Calgon, Take Me Away!

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I was going to entitle this blog post "Wanderlust", but the definition "very strong or irresistible impulse to travel" didn't quite define the feeling. Then I thought maybe "Escape"would do, but "remove oneself from a familiar environment, usually for pleasure or diversion" seemed really narcissistic and that's not where this is coming from either. And then I remembered the commercial long ago where the woman slipped into the tub, closed her eyes, and the Calgon bubbles took her to her happy place.  Yep, that's more like it.

Every so often in this woman's life the need to "fly the coop" (forgive me, Grandchickens) arises. This feeling isn't loud and aggressive, it's really just a small tug. Small like a little pebble in your shoe.  That persists.  Until it drives you crazy. I see it as a little voice telling me it's time to stop and take good care, and I've learned over the years to heed the message. So off I go for a week or so to recharge, to reintroduce myself to nature and to replace the keyboard with paper and a pencil.  

With this spirit I share from my Pinterest boards "Take me Away" and "Dreamy": 

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Hope you've enjoyed.  I'll see you next week!

When the Moon Hits Your Eye Like A...

What a difference a week makes!!  Just after I whined about not having any ripe tomatoes, they all started turning at once.  I heard that beautiful heirlooms are $1.99 a pound at Whole Foods Markets today, but if you're in my area, come on over.  We'll have more than we know what to do with in the next few days!

The beauties in the back are the San Marzano variety.  I'll be cutting each in half and putting them on a parchment lined baking sheet, sprinkling them with sea salt and a bit of olive oil and roasting them in a slow oven for about 6 hours.  They are very meaty with few seeds, and they melt in your mouth when cooked this way.  I actually freeze them and use them all year.

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I just had a Caprese salad for lunch and will be having my favorite - Greek salad - for dinner.  

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This weekend I'm going to see if I can find a pizza sauce recipe (do you have one?) and maybe try grilling a pizza margherita.  Yum!   

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I have to admit, I'm now ready for autumn...you really can feel a bit of crispness in the air and pretty colored leaves are just beginning to line our streets.  Doesn't it inspire you to start cooking?  In keeping with the theme, this week's Pinterest share is from my "Foodie" board.  Enjoy!

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What will you be cooking this weekend?

Can a Cobbler Fix Flip Flops?

I truly hope so, because I broke my favorite black Havaianas yesterday! A cottage style girl cannot go without her flip flops, so I'm going to challenge my local shoe repairman Misak (everybody thinks his name is Tony because he bought Tony's from Tony years ago and promised not to change the name) to glue them back together. I'll keep you posted. By the way, refusing to let summer go seems to be working - it looks like we're going to have lots of ripe tomatoes this weekend!!!! So happy. 


This week's Pinterest share is from my Loving Life board - hope you enjoy it. Coincidence that most of the photos depict summertime?  I think not. 

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 Have a great weekend!  ;-)

It's not over until the fat tomato sings.

I don't want to sound like Debbie Downer, but I will go mad if I hear the term "end of summer" one more time. I'm not ready. This would be why.

This is the bounty from my tomato patch. Year-to-date. This one tomato. It was picked yesterday.

Better perspective. A dinner party this does not make.

This was one day's harvest from last year's garden. One day's.

Bon Apetit.

  

I still have tomato and avocado salads to make,

Caprese salads to share.

I'd like to make sauce.

I've been working on this for a very long time. I'm emotionally invested.

And we're close...

...very close.

So the brakes are on, and the flip flops stay out. I will be wearing white after Labor Day and cannot be persuaded to look at a fall sweater (sorry, Ronnie). Summer is hereby extended until I find at least one big fat red juicy ripe tomato in my garden and I've had my fill of Greek salad and BLT's.   

Who's with me?