Cross Rubicon, check, Misfits and more

Thursday morning I cut yet another final bouquet. Each cut stimulates more flowers and Wednesday night's heavy rain seems to have woken them up.

And the orchid against an early morning backdrop, is still blooming.

The print information about the heatpump arrived. I'd squinted at it online on a little screen, so now I was able to see better what was what.

Scary total. Rubicon sized.

I made my choice after finding out about all kinds of stuff such as SEER ratings, which are not about second sight, and what units the heating and cooling power is counted in.

Then I called the heatpump people, and Marty, the HVAC man, and I had a nice chat, and I learned more things. He thinks he can get it installed next week, meanwhile I have to do some e-signing. 

This timing is good, because the weather is still mild so it's  good to get the installation done.  One working day will do it. 

Then I needed to get out and walk before Misfits arrived.

Self portrait, looking surprisingly tall 

These shrubs are full of fruit probably for the birds and squirrels 

Right across the pond there's a whole congregation of turtles shining in the sun 

And Fergus Frog is sitting in the shallows under a branch, observing me

Look at these wild shapes overhead

Goldenrod is really at peak now, pollinators are happy to note. 

Eventually Misfits arrived, on the regular van but evidently it's being repainted, not yet its usual pink 

Canned goods to share with the food pantry, raisins for snacks and baking, honey because it's ages since I had any, cod pieces (!) with various plans, tofu for a Yeung Man Cooking recipe tomorrow, blueberries and strawberries for desserts with yogurt, which will also feature in the Yeung Man recipe, when I find it again. Baby Bella mushrooms, maybe omelette, maybe recipe.  Tuna for tuna cheese melt, beautiful brown eggs for omelettes and baking,  cannellini beans I think also will be in the same YMC recipe, it's carrying a lot of freight.

Is this fruit a thing of beauty or what? American fruit in American pottery bowls.

Today's resistance was a message to ABC-TV condemning the sidelining of the Kimmel show over a mild comment. 

I note that Disney executives were in on the decision, since D is the corporate owner.  I can't boycott something I don't use, but I'm just sayin, there's other things to watch and other places to go.

Happy day everyone, here's the continuing sock, the heel turned, and soon to bust out in stripes, mainly because I'm seriously short on sock yarn and I'm eking it out.  

That means I'll get to one and a half socks before shrieking "Eek!"

Thar she blows, sez Ted and Big Ursy 

And we remember trans women are women

 

Upcoming art exhibit

 I was invited to send two pieces in for the group exhibit of the Plainsboro Artist Group in October, so I thought you'd like to see.

22x18, watercolor and chalk, Red Orchid 

and 

8x8 Hibiscus, black ink

They will be shown in the gallery you saw in Wednesday's post, which I founded. In fact I founded the artist group over thirty years ago. So they're kindly letting me know I'm not forgotten, really nice considering it's years since I was active with them. 

The current art scene is strong, especially considering the size of the town. 

So for various reasons I accepted and included in the reasons is

Creating means all kinds of creating, gardens, meals, lesson plans, animal care, as well as the arts.

Happy day everyone, keeping well is also resistance.

Cauliflower, Tuesday Knitting Group, Textiles and Tea

Tuesday involved using that cauliflower you saw in the misfits box, and a very nice head it was, good all through. I had decided on a cheese sauce, long time since I made that staple. I used cheddar and feta cheeses, didn't add salt because they're salty, but did use plenty of black pepper.

I really like baking food in glass dishes, and I have several sizes, so it fits.

About six meals here, and I have soup in the freezer full of vegetables, so there's a range. I can make a helping of this cauliflower make a meal on its own. Dessert was yogurt beaten with pumpkin and sweetened.

Then off to the food pantry with sugar, flour, and malt vinegar packets, on the way to the Tuesday knitting group. Small group, no new projects, just a lot of fun with friends. 

Chat ranged over forthcoming wedding with pictures of The Dress, past and present pets, with baby pictures, misfits market, that  supermarket and restaurant app that gets leftover food, dreams about furnishing rooms, meditation, yoga, pilates, AARP, butterflies, groundhogs and more. It was such a relief from the news. 

Here's the view down into the ground floor, from outside the room where we meet. Vertiginous, no? Scroll past quick if it's too much.  

Left is where I sit when I read here,  behind you see the gallery and current painting exhibit, right are the study tables where people often work, between them and the food permitted area is the new book section.

Home after that to Textiles and Tea with Joyce Robards,  a beloved weaving teacher whose own students joined up to sponsor her appearance. 

Her own work is pretty classical in style, and excellent in quality, scarves and yard goods. Mainly she was interested in encouraging people to abandon their fear of difficulty and just plunge in and learn. You could tell she's a great teacher. 

And here's the weaving Center she founded and where she teaches,  in Rochester, NY.

That laugh is typical of her happy approach to life, I think!

Happy day everyone, still waiting on the paper copy of the heat pump info,  which they mailed on the 11th.  Anyway, stay strong, don't cave, we got this.

And keep fit

Howard's End is on the landing, Brideshead redux and toys for boys

Monday morning the cleaners came so I got out of their way.  I had dropoffs for the food pantry about which more later, then pickups at the library, so I stayed there.

When I found that the newer Brideshead Revisited had Emma Thompson playing Lady M, much better casting than the earlier miniseries with Claire Bloom, I decided to borrow it. Monday night at the movies.

The other pickup was 

This inspired piece of writing, which I found out about on Sue from Suffolk's blog, thank you.

It's very engaging and I've already borrowed a couple of her book recommendations for my Kindle. She'd disapprove of this, preferring to be surrounded by actual books and handling them, even ones she's had for years and will definitely read one day.

And convent schooled ladies (!) will recognize this way to hold a book. Never press a thumb into the spine, gels!

Whenever I pick up a book I hear Mother Monica's Irish landowner sharp, loud,  voice.. I daren't hold it any other way.

I used to be in a postgraduate course long ago with a Susan Hill and have often wondered if it's the same one. Turns out not, so it's not six degrees after all. 

Outside the library, in the  square where the fountain is located, they've been digging and tearing all summer and we're finally being let in on what they're up to. The fountain will move but will be there.

All kinds of fun big toys, some for picking up paving looking like hippos biting it and slinging it on a growing heap. There are also humble  spades and rakes, I was surprised to see.

My walk today was around the square, dodging traffic because the sidewalks are gone for now.

Back home I realized that the food pantry can also use condiments and I thought I had a lot of turmeric accidentally over-ordered, and many malt vinegar packets, same reason. 

I did indeed have extras and checked the expiration date on the turmeric. Oh. 2022. I was pretty sure it was more recent. I can still use it, it's vacuum sealed and good quality, but I can't donate it. 

The many little packets of malt vinegar, serving sizes, are fine, and confectioner's sugar. So Tuesday, when I'm on the way to my needlers group, I'll drop them off.  Time flies when you order too much by accident. 

I also have vital wheat gluten, kept frozen, but I can't donate it, it's also well past the date.  I may add in whole wheat flour, though, which is definitely good.

Happy day everyone, some of us are a little past our expiration date but who's counting.

Not I, sez Flufferina