Long Leaf Pine

We got two long leaf pine seedlings from Mama's several years ago.  This one grew about two-thirds of its height this year.  I think the lovely rainfall helped.  We have another that isn't more than half this one's height although we planted them at the same time.  We ran over the other one with the gator and it has taken a while to recover.

Scarf Cache

My scarf cache I'm accumulating in preparation for the Christmas season has five in it so far.  I had to look online for directions on binding off as I'd forgotten how in the space of the several months break.

Not Charging Well

My fitbit isn't charging well and isn't holding well.  I don't really know how to improve it.  I left it charging overnight and it didn't charge all the way.

Twisty Scarves

I sold scarves at the hospital gift shop last Christmas season.  I've started knitting them again for this season.  I think I'll wait until after Halloween to take them in.  I don't know if they'll do as well this year because they were very popular and a lot of people started selling them.  But I found sashay metallic and sequins which are different from the yarn that I've seen at WalMart so they may be a welcome addition to people's scarf collections.

Mating Praying Mantis Pair

Mating Praying Mantis pair

Spider/Praying Mantis

We found a spider with a lurking praying mantis.  We couldn't decide which was the predator but the clue I was using was the spider was in its web and the praying mantis was nearby.  We checked a little later and found they had called it a draw.  The praying mantis had backed off and the spider was fine.

Soda Stream Update

My soda stream's gasket came loose.  I can put it back in order to use the soda stream, but it won't work without it.  I was worried about losing it so I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to get several additional gaskets.  The manager asked if I'd bought it there...I had.  He said to bring it in and they would replace the whole thing!  Wow!  Great service!

Peppers

Another half gallon of cut up pepper went in the freezer today.  I mixed hot banana pepper with the bell peppers.
I made a crustless spinach quiche today.  I didn't have twelve ounces of shredded cheddar so I was going to use Parmesan but it had molded so I used shredded mozzarella to supplement the shredded cheddar.  It   turned out just fine.

Where Are You Going to Put Those?

We dug some sweet potatoes today.  I don't object to that for some reason...maybe because I'm not operating the potato fork.  But finding nests of them underground is nice.  We had about three "hills" dug and sprayed off with the hose.
Larry asked where I was going to put them.
I said, "Anywhere you want them unless you want me to guess."
Sometimes it seems he'd rather complain about what I do rather than just be happy I've helped.  No, it always seems that way.

Roast Beef Sandwich

I'm not a fan of sandwiches which is good for a low-carb lifestyle, but lately I've wanted a roast beef sandwich with sliced tomatoes.

Deli roast beef, warmed in the microwave, low-carb bread, toasted, mayo and sliced tomatoes, yeah, lots of salt and pepper...and I have a sandwich I don't feel guilty eating. Dill pickles would have been good, but I decided I would have that some time when I don't have tomatoes.

Audible Returns

I have been a member of audible for years and have gotten some books I was disappointed with.  I recently noticed that it is possible to return books.  For example, I decided to start getting the Lois McMasters Bujold Miles V. series.  Well, the first one was a prequel. I have read it and have no interest in ever reading it again or listening to it even once.  I didn't realize it was the one about the quaddies until I was listening to it.  I had returned one before that was abridged and I meant to get unabridged.  I didn't notice until I was listening to the abridged version...the plot was there but the character development wasn't.  They let me switch. 
This time I asked how could I just get rid of some books that I didn't like and didn't want taking up space on my iPod and didn't want to get again when I synced.  The nice man took them off and gave me credits for them even though it was over a year ago.
I am seriously a pleased customer.

Poppers

Tiburon peppers (moderately hot), split and seeded, filled with cream cheese, wrapped with bacon, sprinkled with shredded cheddar and baked for 45 minutes (or until the bacon is cooked) makes a great low-carb snack.  They are different when eaten cold, but some aspects are even better...the peppers are more noticeable:)

Make sure they are on foil to save yourself a cleaning horror.

My Fitbit

My fitbit is beginning to look as if I store it in the blender when it's on.

My X-Hose

I have been very pleased with how light and compact my x-hoses are.  But today one burst.  I had turned it off at the wand and picked a wad up to move it around the fan.  It burst and immediately lost pressure!  I have been dragging them everywhere and thought picking it up to move it was nicer.  Not.

Wonderful Donations

 Baby hat and booties...pink

 Black and yellow with bees

 Red with ladybugs

 Girly, ruffled pink

These donations to the gift shop at the hospital are wonderful!  Thank you, Leigh!

Hay Was Baled and Removed

They cut the hay Saturday.  It was thick and they had to let it dry out before baling it.  But we are supposed to get rain and I hoped they wouldn't lose the hay.  They took off two wagon loads.

Some Reminded Me of Cherries

Sometimes I'd reach up for an especially plump, ripe scuppernong and it reminded me of picking cherries from the huge cherry tree in our back yard on Richard Wagner Str. The next people who lived there cut it down.  I thought it was a shame. But we enjoyed the cherries while we were there.

Big Lots

Big Lots has Bob's Red Mill products that I've been buying from Amazon (and paying shipping and handling on!).  I didn't look to see if they have all the things I've been buying, but they had steel cut oats:)

Hanging on a Ladder

I picked a couple of gallons of scuppernongs today.  I had to use a ladder because the arbor Larry built is better for his height than mine.  It took a while and wasn't as nice as sitting on the porch, but I didn't get many steps in on my fitbit. 

Info from Neighbor about Making Wine

I bought a wine-making kit and a book about making wine.  But we had several questions about making our own wine starting with fruit.  We found a nearby neighbor who makes wine.  They currently are making some from blackberries.

The questions we had were how to get the juice out without buying a fruit crusher.  They are pricy if all I'm going to do is try it and then never try it again.  So we wanted to make some to see how it tastes from our scuppernongs.  The neighbor uses a long mesh bag and squeezes the grapes or other fruit.

That was one question answered.

Then the guy said his wife freezes the fruit to kill something or other.  That was absolutely good to hear because all the grapes don't mature at the same time.  But if we pick and freeze the grapes, then we can mash them all at the same time!

We've given away so many, I don't know if we'll have enough to make wine with this year, but we might.  The pile in the picture is one of the piles.  We have another that I've washed and have draining and we still have some we haven't picked.  I don't know how much it takes to get enough juice to make a batch.  

I'm pretty excited about those bits of information!

Alternating Audio Books

I'm switching between Rick Riordan's audio books and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books.  Both series are reruns for me.  I'll be glad when I get my new credits.

Arkansas Black

This is an Arkansas Black.  It is the best looking apple in our tiny "orchard." I don't think it is actually time to harvest them, but we've gotten a couple a day for the last couple of days.  They are firm and somewhat tart.  The tree is supposed to be resistant to some kind of tree rust.

Seven Deer

We've been seeing signs that the deer are fattening on our plants.  Today we saw seven in one of the soybean fields.  I wish Bambi and friends would go somewhere else.  According to other people who have fields, they are there, too.  It is all right to shoot them, but if it isn't deer season, they are supposed to be left in the field.  That is so gross.  Yes, the buzzards clean them up pretty quickly, but still...Yuck!

Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum

I am listening to Eleven on Top by Janet Evanovich on my iPod.  I've already read it and have listened to it before, but not recently.  I won't get any new credits on Audible for another week or so, therefore I'm relistening.  It sounds boring but I was walking and laughing out loud.  Stephanie Plum is a wonderful character.  I've read a couple of books by Janet Evanovich that are not in the Stephanie Plum series, but they aren't as good to me.

I Saw It on TV

One of those food shows was on television cooking a hamburger with peppers and onions.  It looked good so I decided a hamburger steak loaded with peppers and onions would be good.  So I did that and nuked a box of frozen chopped broccoli and sliced a tomato from the garden.

My husband said it was really good and next time I should mash it flatter.  I said next time I might use our cast iron griddle instead of the square cast iron skillet, but I didn't plan on mashing it.  

When somebody else cooks, it is really better to stop with, "It's really good."

The peppers were from my tiburon peppers I grow for poppers.  They are almost hot.

I really like them halved, filled with Philadelphia Cream Cheese, wrapped with bacon, and sprinkled with shredded cheddar.  Then baked until the bacon is done on a foil-covered cookie sheet finished off that low-carb snack.

Neighbor Picking Scuppernongs

I heard a motor sound and looked out to see our neighbor had driven over to pick some scuppernongs.  I waved at him and he said, "You caught me."

I said, "Eat all you want."

He said, "I can't.  I'd be sick."

Small Praying Mantis

I haven't been able to find the large praying mantis for a couple of days.  But I found this small one (it's upside down in the middle).  While I was watching it, I saw it snag an insect and scarf it down. 

It Didn't Ask

Now I see how the "Share" happened.  I didn't do it too fast, it just connected to Google+ by itself.

In a Hurry

Sometimes I accidentally post something to Google+. I've gotten better about slowing down.  If I click too fast, it jumps so that it is on "Share" instead of "Cancel."
It doesn't hurt anything to post it to Google+, but it would be nice if I only did it on purpose.

Time Spent

We spent four hours going to and from Memphis and three hours there.  I didn't get many steps in.

Fun Time

Yesterday the dermatologist bandaged Larry's stitched places.  Today I did it.  It would have been easier if he didn't wait until I bandaged it to stretch to see if it was secure.  Three times I redid it after he checked it out.  Fortunately he didn't rip any stitches out.  He's done that before, too, on the way home from getting the stitches.

People Hurt Themselves

My nurse had a walker because she turned her ankle while carrying cans she couldn't see over.  This time she had a braced knee because she was cutting the grass on a riding mower and put out her leg to catch herself as it started to tip over.  She did some serious damage.
The worker at the hardware store broke a rib because she fell getting out of the bathtub.  I know people fall in the tub, but it turns out she normally got out of the tub by standing on its side.  I don't think the step onto the side of the tub would be easy for me so obviously she was in better shape than I am, but then, I haven't managed to break a rib getting out of the tub...not yet, anyway.  Why would anybody get out of the tub that way?

Ambitious Mantis

I could be wrong because making assumptions on what I see is limited since I don't see the mantis all the time.  But a hummingbird visited this plant and the mantis perked up and moved quickly for the last location of the hummingbird before it flitted off. I've seen the little predators located next to hummingbird feeders.  I wonder if they could catch one. But other insects visit the hummingbird feeders so it isn't impossible that they were planning to feed on other insects.  But just now it was obvious the mantis was trying to stalk the small bird.

Brown Praying Mantis

This brown praying mantis is difficult to see against the basket liner.  I watched it consider jumping from the porch rail for a long time then trudge back to its flower location in the flower box.  When it eventually made it over, I didn't see how it did it.  Did it jump or climb the post and creep down?

Information suggests that it is brown when the weather is dry and green when it is in moist.

Tiburon Peppers

Tiburon Peppers.

These are mildly hot and perfect for peppers.  I started the seeds outside after danger of frost had passed.

Today's Low-Carb Snack

I adore pizza but the thin and crispy crust pizza at Pizza Hut is overcooked to me.  I think everything on the pizza is low carb except the crust.

So today I decided to use a low-carb slice of bread (instead of Texas toast) and go from there.

I used a jelly-roll pan and put butter in it.  I heated it up, then put the slices of bread in and toasted it lightly, then mashed it as flat as I could get it and flipped it over.  Then I toasted it a little longer.

I smeared marinara sauce on the bread, then put the mozzarella cheese on it, then the diced banana pepper, and last, the pepperoni.

I baked it at 400 degrees 8-10 minutes. 

Ella May, Larry, and I all enjoyed it.

Note: I had a lot of the marinara sauce left so I put it in an ice tray so I can thaw a few cubes out next time.

Gorgeous Day

Today we went back to Pebble Isle Marina.  The day was sunny and breezy.  Sitting outside on the floating cafe, I was almost too cool.  The food was, as usual, good.  It was a really nice lunch.

The Phone

Sometimes family members call on the land line.  I try to get to it.  Today I was deadheading roses, the phone rang (not the one in my pocket) and I dashed to get it.  It was somebody wanting money for a good cause.  The problem is that by the time I had hurried across the yard, up the steps, the length of the porch and answered the phone, I didn't care how good the cause was.  I especially don't care when it is somebody trying to act like he knows us because he asks to speak to my husband using his first name. I don't want to buy something over the phone unless I initiate the call.  I don't want anybody to check my credit for me, install a security system free, give me a free weekend somewhere but by the way, bring your checkbook. 
Sometimes I forget to take a phone with me at all.  It isn't because I don't want to talk to anybody, I just was thinking about something else and wasn't wondering if anybody was going to call. 
I can't work in the yard with my land line in my pocket.  Once it's dark, I'm in the house, but I might be in the tub.  Larry might be on the porch with the wireless headset on his head listening to tv.  I don't not answer on purpose, I'm not rude on purpose...but I really wish I could get people who don't know me to not call...at all.

Useless Hour

I've spent the last hour trying to download the podcast by Nathan Lowell, Owner's Share, from iTunes.  The last time I downloaded a podcast, I was successful.  I've tried twice now, two different nights, and I can't get it to show up on my iPod.
It's free, but I'd rather pay for it and actually have it!

Fitbit

It has been a little cooler for the last couple of days and I've gotten my 10,000 steps in fairly easily.  Maybe I will be able to keep it up when it gets hot again.  My fitbit is getting scratched up.  I guess I shouldn't put anything else in the same pocket.

Praying Mantis

I find one or two every year.  I wish I knew whether I see the same one over and over, or if I have several.

Small Gourd

I wanted to grow egg gourds this year.  I bought one packet of mixed small ornamentals with egg gourds listed as one and one packet from a different vendor labeled as egg gourds exclusively.  I've gotten a bunch of small off gourds.  This one is the size of a nice fig.  It is sitting on a coaster.  I don't see a single egg gourd, so far.

Different Reactions to Same Treatment

 This poor allysum nearly died from being overfertilized.

This one didn't consider the mixture too strong.

I'm Glad

I blogged about the laundry detergent a few minutes ago and realized that of the four ingredients, I'd only put two in, the fels naptha and water.  So I dragged it all back into the kitchen, and took down the Borax and Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda and realized that sitting on the shelf open for almost a year necessitated scraping it off the block it had become.
So now I've taken it apart, put the one cup of each in the five gallons of glop, repackaged it, and dragged all five gallons back to the pantry.
Duh.

Good News!

http://www.thekindlebookreview.net/top-5-category-finalists/
That's the link that goes to the semi-finalists' independently-published books.  Richard's book, Jump Drive, made it to the top five in the young adult category!  Wow!
I'm also interested to see some of the other books listed as semi-finalists.  I'd tried reading some of the indie books thinking good authors have to start somewhere, but I wasn't impressed frequently enough to continue reading them. I like a good story with good characters.

Laundry Detergent

Last October I made homemade laundry detergent for the first time.  Today I made it for the second time.
The first time I used the food processor to cut up the fels naptha.  This time I grated it on a hand grater.  It didn't take all that long and was much easier to dissolve in water.
I thought about making the dry mix but it looked like I would need to dissolve it in hot water to use it each time so I decided to make the liquid kind.  I'd already gotten a five-gallon bucket and five one-gallon clear plastic containers and made space in the pantry for storage.
I was truly impressed that one batch lasted eleven months.

It's not an especially clear picture, but this batch use used the same box of Borax and Arm and Hammer Cleaning Soda I bought for the first batch.  I just had to buy another bar of fels naptha.  My hair dresser said she had a stain on a shirt she'd let dry and just rubbed it with a bar of fels naptha and it came out.