robin maderich – write-brained scribbler and crafter-on-the-loose
author, illustrator, crafter, dreamer
adventures and misadventures, gardening, traveling, silly string whimsy
I’m always looking for ways to reuse and recycle. I came across this article and thought I’d pass it on. Me? I use toilet paper rolls as toys for the dog and cats. The dog, because she destroys any other kind of toy–toilet paper rolls, too, but at least they don’t cost $14 a pop! The cats, because they love to roll them around and wrestle with them.
So, anyway, read, learn, enjoy!
Many years ago, a question arose among a group of ladies I happened to be hanging out with, and who had been admiring a pair of parakeet pictures on a wall. One turned to the rest and asked, “What type of bird would you be, if you could?”
Well, the other women chose various chirpy birds one is thrilled to find in one’s garden. You know, cardinals, bluebirds, chickadees, doves. Sweet, lovely, prone to uplifting morning song or at least gentle cooing. I refrained from answering. One by one, every eye turned my way.
“Well,” came the prompt, “what bird would you like to be?”
I took a deep breath and answered. “A hawk.”
Hmmm. Feet shuffled as two women actually sidled away from me, eyeing me askance. The woman who had initially asked the question cocked her head at me. “Odd choice,” she said.
“Not really,” I responded.
“But why,” she persisted, “would you want to be a hawk?”
“Because,” I said, “a hawk is beautiful, strong, and fierce.”
The discussion ended there. I stand by my answer to this day.
Once upon a time, I used to make a fuss over Halloween. I think my kids, adults though they are now, kind of miss that. So, thinking in lieu of all the decorating, wearing a costume, etc., I might just bake something special to surprise them, I went hunting for Halloween cupcake ideas and got–you guessed it–this, The Nifty Baker blog with 54 (yes 54!) Halloween cupcake ideas.
The cupcakes are amazing, yet I have to confess some look rather gross to Ms. Squeamish here. I don’t think I could eat the one that looks like bloody glass, for instance, even though I’m sure it is delicious. Still, all the examples are clear celebrations of the spooky, the creepy, the fun that is Halloween. So, enjoy this share and let me know what you bake!
I’ll post pictures of the cupcake(s) I finally choose to try my hand at, but I can pretty much guarantee they won’t look a thing like the pictures in the article below.
Happy Halloween early, folks!
Hmmm. I’m not so sure how my spring/summer garden is going to fare–except the tomatoes. They’ve gone nuts! But here’s an article about planting for fall harvest. I notice they left out pumpkins. Seeds can go into the ground in August for those and then pray you don’t have a hungry groundhog around.
Here’s the article I read, prompting me to write this and share. 🙂 Enjoy! 10 Vegetables to Plant in August for a Fall Harvest
I’m going to share a secret with you–my gardens are in horrendous shape. All of them. Yet, they still delight me, they are still filled with flowers which have returned to bloom again, as well as others I have recently planted, thriving among weeds and overgrowth and, well, you get the picture.
Continue reading “Gardens of Delight”Several Wednesdays back, I took a train into Philadelphia with my youngest son’s significant life-affirming other. She had picked three destinations for us: Wonderspaces, the Museum of Illusions, and a fabulous little eatery called 3Js Café at 317 Market Street, for lunch.
To say we had a great time (except for the unseasonable 87-degree weather) would be an understatement.
Continue reading “Wonders and Illusions”What a fantastic interview of Joni Mitchell by Elton John. Such a splendid, magical interaction. So well done! I know I said Joni Mitchell rocks, but of course so does Elton John (Elton John’s Rocket Hour).
I had a reminder on Facebook of a post I made a year ago today. Here it is:
So, I went to the grocery store yesterday and was stopped by an old guy sitting on the bench outside. He asked me if I thought I was going to go grocery shopping. I said, “That was the plan, why?” He asked me if I noticed the condition of the parking lot. I said yes, and I figured it was my lucky day. No crowds. He went on to explain that the store had lost power and they weren’t letting anyone in. He was waiting though, because he’d already been back twice. He offered for me to join him on the bench. I thanked him and headed on home instead. The point of this story? The very first sentence: I was stopped by an old guy. An OLD guy? In retrospect, I’m pretty darned sure he was MY age. *sigh*
I say to myself, did I not learn ANYTHING from this experience? Because I still do it. Still say, that old person, that old guy, that old lady. As a descriptor, I suppose it works, but in terms of respecting age, a long life lived, I suspect it falls short. At the very least, it’s high time I recognized the gray in my own head.
Continue reading “Aging and the ‘old’ word”It’s odd, but so often you come across quotes from writers, artists, other individuals who spend a great deal of time in thought, and you find those quotes meaningful. Helpful. Thought-provoking. Inspiring. I’ve started posting some of those quotes on Instagram, to share them with others, and on Facebook, too.
This was one from today, which I put onto a royalty-free photo from pexels.com. The photographer’s name is Yaroslav Shuraev. I found myself as inspired by the photo as by the quote. I think I might print this out to hang on my wall so I can see it every day.
Last weekend, my eldest son drove me around for some errand running. It was quite a bit past lunch time and we were contemplating whether we should stop and grab something or head home. Well, by chance (not really by chance, I insisted we head over that way) we pulled into the parking lot for Hometown Creamery over on Gravel Pike in East Greenville—Pennsylvania, for those who aren’t familiar. We’d both been talking about checking it out. Not a place for lunch, as far as I could tell, but, hey, you gotta live a little, right?
Egads, try live a lot, especially if you’re an ice cream lover.
Continue reading “Small Batch? Splendid!”
robin maderich - write-brained scribbler and crafter-on-the-loose 