You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger - Official Trailer

Today I went to see a movie, "You will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger." It was a good European movie. The movie description:

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Synopsis

"You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger" follows a pair of married couples as their passions, ambitions and anxieties lead them into trouble and out of their minds. After Alfie leaves Helena to pursue his lost youth and a free-spirited call girl named Charmaine, Helena abandons rationality and surrenders her life to the loopy advice of a charlatan fortune teller. Unhappy in her marriage, Sally develops a crush on her handsome art gallery owner boss, Greg, while Roy, a novelist nervously awaiting the response to his latest manuscript, becomes moonstruck over Dia, a mystery woman who catches his gaze through a nearby window.

Details

Runtime:	1 hr 38 min
Release Date:	September 22, 2010
MPAA:	Rated R
Starring:	Naomi Watts, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Antonio Banderas, Freida Pinto, Anna Friel, Ewen Bremner, Lucy Punch, Neil Jackson, Gemma Jones
Director:	Woody Allen
Genre:	Romance

Painting the Trim on the House

Yesterday and Today, Tim has been working on the house.  Scraping, repairing, priming and now painting the trim on the house.  It is always something to do to the house.  He also, hung three pictures that I have been wanting up for some time.

Trim work being primed

Leawood Garden Club

This past June, I joined the Leawood Garden Club. It is a social event with the topic of plants and garden. Yesterday's program was bring plant material inside to decorate with and using plants in nature and pastel drawings of them.  Yesterday's plant for the chalk was the brush plant.  It is this time of year a sage green with mustard color as the tiny flower that is closed. It was a husband and wife team. Brownie and Richard Hayak. She does the plant arrangements in jars, picture boxes, double glass. Good program.

 

His work, pastel chalk, landscape scene of the Brush plant

Her work, arrangements working with dried plants

A Chill is in the Air

Yes, it is late October and the air is getting chilly.  So that sounds like soup calling.  I have a great soup recipe and yes I have converted it to Vegan. It is so good and no greasy taste.  I used my new Vegetable Broth that I made Sunday and yesterday. So here is the picture and recipe. Yummy!

Vegetable Chili

 Recipe:
Vegetable Chili
1 yellow onion chopped
1/2 package of Boca crumbles 
1 can (28 oz) of diced tomatoes, do not drained
1 can of pinto beans (15 oz) drained and rinsed
1 can of black beans (15 oz) drained and rinsed
1 cup of vegetable broth
2 tablespoons of garlic chopped
1 1/2 T. chili powder
1 T. Oregano, dried
1 teasp. ground cumin
1 teasp. mustard powder
1/2 cup of sliced black olives
1/2 cup of chopped scallions

Coat a large saucepan or Dutch oven with olive oil just enough to coat the bottom  about 1T. add the onions and cook over medium-low heat until they are soft and transparent. Add the Boca crumbles,  (I let them defrost in the pan.  Add the tomatoes, pinto and black beans, broth, garlic, chili powder, oregano cumin and mustard powder. Bring to boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Garnish with the olives and scallions.

I found this quote so I am sharing: "

"I am so good at cooking, even the smoke alarm is cheering me on"

Vegetable Broth

I made this and I never will buy vegetable broth again. This is so easy and full of flavor.

In a 5-6 quart pot add 3 quarts of water.
Add:
8 celery stalks, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
2 medium onions, quartered
1 daikon radish (about 1/2 pound)
1 bunch scallions or 1 larg leek
4 dried shitake mushrooms
Few sprigs parsley or cilantro
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 bay leaves
Ground pepper to equal 2 tsps.
Kosher salt to taste

Place all the ingredients into the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes to an hour. Let cool for about 30 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh stainer.  The stock should be very clear.
This will keep 1 week in refrigerator, or 3 months in freezer.

Healthy Eating

Yesterday, I made this healthy salad.

Sweetly Sour Vegetable Salad

Sweetly Sour Veggies - or Clean-out the Refrigerator Salad

(Use any type of veggies you like or have)

1/2 small head cauliflower cut into small pieces or purchase a bag of Vegetable Medley (has broccoli, cauliflower, carrots)

1-2  carrots cut into small pieces

A bunch of Spinach, Kale or any other green (if using mustard greens you diffidently want to marinate for 2 hours or more) mellows the strong flavor of mustard and heat.

1-2 green onions, sliced

1/2 red pepper

1/4 small yellow onion cut into thin strips

1/2 small red onion cut into thin strips

Marinade:

1/4 cup of olive oil

Balsamic vinegar to taste (any type of vinegar

1-2 T. Bragg's Liquid Amino (more or less to taste) (add sea salt if not using Bragg's)

Agave nectar, just enough for a hint of sweetness

Lemon juice, to taste

Garlic power, to taste

Onion powder, to taste

Kelp seasoning, to taste

Ground cayenne pepper, to taste

Place all the cut-up veggies in a bowl.

Add the marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix ingredients. Pour over veggies.

Stir all the veggies with the marinade, making sure everything is covered, then refrigerate for several hours or overnight.  It tastes better after it sits for a while.

Red Cedar Gardens Class

Yesterday, I attended a class on how to decorate for Fall and Thanksgiving. Several arrangements were made and shown how to get different looks. I always get inspired with how Ricki makes the arrangements. Last year, she had a luncheon, which I expected this year.  We had food, but it was not a set down, it was soup and some finger food. Good, but not what I was expecting. Last year, you had time to visit with the others that were attending.

Starting with a base

Adding color - berries, small pumpkins, and grasses

Switched to an owl, added small metal pumpkin on side

Keep adding color

These were to be used at entry to welcome guest

Table dressing

Variations on theme

Keep adding - candles and birds

Change out to owl and wicker acorns

Daughter Mary preparing soup and finger food

Mary serving soup

The New Wall is Built

Hurrah! The new wall is built. The stone is in place and what is left is transferring dirt from the old one to the new. Place the landscape material and then rock on top. Project is all most finished.  Next Spring I will be adding the plants.  My goal is maintenance-free. Also, is to plant grass in front yard.

Sunday in the Park with George

Yesterday, I went to Ironwood Park and saw the play "Sunday in the Park with George". It is a musical most of the play was sung.  It is about the life of George Seurat, a French painter in 1884 or that is when the play starts. The stage was set with music stands for the actor to place his/her script, and the story told through conversations and song.  It was done very well, with an orchestra performing the background music. Second act, was done in modern day about George's grandson also an artist and named George and how he learns about his grandfather and art.

The Invite

The Lodge were the play was held

I have the wall almost finished. I have to find out were I can have the stone trimmed to fit space. Three stones left. Picture comes tomorrow.

The New Wall and Red Cedar Gardens

Today, I worked on the wall in the front of the house.  Made some progress, the hardest part is getting the first row level, well today I did the "S" curve of the wall and went from four layers to three layers.  So far all is level.

Progress on the New Wall

This evening I went to "Red Cedar Gardens" for Lady's Night Out.  It is a business with a private garden.  I have been coming to this place for almost 20 years. I have taken many classes on different garden related subjects, like how to prune bushes, choosing plants for a garden, how to arrange a floral arrangement to wreath making to making a fairy garden.

Fairy Garden at Red Cedar Gardens

Their Personal Garden

An Arrangement in a Bird Bath with Fire Pot

The shop is so fascinating with all the arrangements and accessories that goes in creating them. I purchase a fire pot to go in my bird bath that will be decorated with evergreens for the holidays. I just love this place. It is constantly changing.

And The Wall Came Tumbling Down

I have been slowly getting some progress on the front. I had to use the title from the song, it is appropriate. I at the hard part on the front wall.  I am at the "S" section and joining to heights going from four levels to three. I hope to get to work on it this afternoon and finish it for I have other projects to do. Notice the new wall is level!

The Wall Came Tumbling Down

The Building of the New Wall

Another View of Building New Wall

Going to the Movies

This post is actually Monday, October 11, it is raining so I am going into town and do errands and then see the movie "Wall Street."

Well, I am back, the movie was good, but you need to have watched the first one, to know the character Gordon Geikco. It also explains the characters that are running NY's Wall Street and what a mess it is. I would recommend seeing the movie.

The backyard border is finished

I have finished laying the stone in the back.  Today, I will be working in the front.  There is more work to finish the back but that is another day. I am now, just getting the stone laid.

1. Getting the weeds, small trees and grass out 
2. Placing mulch around the area

Here is the picture of the back.

Backyard

Today, Ali Edward's has the process of making her album, December Daily. I think this is her best layout plan, neater way of compiling. Check out her blog http://aliedwards.com or click the logo under classes.

Border I am trying to recreate and progress from past post

This is the border that I am trying to copy.

Side view of border.

This is a progress report on listings from past post.

Portable salad table picture.

This is the portable salad planted last week.

 Asparagus beans that I planted in August. Third planting, the other times they just would not come up. Look how long this one is.  They taste a little different than green beans.

Asparagus beans

The removal of the front retaining wall to backyard border

In the past three years I have rebuilt this three-tiered retaining wall eight times.  It keeps slipping down slop are at least it looks like it. The retaining wall also creates a lot of water run-off.  I did not have before I built it so it is coming out.  This is a picture of the retaining wall.

Slopping retaining wall

This is what I accomplished so far in back yard moving stones from front to back: Dug a trench with Manthis tiller, cleaned out grass and dirt to make a hollow trench.

Making the trench

Then added sand and made the stones level.

Placing the stones

More coming as progress is completed. Two rows are gone on the front, have 1/2 of the back almost finished. It takes time doing this, but it is worth it in the long run.  I would have done this sooner this year, but the weather was either too rainy, then had to wait for it to dry out, and when that happened, it was too hot. So now, I am just getting to work on it. Hopefully I can get it finished, soon, it is to rain Saturday, so I got to get as much as I can tomorrow and Friday.