Non-Consumer Photo Essay — Imperfect Apples, Stairway Twins & Naughty Signage

by Katy on November 7, 2013 · 21 comments

It’s time for another Non-Consumer Photo Essay. Why? Because my Instagram account is fit to burst!

First off is the scratch and dent produce section at my local Fred Meyer grocery store. They had bags of Braeburn apples for $1 apiece. Sure, there were only three apples per bag, but it was still a better price than any of the other apples. The sizable apples each had a teeny tiny brown spot, not even a bruise,  so it was far from a sacrifice.

Used fruit

I was killing time at the library while my son finished up his Japanese tutoring, and this book caught my eye. Ashley English is married to a friend of mine from college, and I’m always happy to catch a glimpse of her books. This woman is an insanely prolific writer, and has published possibly 72.8 books over the past five years.

Good book, by the way.

Canning & Preserving

I also leafed through a huge coffee table book about classic Craftsman houses. This stairway photo grabbed my attention, as the stairway bore a great resemblance to my stairway.

Craftsman Stairway

See?

Of course I would never dare to paint our walls white, as my family seems to have a tendency to smear ourselves up and down the stairs. Seriously, the paint used to be a light color, and it was always filthy.

Entryway

We always wait until October 31st to carve our jack-o-lanterns, as the flesh will still be fresh enough to bake up for pumpkin puree on November 1st. That way we can eat pumpkin scones, muffins and pies all through the winter. (I always freeze in two-cup portions, as that is the general measurement for pumpkin pie recipes.)

Baked pumpkin

I picked up this great $1.99 vintage Taylor & NG tile trivet at Goodwill last week, and although the tile itself was in great condition, the wood was all dried out and sketchy. (People, do not put wood items through the dishwasher!) Luckily, a few minutes sanding the wood and two coats of my Ikea butcher block conditioner brought the wood back to life.

I’ll likely sell this item in my imaginary Etsy store, but until then, I’ll just hang out with it. (You know . . .  playing cards, chatting after hours and watching Buffy The Vampire Slayer.)

After I picked up my Fred Meyer apples, I walked through the second story parking level and could not help but notice this sign.

Read it!

Extra vagina

What does the sign say?

This is a perfect example of why hiring competent graphic designers is imperative in today’s media savvy world. Because yeah, I shared this photo on my Instagram, The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group and my personal Facebook page as well.

I’ll have to get back there when it isn’t pouring rain for a better picture. Too good to pass up. 😉

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }

ilona November 7, 2013 at 10:59 am

question: is any pumpkin eatable? I have always thought of them in terms of pumpkins for decoration only and pumpkins for cooking/eating … because if any pumpkin can be used, I passed up about 6 cups of pumpkin … thickest flesh I ever saw in a pumpkin! I like your idea of being able to both decorate/carve the pumpkin and then prepare it to store for future recipes/goodies!

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Katy November 7, 2013 at 11:03 am

I don’t think there is inedible pumpkin. Certainly some are organic, while others aren’t, but I try not to overthink it.

Katy

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Sadye November 7, 2013 at 3:44 pm

I think I’ve seen, at stores, some pumpkins designated as “eating” and some without that designation. Not saying that isn’t a marketing ploy, but that might be why Ilona was wondering.

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Jenifer November 7, 2013 at 10:11 pm

Typically, it has to do with the amount of flesh vs seeds. Pumpkins for jack-o-lanterns tend to have less flesh than other kinds of pumpkins/squash, which have more flesh and fewer seeds.

The real benefit of all kinds of pumpkin and squash is how affordable they are. On Nov 1, my husband and I happened upon a shop that was selling pumpkins for $.50 apiece. I came home and roasted the pumpkins, made a puree and then froze it for later use (we make a pumpkin mash once a week). I have enough for about 12 weeks in there, and as pumpkins and squash are currently in season (and inexpensive), we are making fresh each week right now, and then freezing any left-overs.

The seeds are also great — and this includes the seeds in butter nut squash, spaghetti squash, etc. There are a couple of ways of handling these, depending upon how quickly you want to eat them.

We dried several pumpkin’s worth in a dehydrator — those will usually keep in the pantry very well, so long as it’s cool/dry. You can also freeze them. We also roasted a fair amount and have been enjoying the heck out of those as an afternoon snack, or on salads, and so on. Really delicious.

Whenever we do our fresh squash/pumpkin — each Thursday — we always roast off those seeds and enjoy them until Saturday.

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JennH November 7, 2013 at 7:18 pm

Some Fall decor gets shellacked, usually it is shiny, those are non-edible. But regular pumpkins for carving are fine as well as the little sugar/pie pumpkins. The big ones have a higher water content so you may want to sort of squeeze it out through cheese cloth before freezing to come out w/ a firmer end product for pies or whatever. If you are feeling lazy it doesn’t really matter. I usually pore the water off after it defrosts but if there is a lot it night affect your measurement.

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Diane November 9, 2013 at 4:35 am

Pie pumpkins are the small ones designated as such. They have more flesh. That’s the only difference. I’ve used both kinds for pies in the past.

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Susan November 7, 2013 at 11:24 am

LOVE the staircase in your home!

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dusty November 7, 2013 at 11:55 am

The sign is too funny!! It reminded me of years ago when my brother and I toured Ireland. Wee passed a store much like Home Depot that was selling sheds out front. One of the sheds had a sign on it that read “free erection and delivery”. Of course, I took a pic which mortified my brother but I couldn’t pass it up. I also told one of the employees that I’ll take two. I thought my brother was going to faint. I framed the small pic and keep it in my office, gives me a chuckle everytime I look at it.

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Coral Clarke October 16, 2023 at 9:24 pm

An extra isn’t really necessary , though , is it? I noticed our local Farmers Market had”Free Range Sausages “ , it was lovely to picture the happy sausages, roaming free! Perhaps one will meet up with the extra…No, we will try to end this train of thought before it all gets out of hand

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Melissa November 7, 2013 at 1:15 pm

Are you referring to “extravaganza”? I think the lettering is a little weird but it’s spelled correctly.

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cathy November 7, 2013 at 10:49 pm

Agreed.
When I first looked, of course it appears to say Extravagina. When you look closer, you can see the wonky, tall skinny A and the Z. Still…a better graphic designer would have made the sign more legible.

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Renee November 7, 2013 at 3:03 pm

It looks like “extravagina.” I don’t really need another one, thanks.

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A. Marie November 7, 2013 at 3:09 pm

Mixed reactions to this post. I’m LMAO at the Fred Meyer sign, but feeling my age over your description of the Taylor & Ng trivet as “vintage.” I own a similar trivet (different design), plus a set of T&N mugs, all of which DH and I acquired early in our marriage. This is the same reaction I have when I see my childhood toys described in flea markets as “antiques.” (On the other hand, perhaps more of my belongings have some eBay value than I thought…)

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marie November 8, 2013 at 7:18 am

I agree, last time I went to an antique store, I saw my whole childhood there. LOL

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Nancy from Mass November 7, 2013 at 4:54 pm

does anyone really need an extravagina? where would you put it?

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rosarugosa November 7, 2013 at 5:21 pm

I’m another fan of your stairway, Katie!
I believe all pumpkins are edible, but some varieties are better for eating than others, and some have greater decorative value than flavor.

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Chris November 7, 2013 at 6:01 pm

The dark paint on your stairway really highlights the cutout pattern on your stairway railings! Beautiful!

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Jo@simplybeingmum November 8, 2013 at 6:14 am

Your staircase looks a lot like mine. We painted ours just last weekend. Went from light to dark due to mucky handprints etc… In fact I’m going to post a photo of it on FB (I’ll tag you!) so you can see the resemblance!

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Katy November 8, 2013 at 11:37 am

I look forward to seeing it!

Katy

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emmer in pdx November 8, 2013 at 7:47 am

pie pumpkins are less watery and sweeter, and sometimes with a stronger flavor. all are nutritious, so just roast and see if you like the flavor of your jack o lantern. if too bland, spice and sweeten.

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Valerie November 9, 2013 at 3:54 am

Ummm, the sign is hilarious – made me giggle like mad at 5:45 am. And I do see the wonky letters that spell it correctly, but extravagina is much, much funnier. 🙂 Wonder if they’d be willing to sell this sign after the festivities? I’d so buy it!!

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