Play Dictionary

When you're bored and there's nothing in the room but a stuffy old dictionary and a friend or two as bored as you, you're in luck. Dictionaries are a great read and you can take it in turns. No wait, that's not what this article is about! Some people might enjoy reading them but this is the ''game'' dictionary and it's a lot more fun. Play on.





Steps

1. Have at least two players. It's not only a little lonely by yourself but the game won't work. There isn't really any upper limit and a larger group can result in more shouting and merriment.
2. Pick the dictionary master/mistress/fiend. The name doesn't really matter provided this person can read and has a good imagination.
3. Have the dictionary fiend quickly flip through the dictionary looking for a difficult word. The dictionary fiend must quickly make up two alternative definitions and provide a real one as well. We'll use the word "irrefragable" as an example. The dictionary fiend would ask the other players:
Does the word "irrefragable" mean:
Something that cannot be unravelled or loosened?
**An argument or fact that cannot be disputed? [this is the right response but you don't tell]
**A fragrance that has gone off in a bad way?
4. Allow the players to answer. They are allowed to ask questions and the dictionary fiend is allowed to embellish the answers. The first person to get it right gets a point.
5. Keep playing until a set number of points is won by a person (or a team if you prefer). Five is a good set number. The dictionary fiend is then the person who won (or a member of the team). Play for as long as the fun keeps going; it can become tiring after a while of guessing and it does tend to degenerate into very silly statements as people tire of it!

Tips

*The arguments can be great fun if you have good sports on the team.

*Be sure to have dictionary fiends who are good with making things up.

Materials

*A quality dictionary that has a lot of long, hard and long-forgotten English words in it. Most dictionaries should suffice.

Photo courtesy of Daquella Manera's Flickr photostream.

Rhubarb Pie

Rhubarb is delicious any way and especially in a pie. This recipe makes about 6 - 8 servings.

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 200g plain flour
• 50g brown sugar
• 100g butter, cubed
• 1 egg yolk
• A little water

Filling:

• 550g rhubarb stalks, cleaned and cut into 5cm pieces (discard the tips of the stalks)
• 200 ml water
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 100g sugar
• 1 apple, peeled and cut into small pieces
  

Steps

1. Mix the pastry ingredients together to form a soft dough.
2. Boil the water with the lemon juice and sugar.
3. Add the pieces of rhubarb to cook. Cook for around two minutes.
4. Remove from the heat. Add the apple pieces and stir in.
5. Drain the liquid and leave the fruit to cool.
6. Roll the pie base.
7. Add the cooled fruit and cover the pie with the top pastry piece and seal the edges.
8. Prick the pie top a few times for steam vent holes.
9. Place in the oven at 160ºC and cook for 20 minutes, or until golden.
   

Materials

• Large cooking pot
• Wooden spoon
• Pie dish
• Fork

Photo courtesy of Paul Goyette's Flickr Photostream.

Making Lawn Clipping Tea

Lawn clipping tea is a simple and fabulous plant tonic. It is easy to make and apply.


Steps

1. Place the bucket of cut grass into the netting bag.
2. Hang the bag in a bucket of water. Make sure that the bucket is sitting somewhere steady and cannot be knocked by animals or people.
   
3. Leave it there for one to two weeks. The nutrients will leach from the cut grass into the water.
4. Use. Pour small amounts over your garden and pot plants. It acts as a tonic and revitalizes plants, as well as strengthening them. It will help them to grow stronger and gain disease-resistant qualities.

Precautions

• This preparation does get a little smelly. Just block your nose and use it!
  

Materials

• One bucket of freshly cut grass
• Netting bag (the ones used for onions, oranges etc.), large
• Bucket or other large container

Photo courtesy of R.F.M. LL's Flickr Photostream.

Using Kids' Sports Time Productively

If you're waiting for your children during their sports time, it can sometimes feel like wasted time in between the cheering and encouragement, as you think about the 101 things needing to be done back home. There are a lot of things that you can do to make good use of the time.

Steps

1. Write thank you notes and letters. Use this time to do some snail mail catching up with family and friends. Take a clipboard to lean on.
   
2. Exercise. Walk around the sports field or back and forth in an area where you can still keep your children in sight. Walk fast, slow, fast for a varied and more interesting pace. Or, if you can slip away and use a gym in the building, do so.
   
3. Catch up with downloaded iPod shows that you have been meaning to catch up on.
4. Think about problems that need solving. Take a pad and pen and write down all the solutions that come to mind as you mull them over.
5. Phone a family member or friend you haven't had time to talk to for ages.
6. Do some reading. If you're studying, read study materials. Or read a novel, a paper, or a favourite magazine.
7. Use the time for planning events and future children's activities. This can be a great time to sit back and assess the future events coming up and adding them to your diary, writing lists of things you need to do or get, and to put down reminders of people you need to talk with.
8. Catch up with some unfinished hobby work if it's portable. Embroidery, cross-stitch and knitting are great portable projects that you can keep working on during this spare time.

Materials

• Paper and pen
• Reading material
• Hobby material
• iPod
• Mobile phone (cell phone)
• Diary

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Preventing Ponds Turning Green in Warmer Weather

Green ponds are commonplace during warmer months, as algae takes over a pond and thrives. The algae not only spoils the appearance of the pond (slimy and gunky) but also starves other plants and aquatic life out. Keeping a pond from changing to green can be solved without chemicals by relying on a plant solution.


Steps

1. Plant a water lily. The water lily's floating leaves are large and keep the water shaded. This discourages algal growth.
2. Look for other oxygenating plants for your pond. Ask your local nursery for ideas. When you use pond plants that create shade, absorb minerals and carbon dioxide, these plants make the environment unpleasant for algae.
3. Keep the pond clean. As well as removing pond weed regularly, it is also important to remove dead and decaying foliage and aquatic life.

Tips

• Don't leave fish food to build up; it provides too many algae-tasty nutrients.

Materials

• Water lily or similar suitable plant

Photo courtesy of Dawnzy 58's Flickr Photostream.

Controlling Vigorous Pond Weed

Pond weed that takes over a pond can sap the life force from it and prevent the fish from thriving and even suffocate them, as well as starving out other plants. It is a really good idea to keep it under control regularly during growing season, to ensure that the pond remains very healthy. This article provides some suggestions for getting started.



Steps

1. Put on gumboots and some good waterproof outdoor work gloves.
   
2. Drag out a third of the pond weed. You will need to do this every few weeks during growing season.
   
3. Check that you haven't caught any fish in the weed that is been removed. Use a garden knife to break weed that will not pull apart.
4. Leave the pond weed pulled out to one side of the pond on the ground. Let it sit overnight; this gives any small creatures such as water snails and any insects to go back into the pond.
5. Throw the weed into the compost bin the next day.
   
6. Keep an eye on the pond regularly to check for excessive growth.

Materials

• Gumboots
• Waterproof gardening gloves
• Gardening knife

Photo courtesy of Leezie 5's Flickr Photostream.

Spiced Cherries

These are a great garnish for dish presentation if you leave the stalks attached.





Ingredients

• 1 kg cherries
• 6 cups white vinegar
• 750 g sugar
• 12 cloves
• 1 tbsp peppercorns
• 2 cinnamon sticks

1. Clean the cherries. Discard any that are marked (eat them!).
2. Put the clean cherries into a large jar that has been warmed slightly.
3. Combine the vinegar, sugar, cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon sticks in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and allow to boil for 2 minutes.
4. Pour this hot vinegar mix over the cherries in the jar. Cover the fruit completely with the vinegar mix.
5. Cover the jar with a cloth and put somewhere out of the way for one week. During this time, the cherries are pickling.
6. Pour the vinegar off into a saucepan after one week. Bring it to boil and pour over the cherries again. Allow the contents to cool completely before sealing tightly. Store in a cool place or the refrigerator.

• Leave the pit in; provided you leave the stalk attached, it is obvious that the pit is still intact.

Photo courtesy of Bensonkua's Flickr Photostream. I am the original author of this article but it is placed elsewhere on the internet in tradition with my wish to spread the knowledge widely.

Repair Hair Damaged with Split Ends with Sunflower Oil

Sunflower oil is an excellent hair treatment. It can do wonders for healing split ends.




Ingredients

• 40ml/ 8 tbsp sunflower oil

Steps

1. Massage the sunflower oil into dry hair. Massage it right from the roots down to the tips of your hair.
2. Relax. Let the oil sit in your hair for 20 minutes. This is a good excuse to kick back and read a good novel somewhere comfortable. Just be sure to put a towel between your hair and any chair.
3. After 20 minutes have passed, massage through a quality, unscented shampoo. Again, massage right from the roots to the tips of your hair, aiming to cover every hair.
   
4. Hop into the shower and rinse the oil and shampoo out. Your hair will feel soft and lovely after this treatment.

Tips

• Repeat weekly until signs of improvement occur.

Photo courtesy of Chris de Curtis' Photostream.

Venetian Glass Beads - A Small Wonder

Venetian glass beads are wonderful - they have long been the height of elegance and beauty in glass beads. They are produced in Murano, Italy. Back in 1291, the ruling Doges were afraid of the potential for a fire in Venice, so they banned the fire kilns and furnaces used to make glass beads from Venice. The manufacturers moved to Murano but couldn't go anywhere else for centuries because the Doges wanted to keep their monopoly over the glassmaking. This strict monopoly lasted for centuries. However, in the late 1600s, rival glassworks were set up in other countries, in such centres as London, Amsterdam and Bohemia.

You are probably familiar with millefiori glass cane mosaic beads. Their name refers to it seeming as if each bead is decorated with a thousand small flowers. An old technique once used by Phonecians and Romans, the artisans in Murano redeveloped it for their glassworks and we still have it to this day!

Photo courtesy of Iris Dragon's Flickr photostream.

Using Natural Materials for Beading

A lot of people are enjoying bead craft in one form or another. Beads can be expensive to buy if we need a lot to sustain a hobby; or, they may be made of materials such as plastics which are not so great for the environment. The solution can be to make more use of natural materials for beading projects. Here are some suggestions.



Steps

1. Make your own clay beads. You can make beads really easily using clay. Shapes are really endless - circles, ovals, tubes, squares, diamonds and more. They can be used naturally once dried, or you can paint and/or glaze them.
2. Consider animal by-products. This won't be for everyone but it is a time-honoured tradition to use up all of an animal, including horns, hooves, hair, teeth and bone to make ornaments. Plus, you don't have to kill an animal to get some animal derived bead material. Consider horsehair rolled into a bead - if you own a horse, you'll easy find tail and mane hair stuck to fences, posts and stable areas etc. The seaside is crammed with shells, fish cartilages and bones and other washed up debris of animal origin. Antlers, horns and other items are often shed and found on the forest floor. All of these items can be turned into excellent beads.
3. Think plants. Seed pods can make wonderful beads, as well as other tree and plant seeds, nuts, gnarled wood knots and other hard plant pieces with interesting shapes. Pieces of fossilized plants can make excellent beads too; if you're lucky enough to find them and they aren't classified as protected.
4. Try minor gems. Those little treasure chests of tiny gems sold in museum and science discovery shops are not just for cluttering up the mantelpiece - these make great bead objects for beading.
5. Keep an eye out when walking in nature. You can be inspired by anything natural to make wonderful beadwork. Let your imagination help you choose.

Materials

• Natural beads
• Project patterns or plans
  

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.