Post in 2 parts

Part 1: Where She Attempts to Reason Away the 19-day Lag Between Posts

Um. Ahem. Cough. Well yes, 19 days. 20 if you don’t count the postlett below. What can I say. The end of the school year spiral plus parties plus tons of work = no blogging. The ideas just go, poof, out of my head. Truth be told, no ideas really land in there when I’m juggling.

That’s the tricky part about blogging. You love to do it and people start to expect it but when you’ve got nothing, you’ve got nothing.

But now, now it’s summer and we have one solid week of camp plus numerous deadlines behind us.

And while there’s still a lot of hay to make while the sun shines, the pace is slowing. I have one party complete and one in nearly-complete planning stages. I’m 6 weekdays into not having to pack snacks or lunches. I’m about ready to master the sewing machine. I’m kicking the overcrowded closets and basement in the butt.

So lift your glass with me in cheer for more regular musings on the various and sundry.

Part 2: What’s for Dinner

OK. Now that all that is out of the way and with the blog dust banished to far corners, let’s talk about dinner. I’ve said before (or at least I think I have although who really knows since my memory isn’t quite as sharp as a tack as it was 20 years ago) that weekend menu planning + grocery shopping = happy me. After doing both on Sunday, it’s lunches and dinners made easy and healthy every day.

Here’s one you just have to try. It’s a tomato, corn and avocado salad plucked from page 126 of the July/August issue of Martha’s “Everyday Food.” I figure she published it so I can share it with you and save you the link to another website. Actually, I tweaked the amounts a bit as follows:

2 ears corn, husk and silk removed

2 pints grape tomatoes (I had the big carton from Trader Joes and just added until I had a pleasing amount)

1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled and diced (gotta laugh about the “peeled and pitted” part … wouldn’t anyone really put either in a dish they were going to eat?)

2 scallions, thinly sliced (add this even if you’re not a big onion fan as it brings out the other flavors)

2 tbls fresh lime juice

1 tbls vegetable oil

coarse salt and pepper

Stand the corn in a bowl and use a knife to scrape off the kernels. Throw in the rest of the veggies. Whisk the lime juice, oil, salt and pepper in a bowl; pour over salad. Toss gently. Devour.

This is fast and delicious. Plus, it holds up well overnight. The lime juice keeps the avocado green. Pair it with some chicken-apple sausage or other grilled item and you’ve got mouthfuls of happiness. Enjoy!

Back in a minute

Just gotta find a cloth big enough to dust off this blog, and we’ll be back in action!

Guest welcome

When having house guests, a few little touches make for a gracious welcome. A crisply made-up bed. Fresh flowers on the bedside table. Perhaps a small jug of water, and a magazine or two. Or, if you come to our house, a potato with inked on face sitting atop hand-sewn bean bags, surrounded by dozes of stuffed animals.

Yeah, nothing says, “we’re glad you’re here” like a potato. You might want to make a note so you can welcome your next guests properly.

Howdy June

Well, wowee, it’s June. I’ve flipped over all the calendars (4 to be exact … don’t ask me why we have 4) and am ready to start a fresh month. Flipping from May to June made me wonder why it’s only May that has May Day. Why not June Day? October Day? The other months must feel left out. I’m just sayin’.

June Day or not, I am thrilled today is June 1 because it means …

:: Crossing work to-dos off my list (today as a matter of fact) so there’s a chance I’ll be able to breath this week.

:: Getting ready for a Friday afternoon girls party and my favorite house guest.

:: 8, only 8, lunches left to make for the 1st grade school year!

:: Frozen coffee drinks to enjoy while making dinner.

More to share

I know, I know … 2 posts in 1 day … hard to believe! But I have news items to good to wait.

#1 — what every computer user needs

Wouldn’t that cutie thing just be the perfect gift for your favorite colleagues? You can get one or a dozen at Urban Outfitters.

Item #2 — a new gym

The Craft Gym in San Francisco. A gym where you do crafts. Now that’s the kind I can get excited about.

A baseball story

A funny story for hump day from my friend Cori who is the librarian at the local elementary school with a few literary liberties in the presentation of said story taken by yours truly …

The setting: school library at story time. 20 1st graders are eagerly gathered around Cori to hear the story she is about to read.

The opening: (Cori) Upon giving an introduction to a book on a female pitcher who struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, we were going over the rules of baseball so everybody would have a basic understanding of what I was about to read. I asked things like:  How many balls before a batter is walked?  How many strikes before they’re out?  And then I asked, “And what happens when a batter is hit by a pitch?”

Long, long silence.

The ensuing conversation:

Boy 1: (says very seriously)  “He gets really, really hurt … and he could cry.”

Cori: “Ohhhhh-kayyyyy. Does anyone know what ELSE happens when a batter is hit by a pitch?”

Boy 2: “Sometimes he has to go back inside and get a band aid.”

Girl 1: “And the pitcher could get into trouble and not be allowed to play.”

Cori: “Yes, that all that could happen, but usually the batter gets to walk to first base.”

Silence again.

Boy 2: “But why would he do that if he’s hurt and crying and needs a band aid?”

Tell me a story

I’ll make you a book. So you can tell me a story.

Over the weekend, I had the itch to create. And since I’m still just the teeniest bit scared of my new-to-me sewing machine, I opted for some quality time with paper + cutter + bone folder + needle and thread.

This is a great project to use up any decorative papers you may have collected. Of course, plain paper works just as well. I used scrapbooking paper for the covers and plain copy paper for the inside. Simply cut to size and then make 3 tiny holes. I used another scrapbooking tool: eyelet setter. But a nail + hammer would work just as well … just tap lightly!

Then you stitch it all together. Start with the middle hole, going down. Then up through one end, over and down through the other. Come up again in the middle. Tie a knot and you’ve got a hand-sewn book. Yes, yes, staples work too but they’re not half as cute!

Word of caution: this project can quickly get out of hand. Especially, ahem, if you happen to have a lot of paper on hand. I set out to make a few for Miss K and her friends to use. Before I knew it, I had nearly 30. In this house of storytellers, they’ll no doubt go fast!

Did you know …

Outtake from the middle day of a three-day weekend. The sun has gone missing, leaving us with chilly, cloudy, blustery days. But with good friends, piping hot onion rings, a bit of ale and a new guitar, what does it matter?

Take a break, recover a chair

I had a bit of a break today while waiting for info from a client, so I grabbed some fabric and gave an old chair a new look …

The seat of the chair is removable so I just popped it out. Starting with the sides, I pulled the fabric tight and secured it with the staple gun (one of my all-time favorite!). Then the top and bottom was tightened,  gathered and bolted down with more staples. The whole process took about 10 minutes. I love the new look and the little joke … did you notice, it’s a chair covered by fabric that has a drawing of a chair. Ha!

101

We’re having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave. Temperature’s rising, it isn’t surprising, the way that she can can-can …

Whenever it’s really hot, that tune from South Pacific (I think) runs through my head and I see my mom dancing around the house singing it. Record-breaking heat has hit the Bay Area … 101 yesterday in my little town. Not even the shade provided respite.

I don’t really like hot. I melt easily. They say people who were born in San Francisco like I was can’t tolerate high heat because fog flows through their veins. Little bit of trivia for you.

There’s no air conditioning in this little cottage so we make do with old-fashioned fans and endless glasses of ice water. Meanwhile, despite the heat, the garden continues to produce surprise after surprise. Look who popped out this morning …

Happy weekend!