Oh My Word!

What a week it was with old friends, new friends and an exciting purchase to boot.  

Let''s just dive in, shall we? 

Tuesday Bruce told me we needed to be at Fairy Cross by 5:00 which I thought was weird but went along with the idea. What a fantastic surprise it was to walk into the back room and who should I see but Pam and Glen, as well as Bill and Roxanne!! Although they did not drive up from Cape Canaveral together, it was there that they cooked up the idea to come and surprise me. Bruce, of course, was in on the secret. Oh happy day it was.

Earlier this year Glen was terribly ill from his cancer treatment but he's doing so well now and even has hair! Honestly, I've known them for easily ten years and all that time he wore his hair in a crewcut. Turns out, when his hair began growing back after the chemo, he decided to let it keep on growing. Pam, is dressed in her uniform of a polo shirt, whereas what is with me in shorts? I bet I've not been photographed in shorts for years. Roxanne is looking all glam in her maxi dress, and Bill is towering over all of us. Bruce, in my eyes, looks his usual handsome self. Actually, I just love this shot taken by a sweet woman at the shop. If only the light was not shining as bright through those neat windows. Sorry friends, I can't help noticing! 

We were so happy that they got to see our hang out, in part because if they lived here, they would be there as well! We spent many, and I mean many a happy evening with this group! Walking home, they followed in their respective cars to see the house on Campbell Street. Might I just say that they were suitably impressed? All thanks to the Vespasians who kept it like a large jewel box! 

Speaking of Mr. Vespasian, we received a formal invitation in the mail to an open house at his new place and were very much looking forward to it. Held on the Sunday afternoon previous to our friends visit, we walked to the back of the building, (still waiting for the painters)

and pictured is our neighbors who own the bed and breakfast catty-corner to us. You know the ones with the lovely gardens? Yes, them. We'd actually not met Bob before as he has some health issues that is keeping him indoors, but here was our chance. Before we even bought the house we had met his wife Sandy, at, you guessed it, Fairy Cross! It was a real pleasure seeing Mr. V in his new, and I mean brand new place, as well as meeting more of his family. His daughter was very sweet, apparently taking after her Mother Ruth who guests could not keep from praising. I don't know what it is about the house we buy because Ruth was apparently a saint, as was Pinka who owned our condo for thirty years. The first words out of people's mouths to describe both of those ladies are, "she was so sweet!" Hard footsteps to follow in that's for sure. 

If you will recall, when I noticed the serious lack of counter space in my soon-to-be kitchen, I asked Mr. V. how did his wife cook without counters? He shrugged saying, "I don't know, she just cooked." According to the reports I heard during the gathering, she made loads of holiday dinners there as well. One of her secrets was to be found in the new apartment.

For some reason I thought he was leaving it behind, but that was not the case. Perhaps Bruce can build the same for me? And that is because (!!!) in a nod to nearly 50 years ago, we were finally at the stage when he could once again own a table saw. The holy grail for a woodworker, in case you are wondering. 

My heart swelled with happiness for him. You've heard the story before....when we were newlyweds, in our first house right around 50 years ago, he wanted a table saw and I wanted a baby. We got both!!

Selling his table saw was pretty painful, but necessary, when we sold our home to move to Vancouver. That move began his tool drought, but the drought is nearly over! So the saw is in the box as well as a metal table of sorts to hold it, however, that was not the plan for my guy.

Instead, he did this.

Keep in mind, he does this stuff in his head, from buying the lumber to designing it and finally constructing it without written plans. Me, I cannot do a thing without a pattern, so I am super impressed. He used the mitre box that he brought from home to cut the lumber and a skill saw to cut the plywood for the top. How he did that by himself is beyond me.

Now he could have a place to sit it on until he went through the next steps.

I insisted he ask Randolph for help putting it into the hole! And here it is all installed with supports to hold it up. Casters to move it around are going to be great.

All of you knew full well that having a basement for a shop was going to make my dear husband a very happy man and you were correct in your assumptions! Which brings me to this little story.....

Bruce was very much hoping that there was some way to get the fireplace to work. As you may recall, it was a coal burning fireplace with the clean outs and loading bins located on the side of the house.

There is a system in place here that uses propane for heating when the temperature dips too low which makes me wonder, does it work when it gets too hot? Anyway, we have an account with the gas company and an appointment was made a month ago for a technician to come out and take a look at the fireplace. Arriving promptly at 8:45 in the morning, he took the cover off and found a bunch of insulation inside the tiny box which was deemed far too small for any gas connections and fake logs.

So, now we know. 

The mosquitoes were still bothersome most of the week, but every now and again I got to enjoy the porch. Love seeing a bunny!

Hummingbird sightings have been few and far between, in case you are wondering.

On the other side of the house the Rose of Sharon trees are putting on a show! Honestly it is hard to imagine how many blooms and blossoms the scraggly looking trees are producing! Right outside my kitchen window and I mean that literally!

I cannot tell you how great it is. From what I've read they bloom throughout the summer.

The one above is near the driveway and gets full sun so the plant looks vigorous indeed. When the flowers fade, say a day or two later, they turn lavender and are littering the ground below much like a Tabebuia tree does in Florida. Such a lovely surprise.

I neglected to mention that we took Glen and Pam to see Mark and Mary Beth's lovely property on the river. Showing them one of the many sides to Murphy. 

I was super excited to see their chickens which are now teenagers however, being free range chickens they were somewhat elusive. In other words, my photograph is not one to go in the favorites folder!

While the roses are store-bought, the gladiolas are all theirs!

Switching gears here, we went to Cobby and Diane's after the open house a week ago Sunday. After sharing a yummy cookout, we retired to the living room where a friendly conversation began about college bands. It is funny because this is the second time in a month or so that the subject has come up with Mark claiming Ohio State holds the title of best marching band. Anyway, Diane, who was a band director herself, had her own ideas of a good marching band. Youtube to the rescue.

We were all in agreement that not showing the bands during half time is a travesty. Apparently her alma mater in Alabama, Jacksonville State, is right up there in the discussion of exceptional bands.

The unfortunate football loss Florida State suffered at the hands of JSU also came up! I find it so remarkable that the students can play instruments and remember formations at the same time. Show us more!

Here are two things from the kitchen, one a BLT made with one of those fantastic home grown tomatoes. Fabulous. 

You are pretty much looking at the extent of my counter space but, I too, am just cooking. Recently I read about a new cookbook from a woman that lived in a camper for two years. She talked about how her book is real with little styling. I thought about that when I shot the above. Isn't it kind of silly how much work goes into making food look pretty? Speaking of not looking pretty, I had a near-fail in the baking department again. I just ain't what I used to be, or so it seems and this time I cannot blame it on the oven. Two things to think about when you see the pictured graham cracker cake below. One, ingredients are at an all time high when it comes to cost. $6.00 for a box of butter? Nearly the same for a bag of flour? It's simply unreal and it makes me mad when they claim inflation has slowed. Any trip to the grocery store calls that into question.

Secondly, it would have helped if I'd had a review of this cake which  I did not.

When I was a teenager I remembered my friend Peggy's mother made a graham cracker cake that was delicious. With my memory that is saying a lot. Peggy did not remember it and even asked her sisters for said recipe. It was fruitless. Not the cake mind you, the search. Anyway, as I was perusing an Atlanta Junior League cookbook from the 80's that I'd picked up for a dollar at the thrift store, the above recipe appeared. Think of eating a graham cracker crust as a cake if you will. The batter was crazy thick and I did not have the called for bundt pan, but I thought an angel food pan would suffice. I thought wrong. Way wrong. While it was baking the smell was heavenly. Checking it at the required time for doneness, the tester came out clean. All good, or so I thought. Here's where a review might have come in handy. Perhaps it was meant to cool in the pan?

After about fifteen minutes, I ran my knife around the edges of the pan, around the inner hole and put a second cooling rack on top. Flipping it over, immediately I saw I had a problem in the form of the cake top coming out but the base remained in the pan. It looked gooey. Oh my goodness!! Help me Mama, help me Mama! I flopped it back into the pan, cooked it for another twenty minutes or so and called it done. Here's what I am thinking should I make it again. Use a springform pan. That will do the trick. I recently picked one up at the thrift store, actually at the same time as I got that cookbook. The cake, as mentioned is actually scrumptious with coconut and chopped pecans.

Using the lovely antique cake pedestal that Pam brought as a house warming gift was my goal. The stand is far too pretty for that cake.

One of the day lilies that I transplanted bloomed!

If you are still reading I want to tell you about Jane and Tom. They attend our church and while I did not know them well before Bruce and I arrived, I learned a bunch during my visit with them while Bruce was figuring out a way to build a ramp to help him when the use of a wheelchair is necessary. I took a bunch of photographs while there, but I missed one that I should have taken. It was the plaque that read Jane and Tom, married 1955. Yup! And she is still creating and collecting. Peering into her china cabinet I noticed some amazing little figurines that she was thrilled to demonstrate how they worked and how she made them.

As you can see it is quite small and quite cute. Apparently she begins the beading process from the bottom.

Seemingly Jane has been collecting since they married. 

Both of them hail from West Virginia, and arrived in Murphy via Florida. Imagine that! She was a librarian and he was a teacher. I swear we have met so many teachers since moving here it is really interesting because prior to the move, we probably knew only Bev and Bonnie. 

We went out there way a second time for Bruce to talk to Tom about his idea. Unfortunately, Jane had trigger finger surgery earlier in the day and was in a great deal of pain, so I stayed in the car. Seeing her at church yesterday though, she was as chipper as ever. 

Lastly, something that has been running through my mind the last few days is a line from the famous Paul Simon song...Kodachrome. A few factoids about that song can be read here, one of which I will tell you. Recorded at Muscle Shoals! I guess it looks as if the documentary is no longer available, but what a film it was. So much so that on our cross country trip to Vancouver we went to see the studio! Good stuff. Anyway, "the greens of summer" has been the line and we sure are seeing as much here. Perhaps you recall this scene in the dead of winter? 

Oh my word, indeed!

your friend,

Gail

p.s. I know, rare, right? Rarely do I mention it, but I do still have a publisher even though they don't sell a whole lot of my stuff these days, it is not for lack of trying on their part, I might add. Anyway, it seems kind of fitting that the mailbox money check that arrived last week had not one, but two journals listed. Meaning some company used one of my images for the front of a journal. Pretty neat, huh?