Thursday, March 10, 2022

Midweek on Wednesday

 The washed drapes:

The Washed Drapes

On Monday, after I picked up the groceries and took the trash cans out (checked with neighbor T to see if she needed any of her trash cans taken to the curb, but, she said no), I sort of took it easy.  Replied to blog comments, wrote my blog post, did the dishes, cooked dinner, watched news, and chatted with friend R.  Later, in the night, I put in another order for cat food, cat litter, and a couple of other household supplies to be delivered.  I guess I am stocking up, again, just in case we have additional problems with supply shortages and prices increasing.  It would be hard to explain to Dancer why there is no fresh sand in his litter box!

On Tuesday, I picked more peapods from the garden:

Almost Half a Pound!

I am planning to freeze these.  I have not frozen peapods before; I suppose they won't remain that crisp when cooked afterwards, but, they will be a nice treat, later in the year, once the vines have died down.

In addition to the peapods, I picked some oranges, too.  I brought the trash cans in, spoke with neighbor S about resuming piano lessons (in April), called cousin P who had moved to Florida to see how she's settling in, called cousin R and left her a message, chatted with friend R, did what seemed to be a mountain of dishes, and cleaned the litter box.  

Tuesday's mail included this week's grocery ads and I made note of the sale items - they included chicken drumsticks or thighs for $.99/lb., which is a good price.  While I have some chicken in the freezer, I will buy another tray of chicken at that price and cook it for next week's meals.  

Gardener M texted to say that he has a new client on Mondays and she had wanted him to thin out some plants from her garden; he had asked her permission to find new homes for some of them instead of just composting them and she had said it was fine with her.  He asked me if I'd like to have some ornamental purple fountain grasses and an agave plant.  I said, yes, please!  He brought them over, today, and I had him plant them in the front garden.  There were, actually, four agave plants!  These are the larger ones, which were planted in the front:  



Two New Agave Plants

The front garden, as I have mentioned before, gets both afternoon and evening sun.  In the summer, it just bakes!  I am trying to grow mostly drought tolerant plants, such as succulents, in the front.  

The two smaller agave plants were planted in the back yard, near the shed.  All the agave "plants" are actually unrooted cuttings.  But, they should root in about 8 weeks or so.  

The clumps of purple fountain grass were planted in the front flower bed that runs along the side of the drive way.  There were some empty spots where the osteospermum had not grown.  I've drawn blue arrows to point out where the grass was planted:


Fountain Grass Clumps

M said he cut them down before he uprooted them.  I am hoping that they will grow well and provide some much needed height to that flower bed.  The other taller plant in this flower bed is a rosemary bush. 


One of the clumps of the newly planted fountain grass


M warned me that there might be more plants coming my way from this one garden!  He told me that I am under no obligation to accept them, but, I told him that I am happy to receive free plants!

Today, I was able to spend a little time cleaning in the garage.  I tossed a few more items, including a couple of old car floor mats, a couple of plastic table covers, some cardboard boxes, etc. and I swept a small section of the garage floor!  Still a lot more to do on that side of the garage before I can move onto the next area.  But, I am making progress!  

I relaxed in the afternoon, replying to blog comments and catching up with a few blogs.  The cat food and litter, etc., I ordered on Monday, were delivered, today.  Daughter helped me to put away some of the items, but, there are three boxes in the living room still, waiting to have the contents stored in the spare bedroom, which has been turned into a stock room!  I broke down the emptied boxes and will take them to the recycling bin, tomorrow.

In the evening, I decided to go ahead and make the curry puffs for tonight's dinner.  First, I made the filling - ground turkey, with onions, celery, garlic, a grated carrot, a grated potato, and a handful of frozen green peas added to it, along with curry powder, chili powder, a bit of coconut milk, some lemon juice, etc.:

Ground Turkey Filling

Then, I made the pastries using frozen puff pastry squares:

Baked Curry Puffs


I only had one, previously opened package of frozen puff pastry on hand, so I was able to make only six curry puffs (the packages usually contain eight puff pastry squares).  I brushed the tops with a little milk before baking them at 350F for 20 minutes.  The rest of the ground turkey filling was put into a container and will be kept in the fridge to be eaten with rice, or tortillas, or bread.  Unless I get ambitious and make more pastry!

Today's mail brought with it a jury duty summons for me!  I generally tend to enjoy jury duty, but, I really, really don't want to have to serve during this time with Covid case numbers still fairly high in my area!  I am hoping that I will be able to just call in and not be required to report in person!  

Today, I am grateful for:
- Sunny days
- The peapod harvest
- M bringing me free plants for the garden
- Being able to have pet supplies, etc., delivered to the house
- Being able to stock up

Today's joyful activity was gardening.

Plans for tomorrow include more garage cleaning!

How was your Wednesday?  What are your plans for Thursday?

20 comments:

  1. Your window is looking nice with your freshly laundered curtains. How lucky are you to be given free plants and the promise of more to come. Your curried puffs with the turkey filling look very tasty. I've never been called for jury service and i can understand your concerns about attending, I hope you can be excused attending in person. My son has done it and said waiting around was so boring but I don't know what the case was all about I think they are sworn to secrecy.
    Yesterday I exhausted myself with the cooking and the laundry and walking Tilly and I am going for a more restful day today :)

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    1. Thank you, Eileen; I am now eyeing the drapes on one of the side windows, between the living room and the dining area (one L-shaped room). I am very lucky, indeed, to be given free plants! These plants cost quite a bit to buy and these days, I prefer to spend my money on fruit trees and vegetable plants, but, I won't refuse free plants! :D
      It seems like they call me for jury duty at least every 2 years without fail! I don't mind it, but, I'd rather not serve while there is a pandemic going on! I've tried so hard to stay home and be safe!
      Sorry to hear that you got too tired doing things, yesterday.
      Good idea to take it easy and rest, today! :)

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  2. Your freshly laundered sheers look brand new! :)

    Oh I like the idea of free plants & getting some drought resistant plants is a bonus. There's a real push in our region for growing native plants, which not only survive the hot dry summers, but the cold winters & they provide food for the bees & birds.

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    1. Thank you, Mary-Lou. I'm pleased with how they look, now.
      I am happy to receive free plants! I'd rather spend my money on edible plants - fruit trees and vegetable starts, etc. - but, if you offer me free plants, I won't say no! :D

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  3. It sounds like you had a productive day and well done for doing some more clearing in the garage. The curry puffs look so so good - I'm half thinking of not bothering with a meal plan for myself and just copying yours! Your food always looks so good.

    The chance of new freebie plants is exciting and the ones M planted look good. Let's hope they all like their new home and grow well for you.

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    1. Thank you, Eileen; it was a good day. I'm very happy with what I was able to do in the garage, yesterday. I'm cleaning along one of the long walls, which is broken up a little bit by the side door. One corner, where a box of cleaning supplies and car-related items were kept has been cleared and some miscellaneous items that were stacked on the floor in front of two shelving units have also been cleared. Now, I have to go through the shelving units and maybe, just maybe, consolidate the stuff to one shelving unit.
      You are welcome to copy my meal plan if that helps! :D
      I am happy to receive the free plants! I, too, hope that they will grow well. If not - "easy come, easy go"?

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  4. "I picked some oranges, too" - that gives me an urge to migrate somewhere where I can pick some from my yard! You did well with the pea pods. How lovely to have a source of donated plants for your garden. M has the right idea, always thinking beyond mere composting. I hope you get some more lovely plants to add to your garden. Your garage is coming along, too. I hope you won't be expected to turn up for jury service. There is always the concern about the virus, isn't there? We are opening up, and on the 21st, masks will no longer be mandatory either. Guess who will be wearing one anyway! I find the idea of being with unlimited people indoors does not give me confidence, even with masks. Time to wait and see, I think.
    Yesterday DH went to our nearest big town but I didn't go with him as he had business that was out of the way from anywhere useful for me. Today I went down to our town to church for an hour of peace and quiet.

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    1. I love being able to just step out into garden and pick fruits and vegetables! Today, I noticed a lovely fragrance when I went out and noticed that the orange tree is starting to have flowers! The bees had already discovered them and were busy gathering nectar (and, hopefully, pollinating the flowers!).

      According to M, several of his clients get rid of their plants and he tries his best to rehome them, but, some clients just want him to toss them in the yard waste bins.

      Yes, the garage is coming along, slower than I'd like, but, I spent another session in there, today, and managed to go through the stuff stored on two shelving units. I consolidated it all on one unit and am thinking of having M remove the other shelving unit. It's metal and something I put together from a kit - it won't be difficult to take it apart to put inside the recycling bin.
      I don't want to go about in public, yet, and that's my main reason for not wanting to be called for jury service. The indoor mask mandate was removed a week or so ago and our county's new case numbers, while lower than what they were, are still not quite as low as I'd like! On the other hand, people do want justice to be served in a timely manner!
      I'm glad you were able to go to church, Bushlady, especially during Lent. There is a certain stillness inside a church that is hard to find anywhere else, isn't there?

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  5. Free plants are always good! I can't imagine how wonderful it must be to be able to grow agave. You have worked so hard to make a good garden, and you are getting the benefit.

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    1. Free plants are the best! I hope the agave will grow well for me. The garden is a constantly evolving space!

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  6. You are definitely in the minority when it comes to enjoying jury duty. Me? Nope! Most people? Nope! LOL Our guest bedroom has turned into a stock room too. All the overflow from groceries to toiletries goes in there. It was not like that before the pandemic but when I see things I think there may be a run on I try to get it in case there is a shortage. I had kind of backed off doing that but now with the war raging in Ukraine I'm starting to stockpile again. Yay for M bring you some more plants for your garden. I like those agave plants. Have a nice weekend! We are waiting on snow here. Denise

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    1. I guess I am the odd one out when it comes to liking jury duty! For me, it was a change from regular work, there was time between being called into the jury room to knit (back when knitting needles were allowed) and read (when I could no longer take my knitting in with me). One year, I got all my Christmas cards written out while I was in the juror assembly room.

      Yes, that's what I am doing, myself, Denise - buying extra as and when I can and stashing it all in the spare bedroom! It's a bit of a mess in there, right now, but, that's OK. :)

      I'm happy to receive the free plants! If the agave plants grow, in about 5 or 6 years, there might be baby plants (they are apparently called "pups") to give away, myself!

      Oh, my! More snow! Stay warm and safe, Denise. Have a lovely weekend.

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  7. I'm excited on your behalf about the plants! I have noticed lots of self-set hellebores here, if you want to come and fetch them. White, purple and a greeny one, but i know you already have one of those. I was going to say I would like a curry puff to take home with me when I visit, but if you're coming to get plants, maybe you could bring me one, before it goes stale? They look amazing! I've never been called for jury service, but I think it would be very interesting. However like you I wouldn't relish the idea of doing it just now! Hope you avoid it this time.

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    1. Thank you, Lady Ella. I'd love to bring you some curry puffs and collect a few of your hellebores (and I seem to recall something about fox glove seeds, too), but, it might have to wait until I feel better about flying (apparently there is a new variant of The Virus going around?)

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    2. I seem to recall you declined the foxglove seeds! I dug them all up last year so that's the end of them I'm afraid. :o(
      I read about the new mutation today too. Not exactly a surprise... except possibly to Boris.

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    3. Oops! I guess I conveniently forgot about the declining part of it! :D
      No, new mutations are not a surprise to many of us. This is the new reality. But, I would love to visit the UK, again, one day (and spend a little more time visiting places than I did the previous time).

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  8. How lovely to have those plants!

    Those curry puffs look amazing. Sort of like a pasty of some kind. I really need to make some cheese and onion ones!

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    1. I am very happy to receive the plants. :)
      Yes; you can make the curry puffs with a vegetarian filling too - you can make the filling with potatoes, carrots, green peas, onions, leeks, tomatoes, etc., all sauteed and cooked together with spices of your choice (or, just salt and pepper, if you like), enclose in pastry, and bake. :) Cheese and onion sounds good, too!

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  9. Your curry puffs look so good!

    How nice that M brought you some new plants. The agave make a nice striking appearance I think and the grasses will be wonderful. I'm looking forward to seeing them settle in.

    Your window looks nice and crisp and clean with it's nice laundered curtains. I'm sure it pleases you to have that job done.

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    1. Thank you, Debra; the extra curry puff filling has been used in fried rice, two tortillas, and there's enough for one more serving in a tortilla or with some rice! Not bad for 1 lb. of ground turkey! :D

      It was very kind of M to bring me the new plants! I hope the fountain grass will recover from the shock of being transplanted! They look more dead than alive, right now, but, I'll give them another drink of water, today, and hopefully, they'll do well.

      I'm very happy with the window being cleaned! It's one less thing bugging me! :)

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