Mail and in person

Lovely mail incoming including SEEDS! As promised. All the morning glory seeds available around here are one season, and don't self seed. Lately they haven't even flowered. 

So these are seeds a friend collected and sent to try next year, a great thing to look forward to. Thank you, Ch.  Gary has been interested too, since he's been unable to get them going, but remembers his childhood garden with them all over the fences. Accompanied by a monarch. The seeds, not the fences.

Afternoon tea and toast with the mail, beautiful handmade card, thank you, C, and various greetings. 

Then, on Friday, my artist/contractor/cook/friend/neighbor came over with Christmas treats before they got on the road to visit family for the holiday.  

Glazed ham and peppermint chocolate bark. Homemade. I may possibly share but then again, life's short.

Later he came back, cleaning out the fridge of perishables before leaving for ten days, could I use this container of baby bellas? Since I routinely do, favorite mushroom, this was welcome. I'll add it to the ones I have for Christmas.

Thursday was about soup. I'd thought a large bag in the freezer was veg trimmings for stock. I found it was a bag of red onions. The little bag next to it was stock. The label had come off the big bag.

So I made a small stock, and rummaged around for other makings. Remember when I last poached fish in milk? I froze the seasoned milk, and yesterday brought two containers out to add to the soup.

Meanwhile I cooked a large handful of red onions and seasonings, including umami seasoning from Yeung Man Cooking, and turmeric, in olive oil, then blended it before I added the stock and milk, to make a cream soup. 

Seen here with a sprig of curry leaves, really good added flavor. 

I also had this soup with a slice of seedy toast and the spicy cheese spread. The milk base was great and there was the occasional little chunk of fish. 

Light snow and rain on Friday, so Thursday's walk was just in time.  It's amazing how your spirits lift from just a short while outside.

The current glove is now at the knitted cuff stage

And there was bed changing, laundry, masses of dishes, always amazing in a household of one.

I finished the Horowitz which I hugely recommend. He's so entertaining and you have to stay alert at all times. He darts back and forth, present to past, braiding real life with the fiction of the book, till you wonder which is which. 

I've downloaded a Horowitz audiobook to accompany my knitting, though I'd rather read him on Kindle.  But I can't get another without another wait. Also I can't knit and read. So sad, having to do one thing at a time. 

Happy day everyone, do one thing at a time or more if you can.

About the bear, and the water heater

The bear I mentioned was in the news recently, yet another hunting story. Now, I'm passionately against bear hunting, which usually means humans have built houses in the bears' territory then got all in in their feelings when bears are still there.

Who needs bear meat? very few people need wild meat, and it's not about  poverty. What with the cost of firearms, ammunition, licence, truck to carry the animal, if you can afford that, you could buy meat. I know a couple of local deer hunters who really do eat their kill and share it, not just a trophy. 

But around here bears are trophy kills. I  am on team bear.

Anyway, this latest one: couple of hunters, not here, somewhere middle West, out bear hunting, bear scrambles up a tree to escape, one fires, bear falls out of tree, on the other hunter, crushing him. Karma, fast delivery.

When we lived in Wisconsin we noted many hunting mishaps, from hunters firing on each other, to falling out of those tree platform things, and quite often alcohol was involved.  The Darwin effect was definitely in play.

Thursday is about waiting home for two inspections for the water heater, installed back in October, and finally the plumber got around to the paperwork. 

One electric, one plumbing, some time today. On the off chance that they came early, I dressed much earlier than usual, which probably ensures they'll be here very late this afternoon. The window is 8.30 to 3.30.  

Late edit: one inspector did both, no problems, around noon. 

Meanwhile I've got plenty to be doing.  Stitching, knitting, crocheting, Misfitting, figuring out what to eat, no end of things. Not free cycling though, not a good time, people too busy and looking for new rather than recycled. 

Here's Haleem bringing the food home

Then the reveal. Peas for Christmas, mushrooms already in the freezer, sweet potatoes already in house, honey for more granola and cordial, the cheese spread is a good flavoring for all kinds of purposes, like a peppery sauce. The coffee is a good example of Misfits rescue -- only thing wrong is the packaging. It's ground, and packaged in bags saying whole bean. So they can't sell it, truth in labeling, at the regular price, and I got a good discount. 

As usual everything looks fine, and I'm about to check on tofu ideas again.

I baked the sweet potatoes, beat them with butter, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. They'll be in the freezer ready to heat up for Christmas.  

Happy day everyone, don't chase bears up trees, it may not end well.

Mystery lunch

Written before Handsome Son arrives with ingredients for the lunch he's laying on for us today. 

Table ready anyway. Turns out the menu is mozzarella chicken melt on crusty rolls, whoa. 

Meanwhile, Gary is on my case to make another neighbor get into walking to help with her bad back. I have thoughts about this.

One being: walking is when I enjoy thinking and seeing and sniffing whatever's about, alone, not chatting. It's a reset time. It's also a different time every day, depending on weather, what I'm  doing and how I'm feeling.

One is that the neighbor in question is the one who talks in a shout.

One is that a grown-up does their own stuff, not waiting for someone else to direct them. I have now officially lost count of the number of people who've tried to piggyback on my walks because "then I'll do it".  

I rest my case. 

Writing later:

Lunch was wonderful, the tiny Christmas decorating is done, and we attended to bits of business relating to my demise. We reviewed the files and other information he'll need, and other plans for the nearer future, such as my plan to give up driving in probably the next year. This is not as grim as it sounds, since he appreciates the planning.

We also shared some wild theories about the drone sightings, and our funny/not funny reaction to the hunter a bear fell onto this week.  It's about as rare as being in the path of a falling piano, and just as final.

Evening online with friends.

Happy day everyone, look out for falling bears. 

Tuesday Knitting Group, Textiles and Tea

Tuesday knitting group was the last till the New Year because the library will be closed for holidays those two Tuesdays.

No pix, no new projects, but interesting chat about teaching knitting, teaching art, pig Latin, Nutcracker, Indivisible, Universal Basic Income, black walnut dye, reed pens, Van Gogh, miniature making and more. 

Then home to tea, birthday cake and a sudden visit from Gary about my house cleaners. He wants to suddenly hire them. Right away. Now. One time. Hm. He might get lucky. I gave him their full (hard, Czech) name and email. 

Then Textiles and Tea featuring Jeanne Sisson, an artist who draws, paints, prints and stitches on fabric to make small works, many as small as 6"x 8". The biggest are about 20" square.

This was pretty far afield from weaving, quite a departure for HGA. 

And finally my Horowitz came in at the library, after months, yay. Now on my Kindle. 

Happy day everyone, enjoy whatever you can!

Aglets and other discoveries

The slippers are now taking on the shape of my wobbly old feet, also stretching a bit with use.  So I decided to run elastic round the edges to draw the knitted part in and avoid losing them off my feet.

I hadn't much elastic available but I found what turned out to be a stretchy shoelace, which, cut in two, was exactly the length to do this improvement. 

And since each end had a tip, for inserting into shoelace holes, I did it without any needles or threading.

The little bits of white you see, if anything, it's a dark rainy day,  are evidence of this  feat of engineering.  And in the course of this exercise I found that

So now we know. Aglet would be a good name for a tiny dog, too, or a kitten.

I think this musing might qualify as nixen or whatever that Dutch word is for not doing much that's productive. 

And while we're at it, here's another fun and pointless thing 

Just sayin. Do you have any categories to add? 

Happy day, everyone, sometimes an aimless day indoors in the rain is a good thing. 

Birthday celebration continues with Handsome Son coming to cook lunch tomorrow and finally put up my small collection of decorations because I will now permit Christmas to happen chez Boud, the natal day having passed.

As far as we know, that is. When I was born, difficult home birth, attended by a midwife, paperwork was a more casual affair, the mother and baby being more the center of the activity. 

There was nobody taking notes and checking the time of the exact minute of birth. The father usually moseyed down to the Town Hall to register the birth when he got around to it.

In my case, what with six other living siblings and Christmas and my mom not being too well, and the Town Hall shut for the holidays, it was late December when he got there. 

And, knowing him, I will bet dollars to donuts, or pounds to mince pies, that he took his best guess at the date, things having been a bit hectic there.  Anyway that's what got onto the paperwork, so it's what I've observed ever since. 

I fully expect St Peter, when I apply to the pearly gates for admission, to look over his ledger and say, hm, there's a discrepancy here, you'll have to get your earthly papers sorted before we can proceed.  My language will probably determine my ultimate warm, cosy destination. 

The new Boud. Just like the old Boud

Saturday I was reminded about granola, which I haven't made for ages. So I did.

And here's the airtight container, where it just fits.  Walnuts, almonds, dried cranberries, cinnamon, seasalt, oats, agave syrup, honey.

I like this as a cereal with milk, or a snack. I keep the clumps intact to make it finger food.

Then Sunday I found a couple of ideas,  originally going to make an olive tapenade to go with a potato dish. Then I decided to just add the olives in with the onions, garlic and potatoes. All sauteed in olive oil, then an egg broken over.

Here it's served with spinach and cooked carrots. The drink you see is great.

It's a turmeric lime ginger cordial 

Some of those limes you saw recently, and that fresh ginger, with the last of the great Tellicherry black peppercorns, go into the mixture which you blend then strain. 

You can add club soda, but I didn't have any. It occurs to me that for people who like spirits, this might be a nice cocktail with gin or vodka. For me it was good just chilled and still.  There's more for tomorrow.

Wednesday is the official birthday celebration, which will consist of Handsome Son cooking lunch here, probably some chicken garlic and crusty roll combo, then we'll get out the box of Christmas stuff to strew around. Between his cooking and the decorating, the place will look like a warzone.  Fun times.

Meanwhile on birthday evening, Gary and another friend brought over a chocolate cake to share, and at the end of their visit, left me with a couple more slices.

I have started a pair of gloves using the right size crochet hook. What a difference. 

My hand is fine. Just shows it's a Good Thing to use the right tools where possible. This from a person who once replaced all the chains in the downstairs double hung, very heavy old,  windows at the old house using only a steak knife. No tools available, long story.

The jigsaw puzzle is still on the table from Thanksgiving, so I may give up on it. It's nice but not gripping.  Then the table will be free to put a cloth on.

Happy day everyone! Thank you for all your wishes and messages, they were great to read and enjoy.

New trip around the sun!

So many good wishes, cards, greetings, messages, wishes. I feel so lucky and appreciated. Thank you everyone who's been in touch or will comment in here.

As a person who grew up in poor health, struggling to have some kind of normal life and mostly managing it, I'm amazed to still be here and be well enough to do whatever I like doing. 

And here's my chemical element for the year. I swiped this idea from Oliver Sacks, who didn't make it this far. This is for you, too, Oliver!

Odorless is good, and noble very much so. This one's also pretty dangerous on the loose. Yes, I think this is all good!

And by 5 PM it's dark and the moon is well up, huge, bright 

My birthday present to me, a set of Tunisian crochet hooks, arrived Saturday evening.

After years of working with one giant hook, it was time to branch out.

 

Happy day everyone, especially all my fellow Sags. 

Gary, Janee, Anthony, Mare, Quinn, LaRich, so many more friends.