Unraveled Wednesday 8/3/22

 Good Morning Everyone!

Once again I am running behind this morning.  It was another night of being awake for several hours and then finally falling asleep and not waking up until 7 a.m.  Not that it really matters.  I am planning to go to the office today (I have some personal printing I want to do in color and I should check the mail), but I can go in at any time.  Most likely I will stop at Trader Joe's as well.  Yesterday afternoon I had a very good eye doctor appointment which was nice.  I go back in 5-6 months for a field vision test (my favorite - NOT).

Now it's Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and all who are part of the Merry Band of Unravelers to talk making and reading.  As you know, I was excited to finish up Fletcher's Cafe Au Lait socks (which he wore the other night when he walked and he pronounced them extremely comfortable and a perfect fit!!), so Friday morning I ended up winding 3 skeins of yarn from the stash.

The skein on the left is Static from KnitPicks and the colorway is Taos.  I chose that skein for my SIL in Colorado.  She and my brother go to New Mexico a lot, so I figured Taos was appropriate for her.  Oranges and turquoise - it's very pretty and I'm thinking of making the Abstract Leaves Cowl (minus beads) for her.

The middle skein, also my KnitPicks is Stroll and the colorway is Orbit.  This one is for my brother in CO who is an aerospace engineer.  I may make a hat for him...not sure yet.

The last skein on the right is a special one.  This is from back in the day when Valerie and her Mom were dying yarn and selling it.  This is Barn Cat (80/20 blend) and the colorway is Cosmopolitan.  I was thinking of a Hitchhiker or another shawl for a friend in FL, but I may cave and make something (socks??) for myself with this beautiful yarn.

Of course, I have not cast on anything with these yarns yet...maybe later today or tomorrow?  I ended up working on another dishcloth when Dee and I got together last Saturday and finished it up that evening.

Another light weight cotton that I got on sale somewhere (maybe at The Vulcan's Rest in Maryland a number of years ago??).  Just a simple waffle-weave pattern and it knit up very nicely.  I still have more light weight cotton yarn and some more Cotlin yarn for more dishcloths.  They are good potato chip knitting.

On the reading side of things, I did finish Violeta and really enjoyed it.  Now I'm in the midst of 4 other books (one Fletch and I are listening to after dinner, one I'm listening to [but have not listened to that in over a week!] and 2 "real" books I am reading...maybe I'll have some finishes to talk about next week!

Meanwhile, it's time to figure out what I can wear that is appropriate for the office and get myself moving.  I want to get in and out of the office quickly and be home before lunch.  Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Let's Mix This Week Up!

 Good Morning Dearies,

There has been absolutely NO stitching since my TNT post of last week; therefore, I have nothing new to share.  On the off chance that I might be able to fit in some stitching in the next couple of days, I've decided to mix things up and share some recipes today and maybe (MAYBE) share some TNT stitching on Thursday.

A few folks expressed interest in the dishes I made on Sunday, so here goes!

For the Tabbouleh I looked at these two recipes and then threw mine together:  Bulgar Wheat Salad and Ina Garten's Version - they are both similar.  I liked the idea in the first of adding lemon zest.  I used cherry tomatoes and parsley from our garden as well as mint that grows like a weed in one of our beds.

Next up is the recipe for Eggplant Marinara.  I can't remember where I found this recipe - it might have been from an old "Victoria" magazine, or another publication of some kind.  Anyway, I've been making this for years and it is one of our favorites.

Eggplant Marinara

• 1 one-pound eggplant cut into 3/4” chunks
• 1/4 Cup vinegar (rice wine or red wine)
• 1/4 Cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 Cup raisins
• 2 TBS chopped pimiento
• 2 TBS pine nuts, toasted
• 2 TBS EVOO

 Several hours or the day before:

•  Simmer eggplant for 5 minutes and drain
•  Whisk together:  vinegar, basil, oregano, sugar, garlic, salt & pepper.  Stir in eggplant, cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.  Stir occasionally.
•  1 hour before serving add raisins, pimiento, pine nuts and EVOO.  Cover and set aside.  Stir occasionally.

 Serve at room temperature.

And now for the recipe that sounds SO strange, but is really, really good.  This one is from Ema, my (ex) SIL in Boulder, CO.  It's been several years since I last made it, but it sure tasted good and I'll need to remember this one again!

Nectarine Salad

•  1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 2 Cups nectarines, cut in 1/2” pieces (I used 3 nectarines)
• 1 Cup sliced black olives
• 1 Cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 Cup sliced scallions (white & green parts)
• 1 (6 oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, quartered (save juice for dressing)

 Mix all together, toss well and pour dressing over.  Chill one or two hours before serving

Dressing

• Juice from artichokes
• 1/3 Cup olive oil
• 1/4 Cup lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp tarragon (I used 2-3 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp thyme

So that's it for a mixed up Tuesday.  I hope you enjoy!!

Weekending

 Good Morning!

I'm excited to tell you that it is grey and damp...it has been raining!  Yes, again.  I stepped out onto the patio when I let Mabel in this morning and took a look at our rain gauge.  Over an inch!

There are two conference calls on my calendar this morning.  I shouldn't complain (but I might) since my last two Fridays have been clear...but...Other things:  I need to get to the drug store to pick up a couple of prescriptions (one of which I only have one pill left).  I need/want to find time to be calm (maybe meditate?  maybe yoga?  maybe both?).  My friend Carol called me yesterday morning from the hospital - she had been admitted on Saturday and she is very, very ill.  She has a long history of not taking care of herself, of ignoring signs (and talk from friends) and my fear is that all that has caught up with her to bite her hard and she is now in a life-threatening condition.  I'm worried and concerned.

But, meanwhile, time moves forward and we are now in August!  Who can believe it?  The light is noticeably different in the morning...and it gets dark much earlier now.  I love it.  I can't wait to put on a sweatshirt and sit around a fire in our fire pit!

My weekend was really nice and I hope yours was too.  Saturday morning Dee and I met up at our new favorite place for some chatting, knitting and beverages.  It was lovely.  We had skipped a couple of weeks (one when I had vertigo and one when Leslie and her girls were here), so it was especially nice to get together again and get caught up with each other.  The balance of Saturday was also relaxing.  I cooked (Spicy Cuban Beef) dinner and just took it easy.

Sunday was all about being in the kitchen!  I made a Dutch Pancake for breakfast with peaches and blueberries.  Oh yum!  Then I made all the dishes for dinner that night.  Bonnie and Zhongren were coming over.  Fletch did grill a pork loin which was very good and then we had the dishes I had made that morning (Tabbouleh, Eggplant Marinara and Nectarine Salad).  All of them I'm happy to report were a big hit with Mailing's parents.  Bonnie brought a gorgeous and tasty fruit tart for dessert.

They also brought part of a Winter Melon from their garden.

The piece they brought us is only about a third of the entire melon (they can grow HUGE)!  They are often cooked with dried shrimp (reconstituted), but that is typically too strong a flavor for me.  I may try some of it in a soup and some of it in a stir fry.  I've got a little time - this piece should last up to a month in my frig (but it takes up so much room!!  LOL).

Sunday was pleasant enough that we were able to sit outside when Bonnie and Zhongren arrived.  We did put the air on and ate inside for dinner.  They left after 7:30 and it had just started to rain at that time.  After cleaning up the kitchen, Fletch and I watched Grantchester on Masterpiece Theatre and then shortly after that I went to bed.  And slept well!!

Now it's time for another cup of coffee and getting my Monday motor running.  Hope your Monday is a good one!

Happy Friday!

 Hello All,

Finally we received some glorious rain last evening!  It started sprinkling around 4:15, but that didn't last long.  Once again we figured the storms would go to the North or South of us.  But sometime after dinner it started raining, and raining hard!  Within a little over an hour we had received an inch of rain.  The scent was wonderful - Petrichor!!!  Most welcome.  This morning is a little overcast at the moment and the air is noticeably cooler.  Also welcome.

Dinner last night was good too.  We had crab quiche which I usually only make in the winter (specifically it is our New Year's Eve dinner with a salad and champagne).

This time though we had fresh garden tomatoes sliced to go with the quiche.  This quiche also had the addition of garden basil and garden parsley.  So fresh and so good.  A little taste of heaven.  Bonus - lots of leftovers.

For a change of pace, Fletch and I started an audio book after dinner.  We started listening to Northland by Porter Fox - a book about our border with Canada.  However, neither one of us is thrilled with the narrator (weird voice), so I don't know if we can or will continue.  Most likely we will give it another shot tonight and see how that goes.  While listening, I was knitting and voila!  Fletcher's second sock was completed.  And I present Cafe Au Lait socks:

These were knit with DPNs (size 2) using Hermione's Everyday Socks pattern (free on Rav) on the leg; Eye of the Partridge heel flaps and a plain foot.  The yarn is from Youghiogheny Yarns (85% superwash merino and 15% nep) bought at the NJ Sheep and Wool festival and the colorway is "Cafe Au Lait."  They are nice and squishy and I'm betting that Fletch has them on his feet soon (he's been wearing hand knit socks with his sneakers all summer!).

I feel as though my weekend has already begun - my conference calls were cancelled again, so my Friday is pretty free.  The weekend is looking good:  I have plans to meet up with Dee tomorrow morning for coffee, knitting and chatting.  On Sunday Bonnie & Zhongren (Mailing's parents) are coming over for dinner (this is the get together that was cancelled when I had vertigo).  It will be pretty warm, so dinner will be fairly simple (and cool).  Fletch will grill a couple of pork loins and I am making Tabbouleh, a marinated (cold) eggplant dish, and a salad with nectarines, mushrooms and black olives.  That last one sounds so weird, but it is really rather good - a recipe from my ex SIL.  Bonnie is bringing dessert.

Today I am hoping to find the time to cast on for a new pair of socks or, perhaps, a shawl.  Time will tell.  No other plans though and that's just how I like it!  Enjoy your weekend!!

Shortbread!!

 Hello and Good Morning!

I woke at some point in the night hearing rain!  We did not get a lot...if we got 1/4 of an inch I would be surprised (the rain gauge shows that we received a little bit), but things are dripping this morning.  What a relief.  Of course, the sun is back out and the humidity is already annoying, but at least we had a little moisture.

Yesterday's office visit was quick.  I don't think I was there even a half hour!  I saw one other person in the mail room when I went to fetch my mail (all junk).  I was at Trader Joe's before 10 and home before 11.

I've been busy this morning with my Thursday financial reports, but am taking a break as my computer keeps freezing up when I'm trying to run the last of them.  

Some of you expressed interest in, or indicated that the basil lime shortbread that I made last week sounded good (and it is!!), so I thought I would share the recipe with you.  Who doesn't love shortbread?  Butter and sugar - a lot to love - LOL.  Years and years ago when "Victoria Magazine" was first being published, I subscribed.  I LOVED that magazine (the original one, not so much when it was taken over by others).  They always had interesting and tasty recipes too.  It's where I found the recipes I use for a Blueberry Gateau, home-made Ginger Ale and, of course, the Basil-Lime Shortbread.

Basil-Lime Shortbread

• 3/4 Cup Unsalted Butter
• 1/2 Cup Confectioners Sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1.5 Cups Flour
• 1/4 Cup chopped Fresh Basil
• 2 TBS Fresh Lime Zest

Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy.  Beat in vanilla and salt.

In a separate bowl, toss flour with basil and zest.  With mixer on low, add flour to butter and mix till dough just comes together in a ball.  Remove, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 300.  Put parchment paper on cookie sheets.  Roll out dough (~ 1/8" thick) and cut out in rounds.

Bake 8-10 minutes or till edges begin to brown.  Cool on wire racks.

If you make it, I hope you enjoy!  It is rich (duh), but so good!!

Time to pour another cup of coffee and get back to my reports.  Have a great Thursday!

Unraveled Wednesday

 Good Morning!

Our weather here in Eastern PA, just a bit NW of Philadelphia, continues to be dry, dry, dry.  It has been overcast and the temps have lowered a bit (yesterday it never got out of the 70's), but it is still fairly humid and a tad on the uncomfortable side of things.  It's tough to get motivated to do anything at all!

But, welcome to Unraveled Wednesday where we all link up with Kat to talk making and reading.  It's always fun.

Fletcher's second Cafe Au Lait sock is coming along.  I managed to knit about 30 rows on the foot yesterday afternoon.

If I counted correctly, I have about 20 rows left before I start the toe decrease area, so theoretically these should be finished up fairly quickly.  We'll see....

Fletch and I finished our after dinner book last night.  It was Letters From Side Lake which we both enjoyed.  Back in the day when I bought this book, I used to write my name and the month/year that I bought it at the front of the book.  This one states that I bought it in 7/88.  I don't think I ever read it till now!  The author and his wife built their house in Northern Minnesota and this book is a series of essays from their rural life.  It is both interesting and humorous.

I'm still reading Violeta by Isabel Allende.  I think I have less than 100 pages left so (again) theoretically, this book should be finished soon.  The other day I picked up Provence 1970 by Luke Barr (great nephew of M. F. K. Fisher).  This book is based on the journals of M. F. K. Fisher from late 1970 when she, Julia Child, James Beard and other "foodies" all came together in Southern France.  This is the book I am now picking up off my nightstand when I go to bed and it is not disappointing.

I also have on my nightstand Sorrow and Bliss which is the next selection for the Read With Us group.  And, I finally signed up with Hoopla and borrowed a couple of audio books to see if I could enjoy that.  I started one (The Last Bookshop in London) yesterday afternoon while knitting and managed to get 25% through the book.  It's ok and I have not yet fully decided if I like audio books or not, but I'm giving it a try!

My plan for today is to finish waking up (need more coffee) and then I'm heading to the office for a quick visit.  I have some personal printing to do, come copying for Fletch and I should check the mail.  After that I will head to Trader Joe's for a few things and I should be home well before lunch!

Be sure to head over to Kat's to see what everyone else is up to and have a wonderful Wednesday!

Tiny Needle Tuesday

 Good Morning,

Well...it's kind of cloudy out there again, but I doubt it will rain today and we didn't really get enough rain to mention yesterday.  Disappointing.  At one point, Fletch came into the office to tell me it was starting to sprinkle.  We ran out because I had two loads of wash on the line.  The wash had gotten pretty wet, so we just left it on the line.  The sprinkles stopped and within an hour and a half, the laundry was dry.  Yup - Fletch watered the garden last night.

Also noticed that the leaves of our eggplant plants on the patio are covered in some disease or fungus.  Fletch moved the pot back and away from the herbs so that the leaves would not touch them.  I plan to harvest the eggplants today or tomorrow.  Our neighbor Rob has a very large garden and he has discovered the many of his plants are getting moldy (he thinks he may have over-watered).  As Bonny wrote yesterday, everything around here is just so parched.

Enough of that same-old-same-old story.  It's Tuesday and time for a Tiny Needle update.  Not surprisingly with all my weekend activity and friends visiting, I did not get that much stitched on my sampler, but I did get a few motifs stitched.

The corner has been turned!!  There is more to this sampler though.  After I get the bottom motifs stitched, there is a border under them and then the full alphabet.  So, still a little bit of a way to go.  I've been going over options (in my head) for my next piece and I'm pretty sure it will be a BIG one.  I'll need to get moving and order some fabric though.  The look of this sampler on 40 count appeals to me so much that I will most likely go with a high count linen again.  Still TBD, but that's the way I'm leaning.

Yesterday wasn't too bad work-wise and I'm hoping for more of that today.  I'm working on the two meetings/events (Florida in late August and Arizona in September) and that is keeping me busy.  Fletch and I will do a quick grocery shopping today (if nothing else, we definitely need cat food - lol).  I'm at the point where I've started dreaming of soups and chilis and stews and winter comfort food...but we are not yet there temperature-wise.

Wishing you all a wonderful Tuesday - enjoy!!