31 May, 2020 - The End of May & Cleaning UP
Dear, Mom -
I am sorry to report that I did not get around to make the Kladdkaka today. Birgit did, however, bring me some very nice vanilla bourbon (now, now...for cooking only, silly) to add to the cake when I make it. I mentioned to her that the fancy and/or more traditional recipe, calls for a vanilla bourbon instead of just an extract. I just happened to mention that to Birgit and she went into the house and brought out this little, spendy bottle that I guess she feels won't get used in their baking. Score! I will try to make the cake tomorrow. Birgit was not familiar with it, surprisingly enough. Then I read in The Nordic Baking Book that it really wasn't a recipe that was introduced to Sweden until the 1970s. Birgit thought I was making kaffekaka, or Swedish coffee cake. Regardless, she and Paula will get a slice so I can get some genuine feedback about it.
Today was a bit of another lazy day. I was feeling a bit blue. I miss seeing you so much that some days it just sneaks up on me and I get sad. Don't worry, though. Nancy, Rob, and I are trying to work out a future solution. We don't like having you where we can't see you. Of course, we will wait until it is safe for everyone, but it really is hard not having you with us. We will talk more about this in the month to come. We'll just keep praying that there will be some kind of miraculous resolve to this darn virus that is going around.
I was walking by our daisies today and saw a small, spotless lady bug. I noticed there were two without spots and thought that was kind of strange. I then read the following:
I am sorry to report that I did not get around to make the Kladdkaka today. Birgit did, however, bring me some very nice vanilla bourbon (now, now...for cooking only, silly) to add to the cake when I make it. I mentioned to her that the fancy and/or more traditional recipe, calls for a vanilla bourbon instead of just an extract. I just happened to mention that to Birgit and she went into the house and brought out this little, spendy bottle that I guess she feels won't get used in their baking. Score! I will try to make the cake tomorrow. Birgit was not familiar with it, surprisingly enough. Then I read in The Nordic Baking Book that it really wasn't a recipe that was introduced to Sweden until the 1970s. Birgit thought I was making kaffekaka, or Swedish coffee cake. Regardless, she and Paula will get a slice so I can get some genuine feedback about it.
Today was a bit of another lazy day. I was feeling a bit blue. I miss seeing you so much that some days it just sneaks up on me and I get sad. Don't worry, though. Nancy, Rob, and I are trying to work out a future solution. We don't like having you where we can't see you. Of course, we will wait until it is safe for everyone, but it really is hard not having you with us. We will talk more about this in the month to come. We'll just keep praying that there will be some kind of miraculous resolve to this darn virus that is going around.
I was walking by our daisies today and saw a small, spotless lady bug. I noticed there were two without spots and thought that was kind of strange. I then read the following:
"These are Asian beetles, which can be tan to orange, and can have very discreet spots. They have become more prevalent as they have displaced the native beetles. Like the native beetles, they do eat aphids, scale insects and mealybugs."
They are still 'lady bugs', but more specifically a kind of beetle. There are over 450,000 kinds of beetles and lady beetles (as they are called in Britain) are but one variety. I have also heard them called Lady Birds in Britain, too. Anyway, it was a sweet, little character to see in a rare patch of sun today.
I cannot believe it is the end of May already. Tomorrow, or maybe your today, is June 1st. We are already going into summer and I still have more planting to do. Paula told me not to worry that my tomatoes are still small since we normally don't see the fruit until fall. And here I thought I just had not planted them early enough. I see so many people with plants that are 10 times the size of mine that I thought I must be doing something wrong. I'll listen to Paula, though. She knows a lot about gardening. Plus the tomatoes need a lot of sun and we are just entering that time of year, so fingers crossed to lots of yummy tomatoes for salads and sandwiches later this year!
One of the things I did do today was clean up my desk and get some a stack of paperwork filed. There always comes a point when it just gets too cluttered on my desk and I have to spread all the bills, receipts, assorted paperwork out on the bed and file it. There is always so much extra paper that I end up recycling half of what was on my desk (enclosed envelopes that don't get used, the envelopes the bills came in, extra papers with different languages, etc.). My desk feels more orderly now and I have a bit more room to maneuver. I also got all my receipts for all the groceries and dog food I have bought over the last 3 months so Holly and I can square up. I'm the one always going to the store and spending the money. Now it's getting a bit thin in the ole bank account, so it's time to get some reimbursement. I'm not worried about it, though. It just seems to add up.
This is a picture of possibly a mock orange dogwood, but I think my plant identifier got it wrong. It looked a lot more like a type of, hmmm, mixture of a couple of plants. Maybe it is. I will take a better picture next time and try to reidentify it on my Picture This app. It sure is pretty, though.
I love you, Mom. Hang in there. I'll come as soon as I can to visit. Until then, please know how much I love you and that my letters to you are a way to keep our connection strong. You're the best mom in the whole world and I'll hug you very soon. Promise!
Your Youngest, Sally Ann
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