Faithful companion

I appreciate loyalty.  I find that loyalty is often more abundant in the animal world than with humans.

This is Mr Peepers.  We named him Mr Peepers because he likes to sit in our windows and watch us.  He hangs out with Chester in the evenings.  I've "left the door open" a few times, and he shows no interest in being owned . . . even when it would mean soft places to sleep.

The experiment

This summer has been the summer of experimenting with pickles.  It started innocently; with an impulse purchase of "farm stand style" pickles.  Then, we tried David Chang's salty pickles.  I tried to like them.  The idea of pickling cucumbers in their own juices is interesting.  But in the end, they were just salty and not very good.

Then, I experimented with using the brine I use for peppers for feta brushcetta on cucumbers.  That was hugely successful and delicious.  Especially delicious on a caprese sandwich.  (equal parts sugar and red wine vinegar. . . about 1/4 cup each . . .  a grated clove of garlic, a pinch of salt, about 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, and a grind of black pepper.  Shake it up until all the sugar is dissolved and pour over sliced cucumbers.  Stash in the fridge for several hours.)

Today, I made a jar of what I hope will be delicious, spicy, pickled okra.  We'll know in a week.  And, with luck, next weekend will be bloody mary weekend.

Reminders

I was a young, impressionable student when this happened. In fact, I had a copy of this picture, cut out from the newspaper, taped to the wall over my futon. I found inspiration in knowing that a single, courageous "person" (of course, I knew it was a man, but I imagined it could also be a monkey) could stop a line of tanks simply by taking a stand.

I would look at the picture, while writhing in angst over the issues of youth . . . exams, friendships, the future . . . and remind myself that my torments were of little consequence and temporary. In someways, this picture helped me grow up.

It is twenty-one years later. I've had a very lucky life. I have pretty much everything a person or monkey could ever want. A comfortable and safe home, enough food to eat, work that challenges but also fulfills me, and relationships with people/critters I love. It isn't always exactly as I would have it. It isn't without pain and just a few regrets. However, I'm pretty sure it would be selfish to expect more.

Looking on this picture again and being reminded through the media of this event, I recall the energy and excitement I use to feel over the sheer possibilities my future held. Perhaps, it wouldn't be a bad thing to recapture just a little bit of that feeling.

I make things

I've been experimenting with making bags. This fits perfectly into my need for creative outlet, but also this sick compulsion to make things practical.

The first bag is a tote style. The bag is lined with the pink gingham and quilt batting to make it more substantial. The bag features 6 pockets surrounding the whole of the bag. I gave this one to a friend (along with a matching baby sling) as a shower gift. This was the second of this type I've made. The only difficulty I have in making them is that I don't have a good space to cut out the long pieces needed.

The second and third bags are of the same pattern, only I made some adjustments on the green one. The daisy bag features an interior pocket on each side of the bag . . . but they are fairly gappy and I'm afraid not secure enough for things like cell phones. The exterior fabric is reinforced with iron backing, but it's still fairly pliable.

In the green bag, I converted one of the pockets into two smaller, less gappy pockets and the other pocket is three pockets . . . two of which are the perfect size for my iPod or lip stick spy camera. Also, I took a bit of plastic, encased it in a "pillow case" of the lining fabric and put it in the bottom of the bag to give it more structure.

The tote style bag takes several hours and very careful following of the directions to make. The other bag takes 3 hours from start to finish and is easy enough I can see making more modifications in the future.

And, this justifies me spending gobs of money on pretty fabric.

Procrastinate no more

The Old Woman was tremendously fond of telling me, in my days as a young monkey, that "Patience is a virtue." I think I've learned the lesson. I've lived in this house for 11 years now, the whole time knowing that eventually I would need to do something about the guest bathroom. It had, and I'm sorry I didn't take a "before" picture, yellow and white striped wallpaper that featured oversized, chinz style cabbage roses all over it. Very Laura Ashley and very outdated.

At the end of the month, we will be a stop on the "family obligation tour." This has spurned me into gazing upon my home with a new eye. No longer is it the comfy place I put my paws up and seek refuge from the human world. Suddenly, I see it as other humans might. And, along with a serious cleaning and throwing out of crap, the time had come to fix up the guest bath.

I give you the new oasis at the end of our hallway: The walls are a cool, water blue. The shower curtain and window curtain are white with lace. And the towels are a groovy green. Notable is that I've never lived in a home that had anything but white walls. I'm rather pleased with myself.

Photo

I've not posted a photo in a while. Not since before I spent an hour writing up a post about 5 favorite things in my home and the internet ate it for lunch instead of publishing it.



So, as a total cop out . . . I thought I'd put up one of the pictures from that post. (Because I thought I'd let a day pass before ranting about feel good crap society does for the environment . . . because being a copy cat is unattractive in a monkey.)




The Phenom's mother collected salt and pepper shakers. MANY MANY of them. We inherited them when she passed away several years ago. All of them are packed away, except this set.

New Toy

The Phenom has indulged my need to take pictures with a groovy new camera. I'm trying to decide which picture I'm going to post for Wordless Wednesday. The funny one of the dog rolling a drunk in the park? Oscar the Bold attacking a vicious fish?

Stay tuned.