There is an article in today's SF Chronicle about this book which is a collection of six-word sentences that tell a story - in some cases, the writer's life story.
So our breakfast table challenge was to tell our stories.
DH's contribution: "Born. Married. Fathered children. Retired. Happy."
You've got to love the man!
My only thoughts given the state of my sewing room: "So much fabric, so little time." (Not very original but very true nonetheless.)
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Rainy Sunday
After two weeks of above-average temperatures and dry skies, the rains have moved back in. They started Wednesday and have brought us almost two inches so far. This afternoon it really poured for a while, then there was a bit of thunder (didn't see any lightning) and then it was pretty much over. We're supposed to have another day or so of showers, then back to the fine weather.
I've been working sporadically on the Pocket Full of Mysteries Christmas quilts. My feelings are that the lap quilt is just okay but the baby quilt is not a success. I was even thinking about donating it to the animal shelter. Dogs aren't usually particular about color and design, they just want warm and cuddly.
I had both quilts on the design wall when the grandchildren came to visit yesterday and GD2 took one look at them and said, "Oh, Gma, I really love that quilt!" She was looking at the baby quilt and I think it was the elephants that attracted her. She is a real animal-lover.
So I guess I'll hold off on my judgment until they are completely finished. I had planned to donate both to charity but not if they are ugly.
I finished the flannel nightgown for GD1 last week and it has gone home with her. I think it's the first flannel nightgown that she has ever owned. I'm almost finished with the one I am making for GD3 but we haven't seen her, so there's no hurry at this point. I had planned to make the same pattern for GD2, but she was not at all happy when I showed her the fabric - she is one of those people who is always too warm. So she chose a pattern with short sleeves and I'm going to make it in a light cotton knit. I'm making GS a pair of jammies in a cotton knit, so I can work on both together. That will bust another 3 yards of fabric from my stash. Woo hoo!
I made this side dish for tonight's dinner. It was grated sweet potatoes browned in olive oil and garnished with browned butter with sage and garlic. The recipe is here. This one is definitely a keeper! By the way, this is not my photo - I was so anxious to serve this that I didn't even think of getting the camera.
This is a Farro and Butternut squash salad that I made for Friday night's dinner. It was really good but made way too much for the two of us. That's goat cheese sprinkled over the top. I only used half the butternut squash, so I'm looking for a soup recipe that will use up the remainder. I've been in a "clean 0ut the pantry and freezer" mood lately. I really need to keep better track of what I have so that I don't waste so much.
I've been working sporadically on the Pocket Full of Mysteries Christmas quilts. My feelings are that the lap quilt is just okay but the baby quilt is not a success. I was even thinking about donating it to the animal shelter. Dogs aren't usually particular about color and design, they just want warm and cuddly.
I had both quilts on the design wall when the grandchildren came to visit yesterday and GD2 took one look at them and said, "Oh, Gma, I really love that quilt!" She was looking at the baby quilt and I think it was the elephants that attracted her. She is a real animal-lover.
So I guess I'll hold off on my judgment until they are completely finished. I had planned to donate both to charity but not if they are ugly.
I finished the flannel nightgown for GD1 last week and it has gone home with her. I think it's the first flannel nightgown that she has ever owned. I'm almost finished with the one I am making for GD3 but we haven't seen her, so there's no hurry at this point. I had planned to make the same pattern for GD2, but she was not at all happy when I showed her the fabric - she is one of those people who is always too warm. So she chose a pattern with short sleeves and I'm going to make it in a light cotton knit. I'm making GS a pair of jammies in a cotton knit, so I can work on both together. That will bust another 3 yards of fabric from my stash. Woo hoo!
I made this side dish for tonight's dinner. It was grated sweet potatoes browned in olive oil and garnished with browned butter with sage and garlic. The recipe is here. This one is definitely a keeper! By the way, this is not my photo - I was so anxious to serve this that I didn't even think of getting the camera.
This is a Farro and Butternut squash salad that I made for Friday night's dinner. It was really good but made way too much for the two of us. That's goat cheese sprinkled over the top. I only used half the butternut squash, so I'm looking for a soup recipe that will use up the remainder. I've been in a "clean 0ut the pantry and freezer" mood lately. I really need to keep better track of what I have so that I don't waste so much.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
Bounty from Rainbow Grocery
We spent Tuesday in SF with Mom. We hadn't been to Rainbow Grocery for quite a while and I needed some green lentils, so we packed Mom's wheelchair into the trunk and the three of us headed out for an urban foraging adventure.
Mom started shopping there about 30 years ago when it was near 16th and Mission. She would walk down there and buy all sorts or interesting things. They were the first store I remember that had a lot of items in bulk - every kind of flour you can imagine, spices, teas, coffee, grains, beans, even olive oils and peanut butter.
I'm not sure what I'll do with the red lentils but I'm sure I have some recipes that call for them. The green flageolets are new to me but I'll probably cook the first batch the way I would fix any other beans.
I've been hoarding the farro in my pantry because it's not only rather hard to find, but very pricey when you do find it. This 3.3 lb bag was $11.95. I don't really know if that's a good price but I think it is.
Photo courtesy of margie b who posted it on yelp.com
We had planned to have lunch at the St. Francis Fountain on 24th St but they are closed for remodeling this week; so we went a few doors down to the Roosevelt Tamale Parlor.
When I was in third through sixth grades at St. Peter's school we lived at the top of 24th Street and both these places were on my way home. I wasn't too interested in Mexican food but the St. Francis was a kid magnet with its soda fountain. I rarely carried any money but I almost always slowed down and looked in the door and wished.
Mom started shopping there about 30 years ago when it was near 16th and Mission. She would walk down there and buy all sorts or interesting things. They were the first store I remember that had a lot of items in bulk - every kind of flour you can imagine, spices, teas, coffee, grains, beans, even olive oils and peanut butter.
I'm not sure what I'll do with the red lentils but I'm sure I have some recipes that call for them. The green flageolets are new to me but I'll probably cook the first batch the way I would fix any other beans.
I've been hoarding the farro in my pantry because it's not only rather hard to find, but very pricey when you do find it. This 3.3 lb bag was $11.95. I don't really know if that's a good price but I think it is.
Photo courtesy of margie b who posted it on yelp.com
We had planned to have lunch at the St. Francis Fountain on 24th St but they are closed for remodeling this week; so we went a few doors down to the Roosevelt Tamale Parlor.When I was in third through sixth grades at St. Peter's school we lived at the top of 24th Street and both these places were on my way home. I wasn't too interested in Mexican food but the St. Francis was a kid magnet with its soda fountain. I rarely carried any money but I almost always slowed down and looked in the door and wished.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Socks Finished
And they fit the Husband pretty well. I used Knit Picks Felici in the Nutmeg colorway. He wears a size 13 shoe so the pair took two entire 50 gram balls. I think in the future I will buy 4 balls of any sock yarn I want for him. That way I won't have to worry about running short and there will be plenty left to knit a pair for me.
This yarn was part of a sampler package of various sock yarns that I bought a couple of years ago. All the yarns were in shades of brown, from very dark to very light. I think there was only one stripe and also at least one tweed. I don't remember what I paid for it but I don't think it was anywhere near what their sock samplers cost now.
I used the Universal Toe-up Sock pattern from Knitty.com; I never have a failure with that one.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
January Resolution
I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions because experience has taught me that I can't keep them for more than a day or two. But today I sort of had a personal "intervention" about my habit of printing out recipes and patterns that I find online.
I used to be careful with my paper and ink; unless I needed the recipe/pattern right away, I would usually just bookmark the site. At one point I maxed out Yahoo's bookmark limit of 999 and had to go in and delete some so that I could add more!
But for quite some time now I've been making the decision to print much more frequently. The breaking point happened when I wanted to prepare some shrimp that SaveMart had on special. I looked at my seafood recipes and found one for Greek Style Shrimp which sounded good (and I had the feta cheese on hand); then I found two more with the same name. Each was slightly different but basically the same. That's when I decided that maybe I had better cut back on my accumulating.
So for the rest of this month I am not going to print any recipes or knitting/crochet/quilt patterns. I already have more than I could ever use, so it's time for a moratorium. I am making an exception for projects already committed to: Bonnie Hunter's Double Delight quilt, which is her New Year's Eve mystery quilt with clues being released for the next several days, and the Ravelry 2009 12" CAL.
We'll see how this goes...
I used to be careful with my paper and ink; unless I needed the recipe/pattern right away, I would usually just bookmark the site. At one point I maxed out Yahoo's bookmark limit of 999 and had to go in and delete some so that I could add more!
But for quite some time now I've been making the decision to print much more frequently. The breaking point happened when I wanted to prepare some shrimp that SaveMart had on special. I looked at my seafood recipes and found one for Greek Style Shrimp which sounded good (and I had the feta cheese on hand); then I found two more with the same name. Each was slightly different but basically the same. That's when I decided that maybe I had better cut back on my accumulating.
So for the rest of this month I am not going to print any recipes or knitting/crochet/quilt patterns. I already have more than I could ever use, so it's time for a moratorium. I am making an exception for projects already committed to: Bonnie Hunter's Double Delight quilt, which is her New Year's Eve mystery quilt with clues being released for the next several days, and the Ravelry 2009 12" CAL.
We'll see how this goes...
Friday, January 2, 2009
Holidays Over
Yesterday it was time to take down our 2008 Christmas tree. The grandchildren were here to help us put it up but I had a feeling they wouldn't be so excited about putting it away. So here is the before picture...
And here is the after...
This will probably be 
the final year for this tree (although we have been saying this for at least three years now.) We plan to buy a new one but save this one to put in the garden for the birds.
the final year for this tree (although we have been saying this for at least three years now.) We plan to buy a new one but save this one to put in the garden for the birds.
These boxes of Christmas ball ornaments are almost 50 years old. We have four boxes left with one ornament missing from one of the boxes. There were more boxes originally but babies and cats have taken their toll.
These little silver box decorations were made by Mom and me one Christmas when she came to visit while we were living back east. I bought a sheet of styrofoam and cut it into 1-inch cubes. Then Mom, using here Macy's skills, wrapped each one in silver paper and tied each one with silver ribbon. Then we glued them together in threes using a glue gun. Instead of hanging them, we just lay them on a branch here and there.
This morning when I woke up, the sun was out but now the clouds have moved in and it looks as if the forecast for rain will be accurate.
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