Home on the Farm

We have grown vegetables and fruit in our yard ever since we've had a yard where we could plant something. Now it seems that the idea of growing your own vegetables is becoming more popular again. I think it's great. Nothing beats fresh vegetables and fruit. I just came across a site sponsored by Kraft: Home Farming which offers a lot of basic information to help people get started with their home farm. They also have a map which shows locations of home farms. IMHO when the big corporations start to get behind something then the idea has taken hold at least enough for it to trickle down to ( or is it up to) them.
Now if the native plant movement continues to grow I'll be cheering because maybe it will be easier to find native plants.

Getting Sticky with collage

Just started a new class today in collage. We started with painting tissue that we'll use when we create collages. The instructor indicated that we were creating our own paper. We also used newsprint today and will use a variety of papers, pictures and textures. Class was interesting because we could get started right away creating.

The instructor showed us some pictures of collages from previous classes and they were interesting but I see myself on a different path. I hope I learn enough technique to follow the path I'm leaning toward; a more detailed collage. I'm not explaining it well.

Right away I know I have a long way to go, I'm no instant Romare Beardon or Laura Breitman . I think, though, that this seems like a good way to get involved in a creative process without too much background and may be good to try with groups.

I have not been updating my blog obviously. I didn't really realize how long it had been. Work has really had me distracted from the things I enjoy doing : 0). I have not been updating the web site on time either. July is close to being over and the updates are just close to being complete.
July is ice cream month and there are some fun related activities on the site. Check out the Ice Cream Month Cook Create Cultivate page or the Get a Game page. The other pages will be updated shortly. Enjoy!
Currently Reading:
Foreign Babes in Beijing; Rachel Dewoskin (learning something about Beijing the Olympic site).
Just Finished:
Peony in Love; Lisa See
About to read:
Breakfast with Buddha; Roland Merullo

I have been so swamped with work that I have fallen behind on the web site update. Sorry everyone and thanks for your e-mail and calls. I am working on it and hope to catch up by putting in some extra hours over the weekend. The Therapy Resources site still looks like winter and since it was snowing in Ambler today that seems apropos.
Happy Passover and Easter to everyone.
Books:
Currently reading: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Lisa See (Main Characters book club selection)
Just Finished: The Lady and The Panda, Vicki Constantine Croke
On my night stand (still) A Light in the Window, Jan Karon

Web surfing is one of my favorite pastimes. Lucky for me because many of the ideas for activities on the Therapy Resources site have multiple links to sites for further information and resources. It can take hours and hours to search out reliable sites with good, accurate information. While surfing the net I have found many sites that have become favorites of mine. One of them is Jacquie Lawson's e-card site. Her cards are just so fun and creative. I have just finished sending some cards and renewing my membership. Another favorite site is The Journey North a wonderful site about migration. I have learned so much at that site. Happy surfing!

Winter has finally paid a serious visit here and while we didn't get much snow, the ice and cold certainly make up for any lack of the white fluffy stuff. We have to go to Orlando for a couple of days and I was hoping to enjoy some warm weather. However they are feeling the chill even there (Orlando Weather), it's been in the 40s and 50s, it will seem much better to us but certainly not warm. There's still snow on the Therapy Resources site but next month a touch of spring will appear again. The flower seeds are in the stores and the catalogs have started to arrive. We already bought some things to start seeds and we'll get them going soon.
This week is Fat Tuesday and Saturday we were at a Mardi Gras party. Did you know Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) is also sometimes called Pancake Day? There are lots of pancake and syrup recipes out there I think I am going to try and have pancakes on Tuesday.
I'm currently reading: Exile, Richard North Patterson (my book club's pick)
I just read: Special Topics in Calamity Physics, Marisha Pessl
On my nite stand A Light in the Window, Jan Karon.

I had no idea that there was controversy over the different types of wax used to make candles. The three main waxes are paraffin, beeswax and soy. If you surf around the web you'll find sites that claim paraffin is polluting and harmful and only beeswax or soy should be used. Other sites claim that there are basically no differences between the three main kinds and everything should be fine if the candle is handled and burned properly.
One site that started me looking around about the whole issue has beeswax candles and one of the benefits that they point out is how long their candles burn. Quiet Light Candles is an interesting small business and I am planning on trying some of their candles. They have a page of tips about burning candles which was very informative. We are working on updating the Therapy Resources site, have to take down the Christmas decorations, stay tuned....

Duane Keiser from A Painting A Day blog has posted videos of himself creating the postcard sized paintings. I just watched Godiva. Fun! Anyway, your group might enjoy watching the video and then maybe trying to create their own painting in a day. Keep in mind that in September Therapy Resources is posting the Apple in Pointilism drawing on the Therapy Resources INC site again for everyone to try. This is a popular page that has been posted several times. The instructions will be on the Cook Create Cultivate page and an activity page about the artist, Pat Schermerhorn, will be on the What's the Story? page. The pages will be posted September first for about a month maybe longer.

I thought this t-shirt from Busted Tees, was funny, so I ordered one and just as I was clicking submit the order I got kicked off the site. Well I had to try again but I waited until the next nite because in the meantime I e-mailed the company to check and find out if the first order went through. It hadn't so I submitted it again. Once in a while a customer says they had trouble submitting an order on the Therapy Resources site. This is just to let you know it happens, you are not alone. :0)

Visiting a couple of the wineries in the Portland area was fun and in one case adventurous. We decided to visit Hip Chicks Do Wine in Southeast Portland. The trip there was half the fun. We wove around the streets in the southeast after we missed one of the turns on our directions. We started seeing their signs and finally found the little winery which is housed in a warehouse and painted an eyecatching shade of purple. We chatted a little with one of the owners while we tasted their wine. We added a few of their bottles to our growing collection. Ok how are we going to get them all home on the plane? We did it no problem just some creative packing was required. Today I'm wondering if a wine tasting page would work for the Therapy Resources site. I'll give that more thought in the next month or so. Anyway last Sunday we took a bottle of their Vin Nombril (Belly Button Wine) to my cousin's house for lunch and enjoyed it's fruity flavor with our meal.

We were just in Portland Oregon and one of the things on the top of my list to do if we should happen to have any spare time was to visit the new Stash Tea retail store. Turns out we did and the store was only maybe 10 miles or so from downtown Portland. Its a small store, nicely laid out with a view to the work area and most importantly samples of their tea to taste. There were three available when we stopped by and we tried them all while I tried to figure out what to get for my friends. I bought some loose tea for everyone and myself of course. They also have the bed and breakfast promotion which is a great deal buy three boxes of Stash tea (easy, right?) and get a free night stay coupon at a participating B&B. Time for a tea party and tasting.

Check the calendar for June 16 today seems like it will be a good day for a pucker party since it will be hot and sunny and lemonade is great on these kind of days. Father's day is Sunday and then the first day of summer arrives followed closely by the July 4 holiday. The next few weeks are busy and not just with special days that are coming up. First we are heading to NYC the beginning of next week which although it will be hot should still be fun. I'm looking forward to visiting MoMA, which has recently reopened after renovation and maybe taking in a show. Then we are hosting some company for a few days. Not too long after that we head out again this time to New Jersey. Then it should quiet down for a couple of months.

The days go by so fast and there is too much work and too little time. The month flies by before you know it and its time to update the site again. This month there is a lot going on; Nursing Home Week, International Pickle Week, Backyard Games Week and Arthritis Month are all featured on the Therapy Resources site. Check out the solitaire game on the Computer Capers page while you are visiting. Why not make some tissue paper flowers this month to celebrate a special occasion?

On the Therapy Resources site each month there are creative ideas posted usually on several different pages, Amiable Activity, Cook Create Cultivate and What's the Story? are three that come to mind right away. I like to craft, paint, draw, crochet, knit, bake, sew, read, write and a whole lot of other things that I can't even think of right now. I have spent some time learning about and trying a lot of different things and this comes into play when the pages are being updated. Some of the inspiration for the pages also comes from reading and web surfing. One site that I came across a couple of years ago encompasses quite a few of my interests and has become a favorite of mine to visit. Craftster is a fun, fresh and sometimes irreverent craft site that like I said has a little bit of everything. I read the blog and check out the great ideas and creations that people come up with on a regular basis. I think a craftcon somewhere in my neighborhood would be great. Now how to go about it. hmmmmm....

The other day I asked one of the admin. people for a pencil. He responded that he hadn't heard about someone using a pencil for a while. Well I found a box of pencils in the supply cabinet but guess what? No point on the pencil and no sharpener to be found anywhere. Well as these things go I ended up using the admins mechanical pencil for my little editing project. Still I wondered about regular old fashioned pencils. Then today I came across mention of this blog: Pencil Revolution and spent quite a bit of time reading and checking out the links. I especially enjoyed the pencil clock the review of the dux sharpener ( I would like to get one), The BigBlack Pencil and The Original Computer Graphic. At the Therapy Resources Inc. site we post an art therapy activity called An Apple in Pointillism by western artist Pat Schermerhorn. She gives instructions to complete the activity with colored markers but now I'm thinking colored pencils would be great to use as well. Excuse me I'm going to get my pencils out and go buy a sharpener online......

In the realm of the unusual are the various ways that people choose for their final send off. Wanting to have a great final good bye is probably at least some of the motivation behind the unusual memorial services and items chosen. After all today's traditional funerals which can be huge celebrations of life with lots of food and music and the practice becoming less common of having a loved ones ashes in an urn on the mantle were probably considered, at one time,unusual. So getting your ashes shot into space in a Memorial Spaceflight , sent up in a balloon , used as part of a fireworks show, sunk to the bottom of the ocean for a memorial reef, encased in a paperweight or made into a diamond may not seem to be too much of a stretch for those who look for the unique way to do things. James Doohan's, (Scotty of Star Trek) send off will be a space launch, a fitting final gesture which highlights another reason to choose an unusual memorial service.
This month's "What's the Story?" page at Therapy Resources has a Ukrainian folktale called "Why the Old are no Longer put to Death" on it. Talk with your group about the story and the values presented in it and segue into a conversation about funerals and memorials to take the discussion in another direction.

Here in Washington the new baby panda at the National Zoo has managed to grab some headlines. I was watching the news this am, he was on and looking very cute. The National Zoo does not have the little guy on display and people who go to the zoo are only able to see the dad. The panda area is under construction, plus since the baby is doing so well and his mom such a good job with him the zookeepers don't want to interfere. However we can all follow his progress online via the Panda Cam.
The little panda will be named when he is one hundred days old with one of the names voted on by the public in the panda naming contest. The names were selected by China National Wildlife Conservation and the National Zoo. One of the voters will be selected at random to receive a trip to Washington to visit the little guy when he is on exhibit. Awww so cute.
I think I'll look into an activity page with this theme for the Therapy Resources INC site.

It seems that in the interest of the environment more and more emphasis is being place on making do with less and downsizing. Since hurricane Katrina and with the rising energy prices increased interest has been generated in fuel efficient cars and homes. More participation in sustainable and healthy environment activities may be a positive outcome of all this. So when I saw an article about small is the new big I was intrigued. Turns out that Tumbleweed Tiny House Company makes tiny custom shelters, some just big enough for a bed and shelves. The owner /designer Jay Shafer has been living in a tiny house since 1997 mainly because of his concerns about the impact of a larger house on the environment and his interest in sustainability. Downsizing takes on a new meaning when you see these homes.

Seems like a nice idea, order flowers from Organic Bouquet and some of the money goes to a charitable organization to support social justice, wildlife preservation, animal rights and the environment. The flowers they use are grown organically which helps to protect the farmer and the environment.

The Therapy Resources INC site will be updated with a summer look for our little house on the web tomorrow! Summer is here and tonight someone said that the heat and humidity will be back tomorrow as well, at least in our area. So you might be thinking that this is a good time to be concerned about food safety. Along that line of thought check out the surprising shelf life of some of your favorite foods and household items. Amazing that honey never goes bad isn't it? I wonder how that was figured out.