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Author Archives: dreaminofobx

Xylitol

27 Apr

HPIM1976

Xylitol Lime Mint is my husband’s favorite chewing gum. We discovered it when we lived in Japan, and so far, that’s been the only place we’ve found that particular flavor. We left Japan with half a dozen 100-count tubs in our household effects. We coerced friends who left Japan a year after us to send us half a dozen more before they moved. One of my husband’s coworkers recently traveled to Japan on vacation, and we begged her to put as many as she could in her suitcase on the return journey. My husband made an unexpected business trip to Japan a couple months ago, and he loaded up his suitcase as well. Another coworker is transferring to Japan this summer and we’ve informed her that during her three-year posting, she will be receiving periodic requests to send more gum.

Turns out Lime Mint gum has more going for it than just a fresh, clean flavor and a tendency not to get hard even after eight hours of constant chewing. Its key ingredient, xylitol, is something of a dental health miracle. Xylitol is a natural sweetener, occurring in most fruits and vegetables, but derived for commercial purposes mainly from corncobs and beech trees. Its chemical structure is different from other sugars, which enables it to inhibit bacteria in the mouth from adhering to teeth and gums, therefore reducing the incidence of cavities (by up to 70% according to some studies). Xylitol also appears to help in the remineralization of enamel, making teeth stronger over time. Researchers urge consumers to “strive for five”–using xylitol toothpaste in the morning, using xylitol rinse or chewing xylitol gum after breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and brushing with xylitol toothpaste again before bed.

The benefits don’t stop with oral health. Xylitol has a lower glycemic index than sucrose (7 as opposed to 87), so can be a good alternative sweetener for diabetics. It contains 43% fewer calories than sucrose, so also makes sense for those trying to lose weight. When used as a nasal spray, xylitol inhibits growth of bacteria in the nasal cavities and sinuses, thus reducing the incidence of upper respiratory infections. Some studies even indicate that when xylitol spray is used daily, asthma sufferers notice a significant decrease in the number of asthma attacks.

So, as a former 3rd grade teacher who frequently made students spit out their gum (all the while hoping they would not notice the piece I was chewing), I wonder how long it will be before some enterprising student gets a doctor’s note saying he must be allowed to chew gum in school for health reasons?

NOTE: While xylitol may be a wonder substance for humans, it is highly poisonous to dogs. Even the ingestion of a couple pieces of xylitol-sweetened chewing gum can cause a surge in insulin in canines, creating a dangerous drop in blood sugar levels in as little as 15 minutes; larger doses cause severe liver toxicity within 24 hours. Both conditions can quickly be fatal, so it is vitally important to keep all xylitol products out of the reach of Fido.

*Information in this posting was gathered from www.xylitol.org and snopes.com

 
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Posted by on April 27, 2013 in Challenges

 

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Wedgwood

26 Apr

HPIM1961

Mom and I were in Staffordshire for a quilt show today, and while we were so close, we decided to head up to the pottery district of Stoke-on-Trent. There are several companies headquartered in the area, but I specifically wanted to go to Wedgwood. Not to look in the museum. Not for a factory tour to see how the famous china wares are made. Not to buy dishes in the outlet shop. No. We went because I wanted tea. Tea? At a pottery factory? Yes. Wedgwood sells the best English afternoon tea I’ve ever tasted.

I was first introduced to this tea a few years ago when one of my Japanese students travelled to England as part of a package tour to the UK (all of the Japanese tour companies bring busloads of eager shoppers to the potteries); she brought me a pretty Wedgwood-blue tin of loose afternoon tea as a souvenir. Back then, I was only drinking Lipton or Japanese green tea, so my tea palate was not very refined. Plus I was a bit intimidated by tea that was not already prebagged. Once I discovered that the 100-yen store sold disposable tea envelopes into which I could put the loose tea leaves to brew, I made my first experimental mug of English afternoon tea. Wow. So much better than Lipton!!

Since moving from Japan to England, I’ve tried all kinds of different tea, as well as different brands of my two favorites, English breakfast and English afternoon tea. I’ve yet to come across an afternoon tea as tasty as the Wedgwood tea, so when my tin was empty, I set about trying to replace it. It is not stocked in any local shops, so when my grandmother visited last summer and wanted to visit the pottery outlet stores in Stoke-on-Trent, I was sure I’d find it there. No such luck. So I emailed Wedgwood to ask whether there were any shops licensed to sell their tea in my area or if they had an online shop where I could place an order. No reply. So today’s trip to the actual Wedgwood Pottery (as opposed to the outlet shop) was my last great hope.

At last, success! I now have two tins of afternoon tea safely tucked in the cabinet, and my husband’s permission to make another trip to the retail shop before we move back to the States in August if Wedgwood doesn’t offer the tea online when they roll out their new and improved website next week. Life is good! Now if you’ll excuse me, I think it’s time for a cuppa.

 
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Posted by on April 26, 2013 in Challenges, How It Is, True Life

 

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Verdigris

25 Apr
Door handle at Blenheim Palace
Cannon at North Entrance of Blenheim Palace
Sundial in Water Terrace Garden at Blenheim Palace
Sculpture on beach in Brighton, England
Plaque commemorating Queen Victoria’s visit to St. Michael’s Mount, Cornwall
Welsh Dragon, Wales
Commando Memorial, near Spean Bridge, Scotland
‘Partnership’ sculpture, Reykjavik, Iceland

ver·di·gris [vur-di-grees, -gris] noun: a green or bluish patina formed on copper, brass, or bronze surfaces exposed to the atmosphere for long periods of time, consisting principally of basic copper sulfate. (from Dictionary.com)

I took my mom to Blenheim Palace today, and as we wandered around the grounds of one of England’s prized treasure houses, I noticed the green patina gracing many of the metallic surfaces. That got me digging through the rest of my photos from our travels throughout the UK in the past eighteen months, looking for more verdigris.

 
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Posted by on April 25, 2013 in Challenges, Observations, Photography

 

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Un-ness

24 Apr

HPIM1864

 

Unacceptable. Unattractive. Unbecoming. Uncivilized. Unclean. Uncouth. Undesirable. Undignified. Ungentrified. Unglamorous. Unhygienic. Unorthodox. Unpalatable. Unrefined. Unsanitary. Unsatisfactory. Unsavory. Unseemly. Unsightly.

His behavior leaves a lot to be desired, but I’d love to have this cheeky little gargoyle in my garden!

 
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Posted by on April 24, 2013 in Challenges

 

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‘Taters

23 Apr

HPIM1790

 

I love potatoes. Baked, boiled, mashed, fried, in soups, in salads. Not sure I’ve met a potato I didn’t like (white potatoes, that is…not a fan of sweet potatoes in any incarnation). I didn’t know there were so many kinds of white potatoes until I moved to England; the supermarket has an entire aisle–both sides–devoted to nothing but potatoes. Heaven must look something like the potato aisle in Tesco.

I grew up eating potatoes almost every night for dinner. Mom married a meat and potatoes guy; Dad liked other starches like rice and pasta well enough, but preferred spuds with his evening meal. Now, I find myself married to a man who would happily eat rice seven nights a week–he doesn’t dislike potatoes, he just likes rice more. So, long story short, because I don’t cook potatoes very often, the ones I buy often go off before I can use them all.

A few months ago, I found a special potato storage bag while wandering through a cooking store. The package stated that the special dark liner inside the bag would keep potatoes fresher longer–the eyes wouldn’t sprout, and the potatoes wouldn’t turn green (this happens when potatoes are exposed to light, and green potatoes are poisonous!) This magical bag sounded like just what I needed to prolong the life of my taters, which hadn’t been faring so well in a plain paper sack. Let me just say, if I had saved the receipt this bag would be going back to the store.

I bought a bag of new potatoes and used several of them in a recipe the same day. The rest were secured in the dark protective shroud of the potato sack. A couple weeks went by, I cooked rice, we did some traveling, and through it all the potatoes slumbered peacefully in their sack. Last week I remembered that I had baby potatoes (only because I’d just purchased a couple larger spuds for baking and needed to store them in the sack) and thought I’d use them to make some potato salad. I loosened the drawstring at the top of the bag and blindly reached my hand in…only to yank it out with a yelp when I encountered tentacles trying to wrap themselves around my wrist. WTF?! Angling the bag’s opening toward the window, I looked in the dark interior to find 10-inch long sprouts coming out of every single potato. Good thing the bag slowed the growth of those eyes, or I’d have had to hack my way into the kitchen with a machete!

Unless anyone out there has a tried and true ‘tater storage trick, I may have to give up and just get my potato fix when we go out for dinner. Rice is a much more docile side dish, not turning poisonous colors or sprouting and trying to take over the pantry as soon as I turn my back.

 
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Posted by on April 23, 2013 in Challenges, Observations, True Life

 

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Stonehenge

22 Apr

We finally made it to Stonehenge yesterday; it’s been on our Places to Visit in England list since we arrived in September 2011. We didn’t want to visit too early in our tour, lest we end up with numerous houseguests who wanted to go as well. (We visited the Great Buddha in Japan about half a dozen times, and are determined not to be so repetitive here in England.) My mom has been the first visitor to show any interest in Stonehenge, so I made arrangements to get us access to the inside of the stone circle before regular opening hours. It was a treat to be so close to the giant stones with only about twenty other visitors, rather than being confined to the roped-off pathway outside the circle with the hordes of foreign tourists that were arriving by the busload as we left.

I am glad that I’ve finally been to Stonehenge, and getting up at 4:30 a.m. to arrive in time for the special access inside the stones was well worth missing forty winks. But I have to say that the whole experience left me a little underwhelmed. Stonehenge looks so big and dramatic when I see it in magazines or travel guides and appears to be set in the middle of a huge field, far from the intrusion of the modern world. In reality, the diameter of the circle isn’t nearly as wide as I expected, although the stones themselves are massive. I was taken aback by the two busy roadways between which Stonehenge is nestled–I suspect some major retouching to remove cars, fences, and power lines in published photos. I admit to also being a tad disappointed not to feel some kind of spiritual pull standing inside the ancient circle; I’d been prepared for a primal stirring of the soul thanks to countless theories about the original purposes of the temple and reports of the Druid rituals that take place there in current times.

All in all, I think my expectations of this UNESCO World Heritage Site were unrealistic. For anyone who has not yet visited Stonehenge, I suggest trying to forget all you’ve seen and read about the monument before you go. Definitely book the inner circle special access before or after regular visiting hours if you can manage it, then walk in with an open mind and simply marvel at the architectural feats that created the temple and soak in the more than 5000 years of mystery and history contained within the concentric circles of earth and stone.

 
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Posted by on April 22, 2013 in Challenges, Monday Mix, Observations

 

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Up!

21 Apr

100B9691

Today’s my day off for good behavior from the April A to Z Challenge, so I thought I’d look to The Daily Post for something fun to do. Sara Rosso asked for a photo that means “up” in Friday’s edition of the Weekly Photo Challenge, and I immediately knew which folder to visit in my photo archives.

My husband and I were driving home from a day trip in October 2011 when we spotted a whole army of hot air balloons rising up from the English countryside. We pulled into a roadside parking area directly in their flight path and waited as they floated nearer, the dragon’s roar of their burners clearly audible above the whoosh of passing cars. This was my first close-encounter with hot air balloons, and some of their antics conjured up all sorts of horrific accident scenarios, prompting me to pat my back pocket to ensure my cell phone was handy (not that I’m a nervous Nelly or anything). There were a few anxious moments as some balloons struggled to maintain altitude near the high-voltage power lines, but all safely crossed with a few feet to spare. More than one balloon was forced to land prematurely in sheep-strewn fields (intentionally? lack of a favorable wind? pilot error?), but luckily well back from the busy highway, and almost all were able to regroup and rise again to continue on their southward journeys. One balloon in the flotilla was poised to drift directly overhead, so I readied myself to capture the gaping mouth of the beast, feeling a bit like a rabbit analyzing the silent approach of a hawk.

The message in this shot screams “up” to me, from my craned-neck perspective of the underside of the basket, to the painted bird soaring across the envelope’s cobalt background, to the word “sky” lettered on the nylon skin. If I’m ever lucky enough to take a ride in one of these graceful giants, I’ll be sure to collect some photos for a companion post entitled “Down!”

 

 
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Posted by on April 21, 2013 in Challenges, Photography, Sunday Best, Weekly Photo Challenge

 

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