The other day I found myself stuck as I contemplated meal planning with temps reaching the high 90s. Even with the a/c and a good exhaust fan I simply was not in the mood to heat up the kitchen.
You, too?
I found myself dreaming about casseroles and sheet pan meals. I even contemplated roasting a chicken. Pork roasts…pot roasts…chili…baking potatoes all rambled through my brain. <sigh> There really is a limit to the amount of salads and cold fruits. And I like those foods, too.
Before we know it, we will be up to our ears with all those things we have been dreaming about and more. In the meantime, there is cold chicken in the fridge along side the cherry tomatoes and watermelon. And the iced tea, gotta have the iced tea!
Second Thought: The Didius Boys Strike Again. Actually the entire family.
I awaited the release of this book with a bit of trepidation. Having read the entire Falco and Albia series, I knew Albia’s backstory and her propensity for…strong reaction and response. I’ve seen her tempered as a result of her relationship with Manlius Faustus but there has always been an undercurrent of the fiery temper we knew from her days in Britain when Falco & Helena rescued her.
After the last couple of books where Faustus and the rest of the household were barely in evidence, it was nice to have them all back, front and center. Having more of the extended family just made everything better.
One of the more interesting aspects of this series is the way Lindsey Davis has pulled threads from earlier books (from both series) and brought them forward. Folks were wanting more after Pandora’s Boy and they got their wish. To be honest, I almost was another character list/spreadsheet to keep all the folks straight.
Florius’ return to Rome after decades away has upended the delicate balance of the various crime families in the city. Everyone is jockeying for control, if not just more opportunity to make more money as a result of their various illegal endeavors.
What starts out as an innocent trip to the riverbank turns into Albia’s next case when a body is pulled from the river. It is clear from the very beginning that lots of things just don’t add up. Unraveling the mystery strikes the match that starts on her quest to find (and kill?) Florius.
Family is the overarching theme of this book. Who is, or is not, part of the family? For Albia, the folks who make up her family have a history with many of the other characters we encounter, some going back years.
For Florius, the relationships he has developed over the years create quite a complicated, if not dangerous, web that could get him killed way before Albia finds him.
The original question is Who killed the lady pulled from the river? Early on I found myself thinking it would be the person it ended up being but there was a lot (!!!!) that surprised me.
If you have read Nemesis (Falco #20) you know that solution. If you have read both series you already know what the Didius family are made of. The solution to the original question in this book brought us to a resolution that surprised me…until I thought about what I knew about everyone involved.
Thanks to a rather odd algorithm, a few weeks ago I tripped over a YouTube channel that is totally not my usual go to but it caught my attention and I found myself returning and eventually subscribing.
The channel is Dee & Dory Design Dreamers and is hosted by two sisters, Dee and Dory, who have been sharing their love of thrifting and sewing for several years. The ladies seek out fabrics, notions and patterns in thrift shops and garage sales, bring them home and make lovely garments with them.
I am not a garment sewist but I have to admit I am captivated, dare I say it intrigued, watching them create their wardrobes? I enjoy the humor they bring to their videos, too.
I especially appreciate their reminding viewers that home sewing does not need to be expensive, that it is possible to find the patterns and fabrics at lower cost.
As for the unpaper towel, this came from one of their earliest videos and I have to say I love the idea. Check it out below:
What a great idea!
While the idea of the Unpaper Towel being a great starting point for new sewists, I think it is equally important to encourage folks who want to learn to sew but hesitate due to cost of materials that they can start in without spending a huge amount of money.
I am still working my way through Dee & Dory’s video catalog. From what I have seen there are lots of thrifting, lots of sewing and lots of trips. Glad I clicked that subscribe button!
Enjoy!
FOLLOW UP
I have managed to watch quite a few of the earlier videos in addition to keeping up with the weekly Sunday videos where they show a lot of their makes. I was interested to see how they have adjusted where they shop for things. In addition to their thrifting, they use Fabric Mart a lot. You might want to check them out HERE.
Overall, I rather enjoy their channel. There is a lot of inspiration there.
I’ve been a fan of steeped iced tea for decades. I’ve used many methods to make it, usually starting with hot water. Turns out, that isn’t necessary.
I have my trusty Iced Tea Maker (so old the brand no longer exists) and I have contemplated upgrading to a new model with new pitchers. NOTE: If you are looking at something like this be mindful that the plastic pitchers can often get stress cracks over time which cause leaking. Not really an issue if you have another pitcher to serve the tea. Glass sounds great but weight can be an issue, too.
I recently got a gallon sized plastic pitcher that will serve my tea. Rather than load it with ice to start, I simply added my tea bags to the pitcher and then filled it with cold water. I wasn’t particular about the temperature of the water, I just wasn’t interested in using warm or hot water at it would take longer to cool. I also added the amount of sweetener (sugar) I wanted. I stirred it all together and set it on the counter to steep.
That was it. It sat on the counter for about an hour to an hour and a half, not in any sun, and just steeped. Once it got to a color I thought was about right for the strength of the brew I wanted, I removed the tea bags, squeezed them dry and put the pitcher of tea into the fridge.
A word about tea bags – There are loads on the market. I prefer family sized tea bags simply because I require fewer of them for my use. I have also used the standard size. It is up to you.
The end result was a brew I was happy with, not too sweet, and no need for appliances or a stash of ice just to make the tea. The ice was used to serve it.
Why go this route? In my area it is so hot outside that plastic melts and glass will get hot enough to burn. Not good. While I can still use my old trusty electric tea maker, if the power should go out, I now have a method that I know will work to make tea.
If you like steeped iced tea why not give this method a try?
Don’t look now, but it is Christmas In July time again. Yeah, I am not ready, either.
We have less than six months to prepare for the December Holidays. For some that is too much time, for others not nearly enough. Me? I’m trying to make up my mind for my holiday card design.
Speaking of which, Sassy’s LLC has just released her first Christmas In July Emergency Card Kit. I have recently discovered this YouTuber and won’t lie, she is quite interesting. Check her out HERE.
Call me Crafty Al has been doing a lot of videos with ideas using a wide variety of brands and designs. Check out her channel HERE.
Cathy Zielske has been doing some beautiful work using stencils. This could lead to some interesting holiday cards. Check out her channel HERE.
Miss Jenny and the gang over at Missouri Star Quilt Company have been hinting at some seriously amazing Christmas projects. I’ve been impressed, not to mention inspired, by several of their latest shows. Check them out HERE.
And let’s not forget Maymay Made It. I expect we will be treated to an entire Christmas In July with new stamp sets, tips and tricks, and card and projects designs. Check them out HERE.
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I always enjoy Beryl and Edwina. These books are just the right amount of cozy to make the mystery enjoyable. What surprised me was the realization that we have come to the one year mark of when these two friends reconnected and their adventures in mystery solving began.
Barbara Rosenblat does an amazing job with the voices in these books. Teamed with Jessica Ellicott’s wonderful stories, the audio books are a pleasure to listen to.
One of the most apparent things in this book is the amount of growth all of the characters have undergone. We are also looking at a change in circumstance that, to be honest, I’m not sure will resolve itself in ways some readers (not to mention characters) think it will. We shall have to see.
A psychic medium has come to the village and the resulting uproar might be the cause of the murder or it might simply be the red herring to disguise who did it and why.
Beryl and Edwina carefully peel back the layers to find a resolution for their client (The Vicar’s Wife) while managing to work with Doris Gibbs – who ever thought we would see that?
What is next for our intrepid duo? I, for one, can’t wait to find out!
I watch quite a few animal content providers over on YouTube. I like to think I am pretty selective, too. I will be honest, I don’t recall when I first became aware of SOLA.
SOLA is a Border Collie who lives in South Korea with her Hoomans and at least one other dog. She has been foster mom to a lovely orange cat, affectionately referred to as ‘chicken nugget’. She is a sweet, funny dog with a huge heart.
Check her out:
There is a lot to her story, so don’t forget to check out all the videos on the channel.
It has been and odd few days around here. MeTV Toons debuted but is not available over the air (via antenna) in my area. To add insult to injury, antenna feed can often be affected by weather, causing signal drift or deterioration. I finally bit the bullet and looked at the two streaming options in my area to see what is available.
I chose FrndlyTV but there is another option. If you are interested, check out the MeTV Toons Where to Watch page to see what is available for you.
A side benefit of subscribing to FrndlyTV is that I now have access to all three MeTV channels: MeTV, MeTV+, and MeTV Toons.
Saturday morning is once again filled with lots of great cartoons! The weekly lineup is filled with great toons from a variety of eras. Saturday continues that and adds shows not seen Monday through Friday. Sunday looks to be even better.
I’m glad I took the plunge and subscribed, I have already explored FrndlyTV’s easy to maneuver interface and tested out the DVR feature. I won’t lie, it is nice to have shows to watch that I couldn’t easily find elsewhere – even via antenna.
Heading back to the regularly scheduled cartoon fest…
“I am a queen upon this board and I do not play to lose.”
Once again Sherry Thomas and Kate Reading have brought me a book that is luscious to listen to, complicated and meticulously plotted. In short, I had to actually pay attention. LOL!
I found myself thinking back to when I listened to the first book in the series and was astounded at the way Ms. Thomas turned the entire Sherlock Holmes series on its’ ear. As a rule, I don’t care for the many volumes of attempts by authors to evolve the original Holmes into something he wasn’t or to add characters that were not even hinted at by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Charlotte Holmes was, to say the least, totally unexpected and a welcome shift, not to mention addition to, the genre.
A Ruse of Shadows gathers threads from most of the preceding books. This could be a problem for folks who have not started at the beginning of the series, but it could also be a pleasant ‘ah ha’ when they start in with the first book.
As I said, I had to pay attention with this one as there are some twist and turns, not to mention red herrings, that took me off the path. By the time I got to the unveiling/explanation I had forgotten my personal subtitle to the series: Things are not what I think they are, so I was more than a bit surprised.
Watching all the characters evolve has been amazing and satisfying. Contemplating just how far ahead Charlotte has plotted her Grand Plan simply boggles my mind. It is worth reminding folks that she hinted at this during the last book, Tempest at Sea.
I’ve come to the conclusion that Charlotte not only plays 3 dimensional chess but tosses in some snooker to boot.
When the heat is on I look for meals that can be easy to prepare, using as little heat as possible and tasty. These pasta salads check all those boxes AND are customizable.
I don’t know about you but there is only so much lettuce I can consume without losing my mind. And I like lettuce. LOL!
Pasta salads are easy to prepare, flexible, and provide a lot of room for customization.
