Ok, It’s Catch Up Time

Yes, I’ve been away for a while, and that time has done me good.

You may ask what have I been doing for the past year? The book took much longer than I thought it would—it was easy and so much fun until it was time to publish it. If it were created any other way than digital, it would be an absolute rag from being edited so many times. 

Self-publishing is not all that it’s cracked up to be, imho. If I had the book made how I wanted it, it would cost $60, which didn’t make me happy. Who would buy it? So I cut it back and sacrificed a bit—more time than anything else, but now it’s available on Amazon, at least in most countries. I’m really happy I finished it. 

We’ve been adopted!

About a year and a half ago, a sweet calico cat started hanging out with us in the evenings while we sat in the back. Her visits became more frequent, and we fell in love with her—she totally had us at ’meow.’ She had no collar, and we couldn’t tell if she belonged to anyone. So we started feeding and letting her inside since the weather outside was getting cooler. 

We call her Momo, which means ’peach’ in Japanese. She is a little peach, too! 

As it turns out, her former caretaker rang our doorbell one day last year because she saw her hanging out in front of the house. I was scared to death that she was going to want to take her away—I told her, ’Oh, but we love her so much!” She just wanted to let us know that the cat was her daughter’s, who’s been living in Europe, but she brought her to Washington on her last trip because she couldn’t keep her any longer. The mom already has five or six kitties and is happy that ’Momo’ found a good home. I was so relieved. She also wanted to give us her papers, including her shot records and passport. Yes, the cat has a passport! Momo is originally from Spain, so she is a European Shorthair. Apparently, she was a rescue, which may explain why she likes being outside so much. She also lives for belly rubs, but that’s a whole ’nother thing. 

I know it’s evil, but I have been playing with AI. Who knew something so potentially bad could be so much fun?

Of course, I’m not using it for nefarious purposes, but Firefly comes with my Adobe subscription. It turns out it’s more of a time suck than Facebook! Playing with it is so much fun, especially in these troubling times. Most of my prompts start as ’ A calico cat…’ It’s a great way to spend a rainy day, which we have a lot of here, and it’s a lot more fun than cleaning the house. Here are a few of my favorites:

I’ve also gotten quite crafty. I’m beginning to think there is a little switch inside of women that gets clicked to ‘on’ once they retire.

I got a flower press for Valentine’s Day because my husband saw me pressing flowers in books. I was/am totally delighted! I have ideas for unique ways to mount them, but so far, I’ve only framed my first ones. 

I’ve also been playing with glass cloches and taxidermied butterflies. (Really, it’s not as sad as it sounds) I get the butterflies from reliable sources, and it’s an enjoyable and creative process. This is my first one.

The garden, which is still a work in progress, is my other passion.

It’s currently in its dull Winter state, though it won’t be much longer. Here is the best of what’s growing there now—the hellebores make Winter worth it for me. My favorite season is almost here, so the best of the garden is yet to come.

Since this is a recipe blog, I will stay true to form and share a very simple favorite.

It is citrus season, and the kumquats are readily available almost everywhere. You don’t need many for this—maybe 2-3 per person. This classic makes a flavorful lunch or snack, and all it takes is some toasted bread, a smear of soft cheese or crème fraîche, a drizzle of honey, and a sprinkle of thyme.

Kumquat Toast with Thyme

For Each Serving

• 1 slice toasted bread
• 1-2 Tbsp cream cheese, crème fraîche, or mascarpone
• ~2 kumquats
• A drizzle of honey
• a few fresh thyme leaves, pulled from a sprig
• Edible flowers, if available

Toast the bread and spread it with your schmear of choice. Slice the kumquats, remove any seeds, and arrange on top of the toast. Drizzle some honey on top and sprinkle a few thyme leaves over it. Decorate as desired. Life is short—make it pretty. Easy enough.