Inspiration and Peaches as an Alleviation for Thunderstorm

                             The rain clouds whispered their love notes to me as the puddles gathered on my porch. It had been a bright morning.

Do you ever get a sudden impulse to create something tasty? Well, last week I did just that with fresh peaches from my peach tree. I never thought Kansas peaches would be so good! They were delicious. The peach varieties I planted were clingstone. The fruit clings to the pit in these peaches. Which, all in all, is kind of annoying but quite tasty! Did someone say jam?

I had planted two cherry trees in the same area, one a Montgomery and the other a sweet.

These sadly enough do not produce hardly anything.

Since it's summer, biking is quite popular in my area. Though a small town I think the numbers of bikes gliding through town are increasing. I have a mountain bike myself that is in sorry distress. Yes, the gears are unbalanced and the bike chain needs greasing and whatever else.  Oh Lord, it is in my "mechanic shop." Haha, my laundry room. I, honestly, am learning on the job with this bike repair stuff, though I do find it fascinating. Hopefully,  my efforts won't be in vain.

My nighttime hobbies have changed since my sweetie left. I am learning to crochet better and watercolor. My efforts thus far have been something to laugh at but the show must go on.

Sounds like an awful thunderstorm is rolling in.

I am happy to have picked up another freelance newspaper job that gives me the flexibility that I need. The structure of freelance work fits nicely into my schedule, especially as my online classes are finishing up. The first economic development article I completed through the medium of photojournalism. Published online at the Belleville Telescope.




I am slowly eeking through application processes for 4-year colleges. It is quite a tedious task but I'm sure the rewards of doing something great are well worth the wait.  Though I have had multiple opinions---strong opinions offered to me. AHEM-AHEM. I am following the famished writer pathway, at least till I get a Bachelors degree. Heehee. It's quite a leap of faith but I do hope someday to create a work (in this case book) that will be shaping the minds for centuries. With my English degree, I have considered traveling abroad and teaching ESL through secondary education. This would require me to pick up an ESL license and a secondary education major or minor accompanied by a foreign language-- I'm shooting for Italian. Italian culture and Italy has always fascinated me. It's all very confusing but I'm sure it will all work out.

In the meantime, I'm keeping up blogging, making delicious cups of coffee, reading, writing, painting, and my new favorite PLANKING!!

One of my inspirations for planking comes from XHIT, which my morning routines have become entirely obsessed with. I'm not all that strong but I held a plank for nearly a minute and twenty seconds. I was pretty proud of myself. 

So through this post, I hope I've told you a little about my day and maybe inspired you to pick up some new hobbies. PLANKING? KNITTING? CROCHET?

Whatever, inspire you to invest in your imagination and set the world on fire! 🔥

addio!

Coffee Shop, Dinner Thoughts

 The hum of the espresso machine strummed out its sharp soothing lullaby. People gathered in front of this machine daily almost like a golden cow, a different concept I guess, but still. The soft drone of quiet voices echo their replies as the soft drone of background music fills the empty cracks of the shop. My favorites at coffee shops are Cortados but in a pinch, an Au Lait will suit. It's a nice refresher after teaching at the preschool.

Teaching is certainly not for the faint of heart! I love the little ones though, they're so sweet. Today's play agenda at recess largely consisted of making me very very tired. 

I was scrambling from swing to swing. My arms are so worn out! 

Hee hee, they also love climbing to the top of the jungle gym then crying for help because like a cat in a tree they've gotten stuck! 

Oh, Lawd let me tell you, I have figured out the heavier ones ;). But they all certainly fly high!... And I got in an extra arm workout :)

Center time today consisted of playdough and little rubber slippery gravel rocks. Quite a mess! They both wanted to be construction workers. Great boys!

When I got home I arrived at the dank smell of the canned salmon I thought I could remedy something eatable. OMG never again!! I did not buy the salmon, but improviser that I am, decided to take a crack at the canned salmon. TERRIBLE IDEA!!!!!

To make things worse, as I tried to throw it in my trash can, the mass dropped on my floor! Splashing salmon grease over my rug! Uggh Uggh. To make things worse the smell is haunting my house. 

On the bright side, I have kale! I know random, but quite delicious. I think it will go into a salad tonight for dinner. The day is rather grey though, so perhaps a kale soup might be more appropriate. 

Faint Whispers of Spring

So the Midwest is a harbinger of blowy snowy weather. Pictured above is a vase of my favorites: roses, sage, and delphinium. It's a bit of hope on such a blustery cold day! Pictured below is Kansas today. 

Coffee, words, and yarn are what's on today's agenda. Haha! 
I started a new knitting project last night a scarf. It's a chartreuse color, which I absolutely adore, mostly because WHO DOESN'T LOVE SAYING CHARTREUSE! It's a neat color too, I think. 

As I write I'm wearing a knitted hat, I made, with a cabled ring in the same yarn. Quite a topical color I think! I also like periwinkle, which again is a beautiful color but oh so fun to say! 




Now that I've surely confused my readers about odd sounding colors I'll proceed with the core topic of this post-- the paradoxical weather and the harbinger of Spring. 



With this Spring comes a completely new feeling as the creeping white periwinkle drips the dew of a brisk morning in my new city. This new feeling of independence is so reviving like a sweet summer wind full of the faint smells of flowers and harvest. This Spring is full of so much promise as I dream about my honey and I dancing in the moonlight or visiting our favorite art museum. My heart is full!






I have found a very nice place to stay that I'm inquiring about, fingers crossed. Maybe, just maybe, I will be in my new city within the next week. Goodness gracious that would be a dream come true! I would be in a location stockpiled with jobs and the modern convenience of a grocery store, coffee shop and bookstore within walking distance. Funny how dreams work. I can't even count the songs I've listened to about dreams just staying dreams. It's quite a battle to dream freely. 

My readers make me happy as well! It is so nice to see that someone is reading my writing and that I'm not just throwing my words at a brick wall. So thank you! Cheers to a wonderful day! 

Morning Has Broken

As I cracked an egg into my mug of Vietnamese coffee I scanned the Classified's job section. Vietnamese coffee is made with eggs. In fact, the whole egg, shell included! Relaxing for me includes watching coffee videos on Youtube. 

                                Vietnamese coffee has a rich flavor of tiramisu. It's a great variation to the ordinary cup of Joe. Its layers are similar to custard and the taste is absolutely exquisite. Besides,  eggs have protein. If you're looking for that extra protein boost plus caffeine in the morning, then this might be your answer. The eggs used in this coffee are processed in boiling water so there is no need to be intrepid about the raw egg factor. 

Tasting coffees from all over the world is a favorite activity of mine. I have been experimenting with everything from Mexican to Vietnamese coffee preparation styles. Drinking coffees with preparation styles from all over the world is an exciting way for me to begin my day. I enjoy reading the paper in the morning, knitting and reading my Bible. I wake up way too early, generally speaking. Which, in a sense is a blessing and a curse. My mornings I try to be productive but recently I've been in rather a glitch. It seems that I'm stuck on trying to escape my ordinary life. I want a change of pace but I want to make an epic move in life. My grandmother, who's an amazing lady!, has a refrigerator magnet that says "Ordinary women did not go down in history." 

                                              Is being unordinary bad, I think not! So with my quirky early morning waking coffee habits, and my endless flame of new ideas and inspirations I'll travel on through this life being grateful for every day I'm blessed with. Thank God for Vietnamese coffee and early mornings!

Overheated Coffee and Books

This morning began with the urgent moans of the alarm clock at 5:00, which I was not very happy to hear. Last night I was a night nurse so I had a very late night! I did a brisk walk after silencing the alarm, I may or may not have thrown it at the wall...


Pour-over coffee is a hot thing in my house nowadays, which my family turns their nose up at which is fine by me, as I guzzle the pot dry :). Realistically speaking I only fill it half full, three or four cups is enough to make a girl sick!


Putting spices in your coffee is the best for pour over I think. Cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg are favorites of mine.
Note to reader: all spices should be very gingerly added (pun intended).



The pot that I use is a BODUM 4 cup pour over coffee maker. Which is fabulous!



Anyway, it is definitely flannel weather here on the farm. December in November. Cold weather is such a nice thing to have after the blazing hot Kansas summers. Winter on the farm is a wonderful time to read. Reading is such a wonderful way to expand your mind and experience vicariously what others write about. To write a book is a painting of the soul, that I endeavor to accomplish someday. Some books that are on my shelf this winter are "Two Years Before the Mast" by R. H. Dana JR., "Summa Theologica", Thomas Aquinas, "Three Methods of Prayer That Will Change Your Life", by Philip Kosloski- this is really good this is my second time reading.



I think I've got my work cut out for me!

A Boo-tiful Morning

This morning was a boo!-tiful morning!

Happy Halloween to all my viewers.

It was a great morning to make skinny pumpkin spice lattes for my family, which I found on Pinterest from Inspired Table. They have a lot of great recipes including roasted pumpkin seeds and lemon blueberry layer cake. PASS ME A PIECE!!

Actually not now--fitness plans… urgh-- As my mom says, “Short-term sacrifice long-term gain.”

I woke this morning to the creaking of a door, I guess that happens in old houses; shifting houses… Darn creaks!

But I am so happy that the door creaked because it awoke me and I was ready to continue my new fitness journey. Same as always squat, squat, crunch, crunch... .no we’re not talking about cereal :).

This morning it was 27°. Another great day for training and making skinny pumpkin pie lattes... Haha, DIY-ing fun. My family greatly enjoyed the lattes too! Admittedly, I was a bit frightened when I heard something moving in the brush near our porch. I think it was just a cat, probably black…

The morning was so still and the wind hadn’t flinched one twig. A black masquerade opened my morning. As nature’s dance began, an owl hooted from a nearby branch. The darkness is chilly and somewhat spooky, great for a Halloween day.

Speaking of Halloween. Tonight I will be volunteering at the Halloween hayrack ride and soup dinner in the Great Land of OZ… Haha, my hometown is pretty amazing, and I have been called Dorothy one too many times.

It’s the small things that bring people together with laughter, costumes, and lots of hot chocolate that make Halloween such a great time!  

Fitness day #3, Thank goodness for that creaking door!

Coffee, Standing in the Way of Happiness?

Did you know that nearly 50% of American adults drink coffee every day? Praised by the media and daily drinkers, coffee has a high-ranking place in the American diet. Harvard studies show that coffee is high in natural polyphenols, which are micronutrients that have been linked with preventing cancer, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease. According to, mensfitness.com, coffee also works as an antidepressant and spikes your Adrenaline levels.

Is this a bad thing? Not entirely.

While this news is all fine and dandy, coffee, on the flip side, has its negatives.

Coffee is a drug.

Yes, that’s right an addictive drug. Just this year Caffeine dependence was labeled as a new mental illness.

Do you ever get a headache around 9:00 AM? Do you have trouble sleeping? Increased heart rate?

Did you know that all of these symptoms can be attributed to drinking your morning cups of Joe?

According to MayoClinic, high consumption of boiled coffee (boiled or espresso) has been associated with mild elevations in cholesterol levels. Two or more cups of coffee can increase your risk of heart disease in people with a specific- and fairly common- genetic mutation that slows the breakdown of caffeine in the body.

So, next time you’re reaching to switch on the coffee pot, consider drinking milk or juice instead which offers nutrients and vitamins not found in coffee.

I hope I have enlightened caffeine drinkers with this insightful article.

Cheers!