this and that

I have to admit that I am floundering here. It is 30 degrees Celsius today - for us Calgarians this is considered a heat wave. The only activity that makes sense is sitting on a patio somewhere, with trendy sunglasses on, drinking beer and people watching. I am sitting outside, on my step under our huge shade tree, drinking very cold wine and feeling too lethargic to even come up with something really witty to write.

Believe it or not I have decided to knit a little cardigan; but I got as far as six rows and it was put back in my favorite knitting bag until a cooler day; it does not help that it is black yarn. I went running this morning - was supposed to do 16 km - at 14.5 km I decided to call it a day. I love this hot weather, but us northerners are not used to it and our entire physiological system goes into shock. Well, I am going to leave you with a photo of a really cute green jug with just the right amount of peeling paint that I found in a second hand shop. It matches the nasturtiums in my garden and I take great pleasure in just looking at it :)

it's hot, hot, hot,,,,,,

I love the short work weeks. I find I am in a much better mood and seem to take a lot pleasure in many things. I got a bit of shutterbug fever today and decided I needed some hot colors in this space to match the fabulous hot weather we have been having. I finally finished my cute stripey socks and when it came time to take a photograph I had no appropriate footwear to really show them off. Well, kismet was on my side because yesterday I stumbled upon these bright and happy Birkenstock shoes .... and they were on SALE.... how can one resist. The Babe was rolling his eyes because he calls Birks sandals birth-control shoes! I have to admit that they don't particularly make your feet look sexy, but look at the color; I had to have them.

My garden provided the second hit of color for today's post. With the sunshine we have been having blooms just opened up and said 'cut me'. The Babe has huge allergies so garden flowers can't be around the house too much...but he is gone for a boys climbing weekend and I am taking full advantage. The home-grown blooms truly come alive in this little thrifted jug.

hard to get

I am not certain what it is about human kind, but we always focus on those things that seem to be hard to get - mmm, think of like maybe Pierce Brosnan :) In a city like Calgary, where winter reigns throughout most of the year the favorite activities for the locals seem to be golf and gardening. Go figure! Our growing season is truly maybe three months. And during that three months we are subject to possible snow (like in June), incessant wind, multiple hail storms ... and rabbits. For these reasons, you must forgive my seasonal obsession with my garden and the many pictures I like to take and post.

This post is really for my mom so she can see my garden without having to get on an airplane. Very soon, the cold weather will come and I will be knitting again...for now, I am enjoying that which is so rare and so beautiful.

come on Barbie lets go party

Forgive the somewhat cheesy title, but when you do a lot of running, any song that has a peppy beat is fair game :) I have been enjoying my days off, and to celebrate all this free time we decided to host a little party. I have forgotten how much fun it is to have lots of people over and just laugh, drink, catch up on news and eat wonderful food. I love preparing the house for the arrival of guests and try to keep things very simple: home-made hummus, veggies and pita bread, some home-made bruschetta with garden-grown basil, in-season fruit and some good cheese...and lots of wine of course. For flowers, I bring in some of my pots from outside - it's inexpensive and befitting to summer.

The hummus disappeared in record time and you could see where people had scraped the side of the bowl to get the last bit of goodness out. I have decided to post the recipe because it is really easy to make and it tastes fabulous.

Raina's Hummus

2 cups canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

2/3 cup very hot water

4 cloves of crushed garlic

3 - 4 tablespoons of sesame paste (tahini)

Place the above in a food processor and blend until smooth. Place in a bowl and stir in the following:

4 - 5 tablespoons olive oil

juice of 2 lemons ( or as much as tastes good to you)

1 teaspoon ground cumin

salt and pepper

place in a nice bowl (I use a slightly rounded-edges soup bowl) and spread the hummus out, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with some red paprika. As with any recipe, you can experiment - if you prefer more garlic, add more - if you prefer less of a lemony taste, don't put in as much lemon juice. I serve this with a variety of sliced veggies and pita bread. Place the hummus in the fridge until your guests arrive - and then enjoy.