Hanging In

Thoughts and Quotes: “Dear weather, stop showing off… We know you’re HOT!!!”  Anonymous

That just about sums it up. I'm working in the yard off and on, but the humidity wears me out. I come in dripping with perspiration and smelling like a nanny goat.

Thank You: Niece Terri gave me a special day. We had late lunch at Billy Gale's, a restaurant I'd not yet visited; then we checked out the Ozark Farmers' Market at Finley Farms. A little early still, so not many vendors. I did get some lovely leaf lettuce and green onions, but they were a little pricey.

Then she surprised me with a really fun blue and white checkered bag from Bath and Body Works. I've never been there, but recently Niece Gina had told me about wallflowers, and I had mentioned it to Terri.

Now I'm abundantly blessed. Something I'd never heard of before - foaming hand soap. Where to start? They all smell wonderful: Turquoise Waters, Sweet Orange Blossom, Oceanfront Garden, and Cool Cucumber Mint.

Two wallflowers - now I see what everyone's been telling me. They're plugged into the wall and they're little flowers, and they hold the scented oil which is warmed by electricity.

In the kitchen - Raspberry Tangerine

In the bedroom - Spring Morning Rain (I think; lost the label)

And refills: Cucumber and Lily, Wild Lavender Mint, Eucalyptus Rain

Thrifting: I don't make special trips to go thrifting now, but I can't help stopping in if I'm passing by.

$2 items

The size of a salad plate.

 

I finally found a solid-color vinyl tablecloth for crafting at Walmart, then found this used one for half the price. Oh, well. Maybe I'll be working on both tables at the same time.

Another of those paint-your-own ceramic baskets I love, but this one is larger, and the others have handles. Perfect for bread or rolls.

$1 Items

Yes, I have a use for this. You'll have to wait and see.

One of those tall cups I need for my one-cup-at-a-time coffee maker.

Things that Grow: Remember the pink roses for the Lady Lunch table? I bought them on May 24 and they were still pretty on June 9, though they spent a lot of time in the refrigerator.

I left them out on the counter, and they started looking like rose bells, then they looked as if they had fallen asleep. They looked like this on June 14, when we finally parted ways. Simply amazing for supermarket flowers.

I enjoyed them so much, I picked up flowers at Walmart - $5 for days of pleasure.

Thread: I finished the doily, but haven't blocked it yet. Now I'm covering coat hangers. When I see rug yarn at a thrift store, I just can't resist. I love these hangers. When I lived in California, my mother came to visit. While I was at work, she watched TV and made coat hangers for me. It takes awhile to make one, but the ones she made for me in 1971 are still in use in my closet. They're so nice, because your clothes don't slip off and your slacks don't get a crease where they're folded across the hanger.

Thongs: That's what we used to call them; now they're called flip-flops. If you're going on vacation, grab a pair and you can dress them up with silk flowers. I prefer solid white or green, but I used these because they were handy.

Buy some self-stick velcro dots. Put the stickery side on the shoe.

Cut the protruding back off the flowers and add the fuzzy side of the dots on the flower backs.

You can interchange them with any color you wish. 

They're much cuter with solid color flip-flops.

Tea: Afternoon tea really is a treat to enjoy each day. It doesn't have to be elaborate, and it doesn't have to be conventional.

I had this one day when I'd had a late breakfast and skipped lunch.

And yesterday when I came in from working outside in the humidity, I had iced tea in my wonderful Yeti (gift from nephew Will) and watermelon. Nicolas Fairford might not approve, however.

At least I'm still cutting the crust off my toast.

And today was better with green tea and mango bread.

And Nicolas is now blogging more. You can find him HERE. He has a YouTube vlog under his name, and you'll love his soft voice and pretty music. Coming up this weekend is part 2 of his trip to London. Part 1 is HERE.

Theme Dining: I've given up on the Lady Lunch I started. With so much yard work and housework which beg attention, I just don't need the distraction. Stay tuned. I'll get back to it.

REMEMBER SUNSCREEN

BE SURE OUTDOOR PETS HAVE COOL WATER TO DRINK

WATERMELON IS IN SEASON

STAY HYDRATED

STAY IN THE SHADE WHEN POSSIBLE

DON'T FORGET FATHER'S DAY

THANK YOU FOR SHARING MY LIFE

A Quick Update

Thoughts and Quotes: Whit's fur ye'll no go past ye.

Dean Nicholson's explanation of how he came to be traveling the world on his bike, accompanied by his kitty Nala. He found her in Bosnia, abondoned when she was only seven or eight weeks old. 

He's from Dunbar in Scotland and the quote is an old Scottish saying which means, of course, that if it's meant to be, it will be.

I first saw the The Dodo YouTube discussing how a man found a kitty who now travels the world with him on his bike. Click HERE.

I was hooked. I started following Dean and Nala on YouTube, and they're the sweetest pair you ever met. Their relationship is more like a father and adored daughter. Dean's YouTube is 1Bike1World. He hadn't yet found Nala when he named it.

After you watch the YouTube videos (or Instagram), you'll want to read the book. You won't want it to end, but you won't want to put it down.

They've become a fund raising team for animal shelters all over the world. And they're famous, 600,000+ Instagram followers, and are now being recognized everywhere.

 

Besides falling in love with Dean and Nala, I've been fixing things. The dishwasher, the coffeepot, the washing machine, and my Kindle Paperwhite reader.

First the dishwasher. I think I told you that one day when I opened it, the door fell all the way down and it's heavy. The dishwasher worked fine, but I was afraid the door would crack my knee or one of the kitties if I forgot to hold it.

I'm way out of sync with the rest of the world. I still want white appliances. Well, tough! Unless you want the cheapie model on the floor, you'll have to wait 6-8 weeks. I decided to get the door fixed. The door doctor came, ordered the part. A week later, another door doctor came back to put the new lanyards on the sides of the dishwasher. Problem fixed. The second time I used it, it stopped just before the end of the cycle. The repairman came back, and pronounced it DOA. The controller would have to be replaced, but it's obsolete, so not available. $270 down the drain because I wasn't patient enough to wait for a new model.

I decided to throw in the towel and wait it out, but then I remembered Menards. I made a visit, found they had a white one in their private label brand; not what I had on my wishlist, but it did have a stainless steel interior.

But picking it up and installing it and hauling off the old one was my responsibility. Menards to the rescue. They have flyers, one for each installer who fills out the initial form listing his name, phone, etc. and the services he performs. I chose four and came home and started calling. I found Jeremiah who sounded perfect. I went back to Menards, paid for the dishwasher, they put it on order pickup. The next day, Jeremiah took care of the rest, and we have lift off. I haven't used it yet because I didn't have any dishes. Today is Monday and the installation, with an emergency rescue by neighbor Bud who brought a hose clamp, was completed just before 8 p.m. Saturday night.

In the meantime my washer would fill but not start unless I pushed down on the lid. Fortunately I'd watched when this happened before and I called a repairman. I whipped out my screwdriver, tightened the screws on the side of the lid, and voila!

I've messed around with the slide-type "on" button on my coffeemaker, so that now I can make it work if I say please and jiggle it around just right. I have a backup, but haven't taken time to get the stepstool to get it down and start using it.

My Kindle wouldn't boot up, and the girl at Amazon told me everything she knew to do without any luck. She told me she'd give me a 15% discount if I bought a new one. My free Kindle Unlimited which came with my new Kindle Fire was due to expire in two days, and the new Paperwhite comes with six month's free - $60 value. So I said I'd buy a new one. How does one live without their reader, right?

Then I got my old one to start working. One of those mysteries of the tech world. So I called Amazon and told them I guess I don't qualify for a discount afterall, and was told I could have it because my old one (2013 model) is probably about ready to go to Kindle heaven.

Thread: With this and rain, rain, rain, I was so frustrated, I had to run for my crochet hook, my stress reducer. I'm working on the last row of a pink doily.

 When it's finished and blocked, it will look like this.

Theme Dining: I finished the food for the pink Lady Lunch. Here's the menu.

PINK ROSE LUNCH

 M E N U

Tuna and Noodles

Steamed Green Beans

Carrot-Raisin Salad

Bitty Biscuits

Strawberry Cupcakes

Berry Mini-Shakes

 And the food.

I'm thinking about the next one. Started here.

But now I'm over here, using the casserole as a soup tureen for a centerpiece. Stay tuned.

The Pepper and Pals Report: I caught Tobin taking a little sunbath snooze out front the other day. Guess he needed a break from the rest of the gang.

Miss Tippy has disappeared. I haven't seen her for several weeks. I'm down to all boys (Grandpa,Tobin, Fred, Flower, Sweetie Face, Baby, Beau, and Louie), except for the occasional BJ, who probably is taking care of kittens AGAIN somewhere. I also have a new kitty who looks like a pastel Stormy coming around for food, but off like a shot if it sees me. Five of the boys want to be petted: Grandpa, Tobin, Flower, Sweetie Face, and Baby. The other three are still skittish. I wish they all were, because it's not easy to walk with five cats rubbing against your legs when you're trying to put food down. Only Fred, Flower, Sweetie Face, Baby, and Beau are from the original family. Grandpa, Tobin and Louie wandered in, one at a time, and joined the others. They all get along well, as if they were all part of the same family. They have their little sibling spats where they swat at each other, but nothing serious.

Tasting: I made a new soup you might like. It's so quick and easy, and very versatile. I think you could use any kind of broth, any kind of meat, any kind of beans, your choice of spices, and add whatever you please.

PRONTO SOUP

4 cups beef broth

2 15-oz cans great northern beans

8 oz kielbasa, rough chopped

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 tsp crushed dry basil

3 cups spinach leaves

Drain and rinse the beans. 

Put everything but the spinach in a large pot and bring to a boil. 

Cover, reduce heat and simmer for ten minutes or so. 

While soup simmers, chop or slice the spinach. 

When onion is tender, soup is ready. Add spinach and serve. 

Note: You can alter any way you wish. Use chicken broth or summer sausage, add thawed hash browns or tomatoes, add some pepper or garlic powder. Don’t add salt until you taste.

That's it. Hopefully nothing else will break for awhile so I can get something accomplished. 

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