Happy Mothers Day, and change of plan

Lovely ecard arrived from Handsome Son, who's working a full day today, so can't visit.  I played it several times!

And here's some good thoughts about art

Yes to just about all of this.

The weaving needed a change of plan, because I forgot, when I threaded, that pattern threads need to be doubled. My single threads didn't show up legibly. So I decided to continue anyway, with a medley of pattern motifs to see how it works.

Each mistake I make shows me why things are done the way they are. All good experience. And this band is giving me the chance to try a lot of the five pattern thread motifs in the book. They'll look different because of the single threading, and that will be interesting.

I think soup will be on today. Carrot, pumpkin, red lentils. This will be a nice color. 

The containers are whey from the paneer making, and I added in potatoes as well as the ingredients you see here, to make it thicker. I used two containers of whey and the third, still frozen, is back in the freezer.

Here's lunch, decorated with the last of the chive blossoms from the paneer.  It was a golden lunch, because dessert was mango chunks with the last of the paneer 

I had a great postprandial walk, local kids at the start playing football 

Then down the greenway between houses and golf course 

Then chats with neighbors and exchanged greetings for Mother's Day, to turtle watching at the pond 

And young golfers out doing pretty well. These are not the duffers.

Home again and the honesty is developing seedpods. I'm going to have a good harvest. The plants coming up among the sage are interesting -- they're running to seed while the sage blossoms are budding out. Outside there are iris budding up, after years of foliage.  I think they too are glad the butterfly bush is gone. 

So, reading on the deck, sleeping happened too, pot of tea, after checking the iris 

These are heirloom purple and white bearded iris, descended from some planted nearly 100 years on a now deceased friend's grandmother's farm south of here. There are others I gave to neighbors now in bloom, because they're in a sunnier location.

Tea featured several visits from a squirrel who kept forgetting I was there and suddenly realizing ohemgee a human, and dashing away, once with a carpenter bee in pursuit. They're territorial insects, and the squirrel was pottering about in the honesty where the bee was being busy.

Lovely Mother's Day, texted wishes, in person wishes, ecard, it was all good.

Now back to weaving, I realized you can try out a series of designs without making a whole band for each. Just because that's the tradition doesn't mean I hafta. This way I'll have a band that's also a sampler, and a few experiments thrown in. 

Happy day everyone. For some people this is a difficult day. If that's you -- it's just one day, soon done. Hang in there, sez Ted and Big Ursy and Pony and Ursula.

Easter, Mother's Day, pearlworthy

Today we celebrated belated Easter and early Mother's Day. I thought HS had done quite enough for me this year, without doing anything special next Sunday.

My bit consisted of setting up the cheese board, the table and some vegetables.  And making his favorite Colman mustard. He brought ham, more vegetables, tiny chocolate eggs and jelly beans.

I sported The Pearls! It's a family joke that they come out for special occasions, even if I'm wearing t-shirt and jeans.

It was a lovely relaxed easy time, and we took our tea outside on the deck where we watched a merlin fly over the suddenly quiet area, first sighting this year,  not a bird moved, this picture right before the sighting

and I found this on the Japanese maple.

I think it's a gall. I removed it and the branch looked undamaged. I must learn more. If any blogista knows more, please say.

After Handsome Son left, I watched Textiles and Tea with famous Scottish tapestry and paper artist, Joanne Soroka. She wrote a classic book on tapestry weaving, and her own work in paper and in fiber, breaks barriers.

Here she's showing miniature tapestries based on Japanese boro work, originally patching to save fabric, then recognized as an art form

These two pieces below were commissioned for a super yacht!

And here's a collaged weaving

this piece is about the losses of the covid period, and you see it behind her in her studio

 

She works mainly in linen and cotton, very little wool, unusual for tapestry. And her work makes me want to warp up my handheld loom and weave, always a sign of a quality artist!

Happy day everyone! I definitely had one. The rain and thunder held off till early evening, very obliging.

Mother's Day, great food, friends and artisans

 Mother's Day was

I like the consoling "rain stopping soon" knowing everyone was a bit tired of it!

After several setup calls, Gary and I were sure our friend was up for a visit and clear about it.  So we walked down and spent a lovely hour, chatting about the orchids her husband gave her, as on every Mother's Day, blue this year, gardening, kids, grands, weather, cars, cancer treatment, dogs, vegetables, especially beets, and various other things.  

She was so happy, because her treatment has been happening daily, no chance to see anyone other than doctors and hospitals, so this was a change.  I'd say this was one of my better Mother's Days. I was doing what my Mom would do. 

Once home I plunged into the long awaited red lentil curry from Yeung Man Cooking's channel. This is a slow meditative process, many ingredients and stages, and the result was bangin'. Just great.

All the scents and colors were just a treat. And there's enough for several meals. He really knows how to teach a recipe. 

I'm taking a bit of time to decide on my next fabric book page, and I want it to be different from the previous ones.  I have a couple of ideas.

Meanwhile there's such a tempting offer on Freecycle of really lovely calico pieces..very local.. someone may save me from myself by getting in first... it's easy to refreecycle, if necessary, busily rationalizing.

I may do a bit of pinloom weaving, as a change of pace.

Speaking of which, I've come to value certain thoughtful YouTube channels, like Marion, the stitcher, painter, dressmaker, gardener, cook, modest, quiet and blessedly without music. It's like being with friends when YouTubers dare to allow quiet. 

Ant, of Ant's Country Life, is another. 

Sunday he uploaded a long video of himself rebuilding a collapsed drystone wall, occasionally turning to explain what he was doing. His skills are marvelous to watch and he's not afraid of silence, just letting us hear ambient sounds, birds, wind, sheep. It's an antidote (!) to the endless racket of the world. 

It doesn't hurt that Marion and Ant are both from my native part of the world, familiar scenery and speech, so restful.

I've been appreciating a lot of things,  quietness, friends, skills, Mother's Day greetings, chair yoga, simple days. 

Happy day everyone, enjoy what you have going, and, as one of my greeting texts said we're here, we're vertical, that's all we need!

Photo AC 

Textiles and Tea, tea on the patio, yogurt reveal

 I missed the live Textiles and Tea yesterday, because I was having a belated mother's day visit

Outside, lovely afternoon.

But I went online to find you a little something about the featured guest, still in her early 20s and already very accomplished. 

She uses her weaving art as a specific vehicie to express her queer life and experience. It's different from being gay and a weaver, which a lot of people are.

Here's what I found for you

Clearly a person to watch for.

Then this morning is the Great Yogurt Reveal

It's looking very good. I made it yesterday morning, so it's been fermenting for almost 24 hours, and evidently doing well. I used the last of the Nancy's yogurt as a starter. 

 I do like to have plenty of yogurt in the house, for all sorts of uses, baking, sauce, soup flavoring, and just eating as is.

Speaking of good food and good health, my doctor's nurse called yesterday with my lab results. She said here's the full message: everything's fine!  She kindly refrained from telling me I'm lucky. I find the more care I take, the luckier I get! 

Happy day everyone, be lucky, it pays!

 

Happy Mday, dove, dandelion and sage

Happy mother's day, if it applies. Mine will be celebrated Tuesday, since today's a work day for Handsome Son.

Meanwhile yesterday's cooking involved chutney, since I have no pickle related condiments in the house. Apple and raisin, with onions, vinegar, ginger, lemons, cinnamon, apple juice 

Apples cooking down while jars sterilize in boiling water in the background

Raisins added in with cane sugar, lemons, cinnamon, to cook down slowly till thick 

And final product. I'll try it in about a week, after it's blended. This will be good with curried fish, or cheese sandwiches, or practically anything that needs a condiment.

And while I had the raisins out, being all out of breadesque food, I made a batch of walnut raisin scone things, nice for breakfast

Also for a snack for Handsome Son's Tuesday visit.

This morning's dove sighting, nearly vanished under henbit

The potatoes doing well, and the sage starting to flower

While I was picturing the dove, I picked a handful of greens. Probably a bit bitter for salad, but they'll work in today's fish sauce.

Surprising how much cooking I seem to need, always at it. I wonder what other people do? Maybe eat out, or buy prepared food or something, I dunno, but they don't seem to be always in the kitchen. Maybe they're more efficient cooks, too, though, there's always that.

Happy day everyone! Enjoy whatever's cooking chez vous, in any sense.