Decisions, decisions..

Continuing winnowing: art materials, here handmade paper I created from plant materials, quite a bit from local leaves, day lilies, iris, grasses, red onions in the kitchen, all kinds of flowers and foliage. 

Some of it's stamped, some could be framed as is, but it's all a lot of fun for collage, with or without kids. There's a few dyed coffee filters, too and other interesting stuff.

I'm

It's very light in weight and currently on Freecycle, pickup today. If you read the earlier text, I wrote before a local pickup came up.

I'm Freecycling this glass bowl,too, pickup today

The ruler resting on it for size indication. People tend to register pictures better than words. They'd rather squint at the ruler than read the descriptive text, search me why.

And here's another decision. It was at this point that I realized I was bored and impatient with this endlessly annoying puzzle. 

I checked and found they've repealed the law that says you have to finish everything you start. So it's boxed and back in the library collection now. 

I might borrow another, or I might take a puzzle holiday. I can't do my usual walk under the trees just now because 

We got two inches of rain, meaning slippery mud. I can walk on sidewalks, not quite as interesting but meanwhile I did free weights, various weird stretches and moves on the stairs.

So, when my doctor at this afternoon's routine visit asks if I'm active, I can say certainly! That's the main advice I get these days, that and watch salt, which I do anyway.

There's worse things than a doctor with little to suggest you should do.

Happy day, everyone, someone's coming this afternoon to get handmade paper to play with.

Storm has passed, all's shining clean, in nature, that is

I got caught up on buying pulse foods this week, with plans for pease pudding which I haven't made for ages, and other interesting meals, maybe curried dal with rice.

They're great foods, lovely to handle and look at. Bob's Red Mill is a favorite source, but their own website is so buggy, I gave up on it again and found another non Amazon place to order Bob's. The box arrived almost before I'd finished typing.  Watch this space for Adventures with Pulses.

Yesterday's Misfits box arrived early, dodging the storm 

Which didn't live up to its billing, didn't arrive till I was home from knitting group.

Then it was intense rain, the kind you can't see through

for about twenty minutes.

And here's the lovely Misfits supper last night

Food is a blessing, to help keep our spirits and courage up in the face of the news. The more the total police failure in the Texas massacre of children comes out, the angrier and sadder I feel. 

Woke early today, at dawn, to the sound of mourning doves, then later went out onto the deck to the song of cardinals. 

A washed clean outdoors, wishing humans could be more like that.

One foot in front of the other, everyone. 

New daffodils, under guard

Since yesterday this group has opened. Considering what a limited space I have, it's an extended daffodil season.

Two views

One with, one without,  wooden cat on watch.

After the rain and other developments

After a massive night of driving rain and wind and of sudden allergic reaction brought on by them, I suppose, up most of the night attempting to soothe the maddening itching and swelling and blurring of eyes, sure sign molds are swirling around, anyway, the weather and I calmed down this morning a bit, and I was able to get out and see what nature had wrought.

Not a lot as far as the plants were concerned, just everyone draped in diamonds in the sunshine.

 Click to see us all better

Heather, back there you will see a copper bird feeder. Since the HOA banned bird feeding, because of the appearance of an innocent little country rat or two after the corn in the nearby fields was chopped, and the subsequent hysteria of city folks now living here who are convinced that all rats are from the subways and carry nameless disease (!), anyway, the feeder is now resting among the plants and lending a lot of tone to the landscape out there.  Copper against the foliage looks great in all weathers.

And indoors, remember the little cranberry scoop?  the two little dolls migrated from upstairs where they found the bears a bit too quiet for their taste, and took up their station on top of the bookcase.  

Then they spotted the scoop and found it was a perfect antique settle just for them.  So it's now mounted on the wall, and they can survey the whole place, as nosy as cats, with no fear of being swiped off there accidentally.  

They prefer to be separate from the doll polloi, since as they say, WE have cashmere sweaters and silk hair and handmade tatted blouses.  And they might lose them in a hurry if the DOTUS sees them.