Designing in Life

Young Entreprenuers

I remember ordering a "Circus Kit" from the March of Dimes, so that my friend, Becky, and I could raise money to send them.  We made popcorn, and had a little snow cone machine, which I had gotten for either my birthday or Christmas.  I think we made around $5.  That was pretty big way back when I was 8 years-old.

My daughter Beth, sold lemonade with a friend when we lived at Otterside in Middlebury.  The mailman bought 3 cups, since they had picked the hottest day of the summer to sell it.  I'm sure it cost more to make that lemonade than the money that they made, but the jingle of change in their pockets made them pretty happy.

So, following in the footsteps of their ancestors (and a little help from their mom), Chloe and Phoebe set up shop on the streets of Jersey City with a friend of theirs.

Now really, how cute is that!

Star Light, Star Bright...Hey, That's a Planet!

Last night about a 1/2 hour after sunset, I went outside to look at the sky.  Venus can not be mistaken right now.  If you look at the Western sky about this time, you'll think you're seeing an approaching plane.  That is Venus in all its heavenly splendor.  Just below on the left, you'll see 2 smaller objects.  The one on the right is red, and is Mars.  The one near it on the right is Saturn.  These positions will change nightly.

I realize we are very lucky to have a pretty dark sky where I live.  When the sky is clear, the stars span the whole sky, and the Milky Way is unbelievable.  So, here is a sky map from the August issue of Sky & Telescope.  I believe this is where the planets will be at the end of the week.  Because of the mountains in our Western view, I don't think we can see Mercury, but I'm going out there tonight just in case.

 

What's for Lunch?

Before I tell you about my most favorite sandwich in the whole world,  I'll tell you a few things about what's in this picture.

I love the polka teapot that my daughter, Beth, gave me some time ago.  I've never put flowers in it, but decided it would be a great flower vessel for some of the things I have growing out in the garden.

The fabric has been around since I bought it last year.  I have brought my sewing machine downstairs, and it's plopped on the dining room table.  I am hoping to whip up 2 chair covers for some seats out on the deck.

With tomatoes now begging to be picked, and basil growing large, I can make my favorite sandwich.  Since I worked at home today, I was able to go out the door and pick my tomato and basil – talk about fresh!  Grilled (soy or rice) cheese, tomato, avocado, basil and dijon mustard on spelt bread.  You can use real cheese and a nice whole grain bread, and still have the best sandwich in the world.  I look forward to having many of these as tomato and basil season lingers (hopefully) for some time.  Now if I only had an avocado tree, life might just be darn well perfect!

My Garden DOES Grow!

I am excited and happy to report that my garden is growing beautifully (as are the weeds) in this New Jersey weather we're having.  It seems to be thriving in the hot and humid conditions, save for the powdery mildew that has appeared on my squash.  I am about to spray it with 3 parts skim milk and 9 parts water.  This is the "cure" for powdery mildew.  Better to use skim to avoid other pest problems with the high fat in 2% and full strength.  Anyway, back to garden bragging.  Here are some photos of a few things going great guns out there.

So, if you've been wondering what I've been doing in my spare time, it seems weeding is absolutely on the top of my list these days.  Hope you're gardens look great too!

Hey Dorothy, You're not in Kansas Any More!

This was the view from the front of work this afternoon.  Some of my co-workers and I stood out front watching this funnel-like cloud.  The radio was sounding off about tornado watches all over the state -  a  somewhat unusual happening around these parts.

After watching about 5 minutes of this cloud approaching, many multiple lightening strikes and approaching rain, we thought maybe we should get smart and go inside.  The downpour started just after walking back through the door.

Weather is what it's been all about the past few days.  Our hot summer has created some whiz-bang storms and some darn beautiful sky-watching from out deck.  What do you think?

 

See that little white dot there?  That was our evening treat.  Venus popped out of the clouds to say good evening, and you know, it really was!

My New Favorite Tea

Iced Jasmine tea...it's what a hot summer is all about.

I found Jasmine Pearls at Trader Joes – you know, the grocery store that doesn't exist in Vermont.  Well what a surprise.  It makes the most aromatic tea you can possibly imagine.  The bags are full of jasmine flowers and puff up when steeped in their fancy little pyramid bags.  It's so refreshing.

My daughter, Beth was coming to Vermont, so I asked her to pick some up for me.  She wasn't able to find it , so bought the jasmine/green tea combo.  I always have a cup or two of hot tea when I get to work.  Guess what...this is my new favorite hot tea.

Do me a favor.  If you find 100% jasmine tea in a store, let me know what the brand is.  Maybe I won't have to drive 4 1/2 hours to buy it!

Life Goes On

Maybe you think this too.  It's hard to move ahead into the hustle and bustle of daily life when you've encountered some major sadness in your life.  You want life to stand still, but life doesn't skip a beat and on it goes, leaving you to wonder where the heck you're heading on this earthly plane.

My brother-in-law, Jerry, died after a courageous battle with cancer.  He was only 54, which is way too soon for anyone to go.  He leaves a wife and 4 kids, the youngest still in high school.

His last days were spent in the Lancaster Hospice House.  Nick and I were there with him.  We are both grateful for those last days we got to spend with him, and he'll be sadly missed by everyone who knew him.

The grounds around the Hospice House are beautiful.  The flowers were in full bloom; even the pond lilies  came alive during the day.  I think the beauty of all the flowers helped cushion many heavy hearts as family members and friends took turns strolling the gardens, while others visited Jerry. 

The flowers were a reminder that life goes on.  They come alive in the spring, thrive in the summer, give in to the winter, and then appear again when the warm sun of spring raises their sleepy heads.  So I thought I'd leave you with some photos of the flowers I encountered during those two weeks in Lancaster.