Upcoming weekend.
I love the month of May in Louisville! It starts with the end of Derby festival (2 - 3 weeks of parades, steamboat races, Chow Wagons, free concerts, steamboat and hot air balloon races) and the running of the Kentucky Derby. After a couple of quiet days to recuperate & clean up, we’re back at it again. I feel like I need to clone myself to do half of what I want!
This weekend, there is the Beechmont Festival of Flowers which is a fund-raising event for my little neighborhood association. Later in the day, the How-To Festival at the public library. Also this weekend, both Saturday & Sunday, is the Flea Off Market.
This Sunday, Mom & I are going to our favorite art supply store for Mother’s Day. She wanted to get fried fish & beer down the street, but Sundays until 1pm they only serve beignets and coffee. We’re both excited that dyes are on sale right now - she is preparing a batik demonstration for a quilting group, and we both regularly dye articles of clothing to freshen them up or (in my case) to use tie-dye to strategically cover food and oil stain on favorite tops. Jacquard Procion MX is my favorite - you only have to add soda ash to fix the dye to the fibers, and you can use cold water to dye. When you do batik, since you build up layers of wax, it is vital to use cold water. Try to dye in hot water and your wax melts, ruining the design. The Procion MX is good for cellulose-based fibers (linen, cotton) but they also make dyes for other natural fibers (silk, wool). We also use these little packets called iDye. You don’t need to add anything, you can use them in your washing machine on the hot setting. They sell them for natural and synthetic fabrics. Even if you have a garment with mixed fibers, you can just combine the two.
I’m looking forward to spending time with my folks while Mick is out of town. He isn’t an impediment to that, far from it, but there is a different energy there when it is just the three of us. I always look forward to going over on Tuesdays for dinner with my folks. Dad & Mick trade good-natured barbs about politics and discuss education. In the last couple of days, it has occurred to me how much I’ve neglected my local social life. I have a couple of good friends in town, but most of my closest friends live out of town. I have lots of acquaintances here, but so few people I can call to invite over and hang out on my porch, have a drink. I know part of that rests on me - Mick & I spend most of our free time together. While he is gone, I’m left a little lost at first. I’ve been active, keeping my hands and mind occupied, but it feels empty. Last night, I baked chicken for meals for the next couple of days, made a yummy chicken salad (almonds, red grapes, celery, pepper, mayo & touch of Dijon mustard), made a batch of laundry soap, made a batch of coffee sugar scrub, made a Greek-yogurt jello dessert, and hung out on the porch with a beer to keep the critters company.
After I got off work, I went to this little neighborhood fruit stand that has a bunch of tired-looking greenhouses out back. Their bedraggled appearance doesn't prepare you for the lush plants and flowers they sell there. It is run by a small Vietnamese woman who will tell you very sharply how much sun is good for a plant, how often to water it. She is helpful but brusque - I don't mind that combination at all. I bought herbs, vegetable plants and marigolds, then planted them in our elevated gardens out back. We've made chicken-wire cages to keep out the squirrels - I hope they are successful. I'm going to spend a quiet evening in, I think. They are calling for thunderstorms - I'd like to sit on the porch and watch the rain on my garden.
This weekend, there is the Beechmont Festival of Flowers which is a fund-raising event for my little neighborhood association. Later in the day, the How-To Festival at the public library. Also this weekend, both Saturday & Sunday, is the Flea Off Market.
This Sunday, Mom & I are going to our favorite art supply store for Mother’s Day. She wanted to get fried fish & beer down the street, but Sundays until 1pm they only serve beignets and coffee. We’re both excited that dyes are on sale right now - she is preparing a batik demonstration for a quilting group, and we both regularly dye articles of clothing to freshen them up or (in my case) to use tie-dye to strategically cover food and oil stain on favorite tops. Jacquard Procion MX is my favorite - you only have to add soda ash to fix the dye to the fibers, and you can use cold water to dye. When you do batik, since you build up layers of wax, it is vital to use cold water. Try to dye in hot water and your wax melts, ruining the design. The Procion MX is good for cellulose-based fibers (linen, cotton) but they also make dyes for other natural fibers (silk, wool). We also use these little packets called iDye. You don’t need to add anything, you can use them in your washing machine on the hot setting. They sell them for natural and synthetic fabrics. Even if you have a garment with mixed fibers, you can just combine the two.
I’m looking forward to spending time with my folks while Mick is out of town. He isn’t an impediment to that, far from it, but there is a different energy there when it is just the three of us. I always look forward to going over on Tuesdays for dinner with my folks. Dad & Mick trade good-natured barbs about politics and discuss education. In the last couple of days, it has occurred to me how much I’ve neglected my local social life. I have a couple of good friends in town, but most of my closest friends live out of town. I have lots of acquaintances here, but so few people I can call to invite over and hang out on my porch, have a drink. I know part of that rests on me - Mick & I spend most of our free time together. While he is gone, I’m left a little lost at first. I’ve been active, keeping my hands and mind occupied, but it feels empty. Last night, I baked chicken for meals for the next couple of days, made a yummy chicken salad (almonds, red grapes, celery, pepper, mayo & touch of Dijon mustard), made a batch of laundry soap, made a batch of coffee sugar scrub, made a Greek-yogurt jello dessert, and hung out on the porch with a beer to keep the critters company.
After I got off work, I went to this little neighborhood fruit stand that has a bunch of tired-looking greenhouses out back. Their bedraggled appearance doesn't prepare you for the lush plants and flowers they sell there. It is run by a small Vietnamese woman who will tell you very sharply how much sun is good for a plant, how often to water it. She is helpful but brusque - I don't mind that combination at all. I bought herbs, vegetable plants and marigolds, then planted them in our elevated gardens out back. We've made chicken-wire cages to keep out the squirrels - I hope they are successful. I'm going to spend a quiet evening in, I think. They are calling for thunderstorms - I'd like to sit on the porch and watch the rain on my garden.