Happy holidays to all!

Best wishes for warm healthy safe holidays to all.
These shots are some of my favorites from a winter photo shoot.
I want to thank each & every one of my followers and visitors for the likes comments and support since the opening of this blog.

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Dead tree and beauty

©copyright2013owpp

Dead tree
You speak of
Sculpture and beauty

Snow English poem with its original French text Dec. 2012

snow magic!
©copyright2013owpp

Snow
——

Velvet
Immaculate
Dazzling
Hypnotizing

Serenade your praises
Archangel’s dream
Adorn the branches
Stars in abundance

Black night
Mirror lake
Glittering lights
On a somnolent town

Illuminated day
Numbed nature
Your coat shines
Magic captivated

Mirage of a sojourn
Time of a route
Treasure among duties
Images against a buffer

Sumptuous
Delicate
Ephemeral
Sparkling

The archangels
Psalmody
Your apologia
With ease

I ambition
Pray, negotiate
So that, desire
Transforms, Transposes

I wake up
And marvel
To find myself
In the past

I fall back to sleep
And step out
Of my treasures
My heart implores
____________

Neige
——

Veloutée
Immaculée
Aveuglante
Hypnotisante

Seriner tes louanges
Les archanges rêvent
Revêtir les branches
Étoile en abondance

Nuit noir
Lac miroir
Lumières scintillantes
Sur une ville somnolente

Journée illuminée
Nature engourdi
Ton habit brille
Magie captivée

Mirage d’un séjour
Le temps d’un parcours
Trésors parmi devoirs
Images contre un butoir

Somptueuse
Délicate
Ephémère
Etincelante

Les archanges
Psalmodient
Ton apologie
Avec aisance

J’ambitionne
Prie, négocie
Pour que désire
Se transpose, transforme

Je me réveille
Et m’émerveille
De me trouver
Dans le passé

Je me rendors
Et sort
De mes trésors
Mon cœur implore

The flouted child 1990 ( English poem with French original text )

©copyright2013owpp

The flouted child
——————–

A child,
Is hope, It’s the future
A child,
Is the mirror of your memories
A child,
Is naïve, pure and sweet
A child,
Believes in you, but you’re harsh

A child is not a thing
An object to dispose of
It’s a being of its own
With emotions, a light

Do not abuse his faith
For you shall only have his mistrust
Be his enlightened torch
His exemplar for eternity

You closed your ears
To all advice
You wounded this bird
You broke the branch

This child,
Was the hope of your memories
The mirror of the future
His feelings were sacred
But you’ve erased them

____________________

L’Enfant bafoué
———————

L’enfant,
C’est l’espoir, c’est l’avenir
L’enfant,
C’est le miroir de tes souvenirs
L’enfant,
C’est naïf doux et pur
L’enfant,
Croit en toi mais, tu es dur

L’enfant n’est pas une chose
Un objet dont on dispose
C’est un être à part entière
Avec des sentiments, une lumière

N’abuse pas de sa confiance
Tu n’auras que sa méfiance
Sois son flambeau éclairé
Son exemple pour l’éternité
—————-

Tu as fermé l’oreille
A tous ces conseils
Tu as blessé cet oiseau
Tu as cassé le rameau

Cet enfant,
C’était l’espoir de tes souvenirs
Le miroir de l’avenir
Ses sentiments étaient sacrés
Mais tu les à effacé

Very easy Sourdough starters with bread recipe ( available in wholewheat too )

Sourdough bread
©copyright2013owpp

I never dared to adventure in the sourdough ” area ” thinking it was the hardest thing to do but, it really is not.
It is the easiest thing possible, the healthiest, doesn’t contain sugar ( only if you wish so ) it is good for those who are
yeast intolerant or have egg intolerance but you have the choice to use it if you want.

The sourdough starters just needs time to pick up. It takes a few seconds to do, you then let it work for a few days.
The taste doesn’t have to be a strong one, it is up to you to choose if you want it to rise longer or not. The taste
will be determined by that factor.
With time, you will know the exact way you want it.

Sourdough starters
©copyright2013owpp

The lengthy time used for the starters is just a one time thing. After that you keep it in the fridge, take it out a day
before you want to bake another loaf and just add a cup of flour and one of warm water before you make a loaf. Then, add once again the same amount of flour and water in the starters, before you store it back in the fridge,
so you have enough for the next time you feel like baking.

Let me know how it came out for you!

Sourdough starters recipe
————————–

Day one
———

1. 1 cup of flour ( you can choose white, wholewheat or Spelt )
2. 1 cup of warm water

Whisk and leave it 24 hrs in room temperature, cover with paper or cloth. Stir a couple of times.

Sourdough ready
9copyright2013owpp

Day two- Feeding the starters
——————————-

Mix again. Remove half and add more flour and water.

1. 1/2 cup flour
2. 1/2 cup warm water

Whisk it cover again. Stir a couple of times. leave 24 hrs.

Day 3-Repeat
————

Day 4
——

Bubbles build up. Add half a cup of warm water and flour, stir and leave 24 hrs.

Day 5-Sponge
————

Sourdough is ready!

1. Add 1 cup flour
2. 1 Cup warm water

Mix. Let it sit. Cover with cloth or paper for 8-10 hrs ( depending on how warm the kitchen is )

Italian style
©copyright2013owpp

Day 7-Dough
————

Ingredients
———–

1. 2 cups of sponge ( sourdough starters )
2. 2 tsp salt
3. 1/2 tsp rice syrup or sugar ( I put 2 Tbsp when I wanted sweeter and 4 Tbsp for real sweet )
4. 2 Tbsp oil ( of your choice. Sesame, olive, sunflower… )
5. 2 1/2 cup flour ( wholewheat, white, half white regular or Spelt )

Wholemeal & crispy!
©copyright2013owpp

Method
——-

1. Throw all ingredients in bowl, stir by hand, add another 1/2 cup of flour if necessary ( it should be soft enough to scoop it with a spoon, you don’t have to shape it )
2. Put in a glass or stainless steel loaf tin with baking sheet in, if you put a minimum sugar or syrup, you can improvise a Italian bread by sprinkling Oregano herbs, olive
oil, salt, Paprika powder and pepper, they’ll love it!
3. Let it rise overnight but remember to cover it. Then, slide in unheated oven on 175 Degrees Celsius = 347 Degrees Fahrenheit for 40 mn if it’s a flatter shape and 50 mn for
a regular loaf.
4. Take out and enjoy with your close ones, they’ll love it! 🙂

5. Please! Remember to add one more cup of flour and one of warm water in the starters glass jar so, you’ll have enough to store back in fridge for future recipes. you can seal
the jar and place in the fridge for as long as you want. I was told it stays good for just a few weeks but, was proven otherwise when I left it for much longer without it spoiling in the least.

I hope it was clear enough, if you have any question let me know.

100% Natural-ready to use- face moisturizer… Unrefined Shea butter!

I used to make complicated or not so complicated face moisturizers that I had looked up on the internet, there are lots of choices, some great but I got discouraged after another
recipe-flop and realized that the butter itself is brilliant in its pure form!
It melts at body temperature and with the dry skin I have it can only be better as a sole ingredient. I tried it in the evening and lo and behold… magic! The skin is smooth and nourished with hardly any work, just an order on amazon or ebay.

I looked up on Wikipedia Shea butter and they say ( I’m sure you already know this but for those who don’t, here’s the information ) it’s extracted from the nut of an African tree called, Vitellaria Paradoxa, it is edible, something I had not known and used in food preparations in Africa ( at least we know we are not applying poison on our skin 🙂 )

If bought unrefined, it keeps its sunscreen properties equal to number 6 ( that was specified on another site ) and they went on with a list of benefits as Anti-inflammatory, used for management of Sinusitis and relief of nasal congestion, joints aches and aches of other parts of the body which was equally new to me.

I use it on my hands too and if I got a burn or infected wound, I found it cured very fast, now I know why 🙂 if you are interested in the recipe for Shea butter face cream I can post it, just let me know.

Method
——

I bought a kilo of it ( 2 pounds 20 oz. it lasts forever ) put it immediately in the fridge and take out each time a little which I cut with a knife as it hardens once cold, and sterilize a very small glass jar, put a bit inside and after a few hours, being exposed to room temperature it softens and piles up but I can apply it on my face even straight out from the refrigerator as it melts between the fingers.

I hope this tip was useful to you, let me know, feedback is always appreciated, enjoy!

Vitellaria paradoxa

New photos inserted in poem of St.Moritz post!

Hi everyone!

 

I finally managed to insert the photos, I was longing to put in the poem

Of St.Moritz, to show you all, the magnificence of this unique place.

I believe, words and photos are complementary. Photos give justice 

to words and vice versa.

But one cannot go without the other, at least it did, until I got the photos 🙂

Let me know what you think, does it make that big difference I’m talking

about? Do you think the place is unique or have you seen a twin town 

somewhere else?

 

P.S For the English version search on ” will words ever do justice? ”

For the French one ( there are different pictures there too ) search on ” St.Moritz “