Citrus Sinensis

      You're probably asking, "What's he going to tell us now?" The story starts a few years ago when I used to pay about $10 for my vitamin C tablets from Vitacost. Marcia would buy hers from an alternative medicine pharmacy and the cost was about $50. "Mmmmm," I thought. "What's the difference?" So, I looked into it and found that mine were made with ascorbic acid (synthetic) and hers was made using citrus sinensis. Citrus sinensis, as discovered, is basically a fancy name for orange peel!

     I then set off to make 'our' own vitamin C. Is it any wonder, that she's just gaga over me? I'm here to tell you how I do it. The industry uses several acids in their acquiring process for leaching. That certainly doesn't smack of being a very wonderful thing. I use NO acids, and the whole process is natural. This isn't a sales pitch so don't worry, nothing is for sale here. Kind of see no evil, do no evil premise. We've been doing this for over three years.
     You should use only ORGANICALLY grown oranges. Most producers use chemicals to preserve shelf life and color. We are fortunate that our friends Al and Wanda have access to organic oranges. They grace us through the harvest season with boxes of oranges off of neighbors' trees. Every morning, I juice three oranges and do my processing routine. Orange peels are edible.

This is cutting and squeezing for the juice.

     The next step is to remove the inside remnants of the orange. I use the sandwich knife by Cutco. The rounded blade is just perfect for the job. I do this for all the sections before I begin to slice the peel into at least 1/32" strips. I'm getting pretty good at doing this. It's kind of fun to see how fast you can do it without incident! I jokes. The Cutco blade is made specifically to prevent accidental cuts. So, I zip along!

      I then get the drying tray that I used the day before (24 hours is sufficient). See note below.
       Every time I do a new batch, the dried peels are removed from the rack and are put into a shopping bag which is right next to the heater. (Marcia added, "Where it decorates the living room!"                         .

      I usually acquire about a month's worth of dried peels before I move to the grinding (milling) stage.

      I use quart-sized Ziploc baggies and put in 16 oz. of the powder.      I then place them into a gallon-sized baggie and store them in the freezer as soon as possible. The orange sinensis is so potent that you need the double bagging to prevent the other items in your freezer from tasting like oranges, ie. butter, etc..

p.s. Our little heater is ideal. The pilot light puts out a nice drying heat all day long. When it does come on, it's for a brief time and usually on low. I've even dried it in the sun. That takes a while to do. Whatever you use as a dehydrator, make certain you don't expose it to temps. above 125 deg.. That would kill the enzymes. If you can snap it like a piece of dry spaghetti, that's about the dryness you want. The drier, the better. If it's not, it'll sort of gum up your grinding heads. Also if you set the heads too close together, it will do the same thing. You don't have too grind it too fine.
     We then use it by adding 1 tbsp. to a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice or on cold serial. We also use it on our yogurt and granola dishes. If you use it with steel cut oats, or any hot serial, don't put the peel in when you cook the oats. It will negate the enzymes.
     I just read a statement about vitamin C in orange juice that surprised me. I learned that out of 'from concentrate' and 'not from concentrate', the concentrate contains more vitamin C because it is quickly frozen and is fresher when you add water. The 'not from concentrate' allows the vitamin C to degrade by being exposed to the air. So, the best is fresh squeezed, then second is from concentrate!  That was news to me. I've always bought 'not from concentrate'. I guess on that info. the frozen concentrate that we Alaskans buy is probably the best form of concentrate, because the vitamin C would be better preserved.
 The ingredients in citrus sinensis have an adverse effect on Vitamin A absorbtion. So it''s important to eat foods rich in Vitanin A. This is an excerpt that I copied.:

Vitamin A
Alcohol, coffee, or excessive iron can all deplete your body's supply of this essential
vitamin -- bad news. But the good news is that vitamin A is readily available from numerous
food sources. It can be obtained from food in two different forms -- pre-formed vitamin A
(called retinol or retinal), found in animal sources, and pro-vitamin A (beta carotene), from
plant sources.
Thrive Online, part of the Oxygen.com network of sites, provided a comprehensive answer to
your question in their Vitamin and Mineral Guide, which lists the following as the top ten
vitamin A-rich foods:
liver
sweet potatos
carrots
mangoes
spinach
cantaloupe
dried apricots
milk
egg yolks
mozzarella cheese
Orange peel.
Orange Peel is one of the greatest sources of vitamin C on earth and should not be left out of
your diet as a rich source of soluble fiber and a potent support for an enhanced immune
system, as well as a natural resource for supporting the body's efforts to ward off invasive
infection. It is an old and reliable digestive, but important new research has demonstrated
promising potent antioxidant activity. There are also more good sources of vitamin C if you research the subject.
      That's it in a nutshell. Just hope you can use this info.

The Buzz About Honey

     Yesterday we were having dinner at our friend Judy's house. Her sister Jodie and her husband Chet were also there. After dinner while we were having coffee, Jodie says to Judy, "He's getting the honey book!" Judy had warned him not to bring it out while we were there. Judy has diabetes and a few days before I had loaned her a copy, of the 'Sugar Busters', to read.
     I chuckled and said, "Poor Judy, first I hand you a book about the negatives of sugar consumption and here comes Chet with his copy of 'The Honey Revolution' expounding the benefits of honey.
     Macia and I were skeptical about what it might contain since we are hard core Sugar Busters believers. He offered it to us for our reading today. We accepted. Last night while listening on PBS to the Andrea Bocelli 'Concerto' in Central Park video, Marcia was reading portions of the honey book. I have to say that it made very good sense.  So we decided to try it out before going to bed.
     One of the uses we wanted to try was to take a tablespoon of pure RAW honey before going to bed. Chet said that one of the immediate results is that you have vivid colored dreams and wake up refreshed. Worth a try.
     We went to bed and during the night, I had one of the most brilliantly colored dreams I've ever had. You know me, I wouldn't say it if it weren't so. Not only that, sometime during the dream, I was aware of Marcia's presence in bed as well as the street noise. (We live right next to a busy street). How weird.
     When reveille came, I asked M. if she had dreamt during the night. She said that she hadn't. I told her about mine. We both agreed that we woke up feeling refreshed!
     Needless to say, we're pleased with our initial try. I'm including the cover pages of the book.

I was so impressed with the results of my dream that I think tonight, I'll chase the honey down with a Viagra pill and some Geritol, followed by a baby aspirin for the heart. I'm hoping to improve the dream! :)

 

The Honey Bucket

I promised you quite some time ago that I'd do a journal on "The Honey Bucket". Before I go into the creation of a honey bucket, I need to give you some history about its origin. You might say, "How is that pertinent to me?". Hopefully, you'll never need to use such a concraption! But, in case you ever find yourself in such a bind, (no pun intended) you might find this a lifesaver.

    

     When Marcia and I built our house in the early 70's, we hadn't installed our septic system with the proper amount of insulation.  We just didn't know. This was our first building project. Consequently, we had several sewer line freeze-ups. At first we used the traditional 5 gallon bucket with a pine sol solution. If you've ever used pine sol, you know that its vapors are potent. It does its job well. As time goes on, not only the sense of smell but also the visual get bewildered! 

     We dumped the bucket when it was deemed necessary by the overload of the aforementioned senses. This particular time, the honeydo request  from Marcia was challenged by me. I felt as though it were premature. I set out to do the chore in below freezing temperatures . The dumping area was about 60+ feet from the door, behind the greenhouse. The path through the snow was well worn and usually easily navigated.

     We had a significant snow storm which 'dumped' about two feet of snow. I felt no apprehension about reaching my target. I did feel major resentment at having to do this chore, NOW! As I stepped my way down the path through the new snow, I TRIPPED!  If I had my mouth as the little face to the left portrays, I would have had a mouthful! Within what seemed like seconds, I had lost my balance, fallen forward and in so doing I had thrust my arm into the bucket! It was being held in a slight upright position, pointing my way, by the new snow. I lost my grip on the handle and proceeded to head for the bottom of the bucket.

     I was then covered from the waist up, thanks to a principle called the "Tsunami" effect! I hope that helps you picture the situation.

     It was at that time that I turned my attention to finding a better mouse trapper. Or I should say, "house crapper"! At the time we were receiving a daily newspaper. I thought that I would recycle it and use it as a substitute for the pine sol. Much to my astonishment, it worked beautifully. The newspaper neutralizes the smell. Through the years we've had to use a honey bucket because we've had a few disasters. I'm always prepared. The initial picture used for introducing the journal is always at the ready stored in our basement.

     You don't have to live in Alaska to experience a disaster that would cause you to need a honeybucket.  While we're on the subject of disasters, the tank of your toilet probably holds about 5 gallons of potable water. Better to drink it than to flush it! I'm not really trying to treat this subject delicately, it is what it is.

 Now, the Honey Bucket.

  Let's unveil it.  

   and take its hat off.

See how well groomed it is with the paper collar accessorized by the plastic trash bag. Notice the flexibility of being at home in any room of the house. My, you wouldn't have to miss your favorite soaps on TV!

Now for the inner workings and their placement.

1. Place the plastic bag in the bucket and make sure to push the bottom of the bag fully against the bucket's bottom and fold the excess over the lip of the bucket. 

2. Place the newspaper around the inside, covering the areas to the front and rear of the toilet seat placement. Don't try to cover the whole bottom at this time. Just 2 or 3 inches along the bottom will suffice. Then go over the lip of the bucket as you see here.3.  Place a double sheet of crumpled newspaper in the bottom. Put the seat and lids back on. Voila!! Fini!

     And when you are 'fini' with your business, you use another crumpled double sheet of newspaper and cover your deposit. Press down and tuck the edges in. No smell, No unsightliness!

     One more little comment. Just use this primarily for #2s. Use a jar or can for urinating. That then can be put down the toilet or thrown outside.

     If you find yourself without a bucket. You can take the water out of the toilet bowl (don't drink that one) and treat the bowl as though it were a bucket. The bucket would be better for long term emergencies.

The other essential item is how to dispose of the bag of goodies. If you have trash pickup that will work. When we didn't have trash pickup during the winter I would simply place the bags in the greenhouse in a trash can and let them freeze until spring. Hopefully, you won't have to use your freezer!

I seriously hope you never have to be in a situation to have to improvise. But, if you are, you'll at least have a solution and be a lot happier than your neighbors!

Fini, H & M