Sunday Showers and end-of-May Flowers

It's been raining daily and it's wonderful. Living in the desert makes one terribly grateful for rain. The roses are blooming like mad and I don't even have to water the yard today. Hooray!

I took a trip the nursery today with my mama and Kidlet. We needed a few new additions for the garden since some bugs found our seedlings to be oh-so-succulent and tasty. We purchased a few annuals for the front entry barrel and a few perennials for the new bed I dug up a couple weekends ago (and I brought home lots of ideas for the future). I finally reined in my garden spending habits as of a few years ago. I used to spend a bucket of money on new plantings in order to try and 'fix' my yard and make it look perfect. It would never fail; I couldn't take care of all the new plantings and they'd all end up a crispy wisp of their former selves a month later. Now that I just buy a few new plants per season, I find the plants that I have bought under this new plan do much better.

What else from the weekend? An impromptu celebration (congrats, Boo!), a lemon pudding cake disaster, white wine, boysenberry shake, homemade calzones tonight (pesto pizza for Kidlet), iced hibiscus tea, plans, biking, a little knitting. Speaking of a little knitting, off to work on Fantine...

Good Morning, Starshine

This morning I scrubbed the bathroom, did two loads of laundry, swept the kitchen, made breakfast for two, lunch for three, changed the sheets, watered the yard, took the cardboard for recycling out to the car, worked on Saturday's grocery list and did general tidying. All before 7 a.m.. Yeah. That's what happens when Kidlet wakes you up with her bad dream at 4, you lay awake thinking about pants until your hubby gets up at 5, so you throw in the towel and get up too.

Corner View...Whoops!

Well, I spent a lot more time looking at this than the city this weekend. We took a little field trip out to the desert to do a little rockhounding and fossil hunting. It was great to get away from the usual weekend routine of trying to fit in yardwork amongst the errands. I'll be back with a proper Corner View next week. Until then, drink up the city life with...

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie,esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,
caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch,c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise,cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari,jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin,otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina,april, rebecca, b, sunnymama, kyndale, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, nicki, ruth, mcgillicutty,desiree, di, travelingmama, aimee

good times a'comin'

Snow cones, log rides, warmth, friends, family, malts, wine, possibly a field trip, muffulettas, and shenanigans. What's on tap for your weekend?

Four Years Ago

...we lost my Papa.

Dang it, you and Kidlet would have been best friends. I also found some new good, cheap wines. You are seriously missed.

I took this photo about 30 years ago with a little instamatic while we were on an epic vacation. We had many happy times.

Corner View...Coffee

Oh, coffee...I sing thee praises daily. When at home, I drink straight black coffee, typically the Organic Pacific Rim Blend from Whole Foods (it's cheap, despite being from Whole Foods). I drink so much coffee that I can't afford the boutique roasters that charge upwards of $10 a pound. It's good basic coffee. I have an old drip coffee maker although this past weekend, after being reminded how nice a french press can be, I may have to switch back.

I first had coffee when I would go on special shopping trips with my Mama and Grandma. My Mama didn't drive at the time and we lived in Omaha, Nebraska. We'd ride into downtown with my Dad and then take a bus to Lincoln to spend the day with my Grandma. It was a glamorous day for a 7 year old. First off, I'd get to skip school. We'd get to see the big 1930s bus terminal with its amazing murals. An hour ride took us to Lincoln, where we'd get pastries. Halfway through the big day, we'd stop for pie and coffee in a quiet restaurant in one of the old department stores. It was quiet, the sort of place where ladies would lunch and all you could hear was the gentle tinkle of dainty cups upon saucers and soft piano music. I would have a cup of coffee swimming in sugar and milk.

I didn't pick up coffee again until I was a moody teen, spending many late nights at Deux Gros Nez (an infamous coffee shop in Reno, now quite sadly defunct). My drink was the cappuccino, which still has a tender place in my heart. No one takes beautiful cappuccino photos like Sandra of Smoosch. Every time I see one of her coffee photos, I have a strong yearning to drop whatever I am doing to get a cup.



Now, my favorite coffee shop in town is a little place called Bibo. It's interior seating leaves much to be desired (not nearly enough seats), but when the weather is nice, one can sit outside under the trees, oogle other peoples dogs and bikes. That's where the photo above was taken...I like the idea of taking photos of clouds in my coffee. Always loved that song.

So there you have it, another rambling Corner View from yours truly...visit some other picturesque spots on the web and have a cuppa...

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,
caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina, april, rebecca, b, sunnymama, kyndale, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, nicki, ruth, mcgillicutty

Definitely Not Yard Work

More like bike swapping, coffee drinking, sweater knitting, river enjoying, cherry eating, about to be sushi and beer having.

Wow.

Firekites - AUTUMN STORY - chalk animation from Lucinda Schreiber on Vimeo.

Amazing. I would love to try doing this but I have the distinct feeling that Ms. Schreiber is so talented that she made it look easy. Found via design*sponge.

Tooting My Own Horn

This morning, I picked up the project that I toiled upon for the past few months. I got an A+. Glowing, glowing...

I cleaned the house this morning so I think this weekend calls for buckets of fun (well, maybe with a dash of yard work). Hope you bask in the glow of something lovely this weekend too.

I Like How She Thinks

I heard on the podcast "To the Best of our Knowledge" (episode "American Classic") about the artist Anissa Mack. They discussed her project, "Pies for a Passerby" in which she set up a tiny gingerbread cottage outside the Brooklyn Public Library and baked apple pies. She put them on the windowsill, tempting people to steal them (which they did). I also adore her "Last Full Weekend in September" project. Check her out.

Corner View...The Great Outdoors

I've been bringing my little corner of the outdoors in, enjoying the scent of spring.

Flowers are popping up blue, purple, yellow, pink, white, and red all over the yard.

And yes, this is a very sorry excuse for a post about the great outdoors. My fellow townie, Vanessa, did it up right.

I am still decompressing from my school semester. I've been waking up early and jumping upon the list of things that I've wanted to tackle for the past six months but haven't had time. I'm also trying to force myself to take a little break too, but I'm not good at sitting still. Good thing I've started reading this book.

Back soon with photos of the finished sweater, new knitting projects and other musings. In the meantime, visit these lovely folks from all over the world...

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,caitlin, joyce, couturecoucou, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, ruth, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, amy, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina, april, rebecca, b, sunnymama, kyndale, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina 

Five on Friday

...word prompts courtesy of Kidlet.

Feel(ing) the aftereffects of last night's migraine. Oof. I've had two this year after not having them since I was a kid. The migraine aura is the worst part of it for me. Kicks the anxiety into high gear, it does.

Seem(s) like it's going to be a beautiful weekend full of warm weather, gardening, champagne (it is Mother's Day, after all), family, and love.

Need to give hubby a hug.

Sweep? Probably need to do that, but I'm going to let it ride for this week. Y'know, I'm not going to push it (the broom, that is). Heh heh.

Seek quiet and balance. This is my new goal.

Have a lovely weekend, mothers, pet mothers, women who have decided not to be mothers, and all you boys too (umm, all two or three of you that read this).

And the Anti-Shopping Post...

It's rather ironic I share this link right after a post about shopping but check out this guy's work. Love.

Corner View...Shopping

(image from Collier’s, April 15, 1955, 42-3.)

Well, I finally finished my research paper for school and it was all about looking at advertisements featuring women in popular magazines during 1935, 1945 and 1955. At this point, I could tell you a fair amount about the shopping habits of the women of that time period. Since, I've spent the past 19 hours of the past 36 writing on the paper, I didn't get any photos of how we shop. But here's my story...

As far as my shopping habits, my mom, Kidlet and I go shopping together for our weekly groceries on Saturdays. I wish it were possible to go to shopping daily on my way home from work (preferably as I glide along on a cute bike with a woven basket), buying wine from the wine shop, cheese from the cheesemonger, bread from the baker etc.. While there is a wonderful baker and wine shop fairly close to my work, it would be an extravagance of time (and gasoline) to try and shop that way in our town. Everything is spaced far apart and the fact that I don't get home until after 5:30 (and that is without making any stops) would make it impossible for me to get home, make dinner, have time with the family and get to bed at a reasonable hour. Instead, I'm the mistress of planning, planning out the week's meals and buying most of what we need at once. I do have to stop at the store occasionally to pick something up I may have forgotten (the horror!) or a fresh vegetable if one has gone wiggly, but I try to avoid it if possible.

For more of the round the world shopping trip, visit our lovely hostess Jane and the rest of the gang...ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie,esti, sophie, cele,modsquad,caitlin, joyce, couturecoucou, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, ruth, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, amy, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa (hi, home girl!), britta, virgina, april, sunnymama, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina

A Study in Studying

Got up at 5:15 this morning and got started. Stopped around 7 to shower and go to breakfast with my little family (huevos rancheros=brainfood). 10 am finds me in the school library. It's 12:30 now. I plan on being here until 5 or until I can write no more about women, advertising, culture, and domestic roles. Whew. At least this thing is due on Tuesday and that means I have to be done with it soon. Onward, mes amies...