This yarn, the rose, the knitting, the little insight...

This yarn did not please me.  It's just too harsh and having to knit these gloves on size 2 needles to make the gauge ended up creating a stiff and uncomfortable glove.  Even though pattern says that light DK is ok.  Maybe.. your mileage may be different. 

So, I'm not going to use this DK yarn and will also modify that pattern somewhat because it doesn't fit correctly.  I'll  be using Sport weight, which I will have to buy.  Oh Boo Hoo. 😕

Lol 🤣

See where that ribbing is hitting me? 

Over all, it's a very good pattern, but the hand above the ribbing is too short.  The thumb needs to be started a little more above the ribbing than just a couple of rows of stockinette place it.  It pulls the SF Glove slightly out of shape.  As is evident, from the preceding photo of it.  It was the first thing that the unfussy Mr. Z. pointed out.  My purl and knit rows don't differ at all, so it's not a loose and tight knit problem.

Also, I didn't like the way the gloves were so short and not at all like the first ones, which didn't rise up off the wrist the way this did.  So, I'll incorporate that pattern's thumb gusset into this one.

I did like VERY much the way the fingers were knit, i.e., picking up three stitches at the base of the previously knit finger, as well as casting on three at the other side, in a manner that completely eliminated any holes between fingers.  I may have this last a little backwards, but you get the idea.  It was completely clever in that regard.  I am happy that this is knitting to size but would never use DK on it again.  Fabric became too stiff. 

I'm working on the last Thursday 13 list items and it's going to get me where I want to be in the rest of the year.  I've been pretty flat out disappointed in the Deity for awhile.  It is worthless to argue and rant about it in a blog, but let's just say, I've had a crisis in Faith mostly because I was recovering myself, and then this 600 pound Ape man landed in the Oval Office.  I plan to out live the damage or at least be around long enough to help others do so.

There, I've said my bit.  The first hundred years are the hardest, I am told. 

You will all be happy to know that the Torts are all up and enjoying the weather and the sun..

This is little Dusty,
who is not allowed to roam around on his own.  

Now for something pretty.....

Sun Flare rose.
  This tiny florabunda has at least 50 rosebuds on it.

Speaking of Pretty.....I'd also like to say that I've come to like our new First Lady.  She's an Intelligent and kind person whom I can truly admire.

See you when I have something else to report on the knitting.  Take care and stay safe.

Tuesday Tails: Flamingo in San Diego (video) and the infamous Cherry Tree Rebellion.

Article about possibly Native Flamingos in Florida 

And, the Cherry Tree Rebellion, in Washington DC...  From HERE

Home schoolers, here is an article for you. And, Apricot Nectar Rose Roars back to life.....

Wendy Bradshaw's Facebook page goes Viral.. in part because she sees what the standardized testing is doing to children. An Excerpt and HERE'S A LINK to the page at Daily Kos.

An Excerpt:

"Their brains aren't ready for some of the things they do. And Bradshaw says that with confidence because she has studied and researched early childhood development, with the degrees to prove it.

“It makes zero sense,” she said, and is not necessary. We got to the moon and back without learning how to read in kindergarten.”

To this I can only say, "AMEN!"

The Rose:
Though still not displaying the deep green of leaf that it normally possesses, our Apricot Nectar's got an incredible amount of bloom.  This is a big relief.  What was killing it was a fungus that was half masquerading as a drought problem.

Neither of our roses are on the "resistant" list from this Oregon Nursery.  So, they both got the sniffles last summer.  Apricot Nectar looked like mere sticks after awhile and it missed the November/December bloom cycle.

Here is is today, this morning in fact

Make it Bigger if you like.

During the Dry last year, I looked on the web for simple solution, like my mother used to make.  I found this one,  Sodium Acetate solution.  I am in love with that page because it's one of the few that isn't loaded down with a TON of ADS!  Unfortunately, it is no longer being updated.

Sodium Acetate Solution

Mix together:
1 Gallon of water
2 tablespoons Baking Soda
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 drops of Dish-washing Detergent (Hand washing)
Then stir in 1 Tablespoon Distilled Vinegar

Clean up all fallen leaves, cut away any yellow leaves from the plant itself.
Then spray the plant. Do not compost any of the litter or the leaves.
Vinegar and Baking Soda forms an Acetate, and this is why this works.

Tuesday Tails.... Dog story page, Tort Report, and Wolfie report. Geocaching newbies.

Since I started Tuesday tails, it's been so much fun posting videos of various little and sometimes big tales about animals.  I finally got the mother lode of stories in this one web site.  There are others but they had some IFFY sort of ADs going, offensive even.  But this one doesn't.  I was thrilled to find it this evening.

I present the Funny Dog Stories,

I hope you like it as much as I do.  The side bars on the blog have more animal related stories, and the ads all seem to all be family friendly.

Enjoy!

Wolfie Report:  The Wolf is getting a little older but he's really getting good at the crosswords, giving us clues, telepathically, we presume.  When a word pops into my head, I say, "Thank you, Wolfie!". He just looks up at me with those Big Browns, and goes right back to resting or maybe snoozing.

We have new brown chairs after 25 years and they are wonderfully snuggle worthy.
Mr. Z. took the old ones to the stadium for the big community free cycle.  It was great!
They were still in very good shape but needed a handyman for a few things.

Tort Report:  The babies, Milagro and Dusty, are finally tasting the freedom of the whole back 40.  They are enjoying going in and out of their enclosure.  All the torts are spending Spring, Summer and Fall in the garden this year.

Lucky got a few roses from me a couple of days ago and I snapped his April 2016 portrait.

There was a mystery bug inside one of the roses that the big torts ate but Mr.Z assured me that he shook it out before giving them their roses.

The evening when I found said Bug in the rose, I touched his back with a blade of grass. He did a little beetle style rocking Dance of Annoyance, and I just let him sleep overnight there.  Actually I am not sure if "he" is a he or is a "she".  I'm not sure he/she is a beetle, either.  I'm not even sure if he/she is not the same annoying little bug that's biting holes in the roses.  Oh well, live and let live but I hope a bird got him/her if so.

Make it bigger to see the little fella

To keep from going totally insane, Mr. Z. and I have taken up a new tiny adventuring hobby.  It's called Geocaching.  Chris from Tazzie first introduced me to the concept, but the business of life at the time didn't leave a lot of minutes in the day for hoofing about.  Now we have too much time on our hands so we are doing this fun thing together when we go from point A to point B.  It helps.
And, every once in awhile you find something lovely at the cache.

This teensy little onesie ( an unmatched earring) was there.
Isn't it cute?

Last Foto.

When we were hunting down our location, a lovely spring leaf had fallen into the path.  A person must gather their heart falls wherever they may, Hey, Mates?

G'Day! :-)

Wordless Wednesday, onward with the farming theme...

Olexandra Salo, Small Farmers, National Geographic

La Mesa Farmer's Market

Carlsbad Flower Fields

Sky Watcher Post; Garden report; Wolfie report, and The Tort report.

There is lots and LOTS of thunder but no Bolts so far.  I hope we get some rain and not just lightning strikes which can cause fires.  It's over 80 degrees and very exciting!  Wolfie is not bothered by all this but then, it hasn't really crashed to the ground and hit anything.

One year before we had Wolfie and before the trees were out,  a bolt of lightning came down the tree, lept over to the house and fried the electric meter before it traveled through the grounding wire into the ground.   Smokin'!  That was a very big noise!  Living at the top of a Mesa really has it's exciting moments!

Garden Report: Mr. Z saved tomato seeds from the Heirloom Zebras, and this is the second year we've been able to use last year's seeds.    I'm so stoked!  I'd love to plant potatoes, too, but the little skunks and possums would just probably dig them up.  And, the potato plants are, like tomatoes, bad for the tortoises.  This pot is thigh high to me, so the torts can't figure out how to get at them.   We use our compost and some potting soil, new, every year.

Wolfie Report:  Wolfie is very calm during this storm, and we are hoping that most of his PTSD, from living with gunfire and in the rough for God only knows how long, is over with.  He came from somewhere in City Heights, which can be a real Wild West Show sometimes.  He's just been to the groomer's though, so he may be a little deafened from the blowers.  Holy Smokies, is it ever LOUD in there.  He runs away when I try to take his picture so here's one from earlier.

He's small enough to fit inside a grocery sack when he wants to.

Tort Report: The baby torts spent the winter outside for the first time this last year.  They missed their rose feasts but they had plenty of grass in their enclosure.  40% of what a tortoise eats in the wild is dried grass anyway.  We keep a good eye on them lest they tried to escape to the larger world and meet the horrible fate that met their youngest sibling.

Mother Poko went out the gate this year as well, though she was large enough to attract the attention of a passing neighbor who came and told on her.  Mr. Z nabbed the miscreant and immediately fortified the gate with bricks.  How that huge tortoise managed to wedge her way in and then out of such a tight space still has us scratching our heads.  Tortoises, it seems always want to go where "the grass is greener", and will do just about anything to get to it.    

Music Monday: Joe Cocker, "Sail Into the Mystic" and the Uses of Blue Lavender. Monday, Blue, blue Monday...

Everyone, I'm sorry to be so far behind in answering comments and even in posting from day to day. Perhaps I can blame it on Spring Fever even though it's almost summer already!

Here is a  Lavender Uses Page for you who are interested.  Salvia is the other plant that will go into the garden this winter if things go to plan.  I want it to attract and feed the hummingbirds, and maybe butterflies, and then there will be edible sages as well.  Humans can eat the flowers from herbs like Rosemary, Sage, and Thyme in salads.  But beware, some salvias are not for eating.  They contain substances that cause hallucinations.  I'm careful, also, to not grow any plant that might harm the Tortoises either.  Here's another page from the one above about Planting for Color using salvias.

I can't think of anything for Music Monday.  Maybe this:



Thanks Old Friend,  for all the music.  You died on my birthday, last year.  Rest in Peace, Sweet Joe

Tuesday Tails... so you like the tortoises...

There are certain rules for having them.  No poisonous plants, lest they eat them and die.  You must let them dig big holes in your garden, Even deep and gigantic ones, as well as to let them eat all the flowers they come across, and all this without resorting to turning them upside down in revenge....

Remember these?  Well, Lucky certainly did.....

This year, he and his mother and father ate them down to a nubbin.

And these?

Gone gone gone!

Rule number one, is Dig up Tortoise nests as soon as possible.  It's kinder.

Sure, most of the babies don't hatch, and they hatch only to be carried off by Crows, Ravens, Skunks, Possums and Raccoons.

But not all of them suffer this fate.  Some of them grow up and dig holes, eat all your flowers and fight it out while knocking tools over that clank into the side of the wall (or the windows) sounding like there is a wildcat caught in a trash can in the side yard.  But they are cute.

They do go to sleep for five months of the year.  And if you don't really like day lilies and other pretty flowers, they, the torts, will eat them, the flowers, until they cannot recover, or they, the torts, will dig large and deep holes under our beloved bulb plants, and live there as the plant dies, overhead.

Be careful if you think you want a cute little baby from the internet.  If you have a paved over or cement backyard,  and make them a little house to live in, give it a try.  One of the owners of several tortoises let them dig big areas out from under his garage floor.  He can't park the cars in there anymore for fear the cars will fall through.  They sure are cute though.

Tuesday Tails (Hard to Know about Thing) and Plant Garnering. 2 Buddleias..

I'm so thankful to the people, with such big hearts, who will go to whatever lengths it takes to save these beautiful animals from the horror that awaited them.

It was happening here for awhile, too, in my city.  Now it's probably just underground.  It makes me cry.

Something more pleasant:

We got two buddleias, at the end of their season almost, at the same nursery that the roses came from.  We just had to drive a little further since they'd moved out to East County from South Spring Valley.

This is one of them, for certain.  Black Knight

The other is another davidii variety in purplish blue  probably looks like this below, from the description of color of the Nurseryman.

I won't credit because it would go to a source that pops up windows. Duh!

So, I guess you could say that I have the purple sprectrum covered, eh?  Now for pinks and a white. All tall varieties, but it was the tail end of the season for them at nurseries so I guess I have to trust I can plant the others next Winter Season.  Believe me, they will be so very welcome!

Tuesday Tails, Pretty flowers, Wolfie's raincoat, Knitting progress

Rho sent some cuter than cute dogs, and some cats, sleeping.  So,here, for your delight, I present a couple, or three, or maybe four?  Enjoy!

Protecting his food supply

Double Decker

Triple Decker

Doggie Yoga: Pretzel Pose

And of course, Wolfie, sleeping.   He turned his back on me because I had put his raincoat on him for a Photo-Op.

He does not like his Raincoat, but tolerates it because, being a feral dog who can grow extremely long, curly body hair, he remembers what it was like to be out in the rain and wet for days on end.  This, while all the hours of the day trying to convince humans to give him something to eat.  He must have been quite a sight, looking like a walking, matted, mohair wool snarl and smelling just as bad.  This wee fellow doesn't even want so much as a mist falling upon his back, and he'll not even  step one foot into a puddle.  Wolfie no longer does this but he used to lick dew off the long grass.

He hates rain and all it's permutations!

An amazing guy we know sent some flower snaps from the Rhodie garden he and his wife volunteer garden at.  The Rhododendrons and Azaleas and other spring flowers are blooming.  I don't know which this is but it's gorgeous!  Thank you's to Coz!  If you've ever seen "Raising Arizona", and watched the Biker slam to a stop to pick a flower growing in the middle of the road, you know how delightful any guy's love of the beauty of flowers can be to a female of the species.

Make it BIG and dive in!

And, some other pretty harbingers of Spring
from the same garden, same Photographer.

And a Rose from my sister's garden complex

This picture is somewhat diminished by
"Photographer's Thumb" Syndrome.
Mine, Oooops!

And, Tiny succulent blossoms from the Itty Bitty Crowd.

Teensy Succulent not sure of the type

Well, this is a real Cactus, Beaver's Tail, I thought.
Now I'm just not sure!

All the succulents and Bromies are blooming, but you've seen them enough already! Ad nauseam!  These are new.

Knitting progress...
One thing I won't present, ad nauseam, is the knitting of sweaters.  When I get each piece done, with the Fran's Ten Minute Rule, I'll post it.  After today that is....

The pink left front of Stardust, so far:

When it's off the needles, and I've started the right front, I'll post again about knitting.  It won't be long since it's a short cardi.

Have a great week!

It's Tuesday anyway.....sort of a major chin wag

This is mostly about quilting and knitting and re-organizing.  There are also Bit of Garden, bit of ceramics blah blah, too, and a little Wolfie chats as well.....I'm hoping you will be thrilled to read about all of it.  

The Garden!  

Our Dark variety of Aeonium is blooming for the first time ever!

These sweeties finally leaned over and made it into the ground
So, they have rewarded us with a flower spike!
It's not as pretty as a neighbor's is but I also don't fertilize this plant.
 I have to put the green variety in the ground now, too!  And get more varieties!
Yesssss! Love em!  I want them all over that hill back there!

The freeway verges are all sporting lots and LOTS of drought tolerant plantings, and succulents are leading the pack.  Oh, the alloes in the front yard are blooming too, and the teeny cacti, also.  You've seen all of them though.

The Wolfie report! 

Terribly under exposed photo but he is happy with no flash.
He did get a bit of the Green, but Monkeys? 

 He went to the groomer's today, and I was hoping for a bit of the green on his neckerchief for the triangles quilt- which we got.  Having saved all of Jazzie's ties, which are smaller, I started right away saving the ones from Wolfie.  You only get twelve a year.  Jazzie's ties are tiny but by adding a co-coordinating strip of quilting solids, I can make them the same size.

The DNA Report:

I've been so very tired these last few days.  And the knee hurts, the metal one.  It's also taken to clicking.  My brother told me this might happen.  It may or may not be the barefoot stuff, though I fear that the "back to nature foot movement" isn't going to work for me!  Having now read numerous pages, I now know that the knee can just click all it wants as long as it's intermittent.  Five year check coming up.

Having said this, as most of you know, most little old ladies don't do well unshod, and nothing less than hiking boots or at least running shoes works to keep the knee properly aligned.  So, I guess it's "Goodbye Toes and Hello running shoes"!  Sorry Elle!  but the rest of my DNA is rejoicing over getting moved a lot more than it has been since all the 2014 medical DRAMA!  Hmmm.. I wonder if that's why I'm tired?  lol

Knitting report on the Pink Sweater:  

Today, I wanted to get the right size Addi Turbo for the sweater. Well, scratch that because the store that carries them is Gone With the Wind!  The Now modified plan is to use Bates Velocity .....

to knit the two fronts separately; then I'll knit the sleeves, separately, and in the round on some 16 inch hat needles.  I hope this works out!  The sweater was started at least three years ago, in 2012.  My poor, patient DD1 has been waiting that long for her nice sweater.  I just hope she still likes the color and the pattern!

Organizing!

The cutting table is halfway clear!  Toss! Toss! Toss!

See the little Hexagonal Box?  Sis and I made these one year

My next victims of eviction are the extraneous shop equipment for heavy duty lost wax mold casting. (Out! Out! Out!)  and then, after that, all the blasted ceramic magazines!  I'm so over ceramics except, that is, for plant pot creation. I'll fire those twice a year, make a lot of them, and maybe sell some or maybe not, but at the very least make enough for me and the kids.  I can use up the engobes and glazes that way.  And, it's just brilliant fun!

So, I hope that you are set on enjoying your life and not letting anything that is short of a death or bombs falling overhead to change you.   Keep the Faith Baby!  Craft ON!

Music Monday, "Somewhere over the Rainbow", Les Paul. And, A Sad Tale about Modern Suburbanites... it's sort of a joke. Sort of...

Music Monday:

This "Black Beauty". by Gibson, and the guitar that started it ALL while in the hands of an improvisational Master, Les Paul, is up for auction.

Les Paul, playing, "Somewhere over the Rainbow", in a trio...



The incomparable Les Paul and his dream come true: Induction into the Hall of Fame!



-------------------------------------------------
The Joke:

Pina sent this Tale of God and St. Francis discussing what happened to His, God's, Garden.  Since I'd just talked about our weedy, natural garden in the front corner of the side yard, I decided to share it:

GOD to ST. FRANCIS:

Frank, ....
You know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on the planet? What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.

St. FRANCIS:
It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites.  They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD:
Grass? But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD:
The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.


ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes twice a week.

GOD:
They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS:
Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD:
They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS:
No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD:
Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS:
Yes, Sir.

GOD:
These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat.  That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS:
You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD:
What nonsense!  At least they kept some of the trees.  That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself.  The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.

ST. FRANCIS:
You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they
rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD:
No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS:
After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD:
And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS:
They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD:
Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore.  St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?


ST. CATHERINE:
'Dumb and Dumber', Lord. It's a story about....

GOD:
Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story
from St. Francis!
----------------------------------

About our garden:

Now we just need to get the row boat and the surfboard out if it and put up a sign saying, "Nature's Bird and Butterfly Garden". or.... maybe this one!

Picture SOURCE

 Lol

Thankful Thursday- Honor Killings a Human Rights Violation of the worst kind; Trash Backwards Site; knitting blah blah, new David Austin rose

I'm VERY thankful not to be subject to Honor Killings, those terrible aberrations that are not only despicable, they are becoming more wide spread.  I watched a documentary, Link HERE, about groups who are trying to stop this Byzantine behavior amongst humans.  Actually, It goes back to before the Romans who also practiced it!  But I digress.

These women featured risk their lives to help others.  So, if any of you who work against this despicable Human Rights Abuse should see this, I am thankful for you to have been born and for the work you are doing!  This hurts women and their children and I feel that it has nothing to do with religion.  After all, why did the Romans do this, too?

May God Bless you and all who you help.  May the ones who do this see that it is not supposed to be this way.  May you remember the Fatima, how her father defended her:

"'The Holy Prophet said: 'Whoever injures (bodily or otherwise) Fatima, he injures me; and whoever injures me injures Allah; and whoever injures Allah practices unbelief. O Fatima! If your wrath is incurred, it incurs the wrath of Allah; and if you are pleased, it makes Allah pleased, too.' "

Ok, now for something completely different:

I'm thankful for Recycling bloggers!  This one is called "Trash Backwards" and you can see it HERE.   Originally I was looking for what to do with the mylar that CLIF Builder's Bars are wrapped in.  I did find some creative things to do with mylar, including chip bags - cleaned and reversed for wrapping up stuff to gift. Mylar does not make very good snowflakes.  *sigh*

I am thankful for the internet, but this has already been said like THREE- Yawwwwwn- times.  So, some actual web sites will be  tucked in, and maybe a few will migrate to the side bar in my long list of favorite haunts.  For fun things as well as other "Wake up we need you to know this is going on!" sorts of things, I am thankful for the INTERNET!!

Isn't that nifty? HERE'S the link to this part.

Within that last link is another link to the hilarious facebook page about Sun Chip bags that were so noisy that no one could hear conversations over them while noshing.  It's called, "SORRY I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THIS SUN CHIP BAG!"  If you are on Facebook you will be able to log in and see it.

Anyway, keep on the sunny side of life!  It's where the best stuff is, though we do learn lessons from everything both our own trials and tribulations as well as those of others, it's a darn sight more happy when those are over!  Let's change things and THEN relax a  bit!



This music video is a little bit muzzy but all of the Carter Gals, and the Cash family are in it.  Lovely...

Wonky Woman report:  This is a new week, with some good news from the MRI, my ears are, indeed, in straight.  But I get to visit with some quite benign Physiotherapists, and other more SCARY doctors - neurologists- to get the all clear.  We, the Audiologist and I, think it's good news though, on the whole.  I'd be glad to be rid of balance problems and the wicked, sick headaches.

Knitted hat report:  Earlier last night I cast on yet again, fellow knitters, I'm going back at it on the hat.  I made every single mistake a knitter could make on the first attempt.  I had to cast on three (THREE!) separate times, then got the pattern dead wrong in trying to make TWELVE stitch wide cables instead of the called for SIX stitch ones... please don't laugh...

and that was that, said the woman to the hat.  As to spaced out knitting, maybe I'm distracted or maybe I'm past it, but I'm willing to set my troubled little paws back onto the needles because I LOVE THIS HAT too much to give up on it.

And today, the Knit Picks catalog came, so I'm off to drool over it!  And there is a new Sunset Magazine, and there is a new rose from David Austen.  It's called, "The Lady Gardener" ; it's an apricot colored rose with a gorgeous scent.  I am going to do my best to lay hands on it!  It sounds like just the right medicine for me!

My own lovely Apricot Nectar,

Overblown and....
desperately trying for a David Austen photo Op.
heehee

And the Torts, 

will have a new BBF!

As a new  Best Food Forever

The new superstar......

The Lady Gardener Rose: Picture from HERE

Knitting, and gardening, and reading Jane Austen Novels on the Kindle is a very peaceful life for which I thank God.  I wish that every woman in the world could have this sort of Peace.

Well, to be honest, I wish this for the guys, too, but they'd probably rather work on Motorbikes, cars, boats, or wooden things, or maybe plant fruit trees or build decks, and I'm sure they'd rather read Woodworker's Magazine or maybe Sports Illustrated.  Ok, I wish them THAT sort of Peace.  ;-)

Thankful Thursday, medical care for all! And other stuff

Getting signed on to the new healthcare has been a big, long process to go through, but our personal story, the biggest one, is that now all our daughters have coverage!

And so do many of the younger people, especially children, as they are now covered for preventative care who were not.  Thank you God that the United States has now joined the rest of the world, or nearly all of it, in providing this benefit for people who were born with strange ailments that a modern industrial world is capable of creating in the gene pool!   I'm so glad for families that now are covered!

I saw my doctor today for the yearly check up, and got a new pneumonia shot that includes some strains that weren't in the old one.  So, if you had a shot when you were 65, you might want to ask about it, if you are of that age, or more.  It's rather costly, but having had pneumonia once, I thought it ill advised to pass on this protection.

I'm very thankful that I have such a wonderful doctor.  I hope that you all do, too.

Let's see, when I arrived back home there was this:

Heavens!  It was a hardcover, too!
Color me tickled Pink.

I love it when I can get a bargain in a hard cover. This is one of the best Succulent books around.
And, I am so happy to have found it used. I'm going to go crazy this winter planting stuffffff....

Saturday Komeekz, Bookshelves and gardening books.

From a 1973 Family Circle Magazine

I just got another Succulent book,   I'm on the hunt for one more!  Got it!  I think I can keep in shape by dusting my gardening books.  

But, the big plan is to hit this coming gardening project like a whirlwind when the weather cools off enough out there in the side yard, sometime in December.  I want to feed birds and butterflies with plantings of Buddleia bushes and red hot poker plants, which they all love. 

Red Hot Poker Flowers From HERE

A little ancient history here:  I once had a heritage planting of these gorgeous flowers from my mother.  But it was lost to the local  Herbicide Poisoner who poured Round Up onto my neighbor's tree to kill it. We lived "down stream" from him and I suppose he was ignorant enough to think he would only be hurting the tree he was after.

He was a mean old buzzard who apparently finally dropped dead from his addiction to Adrenaline some time ago.  He almost killed our two elms, another heritage planting from my mother's trees.  I saved them by flushing the ground around them with water until the Round Up was leached out.  It took a lot of water.

Anyway, about completing the Wildlife Garden,  I need the exercise and we need to fix our gardens for birds and butterflies.  I'm hoping for the energy to come back to me, so I'll do a rain dance and also pray for more energy.  Do you think drinking Jolt Cola is a good idea??

I truly love used Amazon books. Goodwill Industry Stores are among Amazon's sellers of used books.

Hope you're having  a Very Good Weekend.  

Daily drawing

Since tomorrow is wordless, and also because today was an odd day, I just couldn't settle down today.  so didn't draw.  The light wasn't right or maybe it was my head.  This was, like many others, a bad news day.

So this is a drawing that was the first challenge drawing when we were visiting the girls this last May.  It is, and will remain, unfinished.  It's from memory of a plant I saw a long time ago.

I was gifted with an incredible set of pencils as well as an artist's Vellum paper pad by my daughter Bee.  I was so honored to have these materials that I was shocked into almost being unable to do a drawing at all.

If you draw, paint, sing, sew, plant seeds or whatever everyday (just do something) you will survive this sick world.  You need something creative to do when there is so much destruction around you.

I found this in one of my sister's magazines the other day when we visited.  I wouldn't use an old book, but maybe something that was totally beyond use, like an old Dictionary that one of the bloggers was talking about retiring.

I've seen these paper wreaths before, not made, *shudders* from a book.

But especially, I've seen them in the garden.  They are a variety of of Calendula, I think.  Actually, I believe it's a wildflower but many little garden and landscaping flowers grow at the convenience of the wind, a good landing spot, and the kindness of caretakers.  This plant is at The Nature Interpretive Center at Mission Trails Park. 

Please keep looking around you for something beautiful no matter how tiny, and take delight in it.  You may not be able to stop the miserable megalomaniac upper echelons of the military or the industrial complex, but you can restore your soul, of whom you are the guardian, and first line of defense.  You can also help your family and friends to take comfort in the Peace of this Office.  May you feel blessed.