Wednesday Witterings . . .

 

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Yesterday was a really good day. It started off brilliantly with Cindy and I surprising Dad at the local A&W for breakfast.  He was so pleased that we had come. We were actually there before he was so we sat in the car in the parking lot waiting for him to arrive. We thought he might have seen us, but he didn't so that was good. He was just beaming when he saw us. That made me really happy. Another nice memory to put into my memory bank.

Afterwards we went back to Dollarama again. I picked up another Bento box so that now I have two for when Eileen comes to stay.  We can pack our picnic lunches in them when we go out and about for the day.  I got a few more bins for storage and an insulated bag to keep in the boot of the car so that when Cindy and I go to the Running Man I can pick up frozen stuff without worrying about it thawing out on the way home.

 

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I follow a gal named Lisa-Jo Baker on Instagram. She posted this really thought provoking post the other day.  A Social Media Summer Hall Pass.  It really resonated with me. 

"You are not a tiny box on the Internet. 

You do not have to live enmeshed with 

social media’s demands or timeline. 

 You are free to be free—

to engage as much 

or as little as is healthy for your soul. 

 You are not the Internet’s counselor, 

parent, pastor, or poet. 

 You do not have to sacrifice 

extra hours every day 

servicing strangers or 

managing other people’s opinions of you."

That is only a small portion of her post. Some days I spend literally hours managing the comments on my Facebook English Kitchen page. I don't mind really. That's my job and what keeps the bread and butter on my table.  But sometimes I do wish I had some of that time to do other things like sewing or painting.  And sometimes the things that people say have a really detrimental effect on my soul. I don't have a thick enough skin at times and am not that great at allowing any negativity to roll off my back.

We live in a world where a great many people think that they have a license to say whatever they want to whomever they want without fear of repercussion.  They be nasty, for lack of a better word. They seem to forget that there is another person at the other side of their keyboard and their words. That people aside from themselves have feelings that deserve to be respected and honored.  You can have a difference of opinion, but you have to allow others to have their opinions also.  Kindness is not overrated.  You don't have to have the final opinion on everything, or the right to force your agenda on anyone. As Thumper's mother said, "If you can't say nuffin nice, don't say nuffin at all."

These berries have been in my refrigerator since Friday.  They still look lovely and fresh. I call that a win. I throw away so much fruit, especially berries, that go bad before I can get them all eaten.  I read this the other day, just wash, dry well and pop into a tightly closed glass jar and put in the refrigerator. They will keep longer. I decided to try it with my strawberries and lo and behold, it is working!

I love strawberry season. Mom used to make freezer jam when we were kids. It was so good. In the Winter months we would sometimes have a tasty dessert of vanilla ice cream with strawberry freezer jam spooned over top.

I sometimes miss my jam making days. I used to make lots of jams and pickles every year when the children were growing up. It was my "thing."  I don't do much preserving, if any, these days. For one I would never be able to use it all up and for two, I am a diabetic and don't need to be eating jam! (As much as I love it!)

 

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I found this the other day and thought it quite beautiful. It seems to describe the feels of summer beautifully.  Do you remember how lovely cool grass felt beneath bare feet?  I do. It has been a long time since I have felt the coolness of grass beneath my feet.  The sounds of bullfrogs and peppers . . . electric wires humming in the hot summer sun . . . gathering at the community pools with your friends. Picnics of Kool Aid and peanut butter sandwiches. Ohh, the taste of Kool Aid in a colored aluminum glass. Such lovely memories of summertime.  

The children will all be on summer break now I assume. It is such an exciting time for them all. Two lazy, languorous months stretch before them, filled with adventures untold.

 

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You are never too old for adventures!

 

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When we were living in Suffield, Alberta, one whole side of our little home was lined with beautiful Hollyhocks, whilst the back of the house was bordered with double peonies.  They both seemed to thrive. That was my favorite little house of all the military married quarters that we lived in.   We had three small children and no money. We couldn't even afford a telephone. This was in the very late 1970's/early 1980's.  We did not live there for long We moved there when our Amanda was only 8 weeks old and then moved to London, Ontario in time for Douglas to be born in November of 1981, but for those two-ish years I just loved that house.  It seemed like we lived there longer in my mind, but on paper, it wasn't very long at all.

I guess I just built a lot of happy memories there.  Who knew the intervening years between then and now would pass by so quickly.

 

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Can you imagine having a stove like this in your kitchen?  That's not a very large icebox, but the two look very cute together.  I am assuming it is electric.  

My stove has a solid ceramic top.  Very easy to keep clean. The front right hand burner is quite large and seems to only have two temperatures. Full on scalding or hardly on at all.  There doesn't seem to be any happy medium. I miss my gas/electric stove that I had in the UK. Gas heat is such a great way to cook when it comes to cooking on top of the stove. Instant heat and it doesn't fluctuate unless you manually turn it down or up.  This one I have here seems to fluctuate uncontrollably.  Perhaps I just don't know how to use it.  I was really spoilt in the UK.  And I took it for granted.

I will learn  how to use this stove eventually. Perhaps my sister could advise as she has the same  kind of stove.

 

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“How you define success matters,“ he told me for the thousandth time. He was weeding. And before he scrubbed his arms with dish soap after he pulled out what might have been poison oak, he said it again. You’ve got everything you could want. Boots kicked off at the door. Dirty dishes. A sink full of last night’s memories and a thousand stories of how we got here. Long conversations with kids on the threshold of adulthood. Friends willing to cry with you. Updates from family around the corner, the state, the sea. A great find on Facebook marketplace. Good music blowing in from the neighbor’s backyard. A book you’ve meant to read. A library card. A heart that remembers what it feels like to be broken. The man whose known you for decades and keeps all your dreams as close as his own. Tacos and ice cream sandwiches. Give me all your basic Saturdays. Please and thank you." (source)

What a beautiful reminder that it is the ordinary things in life that have the most meaning. Our lives are composed of ordinary, simple moments and days, that somehow magically weave together to build something quite beautiful, and  . . .  distinctly ours.  Our lives are our story.

And with that I will end my witterings for today.  It's Wednesday, supper with my dad and Hazel tonight.  A magical day stretching before me. However will I fill it?  We shall see!

A thought to carry with you . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

 *.˛The cloud is free

only to go with the wind.

~Wendell Berry•。★★ 。* 。

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  a delicious Cheddar Cheese Bread. Baked in the bread machine. This is one mighty tasty loaf of bread!  My favorite one thus far!

I hope you have a beautiful magical Wednesday filled with love, hope, blessings and peace.  Whatever you get up to, stay safe and don't forget!

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And I do too!