Jars

The other day as I was sorting the non-canning jars out of the box of "canning" jars that hubby brought home,it occurred to me that these junk jars are almost a thing of the past. Everything is packed in plastic these day, peanut butter, mayo, etc...
So last time I was near the canning supplies I picked up a box of plastic screw-on lids for the narrow mouth jars---that way I can keep and use all these glass jars for leftovers, seeds, dried fruit, etc.

Friday

Woke up to wild screeching from next door----I thought they had an injured hawk or eagle from the sounds of it...then I looked out and saw three baby raccoons chasing Henrietta, the elderly, grumpy white duck around the yard. There was one baby left in the cage, and he was the one making all the noise. He didn't appreciate being locked away when everyone else was busy having a good time!
Tried to get a picture, but by the time I got the camera, Henrietta had made good her escape and the kits were chasing the dogs instead.

No O2

Whatever shall I do?
Maybe I'll sew a surprise for the Con....

Weeds

I finally cut back the lamb's quarters, they were getting all fly-spotted and nasty looking----hopefully they'll regrow and we can continue having them with dinner. We used to can them when I was young, also the narrow-leaf plaintain, which we knew as goosetongue.

We've started eating the purslane that grows so abundantly in the garden.....just wish we could find a use for puncture weed and thistles!

Wednesday

It feels very strange without the Con around.....no movies playing, no thundering feet....

Looks like another hot day today. The two black dogs are lying the sun in various states of droopitation, while Cocoa is in the shade. Smart Cocoa.

I'm making bread and mailing beads today, maybe going to the nursery later to surprise Con with flowers when she gets home.

Tuesday

Rain again last night.....it's become an assumption that God is taking care of watering my green beans!! I think I've watered them three times, and they are on their third set of leaves. I could get used to this! This area has been under a drought ever since we came, so I have no idea what it looks like with water....

A big thanks to everyone who bought something from the CCF sale! I'm working overtime to get those pieces out the door, as well as the normal orders. Connie is away, so I'll have a bit more time to spend at the torch!
All three dogs slept in our room last night, then when the thundestorms started rolling through, Cocoa got upset. Peanut thought she wanted to play, so everyone was awake!

And, a shout out to Stan the Raku Man----the book came yesterday, and I think you bought me a new copy...sure seems like I had marked up and dog-eared the one I lent you at the show..

Ears

CCF

Which stands for Con's camp fund...the ruined tire yesterday put a bit of a crimp in the camp funds, so I dug out some Amber Rose and odd lot Aurae, and made some really pretty discs. Then I was having fun, so I made some more in other combos.

Discs

Beads

Like cats and dogs.....

Silver

I just realized I haven't done any of my little sets with silver for quite a while....guess I got a little burned out on them.
But, I discovered I have a 4 oz roll of silver wire to use up, so, I think I'll bring them back for a bit...maybe do a couple of new sets instead of the same old.

Beads

Oh, deer

Meet Rodger and Triton. Rodger is the big guy, Triton is the tiny one---all of four pounds at the moment. Both orphans that my neighbor is raising til they can go to a refuge. (She's a licensed wildlife rehab facility, so don't call PETA...)

Triton still has the freeze instinct, and can hide in two inches of grass!
He's also a tough little dude, and will fluff his fur and stamp his hoof at the cat.

New beads coming....

Probably tomorrow, on Etsy: just a quick heads up.
I had several emails about "Seeds" and "Aria", so I've been working along those lines and I think I'll have a nice listing tomorrow.

Grackels

There was a great kerfuffle out front, it sounded like the neighbor's dastardly cat had a baby grackel and was killing it slowly......turned out to be worm training. The adult was hopping slowly around the yard, pecking at bugs and worms, followed by three cawing babies with open mouths.
They were not particularly interested in learning how to catch their own, only in having Mom feed them, and quickly.

Crumbs

The book "A Nation of Farmers", by Sharon Astyk speaks of people being hungry because they don't know how to cook. This seemed a little outlandish to me, but I've been thinking about it, and watching in the grocery store. This week I heard someone ask her shopping partner if they were out of frozen pancakes, just as I would inquire how much bread was left.
I think I'm going to spend some time in the frozen food aisle, simply observing.

This led me to wonder how many steps it takes before we really do forget these things, and how far we must go to get them back. For instance, I grew up with homemade bread. Then we started going to the store in town more often, and store bread replaced homemade, especially during fishing season when we were all busy. Somehow we never went back to homemade in the winters, and then it was a thing of the past altogether. Canning our own food went the same way, and pretty soon we were living like white men in the middle of the woods......ie: living a lifestyle we couldn't afford...
Now, thirty five years later, I'm counting the steps, and looking for the shortcut back---I think it's a shorter road home.

Weather

Oh,yeah?

Beans

You would think I'd write about beans more, given that my blog title has to do with them.....I wonder how many people are actually searching for beans and find this instead? Still love the title though, and don't plan to change it anytime soon!

I took a whole strip of ground between the sidewalk and the street, you know the weed-prone strip that belongs to the city, but you are expected to water and keep the weeds out of? I planted a row of giant sunflowers and two rows of bush beans....they're up now, and last night I saw the neighbor on her walk do a double-take and stare quizzically at them, probably wondering what the crazy neighbors are doing now!

Pup

Sometimes I kinda wonder about this puppy...his legs are very short and he looks more like a weiner dog than a Chihuahua. His brother has long legs, and we know where Cocoa was at all times....so the only theory we've come with is that he put so much energy into the ears that the legs forgot to grow!

Stormy

A thunderstorm rolled through about 6 am----it sounded like a freight train, with almost constant thunder. I'm very glad it wasn't directly overhead. As it was, the thunder shook the house and rattled the windows. Chuck estimated it to be 4-6 miles to the south of us. It was bad enough that Cocoa forgot to be potty trained and puddled in the middle of the floor--thankfully I smelled it right away and got it mopped up before it soaked into the wood.

Oink,oink

Flu is among us.....don't know if it's swine flu, but it would be nice to be all done and not have to worry about it....first Con, then Chuck, me, and now K. By next week, we should all be feeling better.

The puppy is such a joyful little creature. His little paws are soft, and his fur is sleek and pettable. Yesterday I took him out to potty and it went like this: Look! a fly! I will chase it. Look! a bee! I will chase it! Look! a dandelion...I will chew it, wait is that a dog next dog? I will wiggle sideways and make friends! Pee? Who wants to waste time on that? Look! a leaf! I will chew it. Dirt! Time to dig! Oh, time to go in? Ok, I will pee now, right in the middle of the kitchen. Aren't you proud of me?

Seeds

On Etsy...

...and gone.

Gratuitous puppy pics

I haven't been posting a lot----I've been frantically making beads and digging in the dirt...yes, very interesting, I know. I did take some pics of the munchkin over the last few days though....


Baby, it's cold out there!!

If I can't see you, you can't see me!

Because I can.....

Portrait of the puppy as a young bat.

Guess who!!