STOP. BLOWING. THINGS. UP.

For the love of God... Since MEMORIAL DAY, there has not been a night that goes by that my neighborhood isn't ablaze with booming fireworks. We're not talking the rat-a-tat-tat of the regular ones, or the ZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzPOP of a bottle rocket.

We're talking M80s and quarter sticks of dynamite. And if that's not bad enough? Last night we had a severe thunderstorm - wailing winds, sideways rain, thunder, power went out...And I honestly thought, "Ahhhhhhhhhh, BLISS! I'll get some sleep before midnite!"

Nope. The guys (and I know it's guys, sorry) started right after the T-storm blowing things up again. Really. REALLY??? 

I'd like two things: To not have to dope up my dogs every single night. And to get to sleep before midnight. It's not too much to ask. 

How Does The Garden Grow...

Well....We have cherry tomatoes. Lots of them. And we harvested a handful of snap peas. I think we can start plucking the kale. 

But there was a casualty today. And I was rather heartbroken to do it. We removed two very large Lemon Balm plants. 

I mean, they were 3 feet high and 3 feet across. Each. They took up the entire corner of one garden bed -- this year they just exploded. Last year they were reasonable. But this year, they managed to crowd out the gallardia and almost kill off the snapdragons, lavender and cosmos. 

This is the "after" --- before removal, you couldn't see the marble stepping stone there, and you can see where everything else was just being smothered. 

I hated to do it, but they were just too far overgrown and it would've been detrimental to the other plants. I want Lemon Balm, but I have to look for a smaller variety. 

The flowers at the studio are doing nicely: the alyssum is blooming in the one pot and the mixed wildflowers are coming along fine in the other. 

So perhaps the folks at the employment agency next door have stopped using my flower pots for ashtrays...


Speaking of which, I'm opening the studio back up!! We're in Illinois, and we're in Phase 4 of the 5-phase reopening. We've dropped in number of cases - precipitously. For those saying that the "virus ran its course," y'all are wrong... What happened was that our governor clamped down and most of us paid attention... 

What worries me is that as we can go about more, people will get complacent. And then? We get bit in the backside. Again. And I'm thinking most of us with small businesses won't survive a second shut-down. 

Just Breathe Yoga Studio...

Today, we went in, did a clean, and set up to open on July 1st. Hubby taped the floors so that everyone knows where their mats go. We can open at 50% capacity, but we're being a little more cautious. Our studio can hold 30; but we're topping out at 11 students per class right now. We'll see how it goes.

I wrote out some protocols on the one whiteboard. And I've notified the students. We're still going to do online classes - we're just doing them in a new way. We're back to doing in-person classes soon and quite happy about it. 

It's hard (in my opinion) to teach to a camera. I need to see people. Especially if I want to teach them something a bit complex. I need to see where your body is and where I may need to adjust your alignment. Can't do that the way we've been doing, but what we were doing was better than nothing. 

Each person gets a little more than "social distance" for his/her mat. And we're requiring everyone to have their temperature taken at the door...and we're lucky in one regard: once you're on your mat, you don't have to wear your mask. But it has to be worn inside and as you leave. 

I'm going to encourage everyone to be safe, but I can't police everyone. What I can control, I will. What I can't? I can't. 

Polish Sausage Risotto with Peas...

Bet you never thought of that combo...Neither did I till I was faced with dinner, a sore tooth, and lack of inspiration. Here's the recipe.

1 Polish sausage (or 4 links) cut into thin rounds
1 T. olive oil or bacon fat
1 c. risotto
4 c. hot water + broth cubes
1 1/2 c. leeks
Salt & Pepper to taste (save for last)
1 c. shredded Asiago cheese
1/2 c. goat cheese
1/2 c. half & half
1/2 stick butter
1 1/2 c. frozen peas
Penzey's Green Goddess spice blend
Penzey's granulated garlic

In a large saucepan, melt the butter, and then add leeks. Stir and cook till translucent. Add the risotto and stir around, till the rice has a bit of a shine to it. The leeks should be slightly golden. 

Add a bit of the water. Turn heat to low and simmer; stir every couple of minutes. When the rice has absorbed the water, add more; keep repeating that pattern till the water is used up and the rice is slightly al dente. 

While the rice is cooking, put the sausage into a large saute pan with a bit of olive oil or bacon fat (live large...). Stir it around till the sausage is warmed through and maybe a little browned around the edges, just for taste. Set aside. 

When the rice is al dente, add the peas, spices and pepper and stir. Then add the cheeses, stirring. Add the half & half and stir. Then add sausage. Taste. Salt here, if needed. The whole process takes about 45 minutes. You may have to add more water - if your rice is exceptionally dry. 

This serves 5 people. Or 2 people with really lovely leftovers... 

If you want to use this as a side dish, omit the meat. 

It's a Bird, it's a Plane...

It's a bell tower! The bell tower project is about 98% done. There's some clean-up work to do, but it's all in place. The grass is growing; we're planning a labyrinth and adding a deck to the office space to make it ADA compliant (there'll be a ramp to access off the church property). 

And tomorrow, because I said yes before getting all the details? I'm participating in another peaceful march. We're marching in support of Black Lives Matter again, but our destination is to go to a prayer meeting that the black pastors are organizing. 

Yes, in case you're wondering, we have their permission to march to their event; the timing is that we'd be there before they start. No way do we want to take away from what they're doing...we want to support them, because unfortunately, the neighborhood is kind of ... um... racist, actually. It's kept under wraps, but those of us familiar with the area? We know. And we want it to be better.

Back to the bell tower....The bell has been in the church garage since the late 1980s. It was given to our church from another church. And I have to do some research; it's from the early 1900s we think. It'll be fun to do that kind of detective work.

Knitting...

I'm still beavering away on the Breathe & Hope Shawl; only because I've been busy on other stuff. Not knitting, sadly. 

I'm half-way through Section 8. According to the change the designer made, the colors in this section are actually backward of the way I am doing it. She wants B/A/B/A and I did A/B/A/B. It looks fine to me. 

I don't think it matters in this section how the colors go. It's an interesting one that's going by quickly. See all that pink there? That's Section 6. Which was FOR. EVER. Honestly my least favorite part of this shawl. 

Section 7 in this pic is barely started (sorry, been busy knitting and haven't photographed it in its latest iteration)... it's the striped section, which is the unifying component of the whole thing. 

I'm finding that this is now going faster as I'm closer to the end. When I finish Section 8, there will be 193 stitches. Section 9 brings us to 208 stitches, and Section 10 gives us 211 before we bind off. 

Random Picture...

Well, Raisa is totally untroubled by the fireworks. She sleeps through most of it. And here's her teddy-baby. 

Which she disemboweled this morning. End of that one... I caught her before she could ingest any of the stuffing. 

I have to take a rake to her tomorrow. That will not be fun. She hates to be brushed. Another oddity. 

Every other Siberian Husky I've had has (a) been terrified of fireworks; and (b) adored --- ADORED --- being brushed. She's merely tolerating me plucking her floof. 

I have enough now to knit a small spaniel. 

And it just keeps coming...

Exactly How Long...

and how often is Mercury in retrograde? Because ... it's just nuts. And it seems that it's getting nuttier...

In case you're curious, the Farmer's Almanac says 4 times a year. Holy crap. With everything else going on, this is kind of the last thing we need - planetary craziness!

The Recipe...

Tonight, I made Overnight Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding. It's a great quick breakfast, with fruit and nuts, for the hot weather we're facing. And it fixes my chocolate craving in a healthier way than, say, a milkshake....

1/4 c. cacao powder (I used unsweetened baking cocoa - organic!)
5 T. maple syrup (organic, again, please)
1 t. ground cinnamon (I love cinnamon + chocolate)
1 pinch sea salt
1/2 t. Madagascar vanilla (only because my homemade isn't ready yet)
1 c. unsweetend almond milk
1/2 c. coconut milk (the stuff in the can)
1/2 c. chia seeds

In a small mixing bowl, add cacao powder (sift it, so it's less clumpy), maple syrup, cinnamon, salt & vanilla; whisk to combine. Then add a little almond milk and whisk till a paste forms. Then, add the milk (both almond + coconut) and whisk till smooth. 

Add chia seeds and whisk again to combine. Cover and stick in the fridge overnight. (You can do 3 - 5 hours if you're really craving it!) After the first 30-45 minutes, give it another whisk. 

Leftovers (this serves 4 (1/2 c. servings) will keep 4-5 days, but it's best when fresh. Serve with fruit, granola, or coconut whipped cream. 

The other day, I also made The World's Greatest Scones - using dried cranberries and goji berries. Those were amazing. And yes, we ate them all. 

I made them into balls, and then flattened them slightly. Did an egg wash so they had a little crunch+crust. 

That recipe will come soon. 

I've been doing more cooking since I'm home more, and it's been fun. Still baking but not as much as I was at first. I still find it more healthy to eat my own bread and certainly more economical. 

And, when Mercury comes into retrograde (this is the SECOND time of 2020, by the way), it's a good outlet for the frustration and crazies. 

Cultural Comments...

Ok, weirdly enough, I am now addicted to Queer Eye. Yes, sometimes, it's sappy as all heck. But. There's something inherently good in this show that I find that I'm drawn to. 

Even as we're looking at opening up soon (Illinois is in Phase 3, and soon will be in Phase 4, thank you) (and shut up and wear your mask...it's better than wearing a ventilator!), there's still a lot of stress. Of course the "Open Now!" people are raising heck. And those of us with working brain cells are willing to wait a bit. 

Anyway...part of me wonders what the Fab 5 would make of me and my studio. And the other part says, "Hubby would hit the ceiling!" Ha! 

So if you know that there's something wonky about the show, don't tell me right now. Hang on and let me wait a bit longer...

Went to a protest march, and I'm set to go to another one at the end of the month. And probably another one, if we can get it set up. This one was at one of the busiest intersections one town over. 

I can re-use this sign at all of them. I am definitely wearing a lighter mask though! It was really hot and by the time I left this event, I was pretty much beet red. Oh, and carrying my own water bottle would've been a FANTASTIC idea...

I find it encouraging that people are gathing. I find it encouraging that people are angry. Especially when they're angry because of the injustice and the systemic racism that we have had throughout the entire existence of our country, and which is now bubbling up to the surface now that the #MangoMaggot is in office and trying desperately to ruin this country and stay in charge as a dictator. 

And I'm absolutely encouraged that the haters are coming out of the woodwork. That picture above? Someone in the news article's comments said, "Oh a bunch of unemployed losers and a fat, dumpy Karen." I'm thinking to myself, "Hey, #BasementBob -- I can hold a plank for 10 minutes...Can you?"

This is a gigantic labor pain for our country. I mean that we're hopefully giving birth to something that needed birthing a long while ago. And for all the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, the incremental attacks on women's reproductive rights, the caging of children, and the rampant xenophobia -- I think we're in a moment where there are more of us who believe that we're all human. As opposed to those who are roaring their last (hopefully) as they become extinct. 

How Does the Garden Grow...

Well, the stupid tree-rats got my shrub tomatoes. They're done. Crap. Hubby is doing some research to find out how to best nurture the tomatoes we have; there are beefsteaks in the back garden and some cherry tomatoes on the deck. 

The lettuce and radishes just bolted. They're ruined and they're pulled out. The romaine is re-growing; we had one harvest, and we can get one more, maybe. 

The parsley is inhabited by swallowtail butterfly caterpillars, and so we have to be really careful when we cut it. I've got 2 basil plants left (tree rats a/k/a squirrels). 

I've been pulling the stray milkweed for weeks now. I still see not one single monarch egg on the undersides of the leaves. Bummer. But Hubby was telling me the other day that he thought our milkweed was a good 6-8" taller than the stuff growing in the forest preserve. 

And I got a surprise the other day. In the front square bed there's a ton of Brown Eyed Susan, and a couple pink phlox. But I didn't think the phlox had bloomed yet. 

It hadn't. 

What HAD bloomed was my small rose. It's a stray miniature that I put into the ground about 10 years ago(!).... Yeah, one of those ones everyone gets for Mother's Day and then they die. But this little stinker just stuck!

And this year, it decided to bloom. I didn't even remember what color it was. I thought it was yellow! 

There it was, in all its glory. There are 4 petite little blossoms on this rose bush. This is the last rose bush, the only one left after a root fungus tore up the 50 or so roses I had planted. 

I'm so happy to see it. 

Knitting...

The other day, it was Knit in Public Day and so I sat on the porch. My porch faces "public" so I figured it was better to do that than sit in the back on the patio, right? I stayed there for about an hour and then the sun shifted to "bake" and I went inside. The curse of the west-facing front porch. 

Still working on the Breathe & Hope shawl and I'm kinda dyin' here... Section 6 was FOR. EVER. Yikes. I was just inert. 

I did push through and now I'm on Section 7 of 10. It's moving along quicker - it's the "bars" part. I really didn't like Section 6. I made some obvious boo-boos, but I did not want to rip it out. I don't care. I mean, I care, but I don't feel like I want to take the trouble to rip it. I want to just get it done. 

I have a lovely tee shirt waiting on me. And two more shawls. If I can get to my LYS, which is open, for limited hours, I'd really re-do this for Xmas. I have someone in mind. 

I also have two Wooly Hooligan patterns that need yarn. And doing. 

Look at me doing stranded colorwork... It's a new day in my knitting journey for sure. 

Random Picture...

I've been trying to zhuzh up my Instagram page for the studio so I figured what else but cute dog pics? And dogs do yoga. Whether you think they do or not!! 

So with my phone, I can fiddle with the pics, and I actually get lots more engagement. This picture got lots of comments and likes and hopefully will result in people viewing my Restorative Yoga class. 

Speaking of which, I have managed to torque my back in the last class I taught; doing a twist. I managed to just kind of push through it. But then I had an online tutorial with my teacher; got down on the floor for a small restorative practice, and did a twist with knees on a bolster. 

And got stuck. Called for Hubby, because I was on "mute" but Hubby was on a conference call. So. Managed to get myself up, sat in my chair and just finished the class in the chair. I'm not a happy camper because I have to teach tomorrow - a yoga + movement class. 

It's gonna be fun. 

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Sunday Soliloquies...

It's been a crazy weekend. 

Friday, I participated in a #BLM Black Lives Matter march at a busy intersection in town. Got catcalled once; old white guy on a motorcycle hollered at us "fat broad go home." Since the other protester with me was an older white lady like me and the third person at that corner was a black male, the two of us females just looked at each other and laughed. Could've been worse...

It was a peaceful march. No violence, no stopping traffic, everyone behaving. And lest you think that sounds condescending, I mean in light of looters setting our towns on their ears and putting us under curfew, and in light of increasing police violence. We were quite peaceful. Got lots of honks in solidarity, and a few head shakes. 


Maybe it's just my way of coping, but I just waved at everyone as if I actually EXPECTED them to agree with me. I held up my sign: Equal Justice Under Law... and it's not like I made that up; it's on the Supreme Court! I was interviewed and photographed and then trolled. Which made me laugh...

The article was on the online paper and some troll said, "What a bunch of unemployed losers and a dumpy Karen." Apparently, owning your own business makes you (me) a dumpy Karen... I'm figuring it's some guy named Bob in his mother's basement. 

I estimated about 300 people, but the newspaper said 100...I don't know. I'm not good at crowd-counting, but it looked like the old days when I participated in fancy dinners; I used to be good at eyeballing a crowd. But it was kind of hard to guess when we were spread around the area called "6 Corners" -- the confluence of three streets, resulting in 6 different intersections. This pic is where the majority of the folks stayed. It's the corner of Raynor and Ruby. My corner wasn't too busy, for which I was grateful. 

All but about 6 people (honestly, that I saw) had masks on. Social distancing was a bit tricky, which is why I escaped to the far corner. And stayed there. However, we had one person keel over, in that crowd in the pic above. And about 45 minutes before the march ended, a fellow protester said to me, "You ok? You're awfully red in the face." Well, that's my cue to leave. There was a nice breeze and we were in the shade, but what with the medications I take for my heart issues, sometimes processing heat is a problem. I waddled my rear end back (crossing ONLY with the proper lights, thank you very much) and got to my car. 

Which was in a situation of being triple-parked...So it was ok - I have A/C. I sat in the A/C, listened to about 20 minutes of a detective radio show on Sirius Radio Classics and finished off a bottle of water (I should have had another one or two). Then I was able to go. My friend walked with me; and we thanked the cops for being there. It takes about 2 seconds to say something nice. 

And yeah; on Wednesday, I'll be getting tested for COVID-19. The state health department recommends that if you've attended "large gatherings" to get yourself tested. Urgh. Not looking forward to getting a Q-tip shoved up to the back of my brain. 

I did that in January for that erzatz bronchitis they diagnosed me with. 

How My Garden Grows...

Well, we have CATERPILLARS!!! Swallowtails, to be sure, and they apparently prefer flat-leaf parsley. Of course our dill is only about 2" tall right now. There are about 5 or 6 of them. 

The milkweed? We're still thinning it out. 

We ate romaine from the garden and I'm sorely, SORELY disappointed in the leaf lettuce and radishes. 

They went to seed pretty much immediately. And the radishes? I have one. ONE. Not happy. 

I might be able to get more romaine starts, because I only bought 4 of them. 

And today, after "church" (we had technical glitches, but it wasn't only us; many churches that are reopening cautiously seem to have overloaded the Internet), we decided it was time to trim our front yard maple. Here it is before the trim. We needed to trim the branches that were over the public sidewalk, and that one lower branch going to the left side of the picture...it was really a pain in the butt, and we should've done it a few years ago. The branch was way over into our neighbor's yard. 

I was in charge of lopping the branches into smaller pieces for the yard waste bins. Hubby did break out the chain saw, and of course, I'm nowhere near that thing...they scare me, honestly! 

This is the "after" version. We still have plenty of shade in the front yard, and I think this will actually help the flower gardens because it lets a bit more light into the space. I'm having one of those "two-takes" moments where I glance out the window and it's like, "Wait, something's missing..." But we'll get used to it, and so will the birds and squirrels!

So I showed you a picture of the poppies in full bloom. That was last week. This is them now. A sure and certain reminder that everything in life is fleeting. In yoga philosophy we do study some Buddhist writers. One of my favorites is Pema Chodron. She talks a lot about impermanence. Thich Nhat Hanh also talks about it, probably more in depth. 

The poppies: Enjoy them while they're in bloom, but don't mourn that they're fading. It's an "in the moment" thing -- be grateful they've bloomed. I'll have loads of seed pods for my friends.

And here's a bit of serendipity. I was hoping that the phlox would re-bloom in the pot. Sometimes, the ones you pot are often subject to the freeze in winter and they don't survive. But lookee!!! Pansies and phlox!! 

Honestly, I thought they were pink. Obviously....they're not! The pink ones haven't bloomed yet; they're in the bed with the brown-eyed Susans. Under the now-trimmed maple! So we shall see how they do now. 

I've taken allt he oriole feeders away from the hummingbird feeders. It took a few days, but the hummers are now coming back slowly. I think the orioles just bullied away or scared away the little guys. 

I had oranges sort of "strung" along toward where the feeders ended up; but I removed a couple sets of the oranges and we're back to just one feeder with fruit. 

The birds figured it out!

I've got buds on the tomatoes, but no fruit yet. And the kale is doing nicely; almost time to take a few of the young leaves, when they're tender and you can actually eat them in a salad rather than having to saute them in garlic and bacon fat. (But then again? Bacon fat? Not a bad thing.)

I'm not sure what the Broccoli Rabe is supposed to look like; I've gotta check that out. Otherwise, maybe I'm just growing weeds there?? With the way the garden is going this year, it could be anything. 

Knitting and More...

So my progress on the Breathe & Hope Shawl is moving forward. I'm on Section 6, and honestly? I'm not liking it. I know; it's all about the textures in this shawl. But I'm not liking THIS section of texture! 

It's knitted rows alternating with K1b rows; and there are ridges that I just don't like. Maybe I will -- it's an 8-row repeat that's to be done 8 times. That's a lot of rows. It's nearly 200 stitches at the end of this section. Then we repeat the section you see there with the vertical stripes. That section is interesting because that's where the Blueberry "solid" (which isn't quite solid, but so gently tonal that you barely notice it) really pops nicely. It gets rather buried in the other sections with that flaming flamingo pink. 

The close-up here shows the vertical stripes and a bit closer on the texture of Section 6. The bottom of this shot, the K1b is kind of brioche stitch; it's very squishy. I'd like to experiment with maybe a sock leg (start small, works for me) to see how that works out. It has a nice feel to it. 

And again -- this is on smaller needles. So maybe the whole thing will look and feel different when I do it again, using the proper needles. 

I went shopping. 

Consider that the only "shopping" I was intermittently doing was a random grocery or pharmacy run. But today, I went to Joann Fabric to pick up buttons. I'm not quite sure how all this jumped into my arms. Because I did sort of go to look at fabric for masks, and somehow found lots of it. 

I'm going to try a different mask patter with the two fabrics that have alpacas on them. And I bought the seam binding because it's a different method for the ties, too. Will show you progress pics. And the snowflake stuff? I couldn't resist. (A) because I like snowflakes, and (b) because it will annoy people... 

The white buttons are for the crocheted "head bands" for those who have to use elastic behind their ears. Got feedback from the one I did and it needs to be a bit longer. I was just out of buttons. 

I also bought muslin (lower left) and some 50% off yellow gingham (lower right) for the insides of the masks. Or ties, maybe - we'll see. 

Tomorrow is "back to sewing" day as well as "get your butt in gear on your online classes" day. 

It's going to be a busy Monday!

Random Picture...

I have a haircut on the 12th and I can't wait. But I also can't wait for a pedicure. I may have to drag out my Dr. Who blue again... I love that color. 

I usually bring my own polish; I prefer to do that and I only go to the same salon each time. Before COVID, I had all the colors planned out (yeah, go ahead...tease away). But now I'm behind on my schedule. I haven't heard yet whether I can go do the pedicure, but I can afford to wait a few weeks. 

I'd rather get my hair cut first. It was doing really, really well, because Sarah cut it extra short, but now? It's just out of control. 

Much like my garden. 

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Work In Progress...

That's what we all are - or what we should aspire to be. Works in progress. Always growing. Flexible. 

Now, there's a difference between flexible and wimpy. Flexible: open-minded but discerning. Wimpy: "I blow with the prevailing wind." (cue Claude Rains and 10 points for anyone who can tell me which movie that quote came from) And no, I didn't Google the quote. It just came out of my very weird brain...

I'm taking an online Restorative Justice class. Not because I need it...or maybe because I need it. I don't need the credit or the CEUs. But I'm interested in learning about inherent privilege and how to best move in the world without flashing too much white female baggage. I mean, we all have bias, and I have learned, from my kids, that it's actually pretty insulting to "not see color" because it renders people invisible. 

Much like my grey hair causes people to underestimate me and other women like me. For a man, you see, it's "just because there's snow on the roof doesn't mean there isn't fire in the furnace." For women, though it's changing thankfully, "Oh dear, haven't seen your stylist in a while? Or don't you care?" Honestly, I don't care, but my grey hair isn't the point here. 

Over the columns on the Supreme Court building are the words: Equal Justice Under Law. Granted, for a long time, women haven't had equal justice. But that's nothing compared to people of color. I'm talking about not only those who are descendants of slavery, but also those who come here from any other country who aren't white. I like to think I see everyone as equals, but I was raised in an era where racism was pretty casual, even though it wasn't anything as bad as in the south (sorry, but it's true). 

Tomorrow, unless it's called off, I'm marching in a Black Lives Matter protest. And I want to make it clear: if you're going to say "all lives matter" then you probably need to attend a Black Lives Matter march. Because "all" means ALL. Black, Brown, White, Blue, Red, Yellow, Green - doesn't matter. All lives. 

The idea of "protester" and "looter" is being conflated. There are those of us who protest pretty regularly. We don't loot. We're exercising our First Amendment rights. Looters are scum and crooks. Period. I give no quarter here. First, because looters detract from a legitimate protest. And second, because I'm surely NOT going to be collateral damage because the police are reacting to looters and we protesters get caught in the middle. Not gonna happen. 

How My Garden Grows...

Well, I have shoulders on my radishes. I'm going to pull some in the next few days. They're lovely and when home-grown, (a) soooo easy to grow; and (b) much tastier than store-bought, even organic ones. 

The fun thing is you can have at least 2 growing periods for radishes. You can sow them so early that in reality, you can usually get in one more batch before the first frost in most areas. I'm growing red ones and white ones. I think the white ones will take a bit longer. And I'm about ready to pluck some romaine and the softer lettuces. 

My poppies have popped! I have several requests for seeds, which is fine with me. This plant -- well, maybe not THIS plant, it keeps re-seeding itself... has been in the front of our garden for over 25 years. It moves ever so slightly every year. But it's so far stayed just west of the milkweed. 

As with our lilacs, we seem to have an exuberance of poppies. I have no idea if that's a thing - but it is now! They seem to be a little more pink this year. 

My tomato is still with us. The tree-rats have left it alone so far. But they have been digging in the rosemary and the parsley. 

I saw a swallowtail today; so I'm pretty sure egg laying is commencing. I feel kind of bad; we've moved our feeder to avoid the squirrels, but now it's closer to the parsley, dill and milkweed. 

And birds eat caterpillars. 

The circle of life sometimes sucks. 

Garlic Brussels Sprouts & Ham...

We had some purple Brussels sprouts and we NEEDED to eat them. Like today. So I did the Google and came up with a couple of recipes for Brussels Sprouts & Ham. The original one had sauerkraut. I don't care WHAT could be offered to Hubby, but he won't touch sauerkraut. I will eat it almost every day. But he won't and I can't budge him. 

Here's my modification of the recipe I used... It wasn't too bad, served with whole-berry cranberry sauce and homemade bread. 


1 lb. Brussels Sprouts, trimmed & halved
Penzey's Frozen Pizza Seasoning
1 lb. leftover ham, trimmed and cut into cubes
1/2 c. parmesan
1/2 c. asiago cheese
1/2 c. Panko
Penzey's Granulated Roasted Garlic
2 T. bacon fat (already rendered)
6 green onions, trimmed and diced
4 potatoes, cut into cubes
2 T. lemon juice

In a Dutch oven heat the bacon fat till it's melted then turn off the heat. Add the Sprouts, ham, onions and potatoes. Stir to coat in the fat. Add the seasonings and stir once more. Add the cheese and lemon juice and stir one more time to evenly distribute the cheese. Top with the Panko. Put the lid on the Dutch oven and put it into a 350F oven for 45 minutes. Test the potatoes and stir the mixture up. Turn oven to 450F and take the lid off for 15 min or till potatoes and sprouts are tender. 

***NOTE: I had to cook this for quite a while because the spuds and sprouts weren't quite done. If you have to cook it for longer than the time indicated, for the last round of cooking, put the lid back on. It'll help steam and cook the veggies. 

And yes, bacon fat. In the scheme of things, it's not a lot. If you do NOT have bacon fat, you can use olive oil or avocado oil. 

I like the addition of the cranberry sauce; it brightens up the sprouts and takes the salty edge off the ham. You notice I didn't add ANY salt. It didn't need it. This is after Hubby tucked away the leftovers...an escaped spud tried to stay on the stove! 

I like the Penzey's Frozen Pizza blend - it's a zingy blend not unlike Italian Seasoning but with caraway in it, that kind of gives it a peppery touch. I will be doing this again, and I think I'd add more cheese, but I would NOT add anything like Mozzarella. Stick with Asiago and Parm - they meld well with the sprouts. I might also soften the onions by sauteeing a tiny bit. 

The Knitting Keeps On...

I'm now on section 6 of 10 of the Breathe & Hope shawl. And I'm still sweating the blocking to come. There are a few blips in here, but I like how the K1b looks like little EKG patterns. 

I'm liking how the "bands" with the larger needles are working out. That is apparently the repeat of the whole thing. The part with the smaller needles changes, but the bands are the part which will bring the whole thing together. 

I kind of thought the K1b part would, but apparently not. I hope it doesn't look too jarring with the switching in the variegated yarn. It's a pretty strong variegation, rather than something more subtle. 

But either way, it's still a nice little shawl, that will work for 3 seasons. Now I just have to figure out whether I'm keeping it or sending it elsewhere...One never knows. 

Random Picture...

How does she breathe like that??? I did a seminar with Young Living Essential Oils and Pets and in my research, found the "breathing pattern of dogs" to be quite interesting. All I can say is that it's a neat trick.

FYI, they breathe through the sides of their noses. If you've ever noticed how their nostrils curl, that enables them to efficiently sniff and snort and breathe.

Anyway, this was her afternoon "meditations." She's such a goofball and such a kook. 

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