Darning. Again. Bee on cosmos. Black walls

Sunday was about slow everything. Lovely sunny walk, cool morning, warming up to 70s later.  More junk tipping on the common area, and I took pictures, sent them to management requesting a cleanup, with the numbers of the two houses, so the contractors can find them. 

At home the cosmos is the last flowering plant and it's had a lot of traffic, from this fat bumble?bee I think, to brown butterflies and other stripy buzzy fellers 

 

How lovely it is with the morning sun shining through the petals, six front ones, two behind 

And I stitched a bit more on my autumn leaves, with people sending me pictures of their mothers' crewel work from long ago. It's usually English crewel, more solid and filled in than American. 

American Colonial era crewel was airy, more delicate designs, largely because crewel wool was hard to get in the colonies,  so people had to work with less material. To look at the early bed hangings you'd never know those wonderful designs arose partly from scarcity. No scarcity of great talent, though.

As I was doing dishes (says Boud virtuously, just to show I got around to it) my assistance was called on to look at Gary's sample painting of the black wall. 

He's not just doing the alcove. It's the whole fireplace side of the room. Oh. I liked the warmest sample, and turns out I agree with his daughter on that. So that convinced him! It's very rich. Also very dark.

From fancy stitching to plain, I found yet another sock needing help, so I inserted my glasses case and got to work.

with Kate of the Last Homely House knitting and chatting in the background as I darned along. If you knit socks it pays to know how to repair them,too, especially if you're a walker. Under the toes goes first.

And here's an artwork of spices, many of which blogista cooks will recognize right off.

Since I've been making my own mixes, umami mix, garam masala, baharat, berbere, curry powder, I've come to appreciate the flavors so much more than buying mixes. 

It's fun to handle and grind them, wonderful scents. Also things like mayo, red chili oil, are just better, I think because they're fresh and personal. Even grinding your own pepper as needed, has more flavor than ready ground.  I don't grind salt, but some people do. And I do buy sugar as crystals, not in a loaf!

My spice taste is more south Asian and middle eastern, and Ethiopian,  than Mexican and US Southwest. Though I do make chili sometimes. 

In fact now that I have ground turkey to hand, also various beans, I might do that today. I'll check my World Central Kitchen cookbook. 

They have recipes for feeding huge crowds which they kindly present for family size, too. Chili is a big crowd food, needing vats rather than my little pot. They're still feeding people hit by the latest hurricanes, I believe.

About which, the NJ first responders are home again after working in Florida, North Carolina and Georgia.  

Happy day everyone, eat well, rest a bit, enjoy what you can.

Stitching, German Shepherds, and late roses

Late season roses and leaves on Saturday's morning walk.

And home again to pasta with a sauce of all kinds of seasonings with a Parmesan rind cooked in. Just two meals, the last of the penne, also the last of the tomatoes. No pictures, you've seen pasta before.

Then while I was thinking about dogs, I did a bit more stitching, just deciding on stitches and colors as I went. 

It's shaping up quite well.

About dogs, mainly German Shepherd dogs who could have a career in stand-up.

Molly was a client in my pet care service, and we met when she was newly arrived with her humans as a young puppy. They were experienced and knew that in order for her to let me in and handle her in the humans' absence, she'd need to accept me in her circle very young.  

They used to joke that she had the best pedigree of the lot of us, being a German German Shepherd, daughter of two German national show champions. She crossed the Atlantic to join us and proceeded to enchant everyone except the cable guy whom she terrorized.

She was intelligent enough to play tricks on humans, especially this one.

One day I came at noon as usual, to find an empty banana skin on the front door inside mat. She'd swiped the banana from the dining room fruit bowl, eaten the banana and put the skin right where my foot would go. I wondered if she'd been watching cartoons and hoped to see me skid across the floor.

Other times she'd pretend she couldn't come out of her crate, crying as if stuck. Until I tilted it up from the back so she slid out. Busted! Her face was a picture. I think she was hoping to be tempted out with a treat!

One of my knitting group friends told us how they had German Shepherd dogs, two of them, who, when the housekeeper came, were crated in the backyard. She was terrified of them, but the family assured her they would be crated for her 

She kept saying the dogs were getting out and scaring her, and the family, noting they were in their crates, bolts in place, when they got home, dismissed her concerns as made up from fear. 

Until the mother one day came home early, noticed the dogs playing in the yard, and saw them return to their crates, bolt the doors with a paw slipped through, then lie down as if they'd been there all along.

More dog tales another time. And we're open to your dog stories, too, Please share.

Happy day everyone, dogful or dogless or dogfree, however you see it.

Presents and knitting marvels

This morning Gary showed me he and the daisy owning neighbor lady had planted transplants along the outside of my fence. It's east-facing, just what these daisies like, so I'm hoping for a great show next year. Nothing to see yet.

He also showed me his snake plant starts, all but one of which had rooted, yay, and we discussed his elephant ear wintering over.

And, best of all, he asked me to take care of his pot of succulents! 

He thinks he's overwatering them, leaves dropping.

I'm thrilled about this chance, because I was thinking about starting again with succulent propagation. I was successful a couple of years ago, then when I moved the babies outside for the summer, squirrels trashed them. Literally shreds, nothing left to plant. I was discouraged but now I'm ready to try again over the winter. 

Then the Friday knitting group brought marvelous things 

S, with her Halloween sweater and lovely ocean colored sock

I., wearing one sweater she made while knitting another 

New crocheter K's two Halloween critters, the right one, both are wips, was her very first foray. 

I. again with a pillow for her daughter, front knitted butterflies, back running cross-stitch om burlap.

One other knitter is continuing with a project you've seen, but she's not a one project knitter by a long chalk. Just no picture today.  And your humble blog writer was still with Ministry sock. 

Talk ranged over plans for the yarn for a first sweater, to be bought this weekend at Rhinebeck, voting, knitting patterns, Tunisian crochet, the weather, local politics, book groups, challenging racism, emails, German Shepherd sense of humor and more.

Happy day everyone, I hope your day is  good. Mine was. Friday night online meeting with friends. Because of these great fun meetings, I moved my daily evening dishwashing to the next day. I do it while I cook lunch.

Speaking of which, here's a baked white sweet potato, mashed, salt, pepper and bits of butter, nothing fancier needed, along with part two of last night's supper. 

You see the tan skin and creamy colored flesh, really delicate flavor.

With it was a baked tomato, mozzarella and egg dish. Break the egg over, bake 400°f, when the egg suits you, the dish is done. Good on toast, too.

Chipmunk capers, Misfits box, and Mrs Gaskell

Chipmunks in various blogs lately and why I look askance at the cute little critters.

To wit: library friend reported a chipmunk got in through an open patio door after she'd repeatedly reminded her husband to shut it every time because of chipmunks and squirrels on the patio. 

She thought she saw something flittering across the living room to the kitchen where the dishwasher was running. Couple of minutes later, explosion in kitchen, flames and water together shooting about,  fire fighters cut water and power to extinguish the fire and found a tiny charred body in the wiring. I don't know what she said to her husband.

To second wit: pet supply store friends came home from vacation, to find water running down the driveway, discovered the basement was full, couple of inches throughout the ground floor, and many tiny toothmarks in the pvc basement water supply pipes,  through which water had evidently been jetting while they were away. 

Also a drowned chipmunk. And all appliances drowned and needing replacement. Serious furnace damage.

On a cheerier note, I have added to my classic Kindle library a complete Mrs Gaskell, and I'm currently rereading Cranford with much more appreciation than when it was a school set book. 

While I'm stitching, I also found a good audio version, so my FOMO is satisfied.

Before the pink Misfits van arrived, I fitted in a walk to admire late patio flowers, natural color combos and fall colors at the pond, little wind coming and going 

Misfits day

Great deal on white sweet potatoes, which will be roasted, baked, souped, various meals.

The yogurt front needed a boost from Nancy after several weeks of homemade. The flour may become bread. The big size seen here isn't often available. Cooking with Will Yeung uses up rice, so there's reinforcements. 

The ground turkey will be burgers soon, and spaghetti sauce, and the chicken will be in the depths of the freezer till I need chicken again.  Mozzarella because it's a melting change from cheddar. Future toasted cheese sandwiches.

I also found a good chickpea pasta dish which I'll try with the fettuccine currently in the freezer. It can work with my other favorite, cannellini beans, too. Hummus because it's been a while since I had any I hadn't made. And I've been out of vanilla forever, high time.

Nice haul, and as usual, great quality.

Early voting in North Carolina is booming. Huge turnout. Many anecdotal reports of GOP voting Harris, had it with the wannabe dictator. They may split their ticket, so we can't count on their Senate yet, but we'll see. 

Ticket-splitting, for blogistas in furrin parts,  unfamiliar, is where you vote one party for one or more offices, another for other positions. 

There are usually a lot of offices up for voting in a Presidential year because they seize on voters who don't turn out for the midterms and other elections. Unlike immigrants who make sure they're heard in everyone election no matter what's up for decision.  President or dog warden, hear our voices.

In primaries many states only permit registered party affiliates to vote, in their own party primary, some variation across states. 

But in Presidential elections you vote freely any candidate, any party,  you choose. And you can usually, in any election, write in the name of someone not on the printed ballot.

Fireplace on, Freecycle and Finicky Folk

This morning, overnight last night in the 40s, I switched on the fireplace insert and found the flickering log light effects work fine and the heat function doesn't. After eight years I suppose not surprising. Mainly I only use it for the cosy effect, without the heat. 

No house heat needed yet. If my hands and feet are warm, that's fine for now. 

And I'm putting my heaviest hand weights on Freecycle, keeping only the ones I now use. 

I backed off from these after I passed eighty in order to protect my spine and wrists. I still get enough out of the 5lb ones and the, I think, 2lb. The smaller ones are for some hand exercises I was shown by Handsome Partner's physio, to keep my wrists out of trouble as I moved and turned him. HP, not the physio. They're still useful to avoid knitting injury.

No sooner said than did. Gone in an hour, several eager requests. I'm helping Keep (or get) America Fit!

I'm also offering a bag of clothing, some handmade by me, and have had not much interest, except for one person, there's one in every crowd. 

This person wanted me to text better pictures and asked EXACTLY what size. I had listed these items in detail. Hand stitched clothing doesn't work exactly to manufacturer sizes, whatever they are, and they vary.

I'd specified email only, my phone doesn't text pix, and had said the clothing was all women's small. 

I messaged back saying sorry, the items were now bagged and again they're women's small, usually meaning 6-8 in manufacturing ranges. Crickets now.

I'll probably deposit them at a local collection or the thriftie. I hope someone will get some use out of them. 

The handmade items are unworn, and fine but just don't work for me. The white toweling popover goes over your head and I found it was a bit of an issue to take it off, aging shoulders, unforeseen hitch. 

Gary has changed his mind about the paint. He now plans on a black wall. So he came over with sample strips of blacks to choose a couple to get paint samples and try them on the walls.  

I just hope nobody wants to change it later. It's quite a job painting a light color over a darker one, needs layers and strategy. I didn't get into that, just discussed various shades of black, warm and cool.

Happy day everyone! I hope your plans work better than ours in this neighborhood. We're a bit hit or miss sometimes. Except a hit for lunch. 

I was finishing up that great leftover soup and dropped the last of the fresh greens, mainly spinach, on top of the hot bowl of soup. It just wilted enough to be really good with the soup, and I think I'll do that again.

The early voting numbers are massive, record breaking. This may show the polls, and the people who still believe in them (narrator: see who pays for them first), are hopelessly out of sync with with reality. I strongly doubt  the "neck and neck" scenario.  Let's look for a blue tsunami.

Tuesday, lovely Tuesday

Tuesday started at the dermatologist, getting a good report, and having a couple of tiny red things frozen off, all good.

But first I mailed out my Postcards to Voters, and Handsome Son reported doing likewise. Here's the deal

By following their mailing plans, we arrange for each listed voter to receive three postcards at intervals. These are registered voters in swing states and very contested House and Senate races. Mine and HS are for NJ 7th district where we hope to replace the hopeless Tom Kean Jr with the hopeful Sue Altman. Fingers crossed. We done our bit.

Back in time for another great lunch from yesterday, and a bowl of cornstarch pudding for dessert. There will be a third meal from this Chickpea Sheet Pan recipe, which needs a better name. 

Then off to Tuesday knitting group, yay, I made it this week, and met a wonderful new friend, who didn't mind showing her Achievement of the Day. Picture with her permission

Another member showed her how to start crochet, she having a lot of experience making slipcovers and drapes, but no knitting or crochet. She's determined to make a scarf for her grandson.  This is her first shot at a crochet chain, and she's going to continue.

and here's knitted lace from an expert, wearing one of these shawls as she knits another.

Talk ranged over moving, downsizing, Virginia, outliving family and friends, telephone talkers, favorite women doctors, Christmas presents for teachers, football, dislocated joints, soccer, the Knitting Ministry, and more.

Home again to Textiles and Tea, with Vandana Jain,  a force of nature, a painter and weaver who exhibits works created from found objects combined with weaving. She also teaches weaving to students with physical and emotional disabilities, a hugely valuable service.

This is an installation, tape applied directly to the wall

Her partner is a painter, and gave this painting for her to cut up and incorporate into the weaving below

They're collaborating on a show this weekend in Brooklyn, his paintings incorporated into her weavings

She uses looms ranging from a giant Macomber to a little Cricket and a saori loom.  And her found objects are from the streets of Brooklyn around her studio.  She's such an imaginative and flexible artist, and is the only person I know who loves puerh tea. To me it's way too dark and bitter and earthy. But her workaday tea favorite is Irish Breakfast. Just sayin.

In the middle of the session, Gary came over to confer about a poorly plant, which has that ailment I forget the name of, little scale things on the underside, sticky exudate. He's got a spray. I just nodded and agreed. Warned him to keep it away from his other plants.

Happy day, everyone, I hope your Tuesday was as good as this one.