Artful Journey

 The last time I was up at Stonewall Kitchen’s flagship store, I picked up one of their cooking school brochures. I love all of Stonewall Kitchen’s products, their garden and recipes, so taking a class up there has been on my bucket list. Greeted by a butterfly at Stonewall kitchen The dahlias were fabulous  Love this planter idea. Stonewall class kitchen Covid limited to 15 students Grilled Radicchio and Fennel salad with Braised Articholes The main, raspberry chicken, couscous and smashed peas Triple chocolate mousse and a  Coffee The class format is a demonstration only, but all participants enjoy a delicious meal. The chef John Bickerstaff was low key, friendly and informative. The entire staff was great, typical of Stonewall employees.  I came away with some really good tips, including using grape seed oil instead of olive oil for cooking with high heat. Everything was delicious and I am inspired to make some recipes of these at home. I am already looking at the...

 and slipping into the lives of celebrities  Maybe not this celebrity but I like his library passion Autobiographies aren't my favorite genre, but I’ve read or listened to a few this year. Sharon Stone’s book was chosen on a recommendation and I do love the title. She seems proud of her Irish heritage and I know she is quite involved in the peace process in Northern Ireland, but her depiction of Irish Americans felt disparaging.  She jumped around a good bit in the book and didn’t address some interesting topics, but overall an informative read. Her world wide and AIDS humanitarian work are inspiring. Alright, alright, alright The audiobook is the way to go. I wasn’t sure how much I liked this book, but I talked so much about it, I think I loved it. For someone who seems so laid back, Matthew is a focused, intelligent actor. He was determined to transition from rom com star to dramatic actor, which he has accomplished with enormous success. I wouldn’t be surprised if McCo...

 Happy Anniversary to us Mail art from Meg at Crafting my Art  Perfect sentiment  I love it! So lucky to have found this guy Celebrating on the big day Cloudy and misty but oh so happy Killarney, Ireland If I knew then what I know now, I still would have said I do. So grateful for all the memories, love and support. It’s definitely a day of celebration. It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed this breakfast  Water instead of tea or coffee  on T is for Tuesday Then it was off to the beach for a walk under a white sky. It wasn’t a backdrop, but a misty and foggy heofon. There weren’t many others risking the weather, but if we can’t celebrate in Ireland, the next best place is the beach. Luckily the rain held off and we were able to enjoy a walk with the mist rolling in off the ocean. Celebrating our anniversary  Cloudy and misty but oh so happy Crane’s beach, Ipswich, MA When we got in, Meg’s card was in the mail, our tax refund finally arrived and this little g...

 I recently finished watching the  2008 John Adams miniseries on HBO based on David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize winning biography. It was an excellent production, garnering numerous awards and bringing attention to an often overlooked founding father. After watching the series, I have had a renewed interest in David McCullough and his books. I started by watching the Mass Historical Society’s  History and the American Spirit , which was thoroughly entertaining as well as informative. It inspired me to check out a number of books, two that are currently on my nightstand and a few for future reads. It also provided me with an idea for gifts for some young friends. These are two great choices for elementary school readers. Both end with an additional author’s notes page discussing some of the more complicated issues as well as a bibliography with the references used for the books, which has also inspired future readings.  I really enjoyed both books, from the artwork to...

 Fi and I took a ride to Maine Botanical Gardens to visit the trolls. https://www.mainegardens.org/events-exhibits/giant-trolls/ I love the gardens here and we really wanted to see these fantastic sculptures by Danish artist, Thomas Damko in the Guardian of the Seeds installation. The trolls were enormous and it was fun to explore and find them, hidden in plain sight. Not to mention the fabulous flowers. Such beautiful flowers and unique trolls made the long drive worthwhile and gave us lots to smile about. Happy at another garden adventure after starting with a delicious breakfast  T stands for Tuesday   Breakfast at Stonewall Kitchen. Beautiful gardens here too. We enjoyed a picnic lunch and stopped for an ice cream at Ben and Jerry’s in Freeport to break up the car ride home. A fun garden adventure day with more to come.

 I like to read books that there’s a lot of  🐝 buzz 🐝  about. There’s typically a long wait list, so when they come in I dive right in. Here’s the hyped list that I have read this year. I thought I would love this book since I love dictionaries and word play. Despite the great reviews I had a hard time getting into the book and the characters. In the end, there were just too many words for me. On the plus side, it made me think more about language, the origin and obsolescence of words. I was on the waitlist for a long time for this one and had high expectations. It was well written and I enjoyed it, though not as much as I anticipated. My expectations too high? Was it because it was a downer in the time of Covid or because I knew the ending so it lacked suspense?  Not sure, but I do love this cover! My two favorite hyped books which I consider must reads are: These were two powerful reads about very difficult and depressing subjects: race and the opioid crisis. Nei...

Hydrangeas… Aren’t they beautiful  Mixed media fun, Not something I usually create Every day can’t be the best day ever, but I like to find 3 things a day to be grateful for. That in itself makes every day a little better.   https://runfasteatslow.com / pages/about Happy Tuesday  Bleubeard and Elizabeth   I started my day off with a cup of coffee and homemade superhero muffins from Shalane Flanagan’s cookbook, Run Fast Eat Slow. Although we won’t ever run as fast as Shalane, we are continually inspired by her accomplishments, attitude and recipes. A nice start to my day! And for the perfect end to the day… Sunset at the Lake Eoghan and I took a run to the lake to see this magical sunset. We are so lucky to live nearby and enjoy sunsets like this. Look up, experience wonder!

There is a great deal of inspiration here. Some of my favorite takeaways from the book: Repetition plus discipline improves skills; discipline becomes routine; routine becomes habit. Design a starting ritual for your creative process. Always end right in the middle of a work for an easy entry the next day. I love dancing and books about creativity so this was a fun read and inspired my latest exchange envelopes. Life is short and there will always be dirty dishes  …so let’s dance. - James Howe A quote from a favorite children’s author fit perfectly.  I don’t get many opportunities to dance much now, except for dancing in the kitchen but that’s alright as it remains my favorite place to dance to the music. Dancing in the kitchen. A gift from Fi… Because it’s how we roll here! Life is better when I’m dancing, and it’s impossible not to feel happier when I’m moving to the music. Dance: (noun) (verb)  fun exercise to music, seemingly without effort. Exceptional calorie burner...

For a new feeder, back to the drawing board…nature wins. I’ve been lucky to have monarch butterflies visiting my garden regularly.  I really wanted to attract hummingbirds to my yard, and Onz gifted me with a feeder a few years ago. I have had no luck with it, except for hundreds of tiny ants that I would find when cleaning and refilling it. I gave the feeder a miss and passed it on. Maybe the next owner will have better luck. I gave up all notions of finding a hummingbird, when one appeared  feasting on bee balm in my trellis planter. Hummingbird in my garden Inspiration for procreate practice  I have seen the hummingbird a few times, apparently they are quite territorial and return to the same plants frequently. They are quite small so you have to look closely. It is fascinating to watch as it hovers sipping the nectar with its wings beating furiously. Once again, it is evidence of the wonder of nature. 2nd on the second https://alteredbooklover.blogspot.com/2021/08/t-s...