Spiced Tea and Shawls

It's that time of year when hot drinks and warm clothes aren't just luxuries; they're necessities. So I have this nice recipe for my spiced tea and added this new shawl made by a technique that I invented/taught myself. After all, there's nothing new under the sun, so maybe I just re-invented it.^^ It's kind of a cross between crochet and weaving, so I have no idea what to call it. Suggestions?

Makes about a pint of spiced tea mix

18 oz Tang (or other sweetened orange drink mix)
1 dry unsweetened lemonade packet
1 tsp cloves
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)
3/4 cup instant tea


Mix. That's it; just put it in a bowl and  mix. To brew you just add a heaping spoonful to a coffee cup with some hot water.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are having as much fun as I am up at my grandmother's, that you are eating lots of good food, and that you have lots of things to be thankful for^^

Train tracks and fall leaves. I'm thankful for the great weather!

October Birds

Most Americans think of crows and ravens this time of year, but in my neck of the woods it's cowbirds. I might see two crows all year, and I don't think I've seen a raven since the last time I went to the bird exhibit at the zoo. Cow bids are easily spotted, because they have greenish black heads and brownish black bodies. They lay their eggs in other birds nests, and when the hatch-lings are fledged they make their way to the closest flock. Parasitic birds are creepy, right?

The Last Rose of Summer

Summer is officially over, and yet my rose bush has decided to re-bloom. It usually blooms in the spring, so maybe the cool weather we're getting has something to do with it.







Plus this pink yukata and black obi set are finished and in the mail. I hope it gets to her before the 27th^^

Summer Vacation 8

And here we are, in New Orleans. Home of Mardi Gras, Cafe Du Monde's Beignets (epic), and apparently a lot of rain. This leads me to use the phrase "I got sloshed in New Orleans." Literally^^
We made it home, and I'm ready for a vacation!



Sloshed is the term I would use. It took two days for my shoes to dry!



The rain did not stop the street performers though^^



The original Plague Doctors were medical men who volunteered to treat poor plague victims during the black death. They wore waxed clothing, long cloaks, and beaked masks given to them for their service. The beaks were filled with herbs to prevent the doctor from catching the disease, and the clothes were also supposed to protect them. Simply by being there they may have saved many lives. Sadly, only one known doctor survived the outbreak; all others died of the disease. An ornate version of the mask became popular at the Venetian Carnival, and has been a popular mask design since.

Summer Vacation 7

And home we head. Back through Texas, to Louisiana today.



We visited the San Jacinto Monument in La Port, Texas; the tallest monument tower in the US. When Texas got permission to build it, the state was told not to have it any taller than the Washington monument in Washington DC. So they built it the exact same height, and then put a giant star on top. Sneaky, right?
The monument was built to commemorate the battle that lead to Texas becoming it's own country, and later a US state. The battle is also directly responsible for much of the southwestern states joining the USA.



This is an example of some beautiful tatting work. I hope my tatting will look this good some day. Done in thread weight floss.

Summer Vacation 6

Last day here at the beach; we head home tomorrow. Bummer.



This is the kitchen of a WWII Submarine at Seawolf Park on Galveston Island. Can you imagine making meals for 80 men in this kitchen? BTW Robert is twelve, and less than 5 ft, just so you know how small it is. It was so cool to walk around inside the submarine. Unfortunately we couldn't go everywhere; people had been stealing parts of this national treasure for souvenirs.



Hermit crabs. The twins and Maggie caught over a hundred of them. Aren't they cool?

Summer Vacation 5

Vacation is almost over, and I've seen all sorts of sea critters. I've seen dolphins, man o' wars, a school of sting rays, crabs (hermit, sand, and blue^^)and the noble sea creature; the plastic bag.
What, a plastic bag isn't a sea animal? But it lives in the water, and turtles and other animals eat them! Imagine thinking you have a nice tasty jellyfish, and eating a plastic bag instead. Yuck. I may have looked weird, but I picked them up and put them in the trash. Why they weren't there in the first place boggles my mind.



Sea birds. There was this one pelican who kept soaking himself, and then puffing out is chest and spreading his wings^^ Another was missing a wing, but that didn't keep it from catching the fish!



This is Our Lady, Star of the Sea Catholic Church. When the floods came through Texas the tall towers and sea facing statue of Mary on this church guided people to safety. You can see the statue from the beach, a mile away! Unfortunately the church itself took some water damage in the basement.



Jellyfish^^

Summer Vacation 4

The ocean at night is beautiful. I enjoyed taking walks in the morning too. Less sunburn, and being a pasty white girl, that's important.





I caught this little sand crab under a street light. It was munching away on a grass hopper, so it stayed still long enough to photograph. Then it just walked across the highway back to the beach!

Summer Vacation 3

The ocean in Galveston Texas is a green-ish brown, with seaweed up the coast line. And turtle watch signs everywhere. The endangered Kemp's Ridley turtle nests in the area, and the beach patrol takes their job very seriously. I didn't see any turtles, but these friendly seagulls were everywhere.

Summer Vacation 2

Yesterday we made it to Louisiana. We then visited a civil war monument, and went to bed. It's a long drive!

Today there were bayous. Lots of bayous. And Cajun music which, if you've never heard it, is a strange mix of southern accents and French.



A bayou. Swampy; with trees, crawdads (aka mud-bugs or crayfish) and alligators included.



And you can't pass Avery Island without stopping at the Tabasco plant. It's near Baton Rouge, so we stopped for a break. And some jalapeno ice-cream. Weird, but tasty^^



This sign is ironic. I mean REALLY ironic. Why? Because right after we got the key to the beach house, we were involved in a three car accident caused by a speeding pizza delivery guy. Left a giant dent in the back of the bus, and we can't open the back doors. Luckily no one was hurt, and the only one who ended up needing a tow was the pizza guy. Who also had to pay damages. And we got to meet some Texas police officers. Welcome to Texas, land of friendly drivers indeed.

Summer Vacation 1

What do you get when you stuff most of the clan into the bus and go on vacation? I have no idea, but you know it's going to involve noise. And whining. Messes too, for that matter.



Road trip on the short bus^^



Some tornado damage in Southern Alabama. See how the trees are lopsided and missing most of their branches? Last year's tornadoes ripped them clean off. Living in Tornado alley can be scary. And I am not looking forwards to all the work that needs to be done at our house. A whole section of fence was smashed by some huge branches, and there are trees down in the back yard. Grrr. At least no one was hurt, and nothing hit the house. But for now, it's time for a vacation adventure^^

Pseudo Irish lace and bamboo dilemmas

I am working on this pseudo-Irish lace shawl/veil/hijab/shawl. I call it pseudo, because I am sewing the motifs to a open weave cotton fabric as opposed to making my own net. It's still taking forever; it took two days just to crochet the lace trim.



Also, I have these segments of bamboo William cut while he was here. Not sure what I'll do with them, but I'm sure they'll be cool^^



Also, who wants to play spot the wacky things on Heather's bookshelf?

Recycling and Other News Part 2

Today I finished the recycled yarn project. It ended up being a shawl/wrap, but Maggie still thinks it's a baby blanket. I guess you could use it as one, but since there are no babies here I don't see why we will.




Also, my pond is so cover in pond pads you could walk across it with out getting one's feet wet. To bad they don't have pretty flowers like lotus or water lilies. I'm not sure you can eat them either...



I'm also thinking about teaching a crochet class. What do you think?

Nashville Zoo + Boy Scouts =

So, yesterday I drove all the webelo scouts of the local den to the Nashville zoo in the Beast; the twelve passenger van. It rained. People wondered off, whined, and expected me to buy them snacks. Somehow 'boy scout outing' became every one is invited, including kindergarten aged girls. I almost got lost on the way home. But hey, no one died, got kidnapped, or caught pneumonia, so all in all, a successful trip.

Mulberry Trees

Today I learned that the tree growing in front of my window (which I have been trying to kill for ages but just won't die) is a black mulberry. Black mulberries are a cultivated form of the mulberry tree, and are not wild fruit trees like other mulberries. They are rather rare in my state, so I had never seen a black mulberry before. Now that I know what it is it's no wonder I can't get rid of it; mulberry trees are almost impossible to kill. If it were anywhere else I would leave it alone, I don't like cutting down healthy trees, but it is so close to the house it's digging into the foundation. Since I now know it won't get any bigger root wise maybe I can figure out a way to live with the thing attacking my house. Now what I want to know is why the previous home owner thought it would be a good idea to plant the poor tree up against a wall. It certainly didn't put itself there.



See the poor thing? Why would you plant a tree like that? Yeah, you can pick the berries from the dining room, but still...

Nashville Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom Festival)

Today was the 2012 Nashville Sakura Matsuri. Here is the official website; nashvillecherryblossomfestival.org. The curse continued; rain chased us from the park as the festival came to a close. Always with the soaking!
There are several Sakura matsuri, or cherry blossom festivals, in America this time of year. Washington DC in particular is a big one, but Hanami (flower viewing) parties are scattered all over the US. This year was special because Nashville received three baby cherry trees grown from cuttings from the original cherry trees given to our countries' capitol by the mayor of Tokyo in 1912. This year marks the 100th aniversary of the first Japanese cherry grove in the US. I know that according to Japanese folklore objects sometimes gain spirits after reaching a hundred years. I wonder if cherry trees do as well?

The last of the cherry blossoms. It rained petals as the wind blew.

These guys were adorable little troublemakers. Their mother would dry them off and they'd be right back in the fountain. It was too cold, but they didn't seem to mind.

This was a demonstration of a tea ceramony. The way of the tea is so complicated!

A sakura kusadama.

Yoyo balloons. You had to hook the string with a wire hook attached to a twisted rice paper rope. Tricky like you wouldn't believe.

First Day of Spring

Spring Equinox is here, and with it the Spring. There are bugs, birds, and baby animals everywhere. Is it any wonder almost every culture and religion has a celibration of new life this time of year? Easter, of course, is what I celebrate; a story of rebirth out of what appears dead. Like a pheonix, let's make this new life better than the old one.

With all the warmth all my flowers are seriously confused. The lilac is blooming almost a month before usual.

I took this picture of cherry blossoms last weekend. Good thing too; they're already falling. Looking forward to the cherry blossom festival this weekend, even if the trees are bare.

Not sure what kind of flower this tsumami kanzashi hairstick is, but I made it anyway.

Also, this strawberry kanzashi. It was a fun hair accessory to make. It seems a little early, but the plants are already blooming. The berries will be here before we know it.

Nashville zoo / spring break

This week was spring break, and it's not over yet. Tomorrow is the twin's birthday party; their birthday is actually the 13th, but their friends are coming over tomorrow. Yesterday we went to the Nashville zoo. Here are some pics^^

 It was over 80F!

The elephants were enjoying it a lot.

This iguana was part of the America exhibit.

There were many different animals from all over North and South America.

Some of them I see all the time, but black widows and brown recluses

aren't nearly as friendly as this guy was^^ 



The play ground at the entrance is huge.

This is only one of six or seven parts.

Some parts were four stories tall!

3.11 media

Over the last couple days I have read many stories about the Tohoku Earthquake. Some of these stories are about the brave survivors, the amazing clean up work, and the mass prayers and ceremonies for both the living and the deceased. However, many of the ones most pushed, reported, or published were highly offensive. They made me ashamed of some of my country members, who apparently only care that they are/might be affected by this tragedy.
This goes especially for those who only see this as a platform for their personal agendas. Whether they are against the fishing boats, feel the Japan's way of life is wrong, claim Japan is over populated, or anything else does not give them the right to slander our neighbors. The fear mongering and hateful way that this natural disaster has been portrayed, especially by English speaking media, disgusts me.
The main tragedy was the loss of over 20,000 lives; not a nuclear accident. The brave men of Dai-ichi plant are to be commended; and while certain groups could have moved faster or done more, hindsight is always 20/20. Saying things like Japan should be cleaning up the mess in the ocean so we don't have to, destroy all nuclear plants because while we still need electrical power we don't want to deal with the consequences, or that anyone deserved the Tsunami for any reason is selfish. Let us stop accusing each other of things and help one another.