are we there yet?

Happy Spring!

2010-03-21T11:40:00.024-07:00

I hope you have the opportunity today to soak up a bit of sunshine, or listen to the birds, or catch a hint of color from a flower, whether it's a glorious red rose, a simple little daisy, or even a dandelion! I'm enjoying all of the above; it's a beautiful day.

I do have the obligatory chores that I must tackle today as well - a few loads of laundry, cleaning a bathroom, maybe running the vacuum. I have a couple of candles lit, some soothing music playing (Diane Arkenstone - thanks Pooh for introducing me to her!). I've spent a couple of hours in the kitchen already, which, honestly, I didn't feel like doing when I started. But it didn't take long to realize how much I've missed it the last few weeks.

I did some experimenting this week too, mostly out of necessity, but with some great results. Since starting a vegetarian diet in late January, I've made an effort to cook as many meals as I can in two batches - with meat and without - so that my husband isn't forced into going meatless if he doesn't want to. I had the makings for some really quick enchiladas for him - frozen rolled tacos topped with a can of enchilada sauce, grated cheese, and sliced olives. Easy! But I didn't have any meatless rolled tacos that I could eat. I did have corn tortillas, though, and knew I could come up with something to fill them. I had several pouches of Uncle Ben's and Seeds of Change brands ready-to-serve rice dishes in the pantry. One of them was a Santa Fe version and included black beans, corn, brown rice, red and white wheat, tomatoes, peppers, and spices. I warmed my corn tortillas in just a few drops of oil in a small skillet, put a couple spoonfuls of rice down the center of each one, and rolled them up. I used a 9" x 13" pan and filled it with half of the frozen rolled tacos, half of my rice filled rolled tacos, topped it all with enchilada sauce and sliced black olives. I used regular grated colby jack cheese on my husband's half, and vegan cheddar flavored grated cheese on my half. I was expecting them to be a little bland and not thoroughly enjoyable, but I was wrong. They were great!

Frozen meatballs are another one of my favorite time savers. I've found turkey meatballs and Veggie Patch brand meatless meatballs. Naturally, they're great in spaghetti, and the leftovers make great meatball sandwiches. Today I got out a recipe for Albondigas, a Mexican meatball soup. It calls for chicken broth, but I use vegetable broth, canned tomatoes, chopped celery and onion, and a sliced zucchini and chopped cilantro. I didn't have the zucchini or cilantro, but I did have carrots and kale. I also added a little bit of orzo. Because the kale cooks pretty quickly, I added it last. When it had wilted just a little bit, I removed half of the soup to another pan, and added turkey meatballs to one, and meatless meatballs to the other. Instead of albondigas, I made more of an Italian wedding soup. It satisfied my craving and is delish!

I'd had a whole bunch of kale in the fridge, but only used half of it in the soup. I usually chop it (after removing the stems) and cook it with a little garlic and onion. I soften the garlic and onion in just a smidgen of oil in a large skillet. I add the kale all at once, and sprinkle it with a few drops of aminos and a drizzle of vinegar, usually apple cider vinegar. Today I only had red onion, so into the pan it went. I softened it with the garlic and added the kale. I sprinkled it with a few drops of aminos, just a splash of ume vinegar and a smattering of rice vinegar. I gave it a little taste and immediately thought of the couple of pineapple spears sitting in my fridge. I chopped them up and added them to the pan. Yummy! A perfect blend of just a little salty and just a little sweet.

I've also cooked a pan of brown rice which I'll just put in a container and stick in the fridge. I can put it in a bowl with some kale and that can be either breakfast or lunch for me. Midway through the week, we'll want a quick and easy dinner. I'll get out the rice, the wok, chop up whatever veggies I have in the fridge that need to be used - broccoli, leeks, celery, green onions, carrots, bok choy - whatever I have. I'll grab the aminos or soy sauce and whatever vinegar happens to sound good at the moment, and we'll enjoy a wonderful fried rice. (I knew I should have grabbed that box of fortune cookies at the store the other day!)

I'm done in the kitchen for the day now. I'm sipping my second or third cup of tea as well as my water bottle with a couple of cucumber slices in it. I'm going to put in my last load of laundry, do a few minutes of yoga, and then have a bowl of soup. I think I might even brew a couple bags of chamomile tea, put it in a big bowl and enjoy a facial steam, perhaps followed by a nap.

Wishing you a peaceful afternoon,

the week in review

2010-02-28T12:15:00.020-07:00

Poor, poor me. I actually worked five full days in a row this week! Between the holidays, the time we've been required to furlough, and having every other Friday off as my normal work schedule, I haven't worked a full five day work week in months. But I managed; I am a professional, after all.

Granddaughter k was sick this week, running a fever off and on during the day, but spiking during the night. I talked to her on the phone one afternoon - oh, it was so dramatic! - and offered to pick up her meds and drop them off after work. What kind of a grandma shows up with only yucky medicine? Not Grandma J. I love those dollar bins (and now some 2 for $5 bins) up front at Target. k got some monkey slippers and a blanket; a soft, furry, stuffed monkey just waiting to cuddle; a box of cheese crackers; a Strawberry Shortcake coloring book and a box of crayons. Seemed like the perfect prescription to me. She's all better now.

I returned to work at 9:00 Thursday night to attend the final briefing and retirement celebration for our senior Sergeant. Sam 1, as he's been known around the Department for what seems like an eternity, retired after 36 years, 5 months, and 2 weeks on the job. An unimaginable accomplishment! And I have to say, it was something to see him get emotional and tear up. He has the reputation of an extremely tough guy and hard boss, but when you get right down to it, he's a softie and has feelings too. It's obvious how much his career meant to him.

Today marks one month that I've been vegetarian. I feel good, and it even feels good to say it. :) My next goal is to meditate every (or almost every) morning. I've tried this before and always managed it for a short while, but never for the long haul. This week I made my first attempts to start again. It means giving up reading e-mail in the morning, which actually is the perfect trade. Instead of sitting in front of the computer pouring all those new thoughts into my head, many of them useless, how much nicer is it to sit, instead, and work on emptying out all the unnecessary clutter?

With the goal of daily meditation in mind, I found a pattern for a prayer shawl that I liked and decided to crochet one for myself. There's not much to the pattern, really; it should be relatively easy to make - almost meditative itself really. But the yarn that I had and wanted to use is a little tricky to work with. It might also be a test of my patience.

While on-line a couple nights ago, I ran across the book, "Tranquilista, Mastering the Art of Enlightened Work and Mindful Play" by Kimberly Wilson. The title hooked me right away, and I was on a quest to find out how I could become a Tranquilista. Kimberly's previous book "Hip Tranquil Chick," sounds like fun, too. There's even a quiz you can take to find out if you are a Hip Tranquil Chick! Her blog is also a delight - Tranquility du Jour. Now I need to update my profile - I can add that I'm a vegetarian AND a Hip Tranquil Chick!

I bought some millet this week and tried a new recipe with it. I have tomatoes in my garden out back, and the cherry tomatoes are ripe already. It was so, so satisfying to walk out to my backyard this morning with a colander and pick a couple handfuls of tomatoes. It rained a little bit yesterday so everything seemed just a little bit fresher. The tomatoes way down on the bottom had little specks of sand all over them from where the rain hit the dirt and splashed back up on them. I'll make this recipe again; it's good!

While I was cooking this morning, I opened up my kitchen window so I could hear the birds singing. They are delighted that the sun is shining after the rain yesterday. Every once in a while the breeze picked up the scent of alyssum that's come up everywhere out back. It's one of my very favorite smells. Which reminds me that the freesia out front are blooming too - another of my favorite smells.

Wishing you a tranquil week,

To meat or not to meat?

2010-02-24T19:52:00.013-07:00

It hit me last weekend. I was at the grocery store in the check out line. I had all sorts of veggies, brown rice, lentils, soy milk, soy ice cream. The clerk was looking at my groceries and commented on how healthy I eat. And then she said, "That must be why you look the way you do. Are you a vegetarian?" And I realized, "Yes! I am." She asked, "For how long? A year?" "Not quite a year," I said.

This week is my fourth week experimenting with The Kind Diet. On the 28th of February, I will have been a vegetarian for one month. (So my "not quite a year" was a bit of a stretch. wink, wink.) And I have been eating almost vegan for most of the past few weeks. It's not been nearly as difficult, or as much of a sacrifice, as I thought it would be. I didn't eat that much meat to begin with. But I love cheese, and eggs, and ice cream and yogurt. I've found, however, vegan replacements for almost all of those things and they are, for the most part, surprisingly good! I can't say that I've really missed anything. Except sugar, which is a whole different story. But I'm getting used to that too. I have not yet even tried to give up coffee. Maybe some day, but not today for sure.

My husband, the Great White Hunter, gets it now. He's not giving up meat, and that's okay too. A few nights ago, he grilled venison burgers for him, and a couple of veggie burgers for me. After we ate, he asked me if it was okay to put them all in the same container in the refrigerator. What a guy! Although just a few nights before that, his hunting buddy came over so they could fill out their forms to mail in to get permits to hunt deer later this year. They were looking over everything else they could hunt for, and I heard him say, "Janet used to always want to shoot her own turkey. Hey, Janet! We're going to put you in to hunt turkey. Okay?" Um, hello!?!? I'm not eating meat. Why on earth would I want to kill something?! Sigh . . .

My Super Bowl

2010-02-07T18:45:00.003-07:00

Have a healthy and joy-full week!

My Not To Do List

2010-02-06T17:44:00.022-07:00

My inbox, once again, has grown to monumental capacity. It's become almost overwhelming. I've developed something of a plan to prevent this from happening, but if you don't get to your inbox everyday, even a great plan won't work. So yesterday I began weeding out the uninteresting and apparent unimportant e-mails. And this morning my finger even hovered over the "delete all" button. But there were a few that the little voice inside my head urged me to keep and read. That little voice is brilliant sometimes.

One e-mail I kept to read was a very recent edition of Christine Kane's "Live Creative" e-zine. The featured article, How to Create a Powerful Morning Ritual, included some great suggestions. (Part of my fondness for Christine's e-zine is that her featured article is always done as a list. Yay for lists!) One in particular lit a little light bulb up in the space where my little voice resides. "Be Prepared: Create a Not-to-Do List." Christine's suggestion here is specifically aimed at your morning ritual, but I loved the idea of a Not-to-Do List on a grander scale. So, for example, my list for today . . .

Not To Do:

Let the rainy afternoon go by without spending a while on the glider on the patio.

Give in and eat meat because I feel guilty that the hubby cooked it.

(I haven't eaten meat for over a week and want to continue that way. I've bought

and prepared foods for both of us - with meat for him and without for me.)

Leave the laundry for one more day. It will bug me more tomorrow.

So here's my new note pad.

What will you put on your list?

Peace,

Some favorite things

2010-02-05T20:15:00.049-07:00

Some things I'm loving right now . . .

Lion Brand Jiffy Thick & Quick yarn. I only learned how to crochet in December. My daughter-in-law taught me while they were here visiting. To begin, I bought a couple cheap balls of yarn just to practice my stitches. But soon I wanted to actually make something. I found this yarn at the local Joann store, and bought it in the Adirondacks color (not the one in the picture below). I made a scarf - it was so fast because the yarn is so thick! I loved it so much (the color looked great in my living room!), I went back and bought all the yarn they had at the store. Then, while out of town in the "big city," I bought all they had at a Joann store there, and I made a small throw for watching tv or reading on the couch.

For Christmas, one of the gifts I gave my husband was a water bottle I found at Gaiam.com. (It has trout on it. A manly water bottle!) I have a couple, too, but it's difficult to clean them. Today I found a brush especially for cleaning aluminum water bottles at Target. It's made by Sigg and works great. Speaking of water bottles, Papaya has the most beautiful water bottles, tote bags, cards and envelopes ever! I have a couple of their legal pads in my shopping cart right now. I may have to go to work everyday, but there's no reason I can't use beautiful things while I'm there. And one of these gorgeous bottles may wind up in my shopping cart too.

I am a bit obsessive about order and organization. I can't believe I didn't have one already, but I just purchased a Dymo label maker. I recently reorganized my pantry. I love cooking and baking, but sometimes my urge to bake was quashed by the fact that I had to make multiple trips back and forth to the pantry to get everything I needed - the mixer, the flour and sugar and ingredients, the mixing bowls, etc. So I purchased a nice kitchen cart that I can roll in and out of the pantry to use in the kitchen. My mixer sits on top, along with a cookbook stand, my timer, etc. There is a drawer that holds my measuring spoons and cups, a few spatulas, a rolling pin, a silicone mat, a few spices that I use almost exclusively for baking, and a few other things. There is a shelf where my mixing bowls and big canisters for flour and sugar go, and storage space down below behind two doors where I keep a few baking pans, special flours, baking powder, baking soda, etc. I have Tupperware containers in a couple different sizes that stack very nicely, and all the various flours and other dry necessities are stored there. So everything needed to be labeled.

And just for fun - these brown canisters are also Tupperware. I got them when my son was a baby and he'll be 29 in March! Originally there was one more - a larger one - that cracked. But Tupperware replaced it at no cost to me, just from a different set because this set was no longer being made.

I am also loving this book. There is so much information - a lot of it new to me - and it's presented in an upbeat and entertaining way. I've already tried a couple of the recipes, and so far I can highly recommend the Cheesy, Oozy Guacamole Bean Dip. It was delish hot from the oven, but was even really good cold the next day. I may do another post on this book later.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Mail Art - Handmade postcards

2010-01-26T19:40:00.010-07:00

I'm having a blast using up leftover scrapbooking papers, stickers, seam binding and just about anything else I can get my hands on. One of these cards is on its way to Katerina in Greece.

And I had the time to play tonight with a really cool gadget that I got for Christmas. It's called the enveloper, and making envelopes is a cinch with this!

Have a creative day!

Finding my rhythm

2010-01-24T18:42:00.007-07:00

Here I am - at the start of the last week of the month already. Sigh . . .

It was a month ago - almost exactly - that I remember looking forward to the busy-ness of the holidays being over. And my holidays were wonderful, really. There was a dark cloud or two, but also a silver lining, if you'll pardon the cliche. My son and his family came home for a funeral and were here until almost Christmas. We celebrated Christmas early, of course, and it was the first time in a long time both of my children were here and we were all together for Christmas. It was the first time that the two cousins (my grandkids) were together, and it was perhaps my favorite Christmas ever!

But I did miss some things. I missed writing letters and postcards and working on mail art. I missed making tags and scrapbooking. And I missed blogging, or, more specifically, the sharing and connecting that I feel when blogging. I looked forward to picking up where I'd left off, getting back to my comfortable and comforting routine. It's just taken me longer than I'd planned.

I've taken a little time to read. I've spent some time in the kitchen cooking and baking. And when my Daughter-in-Law, C, was here, she taught me how to crochet. And I've been hooked (pun intended). I've made some scarves, I made a lap throw for sitting on the couch, I've made some dish cloths, and I'm working on a small tote bag currently.

I got a couple of my girlfriends, S & T, to go with me to a Crochet 101 class at the local Joann's store a couple of weeks ago. It was fun; we laughed a LOT! At one point S said, "You know, people say this is calming and soothing. I'm not getting that. This is a pain in the a**!" And I told her that she just needed to practice. I explained that when you get comfortable with the stitches and are just sitting with your yarn and your hook - yarn over, draw up, pull through, yarn over, draw up, pull through - that you fall into a soothing little pattern. You fall into a rhythm.

And I've been hearing my own words again lately. "Find your rhythm." I hear them often, as a matter of fact. "Find your rhythm." And so I'm here. And I hope to be back often.

xoxoxo

Feeding the body and the soul

2009-11-30T20:40:00.009-07:00

Things have been so hectic. And I'll be honest -- I'm glad to be getting back to my boring little rut.

The weekend was nice though. Thanksgiving dinner was small and quiet. My daughter and son-in-law and granddaughter, k, came over. We ate late afternoon and it was nice enough to sit on the back patio for a while after dinner. I'd cooked the giblets from the turkey for the cats that "live" in our backyard, and I cut them up and k and I put some out in a little saucer for them. I'd named the black and white kitten Zorro some months ago, but k renamed it (she? he?) Patch. So Patch it is. Daughter and family went home with a bag full of leftovers, and hubby and I went to bed with tummies full of pie. Life is good.

k came over again on Friday. We planted pansy seeds and watered everything else in the yard. We painted - I painted Patch and k painted an abstract, with some help from Grandpa. I must say I like hers better! It's currently displayed in La Galeria de Mi Cocina - aka up on my fridge.

k had a runny nose and I had a bit of a headache, so we decided midafternoon to climb into Grandma's bed and watch TV. I even let her take a little package of mini M&M's with her. She'd found them and wanted them during dinner on Thursday, but she didn't eat her food, so she didn't get her M&M's. Normally M&M's in the bed would be a big no-no, but I've learned over the years that it's wise to pick your battles. We both fell asleep and had a yummy nap. Yesterday I washed the blankets and spot cleaned the bedspread by hand to remove the little smudged chocolate fingerprints. Yes, life is good.

I am grateful

2009-11-24T22:15:00.003-07:00

for my inner artist.

Today I am Thankful

2009-11-22T20:07:00.018-07:00

Sunday

It was a beautiful day today. The first cup of coffee this morning - made for me by hubby - tasted just right. The line at the grocery store wasn't too long, so we have a turkey and many goodies to go with it in the fridge ready for later in the week. Hubby's friend from out of town who came for the funeral stopped by on his way out of town for one more visit. And hubby and his baby brother spent the rest of the day at Mom's house replacing toilets, putting up shelves, putting up blinds, and just general handy man things that good sons do for their Moms.

I got to talk to one of my bestest friends who lives in Texas. I received mail from a new friend in Canada. The laundry got done, the birds got fed, I got to play a bunch, and we had ice cream for dessert. All in all, it was a day to be thankful for.

Postcard I received from Canada - titles of songs from the 1920's

Mail Art I made that will go in the mailbox tomorrow.

an envelope I made from a page from a seed catalog:

a stamped envelope:

a collaged postcard:

Have a wonder-full week,

Absence makes the heart grow fonder . . .

2009-11-20T13:49:00.009-07:00

Just another cliche -- "absence makes the heart grow fonder" -- a combination of words that I've heard so many times before that I seldom even stop to think about what they mean. But I'm thinking about them today; the thought is just in my head.

On the surface I could tell you that there's no particular reason I'm pondering this phrase today. But so many little things (and some not so little) have happened over the last couple of weeks that I'd be lying if I claimed such a thing.

My son came home to visit and has since returned home to North Carolina. He's been in the Air Force 10 years now, yet it's never gotten any easier to say goodbye to him. He only returned home on Monday and I miss him already. I wish that my daughter-in-law and grandson had come too, but that didn't work out this time. Just means that grandma has to go visit them again SOON! My grandson, j, who is 15 months old, loves to talk on the phone already. And he has so much to say! Yes, grandma must go visit soon.

My father-in-law passed away a week ago. He was truly one of a kind. He was retired Marine Corps and retired law enforcement after that. We shared the same birthday, which is in two weeks. It certainly won't be the same. His funeral is tomorrow, and it happens to be the day my mother died. I miss both of my parents more than ever.

And I have missed you all too. I have missed hearing your stories and sharing your lives, and I've missed sharing mine with you. But that's the thing about good friends - you can always pick right up where you left off. It's like you've talked every day and never missed a thing.

So I'm going to go see what's new with each of you and to get caught up. Hugs to you all.

And so it goes . . .

2009-11-04T20:13:00.006-07:00

I spent last weekend with my BFF's. We went to the big city and had big fun! We ate, we drank, we shopped, we laughed, we hugged. There were many cups of coffee drank, as well as a margarita and a beer or two, and a bottle of wine while sitting in the jacuzzi. We partook of omelets and crab legs and enchiladas and even tiramisu and gelato. We were successful on our quest for new fall jackets and sweaters, and didn't forget our husbands and grandkids for whom we found special treasures. And we bought books - we always buy books - and we even spent a teeny bit of quiet time reading. And we missed the two BFF's that weren't there.

Then we were wowed by The Phantom! It was the perfect show to see on Halloween. And I got to cross off one more thing on my bucket list.

Last Friday marked 20 years at my job. It is quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself. :) And now I'm one week into year 21.

My son, J, comes home tonight for vacation. He comes home about this time every year to deer hunt. I last saw him in June, and I can't wait to give him a big hug. I wish j was coming too, but I'll just have to plan another trip to visit them soon.

Tomorrow night after work, I'm picking up my granddaughter and we're having a slumber party. She's excited because she knows I brought her a present from my trip (a snowglobe). She'll spend part of the day Friday with me, and I think we'll go to the garden center and get some flowers to plant.

On Saturday afternoon, there is a baby shower for the daughter of one of my BFF's. This will be granddaughter number two for her. Four out of the six of us have grandbabies (two boys and soon to be four girls, the oldest of which is 3), and the youngest one of us has a baby of her own who is not quite a year old. Needless to say, our conversations often start out with, "You wouldn't believe what j did! It was so cute!" And of course we always have new photos to share. Ah, babies . . . such sweetness.

Here's hoping there's abundant sweetness in your life this week.

I need a shot

2009-10-29T20:49:00.003-07:00

I have yet to get a flu shot. In fact, I'm not certain that I will. I have no arguments for them or against them; I just haven't decided yet. But I need a shot of somethin'.

So I'm going away for the weekend with my BFF's. Whenever I need to recharge, or relax, or renew my inner me, whenever my shine fades and needs to be polished, whenever my well becomes dry and needs to be filled, and sometimes even when I just need to have my ass kicked, I turn to my girlfriends.

And there will be shots aplenty. Shots of love. Shots of understanding. Shots of laughter (the almost pee your pants kind). And sometimes shots of tequila. Combine all that with a dose of good food (lots), a dose of entertainment, and a huge dose of shopping, and the prognosis is good.

to girlfriends!

More Miscellany

2009-10-27T21:01:00.021-07:00

things that have made me smile lately . . .

My Mother-in-law called me last weekend to see if I'd taken my hubby to see "Where the Wild Things Are." She said it was his favorite book as a little boy. 21 years together, and I didn't know that! I can't tell you how many times I've been at the book store and stared at the book, thinking I should buy it, but I never picked it up. Will have to next time I'm there.

My daughter is a huge Twilight fan, and I must admit that I loved the books and have seen the movie a couple of times. (I blame it on my teenage heart.) She has invited me to go with her and her girlfriends to the first showing of "New Moon" at midnight on November 20th. I think it's super cool that she invited me. Of course, I'll have to nap first and probably get to work late the next day, but it'll be totally worth it.

I got a couple tomato plants planted on Saturday. It was a bit of work because I had to dig out quite a bit of bermuda grass first. And it got hot enough that I was drenched in sweat and my face got really red. As I sat in the shade on the patio, catching a nice breeze while cooling (and drying) off, a butterfly came fluttering in. Only for a few seconds, then it was on its way again. But it totally made me smile.

I also removed a bunch of "babies" from my cactus plant and put them in little pots. Some of the babies are only an inch across and are in teeny tiny clay pots; some are about three inches across and are in a little bit bigger clay pots. They are all on an iron etagere and are now my "nursery." Makes me smile.

I enjoyed a cup of chai on Sunday afternoon - something I hadn't had all summer long. It was delish - so much so that I took a thermos of it to work with me today. It even stayed warm until lunch time. I was smiling again.

I found the 1940's version of "The Phantom of the Opera" starring Claude Raines in with my old VHS tapes. Got comfy on the loveseat while hubby was gone and popped it into the VCR. (Getting ready for this coming weekend!)

Made another tag. Also did some journal pages, but will post them another time.

I actually finished a book. I have started several over the last few months, but didn't ever finish any of them. Either it was too complicated, or too boring, or I'd just let too much time lapse between starting it and picking it up again and needed to start over. Now - what to read next?

Have a wonderful rest of the week friends!

to the little things that make you smile,

Magnificence

2009-10-27T06:45:00.005-07:00

I might make a tag later this evening for Tuesday Tag Challenge, but nothing I create can compare to this. The most magnificent sunrise! How can today be anything but perfect after a beginning as glorious as this?

Have a glorious day,

Something Simple on a Sunday - Haiku

2009-10-25T13:10:00.009-07:00

Have a poetic week!

List Lovers Thursday

2009-10-22T06:02:00.011-07:00

So it's my favorite time of year - in case I hadn't already mentioned that. Even though the daylight comes a little later and goes a little sooner every day, I must, must, MUST get outside everyday. We have enjoyed some time each evening after work on the back patio. I get home, kick off my shoes, grab a big glass of water and the day's mail, and retreat to the loveseat out back. Hubby is usually there already enjoying a cold drink on the glider. On Tuesday I moved my little TV (that's also very old) out there and we sometimes have our dinner there. I think I even caught a cat nap on Monday evening. It's become our little oasis.

I have a few palms, a couple of cacti and succulents, some ferns and spider plants, and even a little lemon tree in pots on the patio. Out in the yard I've planted a few herbs in a small bed, trimmed up some fountaingrass in a couple of beds and borders, and still need to clean up a couple of other beds to get ready for some new plants. And here's where I always get into trouble.

I always plant tomatoes - it's a given. After that, anything goes. I'll prepare the spot for the tomatoes and dig out the tomato cages. I make my trip to the store to buy a tomato plant or two, but usually come home with much, much more. I just can't resist the happy little faces of a pansy, or the texture of a lamb's ear, or the way a little succulent seems to grow in a spiral, or even the idea of cutting a bunch of kale and digging up a couple of beets to cook for supper.

So here is my list - a list of things I'd like to plant this year. Some are practical and do-able, and some are just pie-in-the-sky, but fun to dream about nonetheless.

lettuce (red oak leaf, deer tongue, Simpson black-seeded)
radishes (German Giant and Pink Beauty)
chocolate mint
lavender
society garlic
Baja Fairy Duster
violas
Mexican Primrose
shallots
millet and purple millet
lamb's ear
yarrow
Mexican Red Hat
butterfly bush
popcorn bush
catnip
zucchini
beets
yellow beets
swiss chard
kale
basil
nasturtiums
salvia
flame tree
alyssum
hollyhocks
sweet peas
morning glories

Here's to playing in the dirt!

No Falling Leaves or Snow Here . . .

2009-10-19T20:39:00.008-07:00

. . . but I do have a wonderful fall recipe to share with you.

The weekend before last, the weather here was perfect. Out on the back patio, the mornings were crisp and the evenings were perfect for relaxing on the glider or curling up in a wicker chair and watching the sunset. Since then, it's gotten toasty again. But I took advantage of the great weather and did a little cooking.

I'd been in the mood for something that smelled and tasted like fall. Something that smelled and tasted spicy and pumpkin-y. I went in search of a recipe for waffles, and hit the jackpot with the very first one I tried. The recipe says that it serves 8. Since there are just the two of us, that meant lots to go in the freezer for quick breakfasts during the week. They toast up perfectly and smell divine coming out of the toaster. They're wonderful with good old fashioned maple syrup, but also great made into a sandwich with apple butter oozing out the sides. Perfect for dropping into my tote bag to eat at work - except that everyone wants one!

Spiced Pumpkin Waffles

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
4 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat waffle iron. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cloves in a large bowl and set aside. Whisk together eggs, buttermilk, pumpkin, sugar, butter, and vanilla in another large bowl until smooth. While whisking, add the flour mixture and blend until smooth. Generously coat the waffle iron with vegetable oil and cook the batter in the waffle iron as recommended in the manufacturer's instructions. Repeat with remaining batter.

Enjoy!

P.S. If you're not in the mood for making waffles, I did find Count Chocula, Franken Berry, and Boo Berry cereals at Target yesterday. My son used to love them. I had to buy a box just because of the nostalgia!

Six Word Saturday

2009-10-17T19:13:00.010-07:00

Herbs, tomatoes, and flowers - oh my!

This is one of my favorite times of year. The weather is finally changing here. Baby lettuces can be seen in all the fields I pass when I drive to and from work every day, and garden centers are gearing up for planting season for home gardeners.

So far, I've cleaned up last year's herb bed and partially replanted, and this morning I managed to trim up some very overgrown purple fountaingrass. I even washed the windows in my kitchen and dining room so the view out to the backyard is that much nicer. Unfortunately, temperatures rose again this week and the last couple of days have been over 100 degrees. So that's where the outdoor chores ended today. There is still so much to do, but I guess it'll happen all in good time.

Maybe I'll post another list next Thursday - of all the things I'd like to plant this year. It could be a long one!

To enjoy other Six Word Saturdays, visit here.

List Lovers' Thursday

2009-10-15T20:02:00.031-07:00

Way back when, when I was very much a newbie blogger, my Thursdays for a while were devoted to lists, and, in fact, I called them List Lovers Thursdays (even though once I did it on a Friday, and once it was about a Friday).

So, today being Thursday and all, I am in the mood for a list. (Besides, Liz did a list today and now I want to too!) Tomorrow is my every-other-Friday-off Friday, (YAY!) and there are some things I should do and some things I could do.

Could do:

** make (or find) templates for envelopes for mailing tags and ATC's, and then make a couple envelopes so I can mail a tag to Mari.

** send some snail mail to Diva Kreszl and Jeanette. I don't know yet what it'll be, but must be something special!

** and i must come up with something wonderful to send the The Fragrant Muse as it's her birthday tomorrow!

** hunt for treasure (aka taking a trip to the second hand store). Did I tell you that the last time I went I bought a poker chip holder? It's a nice wooden one that spins, and it's perfect for holding my small bottles of craft paints on my craft desk.

** I found some turkey meatballs at the grocery store last weekend and I'm in the mood for some spaghetti.

** Find a Michael's coupon and buy another ink pad.

** Take a new photo of my front porch with my scarecrow on the front door and a pumpkin and marigolds out front and replace the photo currently in my sidebar.

** Nap. (one of my personal favorites)

Should do:

** make hotel reservations for our trip to see Phantom of the Opera in two weeks.

** send haiku to a postcrossing friend that I sent a postcard to earlier this week.

** pull up the bermuda grass and bird seed that's sprouted to get ready to plant tomatoes and radishes and nasturtiums.

** clean out some old magazines to make room for my new Craft Spinner.

Of course there will be coffee in the morning on the patio while I contemplate the possibilities that the day holds. And maybe even a cup in the afternoon (after the nap of course).

I hope your Friday is beautiful.

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-10-14T05:50:00.016-07:00

What do you wish to let go?

Such a great question! We are always wishing for things. How wonderful to focus on ridding ourselves of something useless. Thank you Jamie.

I could list quite a number of things here that I would benefit from letting go: expectations, self criticism, doubt, worry. But, for me, they all really boil down to one thing - guilt. A horrible, horrible concept that has plagued me since grade school, or perhaps even before. And I am fairly certain that it will be my constant companion until my final day in this body. I am aware that I carry too much guilt, ridiculously so, but I've also resigned myself to the fact that it's just a part of who I am. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to drastically change it. I am just one of those people who wants (needs?) to make everybody happy all the time. And when I don't . . .

For example, when I speak my mind and tell someone how I really feel about something, knowing that I have every right to do so and, in fact, owe it to myself to do so, and what I've said is not well received, I feel guilty. If I call in sick to work - with a migraine or a cold, for instance - I feel guilty. I could go to work with a headache or a cold after all. If I fall behind in replying to e-mails, or neglect to answer the telephone when I really don't feel like talking, I feel guilty.

A couple of months ago, I ran across the following quote by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche from Tricycle Magazine.

Regret, Not Guilt

The difference between guilt and regret is that the guilt never faces the wrongdoing straightforwardly. There's just this strong emotion of "I wish it hadn't happened. I wish I hadn't done it. I wish I had never gotten angry." Or, "I wish I hadn't done that embarrassing thing," and so on. Regret is the opposite of guilt. We acknowledge it, we expose to ourselves that we have done something harmful, and how it came about from our ignorance, but we don't get caught in emotions or story lines.

While I don't completely follow that logic, I do appreciate the delineation between guilt and regret. And I need to remind myself of it more often.

So, I wish to let go of that toxin - guilt.

Hoping all your wishes come true! Here's to letting go.

Please Write

2009-10-13T20:14:00.011-07:00

I once wrote about how much I love sending and receiving mail - actual pieces of paper on which someone has written with ink and sealed in an envelope and stamped and dropped in a mailbox. It's about how personal it is, and the connection, however small and taken for granted it may be, that it is to another person.

So when I read "Please Write: Don't Phone" by Robert Watson in "Good Mail Day," I just smiled and thought to myself, "Exactly." I thought I'd share it with you.

Please Write: Don't Phone

While there is mail there is hope.
After we have hung up I can't recall
Your words, and your voice sounds strange
Whether from distance, a bad cold, deceit,
I don't know. When you call I'm asleep
Or bathing or my mouth is full of toast.
I can't think of what to say.
"We have rain?" "We have snow?"
Let us write instead: surely our fingers spread out
With pen on paper touch more of the mind's flesh
Than the sound waves moving from throat to lips
To phone, through wire, to one ear.
I can touch the paper you touch.
I can see you undressed in your calligraphy.
I can read you over and over.
I can read you day after day.
I can wait at the mailbox with my hair combed,
In my best suit.
I hang up. What did you say?
What did you say? Your phone call is gone.
I hold the envelope you addressed in my hand.
I hold the skin that covers you.

Yes, that's it exactly.

Tuesday Tag Challenge

2009-10-13T13:03:00.010-07:00

Pink and Brown

While Lucky Louise at Kard Krazy cruises on the Artful Voyage in Mexico with Tim Holtz, Nancy at Sugar Lump Studios is graciously hosting Tuesday Tag Challenge this week. Her theme -- pink and brown. Thank you Nancy!

Double Trouble

2009-10-08T22:03:00.006-07:00

My take on the Double Trouble theme today at Wednesday Stamper. I'm having so much fun playing with Tim Holtz products - mostly inkpads and clear stamps so far. (the stamp of the girl is not Tim Holtz; it's old and not labeled.) The colors are so gorgeous. I can't wait to play some more this weekend.

Tuesday Tag Challenge

2009-10-06T19:09:00.009-07:00

It's Tuesday Tag Challenge time again at Kard Krazy. This week's theme is shabby chic, which I love. I just think it's sweet.

This week, I got to use some old paper doilies, some leftover stickers from scrapbooking, some leftover ribbon, and more inks.

Happy Tuesday!

Corset Bling

2009-10-02T14:22:00.012-07:00

For Gingersnap Creations (love the name - knew I'd love the blog!) GC22, Spicy Supply Challenge using bling.

Used some vintage clipart from The Vintage Moth, some glitter and some metallic embroidery thread for stitching on the corset.

to living brightly,

Theme Thursday Challenge

2009-10-01T20:22:00.007-07:00

Wings

You know how one thing leads to another? Well, as a result of finding KardKrazy's Tuesday Tag Challenge the other day, I've also run across Theme Thursday - another invitation to be creative. This week's theme is wings.

Tuesday Tag Challenge

2009-09-29T19:18:00.007-07:00

Louise at Kard Krazy hosts a tag challenge every Tuesday. This week's theme is birds. I have tags on hand, I have ribbon and stamps and inks. So guess what? I get to use some more of my many supplies and play!

The bird is mirrored, but wouldn't photograph well. Doesn't matter. I had fun!

And I made a tag last night too, although it's not a bird theme, but it sure was fun. Will probably be posting pics of a few more soon.

Kreativ Blogger Award

2009-09-28T20:13:00.005-07:00

Last Monday, Kiki, at Yogademia, shared a post about receiving the Kreativ Blogger Award. This award has two parts: the first is to list 7 things that you are loving right now, and the second is to pass the award on to other Kreativ Bloggers. Lucky me! Not only did I learn some things about Kiki, and find a couple of new podcasts thanks to her, but she passed the award on to me. Happy day, happy day!

7 Things I'm Loving Right Now

1. Altering/decorating envelopes. If I take the time to make a card by hand, and make sure some love and peace seeps into it, then isn't a plain old envelope just too boring? Wanna find out? Send me your address and I'll mail you a little something special.

2. Cupcakes. A few months ago I started noticing that cupcakes seemed to be everywhere - in many of the blogs I read, in the magazines I read, and in a whole display of cupcake cookbooks at the book store. I hate to be left out whenever there's something good going on, so I went sniffing around (pun intended) to see what all the fuss was about. Three cookbooks, a new hand mixer, two new cupcake pans, and a couple of magazine articles later, I'm hooked.

3. Netflix. Was a member many, many years ago when they first started. Recently rejoined. Slum Dog Millionaire was great. Inkheart, so-so. Australia was not what I expected, but with Hugh Jackman in it, it could've been in ancient Sanskrit with no subtitles and I probably still would have watched.

4. Still discovering beautiful, gorgeous, artistic, creative, generous, footloose, free-spirited bloggers!

5. The hint of autumn. I know it's just around the corner, and Mother Nature has been teasing us with some lovely, lovely mornings, only to have the thermometer hit 105 degrees by mid-afternoon. Come on Mother! I'm ready to plant tomatoes and herbs and violas and lavender and radishes and and and !!!

6. Lavender - baking and cooking with it. I ran across a recipe a couple of months ago for muffins or scones or something along those lines that called for lavender. I finally bought some and brought it home, and I can't find that recipe to save my soul. I did find a couple of others, though, and I love the subtlety of the lavender. I stashed three mini muffins in the freezer when I baked them and have since found some lavender tea in a local tea shop. Will try it one of these lovely aforementioned mornings.

7. Having every other Friday off from work. I adore my alone time. Sometimes I crave it, in fact. I have been on this schedule for a few months now, and I must say that I'm very pleased with myself because my Friday's are my "Me" days. I don't do laundry, I don't do housework to speak of, with the exception of washing a few dishes. I usually wander through a bookstore and stop at a coffee shop. Sometimes I'll do some other shopping. Most Friday's I take a nap at some point. My "Me" Friday's are very, very good days.

And now the award goes to:

The Bodhi Chicklet

The Happy Turtle

The Red Door Studio (whose beautiful book, "Nature Inspired," I received today)

A Fanciful Twist

Happy Loves Rosie

The House in the Roses (be sure to scroll down to the little wooden door and visit the Secret Garden)

The Feathered Nest (when I really want to chill, I turn on Dawn's playlist from the Feathered Nest, and the playlist from the Secret Garden - which is nature sounds - both at the same time. it's just gorgeous)

I do not expect that all these bloggers will respond with a post of 7 things they love. Not that I'm not curious - I am - but that's not my only goal in choosing them. These blogs are cheerful and uplifting, and beautifully artistic and inspiring, and spunky and fun, and romantic and feminine, and all a little bit magical. And I thought you might enjoy them too. I hope so.

Miscellany

2009-09-27T18:37:00.025-07:00

I had to make time for playing this weekend. It was a crazy busy week. But where there's a will there's a way, and I really needed it. I didn't get all my laundry done so I'll wind up pulling some things out of the closet that I haven't worn for awhile to get by this week. And when I needed to run to the store this afternoon so that I have some healthy breakfasts and lunches at work this week, I ran my fingers through my hair and left without any makeup at all - not even mascara - which I never do.

I did squeeze in a fall-inspired mini collage one night this week:

And yesterday I quickly glanced at a handful of my favorite blogs (sorry, I may not have commented, but promise I'll catch up soon) and ran across this post from Dawn at A Feathered Nest. She linked to another post by Jan of The Polka Dot Barn (another darling blog, by the way) about the Team Tina Project. Tina is a fellow blogger who was recently diagnosed with colon cancer. Jan is collecting tags from any and all interested artists and bloggers to send to Tina to, hopefully, lift her spirits. I spent a little time this evening and made this tag and envie to send.

Expect miracles

I also received this picture of my grandson this weekend. What an angel! And he obviously takes after his grandma - falling asleep with a book in his hands. How sweet.

And it's really got me thinking. Tina is a grandma too. I can't imagine how sad I would be if I found out I was sick and the possibility existed that I might not ever see this precious little face again. So . . . I'm sticking my tag in the mail to Jan tomorrow and saying a prayer for Tina tonight.

Now I'm going to have a bowl of homemade rhubarb crisp with some good vanilla ice cream. Life is short and we should always make time for art, for prayer, and for really good desserts!

Six Word Saturday

2009-09-26T22:08:00.005-07:00

It's Saturday? What happened to Friday?

Busy, busy week at work. Worked the better part of today too. Will continue into next week I'm afraid. Really hate that it limits my play time, but what's a girl to do?

Hope to catch up with you all a little bit tomorrow. xoxo!

International Day of Peace

2009-09-20T21:01:00.009-07:00

There is no way to peace. Peace is the way. --Thich Nhat Hanh

Click here for information on the International Day of Peace. Click here to visit other participants in Rhonda Roo's Peace Party. Perform a random act of kindness today, smile at a stranger today, and please pray, everyday, for peace.

The Zen of Cooking - worth the wait

2009-09-20T20:55:00.003-07:00

Cream Soda Toffee Cupcakes with Brown Butter Frosting

a sweet ending to the weekend.

The Zen of Cooking Week Two - 60 minutes later

2009-09-20T14:33:00.003-07:00

Progress . . .

The Zen of Cooking Week Two

2009-09-20T13:03:00.007-07:00

I so enjoyed spending last Sunday in the kitchen that I'd planned on doing it again today. And I am. But I got a late start and am not quite "in the zone" today. Like, I know that butter has to sit out at room temp for a bit to soften before you bake with it. Why was mine still in the fridge until five minutes ago? And I still have two cupcakes left from last Sunday (was three until about ten minutes ago), so should I even be baking more? (Stupid question, I know!)

So for now, cupcakes are in a holding pattern. Can you guess which ones I decided to make?

Six Word Saturday

2009-09-20T07:50:00.004-07:00

It's Sunday. Am I too late?

I saw this "Six Word Saturday" thing a week or two ago, then forgot all about it. Thanks to The Fragrant Muse and Serenity Now, I found it again today. (even though it's already Sunday.)

Decisions, Decisions

2009-09-19T06:00:00.003-07:00

Your help please!

Last Sunday I baked - cupcakes and muffins. I want to experiment some more this weekend, but can't decide which cupcake recipe to try. Which would you choose?

Cream Soda Toffee Cupcakes with Brown Butter Frosting. (Recipe here.)

White Chocolate Mud Cake with Whipped White Chocolate Ganache

Choc Chip Cherry Cake with Milk Chocolate Ganache

Vegan, gluten-free Red Velvet Cupcakes (although I don't have the ingredients for the vegan vanilla frosting, so would have to make something else)

I also found some gorgeous rhubarb at the grocery store, so I'll be making a rhubarb apple crisp too. Mmmm . . . Don't forget - the door is open!

"This is a murder investigation."

2009-09-18T15:52:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying that I don't watch a lot of TV. I will admit, though, that I am a fan of a few cop shows. I have my favorites, and they're my favorites for different reasons. I take them all with a grain of salt, and realize that they are for entertainment and not necessarily accurate portrayals of real police work.

NCIS is one I like. I watch mostly reruns because I can find them on at almost any time, but I'm not up to date with current season stuff. I like NCIS because of the characters. They are all so different, but they mesh so well. The Geek, McGee, is just endearing. Ziva is one tough chick, with a soft side too, though she doesn't show it often. Tony is . . . well . . . Tony. Abby is just a freakin' genius. But I don't believe for a minute that there is any one forensics expert that is an expert in fingerprints, and ballistics, and DNA, AND computer forensics, AND . . . you get the point. And is there anyone cooler or smoother than Gibbs? Anywhere? And when, out of the blue, he flashes that smile, well, he is human after all.

I watch CSI from time to time, also reruns. I mostly watch the original, set in Las Vegas, and some of the Miami version. But that's one show that it's hard for me not to nit-pick. Perhaps I just don't have accurate information, but I'm not buying that crime scene investigators all carry guns and make arrests. They certainly don't where I live. And do they really interview suspects? That's what the cops are for. My favorite CSI character is Grissom. A loner, very different from everyone else, but not at all ashamed or embarrassed by it. Then there's Horatio on CSI Miami. Puh-leez. What kind of a lunatic would always wear a jacket, and wear all black at that, in the heat of Miami? And never sweat? And every show ends the same - Horatio is alone with his thoughts, looking ever so concerned and humble, and we are supposed to be touched to the heart by it all. Puke.

My favorite thing to hate, though, about all the CSI shows (and probably some other cop shows, but this one in particular), is how they are the be-all-and-end-all of important people on a mission and everyone better do what they say and give them what they want because "this is a homicide investigation."

CSI: "Doctor, We're going to need her medical records."

Trauma Room Doctor: "You know I can't give you those. They're confidential."

CSI: "Look, this is a homicide investigation. That woman is dead, so I think the need for confidentiality is moot."

Or . . .

CSI: "The cook said he saw you and the dead guy arguing during the lunch rush."

Waitress: "Oh no, we never argued. We got along real well."

CSI: "Let me make something clear for you. This is a homicide investigation. If you're lying to me, even a little bit, I'm going to come down on you like a load of bricks."

OR . . .

CSI: "We're gonna need to talk to your employees."

Drive-In Manager: (groans) "Oh, come on, please. Is that really necessary?"

CSI: "It's a homicide investigation. We could just call the health inspector and see how many code violations he has festering in that concession stand."

Drive-In Manager: "Geez, fine, knock yourselves out."

Sometimes I miss a few seconds of the show because my eyeballs have rolled so far into the back of my head that it takes a second for them to roll back around again. And yet I keep watching. So tell me, who's the lunatic now?

Fear: I'm Not Having It Anymore

2009-09-17T20:16:00.000-07:00

Some days back, I posted in my 10 Cose di Me that I had come home from work one Friday evening when my husband was out of town and caught someone in my house. That was a few years ago, but I still remember it very well.

When I get home in the evenings, I always pull my car into the garage, close the garage door behind me, and enter the house through a door leading in from the garage. At the time, we had two dogs. They could hear the garage door go up and were always waiting, tails wagging, just inside the door for me. When I came in that day, the dogs weren't right there, although that didn't dawn on me right away. I'd set my things down on the dining room table and turned to walk towards the kitchen, when I caught some movement near the front door out of the corner of my eye.

It's funny how fast things happen. I was immediately struck with terror, and then just a fraction of a second later, I was relieved because I knew who the person was. It was our neighbor's son, about 19 or 20 years old at the time. His parents were out of town too and he was taking care of their house for them. He was nervous; he was maybe even more scared than I was. He stammered and gave me some story, a very shaky story, about leaving his phone in the house when he'd been over earlier in the afternoon visiting with my daughter, who had since left to spend the night at a friend's house. He had come back to look for it. He apologized and made his way out the door.

I just stood there for a minute, my mind racing, trying to sort everything out. How had he gotten in? He had obviously been back near the bedrooms; what had he been doing? Of course the dogs weren't barking - he knew their names, and if he'd really been over earlier in the afternoon, then he was no stranger to them either. Then there was a knock at the door and it was him again. Apparently, he had not had his phone in his hand when he'd left the first time. I couldn't tell you; I had not been paying that much attention. He said he thought he remembered now where it was, he thought he'd left it in the bathroom. He went to the bathroom to retrieve it, and he left again, still very nervous and a little panicked. I locked the door behind him.

And then I started getting mad. At myself.

When I first realized that someone was in the house, but then realized that I knew who it was, it was almost like it was a relief, and I'd let my guard down. I even said, "Oh, it's you." Which translated to, "Oh, it's you. Well, then I guess it's okay. Oh, and you forgot something the first time? Well come on in again." WTF? I know better than that! He still had no business being in my house. I should have said, yelled, "WTF are you doing in my house? You left your phone? Bullshit! Get TF out of my house NOW!" But, like I said, things happened very quickly, and that's not what I did.

I called the police, my hubby talked to his dad when they all got home, and the matter was handled. But I still saw him around, and he made me very uncomfortable. I'm not sure I was afraid of him, but I avoided him.

Sometimes if we were outside chatting with his parents, he'd show up and hang out, with what I swear was a smirk on his face, because he knew that it bugged me. If I was out in my backyard, and saw him out in his parents' yard, I'd immediately go into the house. If I wanted to go out on to the patio, I'd look out the back door first and if he was around, I'd stay inside. I had given him control.

Finally something clicked and I got mad again. Why was I acting like I was afraid of him? He should be embarrassed, and he should be afraid of me! And that was the end of that.

I realized then, too, that I'd done the same thing with a couple people at work. A couple of people made me uncomfortable, and if I saw them coming towards me down a hallway, I'd turn and go another way, or do whatever I needed to do to avoid them.

Not anymore. I look people in the eye and I'm not intimidated. Sometimes I even want to say, "Bring it!" It's really kind of liberating! So there's one more "cose di me."

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-09-16T06:17:00.001-07:00

How do you wish to stretch?

That's Jamie's question to you and to me this week.

And I find no need to look very deep, or to get all symbolic or metaphorical. It's pretty straightforward. I just need to stretch. I just need to move. I just need to bend and to fold and to extend. Nothing complicated here. Just need to go to the mat. No more excuses - "I have a stomach ache," or "I have a headache." (Downward facing dog is a bitch when your head is pounding.) So I'll find some poses to do.

a scrapbook page I did of a yoga retreat I attended

Please be sure to visit Jamie's blog to visit other Wishcasters.

Namaste,

The Zen of Cooking

2009-09-15T20:20:00.010-07:00

and a recipe to share.

Among my many, many hobbies are cooking and baking.

Over the last several years, since my husband and I became empty nesters (we adapted quite quickly as a matter of fact), I find that I cook less during the week. But I still enjoy spending hours in the kitchen on the weekends. I love cookbooks; they are books after all. And I love getting new kitchen "toys" - pots and pans, knives, mixing bowls, and gadgets of all kinds. I invested in a Gel Pro mat for in front of the counter where I spend most of my time chopping and slicing and mixing. It's worth every penny. And I have a TV in kitchen.

This weekend, for example, I made:

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting - all from scratch.
Pan-seared Trout with Capers (Trout caught by Hubby in Colorado)
Fresh Lemon Rice
Citrus Roasted Asparagus
Chicken Salad (for lunches this week)
Lavender Lemon Mini Muffins
Bread and Butter Pickles

It's actually still very hot here to be spending so much time in the kitchen. But I needed it. I needed to clear my head of all the clutter and drivel from the last couple of weeks. Focusing on the weight and feel of the knife in my hand while slicing cucumbers, or really feeling the exhilaration that a whiff of freshly grated lemon zest provides really re-centered me. And then there were all those dirty dishes. They were all washed by hand. It was very soothing, if a little time consuming.

But the best part? Enjoying it all afterward. Hubby took cupcakes to work to share. I took muffins to work to share. And there were leftovers enough of the fish and the rice for at least one more dinner.

Lavender Lemon Mini Muffins
(found this recipe on the Internet somewhere)

1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. lavender
1 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 egg
2 tbsp. melted butter

Preheat oven to 400F and spray 24 miniature muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Combine sugar, lavender and lemon zest in a blender or food processor; process until lavender is chopped. Remove 2 tbsp. to a small bowl and set aside. Combine remaining sugar mixture, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Stir together buttermilk, oil, lemon extract and egg in a small bowl; add to dry ingredients, stirring just until combined. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. While still warm, brush tops with melted butter and dip in reserved sugar mixture.

Wishing you a sweet life,

Dreaming in black and white

2009-09-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

I love color, but sometimes black and white, or cream, is just classic and elegant. These have me drooling.

Ice Milk Aprons

Crabtree and Evelyn razors

"Zen" Two Tone Infuser Tea/Coffee Mug

Two Tone Leather Journal

Sprinkles Cupcakes

Pottery Barn Monogrammed Soaps

still here . . .

2009-09-09T20:47:00.024-07:00

to wishes,

Unexpected Gifts

2009-09-06T12:02:00.011-07:00

We had rain yesterday. Real rain. Not just a sprinkling. Not just a smattering. Not just a drizzle. Rain. And the temperature dropped about twenty degrees. It was WONDERFUL!

It started midafternoon with a lot of thunder and some lightning. Then came the wind, and finally the rain. Definitely worth waiting for.

While standing out on the back patio enjoying every second of the cloudiness and the breeze and the smell (!), I noticed that my bougainvilla had fallen over. It is on a trellis/arbor and is just starting to get big. It's not the first time it's fallen over, but I'm always a bit alarmed because I don't want it to break or be damaged at all. I'm waiting (ever so impatiently) for it to climb up and over the top of the arbor and cover it. (Besides, I hate it when I know a plant has been damaged because I can almost hear them in pain. I also can't walk by the 50% off shelf in the garden center at the home improvement store without bringing a couple of poor babies home for some TLC. )

After the rain had subsided, I was standing in my kitchen looking out the window, watching the birds return the feeders. I looked over towards the bougainvilla, thinking that I needed to get my plant tape or some string and go out and stand it back up, hoping that it wasn't broken. When I looked, though, I saw a pair of doves sitting side by side on one of the branches. I smiled and thought to myself, "Now there. You see? If it hadn't fallen over, those two little honeys wouldn't have a spot to sit side by side." And I ran to grab my camera. I didn't think I could get close enough, even with the zoom on, to get a very good picture, but I was going to try (because that's what I'm beginning). By the time I snuck outside and tiptoed to the edge of the patio, they had moved apart. I snapped a photo anyway, a little disappointed that I'd missed "that moment." And then they flew away.

But when I turned around to head back to the house, I looked up and saw the beginning of a rainbow.

I kept an eye on it, but this was all I was ever able to see. And it was enough.

Today it is sunny again. And hot. And humid. But I have a rainbow in my heart and life is good.

10 Cose di Me

2009-09-03T19:33:00.013-07:00

I got an e-mail today from The Fragrant Muse, the title of which was "You're It." She'd tagged me in a meme, and I simply cannot say no to Liz! (I also couldn't resist her use of Italian, which I kept in my title. And, no, I do not know how to count in Italian, at least not before this; I looked it up.)

The rules are simple: I am to tell 10 things about myself that my readers may or may not know, but are true.

uno. I work with mostly men. (Much less complicated than working with women, I can say from experience.)

due. I am 5'8 (maybe 5'9") and between 135 and 140 pounds, and wear a size 10 shoe. (and on days when I wear heels to work I am taller than most of the men.)

tre. I have been a victim of domestic violence (not my current hubby, he was a victim too). People that know me now (the few that know about it) say they find it hard to believe. I tell them that's because going through that helped to make me the strong woman that I am today.

quattro. My corn relish has won a purple ribbon at the county fair. And a jar of jelly won a red ribbon. I still have the ribbons.

cinque. I have watched "Top Gun" so many times that I know most of the dialogue word for word. I don't like Tom Cruise much any more. Tom Selleck on the other hand . . .

sei. I have worn braces -- twice.

sette. I used to be VERY shy, and I still am a little bit, but I'm also a decent public speaker.

otto. I don't really like diamonds so much. I have a diamond ring that was my mom's, I have a diamond tennis bracelet that my husband gave me for our tenth wedding anniversary, I have some sapphire jewelry that also has diamonds, but that's it. My wedding ring is a plain gold band, and I don't own diamond earrings or a necklace. (Although I look at earrings every once in a while, they just don't thrill me.) I love gemstones, precious and semiprecious, instead. Also prefer silver over gold.

nove. I came home after work in the evening once when my husband was out of town and caught someone in the house. That was scary.

dieci. I really don't like the desert, but I've lived in it all my life. I want to move to North Carolina.

I am now to pass this along to 10 blogging friends. I don't know about 10, but there are a few that I would bet have some pretty interesting stories and that I would like to get to know better. I hope they will share.

Eyecandy
Marinik's Blog
Pink Purl
Yogademia
One Day at a Time

If I didn't tag you, but you want to play, the more the merrier! Just leave me a comment because I don't want to miss it!

Buona notte!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-09-02T17:51:00.013-07:00

What do you wish to begin?

I can't believe it's Wednesday again already. And September! My head is spinning.

I love Jamie's question this week. Most of my blogger friends and I all share a similar trait - we all have ideas - for projects and adventures and creating and writing and - well the list just never ends! And it's hard to find time to do everything. In fact, sometimes our creative juices are flowing so quickly and in so many different directions that it's overwhelming, and it's hard to just slow down enough to even begin one thing!

I am inspired everyday by what I see in the blogs I read. So much gorgeousness! In words, and sewing, and painting, and poetry, and photographs. And I want to try everything.

I've been wanting, probably since I started blogging, to improve my skills in photography. I would love to feel comfortable calling myself a photographer. But I only "take pictures," I am not a "photographer." I've dug out the book for my camera (just a little Sony), and even picked up a book or two at the bookstore. I've played with the settings on my camera (and then got them so out of whack that a bunch of pictures didn't turn out). And I've even considered changing my "Paris Fund" to the "Camera Fund" (but I'm not quite there yet).

I know that experimentation and practice are a big part of perfecting any skill or hobby. And I've been working on that. A little. But I wish to really begin.

Strangely enough (more like magically enough), I began a little this morning, before I even knew what today's prompt was. I was leaving the house to go to work. I'd backed my car out of the garage and was sitting waiting for the garage door to finish closing. I glanced over to the east and gasped. The sunrise was spectacular. I thought, "Wow! I wish I had my camera. That could be such a fantastic photo." I went ahead and backed out into the street, but turned one more time to look at the sun peeking out from behind a cloud.

That was it. I put the car in drive, pulled back into the driveway, raised the garage door and ran back into the house for my camera. I realized that this moment was passing quickly and that the sun would never sparkle from behind a cloud in just this way again.

This is not a perfect photo, but it is a beginning. The beginning of a new day, and the beginning of a new learning experience.

To beginnings,

p.s. Please follow the link above to Jamie's website to visit other Wishcasters.

More Collaging in Miniature

2009-08-29T21:46:00.013-07:00

I enjoyed a post from B today, who has been MIA from the blogosphere for a bit. And that's totally allowed, and understandable. We all need a blogging holiday from time to time. Been there, done that. It's necessary.

I liked reading about the many things that B's been up to this summer. I would love to see some of the tote bags, jewelry, and books she's been making. And embellished underwear? I really want to see that! I might be inspired to give it a go myself.

I was inspired today, though, by the collages that she shared. She left me wanting more, and I'm hoping that if I'm patient, I'll be rewarded with more. In the meantime, I got out my old magazines and my scissors and my glue stick. Thanks, B, for the inspiration.

It's Amazing What You Can Find . . .

2009-08-28T21:17:00.014-07:00

. . . when you clean up your craft room.

Earlier this week, I did some rearranging and reorganizing in my office slash library slash craft room. I went through a couple of old cigar boxes I had shoved into the back of a shelf. I found a stash of photos that I had printed about a year ago for scrapbooking, and I found some ATC's I made at about the same time. I'd totally forgotten about them (and obviously they didn't get sent to wherever they were supposed to go. Oops!) But I remember how much fun I had making them, and I really like them.

Beach ATC's

Asian ATC's

Bugs ATC's

Asian Tag

I have a few others, but these are my favorites. I would love to share . . . anyone interested?

I Danced

2009-08-27T21:15:00.011-07:00

I danced today.

I had the day off work today. My plan was to continue painting - the entry way and/or the living room, after doing my bedroom last weekend. But I let myself sleep in, and it was glorious. That first cup of coffee was wonderful, and when I peeked out the door to the back patio, the white cat (not mine, but one of many that seem to live in my yard) was curled up on the glider, enjoying the morning before the heat became unbearable. It was just too perfect a morning for anything that resembled work.

A couple of weeks ago, in my meandering through the blogosphere, I found a blog called A Fanciful Twist. Quite magical and a little ethereal, almost like a fairytale. This particular post had me at the "lace and paper flowers." And I instantly wanted to put on a twirly skirt and dance.

Since that night, I've had it on the mental list in the back of mind to look through my old CD's for one in particular. But, as it usually plays out, there was always something more important to do. Until today. And I found it - "Gypsy" by Fleetwood Mac. And so I danced. In my pajamas. And the day was good.

Photo Source

I hope you dance today!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-08-26T20:30:00.013-07:00

It's Wishcasting Wednesday. You can be a maker of magic and a tender of wishes.

Jamie's prompt today:

For what do you wish to acknowledge yourself?

Okay, I'll give myself a pat on the back today.

I acknowledge myself for inspiring creativity in others.

When I did my first Full Moon Dreamboard several months ago, I really enjoyed it. It was fun, it was kind of relaxing, and it was rather fulfilling. And I still love it. It's still up on my bulletin board, and I still love the colors and the pictures and the message that I know is there for me. I really, really believe that one reason, a big reason, a lot of us are unhappy in our lives is because we have no creative outlet.

Every kid loves creating. In fact, it is pretty much a given that every child is a little artist. We give them crayons and paper and pencils and glue. It's almost automatic - it's like it's as much of a requirement for a healthy child as drinking their milk and eating their vegetables. And we place great importance on their creations. We stick them up on the refrigerator with magnets or frame them and hang them on the wall. And every mother has a box or an envelope someplace where she's saved these precious masterpieces.

So what happens as we get older? What changes? Nothing changes except for what we perceive to be priorities. But I have discovered over the last few years that I need to play. I am a much happier girl if I'm creating. It can be (and has been) beading, or sewing, or scrapbooking, or rubber stamping, or painting. Or it can be as simple as cutting up a magazine and gluing pictures and words onto a big piece of paper.

I liked the Full Moon Dreamboard idea so much that I invited friends over to join me. I have hosted two Dreamboard Circles so far, and am planning my third one. My friends love it. (In fact, last month a special friend traveled 250 miles to come play!)

When I hosted my first Circle, I was right in the middle of a wonderful experience called "Wreck This Journal." Of course I had to get it out and show it to everyone, and one of my friends, M, actually helped me with a page. Just a few days ago, M called me from the bookstore. She thought it was so cool that she was buying one too.

So there you have it. I am a creativity inspirer. Or conspirer. See? I even create new words! It's all good!

To your creativity,

P.S. Please be sure to follow the link above to Jamie's Studio to visit other Wishcasters.

It's Tuesday . . .

2009-08-25T20:00:00.013-07:00

. . . and I feel like I'm still recovering from the weekend.

Well, let's see . . .

On Friday, I got hubby off on his fishing trip. Up north. Where it's cool. Lucky bastard*. Don't know what else I did that day, but I'm sure there was something. Some form of domestic chore, no doubt.

Saturday morning I was up early and off to the home improvement store for paint. Walked out of the store with four gallons of paint, some new roller covers, a couple of tray liners, a yardstick, and two ferns. (I can't resist the garden center. Ever!) Stopped at Starbucks on the way home for a cinnamon dolce latte, a lowfat raspberry muffin, and some sort of a chocolate, chocolate, chocolate cookie that was for my afternoon break. (It was heavenly! Can't remember what I did on Friday, but I remember every crumb of that cookie.) Got home, changed clothes, washed walls, and gathered my paint supplies/tools. I got 7/8ths of the room painted, but I can't move the bed by myself, so must wait for hubby to get home to finish. Moved furniture back, replaced switchplate and socket covers and cleaned up the mess. Including me. Had a short nap and ate some little Amy's organic tortilla casserole bowl thing for supper. Watched the mama cat and the kittens in the back yard. Named them all - Mama Cat, Kiko, and Zorro. (oh oh.) Walked in and out of the bedroom a number of times to get a "first impression." Decided I needed new curtains and made a trip to the store at about 9:00 p.m. Put new curtains up and went to bed. Didn't sleep well and finally got up at about 1:30 a.m. and turned on the computer. Ate a couple of crackers and played around on www.polyvore.com for about an hour or so, then went back to bed.

On Sunday morning I was up by 7. Started laundry, cleaned bathrooms, and made a trip to the craft store. Bought a hinged display frame to hang on the wall to hold some of my necklaces. And a new basket to hold magazines. (Oh yeah! I just remembered. On Friday I went to Pier One to buy baskets for spare toss pillows and throws and books.) Put up a mirror above my nightstand and moved some other things around so I have a little space similar to a dressing table. Kind of girly and kind of fun. More like playing dress up that way. ;) More laundry, including hand washables. Outside to take care of the birds and water the plants and sneak a treat to the kitty cats. (Oops! Did I just say that? No, hubby dear, I was just kidding. I would NEVER feed Mama Cat and Kiko and Zorro. I mean those darned cats that aren't even mine. And aren't cute at all.) Climbed through the kitchen window (that thankfully wasn't locked properly and I could force open) when I realized I'd locked myself out. (Remember, hubby is out of state fishing, theluckybastard, and the in-laws with the spare key are at my sister-in-law's house 5 hours away.) Prayed that the neighbors wouldn't see "someone" climbing into my house through the window and call the cops (where I work, by the way. would be totally embarrassing). Pulled a muscle that started in my right "cheek" and ran all the way down the back of my thigh to just behind my knee. And, oh yeah, it was about 110 degrees and 30 or 40 percent humidity. Nice day to be locked out of the house at noon. Recovered and cooled off and wrote myself a note to have a spare key made and hide it in the shed someplace. Finished laundry and took a (long) nap. Had soup for dinner and gave myself a pedicure. Slept better.

Monday morning, got to work at about 6:45 a.m. Home at five. Soup for dinner again, along with a wedge of romaine lettuce, some cherry tomatoes and a drizzle of blue cheese dressing. Blogged for a bit. Talked to my son on the phone for a while. Got to bed a little after ten. Slept like a rock.

Today, at work before 7 a.m. again. At lunch time, I had a duplicate key made, stopped at the health food store for more soup (which I didn't buy because I'm not going to pay almost $4 for a can of soup), stopped at the ATM, and went through the car wash (all in just an hour). Home at 5. Talked to a friend in El Paso (while yawning), had a bowl of cereal (while yawning), blogged and read blogs (while yawning and squinting). Now it's time to get ready for bed.

Tomorrow? We'll just have to wait and see. :)

*NOTE: In this blog, Are We There Yet, the terms "bastard" and "bitch" are (almost always) used as terms of endearment. Sometimes in a fit of jealousy.

The Colors of My World

2009-08-24T19:31:00.014-07:00

The weekend, as usual, came and went too quickly. The good news is I got to spend a good chunk of it painting! The bad news is - alas! - it was not in my Moleskine watercolor journal, and not with my lovely watercolor pencils, and did not include dainty florals or any scenes from nature. It did, however, include a very pretty color called Urban Mist, even though it came in a gallon sized can.

I have been wanting to paint my bedroom for a long, long time, so I am very pleased that it is (mostly) done. The color is not exactly what I wanted, but is such a tremendous improvement that I'm happy with it. (Hubby is out of town and it'll be interesting to see how long it takes him to notice when he gets home next weekend.)

I also bought a couple gallons of paint to paint my living room and my entry way. I painted the dining room about a year ago - one of those not-quite-beige-not-quite-cream-not-quite-tan colors that seems to be different hues at different times of the day. I have an open floor plan and the dining room and living room flow one into the other, so I will continue that color into the living room. It's called Baked Scone. Mmm . . . yummy.

And that got me wondering - who gets to name all these colors? The other paint chips I picked up when trying to decide what color paint to buy are called Mesa Taupe, Silver Sage, Verdigris, Cafe Cream, Clear Pond, Sculptor Clay, and Ozone. I have a brochure/catalog from a few years ago from Anna Sova, a company that sells "healthy paint" as well as organic bedding. (They even, at one point, had what they called "Paint Aromatherapy." You could add a small container of "aroma" to your paint and it supposedly lasted from 6 months to a year. Aromas included Clean/Fresh Lemons, Hope/Vanilla, Exotica/Sandalwood, and Courage/Orange Clove. Are you getting this Fragrant Muse? ;) Don't know if they still sell them.)

Anna Sova's colors were outrageous! Elephants of Victory. Tibetan Turquoise. Fish Calligraphy. Flying Lizard. Stonehenge. Filipino Eggplant. I could go on and on.

And have you checked out a box of Crayola Crayons lately? The box of 96 still includes my old favorites from SO many years ago - Sky Blue, Apricot, Sea Green, and Burnt Sienna. Now there's also Timberwolf, Big Dip o' Ruby (metallic), Inchworm, Purple Mountain's Majesty, Tumbleweed, Macaroni and Cheese, and Wild Blue Yonder.

I want that job! I could come up with a few I think. How about Marilyn Monroe Lipstick Red, Caramelized Onion, Bird of Paradise, Egg Yolk. (I have a small eyeshadow compact with two shades of green. I put the lighter one on one day and instantly thought, "Oh no! It's that weird pearlescent green color that ham turns when it's getting a little old." Haven't ever worn that one!)

And I have some for the Grunge set - Four Day Old Bruise, Marilyn Manson Black, Dirty Dreadlocks.

What colors can you come up with?

More Than One Way to Skin a Cat (or to wear a necklace)

2009-08-17T19:00:00.015-07:00

I recently started receiving Lucky magazine. I didn't subscribe to it; it replaced another magazine I had a subscription to that went out of business. And while I don't usually buy a lot of fashion magazines, I did enjoy flipping through the September issue.

One of the things that caught my eye was this outfit.

(photo)

I have a blouse very similar to the one shown, and I am especially fond of the layers of necklaces and beads and bracelets that seem to be popular this season. I also have several flower pins and I do where them from time to time on days when I'm feeling especially girly. It's the romantic in me. (Or perhaps the artiste, I'm not sure. Tee hee.)

I popped into a department store one day last week on my lunch hour and found some silk rose pins on a clearance rack. There was a navy blue one that had my name on it, and it came home with me.

I already had a string of beads that went with the blouse beautifully. It was really long and I loved it. The first day I wore it, however, I broke it. I saved it, sure that I could fix it. I have a stash of beads and findings from my "beading period" a few years ago, and I knew that I could dig out a crimp bead and put the chain back together.

I worked on it some this weekend, but it proved too difficult. My crimp beads were too small and the chain was too delicate. I was stumped to come up with another idea.

Until this morning. I was determined to wear that necklace. I mean I just had to wear that necklace. So I came up with a couple of other ideas.

Idea number one - duct tape. (Don't laugh.) The color wasn't right - it was way too bright - but I thought I could use a tiny piece to put the chain back together, then slide a bead over the top of it and nobody would even see it. Perhaps good in theory, but not in reality.

Idea number two - Elmer's glue. Fill the center of my one loose bead with glue, then slide both ends of the broken chain into the center and let it dry. I was hopeful, even confident, that this was going to work. Time was running short, though, and it wasn't drying quickly enough. Solution? The hair dryer. It seemed to be working! I picked the necklace up and it held together. But as soon as I put it around my neck, one end pulled loose again. Damn!

Was I to be beat by a string of beads that, apparently, wanted more desperately to stay broken apart than I wanted them to be put back together? Beads, you don't know me very well, do you? Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Janet and I'm going to be wearing you today.

(color not great; rose is navy blue and blouse has lots of blue in it.)

I wore them as a lariat. And I gotta say that I like them much better that way. See beads? That wasn't so hard now was it?

Cooking and Love and Perseverance

2009-08-16T18:14:00.022-07:00

I went to see "Julie and Julia" today with my sis-in-law. We decided to meet first for brunch and take our time over it, making plenty of time for some much needed catching up.

I sometimes crave breakfast foods - waffles covered in whipped cream and fruit, pancakes dripping with syrup, french toast that looks like the Alps because of the mound of powdered sugar on top. But I almost never order it. I usually opt instead for oatmeal, or a quiche, or sometimes just two eggs and toast. But today felt special. (And that little voice in the back of my head kept reminding me that I just this week made a wish that the door to my free spirit would reopen. That I would remember to be ME and follow my desires.)

So I ordered the pan perdu (stuffed with cream cheese and orange marmalade). Appropriately, since we were going to go celebrate Julia Child, it came with an enormous mound of butter. And I didn't scrape it off. (She sighs heavily as she smiles remembering.) Heaven.

The movie was darling. (Meryl Streep as Julia Child was wonderful.) It was funny, and tender, and definitely made me want to shop for copper pots and wire whisks. It was inspiring.

And it had to do with so much more than cooking. It had to do with love, and it had to do with perseverance.

The two main characters, Julia and Julie, are both married and are both ambitious women. I was really touched by the relationship between Julia and her husband Paul. He wanted, it seemed more than anything, for her to be happy and urged her to keep looking until she found whatever it was that made her so. They just really seemed to adore each other.

Julia was told when starting cooking school that she would never be able to keep up with the men, and that she would never become a professional cook. She had her first cookbook turned down by numerous publishers. But she didn't give up.

Julie had set a goal to cook all the recipes in Julia's cookbook in one year, and to blog about it. Julie wasn't a cook; she worked in an office and aspired to being a writer. She endured a few setbacks and suffered some failures. But in the end, she cooked all 524 recipes in 365 days.

Julie also had a supportive husband. And, as we all do sometimes, she needed to be reminded just how important love is. All the sauces and the soufflés and the ducks are pretty meaningless if you have no one to share them with.

So . . . go see the movie. You'll laugh a lot, clutch your heart in a tender moment once or twice, and smile at the rewards of hard work and determination.

Enchanté,

More photos from the Motherland

2009-08-14T20:59:00.017-07:00

First two photos from Dublin, several from London, last few from Bury St. Edmunds.

Will also share photos of Kew Gardens later in the weekend.

Cheerio!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-08-12T19:59:00.020-07:00

What door do you wish to open?

That's the question Jamie asks this week. And I've had to give this one a little thought. I have the perfect picture in mind, and after some closing-my-eyes-and-listening-to-my-heart kind of consideration, I know exactly that this is the right photo. Not because of the door, but because of the person standing next to the door.

My son, J, is in the military and was stationed in England for three years. We were very fortunate to be able to visit him while he was there, and this photo was taken on that trip several years ago. It's outside an old, old church (St. Mary's I believe) in Tuddenham which is near Bury St. Edmunds.

It was a wonderful trip and we would love to go back. But what waits for me beyond that door isn't anything I experienced or learned in England.

I wrote a few months ago about My Teenage Heart. And in that entry, I alluded to the fact that there are parts of me, bits of my personality, likes and longings, that I keep hidden. J left me a comment on that post that really blew me away: "never fear the thoughts of your companion....your thoughts will make you happy before the thoughts of any other." Such wisdom from such a young soul, and probably something that I should have been teaching him and not the other way around. I felt that he'd given me such a gift, and I really had a new frame of mind for the next couple of weeks. I kept hearing his words over and over again in my mind. And I smiled every time and thought, "Yes! I am a free spirit and I can do or say or feel or like or be anything I want!"

And as it always seems to happen, time passed and I got wrapped up in the daily grind and let go of that spirit. I remember it every once in a while, but not often enough. So that is the door I wish to open. The door to my free spirit. And I think I'll find a doorstop and prop that sucker open for a while!

Please be sure to go back to Jamie's site and see what other doors are opening today.

This and That

2009-08-11T19:13:00.016-07:00

Just a little randomness today.

Found a wonderful blogger, who just happens to be in Arizona, that I think some of you will enjoy. Especially those of you with a gypsy soul. This is the post that hooked me, but do check out all of her site, A Fanciful Twist. It's just magical.

I buy organic most of the time, especially produce (even tho I read a headline from the British press, I think, a week or so ago saying it wasn't all that much better for you). My husband is okay with it, and even indulges - and enjoys - some soy products instead of meat from time to time. The other night he was in the kitchen fixing a sandwich or salad or something. I heard him start to chuckle and he called for me to come see something. He was removing some leaves from a head of romaine lettuce - organic - and there was a ladybug in between a couple of the leaves. Yup! That's organic!

For some reason it makes me feel good (successful maybe?) when one of my kids calls me to ask for advice on how to do something or cook something. "Mom, what did you used to use to marinate that chicken?" "Mom, besides the hashbrown potatoes and cheddar cheese soup and ham, what else did you used to put in the crockpot when you made that cheesy potato stuff when we were kids?" It just kind of makes me smile. And interestingly, most of those calls over the last few years have come from my son.

About three weeks ago, I saw a little calico kitten and its mommy in my backyard for the first time. I don't have cats, but a neighbor - almost a block away - has several/lots, and they have made a habit of hanging out in my backyard for some time now. (I once asked the universe why this was. I still don't know, but I take it as a compliment that they do. silly as that sounds.) The kitten was still nursing and, as near as I could guess, had probably been born either in, behind, or under (somehow) the shed in our backyard. I saw the kitten and mommy every morning and every evening. And I was captivated. I'd forgotten how cute kittens are. How absolutely curious and playful and forever pouncing on things they are! I never fed them, and while I went outside from time to time so that they could kind of get used to me, they still always run and hide when I'm too close. And now I haven't seen the kitten since Sunday. And I miss it. I keep going and peeking out the window hoping it hasn't moved on, even though I know it will eventually. Here kitty, kitty, kitty . . .

see the kitty peeking out of the shed? quality is not great, but i took it from inside the house through the window.

Happy Tuesday,

Full Moon Dreamboards

2009-08-10T21:33:00.029-07:00

It's been a few days since the August full moon. And it was several days before that, that I hosted my second Full Moon Dreamboard Circle. If you're not familiar with Full Moon Dreamboards, you can learn more from the talented and generous Jamie at Jamie Ridler Studios.

Participants in our Circles have ranged in age from 21 to 55. Mothers have brought their daughters, and a special friend even traveled over 250 miles to join us this time. It isn't really noticeable in the photos, but I always hang a big paper lantern to represent the moon. And we always have food; we must feed our physical bodies as well as our creative selves. It's just fun.

Last month, one of my friends commented that she had just gone in search of pictures that caught her eye, pictures that drew her in. I asked her what she was going to do with the board when she left, and she said that she was going to put it up on the vanity in her bathroom so that she could look at it every day and come to understand what it had to tell her. This month she said it's still there, even though it's been splashed with water and splattered with toothpaste. She's enjoyed looking at it everyday.

Just before we met this month, I'd run across these wonderful Affirmation Cards from Kind Over Matter. I printed out the complete set, and randomly chose several to put one at each place at the table. I told the girls it was an extra moonbeam of inspiration, and a couple of them even included them on their boards. (I also cut out the one that reads "Today may I see my own beauty," and taped it to the mirror in the guest bathroom.) :)

The very last board in the photos - labeled July - is mine. I started it at our circle in July but never finished. I had so much fun that day playing hostess that I couldn't sit still long enough to actually complete my board.

I hope to continue the fun next month, and I'm thinking I might even need a second table!

here's to dreams,

Vanilla Wafers and Alcohol

2009-08-08T08:05:00.020-07:00

I ventured out yesterday morning to do a few errands - post office, book store, grocery store. Nothing too unusual.

The post office, which is usually a horror, wasn't too terrible. (I had to mail a package to Diggy and Bertie. tee hee!)

The book store was wonderful (can they be anything but?). I am in search of inspiration, and went straight to the magazine rack. My bedroom needs a makeover, and while I've had an idea of what I wanted to do for the past year or two, I never did it. Now I'm so over it and ready for something different anyway. I picked up a couple of magazines, hopped back in the car and checked post office and book store off my list.

Then on to the grocery store. Not the store I usually go to, but one a little farther out of the way because they have things that I can't find elsewhere (like dried lavender for baking, anisette cookies, etc.). It was midmorning and fairly quiet, and I figured I'd sneak in and out rather quickly. I had a pretty short list.

I'm not one who usually attracts, or likes to attract for that matter, a lot of attention to myself. In fact there have been times when I have been virtually invisible (more on that in some future post). But something was different yesterday because practically everyone I ran into felt the need to engage in conversation with me.

First, there was a young Hispanic man stocking tortillas on the shelves at the end of one of the aisles. He had a stack of large plastic trays piled up on the floor. Though they weren't in the way at all, I was reaching over them to take something off the shelf adjacent to them. He saw me reaching, pointed to the trays and asked me something which I didn't understand. He repeated himself and although I still didn't understand every word, I got what he was asking me (or at least I think I did): "Are you using these?" What? Why on earth would I be using them? I smiled, said no, and went on about my business.

Down the next aisle there was an old lady (yes, a little old lady) and a young, maybe early teenage, girl shopping together. I took them to be grandmother and granddaughter. "Grandma" stopped, touched my arm, and told me she was having the darndest time finding vanilla wafers, and asked me if I might know where they were. She explained that she wanted to make a pudding and needed them to make it. I told her that I knew they were there somewhere. About that time I glanced down the aisle and the granddaughter was reaching up to the top shelf grabbing a yellow box. Success! I said, "There. See? She found them." "Grandma" chuckled and thanked me, although I'm not sure what for. I laughed, and I was invited over to her house for pudding.

A couple of cans of soup and a few minutes later, I ran into an old friend from work who is retired. He is a real sweetheart, but has the same story to tell anytime I run into him. Times are hard, he could probably use a job, but nothing's working out. I mentioned a couple of possibilities that he could look into. His replies were, "Well, you know, that Monday through Friday, 8 to 5 . . ." and "a lot of responsibility, I'm just not sure." And when I mentioned a potential part-time gig, "Well, you know, things aren't that bad yet." Funny, I'd been thinking the same thing since one of the few items in his cart was a big bottle of whiskey. Still, it was good to see him.

And, finally, while I stood looking at new cupcake pans, a neatly dressed elderly Hispanic looking gentleman picked up a couple of oval aluminum roasting pans and asked me, "Do you think my feet will fit in this?" I was polite and answered, "Yes, I'm sure they will." And then he asked, "What should I use? Alcohol of some kind?" Me, "For your feet?" Him, "Yes." Me, "I would use epsom salts." Him, "Ep(something something) salts?" Me, "Yes." Him, "Okay. Thank you." And off he went.

While I was beginning to think I'd entered some other realm or dimension without knowing it, I decided not to question the day at all. I believe that I am exactly where I am supposed to be at any given moment. For some reason, either those folks needed me, or I needed them, for reasons I may never know. And I'm good with that.

The Music That Transports Me

2009-08-03T19:16:00.038-07:00

Several posts ago, I mentioned that I'd been compiling a list of songs that "send" me to a particular moment in time. It's like how a certain smell can trigger a memory. I smell bread baking and I'm immediately anticipating my Mom's homemade potato soup and just baked bread. (Yum!)

Certain sounds can do the same thing, and certain songs in particular evoke immediate and specific memories for me. I hear a particular song and I am transported at once back to a place in time that encapsulates a significant moment in my life. Mostly, they are special, tender, beautiful moments; but not always.

"We're All Alone," by Boz Scaggs. (play song) A very special memory. I attended a weeklong summer camp (Anytown) the summer between my junior and senior years of high school. The camp was attended by high school kids from all over Arizona - 3 from my high school, 3 from the other high school where I live - and many others from all over. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this here before, but I was a GEEK in high school. Seriously, if you looked it up in the dictionary, my picture was there. I fit in okay, though. I didn't "hook up" with anyone ;) like a lot of other kids did, but I had developed a bit of a secret crush on a particular boy from the other high school in my town. (I even still remember his name. Jeesh!) On the last night of camp we had a dance. I don't remember for sure if I'd danced at all before, (probably not) but the very last dance (you know, the really special one), my secret crush asked me to dance. He was so sweet, and I don't think my feet ever touched the floor. I was floating. Sigh . . .

"Never Surrender" by Corey Hart. This song gave me strength; this song made me determined. I was in a bad situation and I needed to get out. But I knew it wasn't going to be easy. And it wasn't, but I did. Enough said.

"Let's Stay Together" by Al Green. Or anything by Al Green, for that matter, was a bad sign. When that album came on, my heart raced and my stomach clenched and I was scared. That music was usually played at night after "he" had spent an afternoon drinking (and/or other things) and was usually my clue to brace myself. That was over 20 years ago, but I still can't stand those songs.

"Waterfalls" by TLC. Another summer camp memory. Only this one many years later and much, much different. I took a week off work several years ago to be a counselor at a camp for kids who are burn survivors. This song played on the radio a few times while I was driving the five hours or so to the camp. I was so excited to be going! Turned out to be one of the toughest AND most rewarding weeks of my life.

"These Days" by Rascal Flatts. Most (all?) couples go through rough spots, and my hubby and I are no different. A few years ago we were "apart" for, as it turned out, just a week. We went out on a "date" late in the week, and this song played on the radio. My hubby asked me if I'd heard it before (I hadn't at the time). He said he'd listened to it a lot and asked me to listen to the words because it was a lot of what he'd been feeling.

"Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's Turandot, sung by Pavarotti. An incredibly beautiful song. In September 2007, I attended a yoga retreat in California. As part of our closing "ceremonies," we were doing an exercise in connecting (with the earth and with each other). They played this song and I thought my heart was going to explode. Pavarotti had died two days before.

I leave you with "Nessun Dorma."

Mental Cool Down

2009-08-01T22:17:00.010-07:00

It was hotter than hot here again today. So a little positive imagery certainly can't hurt.

Photos from Gatlinburg, Tennesse, and the Great Smokey Mountain National Park, 2006.

For a previous "Mental Cool Down," see here.

Theory #1 - My "Speck Theory"

2009-07-31T21:10:00.022-07:00

I have a theory. Actually I have a few, but let me pace myself.

This theory is one I named several years ago; I call it my "Speck Theory." Not everyone will understand it, and certainly there will be those who disagree with it. Now where do I begin?

I was raised a Catholic. I attended Catholic school, went to mass at least once a week, and had, what I consider anyway, a very sheltered childhood. Don't misunderstand - I had a great childhood and received a first rate education. What I did not learn about, however, had to do with the ways of the world and all other religions. I went to public high school, as there was no Catholic high school here at the time. And it was then that I slowly (and I do mean slowly) began to see more of the true workings of society. I started to realize that there were aspects of Catholicism with which I did not/do not agree. Nothing drastic - I never felt the need to renounce the Church. I had no desire, really, to completely alienate myself from it. I just felt the need to explore other belief systems a little bit.

My belief in "God," or a Supreme Being, or a Higher Power, or whatever you wish to call it if you believe in "it," has not waned. I believe that there is at least some version of heaven or the hereafter. And I believe that when we pass, it is simply the end of our physical body. I do not believe that any one religion is "right," and all the others are "wrong," that any one person's "God" is the only god and no other should be followed. I believe that we are all here to learn and to experience, and that we should all strive to experience love - to give it, to receive it, to be it. I believe that we are all in this together and that we are, in fact, all together one. (One of my favorite sayings - a Vedic saying - "I am that, you are that, all this is that - that's all there is.")

So, here I am. One little person in a town of 90,000, in a country of 307,054,000 on a planet of (how many?) people, in a solar system of eight (nine?) planets, in an infinite universe, in . . . who knows? Imagine you're on one of those other planets or out in the universe somewhere and look at planet Earth. Where am I? I am not even a speck from this vantage point. But zoom in a little, then zoom in a little more, and maybe I'm a speck on a speck on a speck. Such a seemingly insignificant piece of it all, but not insignificant at all. Not insignificant to me, nor to my husband, or my children, or grandchildren, or friends. Not insignificant to the people that I work with and for, nor to the birds that I feed or the plants that I water. Not insignificant to my parents and other relatives that have passed before me, or to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren that are not yet here.

So what's the point of all this? There is no point except that I am a speck - but an essential speck. So many other specks are dependent on me. Think about it next time you are in your car driving to work, or in a plane flying across a continent, or even standing in line at a coffee shop. Imagine yourself in the cosmos somewhere, and look down on your earthly body. Are you a speck too?

In this together with you,

Don't tell my sewing machine but . . .

2009-07-29T20:11:00.033-07:00

. . . all these cute projects make me want to kiss and make up with my sewing machine.

Patisserie Soleil felt desserts . . . look good enough to eat.

Heather Bailey pincushions . . . so cheery!

Or these far out Amy Butler lounge pants . . . so groovy . . .

and her Gumdrop Cushions to lounge on . . . aaahhhh . . .

And my granddaughter would love Ruby and Ginger . . .

And Grandmas can have dolls, too, right? I think I might have to have a few of these Felted Buddhas.

Peace and creativity,

Messages from my Father

2009-07-28T20:13:00.016-07:00

For the last couple of weeks, I have been compiling a short list of songs that evoke immediate and specific memories for me. It's something that happens to everyone - you hear a particular song and you are transported at once back to a place in time that encapsulates a significant moment in your life. Mostly, they are special, tender, beautiful moments; but not always.

I will still do that post one of these days, but tonight I read this post by Spudballoo. She was also transported by a song today, and while I know it was painful (you can feel it in her writing), it's also special. I doubt that she would like to never hear the song again. It's a special song to her; it's just painfully special.

Both of my parents have passed - my Mom in 1997 and my Dad in June of 2002. When my Dad died, my brother and I (I have one brother and two sisters) were co-executors of his trust. Suffice it to say that things got complicated, and - I'll even just come out and say it - damned ugly. I wound up taking care of almost every aspect of the trust, partly because my brother just couldn't or wouldn't, and partly because he (although he was not alone) decided that my father's wishes were wrong and things should be done differently. I couldn't let that happen. For the next couple of months I methodically carried out the instructions of my father's trust and will. We all fought (it was pretty much two against two) and I wanted to just quit and cut myself out of it completely in order to just be done with the whole thing. But I carried on, in large part because I couldn't deal with the guilt of feeling that I was letting my father down, and also because I felt I had to be sure things were done the way Dad wanted them done.

I got to a point where I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat, I had headaches all the time, and I lost weight. It was September and there was one last thing to take care of, something that my brother should have taken care of anyway. I got home from work that day and gathered the remaining documents together. I had my daughter drive me to my brother's house and I knocked on his door. I handed him the paperwork and said, "I quit."

I cried all the way home I'm sure, partly from guilt, maybe partly from relief. I apologized to my father over and over again and prayed that he understood. When I finally crawled into bed that night, I was flipping through channels on the TV. I ran across one of the country music video channels and stopped there. I had never before, and have never since, seen a video clip of Patsy Cline singing "Crazy" on a music video channel. It was one of my Dad's favorite songs, and I can still here him singing it. :) (He thought he was quite a crooner.) I knew right away that it was a message from him. He was telling me, "Hey, kid. It's okay! Don't feel bad! You did good, and I'm proud of you and I love you." Oh yeah - it was my Dad's birthday that day.

My Dad has sent me messages like that a few times. I remember one morning several years ago leaving the house in the morning. I don't remember what was going on at the time - maybe there was nothing other than the fact that I might have needed a hug that day. My daughter was in the car with me; I was dropping her off at school and then going to work. She turned the radio on and tuned it to the country music station. There was a song just starting - "Kiss an Angel Good Morning" by Charlie Pride. Another of my Dad's favorites, and another one of those songs that you just don't hear everyday. I just smiled and said to myself, "Good morning Dad!" The song concluded and, instead of the disc jockey coming on, another song immediately started - "Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine" by Tom T. Hall. I had to pull the car over to the side of the road. It was Dad for sure.

My son and my Dad - about 1984

Of course those moments make me cry. There isn't even a second to try to suck it up and hold back the tears to save for later. It's automatic. And it's kind of sad, but it's very reassuring at the same time. I know that I have angels watching over me, and I know that I am never alone. And I really wouldn't trade those moments for anything.

I wanted to tell you a simple story . . .

2009-07-26T21:16:00.024-07:00

I wanted to tell you a simple story about an interesting bit of trivia that my husband shared with me a couple weeks ago. But since I haven't written much here about my husband, I wanted to describe him a little bit first.

My first attempt at describing the hubby was, "My husband is what you might consider the ultimate man's man. He is strong and tough, smart and witty, and definitely fills his role as the hunter in our hunter-gatherer relationship. I especially like having him around because he can fix darned near anything."

However, not wanting to ever write anything erroneous here, I thought I should check to be sure that my understanding of the term "man's man" was, in fact, correct. I mean, after all, I'm not a man, so do I truly understand the whole "man's man" concept? I really don't know. So I looked it up.

Urban Dictionary defines man's man as: "He always shaves and wears clothes that fit. He's worldly, educated, and a gentleman. He thinks that buttoned shirts are not just for special occasions and that newspapers have more than one section. While he is polite, he is not a pushover. He will swear when he needs to, but will try to control his temper. He can handle his liquor and keeps himself in shape." Um . . . nope, that's not it exactly. There's a lot there that's not my husband. Will go days without shaving. Buttoned shirts are for uber special occasions only. Is polite most of the time.

Mans-man.com states: "They're charismatic. They appeal to both sexes. They're down-to-earth and affable. They're leaders. They have a sense of style. They're cool under pressure. They're mavericks. They're winners. They're masculine. They're the kind of men other men respect and look up to. They're the kind of men that women swoon over. A Man's Man is fiercely loyal to his friends. He's the guy who will give you the shirt off his back without question." Okay. That's a little closer. He's definitely down-to-earth, he's masculine, and would, without a doubt, give you the shirt off his back.

Maybe the term I was looking for was "manly man."

Urban Dictionary again: "Manly Man A man who is comfortable in his own skin, but doesn't use skin care products. Someone who drives a vehicle with "muscle" but knows where to draw the line. i.e.- you won't need a ladder to get in. A man who loves women, but not all at the same time. *see playa. Protective but not overly aggressive. Prefers big dogs over cats. Masculine sans machismo. Heterosexual, period. Soap? Irish Spring, of course. Brad Pitt is not a manly man but George Clooney and Paul Newman are." Some of this fits too. No skin care products, drives a truck, likes big dogs especially Labradors. However, not a playa.

So maybe I'll skip the label and just describe him.

He is a friend to everyone he meets, he's the life of the party, he loves to laugh. He is a hunter and a fisherman. He is jeans or shorts and t-shirts, and flip flops. He is a mechanic, a carpenter, and an all around Mr. Fixit. He is a mean barbecuer and great omelet maker (even though he's allergic to eggs). He is a history buff and a proud American. He is a stepfather and a grandfather, aka wagon puller and bubble blower. He is rock and roll, and just a little bit country. He is a blue eyed, (used to be blond) bald headed, rugged (ala the days without shaving) middle-aged man.

And he's mine!

So, what was the little story I wanted to share? A couple of weeks ago, after spending an hour or two watching the History Channel, the Hubby asked me if I knew how Maybelline mascara/eyeliner came to be. I did a quick mental search (I really wanted to say, "Well, yes as a matter of fact I do!") but came up with nothing. It seems that many millions of cakes of eyeliner and many billions of tubes of mascara ago, a young scientist saw his sister mixing coal dust and Vaseline and applying it to darken her eyes.

And according to Wikipedia: "The Maybelline Company was created by New York chemist T.L. Williams in 1913. Williams, then in his early 20s, noticed his younger sister applying a mixture of Vaseline and coal dust to her eyelashes to give them a darker fuller look. He adapted it in his little laboratory and produced a product sold locally called Lash-Brow-Ine. The product was a local hit, but the awkward name held it back. His sister, who inspired the product, was named Mabel. So T.L. Williams re-named it Maybelline, a combination of Mabel and Vaseline. It is under this name that Maybelline has achieved its now legendary status in the field of cosmetics. In 1917 the company produced Maybelline Cake Mascara, "the first modern eye cosmetic for everyday use" and Ultra Lash in the 1960s, which was the first mass-market automatic mascara."

Well isn't that a fascinating tidbit of trivia to stash away!

I think I'll keep him.

End of Week Confessions

2009-07-23T21:21:00.002-07:00

Just a little miscellany - nothing for the Enquirer or anything. (a couple of those are in the very fine print at the bottom. tee hee!)

I often have a slice of cheese before bed.

I have a couple pairs of pants on which the hem has come loose, and I've been fixing them with double sided tape - for months!

I had to cancel a dentist appointment last August and told them I would call to reschedule. I haven't called yet. (I really did intend to! I promise!)

Sometimes when I'm home alone and I don't feel like talking to anyone, I just don't answer the phone - no matter who is calling.

I have a tattoo.

I (almost) never (about 95% of the time) try things on before I buy them. And I'm not the best at returning things quickly. (I once tried to return 2 pairs of pants to a store that had a 30 day return policy. I'd bought the pants 32 days before I went in to return them. They were only going to give me about 25% of what I paid for them, so I kept them and didn't shop there for almost a year. Turns out I tried the pants on again a couple of months later and I love them.)

I have never had a bikini wax. Once after getting my hair cut short, I had a couple small patches of hair on my neck waxed, and it hurt like a mother! For a couple of days! I think I would have to take a couple of sick days from work if I did the bikini wax.

I hate my freckles (actually a combination of freckles and moles. but I hate the word "moles" so I just call them all freckles.) (Oh yeah - and a growing number of age spots too.)

I am secretly thrilled with the fact that I don't yet have gray hair (a very few strands here and there). And I'm the oldest of 4, and everyone else does. (Now, of course I'm going to wake up in the morning and be totaly gray! Yikes!)

I love it when my husband is out of town for a couple days, and I have the bed to myself.

I occassionally sneak in a load of laundry during "peak hours." (power bill is cheaper if we stick to a special plan where we use minimally between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.)

I spent a night in jail when I was 18.
I went skinny dipping with one of the guys from a band after the bar closed.

"Clutter Blocks Success"

2009-07-22T05:54:00.023-07:00

On mornings when I steal a few minutes to read my e-mail before leaving for work, I usually have to pick and choose just a couple that sound especially enlightening or intriguing. Sometimes I hit the jackpot, and sometimes I don't. But today I opened a little pearl. It is both luminous and simple in its message, really, and the timing couldn't be more ideal for me.

Read more about the author, Christine Kane, below. And check out her blog and her music if you have the time.

The Year I Discovered How Clutter Blocks Success

I looked at my phone in horror.

"You want me to what?" I said into it.

"It's time, Christine. You've been talking about that basement for weeks now. It's time to deal with it."

I had been working with my coach for months at this point. And even though I had reached certain levels of success in my career, I kept getting stuck in the same old ruts. I was about to record my fourth CD, and I was ready to move to a higher level.

Thom was doing what good coaches do: listening carefully, seeing clearly - and of course, pushing me to take conscious action.

So, he encouraged me to start small and completely clear out the junk in my basement. Thirty minutes a day.

One section at a time. Building momentum as I went.

Each week, during our call, I'd report back on my progress. Each week, I had a new reason why I simply could not let go of some clutter-y item.

"But I spent so much on it!" "I might need it someday!" "I could gain weight and need this again." "I paid such a good price for it!"

To my credit, I did pretty well at letting go once Thom talked me through these old mindsets.

Then came the week I had to face one particularly significant section of the basement.

It was where I stored various pieces of furniture I had gotten at the Salvation Army and at local flea markets when I first began my songwriting career. A bookcase, a kitchen table, a dresser, and a few shelves. I no longer liked or used this furniture because my tastes totally changed. I had begun to cherish beauty and opulence in my surroundings. I wanted to fill my home only with items that I loved."

So, Christine," Thom asked. "Why don't you want to let these things go?"

I was embarrassed. But I told him the truth. "Well, here's the thing. If my music career doesn't work out, I might need them one day. If I fail, and I don't have any money, I might wish I had kept these things."

Long pause. "So, you'll be on the street - but at least you'll have that bookcase?"

I laughed.

Thom sighed. And what he said next has been a core lesson of creating my success and happiness.

He said that everything in our lives has energy. Everything has our thoughts and emotions embedded into it. Old furniture is no exception. In essence, what I was saying to the universe and to my subconscious, creative self was this:

I believe so deeply in my own failure that I'm holding onto physical things that represent that possibility. Every time I walk by these items in my basement, I will be reminded of my inevitable failure. Every moment I'm in my house, my subconscious will know that in the very foundation of my life (my basement), there are items that prove I don't believe in my own success.

That week, I called Goodwill, and scheduled an appointment to have the old furniture taken away.

I'd love to report that I smiled and waved as the old clunky furniture was carried away. But the truth is I was terrified. I was letting go of my Plan B. I was saying to the Universe:

"I thoroughly believe in my own success."

I had never done that before in such a concrete way!

As I wrote earlier, I began recording my fourth CD "Rain & Mud & Wild & Green" as I was clearing out the basement. That CD went on to sell five times more than any of my other CD's. It received rave reviews. Border's Books featured it on a listening post that year, and named it the top CD of the year in my category.

Now, even though I know this success wasn't ONLY about letting go of my old flea market furniture, I have become a firm believer that we each need to pay attention to the energy of the stuff that surrounds us. We need to pay attention to what we are telling our subconscious minds when we hold on.

Now you.

What are you holding onto? What thoughts and beliefs are you putting out into the Universe by clinging to it? Are you telling yourself you don't believe in the inevitability of your own success and prosperity? Or that you don't believe you can expand and create better things in your life?

Pick one thing - just one small thing - and let it go. Today!

Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her 'LiveCreative' weekly ezine with more than 4,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FREE subscription to LiveCreative at http://www.christinekane.com/.

More Simple Things

2009-07-21T19:19:00.023-07:00

It's been a couple of weeks now since Christina of Soul Aperture invited us to slow down and take note of the simple things that bring us joy. For some reason, summertime just seems to be all about simple things. Or maybe it's because summertime is steeped in so many traditions, and they remind us of simpler times. In any case, I'm continuing to be a big fan of simple things.

ironing (with a linen spray with just the slightest scent of lavender)

a plain white linen blouse

vanilla ice cream

sprinklers

whisper pink toenail polish

singing

"creating" with magazine cut outs, paper, and glue

piggy banks

a wave from a neighbor

ice cold watermelon

cartoons and cereal on Saturday mornings (no age limit!)

car trips with "slug bug" and travel games and rushing to put your shoes back on when stopping for a potty break

I hope you take the time to enjoy a few simple things today.

Peace,

5-7-5

2009-07-20T20:21:00.002-07:00

A sprinkling of summer haiku . . .

sound of a mower

and it's eight o'clock at night

must be summertime

hear the cicadas

as they all sing the same song

but you can't see them

turf wars with the weeds

a battle i'll never win

humbly i concede

little feathered friends

finding damp spots in the shade

trying to stay cool

Decluttering and Creativity

2009-07-18T14:01:00.015-07:00

I have been cleaning, decluttering, purging -- whatever you would like to call it. I don't know if it's the hot (and I do mean hot!) weather, but I feel almost "stifled by stuff" at home lately. Things are not really out of place (except for the pantry and my closet) but our house is 13 years old and there is a list of things that are starting to look old and worn. It's time to start addressing that list, and it seems logical (to me anyway) that a good place to start is just with a good thorough cleaning - top to bottom, room to room, wall to wall - and maybe some fresh paint.

During my "rest breaks" (they are a requirement after all, what with the heat and everything), I've torn pages out of magazines and grouped them by themes. As time has permitted, I've quickly done some mini collages of some of my favorite colors and themes.

Such great fun. Hope to do more in the next couple of days.

Observations on a Weekend

2009-07-12T11:04:00.006-07:00

Little dirty feet always seem to be wet, thereby leaving little dirty footprints/smudges on every inch of tile floor.

Coffee really does taste the best on Sunday mornings when it can be drunk slowly (with no three-year-olds around!).

It is possible to do four things at once: boil potatoes for salad (and beets for lunch), run a load of laundry, water the backyard, and vacuum.

If you feed them, they will come. (In this case, the birds; but I’m sure it applies to other areas as well.) ;)

Tuna salad is good for breakfast.

Three-year-olds are easy to please when it comes to buying birthday presents. (I asked my granddaughter what she wanted for her birthday next Saturday. She said, “avocado.” I asked her how many and she said, “two.” Then I asked her how old she was going to be and she said, “July.” )

When my daughter was young, she jabbered ALL THE TIME!! (She even got a sweatshirt for Christmas one year that said, “Help! I’m talking and I can’t shut up.”) Granddaughter is turning out to be exactly like her mother. ;)

The little 3 ounce single serve cups of ice cream that you can buy by the dozen from the supermarket are really, really good!

Naps are wonderful.

Trying to get motivated and accomplish anything after a nap of more than an hour is next to impossible.

Baby Steps in . . .

2009-07-11T22:02:00.020-07:00

watercolor journaling

I have, for many years, admired travel sketchbooks and journals, especially those done in watercolors.

I am a big fan of watercolors in general. I don't know if it's their softness, or the way they seem to be especially forgiving, as it really seems to me that many appear to be colored "outside the lines." I just like them.

For me, part of the appeal of sketchbooks and travel journals is that they are done quickly and in the moment. I fully admit that patience is not one of my strongpoints. So the idea of completing a sketch or painting in a journal in a matter of minutes or an hour, as opposed to days or weeks, really thrills me.

My grandmother painted. She dabbled in acrylics and I have one of her paintings hanging in my spare bedroom. It's just a vase of flowers, and it's not perfect, but that's not why she painted. She painted because she was a creative type. She gardened, she crocheted, she sewed, she loved to write letters, she loved to cook and have luncheons for her lady friends. I have realized just in the last couple of years how much I am like her. And I miss her.

My favorite of her paintings, though, are a couple of miniature watercolor landscapes that she did for me. She used just the little dime store eight-color paint palette and the paintbrush that came with it. And her "canvas" was the tiny piece of cardboard that used to be in the bottom of the purse-sized packets of tissues. It's about 2 or 3 inches wide by about 4 inches long. I was probably still in grade school when she painted them, and I was in awe. She was an artist!

I have "dabbled" myself several times in the last few years. Other than a few very small Chinese brush paintings that I am fairly pleased with, I never felt that I got the hang of it. I never liked the finished product. I've tried watercolor pencils, a small watercolor palette, and even a few tubes of watercolor paints. I recently signed up for a class next month - just three hours one morning at a botanical garden. But I decided I wanted to practice a little bit ahead of time. I found some instructional videos on the Internet and watched them, and decided to give it another go.

The first sketch I did just in watercolor pencils a couple of months ago. I had not added any water until today. I don't love it, but it's a little better after I played with it today.

The next two I did tonight. I used watercolor pencils again and just looked at some pictures from a magazine and copied thrm.

I rather like the lavender. And the fruit is kind of growing on me. I definitely can't wait to try some more! On to the paint palette next.

Wreck This Journal

2009-07-10T09:33:00.014-07:00

An Ode to a Journal

I wrecked this journal once,
I wrecked this journal twice.
It started getting easier
to "not be nice."

I wrecked this journal three times,
and then I wrecked it four.
And my inner "wrecker"
hollered, "I want more!"

I've wrecked it with a pen,
I've wrecked it with some glue.
I've wrecked it with some coffee,
and with some pudding too.

I've yet to take it for a walk,
or with me in the shower.
In fact, the mere thought of it
makes me kind of cower.

A few more weeks of wrecking.
And then what? It's the end?
I'll be sad cause it's become
somewhat of a friend.

Corny, yes. But creativity is what it is!
Be sure to go to Wreck This Journal to witness the creative genius of Wreckers everywhere!

Simple Things

2009-07-08T20:34:00.009-07:00

Christina at Soul Aperture has invited us to celebrate Simple Things today. Thank you Christina for opening that little door for me - the little door that led to a small, quiet spot in my head for this contemplation.

good hair days, a big glass of iced tea with the perfect amount of lemon and sweetener, coffee when my husband makes it, a slab of romaine lettuce with a drizzle of blue cheese dressing, #2 yellow pencils, ceiling fans, butterflies floating through the backyard, rocks, cereal for supper, swinging on the glider on my back patio, getting my feet wet with the hose while watering the flowers out back, freshly cut grass, a clean pillowcase, a bath, the smell of an onion field when it goes to seed, washing breakfast dishes by hand, canning jars, Old Navy flip flops

I hope you are enjoying the simple things today.

Things To Do/Did Today

2009-07-07T20:29:00.008-07:00

Things To Do/Did Today:

Day 2 of meditation practice instead of computer/internet time before work. I'm on a roll now!

Received 2 more postcards from Postcrossing! These from Great Britain and Taiwan.

Received my Student Packet for Art Unraveled in the mail. (Yay! I'm really going! Only one class but I can't wait.)
Had salad for dinner (so cool and refreshing!)
Received a PILE of catalogs in the mail (Viva Terra, Acacia, JJill, et al) but haven't read them yet
Getting my clothes laid out for tomorrow and getting my lunch together for tomorrow (also something new I'm doing as opposed to doing it all in the morning)

And I promise (myself!) I'm going to be in bed before 10! (that's in 75 minutes). Haven't commented on all your wonderfulness and creativity as much as I'd like to so far this week, but I have been visiting! Will catch up with comments on Friday.

Who Loves Ya Baby!

2009-07-05T21:40:00.003-07:00

If you are reading this, I have an assignment for you.

It's not difficult. It won't take long. In fact, I'll even do it right along with you.

Take your hands off your keyboard. Wrap your arms around yourself and say, "(Your name), I love you! You are a beautiful person! And Janet loves you too!"

Have a great week!

Big Girl Panties?

2009-07-04T19:54:00.052-07:00

The weekend is progressing nicely. Although it's ridiculously hot outside. But that's why we have air conditioning - and lots of books and magazines, and a comfy chair in front of the computer for blogging, and a very light throw at the foot of the bed for keeping the draft from the air conditioning off one's legs while napping, and a rotisserie chicken in the fridge for dinner so I don't have to cook, and several different kinds of ice cream in the freezer. Ah . . . summertime!

Now, I have done the required laundry today, and I did clean the kitchen pretty thoroughly this morning, and even wiped down the windowsills in the kitchen and the dining room. I dusted in the dining room and my bedroom (still have a little bit left to do in there), and I have cleaned and organized my hobby room (aka the library, the office, the craft room). I managed to get outside to deep water the plants and tend to the birdcages, and I had to bandage up the bougainvilla that blew down off the arbor a few nights ago when it got very windy.

While I was outside watering, I gathered up some seed pods and skeleton leaves and things - even some moth wings - for a page in my WTJ (multitasking!) And I did take the time to glue and tape them into the journal because I didn't want to lose them once I brought them all into the house.

I've had coffee and iced tea, cut up kiwi fruit and strawberries and honeydew melon, a little cheese to go with the fruit, several bites of shrimp cocktail leftover from last night, half of a hamburger (shared with my husband), a handful of tortilla chips with guacamole, some chicken and rice, and (here's where it gets ugly) several "bites" of brownie, and i-don't-know-how-many powdered sugar donut holes that I bought for my Full Moon Dreamboard Circle tomorrow because they looked like little full moons.

And I feel horrible.

I am miserable.

In fact, I'm sitting here now in a pair of eleastic waist shorts (had my fave cargo shorts on earlier in the day but all those pockets and snaps and buttons make for uncomfortable napping), and my stomach feels so awful that the elastic is pulled way up underneath my rib cage to get it off my stomach. It's not pretty.

What has happened to me? I never used to be like this. I was always active - go, go, go; run, run, run; clean, clean, clean. Hustle and bustle! And I would never have even considered bringing powdered sugar donuts home, or if I did for some sort of occasion, they wouldn't have even been opened until just before the guests arrived. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

But I know what has happened to me. It's this. It's blogging. And Twitter. And Facebook (though not so much). And e-mail. And everything else that is a byproduct of one of the above, e.g., WTJ, collage art, links to interesting websites, etc. All such wonderful things! I'm not blaming them, however. You can't blame the pusher for an addict's addiction; you can't blame the pub for the alcoholic's fall from the wagon.

I have everything I need to right the situation. I have a trash can into which the donuts can go (actually I have the strength to just keep my hands off! The brownies too!). I have a yoga mat and yoga and pilates DVD's. I have an elliptical trainer and an iPod with some kick-ass tunes. So I figure I have options. I can:

quit blogging altogether (yeah right)
quit eating and only drink coffee and blog (hmmm . . .)
hire a maid and a cook and buy more elastic waist shorts
figure out a way to get my favorite bloggers to record themselves reading their blogs so I can listen while I work out (this might be my favorite)
get a mini voice recorder and write/dictate my blog while on the eliptical trainer for posting later (if possible to understand with all the huffing and puffing and groaning)
exercise for 30 minutes, blog for an hour; read (a book!) for an hour, blog for an hour;
15 minutes of meditation first, then 15 minutes of computer before work in the morning (in that order only!)

The key is really - though it sounds a bit (a lot) cliché - everything in moderation. And I can handle it. After all, I am a big girl - with big girl (elastic waisted) panties!

Happy weekend!

Wreck This Journal - Week 5

2009-07-03T22:08:00.009-07:00

I played a little more this week and had great fun!

the page that got washed - this was a surprise. I expected it to hold up a little bit better!

this was great! it gave me a perfect reason to sort through my pile of markers and toss old ones.

have I mentioned that I love post-it notes, especially the little page marker flags?

There is so much more going on! Go to The Next Chapter - Wreck This Journal (hosted by Jamie at Starshyne Productions ) and be wowed by all the creative destruction!

And the Morning Coffee Award Goes To . . .

2009-07-02T21:45:00.014-07:00

Some weeks back, Liz at The Fragrant Muse honored me with The Morning Coffee Award. It was my first award and meant a lot to me because I hadn't been blogging very long at all at the time. I thought I was all that and a bag of beans! (coffee beans of course!)

I have been remiss in not passing this token on to another. But I'm actually glad I waited, because in that time I've encountered a vivacious and authentic soul, who, with her verve, could almost replace my coffee in the morning. I get that much of a lift from her writing. I am very pleased to present The Morning Coffee Award to Holly at Your Mother Knows But Won't Tell You.

for blogs that go well with morning coffee

Holly, I hope you will accept this award from little ol' me, I mean, since you are the Queen of the Universe and everything! Thank you for sharing your spark with me, and please keep on writing!

Cheers!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-07-01T19:11:00.018-07:00

What Do You Wish To Nurture?

Because I'm located on the west coast, I'm often one of the last to post on any given Wednesday for Wednesday Wishcasting. And I often sit and read and offer up wishes on everyone else's posts before actually writing mine. But I did something different today. I did not want to be influenced by any other's wishes. I wanted to contemplate the question and write my own wish first. I guess I wanted to take it a bit more seriously than usual.

This week, Jamie asks, "What do you wish to nurture?" I wish to nurture my inner yogi. I love yoga, and I love some of the associated/similar habits and practices, like meditation. I just don't manage very often to actually stop everything else I'm doing and spend my time practicing. I know the benefits of yoga and meditation - I've experienced them!

Lately, I've had too frequent periods where I almost can't draw in a deep breath, or my breath catches, and I have to consciously make myself breathe slowly and deeply. And there have been too many days where I have had to stop and tell myself to lower my shoulders because they've been hunched up around my ears for too long. And I know how to fix it, but . . .

So I implore you, Universe, I come to you on bended knee (or maybe two bended knees in child's pose) I wish to nurture my inner yogi. Namaste!

Confessions, Apologies, etc.

2009-06-29T18:37:00.015-07:00

I have been unsettled today. I'm not sure why; it could be because I didn't sleep well last night. It took me much longer than usual to get to sleep, and then I tossed and turned pretty much all night long.

But whatever the reason, something is gnawing at me. The little voice in the back of my head -- the one that I can barely hear, and certainly can't make out all the words -- started early this morning.

Sometimes the little voice is fearful, sometimes it's worrisome. Today it's guilty and apologetic. So I must get these feelings out there and release them. I hope they are read, or heard, or felt, or in some way transmitted to whomever needs to hear them.

I am sorry that I don't call you on the telephone more often just to visit and stay caught up with what's going on in your life. I do care about you, and I want to support you when you're down and celebrate with you when things are great. I just really dislike talking on the phone.

I am sorry if I turned and walked the other way when I saw you from a distance and didn't feel like chatting. I should have made a point to wave you down and tell you how wonderful it was to run into you. Sometimes I just don't feel like talking.

I am sorry that I'm already trying to figure out how to get out of going to that funeral. She hasn't even passed yet! And already I'm worried about having to go and see people that I haven't seen or talked to in years.

I am sorry that I'm not affectionate towards you every day. You come up behind me and wrap your arms around me and rest your chin on my shoulder every so often, and I just continue with what I'm doing instead of turning around and hugging you back.

I am sorry that I haven't sent you the package that I owe you. There is no excuse for it. I let several days pass and didn't do it, and then one more day passed, and then another week passed, and now it sits here and I feel horrible because I know that you'll never get it.

I am sorry that I am so selfish -- with my time, with my words, with my affection.

It is almost the beginning of a new month. I try to set an intention at the beginning of each month (as opposed to only at the beginning of the new year). And I think this is a perfect starting point for July. I have a lot to work on. This is going to be tough!

With much love,

Joy

2009-06-26T13:34:00.032-07:00

The things that peg my "joy meter"

A few days ago, I was tagged by Tippyrich to do a post on My Five Favorite Random Things. As it turned out, I had already done that list after being tagged by Julochka (although I could probably do it again and have completely different items on my lists today!). But Tippyrich had mentioned that she hoped to learn more about her fellow bloggers by getting folks to play along and share this kind of information. She has a point.

Some days earlier, Tippyrich had written about counting her blessings, and had included a list of "things that give me pure unadulterated joy." So I told her that I would compile a similar list and post that instead. And here it is:

my cargo shorts (so many pockets & zippers & snaps & velcro)
my new Havaianas (with peacocks on them – so pretty)
getting a card or postcard in the mail
that first sip of coffee when my husband makes if for me in the morning
a new magazine
a comment on my blog ;)
a pedicure (preferably done by someone else)
having a baby fall asleep on my chest/shoulder
babies’ little round heads with just an ever-so-soft bit of hair
a new pic of my grandson (10 months old)
a phone call from my granddaughter (almost 3 years old, so cute on the phone : "Hi gramma. Wuv you!")
laughing out loud to a rerererererun of Two and a Half Men
reading followed by a nap
having my pillow “just right” when I go to bed at night
a hot bath on a cold night, when I can see the steam rise up off my skin
a venti passion tea, iced & sweetened please (oops! Sorry, thought I was ordering there for second!)
sitting quietly at home contemplating how blessed I am(sometimes moved to tears by it)
being “one of the guys” once a week when we all go to lunch
actually picking & eating something that I’ve grown (tomatoes, radishes, chiles, tomatillos)
having a server (waitress at a restaurant, barista, cashier) say hi & smile & ask, “the usual?”

Wishing you joy,

Wreck This Journal - Week 4

2009-06-26T13:06:00.001-07:00

Only pictures this week. Short on time.

Wreck on!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-06-24T18:58:00.017-07:00

What do you wish to savour?

That magical Jamie at Starshyne Productions has us in deep contemplation again this week. For her Wishcasting Wednesday prompt this week, Jamie asks, "What do you wish to savour?"

That side of me that craves immediate satisfaction never gave it a second thought and answered, "Ice cream! Iced coffee! Ice cold melon!" Ahh . . . it all sounds wonderful.

But the too-often-neglected quieter side of me whispered "tranquility please. a few slow, silent hours s'il vous plait."

My schedule has recently changed at work, and starting this week, I'll have off every other Friday. I am very excited. And while I would normally start making a list of all the extra things I can get done around the house, I'm going to refrain - at least for this week.

I'm going to savor waking up when my eyes open on their own, and not to the sound of the radio.

I'm going to savor my first cup of coffee quietly on the patio instead of drinking it without even tasting it while reading my e-mail.

I'm going to savor staying in my pajamas for a little while.

I'm going to savor sitting in meditation, if only for fifteen minutes (which I haven't done for a long time).

I'm going to savor running my finger along the spines of the books on my shelves deciding which one to read next.

I'm going to savor the quiet of no TV, no radio, no telephone.

I'm going to savor a nap in the afternoon (after doing pretty much nothing all morning).

Whatever you wish for, I wish for you also.

It's a Small World

2009-06-22T20:16:00.047-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, B did a post on random things - interesting links and websites that she'd run across. One of them was http://www.postcrossing.com/. I checked out the website and was immediately hooked.

I love the idea of receiving postcards in the mail from all over the world. We see and hear everyday of all the ugly, hateful acts of people. I find it so reassuring to know that there are many, many decent and interesting people in the world - people who want to reach out and have a brief dialogue with someone half a world away and share a 4 inch by 6 inch glimpse of a beautiful place or thing.

And in a way, it made me rather nostalgic. I had a pen pal from Peru when I was in grade school (I wonder whatever happened to those letters?). And I also collected stamps when I was in school. Grandma G. would always send me letters, and in them she would include an envelope, or a corner torn off an envelope, with some special stamp, some miniature work of art, often in a language that I couldn't read. And that made it all the more fascinating. She received letters from all over the world. I don't remember how she wound up with them; it might have been that she had friends that traveled and wrote to her from their faraway destinations. (Yes, I still have my stamps.)

I also remember saving my allowance and going to a particular drug store that sold foreign postage stamps in those little glassine envelopes. It was always so hard to choose - I would go in wanting a stamp from a particular country, but there would be some other stamp with some magnificent dragonfly, or an exotic geisha, that would catch my eye, and then I would have to choose.

So I joined Postcrossing. And it's been so much fun. The very first card I sent was to a woman in Finland, and on the card I included a note and told her that hers was the very first card I was sending. She didn't have to, but she mailed me a couple of cards in return.

And the very first card I received was from Finland (there are a lot of postcrossers in Finland!).

Last week I had a message on my answering machine one evening when I got home from work. A card that had been addressed to me had been delivered to another lady across town instead. She was sweet enough to look me up in the phone book and call me so that I could go pick up the card, which I did. It was from Germany.

I also received a card from China. It included a note, but was written in Chinese. I happened to Twitter about it, and later got a reply from Kiki, whose blog The Prosecco Life is one that I read regularly. Kiki is working on her Ph.D. in Chinese art history and, you guessed it, speaks Chinese! She offered to translate it for me if I scanned it and sent it to her. I just did that yesterday and am awaiting her reply.

Participating in Postcrossing has also led me on a quest for beautiful postcards. I've bought some locally, of course. But I've also happened across some photographers' blogs - Susannah Conway and Tricia McKellar so far - who've used their photos to create beautiful postcards. And I've ordered some. (I am worried now, though, that I'll have to keep them and won't be able to part with them!)

So you see, it really is a small world. If I can drop a little piece of cardboard in a box with thousands, maybe millions, of other little pieces of glossy paper and cardboard, and it can travel 10,000 kilometers around the world and actually reach the person for which it was intended, that's something!

Where do Babies Come From?

2009-06-21T14:08:00.015-07:00

Was reading Jane's blog at Spain Daily today, and although I can't really remember if we ever even had a story about where babies come from, it reminded me of a funny story from when my kids were little.

Years ago, probably close to 20 years, we were at home one night cleaning up after dinner and getting the kids their baths. My daughter was in the bathtub in the bathroom down the hallway from the kitchen (she must have had the door open) and my son was in the kitchen with me.

We had a couple of clear acrylic magnetic photo frames on the refrigerator door, and one of our photos had slipped out the bottom and landed somewhere (probably under the refrigerator). The picture that came in the frame when I bought it, a picture of a sweet couple standing together on a beach at sunset, was still in the frame. My son, about 9 or so at the time, asked me who the people were. And my explanation to him went something like this, "Well, I have been trying to figure out how to tell you this, and I was going to wait till you were a little bit older, but I guess I can tell you now. Those are your real parents, you and your sister were adopted. But don't tell her yet, because she's still too little and she won't understand."

I can't tell you what he said, if he said anything. I simply don't remember. But a few minutes later, my daughter, then about 5 or 6, was standing in the doorway of the kitchen wrapped in a towel. Her face was red and she was just about ready to cry. I asked her what was wrong. And she said something like, "I've been having a little talk with God." Me, "Oh really?" Daughter, "Yes, and I don't think you're our real mom!" Right away I started laughing and commented on what wonderful hearing she must have. I went and got her and told both kids that I was only teasing them and explained to them about the fake photo in the frame. She was still upset and just didn't believe me. My husband even tried reassuring her, but she wasn't buying it. We actually had to call my Mother and have her talk to my daughter to finally calm her down and assure her that I was, in fact, her mother.

True story!

Molly's Meme - my turn

2009-06-20T21:54:00.032-07:00

Julochka said, "tag! you're it" after she responded to Molly's Meme. And since memes are kind of fun, and relatively easy, this is perfect for a Saturday night that's getting kind of late.

Like some of the others who've memed before me, my favorites in any category can, and do, change from time to time. So for now . . .

5'ish favorite songs:

1. "Never Surrender" by Corey Hart (like Julie had a special song, this is a song that got me through a hard time)
2. "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane
3. "Samba pa Ti" by Santana
4. "Caoineadh Cu Chulainn" by Davey Spillane (from the Riverdance CD)
5. "I Kissed a Girl" by Katy Perry (current, may change next week)

5'ish favorite films:

1. "Rocket Gibralter" (with Burt Lancaster & McCauley Caulkin pre Home Alone)
2. "Top Gun" (I feel the need, the need for . . . )
3. "Pride and Prejudice" (I'll take Matthew MacFadyen for my Mr. Darcy please)
4. "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" (another Matthew)
5. "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation"

5'ish favorite books:

1. "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach
2. the Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer (don't roll your eyes; I told you I had a teenage heart.)
3. "Roget's Thesaurus" (I know that sounds kind of weird, but I've always had one since I was a kid and I just love it.)
4. "A Year by the Sea" by Joan Anderson
5. The Women's Murder Club series by James Patterson (current - will change when I've finished them all. currently on number 4.)

5'ish favorite crushes:

1. Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon's character on NCIS. Smooth . . . )
2. Kevin James (aka Paul Blart Mall Cop, et al)
3. Matthew Goode
4. Bradley Cooper

5'ish favorite things to eat:

1. cheese
2. creme brulee
3. coffee cake
4. salted cashews (but I can't eat as many of them as often as I'd like; too many bother my tummy)
5. pierogi (with sour cream), gyoza, ravioli - any little filled dumpling-like morsel.

And I will, in turn, tag a few others:

Kiki (Kiki, if you have the time.)
Tracy
femminismo
Candace

Now, what are the ladies at Blog Camp up to?

Wreck This Journal - Week 3

2009-06-19T20:55:00.020-07:00

I was on vacation last week and missed posting for Week 2. But I have been able to go back and admire (lots of ooh's and aahh's!) everyone else's work (aka play). And I can't wait to see what everyone has done this week. I have also really enjoyed all the videos, and I was inspired to give it a try.

While I would normally share a couple of pages from my WTJ, the video took me a little bit of time to get done. So I'm sharing just one page this week -- writing backward. I can write backward as easily as I can write forward. In fact, (this is really weird) I can hold a pen in each hand and write the same word or phrase both forward and backward at the same time. I start in the center and write backward with my left hand and forward with my right hand. It's easiest on a chalk board or a white board, but I can do it on paper too.

I realized I could write backward when I read The DaVinci Code a few years ago. (remember that part? one of the codes?) I tried it a few times and it really wasn't that hard. When I tell someone I can do this, or better yet, show them, the eyebrows go up and they generally look at me like I'm really weird. I kind of think that lots of people could do it, but they've never tried. Have you tried yet?

See you next week. Wreck on!

Wishcasting Wednesday

2009-06-17T19:47:00.041-07:00

I Want To Play

Who or What Do You Wish to Play With? That's the question of the day according to Jamie at Starshyne Productions.

Well . . . I would love to play with the girls who are going to be at Blog Camp in just a few days. I mean, can you imagine? But I will be satisfied with staying in touch via their blogs over the weekend and enjoying the stories they write and photos they take.

But I'm really missing my girlfriends (aka the girls). We have just all been busy! And it's been too long since we've all been together. It wouldn't matter what we did.

We could ride horses . . .

. . . or paint . . .

. . . or climb a tree . . .

. . . or have a midnight margarita party (in our jammies) . . .

. . . or dance . . .

. . . or play house . . .

. . . or swing . . .

. . . or do yoga on the beach . . .

. . . or just be silly and laugh!

It's not so much what we do to fill our time that matters. It's simply that we are all good for one another, and, at least for me, I feel like a new and improved version of myself after spending a day or two with all of them.

So, I wish I might, I wish I may

just hang with my girls

and be girls and just play.

Little Boys and Little Girls

2009-06-16T19:50:00.028-07:00

I was not one of those little girls who grows up dreaming of getting married and having babies. But when they came along, I loved my children more than anything in the whole world and couldn't imagine my life without them. They have provided me with moments of immeasurable pride and limitless love, and also unbelievable heartbreak. And in those very quiet, deeply soul searching moments when I've been alone with my thoughts and asked myself what I wanted to do with my life, what one thing would make everything worthwhile, and after which I could die and feel completely fulfilled and happy and peaceful, it was always that I would raise my children to be responsible, self-sufficient, loving, happy people.

And, I'm happy to say, I have had those days, days when I've said to myself or to my friends, "If I died tonight, I'd be a happy camper." That's a great feeling.

And now my babies have babies. And everything that I knew as love before, every laugh or smile that I thought was special, every little hug or kiss that I thought was the sweetest, every tear or frown that I thought would break my heart, was nothing compared to the laughs and smiles and tears and frowns and hugs and kisses of my grandbabies. There must be other words for these feelings. There must be some other chamber of the heart that only opens up when one becomes a grandma. There is no other explanation.

J and j, and S and k, I love you so much!

j

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Trippin'

2009-06-09T19:57:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving early tomorrow morning for North Carolina to visit my son J, and his wife and son, who I'll call j (see, there's big J and little j). j is 10 months old, and I last saw him at Thanksgiving time.

j is a healthy little guy, but was born with a cleft lip and palate. Soon after he was born, my son and I talked frequently about what they were going to be able to do and how they were coping with all of it. We knew surgeries would be required, but didn't know quite to what extent or when they would be done.

I'm not a mother who gives advice often without being asked. But I couldn't stop thinking about that poor little boy having to go through such an ordeal already. So I urged my son to take care of things as early as possible. I told him that I thought that if they waited until j was closer to a year old, that it would be so difficult on all of them. I knew that the older he got, the more attached to mommy and daddy he would become. And I remember telling my son that it would absolutely break his heart to see j afraid or to hear him cry when the doctors and nurses were taking him in to the operating room.

His first surgery was at four months old and was to fix his lip. I waited all morning for a phone call to say that things were fine. I didn't get a phone call, but I did get a text message or two. The phone call came the following day. J told me that he'd been unable to talk on the phone because he knew he would cry. I said, "See?" He laughed then and told me that he'd said to himself, "Mom was right!" several times the day before.

j had his second surgery on the 20th of May. According to his wonderful doctors, he should be done and not need any other surgeries in the future. I hope they're right!

In recovery after surgery.

Just in the last year or two, I'd finally gotten to the point where I didn't cry when it was time to say goodbye whenever one of us was visiting the other. But this little guy changes everything (why must they be clear on the other side of the country?)

About 10 days after surgery. (picture is not great

but was taken with a phone) I think he's feeling better!

I'm not sure if I'll be able to post anything while I'm gone. But if I can't, I'm sure I'll have stories to share when I return next week. Till then, be happy!

Corner View - Out Your Backdoor or Window

2009-06-09T16:05:00.019-07:00

The theme for the Corner View this week is "out your back door or window." When we first moved in to our house so many years ago, there were no other houses around us in all but one direction. When we looked east, we could see the mountains (what we call mountains anyway). That was thirteen years ago, though, and things have changed. A lot! But we knew that they would, and, for the most part, we still like where we live.

When the weather is nice, we spend a lot of time outside -- planting flowers and pulling weeds and all the general upkeep that a yard requires. And we have turned our patio into an outdoor room of sorts. Weather permitting, we have our coffee out there on weekend mornings, and sometimes during the week when there is time. We feed and watch the birds, read books and magazines, and drool over seed catalogs. We take our granddaughter for rides in her wagon, blow bubbles for her to chase, run races, and create wonderful pieces of artwork with sidewalk chalk.

We cook outside a lot, and a lot of wine and beer has been enjoyed there. We've had three wedding receptions in our yard, and many Easter brunches. And in between, I've even napped out there on occasion. Unfortunately, it's getting too hot now to spend much time out there, but I do sit at my desk and have my coffee while looking out the window.

For other corner views, visit here.

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana,denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, ruth, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, amy, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa,britta, virgina, april, rebecca, b , kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, angelina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, desiree, di, travelingmama, aimee, sunnymama amanda, ali, jenell, guusje, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb , susi, jodi , lily , jillian, doobleh-vay

Full Moon Dreamboard

2009-06-07T16:06:00.012-07:00

The Full Honey Moon

To celebrate the Full Moon tonight, here is my full moon dreamboard. May all your dreams come true!