Book Group 12-15-23

Our Book Group meets  on the third Wednesday of the month, so the December meeting was this  past Wednesday.  In December we have lunch at a restaurant and exchange gifts.  In past distant years we met in the evening and someone would hostess an actual dinner  with contributions from everyone.  But when everyone had retired we switched to daytime meetings.  I  think mostly because we no longer enjoy driving after dark.   The gifts are always thoughtful and usually useful.  I did my usual gift cards for either Amazon or Barnes and  Noble.  It was a happy time and the food was okay. 

This was our December selection which I  had to struggle through.  Four young women are recruited in the late 70s by an independent company, "The Museum", to be international  assassins to murder  "bad guys" identified by the company. They started out with Nazis, but once they had done all they could find they branched out to Mafia dons, drug cartels, human traffickers, and others who made money on the "common" people.   The story flips  back and forth from 70s to present day when the four ladies have retired after 40 years  of assassinations.   There are a few witty parts, but basically it is about imaginative ways to kill.  

This is our January selection which is promoted as

"If you liked 'A Man Called Ove' you will love this book."

For our group whoever is the hostess chooses the book for the following month.

So, we have read a great variety over the past 40+ years.

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A Busy Week 12-14-23

 

I guess one doesn't realize how many wrinkles one has until they see a picture!

This was at the Guild meeting on Tuesday. I almost never remember to wear a nametag until I check in at the membership  table and don't want to go back out to my car where there is a bag of nametags in the glovebox.  But I remembered I have this nice Xmasy one, so I put my name in basket and it was pulled as the winner for a nice pack of 5" squares.  I passed my phone to a friend to take the image.

I borrowed Jeanette's special hat for this picture.  This would  make a great addition to my hat collection.  I could even wear it for Arbor Day!  The "beads" are felted wool and came from Trader Joe's!  Actually a tree garland but easily adapted to fine jewelry.

Instead of having a speaker this was a "give back" meeting.   Members have been making quilted stockings which we fill with items for several different  groups - Meals on Wheels, Orangewood Home for children, a veterans service, and others I can't remember.  We have some super shoppers who love to shop, so non-shopping members (like me) give them money to shop for us.

Stuffed stockings go in  boxes for each organization for delivery. We also give pillowcases and quilts to different groups.     It is a huge operation and the members  in charge have it well organized.  It was a fun meeting with time to visit and get to know one another. Many members wore antlers and Santa hats and an amazing array of Xmas clothing.  

And it is time for this blog to do Xmas cartoons........

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Wordless Wednesday 12-13-23

 

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Autumn 12-09-23

We do have seasons in SCalifornia,, but they are not as spectacular as more northerly locations.   We need  the  temp to drop  to 40F for  some plants to turn color, whereas  some just turn brown and quickly fall.   The thermometer has only dropped to about 45F, so not  much  color. 

This block wall is covered with  Virginia Creeper (I think).  The NW facing side is pretty much still green.

I've  fiddled  with this image trying to show the redness, but this is the best I can do.

KoKo gets impatient when I spend too much of his walk taking pictures.  

The Nandina along the drive-thru at Starbuck's becomes more red each time we go there.

There will be a lot of leaves and twigs on the ground tomorrow morning. The wind has been strong all day and is still howling tonight at 10pm.

The palms lose huge dry fronds if the homeowner doesn't have them trimmed. 

Did you know that outdoor Sanseveria grows berries?  This poor plant is still recovering from the yard cleanup in early summer, but it is gutsy enough to put  out a few berries.

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Camera Jiggling 12-08-23

To  explain Wordless Wednesday...   Way back  in 2008 I discovered camera jiggling and experimented doing it several times.  On a SLR you click the button to take a picture at the same time you toss the camera which you have on a string.  The picture is taken as the camera  moves, giving interesting patterns - sometimes. The picture below is my favorite.  Alas, with the advent of phone cameras this doesn't work, at least I cannot do it.  No longer a  playtime possibility.

https://delquilts.blogspot.com/2018/10/what-was-happening-ten-years-ago-10-25.html

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Wordless Wednesday 12-06-23

 

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12-04-23 - Raspberries

You may remember how crazy I am about raspberries.  We grew them in our  backyard when I was growing up  in Portland and we participated in the picking crews that were bussed to the fields outside of town.  I would eat as well as pick. 

This photo is of berries I bought at a roadside stand in Oregon, maybe 15 years ago.  I took a box to breakfast at the motel the next morning and thought I would cause a riot because everyone wanted their share.  The berries were  huge, just four fit in my palm. 

I  do buy them  at  the market when they are in season and sometimes off-season, but they aren't as tasty and  the  price is painful.  

Recently I  was at the market when they had a sale and I wanted to stock up on Bonne Mamon brand, which I think is the best raspberry jam.  A young man was also shopping jams and pointed out that St. Dalfour jam was also on sale and that was much better by far.  "You should try it."  So,I picked up a jar.  And he may be right!    St. Dalfour is VERY rich in raspberry flavor, seedless, and a good consistency.  Also, because it is so rich I need to use less to achieve the same  flavor as Bonne Mamon.   Guess I will need to keep both in my pantry so I will be supplied for any usage. 

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