Kwality Ice Cream, Medford, NJ

   
6/14/15 UPDATE - I have not gone to the door and knocked, but it appears that Kwality Ice Cream has closed.  The parking lot is always empty, and the phone number has been assigned to someone else.  The Facebook page has been taken down.


     I love unexpected surprises.  I'm not talking about surprise parties or let's-go-out-to dinner-you-shouldn't-cook-tonight surprises.  I mean delights you wouldn't have expected to discover in a million years - right there under your nose.  I was on the way home from ordering a new screen at Dubell Lumber when I noticed the ice cream shop on Rt. 541 had changed hands.  It was 4:00 p.m., and I had had a busy day.  One scoop wouldn't ruin my appetite for supper (and hopefully wouldn't jack up my cholesterol).  I pulled in to Kwality Ice Cream.  Suddenly it was goodbye chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry and hello 'Indian Kick."
     Yes, Indian Kick is an ice cream flavor.  Kwality Ice Cream makes ethnic ice cream catering to the Asian Indian population.  Besides cones and cups, they sell ice cream cakes and sugar free ice cream.  There are also specialty products -

     Kulfi - Indian ice cream that is denser and creamier than Western ice cream.
     Cassata - Layers of different flavors of ice cream formed in a brick shape that might also include some liqueur soaked sponge cake.  The Italians also serve this treat.
     Falooda - A concoction containing ice cream, rose syrup, basil seeds, jelly pieces, and tapioca pearls.

Some of the flavors were -

     Mango
     Pistachio
     Ferrero Rocher
     Blueberry Cheesecake
     Apple Custard
     English Toffee

And Indian Kick.  It tastes like Chai Tea - only better.
     The owner was a friendly guy who couldn't offer enough samples of the exotic flavors.  Check out their main website:

http://www.kwalityfoods.com/
   
     Also, check out the Medford store's Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kwality-Ice-Cream/133845300151003

     If you are in the Medford area, stop in and taste how they do ice cream on the sub-continent.

Dead Ant, Dead Ant, Dead-Ant-Dead-Ant-Dead-Ant

     Sing this entry's title to the tune of the "Pink Panther" theme.  Or you can sing it to this guy's guitar solo:

 

     I wrote about ants in two window sills on Tuesday, July 23rd.  We baited, and they disappeared.  We continued to bait, and started to see piles of what looked like dismembered ant corpses in one sill.  We read that ants throw the deceased out of their nests.  The nest had to be around the sill, but where?
     We got the answer on Saturday.  Mike was washing the siding, so we took out the screens.  I started washing the screen from the graveyard sill, and ants began pouring out of a slot in the screen's metal frame.  I ran for the spray while Mike tap danced on the scurrying ants.  Along with the spray, I brought a screw driver.  I pried the slot apart and saw lots of ants heading for the exit and eggs coming along with them.  We filled the hole with insecticide (goodbye, Queenie), then folded the screen in quarters when there were no more signs of life.  We deposited the screen in a contractor's garbage bag that was well sprayed on the inside and around the closure.  Some might say that was overkill, but we like to err on the side of caution.  The bag is in our trash can which has been rolled away from the house (more caution).
   

  

       Needless to say, we checked out the rest of the screens - no ants, though.  I have a few specimens, and I'm calling the agriculture extension on Monday.  I'd like to identify what species of pests we have.  I also have to go shopping for a new screen.

Mind in the Gutter

     Actually, my mind is on the gutter, the rain gutters.  And the down spouts.  We replaced around half of the gutters on the back of the house.  The old ones had so many bends and connections, it looked like a game of Chutes and Ladders® up there.  In spite of almost a dozen cleanings per year, certain areas clogged and overflowed.  Mike and I are not convinced that gutter guards provide the answer.  Consumer Reports seems to back up our thinking.  http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2010/september/home-garden/gutter-guard/overview/index.htm  We noticed the areas that did not clog had over sized down spouts - 3' X 4" instead of the standard 2' X 3".  Leaves and wads of that stringy oak pollen washed through the gutters and down and out of the over sized spouts.  We added an additional down spout to eliminate one area prone to clogging, and we switched the standard down spouts to the larger size.  Our new gutters/down spouts handled the 2" deluge which occurred on the 7/22 - 7/23 overnight.  I know because I spent the entire storm observing the gutters.  Who could sleep through that down pour?
     There are many gutter specialists in our area.  I called three for estimates (but only two showed up!).  We chose Storm Master from Cherry Hill.  Their estimator called ahead and showed up promptly.  He listened to our concerns and made a number of valuable suggestions.  Next a crew of installers came to do the work.  We had some questions about how the job was done.  We called the office, and they sent someone out the next morning to make a small correction.  We were impressed because Storm Master couldn't do enough for us.  They stressed over and over that their goal is for us to be satisfied customers - and we are.  Storm Master is a Better Business Bureau Accredited Business with an A+ rating.  Mike and I couldn't be happier with the job.  http://www.stormmastergutters.com/  
   

Bloody Beverly

     If this title conjures up visions of a machete wielding Hainesportonian decorating a room with blood spatter, scale it back a little.  I'm out for the blood of ants  (yes, they have a type of blood - a mixture of haematocytes and plasma).  The window sills at the very end of the house were crawling with the little pests.  They don't enter the house.  They just stroll around the sills for a while, then leave.
     From where do the come?  Where do they go?  I don't know those answers, but I do know they are going to die.  They will die by laundry additive - the twenty mule team kind.  Boric acid or just plain borax is a low toxicity, effective pesticide against an asortment of bugs.  Rather than buying boric acid, I purchased a couple of boxes of borax because, after I wipe out the ant colonies, I can use the leftovers as a detergent booster.
     While it is tempting to grab a can of Raid®, ants should be baited, not bombed.  If you spray, you kill only the worker ants who have gone out searching for food.  If you bait, the workers take tainted food back to the nest to share with the entire colony, including the egg producing queen. Kill her and your job is done.  
     The recipe for ant bait can vary.  The trick is to use enough boric acid/borax to slowly kill, allowing the ants time to return to the nest and share the bounty before dropping dead, but not enough for the ants to detect it in the delivery medium.  Ants will ignore baits if the offerings don't seem quite right.  I mixed 3/4 tsp. of borax to 10 tbs. of simple syrup (the recipe for simple syrup is 50% boiling water to 50% granulated sugar).  The internet site I consulted recommended maple syrup, but we use low calorie syrup, and ants aren't attracted to artificial sweeteners.  Jelly, especially mint apple flavor, is recommended on Texas and Nebraska agricultural extension websites.  Some ants prefer grease rather than sugar, so you can mix the borax with vegetable oil or peanut butter.  I filled soda bottle caps with bait and, using some double sided tape to hold them down, placed them in the window sills.  The ants came in droves and drank for a couple of days.  Then they were gone.
     Here are two good articles:

http://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/resources/antbait267.shtml

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/boric-acid-maple-syrup-recipe-ants-71304.html

     If you want to identify the ant species causing your infestation, try contacting the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Burlington County.  http://njaes.rutgers.edu/county/quickinfo.asp?Burlington         
         

Too Darn Hot

     Cole Porter wasn't the first songwriter to compare love to summer's heat, and he won't be the last.  One of my favorite songs about an elevated temperature is "Heat Wave" by Martha Reeves & the Vandellas.




     Foreigner also sang about body heat.




     Why does love rage in the summer?  It makes more sense to be passionate during the winter when the extra warmth can be appreciated.  Does anybody remember the Lovin' Spoonful?  "Till I'm wheezin' like a bus stop" - say what??




Yeah, the heat is on ...




... and this girl is on fire.




     Hot fun in the summer time?  Not this week!  Try to stay cool.

My Craigslist Experience

     Have you seen the Subaru TV commercial featuring a young couple using their car to have new experiences?  They catch falcons, experience log rolling, and eat bugs - all things they enjoyed. They also visit a hot spring and encounter and old hippy who is eager to strip down, jump in, and give shoulder massages - "shouldn't have done that."

   
     "Shouldn't have done that" sums up my recent Craigslist experience.  Craigslist is successfully used by millions of people in 50 different countries.  Leave it to me to have a completely unsatisfactory foray into Craigsville.  I used the site both to buy and to sell.  Here's how it went.
     I posted two requests in the items wanted section.  First, I asked for delicate china tea cups, no saucers necessary, complete sets not necessary - just mismatched odds and ends.  My plan was to fill the cups with a wicks and wax to create candles.  There were no responses, so it's back to the thrift shop for me.  Next, I asked for a bar stool with a 30" high seat.  I got one response from someone who said they had a bar stool, but couldn't send a picture (why not?).   This person was extremely eager for me to drive a long distance to see the phantom bar stool and their many other items up for sale.
     I had an assortment of items for sale, things that didn't move at my last yard sale.
       
          Epson printer ink - no bites.
          Luggage - no interest.
          Pendant lights with matching chandelier - one taker for pendants only - at much less than asking price.
          Cradle and rocking chair - two offers from foreigners trying to suck me into check cashing scams.
          Tool boxes - the first buyer never showed up/ I rejected the second candidate after a Google search turned up a person of the same name, from the same town who was arrested for involvement with drug sales.

     There are lots of articles out there that will educate newbies in how to safely use Craigslist.  Read all of them and be guided accordingly:

http://www.denverpost.com/smart/ci_20605127/how-be-safe-craigslist-precautions

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/online-auction-info/1213574/

http://lifehacker.com/5915608/how-can-i-avoid-getting-screwed-when-selling-on-craigslist

http://www.localnews8.com/news/Scam-Alert-Craigslist-buyer-tries-to-get-money-from-seller/-/308662/18116818/-/uaeaw3z/-/index.html

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/craigslist-buying-and-selling-60858

     As for me, I'm donating the yard sale leftovers to the Virtua Thrift Shop.  I still want a bar stool and some tea cups, though.




               
   

Oh, for the Love of God...

     If you've begun speaking cursively and you want to maintain the buzz, check out these products.  It's a funny/sad collection.

It's a flask bangle.  Imagine taking a swig from your bracelet.

It's not a purse.  It's a wine box.

They call this breast enhancing sports bra the Wine Rack.  It holds a full bottle (750 ml.) of vino.

     There's  even a company that sells neckties which conceal 6 oz. of hootch.  It gives a whole new meaning to the terms "sneaky pete" and "power tie."  http://flasktie.co/magento/

Cursively Speaking

     Not everyone can read it, but many can speak it...

Flask

T-Shirt

Coaster

The Cursive Writing Handwriting Debate

     I first learned about the cursive handwriting debate when I read a story about the Trayvon Martin case.  One of the witnesses at the trail was asked to read a letter.  The nineteen-year-old confessed she couldn't because she is unable to read cursive handwriting.  She could only read printing (or manuscript, as it is sometimes called).  Many people under the age of twenty have not been taught cursive handwriting.  They have been schooled only in printing and keyboarding.  Many people under the age of thirty say they never use the handwriting skills to which they were briefly exposed in the third grade, except to sign their names.  These same people say it's an effort to decipher letters written in cursive.
     Those on the cursive-is-dead side of the issue say learning and practicing "script" is a waste of time for students.  Technology skills are required to be employed, so typing should replace cursive handwriting lessons.  One smart aleck even suggests a good speech to text app eliminates the need for reading and writing skills.
     The arguments in favor of retaining cursive handwriting are numerous.  The usual arguments for the benefits of cursive handwriting are that it improves fine motor skills, increases the ability to read, and improves spelling abilities.  It's a form of self discipline.  It's faster than printing.  Maybe the most basic argument for cursive is that everybody needs a distinct signature.  Signatures are almost like fingerprints.  They are a mark of our individuality and uniqueness.  We should all hone our autographs - just for the sake of it.  More practically speaking, signatures are harder to forge than printed block letters.  That's valuable when we sign checks and contracts.  Cursive style writing has actual therapeutic value for dyslexics.  Many people with learning disabilities can finally master reading and writing when the letters are strung together.  Cursive turns those separate hieroglyphs into words and sentences.  Some point out that the ability to read historical documents, like the Declaration of Independence, will be lost if people can't read script.  What is sadder, I think, is that today's teens won't be able to read letters and diaries from their grandparents if they only know how to print.
     Since there is no nationwide uniformity in school curricula, the ability to read and write using cursive is just one more difference between the classes.  The lower income school districts bypass cursive handwriting.  The upper income districts throw money into the budget to teach it.  New Jersey's Core Curriculum Content Standards were set in 2004 for grades K-12.  http://www.state.nj.us/education/cccs/  The goal for children at the end of the second grade is that they be able to "write legibly  to meet district standards."  This changes to being able to "write legibly in manuscript or cursive to meet district standards" by the end of the third grade.  The option to use manuscript or cursive continues through the twelfth grade.  I don't know how much time and effort is put into the cursive side of the equation these days at Hainesport School once kids hit the third grade.  When I attended  Hainesport School I was graded on penmanship through the eighth grade.  I still have the report cards to prove it.  Penmanship was the only C grade on a document filled with mostly A's and a few B's!
     Things come and go.  Times change.  Sometimes the pendulum swings back and things are reborn.  My grandparents spoke in German when they didn't want my mother to know what they were discussing.  My mother left notes around the house written in shorthand because she didn't want me to know the contents of her "messages to self."  All I have to do to keep information out of a teenager's hands is write it in cursive.  It's a hoot to think the children of today's teenagers might write their diary entries in cursive to foil their script illiterate parent's attempts to pry.

     

         

Is Anything Ever What It Seems?

     On July 18, 2012 I blogged about Elle Zober, the Oregon wife who posted this for sale sign in front of her house -

      Ms. Zober, a photographer and greeting card maker, made the rounds with the TV news and the talk shows.  She started a blog named "The Scorned & Slightly Bitter Blog."  She states in her blog's sidebar, "We are divorced and for the very reason the sign [the real estate sign shown above] suggests."  Oh, really?  Ms. Zober came out in her June 3, 2013 blog entry.  http://www.greatfamilyhome.com/1/archives/06-2013/3.html  You see, she's known since she was a child that she is a lesbian.  Well, she knew, but maybe she wasn't sure.  Or maybe she was in denial.  Or something.  She married husband #1, a man who went outside the marriage for sex since he didn't get it at home.  After that split, she dated men until she met Husband #2, her soulmate.  They weathered health problems and had two children.  He never failed to make her laugh, they never stopped talking, they were best buds, but their marriage had little physical intimacy.  So, when she discovered his extra marital dalliance, the sign went up in front of the house.  The scorned-heterosexual-wife blog hit the internet.  She kept up her straight facade - until four weeks ago.
     Did anyone see this coming?  Maybe the flippant nicknames given to the players was a hint.  The ex-husband is El Capitan.  His 22 year old girlfriend, La Novia.  She refers to her children as The Boy and The Girl.  Ms Zober's butch love interest was Carhartt (they broke up).  I get the feeling there are more surprises to come.  Is anything ever what it seems?  Rarely.