The Sky Looks Like a Painting

Hi friends,

Happy Friday to you all. We've made it through another week intact.  When I last shared in this space a few days ago I mentioned it would be raining for a good part of the next two weeks. I'm happy to report that we had 2 nice days of sunshine. I made it out to grocery shopping early Thursday evening. It was just in time as the sky turned dark in readiness for rain again soon.

I've been using the recent rainy days to read. I finished the books I mentioned in my last post here.

Currently I am reading two new books. One called Before We Were Yours, by Lisa Wingate. This is a gut wrenching story based on a real life scandal in Tennessee where the director of an adoption agency was involved in kidnapping and selling the children of poor families into wealthy families.  The other book is called My Vanishing Country:  A Memoir by Bakari Sellers, elected in 2006 at just 22 years old, the youngest ever representative of the South Carolina legislature. Bakari Sellers is a lawyer and CNN political analyst.  This book is part memoir, part cultural analysis. It's set in the author's hometown of Denmark, South Carolina, one of the poorest states in the USA. I've just started the book but I've read it will trace his father's friendships with Stokely Carmichael, Trinidadian-American civil rights leader and Martin Luther King, civil rights hero and explore the plight of the rural South's dwindling black working class.

It isn't very often I get to see such vibrant colour in the morning sky. I was lucky to capture these images.

Enjoy the sky where ever you are in the world. 

Keep well and keep safe.

Joining Skywatch Friday today and paying homage to Friday Foto Friends. xx

Early Morning on the Patio

Hi blogging friends,

I  hope you are all doing well and keeping happy and busy.

We are still getting quite a lot of rain where I live and I haven't been out in the gardens much.  The long term weather forecast is for more rain over the next 2 weeks. It has also been cooler than usual. At the end of this new week we will crack the 20 Celsius mark for only the 2nd or 3rd time since the beginning of Spring.

I'm not complaining as I'm still self isolating despite restrictions being lifted. I will continue to self isolate and keep my eye on the community transmission developments over the next few months. Being indoors means I am slowly getting some old business done though truthfully it is taking me a lot more time than I thought it would. I guess the good news is I always have something constructive to do.

I was out in the patio garden very early one morning and captured these photos. Most of them are of a bush that I don't know the name of but which goes through a multitude of looks over the course of the year. Sometimes there are berries.

The photo below is the only one that is not of my flowering bush. I think it's a Salvia plant but I am not 100% sure as I planted it a few years ago and it never did very well.  This year it seems to be doing better.

My reading list includes this raw and powerfully written memoir of an up and coming Indigenous writer and activist, Helen Knott. Unfortunately her story of gender violence is not that pretty but the good news is she managed to overcome her addictions to drugs and alcohol and begin a new, cleaner life with hope and promise.  The gender violence the author had to endure throughout her lifetime fed into her addictions and the memories kept her addicted.

I'm currently reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. Several years ago I saw a movie based on the book and I enjoyed it. I'm about half way through the book and I don't remember much about whether the movie is true to the book. In any case, I always like to try and read books on which movies are based and the writing is quite enjoyable.

Last, but not least,  I'm reading Shadows Along the Zambezi. It's as masterfully written as Shadows Over an African Heart by Diana M. Hawkins.  Both books bring focussed attention to the issue of elephant poaching in Zimbabwe and all the violence and corruption that goes along with it.

Young elephants having a mud bath at Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Orphanage, Nairobi, Kenya

All but one of the books are digital loans from the library which for some reason is still closed to the public.  They don't even do curbside pickups. I'm not sure why they are still closed while most places are now open with new policies in place to stem the transmission of Covid 19.  Some time back I purchased a digital copy of the book on elephant poaching and am reading it on my Kobo device, Canada's version of  Kindle).  I'll be so glad once the library is open again so I can borrow paper books. In the meantime, I'm grateful for the digital option.

A short update on the Kenyan missions.

• A variety of crops were planted for one large, extended family.  Once the harvest is ready there will be corn, cabbage, carrots and a variety of vegetables for 3 or 4 households to eat.
• Elder Eunice is still in hospital. Though it was about 8 months ago that doctors said she would be ready to go home in a month or two that never happened. She is still in hospital and is more or less stable. We have no information as to the prognosis. 
• Alvin, the young engineer graduate was hoping to come to Canada and continue his studies.  Sadly he was not accepted and we have given up on the idea.  It is very expensive process to prepare the application packages and has lead to a "no" decision two years in a row. It is very disappointing.  Alvin is a very intelligent and studious person and he would have done well here but getting accepted to a Canadian university (easier to get acceptance and scholarship if one is freshly out of high school)is difficult for people from poor countries and is more so the case when money is not part of the family assets.
• Pastor Jonah has had a very difficult experience of late with one of his molars. He needed a root canal and the hospital where they did it did not do a good job at all. It was becoming septic. Fortunately he managed to get the tooth redone at a private dentist office and after a week is now very much on the mend. 
• Others continue to receive food and medical helps when we have funds to assist them.
• I thank those of you who continue to pray for the missions and/or lend financial support. May God richly bless each and every one of you.

That's all for now friends. I hope you all have a wonderful week. Please continue to stay safe. xx

Hello June

Happy June to all my lovely readers. 

I hope and pray that June finds you doing better than May 😀

I've been busy working away on various projects that I've let languish for long. I'm pleased with my progress thus far and have more work to do.  Mainly I've been continuing my major decluttering project and in the process of doing that I've identified some household projects and also some decor needs.  These are minor things not major projects but they take time to implement.  It has been raining for much of the last 6 weeks so that has helped me move forward and squeeze projects into the available free time here and there.

Where I live, the restrictions put in place over the last several months to contain the cases of Covid 19 are slowly and cautiously being lifted.  For now I remain in isolation and I intend to remain so until we see what happens with the forecasted 2nd wave of the virus in a few months time.  As in many countries and cities around the world, containment of the virus is made more challenging due to the protests going on over the egregious deaths of several Black Americans.  Of course I support peaceful protests for righteous causes but I do not support the looting, rioting, burning of buildings and so on that has gone on in some places and I hope peace will be restored before military interventions.

These are my first sky photos for the month of June. These are very early morning photos.

Joining up with Skywatch Friday.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Time Passes Quickly

Hi blogger friends,

I hope this post finds you well. In most parts of the world restrictions are being lifted and countries are trying to restart their economies. Where I live is no exception.

Now that the nicer weather is here it means the streets are much bigger and things like public transportation, restaurants and so on are back in swing albeit with different rules.  I won't go into the various restrictions as they currently exist.  Suffice to say, in my province the leadership and medical officials are being very cautious about lifting restrictions and I am fully on board with that.

I say the nicer weather is here but truth be told it has been raining where I live for much of the past 5 weeks.  We've had a bit of sunshine and dry weather after every week or so of rain.  Personally I think all that rain killed half of my vegetable garden because several of the seeds planted are not sprouting at all. These are the ones that require warmer temperatures, like peppers). The radishes and potatoes seem to be doing all right though maybe growing a bit slower than otherwise. The petunias and pansies are blooming though the geraniums are getting a bit too much rainfall.

 

This morning just before sunrise I was pleased to see the sky was full of pink colours though I see in the photos they are pinkish orange.

I haven't been baking anything lately but I did prepare some apples for use in pie filling, apple crumble or simply to eat with ice cream.  I like to eat Fuji apples but I haven't been eating that many lately. I had 8 of them that were going soft and wrinkled so I peeled, cored and chopped them. I cooked them up on the stove with a bit of coconut sugar, lemon juice and raisins and a tiny bit of water just so the apples didn't stick to the pot. I added just a bit more water to make a bit of juice and mixed up the whole thing with a bit of cornstarch and water mixture. It was very delicious over vanilla ice cream. I should  make a pie before the weather gets too hot.

Since my last post, I planned to read the book on Artificial Intelligence which I posted about last time. Instead I read a book called Nobody Cries at Bingo. The latter was written by Dawn Dumont, a First Nations comedienne from the province of Saskatchewan.  The novel was about a young girl growing up on a First Nations reserve in Saskatchewan and is quite humorous.

Last but certainly not least, I have added an About Africa page (see link at side bar) to this blog. The needs in Kenya continue to be great  for a variety of ongoing needs and during the pandemic the needs for nutritious food is greater than ever.  Needs include food and hygiene, medical and dental, farming needs, hospital needs and so on. Many thanks for your prayers also for these people.

Update: I know the needs are great everywhere but in some countries, such as Kenya people more people are literally starving than ever before. There is no such thing as stimulus cheques or social programs for the many who have lost their jobs.  There are no nationwide programs to help the general public in the best of times.  A few years ago though the the government thankfully did implement a pension program for the elderly and disabled.  Only a fraction of the elderly and disabled are enrolled and actually receiving funds. Many others who are qualified do not receive a shilling.  I personally know many who are qualified yet have never received a shilling from the government and I'm not entirely sure why.

During this pandemic, the only government assistance that has been distributed was to those elderly and disabled who are already receiving a pension. I believe they received a top up at end of April to their delayed pensions which were payable at the end of March.  The government added an amount equivalent to 2 months pension or roughly equal to $51 Canadian ($37 US Funds, € 33 Euros, ¥ 4000 Japanese Yen, £ 30 GBP, $56 Australian).  Others who live in the slums have received distribution of food from non profit organizations and individuals who have a heart to help others who are starving.  The aid has not reached all the slums or all the the very poor.

Linking up with Skywatch Friday.

Have a glorious and safe weekend.

A Little of Everything

Hello friends,

I hope you are all doing well.

I am basically fine and have been keeping myself busy.  I've been gainfully occupied with homely things like cooking, cleaning, gardening, a bit of knitting and reading.  I'm sure most of you are all doing much the same.  Some people are probably exercising of which I am only doing a bit of indoor exercise.  Unless you count a little bit of outdoor gardening though most of the strenuous work is finished.

Fern on May 19/20. I'm really pleased with how lush it looks after how it looked at the beginning of May.

Same fern on May 1/20.  After the winter I removed most leaves which were dead.  It has really come back to life and more fronds are unfurling (the round knobs you see near the soil).

Cosmos. I wish I had some dirt in the ground to plant these in rather than in the container.

Catmint. This plant has several medicinal benefits and is easy to grow.

Hostas. I am going to transplant some of these are they are too crowded in the cedar box.

Red petunias. I need some new terracotta planters but it will have to wait for another time.

Red petunias. I love how petunias spread out and take up space with their luscious blossoms.

I recently started knitting some cloths again. I'm using up my yarn stash and replenishing the cloths I made in the Fall to give as gifts

 ~~~~

I haven't been using the time of quarantine for much reading except for Bible reading.

It's mainly because I enjoy reading paper books and our library is closed except for digital books.

Recently I took the plunge to borrow some digital books and read Sapiens and The Colour Purple.

 It started well but I ended up only giving it 3/5 stars.

I gave this classic 4/5 stars.

This will be my next read.

I still enjoy taking photos of the sky, especially if there is colour in it when I am still up at dawn. It's been raining for going on 3 of the past 4 weeks but there are dry periods in each day and I believe the photos below were taken in our dry week.

Early morning, May 11, 2020

Early morning May 11, 2020

Early morning May 8, 2020

Joining in with Skywatch Friday.

Have a wonderful and safe weekend ahead.

Mission Accomplished

It was 8 long years before I got the call that a plot in my preferred community garden site was available.  I was in Kenya at the time and the phone I was using wasn't very reliable for checking email on a regular basis.  Fortunately I  borrowed a laptop from a young Kenyan friend of mine and it helped me check on and respond to my messages.

The summer of 2019 was my first year at the community plot. I wasn't quick enough to take advantage of the compost and additional soil purchased by the garden committee as I've discovered that most people at the community plots are real keen gardeners. Their gardens are already growing by the time I'm thinking about cleaning the debris and preparing the soil.  Thankfully my garden grew nicely without all the additional amendments.

This year I stayed away from preparing the garden even longer than last year due to Covid 19 and I missed out completely on the soil and compost.  It seems like I wasn't the only one to miss out so I'm not sure who used it all.  I  heard we have a number of new gardeners this year as many of last year's gardeners waited years like I did for a plot.  In the years they were waiting several had moved out of the neighbourhood and they found it simply too hard to visit and work on their gardens on a regular basis so their gardens became quite overgrown.  I bought some manure if I need it but I don't have additional top soil this year. Somehow I seem to have ended up with a lot of potting soil of which I still have lots.

The path leading to the garden shed where all the tools are stored for use by the community gardeners.

We have a nicely kept and well organized gardening tool shed. In the summer of Covid 19-2020, the tools are off limits so as to avoid the potential spread of viruses. We can bring our own tools and we still have access to the two water hoses at either end of the gardens.

I spent a few days last week cleaning out the weeds and also some plants from the garden plot I rent. While the plot isn't really that big it still requires a lot of work to pluck out weeds and plants seeded by the wind, rake all the wood, debris and green debris then dump it all in the garbage containers, and finally, to break up the hardened dirt and plant the seeds.

I'm a very slow worker and take frequent breaks to rest my back.  The plot is a raised bed.  I don't know why they call it raised bed because it is only a few inches above the ground.  Given it's so low and very close to the neighboring plot, a bit of gymnastics are required to hoe, rake and plant.  It is also not a good idea to squat in the garden because then you tamp down the soil and it quickly gets compacted.  If i was younger it would surely be a lot easier but I don't let that deter me.

I felt terrific after finally getting the garden in for another year.   I went back  later in the week to clean up some of the green debris I left on the outer edges. We are supposed to ensure the pathways are kept free of such things.  Fortuitously I finished the planting on Saturday and it rained on Monday and Tuesday.  I  prefer when it rains a few times a month because it really does a garden good.  Much better than watering by hand.

Back at home, my little balcony garden is sprouting various things and I'm looking forward to seeing what grows.

I captured this park view just beyond the garden.
The sun was setting and most people had left for the day. 

The swirly clouds in the sky are rather peaceful and lovely.

Can you make out any shapes in the clouds?

~~~~

It's been raining quite heavily again so when that happens I usually crave banana bread or muffins.  This week I was craving banana bread and a friend gave me a recipe to try.  Instead I ended up trying a recipe developed by pastry chef Anna Olson who I've watched on Canadian television for years.

 
Here is her recipe.

 Ingredients

1 ½ - 1 ¾ cups (375-400 g) mashed ripe bananas (3-4 bananas)
6 Tbsp (90 g) unsalted butter, melted
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
½ cup (100 g) packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (225 g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp (5 g) baking soda
¼ tsp (0.75 g) salt
1 cup (250 mL) chocolate chips or toasted walnut pieces (optional)

Directions 

  Preheat the oven to 325 ºF (160 ºC) and grease a 9-x-5-inch (2L) loaf pan.
2. Whisk the banana, melted butter, granulated and brown sugar together until well-blended. Whisk in the egg and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking soda and salt. Add this to the banana mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips or walnut pieces (if using). Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf tin and sprinkle the top with a little sugar. Bake for about 75 minutes, until a tester inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake for 20 minutes in the tin, then turn it out to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Makes one 9 x 5 loaf.

It was a fairly dense, yet moist loaf, which I liked.

♥♥♥
If you were here with me I'd offer you a slice and a hot tea or coffee out on the patio as long as it wasn't raining :-)

When I did my first taste test I thought it was a bit sweet however it contains far less sugar and fewer eggs than  many other banana bread recipes I've looked at. The bread was even better the next day.
I think I've found a keeper. I believe I have another keeper on my blog somewhere which I will have to search for and try again to compare.
Once I try my friend's recipe, I may actually have 3 great recipes and that will likely be enough.
I've been searching for a great recipe for a long time.

Linking up with Skywatch Friday this week.

Thank you for stopping by.

Neon Lights in the Night

 

 

I love the way this neon vintage light looks against the night sky.

They also have a beautiful painted mural on the side of the building where the seated patio is located.

Enjoy your week ahead. 

Stay safe and thank you for visiting.

Linking up with Our World Tuesday