Wednesday, September 9, 2026

Good Day Tuesday

 Hi Everyone!
I write my posts the day before so even though this is Wednesday, I had the best Tuesday.
First we actually had a summer day. It was 71°F with no wind. That's a dream for here. Mr. M. and I took a very short drive north of town. We haven't been over that way for awhile, and I wanted to prove to you that I really do live on the beach. 
We drove the long way about 3 miles. LOL
 
Once we turn west off of HWY 101
 
We come onto this road. Behind the mess of trees are homes.
 
Except for here. In winter this is a swamp. We have had no rain this summer so it's dried up.
 
Then around the corner where there is a small lot that is NOT a fee area.
 
I spoke with the couple sitting off to the side. They are from Utah and come here every year. In my mind I thought, "Why?" OK, I'm being snarky.

 
The tide was fully out. 


 
We are known for our dunes large and small.


 
We came home, had a bite to eat and then went to the Florence, Farmer's Market. Now I don't normally attend this market. It doesn't start until 3pm and by that time I'm done in.
However, I had some coupons and wanted to use them up. There is never a place to park so Mr. M. dropped me off while he drove around.
I must say that going later in the year is much better. The vendors were amazing, the prices exceptional, and I'm happy with what I got. 

However, somewhere a long the way I lost a beautiful zucchini. Don't have a clue how or where it dropped out of my bag. It's nowhere in the car.
Someone will find it and hopefully put it to good use. Besides I got these beauties from my own garden. They aren't very big but they are sweet and so good. 
 
One last thing. I needed, (wanted) a smaller Comal cast iron pan. I found one on Amazon on sale and that arrived today.
It's perfect.
 It's not the highest quality of cast iron, mid range but it will work for me.
 
That's my day in a nutshell.
Have a great day today.
Nicole
 

Tuesday, September 8, 2026

T Stands

 Hi Everyone!
 
Today is Tuesday and that means a day with Elizabeth and Bleubeard.
 
I enjoy cooking very much. Searching, changing, inventing recipes. Making them to fit our medical needs and life style.  Let's take pork chops.
I make a pretty good chop but if you want the best chop ever do this.
Forget those thick chops with no bone or if you have them cut them long ways in half. If you want a juicy chop place the chops covered in cold water with salt, cover and put in fridg for NO LONGER than 2 hours. If you want a very tender chop, place in real milk cover and set in fridg for NO LONGER that 2 hours. Once the chops are ready for the pan dry them as much as you can. I mean DRY them. Make your pan screaming hot, add a small amount of oil, lard or ghee. Salt and pepper the chop and place in pan season side down. Season the top side.  DO NOT TOUCH it for 4 minutes or until the chop lifts right off the pan. Flip it over and cook another 2 minutes or so. Once it is done let it set for 5 minutes covered with a dish towel. Not tin foil, not a paper towel, a clean dish towel. Any juices pour over the chops and serve.
 
One day I made "Dirty Cabbage" The homemade bread was baked in my air fryer. 
This is so darn good that the next day Mr. M. had it in a taco. Come on almost everything taste good in a corn tortilla.  
 
This next recipe is too good to pass up. It's cake in a cup made in the microwave. 
I didn't think I had a mug big enough so I started it in a bowl. Mix together
1/4 c flour, 1/4 c sugar, (I used less sugar, I don't think it needs 1/4 cup)
2T cocoa powder, 1/8 t salt, 1/8 t backing soda. Mix to combine.
Add in 3T milk, 1T water, 2T oil and a splash of vanilla.
Mix it all up. 
At this point I did have a mug and poured the mixture into it. Now place the mug into the microwave for 1 minute 45 seconds and you will have the best one serving chocolate cake ever. I pulled a bit of the top off to show you how nice and moist this is. 
I have some other recipes but will save for another day. 
My drink today is good ol' water.
Have a great Tuesday.  

Monday, September 7, 2026

Monster Monday

 Welcome to 
Before I get started I want to give some help for those who can't see the videos. The first thing to do is refresh the page. These videos are embedded from Pintrest, you do not need to be a Pintrest member to view them. After refreshing if you still can't see them check your ad blocker, or pop up restrictions. Especially with browsers like Safari. If you click anywhere on the video it will take you to pintrest so you can view it there. Hope this helps.
Now for monster videos.
The eyes have it. 
   

                             

 

                            

                           

 

 

 
 
 
 

   
 
 
Now for some eyes I created a long time ago. Some of you may remember. 
 
 




Hope you enjoyed the eyes.
Have a nice Monday
Nicole 

Sunday, September 6, 2026

SITAR

 Welcome to
SITAR is about ANYTHING art. Your art, someone else's art, writing, photography, the art of cooking, the art of sewing and textiles. Sharing historical art, street art, a story about art. Do you have a question or need help with art? Write a blog post and link it up here. We will all try to help with it. My only rule is that if someone asks for critique it must be done with generosity and consideration. 
This is a place of learning, encouragement and inspiration.
 
I have always found fashion to be an art form. But how did it start. Here is a video that shows just a bit of how things changed. 
 

 
 
It wasn't until 1890 that modern fashion shifted the clothing industry. The rise of the sewing machine is what made this possible, changing from laborious handmade clothes to crafted luxury designs. Before that Mothers and daughters spent a massive portion of their daily lives sewing. Girls were taught precise stitching (like the back stitch and running stitch) from early childhood. To save time, home-sewn clothes used simple, geometric patterns (like rectangles and squares for shifts and shirts) that required less cutting and fitting. Because fabric was so expensive, clothes were constantly mended, patched, resized for younger children, and eventually turned into rags or quilts. People owned very few outfits.
To understand the impact of the 1850s transition: a skilled hand-sewer took about 14 hours to make a man's shirt by hand. With the early sewing machine, that time dropped to 1 hour and 16 minutes. 
Now there are so many directions I can go with this post. From the early "slop" shops located near ports for sailors who didn't have anyone to sew for them, to the second hand trade. Or the sweat shops where women form different countries slaved to make clothes.  However, I don't want to get into all of that. I just want to show how clothes have changed over the decades. 
Here is another video.
 

                           

  

 

 I just thought these were fun to watch.

I will be joining Gillena 


 
Nicole
 

Friday, September 4, 2026

Friday Face OFF 9/4/26

 

Welcome To Friday Face OFF (FFO)
This is the place to show off your face art.
You know, ANY type of face, nature, the face of a flower, photography, drawings, paintings, AI. There just needs to be a face in your blog post, a link back to my blog and please use the image below. 
Thank you.
 
 The faces I have today are NOT my art. Just way too much going on in my life right now.
Here are some fun oldies for you.
 
I have stairs in my house. 

This is very true.  
 
Me in the art room
Just fun
Last but not least. 
Now for some features.
 
That's it for now 
Don't miss
Sunday in the Art Room.
 
I will be joining Gillena 
 
Now it's time to show me your face.
 Nicole
  
 

Thursday, September 3, 2026

The Blues

 HI Everyone!
I don't talk much about music. I do like all different genres. If I had to pick just one it would be the Blues.
I found this and had to share it.
Have a great day today.
 
 
                       

Wednesday, September 2, 2026

Wednesday Post Voting


Hi Everyone!
 
We all know that the "thing" in the white house has always wanted to stay in power no matter the cost, no matter the laws broken or the constitutional crises that WE ARE in.
 
A U.S. Postal Service official has accused the agency of defying court orders as it rushes to implement the Trump administration’s mail-in voting restrictions.
The allegations were made public Tuesday morning by way of a letter from Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal to Postmaster General David Steiner. Citing the insider’s testimony, Blumenthal said that the “risky and haphazard” implementation of the "thing's" March-dated executive order—which granted the postal service new gatekeeping responsibilities regarding mail-in ballots—could lead to a “catastrophic failure” in America’s voting procedures come November. 

Uhh I do believe that's what he wants

The executive order was in legal limbo for months—up until last week, when the Supreme Court decided that the lawsuit challenging the order was premature since the administration had not yet implemented it. The Supreme Court was clear that it had not ruled on the legality of the "thing's" order, but nonetheless allowed it to move forward. 

Yet how the postal service is planning to carry out the marching orders is already fraught with problems, according to the whistleblower report.

The snail-mail carrier has been building an entirely new federal ballot mail portal since June, months before the service was permitted to move forward with the executive order. The portal will screen all incoming ballots, but its development has been “rushed” and “risky” as the service tried to meet “impossible deadlines”.

For instance, the agency has eliminated testing procedures for the platform, a risk that could potentially “derail the midterm elections,” according to the whistleblower.


“Potentially millions of American voters may not receive their mail-in ballot this election cycle in a timely manner, or at all,” the official said.
Blumenthal told reporters by phone on Monday that “the main takeaway for me is that the Postal Service has designed a system to disenfranchise millions of Americans. One-third of all Americans cast their ballots by mail, and the USPS puts all of their votes at risk.”
 
Voting by mail will invariably become more difficult for the tens of millions of Americans who depend on the service under the "thing's" new order. Even if a voter does everything right, their vote could still be rejected by the Postal Service’s new portal.
 
Part of the problem is the system’s zero percent failure rate, which processes ballots in large batches but rejects the lot if one fails to pass muster.
“For example, if a state election official brings a batch of 10,000 ballots to USPS and USPS is unable to match just one of those ballots against the Portal—because, for example, someone has recently changed their name after marriage or they’ve moved—then USPS would refuse to mail the remaining 9,999 ballots as well,” Blumenthal wrote. USPS would then expect the state to “take back the entire batch to cure the issue with the single ballot,” according to the whistleblower.
The whistleblower claimed that developing such a portal and the infrastructure to support it should take the service a year or more, but USPS leadership nonetheless demanded that the electronic processor be launched by September 1—less than six months after the executive order was signed, and just two months before the midterm election cycle. 
 24 states and the District of Columbia have filed law suits against this. The President of the United States does not have the constitutional authority to control, administer, or dictate voting procedures in individual states.
However, we are dealing with the "thing". 
In addition The "thing's homeland security chief says ICE agents could be sent to polling places.
 
No matter how you vote make sure your information is up to date.
Contact your state voting website to get updated information.
Keeping the right to vote is everyone's fight.
Nicole
 
 
 

Tuesday, September 1, 2026

T stands for cooking

 Hi Everyone!

Today is Tuesday and that means a day with Elizabeth and Bleubeard.
Yesterday I was supposed to meet up with my 3 neighbors. It's our monthly gathering. I knew when I got up I wasn't going to make it. Lupus pain an overall feeling like crap. I called to let them know that I would not be attending. 
 Everyone texted to see if I needed help.
I don't. I just want to be left alone with feeling like this. 
Don't worry my friends, I'm OK it's just a day setback. Prednisone will take care of it. LOL
Friday we drove over to Bandon to the Farmer's market. It's late in the year and when we arrived there was only one vendor. However, it was the vendor I always shop with. This is what I got. The grow the best string beans. 
The sweet onions are always so good with long scrapes that I chop up and freeze.  
Can't leave without peppers and small heads of cabbage. 
Some of what we ate this week.
Steamed veggies with egg noodles. 
Doesn't seem like much but it is so good. 
Yumm homemade burritos. I make these and freeze them. Plain rice and homemade refried beans.
Perfectly cooked battered pork chops, coleslaw with apples and string beans.  

And sugar free chocolate pudding pie. 
 
Sorry this is blurry 
I got a coupon for a free 12 pack of bubly. Mr. M. likes the black cherry. With the sparkling waters I only like the plain. 

 Have a great day today.
Nicole.