, I can't complain though, I tried candle making ONCE, it was awful, clean-up was a nightmare, I melted two spatulas and ruined a pot, never again!

Well I hope you enjoyed the pics, wish you could smell the delightfulness. 

Bye for now

~CM

Pesto II

I made pesto back in September and wrote about it. BUT I did not make it from basil that we grew for the past few months. We finally trimmed our basil tree (yes, it became a tree) this morning and I pulled out the old food processor to make some pesto. The basil was great the kitchen smelled intoxicating as I was pruning the"tree".  I think I am so partial to this batch because it has been a labor of love from our little kitchen garden.  I mean the thing got so bit some leaves got burned by the grow lights and our other plants are all midgets because they have been starved for light!  I used almost the same recipe as last time but substituted pecorino romano cheese instead as I like the sharp bite and saltiness it brings to the table.

The pesto turned out GREAT, it was bright green in the processor once mixed, in my opinion good pesto, like a good piece of beef or fine wine needs to rest and the ingredients need to blossom prior to being completely enjoyed. I let it sit for a bit about 30 minutes at room temperature and tasted it again later and there was more complexity to it, as if the cheese and pine nuts and olive oil all did their dance and merged together.  Of course basil is the star of this dish and always will be, the other ingredients are only to compliment and punch up with deliciousness of that ingredient which they totally did.

We will make a couple great dishes with this pesto, then I will take the remaining and freeze it into an ice cube tray. Why such small portions you ask? Well pesto, unlike marinara or alfredo sauces can be enjoyed in much smaller amounts - about the size of an ice cube is actually a service size for someone, that is unless you are of the biggie size generation, much like myself, an ice cube sounds so minuscule. I agree it does, but just try it, you will be pleasantly surprised and then your creation will be able to go much further and make appearances in many more dishes than you could have dreamed of!

Just to save you from searching again, the recipe is:
12 Cloves of garlic (although I thought 8 was better, 12 scared all the vampires, close friends, family and colleagues away)
4 C fresh basil
1/3 C pine nuts
1/2 C grated parmesan (i used the romano instead)
1/2 C olive oil (more if you prefer a different texture)
salt/pepper to taste (i didn't need any, the romano is very salty to me)

I got this awesome but simple recipe from Bruce Brennan, who is the author of Hippy Gourmet and has many cool videos on youtube (look him up!)

The final product >>>>>>>
Oh, I have so many delicious plans for this pretty!








Buon Appetite from the Mouse!