TIGER JAW SUCCULENT CACTUS

 I am getting better at taking care of cactus plants.  This is Tiger Jaw Cactus.  It tried to die while it was growing beautifully two summers ago.  I thought in summer, it's okay to water it, especially the sun heats the patio door close to 105'F at least during summer.  But it showed the sign of rot.  I quickly pinched off the top groups of new petals and replanted it.  Fortunately that saved the plant.  Now I have three pots of them growing happily.  To my surprise, they even flowered.  I think it is very rewarding when the cactus flowers.  You never know if they will flower or when.

They bloom open in the morning and closes as the sun goes down.

PRE-COOKED DUNGENESS CRAB ADVENTURE

 Back in January, I bought pre-cooked crab from COSTCO.  This is my first time ever to buy non-live crabs.  They can be disappointingly smelly and costly.  But COSTCO is one place you can return if the product is bad.  So, I tried.  And I was very careful in selecting a clean crab with large pinchers.  I was lucky.  The crab was fresh and tasted very good - not as good as the live ones, but it was very fat and meaty. 

 

Scrub clean and wash purchased crabs under fresh water.  Sprinkle salt to help with cleaning and getting rid of  'anything'.  Pull the top shell apart from the body.

 

Extra crab meats are picked and used for fried rice noodle or egg rolls.

SPECIAL WINE WAND - "NO MORE WINE HEADACHES" WINE PURIFIER - REALLY?

 During Christmas holiday, I came across this "TheWand" Wine Purifier Ad.  I thought I would like to try it because I can never get past the first sip of the wine tasting without tasting the Sulfur in it.  Most of the people won't taste it, but it bothers me.  I am not a wine drinker but I decided to try it.  I find it quite ingenious and effective.  I even bought a wine bottle style purifier as a Christmas gift.   It says, it removes Histamines and Sulfites.  Sure enough, I had no itch or red dots on my body or headache afterwards.  That doesn't meant that I start drinking every day or week, but it's nice to use it during the special occasion when wine is included in the celebration.

Stirring the wine also helps airing, I think.