Mood:  a-ok
Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

I really haven't been doing much that's blog worthy lately.  My only sewing projects for myself are a few pairs of "jorts" jeans+short=jorts. No, I haven't lost my sense of style, these are not for wearing around the city, these are for hiking and camping far away from the city.  Denim is more durable and is less likely to rip when caught on branches or sharp rocks.  The only problem is that jorts are neither challenging to sew nor interesting to discuss.

On the weekend i got to the annual Rock, Mineral and Gem show. I got some really nice banded agates and some small nautaloid fossil discs with holes drilled in them. I also got a couple freebies, an amethyst crystal point, a clear quartz point, a pair of moonstones, and a pair of uncut rough diamonds from the Herkimer mine is the US. There was a large polished, round herkimer diamond that was hollow and contained water.  Imagine that!  Water the way it was 500 million years ago!   I learned a bit more about drilling rocks, the tools to use and to not use.   Standard drill: bad.  Dremel mounted on drill press: good. Drilling dry: bad. Drilling using baby oil or bath oil: good. And it smells nice too.According to New Age Crystal guides Herkimer diamonds are supposed to enhance the dream state and to facilitate astral (out of body) travel. I don't know about that, but they will be nice wrapped in silver wire and enhanced with some swarovski beads.

We've had a very early spring this year, It is barely May and the tulips are almost over, the late season purples are now in bloom.  This of course means it's Morel time, so here's this years Morel Mushroom Newspaper article: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100503/NEWS/5030316/1001/NEWS/Wanted-%28badly-%29-More-morel-mavens-in-Iowa  this article tells of how a government agency went wayyyy overboard to protect people.  It's not that difficult to tell a false morel from a true morel, usually the smell is enough, but for those with olfactory challenges here's a simple rule: If it's the heat of summer it's a false morel.  The end.  The mushrooms grow in entirely different seasons. Spring is for morels, summer for false morels.  And for further identification, false morels look like brains, and when cooked they smell harsh and metallic.  It's the rocket fuel in them; cooking releases the rocket fuel in the steam. Raw False Morels have a slight metallic chemical smell, again it's the rocket fuel in them.

In other food news: why isn't broccoli canned? Some one has answered this: http://www.yumsugar.com/Why-Doesnt-Broccoli-Come-Can-8285229  It would emphasize the yucky metallic taste, turn out slimy like canned green beans, and it would enhance the gas factor.  I freeze broccoli: it takes about five minutes in the blancher and i can freeze enough to last all winter.  I do, however prefer fresh because freezing and then re-ccoking makes it soggy and you loose some vitamins.  Like Asparagus and Spinach it is best fresh. And just because you CAN can something doesn't mean you should: see canned chicken: http://www.geekologie.com/2009/04/good_eats_a_whole_chicken_in_a.php And of course the classic campfire favourite Cheeseburger in a can: http://www.gizmag.com/the-canned-cheeseburger--fast-food-in-the-wilderness/8713

All this food talk of morels and cheeseburgers and chicken has made me hungry! Time for lunch!

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Our recent blast of warm almost summer like weather is now officially over.  The last two weeks of winter were unseasonably warm and sunny, until the day spring officially arrived, when it started to snow. Isn't it ironic Alanis? Like sno-oooh-ooow on the first day of spring?  Like getting the meaning of a word wrong and using it as the title and theme of a song? Friday was spectacular, the high was 20C (normal is 6C) and the sun was brilliant all day.  Ben and I did plenty of walking around and I feel like some of my winter weight is going away.  I also planted a bunch of spring multiplier onions so in a few weeks we will be enjoying the first crop from the garden.  It's also seed starting time and I have a couple trays of peat pots ready to go.  I need a couple more trays and then I will have enough plants for my flower gardens.

I've been working with my beads and I remembered something important!  I have to make some of those hoodies with the mushrooms!  I have the tie dye fabric, I have the under fabric, all I need is the sweatshirt fleece.  it's being a surprisingly difficult fabric to find. They have the fleece at Wazoodle, but they are out of the dyed to match ribbing that I need.  I'll order the fleece and hope the ribbing arrives soon. 

I have the pattern mostly cut, all I need to cut is the hood.  can't have a hoodie without a hood.  I think that when we look back on the number one fashion fad item of the 00's the one item that has transcended age, culture, gender and income level will be the hooded shirt, now and forever known as The Hoodie. 

I also need to work on my denim and leather jacket.  it would have been perfect for a few of the days when it was so warm.  But since it wasn't done, I couldn't wear it.  I need to put down the beads and pick up the sewing machine.  Okay, not literally pick up the machine as it's quite heavy, but...you know what I mean! There are several things I need to complete, and one is nothing more complicated than sewing on buttons and then buttonholes.

I just had a chance to listen to the new MGMT album "congratulations"  it's good. Quite different than Oracular Spectacular, but still good.  It leaked a few days a go so the band streamed it on MySpace for everyone who doesn't know about torrents or binaries. Next on the list of new releases I want is "Arcade Fire" I figure this one will be the one that can't ever expect to live up to the advance hype.

And that's all that's happening in the old litterbox.  Not much, just a few things.  Maybe this week will be better. 

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Fark.com has a mushroom photoshop thread.  Lots of adorable, creepy, and trippy pictures of shrooms:  http://www.fark.com/cgi/comments.pl?IDLink=4804626  In my not-so-humble opinion...too many Mario Brothers shrooms.  I like the toad-in-the-toadstool the best. 

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Not a lot to say today.  It's been one of those weeks where I would like to declare it a write off and try again next week.  Not anything serious, just a combination of stupid little things that made me feel like crap all week.  The only good thing is that today I feel fine.  So the week has bee 80% crap rather than 100% crap.

I did remember how to properly insert clear elastic into the coverstitched neckline of a stretch top.  Yay!  Now i can wear it with the jeans and skirt that i made... the ones with the mushrooms on them.  it's made with a stretch lace that has a real 1974 colour scheme, brown rust, how about a swatch?

That's the lace at the top, at the bottom is some bamboo rayon knit, some ribbon festooned with coils and beads that make a pleasant jingle, and some sequined lace.

And that's to top I made.  The bamboo knit is under the lace right up to the sweetheart lines just above the boobs. The original had nothing in the back, just the lace and it was bit too much. The original also had elbow length sleeves that looked either a bit too long or a bit too short. I like the retro yet modern look of this piece.

Project Runway season one winner Jay McCarrol now has fabric available on his website: http://www.jaymccarroll.com/category-s/21.htm?ref=ts  His stuff is all quite retro-cool, whimsical, and unique.  Because this entry is titled "the FungusAmungus, I need to mention that his woodland friends collection with the mushrooms is available. 

A depressingly common story: Family in hospital due to mushroom poisoning.  without reading the article I will make a few un-psychic predictions: The shroom in question is an amanita.  They are from a country where foraging is common.  They mistook the amanita for an edible species common in their home area.  they weren't aware that there are toxic shroom the superficially resembles their prized delicacy.  To the article....

Yup, oh yeah, of course, and no surprise.  The first rule that all mushroom books drill into the heads of North American collectors is "Learn to recognize the tell-tale characteristics of the Amanita family before you eat a single mushroom"  Surprisingly, once you become informed and learn what makes an amanita an amanita, it becomes easy to recognize them, and easy to tell an amanita from an agaricus, a russala, or a hygrophorus.  It's like being able to tell the difference between spinach, lettuce and cabbage and know that these three aren't poison ivy.  All green, all plants, but all are unique.

I never ever risk eating anything I am not sure about or anything that someone's grandma in Europe or china or japan ate everyday and lived to 119 years old.  There are many toxic north american natives that look superficially like wild treats from elsewhere.  Since most people don't travel with a microscope or take spore prints, they fall victim to mushroom poisons that vary from stomach upsets to liver failure.

There is one big error in the article, They say they ate "death caps" and identify them as Amanita phalloides,  yet further down they describe the appearance of a Amanita Virosa/bisporga, the two commonly called "destroying angel."  which is it?  the white one or the green one?  Death Caps are quite green, while the angels are white and can appear green or brown depending on age, decay or lighting.

I know all about mushrooms.  MYcology is better than YOURcology!

One last thing, courtesy of The Fail Blog:

see more Epic Fails

These, people, are what we in the fashion world call "jorts" And that's all for today.  I must be feeling tons better, I have the urge to go do laundry! Must Fight Urge!

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Glow in the dark Mushrooms.  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33179052/ns/technology_and_science-science/  Another to add to the list of glowing shrooms including Jack o Lanterns and FoxFire from Honey Mushrooms. Glowing is quite odd behaviour from Mycenae's, but the Mycenae's are the most under-rated group of mushroom out there.  They may be tiny but they are infinitely fascinating.  Oh...and scroll down for the link to the "phallic mushroom" It's really cool reticulated stinkhorn something like this one that grew in our neighbour's yard and was once my top hot-linked image:

second look:

This picture was taken later in the day after it's slime was dispersed by millions of buzzing flies. 

And that's all for today!

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

It's been a while, hasn't it?  I took a bit of a break to work on other things. I finished the wide legged high waisted jeans from the August burda magazine.  They look nice.  I added lots of piping and leather trim. In mushroom shapes of course!

Here's a guy who made shelves from shelving mushrooms.  Here's the article: http://findermaker.blogspot.com/2009/09/mushroom-shelf-tutorial.html  I love that he has a skull on one shelf. He can decorate my house any day.  These are all very common and easy to find bracket and hoof conks.

The mushroom guy at the market had Chicken of the Woods.  Yummy!  Tastes like chicken! 

I've also gone back to the beads.  For a while i managed to resist them...I mayhaps should have resisted them last night when I came ~|~ this close to super-gluing an aqua aura crystal to my thumb. Note to me: Never ever use super glue when tired!

Rachel molted.  She's still got a bit of exo left near her spinnerets, but all the important organs are clear.  Her lungs are at the intersection of her head and her abdomen.  That part is clear and so are her pedipalps and her fangs, so she's good to go. I now know more about tarantula anatomy than I ever thought possible.

Otherwise, things aren't really interesting around here. Better luck tomorrow!

mush in tha room!
Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Here are a few praise worthy fungus links: A new book about magic mushroom the illustrations are what sets this one apart, titled Mushroom Magick  The artist has many amazing painting of mushrooms and various fungi.  His name is Arik Roper and his website is found here.   You can browse through many of the pages of this book at the publisher's website found behind these magick clickable letters.    Mushroom art has a long history.  I've done more than a few mushroom paintings.  Mine explore the idea of real mushrooms, unreal colours.

And that's all for today!  Later!

Mood:  cheeky
Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

Last night I saw a really cool documentary movie on Bravo.  The title was "Know Your Mushrooms"  It's made by Ron Mann, the same guy who brought us "Comic Book Confidential"The subject, needless to say was everything you ever wanted to know about mushrooms, from edible mushrooms to medicinal mushrooms to magic mushrooms to the science underlying the life cycle of fungi.  The movie centres around the Teluride Mushroom Festival and focuses on a pair of fungophiles. One is a fungus gypsy who follows the mushroom season from Alaska through the rockies down into south America and back up again.  The other fungophile is a scientist and researcher who explains some of the amazing things that mushrooms can do.

Did you know that Oyster mushrooms can clean up oil spills faster and more effectively that any other method?  As a plus, you can eat the mushrooms that fruit from the mycelial matter.  Did you know that the low cancer rates in Japan has nothing to do with soy, rice, or the vegetable centred diet and it has everything to do with the consuming of the Shiitake mushroom?  Did you know that the largest living organism on earth is the growth portion of a honey mushroom?  The mycelial portion that grows underground and up tree trunks covers five football Fields? The fruiting bodies the parts with the cap and stem, are a few inches tall, about four inches wide at most and are very edible. Did you know that there are thousand of fungus growing in the rainforest that have never been identified, placed in a family or even photographed?  Did you know that the Oyster Mushrooms of Northern Ontario are carnivores and live by consuming nematodes?  And finally, the False Morel, the Gyromitra, is one hydrogen bond away from a highly unstable and explosive rocket fuel?

No one is allowed to ever again say "It's only a mushroom"

There's a collector whop sells at the St Jacob's Farmer's Market. There's a unique connection between fungophiles, it's almost like a secret club, a society with arcane rules and rituals know only to other fungophiles. We know there's no such thing as toadstools, except for the toadskin milk Mushroom.  We talk about the unbridled joy that we feel when smashing Russulas against tree trunks, only the ones that aren't edible.  We all have a healthy respect for amanitas, and we all go into orgasm of gastric delight at the sight of our beloved Morels.  Morels are the one luxury food item that I'm willing to spend a fortune on, even when it isn't in season and all i can find are the dried ones an Vincenzo's.

The movie title graphics, animation and much of the art direction is done like a children's reference book from the mid to late sixties, the golden age of the Golden Book.  There's an adorable animated King Bolete with two big black shiny eyes.  He introduces each segment with a little quiz, and the answer is always some type of fungus. There were film clips from long ago, the oldest from a silent film, "earth to the moon" I think.  There was plenty of fungo-centric music, including a love song to Morels.  We were treated to plenty of frying pans containing thousands of mushrooms. YUMMY! and we got lots and lots of forest panoramas.  The final punchline to the movie was in the closing credits, as music by The Flaming Lips played in the background we were informed "No hippies were harmed in the making of this movie"  It's nice that some one out there is looking out for the health and welfare of hippies.

Here's a review of the film: http://www.thestar.com/Entertainment/article/579494
and here's something about the Flaming Lips' contribution to the movie: http://www.chartattack.com/news/65753/flaming-lips-know-their-mushrooms
And here's the Trailer for the film as found on YouTube:

And that's all for today.  First day of spring=start of mushroom season!

Mood:  don't ask
Topic: The Fungus AmungUs

It's been a while since we've featured a worth shroom in the litterbox, but today's fungus makes up for the dearth of mushrooms in the media and in the forests.  Ginormous 40 pound Mushroom found in Mexico!  This monster meal is 27 inches tall!  That's one big mushroom.

And for all youse english professor types out there...ginormous is now a real word!  It's in the dictionary and everything!  So there! Everybody just chillax for a while!

So here's an odd little flash game.  it's part game, part philosophy, and surprisingly entertaining.  You have to get the little creature to his ultimate life goal and try to avoid the things that make you not alive, and some actions are rewards with aphorisms and others with negative messages...it's all quite strange.  You have to pay attention to your moves, learn from your mistakes and there are these odd little home movies from a bygone era interspersed in the game itself.  There's a score, but it doesn't matter.  weird!

I'm working on Santa's suit.  Nothing is better for a hot summer day than remembering how cold december can be! 

And that's all for now.  I have my period and I'm totally crampy, but nobody cares about that! Yes I know I'm not blogging much these days...maybe in the fall when i have a bit more time!

Topic: The Fungus AmungUs
From Yemen comes this story to warm the cockles of the heart, especially if one is A/ a fan of fungus and B/ gluten intolerant.  New strain of killer wheat fungus found in Yemen. It's a red rust fungus, a acsomycete  or "flask fungus" that's quite common.  This fungus is serious problem in the world of wheat farming and this strain is particularly virulent. If it escapes the fields it's in now it could threaten the world's wheat crop. This is good news on so many fronts.  No more toxic wheat gluten in pet foods.  If wheat becomes expensive and rare, they won't put in in almost every food out there.  If it dies out completely, then I will be able to eat anything anywhere because nothing will have wheat in it!  How can this possible be bad?  (Did you know I had a gluten reaction at easter and i finally feel like my tummy has recovered?) Once again the litterbox puts the Fun back into FUNgus!