by Kat | Jul 11, 2022 | General, In This Moment
One of the things that I am focusing on this month is to fill my days with simple things… which is not as easy as it sounds. Life is complicated… hard… painful… and these days, it seems that there is a daily new calamity to keep me anchored in that space.
Yet this month, I want my focus to be on ending the month by discovering what being full of the simple feels like… and gosh, it seems like complicated life just does not want to let go… amirite?
So this is my inspiration for the month:
Simple things bring infinite pleasure. Yet, it takes us a while to realize that. But once simple is in, complex is out – forever. — Joan Marques
And so I am going to use the remaining Monday’s in July to keep myself focused on the simple… a reminder for the week that will hopefully set me on the simplest path.
I wanted to give you an idea of what simple things are filling my days this month so here is a short list of my simple focus right now!
- Hand washing dishes. Yep, you read that correctly. This is a bit of necessity since the automatic dishwasher is not functioning currently, thankfully… the manual one never fails. lol But rather than complaining about having to wash the dishes, I am using the time to do a little meditation… I am freeing my mind of all the outside noise, and just being in the quiet – and yes – very simple moment of washing dishes. Honestly, I am loving it… but don’t tell Steve that, I also like the simplicity of loading the dishwasher and then heading off to do something else!
- The constant simplicity that the weeds provide me. Really, if they did not grow, would I spend as much time in my garden? Can anything be simpler than pulling weeds? I don’t think so… and it gives me a bit of a work out (those thistles can be a challenge to pull out!)
- Sewing. Especially the bits I don’t like… cutting out the pattern. However, there is a simplicity to that task… it is one that has not changed much, if at all, since my nana taught me to sew. I can hear my Home Economics teacher, Mrs Larr, talk about this being the most important part of making…and she was so right. So I am going to focus on the importance of this task and savor it… or at least I am going to try!
So there you have it! My simple focus right now.
I hope your Monday is full of good things… and maybe even some simple ones as well! See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Jul 4, 2022 | General, In This Moment
Is still the weekend! And what could be better than that?!
If the blooms on my tomato plants are an indicator of fruit volume… it looks to be a banner year! I am practicing patience waiting for said fruit to develop. But the plants are lush, green and growing like crazy… so I have hope!
It is been a curious start to summer. The lawn looks like late August…very, very dead. Steve has not had to mow in 2 weeks. And the heat is absolutely ON outside. I hope you all have AC… if not, Life Kit shared some great tips for staying cool! I am doing my weeding early in the morning hours… and why is it that the weeds regardless of the amount of water they get?!
My summer reading is going exceedingly well. I am currently listening to Shelby Van Pelt’s Remarkably Bright Creatures… and it is lovely! So lovely! If you need a reading suggestion… NPR’s Books We Love list came out last week and it is chock full of good things! I added quite a few to my TBR list!
Enjoy your weekend Monday! See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Jun 6, 2022 | General, In This Moment
Allergies to dust and grain, maladies, remedies and still these allergies remain. — Paul Simon
Spring is … wonderful … well, except for that little allergy thing that happens every year. I have some generally mild allergies to tree pollen and usually I can count on 5-7 days of itchy eyes, a scratchy throat, and – of course – a runny nose. This morning brings Day Fifteen of the most horrible spring allergies I can remember in … well … a long-ass time! So I did a quick Google search yesterday to see if my Off-The-Charts allergies were a one-off, or not… (really, I should have included a box of Kleenex™ in the above photo because we spent so much time together! lol)
Turns out, it’s a Big OR NOT… sigh.
So this weekend was all about not thinking about my allergy symptoms (and not rubbing my eyes, gah!)
My Mind Over Matter things… knitting, that water color class, and some Word contemplation (this month Ali Edwards is having us look back and look forward a bit, which is such an interesting way to consider my word at the “mid-year” point!)
First up… Knitting. In my Year of Never Not Gnoming, I began my June Gnome (a repeat of Gnombleberry that I had previously knit for Steve’s mom.) I have Gnombleberry’s body done… as well as the start of his “backpack”… which I am going to change up a bit and make it a cross-body messenger-style bag I think. Stay tuned.
Next… that watercolor class. I have watched the “make thumbnail sketches” video twice. The first time, I just watched what Rick Surowicz did. Wow, is he fast! LOL Anyways, the second time watching I picked up my pencil and managed to get two thumbnail sketches done in the time he did four. The first is perhaps too detailed for the watercolor process and the second might be a bit closer to how Rick did his four. The best thing about a video class… I can play the video’s over and over and over if I need to. I am working on letting go of my desire for perfection… but gosh, the struggle is real. Haha. Today I am going to watch the value study video … likely several times.
And that word work… I have made some notes from each month that fell into the “out of sight, out of mind” hole. A mid-year reflection is exactly what I needed to gather up some pieces I do not want to lose!
Finally, another list… and boy, I really wish that this would be the last ever list like this that anyone has to make:
- Philadelphia, PA
- Omaha, NE
- Chattanooga, TN
- Summerton, SC
- Phoenix, AZ
- Mesa, AZ
- Socorro, TX
- Chesterfield, VA
- Macon, GA
- Saginaw, MI
That’s right… 10 cities, 10 mass shootings, 15 dead, 60 injured…during the weekend.
Enough. Really. My gosh.
by Kat | May 23, 2022 | General, In This Moment
The best laid plans of bloggers… sigh. I had planned on giving you all a May Word update today. But Carolyn posted this weekend that word update would be next Monday.
Okay… that works, because it gives me a few more days to contemplate Four Thousand Weeks, which I will finish up this morning. I am enjoying it and I am adding bits to my Word Sheet for May. Last month, thanks to Kym’s encouragement, I signed up for Ali Edward’s One Little Word Year Long Workshop and I spent much of April catching myself up. I don’t plan on doing a separate Word Journal – a scrapbooker I am not – but I am loving the creative conversations that are inspiring new ways of thinking.
And speaking of Journals… someone brought this journaling opportunity to my attention yesterday. I immediately sent the link to my daughters… what a fun activity to inspire Genevieve, Winston, and Olivia as June begins. I am going to participate as well…and I am so excited!
As MacroMay is drawing to a close, I continue to learn how to use my pseudo-macro iPhone lens. This week’s wins:
An ant visits the primrose
I’ve got sunshine…
But here we are with another Monday, another week, another fresh page, another opportunity. And thinking about Monday in that way is exciting… don’t you think?
And it was with those thoughts in my head that I set about my weekly list which was not the same as last week’s … no carry overs… a true fresh page.
I leave you with my Beardy Attempts from yesterday… yes, I made two and I might make another one this morning, lol.
Happy Fresh Start Monday, everyone! See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | May 9, 2022 | General, In The Kitchen
…is for sharing!
Gentle Readers, do you have a spouse who is an IG Junkie? Steve must send me at least 4 “reels” a day… and most of them are about food… specifically IG Recipes.
Some weeks ago he sent me a recipe for baked feta, and I was so curious as to why he would send it to me… a main ingredient was fresh cherry tomatoes (which he hates!) Now I don’t know about the flavor of cherry tomatoes in February in your area, but in my neck of the woods… they are flavorless things. But I thought the idea of the recipe had some merit, if I could somehow figure out a tomato work around.
Enter a group I am in on Facebook… I know… but while FB by itself has no redeeming qualities, that is not necessarily true of some of the FB Groups! LOL… Anyways, in the Milk Street Community Group someone shared that Mutti Ciliegini Tomatoes were crazy delicious straight from the can. And so I began my search… no grocers near me stock these babies, but Amazon does but they seemed pricey to me. So began The Great Mutti Tomato Price Watch… and when the price fell to what I felt was reasonable, I nabbed a case of them!
And… Oh.My.Gosh. Really, it is summer perfectly preserved in a can. Cherry tomato flavor bombs picked at the peak of ripeness and snuggled in a silky, rich sauce. Now I had everything I needed to make the Baked Feta… and so I did. It is super easy… and I am so happy to share my tweaks that pushed this utterly simple dish to perfection.
I present my take on…
Baked Feta with Tomatoes and Chickpeas:
- 1 can of Mutti Ciliegini Tomatoes
- 1 can of TJ’s Greek Chickpeas, drained but not rinsed (you can do this with a can of regular chickpeas, but you absolute need to drain and rinse the chickpeas and then get those skins off… I rub them between a couple of layers of paper towels, but golly is this tremendously fiddly and time consuming. Thankfully, Steve found the Chickpeas at TJs! They are so good and no zero fiddly-ness)
- 8 ounces of Sheep’s milk feta in brine (the best I have found to date is Trader Joe’s Israeli Feta… it is the least salty and bakes beautifully)
- One (or two?) baguette, sliced and toasted… or Pita Chips… whatever your preference!
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
While the oven is pre-heating, drain and gently pat dry your feta. (If you are using the block of Feta from TJ’s, I recommend cutting it in half.) Place the feta in a baking dish and pour around it the canned tomatoes, including every bit of the sauce, and the drained chickpeas. If you are using regular chickpeas, drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil over the entire dish. Sprinkle some freshly ground pepper over the feta and bake in the oven for 25 minutes (or until the tomatoes are beginning to pop open and the sauce is bubbling)
Then turn the broiler on high and broil for 5-8 minutes until the cheese begins to brown a bit and the tomatoes start to blister.
Remove from the oven and serve with a crusty bread or pita chips. I baked this Olive Bread this weekend and served it with that… delish!
This is my new favorite for Friday Happy Hour… it is so good! Don’t like chickpeas? I have tried it with olives (Kalamata and Sicilian Olives are both excellent choices) and it is amazing. I even think canned artichoke hearts would be a great addition!
Oh…and if you should happen to have any leftovers… never fear! It reheats beautifully… or even better, toss everything in the food processor and puree it. Yes, any leftover feta, chickpeas, and tomatoes/sauce… oh my gosh. So Good! We had this last night with the rest of that Olive Bread but it would be great with fresh veggies… carrots, peppers, cucumbers, etc.
And there you have my take on a truly delicious Baked Feta!
Happy Monday everyone!
