Sunday Happy

What a week. We had sunshine and we had snow. I was hot at time and I was cold at time. My eyes Itch but I don’t care because the world is turning green again and there are flowers and tree buds and veggie starts and all the good things. This is why I love spring so much. It is crazy and unpredictable and more or less not to sunny and not to warm. (I like me a cool cloudy day!)

Stuff happened this week. We had a farewell dinner for Mark because he is now off in the Police Academy which is so freaking weird and now I have a guy on the inside to delete any and all parking and speeding tickets I plan on getting in the future. Ha!. The mr, Barb, and I went for a much needed drive out of town to a river. We had a picnic, watched that water flow, played with rocks. You know, river stuff. Oh and I got a new bike!!! Well not new new but new to me. Ever since I got my bike stolen last fall I have been on the look out for a new one and I got to tell you, things in the bike world are not great right now. New new bikes are a million dollars and even the reasonably priced ones are hard to find cause of lack of inventory (because covid). And used bikes, well finding something that works, not garbage, and fits, is a pain in the ass. But it finally happened and I am just a happy lady on her bike again!

And now my garden, it is being fenced! The mr has been bugging me for a few years now to fence it in and I finally caved. I don’t know why I have been so hesitant about it but I just never wanted a fence. But now that he is putting it up well I am so excited! And the mr being the mr, he is making is so freaking cute and pretty and I am just really really excited and can’t wait for it to be fully up so I can put some shit in the ground and not have it eaten by the massive woodchuck lurking in the neighborhood!

Other then all that good stuff, same old same old. Made plans with the littles for sleepover next week while they are on spring vacation. Worked on pots, sat with the piles of papers then decided I would rather clean the fridge. Picked up second to last farm share. Ate all the greens. Basic life stuff.

And it is Sunday, again so soon. The mr and I are planning on a little drive to a place. Not sure the place exactly but I am hoping for a river/woods situation. A little hike, he can do a little fishing. I can sit by the river and read. That is my hope for today. That and to get all the laundry done. I have been ignoring it and now I have to deal with it. Stupid laundry.

Internet from the week.

-Your Biggest Climate Decision Isn't What You Cook—It's What You Don't. Food waste is one of my biggest anxiety triggers. Holidays and little kids… It can get pretty intense.

-The state of the plant-based food industry. And maybe stop eating so much meat.

-'Comfort Decorating' Is All About Making Your Home A Sanctuary. The key is to make is comfy and not ugly. HA!

-I never thought I would see the day. Gnome shortage: Lockdown and Suez canal blockage blamed

-Why Do We Compete? Sometime a little competition is a good thing.

-I am in love with this house and the property and can’t wait to see the renovations. LAKESHORE RENOVATION | PART 1

-I Got High to See if Weed Would Help Me Work Out. I don’t get high before I work out but when I use to go to the gym there was sa group of guys that came in that were always high as fuck. I always thought that if they were coming to the gym stones, well they were still coming to the gym so who care if they are stones.

-This is not a joke. Fancy Feast Released a Cookbook So Cat Owners Can Coordinate Meals with Their Pets. So how do you feel about this? I mean, well, why not?

-Watch out for those baked goods. Mystery tree beast turns out to be croissant

-I love a good scallop. Trend Alert: 21st Century Scalloping

And some pictures from the week.

Sunday Happy

Two things that really worth noting for me this week. First, the mr and I went and cut down our Christmas tree!!! Always one of the best days of the year. Into the Green Mountain National Forest we hiked, found our tree, cut it down, and dragged it out. Well the mr actually carried it on he shoulder for about 1.5 miles. (He didi’t want help.) We got the tree home, immediately put it up and wrapped it in lights and I just sat there, with the tree smelling all tree like and I was so happy.

Second, I realized that I like Taylor Swift. Like really love her new album. So that happened.

Now it is safe to say my week was better then the last. How could it not be when you have a freaking tree covered in lights in your living room. I got a lot of stuff done that I have been needing to, I glazed some pots, sold some pots, and organized then trashed my studio(yes in that order). I am slightly freaking out about getting all the “things” done before Christmas as usual but I guess it wouldn’t feel like Christmas if I wasn’t low key bugging about something. And honestly I’m actually less buggy then most years so progress!

Some other good things From the week included a few Christmas light drives which I must say are oh so excellent this year. People really stepping up their light game fr sure. I made So her birthday cake and then Barb, the mr and I went over to Megans and we all stood outside, sang her happy birthday, and did the cake thing on the front porch because well Covid and all. She was surprised and so cute and it was great. Eight years old, I can barely believe it. It was also Justins Birthday but adults just don’t matter as much but happy birthday to him too. Haha. And what else. Oh, not my news, but the mr took barb to cut down her very first Christmas tree in an undisclosed location (like the side of the road, but I was told it was all good and so on and so forth) and then he found her and took her to buy a car. FINALLY!!! Now the mr doesn’t have to drive her ass around anymore and she can go get groceries and not starve to death.

And that is all I can recall because honestly this week I have spent as much time as I could just reading. I went to the library and took out like 15 books. Things might be shutting down again and I do not, can not, go without something to read at all times. It makes me agitated and cranky. So I stocked up and that is my truth.

Back to Sunday. Start of a new week. Today the mr and I are going for a drive to drop some pots off, maybe take a hike while we are out, and I have a few things I need to finish up at the studio.. Other then that, not much. I might make a few more paper snowflakes to hang from the ceiling and I need to get my crafting basket ready for tomorrow when I go to Barbs and help her decorate the loft and tree, but yeah, thats it. Now if it would just freaking snow a shit ton, that would be great.

What I looked at on the world wide web.

-Winter blues? Listen to Oprah, she knows best. How to Be Happier in January Than in July

-Also check out Martha. She was (and is) one bad ass lady. Living Just Turned 30, But Martha's Reach Remains Limitless

-Staying safe this winter means a lot of time outside. Here’s how to stay warm. Frost bite is not fun.

-Not that you need an excuse, but This Is Your Brain On Holiday Rom-Coms. It’s good for you.

-Why is it so hard to predict the weather? Live in VT. No one ever really knows what the weather is going to do, even while it is happening.

-A theory that can help explain why time seems to move slowly

-I ever back to these yearly book lists all the time. NPR’s Book Concierge

-Do you have a clutter room? I do not and would bash my head on the wall if there was a room of clutter. IT hurts to just think about it, but that is me. Don’t Worry, You’re Not the Only One With a Clutter Room In Your Home

-Imagine A World Without Movie Theaters… How do you feel about this? Personally, I haven’t been to a theater in years. I hate them, but it still seems sad.

Pictures from the week.

-C

Sunday Happy

What a week. Cool and dreary with a little sun sprinkled in here and there. I know a lot of folks hate this weather but I love it. It’s my favorite!

Last weeks camping was so good!. We went to our favorite state park, Half Moon, and it was just so nice. Super quiet, the trees were amazing, the temperature was fantastic. We hiked through the woods to a little pond, kayaked around 2 separate ponds, and the rm did some fishing while I did some reading. Everything was just A+. Even when it started to rain in the middle of the night. It didn’t bother me. I guess I told the mr that it wasn't suppose to rain so it didn’t matter and that he shouldn’t put the rainfly on. (My logic is spot on when I am sleeping.). And yeah we got a little wet, but whatever, still was the best. (the mr eventually put the fly on. Good call on his part to not listen to me.)

Then back to the world we came. To the doctors, to work stuff, to siding the porch on one of the houses. All the fun things that was on the list of the stuff to do.

And it was Alex’s 15th birthday (Happy Birthday!!WOO HOO!) so we went over to see him and have dinner and birthday cake. We also went for a nice rainy day foliage drive which again, my favorite weather, was really some of the best fall color we have seen in some years.

After working at the studio on Friday I rushed home fast to make a Pokemon cake for Saturday. Early Sartuday morning we grabbed the little, snagged Barb, and did our annual farm day pumpkin picking, masked and social distancing and all. We took the wagon to the field, they picked pumpkins (they all picked the first ones they saw) and did a little flower picking after. Then back to my house for a birthday party celebration for Coco. Technically his birthday is today (HAPPY BIRTHDYA COCO!) but we did a little party for him yesterday. Ate lunch, played around then surprised him with his pikachu cake. He was so happy! Then we gave him his presents (his own package of his favorite cookies, a hand knitted hat, and a vintage kids accordion) ate cake, and ran around the house playing with the accordion to the point where I wanted to smash it. He loved it all (even loved the hat!) and the accordion is home with him and can drive everyone who lives with him crazy. HAHA!

I must mention one thing. Judah was talking to Barb about her job as a house cleaner and all the things she has to do. He then said he would love to get paid to clean my house because it would be like getting free money cause my house is so clean. That really made my day. With that said, it has been a while since I have had so much cake all over the house. I really don’t understand how they do it. Everyone was sitting at the table and were not being messy or gross or anything but after they left and I started in on my cleaning routine…. cake was EVERYWHERE!. I might just make it mandatory for all food to be consumed outside from now on. Although that probably won’t work either. The littles (and sometime the mr) are slobs and no matter what or where they eat, it will get all over.

And now Sunday. So so ready to get out. Elmore State Park is the destination and we are going to take a good long hike up a mountain while we are there. Hopefully there are not a shit ton of other people around. (Vermont during foliage season is the best time and the worst time.. too many people!) I have a pumpkin packed for dinner, the rain fly (just in case) and the wool blankets. It’s gonna be a chilly one tonight!

Internet from the weeks internet.

-How to Cope When Everything Feels Bad and Somehow It Keeps Getting Worse. My go to is reading. Guess that is why I have been reading 2 books a week.

-Celebrate the House Meal, the Go-To Dish for When There’s No One to Satisfy but Yourself. Sometime I wonder how weird and screwed up my tastes are compared to others but then I think how screwy other peoples are.I think that we all eat some weird shit and the weird shit is almost always the best.

-I would live here. An Architect’s Scandi-Inspired Off-the-Grid Hut

-Sugar bread is not bread. For Subway, A Ruling Not So Sweet. Irish Court Says Its Bread Isn't Bread

-Yes, Halloween Trees Are Officially a Thing, and We Don’t Hate It. But I think I might hate it. At least use a different tree. Geesh.

-All of these floors.

-58,000 Pounds of Carrots Were Dumped at a London University. Could have just dumped them in my front lawn. I like a good art installation. And carrots.

-Vermont proud. Vermonter raises zucchini currently listed as world's largest in 2020

-May The Fattest Bear Win: Voting Opens For National Park's Pre-Hibernation Contest.. Love a fat bear.

-I just really like this. Portable Candlelight

Pictures from the week.

-C

Sunday Happy

Are you aware that it is the last week of November? I know right. Every year this happens but seriously, it’s just flying by so fast.

The mr and I did the norms for the week. Went for a amazing hike in nice snow. We worked on work, the mr made paper, I cut up the paper. I spent some time with clay, works the studio, organized some stuff and watched it snow and loved every bit of it. Then it rained and got kind of sad that all the snow melted.☹️ We picked up farm share, had dinner with my mom and Paul, hung out with the littles for a bit, and fed Barb some soup. Nothing terribly exciting, besides feeding Barb. She makes every exciting.

And then we get to Saturday. Family thanksgiving plus is was Erin’s birthday. (Happy Birthday Beotch!) Always crazy, what with every one of my family members together in my house, eating food, and hopped up on booze and sugar. The day started early with me running away to the gym to get in some sane time, then one last stop at the grocery store before heading home to finish baking and getting all the food ready. Barb came over early to help cut up veggies but really, for her and the mr to make fun of me and gossip like little old ladies. So food got prepare, then I cooked it all. (Minus the main which mom made. She made a crazy chicken thing, cooked in her oven, and brought it over. No meat gets cooked in my house.) And then the family descended on the house, hungry and crazy. Food got served/ thrown all over and for a few short minutes, everyone was sitting down all at once together. But that lasted 2 seconds, and the kids went off and I ran back to the kitchen while everyone was eating to straighten up a bit and because I don’t need to see people dropping chicken bits all over. I just let them eat in peace while I hid for a few minutes in the pantry and snacked on roast Brussel sprouts, carrots and mustard.

After everyone ate, we all ran around the house, picked secret Santa names, had a massive dance party in the kitchen and did dessert and birthday cake. Erins birthday yes, but Coco got to blow out the candles. So cute, that little loving the candles and all but I am going to be watching out for him. I think he might turn into a little pyromaniac. HAHAHA. But for real. Dinner ended with everyone leaving except Barb, Megan,and So. We picked up a little but basically just sat in the pantry eating raw Brussel sprouts from the stock, with mustard of course, and talking about boys. Then they left too and the mr and I were left alone to assess the damages.

The house. Oh my, oh my. It is a FUCKING DISATSER! I know I tell you all that I spend a good chunk of time every weekend cleaning…Well this time, today, all Sunday, I’m a be cleaning. Cleaning the cake and ice cream and cookies crumbles all over. Cleaning up the dinner rolls behind the couch, all the ripped paper, smashed potates, food and drinks particles. Chicken bits, which everyone was super awesome about and tried not to get anywhere, are everywhere. All. Over. The house. Then the kitchen. Every single piece of silverware and then some plus at least 40 plates and bowls are waiting for cleaning. Not to mention the the pots and pans. The compost is overflowing. The recycling is a mess, and I have at least 2 laundry loads of rags and napkins and dirty towels to do. The fridge looks like a freaking bomb blew up in it with tons of half lidded containers precariously stacked on top of each other, waiting for just the right movement of the neighboring jar or the movement of the hot sauce to have it all come crashing down. Aye ya ya. But all worth it because I love my family and we had a blast. I just need to remember next time I am at one of their houses to like pee on their toilet seat or mash some frosting into their couch cushions, you know, to be fair and all.

Anyway, so today I clean and maybe try to hang up some Christmas decorations? The mr is off to do very nice things for people that might not appreciate it, but do it he is going to do (he is too good a person). Hopefully by the time he comes home later tonight, I will be done cleaning, he will be done helping for a good long while, and we can eat soup and maybe watch a movie together. Or more realistically, he watches a movie while I read and probably fall asleep on the couch. Real life.

Reads I read from the internet this week.

-A long but good read. RuPaul: The Philosopher Queen. who doesn’t love RuPsul?

-I just pulled out a nice tablecloth, covered in stains mind you, but maybe i’ll be able to get some of them out now. A Cheat Sheet to Get Rid of Every Type of Holiday Stain. Or not. I don’t think I care enough. HA

-This is so appealing to me especially since the mr loves his heavy comforter and I just want a light blanket with the window thrown open in 20 degree weather. The Scandinavian Sleep Secret: Mine and Yours Duvets. HE is always covering me up at night.

-The best health foods? Soup, garlic and cake. Food is healing, and if cake makes you feel better, well then cake it be.

-These cakes remind me of my 5ht grade volcano science project. I made it out of cake and whipped cream. It was awesome. Antarctic Research Takes The Cake In These Science-Inspired Confections

-Vegan man sues Burger King claiming meatless burger is cooked on same grill as meat. This is one reason I do not eat out. Oe of the last times I did eat out, there were egg shells in my scamp bled vegan tofu dish….. So yeah.

-Who doesn’t love a good TV tray? A Brief History of the TV Tray

-HAve you ever raised a adolescent dog… It is crazy to say the least. Animal adolescence is filled with teen drama and peer pressure

-So there is this ti look forward to. Cockroaches Are Evolving And in the Future They can Become Impossible To Kill

-A Brief and Buttery History of Libby’s Pumpkin Pie Recipe. The pie of my childhood.

And pictures from the week.

Sunday Happy

I don’t know what the hell I was just reamng about, but I woke up with Celine Dion “Thats the way it is” stuck in my head. I am pretty sure I haven’t heard that song in like 10 years so it had to have made it’s way out of my deep, deep subconscious. What does it mean? And why won’t it stop replaying in my awake head!

What a ear worm to have on a Sunday morning. I need to plug my headphones in and listen to something, anything. It’s driving me nuts!

The past week involved our last camp of the year. We went to Little River State Park (the last place open) in the pouring rain and crazy wind and did our thing. Set up camp, hiked, made food. All drenched and loving every second of it, even the rm, who was fighting off a pretty crappy head cold. One thing that I did not love was that I was trying to dry out my soaking wet hiking boots a bit by the fire and ended up melting them. Yup, they actually melted, but lucky the mr brought extra shoes so those got me through the rest of the time. Anyway, so that was it, no more camping (due to the fact that it gets dark at 4 now and everything is closed for the season). And yes, I am sad about it. Until next year I guess, or until I convince the mr that winter camping is a good thing.

The rest of week involved me breaking and swallowing half of the second temporary crown. This time I did not bother going back for a third because my new permanent gold one goes in this week so I am just dealing for the time being. Then there was Halloween, which by hat time in the week, I was starting feel icky and sick, but still good enough for Barb to come over for dinner, watch me hand out a few handfuls of candy and walk the block in the rain. That storm was crazy with some freaky rain. The downpours were so intense at times that I though our house was going to wash away.

Not much else. I worked the studio and cut my hand open again. There was no farm share this week so I have had to go to the grocery store more then I would have liked. I cleaned the back porch off and backed away most of the summer stuff, and I found a few pairs of wool socks hiding in my closet. That was really nice. We didn’t see the littles cause they were all busy being cool with their fiends and between the mr and I both feeling under the weather, we choose to not infect the masses. We thought it better to lay a little low because we are good, caring people. Ha.

Yesterday was an Ikea day. Paul and Barb both wanted to go, so go we did. Left early morning, got stuck in dumb stupid traffic, then got to Ikea just in time for everyone else in Montreal to get there too. I peed, they got hot dogs. They shopped, I shouted. I peed again, they checked out and loaded up on more hot dogs. And then home we went. Me and Barb basically sitting on top of each other because Paul bought a shelf that took up half the car but you know what, traffic did not suck, the boarder was fine, and all and all not a bad trip. Minus the smell of the hotdogs, it made me want to barf.

And then I came home, the mr ran to rescue one of our tenants, I made dinner, we went for a walk, then I went to bed. Still feeling off and was more then happy just to get underneath all the covers and sleep.

Today the mr and I are not camping, but we are going hiking, so there is that. And we plan on making soup for dinner and maybe…maybe, turning the heat on tonight if we are feeling extra cold. But probably not. We might just wait til it snows.

Some links to look at from the internet.

-Is A Diet That's Healthy For Us Also Better For The Planet? Most Of The Time, Yes. Get on board people.

-On the drive to Ikea, we got into the conversation of seltzer because it’s always about seltzer. Is Seltzer Bad for You?

-This map shows how food travels from farms to your home. Some things really travel so far, it’s kind of crazy. Let us all try to eat more local, yes?

-Why do people hate vegans? Why indeed.

-Keep your brain alive and healthy. 5 Daily Habits That Negatively Affect the Brain and Should Be Stopped Before the Damage Becomes Irreversible

-How Jane Fonda Convinces Her Famous Friends to Get Arrested. I would get arrested with Jane Fonda. Hell, I Would do just about anything with Jane Fonda.

-Bulk all the way, but done right. The Problem With America’s Bulk Food Bins

-Thank you Dutch science people for making the world embrace Brussel sprouts. From Culinary Dud To Stud: How Dutch Plant Breeders Built Our Brussels Sprouts Boom

-Yes please! MAKE MINE AN A-FRAME.

-I Tried the Wim Hof Method to Find Happiness Through Suffering . I don’t know, I could see this working for me. Huh.

And pictures from the week.

-C