Imma Going Back.

Monday 2/04/08

It’s 6:35am and I have just finished a delightful breakfast of poached eggs and toast.
These were not your ordinary poached eggs. They were served with a light salmon glaze. A taste combination that at first caught me off guard but two bites into it and I was hooked.

As I sit here enjoying my coffee the soft creaking sounds of a water wheel can be heard from outside. The Mill itself located on the Ripper River once belonged to the Harper Family. The river is only one on many rivers that join the Rivers of America before flowing into Passamaquoddy bay and the Atlantic ocean.

Currently the Mill it is owned by Imma Itchy a retired school teacher who bought the property and has renovated it into a Bed and Breakfast.

Last night being Sunday, I partook in what has become a weekend tradition. Every week Imma opens up her kitchen and provides meals to anyone willing to sing sea shanties for their supper. This was a lot of fun and provided hours of entertainment. I asked Imma why she provided Sunday supper for those willing to stop by and sing.
“I like a house full of people and I want to help the townsfolk feel a sense of community.”

How can argue with motives like that?

I sang ‘Blow the wind Southerly.’

Blow the wind Southerly,
Southerly, Southerly,
Blow the wind
South o'er the bonnie blue sea.
Blow the wind Southerly,
Southerly, Southerly
Blow bonnie breeze,

My true lover to me.
They told me last night
There were ships in the offing
And I hurried down
To the deep rolling sea.
But my eye could not see it
Wherever might be it,
The bark that is bearing
My lover to me.

My reward was the finest bowl of corn and clam chowder I have ever tasted.


Imma and her food hold a special place in my heart. I look forward to taking another trip over to Passamaquoddy.

On a scale of 1-5 Kernels I give the Itchy Bed & Breakfast To learn more about the friendly community of Passamaquoddy be sure to visit http://passamaquoddy.blog.com/

Have a pleasant day, Fred

Isn't that Corntastic.

I found this interesting article over at www.ilcorn.org/Corn_Products/corn_products.html

New tire made from corn may mean ‘good year’ for growers

For as long as farmers have grown corn, they’ve had to plant, harvest, store and deliver it. Now, thanks to a breakthrough which allows for the production of a new starch-based material called bioTRED, they may eventually be driving on it.
Goodyear Tire Co. recently announced the introduction of the world’s first tire, with a compound derived from corn, at a major auto show in Europe.
The new Goodyear GT3, which ranges in 17 sizes from compact to medium-sized vehicles, is the first tire on the market using bioTRED, which uses common corn as its “feedstock.” It is being introduced in Europe first, where Ford will use it as original equipment on a new version of its Fiesta.
Volkswagon has also applied for use of the revolutionary new tire, according to Akron, Ohio-based Goodyear spokesman Dave Russ.
“It’s too early to tell (how many vehicle manufacturers may be using the new tire in the future),” Russ said. “We’re doing tests in Europe first just to kind of get our feet wet. A patented innovation developed at the company’s Luxembourg technical center, BioTRED partially replaces more conventional carbon black and silica. The starch used in its production also comes from a process similar to the one used by food industries, therefore reducing the cost to produce the unique new corn-based tire.
“This presents important environmental advantages, including remarkably lower rolling resistance, and, as a result, less fuel consumption, noise reduction, lower carbon dioxide emissions and less energy consumption in the production processes,” said Filomeno Corvasce, the Goodyear engineer credited with the development of bioTRED.
As for production, the starch derived from corn is then treated to obtain micro-droplets of starch. In the next step, the micro-droplets are treated, transforming them into a biopolymeric filler.
The end product has physical properties that differ substantially for those of traditional fillers. The lower specific gravity of the new material also reduces tire weight and rolling inertia, thus further improving fuel efficiency.
“We’re delighted. It’s a use of a renewable resource and we’re getting just as good or better performance characteristics as traditional compounds,” Russ said.
Russ noted it’s still too early in the marketing process of bioTRED to estimate the possible impact to corn usage and subsequent prices. He did point out that less than one pound of the substance is used in each tire, which weighs roughly 20 pounds apiece.
But it does represent another use of corn, which could eventually help pull prices back to decent levels, according to Mark Lambert, Illinois Corn Growers Association communications director.
“This is a major deal,” Lambert said. “We’ve known we could do this for a long time. It was just a matter of getting the commitment.”
Corn is currently utilized to make everything form explosives and fuel to biodegradable plastics. Lambert said it can also be found in about 3,5000 products found in grocery stores.
“(Corn starch) is really a miraculous substance,” Lambert said. “With oil prices where they’re at, I think we’ll start to see more of this.”
Tire sizes for the first line of bioTREDs range frome 155/7OR13 to 195/65R15.

Whoops, how'd I get here?

I knew I shouldn't have taken that left turn in the Big Thunder Mountain queue line.

That Salesman Sure Saw Us Coming.

Garth and Hub had never met a salesman they liked. In fact, one of their favorite things to do was to sit on the front porch with their shotguns and tea, just waiting for one to come calling.
Word had got around that these two gentlemen were rich. And salesmen showed up nearly everyday because of that. They would not sooner get out of the car before the shots rang out. It was sort of a sport chasing these vultures off their land.
One day young Walter (their nephew) came onto their lives. His mother dumped him off on the two old men while she “went out to start a new life for her and Walter” She too had heard about the money and told Walter to keep a look out. Over the summer Walter and his Uncles managed to grow very fond of each other. Garth and Hub shared stories of their days over in Asia and of the Princess Hub had fallen in love with. Her name was Jasmine.
Walter discovered that his Uncles were indeed very wealthy. He asked them “what good is all that money if you never spend it?” Of course a salesman pulled up about that time. Walter persuaded Garth and Hub to give him a chance. It turned out he was selling a skeet launcher. It was just the perfect thing for guys who enjoyed shooting their guns. This led to many other purchases. One day a salesman came by offering seeds for growing a vegetable garden. Garth like the idea and told Walter and Hub so. Some time later they working the land and looking over the garden, which was about knee high by now.
“What’s this here?” asked Hub
“That’s corn” Replied Garth
“And what’s this over here?”
“Radishes” he replied after walking to the end of the row and looking at a package tag he had staked there.
“And over here?”
“Cabbage”
“Radishes and cabbage look an awful lot like corn?”
Looking over the garden the men knew they had been had.
“That salesman sure saw us coming” said Hub.

The guys end up with a lot of corn and come up with some interesting ways to dispose of it. Including using the skeet launcher. This movie has a lot of heart and the corn is really only a small part of it.

"Secondhand Lions" Robert Duval, Michael Caine, and Haley Jole Osment star in this delightful family friendly film. I highly recommend it.

This is a 5 kernel movie.