It's all in a day off!!!!

I have had a wonderful day....going to my yoga class, getting mushroom compost on the garden beds, doing laundry and finally doing some ART!!

These are collage pages from a round robin canvas art journal which some of us are doing. [Go to my collage blog to see more about this round robin.] The theme of the round robin is ART SAVES. I've done the first pages and cover for my journal. Now it will travel for awhile then come home to me full of fun, lovely, inspiring pages done by others!

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To keep me going while doing all of this, I was looking forward to having a piece of this Raspberry Polenta Cake from the current [April/May] issue of Hobby Farm Home. The article is about baking in cast iron skillets. It was fun to do. So, we ate a piece or two and the rest is either in the freezer or going to work with me tomorrow to share!

YUMMMM!

My own "March Madness"!!!!

This free calendar page is a great visual of how I feel on this fourth day of March!

We have a great forecast, warmer, sunny, not too windy and I have the day off!

It is like an overload of energy and possibilities this morning!

Birds are busily preparing their nests, my house wrens arrived this week! Robins are everywhere....I am tempted to clean and tidy my own nest.

OR, I could make a batch of crepes to have on hand for coming meals....or even try making my own mozzarella. [Yesterday a customer commented to me that her next errand after out store was to pick up a cheese thermometer. I was intrigued and had never heard of such a thing. She told me that she makes her own mozzarella and that it "ONLY" takes 30 minutes. It was an interesting conversation, but I didn't think too much about it....THEN, while running my errands, getting seersucker fabric for more little rompers for my grandson, I browsed the magazines at Hancock Fabric...what should catch my eye but "Make Mozzarella in Minutes"!!! It was in a charming magazine called HOBBY FARM HOME.

I bought the magazine... seems you can also make ricotta from the whey as you do this....and ricotta with fruit would be wonderful in those crepes!] If I had another day off...like tomorrow too, I might just jump in and try!

OR there is the art/sewing studio downstairs, where I could collage, or paint birds,...

OR step out the door there into the garden area and start cleaning up and preparing for planting.

OR I could visit local thrift stores looking for a fun chair to recycle into an art piece for our local "CHAIR AFFAIR" an art auction evening which supports Life Styles a local organization which provides services for individuals with developmental disabilities.

I guess since there is a deadline coming on doing the chair, I could do that errand.... after the heating and air-conditoning workers come this morning, to do the seasonal check on our furnace and all. And of course, getting to yoga class....

OR maybe the best way to have a day off is just to relax and "piddle", take things as they come and NOT try to accomplish too much ????? Just breathe and BE.

I'm making good progress on the Easter dress. The flounces at the bottom are now on. I had planned on making the underneath tier out of a coral cotton fabric, but once I found these butterflies, I knew they should be the choice! Fun!

AS I returned from my shopping for that fabric, yesterday, I didn't see a bent sharp tool lying in the road....immediately, my right rear tire began making a terrible k-thunk, k-thunk noise. I got to my parking place (where I work) and took a look. The handle of the tool was sticking out of my tire!

Hearing of my problem, our gallant sewing machine repair person, Jim, came out to my car and changed the tire. [yeah!!! Jim is getting a batch of cookies when I go back to work tomorrow!]

So, my day off this morning started with a trip to the tire center for the installation of a new tire. Thank goodness for road hazard coverage!!! I didn't have to pay for a new tire!

While I waited, I continued to read "THE HELP". It really is a good read, hard to put down..... so that's all I have done today; I just finished the book and can now start cooking dinner!

I hope to get around to visiting some of your blogs this evening!

A day off from work!

I've done my errands, attended yoga class, watched a British mystery DVD (while crocheting a granny square or two!), tidied the house (it was even warm enough to leave the garage open and clean a bit out there), planned Easter sewing for the grandkids! I am now contemplating doing some art work with this bowl and pear. Maybe a watercolor, or at least a sketch for a 5x5 acrylic painting. I have some heat on down in the studio and hope to get down there soon!

I'm so thankful that I have a camera to capture this idea just in case I run out of painting time today! I even played a little in Adobe photoshop with "splatter" and "pastel strokes" just to see the "look" I could get... soft and fuzzy, that's what!

Down to the studio now....or I'll never make it!

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Later---I did find a few minutes for a watercolor sketch! Yeah!

We're having a winter storm...and....This is my 700th post!

Here is the photo of the snowman block which I promised you. I am scheduled to teach this block of the month (which I am designing) at the sewing shop, tomorrow. However, we will probably not be open, and real snowmen will be appearing all over town!

I took this photo out the front window, a few minutes ago. Things have changed since then, we now have large fluffy flakes cascading silently into our world. This is SO much better than the relentless ice which fell a year ago! I am off work today, as everything here closes when the streets get icy. This wonderful day is all mine, I feel. I am doing some "old" (as in "same ole, same ole") things, crafts, reading, blogging. But I am trying some new things this week.

One new thing, fennel. I had never bought a fennel bulb before. Yesterday, I decided to try one. The bulb below has been oven roasted with sea salt, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It will be my lunch. The stalks and feathery part of the fennel are in a crock pot with a small pork loin which I browned in an iron skillet first. The fennel is under the roast which is topped with sea salt and lemon slices. We will have that for dinner. [I won't be thinking that Mr. Pear will eat the fennel stalks but they should impart a delicate flavor to the pork roast.]

My other plans for new foods include Swiss chard which I'm sure I will have to eat by myself, as well. This is a new path for me...trying to eat much less sugar ( I can't give up honey yet, though!) and switching to green tea instead of coffee. [Is this really ME???? I always loved coffee.....first thing EVERY morning!]

I can only say that the "wake-up" call my body gave me with all the pain a week ago, has made me look for a different path. The one not yet taken. It might be interesting....getting out of a rut and all! I am going to take CARE of ME this time, which includes completing a series of helpful sessions with the chiropractor in the next six weeks and seeing them on an on-going basis! [I've learned that I do love being taken care of, and even if I have to pay for it, I'm worth it!]

Of course, the skills I've had for years, sewing, crochet (see granny squares in photo), knitting are still available to me.

I just have to be careful and not overdo....same thing with typing on this computer! Here is my little Singer Featherweight which I carried up from the icy cold basement studio. I used it to make a yoga bag for my new yoga mat.

We have a wonderful local TV channel which has a daily yoga session each morning at 10:00 so I was able to do that today too! [It's great being off work! LOL!]

Much of my quiet day is left....after the fennel bulb lunch, I can read or even set up a still life and try a watercolor painting. Thank-goodness for the crock-pot, I don't have to stop and cook again!

I hope you have a lovely day too, wherever you are! Try a path not taken!

We're still having a sunny warm week! Today, my day off, I remembered to plant these daffodil bulbs which I bought a month ago. The variety is "Tahiti" which is a double daffodil with and orange ruffle. I planted a dozen. They should come along to brighten our world next March!

It has been an altogether good day, laundry, housework (a little), a walk in the park with Mr. Pear. Slowly, carefully. Still to be seen.... a maple tree or two with pretty leaves!

Then reading "The Lacuna" by Barbara Kingsolver. I have only just begun reading it and it is GOOD!

I have finished quilting on the Dresden plate quilt which I have been handquilting for the last few months. Today, I am sewing down the pastel scrappy binding. It is a classic!

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More creative fun here....a page from a collaborative altered book/scrapbook/art journal. This page was done by my friend Paula who found the wonderful book at a thrift store, an older decorating book by Tricia Guild. Wonderful photos for us to play with. Great color throughout the entire book....this will be fun! [click on the photo to see the page larger].

Simple pleasures for Labor Day....


Finding another fresh tomato and picking it this morning... [destined to be part of our evening meal]!

Smelling apple crisp as it bakes with apples from a friend (thanks, Cheryl!)!!

Hearing the song of a cardinal just outside my studio door. [A watercolor painted last month for another friend!]

I have given myself a day off. I will do what I enjoy with no pressure, so now I will THINK about doing a collage/art journal page about Botswana or whatever it evolves into as I work on it.

I took my morning coffee out the back door to watch the morning sun on the layered garden.
Having a day off, I had time to enjoy it. Just BEING there.

Things are growing better this week, as the 3 weeks of rainy days are now over! Here (below) is a red bell pepper plant, verbena and cilantro.

Here is the tomato (Beefmaster) which was having trouble last week. It seems to be better now that all the bad leaves were removed (a week ago). My little marigolds brighten every place they are in!

Gardening, for me, is now about having the little garden to watch and wonder over....more fun than just "counting" on the possible harvest. We have harvested some baby lettuce so far....This is a good attitude for me, as below you can see that my radishes, inspite of having more than 35 days and not being too crowded made lovely leaves, but no radish "bulge" on the root. [ See that skinny shadow???]


I'm off to buy some fish emulsion. I do hope I eventually harvest some tomatoes...and I might pick up a zucchini plant while I'm out.
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This afternoon, I have a tiered skirt to finish sewing. Also a rice pudding to bake! No end to the projects here! [Thank goodness!]

After so many rainy days and not much sunshine, the tomato plant from my kitchen garden["lasagne" or layered garden] is turning yellow green and coming down with something (see scanned leaves below). I can't diagnose it for sure....maybe leaf mold, bacterial spot or "target spot"? I am not anxious to be running out to purchase fungicide....maybe I can just pull it up and plant a marigold there....first I'll try removing all the spotted leaves. It has been so damp that the mushroom compost on top of the garden is now growing mushrooms, but of course I don't feel that they are safe to eat....

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Today I read in our newspaper that a local bakery uses a recipe for a high protein bread developed by Cornell University in the 1930's.....that intrigued me.... searching the Internet, I quickly found the recipe....and other trivia!

I think this is interesting as it shows how people were encouraged to cope in other stressful times. Perhaps I will continue looking for the bread machine version of the Cornell bread recipe....or just get busy with a quilt! LOL!

My day off, so busy!!!!!
Now I am setting up a still life and doing a watercolor....must work while the sun is up, even if it is intruding on my table!



Tonight we will have a chowder using a recipe from our dear Mary. I can hardly wait...I have collected all the ingredients, cod, leeks, potato, zucchini, mushrooms etc. (I should probably be putting them in the still life first! LOL!
We have our friend Karen coming for dinner and to watch the final episodes from Hamish Macbeth...the Scottish (BBC) TV series....(from Netflix). It will be a fun time....then back to work tomorrow, for me.