Gardening ~ Cooking ~ Frugality
Live from Zone 7b in New Jersey
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Goodbye October
Goodbye October! Goodbye Daylight Savings Time! I’ll miss you both. I spent this last week of one of my favorite months trying to capture some good fall images. Images that would remind me of rushing out to water the plants before darkness falls, the last of the crickets’ song, the brilliant blue skies, the trees…
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Sufferin’ Succotash
I don’t know if any of you readers are speech therapists, but I had my first such appointment last Thursday and it was very interesting. At first, I had her quite stumped! But by the end we had an idea of what was going on. So I have a thing where the right side of…
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Deals and Decor
Last week was not the best. I envisioned this post being one long venting session about national politics, our underfunded public school system, the continuing unaffordability of just about everything, etc. I was feeling very sour. This culminated in a bizarre dream Friday night that I’m going to keep to myself because, even for me,…
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Wedding Weekend
What happens when there’s three days of wind and rain and you don’t check on your broccoli and Brussels sprouts? A Brassica Massacre. When I went to check on them this week, they were nearly all nibbled away, and the culprits, the bright green cabbage worms, were still lolling about. I must have picked eight…
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Washout Weekend
I felt more like myself this week as the cold I had finally receded. I found myself actually wanting to try to get stuff done during the week after work. That’s not to say I did a ton, but a few things: walking the dog; getting bean seeds into packets; shopping around for a cheap…
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Best Meal of 2026?
Another weekend has flown by. The kids have off tomorrow for Yom Kippur but I, alas, do not. T. spent the weekend in Nashville and got to see a really exciting Eagles game. The rest of us followed our usual weekend circuits: Haddon Ave, Knights Park, my parents’ house. I had hoped to spend the…
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Hallelujah, Holy Shit, Where’s the Tylenol?
Last night was one of those nights where I ended up lying awake questioning most of my life choices. This was precipitated by Tom’s near-constant snoring, and also both the dog and the cat trying to get in the bedroom. I didn’t fall asleep til the wee hours, and then woke up feeling sick. Usually…
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Song of the Cicadas
Maybe my next house will have a screened-in porch, where I can enjoy a breezy 65-degree September morning, drinking hot coffee and listening to the sounds of nature without my neighbors seeing me in my pajamas and bra-less. In the meantime, I’m on the patio in full view. Too gorgeous a morning not to. Listening…
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The Party’s Over (But What a Party)
I was out past my bedtime last night and seem to be paying for it with a crazy headache today. But it was worth it: I saw Chris Stapleton with friends at a nearby outdoor venue. He was amazing! I’d go see him again. Love his voice. It felt like the perfect finale to what…
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Midyear Assessment
Jumping off the daily treadmill for a minute to think about how I’m meeting my goals (or not). Here are the goals I put in my New Year’s post: I’ve had a change of heart regarding groceries. I’m not doing Costco anymore or worrying about food prices too much. I just don’t have time to…
