Outside My Window ~ 3.13.11

Outside My Window…is a twilight sky as the sun sets on this amazing day.  It was beautiful….we had a high temperature of 70°F, mostly sunny and just a slight breeze….definitely a spring teaser.  I wandered around the yard this weekend ~ I should have been picking up some leaves and pulling some weeds, but I just looked.  I’m actually a little hesitant to start weeding right now ~ I’m afraid I may pull up a would be flower so I wait a little bit, until I’m certain it is a weed.  The violets are coming back nicely ~ but they are a type of weed so they are fairly hardy.  I have to say, they are a very pretty weed with beneficial qualities as well.  My black and red lilies are coming back….no sign of the Lily of the Valley yet but I think they will be here soon.  And remember the morning glories from last year…I got a lot of seeds from them this fall.  I’m looking forward to photographing more of them this year.

I am thinking…I’m going to have to pass on Mrs. David Rose’s email about giving me 6.5 million dollars to pass on to charity. You see, she is ill and wants to make sure her deceased husbands money does not go to their government.  All I have to do is say I will and she will put me in touch with her bank, who I’m sure will request all my banking and personal information so they can wire the money.  Or maybe I just email her and say good deal but rather than wire it to my bank, pack it up and send it…in small bills so I can spread the wealth.  Of course you know I am kidding and have no intention of responding….this is one of “those” emails…the kind that try to trap people into providing their personal information.  And you have to figure, anyone who believes that some random person is going to send them that much money has got to be a little bit greedy.  That would be the only reason I can see why they wouldn’t be able to see right through the scam.

I am thankful…for the things I was able to accomplish today…for being able to work from home tomorrow….for figuring out how to accomplish a graphic design issue I was having and feeling really good that I did.

From my kitchen…will be a small broiled steak topped with a little feta cheese and some steamed asparagus.  Yum.  Has anyone ever tried the Ziploc steamer bags?  If you like things steamed but you don’t own a steamer basket….or like me you don’t always want to drag it out…these are wonderful.  They come in really handy for work…fresh steamed vegetables are so much better than reheated ones…in my humble opinion.  By the way, Ziploc has not asked or paid me to say these things, I just really like the bags and thought I would mention it to you.  The only thing I found is their times listed were a little long for me, I like my vegetables a bit crunchier.  You can play around with the time and adjust to your taste very easily though.  Right now  I’m enjoying a glass of blackberry sage iced tea and thinking I want dinner pretty quick.  Tomorrow I think we will have grilled chicken and cheese burritos for dinner…I have been craving them lately.

I am creating…several different designs.  I have been working on some things for seniors ~ graduation open house announcements, senior rep cards or cards that could be included with announcements.  I’m also trying to develop something for a friend to use to promote her business.  Lots of pies….so few fingers to put in them. 

I am going…to make some face and body cream for a friend at work, probably tomorrow evening.  I’m also going to make a batch of Shea butter soap for Nina…’cause she loves it so.  🙂

I am reading…the Harry Potter series.  You know, I realized I have seen the movies more than I have read the books…and I had forgotten that the movies didn’t follow the story to the letter.  The idea is there, but situations and people were changed.  I suppose it is the same with all books to movies.

I am hoping…that the survivors of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan are able to receive aid sooner rather than later.  I can’t even imagine how surreal it must be for them.  I haven’t watched a lot of the news because I am not so fond of how they can saturate the air waves with video after video after video, but I have seen a few.  I have seen photographs…heartbreaking, unbelievable…just incredible the magnitude of devastation. 

I am hearing…the ticking of my many clocks ~ which have been set forward by the way….a commercial on television….the hum of the refrigerator….my wind chimes singing lightly to me.

Around the house…a nice clean living room and…ready for this, an organized and clean work area.  Oh yea!   🙂

Plans for the week include…working from home on Monday….meeting my new director on Wednesday (gulp)….taking Cailin to a doctor’s appointment….working on more layouts for cards, including some boutique cards.

One of my favorite things…is seeing my flowers and plants come back each spring.  I have my morning glory seeds to plant and trying again with the moon flowers this year.  Last year was a disappointment with them, but I have a new plan this year which I think will work.  I also have a few seed packs I picked up recently….Spanish Eyes Mix Black Eyed Susan….Zinnias, of course….and a summer cutting garden mix of Sunflowers.  I decided I wanted a bit more variety with the sunflowers this year and these look really interesting.  You know there will be photographs so stay tuned.  🙂

A photograph I would like to share with you…a couple of months ago while picking up some bird seed from Lowe’s, I ran across the coolest looking corn on the cob holder for squirrels…and it was a bargain!  It was fashioned after an old style metal lawn chair with a large screw sticking up from the seat for the cob corn.  Perfect for the backyard because I thought if I gave the squirrels their own treat (which is quite cheap by the way), they would leave the feeders alone.  They haven’t been having a lot of luck climbing the poles since I started putting apricot kernel oil on them….hysterical to watch by the way.  They jump on the pole only to slide down.  It kind of freaks them out and sometimes they jump off and kind of look at the pole like it is possessed.  Sometimes they get mad and chatter at it….but it is really hysterical to watch.  I know, not so nice….so my trade-off is the lawn chair.  Now I have been putting the cob corn out there, and after a couple of days, it is picked clean….but I have yet to see what is eating it.  Was it squirrel or bird?  I got an answer this morning….