Tall Tales from Kansas

this amazing jumpsuit

When you come to the Lawrence farmers market, if you have a question, head for the information booth where "the person in the know" may or may not be wearing this amazing jumpsuit, but I hope she is. It's spectacular.

This week I jumped up and down and clapped when I saw the mini gourds and decorative corn. 

The dahlias, zinnias, marigolds, and basil were perfection in this arrangement. 

Pumpkin Spice (complete with straw) was the cake of the week from Chonky Sweets and Eats and was going fast by 7:30am. 

I was delighted to see a new batch of dryer balls available for purchase. 

I have been using these for years to reduce drying time and static cling. I like to replace them every 3 years or so.  I have no idea if there is really a "life-span" for dryer balls, but in my house there is.  Also, are they drier balls or dryer balls? 

Get a load of these gnarly gourds.

I did not expect to find green beans this beautiful, but grabbed a bag to go with the chicken and rice Chris was making for dinner on Saturday. 

Kale and roasted butternut squash salad with cranberries and Thai dressing are on the lunch menu this week. 

The light was perfect on Karen as she wrapped up my flower purchases for the week. Bittersweet! 

Which by the way look perfect on my porch.  Did I tell you Chris had a ceiling fan installed out there for me? It's wonderful for stirring the air.  To keep things cool as well as for discouraging bugs. 



Purchases for the week are below. Bittersweet and mini pumpkins and gourds in the house means it's time to change the pillows on the rockers and the front door mat.  Maybe next week, out will go the geraniums, to be replaced with mums. It's fall, and I for one am completely delighted at the prospect of all that means.  

this writer skips the usual ploys

Happy all the Time is the story of Guido Morris and Vincent Cardworthy , two long-time friends, now into early adulthood, who meet Holly Sturgis and Misty Berkowitz. Somehow, each with their individual quirks, turn out to be the right people for each other. As in, the kind destined to spend the rest of their lives together.

This sounds simple, but Laurie Colwin, unlike so many others, manages to avoid the usual pitfalls found in stories about people who meet and fall in love.  It is instead, entertaining with unusual dialogue and situations that make you want to meet these characters, instead of rolling your eyes when you encounter typical romantic angst. She skips the usual ploys, leaving you wondering where things will go next in the relationships you are pretty sure will remain intact. 

This book doesn't fall easily into any category you might want to put it in. Unless it is that type of book you will continue thinking about for awhile after you have finished reading it. 

One last thing I enjoyed was this card that was tucked in the copy I got from my library. On the back was written "...this is one of my mother's paintings - I thought it was a good time to share...",  it was signed Jennifer.  I left it in the book for the next reader to discover. 

Highly Recommended. 

...this dot on the map

This week Chris and I went to Union Station in Kansas City to see Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away. This exhibit, provides a history of the development of Nazi ideology and how the Polish town of Oświęcim became the place where over a million Jews and tens of thousands of others deemed inferior by the Nazis were murdered.  

This exhibit will be in Kansas City until mid January 2022. It is extremely moving, incorporating voices of survivors telling their stories, along with artifacts and photographs. You move through the different galleries at your own pace, with your individual device and headset that allows you to stop, start, or re-listen as needed. It is not be be missed. I will not attempt to describe it more than this. 

to have the most contrast in color value between the strips and the squares

Today the Prairie Makers got together to work on sewing projects. We had such an invigorating session last time, we decided to have another "meeting of the machines".  The photo below will not look like much to a regular sewist, but for me, gathering the sleeves and fitting them into the cuff band in a relatively uniform pattern is no small feat.

 

When I was considering how to best do the gathering after our last session, I discovered the existence of a Bernina "gathering foot". Which I promptly ordered, not realizing it was shipping from Istanbul. I love thinking about it coming to me from that wonderful city. 



It worked just fine and the next step will be gathering the neckline. But because I can never work on just one project at at time, there is also the update on the Spots and Stripes quilt.

I am zipping along on my squares and continue to be quite entertained, getting a few squares done at each sitting. 

With the "stripes on stripes" squares below, it is fun to experiment with pairing the different colors, my preference seems to be to have the most contrast in color value between the strips and the squares.

On a day off, it is so great to engage my brain in things like gathering material, pairing pleasing colors, and just everything NOT related to work. On a related note, last night at knitting class, my friend Dianne brought her autumn cross stitch projects to show me. It took me back to how I so enjoyed doing that years ago. 

Stitching on over dyed linen was something I would never considered, but seriously how cool is this?!

when planning an adventure in the mind the more detailed the better

Last night, in our imaginations, Dottie and Mary Ann and I planned a rendezvous on the Mendocino headlands. We were to meet at 6:30 am by the big tree in front of the white house and from there would proceed out to the trails that wind around the coast above the ocean.

After our walk we would make our way to the Good Life Cafe and Bakery where I would get avocado toast, Dottie the tofu stir fry, and either a strawberry danish or biscuits and gravy for sister. When planning an adventure in the mind the more detailed it can be the better. 

This was the walk taken instead. Which was equally glorious, though I would have appreciated the company of my sisters.





After a weekend of work it feels good to get up early and re-acquaint myself with the joys of an early morning ramble, especially when part of it involves a light sprinkle, and an encounter with 2 deer.

watch the 2 cats who live in peaceful co-existence with the chickens

I don't know about the rest of you who "suffer" with allergies, but this year has been one of my sneeziest in recent memory (yes, sneeziest is the superlative form of sneezy). This has me ready, dare I say it... for the first freeze. Then I remember the zinnias, which are still looking good.

Which means I have to show you these. 

The vase above is from a flea market in Budapest, the one below from a botanical garden in Sweden.

This tall pottery vase is from the Lost Coast Found antique store in Ft. Bragg, California. A local potters early work? A rare treasure?  I love to collect small bottles, jars, and vases from my travels. 

Happy Weekend all.  If you are in the vicinity of Lawrence and looking for some morning coffee and a pastry may I suggest you stop in at 1900 Barker? Get yourself a morning bun and go sit on the patio out back. It's shaded by trees and you can watch the 2 cats next door who live in peaceful co-existence with the chickens. 

Helpful links: 1900 Barker
 

the sun, the sky, the sunflowers

Early morning sunrise at the Baker Wetlands is hard to beat. Oh the sky, with all those colors, it never fails to get me. 

The sunflowers are blooming right now. Not a field of those giant headed ones, but I think you will agree they are equally wonderful. Especially at 63 degrees, when you and the birds have the place completely to yourself.

This silky fluff emerging from an open milkweed pod was putting on a show, just for me.


As was this big giant spider that I was grateful to spot before I walked into it's web. 


It's hard to know where to look, in the morning light everything is fine.

As I circled back to where I started, the sky was a bright blue, the perfect background for the impossibly perfect sunflowers, in all phases of bloom.

I didn't make it to the lotus pond, so captivated was I by the sun, the sky, the sunflowers, and of course the grasses. 

In the realm of all the things one can hope for, the thing I most want, is to never cease to be stopped in my tracks by nature. 

I don't know that I necessarily agree with all of that, but it is a good story

I made a special trip to the post office this morning, to get 15 more minutes of listening time in, and reach the conclusion of The Last Thing he Told Me by Laura Dave. It's a good listen. Rebecca Lowman is the narrator and has a great voice. If I had been reading, I would have plowed through it a bit faster, instead of chewing slowly, and giving it the attention it deserved. 

On the back cover it says it is a "...riveting mystery, certain to shock you with it's final, heartbreaking, twist..." I don't know that I necessarily agree with all of that, but it is a good story, well written, which keeps you wanting more. The characters are likable and the ending satisfying without being predictable or trite. Recommended. Especially if you have a road trip coming up. 

the marriage of a biscuit texture and a muffin flavor that needs no embellishment whatsoever

Here are the contents of my market basket from Saturday. The treat in that brown bag shall be discussed later.  

There is nothing better than a 65 degree morning with the sun coming up over the market. It lets me know for a moment, that all is right in the world. 



I love a good crop of marigolds. They always put me in a Dia de los Muertos frame of mind which makes me want to watch Coco again this year. 

You know I snagged a nice bag of arugula, there will be time in the coming weeks for the acquisition of apples and pumpkins.  







Linda had on the most amazing blue/green "butterfly" glasses, and THE smile to go with them. 



These bundles of drying grasses, flowers, and branches were simple and beautiful. 



This week was the week I decided it was time to try some sourdough bread from the Peters Family Farm. 



Since I am writing this post on Sunday night, I can tell you that it was everything sourdough should be. Dense and flavorful, it made perfect toast for breakfast and was equally good with butter, garlic, parmesan, salt and pepper, under the broiler with dinner. 

I loved her flower toting method that allowed for continued hands-free shopping. Sometimes you spot the bouquet you want and don't want to trust it will still be there after the rest of your shopping has been wrapped up. 



I myself was a sucker for the bouquet with pink dahlias this week, they went quite well with the orange zinnias that were already on the table.  



Last but absolutely not least is this cranberry orange scone from Chonky Sweets and Eats. Several weeks ago they told me how good their scones were, this week I tested. I am a HUGE scone fan. In my mind the perfect scone is the marriage of a biscuit texture and a muffin flavor that needs no embellishment whatsoever. The raw sugar on top provided a wonderful crunch. I was told it would be perfect as is, but if I warmed it in the oven for about 5-10 minutes it would be even better. Which was excellent advice. This was one of, if not THE best scone I have ever eaten. Well done. 

on page 13 of the guide to looking good in any situation

Apparently I was in an orange frame of mind when I went outside to snip flowers last week.

With a dash of yellow and a stem of sage, placed on top of a cupcake platter for extra height, I liked them just fine.

They are only surpassed by the front porch arrangement this week which consisted of big, bushy, blooms, of bright colors.

Again with the color transitions... 

Upstairs by the computer there was this,

and in front of the sink, these. 

On a completely unrelated topic... at this exact moment I am texting with a friend - we have nothing to wear to the "cocktail party" we are going to tonight. I am trying to convince her that we should wear halloween costumes and she doesn't seem to think that will work. As for me, I am going to adhere to what is written on page 13 of the guide to looking good in any situation, "...the key to feeling confident in what you are wearing wherever you go, is not looking in the mirror after you are dressed, and believing what your mind tells you when it says you look great".