Still producing

On By CarynIn Garden

This summer has been hot, so very hot. Our plants and yard have definitely taken a hit and are looking quite sad. I was surprised therefore to find that the pepper plants have actually been producing peppers. Small, yes, but still there. I saw a couple that had turned red and started to decay. These were mid-planter and high up against the fence. Where the dog can’t reach. Ah. That is where all the rest of the peppers went. To test my hypothesis, I tossed this pepper to him. He picked it up and took it off to eat it. Yup. Pepper pup. Sigh.

Photo description: Small red pepper with brown spots surrounded by semi-chewed pepper plant leaves and a couple white blooms.

The hibiscus out front is also putting out an effort, despite receiving a full dose of Texas summer sun and being host to a myriad of insects. It has produced a couple small blooms despite the scorching temps.

Photo Description: Hearty Hibiscus in bloom with a white flower with red center surrounded by green and yellow-green leaves.

I know technically we have passed the autumnal equinox and are in fall, but nobody tells Texas.

Two to one

On By CarynIn Craft, Life Hack

I have Frankenstein’d my shirts before, where I have two shirts with opposite positive attributes, so I combine them. Mostly it involves ripping seams, cutting, and sewing back together. I’m at it again. I found a printed tee that I liked the print and the message: “Keep going, just to see what happens” with singing dancing skeletons. But it is a “women’s” shirt, so has cap sleeves and a snug fit. Bah. I have an old shirt with lovely full sleeves, but a high neck and short body. Also Bah.

Photo description: Peach t-shirt with skeleton print and an olive green shirt with butterfly sleeves.

I like peach and olive green together, so I selected these shirts for tailor surgery. I ripped out the seams on the peach shirt, except for the shoulders, and cut a larger neck hole. I cut the sleeves and the hem off the olive shirt, and a two inch section of the body. I sewed the olive green strips into the side seams of the peach shirt to give it more ease, sewed the butterfly sleeves in, then used the olive green hem to edge the neckline.

Photo description: Printed peach tee with olive green butterfly sleeves, side gussets, and new scoop neckline.

I like how it came out. Before I had two shirts I would not wear, now I have one shirt I will.

Knitting WIP

On By CarynIn Cats, Craft

I have two knitting works in progress. One needs a section ripped out, so is resting until I have the courage to tackle it, and the other I cast on several months ago, and am now circling back around to work on it. This is a fingering weight sweater (right? Crazy.) that I bought the yarn to support a cause, and determined I wanted to make my youngest an actual garment. The knitting isn’t hard, but it does take a long time. Izzy the cat appreciates it when I knit; I provide a long-term nap space.

Photo description: Yellow and Blue fingering weight yarn on Prym circular needles in the foreground; in the background a sleeping calico cat laying on my lap.

I am acknowledging that this will be an on-again off-again project as other shiny things distract me.

Bug catcher

On By CarynIn Life Hack, Wildlife

I’ve been seeing some strange bug catching methods on my feeds, so I thought I would share my preferred method for catching and removing critters from the house: a cup and card stock. Put the cup over the insect, slide the card stock under, tada, instant cage. Thin paper can work, but isn’t as secure. Clear plastic cups are awesome, but a glass works too.

Photo description: Blue transparent plastic cup upside down on a white sheet of card stock on a concrete porch. Large black beetle visible inside the cup.

This works great for creatures on flat surfaces, and the materials are cheap and readily available.

Poster

On By CarynIn music

I geeked out at my chorus this week. We talked briefly about marking our music and some important things to notice when singing 4-part barbershop, and their homework was to go home and delve into their own sheet music (I did give them a cheat sheet). I made a poster. This was an old school poster layout, with a yard stick and rulers, done in pencil, then in ink. It gives examples of the tonic chord (or one (I) chord), rubs (notes next to each other), and octaves. My youngest wanted to help, so she marked the colored sections (bonus, she starts seeing the relationships too). Learning to recognize and hear these aspects helps us along toward making better music.

Photo description: hand drawn barbershop music score, first four measures of “How We Sang Today” with numbered scale, legend, and marked and labeled notes.

I admit I don’t use the colors, but I do use the numbers, and I’ve been naming as many chords as I can, not just the tonic. It is good practice.