Wicked Warm Wednesday

Wicked hot out!

Lord, it was profane over here! I may not be the best judge of temperatures, but I think it can be agreed by many that 93 degrees (Fahrenheit, thank goodness) in the shade with 90% humidity, is a might bit unpleasant. Especially in two layers, pants included.

Why you may ask, was I wearing two layers? Because I'm a wimp, and the uniform service my company has gives shirts and pants that leave me with amazing skin abrasions and rashes. So naturally instead of being logical and laundering the uniforms myself, I wear my own clothes under my uniforms. Makes sense in the wintertime, when the building is resting easily in the single digits (-5 to 5 on average), but during the summertime, it's stifling.

So now that I've complained about my self induced misery, let's get on with some lighter subjects. Despite this week being uncomfortable, this has been a fairly mild summer. Mild and interesting to watch, with pop up thunderstorms and torrential downpours. It's been a good time to wander in the woods, and check out plants that are around in a new light. Ever since I learned of Homeopathy and (entirely separate) Medieval uses of plants, I've been checking out everything I have here to see what it does.  Like yesterday, for example. You ever heard of Lycopodium? I hadn't heard of the thing before, but apparently it's in the family of clubmoss (or creeping cedars), and looks sort of like little tiny pine trees. It turns out that in the Middle ages, entertainers would harvest the spores of this moss and dry it out to be used in the strangest way. They'd blow it into a spark or flame, and the spores would erupt into a low heat, fairly explosive fire (if you want to see an example). The spore cloud only really works if it's airborne, otherwise it will burn slowly and surely where it rests (in large piles). It doesn't re-ignite, no flashbacks, and it pretty easy to harvest...Looks like it's time to learn to blow fire!

Which speaking of fire, have you ever held a fireball? I want to, and recently found a way to do so! Take nail polish remover (acetone), a lighter and a cotton ball. Rip the cotton ball in half, crumpling the halves up and soak them in the nail polish remover, rolling the things around a little to cover them completely in acetone. Then wash your hands and wet them a little with water (for safety). Then, hold and light. It's said you shouldn't hold the ball for more than a couple of seconds, so be sure to be careful with this. The thing that gets me is that this can't be healthy to breath in the fumes for this, or to burn this at all (I'm quarrelsome when it comes to the environment). So instead, I'm hunting for a more environmentally friendly fireball maker. Pine pitch burns well, and hot, but it might be too hot and powerful for controlled fire play. We'll see what comes of that. I'm thinking it could be possible, if I'm liberal with the water buckets, and sparing on the pitch, it might go well (maybe).

Wow. From hot day to fire. Interesting combination....

But that's not what I meant to talk about with lycopodium! It not only makes a good fireball, but it also make a good medicine, for Arthritis pain, muscle cramps, and food poising, and more. When mixed homeopathically (if that's a word), it can be used for ear aches, fear of crowds/ anxiety problems in general, gall stones, and again, more. It amazes me that something so small and simple can do so much, and come from a small plant, commonly overlooked. Spectacular!

Generally, that's all I have to share this week. A little heat, a little crazy fire, and a little home remedy work. Enjoy, and have a good evening, everybody.