Hot,Textiles and Tea, and stitching

 Early evening

Note the "feels like"

Textiles and Tea yesterday featured a weaver who helped found a fiber arts center in North Carolina,  and teaches  there more than she makes her own work, so the pictures are sparse, but she's an engaging person, like most textile people I've met.

The Turkish coat in the illustration is her own next thing to make.

She loves shuttles and has written about them.  Makes me think about upgrading from my simple shuttles.

Back home I amused myself with this composition, showing the photographer wearing her hand stitched skirt, reflection, with a bit of the current stitching, bottom left,  and the knitting to date. The stitch markers indicate I've started to shape the thumb. This yarn has very good stitch definition, as you see from the ribbing.

And here's the current block in progress, stitched to the accompaniment of a Lady Audacitee podcast

To date, where we are with the applique blocks.

The current one still has the  needle and thread in there. It's starting to shape up. There's an earlier one I'm planning to add to at the top. In fact with this kind of work you can go back and add new ideas as your skills get sharper. My kind of thing, modular, open to new ideas. The blocks can be turned in different directions  depending on their neighbors, until I finally stitch them down.

The Haggard Hawks puzzle answer is

OPINION

which is why I said it was very suitable for this (opinionated) blog.

Happy day, everyone, off for lab work this morning, before it gets too hot. One bonus about the return of the heat is that it extends the time I'm able to wear my favorite robe, the one I made from a sheet, before it goes away till the next hot weather.  

Enjoy whatever the weather permits, and keep warm or cool, both hemispheres, this is an inclusive blog!

Speaking of Ukraine, which I have done almost daily since the invasion, here's a bit of resistance we can all get behind. I'm not reducing this one as I usually do, but enlarging it to make the point.

The growing season, and a new idea

 Yesterday I planned on shakshuka, but only had three eggs till Thursday, so I had a change of plan. I'd already substituted chard for bell peppers since I don't like bell peppers a lot, particularly the current price. So I thought I bet chunks of hake would work here.

Onions, garlic, tomatoes, tomato paste, cumin, hake, there's probably a name for this which I don't know. 

I drained the tomatoes and the liquid will go into the next spaghetti sauce.

It was very good, the fish cooked just enough to flake. The flatbread is vital for getting all the sauce. And I'm having the second half today.

Meanwhile Nature is busy. Remember back when I chipped a favorite teapot and started using it to root cuttings?  No? Well anyway here's a healthy group, two kinds of begonia

Now potted up, and joining their friends.

Outside somebody's creating lace from Gary's collard greens

The daylilies, Stella d'oro, are getting tuned up. I have these all over, including other people's gardens and around the dumpster enclosure. It's very easy to grow and divide.

And my cheap dollar store seeds are booming

The lavender got to its destination overnight, amazing, and was well received, like this

So all's well, and happy day everyone! Let's hope our plans work out or at least we have a backup if they don't.

Count on Zelenskyy to have a backup, always

Broken roof follow-up, and MFK Fisher

Yesterday I wrote my blog post at the library, edited, noted and published. And then I saw a man with a seriously good camera and tripod setup, taking pictures.

Soooo I asked if he was one of the participants, and it turned out it was Wayne Baruch, the photographer who created the image of the tree falling into the house.

We had a wonderful chat about art, exhibiting, nonglare glass and how we hate it, his work, my work and altogether a good time was had 

And since photography is his retirement occupation, he's blending it with a previous career in artisanal construction, rehab, and work as an expert witness in real estate construction cases. 

So he knew the story about that old house with the tree on it. Apparently back in the 18th century it was totally wood, cedar shake roof. Then an early owner decided to add a slate roof on top. 

So when the tree came down, the double roof formed trusses which stopped the tree's descent, see sketch Wayne made to show me

He's drawing in the visitor's book, nearest paper to hand! It's so great to talk with a knowledgeable enthusiast who knows when he's got a good audience.

So that was my bonus.

I got home and found a lovely clean house, and the bunch of lavender still there. Then an email from the cleaners saying oops we remembered the lavender after we'd locked the door! So I said np, I'll drop it in the mail.

Found a plastic envelope, bit of damp paper towel, extra lavender, why not, outer envelope, their address off my Christmas card list, and off to the post office. 

Halfway there, remembered I'd left the package on top of the freezer where I'd put it for a second while I got my keys organized. 

Home again, found the package, back to the PO, mailed it, and came home wondering if lavender is the herb of forgetfulness. It's so calming you just don't worry about anything.

And here's proof that I have something in common with MFK Fisher

 

To me it's the cook's privilege. I've often wondered what other jam makers do with it. 

More rain for the foreseeable future, not exactly flaming June, but I like it fine. I'm designed for a damp climate. 

Happy day everyone, enjoy whatever chance encounters happen.

Sounds as if Putin's finally facing the Russian uprising music.

 

Lovely breathing! and other nice things

 Yesterday was a lovely day, breathable air, warm and, later, a shower to settle the pollen and clean the air. I sat on the deck and watched fledglings. 

Two little downy woodpeckers wambling about more or less catching insects on the trees, house sparrows dancing and chasing. Watching them learn to catch their own food. I've been hearing woodpecker calls a lot recent, so now I see the family out.

I finished the current weaving

Fred Bear and Ursula guarding the three panels and one pocket.

I really need to take a few days to let my neck heal before I warp up again.   But it's fine, plenty of other things to enjoy.

Yesterday I did a bit of Freecycle

Handsome Partner's London Fog coat, which he wore for years, then I did. But now I'm shorter and smaller all over and it swamps me. So it's moving on. He used to look so handsome in it, back when he was walking.

It's still in great condition, too. A bit better than mine, come to think of it. Nah, I'm good.

And recently food has been interesting. Here's a great spicy tuna/cilantro with jasmine rice and dessert

And yesterday I made a really great spaghetti sauce, the one with plenty of onions and butter and turmeric, good quality canned tomatoes, simmered for ages. 

no

Best parmesan grated, peppers to shake over, best spaghetti, as my Mom would say, all good ingredients. Simple food made with the best ingredients I can afford. 

It's a lot of pasta, but after a couple of days' main events, it will be a side for the chicken I'm roasting today, marinated with garlic and yogurt overnight. 

This sauce is great, the original recipe being to simmer a whole onion, then, the original famous  cook said to THROW AWAY the onion. That's why I'm not naming her, the vandal. Throw away beautiful food ? Never. 

But the butter idea is great, I'll give her that.

Happy day everyone, are you coming up with cool puzzle clues?

Stand by Ukraine in the dam explosion disaster the invaders have unleashed on them. They need all the support we can send, financial, military and moral  

Health check-in smoke gets in your eyes and yogurt happens

 Today I wove again, no trouble from the shoulder from weaving, probably because it's large arm movements, so I'm happy about that, and about my selvedges which are holding up fine 

This was the color of the sunlight this morning

Orange sunlight from the smoke from the now extinguished fire in South Jersey and the northerly Nova Scotia fires.

I did get a walk, though the air quality isn't high..

And I did a bit of gardening, pruning off the spent flowers from the sage , watered the seedlings and small herbs.

I've got back to walking after a few days when it was too hot, and the difference to my back is terrific. I had been stiffening up, and probably that triggered the shoulder issue. It's also good for your spirits to walk. Just walk and look and listen, no audiobook nor music.

Icing, rest, range of motion exercises, ibuprofen all helped.  Doing much better today. But I'm listening to blogistas telling me not to rush back into knitting and spinning and getting back into trouble. I hear you! You're right. 

I'm making yogurt today, writing while waiting for the boiled milk to cool down.

I also finished the last of the dandelion leaf soup with the cannellini beans in it, and it really developed in the freezer. No bitterness at all, just a great flavor. 

Later this afternoon there's Textiles and Tea so I'll report on that tomorrow if it's interesting. 

Happy day, everyone.  My whistling is coming along.  About to practice Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, favorite ballad and appropriate today. Bigger than my range, makes my whistler tired.

Today more than ever 

As they cope with the catastrophic  attack on the dam.  

Snow, Purim and winnowing sub

 I woke early because the room was bright, and I got up to this

At last, enough snow for a picture. Today will be up to the 50s f, so it won't last long.

Yesterday's winnowing was replaced by a bit of cleaning, same principle, improving my surroundings. I noticed my ancient refrigerator, still working, was depositing condensation down the inside back wall. 

So I took out and washed the bottom  drawers and the floor under them and put everything back, much better now. Nothing actually left the house but I think this is a good substitute.  Cleaners don't usually clean inside items, or behind them, so there's usually a few things to do, even when you have cleaners. 

On winnowing,  today I'll turn ny attention to art materials, mainly frames.

Speaking of art, last night I dreamed about the current ArtShaped piece and how to do the next stage, very helpful. I also dreamed I was doing the work outdoors in a town square, with friends and blogistas and passers-by looking on and commenting.

I've done tapestry and other fiber art work  this way, in a library, public free to come and ask questions and tell me their European grandmothers used to do these things. But I don't think that's what will happen with this piece.

I do have some good ideas now for today's work on the head, and need to gather materials to start the torso. Dreams as studio assistants work a treat. 

Meanwhile a green powerhouse soup happened yesterday.

 

Vegetable stock simmering first, before spinach, chard, broccoli, scallions and yellow potatoes get involved, with cappellini in the last couple of minutes.

Then here's the chorus of spices. Baharat, black pepper, basil salt I mixed ages ago and finally remembered to use, za'atar.

Sprig of Thai basil, aromatic. Served with a half pita filled with sharp cheddar and toasted.

I also baked a batch of dried cranberry/ walnut muffins

 And here's one toasted for this morning's breakfast

If I'd remembered the day

I'd have made my favorite hamantaschen

Next time I bake, maybe. Happy day if you celebrate it, well happy season, really.

And now, more than ever