Letters From New England

Preserving fresh herbs...

Wednesday
June 29, 2011

 Hi,

This is for you, BD, and anyone else who is interested:

http://www.ehow.com/how_4804379_freeze-dry-herbs.html

http://gardening.about.com/od/vegetablepatch/a/DryingHerbs.htm

http://www.nj.com/homegarden/entertaining/index.ssf/2010/09/fresh_herbs_save_them_by_dryin.html

http://herbs.lovetoknow.com/Freezing_Fresh_Herbs

I hope I find the information and need to start saving some of these goodies because I love fresh herbs in my food.   

 Good luck!

Peace,
Kay

Quick catch up...

Tuesday
June 28, 2011

 Hi,

It's been untypically slow at work for a few weeks. Not sure why since the census is up, but I have been finding myself with empty pockets of time lately. Maybe I'm just working more efficiently. :)

Shelby and I have been accepted as vendors for a Pagan Pride Festival at the Bradley Palmer State Park in September. I've never been to the park or the festival, but any chance to sell my jewelry works for me! We are borrowing a canopy from where she works and buying two folding tables (also from where she works). We will share a space this time and see how it goes. The good thing about the tables is that we can use them over and over again if we register to participate in school or church fairs year round. Now, I must get busy making stuff because a lot of my current inventory is in a local gift shop.

I started reading The Passage a couple of weeks ago. The plot is odd, but the writing and story line keep me reading. It's a BIG book (nearly 800 pgs) and I borrowed it from the library. Since I only read at night, I will probably have to renew it a couple of times. Has anyone read it? Just wondering if it is worth plugging away at. You know... so many books, so little time and all. 

After what seems like weeks and weeks of rain, we have had a couple of fair, dry, sunny days in a row. Maybe the mold between my toes will finally dry out. A very rainy spring, that's for sure. After the snowy winter we had, I can't imagine there will be a water shortage any time this summer. 

 In another effort to be a bit more eco-friendly, I am buying an outdoor clothesline. I don't dry my clothes in a dryer now, but I'd love to hang my sheets outside again. They smell so damned good when they've been dried in the sun and air. I'll have childhood flashbacks, I'm sure. Barb was excited when I told her about it and offered to pay half (which I won't accept). Right now, she drapes a few items here and there on the railings. I'd (seriously) love to just go back to the 50's...sigh.

 Hey, if anyone has had any experience with harvesting and drying/freezing fresh herbs, I'd appreciate an email with what has worked for you. My herbs are getting leggy and it's time to start snipping, but I'm not finding a lot of help online. I have chives, parsley, basil, thyme, sage, winter savory and oregano. One place said to snip and chop, then put in ice cube trays with water and freeze. When you need a bit of oregano, just pop the cube into the pot. Some places said to blanch first, then freeze on a plate and bag. Some said to hang by the stems until they dry, then crumble and put in jars with a good seal. I am trying that with some parsley, but it looks to me like it is just turning yellow/brown and dying, not drying.

Emma got strep throat the last week of school and spent the first day of summer vacation in the ER because of an allergic reaction to amoxycillin. Scared the bejeezus out of me when I saw her picture on Facebook. Hooked up to an oxygen sensor, her eyes swollen shut. She started to have a hard time breathing about 15 minutes after taking the med, then the swelling came on. Not a good way to start the summer!  

Well, I need to get to the market, so... adios amigos.

Peace,

Kay

 

 

Summer Solstice...

Sunday

June 19, 2011

Hi,

I went to my first Midsummer Festival yesterday.  It was interesting and I had a good time.  Lots of fun people and great pot luck food. :)

That gift shop that took a bunch of my jewelry a few months ago also took all of the coiled wire bracelets and earrings that I had left over from my vendor sale.  I haven't been back out since I drop.  ped them off (a month ago) and I need to get out there to pick up the inventory list.  And, she might have money for me...which would be a good thing.

Barb bought a new car yesterday.  I love it...it's a silver Nissan Sentra (little spoiler over the trunk).  So cute...nice interior.  Almost made me wish I'd done the same, but I love my Fit.  I got lost looking for the house the festival was at yesterday.  What should have taken about 30 min took over an hr.  I'd filled my gas tank on the way home from work the night before and when we left the festival yesterday, even after all of that driving TO the festival, my gas tank was still on FULL.  Yes!

I had the WORST case of stomach flu last wkend.  It started Fri after work and I had a relapse on Tuesday night.  Ended up calling my dr on Wed evening for some anti-nausea meds.  I lost SEVEN LBS in 5 days...all fluids and it's probably back now that I can eat.  I have never been that sick in my life.  Who vomits for 4 days?  Sheesh... awful.  Had chills, fever, headache, vomiting, diarrhea.  Really nasty.  Wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.  (haha... I originally typed enema there...Freudian slip?)

My Celestine Prophecy book discussion group is great.  We are still on the first insight because we talk and share so much every week, but it's interesting and I'm enjoying it a lot.

So, my grandkids are out of school again already.  Emma is starting HIGH SCHOOL in the fall.  WTH? How did I become old enough to have grandchildren in high school?  I DO have a most yucky birthday coming up in the fall, but still... we're talking GRANDCHILD IN HIGH SCHOOL here.

Speaking of yucky birthday. A co-worker has given me 3 days in his White Mtn condo in North Conway for FREE in October.  I am taking my other 60th birthday school chums with me for a getaway.  Some shopping, drinking eating and merry making.  I think we deserve it.  Hahahaaa... All 3 of us were single moms for a long time too, so...yes, we deserve a little treat while we still have all of our faculties. :)

It was beautiful here today.  70 something, dry and a nice breeze.  It's a little chilly tonight...perfect for sleeping.  Supposed to be like this fr a couple more days.  We've had a lot of rain this spring and we had a LOT of snow last winter, so I don't imagine that a drought is in our future. 

I broke down (after 2 yrs here) and finally (FINALLY) cleaned the little porch off of my kitchen.  I wish I'd done it the first summer I was here now that I've had a chance to use it.  It's very private because of all of the trees around the house.  It took me all of one Saturday to wash down (by hand) all of the siding and the floor.  I've touched up some of the paint and planted a bunch of herbs, bought some flowers, replaced the torn, filthy screen in the door.  The door still needs to be "de-rusted" and painted, but I'll get to it.  I love sitting out there with a cup of coffee and a book.  If I knew how to create an album with a bunch of pictures, I'd share the before and after shots.  I should check into that.

Linda and I went to Rietta Ranch this morning...local flea market (also called tag sales in some parts of the country). I picked up a couple of handmade soaps and one vendor had a bunch of stuff from Tom's of Maine...natural hygiene products.  I got a soap, a toothpaste and a deoderant.  This is the first time I've been in a couple of years, even though it's open every Sunday from April - October and about 10 minutes from my house.  It's huge and generally packed.  I grabbed a flyer for a weekly Farmer's Market in Barre.  That's closer to 30 minutes away, but there are none near here.  Plus, Barre is a pretty cool little town, so I may meander that way a few times over the summer.

Well, looks like it's my bedtime already.  Back to the daily grind tomorrow. 

Peace,

Kay

 

Rain, rain and more rain

Sunday

May 22, 2011

Hi,

It's been raining in MA for over a week.  I feel like I live in Seattle.  My biggest fear is that we'll go straight into hot and humid without much of a stop at 70 and dry. 

I took a Crystals and Gemstones class today.  Not at ALL what I expected, but then again, had I not had expectations, I might not have been so disappointed.  But I did, and I was. $20 down the drain. 

I just discovered that one of my fave shows, Brothers & Sisters, has been cancelled.  Miffed about that.   ABC has cancelled a handful of shows I enjoyed over the last 5 yrs or so.  Amerian Dreams, October Road, Men In Trees, Kyle XY to name a few.  Seems like if they aren't full of death and destruction, they get dumped.  Meanwhile, there's a CSI in every city in America now.

Wow... I sound kinda bitchy.  Hmmm....

I'm nearly finished with Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult.  Did I tell you how I came by this book?  I went to Salem, MA a couple of weeks ago.  While touring The Witch House, I found this book sitting on a table.  It's from Bookcrossing.  I registered there a few years ago, but never got fully involved.  This is my first Bookcrossing find!  I must say, as with all of Picoult's, books, she does her homework!  It's very good.  I'll be passing it along when I'm done.  I just need to come up with a fun place to leave it.  I don't want to go all of the way back to Salem (which was a perfect drop off place).  Maybe I'll leave it in a pew inside of a Catholic church.

My cousin, Diane, let me borrow her copy of A Discovery of Witches.  I really wanted to like this book, but I can't seem to make myself finish it.  It's a little bit too Twilight Series for me, I guess...I dunno.  Anyone else read it and can shed some light?

I'm very excited about an upcoming book discussion group which begins on June 1.  We will meet every Wednesday throughout the summer and discuss The Celestine Prophecy...insight by insight.  I have The Tenth Insight somewhere...just can't seem to put my hands on it.  Maybe I let someone borrow it.  I'll pick it, and the 11th and 12th up at Half.com.

Speaking of Half.com... I got a copy of The Celestine Prophecy there for a friend for .75!  Even with shipping, it was under $5.  So, I went back this week and grabbed an old copy of To Stir a Magick Cauldron by Raven Silverwolf, which I am going to tear apart and decoupage onto a small, wooden chest.  Can't wait to get started with that project.  Shelby recently decoupaged an old sewing table she had and it looks awesome!  Right now, this little chest serves as my coffee table and storage for magazines, but once I finish it, I'll have to move it into my bedroom so Bella doesn't scratch it up (like she's doing with the chest now).  Which means, I'll need to replace the coffee table...or not...since she'll probably claw that up as well.  Whatever made me think I wanted a cat?

I've been feeding her later in the day and she isn't waking me up at 4 a.m. these days.  6, yes...  but not 4.   Anyone have any tips on how to keep your cat from destroying your property?  I won't get her declawed, so that's out. 

Guess I'll finish my book now and you can go back to doing something enjoyable as well.

Peace,

Kay

 

All work and no play makes Kay a boring girl...

Saturday

April 30, 2011

Hi,

I just checked my last post...VALENTINE'S DAY!  Sheesh... I don't know what to blame my absence on.  Winter sucked the life outta me!  We were in a never-ending snowstorm from December until last Saturday (yes, it snowed a bit last Saturday).

Spring is bustin' out all over this weekend though.  I took a few pics of some green stuff around the house this morning.  Lilies popping up, a red tulip, leaves bursting out of their buds...even a dandelion or 2.  And when Cindi and I were out for a walk this morning, we ran into a couple of May fly swarms.

I have been working a lot on jewelry.  Last summer, it was wire crochet that kept me busy.  This time, I learned a new technique...wire coiling.  Have been having some fun with that.  I wish I knew how to resize my photos.  I'd share more than this one:

 
Anywho...I'm having some fun with it.  I made some spring/summer colored ones, some gold, some silver.  All pretty and fun.  I will probably buy some autumn colored wire...rust, brown, brick red, etc for my next sale.

I had a vendor sale at work on Wednesday.  It was in a new location because the conference room I was scheduled in was...well, gone.  The powers that be decided to expand the doctor's lounge without letting anyone know and all of the vendor sales in that conference room had to be moved.  It wasn't a great sale and I don't know if it was the location or the fact that we are a month out from layoffs and reduced hours for some staff...or the economy, or the price of gas, or the fact that a you need to take a second mortgage on your home to buy a head of iceberg lettuce these days.  Whatever it was...sales were slow.  But...I went home with more money that I left the house with that morning, so it's all good.

On the upside though, a local gift shop asked if I would consider putting some stuff there on consignment (I've known the owner for years, so yes, please).  She took everything I brought out to show her.  I've already sold some pieces too.  She hasn't seen the coiled wire yet.  Maybe I'll pack some out and bring it out soon.

I haven't watched American Idol since the year Taylor Hicks beat Chris Daughtry (ummm...duh) and I'm not proned to watching any "reality" t.v., but I tuned into The Voice this week and really liked it.  Despite the fact that I probably can't name a single song any of the "coaches" have ever released, I liked the way the whole thing is going down.  You sing your ass off and pray that at least one of the 4 will spin their chair around and I WANT YOU will light up.  Then they get to fight over you for a few minutes and YOU choose your mentor.  Now...I may not be able to recite the title of a song any of them sang, but I know that if you have Blake Shelton and Christina Aguilera fighting over you, you musta done somethin' good.

On Netflix, I've been watching The Tudors (I could be in love with Henry VIII) and The Pillars of the Earth.  Love them both.  My Netflix queue is ridiculously long...like 500 or something.  At the rate I'm returning dvd's, I'd be dead 100 yrs before they all had a chance to ship. :)  Good thing there's no late fee.

Bella...what can I say.  She's not calmed down a whole lot in 2 1/2 yrs...or maybe she's just a different kind of crazy.  I truly wish that I had started blogging about our life together when I first got her because she is one insanely (root word:insane) smart cat!  And when she's not being naughty (and sometimes when she is) she makes me laugh my ass off.  I only keep her because she opens my mail for me, saving me from those annoying paper cuts.

This is what happens when you post an update every two MONTHS... you never shut up.

What else can I update you on? Hmmm...  OH!  It's almost May 2, which has been deemed Pagan Coming Out Day, and since who knows when I'll be back, I'll come out today.  I'm a witch.  (I've been called worse things).

Blessed Be,

Kay

 

Journal To The Self

Monday

February 14, 2011 (Happy Valentine's Day)

Hi,

Just a quick note to let you all know about the newly launched Journal Therapy website.  This is where I was certfied to teach the Journal To The Self workshops that I offer at hospitals and our local community college.

www.journaltherapy.com

Check it out!  Fun, informative and interactive.

Peace,

Kay

Happy Valentine's Day...

Sunday

February 13, 2011

Hi,

I bought myself a Valentine's Day gift...picking it up tomorrow.  Very excited!  Here's a picture of it although mine is black.

 
This is my third Honda...but this time I bought it instead of leasing it.  Got a good deal... 0.9%!  Unheard of... I grabbed a leftover 2010 with no mileage and they gave me almost $3000 off the sticker price. It was less than they paid for it. 

Because I'm turning in a lease and buying, they couldn't just transfer the plates.  I have to go to the insurance company tomorrow, then the registry, and then back to the dealer (in New Hampshire!) to pick up my car.  No advance warning about needing some time off at work...but it shouldn't be a problem. I'm going to see if the insurance company has a runner they can send to the registry for me so I can go back to work and head out to pick it up at the end of the day.  I WILL miss my civic though...it's a nice car.

My cousin, Cheryl, hosted a home jewelry party for me today.  She had a nice turnout (12 women) and I sold some stuff and made some money to help pay the taxes ($931...yikes) tomorrow.  Kind of puts the squash on my plans to go to Florida in May, but it is what it is.

I'm touring the city's most famous haunted house on Friday!  Can't wait... I've been wanting to see the inside for many years.  It was empty for a very long time, then about 10 yrs ago, a couple bought it and started the restoration (it's an old Victorian).  They were unable to finish it (financial troubles, I guess) and vacated the house (ghostly troubles?).  It was unoccupied for a few years again, then a new couple bought it and started giving tours.  It's only $10...a bargain, right?  You can spend the night for $50, but ummm... no thanks. :)

On Saturday, I am going to a theater in Worcester to see Grease with some friends.  Lunch first a a pub.  All of it free to me for a belated birthday gift.  Yay!

On Sunday, I am taking a meditation class.  It's been postponed since mid January because we have had a big snow storm every week on the night it was scheduled (Wednesdays).  Three in a row...so she changed it to a Sunday and so far, so good.  After a busy wkend like that, I'm happy to have a Monday holiday from work.

We have had a reaaaaaally cold, snowy winter.  The piles of snow everywhere aren't going to fully melt until mid-summer.  There's just no room to put anymore snow and we are all weary of it.  Either it's snowing or it's 20 below zero.  Enough!  I want spring...

Peace,

Kay

Snow!

Saturday

Januray 29, 2011

Hi,

This has been the SNOW month from hell.  I feel like I live inside of a SNOW globe.  It SNOWS and SNOWS and SNOWS, and then it SNOWS some more.  Oh!  And, let's not forget the cold.  It was MINUS 20 here a few days last week!  Of course, it doesn't SNOW when it's that cold, so at least we got a reprieve from the SNOW.  I am SO ready for spring.

I do have a uplifiting story from the most recent storm, though.  Some background info first... When I moved here, my landlady was upfront with me about her husband not being able to get here to plow out the driveway after every storm before I have to be at work.  So...okay.  When we had big storms, I would get a ride in and deal with my car after work. 

A couple of weeks ago, we got slammed with about 22" of snow during a 2 day storm.  I backed my car up into the yard so that the driveway would be clear for Jim to plow and asked Linda to pick me up the next morning.  When she dropped me off that night, Jim had plowed the driveway, but he'd also plowed my car in!  It took 90 minutes of shoveling to unearth my car that night...and it was snowing the whole time I was shoveling.  I shoveled out all of the snow in front of it, but when I cleaned 22" of snow OFF of the car, I had to shovel it out again.  Then I had to shovel around it enough to get the driver side door open so I could get in and move it.  Once I had it into the driveway, I cleaned it off again and this time I pulled it to the end of the driveway, as close to the road as I could without sticking out enough to get swiped by a city plow.  Jim came back once more after that and plowed some snow up against the passenger side of my car, but not much.  In the morning, it took me about 15 or so minutes to clear the front enough to get into the street.

So...since then, if the weather forecast even hints of 12 FLAKES of snow, I leave my car at the end of the driveway so there is minimal shoveling to get out.  Well...

We had yet another nasty 12 INCHES or so of snow Wed night into Thursday morning.  My car was down by the road, however, I didn't pull it as close to the street as before because the snow piles are sooooo high, I was afraid a city plow wouldn't see it and I'd get clipped.  It took me about 10 minutes to go around my car with the brush to clean it off (snow was almost to my knees), during which time the city plow went by, not once, but twice and pushed more snow in front of my car while I stood there looking at the driver and wondering if he had ANY compassion anywhere in his over-tired, over-paid body.  Apparently not.

I opened the trunk and got out my shovel.  After the third or fourth shovelful around the front passenger tire, I heard a noise behind me and looked up in time to see a young guy in a pickup truck drop his plow and sweep the snow away for me!  He rolled down his window and said..."If you back up a bit, you can gun it and get out of there".  I thanked him profusely, put the shovel back in the trunk and got in my car.  Meanwhile, he went a few yards down the street and blocked the road with his truck so that I could fly out of there without having to inch my way forward to see around the 15' snow pile if any cars were coming.  When I made it out, we gave each other the thumbs up and I went on my merry way.  At the stop sign, I looked back to see if he was gone and saw that he was plowing my next door neighbor's driveway.  I plan to stop at Dunkin' Donuts and get him a gift card and ask Theresa if she will give it to him for me the next time she pays him.  It's supposed to SNOW again this weekend, so I'm sure she'll see him again.  He certainly renewed my faith in humanity.

Peace,

Kay

Happy 2011!!!

Sunday

January 2, 2011

Hi!

I'm a day late, but wanted to wish everyone a Happy New Year!  I hope it's filled with peace, abundance and prosperity.

I have been working on my Etsy webstore.  It has about 1/3 of my current inventory listed so far.  VERY tedious process.  I'll be working on it over the next week or so and hope to have it complete soon.  If you are interested in taking a peek, here's the web address:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/kayserasera

Denny has been here for almost 2 weeks.  He spent one week in Maine with Tammy and they have been with me since Thursday evening.  We have been busy, busy, busy getting as much in as we can before  he flies back to AZ on Thursday.  Michael came with him and is the photographer who took all of the pictures (so far) on my site.  It's been so great having them all here.  Haven't seen much of Tammy but she's here every morning when I wake up. :)

I need to hit the hay myself.  Another busy day tomorrow...learning how to take my own pictures, breakfast with Shelby, visiting friends in New Hampshire who have 1 yr old twins I've never seen, more work on the website.  I don't go back to work until Wednesday. :)

Peace,

Kay

First house party...

Sunday

December 5, 2010

Hi,

Hey, remember when I used to write everyday?  Me neither...

Nora hosted a house party for me and Shelby today.  Only 2 women came, but I made 2 sales. :)  Shelby went home with everything she brought over.  :(  Oh well...c'est la vie.  We are both working on Etsy sites.

We actually spotted a few white fluffy things in the air while we were waiting for ANYONE to show up, but they were few and very far between.  I had to stare out the window for 5 minutes before I saw one. :)  Not to say we aren't in for snow at some point this week, but so far, so good.  I think this is the latest we've gone before the first snowfall in quite some time...not that I'm complaining.

It is definitely cold today though.  Brrrr... As soon as I got back in from Nora's party, I put my flannel happy pants on and made a big pot of chicken soup.  So yum... no dumplings today, but lots of chicken broth, chicken, carrots, onions, celery...and the magic ingredient: sarriette  I got mine straight from Canada, the only place I know that has the real deal.  In a pinch, I'll use oregano, but it just isn't the same.

Emma had her braces off a couple of weeks ago.  She looks soooo grown up now.  Freaking me out! ;)  And Sam... well, in his new school pictures he looks like a little man! Wow... He had an accident a couple of weeks ago.  Fooling around with Emma at Home Depot and smashed his mouth into a metal bar or pole or something.  Broke a front tooth right in half and fractured the remainder of it in 4 places.  :(  He was seen immediately by his dentist who discovered, from the x-ray, that he also has another tooth growing behind his front teeth.  Wouldn't it be great if that third tooth could come down and replace the broken one?  The dentist said no.  :(  So now, at 8 yrs old, he has permanent damage to a front tooth.  Gah!  It's capped and the third tooth will be removed surgically after the holidays. 

I'm procrastinating on getting any holiday decorating done.  I can't put a tree up with Bella here, so I will go up to the attic and take the boxes of snowmen down and scatter them about.  Maybe put some white lights around here and there.  The problem (and it IS a problem) is that there are VERY few electrical outlets in this apartment.  Maybe I can get some battery operated ones. 

I also need to take care of the front hallway, which has been filled with stuff from when I moved here.  Boxes of decor I don't use anymore.  A 3 drawer cart on wheels filled with stuff for Sam and Emma that they are too old for now.  Air conditioners, fans, my Christmas tree, which weighs a ton, and anything else I wanted out of my way.  I need to clean it up for the sake of cleaning it up, but also to make room for a few more things (of course) in my spare room that need a place to go so Denny can use the room as a bedroom for 2 wks.  The spare room is a disaster...filled with beads and filing cabinets and all sorts of stuff.  I've been here for 20 months...time to take care of that.  :)

I'm currently reading (on my Nook) The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.  Love it so far, so will probably read the whole trilogy.  I've downloaded Michael Cunningham's new book, By Nightfall, and can't wait to get started on it.  I read an excerpt and loved it...big fan of his!

Okay, I've rambled enough. 

Peace,

Kay