The Last Snow Of The Season… Or So I Imagine

/ Ally Bean / 18 Comments

On Wednesday we had what I imagine will be our last snow of the season.  

It was the kind of snow that covers everything it touches with what appears to be wallpaper paste or cotton balls.   This snowfall didn’t slow things down like early and mid-winter snow does.  In fact, by mid-day Thursday the streets and sidewalks were clear.  

But while it remained on the trees and bushes, the heavy snow made for some pretty photos.  There are times when the grayness of winter is quietly stunning.

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{ maple leaves on a snowy branch }

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{ snow-covered rosemary in a pot }

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{ view outside through the front door sidelight }

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{ moss + snow on the trunk of a tree }

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{ a view into our ravine from high above }

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2 Movies, 2 Books & 1 Unique Bumper Sticker

/ Ally Bean / 12 Comments

As part of my attempt to live a more balanced life in 2013, I have given myself the assignment to watch 2 movies and to read 2 books each month.  Here is my February report.

2 Movies

The Magic of Belle Isle – Bland + trite.  With Morgan Freeman and Virginia Madsen in it, I thought that this movie would be a sweet, but nuanced, look at life in a small town on a lake.  It was not.  In fact, it was boring, mildly insulting to women over 40, and just a plain waste of beautifully decorated lakeside homes.  Not recommended.

Helvetica –  Fascinating + inspiring.  Helvetica is a font that was born in 1957 and permeates our lives.  It has been revered and it has been marginalized, but it is still here.  The interviews with graphic artists are compelling, even if you disagree with what they’re saying.  Recommended if you have an interest in typography and the world around you.  [H/T to alejna at collecting tokens for telling me about this documentary.]

2 Books

The Spice Necklace –  Charming + fun.  I enjoyed this book.  In a nutshell, Ann Vanderhoof and her husband decide to live on a boat, travel around the Caribbean and research the local cuisine.  Along the way they make friends with some nutty characters the locals, learn about alcoholic beverages regional history and decide to conjure up recreate Caribbean specialities in their tiny  galley kitchen.  Recommended if you like recipes, travel and cheerful adventurers.

Marrakesh By Design –  Beautiful + informative.  In this colorful book on Moroccan decorating, Maryam Montague explains the history of the region as well as the reasoning behind this style of decorating.  The photos of patterns, colors and homes are perfect.  I read the book all in one sitting, then came back a few days later to get lost in the photos.  Recommended if you have an interest in African history, art and/or home decor.

1 Unique Bumper Sticker

The bumper sticker on the back of the van said: Play More Viola.  I saw it first and was silently thinking about it when Zen-Den noticed it, too.  Naturally we needed to know more about it, so I googled it.  I half expected it to be a line from a Saturday Night Live skit a la “more cowbell.”  But its origins were much simpler than that.  It’s a bumper sticker encouraging everyone to be more joyful… by playing more viola.  Cute, huh?

Are You Reeling In The ‘Burbs?

/ Ally Bean / 21 Comments

“The weekend at the college, Didn’t turn out like you planned.  The things that pass for knowledge, I can’t understand.” 

~ Steely Dan, “Reeling In The Years”

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So my weekend didn’t go as I planned.

First, there wasn’t any sunlight which meant that we couldn’t seal the granite counters and tumbled stone backsplash in the kitchen.  This is an annual project that we do at the beginning of March.  It takes two days in all to get it done– AND it requires sunlight to get it done right.  Naturally, it being the first weekend in March I had planned on doing this project, but Mother Nature, she be fickle.

So we didn’t do it.

Then second, I didn’t feel good– as in intestinal distress and a sore throat.  So my plan for us to attend the home show was a no-go.  The last place I wanted to be was in the middle of a huge convention center, surrounded by people and strollers.  I could only envision the worst possible scenario with me needing a bathroom now– and no fast way to get to one.

So we didn’t go.

But the weekend wasn’t a total bust.  Zen-Den watched basketball [*yawn*] and various movies that were on TV.  Movies like The Karate Kid and Catch Me If You Can and Lady and the Tramp.  While I drank hot tea, huddled in blankets and advanced to Level 15 [of 16 levels] on my iPad Tetris game.

So there’s that. 

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What did you do this past weekend?  Something exciting?  Or were you as dull as we were? 

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Odds & Ends

/ Ally Bean / 19 Comments

::  I’m waiting at home today while my car, Olivia, is in the shop.  She is a 10 y.o. Honda Accord Coupe.  Yesterday I went in for an oil change, knowing that there’d be more to it than just that.  At ten years there has to be.

Apparently at year 7 something involving the timing belt [belts?] was to be done.  But I didn’t do it then.  Probably because no one at the dealership told me to do it.  Whatever.

So I’m having it done now.  And this, people, is why I like Honda Accords.  They are very forgiving about maintenance schedules, which is a good thing when they belong to a person such as me.  That would be a woman who means well, but often forgets to have the oil changed on a timely basis.  A woman who maintains her car based on whims– and prayers.

::  I got a new slow cooker [aka crock pot] for Christmas.  Did I tell you this before?  Probably not.  Exciting news such as that I usually keep to myself because I wouldn’t want you, gentle readers, to be jealous of my good fortune!

My new slow cooker is shiny and bright red– and works about a hundred times better than the old one.  Considering that I have the time today, I’m going to research some new recipes to make in it.  Clearly I know what herbs +  spices are available in our kitchen.  Plus we have a busy weekend coming up, so fixing and forgetting a meal sounds like a good thing to do.

Anyone got a favorite slow cooker recipe that I should know about?

::  I’ve mentioned this before but as a refresher: Murphy Brown had Eldon, the painter– while I have Greg, the landscaper.  And it being on the cusp of spring here, Greg has been in touch.  Actually he first phoned me in January, but I dodged his calls because I didn’t want to talk about gardening.  Couldn’t I just have one month off?

However, Greg is nothing if not clever.  He started emailing Zen-Den, who then started forwarding me photos of shrubs and bushes and such– so that I’d decide a thing, or two, about this year’s spring garden clean-up & replacement ideas.  [We’ve been at this residence close to 14 years now, so lots of the original bushes are near the end of their vitality.]

And you know what?  Much to my surprise I’m rather pleased to be looking at photos of + details about green growing things.  I think that I’m ready for spring.