SOMETIMES I NEED ONLY TO STAND WHEREVER I AM....

 

RANDOM PHOTO - A HUMMINGBIRD ON A CANNA LILY

Tiny but mighty, a phrase which I often hear used when describing the hummingbird. They are the only birds that can fly backwards and completely upside down. Their wings rotate in a figure-eight pattern, operating like helicopter rotors to allow stationary hovering. They can beat its wings 50 to 80 times per second. They glide at 30 miles per hour and reach 60 miles per hour during mating dives. They are among the most evolutionarily unique creatures in the animal kingdom. They are native exclusively to the Western Hemisphere, with over 300 distinct species distributed across North and South America. 

 I couldn't get a definite ID on this hummingbird. Two possible suggestions are an Anna's hummingbird or that of a Black-chinned hummingbird. If anyone can verify with certainty, please let me know. It is sipping the nectar from an African arrow/Indian root/Purple arrowroot/Edible canna or Canna lily. All names may apply. Both bird and flower were seen while walking around the San Diego Zoo in California. Another old one from 2013.

Thanks for looking and enjoy your day.

ROAD TRIP ACROSS ARIZONA IN 2013 - MURALS - FROM MY ARCHIVES

I have shared these before but as it has been a long time, some of you may not have seen them and those who have, I hope you don't mind me showing them again. The information below this post was added yesterday. 

Going through our old photos the other day, I came across the smiling lady again. I had always wanted to identify who the mural painter was. Try as I might at the time and many, many searches online later, I never found out who it was. On a whim I decided to try again and technology being what it is, I found the painter's name.

Today's photos are from our road trip across country in 2013. We were driving through Arizona and in the distance, I saw what I thought was a smiling face looking up at all those clouds floating by.  It really was a phenomenal day for sky-watching. I thought my eyes were playing tricks but as we got closer, I could see very clearly. 

When a person smiles at me or I see a person smiling at others, I find myself smiling too, and this lovely mural painted on a building out in the desert, had the same effect. I could also see there were what I thought were wolves on the side. No, not wolves. The following is the only explanation I could find, this time.

"The painting depicts a local Navajo resident named Stephanie, whose portrait was blown up larger-than-life and wheat-pasted onto an abandoned roadside building - or home - locally known as "JR's House". Because the artist, Chip Thomas, often incorporates local wildlife, livestock, and community members into his expansive desert murals, it is easy for travelers to blend different installations together in memory."

This fabulous art is called "Stephanie on JR's House."

As we drove through that area we came across other buildings with different scenes on each wall.  

Added note: I also put this photo into the Google ‘camera’ in its search engine. More wonderful murals can be seen here.  As described, “The mural is entitled “Bluebird Diner” or “Blue Bird Diner Revelation,” and was created by artist Gaia in 2012 as part of the Painted Desert Project. It is located in the Painted Desert on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. The artwork depicts a stylized bird on the left and a hand with a beam of light on the right.”

These artists brought us great joy as we traveled on this very long road, and we were mesmerized. 

The old buildings had been turned into incredible works of art, but my favorite will always be the smiling face looking up at that beautiful sky.

Chip Thomas is the artist of the smiling lady. He is a family physician, born in 1957 in Raleigh, North Carolina. He arrived at the Navajo Nation in 1987 to fulfil a medical scholarship obligation and stayed for over three decades, transforming his clinical practice and documentary photography into an impactful public art movement. You can read more about him here and here.

This particular art piece is located on an abandoned building within the Navajo Nation in Arizona. The piece is part of The Painted Desert Project, a public art initiative that connects street artists with communities on the Western Agency of the Navajo Nation. (I don't know how long any of these websites will remain current. Years down the road they sometimes 'go away', but at the time of writing, you can see other artists on the project at this link.) The project was brought about for the aim of healing and community connection. The first link in this paragraph has the whole story and it is worth a read. Several links have been provided throughout my post.)

Finding out all this information while climbing down into one of my curiosity rabbit holes I fell into after all these years, was a delightful, mind-opening experience.

Thanks for visiting my post about Stephanie, 

Chip, the beautiful desert and State of Arizona. 

I hope your day is a great one.

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE POST - BUTTERMILK AND BLUE CHEESE MASHED SWEET POTATOES

I found this recipe at LivingLou.  I have tried two of Lou’s recipes before and if you click on the label ‘Living Lou hosted by Louisa Clements’ below this recipe, it will take you to them. You can also see other sweet potato recipes I have tried at this link.

Buttermilk and Blue Cheese Mashed Sweet Potatoes - serves 6

4 medium sweet potatoes, washed and cut into eighths 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup blue cheese

1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh chives or green onion

Boil salted water in a large pot (use about 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt in the water). Carefully add sweet potatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until soft enough to mash. Drain and return to pot.

Add salt, buttermilk and butter (see my notes below). 

Mash using a potato masher until it reaches your desired consistency.

While still warm, stir in blue cheese and garnish with chives.

This was very tasty I served it with quinoa, and a spring green salad with diced sweet red bell pepper.

The creamy flecks are the crumbled blue cheese. If you don’t like this cheese, it would be easy enough to leave out.

The buttermilk gives it a little bit of a tangy zip but you can use regular milk if you don’t like that, or a plant-based milk.

I also didn’t use all the buttermilk called for, as I didn’t want it to get too soupy.  My potatoes may have been smaller but you be the judge on what consistency suits you best and how much liquid you add.

There are leftovers. I filled several freezer-proof containers (1 cup portions) and put them in the freezer. 

I try to remember to add the full address so that you can copy and paste rather than use the link at the top of the page if you prefer.

https://www.livinglou.com/buttermilk-blue-cheese-mashed-sweet-potatoes

If you have any questions leave them in the comments and I will be happy to answer if I can.

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - A POEM

 I haven't brought down any poetry books from the shelf in a while. I had a few quiet moments yesterday, drinking a cup of coffee, working on a blog post. I happened to look up and there they were, beckoning me to take one down. I chose "Talking to the Wild" by Becky Hemsley. Next to Mary Oliver, she is one of my favorites. It was a good hour before I got back to blogging, reading these lovely poems took over. 

You tell me that I'm childish

Seeing magic in the world

That there's no room for enchantment

On this scientific earth

You give me explanations

And you hand me charts and graphs

For you say there can't be magic

In the company of fact

But I'll argue that there's magic

In a new-born baby's cry

And in how that baby heard

Its mother's heart beat from inside.

I'll tell you that it's magic 

How a butterfly exists

That there's something most spellbinding

About metamorphosis

There's magic in the differences 

Between each flake of snow

And in people finding footprints 

From a million years ago

I'll tell you that it's magic

How the tides move with the moon

And how the sun can split a raindrop

Into seven different hues

It's magic how a spider 

Weaves a complex fragile web

And how all the words of years of songs

Are stored inside our heads

But you'll tell me there's no magic

For this all can be explained

Yet, to me, there's magic dancing 

In the workings of our brains

See, the danger is our knowledge

Means there's little awe to spare

But if we stop looking for magic

Then we'll never see it there.

~Magic by Becky Hemsley~

My photo was taken in Manassas (Virginia), and is an old one from 2009. We decided to treat ourselves to breakfast at Bob Evans after running a few errands. As we were leaving the restaurant, we looked up at the sky and this was what we saw. I don't think I have seen a sky like it since, and I look up all the time. This was special enough to make both our mouths drop open. It was glorious! Straight out of the camera taken with a little point-and-shoot.

Wishing you all a great Sunday.

SATURDAY MORNING AT THE BIRD FEEDER....REALLY?

Build it and they will come they said, or in this case buy it and the same thing will happen. Really?

 

This is for our overseas friends so they translate using the widget on the side bar.

Photo 1: 

"I don't know what this is over there but the squirrels seem very interested."

Photo 2:

"I am not going anywhere near it. It is too loud and gurgly."

"Scary!"

Photo 3:

Camera Lady is not happy we are not interested yet, but there is one thing she is happy about."

"What's that?"

Photo 4: 

"It has a live feed and a bump outside woke her up. She thought it was those naughty raccoons."

Photo 5:

"We heard it too. We were sleeping up in the trees."

"There was no one there but she noticed something else."

Photo 6:

"She saw that she had left the light on in the garage and turned it off right away. She is still patiently waiting for us to use the birdbath."

Photo 7:

"She says she is going to do cartwheels across the deck when that day arrives."

"That is definitely not a good idea."

A FEW MORE FLOWERS FOR YOU FROM LEWIS GINTNER BOTANIC GARDEN.

This is my last post of the flowers we saw that day until we go there again. Hopefully that will be in a month or so. I thoroughly enjoyed our time here. 

I was really taken with the Stokes Aster and how it was unfurling in the photo below.

I found them along the pathway walking up to the entrance.

This courtyard greeted us as we exited the visitor center into the garden.

Purple Coneflowers.

Oakleaf Hydrangea.

The Daylilies were blooming beautifully (and thank you Marcia for letting me know it wasn't a Ditch Lily. I should have known better but took my plant ID at its word. Always grateful to my blogging friends for steering me in the right direction). I really loved this color combination.

Another pretty area I would like to explore next time we go. 

Next is the Spider Flower, perhaps a better name for it, Cleome. 

It's also called Grandfather's Whiskers, but we can also call it Pink Queen.

I shared these the other day, "Irish Eyes' Black-eyed Susan

My other post of the flowers can be found here if you missed it.

Have fun and 

thanks for stopping by.

AROUND AND ABOUT ON WEDNESDAY, JULY 22ND, 2026

Nothing too exciting today, just out running a few errands. I've numbered the photos in the collage, and below have explained what they are. 

1. This is the spot where there used to be an old derelict house we passed by for years. I can still see in my mind's eye the beauty of the place in its decline. I mentioned how disappointed I was when driving by, to see that it had been completely leveled. It wasn't long before there was a lot of activity. The big machines had moved in, rubble removed, foundations laid, and then the elevator shafts built, then the walls. Each time we passed by I took a photo and then went home and compared it to the others I've taken, to see its progress. It wasn't too long after that we saw the company sign, a new storage facility for people's personal belongings. The place is huge! There is another building down the road by the same company, maybe not quite as big but big enough. Kitty-corner from that to my right, there is a much smaller storage facility run by another company. Personal storage is definitely big business around here.

2. I have my head up in the clouds again. I am a cloud watcher. When we left the house we were socked in. The skies looked very foreboding. The night before we had a thunderstorm with lots of rain. It actually started raining when we left the house, but when we got down the road a few miles, this was the sky and a few miles later all the rain clouds disappeared. 

3. & 4. are basically the same. Lunch and a car picnic in the parking lot outside The Pure Pasty Co. There website is here. A place I have mentioned on here several times. The owner is British and we have been coming here off and on ever since we discovered it. I can't remember when that was now, but it's been years. We often took our friends to the place. It opened in October 2010. We stock up on a few things as they also sell British food. We didn't buy much today, a few packets of British Bangers (sausages) from out of their freezer, and the pasties we had for our car picnic lunch. I think it was the last time we were there, a couple of ladies in the next car were doing the same. The absolute best pasties! Here's a history of them. You can enlarge the history card if needed. Also, below this post it is written out for translation for our overseas friends.

5. & 6. On the way home we spotted the tree trimmer. There are trees here that are beautifully shaped. I don't know what kind they are. That gentleman at the top in the cherry picker, what a good head for heights he must have.

We went home and pottered for the rest of the day. 

Thanks for looking and I hope 

your week is going well.

Have a great day!

History of the Cornish Pasty

The pasty is the national symbol of Cornwall, England. In some Cornish families a pasty recipe is the only means of tracing their family history. No one can pinpoint when the pasty originated. However, it can be traced back to Henry VIII (1491-1547). There is a letter in existence from a baker to Henry’s third wife, Jane Seymour, saying “Hope this pasty reaches in better condition than the last one…” We also find reference to the pasty in two of Shakespeare’s plays. It is referenced in: The Merry Wives of Windsor: Act 1, Scene 1. Page: Wife, bid these gentlemen welcome. Come, we have a hot venison pasty to dinner: come gentlemen, I hope we shall drink down all unkindness.  And in “All’s Well That Ends Well: Act IV, Scene III. Parolles: I will confess to what I know without constraint: if ye pinch me like a pasty, I can say no more.

The pasty became the Cornish miners’ meal of choice for many reasons. The traditional pasty was a complete meal consisting of meat, potato, onion and seasoning all wrapped in a crust then baked. Also, a miner could leave home with a hot pasty in his pocket and reach in once in a while to warm his hands.

In Cornwall arsenic was often found in the tin mines. This is the reason for the thick pastry crimp on the pasty. The miners would hold the pasty by this crust, throwing it away after they had eaten the body of the pasty to avoid poisoning. The crust wasn’t wasted though; the miners were firm believers in “knockers” (ghosts) and left the crust for them. Pasty shops in Michigan can be found where the people of Cornwall settled. They are, however, most prevalent in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

HE FOUND IT!

 

Not so many birds have been around yet for this new bird bath. There is one male Goldfinch who pops up every now and again. This little guy arrived before a thunderstorm last night and it rained buckets. I said I think he needs a tiny stepladder and asked Gregg if he could make one to help. I got an affirmative “no!” Oh well! Yes I was joking I told him but I don’t think he quite believed me. I am looking around for a ground bird bath. The other one cracked. Gregg knows I can squirrel speak. He told me to tell squirrel to go to the creek which is on the other side of the trees. Harsh! Grin….

Enjoy your day friends and 

thanks for stopping by.

ODDS AND BODS ON TUESDAY, JULY 21ST, 2026

 

Good Morning! How are you today?

Sorry I’m late. I was telling the trees how beautiful they are - Healing Hearts

Let’s walk down to my imaginary cottage.

We can enter by the gate.

I like coming home to wide open windows where I can see the curtains dancing in the breeze.  As we walk around the back, there is the smell of bread baking.

Oh yes, this looks like the perfect recipe.

Homemade Artisan Bread - Ingredients: 3 cups of flour 

1-1/2 teaspoons salt - 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast 

 1-1/2 cups warm water (heated to 100 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit).

Instructions: 1. Mix dry ingredients and add warm water, 

stir to a sticky dough. 2. Cover and rise 12 to 18 hours. 

3. Shape gently, rest  30 to 45 minutes. 4. Preheat oven to 

450 degrees Fahrenheit. 5. Cool 1 hour.  Tips: Wet dough = airy loaf 

Dutch oven makes a crispy crust. Longer rise = deeper flavor.

We have a choice of cottages today. What do you think? A bit too hilly? Do you have a favorite?

Both come with lovely neighbors. 

Are you a Woodlarker? 

Woodlarking - Not everyone walks through the woods the same way.

Some see trees, and some see stories, others notice the tracks, the 

feathers, the old stones, the things that happen in the corner of your eye. 

We are the ones who stop. Who listen and look closer. Woodlarkers. 

Maybe you are one too - Woodlarking. 

Ipsety (English) - (n.) the quality of being oneself; embracing our 

Individuality + what makes us unique.

Liberosis - lib.er.oh.sis - the feeling of wanting to 

care less about things, a sense of calmness that comes 

when you let go of unnecessary concerns.

Orophile - a person who finds peace and serenity, 

and connects with themselves more deeply in 

mountainous settings; a lover of mountains.

And because we must remember our cat lovers.

Ailurophile - noun - meaning: one fond of cats.

Last one!

niksen (NEEK-sen) noun (Dutch) - the mindful

practice of doing nothing. A pause for your

mind to wander, rest and refresh. It’s not

avoidance, but a quiet space where clarity and

calm naturally emerge. 

This little one has all of that figured out.

Do not disturb! Bee is sleeping. He has had a busy day being a bee. 

I am feeling like a bit of a snooze myself...

but I am trying not to nap today as I know it will cut into a good night's sleep.

Sometimes it’s okay to stop doing and just bee.

Have you had a banana today? I had mine for breakfast, along with a cup of blackberries and 1/2 cup plain Greek Yogurt. I have been on my journey to eating healthier for a long time. Let’s just say it’s a long journey, with a few side-trips, and leave it at that. Each day is a new adventure.

Advice from a Banana - always be ready when the time is ripe - Friends 

are better by the bunch - Just because someone calls you “yella,” it doesn’t 

mean you’re a coward - Ignore all the monkeys, they’re just trying to get to you.

Sometimes when you’re slightly bruised is when you’re at your very best

Life’s little surprises are what makes it so apeeling.

Now for some recipes. I thought I would start off with brown bread…

Cheesecake Factory Brown Bread - Ingredients: 2 cups warm water

1 tablespoon yeast - 1/4 cup honey - 2 tablespoons molasses 

1 tablespoon espresso powder (optional) - 4 cups bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour - 2 tablespoons butter, softened - Oats for topping

Instructions: mix yeast, warm water, honey, molasses. Let foam for 5

minutes. Stir in cocoa, espresso, flours, butter, salt. Knead until smooth. 

Let rise 1 hour, shape into loaves. Brush with melted butter, sprinkle 

With oats. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. 

to go with…

Slow-cooker Sausage, Potatoes and Cabbage 

Ingredients: 12 ounces sausage (such as kielbasa or smoked sausage), sliced

5 potatoes, peeled and chopped - 5 cups of chopped cabbage - 1-1/2 cups

chicken broth - 1 white onion, sliced - 1 teaspoon dried thyme seasoning -

salt and pepper to taste - Instructions: 1. brown sausage in the skillet.

2. Layer the sliced kielbasa, peeled and diced potatoes, cabbage and sliced 

onion in your slow-cooker. 3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and dried thyme.

4. Pour the chicken broth over the ingredients. 5. Cover and cook on low for

5 to 6 hours or until potatoes are tender.  -   With this Slow Cooker Sausage,

Potatoes and Cabbage recipe, you can effortlessly create a satisfying and comforting 

meal that pays homage to its European roots. Whether you’re looking for a crowd-

pleasing dish at a family gathering, this recipe is sure to delight your taste buds

and warm your heart. Enjoy! 

Or maybe we want something easier and simpler to prepare on a hot summer day.

Cucumber Sandwich: You will need 8 ounces cream cheese, softened 

2 tablespoons mayonnaise - 1 tablespoon lemon juice - 1 tablespoon dill, chopped

and let’s not forget thin slices of a hot house cucumber. You don’t need to deseed

those. 

Mix all the ingredients up and spread it on your favorite bread. Add the sliced cucumber and there you have it. I love a cucumber sandwich.

Wise Words!

Be like a sunflower - bright - sunny - positive - spread seeds of happiness

stand tall and always turn to the light

Joy can be found in the tiniest moments.

Never stop looking. 

Pep Squad arriving! You are going to get tired of me telling you, but it’s important to remember the reminder. 

Sometimes you forget you’re awesome, so this is your reminder.

Pep talks - you’re doing better than you think. Even on the days when you 

feel tired, unsure, or a little behind, you’re still moving forward. Give 

yourself credit. Give yourself grace. You’ve overcome so much - and

you’re still rising. 

Take a deep breath. Feeling scrambled? Let that go. 

It’s a great day to be you. Strut your stuff. You got this.

I am proud of you and everything you have accomplished. Keep shining brightly, and never stop

believing I yourself.

Okay, that is the end of my Odds and Bods for today.

You all take good care of yourselves and

thanks for stopping by.

(My thanks to Pinterest for today’s inspiration.)