Monthly Archives: July 2025

…………..It’s that time of year!…….When it’s HOT, HAZY and HUMID…..known as the “SUMMER DOLDRUMS”…..When we are having this kind of a weather spell….I prefer not to cook!……so I prepare a HUGE SUMMER SALAD…..There’s no receipt for this….you just choose things you like…..I start with a bed of my favorite lettuce for this type of salad…ROMAINE….I think it holds up better after a few days in the refrigerator and doesn’t wilt…..In the center I put my Sclafani Italian tuna, and then my cut string beans, my red beans, and my cannellini white beans….then I add my grape tomatoes, sliced English cucumbers….boiled eggs….boiled and pealed white potatoes…..artichoke hearts….beets….Feta cheese….and anchovies…..I’ll either make a lemon dressing with white balsamic vinegar and olive oil, or my Dijon mustard dressing with olive oil, and also white balsamic vinegar…….Guests love this salad for lunch or dinner…..and I can have several meals out of it……A cool refreshing repass for these hot summer days with an ice cold glass of white or rose wine!

………………..Not too long ago I posted pictures of my baby tree……….At the time of the previous post the height of the tree hadn’t even grown to the top of the fence……..A very few months later it has grown well above the fence by at least a foot and a half more! It seems to grow overnight…..By next summer it will be a BONAFIDE TREE!…………I’m very proud of my baby!!

………………….This morning I met my friend Lou for breakfast at 7:00am. I had a goat cheese omelet with bacon and Rye toast. Lou had scrambled eggs and bacon, also with Rye toast….I had errands to do, so I headed right out. First stop the post office. I have been told to NEVER put my mail in a post office box on the street, or even in front of a post office! Thieves can fish them out, and with a certain liquid pen change the names on checks and cash them! So now I go into the post office and leave my mail…..Next stop the grocery store…..We are suppose to have consecutive days of high temperatures in the 80s and 90s….I really don’t want to cook, even with the air conditioner on, so I’m making a huge cold summer salad that will last a few days…..Lettuce, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, cucumber, white and red beans, Italian tuna, artichoke hearts, red beets, some tortellini salad that I bought, new potatoes, chunks of feta cheese, and whatever else I have in my new refrigerator. You can come up with your own favorite choices……..Now to the point of the post!…..After putting everything away, and boiling my eggs, I headed up to my 2nd floor office. I put on the air conditioner, and was about to close the windows….when……….I saw these two birds perched on my car! I had never seen these birds before? I think that perhaps they were babies, and their feathers haven’t changed yet?…..Baby egrets???….To ALL of you bird watchers….if you know what they are let me know…..They were very funny just standing there, and one turned to face me as if it new I was taking its’ picture…..photo upper middle.

………………….This morning I got up at my usual “crack of dawn”…..but the seagulls were nowhere to be seen…..strange?….I went down to the kitchen, made myself a cup of ORANGE SPICE tea, and went out to sit on my rocking chair to look at the water….To my surprise I heard voices….lots of voices….When I got outside there was a flotilla of KAYAKS and PADDLE BOARDS going by…..and I mean lots of them!…..I thought this must be a club or some sort of event due to the fact that there were so many….at least 100…….It’s a beautiful morning, and they looked and sounded like they were having a wonderful time…….I was happy to sit in my rocker and just watch them! I’ve tried a kayak before, and honestly….it hurt my back! I could just never get comfortable……I watched them row and paddle by until they were out of sight…..I wondered where they came from and where they were going?…….a mystery never to be solved…….but it was a nice way to spend the early morning….sipping my tea and watching all of the people go by.

…………….This is a follow up post on my “FISH and PALM LEAF” jewelry……..These were very early crude sketches I made on the beach in Barbuda, in a small sketch pad, for my Anne Klein Collection of resort jewelry….I wanted to quickly jot down my ideas on paper. By the end of the trip the sketch pad was full of sketches……When I got home I started to refine each piece, and developed a variety of earrings, necklaces, bracelets and belts….It took a few months to completion….but it was well worth it, as all of the final pieces were very successful.