Check out the cute ladybug that is hanging out on my home page. If I’d paid attention to what others were thinking, the heart inside of me would have died. Bob Dylan | December 28, 2008 Happy Xmas I hesitated to post this video and struggled with the idea, but, in the end, I decided to post it. The images are an ugly part of our world that most of us can do little about. What these images can do, however, is make us, in our very small worlds appreciate more of what we have and maybe, after watching this, we might greet the next person we meet with more kindness and understanding and less judging. At the very least, these images will force you to realize what a wonderful Christmas you just had. Till next time, p.s. |
|
December 20, 2008 Memories  As I sit here five days before Christmas, I am sorting through Christmases past and trying to pick a memory to share, one from my childhood, one that means a lot to me. I immediately think of my parents and the things they have done to cause wonderment of the season and have done so without the use of money. It is funny, but none of those kinds of rich memories involve money, they all deal with the natural world and with the goodness of people.
My brother reminded me of the Christmas my dad cut the top of a cedar tree (we called them Christmas trees then) to use as our tree. I am thinking now that money was probably tight that Christmas and cutting down this scraggly tree from the woods was something necessary. We would have never known that; here I am today listing it as one of my favorite Christmas memories. I remember following my dad through the cold afternoon looking for a cedar tree, one that would fit in the living room and one that had enough sturdy branches to hold glass ornaments and a couple of strings of Christmas lights. I remember trailing behind and there was not much talking, just walking in the cold searching. I suppose, now, that he was on a assignment to get this tree, it was probably Saturday, a day off from work, and he had much else to do. Anyway, I recall being totally excited about the whole thing. This tree from the woods was exciting to me, it was not about not having enough, it was about the uniqueness of the journey. From my point of view, it was one of the best trees we ever had. Later, there would be beautiful trees from nurseries, furs especially grown for Christmas, but none as magical as the top of that giant cedar that my dad struggled to topple and would sit in our living room that Christmas. I could not tell you what gift I opened that year, I can only tell you about that tree and my dad. There is a lesson here. We all know it is never about the “stuff”; it is about the love. Till next time, p.s. |
December 10, 2008 Cookies The year is ending so quickly. Before the earth makes it final orb on 2008, I hope to find a minute to be still and look back. It seems to have all begun and ended so quickly. I am trying to stay far away from the “holidays” and get as close to Christmas as I once was. I hope to get in the kitchen soon and fill Christmas tins up with Christmas candies and cookies. One of my favorite recipes is from my Jewish mother in law, butter cookies. The wonderful thing about this recipe, besides the taste, is that she wrote a little letter on the back of the card. There is no date, but it was in the early eighties because she talks only about my two oldest sons and says how she misses them. Apparently Jon had said “I love you Bubbe” over the phone and she was filled with the joy grandmothers feel. I keep this hand written memory and connection to her in a muddled basket filled with memories from my kitchen, mostly hand written memories. I take them out this time of year and I remember and although it makes me sad and lonesome because many, like Bubbe, are no longer here, in a twisted kind of way, it makes me happy that those people were once here for Christmas, long enough to make a memory. Bubbe’s Butter Cookies 1 cup butter 1 cup sugar 2 eggs ½ t. salt 2 cups sifted flour 1 t. vanilla 2/3 cups broken nuts 2/3 chopped white raisins 1 cup shredded coconut Cream sugar and butter till light and fluffy. Beat in eggs singly. Add sifted dry ingredients and mix well. Blend in vanilla. Add fruit and nuts. Chill dough 1 hour or more. Drop by teaspoon onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 10 minutes in 350* oven. "Love to all of you ,Mom" Here is my Christmas Goose card I am sending out this year. 
Till next time p.s. |
November 29, 2008 Gathering Eggs  It rained all day here. I could hear football in stereo for most of the day, intermittent with the first Home Alone movie in another room, and the sound track from Twilight in yet another. Happily, I was able to go outside earlier in the day to gather a few green and blue eggs from my Americanas and admire my newly planted strawberry plants. They have come to life in this rain and have spread their generous roots in the spongy dirt and will give me and my family so many berries this spring. When I look at my garden in late November, I love its look, but I can’t help but think of yet another spring and plan for tomatoes and summer squash. I think the garden is a reason to look forward; the garden is another reason to be. For now, however, it is so cozy within my little fence; the leaves are mostly on the ground and wearing their fall color. My narcissus bulbs are beginning to pop up in small bouquets here and there. Every Thanksgiving for 24 years, I have forced narcissus bulbs inside near my kitchen window for a Christmas bloom and each January, I have planted them somewhat randomly in the yard. By now, I have bunches and bunches of them scattered throughout my yard to enjoy in the winter.
Till next time, p.s.
|
November 25, 2008 Sunrays, Pumpkins, and Fresh Eggs 
I was home this morning to see how my keeping room comes to life at 8 am. Just at that time, the sun rises over the woods and its rays fill that part of my house with sunlight and imagery and fill me with joy. I sat for a moment in a blue chair near the unlit fireplace and took it in, a moment of connection before the day began. Late in the afternoon about 5, that same spot will be filled with the dappled light of the setting sun. The day will be gone and I might sit once again for a moment with a cup of tea and take in the enchantment of the setting sunlight as it filters in and transforms my house for just a moment, long enough to make me look forward to the next day when the sun comes up once more and the day ends. Thanksgiving is in two days and it is obvious here in my kitchen. I have been shopping at Sam’s and have counters of food to put away and to turn into Thanksgiving pies. Yesterday my hens layed one brown egg, one blue egg, and one sage. I am letting them free range for the last two hours of daylight each day. I am very cautious however, since one of my barred rocks fell prey to a stray dog that came through one afternoon late; all that was left was a fluff of feathers. I am continuing to paint pumpkins and have a completed painting sitting on my mantle drying. I like this one a lot. The colors are intense and the lines are firm, something I have difficulty with in oils. Amongst all that is somewhat wrong and upside down, I hope that I continue to be thankful for all the things that really matter and are rightside up.I hope to always be thankful for the sun coming up each morning and for it setting each evening on a day that was purposeful and good. Till next time, p.s. 
November 19, 2008 maybe next time Here it is Tuesday night and I am having to say, I did not get too far into the decluttering juncture. Funny, but life gets in the way of plans. My daughter “needed” something at the mall right in the middle of Saturday afternoon and when I finally came home, I was in another mind set. I did notice a large bunch of bananas getting a bit too ripe and I did make banana muffins that evening, some with walnuts and some without. I will try again next week end to declutter, but really, I am thinking maybe all of this stuff is a good thing; who knows where someone may need some of it. I’ll close with an appropriate quote from Mark Twain: “Civilization is a limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessaries.” Till next time, p.s. |
November 15, 2008 clutter Just a quick note to say I am taking somewhat of a holiday from the creative part of myself. My son, Jonathan, told me once that it is revitalizing to take a break from the things you love to do and do something else for a bit of time; this will be that time. This decision was prompted by necessity. It seems the clutter is making it difficult to find my pc and paintbrushes. As a matter of fact I have an n assortment of brushes sitting in turp ruining. I have to get my house harnessed and it has to be now. I have no master plan. I will just light like a butterfly and wherever I am, I will sort and clean. With no specific goals, I won’t be disappointed. Except for some time in my garden, a couple of errands, and a quick check on my chicks, I plan to spend my week end doing this. I hope to report my progress on Sunday night. Till next time, p.s. |
 November 10, 2008
Peace To be satisfied with your possessions but not contented with yourself until you have made the best of them, To despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness and to fear nothing except cowardice, To be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts, To think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends . . . These are little guide-posts on the footpath of peace. Henry Van Dyke | |
November 9, 2008 Responsibiliy It seems life has gotten in the way of my posting. The days are going by so quickly while I am busy doing many things I would not care to do at times, but must. There is always that internal conflict, the perpetual struggle between what we should do and what we want to do. I know I should get up each day and go to school, but most days I want to stay home and plant snapdragons and cabbage or paint pumpkins. Because I was raised to be accountable, I always get up and drive myself and my daughter to school. I suppose there are those who would choose the other way and would stay home. I wonder who is the happier of the two; the one who stays within the boundaries of society and functions within those rules or the one that stays home and plants carrots and broccoli and pulls the weeds from their strawberry patch? I will likely never know, for I am committed to my responsibility, so I spend my days navigating between these two spots and trying to have the best from both worlds. "Responsibility is what awaits outside the Eden of Creativity." Nadine Gordimer Till next time, p.s. 
|
October 12, 2008 Morning Glories, Pumpkins and Me  I was outside early this morning trying to experience a bit of the cooler weather. I had to go back in to get my camera for this shot. It seems the morning glories are true to their name and are most beautiful in the early morning. The little red flower alongside of it, which will open with the late morning sun, is a cypress flower. I scattered a packet of seeds three years ago and these vines are almost everywhere now. They look patriotic next to the blue morning glories and white four o’clocks that are just outside of this picture frame.It's funny, but some things (and some people) do better when left alone.
I haven't been writing so much on these early days of fall; I have been painting and drawing pumpkins. These little drawings are my anti drug, they soothe and heal me and make me feel like me. After many years of being a wife and mother, sometimes you forget about who you were before. I wouldn't have designed my life any other way, for those years were so rich and the most rewarding part of my life; nothing I could ever do could surpass that chapter, but I have to say, it is wonderful getting reacquainted with myself. I think of the days when my only hat was "daughter" and the way my mother, who knew me best, was trying to shape who I was. I remember little bunches of words and messages she gave me and somehow they all make more sense now. I am trying really hard to connect with that person ; the one who was just me. That is why I am painting pumpkins. Till next time, p.s. 
September 28, 2008 Cool Breezes I put the water on for tea just as soon as I walked in from outside. Already I could feel the histamines from the poison oak I so recklessly pulled. How could I help it? Fall has been delivered to my little southern town just today. I had to do something to commemorate this delightful juncture. After experiencing temperatures in the nineties, it is so welcomed and I am on a mission to put together at least a piece of my yard so that it reflects my autumnal spirit. I will have to go to the nursery today for chrysanthemums and maybe a croton and I will refill my clay pots with cascading color that will be there at my door when I come home from school. I think they will transcend me from the school day to time at home, my favorite place. The little maple tree that I found in a forgotten clay pot at my parent’s home before we sold it is growing, as is the oak that will bare giant acorns. I cannot see these saplings without thinking of them; the trees will continue to grow tall and healthy, like the grandsons left behind. I feel encouraged to tend to my house when the weather turns to the north and the fall is sitting right next to summer. I want to dust the cobwebs and sweep the floor and hang a new painting from the summer and bundle up unused items and too small clothes and bring it to goodwill for another life. I would like to smell cinnamon in the kitchen from an apple crisp in the oven. It is not cool enough here to open the windows or to put out the pumpkins, but I will sit outside at the end of the day with a cup of coffee and welcome the cooler evening and look forward to fall. I have posted a picture of the things I bought at the garden center. The petunias will go along my garden fence, the little bouquet of mums will sit in a clay pot by my door and the cabbage and broccoli will be a part of my fall garden, there are also some shallots tucked in there and they will find a small corner in my garden to grow. I also have packs of organic lettuce and turnip seeds to scatter. My hens will have to be “cooped up” for a while once my garden is planted. They have been a great help preparing the beds for me; there is not a weed to be found on their favorite dirt bath spots. However much I appreciate their help, they must stay in their houses for a bit of time. I hope to let them free range once my plants are established and the leaves are not so tender and tasty. Till next time, p.s.  The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth,
One is nearer God's heart in a garden
Than anywhere else on earth.
Dorothy Frances Gurney Happy Birthday to my dad.
|
September 23, 2008 Pooh Christopher Robin and I walked along
under branches lit up by the moon.
Posing our questions to owl and eeyore
as our days disappeared all too soon.
But I've wandered much further today than I should
and I can't seem to find my way back to the wood.
So, help me if you can I've got to get
back to the house at Pooh corner by one.
You’d be surprised there's so much to be done,
count all the bees in the hive,
chase all the clouds from the sky.
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh.
Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do,
got a honey jar stuck on his nose.
He came to me asking help and advice
and from here no one knows where he goes.
So I sent him to ask of the Owl if he's there,
how to loosen a jar from the nose of a bear
So, help me if you can I've got to get
back to the house at Pooh corner by one
You'd be surprised there's so much to be done,
count all the bees in the hive,
chase all the clouds from the sky.
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh,
back to the days of Christopher Robin,
back to the ways of Pooh These lyrics by Kenny Loggins are some of my favorite collections of words. I heard this song tonight and I had to post the lyrics for you to read and hopefully take you to a simpler place. I know we cannot really live at Pooh Corner, but we can try!! Till next time,  |
My greatest skill has been to want but little.
-Henry David Thoreau,
naturalist and author (1817-1862) |
September 21, 2008 Garlic  I think I will plant my garlic crop in clay pots this year. I am not sure where I heard this information, but I have always followed the “plant garlic when school starts and harvest when school ends” philosophy. It works for me here in the Deep South. Because of that “philosophy”, it takes up valuable garden space in the spring when it is time to plant tomatoes and cucumbers. Anyway, I have two really large clay pots that my dad used to put tomato plants in when he felt he was not able to turn over the soil and I shall try growing several pods of garlic in them. I plan to spend the bulk of my day in the yard today. There are, as always, many things I could do in the house, but I need a day immersed in Nature. It seems my mind is traveling to places it should not, cobwebby with downbeat thoughts, anxiety and trepidations. Nothing serious, just not where I want my thoughts to spend their limited time. There are plenty of weeds to pull and suckers to snip and dirt to turn over; enough to move me from this place to one of benefit, a place that nature can take me. I have already noticed little gifts from autumn; the cranberry colored seed pods from the magnolias, a scattering of golden leaves from the pear and tally trees, acorns from the oaks, a bit of color when I look at the woods from a distance, a new population of birds, and an occasional cool breeze from the north. I cannot choose a favored season (or a favorite color), but I am always so happy to greet the arrival of each one.
Till next time, p.s. |
September 20, 2008 My Hens  I have had this batch of hens since February. I remember the cold morning before 6 AM when I picked them up from the post office. They were shipped from up North where winter was in full tow and consequently, two had not made the trip and had died from the cold. After a few weeks in my laundry room, they were put outside in a vacant bunny cage. That was a formidable plan; a raccoon came that night and ate the toes of the fortunate ones and mutilated the less fortunate, back to the laundry room. Anyway, I have had many trials and few tribulations with this batch of chicks. Now they, what remains of them, are laying and they want to spend their days outside of their cage scratching in the dirt. I suppose that is a reasonable request from a chicken, but they are sure to be eaten by a chicken hawk, a dog, or a raccoon, everything wants my chickens. I have reached a compromise with them, 1 1/2 hours before dark for foraging. I will commit to that amount of time to work or just piddle in my yard while they enjoy their bug fest. I get exercise and they get omegas. It seems I am making deals with poultry, how did that happen?
Till next time, p.s. |
September 15, 2008 Healing The storms have passed, Gustav and then Ike. They have left many people without homes and basic comforts. I am very thankful that my family and friends are all doing well and were, for the most part, unscathed by the raging waters of the Gulf. I am, however, especially sad about Galveston Island and the devastation it and its residents suffered. Galveston has always reminded me of a part of my childhood for some reason. Growing up in the fifties and sixties in south Louisiana, we did not take far away trips; a short trip to Galveston was something we were able to do. I remember the ferry we took to get to the Island, bringing stale Evangeline Maid bread from home to feed the gulls and small Brownie cameras to snap blurry pictures. And I remember the little shops on the beach that sold seashells and souvenirs. I remember my Dad falling asleep on the beach and waking up to a painful burn and my mom never going in the water. Those are warm memories that I keep from childhood and Galveston. Anyway, I pray the people of Galveston can rebuild their lives there and more memories can be made. 
“Birds sing after a storm; why shouldn't people feel as free to delight in whatever sunlight remains to them?” Rose Kennedy | |
September 6, 2008 An Antidote In response to my somewhat downbeat preceding entry, I would like to share the following antidote with you. My son, William, is reading all of Dale Carnegie he can unearth in his university’s library and he earmarked the following passage from the book Public Speaking and Influencing Men in Business. The excerpt was authored by a man named Elbert Hubbard. Mr. Hubbard lived from 1856 to 1915. He was a writer, publisher, artist, and philosopher and was a noteworthy proponent of the Arts and Craft Movement in America. You are probably familiar with one of his quotes: “Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive." Here is a bit more of his philosophy; I hope you can find something in this that makes a difference for you.
“Whenever you go out of doors, draw the chin in, carry the crown of the head high and fill the lungs to the utmost; drink in the sunshine; greet your friends with a smile and put soul into every handclasp. Do not fear being misunderstood and do not waste a minute thinking about your enemies. Try to fix firmly in your mind what you would like to do and then without veering of direction you will move straight to the goal. Keep your mind on the great and splendid thing you would like to do and then as the days go gliding by you will find yourself unconsciously seizing upon the opportunities that are required for the fulfillment of your desire just as the coral insect takes from the running tide the elements it needs. Picture in your mind the able earnest useful person you desire to be and the thought you hold is hourly transforming you into that particular individual…. Thought is supreme. Preserve a right mental attitude- the attitude of courage frankness and good cheer. To thing rightly is to create. All things come through desire and every sincere prayer is answered. We become like that on which our hearts are fixed. Carry your chin in and the crown of your head high. We are gods in the chrysalis.” 
Till next time, p.s. |
September 6, 2008 The Storm Gustav has been nothing more than a cool breeze for me for five days now. He, however, was a significant gust of wind last Monday, Labor Day and William’s 26th birthday. Gustav caused the winds to blow and the clouds to burst, trees to break and fall and more significantly, at least for me, he caused questions to surface. These questions were not comfortable and not easy to confront. I still am in active combat with many of them. Beyond the primeval fear you feel when you are subject to the wrath of nature; you survive it and are left with a feeling not of the ordinary sort, not the everyday garden variety. Questions pop into your head, like, why am I here? Perhaps I should go to another place and begin again, a place away from these storms. I watched as the late summer beauty of my garden and my yard bowed to brambles of twigs, limbs, and green leaves that would never turn to hues of autumn and I was disappointed. Those superficial feelings of disappointment lead me to further feelings of doubt. I doubted that insurance companies would even remain in our state much longer and I doubted that our business policy would be renewed and soon I doubted why I wanted to fight this beauracratic battle. I don’t like to put this negative jargon in this website, for it is the antithesis of its purpose, but after a natural disaster of sorts, my response is on the surface and I felt inclined to post. I began this site as an effort to simplify my life and to see the simple beauty that surrounds me each day; to seek it out and to share it. I apologize for the deviation on this date. I will work through these thoughts and torments soon and post something agreeable. Something good that happened because of the storm was the opportunity I had to do several really fun drawings. I am still trying to get that part of my site up, but it is painstaking. With all the complications in mind and in my quest to simplify, I think I will only post drawings, not paintings, at this time. Again, so sorry for the negativity, but I have been witness to an extraordinary occurrence and an extraordinarily negative insight. I am very thankful, however, that we have survived this brutality from the Gulf and promise a more pleasant post soon. Till next time, p.s. | | | |
August 24, 2008 A thought Spend the afternoon. You can't take it with you. Annie Dillard 
photo...glenda sanders fleshman I have not read her book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, but I have read a bit of Annie Dillard's bio/profile and I would like to read the book. It seems to be written in the style of Thoreau's Walden Pond. Good stuff if you are into Nature. Anyway, I thought the quote was thought provoking and therefore, worth sharing. Enjoy your afternoon. Till next time, p.s. |
August 14,2008 Changes I just wanted to send a picture of what my garden has become. It is changing and signaling the impending equinox. As hot as it still is, if you listen and smell and look, you can realize the summer season is beginning to relinquish its’ post and the cool breezes of autumn will be here soon to take its place. My garden is a tousle of vines reaching for the sun and zinnias drying out and dropping seed and basils and oreganos going to seed. The garden is one of my favorite places to be, but I have to admit to weariness by late summer. I have let my okra get tough on the stalk and I haven’t had a small bouquet of zinnias on my kitchen cabinet since July and I am allowing my hens to consume the rest of my tomato crop. All I care about are my bell peppers. I am waiting for them to turn yellow and orange and red. I do not buy any bell peppers during the year (they are heavily sprayed), so I have to depend on my summer crop for twelve months of cooking. It is so easy to chop and freeze peppers and I feel so good about using them when it is the middle of winter and I can pull out a handful of summer from my freezer. Till next time, p.s. Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. Robert Brault  | |
August 5, 2008 Sacrifices 
I just brought the last clothesline full of summer clothes inside. School starts for me tomorrow and there will be less time to hang clothes in the early morning when the lines are still drenched with dew and the grass gets my shoes soggy and sometimes the night sounds can still be heard coming from the woods. There will be less time to peel and preserve my remaining pear crop and keep my garden tidy and my chicken coops full with grass clippings and vegetable peels. When school starts my summertime life ends and my j-o-b begins. I will miss the leisurely mornings of piddling in my garden and sitting at my easel with the intent and the time to paint and afternoons of pecking at my keyboard and sorting through my house and paying more attention to my thoughts. The Strawberry Moon in June has passed and the Thunder Moon in July has shown and will not be full again till the 16th of August. By then I will have long ago left summer behind and will be looking forward towards fall and cooler breezes and falling leaves. I will also, soon after the abruptness of those beginning days, be happy to be in school. I am so fortunate, thanks to my dad’s persuasion, to have chosen a job of service; it is very fulfilling and easy to love. I am also fortunate to be along side of our youth, for they give me insight into the future and keep me current with my own children. Most of all, I am happy to fulfill at least one dream my mother had for me, education. She was born in 1932 and was a child during the Great Depression, when education was a luxury and "just surviving " was the norm. Because of those days and those intense hardships, she placed much importance on education. For her, it was the (pseudo)assurance of security. As a matter of fact, she paid for most of my college education by working as a paraprofessional at the same high school where I now teach. Some days, when I am having an “off” day, I walk down the halls there and think of her courage and the commitment she made to make my life better and I feel peace and continue my day with humility and thankfulness. I did not mean to “go on” about my mother, but it is so easy to do and it felt wonderful to speak of her, thanks for listening. You can probably guess; I had an amazing mother. I hope you found some connection and inspiration with this little happenstance story that I have decided to post. It is late and it is over; school year 2008-2009 will begin in 8 hours.
Till next time,
p.s.
|
August 3, 2008 Basil 
While I wash the last of the dishes this morning, dishes left from supper, I am listening to Neil Diamond’s Forever in Blue Jeans. For the most part, the house is quiet. I stack the plates smallest to biggest, and arrange the cups somewhat neatly on the drying rack and casually glance at the day ahead. It should be a simple day, a day filled with ordinary stuff and minimal confusion; the kind of day that I love most. For a minute, I think of my mother and how I would sit at the kitchen table when I was a teen and still so bewildered. I’d watch her wash each glass and each plate in a way that was hers and I’d talk and ask questions and she’d answer and it felt so good to be there in that kitchen, in that shelter where my world was turned right side up. Somehow I knew then that I would remember those times and I knew I was recording that image of her as she washed dishes and the way she listened and the world she created for me and all of my adolescent insecurities.
Those big moments in life are necessary and certainly enjoyable, but these little moments that aren’t so noteworthy, are where I find peace and connection. The big moments bring with them so much anticipation that sometimes we are bound by expectation to be disappointed. I rather those moments of spontaneity and surprise, a day when nothing is really on the docket and suddenly Elizabeth comes in with a zinnia for my kitchen vase or I find the first turquoise egg from one of my Americanas, or Neil Diamond comes on the radio and sings Forever in Blue Jeans while I am washing the supper dishes and remembering my mom.
In case you find some garden time today, I hope you do, and if you have a lot of basil by now, you may want to dry some for the winter. I have learned that it should not be tied and bunched like some of the other herbs. I will post the correct way according to my source, Organic Gardening Magazine :
• Don't tie basil stalks together or hang them to dry as you might other herbs.
• Pinch or snip leaves from the stems and place them on a screen or absorbent towel.
• Stir daily and allow to dry until crackly.
• Store in an airtight container.
Till next time,
p.s. | | | |
July 29, 2008 Sunflower I just wanted you to see this beautiful sunflower right when you opened this blog. It is growing in my garden. There are only two flowers and a short row of okra left. The summer heat has finished off the squash and the snapbeans that were there. Okra, a native of Africa, and sunflowers should be able to weather the August heat and continue to produce. Anyway, just wanted to make you smile . Till next time, p.s. July 27, 2008 Me If you are like me, you don't like to have your picture taken. It seems my Ezine site requires a photo, so because I value my presence there, I have submitted one. It is a picture my daughter took of my twins and I this past May while in Disneyworld. I cropped it to the smallest possible size! I decided to put it on my Sketches of My Day Home page also. The web browsing experience is always enhanced for me when I can see a picture of the person writing the articles. Anyway, I am being a good sport and submitting my fifty four year old picture. While I am “here”, I would like to post a little quote that I found while cleaning out a desk drawer. I love the message and hope you will too. I do not have the author, so I apologize to whoever it may be; it was written in a hasty script by me a long time ago. “In bringing up children, spend on them half as much money and twice as much time.”
 Till next time,
p.s. p.s. I don't follow my horoscope or believe in the predictions made, but today I read mine,Cancer,in our daily newspaper and I love the message.I would like to post it before the day is over (it is 11:45). Perhaps it is something you will need to read tomorrow morning. It feels a bit empowering. " No matter what's going on beyond your front door; you have the ability to close it out and forget about it as you busy yourself with the creation of a cozy, happy, calming world of your own."
July 25, 2008 Pears 
I can always find the end of summer near my pear trees, there on the ground where there are tens of fallen pears. Most of them are discarded by a raccoon that has eaten there the night before, some are there because the wind blew them off the tree and some are there just because I neglected to pick them and they finally let go. Yesterday evening I called an “all hands on deck” event and my twins and I gathered all of the fallen pears and layered the chicken coops with these sweet treats topped with bug sprinkles. Yum. After we feed the girls, I collected half a basket (my sister gave the cute basket to me) for us. I could have filled up three baskets, but this seemed to be enough for us for now. I suppose the raccoons are thanking me for leaving so many behind and while they enjoy their midnight feast, I know it is my chickens they really want. Matthew and Andrew cleaned up one of my gardens; they pulled up old squash vines and spent snap beans and neatly trimmed the stalks of the okra. I need to find leaves to layer and decompose now in anticipation of my fall garden; it is somewhat of a lasagna garden. Anyway, I am happy about all of that; picking fresh, organic pears for my family and cleaning out an old garden that has been good to us this summer and is still supplying us with okra and exercise. I am not sure yet what I will plant in this patch this fall. It has to be hardy because of its closeness to the woods and the big bug population and the nocturnal creature feast. Till next time, p.s. July 23, 2008 Marc Chagall "Only love interests me, and I am only in contact with things that revolve around love".
Marc Chagall 
In the summer of 1974, my good friend Kathy and I strolled up a mountain on a journey to Musee Marc Chagall, in Saint-Paul de Vence. We had heard that he might be there for his show. At twenty, I don’t think I fully understood how significant this could be. Today, I try very hard to recapture all that I can of those moments. The museum was modern looking (it had been built in 1966) and the walls were filled with Chagall paintings and it was rather crowded, but not crowded like here in the U.S., this was very French - room temperature wine from the neighboring village of Bordeaux, cut flowers on tables and warm romantic conversations I could not really understand. Soon after arriving, there was a bit of a fuss being made in one of the rooms and when we made our way there, we saw him. He was so small and his hair was white and he shuffled throughout the museum and spoke softly and humbly of his work. There was no paparazzi here only Marc Chagall and a modest gathering of people who were trying to be near him and somehow share or experience his genius.Hollywood and all of its’ plastic could never come close to this moment and this 87 year old man who had spent his life creating art. He went on to live ten more years and created more art. One day I would love to return to that place and imagine him there and take with me that feeling of someone real and genuine.
Till Next Time, p.s.
| | | "Forgive one person today. Open your heart to that person, and release unnecessary suffering from the past. Feel the peace that follows from this simple act". Caroline Myss & Peter Occhlogrosso |  July 17, 2008 Peace photo from glenda fleshman |
July 12, 2008 Sharing My daughter is reading Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (required reading, don't be quiet so impressed). Yesterday, when she was reading, she came to me and wanted to share a small passage that she thought I would like. I did, and now I am putting it here for you to read; I think it is something you might like. "We did not pick from the bottom of the vine or from the top. The ones at the bottom were for the rabbits, my mother said, and the ones at the top were for the birds. The ones at people - height were for people." 
If only we all lived by that concept. July 10, 2008 Being Positive 
"Selfishly seek joy, because your joy is the greatest gift you can give to anyone. Unless you are in your joy, you have nothing to give anyway". Abraham Hicks
I thought this might be a wonderful thought to take with you. Sometimes we feel "guilty" when we are happy and someone we know is not. This perspective helps with that interpretation. Till next time, p.s. July 6, 2008 le'jardin Here it is my garden once again. I suppose it is a lifeline of sorts for me. I go there everyday and there is always something that draws me there again on the next day and the next…. It is a source of creativity and a sense of tomorrow. Anyway, I just wanted to share my latest little DIY project (my garden is a totally DIY project except for the much appreciated occasional muscle from my four sons – that makes it even more special). I had it in my mind to do a little Cajun/French jardin patch kind of thing. Something so very simple and spontaneous, something that was only meant to bring joy and was put in almost recklessly and certainly mindlessly. I did have to leave the house to do this, I am sorry to say. My most rewarding projects are with found objects and a $0 outlay; this is something my mother always did and I aspire to do as often as I can. I had to go to Big K and I found a great deal on dirt – 40 pounds for $1.77. Then, I stopped at the local garden center and found annuals half price – yea! I made the little bed with old bricks left over from a fence, situated the cheap as dirt soil, and lovingly gave my little half priced flora a snug home till the first frost. The first thing I did this morning was walk outside to see my handiwork and, you guessed it, I was happy. Till next time, p.s. 
July 4, 2008 Summer Colors 
Send photos of your garden to wejamnla@yahoo.com so I can post yours instead of mine. I suspect that you are tired of seeing my garden, but , for some reason, be it weather or time, it is so beautiful this year and here on the 4th of July, it seems to be peaking.Perhaps the photo will inspire you to plant a pack of zinnias, Clementine Hunter's favorite flower. They are so easy to grow, bloom til the first frost, and are great flowers to cut for your kitchen. Oswald, our cat looks thin. She is nursing kittens. My husband feeds her twice a day and she has, on many occasions, been caught with a lizard or prehistoric looking salamander in her mouth, still, she is thin. Maybe I should change my diet to lizards and salamanders?? Happy Fourth of July!! Till next time, p.s.
"You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt." 
July 1, 2008 My Kitchen July 1st came barreling in this morning and found me in my kitchen personifying summer. By 9:00, I had already beat the birds and picked my daily bowl of figs and had them and yesterday’s harvest in a heavy pot simmering and ready to can, picked and cut enough okra to smother for lunch and was doing so, and snapped one of the seasons last magnolias for my kitchen and it was sitting near my sink smelling like summer. Jimmy Buffet was on my preferred FM station singing one of my favorite songs from my youth, ‘Come Monday’, and I was happy there in my kitchen in the middle of summer. Outside was equally enchanting; the crepe myrtles are breathtaking here. I have a picture of some, but no justice was done with this photograph; they are so stunning in person.
I am making this entry primarily to share something I have recently read by Alice Waters. For those of you not familiar with her, she is a chef responsible for a sort of food revolution in California and is the person behind the Edible Schoolyard program in Berkeley. She is all about sustainable farming, organics, and eating locally and in season. Anyway, I found this little list she has compiled that really summarizes who she is and I wanted to share it:
Eat locally and sustainably
Eat seasonally
Shop at farmer’s markets
Plant a garden
Conserve, compost, and recycle
Cook simply
Cook together
Eat together
Remember food is precious
How wonderful are these words by Alice Waters!! Till next time, p.s. 
June 29, 2008 Fifty - four 
That's the number I reached today, 54. I remember being in college thinking that that specific age, 54, would be plenty enough time for a person to do what they needed to do. Scary thought. In some ways, being this age is like a beginning, not another chapter, that is too cliché and simple; it is more like another volume. Anyway, to describe my day in one word would be “sweet.” I heard from all of the people I care a lot about, by phone, U.S. Mail, and of course email, and the little gifts I received were the best ever and exactly the kind of stuff I love. My sister gave me a little sign that said “Garden” to hang on my new fence and a wire basket to gather the last of my summer vegetables, my daughter spent about three hours painting a colorful narrative on a birdhouse that my dad made for me several years ago (heart tug), my neighbor decorated a clay pot with paint and a picture of a radiant rooster and then filled it to the top with chocolate (yum), there is now a tower in my garden for my sweetpeas to trellis on next spring thanks to my husband, and my twins (with my husband’s direction and suggestion) designed and built a carrier for my chicken feed. It is compartmentalized and made from recycled wood; no way to express how happy that made me. The day was a bit stormy, but that was nice. I stayed inside and worked on a draw ing of a bunny from behind and piddled in this old house. Sweet Till next time, p.s. June 21, 2008 Summer Begins 
It’s the first day of summer and what could be more expressive of this season of long afternoons, June bugs and fireflies, swimming holes and family reunions, than a seemingly carefree lizard basking atop a Black Eyed Susan? My cousin, Glenda, has sent a photo she took of just that. This image has to make you smile and envy this little creature and his flower top view of the world. How much nicer do you think it looks from there? June 19, 2008 Quik - Pic 
Just a quick entry to perhaps motivate any of you who may be thinking about a little vegetable patch but may need a tender shove to begin. This is something I just picked up while feeding the chickens; it really isn’t even a harvest and I am certainly not a food photographer, but isn’t this wonderful? Lots of vitamins...I plan to slice the cucumbers and tomato to make a little vinegar salad, clean the carrots and put them in front of my daughter with a soufflé cup of dressing, slice the melon for supper, save the okra for a larger serving to smother, add the potatoes to my previous "dig", and keep the squash for tomorrow. The hens are free ranging and I cannot find their eggs just yet or I would have included their “contribution" also. Maybe you should plant something to eat??
Till next time,
p.s.
June 18, 2008 Tasha Tudor & The Strawberry Moon Tasha Tudor passed away today. For me, she was an icon of simplicity. It seems she lived the life she desired, one that was genuine and counter. She surrounded herself with Nature and successfully kept away the trappings of consumerism and self-indulgence. She was 92 and lived in Vermont.  www.tashatudor.com I hope you were able to enjoy the full moon this evening. It seemed to rise from the horizon like "the great pumpkin". I know this is contrary to how I should feel and think, but sometimes I wish we had never been there, if only to maintain the mystery that the moon once was. Think of all the songs that may have not been written had we landed there before 1969. Sorry Neil, I know it had to be an awesome moment. Till next time, p.s.
June 17, 2008 Heat 
I tried to get some garden time in this morning, bit it is now 93 degrees where I am and I had to come inside. I wish I could share cucumbers with those of you who might not have any. I would like to put up Bread and Butter pickles, but I don’t want to heat up the kitchen. I think I have been given one of the lazy days of summer today, nothing much on the "have to do " list. I will get back to my garden later today. I cut the grass yesterday evening and there are bunches of clippings scattered throughout the yard that I need to add to my garden and I will share some with my chickens. I also need to tie some top heavy tomatoes and lanky peppers. Stay cool and don't forget about the full moon on the 18th, the Strawberry Moon.
Till next time, p.s.
June 10, 2008 Love You I wish I could remember more about her, like her name, was she a mother, what kind of house did she live in, but I can’t and it was very long ago and there is no one left to ask. It was the summer of 1974 and I was an art student in Nice, France - the Cote d’Azur.(Let me just insert here that I was a student with a foreign study group and that my parents were not at all wealthy, they just wanted me to have this moment. As a matter of fact, they struggled financially to give this experience to me.) Anyway, every week day morning my friend Kathy and I would walk from our room at the Universite de Nice to a second floor studio with huge windows and tremendous light. Our journey would take us through the French Market in downtown Nice. There were colorful market umbrellas and plucked chickens hanging upside down, color wheels of vegetables from the neighboring countryside, Frenchmen speaking so quickly and bargaining so loudly and there were flowers, buckets and buckets of fresh cut flowers and everyone bought a bouquet; everyone had fresh flowers on their table each night for dinner. The personification of this sensual experience could be found in one of our models. She too would walk through the market each weekday morning. Along the way she would gather fresh fruit and baguettes and of course, fresh flowers. She carried it all in an oversized straw bag that was very old and full of character and the day's supply of food. She wore a summer dress of sorts, one very simple and minimal, for she was a nude model and she was able to dismiss it without much effort or fumbling. She had sandals on her feet and her hair was gray and loosely gathered in a large clip; again, easy to take out and tumble on her shoulders and cast shadows and interesting lines for us to sketch. The thing I remember most about her was her smile, the radiance she brought to class each morning, as we stood behind our easels, still sleepy from the night before, and there she was with flowers and joie de vivre; content to be exactly where she was. She could not speak much English, but that was okay, her smile spoke of life and passion and happiness. I remember thinking she must have been “old” to be a model, especially a nude model, but she was so comfortable with who she was and that transformed into a thing of beauty. I am probably the age now that she was then and I reflect on who she was; someone, I suspect, who had sorted out all of the foolishness in life and was capturing the core, each morning, each day with flowers in her old straw basket and simplicity in her life. Till next time. p.s. June 4, 2008 Roses Just a quick note and a nice picture of summer for you. These sweetheart roses are perhaps twenty years old. My mother, who passed away in 1997, brought them to me one summer day when I had just moved into this house and I was beginning to establish my garden; they have bloomed profusely this year. Hope your day is good and don’t forget to “stop and smell the roses”.
Till next time,
p.s.
June 1, 2008 Beginnings 
I just had to write a short note simply because it is the 1st day of June, the month of brides in white dresses with dreams of forever and fireflies thick in the woods and green lizards basking on wheelbarrow handles and late sunsets and the first slice of watermelon and sniff of honeysuckle, and uneasy dragonflies on clotheslines. It is so wonderful to get up early on June mornings and water the garden before the heat rolls in and think of the long day ahead and all there is to enjoy. Till next time p.s.
May 30, 2008 Letting Go  Just wanted to take a minute (that is seemingly all that I have) to write. I just returned from Disneyworld with three of my kids and I have been in my garden ever since. I have not even unpacked a bag or washed a load of laundry. My garden has gone from a thing of splendor and pleasure to perhaps, an incurable crop of struggling vegetation. I cannot blame my husband, he watered as I asked, but he did not, understandably, do all “the little things”. Each time I go outside I find my way to the garden and take in its' beauty, pull out its’ weeds and give it a sprinkle; little by little without even noticing, it remains kept. Some days I fill a wheelbarrow with live oak leaves and they find their way under the pepper plants and some days I help the cucumber vines find their way to the trellis and deadhead the lilies; little things that all become a big thing, which is the beauty of the garden. I can’t blame him at all, I should know that time away from my garden in May or June would not produce a desirable outcome. I have hope, however. I will indeed use my grandmother’s chow chow recipe and harvest all of my green tomatoes – this will not be difficult, for they are burdening my vines. Next, I will remove all of the unhealthy stems and vines and fertilize. Yesterday afternoon, with mountains of laundry and stacks of suitcases piled near the door, I was there in the garden harvesting all that I could. I collected white summer squash, canary yellow squash, green peppers and cadmium red peppers, carrots, basil, rosemary, and potatoes. I put it all together with olive oil and spices and put it in the oven. We also had the last of the strawberries and blackberries. It was so delicious after six days of amusement park food. Today I will pick snap beans and dig a few more potatoes for supper. Anyway, I hope that I can save most of my garden; summer would not be summer for me without it.
I read an article from O magazine while on vacation. It was about letting go of things, both physical and emotional, that needlessly use up our time and energy and prevent us from moving on in our lives. This totally impacted me (remember the three cardboard boxes?). I have always wondered why I spend so much of my day fooling with inanimate things instead of growing and discovering and being. The summer of 2008 will be the summer that I let go. While I will never willingly let go of things like my grandmother’s quilt or my mother’s dining room table, I will let go of clothes that clutter our closets, magazines that I do not need to save, a sofa no one sits on, and papers I don’t need. And with my extra time, I will try a new recipe, watch a movie in the middle of a long summer day with my daughter, add more time to my daily walk, sit in my garden and watch for humming birds that might visit and later, watch for the moon and be there in the garden the instant it rises, or write a long letter to a far away friend.
When you look back on your life, it was never about the “things”.
Till next time,
p.s.
p.s. our cat had kittens
May 18, 2008 Green Tomatoes 
I did not fill the boxes. Filling them would have made me happy, but not filling them has not made me sad, just disappointed. The day raced by with unexpected turns and I was sidetracked. Everyone is asleep now and just as soon as I post this entry, I will begin filling those boxes with clothes from the laundry room; clothes that sit on open shelves week after week; no one here wants them, someone else may.
I have green tomatoes and chow chow on my mind today. I remember a small garden along side of my grandparent’s house that my grandfather tended and I remember the anticipation of green tomatoes and the day they would spend making chow chow. It was an event, not something you tried to squeeze into the summer. The garden was small and so was the kitchen, but somehow they turned out enough tasty green relish to last the year. The process is a bit thorny and the kitchen is completely consumed by it, but the taste is truly irreplaceable. Again, I hope I can find the time in summer to make a batch. I have planted extra tomato plants this year so that I have plenty of green tomatoes to spare. I will post my grandmother’s recipe for you in case you care to try it. It is (psychologically) difficult to pick a bucket of beautiful green tomatoes, but, as I said, it is worth it.
Chow Chow
1 small cabbage
2 cups chopped onion
2 cups chopped green tomatoes
2 cups chopped bell peppers (about 4)
3 T salt
Chop, combine and let stand for 4-6 hours in a cool place.
Drain well.
Combine: 2 ½ cups of vinegar
1 ½ cups sugar
2 t dry mustard
9 t turmeric
½ t ground ginger
2 t celery seed
1 t mustard seed
Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add vegetables and simmer for 10 minutes.
Pack mason jars and process.
The turmeric and ginger are good for combating inflammation. Try to use the peppers from your garden. Bell peppers are on the list of the most tainted veggies. As I said, this takes time and is a bit messy, but it is such a treat to open a jar in the middle of winter and serve with hot chili or Great Northerns and rice.
Till next time, p.s.
May 17, 2008 Two Boxes  "This is a delicious evening, when the whole body is one sense, and imbibes delight through every pore. I go and come with a strange liberty in Nature, a part of herself. As I walk along the stony shore of the pond in my shirt-sleeves, though it is cool as well as cloudy and windy, and I see nothing special to attract me, all the elements are unusually congenial to me. The bullfrogs trump to usher in the night, and the note of the whip-poor-will is borne on the rippling wind from over the water. Sympathy with the fluttering alder and poplar leaves almost takes away my breath; yet, like the lake, my serenity is rippled but not ruffled. These small waves raised by the evening wind are as remote from storm as the smooth reflecting surface. Though it is now dark, the wind still blows and roars in the wood, the waves still dash, and some creatures lull the rest with their notes. The repose is never complete. The wildest animals do not repose, but seek their prey now; the fox, and skunk, and rabbit, now roam the fields and woods without fear. They are Nature's watchmen -- links which connect the days of animated life."
What I have posted today is a little exert from Walden. For me,Thoreau wrote the book on simplicity. I am not moving to a cabin in the woods today, but I will, by day's end, have two rather large cardboard boxes filled up with unnecessary clutter and delivered to Goodwill. The boxes are sitting perceptibly on my keeping room table to remind me of their urgency. I will tend to them and at the end of the day and I will feel gratification, for my life will be just a bit more relieved. This quest for simplicity, I am discovering, is a physical as well as spiritual journey. I will continue to fill boxes until I have freed myself of lifeless things that require my attention and steal moments of my life. More importantly, I will be mindful of bringing more “things” into my house, so that I have more time to spend in the garden. That is my Saturday thought, compliments of Henry David Thoreau.
Till next time,
p.s.
May 13, 2008 The Fence Here are the “after” photos of my garden and chicken coop from my Getting to Know You page. My twins completed this fence for me on Mother’s Day. There are many things wonderful about this enclosure, the main one being that it was made by my sons and another being that it was made from wood that may have otherwise been discarded. Instead, it has been reused and has found a second useful life. This fence was once our deck. It had become unsafe to walk on, but, as you see, it is a very stout fence. I am so proud of the job my twins have done (this is their very first carpentry experience, besides a bird feeder in Cub Scouts). This outdoor classroom of creating seems to suit them and I am happy that they have discovered a way to be creative. I plan to spend many summer afternoons having coffee under the Vitex tree in my garden. My tomato plants are sporting big green tomatoes, my cucumbers are vining , the peppers are still green, but growing, and the white scalloped squash and yellow squash are about to supply me with quite a harvest. Soon it will be time to dig potatoes and garlic and my crop of carrots is ongoing. We are still enjoying blackberries and strawberries and perhaps I will have a few blueberries this year. I think I am obsessed with growing my own food. What would summer be without fresh tomatoes and cucumbers Till next time, p.s. May 11, 2008 Happy Mother’s Day I doubt that I will spend much time on my computer today; instead I hope to be in my garden for the entire day. My twins should be completing my fence that encloses one of my vegetable gardens (the “before” photo is on my "Getting to Know You" page). That is my gift from them and it is wonderful. I will send the “after” photo later. Three of my hens are free ranging now and the fence is very much needed. This fall, when the garden has stopped producing, I plan to fence them in and they will have a grand time debugging and weeding it for me, but not now. I went to the garden center yesterday and brought home a deep purple Buddleia, a small bunch of Shasta daisies, one biannual Hollyhock, a Duranto, one lavendar Plumbago, and a red rose bush named “Frankly Scarlet”. I plan to plant this in the garden today and enjoy it all summer. My column came out in our local paper today; it is a tribute to mothers. If you care to read, it is on the front page of our local paper:
under : Editorial
Time to honor mothers who spend lives for their children ... Till next time, p.s.
May 7, 2008 Comfort Food It seems we are in the height of berry season here in zone 9. I am busy freezing giant red strawberries for jam and smoothies to enjoy later in summer and I am making cobblers with most of the blackberries. I have a recipe for cobbler that my family loves and it is so easy to make. Naturally, it is called Jiffy Cobbler
Melt 1 stick of butter in a baking dish.
Make a batter of:
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp salt
(I also add ½ cup of Flax Seed and I use organic flour and milk)
Pour batter over melted butter and whisk together.
Next, bring 1 quart berries (organic or from your garden) and ½ cup sugar to a boil.
Spoon over batter. Bake @ 350 for 40 minutes. p.s.
May 6, 2008 Beginnings and Endings I find myself somewhat discouraged on this May morning. One of the core reasons I began this site was to bring emphasis on making my life simpler. I know that “simplify” is a catch all, perhaps even trendy, word at present, but for me, it holds substance and has history for I am in constant pursuit of its’ illusive meaning. Unfortunately, it seems since I began, its’ meaning and time have alluded me; I suppose I am not doing so well thus far. I do a monthly column for our local newspaper, The Daily Iberian, and it is due tomorrow before 4, so I have written that, but I have not tended to this blog - this collection of words and thoughts that are so important to me. In an effort to do something towards my goal, I am posting a little photo from my backyard that I took last night. It is a visual on the collision of early spring and soon to be summer – the sweetpea and the gardenia. I am sad to say that these coral sweeties are the last of the season, but happy to have picked the first gardenia yesterday evening. It is currently sitting coyly on my counter adding fragrance to my kitchen and making me happy, for once again, it is spring. Till next time, p.s. 
May 6, 2008 Berries Just wanted to share an amateur photo of my strawberries, blackberries, and fresh eggs. I planted the bare rooted strawberries from Ponchatoula, Louisiana last October, the blackberries are from an LSU hybrid that I have had for 23 years, and the eggs are from my three hens a layin. This was a great way to end the day. p.s. 
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. Albert Einstein May 4, 2008 To Begin With... This is my maiden voyage, my first blog, and I am so anxious to get started. I hope to successfully accomplish my goal and alongside of that mission, meet some of you and share stories about art and nature and family and all of the things that matter. It is Sunday, and I have a busy day in the garden and in the kitchen, so I will be brief, but perhaps I can share something of interest this evening when the day has ended and I finally come inside; we can grab a cup of coffee and chat. Till next time p.s. 
Let's Talk |
Places I visit: THE STORY OF STUFF Who links to me? Check out this google search. It is specific to wonderful things like gardening, painting, writing, living simply, organic food, chickens, and the moon. p.s.
May 4, 2008 To Begin With... This is my maiden voyage, my first blog, and I am so anxious to get started. I hope to successfully accomplish my goal and alongside of that mission, meet some of you and share stories about art and nature and family and all of the things that matter. It is Sunday, and I have a busy day in the garden and in the kitchen, so I will be brief, but perhaps I can share something of interest this evening when the day has ended and I finally come inside; we can grab a cup of coffee and chat. Till next time, p.s.
Let's talk
|