Friday random

Friday always seems like the perfect random sort of day to me.Does it to you?I mean, the weekend is almost here, and anything can happen. I love the weekend! I bet you do too.Friday evening usually finds me right, here at home, on the front porch. Admiring the flowers.I'm not much of a party girl.Speaking of flowers...The very short, almost ephemeral, season of the flowering black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is upon us. Don't blink. It only lasts a week or so.The thing is that the flowers are just so out of this world delicious as fritters!My favourite batter is as follows:1 cup flour2 Tbs sugarpinch of salt1 egg2/3 C milk1/4 tsp vanilla1/4 tsp fragrant rum (I use Czech rum)Olive oil for fryingDredge the flower clusters in the batter, or, strip the flowers from the stems and mix into the batter, then, spoon into the oil.Fry a few minutes till golden brown, drain a few minutes on paper towel, sprinkle with sugar/icing sugar, EAT!Oh my gosh, there's something about eating flowers that makes one feel like a Goddess. Like Venus and Athena on Mt Olympus! My friend Katie and I shared these fritters and we didn't even touch the brownies!Out of the world delicious!Don't confuse black locust with laburnum though. Laburnum is poisonous!I know, now it feels like a sort of Russian roulette, but laburnum blossoms are yellow and black locust are white...go figure.Tuesday I taught the therapy journal and, while my students were busy finding the perfect words to describe the day, I carved a couple of stamps. I love carving stamps and love stamping the resulting carving to see what I got! Such a thrill. Then, my students are welcome to use those stamps Win, win!Since last Sunday night and the fresh pizzas I'm so not over them. This one with beef pepperoni, mushrooms, red onions, tomatoes, parsley, mozza! OMG!And last random, roses! Roses and roses and roses!Bunches and bunches and armloads of roses!Ever since I read Martha Stewart's gardening book and that her husband gifted her with umpteen rose bushes for mother's day I thought, well then, all I have to do is move to the country and Robbie will be so happy to gift me umpteen rose bushes. But I'm here in the city, so I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it is to have, (over these five years in my small city garden,) cultivated enough rose bushes to just be able to go out in the garden and clip as many of the blossoms as I like.I love roses.But I still want to move to the country to grow so many rose bushes that it borders on an obscene amount!Sharing with Nancy and the random bunch.

A random roundup for Friday

There are times when I see something and it's just so lovely that I have to take a photo. These things are usually everyday ordinary things, like this little escapee/volunteer pansy up against the blue pot, but the everyday things are magic to me...you know, that common magic I sometimes go on about.Speaking of magic, who can resist sunlight dried towels and sheets. Oh it's the best, isn't it? That fresh smell. I never use fabric softeners or dryer sheets, too toxic, but I always marvel at how companies try to mimic what is easily done freely...and non-toxicly.I opened all the windows to air the house out, including the windows in my studio. Downtown looked sparkly across the water.Morgan immediately jumped out onto the roof and walked around to the skylight and jumped in thru the skylight onto my drawing desk. Milo ran around like a mad cat in thru the front door and out the back door ad infinitum.And on my drawing desk are birds! Birds and more birds. I was so happy that my FB friend Diana suggested I draw a Mockingbird and then Melodye asked to use it to illustrate her writing. Morgan comes around and jumps up for a cuddle and I can't paint! She knows it and sniggers.The other day I found a brand new pair of retro climbing shoes at the thrift for $6! Chloe urged me to buy them. I had a second thought about that because that meant that I was probably committing to climbing! Oh, what the heck, we're only young....er...as long as we feel like it. :DI'm nowhere near this spider monkey child of mine, but I was pleased with being able to reach the top of the easier routes and very pleased with my muscles!I cleaned up the patio table. Time for an alfresco...something!In the morning I usually have a couple bed-ferrets invade my bedroom.I love it. :D

Randomness to the max

The other day I bought a lovely basket at the thrift for something ridiculous like $1.99. I imagined all the wonderful picnics I could serve from it, all the stuff in my car I could organise in it, how lovely it would look in the laundry room...Morgan had other thoughts. It now lives under the kitchen table and has a slight smattering of catnip in it...lol.With lovely spring flowers appearing in my garden, I'm feeling more like spring cleaning and spring decorating. Fresh green mantle and decluttered, clean house, here we come!A generous new friend, Mona, sent me a small envelope of indigo seeds from Denmark. She included a tiny bow dyed with the precious blue dye. I've started the seeds and hopefully, come autumn, we'll be trying out the deepest, richest, bluest dye ever seen!!!Speaking of garden, I'm excited to say that I'm making home-grown garden lettuce salads for lunch already.And finally, my friend Sara sent me such a beautiful and generous surprise. I can hardly believe it! In a huge box full of packing peanuts were two precious and beautiful tea cups, (which have already been put to proper service), a spectacular glass paper weight, and a guardian angel! The most beautiful, porcelain guardian angel in the gentlest Victorian dress, with white feather wings, pearls and lace. No one has ever given me a guardian angel. I'm so touched Sara. I'm feeling absolutely weepy writing this. Thank you so very much. The angel will be called Sara, and will look after us from now on. Biggest hugs and kisses, and one day in person!Sharing with Nancy and hanging out with the random bunch over there. :D

Total randomnocity

Yesterday Morgan came in with a hitchhiker; a slug tangled in the long hair at the tip of her tail. Ugh. Ever try to detangle a slug from the tail of an ornery cat with razor blades for claws?I mentioned to my friend Margot that I wanted to buy a slow cooker (again, after millions of years without), and she said not to because she was sure she had two and I was welcome to one of them. Thank you so much Margot, I'm loving it to pieces and so far made a most terrific stew, chili and chicken cacciatore.I was just at my favourite book store, Booklovers, to find some books to take with me to Mexico. You know, the kind you don't feel badly about leaving behind for the next holidayers, and the owner, Dalyce, handed me a Terry Pratchett Discworld book, which I immediately snapped up. I've read it several times already, but only have a copy in England. Obviously I need a copy here in Vancouver as well. I love Terry Pratchett books to pieces and, even though it may have been somewhat expected, I was immeasurably sad to hear of his passing yesterday. I'm sure that he's now walking thru Discworld with his friend DEATH. Godspeed Sir Terry.Many of my favourite bloggers are full speed decorating their homes for spring and I'm like...meh.But I am getting some art done and finding tons of inspiration in my studio. :DSharing with Nancy and the random bunch.

A randomness on Friday

This morning I got an email from my friend Nancy, who has resurrected her Random Friday blog hop. I used to really enjoy that hop and am really happy she's made this decision.So welcome back to the randomness :DI'm so sorry about winter out East this year. Completely don't understand what's going on in the world. Here it's mild, early spring, very little snow pack. Loving the sunshine, but am a bit worried about the lack of snow for summer water.Tomatoes, organic or not, big or small, roma or beefsteak, tomatoes taste rather bland this time of year, don't they?Clover's lunch time and after school art classes are going really well. This bunch of self portrait paintings, done by 6 and 7 yr olds are going to be turned into pencil cases for them. Aren't they wonderful?Years ago I've lost one of these pots to carelessness and an unexpected frost. I still have the lid and am having the darnest time replacing the pot. Isn't it supposed to be the other way round?Did I mention I'm loving the sunshine? :D

Friday random

I really have to pick up the camera more. I've been really lazy these days and not working on art and artistic things...as evidenced by the hopeless lack of posts.But work in the garden for the Art in the Garden weekend is continuing. I've planted a sedum collection in a pot and I have dreams of a living wreath or living wall...but it'll take time because all these sedums have been stolen divided and shared and have come from family and friends.Clover is using this amazing product called Sculpey baking clay to make a weird and wild taxonomy of fairies for a Cabinet of Curiosity display for her art history of museums course. Here, with Morgan inspecting, (as usual), she's just placing her fairies into the shadow box she'll use for the project. That clay was super fun for her to work with and there's a little left over. I think I might have a go.I've been putting in a bit of time in the new jewellery studio. It's working really well on the bench in the sun. The only slight drawback is that I can't see the flame of my torch in the sunlight.And, as with almost any new art discipline almost anyone takes up, it's going to be hours and hours of solid practice before I get good at it.Chloe turned 22 this week and I was determined to make her a special birthday ring. So, after about three tries, (all of which ended up in the scrap silver for lost wax molding jar), I finally succeeded!I made her a ring with a piece of beach glass she found in Mexico.She loves it. :D I'm so happy.Sharing with Nancy and the random bunch.

Too much wonderful randomness happening here

Oh my gosh, I could go on and on and on...and for those of you who know me well, thank you for not tapping your toes and crossing your arms and rolling your eyes. I know these days have been a little post heavy, but if you only know how much I have to say and how much I restrain myself!!! :DLet me just say though, that the light quality is astounding here. It practically takes my breath away every second. As I look around I feel myself automatically reaching for my camera. It's breaking my heart...in a good way.I bought a piece of art. Not this one...although I really want this one too...but a similar one which C and I picked out together to remind us of our holiday. This is the second piece of art I bought from this artist; the first piece was one Robert and I chose together. It's called Romeo and Julietta and it hangs in our Vancouver bedroom. The artist's name is Xaime Ximenez and he doesn't have the use of his hands. He paints with the paintbrushes in his mouth. I'm humbled by his work.In the morning, I pretend to want to go for a walk on the beach but it's only to the neighbouring resort so I can nick a blossom from their hedge to paint in my travelling sketchbook, and then I wear it in my hair...and when it's almost gone at the end of the day, I press it into my book.Speaking of books, there's a little library of silly books left by holidayers for anyone who wants one, and in it was this Danielle Steel as fifth Musketeer novel. Makes me think of the sorts of surprises I can leave in a novel for the next holidayers...lol..love it. :DC ran out of energy at about 7pm today, we missed having supper for the sunset. I know we were pushing it and I bough her a snickers bar because she turned into such a Joan Collins. No...actually she was more Betty White.Later, back at the resort post supper, she showed me a most excellent snickers commercial:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gjsoSY18kgI know, right?...lol :DSharing with Nancy and the random bunch. :D

Spring is in the air

There's such an immediate rush to right now. Like things can't wait another second longer. It could be because spring has sprung and everything is flying, springing, greening, swimming, hopping and generally rushing head long into the season, or it could just be me.On this wonderfully perfect first day of spring we opened all the doors and windows and let the house freshen a little.The mailman brought a sweet and most welcome letter from my pen pall Laurel. I love good mail!My cats are going a bit crazy. Morgan is hissing at Milo or at us if she doesn't like something, and generally being a miserable cat form hell and Milo seems to have two settings these days: dead to the world under a blanket or running up the walls, tearing thru the house and jumping out of windows just for fun. He does this thing where he jumps out the window, runs around to the back door, runs thru the house to the open window and jumps out again. And he'll do that over and over and over. What's all that about?I got the most beautiful bouquet of flowers as a gift from some friends who came for supper. It's so giant and so fragrant, and has roses and orchids and hyacinths and proteas and all sorts of beautiful things. I'm feeling so lucky.Actually, I love the flowers so much I've been moving them from room to room with me.I'm leaving in three days and so will enjoy them every second of every day before I go.Sharing with Nancy and looking forward to everyone's random days. :D

Randomness, here it comes:

Clover and I went for a walk in the old hood this week, (only a few minutes drive). It's so beautiful in Vancouver when the sun shines! Every time I find myself on a day like this, in a place like this, I feel like the luckiest girl in the world...and there are hummingbirds displaying.Actually, walk is a loose term, always remembering that if you go down those stairs, at one point you have to actually hike up those stairs to get back to the car...but we can't help it. :DBriefly wondered what those mysterious white spots could be on my African violet leaves, then it dawned on me: potato starch! I started to peel the potatoes over the sink right beside the little plants...DUH...lol.I'm starting to really love this boho, floopsy, gypsy, layered clothing look.The more I get into silversmithing and begin to understand the how-to of it all, the more I: a) appreciate innovative designs and craftsmanship, and b) shake my head at the unbelievably high prices some craftsman ask...especially when I know that a certain piece with the $300 price tag has about $50 worth of silver in it and took about one hour with simple techniques. What gives? Maybe it's me.I started a Pinterest board of the most beautiful jewellery just for inspiration. Don't you just love Pinterest?I want a boat!I really want a boat!Sharing with Nancy and the random bunch. :D

It's been a helluva random week

Sorry for being a little MIA.Wordpress sent me a congratulations message this week saying that I just had a fourth year blog anniversary. Really? I can hardly believe it. I guess I've always taken this blog as fun, you know, no pressure. I've always written posts when I felt like it, incorporated lovely photos for anyone to use, visited as many people as I could, tried to make friends and be a friend, tried to be honest and inviting and approachable and friendly, and it's been a load of fun. I also blew right past my 500th post...lol...without even noticing. I suppose I should have noticed. :DThis week the garden was toured for the possible inclusion into the Art in the Garden weekend and folks, it looks good! I think I might be in there! So I've now been hounding my favourite garden centre for ideas on how to make my garden the most beautiful, distinct garden out there.The other day, Clove and I stopped at Sbux and, while we were waiting for our drinks, C looked around and whispered, "mom, no one is talking." I looked around and sure enough, everyone was either on PCs or iPhones. No one said a word!Later that day, I sat down to a new page in my journal and, remembering the Sbux loneliness, I decided to build a regatta where everyone is chatting, happy, loud and boisterous; even if they are in the confines of their own boats. Stay tuned... :DC and I also drove out to mom's a couple of times this week. It's pretty darn cold and wet in Van and my car has lovely front seat warmers. Let me tell you, having a warm bum can really make all the difference to an annoying stop and go X city drive. So when we get to mom's and the child has to sit in the back seat...some days I think we really need an upgrade to a model with rear seat warmers.Today we booked a week in Mexico! Flip flops, bathing suits, summer dresses, sun! Heaven. :DSharing with Nancy and all our random friends.