Mid-April Miscellany

 

Post Easter round up. My holiday was quiet, just Mo and me, as family members had exciting post-Covid opportunities to travel again. How could I say no? And then a self invited guest, expected Sunday [rushed to clean and prep], cancelled last minute. I don't really mind either way, though with so many people saying they do not bother to decorate, I felt a bit stupid, with all my treasures on display. Thanks to everyone for your comments and good wishes, I will catch up prob tomorrow, Tuesday.

On Friday I met my best friend L for a fast Home Goods Easter basket [Mo] run.

Mo needed a new bed! He is not liking it so much yet. I hope it doesn't upset his tummy, as he chewed it quite a lot and was unimpressed by its ''Cozy Calm" hype.

And he got treats from the Easter Bunny, plus a visit by a young friend who walks him on weekend mornings, who also brought the special gift of her boyfriend's presence. Mo adores new young active friends, so it made me feel good to provide this treat.

I got myself a few Easter basket treats too, why not!

Markers for my art experiments. Not quite what I expected them to do. I thought they would dissolve and blend like my watercolor pencils do? Huh. No.

And a little box for the finished paintings, gotta have a special box.

Trail mix and a pretty outdoor tablecloth for my deck table.

The stripe goes with new striped umbrella!

For planned/ cancelled Easter dinner I made pork tenderloin with whole roasted garlic heads recipe here,* white wine gravy, and a Martha Stewart new-recipe-tryout: potato-asparagus gratin, made with goat cheese. *[bake the roast MUCH longer than recipes says! and at lower temp.]

recipe:here

Not very pretty  Not very tasty. But leftovers are a Good Thing, especially with a storm now on its way.

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Easter eggs: after years of friend Mel talking about natural dyeing of eggs and fabric I decided that this year, home alone, I would try using purple cabbage leaves and vinegar. 

The dye is supposed to create bright blue eggs...like this? Not that!

After 12 hours in the pan, the eggs did turn mottled blue-green.

Oddly, even though the drips that fell on the floor turned turquoise,

or as it's erroneously now called TEAL, with splotches on my white tiles, the test paper towel came out palest lavender. 

And the pale beige linen piece, left overnight, turned ugly grey-purple nothing. Though--- rewashed and ironed it may make pretty lavender hearts, who knows, perfect for the minimalist who loves drab and dull grey things?

Last, what do I do with half a head of purple cabbage? Make slaw? I have never that I recall  eaten red cabbage cooked, any ideas? I feel like my mom make it sweet/ sour when she made sauerbraten and potato dumplings once a year. I hated sauerbraten, all that ginger and vinegar and spice..too complex for a child; she probably made me an omelet or something instead. So: red cabbage. HERE  I'd add caraway seed, fennel seeds. 

Traditional German Sauerbraten Should have juniper berries too. And sweet paprika? Do not sub wine for the vinegar; do NOT omit ground up gingersnap cookies. Add sour cream dollop to each plate of meat and gravy.

or Asian cabbage slaw

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I had planned my @roomportraitclub painting session for Sunday, then scrambled to do it Saturday night before the unexpected company came Sunday. 

I took a lot of care working on the fairly complex challenge picture, within my 2" x 3" parameters. Then again someone painted an entire room on a teabag, so who am I to moan,lol. 

And, just for posterity, the earlier in the week,computer generated doodle of the same view..

and the scribble I drew on.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CcIzhe_I7aa/

This week's challenge also has tulips [and real bunnies and chickens!?], so I get to try again.

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Tonight we are having a full moon spring storm, a nor'easter. And it is quite cold, though no snow as some of you had.

 love,

lizzy

gone to the beach....

This weird cloud rolled in Saturday just before sunset. It was huge---Jersey Shore to Montauk and beyond. Especially odd as the rest of the sky was beautifully blue with a few pretty spring wisps of angel clouds, tinted shell pink and gold.

And from the west coast, some wonderful Easter neighborhood pics from blog friend Kel..