Tea Stands for Tuesday 1/24/17

I always look forward to the Tuesday posts at the Alerted Book Lover blog.  I really feel like I've come to know the regulars there. Bring a drink of your choice and join us won't you?

No surprise, this morning I'm drinking Peets coffee.  Here's the set up for grinding the beans.  Peets often has a new variety of beans for a limited time and I like to try them.  This time it is Ethiopian Super Natural only available for a couple of months.  I think these special issues are only for sale in Peets own shops.  I'm not sure.

After a very long time, I've taken up paint and brushes again.  I have an idea that I want to execute in acrylic on canvas in a larger format.  I decided to try a watercolor sketch first.

8 x10 watercolor

The above is my first pass at my idea.

8 x 10 watercolor

I let it dry a bit and then went back in and darkened some areas.  I see some changes I will make already but it was enjoyable to put the idea on paper.

Neighborhood Walk - 1/24/17

No CA had been getting lots of rain.  I think our area is officially out of the drought now although I don't think that's true of the Southern part of the State.

Because the sidewalks are littered with slippery leaves and small branches I decided to go out by the Bay for a walk.

Looking West:  There is a great long walk along the bay.  If the picture were bigger (or clearer) you would see the Golden Gate Bridge there where a gap appears in the distance.  The Bay looks dark and rough as I walk along.

Looking East:  My walk took be around to this cove and a view back over the Berkeley hills.  The waters here are always much calmer and there were lots of birds sitting on the rocks.

Rain again today but starting Wednesday we are in for a clear spell.

Hope you are staying dry and warm.

Tea Stands for Tuesday - 1/17/17

Good Morning, hope your day is starting out great and that you have your favorite drink at hand.  

I spent much of the time since we last got together knitting.  That's my colorful knitting bag in the background.  Water is the only drink I will let near my yarn and even then I'm cautious.  The pink hat is what I've been working on.

My local LYS had a "knit-in".  An afternoon when they offered the use of their classroom space for knitters to work on their pink hats.  

Pink hats are showing up everywhere, pink yarn has been scarce lately.  It was fun to spend time with other knitters talking about this and that while fingers flew and needles clicked.

For those of you who haven't heard, pink hats are being worn at the Women's March in D.C. and in local marches.  I won't be marching, just wearing my pink hat when I go on my currently cold morning walks.

Maybe I'll wear it this morning while I go visit Elizabeth and the rest of the Tea Gang.  Hope to see you there.

PS - LYS - Little Yarn store or Local Yarn Store

MLK Day in the U.S.

Today is a public holiday in the U.S.  A day to celebrate the 

birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.

“I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have

 three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their

 minds, and dignity, quality, and freedom for their spirits. I believe 

that what self-centered men have torn down, other-centered men 

can build up.”

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Words spoken years ago but words I believe true today.

Neigborhood walk - 1/12/13

We have been getting lots of rain here by the Bay.  I try to time my walks for a break in the showers.  On a couple of occasions didn't get out the door at all.

Fashion?  The window displays are pretty much the same old thing.  Guess we will have to wait a few months to see something brighter.

I did find these red boots.  I'm not sure they would be practical in wet weather but they would brighten up the above outfit.

This display amused me.  The chicken appears to be knit out of some kind of shiny fabric/material.  What is it about chickens?  They always make me smile.

I had to walk around this on my way home.  Yikes!  This is in front of what looks like an office building.  Some poor person is going to come out to quite a surprise.

Hope the weather is decent where you are.

Tea Stands for Tuesday - 1/10/17

Sometimes I can't believe how fast Tuesday rolls around.  A couple of days ago we were at the River House.

I was sitting on the front porch having an early morning cup of coffee

Looking at all the bare trees and the red sunrise.  You've heard "Red skies in the morning, sailors take warning" haven't you?  Yes, we've had lots of rain and it is threatening to flood.  I can only cross my fingers.

On a more cheerful note, let me show you my latest thrift purchase for the house there.  Dishes.  I don't need more dishes, I just have a tiny weakness.....For Dishes.

They are not old  They are by Susan Winget and part of a set called Garden of Olives. I found them listed as salad/dessert plates but they are going to be perfect sandwich plates for me.  Three plates/$2.  I wonder if I will ever stumble across the 4th plate in the set in my thrift store hunts.  

Lets take our drinks over to the Altered Book Lover blog and find out what has been happening since last Tuesday.  The people who post there seem to always have something interesting going on.

January knitting

Just finished this pair of socks for DH.  He loves his hand knit socks.

Meanwhile, I was given a gift certificate for my local LYS.  It will be fun to find a project and start something new.

Anyone knitting/crocheting/sewing?  Tell me about the project you have going.

I like to have knitting pictures on my blog to keep track of what I do. Some of you may have seen these on my FB page, sorry if it is a repeat for you.

Tea Stands for Tuesday - 1/3/17

This morning I'm drinking orange juice.  I have lots of orange juice but I don't have this set to drink my juice from.  Wish I did.  Isn't it pretty?

vintage Hazel Atlas juice set

You may have noticed a lot of citrus related posts here lately.  That is because there are several citrus trees on the property at our new(ish) River House.  This is our first winter there and we recently harvested these.

Oranges

Tangerines

And Lemons

As a bonus, one our our neighbors there gave us a whole bunch of avocados from his tree.  Worth their weight in gold.

Now that you've had your Vitamin C lets head over to Elizabeth's blog and see what is happening at this week's Tea Party.

Second on the Second - 1/2/17

I recently posted a lemon curd recipe.  Since I had all those lemons I needed to find another use for them.  Digging back through my old blog I came across this post.  Ta-da!  Here is my entry for the Second on the Second hosted by Elizabeth at the Altered Book Lover blog.  Thanks Elizabeth for keeping this going.

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2009

Lemon Bars (recipe)

What do you do when your lemon tree is producing lots of lemons?


Make lemon bars of course!

Our Meyer Lemon puts out so much fruit this time of year. What you see here is just the harvest from one day.

Here's a simple but delicious recipe for lemon bars. I think I've posted it before. It is a favorite and if you have a few lemons the rest of the ingredients are pantry staples. I usually cut the bars smaller, they are very rich. I guess my appetite must have kicked in when I was cutting these.

Lemon Bars

Crust
2 cups flour
1 cup melted butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Mix & press in 9 x 13" pan. Bake 20 minutes at 350F.

Filling
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
grated rind of one lemon (optional)
5 tablespoons flour
4 beaten eggs

Mix sugar, juice and flour, add eggs. Pour over crust and bake for 25 minutes at 350F. Sprinkle with powdered sugar when done.

Are you fond of lemon flavored desserts?

happy new year

Happy New Year to all my friends.

I'll leave you with the words of John Wesley:

Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.

Thanks to the Graphics Fairy for the image.