The Party’s Over! The very last sunny summer day – Friday, September 15thA corner of my deckMy summer blue polish
Say Hello to:
Fall ClothingOutside Heaters if you’re lucky (at Lift, Vancouver)Hearty Dishes (this is Tavola on Robson, Vancouver). Whole Seabass & GnocchiDifferent DessertsMaybe some dancing here and there
I would like to introduce you to our new little furry female family member, a one-year-old sheltie named LAYLA.
THEN – first meeting
Big brother Jia Jia is thrilled to have her and considers Layla his dog.
She brings some sunshine to our days following the one month anniversary of Don’s passing. We are still grieving and Jia Jia was very depressed and moping around. Now he has come back to life. Layla too for that matter. It’s a bittersweet story of how we got her.
Don was the instigator because he started sourcing breeders when we were last in Palm Springs. He located a breeder in the Kootenays (British Columbia) and asked me to make the call. It was a husband/wife team. They were expecting a litter in May but I told them we would be fine with an older female for our male sheltie. They had a female who they were planning to breed and would be happy to let her go after she had a litter. We decided to take a trip in June to see her. Believe it or not, Don drove most of the way there and all of the way back. The dog was Layla. Jia Jia and she immediately hit it off. We saw the puppies too, which as you can imagine, were totally adorable. They were not ready to let her go as she was coming into heat at that time. So we went on our way and said we’d be in touch.
We got the call early August that she did not get pregnant as planned, so they were going to have her spayed so that she’d be available for pick up. I asked Don what to do as his health had deteriorated to the point of not being able to look after himself at that time.
He said “go for it.” He met her and loved her. Said she’d be great company for Jia Jia and good for me too. So I said okay. I made plans to pick her up in Summerland early September where they were headed to a dog show. It was also half the driving distance to where she lived.
Then about a week after Don passed away the breeder called and told me that Layla was very sick. She had been spayed but didn’t come out of it so well. She stopped eating for several days and seemed to have a possible problem with her esophagus. They would not be able to sell her and they thought they might have to put her down. I was doubly devastated now. This was the dog that Don, Jia Jia and I made the trip out to see and now not only can we not have her, but she might not even make it. I asked them to please keep me posted on her progress nonetheless. Hoping that they would at least be able to keep her should she survive.
Fast forward two more weeks. I received an e-mail that Layla was eating again and x-ray showed that all was fine. Clean bill of health from a terrible scare. It was just an alarm and she had a bad reaction to the anesthesia. She was available once again. So I made a quick decision to pick her up the very next day in Summerland where the breeders were showing one of their dogs. They were not even planning to take her. And I was lucky to get a hotel room because everything was booked for either the dog show or a classic car show.
NOW – getting acquainted with her new HOME and adapting amazing well
She’s a very sweet, smart, playful little girl. It took her all of one day to get settled. My only disappointment is that Don not be here to witness how well the two of them get along together. But he is responsible for finding her and he did meet her (above photo). I’m very thankful for this gift from Don. At least this story has a happy ending. I absolutely adore her!
I hope you enjoyed a wonderful long weekend. Now it’s back to business, back to school, back to back.September represents a:Which I will try my very best to embrace
A few quotes on the very first day of a bright new month
“Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while others lay brown beneath the August sun.”— Kent Nerburn (American writer).
“Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August.”—Jenny Han, The Summer I Turned Pretty
“August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time.” ―Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath
“When summer opens, I see how fast it matures, and fear it will be short; but after the heats of July and August, I am reconciled, like one who has had his swing, to the cool of autumn.”— Ralph Waldo Emerson (American essayist and scholar).
Some of the best people are born in this month; one was my mother
“The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank white dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color.” ―Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting
Never forget to apply sunscreen. I love her retro look.
Chic Peek: Style on the Street (somewhere else)We just had a Sunday afternoon Tea Party with a variety of homemade finger sandwiches (sans pink, green + yellow food-grade dye like my mom used to do with the bread – yeah she did!), old-fashioned deviled eggs and some sweets to finish. And tea.
Maybe not high-tea. More like medium-low but delicious nonetheless. Highly recommend it!
You may have noticed or not because everyone is caught up relishing the joys of Summer. It’s normal for me to cut back posts from mid-July until the end of August. Time to wind down. I become more lazy, take time out for myself, spend more time outside and quality time with others.
However at present I am devoting my full time and energy to a very difficult family situation. Eventually I might write about it. It’s the first time in a loooong time that I find it hard to concentrate on more than what is at hand. It’s been emotionally draining and I must look after myself on top of it all because…
Simple pleasures: it’s strange to note that something as unexciting as changing the bed sheets give me a simple boost of pleasure. Something as habitual as sitting down with my morning coffee to check e-mails is more relaxing than normal and a fifteen minute afternoon nap is heaven sent. I don’t function well when there is chaos around me and my surroundings need to be relatively clean and tidy.
Which brings me back to what it means to take time out. It’s important to not totally deplete your energy. And we don’t need Denis Waitley (best-selling author of the audio series “The Psychology of Winning” and books such as “Seeds of Greatness” and “The Winner’s Edge”) to tell us so. Although he did say:
Time and health are two precious assets that we don’t recognize and appreciate until they have been depleted.
Always scrambling for new healthy breakfast ideas, my gut feeling said that this would be an excellent choice. Made with good-for-you *kimchi and leftover vegetables topped over wilted spinach it was!
photo/recipe – d. king
Story at-a-glance *Kimchi is a fermented blend of cabbage, chili peppers, garlic, scallions, and other spices often eaten with every meal in Korea. Rich in vitamins A and C due to its fermentation process, it is also rich in beneficial gut-boosting lactobacilli bacteria. Kimchi has potent antioxidative and immune-stimulating activities along with anti-obesity effects and more more. Basically it is a super healthy additive or mid afternoon snack on its own.
As it turns out I was not so imaginative using kimchi in a scramble as I thought because there is a ton of recipes out there.
How-to:
First wilt a handful of spinach in butter. Set aside.
In same frypan stir in chopped red pepper, broccoli, green onion + parsley. Then add some kimchi (amount depending on how much you like – it’s a required taste but I actually love it). I also added some freshly grated carrot (optional).
In another small bowl beat with a fork two free-range eggs. When vegetables are tender, add the eggs and mix together. Top over spinach.
Notes: for sides instead of making homefried potatoes I steamed yams then mashed with a little (grass fed) butter, sliced avocado with sesame seeds and baked beans.
Maybe it’s the influence of a fashionable friend visiting from London or maybe it could be that I’ve always found LONDON WOMEN have a look (aka the London Look) that’s a bit more edgy or funky (for lack of a better word because groovy is what really comes to mind) over the rest of us. I admire the way they experiment with clothing and accessories and manage to pull off something more avant-garde and make it chic and fun. it’s not necessarily anything trendy or something we’re so used to seeing. Which leaves us wondering…hmmm how did she pull it off? For this post we look to the feet.
Feet found on the streets of London during Fashion Week – unfortunately not by me.
MOD WOMEN
Photos: Vogue (UK), Buro (but chosen by me from plenty more images).
Last night was the first time I made this dish. I’ve been in the mood to try satisfying meatless meals and something easy to prepare & fairly quick to cook. It’s a keeper. This one is filled with goodness like mushrooms, chickpeas and marinara sauce. Plus it’s only 143 calories per serving for those of you watching your weight. Why Spaghetti squash? (see bottom for some of the health benefits). This squash possesses an uncanny resemblance to spaghetti strands when cooked, and for this reason is known as vegetable spaghetti which makes the dish when combined with the rest, taste somewhat like a vegetarian lasagna. You can add other veggies like zucchini, red bell peppers or broccoli. It was delicious especially with the added sriracha hot sauce (I always zip it up with a little heat on the side).
Serves: Makes 8 cups
Ingredients
1 (3 lb.) spaghetti squash
2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
8 oz. mushrooms, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
¾ tsp ground oregano
½ tsp ground pepper
⅛ tsp salt
1 ½ cups marinara sauce (your favorite kind)
1 ¾ cups (no salt added) chickpeas, rinsed & drained
¼ cup minced flat-leaf parsley
⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese (animal rennet-free for vegetarian)
Additional veggies to add (optional of course) with the onions & mushroom: red bell pepper, zucchini and/or broccoli, and a little chopped jalapeño for zing.
Instructions
Here’s the best way to cook spaghetti squash! Cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, rub a little olive oil and salt on the inside, and roast in the oven cut-side down. OR;
Using a large, sharp knife, pierce the spaghetti squash in several pieces.
Place the spaghetti squash in a glass baking dish and cook in the microwave on high for about 15 minutes, turning the squash halfway through cooking.
Before handling, let the squash stand until slightly cooled. Using a fork, twist out strands of the spaghetti squash flesh and place in a large bowl.
Preheat the broiler.
Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick or cast-iron skillet, set over medium-high heat.
Add the onion and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and just starting to brown, 5 to 6 minutes.
Add the garlic, oregano, pepper and salt. Cook for 1 minute.
Stir in the reserved spaghetti squash, marinara sauce, chickpeas and parsley.
Spread the spaghetti squash mixture into an even layer in the skillet. Top with the Parmesan cheese.
Place the skillet under the broiler until the cheese is melted, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve.
Spaghetti squash is also rich in the B vitamins riboflavin, niacin, and thiamin, which promote optimal cellular function. Folate is also found in this bright-colored vegetable. Folate supports the formation and development of new cells and may help prevent birth defects, making this squash an ideal food for pregnant women. This nutrient can also help filter out homocysteine from your blood and promote cardiovascular health.
Potassium, a mineral that maintains proper muscle and nerve function, is also present in spaghetti squash, making it helpful for people with high blood pressure. Manganese, a mineral that assists in bone and tissue heath, metabolism, calcium absorption, and nerve function, is another key component. Spaghetti squash also contains the essential minerals calcium, iron, phosphorus, and zinc.
Another reason to consume spaghetti squash is for its omega-3 and omega-6 fats content. Omega-3 fats are associated with the prevention of inflammation, which may cause heart disease, arthritis, and certain types of cancer. On the other hand, omega-6 fats are linked to proper brain function. It is critical to maintain the ideal 1:1 ratio of these fats.
I hope you enjoyed a wonderful long weekend. Now it’s back to business, back to school, back to back.
September represents a:
Which I will try my very best to embrace
We just had a Sunday afternoon Tea Party with a variety of homemade finger sandwiches (sans pink, green + yellow food-grade dye like my mom used to do with the bread – yeah she did!), old-fashioned deviled eggs and some sweets to finish. And tea.
But you can still enjoy it!
Do you like kimchi?
Girl Who Would be KING on Life, Style and INSPIRATION. 
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