Our Fireworks

Here's a very short clip of our awesome 

fireworks.  We did have some nice ones but

I'm not great with the photos.

Happy Fourth of July

Have a safe and Happy Fourrth of July!

News, news, and more news!

My oldest daughter just received the news that she passed her State Board of Nursing License exam.  Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaa!   She is certainly one happy person at work today!  

My youngest daughter was accepted to OU College of Health and Science, but....she got a call yesterday that one of her credits didn't get transferred and she would have to take one more summer class in Gen. Ed upper level.  She just got back from Italy having taken an art class that qualified!  Yeaaaaaaaaaaa!  She was so happy about that and me too.  She found an apartment and a roommate yesterday too.  She moves next week.  :(  Third floor.  

My son smashed his hand at work yesterday.  But this morning it looks much better even though it hurts considerably.  Nothing broken.  Thank God!  He will be moving back to an apartment in August.  Continuing college.  

Viva la Vida
I get to see Coldplay in concert in November. They cancelled their July 10 concert. I can't wait.

For my birthday my daughters and I are going to see John Mayer in Dallas.  We'll stay all night and do some shopping too.  I also can't wait for this!  

Ziggy

Wordless Wednesday

For more Wordless Wednesday go here.

Italy

I will be posting some pictures soon from my daughter's trip to Italy.

But in the meantime I was looking at Lake Garda and how beautiful

it is.  Gattina is  there on holiday.  Here's to Gattina:

Doesn't that make you want to go there? It does me.

P.F. Chang's and a top

Here's my new top.  We went out

to eat with our two daughters at

PF Chang's.  Of course, I had to

have the Citrus Soy Salmon again.

I have found the recipe for it now.

FOOD & WINE
Restaurant-quality food right in your own home
Friday, June 20, 2008 | 9:01 PM
Instead of going out to dinner this weekend, why not cook an amazing dish at home and impress your friends and family! The executive chef at P.F. Chang's, Gregg Piazzi, share his recipe for citrus salmon.

Chang's Citrus Soy Wild Alaskan Salmon

8 oz. piece of skinless Salmon Filet
½ tsp of Salt
½ tsp Cornstarch
1 ½ tsp Water
1 tsp Ginger (Finely Minced)
3 fl. Oz Soy Sauce
1.5 fl. Oz Mirin
1 ½ tsp Orange Juice
1 tbs plus 1 tsp Lemon Juice
2 tbs Unsalted Butter
5 oz. of cooked Brown Rice (Follow directions on package)
1 ½ tsp of Lemon Olive Oil
Story continues below
Advertisement

Citrus sauce for Salmon
PROCEDURE:
1. Season the Salmon Filet with the Salt (set aside)
2. In a separate bowl, mix cornstarch and water (set aside)
3. In a warm saucepot (low flame) add Ginger & cook for 10 sec.
4. Add Soy Sauce, Mirin and Cornstarch mixture and mix well
5. Bring to a boil and then turn off heat (Do Not Over Boil)
Over Boiling may cause the sauce to turn out to Salty!
6. Let the sauce cool to 40° F
7. When sauce is cooled, add Orange and Lemon Juice (set aside)

Plating of the Citrus Soy Wild Salmon
FINAL PROCEDURE:
1. Brush pre-heated grill clean (Med. High Flame)
2. Place Salmon Filet on hot grill (presentation side down). Cook for 2 to 2.5 Minutes, flip and cook 2 to 2.5 minutes (approx. 5 minutes or until medium)
3. Meanwhile, place 2 fluid oz of the Citrus Soy sauce and 2 TB of butter in a Small saucepan on medium heat. Swirl until butter dissolves.(set aside)
4. Mound the cooked rice on the middle of the plate
5. Gently place the grilled Salmon on the rice
6. Drizzle the sauce over the grilled Salmon
7. Mound the Micro Greens on Salmon
8. Drizzle Lemon Olive Oil over the greens and Salmon

Beverage Pairing: We love this dish with Paul Dolan Chardonnay or P.F. Chang's Chinese 88 our twist on the classic French 75.

Website: www.pfchangs.com

Wordless Wednesday-Bark bark!

Do you see the dog? or his bark?

For more Wordless Wednesday, check these out.

Drummond Home

Amazing Grace (Scottish Bagpipes)

Drummond Scottish Heritage

 Play the music while you look at the photos below:

Welcome back!  Natasha welcomes your visit.

Pretty table setting.  My mother-in-law had a set of

Royal Doulton brought back from Germany after WWII 

by her brother.  They were the Old Country Roses pattern.

Addie Drummond's bedroom

A secretary desk

German brass bed

Modern conveniences

Cooking with gas

Natasha visits the Dummond Home

Natasha had a lovely visit at the Drummond Home.

She enjoyed riding in the car.

You may have to look closely to find Natasha.

Here she is posing on the steps.

The ladies at the Home were more than glad to visit with

us.  We were very much welcomed.

They were quite delighted with Natasha.  

Let's come inside.  This is the first room off of the entry.

Probably used as a parlor.  Notice the portraits of Fred

and Addie Drummond.  This is a beautifully restored

room.  The wallpapers were so colorful in the Victorian

era.  There is Natasha on the table.

Of course, this was Natasha's favorite room, the children's

playroom on the third floor.

We have more photos to post sometime later.  We enjoyed

our visit immensely.

The French

Notre Dame  (click to embiggen)  

Marilyn at Simmer Till Done got me thinking about

Paris since she has visited there recently.  Not a thing I 

like better to think about and dream about.  I have so

many books about France and French in general.  I have

only visited there once and would love to return soon.

Here are some bits of information that might prove 

useful to you when you travel to France.

"The French are different from you and me.  Theirs

is not a puritan country.  We speak with an air of detachment,

even distrust, of the pursuit of happiness.  The French just

go ahead with it--and they've organized a country and a 

great city to make sure they catch what they're chasing...

What I mean is that the French have developed the arts of

leisure to a higher degree than we have.  Eating, drinking,

gossiping, just enjoying--the French do it with unique style...

An American has more of a chance to become the person he

or she aspires to be.  A Frenchman is more locked in by where

he was born, what his father did, how he speaks the language.  

But, God, the French know how to live.  And thank God the 

rest of us can share life with them for a while..."  

~Richard Reeves-"An American in Paris"

According to Polly Platt in her book, "French of Foe?", there

are certain codes one must adhere to when visiting or living

in France.  

Code 1:  Don't smile.  "French people don't smile blandly

as they walk down the street.  They don't smile without a 

reason."  De-smile your public face.

Code 2:  Flirt.  It can come in handy when it comes to

receiving help.  You do it with your eyes.  

Code 3:  Use the ten magic words!  The first five are:

"Excusez-moi de vous deranger, monsieur (or madame)..."

"Excuse me for disturbing you, Sir, or Madam.."

"This is the charm that warms the hearts of impatient 

Parisians on the street.  The five magic words click with

Frenchmen like the responding smile with Americans."

The five magic words work wonders and if you add five

more:  "J'ai un probleme" ("I have a problem"), you 

qualify as a person to be respected and helped to the

very limit of the Frenchman's possibilities.  

Code 4:  Add "Monsieur" or "Madame" to "Hello."

You must always say hello and goodbye to all of the

strangers that you have an exchange with in the stores.

"Bonjour, monsieur (or madame) and au revoir, monsieur

(or madame).

Code 5:  Shake hands!  You shake hello and goodbye.

This is more for people living there and working.

Code 6:  Watch out at the door!  Just because you

got to a door first does not mean that you should go 

through it first.  It's called the bataille de la porte (the

battle of the doorway) and also takes place at the elevator.

Rank and sex are key here.  

Benjamin Franklin said:  "Everyman has two countries,

his own and France."  

Wordless Wednesday-Like a Bird on a Wire

Crop duster-bird on a wire

Be sure and watch this little ditty.

Very interesting.

For more Wordless Wednesday go here.

For Tammie

Summer breeze

Fun Monday-The Wall

So sorry I'm late with this Fun Monday. We were without internet
most of yesterday. This week's host was Jan at The Prytz Family.  We are

supposed to show our walls and what's on them.  I am only going to

show you my bedroom wall for now.  I have artwork on most every

available wall.  I am currently changing some art on my living room

walls.  I'm not about change.  I could keep something like it is for

years, just ask my kids.  Anyway, here are bedroom photos for your

enjoyment(?)

This photo is the view from my bed every morning.  The

picture on the left is artist George Bates.  The middle is

Yuri Dvornik with a Paris scene.  The right is "The Girl

with the Pearl Earring" by Johannes Vermeer.  I love 

Dutch paintings.

This is above my dresser.  I collect wooden shoes.  I love

Monet.  This is called "View of Tuileries Gardens."  

Behind the bed are more pictures.  Of course, the building

of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.  Other various farm scenes

I picked up at Arts and Crafts fairs of local artists.

Below these are prints that I picked up on our trip to

Paris.  The one on the bottom right is a very old watercolor

by a Parisean artist in the mid-1900's.

Just another view:

Another Monet print:  Red boats at Argenteuil 1875

Final view of room below

Sorry for being late.  

Beware of the Woes of Apartment Renting !!!

I am going to warn you pre-college parents of the woes of off-campus apartment rental.  This is what happened to my daughter.  You see, you are not the signer of the lease, your college-age young adult is.  So you are not part of the agreement or process.  When my daughter moved into her apartment the first thing I noticed was the carpet was torn near the entry way.  Apparently the door had torn it over time because it was a poorly hung door.  There were many sad things wrong with this apartment but it was really the best place in this little college town.  The carpet had several stains and the bathroom was disgusting.  I had to clean the shower, tub, floor, and ceiling of this bathroom.  There was mildew or mold on the ceiling right above the shower.  I didn't want my daughter to have to stand with her head that close to it, so I cleaned it as best as I could.  The toilet did not have a handle to flush it with so we drove to the nearby Wal*Mart and bought one.  I'm thinking the sooner the better rather than have to raise the tank lid every time to flush the toilet.  While we are replacing the handle, the manager walks in, apparently to fix it.  He says, "Oh, most people don't ever bother trying to anything around here.  Thanks."  

    So as part of the process of moving into an apartment you are asked to fill out a move-in condition form and list all the things that you found wrong with the apartment.  This is where I want to warn you.  If you or your child ever moves into an apartment, remember to fill this out in detail.  This fall my son moves back into an apartment and we will be taking photos and video-taping the place.  This seems to be a trap that apartment management plays to take advantage of young, inexperienced college students.  

    My daughter says that she listed on the form about the carpet and so did her roommate but the new manager after they moved out says that the form is marked "Ok" next to the carpet.  I can hardly believe that anyone in their right mind would have marked carpet "ok" in this case.  Long story shorter (?) we are charged $267.54 to replace that carpet.  

    The old managers were always telling my daughter and her roommate that they needed to replace their carpet for them but never did it.  I guess the apartment company waits until they find somebody who possibly did not mark complaints about the carpet and then they can charge them to replace it after they move out.  It all got very ugly.  I said, "I suppose this is how you get your carpets replaced."  

   I had so many things going against me.  No copy of the original form that was filled out, new managers who did not believe me, they don't keep records of the previous renter's form, (my daughter was only there for 10 months).  I called the corporate headquarters but they said the same thing, "If it's not written on the move-in form, we will assume you did the damage."  

   I really can't believe them.  I feel like going over and knocking on her old apartment and asking to see the new carpet that I am purchasing.  I am going to go over and look at the rental form, if possible, I am not on the lease so I have to have my daughter's permission and since she is in Italy right now...

   I have been mad about this and trying to think of ways to get even but I can't think of anything worth doing.  Also, I don't believe it is the right thing to do.  But I sure hate paying for new carpet that my daughter never got to enjoy.  If they had told me when she moved in that we could pay for new carpet now and enjoy it because we would be paying for it later with no enjoyment then I would have paid for it in advance!

This is my recommendation for apartment dwellers:

Take photos and document everything.  Make copies of the form you fill out before turning it in.  Keep this copy in a safe place.  Take photos after you move out.  Any time you have a complaint, document it.  Put it in writing.  The corporate headquarters told me that managers forget.  It has to be in writing.  Please don't ever let this happen to you.  :D  They told me after every phone call, "Have a nice day."

Enigma

"Somewhere in her smile she knows"



"Something in her style that shows"

Ziggy

Wordless Wednesday-"The Spy Who Loved Me"

Nobody does it better.







Please visit more Wordless Wednesday here.

Identified flying objects

Crop duster that flies over my house every morning.

Visiting my little feeder every day.

In motion.

Fun Monday-Good Memories

Fun Monday is being hosted by Molly of Return of the

White Robin.  She wants us to share a happy memory

of our childhood.

One of my favorite childhood memories was shopping with
my mother in a nearby town. It was a wonderful way to
spend a day. We'd shop and get ice cream at a drugstore
soda shop with the old fashioned counter. Here is a link
to the post with pictures.