Watermelon, Feta, and Olive Salad

Yes, I know it sounds strange. But it's really not. It's a surprising mix of ingredients that truly tastes good together. And after the indulgences of this week, it's much healthier to eat this than what I really wanted. I'd been on the go all day, having to leave the house at 8:30 to drive to a check-up appointment for my beloved Honda Element. What should have taken a half hour took over an hour, but I was okay with that. I don't like the Honda waiting room, so I trek way across the parking lot through the cold to get to the Accura waiting room where the leather couches await, the Starbucks coffee, and the refrigerator full of chilled water. It's not that I'm an elitist or anything. I just like being comfortable.
Then on to run my errands and get some things I've run out of. Driving home afterwards, I realized I was missing my girlfriends, Karen and Adrienne. So I called each one of them just to hear their voices, and they were going shopping together. And I love shopping, but I live all the way out here and I'm heading home because I've got things to do. I started to feel really sad, so I stopped again to my favorite store outside of Smyrna, DE. It's Willey's Market and they've got so many lovely things, and lots of excellent produce. But best of all, they've got a greenhouse and I took my time strolling through it and wishing I had brought my camera. I was looking for a calla lily, but couldn't find one. When I checked out the produce section, I saw there was a big display of watermelon. Fresh, pink watermelon all sliced up for sampling, and there were a lot of people eating and smiling, so I tried some. And that's when I knew what I was going to make for lunch.

This recipe comes from a book I have called "The Skinny: How to Fit in your Little Black Dress Forever". The juxtaposition of cool, sweet watermlon and the salty olives and feta makes a very satisfying lunch or snack, says the book. Now, it won't last more than a couple hours after you make it because of the properties of the watermelon. So just make enough to eat without putting any aside.
Here's the recipe:
Watermelon, Feta, and Olive Salad
2 cups watermelon, cut into small chunks
1 1/2 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (about 1/3 cup)
2 Tbsp. chopped, pitted kalamata olives
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh herbs,
such as basil or oregano (optional)
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Toss the watermelon, cheese, olives, oil, and if desired, herbs together in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve.
I feel like it's summertime when I eat this. And suddenly, I'm feeling better about my day. This salad has a surprising taste. Try it and let me know what you think!

Weekend Guessing Game #6

It's that time again when I invite you to look at this photo and try to guess what the heck it could be. Here's how it works. If you think you know what this item is, or even if you don't, hit the comment tab at the bottom of this post and guess the answer. Oneguess per comment, as many times as you want. If you guess anonymously, please leave your initial or name, so I'll know who you are.

I hope I didn't make it too hard, but after someone guessed last week within 10 minutes of my having posted, I figured it was time to get tough.

No clues this week. It could be anything. Oh, was that a clue? I know you're wondering if I found it outside . . . or inside . . . or is it part of something . . . well, guess on. Because I'm not telling.

Game on as of now, 6 PM Friday night, Eastern Standard Time. Winner will be announced later tomorrow afternoon by 6 PM. The first person to guess the correct answer is the winner. There's no prize other than the fame and notoriety that winning this game can only bring. So be prepared for the fame.

Not really.

Weekend Guessing Game

Stop back this evening around 6 PM when I post this weekend's Guessing Game. I think it'll be a tough one.

A Valentine's Day Story

When I started this blog, I told myself I'd never publish a post involving my workplace, and then something happened today that just made me feel good. And I wanted to share it with you. All day long at the school, delivery persons were bringing Valentine surprises for faculty and students alike. And then, at the end of the day, when most of the teachers had already left, an elderly gentleman who I recognized from one of the better florists showed up, out of breath, but seemingly proud of himself that he had arrived 'on time'. I didn't have the heart to tell him that the recipients had already left for the day and thanked him, telling him I'd call the teacher over the intercom right away. I did, but to no avail. She'd already gone. Some of you readers may remember ALISA from a previous post when she won one of the Weekend Guessing Games. And when I called her on her cell, she was well on her way home. I told her about the delivery and when she asked me if she should return, I told her that yes, it would be worth it if she did. You see, Alisa's husband Steven is in Iraq and I knew these gifts must be from him. I got the little school camera ready because I knew he would appreciate it if he could actually see his children and his wife and their reactions to the lovely bouquets of flowers he'd so thoughtfully sent. To each of his girls, Courtney and Grace, he sent a single lilac-colored presentation rose, and to his son, Chris, a box of candy with the instructions that he should "share this with your sisters, now." And to his wife, my co-worker and friend, Alisa, the biggest bouquet of red roses that I'd seen all day. The look on their faces alone made me realize how much I enjoy this little holiday. Its positive message of love makes me feel good. I hope it does you, as well.

Valentine's Day

I have always loved this poem from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and just wanted to share it with you today. We don't really do anything special in my house on Valentine's Day. Just cards, but maybe he'll surprise me. I really get a kick out of a card. I like to imagine him inside the card shop, reading them and choosing just the right one for me. I really don't need anything more than that.

Now, if he wants to stop by the camera shop and pick me up something from there, I'm not going to turn it down! But honestly, a card is enough for today. Just something that tells me that he loves me.

I designed the picture for this post using Scott Kelby's Photoshop CS2 book. It's called a Gallery Print, and is in the section "How to show your work". Basically, I made the canvas bigger (the white) and each line of type is its own separate layer. This photo had 6 layers, and a background which I "flattened" at the end. I just wanted to do something different for today.

Ott-lite information

Because so many of you have expressed an interest in the Ott-Lite, I've taken segments of the description off the box that my new lite came in, so here goes: Dr. John Ott, a photobiologist and pioneer in light research, discovered the remarkable effects that specific wavelengths of natural light have on all living things. Dr. Ott developed the first OTT-LITE product while he was filming The Secrets of Life for Walt Disney. He spent 40 years of scientific research to create the specially formulated blend of rare earth phosphors that he used to create the unique illumination that looks and feels like natural daylight. It's possible to see with superior clarity without the intense heat, excessive glare and the harsh distortion of standard lighting. When I googled Dr. Ott, I found a wealth of information. Too much to post here. He's known as the "Father of Full Spectrum Light" and his hometown was Chicago, IL. I mentioned in a comment that I bought my lite for $40 online from Joanne Fabrics. They have many ott-lites on sale right now, so it's a good time to buy. Just thought you'd like to know. Glad to be of service to ya!

Grey skies, wet weather & new ott light

It's early morning and I'm posting before leaving for school. We've had a 2-hour delay today so this gives me time to look at the photos I took last night with my new ott light that arrived yesterday.

An ott light gives out a natural light. It's great for doing crafts, excellent for reading, and it lends itself well to taking pictures when there's no available light. (And I rarely use the flash. It just doesn't look right.)

These photos haven't been touched other than to size them and I love them! They make me happy.

This is the cyclamen plant that I bought last week. The previous photos are down below on one of the earlier posts and every time I scroll down to look at them, it's almost embarassing because well, they're just not good. It's the lighting.

But now, with the ott light, I can capture the true colors when I take pictures in the evening. I've never used one of these lights before and am really excited about not having to rush home and take pictures before I lose the light.

It's a dreary little day back East here. Ice on the ground, a steady rain coming down, and cold. But I'm happy. I'm happy because I've got a new ott light and I know how to use it!

(Um, you just plug it in).

Mushroom soup is good for the soul

Chicken soup may be good for a cold, but when I think of comfort, it's cream of mushroom soup that comes to my mind. The silky goodness and the earthy-good taste of mushrooms were something I kept thinking about on and off today. It's so cold outside and sipping some soup was just what I was looking for. So this afternoon, when my school let out early due to a coming ice storm, I stopped at the grocery store and was surprised to see it not very crowded. And then I came home and made this excellent little soup for dinner and served it with a piece of crusty rosemary herbed bread. I've gotta warn you, though, it isn't diet. It has probably a jillion calories, so eat at your own risk. Here goes:

Cream of Mushroom Soup
6 Tbsp. butter
1 med. onion, chopped
3/4 lb. mushrooms
3 Tbsp. flour
1 Knorr Swiss vegetable cube
3 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup light cream

1 large bay leaf
freshly ground pepper

Melt the butter and add the chopped onion. Cook until transparent at medium. Add mushrooms and continue to cook for about 5 min. Add the flour and the vegetable cube and stir in. Immediately add the chicken broth and water, incorporating slowly. Add bay leaf and pepper, cover and bring to a boil. Turn heat down immediately and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove bay leaf and add cream. If desired, top with fresh croutons or crackers.

Lillies and old movies

I think everyone is feeling like they've had a little bit too much of winter lately.

Jeannelle at Midlife by Farmlight says the wind chill was 30 degrees BELOW in Iowa the other morning! She's posted a picure of a newborn calf with frost on its little face!

With all this icy weather happening, looking at flowers is a nice way to feel a little better and it just makes me happy, so I'm guessing it does you, as well.

I picked up these lillies at the florist last week and the second bloom began to open on Saturday. I think these are Oriental Lillies, but Robin over at the Bumblebee Blog would know for sure. Have you visited her site yet? And while I'm asking, I've posted a number of sites at the bottom left of this page that may interest you. Try to check some of them out, if you have some extra time on these long winter evenings.

The second lily pictured had already opened when I bought it and it's just beautiful still.

I have them in a nice vase in my living room so I can look at them whenever I'm home. During the week, before I go to bed, I post for the next day because I've got to leave by 7 am for work. George is here napping on the couch tonight, I've got the TV on and I'm sort of halfway watching It Happened One Night with Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. Sometimes I just like watching old movies and this one was made in 1934.

I'm probably going to do a little knitting after I check out some catalogues that came today. I'd like to tell you they're seed catalogues, or something important, but they're really not. I've got the new Chico's Spring Getaway catalogue and a Be Beautiful on tap to peruse. Hey, being a country girl doesn't mean a gal doesn't like fashion. On the contrary. I love it. I also love beauty supplies and I'm a sucker for shampoos and conditioners. My current favorite is the Ojon line. I use it sparingly because it's really expensive and because my hair is really curly, I only shampoo about twice a week. (Curly hair is very prone to dryness). I just use a good conditioner daily. Why am I telling you all this?

When he was young, my father was even more handsome than Clark Gable.

Now where the heck did THAT come from? What was in that pad thai that I ate for dinner, anyway?

Dogs just wanna have fun

"Dogs are our link to paradise.

They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent.

To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace."

~ Milan Kundera

As much as they love their human owners, I truly believe that the thing dogs love the most of all is being with other dogs. It's their raison d'etre. One of his favorite things George likes to do lately is to run the fence across the farm road here. The yellow lab on the left is Natasha and she lives there. Every day she has two visitors come over, the black lab and the little puppy on the right. They stay for the morning and then they go home. And while they're there, George is always out there talking and playing with them. Mostly they just like to run. (Don't ask me why he can't go into the fence. You'll have to talk to my husband about that. George is actually his dog. And he just doesn't want him going into the fenced yard.) When no canine friends are available, George turns to the next best thing. The felines. The black cat you've already met. She lives in our home. The white & grey is a stray that I feel sorry for, so I put food out. Don't say it, I don't want to hear it. This cat absolutely loves George. Don't think that he's hurting her in this top photo here, because he's not. He's extremely gentle. And she loves it. You can tell. This is her happy face.

After playing with other creatures, walks are the Best Thing Ever. Mention the word and he's ready to go. Even if he looks like he's asleep.

I just love this dog. Disclaimer: no cats were harmed during the filming of this post.

I miss daylillies

And flowers, and warm weather. It's super windy outside today with gusts up to 50 mph. The bird feeders are blowing sideways at the moment, but I'm not taking a photo because my macro lens is on the camera and I'm really being lazy today. Besides, my sliding glass door is dirty and I don't want you to see what a slob I am. I meant to clean it yesterday when I did my housecleaning. I took this picture last summer with my old Sony Cybershot point and shoot camera. Then I opened it up in Photoshop today and just played with it until I liked what I saw. I'm hanging around inside the house this afternoon, knitting, reading and playing with the computer. My husband is making bangers and mash for dinner. (He's British). If you haven't had this dish, I'll tell you it's pretty good. Bangers are sausages. (Go figure). And the mash would be the potatoes. They're mashed. We rarely have it, but he's been making it for me since we first got together at age 19. And it's become one of his classic staples. I just love it when he cooks.

My childhood was typical, summers in Rangoon . . .

Very well, where do I begin?

My father was a relentlessly self-improving boulangerie owner from Belgium with low grade narcolepsy and a penchant for buggery.

My mother was a fifteen year old French prostitute named Chloe with webbed feet.

My father would womanize, he would drink, he would make outrageous claims like he invented the question mark.

Some times he would accuse chestnuts of being lazy, the sort of general malaise that only the genius possess and the insane lament.

My childhood was typical, summers in Rangoon, luge lessons.

In the spring we'd make meat helmets. When I was insolent I was placed in a burlap bag and beaten with reeds, pretty standard really.

~Mike Myers, Austin Powers Man of Mystery

I'm watching Austin Powers, the first one. This film, for me, makes me think of nothing but being with practically my entire family, visiting with our dad because he was dying.

The year was 1997 and my father had taken a wrong step, going out his side door at my parent's place in Barefoot Bay, FL. He ended up breaking his hip, then nearly dying of pneumonia in a hospital down there. By the time I arrived, he'd been moved to rehab and the prognosis wasn't good. Then the rest of my siblings showed up. For the best part of a week, we stayed and visited with him every day in that rehab. He says that he didn't even know we were there. He'd rally every once in a while, letting out a laugh (as if he'd been listening) or smiling.

In the evening, we'd gather at my sisters house and one night we rented this movie. It was just what we needed. Sophomoric in its humor, it made us laugh to no end. My brothers were imitating Mike Myers going down the stairs (behind the couch), going down the escalator, rowing a boat, using the elevator. I don't remember laughing as hard in my life as I did that night. As troubled as we were during the day, visiting with our mother, making funeral arrangements, and being with dad all day in the hospital, we needed a release and this movie gave us just that.

In the end, my father got well. He's still alive and living with my sister Ginny (see post below) and is 89 years old.

Uh-oh, gotta go. Austin's dancingto "I touch myself" for the femme botts.

Sometimes I like a movie just because of how it makes me feel. How about you?

It's a tie for Weekend Guessing Game #5 (announcing early)

It's a DEER ANTLER. And not only is it a tie, but it's a tie between two sisters. My sisters, at that. And to everyone out there, please don't think this game is rigged. It's truly not. Some may find it odd that now all 3 of my sisters have won this game, among several others that are my friends. But really, my friends and family probably make up the bulk of the viewers of this blog, although that's beginning to change.

And thanks to a visitor named Jen for pointing out that I had inadvertently tagged my photo with "Deer Antler copy" which I quickly fixed. I contacted my two sisters and asked them if they'd clicked on the photo and I believe them because they both told me that no, they hadn't. Char told me she didn't even know you could do that. I trust all three of my sisters implicitly, and they've never lied to me that I know of. Well, except for that time I asked them if my butt looked big in a certain pair of jeans but really, I do believe them.

Both Char and Ginny guessed Deer Antler at exactly the same time, so they're the winners. I got some interesting guesses this time, most of them good ones. And one gross one about someone's toenail, but I digress.

CHAR (top photo) lives in PA and is wife to Dave and mother to Em and Sam. And GINNY, our baby sister, lives in CA and is wife to Jay and mom to Danielle. She's also the caregiver to our dad, Clarke (Superman) but she always just calls him Maynard. Seems to fit better, I think. Now I'm really digressing.

I'd like to end by saying that I hope to continue this game. And honestly, it's only a game. But even though it's only a silly game, I'd never rig it or try to trick you. I'm just not like that. And I never will be. Amen.

I love my dog

I love this dog.

He's such a busy guy.

This morning, after treeing our cat, he wanted to rile up the broodmares. The cat is halfway up the walnut tree in our backyard, right around where the trunk begins to fork. If you look closely, you'll see her little black head peeking out on the right.

The broodmares are having a little run. That grey mare is the one that always gets things going. She appears to be the leader in this little group. That black on the far right looks like she's feeling her oats. They don't run for long, though. Since I've taken these pictures, they've moved on down to the far end of the paddock. Far away from the absorbent puppy.

It all began when I got up. I heard him down here running about with his squeaky toy. He'd tried to wake me around 6:30 am, but I wasn't having it. My husband had already taken him for a quick walk, and had just left to take care of the horses.

I came downstairs to have my coffee and there was George waiting for me with his squeaky fish toy. He prances about squeaking the toy, and sounds like a little baby when he chews it. He loves to play fetch. He can catch his toys in mid-air and then he returns them, very gently, next to where I'm sitting. He's very polite that way. Then he slowly backs up and gets down on his haunches and waits for the next round of fetch. This can go on for hours, if you let it. But today he'd had enough. And that's when he went outside to tree the cat.

Ah, it's a dog's life, isn't it?

As for me, I've got cleaning to do. And it's a perfect day for doing so. Have a great Saturday. I'll return around 6 PM to announce the winner of the Guessing Game (see below). We may already have a winner. But then again, we might not. I'm not telling.

Weekend Guessing Game #5

It's time for the Weekend Guessing Game again, where you get to guess what in the heck this picture could possibly be.

It's probably too easy, so the only clue I will give you was that I found it in the woods near my home. Was it man-made? Maybe. Is it 'of the earth'? I dunno. Might be. Did you plant it there? Now, would I do a thing like that?

Thing is, I'm not telling.

So GAME ON as of now, 6 PM Friday night. You've got 24 hours. First person to guess the correct answer is the winner. Winner will be announced tomorrow (Saturday 2/9) between 6 and 7 pm. If you post as anonymous, please leave your name or initials so I'll know who you are. You can guess as much as you like, but please limit your guess to one per comment. It's just easier that way.

Good luck.

Oh, and there's no prize. Sorry, I keep forgetting to tell you that. A picture of the winner gets posted (if they want) and the winner gets the fame that only comes from having their picture posted in this photo blog. Doesn't get any better than that. Yeah.

Weekend Guessing Game #5 Tonight at 6 PM!

Folks, don't forget tonight's regular Weekend Guessing Game. My husband thinks it's a tough one, but what does he know? I'll have it posted by 6 PM. Then I have a hot dinner date. Well, not really. It's a function I go to every year. But it should be fun! ~ Country Girl

Lighting effect using Photoshop

I was playing with photoshop today, using my new book, The Photoshop CS2 Book, by Scott Kelby. I love this book.

This is an effect called a Soft Spotlight. It actually looks like there's light emanating from inside the little flower bud.

I still think the layout options on this particular blogging template leave much to be desired, but the

top photo of each picture is the one I worked on and the bottom is the original Straight Out of Camera Shot.

For the flower bud, the first thing I did was sharpen up the original. Not too much, though. Next I adjusted the hue & saturation by turning up the red just a little bit. And finally, I used a render filter called flashlight. I situated it in the center of the bud. I've never used the spotlight effect before and that's the trick I learned today.

It's a trick that Scott says he learned from the famous nature photographer Vincent Versace. Before he learned this trick, he goes on to say, it used to take him a long time to finally achieve this effect. Now it's done in one step. For the tree photo, I shapened it up. A whole lot. Enough to bring the branches out noticeably. Then I chose the same render filter and style and placed the circle over by the cloud on the left. This effect more resembles how the sky looked to me that evening when the sun was peeking through the clouds. I think it's just enough.

Best thing is that it's basically really easy. And it's fun.

What do you think?

Record Highs in Maryland

The temperature went up to 72 degrees yesterday (2/6), a record high for our area. In the late afternoon, the wind picked up as I left the house for my walk with George through the woods. The skies were gray when I left, but by the time we got to the other side of the woods, the sun was breaking through and shedding that amber light it does before sunset. Then the pink color arrived and it was magic hour.

I had come to the marsh area, a place where beavers have built dams, creating a huge pond. It was so peaceful there and the birds were trilling back and forth. I could hear ducks, too. I just wanted to stay awhile, and the dog had run off on the scent of something, so I sat down. Then I laid down and just looked at the sky and the clouds moving and listened to the wind through the trees and the birds chittering in the brush around me. I could even smell deer nearby. Have you ever smelled deer? It's a distinct scent, sort of like really earthy wet fur. Difficult to explain unless you're there to smell it.

It was so beautiful just resting there, but then I heard this growling nearby. Turns out, it was only George, who had returned to see something out of place (that would be me), lying on the ground. He ran off when I called him and didn't come back until I was standing in an upright position and telling him it was ok. I was just chillin', pup!

Walking up our hill on the return home, I noticed our backyard trees with the skies brilliant and blazing behind them, so I made tracks to the house to get the camera. I took these photos looking up towards our backyard, standing between our home and the pond below. I didn't work on them in Photoshop because I like how they look just fine.

I still can't believe how warm it was today. Cold weather coming soon, though, so I'm glad I got to enjoy it while I could.

I'd like to take a moment to ask you to pray for the people in this country who have been affected by the record number of tornadoes on the night of Feb. 5, making it the worst one-day onslaught of weather seen in years. Across 7 states, 30-50 tornadoes were reported.

Not quite in the pink again

I bought some flowers while running errands this afternoon after work. By the time I got them home and ready to take a picture using existing light, I noticed that my camera battery was dead. Ah, well.

After charging the battery for several hours, I really wanted to capture what I thought was a beautiful specimen of a cyclamen, but after taking pictures by lamplight in my living room, and then using my minimal Photoshopping skills, I still cannot make this flower look as beautiful as it does it real life.

I'll try again tomorrow, but for now, it's still good to gaze upon. Even though I know it's not perfect.

I've never owned a cyclamen before and had to research it on the internet. I didn't know the plant would go dormant during the summer months. In fact, it's suggested that you let the it dry out complety for 2-3 months.

Aren't you glad you come here to visit, so you can get these interesting plant tips?

I'm so glad to be of service.

A slice of life

I have been so inspired by Riva Berkovitz, a photographer who was recently featured in the New York Times. I love going to her site and reading her blog and just looking at her gallery. My son sent me the link just after the holidays and I used it as one of my first posts on this blog.

If I'm feeling frenzied, or frustrated (as I often get with my internet provider) or just plain not quite right, visiting her site always seems to set me straight.

The colors and the shapes of the petals calm me down, like they do here with my white rose. I've also been experimenting with the picture inside of the picture like I've depicted above. I just like how it looks.

There are so many wonderful sites out there, but I don't have the time (or the patience!) to visit as many as I'd like.

Another reason to get a faster internet provider. Can you tell I'm lobbying here for it? Can you help me convince my husband to pay more than double than we're already paying for dial-up? Nah, that's ok. I don't think I need any help convincing him. He's a pretty reasonable man. Usually.

More inspiration is needed

The weather in Maryland on Sunday was beautiful. Blue skies and a balmy high of 50. Very nice. Unfortunately, I had to go into work so I didn't get to spend much time in the great outdoors today. But it was something that had to be done, so I won't dwell on it. And it all went well.

I am dwelling, however, on my internet connection problems. I have a fantastic computer but a slow (dial-up) internet connection. And when it is working, you never know when it will quit. It frustrates the heck out of me, but I've learned to be very patient. My next goal is to correct this problem.

I took this picture yesterday. It's a tiny little geranium blossom from the same plant I took the pic of the other day (see one of the posts below). This week I'm planning on getting over to the florist to pick up some more inspiration. Oh, and this little plant didn't come from a florist. I'm overwintering this in a sunny corner of my living room.

Photogenic Pup

He can't help it. He's America's Next Top Doggie Model. Did you hear Janice Dickinson is lobbying to host this show? She'd be PERFECT for it!

Oh, my, I do sound catty, don't I? But look at this face. Isn't it sweet?

My husband shot these photos outside yesterday from a comfortable seat in the backyard. I was inside, slaving away cleaning the living room windows.

Yeah, for about 15 minutes. Sometimes I like leaving him outside with the camera and a good setting already loaded. Not to make him sound like a robot or something, but he doesn't like changing lenses or changing the settings. I don't know why. And I think he likes it that I have the shutter programmed to shoot continuously. It's like you're a professional photographer or something. He took lots of them while he was out there.

So I'm attibuting these photos completely to him. I Photoshopped the borders around the ones we chose to put in; learned that from http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/ and that's about it. He says he could care less about how to get them into the computer in the first place and to make them open up in Photoshop. So there.

He does take a pretty good pic, though.

So here's to Sunday. I'll be at work this afternoon as we're hosting an event. So hope your Sunday is a good one.

Winner Announced for WGG#4

I know I'm posting early, but it's only an hour and besides, it's already been won. This week's winner is HELEN, who was the first to answer with the correct guess of a SWEET GUMTREE BALL. (Or Sweet gum tree seed pod, which is what it is). Helen's first guess of a sticky ball from a Sycamore tree was incorrect, but her husband BOB set her straight. (Bob is big into gardening). Helen lives in NJ and works in Philadelphia. She's also my sister-in-law but that doesn't prevent her from winning any contests that I hold. If I didn't include my relatives, I'd hardly have anyone playing, so it's all good.

Now you may remember Helen from one of my very first posts, and her daughter Kim from hanging out with Jerry Garcia. And Helen, I had no idea you even read this blog! So, welcome to my world. I hardly get to see ya, so it's good to have you along.

I'm posting the Big Picture here, as well as what a sticky ball from a sycamore looks like. The farm drive here is lined with big old sycamore trees and over the holidays, I took this photo with my zoom lens and posted it for New Year's Day. I'd rather walk on a sycamore ball in my bare feet rather than one from a sweet gum. Ouch!

This isn't a sad day

Really. It's not. The sun is shining and it's not bitter cold. Our youngest son has gotten his first apartment, about a half hour north of here in Delaware. He signed the lease yesterday, but had to work late so he came today to collect his bed and some things he still had here. My husband helped him and I made him lunch and collected things I thought he'd need. Actually, he moved out of our home last August but he was just staying with a friend until now.

But today, he came to collect everything. And I'm not sad one bit. If you know me, you know I'm not kidding. And isn't this what it's all about? You have children, you raise them the best that you possibly can, and then they grow up and move on. It's as it should be. Parenting is the art of letting go. I've always believed that and it's helped me when they've left. We have two sons and our eldest lives in Manhattan and is doing well.

I'm really excited for my youngest son. There he is driving down the farm road in our old Volkswagen Eurovan. Let's wish him luck, shall we?

GOOD LUCK, SHAUN!

It's Back . . . Weekend Guessing Game #4

UPDATE SATURDAY MORNING:

DEAR READERS:

I don't want to tax your minds. I can't handle it when mine works too hard, so I feel bad doing it to you. If there were an actual PRIZE involved in this game, I wouldn't be doing this. So here's a bigger picture, per your requests. And still, the only clue: I found this outside. And now you'll know what it is. Now I've given the whole thing away.

It's time for the Weekend Guessing Game. Beginning now and ending tomorrow (Saturday 2/3) at 6 PM with the results, this is where you try to guess what the heck this picture is that's posted here. This week it's another easy one. I will only give you one clue and that is that I found it outside. If you think you know the answer, or if you want to make a crazy guess (they're always interesting to read) please select the "comment" tab at the bottom of this post. You can comment anonymously, or take a moment and sign up for a (free) blogger account. You choose a screen name for this. If you sign on as anonymous, please leave a unique signature, like your first name, initials, or a nickname.

First one to guess what this is, well they're the winner. They will enjoy the feeling of fame that only winning this game can bring.

So get your brain going, and try to figure out what exactly this is here. Me, I'll be sitting back and enjoying a glass of wine because it's Friday night. And the weekend is here.

Indian corn revisited

I got home late today, too late to go out for the usual walk with George, arriving home just in time for dinner. I love coming home from working all day to a house that smells like good cooking and a man in the kitchen stirring the contents of a simmering skillet. There is nothing better, and I'm blessed to have this.

My husband also likes to garden and again this year, he grew ornamental indian corn. I love the colors of this one and am thinking of re-doing my bedroom with this color scheme.

Not really.

I was just looking through my photo files for a picture to use in this post when I came across this one. Readers may remember when I used indian corn as my first Guessing Game clue. So I'm also using this photo as a lead-in to the upcoming Weekend Guessing Game which'll be posted tomorrow evening between 6 & 7 PM. It's simple to play. You just guess what the picture is and the winner will be announced Saturday evening at 6 PM. In the past, I've always used things found in nature for the pictures and might switch things up tomorrow, but I'm not sure yet. So stop back tomorrow evening to find out and play. It's fun and easy. And there's no prize other than the fact that you've won, beating out about 14 other people.

It's a goal for me to actually have 25 comments on a post in one day, but it's a superficial goal, really. I just enjoy posting my pictures and being quiet. It's all good for now.