Monday, October 5, 2026

a surprise visit

i was in the midst of updating photos on the computer and getting ready to do some italian homework when marisa called to say she was in town. she and tsering were here for a dental appointment and apartment decluttering. she also had a bag of apples for us from her tree! of course i invited her over for tea, and then (of course) we had to go out for a walk as it was such a nice day.

i'll post more tomorrow, as it's late right now and i still need to get my duolingo exercises in.

Sunday, October 4, 2026

morning poem and sunday breakfast


morning

it tastes like silver
the morning
amidst the garden's
pallor

in the corner
are snow-dusted shadows.
in flowerpots
the absence of jasmine.

by concha méndez (1898-1986)

----

greg, chanda and i had breakfast together before greg and i went out to meet his friend who has been in town visiting for a few days.

greg is the official breakfast egg maker . . 

(making sunny side up eggs)

and then we were out into the rainy day to meet his friend peggy at chelsea piers (she had been on a cruise around the island with her traveling companions).

Saturday, October 3, 2026

another day with a long walk

 
do you see the moon shining in the blue sky above the building? (looking west.)

greg and i walked downtown for breakfast at square diner . . 



but we ended up having tacos instead!

today i visited brooklyn craft's manhattan pop up store for the yarn crawl.

their little bat is a honduran white bat and they were able to find the pattern for me (seen here on ravelry),

korrina has visited their store in greenpoint . . they had a free craft happening today . . 

and so i made a button. greg said he thought it was very cute.

walking home past the new amsterdam branch of the library . . 



for dinner i made a marinara sauce with conchiglie and farfalle pasta (seashells and butterflies), and zucchini sautèed with garlic and olive oil. 

morgana has been sick also, and sent a photo of her chicken bone broth with pastina dinner  (with parmesan cheese) (something my sicilian grandma would make for me when we visited her).

Friday, October 2, 2026

dinner - friday night

this is a terrible photo as i had trouble adjusting for the low light, but it's a photo of potato salad, a family recipe and particularly my aunt evy's version (from the german side of my family). you peel and slice the hot potatoes directly into the bowl and then gently mix a raw egg into it, and then add onion or anything else you like (salt and pepper) (we added a little grated carrot along with scallions). it's difficult to do as the potatoes are so hot! the bowl is a special wooden bowl given to me one christmas, years ago, by my aunt evy, uncle bill and my cousin cindy and her husband. the resulting salad is always delicious!

chanda's friend sylvie joined us for dinner, after which they went out to a salsa social dance, which i thought sounded really fun. 

Thursday, October 1, 2026

a day with a long walk

 
it was such a nice day that i ended up putting in a load of laundry and then going for a walk (and talking to my sister on the phone).


i walked to abraço in the east village and had their delicious kaffe mit schlag, a mandarin orange and olive oil cake . .  

and began to re-read the first book of the vanderbeekers (since i just finished book seven and wanted to start over).

i also checked to see if east village organic had chestnut honey yet (no) . .



and since it's the new york city yarn crawl weekend coming up . . i stopped at downtown yarns. the theme is "bats" this year, which is also one of the reasons why i wanted to visit. each yarn shop has a bat with special theme words. if you visit all thirteen participating shops (!we keep growing with our fiber shops!) and you submit the photo and special words, you are entered to win a big grand prize! (this is not happening in my little world).

i did purchase a bag for myself, however! (oh, and a few skeins of yarn for christmas gifts - i intend to knit a few scarves for gifts . . hmmm . . i hope i do so.)

ciao, downtown yarns . . a presto. see you next time.

passing a sweet buzzing bumblebee . . 


i had to pass some time while leti at downtown yarns wound my yarn for me, so i decided to visit thompkins square library . . 

where i checked out the movies "l'albero degli zoccoli" and "mia madre." i've seen the first one in the theatre years ago, but i've never seen the second.


another bumblebee . .



my walk home took me past many halloween decorations . . 'tis the season, i suppose.

i was also exhausted, too exhausted to write this post the day of, and so am writing saturday evening, october 4th. and i can't remember what we had for dinner. maybe leftover minestrone soup?

the weather has been so up and down. one day it's chilly, grey and cool, the next warm, sunny and humid. i think i've had trouble adjusting.

Wednesday, September 30, 2026

out and about for italian class

i've been sick with a low fever and no appetite for two days. thankfully, i was well enough for italian class at the library this afternoon.

 
my lunch afterwards . . 

which cricket . . 

and pluto were giving me the side eye for (they love eggs) . . i did end up giving them a little bit of cream afterwards (zuzu too).

trying to read with cricket wanting attention (summer of the gypsy moths, by sarah pennypacker which came in the mail today from alibris - we first read it together on the cape years ago. it brings back such warm memories.).

Sunday, September 27, 2026

the storm continues

greg and i had a coop shift this morning . . the storm has continued in spurts . .  



sent this pic to korrina . . it's nice to be able to get this cheese again. we especially enjoy it around holiday time.

and these powders . . not inexpensive, but nice for gifts.

heading to the car with the groceries. i stopped at milk bar cafe on the way to get a cup of green tea. i wasn't feeling well and am a bit worse. i think i have a bad cold, or a mild flu.

----

morgan was by the sea with harley's family to scatter their dad's ashes (he died two years ago now, i think).

little dougie was with them . .

morgan and harley stayed afterwards at a quaint hotel that had a very nice restaurant.

another beautiful view of the sea.

----

our storm continues . . 


korrina spent a restful day home with wash . . knitting.

chanda made a delicious minestrone soup with the veggies we brought back today.