If you're wondering why it has such a high rating, it's cos the Shadow Lord and the Pirates are review bombing it as a great place to hide giant gemstones and leave people for dead!
If you're like me, you've always thought that delicious looking golden toffee would make a great treat for you and the kids (shout out to my five darling angels, you make every day living in the Plains worthwhile) until you open the bag and get knocked out by the smell- this is no joke, my youngest, Nida (yes, of course she's named after Adin) once fainted after smelling it. As a stay at home mum of six (but only on Sundays when Idna (named for Adin as well) literally becomes two people, don't you just love the Plains) it is my duty to ensure my children are eating the best. I figured it was high time I put my apron on (my husband brought it back to me from one of his trips to Del, isn't he the cutest) and worked out how to crack a safe human recipe for Polypan Toffee!
You will need
Water- but please make sure you don't use the silver well from beside the Shifting Sands, it makes you hear the buzzing for six to twelve days
Sugar- make sure this is a thin sugar, you'll need it to be highly ground down. Please leave a comment if you think Caster Sugar is a great name for this new concoction (named for my youngest who we're pretty sure is a sorcery caster!)
Queen Bee Honey- this is an optional ingredient and I fully recommend leaving it out if you aren't close, personal best friends with Queen Bee. I meet her every Sunday (Yes, when Idna becomes two people, isn't she adorable) for tea and tips on how to keep bees (see my other blog post for my favourite suggestions)
Method
Light your stove with a Tom Approved Match Stick (NOT SPONSORED) and stir in a quarter cup of water for every cup of the caster sugar (the name is so growing on me!) until all the sugar is dissolved (this means you can't see it anymore!) and then let it all boil! One it sets, you have human safe, 100% less smelly Polypan Toffee
My children just gobble this up, but I have noticed some strange side affects from the Queen Bee Honey, so maybe leave that out if you're not from the Plains
Roddacember 2024 Day 11 | Food Activity
Made a fake recipe in vein of those super annoying ones where you just want to read the recipe but you walk out knowing the author's whole life story
Even before the gang had truly gotten to know Elmo Zimmer the Third, they’d gotten to know his hair. His curly ginger haie meant he was a target for bullies all through primary school. Kids thought it was funny to say he had no soul and call him a wide variety of orange foods, but it wasn’t just that. Elmo had always kept his hair fairly short like all the other boys had, curled around his ears and remaining that way up to year seven. When Elmo was twelve however, he stopped cutting his hair suddenly. It grew long and it grew fast. By the time the kids had become teenagers, sixteen to be precise, Elmo’s curly ginger hair reached his lower back. It was definitely an odd look, no one was ever quite sure if it really worked or not, but despite a lot of teasing, Elmo’s hair remained stubbornly long. Elmo often wore it down, or in a messy ponytail that just screamed ‘I’m a dag.’ He didn’t seem to care about looking after it, but he never cut it.
“It’s so infuriating.” Richelle sighed one day at lunch, eyes fixated on her nails.
“What is?” Liz asked patiently after it became clear Richelle wasn’t going to elaborate.
“His hair,” Richelle yawned slightly. “It’s hideous.” Her eye flickered over to Elmo, sitting along, hair frantically flapping in the breeze that was lingering from winter.
“Looks like someone set his head on fire.” Tom laughed.
“Well if he likes it like that, then who are we to judge.” Sunny said firmly and that was the end of that conversation. Sunny had that sort of power within the group, when she talked, people listened. Still, they kept shooting glances over at the teen throughout the day.
The next day, Nick stumbled across Elmo in the boy’s bathroom with a pair of those cheap blue handled scissors every classroom had in his hands. His eyes were slightly red like he’d cried briefly or encountered something he was allergic to.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Nick’s mind flew to one conclusion. “Hey buddy, do you wanna put the scissors down.”
Elmo spun at the sound of his voice, staring first at the stationary in his hands, then at Nick, eyes wide with confusion.
“Um…I’m just trying to cut some gum out my hair.” Elmo chewed his lip nervously. He turned slightly to show off the tangled wad. “I do it all the time, it’s not going to go wrong.”
“Oh,” Nick willed his cheeks not to flame out of embarrassment. “Wait, you do it often?”
“Well yeah,” Elmo shuffled his feet. “I mean this curly mop of hair is just asking to be targeted.”
“Oh, right.” Nick turned and left the bathroom. He didn’t know what else to say. He needed to pee but it was more awkward to stay.
He waited outside the door however, ear pressed against the cheap wood in an attempt to eavesdrop. He heard the faint sounds of scissors snipping and then Elmo sighed loudly and footsteps approached the exit. Nick darted away, round a corner and out of sight. He didn’t want Elmo to know that he’d been hanging around and listening in.
He peered round the corner cautiously when he didn’t hear Elmo coming towards him. He spotted the boy leaning against the wall, head buried in his hands. His shoulders shook with…sobs? He was probably trying to compose himself, but why not do it in the privacy of the bathroom?
Then, Nick saw that Elmo was laughing. Giggling. Snorting as he tried to be quiet. Something in Nick told him that Elmo was laughing at him. He couldn’t be sure though- it was just a feeling. He could always ask, but Nick also had the feeling that he’d overstepped some sort of invisible boundary today. He’d reacted like a dumb idiot, implying that Elmo was about to commit suicide in the bathroom and not perform a hasty hair cut.
Damn.
Nick turned and stalked away. He wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
No more fraternizing with Elmo Zimmer the weird.
Roddacember 2024 Day 2 | Feels Good Activity
This is the start of an incredibly indulgent Nick x Elmo Teen power Inc fic I've been writing for like, 5 years at this point. I'm not writing it for anybody but myself really (this is the first time I've posted anything about it), and it's a total feel good piece of work I tap away at whenever I'm in the mood. Happy Feels Good Roddacember!!!!!
(that's not the official book for Deltora Quest shhhhhh)
As an actual Quiz Host and former Quiz Writer for a paper, it is my solemn duty to preserve the legacy of Emily Rodda through a quiz paying honour to all of her books (or just the ones I've read, shhhhhh) Test your knowledge and then check the answers in the Keep Reading for answers and your score
In the Deltora Quest series, which gemstone represents honour?
In Rowan of Rin, which companion deserts the quest after their twin brother leaves first?
In the Battle for Rondo, what is the 'stolen magic' that turns the tide of said battle?
In Teen Power Inc, what breed of cat is Elmo's cat Shadow?
In the Star of Deltora series, which book is Sky's gender revealed in?
In the Three Doors, which door is Sholto drawn to?
In Shadowgate, what creature spells a beware sign for the Masked Ones?
In Rowan and the Keeper of the Crystal, what colour cape does Seaborn wear?
In the Key to Rondo, what item of jewellery does the Blue Queen pretend the key is?
In Beware the Gingerbread House, Sunny drops what dangerous item into a pot of oil?
In the Star of Deltora series, what is the name of Britta's older sister?
What animal does Rye bring home in the Golden Door at the expense of their house?
Which book in the Deltora Quest series does the Topaz Dragon first appear in?
Name the five strange fingers (or questers) that form fate's hand in Rowan and the Zebak
What food item is Wizard Bing turned into by Spoiler in the Wizard of Rondo?
During Danger in Rhyme, what location is bombed for the 'This Old Man, he played two' rhyme, and why?
Who is actually hiding all the books in the Star of Deltora series?
In the Three Doors, which magical item gifts Rye the ability to master the oceans?
Name the three Torans who pretend to be Lief, Barda and Jasmine in Return to Del
Fill in the blank to finish the line in Rowan of the Bukshah- The beasts are wiser than we know, and where they lead....
What is Mimi and Leo's familial relationship in the Rondo Trilogy?
Which member of the Teen Power Inc gang is a middle child?
What item does Britta present to win her place in the Trader's competition in Shadows of the Master?
Where do each of the Doors take you in the Three Doors?
Emerald (1 point)
Val (1 point)
A pair of boots that let you feel how the person before you felt (1 point)
She's part Burmese (1 point)
Two Moons (1 point)
The Silver Door (1 point)
Moths (1 point)
Green (1 point)
A ring (1 point)
A gun (1 point)
Margareth (1 point)
A goat (1 point)
Cavern of the Fear (1 point)
Rowan, Zeel, Allun, Perlain, and Sheba (5 points)
A mushroom (1 point)
A church, because the old man played two on the pews (2 points)
Vashti (1 point)
A serpent scale (1 point)
Peel, Kris, and Lauran (3 points)
Four souls must go (1 point)
Second cousins (1 point)
Richelle (1 point)
A candlestick (1 point)
Golden Door takes you to the past, Silver Door takes you to the future, Wooden Door takes you to the present (3 points)