The Rag Blog

Get out the hankies, Mabel. I don’t know that we really want popcorn for this one … rdj

*MM = Monday Movie

Terry is one of our own, someone who worked on the Rag in its time. And now he gets to work for the Rag, again, by singing for us. Clever and talented, please give him a hand. rdj

******
I enjoy the writing a lot, average maybe one or two new tunes a year, but as for performing, I pretty much aspire to adequacy. Once in a while the tunes are political, but generally not. The two tunes you’re posting are in a kind of an island/low-latitude bag that visits me often, but it can vary — I wrote one recently that turned out to be a “traditional” pub-type drinking song. Go figure.

I got interested in writing songs when Bob Dylan came along and Shakespeared the medium. I was blown away (me and everybody else’s singer/songwriter brother). Lyrics that mattered — what a concept! As a bonus, he was making the world safe for, um, less-than-golden voices. As I got more into the medium and started coming up with tunes that actually worked, I really appreciated how they had a “real life” the moment you finished them — no messing around with publication and so forth, you just sing them and they’re everything they need to be, right then and there. Early on, of course, the main task was how not to sound like a bad Dylan imitation. I eventually found a voice that was more or less my own, but it was always a defining issue: doing Lyrics That Matter while trying to avoid sounding like Mr. D.

Over the years, I was alternately inpired by the vast new possibilities he’d shown, aggravated that I wasn’t him, and knock-down gobsmacked by his latest killer line. He still does it, dammit. We can talk about it now: Rodney Crowell’s song “Beautiful Despair” has that line in it “…hearing Dylan when you’re drunk at 3 a.m. / Knowing that the chances are / No matter what, you’ll never write like him / Oh brother.” I think the sentiment is made somehow complete by the tag “oh brother.”

The Folk Music Scare (as Tracy Nelson referred to it) was fairly short-lived, though. When it subsided, there was rock and roll, which had a lot of possibilities of its own. I was in and out of rock bands for years, really liked the way the rock combo worked, particularly the structural aspect of the bass and drums. It was okay now to have Lyrics That Aren’t Completely Idiotic, but the focus, ulitmately, was getting bodies to move on the dance floor. I always liked Mick Jagger’s comment about lyrics: “They don’t really have to mean anything — they just have to sound good.” That had its own peculiar sort of liberation to it. And there is nothing quite like that sensation when all four or five of you are hitting the groove and all that lovely loud music takes off and takes you with it.

My own process for coming up with new tunes isn’t real well-defined, even now — I can coax them to come visit, but it still seems to be pretty much on their terms. There’s the usual question Do you do the lyrics first, or the melody. For me, the answer is “Both.” Usually, it’ll start with some line that pops up; it’s catchy or evocative in some way, and the sound of the words will have its own suggestion of a rhythm. Fleshing out a rhythm with notes has always been pretty straightforward for me, and I just try to listen for what the rest of the melody is, and then put more lyrics to it. Even though I don’t read music, I know music theory pretty well, and that’s always a big help when it comes to extending or elaborating a musical idea.

Music has gotten a lot more diversified now, fragmented, even. Genres within genres. There’s a lot of crap, of course — you’ve probably caught yourself saying “These kids, the music they listen to, it’s just a bunch of noise.” And a particularly sweet irony I once heard from some forgotten stand-up comic, who said “Bob Dylan — he invented rap music, you know.” Well, if you think about it… When I did, I was dismayed.

But there’s also genuinely interesting stuff now and then. The most recent stuff I’ve listened to in the “genuinely interesting” column are Green Day and Norah Jones and Jack Johnson. And Texas music is strong and sassy as ever. My current fave there is Albert and Gage. To listen to Chris Gage play guitar and piano, I think, is to be in the presence of greatness. Things have opened up a lot with digital technology and online delivery, and I think those changes are great. The effect has been to shift the emphasis away from the record companies and let us hear a lot of stuff we just wouldn’t get to otherwise. Heck, nowadays anybody can make a CD at home — I’m here to tell ya!

Terry Dyke
*****
Here are two of his tunes:

“Because of the status of my own people, I am in no position to follow you. We have no foreign policy but that of the US I cannot imagine a situation where that would change.”

Nation states are for little people who don’t understand. The economic elites are Global Capitalists who care not a bit for the small minded patriotism with which they control the masses. “My own people,” how charming. Or “how quaint” as Mr. Gonzales would say.

“No foreign policy but that..” of Island North America.

Slavery and Native American genocide were, and still are, North American policy. The subjugation of Vietnam (El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, et cetera) and Apartheid were/are American foreign policy. The kidnapping of Aristide is American foreign policy. The murder of two million Iraqis is American foreign policy. The overthrow of Castro didn’t work out. Hugo Chavez is in the sights of American foreign policy. You probably don’t want to identify with those parts but you want to think there is a something called America which stands apart from the actual doings of American foreign policy. I agree there is but it is beyond nationalism. You have been getting your paycheck from The Man for too long. Let both sides of your brain talk to each other. What is good for Native Americans is good for everyone. Take a giant step outside your present mind. There is a North American bureaucracy that extends to wherever its troops can hold ground but other than that North America is a fiction. Whatever is good about “America” is the good inherent in humanity, that extends to everyone on the planet. Likewise, whatever is bad about “America” exists everywhere insofar as humans can fool themselves. There are people in what we call America but there are no American people.

I learned in Vietnam that American foreign policy is to murder, rape, burn and crush those who do not step in line with American/European Capital interests. Nothing has changed. I neither idealize nor demonize any group, or political fiction we call countries. I do know the economic/structural modes of self-appointed elites.

I do believe human nature is good. If it were not aimed at the good then there would be no need for propaganda. There would be no such thing as even the thought of morality. There would not be human consciousness. But people can compartmentalize their minds to such a degree that they are incapable of seeing that they are doing what they accuse others of doing. We humans are famous for this hypocritical activity. But, oddly, this still proves the inherent goodness of human nature. Few are those (individuals or whole nation-states) who can flatly state, “I saw what I wanted and killed the person(s) who wouldn’t give it up just as anyone/group would. If a stronger person/country kills me for what I have then that is natural. I make no appeal to God, or destiny (being the leading agent of historical betterment or whatever), or any inherent worth other than the ability to conquer.” Most people or nation-states claim those that were killed had it coming for some reason. God gave it to them so any resistance is anti-God. They rationalize, moralize, their greed. “We made a good offer,” “we were provoked,” it was somehow better for the victims that they were victimized/colonized. We brought them the True Religion and Big Macs, the ungrateful Islamo-Facists, Indian Savages, Little Yellow People in Pajamas, drunken pagan Irish. The Nazis probably believed their own bullshit just as the Zionists do now, and the NeoCons, and the waffling Republocrats. People just like you and me are being murdered for some other people’s profit but that MUST be obscured, human nature being as it is. The Israeli government does it to the Palestinians et cetera. The North American government does it to everyone. The British (Petroleum) government tags along in Iraq and can only barely continue to bash Ireland. (I was there also. The conflict in Ireland is not about religion. It is about British imperialism. I was unpleasantly surprised by Steve’s glib and callous remark about the political struggles in Ireland. Maybe Bud can make some “drunken Catholic Irishmen” commercials instead of “drunken Indian” commercials?)

I was in Baghdad when Clinton missiled it. I saw the pregnant women hit by shrapnel, the dead of all ages. I wish there was a hell so Bill could burn in it forever. Hillary as well, and many more. Clinton missiled the Al Shifa pharmaceutical factory in Sudan that packaged antibiotics for all of Africa at 25% of the American/European price. May the heat be turned up. Dead Iraqis can’t tell the difference between Clinton and Bush, 1 or 11.

Alan Pogue

Pogue is the Gaelic word for kiss. “Pogue ma hon” is Gaelic for “kiss my ass.”

We found this tucked in a box of junk up in the attic. Shouldn’t have been there, so now it’s here. The Rag

And now for something entirely different. This is the sort of thing Charlie would eat, I s’pose. We’ll leave it at that … rdj

Ragodin au Choux Rouge
(Nutria with caramelized red cabbage and honey mustard sauce)

2 hind saddle of nutria (available at Calvin’s Bocage Supermarket)
1/3 cup chopped celery
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup chopped carrots
Bouquet garni:
– 1 branch french thyme,
– 1/2 bunch of parsley,
2 fresh bay leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil,
2 teaspoons flour
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard and 1/2 cup honey
1 cup red wine
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed fresh rosemary
2 cups hot water
Season to taste

Caramelized choux rouge: 1 thinly sliced red cabbage, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vegetable oil, season to taste.

Saute red cabbage with oil, sugar and seasoning until sugar is caramelized (4 to 5 minutes).

Place oil, chopped vegetables and bouquet garni in a large saute pan. Rub each hind saddle with mustard, honey and rosemary. Place hind saddle into large saute pan with the vegetable and saute on medium high heat, until golden brown, sprinkle flour and stir well until flour disappears, deglaze with red wine, stir well then add hot water, simmer on low heat for 1 – 2 hours. Remove hind saddle, strain juice into a sauce pot, bring to a low boil, skim the fat off of surface, add cream, reduce for 5 minutes and correct seasoning. Remove meat from bones and plate, top with sauce, garnish with caramelized red cabbage.

Recipe by:
Chef Philippe Parola
The Louisiana Culinary & Hotellerie Institute International

Submitted by Charlie Loving

Appendix: Thought it best to wait until after the recipe to show you what the little critters look like. Appealing in one of those, “Only a mother …” ways.

Although we’re planning another weekly feature called “Monday Movies,” I couldn’t resist posting this video tonight. Make the popcorn, Zeke. I like the concept of these videos. Richard Jehn

* TT = (car)Toon Tuesday

This is a suggestion from one of our peace-loving members. Most of us want peace and most of us don’t think what these women and men are doing is indecent. Speaking for myself, I do strongly feel that what our current federal administration is doing in Iraq is indecent. These folks have a really eye-catching way of demonstrating their opinions. Richard Jehn

I consider this a pretty special treat for Singin’ on Sunday. I hope we can do this, again, many times. The Rag reported and promoted the Austin music scene extensively in its heyday between 1966 and ’77. Why should we stop now? And because today we’re spread across the world …. Well, you get the picture.

This is what started all of it, at least for this week’s posting. Actually, I suppose it all started 40 years ago when I began to be attuned to the new music of the era. When I became involved in the Rag, I’d already met some funny fellas who played in a band called the Zig Zag String Quartet. They were fine musicians then, and they’re all much better now. The two guys I got to know the best are Vic Egly and Tony Airoldi, still in Austin and still active in music.

I moved on from Austin in 1970, but I’ve maintained a certain connection that must be nearly unavoidable. Texas roots seem to be strong, no matter where one goes. And being born and raised in Austin has kept something dear in my heart for all these years. Well, after reading Fred‘s column, I got to thinking about music a little more than usual. And I’d just come up with the notion of posting a tune every Sunday, calling it ‘Singin’ on Sunday.’ And then there was Fred’s column, and then Janet Gilles suggested I track down Lissa Hattersley, and I also remembered that I’d met Lissa once in 1977 (I think that was the year) when she was playing a gig with Tony Airoldi, and ….

I love the synchronous nature of life !!

Richard Jehn

P.S. Before you read Cleve’s words, you should read Fred’s, despite the latter’s eccentricity. There’s a peculiar natural flow.

*****
The riddle should be: what has blown up good, yet still lives on to tell the tale? The answer would be Greezy Wheels, long thought dead, or at least pretty much blown apart, yet still kicking around thirty-five years after the first Big Greezy Bang, dancing on the graves of all who believed they would outlive Greezy.

What once was a hippy band blessed with a little bit o’country is now….a hippy band blessed with a little bit of Americana. Once considered by many Armadilo-ites as the Grateful Dead of Texas, these Wheels are now just grateful to see themselves in the mirror. Or maybe not. They are grateful to be still making music.

Greezy Wheels has always been a family band, one that didn’t form so much as it coagulated, and it has now done so twice. The Wheels first coagulated around a Hattersley (Cleve), a Pankratz (Pat) and a Pugh (Michael) in 1971. It grew to include, first, Sweet Mary (another Hattersley) and Tony Laier, then Lissa Hattersley, Tony Airoldi, and Madrile Wilson. It was kinda like one big happy freakin’ family.

It stayed that way until Chris Layton, Chip Dill and Vic Egly replaced Pat, Michael, Madrile and the two Tonys in 1976. Though more a band than a family, the Wheels continued to role from here to the east coast for a couple more years, and it could have stayed together for a good while, if Stevie Ray hadn’t called out to Chris to come join him. I told Chris he was making a big fucking mistake. We still laugh about that. The band fell into ‘disuse’ in 1978.

Flash forward twenty-two years, to 2000, when Sweet Mary was deathly ill with breast cancer and our dear friend John ‘Mambo’ Treanor was dying of an even worse cancer. We did what any right thinking, aging musician might do – we (Mary, Liss and myself) reformed the band around Mambo. Once again a coagulation process just took over. David Roach, once of the legendary Austin reggae band, ‘Lotions,’ fell in with the band immediately on keys, along with Mike Pankratz, Pat’s brother, on percussion. John Jordan, of the killer diller Chris Duarte Group, also fell in line on bass, almost without question, and Penny Jo Pullus a Syracuse, NY ex-patriot and touring pro, proclaimed herself our Greezette.

Mambo passed away soon after starting what became ‘Millennium Greezy,’ the first Greezy album in 25 years, and Lisa Pankratz, Mike’s daughter and Pat’s niece, took the Mambo chair. Randy Kirchhof dialed in shortly afterwards, as well. All of it was a coagulation – a natural coming together of a bunch of great hippy cells. Out of this coagulative process, two more records have sprung forth, 2004’s ‘HipPop’ and the upcoming new release ‘String Theory’ (due in late 2006).

Though John Jordan has moved into politics with the Kinky Friedman campaign, the family core remains, with Lisa’s husband, Brad Fordham, now doing most of the bass work. The live shows still kick ass, Mary’s ‘Orange Blossom Special’ still rules all of the known world, and Greezy Wheels simply refuses to grow any older. They do so, because they now believe they will never die, and they are plenty old enough now.

At least one reviewer still agrees with his earlier assessment of the band. John Swenson, who compiled the first ‘Rolling Stone Record Guide,’ declared the band “ahead of it’s time” in 1978. He still believes they are ahead of their time.

All the more reason to live on.

Cleve Hattersley, Fearless Greezy Leader
*****

Cleve wrote it, Lissa ‘interpreted’ it, and the band played it. We just love the sound of it.

Here’s their Web site – Greezy Wheels – where you can buy their CD’s, read some Austin history, see photos of these fine folks, and connect to more of their music. Go visit them, and buy their tunes. They’re living legends of central Texas music.

Note: if you only have 56K dialup, you’re best off downloading the tune completely before playing it. Right click and select “Save link target as …” (Netscape) or “Save target as …” (Internet Explorer). High-speed connections can click the link which will open your default mp3 player.

This morning, I was reading Raed in the Middle. He’d been in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, but it was his trip across the country after arriving in the US that aroused my anger. This is exactly where we’ve been going for 5 years, and I believe it won’t be stopping anytime soon. I am immensely grateful that my daughter and three grandchildren live in Canada.

*****
Back from the Mideast

[snip]

One of the two men who approached me first, Inspector Harris, asked for my id card and boarding pass. I gave him my boarding pass and driver’s license. He said “people are feeling offended because of your t-shirt”. I looked at my t-shirt: I was wearing my shirt which states in both Arabic and English “we will not be silent.” You can take a look at it in this picture taken during our Jordan meetings with Iraqi MPs. I said “I am very sorry if I offended anyone, I didnt know that this t-shirt will be offensive”. He asked me if I had any other T-shirts to put on, and I told him that I had checked in all of my bags and I asked him “why do you want me to take off my t-shirt? Isn’t it my constitutional right to express myself in this way?” The second man in a greenish suit interfered and said “people here in the US don’t understand these things about constitutional rights”. So I answered him “I live in the US, and I understand it is my right to wear this t-shirt”.

Then I once again asked the three of them : “How come you are asking me to change my t-shirt? Isn’t this my constitutional right to wear it? I am ready to change it if you tell me why I should. Do you have an order against Arabic t-shirts? Is there such a law against Arabic script?” so inspector Harris answered “you can’t wear a t-shirt with Arabic script and come to an airport. It is like wearing a t-shirt that reads “I am a robber” and going to a bank”. I said “but the message on my t-shirt is not offensive, it just says “we will not be silent”. I got this t-shirt from Washington DC. There are more than a 1000 t-shirts printed with the same slogan, you can google them or email them at wewillnotbesilent@gmail.com . It is printed in many other languages: Arabic, Farsi, Spanish, English, etc.” Inspector Harris said: “We cant make sure that your t-shirt means we will not be silent, we don’t have a translator. Maybe it means something else”. I said: “But as you can see, the statement is in both Arabic and English”. He said “maybe it is not the same message”. So based on the fact that Jet Blue doesn’t have a translator, anything in Arabic is suspicious because maybe it’ll mean something bad!

[snip]

Read the Full Post
*****

Insofar as we allow this to happen, we fail as Americans !!!! Freedom indeed.

Richard Jehn

This could also be titled The Middle East, Part VIII. rdj This post was updated on 27 August 2006 at 5:35 pm PDT.

The US has consistently blocked resolution of all issues with Iran by refusing to agree to, or even discuss a non-aggression treaty and, in fact, refusing to even talk to them. (See below.) Of course, this means a pretext for further US aggression is being concocted. And that means the people driving this bus are lunatics.

David Hamilton
……………..
Published on Wednesday, August 23, 2006 by the Inter Press Service

Bush Ensured Iran Offer Would Be Rejected
by Gareth Porter

Even before Iran gave its formal counter-offer to ambassadors of the P5+1 countries the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China) Tuesday, the George W. Bush administration had already begun the process of organising sanctions against Iran.

Washington had already held a conference call on sanctions Sunday with French, German and British officials, the Washington Post reported.

Thus ends what appeared on the surface to be a genuine multilateral initiative for negotiations with Iran on the terms under which it would give up its nuclear programme. But the history of that P5+1 proposal shows that the Bush administration was determined from the beginning that it would fail, so that could bring to a halt a multilateral diplomacy on Iran’s nuclear programme that the hard-liners in the administration had always found a hindrance to their policy.

Britain, France and Germany, which had begun negotiations with Tehran on the nuclear issue in October 2003, had concluded very early on that Iran’s security concerns would have to be central to any agreement. It is has been generally forgotten that the Nov. 14, 2004 Paris Agreement between the EU and Iran included an assurance by the three European states that the “long-term agreement” they pledged to reach would “provide…firm commitments on security issues.”

Full Article
……………..

There is a major push going on in neocon circles (op-eds and editorials by the usual suspects in the usual places) to engineer an attack on Iran by Bush before Bush leaves office.

The neocons seem pessimistic about having much power after the next election. The leading Repug, McCain, claims in so many words to be a neocon, but he has not toed their line like Bush has. That idiot from Virgina, Captain “Macaca,” would be a handy sockpuppet but surely he will not get elected. Mitt Romney I take to be a realist rather than a neocon. Who else is there? Frist? Not sure about him.

Anyway, the current neocon line is that an attack on Iran within the next two years is a vital US interest.

This in spite of the generals saying (1) we don’t have the wherewithal to attack Iran on the ground thanks to the Iraq circus and (2) it is impossible to take out Iran’s nuclear capability from the air because it’s spread out and we don’t know exactly where.

This is very like the run-up to Iraq in that the civilian leadership and the military disagree and it is the military saying “don’t.” That tinkling sound is stereotypes shattering, and the bass line is Colin Powell chanting “I told you so…I told you so….”

Steve Russell

Negotiations, US style.

The principal US negotiating strategy when dealing with potential adversaries is one designed to keep the US out of such negotiations. You might call it a non-negotiation strategy. The simplest approach is just to refuse to talk to them. The US government presently refuses to talk to Iran, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, Hamas or Hezbollah based on an assumption so entrenched that it rarely requires repeating; that they are all such a bunch of dirty, rotten scoundrels, it would sully the US’s honorable reputation to sit in the same room with any of them. Heresy is to entertain the idea that any of them have legitimate needs or that they are motivated by policy interests instead of by their innate venality.

Otherwise, the US’s preferred non-negotiating strategy is to dictate that the opposing party acquiesce to the principal US demand as a precondition to negotiations. Hence, today we have the US demanding that Iran give up its uranium enrichment program (which is legal under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty) in order to get the US to even talk to them directly about anything else – like a non-aggression pact. Likewise, Israel demands that the Palestinian Authority and Hamas guarantee Israel’s sovereignty (over what?) before negotiations concerning Palestinian borders can begin. Give us the main thing we want and sometime later we’ll talk about what you want – maybe – but no guarantees. Those who employ this approach are actually intent on avoiding negotiations altogether because they are getting what they want in the status quo.

This strategy is employed to subvert the possibility of negotiations where the US would have to engage in a process in which the adversary would have equal standing. The US prefers to settle such disputes by resort to arms where it has a significant advantage. When you control a military budget equal to the rest of the world’s combined and your campaign contributors own the war industry, combat is your preferred modus operandi. But, first, you have to go through the charade of appearing to utilize diplomacy. Here is where it is crucial to appear to want to negotiate while skillfully avoiding actually doing it.

The Bush regime fabricated the nuclear issue with Iran, but has consistently refused to negotiate about it before Iran capitulates. This supports the conclusion that the Bush regime remains intent on creating a justification for attacking Iran – and might as well throw in Syria while they’re in the neighborhood. That is, the Bushites seem intent on spreading the current four front war (Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine) into a real world war stretching from Afghanistan to the Mediterranean, fighting Shiites and Sunnis, Arabs and Persians, and Muslims in general, in that “belt of insecurity” where most of the world’s oil just happens to be located. Iran could be a great choice for a foil if they would only agree to fight with their conventional army, where US advantages could be fully utilized, rather than asymmetrically. But they know better.

That the Bushites would, at this stage of their demise, boldly pursue this path simply takes my breath away with its audacity or, more likely, its obliviousness to the odds for success and the potential consequences. The driver of this bus is a lunatic on crack and steroids, reading the map upside down and speeding toward the mountains. The damage likely to result from Bushites pursuing this course in the next two years could be enormous. The scenes of southern Lebanon, Gaza, Baghdad and 9/11 may just be appetizers.

David Hamilton

Steve,
It would get really really interesting if when the chips were down, the military refused to do what they were told, not an uncommon happening in other parts of the world.

Nick Hopkins

Nick, I think that’s a horrible idea. That the unelected military should refuse the orders of the elected civilian government is, thank goodness, unlikely.

If the American people won’t step up and be responsible in their voting, a military coup won’t save them.

There is, by the way, an article in this month’s Foreign Policy about how the neocon Paul Bremer, civilian leadership on the spot, disregarded all military advice in screwing up the Iraq occupation.

Even though we are suffering through a time when our military leadership has more sense than our civilian leadership, that is no argument for the general superiority of military rule.

It would, however, be a good idea to listen to military men when they express opinions on what the military can and cannot do.

Steve Russell

Steve, don’t get me wrong, I think it is a horrible idea as well. But this kind of thing happens all the time in Latin America and the Third World, and the US is showing increasing tendencies in that direction. When the elected government violates the Constitution and abuses the people, Latin American militaries feel it is their duty as citizens and patriots to intervene.

Nick Hopkins

Until recently (within the past 5 years or so) no one in the U.S. had heard of stevia. It was prohibited. No plants, no seeds could be imported. Then the soft-drink lobby figured out it was a Dirt Cheap way to sweeten stuff and Presto! it’s OK at last. I like the plant and it likes me. I am lucky!

For those of you fortunate to be growing stevia, here is a recipe for stevia water. Stevia, aka Paraguayan Sweet Leaf, is 300% sweeter than sugar, has no calories, is safe for use by diabetics, can be used fresh or dried, and can be easy to grow. Seeds are available on the internet (tell your search engine “stevia seed”) and plants can be found at many local nurseries and at Wheatsville Coop’s Herb Fest in March. Stevia reproduces by seed and root. One plant will multiply nicely in 3 years to a forest! As with any herb, harvest before 10 AM, do not harvest when flowering, dry in a paper bag hung in a dry, airy place. Stevia water may be used to sweeten coffee, tea, lemonade, etc. I find that 3 iced-teaspoonfuls of stevia water in my mug of morning coffee is just fine for me, but use it to taste. Stevia water may be frozen in ice cube trays, kept in the freezer, and dropped into punchbowls, big glasses of tea, etc. Stevia water made with the fresh herb will be a pale yellow color; made with dried herb, it will be more the color of flat cola. The taste stays the same.

To grow stevia, give it partial shade, good soil, and plenty of water. Too much sun and it will droop and need watering twice a day! The seed packets say it needs mulching in the winter; I never have. Stevia is a perennial. It dies down in the fall (October or November) and sends up new shoots in February/March. It does not take kindly to transplanting when mature, so try to start it where it will live. Smaller plants transplant well. The trick is to get as much of the (extensive) root system as possible.

Lore says that stevia, because of its intense sweetness, repels grasshoppers. Since I have planted stevia in my garden I have seen no grasshoppers and am, finally, able to grow lemon verbena. I have also noticed fewer tomato hornworms.

It is difficult to use stevia water in cookie recipes instead of sugar because it’s a liquid. There are recipes on the internet (tell your search engine “stevia recipes”), however, that may be useful.

Enjoy!

Kate

Pack fresh or dried stevia into a 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup*. Bring water to a rolling boil in a teakettle or pot and pour the boiling water over the stevia to where it is level with the spout of the measuring cup. Cover with a plate and let sit until cool to the touch (at least 3 hours). Pour liquid into a bottle (I use old 20-oz soda pop bottles). Be sure to strain out all the liquid. Throw the stevia away. Keep the liquid in the refrigerator and use as needed. This much stevia makes about 25 oz. of liquid and lasts my household about 2 – 3 weeks.

*Do not use metal or plastic; metal may have a strange reaction with the stevia and plastic may not stand up to the boiling water. Non-Pyrex glass may break from the boiling water.