Weekend Baking... Cream Tea Scones

 

"One cup of flour," I say quietly.

"Are you seriously whispering?" he asks.

I look away from my cup of cream just long enough to glare at him.

"Does volume of someone's voice also affect how a recipe turns out?' he says/

I keep glaring at him.

"Should I sing to the cream?"

~Katie Cicatelli-Kuc

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice

Scones for Sunday breakfast... a classic! Several years ago, I was really into making scones. I made every kind you can imagine, and a few of the recipes came from this site, King Arthur Flour. I just came across this recipe recently, so I downloaded it and added it to the new personal cookbook I am making for myself, because sometimes I just want something light for breakfast. I love regular breakfast faire, but I don't need meat at every meal. I am at that fun age, where blood pressure and body swelling is now my main hobbies. I am kidding, of course, but I do want to take better care of myself. Life is short, especially when you are officially elderly. Lordy I hate that word, but if the word fits, eat a scone for breakfast, with a bowl of fruit salad, and a glass of nonfat milk!

Try This awesome recipe, and tell me what you think!

Cream Tea Scones

King Arthur Flour

Lorquin's Admiral ( Limenitis lorquini )

 

Lorquin's Admiral

Cosumnes River Preserve, River Walk

Galt, California

April 30th, 2026

A fallen blossom returning to a bough, I thought... but no a butterfly"

~Arakida Moritake 

Traditional Japanese Poetry: An Anthology

Yesterday was a beautiful day. Hubby and I took a walk, and a roll in my wheelchair, along the Cosumnes River Preserve, River Walk. It was peaceful and produced several birds we have not yet added to our birds list for this year, so that was nice. In fact the whole day was amazing, except for the keys that were dropped right on top of my head, the scary encounter with the skunk that ran right past my husband's feet, and the large rat and assorted lizards we encountered. We were definitely spending a day in nature! I will share more about all this later, but I guess on the bright side, the keys didn't break my nose, or put my eyes out, the skunk didn't spray us, the rat didn't bite us, and the lizards were quite content to mind their own damn business. As I said, yesterday was a beautiful day. There is beauty in the world!

More later...

Goodbye My Friend, For Now

 "If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we have to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don't want to do it."

~Stephen Colbert

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ends his 11 year run in May. I will never forgive Trump for setting this travesty in motion. It's yet another thing, that adds to making life shitty, that we have no control to either stop or at least slow down. I get that late night tv has been losing money for years, but it's also true that Trump had his hands all over it! That's the worst part of life with Trump, being completely out of control to fix the things giving you pain. He wants to hurt us, to have us under his control, even in our very thoughts. Life is difficult enough, without having him as the president. We all needed, Stephen Colbert, and now he's gone. And while he will be back in the awesome form of helping to develop the newest movie in the, Lord of the Rings, film that is not the same in any way as inviting him into our living rooms at night, still I look forward to his future endeavors, and I wish him well!

And now Trump is killing culture. 

Comedy is important. Stand up for free speech whenever you can!

Read the New York Times article.

It Was A Very Good Tuesday

 

"We begin to read each book, 

not knowing if we will see a peacock's feathers, or a baboon's arse."

~Kevin Ansbro

Hubby and I took a ride to Tracy yesterday, just to check out the range on the new EV, and while there we decided to check in at the Clifton Court Forebay, to see what new and wonderful birds might be lurking about. We first found about 100 or so swallows, cliff swallows I think, flying around the first bridge on the road. There may have been a couple different species of swallows, they were flying so quick I couldn't quite get a shot of them. I need to come back in the early evening, when they are slower and ready to roost. You can spot them on the telephone lines sometimes. Next, to my delight, we came across a flock of Caspian Tern. I love those birds, and I was afraid I wouldn't get to see one this year, but happily, there they were, flying on both sides of the forebay! I only wish they could have been a bit closer, my camera is feeling it's age, but still, I'm not really complaining! It was nice. And it was nice in general to get away from all the drama of worldly events. As irritating as those worldly events were, finding, photographing, and being able to enjoy the beauty of those beautiful birds erases a lot of bad! And to make it all that much better, I had a delightful dinner with my hubby, a Jersey Mike's sandwich, and a Habit Burger Garden Salad. Yep, it was a pretty good Tuesday!

Ellipsis Movie Of The Week... Six Days, Seven Nights

 

Robin, Speaking to Quinn: I've flown with you twice,

 and you've crashed half the time."

~ Six Days, Seven Nights

Imagine six days and seven nights on a fabulous tropical island, sounds like a dream come true, doesn't it? Although I would probably rather spend my vacation birding in Central Park, or shopping in London, I could see how it would be an amazing idea, especially if you're vacationing in winter, but good ideas can go horribly wrong. That's what this film is all about. Good ideas, bad ideas, and the love and strength to survive your choices along the way. You never know when fate will line things up, there are so many random moments in life, the worst idea can turn out to be just what you needed, and the perfect moments can sometimes fall spectacularly flat. Anne Heche and Harrison Ford are terrific, and they bring the adventure and romance!

Watch it! It's a pretty good time! It's a rom com worth curling up with!

The Calypsonians 

By

Taj Mahal and the Hula Blues

The Teacher Of The Month

 "If you're at the end of your rope... untie the knot in your heart."

~Cooper Edens 

If You're Afraid Of The Dark,

 Remember The Night Rainbow/Add One More Star To The Night

Okay, so it happened again. Someone tried to assassinate Trump. Again. For the third time to be exact. History will fill in the details. Was it real? Was it fake? There are reasons to believe both! I am not a conspiracy theorist, but there are oddities to this one. Ugh, I don't even want to discus my doubts because it's all so strange, but then w are talking about an event around Trump, so of course it's strange. It would be strange if it wasn't strange. All I know is, watching it all unfold live on, MS Now, was... strange. One minute hubby and I were discussing what we would serve at the dinner, if we were the caterers, the next minute men were climbing across chairs, and folks were ducking. Strange. Wanna know something else strange? The apparent bad guy was named Teacher of the Month, in December 2024. Before Trump took office for the second time.

 I am not giving any passes there is, NO ROOM FOR POLITICAL VIOLENCE, but the last year and a half has seemed more like 5 years, than 18 months. It hasn't been an easy time to take. So much bad, in so little time, so I understand the desperate frustration, but for our own mental health we have to find things for ourselves, for self care. I get a lot of help from turning off the TV, after, Deadline White House... with Nicolle Wallace, and I nap for a couple hours. I have anemia, left over from my last bout with Covid-XEC, so I need a little extra rest anyway. You don't have to nap, but turning off the TV is mandatory. Believe it or not, essential oils, help. I keep a small bottle, on my desk, of cinnamon oil. I take a little sniff, when I start to fell stressed, and it brings calmness and serenity to my soul. That's my favorite scent, yours is probably different, but you get the point. Lavender is pretty good too! And if all else fails, find yourself a good therapist!

Donald Trump is not worth it! Truly he isn't.

Remember, you love pizza more than you hate Trump!

Losing your whole life, by going to prison for life, isn't necessary, when we have so much to be hopeful about. We just need to concentrate on seeing those things, more than what sits in the darkness. The midterms are right around the corner!

Anyway, here are a few scenes from the other night.

The ever loving RFK jr., and his wife, Cheryl Hines

The super creepy, ever loving, big boob Stephen Miller and Wife

The TEACHER OF THE MONTH

Trump want's to reschedule the event for sometime in the next 30 days, we'll see if he can pull that off. It costs money to produce these things, but the again, when did he ever worry about spending other peoples money? Also, there are schedules to be considered, both personally and professionally. I imagine some new evening gowns must be purchased, as we ladies don't like wearing the same gowns to a rescheduled rubber chicken event, especially after a gunman scares the ever loving boredom out of us! There is a whole lot to consider. As for me, if the WHCD does get another chance, I will probably tune in. I will be wearing my comfy leggings, my long soft shirt and my slippers, and I will have my Bingo card ready to go!

Ellipsis Word Of The Week... Makebate

 

"Selfish and contentious people will not cohere, and without coherence, nothing can be effected."

~Andrew Hall

In that the word "Makebate" is an archaic word, I had a bear of a time find an example of a proper usage, here are some quotes the fit as alternative definitions. The word  dates bake to the early 1500's, so I'm guessing that it's usage in modern English is pretty much a rare event. 

Although perhaps we should bring it back!

Does the word remind you of anyone?

"Trump relies on his abilities as a MAKEBATE,

 to sew contention and quarrels among his cabinet, 

all for his own entertainment."

~Me

The word "MAKEBATES" appears in the King James version of the Bible.

 It refers to slanderers and false accusers.

2 Timothy 3:3 Makebate is mentioned in the margins.