Thursday, March 28, 2013

Day 85–Edith the Easter Chicken

Day 85 - Edith

This is Edith the Easter Chicken. I saw the pattern this morning on the internetzzz and I knew I had to make one..

Or perhaps more than one….

There may be an entire flock of them before I fill my knitted Easter Chicken urge.

Everyone needs an Easter Chicken don’t you think?

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Day 84 - Necessity Is The Mother Of Febreze

Perhaps you are wondering why my photo today is of a spray bottle of Febreze. There is a reason and it goes like this....

HHBL and I took a red eye flight home from Tucson. We arrived in the Frozen Northeast Ohio at 5:56a this morning after a 3.5 hour flight where I attempted to sleep but was fairly unsuccessful despite wearing my stunningly beautiful eye mask and neon orange ear plugs. Don't you wish you could see THAT picture. As of the writing of this stellar post I have been up for approximately 30 hours.

I went to pick up Max the Magnificent from the kennel at 8a. When I arrived I found that Laurie, the wonderful woman who runs the kennel, thought I was arriving in the afternoon and had not given Max a bath that he so desperately needed.

I took him home anyways because I didn't want to have to come back later to pick him up. I just didn't think I was going to have the moral fortitude to go out again. It is cold out there!

I knew almost immediately that I probably should have left Max at the kennel for a bath. He was rather doggily fragrant. That means that I almost choked on the drive home as waves of warm and sweaty dog smell rolled over me.

I then had the brilliant idea that I would give Max a bath myself, despite the fact that it is only 38F today. Caulk that stellar idea up to the fact that I have had my little blue peepers open for so long.

I couldn't find the dog shampoo.

I had to go out and buy dog shampoo.

I decided after getting home from buying the dog shampoo that I was just too tired to actually give Max his bath.

And that meant that he continued to stink to high heaven and I was at a loss as to what to do.

What to do? What to do? What to....

Hey! I wonder if I could use Febreze on the dog???

And I can say that, after extensive clinical testing, OK a couple of mists, that it works pretty well

Oh Alpha I smell so fresh and clean!


 

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Day 83 - Cactus Love

The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.

Dorthea Lange

On our last morning walk in Tucson, as HHBL and I were striding along, I stopped dead and whipped out the iPhone to take a picture of the cactus heart that I saw on one of the ever present prickly pear cactus. First HHBL reminded me that this unscheduled stop would mess up our walking time. And then he asked the question that he always asks when I see something that he doesn't.

How did you see that?

When he asks that I am reminded of the above Dorthea Lange quote which I think is truth.

 

Monday, March 25, 2013

Day 82 - Sunrise 1

Sunrise over the mountains on a clear and chilly morning. What could be better for a walk. And taken with the iPhone no less! I wasn't in the mood to lug Old Faithful on a 3.5 mile walk this morning.

 

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Because Unfortunately I Must

Well folks, I hate to have to do this but I am going to re-enable the word verification for commenting. I personally hate those things but I am being bombarded with SPAM comments these days and I am tired of deleting the bogus comments that make it through Blogger's SPAM filter.

I think this problem has evolved over time because there has been an occasional legitimate commenter that used "Anonymous" as their name. Blogger will let you comment without having a Google account, and I would ask you to pick a name or initials or Super Hero moniker when you comment. Whatever makes you happy. Anonymous isn't going to cut it any more.

So sorry to have to do this. I am hoping that, given enough time, I might be able to get rid of word verification.

But for now it is back in operation.

Day 80 - Night Sky 1

When we started thinking about our latest trip to Tucson I knew that I wanted to take a tripod with me specifically so that I could try to take some photos of the night sky. There are no street lights out here and the lack of light is perfect for star viewing.

Camera on tripod. Two second shutter timer. ISO set at 400. 30 second shutter ( which is as high as Old Faithful can go before you hit bulb mode).

Not too bad for a first try. I will work on it. Good sky photos are not made in a day.

Now if I can just stop getting freaked out at the sounds of unknown creatures wandering around in the arroyo.

 

Friday, March 22, 2013

Day 79 - Sentinal

On our morning walk HHBL and I passed this tree. For some reason it's starkness struck me as beautiful. The picture itself was taken with the iPhone as I hadn't lugged Old Faithful with me.

But you know I am going to have to go back with the big camera and photograph it again.

 

7 Quick Takes (Vol 207)

 

Here we are, Spring has sprung. And most of the Midwest has gotten more snow. Mother Nature is a mean momma.

You know what you must do. When you are done gathering my Spring bulbs of blather you need to click on the picture above to be whisked, at the speed of my fast approaching Easter candy saturation, over to Conversion Diary to see what is happening in the wider blogging world.

I am the Easter Bunny of Blather.

1.

Yarn diet? What yarn diet? I don't know anything about a yarn diet. The Pagewood Farms spoke to me and I could not resist it.

And then there was the Alpaca Sox.....

And the Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine in a startling green, Bonnie Harden sort of color.

But I stopped before I bought the Dream in Color which was $30/skein.

But oh I wanted to.

2.

Have you heard the news about Google Reader?? It goes bye bye forever on July 1. When I heard the news I tried not to panic. I use Google reader for all those darn blogs that I cannot seem to stop reading. What to do!!!

The sky is falling! The sky is falling.

OK I have myself in hand again. I am going to give Feedly a try. I have been using it on my iPad and I really like interface so maybe that will be what I use on the computer too.

I hate change.

3.


I love Xena Princess Warrior.

But.....

She has a tendency to leave "presents" on the oriental runner in the hallway of the in-laws house. Do you know how hard it is to see a steaming pile on a busy Oriental runner? You know where I am going with this don't you.

I missed that freshly sown poop pile on Tuesday. Or I should say I missed SEEING that pile. Because I sure didn't miss it with my flip flop. But I didn't realize that I had scored a direct hit on the poop land mine until I have walked the length of the runner, into the kitchen, back down the runner and part way to the bedroom.

Super FANTASTIC!

Why am I always the one who steps in poop?

4.

The great thing about vacation? Well, other than this sunrise view every day....


It is the fact that I can sit and read or knit all day without guilt or laundry or work calling my name. Indulging my lazy slug tendencies on an hourly basis. Yes, I know that when in my home habitat and could also sit all day and read or knit.

But I just cannot give myself permission to do it. I have tried valiantly and it just doesn't work, too many other things call for my attention.

Vacation was made for reading "World War Z" by Max Brooks. That is really not my normal cup of tea reading, although I have certainly loved Justin Cronin's Passage series. Not sure what I will read after I am done with this book, today I would think. I am not short on reading material, the iPad being a great one for feeding my book hoarding tendencies.

What to do, what to do.

5.

I think it snowed at home.

I am sorry.

It has been sunny and 80F here.

Don't hate me.

6.

Another excellent thing about vacation?

I eat things like large pulled pork sandwiches smothered in cole slaw with a side of Texas baked beans and potato salad without guilt.

And I have had a donut just about every day.

But I took a 4 mile walk this morning so that cancels out the donut I ate afterwards.

I am all about the healthy life you know.

But we won't talk about the fabulous gelato I had yesterday.

7.

I am sorry to say that I have become a lazy blogger recently. I am sliding by on my 365 Project and nothing else.

Bad Debbie. Bad, bad Debbie.

Some days I get the picture post up and then lose all a blogging mojo for another post. And I sometimes fear that I am overwhelming you with two posts a day and that you will leave me because of my excessive love of posting.

I will try to be much better starting after Easter. I have a bunch of blog posts forming in my head so be prepared.

8.

Yes, I know there should be only 7. This is a bonus to tell you that there won't be any blogging next week other than the 365 Project. End of vacay and Easter Week and all the recovery from vacay. That means that there will not be a Quick Takes on Good Friday. We will pick up where we left off on Easter Monday.

I love you! Don't leave me!

 

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Day 78 - Xena Princess Warrior

One eyed, almost totally blind in the eye that remains, deaf, 15 years old, occasionally incontinent. But still one of the most love able of dogs. What will my FiL do when she is gone???

 

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Day 77-Peter Rabbit

While I was continuing in my Quail obsession this morning, Peter Rabbit came by to nibble on the plants. I almost missed him because I had Old Faithful plastered to my right eye trying to get a good picture of a quail that was sitting on the fence.

But I managed to snap two pictures of Peter before he moved on to his next stop of the morning.

If you could see nibbled state of the plant you would know that this isn't the first time that Peter has come to eat at Mrs. MacGregor's garden.

 

Day 76 - Quail Not Quayle

When we visit HHBL's dad and step-mom I spend a vast amount of time being obsessed with the Quails that are all over the place. I can hear them in the arroyo and next door and all over. And until today I had not been able to get a really good picture of one. They are skittish and FAST. Oh are they fast. You startle them and they are gone in a flash, running down into the brush in the arroyo where I am definitely not going to follow them. there are snakes down there. And the occasional bobcat. But today, thanks to patience and the trusty 18-270mm lens I managed to get my best picture in about ten years.

That isn't saying much but I am still happy.

 

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

53 Is A Pretty Good Number

Today I am 53 years old. Let us have a list of 53 things that you might or might not know about me.

1. I love my toe rings.
2. Beets. Love. This applies to asparagus as well.
3. the smell of Spring blowing through the open window makes me smile.
4. The smell of library books shoots me right back to childhood.
5. As much as I want to, I am not allowed to be on the National Bone Marrow Donor Registry.
6. Liver is a tool of the Devil – except in liverwurst form.
7. I am completely addicted to documentaries
8. I hate to swim in the ocean. There are things below me that I cannot see.
9. cartoon Girl and I want to do a movie podcast….if we could ever find the time.
10. Craft beer is the only beer to drink!
11. Olives are the food of the gods!
12. If I am stuck in a crowd and I can’t see where I am going I panic
13. I love the smell of other countries.
14. Rain at night is a fabulous sound.
15. As hard as I try, I cannot make apple pie like my Grandma Pringle could.
16. HHBL is my best friend.
17. I cannot eat pineapple. It hates me.
18. I sleep with the covers pulled over my neck and head.
19. Not all that fond of bananas.
20. NEVER wear pantyhose.
21. I have a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Baylor University. Sic ‘Em Bears!
22. I have never regretted having a hysterectomy.
23. A day cannot start without coffee.
24. If I had my way I would go to bed at 9p.
25. The smell of Easter Lilies makes me gag.
26. I organize when I am nervous.
27. Sometimes I obsess.
28. Knitting is life.
29. I loathe fudge.
30. I am deathly afraid of spiders and snakes.
31. I was born to be a photographer.
32. At 53 I finally feel like rules are meant to be broken.
33. I can live without cookies but I LOVE chocolate cake with white icing.
34. I have a constant “negative soundtrack” running in my head that I battle daily.
35. I never drink diet soda – I dislike it intensely.
36. I loved being a “SAHM” (stay at home mom)
37. I will never be svelte again and I am OK with that.
38. I share a birthday with Adolph Eichmann
39. When I am really angry I don’t yell, I speak quietly. Evidently it is scary.
40. Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #2 makes my heart fly.
41. I talk to myself all the time
42. 50% of my days I forget to put on makeup
43. I cannot stand to have anyone play with my hair.
44. I cry at the end of “ET” every single time.
45. Perfect day: Rain, books, knitting, Netflix, coffee
46. I dread parallel parking.
47. I snore…a lot….and loudly
48. Black licorice good. Red licorice bad.
49. I could live without beef for the rest of my life but not without bacon.
50. Exercise and I are not very good friends.
51. I like all types of music…..except Rap.
52. I said yes to assisting with brain surgery and garnered an A in the class because I did so. AND I also got to suck out brain tissue so that was an added bonus.
53. I eat pickles every day.

Thank goodness THAT is over for another year!

Monday, March 18, 2013

Day 75–At Summer’s End

2013-03-18 15.33.40

This is one of the few pieces left of the Ragin’ Wolf Bobs at what used to be Geauga Lake Amusement Park. We spent many a day and evening riding the rides at the park when we were first married and when the progeny were younger. Good times to be sure. But a few years ago it all came to a sad end when another larger amusement park corporation bought Geauga Lake, let it run for another year or two and then shut it down and took the best rides out for installation elsewhere, leaving a sad and empty shell of a place.

The park, or what is left of it, is in the same general area as Chez Knit. I drive by it almost every day for one reason or another. From the “front” of the park you can see the empty and weed filled parking lots and the front entrance quickly being taken over by trees. But if you drive around the back you can see through the chain link fence to the slowly crumbling roller coaster at the back of the park.

It just breaks my heart.

And oh how I wish I could wander around the park with my camera.

I suppose I could but the numerous “No Trespassing” signs are a bit off putting.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Day 74–Hands at Work

Day 74 - Hands at Work

I am almost 53 years old and you can see that in my hands. They don’t have the smooth and supple skin that they once did. They have lines and wrinkles and veins. They are what they are.

I don’t know from day to day what picture I will take for this little project. Sometimes it is a picture that I have been thinking about for a long time and just waiting for the right conditions. Sometimes it is spontaneous.

Today was spontaneous.

I was in the process of kneading a mess of French bread dough. Can I just tell you how totally calming and contemplative kneading bread dough is. I often times just get lost in the rhythm of the kneading, looking out the window and letting the motion of my hands go on autopilot, or autoknead as it were. I was in my “bread zen” zone when I happened to look down and thought,

I need to take a picture of my hands kneading the dough.

It required carefully switching lens (the 18-270mm wasn’t the right lens for the job, I needed the 50mm), mounting the camera and getting the settings right. Now I have flour on the camera AND on the small tripod since I didn’t want to take the time to wash and dry my hands.

The inspiration is strong in that one.

Sorry, too much Star Wars on the brain.

But I am pleased with the results.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Day 73–Self Portrait in Black and White

Day 73 - Self Portrait in Black and White

I might have mentioned somewhere that at times, when I am shooting an interior, I take a photo of myself in a mirror. I usually don’t show them here, it is just a personal project. And I always hope that the homeowner doesn’t wander by at a most inappropriate time and I have to explain myself.

Now THAT would be awkward.

I hate seeing myself in photos. Hate. Hate. Hate. I would much rather be behind the lens than in front of it. Good thing I never had any aspirations to be a model. I also would have had to grow about another eight inches for that to even be a possibility. Three cheers  for being “vertically challenged”.

Today you get a self-portrait.

Because I am feeling wild and crazy.

It goes with the hair.

7 Quick Takes (Vol 206)

7_quick_takes_sm1

Guys it is almost the middle of March!!!! In the words of the ever wise Calvin (of Calvin and Hobbes not John Calvin. Although, who knows)….the days just fly by. You know the Quick Take Regulations. Once you have consumed your weekly fix dose of blather you need to click on the picture above to be whisked, at the speed of the College of Cardinals voting on a new pope, over to Conversion Diary.

Blather the Ides of Debbie Sue!

1.
2013-02-25 13.26.40

I have told you before, this is my sis-in-law, The Chef.

OK, really she is the sister that I never had. I love her. And do you want to know how sweet (and sneaky) she is? Well I will tell you.

When we were visiting together in Florida I mentioned that I have no idea how I am going to do my hair for the upcoming Shoe Queen/Slim Jim nuptials. I figured I would just go and let Dana, the woman who has cut my hair for 25+ years, fiddle with it. And that was the end of the conversation more or less. We swapped “hair” stories for a bit and moved on to the next thing.

So imagine my surprise when The Chef called me on Saturday to tell me that she had sent me a little “surprise” for my birthday. A gift certificate to the salon where Dana cuts my hair!! Enough so that I can have my hair fiddled with twice. Once to find a style and once for the big day.

I TOLD you she is the best sister ever!!!

2.
We had a house showing yesterday. I just don’t get all that excited about them anymore. The house is picked up and clean. Heck it is generally always picked up anyways as there are no progeny to mess things up. But I just don’t get excited about showings because…

Well….

Nothing has come of them yet. But whoever looked at the house yesterday actually sent positive feedback and said that they liked the house and that….they might be interested.

But I am still not going to get my hopes up until a realtor calls and says they want to buy the house. It is just better that way. When the house went up on the market almost a year ago every showing got my hopes way too high. And then when the “lookees” said they didn’t like the house or weren’t interested in the house or didn’t like the floor plan my mood would just plummet.

And 2012 was a tough year anyways for other reason so I decided that I just wasn’t going to do that anymore.

But we will see.

3.
The following is another reason to love Netflix streaming. HHBL will tell you that my “queue” is long….188+ I think and mostly filled with documentaries. I love documentaries. When I see one that looks interesting I stick it in the queue for later viewing. Below is the trailer for A Walk to Beautiful. I have included a link for the entire film, which can be watched on PBS or Netflix. You must watch it.

You must.

As I was watching the movie (and of course knitting) I noticed that all the women who come to the Hamlin Fistula Hospital are given…a knitted blanket. It is theirs to keep forever. These blankets are treasured for the comfort that they bring and as a symbol of what the hospital can do and has done for these women who are shunned by family and society for something they have no control over. But something that can be fixed through surgery, at Hamlin, for FREE.

And I got to thinking about those blankets.

And I let my “fingers do the walking” as it were and found that I can knit blankets for the Hamlin Fistula Hospital.

So you know that I am. It will be my “bedtime” knitting when I am sitting in bed watching something on Netflix on the ipad.

I am so excited. It is completely autopilot knitting, garter stitch all the way. The hospital website gives some basic instructions but I may fiddle with it a bit (are you surprised at this??). I think that as long as it is the correct size they aren’t going to care if I do the squares as straight garter stitch or if I throw in mitered squares in the blanket. The only problem was that the blankets are knit with acrylic yarn, for it’s sturdiness, and I don’t have a lot of acrylic anymore. But I knew that the local thrift store probably had some for cheap and so I am now set with enough yarn for at least one blanket. Any of my Knit Sibs who want to get rid of their acrylic yarn, you know where you can take it. Or better yet…..knit a blanket yourself.

A Walk to Beautiful

Hamlin Fistula Hospital

4.
I have had cold veggie pizza for breakfast two days in a row this week.

The perfect breakfast.

Just thought you should know.

5.
Last week, when we actually had some warm weather, I had the sliding glass door open for the afternoon. Oh the smell of the outside air was so excellent. And it just shows how stale the inside air becomes after having the house shut up since October. HHBL and I live most of the warm months with the windows open. We are not particular fans of air conditioning. Don’t get me wrong, we will use it, but our rule is if the daytime temps are going to be over 90F and the night time temp isn’t going to cool down below 70F then we turn it on. OR if the humidity is crazy high. Otherwise it is windows open baby and the whole house fan on at night.

But now Mother Nature is being mean again and it is cold and cloudy and there was a skiff of snow this week. She is such a tease.

But warmer weather is just around the corner! And then the screens are in and the windows are open. I always sleep better at night if I can hear the night sounds.

The coyotes killing something in the woods is SUCH a wonderful lullaby.

6.
It is almost time for Max the Magnificent’s annual “shave”.

IMG_7226

Oh Alpha tell me it isn’t so.

I was going to have this done next week but……it is still too cold I think. Max is an elderly dog and groans when he has to get up. I think that his hip joints would be better served by waiting until May when it is a bit warmer.

IMG_2566_edited-1

Elderly dog? Whose an elderly dog? I think I will lie down now and take my early mid-morning nap. Is it time for lunch yet?

7.
It is almost gardening season! Can you tell that LaurenLeap and I are eagerly anticipating. She was actually out at our little 1/100th of an acre of heaven on Sunday doing some work. We are rearranging beds and she was measuring and re-staking. We are making our plans and thinking our thoughts. This year we have decided to eliminate cucumbers from the rotation. The yield wasn’t worth the effort and we can buy pickling cukes very cheaply and easily from a local source. We are adding some Kale (but only for me as evidently LaurenLeap doesn’t like it!!). And there might be peppers this year. The spinach will be in pretty soon I would think as it really likes to be cold. And this year we are hoping for our first harvest of rhubarb. We planted a square of it last spring and then just let it be. Oh and I think we are going to try Butternut Squash as well and not plant those small pumpkins that turned out to be more ornamental than edible.

Excitement is rising and the urge to dig in the dirt increases.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

A Very Nice Surprise

There are benefits to living in one area for a long period of time. You get to know people. You get invited to fun events.

Last night was one of those.

HHBL and I drove up to the home of Eric and Dawn who reside in Ohio City. Ohio City is where the West Side Market can be found as well as Great Lakes Brewery. I like Ohio City. At any rate, Eric is the Superintendent of one of the school district in the Frozen Northeast Ohio. Now THAT is a job that I do no envy him. But he LOVES it. He loves the kids. He is all about the kids.

And he lives in a house that used to be a funeral home. And for some unknown and probably shouldn’t be explored reason I think that is fabulously cool. It also explains the extra wide front doors that open out.

But I digress.

So, Eric had told everyone that we needed to be at their abode no later than 7p because there would be a special surprise for us. I wasn’t going to bring Old Faithful with me but when he said surprise I thought I might just be able to stuff him in my always overstuffed purse/bag “just in case”.

Good choice Deb. Good choice.

I am going to preface this next part by saying that the lighting was, shall we say, challenging. I love Old Faithful with a vast passion but, he is on the elderly side as far as DSLRs are concerned. I could have used more ISO power in this instance (he only goes to 1600). I am pretty darn good with natural lighting….when there is natural light to be had. And I am a wiz in Manual mode and squeaking out every ounce of light….but this was challenging. So the photos aren’t my best work. But really, it isn’t at all about my photos, it is about what the photos recorded.

I won’t bore you, this time, with the food and drink aspect of the night. The wine was good, the appetizers were good, the dessert was FABULOUS (more about that later). Let’s get right to the “surprise” shall we. When we arrived I could hear violin music coming from the front parlor.Concentration 1

This is Solomon (on the left) and Heddy (on the right) and they are students and The Cleveland School of the Arts. Eric had arranged for them to come and give a performance for us. And what a performance it was!! Solomon is a senior, Heddy a Sophomore and these young men are passionate about music. And they are very, very good.

EGordon 1

First Solomon performed. Then they did a number of duets. Then Solomon was persuaded to perform his audition piece for us. You could have heard a pin drop in that room. Beautiful, beautiful music.

Heddy - Solomon 4Heddy - Solomon 5Heddy 4The hands of a future master

After their “performance” there was a time for questions and answers and we were able to hear a bit more about how they came to be so passionate about music. There was also some improvisation and audience participation. Good times!

Can I just tell you that it was stunningly wonderful to hear young people (I feel so old at the moment after writing that sentence) who are so very passionate about something. These men are passionate about music. Not just violin but jazz and piano and guitar and voice. They have dreams and aspirations and nothing is going to get in their way. That is why they are at CSA.

Heddy 5

This was the quietest that Heddy’s feet ever were last night. He was moving all the time. I was exhausted.

And after all the beautiful music and the questions……we got to have dessert.

And we were able to meet several of the students who had a hand in preparing the desserts.2013-03-13 19.57.202013-03-13 19.59.10

I am going to be honest and say that I didn’t catch these girls names….because I was stuffing my face with a truly outstanding cream puff followed by several large bits of Amaretto Cheese Cake.

Oh be still my weakly palpitating heart.

They are geniuses. And they are passionate about food. And have plans for the future.

I just love that.

Love, love, love.

Thank you Eric for the excellent “surprise”. Your kids are awesome and awe inspiring.

Day 72–The Beauty of the Ordinary

Day 72 - The Beauty of the Ordinary

Many photographers see the beauty in grand vistas.

For some reason still unknown to me but certainly known to the Lord, I see beauty in the crazy ordinary things in my day.

I love washing dishes. I don’t love drying them but I can always just let the air do that job. No, I find washing dishes to be a calming and contemplative job, especially as I can look out the window over the sink and see the back garden with it’s always varying landscape.

And often Max “doin’ a dukie”.

But I digress.

The sun has been in and out today and as I was doing dishes it shown down into the sink and the dishes and just seemed beautiful to me.

Oh man, I am odd.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Day 71–Apple Ambrosia

Day 71 - Apple Ambrosia

Canon 450D; Tamron 18-270 @ 270mm; ISO 400; f6.3; 1/8 sec

Please ignore the slightly artful fuzziness of the picture. Shooting at 1/8 sec really calls for a tripod and I was literally too lazy to walk the 20 feet into my office and get out one of the FOUR tripods that I own.

Yes I own four tripods, doesn’t everyone? They all have specific uses thankyouverymuch.

Rabbit trail.

What I wanted to tell you about is what is in that glass. Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce.

Just pause for a moment and let that sink in. Warm homemade applesauce. Can you hear the angels singing in heavenly delight? I sure can. I wasn’t really intending to make applesauce. I hadn’t ever done it before and I wasn’t inclined until recently. And that is because last October I might have overindulged in buying locally grown apples.

Like by a peck of apples or so.

They had been residing in the garage refrigerator and even though they were still probably eat worthy they were getting a bit wrinkled. I hate to throw anything away and I was contemplating making them into pies when all of a sudden I thought….APPLESAUCE!

Seriously easy to make. Peel and core all apples. Cut into chunks and place them lovingly into the larges crock pot that I have. Add just a bit of water, the juice of two lemons, salt, sugar to taste and a large cinnamon stick. Put the crock pot on low and then just leave it there until the apples are mushy soft. Stir it once or twice if you think about it. I let it cook for close to 8 hours. When it is done the apples are soft and you can just mash them with your handy masher if you like chunky applesauce. OR, if you like yours smoother then use an immersion blender.

And if you tell me you don’t have an immersion blender then I am just going to shake my head sadly at you. It is the most useful of tools.

The applesauce in the above picture was warm.

Oh Mother of All that is Holy and Good it was fabulosity.

Semi-Wordless Wednesday

Fiber, yarn, remote control shooting

Yes, Yes I know I used this picture just recently in the 365 project.

I resurrect it here because soon, very soon, I swear really really soon I am going to have to go through my stash.

Oh help me.

I suffer from a severe case of SABLE

S-Stash
A-Accumulation
B-Beyond
L-Life
E-Expectancy.

I don’t know how it happened, I really don’t. When I came back to knitting about seven years ago I didn’t have ANY fiber at Chez Knit. Well, other than that old bottle of Benefiber…but we won’t talk about that. I had to BORROW needles and yarn from my knitter friend Cindy. In fact she gave me some fabulous Aran weight yarn to start making “something” with. She just told me to cast on and see what happens.

I cast on and started thinking I was going to make a scarf. It looked more like a growth hormone challenged afghan but I persevered and frogged a lot. But I was hooked. And I started to buy a bit of yarn here and a bit of yarn there. But not very good yarn.

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Yarn Enablers

No longer could I be content with Lion Brand or……Red Heart. Now there was Pagewood Farms and Knit Picks, Aracania and Berroco, Crystal Palace and……Malabrigo.

Oh Malabrigo how I love you.

And I started to buy yarn here and there.

And when we would travel I always made sure to check out the yarn stores in the area.

And….

And my Stash cupboard is full to overflowing. Bursting at the seems. Ready for a Melt Down to China.

I bet they have yarn in China!

And so the best way to know what I have in there is to actually take it ALL out, photograph ALL of it, spreadsheet all the fiber and how much I have of it, update my stash on Ravelry and then organize it a bit better. Also it would help if I actually linked up some of the yarn with specific patterns. Well now THERE’S a thought.

It isn’t happening today because, well, there are other things on the agenda. But it will be soon.

Wish me luck. I just looked and I only have enough fingering weight sock yarn to make 20 pair.

I don’t think that is nearly enough!! I am going to have to free up some space.

You know, I could always just switch everything to a large cabinet and then I wouldn’t have all this trouble.

Hmmmmmm

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Day 70–Dang Woodpeckers

Day 70 - Dang Woodpeckers!

Canon 450D; Tamron 18-270 @ 270mm; ISO 400; f6.3; 1/20 sec

I know, I know….I live in the woods. And so do the woodpeckers. We must co-exist. These holes happen to be made by our Pileated Woodpeckers, of which we have several pairs. They are seriously large and they make seriously large holes. This tree sits just to the side of the driveway and has looked a bit on the sickly side. Having large holes bored into it’s innards isn’t going to help it I am thinkin’.

Day 69–I See You

Day 69 - I See You

Canon 450D; Tamron 18-270 @ 270mm; ISO 400; f10; 1/15 sec

A little “quirk” that I have is that when I am shooting an interior, especially if that shoot includes a bathroom or two…..

I take a picture of myself behind the lens in a mirror….or any shiny surface for that matter. This doesn’t happen if the client is following me around obviously. THAT would be strange.

This reflection just happened to be in my own kitchen. I had washed out the milk bottle that is slated to be returned for deposit. It was draining on the counter when I noticed the reflection in it….

And that caused me to grab Old Faithful because I was really interested in that unusual shape that the moisture had made. But when I leaned down to photograph that I saw my reflection in the glass and decided that was the picture I was looking for.

Day 68–Sunbathing

Day 68 - Sunbathing

Canon 450D; Tamron 18-270 @240mm; ISO 200; f6.3; 1/500

Even the Basil plant on my kitchen counter had it’s face turned to the sun on Saturday.

And in case you wonder……

I took my daily pictures on Sunday, Monday and Today…..

But I forgot to post them. So be prepared cuz there are two more pictures about to arrive in your blog feeder.

Monday, March 11, 2013

A Quarter Century Under Her Belt

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Moo Moo Meister, otherwise known as TMO, is 25 years old today. Oh how time does fly.

And in keeping with tradition here are 25 pictures to celebrate!

Happy Birthday Moo Moo Meister Slicester!! See you soon.

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Feeding the ducks

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