ODDS AND BODS - FRIDAY - 7/31/26

Meet Tea and Coffee.

    Good Morning

        Tea                                    Coffee 

While we are here, let me introduce you to their friend, Stopthat.

Hi! My name is Stopthat.

Sometimes they call me Getbackhere.

I hope your day is starting out well and you are not feeling a little upside down like kitty here. On days like hers, we kitties drink a cup of herbal tea, definitely no coffee but a favorite drink is a whole pitcher of milk, or ….

one of those teensy glasses of Bloody Mary if we’re going out to brunch…or maybe that was a whole pitcher of Bloody Mary and one of those cute teensy glasses of milk? We have all our friends coming with us after all. I am confused! I am having such a good time, I can’t remember now. Definitely feeling more perky.

Here’s this week’s imaginary cottage…

with its gate leading to the secret garden... 

where all good things visit, like little birds in great numbers. Imagination is a great thing. All are welcome here.

I saw the quote on Donna’s blog and I

it made me chuckle. Thank you Donna! My dear other half and I were having a conversation along the same lines.

“One day you are young and the next, you are standing in your back yard looking at your bird feeder.”

While I am thinking of flowers, I thought I would put these on here.

I am going left to right on each line, reading the title first. 9 Container 

Combinations That Attract Pollinators. Every pot pulls bees, butterflies and 

hummingbirds. Lavender and Catmint - bumblebees. Salvia and Lantana - 

Hummingbirds + Butterflies. Coneflowers and Black-eyed Susan - Native Bees.

Bee Balm and Penstemon - Hummingbirds + Bumblebees. Zinnia and Cosmos -

Butterflies. Borage and Sweet Alyssum - Bees + Beneficial Insects. 

Sunflower and Nasturtium - Bees + Hummingbirds. Agastache and Sedum - 

Late-Season Migrants. Milkweed and Verbena - Monarchs (Breed and Fuel)

and another.

Title first and then I go down each line from left to right. Milk weed

(Asclepius): Host plant for Monarch Butterflies. Purple Coneflowers 

(Echinacea): Nectar rich and pollinator friendly. Lantana: Bright 

blooms all season long. Butterfly Bush (Buddleja): A magnet for

butterflies. Zinnias: Easy to grow and loved by butterflies all summer.

Verbena (Vervain): Long-lasting blooms that attract many pollinators.

Black-eye Susans (Rudbeckia): Hardy native plant butterflies love.

Lavender (Lavandula): Fragrant blooms that attract and soothe. 

Verbena (Vervain): Great for ground cover and full of nectar.

Phlox: Sweet scented flowers that draw butterflies in. I see that 

Black-eyed Susan has been repeated, but as the description is 

altered slightly, I kept it in. Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia): 

Drought tolerant and butterfly favorite. Aster: Late season

blooms provide nectar when butterflies need it most - Plant 

diversity. Support Pollinators. Create a garden they’ll love.

One more!

Plant Once , Bloom for Months: Low Maintenance Cottage Flowers That Never Quit

(I am putting these here left to right on each line until I get to the bottom.

Black-eyed Susan - Garden Flox - Lavender - Salvia - Coreopsis - Coneflower -

Lavender - Catmint - Yarrow - Dianthus

Fingers crossed, we are off to the garden center today. I am hoping to pick up a couple of planters and a few flowers. I have put ferns and red geraniums on the list, and lavender (added note: We are home now and purchased two pots of red geraniums. I am loving them. The following photo shows the place on the left. 

We were at a traffic light waiting for the green before turning left into the entrance. It’s a big place but for all they were offering, I couldn’t find any planter pots that I loved, and those that were considered maybes, were over-the-top-expensive. I was happy to buy the geraniums. The color made me feel cheery.) 

I loved this beautiful art showing hairstyle, makeup and fashion, and look at those dangly earrings?

Golf anyone? I don’t play but it’s a pretty picture. 

A little humor.

I didn’t realize how bad my driving was until the GPS said, 

“In 400 feet do a slight right, stop, and let me out!”

She would not make a good getaway driver for her cousin. (I am watching way too many cops and robber shows.)

In the meantime…

When you rat on the dog and you need to enter the witness protection program.

It’s best to hide in plain sight, so say those cops and robbers shows.

He knows something but he’s not saying, tsk!

I bet the opossum would do the right thing. He looks such a friendly little fella. Did you know…

I will read these top row, middle row and bottom row left to right.

An opossum can: eat dozens of slugs each night - leave your vegetables alone

shelter in brush and leaf piles - devour beetles, grubs and snails

climb fences and trees with ease - patrol your yard after dark - live

peacefully with backyard animals. Welcome nature into your backyard.

I little bit of Ireland for the recipes today. I don't usually make these before I share. If any of you do, would you please let me know what you think of them?

Waterford Blass (Traditional Irish Bread Rolls) - Ingredients: 4-1/8 cups bread flour - 3 teaspoons fast-action yeast - 2 teaspoons fine salt - 2-1/2 teaspoons sugar - 2 teaspoons unsalted butter  1-1/4 cups warm water - extra flour for dusting - Instructions : Mix flour, yeast, salt, sugar, butter and warm water into a soft dough. Knead for 5 minutes until smooth, then let rise in a covered bowl for 1.5 hours. Divide into 12 equal pieces, roll into balls and flatten slightly. Place on a tray, cover and let rise for 45 minutes. Dust tops heavily with flour. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-35 minutes until pale on top with a crisp bottom.

Traditional Irish Colcannon - Ingredients: 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and chopped

4 tablespoons butter - 1 cup whole milk - 3 cups green cabbage, finely shredded

4 green onions, sliced - salt and pepper - Instructions: Boil potatoes until tender. 

Drain and mash with butter and milk. Cook cabbage until softened. Stir cabbage and 

green onions into potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot with extra butter. 

Dessert?

Irish Cream Liquor- From the kitchen of…Preparation time…Serves….

Ingredients: 1 cup sweetened condensed milk - 1-1/2 cups of heavy cream

1/3 cup chocolate syrup 2 tablespoons espresso - 1-1/2 tablespoons vanilla

3/4 tablespoon almond extract - 1-1/4 cup Irish whiskey, chilled. 

Directions: whisk together milk, cream and chocolate syrup. Add espresso, 

vanilla and almond extracts. Add whiskey last and whisk until well 

 combined. Serve chilled over ice or added to warm drink.

Wise Words, Kindness and a pep talk.

A few careless words may be forgotten by the person who spoke them,

but linger in the heart of the person who heard them for years. Never

underestimate how long a kind word can be remembered. Intrepid quips.

If you could see the struggles and heartaches people carry that never make it 

to the surface, I think we’d all be a little gentler, a little more patient, 

and a whole lot kinder to one another - Cottage Whimsy

Kindness makes for a better world.

I will never believe that kindness and compassion are a weakness, they are our strength. But, while we are at it, sprinkle a dash of common sense in there too. 

Another quote I read recently. 

“Your value doesn’t decrease based on someone’s inability to see your worth.” 

and

Always remember you are loved.

Very true! Believe it for you are worthy.

Thank you for always being interested in all my nonsense.

That’s all for today. 

Happy Friday everyone and thanks for stopping by.

Have a great weekend!

(With my thanks to Pinterest for the inspiration.)

 

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - ODDS AND BODS IS STARTING WITH VIRGINIA BEAR

Virginia - Good Morning from Virginia

Now that’s about the size of my coffee mug that I like to start my day off. Yes, I am kidding! I don’t want to be wired through to the rest of the week. Only in my dreams, and talking about dreams…

I found this week's dream cottage…

This looks like a good thing to have handy.

How to prune lavender - top left image says “Prune lavender after flowering.”

Top right image says “If not pruned, lavender will become woody. Lavender is a 

short-lived perennial. Bottom left image says “Pruning lavender between late

Summer and Autumn. Bottom right image says “Result”.

I am trying this also. 

DIY means Do It Yourself Pest Spray - Ingredients - 1 cup of water 

10 to 15 drops of Lavender essential oil - A spray bottle

Instructions - Combine water and lavender essential oil in the

spray bottle. Shake well before each use. Spray around

Windows, door frames and baseboards. Lavender naturally 

repels moths, flies and mosquitoes!

and look whose waiting for us around the back…

along with his friend.

We will have a good old natter. 

Did you ever listen to the stories told when people were invited over for tea when you were very young? I am remembering back 70 years ago and have probably told this story before, because that's how it goes when you have been blogging for years and years and years. 

When my parents had friends over, there was always someone who would entertain us. One lady was Mrs. Bissell, who also had the honorary name of Auntie to my sister and me. We loved her and always looked forward to her visits. She was probably as old as I am now, maybe even younger. She hadn't long returned from visiting her brother in the Outback. As we were designated the 'kids', we would always sit on the floor and the grownups, quite rightly so as at this age I don't know even if I could get down on the floor, had dibs on the chairs. I remember being riveted by Mrs. B’s latest adventure in Australia. Later, we usually had a singsong and Dad played the piano. (This was our entertainment. We always had a radio, and my parents bought a TV when I was 13 years old, but we still preferred to read books and play board games, I had coloring books and loved cutting out my paper dolls.) Mum fixed tiny sandwiches with the crusts cut off and brewed endless pots of tea at these gatherings. Mr. Bissell would join Dad in a tot of whiskey. The picture below with the poem reminded me of those days.

That was a perfect house whether you liked food or sleep, or

Story-telling or singing, or a pleasant mixture of them all.

Merely to be there was a cure for weariness, fear and sadness.

~J. R. R. Tolkien~

Come on around, I'll make us a hot drink, or a cold lemonade and a bite to eat, on a warm day (as I sit shivering. It's been a wacky spring). We will also have tea sandwiches with the crusts cut off but I won't make you sing, not today. The weather is warm in my dream, but it has a gentle breeze to cool us down, and we will enjoy telling a tale or two.

We can also take a walk around the garden. It looks very inviting through those gates.

I looked in my wardrobe and picked the perfect dress to wear. I wish this was really in my wardrobe but hey, it is my dream.

We will visit Rowena Robin in her potting shed. 

You never know whom we will come across on our walk back.

But now it’s time for a mug recipe. I never try these things before I add them. One of these days!

Brownie in a Mug - 1/4 cup flour - 1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa - Pinch of salt - 2 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons water - 1/4 teaspoon vanilla.

Mix. Microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Enjoy!

Fun with food?

The crows seem to be out and about. I knew there was a reason I liked crows so much, even if we do call them a Murder of Crows. And yes, they are noisy but...

Did you know? Crows are quite similar to humans and visit

their aging parents many years after they have left the nest.

How about a new word. I love this one.

Ubuntoo - noun - a profound African philosophy that embodies the spirit of 

togetherness; the belief that our humanity is intertwined, and through 

compassion and community, we rise.

Or this one.

Wabi-sabi (wah-bee-sah-bee) - noun - the Japanese appreciation of life’s 

imperfections; finding beauty in the flawed, the aged, and the incomplete, 

and embracing the transient nature of all things,

Nakama - a deep bond beyond just friendship, people who stand together, share

burdens, and support one another like a found family. 

It's time for Kind and Wise Words

"Keep what is worth keeping, and with a

breath of kindness, blow the rest away."

~Dinah M. Craik~

When it doesn't fit in with how you are feeling,

there are times when it is okay to say no. You don't want to hurt anyone's feelings but hopefully they will understand and if they don't, let them move on in peace, kindness and love.

“All that is gold does not glitter. Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached

by the frost.” - J. R. R. Tolkien

“There will always be someone who can’t see your worth.

Don’t let it be you.” - Mel Robbins

Things I can control: my choices - my boundaries - my behaviors - my thoughts -

my actions - my attitude - my habits - my routines - asking for help - 

how I express myself - how I treat others - how much effort I put forth - 

how I talk to myself - how I treat my body - what I focus on.

Things I cannot control: the past - the future - other people’s opinions -

what other people think or do - the news - the economy - social media -

my age - other people’s mistakes - other people’s words - how other people feel - 

natural disasters or the weather - the passing of time.

And always remember…

In case no-one told you today…you are beautiful, 

You are needed, you are special, you deserve the best,

it’s okay to not always feel strong.

You are loved ❤️ 

Wishing you all a wonderful day,

and thank you for visiting me.

(With my thanks to Pinterest for today’s inspiration.)