I guess we are really really really lucky cause we’ve had a cricket take up residence in our kitchen for the past couple weeks!
Every night they sing and I follow the sound (warmer… colder… warmer…) until I zero in on their exact location. For a week it was the cabinet to the left of the stove. Last week it was a different cabinet! Then a couple days ago, jiminy went over to the hutch.
I suspect this magical adventure is sponsored by Elvis, who is a professional cricket catcher and loves to share his catch with the family.
As you know Biggie Smalls jumps the fence a hundred times a day to patrol his domain.
Today, Elvis made a dash for it and somehow eluded a camera notification!! When he came running up the front sidewalk, I went back through the footage to find this special moment in time.
I’ve slowly, SLOWLY let the cats outside under extreme “hover-cat-mom” supervision. They are both well trained to return home with a couple claps out the back door. Most of the time, they come inside in their own and start napping, cause it’s over 110 degrees!
Elvis camps out in the backyard like a zen master. He’s very conservative.
Biggie Smalls is our wild child adventure seeker. His latest game is to exit the back door, jump the gate and come back through the front. When my gate camera gets triggered, I know to answer the door for him and he knows to be there!
Official results on how many jars sealed will be tallied tomorrow. I am anxiously *ahem* excitedly waiting the 24 hours it takes for them to cool and seal. Based on the pings I heard after pulling them from the hot water bath, my very first canning session is a success. I just bought myself some shelf life!
I was kinda put on the spot to try hot water bath canning. I ran out of my last case of Southside Mike’s BBQ sauce. He doesn’t have any bottled, so there’s no way I’m gonna say no to a gallon jug of this delicious dark brown glassy spice infused gold!
“I’ll just can it,” I told myself when I made the order. The jug arrived at the perfect time. My ribs came out great! Now I gotta get that gallon canned… I’ve never canned anything before… until now!
Visit Southside Mike’s BBQ in Humboldt County, CA if you’re ever in the area; he puts love in the food!
This article from Medical Medium is surprising but makes sense:
…there are two different deep roots behind addictions: adrenaline surge dependency and glucose deficiency. Other factors can certainly play a part too, including life stressors, immense pressure, and abuse. Nonetheless, adrenaline dependency and glucose deficiency – or a combination of the two – are nearly always involved. This is unknown to medical research and science. From these root issues stem countless possible addictions, including to alcohol, drugs, sex, food, diet soda, extreme sports, and more.
This fits with what I’m learning about prometabolic eating to regulate blood sugar and decrease the excitability of the nervous system. Your physiology affects your psychology, including addictive behaviors.
I have been living beyond my means! For years I have starved myself, drank coffee and powered through life. Now I am changing course and changing my state- from surviving to thriving!
In the morning, I check in with my body and see how it feels. Then I eat an efficient fuel that sounds good based on my hunger level (more or less dense foods.) Twenty minutes post meal, I check in with myself to see how I feel: still hungry, tired, energized, full?
This practice sets the trend for the day: awareness.
What you eat deeply affects the way you feel and how well you can function. Each person is unique in their needs, what satiates them and for how long.
The results so far are a stark contrast to what I’m used to. I feel more grounded, calm and safe in my body. I’m less anxious and stressed. It’s unbelievable to me that I can feel this good just by eating and actually noticing how my body responds and what it needs. I am creating a new rhythm for a return to vitality and resilience!
To learn more about the Restoration Thyroid Nutrition program I am using, visit Eastwesthealing.com or check out @realfoodgangstas on IG.
I am at the home and school of architect Frank Lloyd Wright here in Scottsdale, Arizona. I meant to visit for a very long time. Upon learning that Dale Chiuly is exhibiting, I know this is the time to go. After six months on display, I made it on the final week of Chiuly and live tours.
Our guide sheds light on life at Taliesin West: FLW bought the over 100 acres of desert property in the middle of nowhere. (Today it sits conveniently off of highway 101 in northeast Scottsdale.) They sourced local rock out of the mountain to build. When they found petroglyphs, it encouraged them knowing that OTHER people survived here too!
Rock and cement make up the walls of all the structures. In the early days, the buildings are covered in canvas, secured with a redwood frame. Over time, different woods and eventually metal is incorporated in the structures. Open windows and organic shapes allow air to flow through (and also critters.) Eventually glass windows, electricity and even air conditioning were brought in.
When power lines went up across the landscape, it upset FLW so much that he declared he would NEVER look THAT way again, instead turning his attention back towards his land and the mountains behind. He added walls to the living room and built his wife a whole new tea garden.
Apprentices build their own structure on the back part of the land. There are three people who still live there today in lifelong fellowship!
Taliesin is beautifully unassuming; it melds into the mountains all around it. I am impressed by the accomplishments of all who made the place what it is and contributed to it’s legacy.
Check out my photos and see if there’s a FLW structure in your area to visit!
The day after my tour, Frank Lloyd Wright is still showing up in surprising ways. In the morning on TV, there is mention of a FLW house in Charleston.
I go to an appointment at noon. My client’s house is in the same area of Taliesin and she has six wind chimes that perfectly match the ones in the gift shop. When I go inside, she tells me that her property backs up to FLW property!
Windchime SynchronyChimes at Taliesin West
On my way to the deli after, I see a guy walking down the street looking and dressing like the tour guide- hat, glasses, facial hair, colorful shirt, shorts, kicks, water bottle. It wasn’t perfect- no yellow Converse- but evoked his image. Can’t wait to go back for another visit!
Space Case 