I wiped away the weeds & foam. / I fetched my sea-born treasures home... Ralph Waldo Emerson







Sunday, July 14, 2024

Dregs of Beryl

 


Hi everyone! Mid-July!? How is that possible. This past week has been a bit busy and not in a fun way. The pics I used are from many summers, I had fun looking back at other summers, hope you enjoy. I'm writing this ahead of time, as next week/ this week now is a clinic treatment week. The appointment is again at a far away place[not really far just unpleasant 1/2 hour drive , traffic permitting]. It's not set up for sitting still, uncomfortable, for four hours. Ugly and not very clean, in my opinion! Scariest rickety elevator , like a horror pic. This all adds to the stress, of course. [Hence my lack of focus for this post and projects.]

Theother day  sky was filled with wispy grey banners and intermittent rain---looked like November,  but is the hot sultry dregs of H Beryl, who is now laughably designated a Tropical Shower, not even a storm. We we and are inside with air conditioning on, because the salt and humidity are crusting over sand and dust and it's so hard to keep the house sparkly clean looking. 

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Mo had a scare, with a skin tag  or mole that suddenly ballooned up to a blister, like a blood filled sac, bigger than a pea! Grape tomato size. It is benign ---vet says, no big deal--- but it burst before I could get Mo to the vet and bled profusely. I am thankful of course it is not cancerous, but it cost 250.oo to be told, ''No big deal, blot with a damp paper towels and put Neosporin for a few days.'' [My home remedy anyway, for free?] Mo saw the head vet in the practice, whom I trust, so it was a necessary expense, I know.

Cooking: I like to cook ahead while recuperating. I made a pasta casserole, yellow squash w vidalia onions and parmesan,  ham salad, roast beef salad. The casserole will go in the freezer probably.








[We don't like crowds here]

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"Threads": do you follow Threads via Instagram? It's like a talky site, maybe like X or Reddit but really obnoxious and stupid. It is pushed into one's IG feed whether you want it or not. BUT today was enlightening. So many many sellers from Etsy, talking about how they were closed down by Etsy administration, no warning, no reason. A bot or algorithm randomly removes one's shop And buyer status too. This is what happened to me. Gone, blocked, no human to talk to and explain or fix, just gone. For good! I had a perfect record, 5 star ratings, next day shipping, paid on time always, credit card and PayPal up to date. I had customers who have become friends, new customers looking for a special item, it gave me such joy. 

  I am  leaving my sidebar Etsy link for old friends/ customers who might then contact me here, where I may post a few items now and then. 




Maybe the saddest aspect is being unable to buy on Etsy, so no patterns from Barb Vedder, Julie Porter, Laurie Simpson---no fabrics, for example that retro Halloween print I loved and searched for. Yes etsy may have it, but not for me.


Have a great week! 


love

lizzy

gone to the beach.....











Tuesday, July 9, 2024

Miscellany and Musings - Recipe Fails and Surprises in the Mail

 


Hi everyone. Fourth of July was a looong weekend, wasn't it. After all these years my little midwestern girl's heart is amazed to sit on my deck and watch the BIG and small fireworks events over the ocean. This year there were again boat cruises and helicopter trips. I'd love to fly into the fireworks display, wouldn't you! google image

Today the Post office finally woke up again and delivered not one but two exciting packages!


One a box of flea market finds from my brother and sister in law [another post for them]---and, finally my winter quilt finishes are back from my quilter.


Oh so exciting, her skillful work brings my ideas to magical life. Separate post on these fun things later too.


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Yesterday my friend L and I made the long drive to Joann's Fabric store. It's quite far and the only fabric shop  near us [before you scoff and scorn].


Multiple different bridges, maybe an hour or so in mostly heavy traffic. These bridges are over the eastern bay and attract a lot of sport fishing boats.

We had heard so much about how JoAnn's is bankrupt and stores are closing. Big sales advertised online. There was the cutest Singer straight sewing/ extra machine on IG. $24.oo.  Bec I just know my current machine will go on the fritz anytime soon and Covid closed all the repair shops here. But no, and nothing seemed on sale either. Not a spool of cotton thread to be seen, just dual duty poly.

It was fun to see rows and rows of colorful fabric! But the store was a mess, a pet peeve of mine. 




The line to get fabric yardage cut was almost out the door. And they charged me 2.oo for a shopping bag, 99 cents at Home Goods.

I did get much needed graphed mylar, as I still often make templates both for applique and piecing. And cute beads for a collar for Mo and projects for little friends.

Elastic to fix my shorts which keep falling off. Not sure if I'm losing weight or if the old elastic in the LL Bean washed canvas standby shorts is just old and needs replacing.

Always have to buy a fat quarter or two. Blue for Noah's Ark animals, and pineapples just because, well, pineapples.

Mo's groomer gave him this beautiful bandanna last visit. I d love to make it into a pillow for summer beach vibes, even if no, it  doesn't ''go'' with my blue and white summer decor.



And my flyaway hair always needs fun clips and barrettes.

Listed as available on their website but not in the store were these wonderful retro Halloween prints! I wanted them for the backing of my Jackolantern project, but wanted to check the quality before buying.


Same print in pink, oooh.


And I need a couple little tables for my deck. These too were listed as in stock at the store, but none to be found. $19.99.


L got beautiful fleece to make nap blankets! In this heat! We were exhausted! It was hot at JoAnn's, away from the ocean, almost 90*. Mo says it's not the heat it's the humidity.



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Cooking: One night I left the burgers to defrost too long on the counter. Didn't dare eat them. And I made this recipe: a Thai slaw, w peanut sauce. https://www.saltandlavender.com/thai-chicken-salad-peanut-dressing/   Salt and Lavender Thai Peanut Slaw  [I made mine without chicken. And still--16 ingredients or more--that I had to buy specially for this project.] 

photo from website


I adore Thai peanut sauce noodles or salads! But---It was so nasty and disgusting. One of my worst fails ever. All those $$ ingredients! Hour spent chopping and mixing. Sooo disappointed. I must give the IG chef-poster credit bec when I posted a comment that the result was so bad, she did immediately contact me and extensively chatted, trying to help me figure out what went wrong. To no avail, though now I am wondering if the precut slaw mix had spoiled. I didn't taste it, just rinsed and used it. I really hate to throw out food! First the burgers, then the slaw. Too bad.

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Brief garden update: why are plants so slow?


Not my usual seed company? Humidity and lots of salt wind damage. Only the little marigolds have peeked out,



and the grand yellow coreopsis, on the second blooming.

They need yet another deadheading; and you can see that their foliage is very wind damaged and scraggly.


Have a great week!


love

lizzy

gone to the beach....






Wednesday, July 3, 2024