I Hit The Leftover Jackpot

The zesty turkey veg soup got finished last week and, with the whirlwind weekend we had, making a pot of soup just wasn't in the cards, so this morning I dug around in the fridge for something, anything to have for lunches this week and I hit the jackpot.  I made curried chickpeas and rice last week when Durwood wasn't feeling good, ate some the other night and had about half left.  Then there was a pair of chicken drumsticks that got shoved aside but were still edible and I'd begged a few spoonfuls of Greek salad from our weekend supper guests so I had it made.  As long as there's strawberries, blueberries, and pineapple at Aldi I nab one of each, do a little slicing and peeling to make a big bowl of fruit salad (with just a little Splenda on it) for putting on yogurt or cottage cheese or eating all by itself (it's a way to get Durwood to eat fruit that's not in pie) so I was good there.  I'll either have to whip up another batch of curried chickpeas (which I would be happy to do... I wonder if I can freeze it? I'll look that up) or make a PB&J for Thursday's lunch, but then perhaps there'll be a single serving of some quality leftovers that pops up by then.  You can just never tell around here.

The stargazer lilies are starting up.  Another pink one bloomed and the white ones are just about ready to pop.  The peach daylilies on the side of the house are still making flowers, the first coneflower's petals are nearly open, and the daisies and bee balm are still showing off.  It makes me smile every time I look at them, which is why I keep putting pictures of them on here.

 

  

Since I finished the Mosaic Practice Hat last week I've been casting around for what to make next and decided to give the E.L.F. Hat a shot.  Naturally the yarn I have isn't the thickness that the pattern calls for so I'll be swatching for gauge and then rejiggering the stitch count. It promises to be an interesting challenge.  Durwood helped me wind eight little skeins of DMC needlepoint yarn into little balls (hey, yarn's yarn and this is in my stash; you know I'm determined to knit down my stash) last night, I've got the pattern, my notebook, and a book of generic patterns that helps to figure out how many stitches to cast on with the gauge you've got.  It's very handy.

My friend Mitch turned me on to a series of novels by Anne Perry set in Victorian England featuring a detective William Monk and one of Miss Nightingale's nurses, Hester Latterly who solve murders among London's upper class.  I'm on the third one (of about 20), I get them from One Click Digital through the library (for free!) and listen while I drive or knit.  I like them, they're interesting stories without being too taxing or making me think too much.  I have enough to think about outside of my reading/listening life, thank you very much.  (The link takes you to the first one's description on Amazon if you're interested.)

July 20--Douglas David Seifert, Humpback Whale.  Out of the navy blue depths of the open ocean a dark gray shape rose toward the sun sparkled waves.  It was a calm day, the dive boat rode easily at anchor while the divers waited out their surface interval before the next dive.  A couple of them lay napping in the shade of the flying bridge but Sue was too excited to waste time sleeping.  She put on her fins, grabbed her mask and snorkel, and slid off the swim platform to watch the sun's rays pierce the depths.  She was no more than six feet from the boat when she saw the change in color far below and the stream of bubbles from the great mammal's blowhole.  She knew the moment it saw her.  The whale paused in its ascent, made a long stroke with its fin, and came toward her to investigate.

I should have more prompts/pictures like that.  Those words just rolled off my pencil like falling off a log.  I'll study on that thought.  Time to get ready to go face the world of retail SCUBA diving, and not forget to pick up tanks on my way.
--Barbara