Monday, July 24, 2017

Baking-Figuratively and Literally

Greetings from my sunny kitchen.

 What's cooking? At the moment, a peach pie. I hope they don't expect a proper meal as well-I haven't planned the day out that far yet. I wasn't kidding when I said the kitchen is sunny-see that glowing space beside me? That's with the blinds drawn. It can be annoying in the summer, but come December I'm happy to have a light-filled kitchen, even if only for a few hours. We're getting a temperature break today, but then we're back into the heat and humidity for at least another week. I took this break as an opportunity to wash and dry my hair because I know by mid-week no product on earth will combat the inevitable curls and frizz. Eh, that's why I have hats.
I haven't been feeling motivated to do much, and with the car at the garage for repairs I have felt even less motivated. We did get out last weekend to see Dunkirk, but that was hardly a mood-lifter! I thought it was well done, but I'm also glad I didn't see it in IMAX-that would have been too much.

 Outfit Particulars:
Nylon dress and jacket-Thrift World (years ago)
Shoes-Goodwill
Thermoset necklace and matching bracelet-Hand-Me-Ups
Earrings-Goodwill
Handbag-Etsy
Sarah Coventry brooch-Goodwill
The plastic moulded wall decorations on the wall behind me are the ones that I switch out on the front door. I'm partial to the owls.
I knew there was a reason I bought these shoes. Now I need a matching blue patent handbag.

 
Last weekend, in the throes of 100+ degree temperatures, I finally wore this Mexican embroidered dress I bought last winter at Sequels (the thrift store in the Dairy Queen) in Council Bluffs, Iowa. I think it set me back two dollars, but it might have been less. It is bright, and it caused an old man to shout at me in the street, "You sure do like red, don't you?!" Well, actually, I don't but I like being shouted at in the street even less. At least he wasn't shouting that I should, "Go back where I came from", or driving up slowly beside me to roll down the window and shout, "How much do you weigh?" but truth be told, I still don't like being shouted at in the street, even if it is a fairly innocent observation by a pensioner. It is a bright red dress. 
 Outfit Particulars:
Mexican embroidered dress-Sequels
Vintage straw-look bag-Can't remember(I have several and they're all quite similar
Bangles-all over
Hair flower-Tiff and Tam
Franco Sarto shoes-Goodwill
Vintage clip earrings-New Life Thrift
Fragrance-Tuscany per Donna

 It must be the annual Nebraska heatwave if Chilly Willy is out in the garden with his sign. I wonder how many people laugh, and how many others pass by muttering, "Fuck off, Penguin!"
I still have Roland the Snowman's* head in the freezer from last winter. He'd better behave himself if he knows what's good for him! 
"I am in ur freezer drinkin ur gin."

*Have you seen the trailer for a horror movie called, The Snowman? As soon as Danny saw the frozen snowman head on the victims he started cracking up. "So THAT'S what Roland has been up to! 
ROLAND!!!
Roland, you stop killing people...and stop drinking my gin! Don't make me send you to the naughty step in a heatwave.































12 comments:

Bibi Maizoon said...

But red is sooo your color, Goody! I think it looks gorgeous on you!
That turquoise nylon ensemble could have gone woefully 'church lady' but you've taken it to the uber artsy chic of a David Lynch character. Those molded plastic early 70's objects d'art complete the popular surrealist vibe.
Mmmmm...peach pie.
Great, now I'm picturing Roland hissing "Hello Mister Police" with gin tainted breath. AAAAH!
Our weather report for the day: Considerable cloudiness with a couple of showers and a thunderstorm (at least it's only 83 with a real feel of 89?)

Radostin said...

You don't like red? I am astounded! You look really great in red, but why wear it if you don't like it?
I love the blue ensemble, including the non-patent-blue bag. The print is amazing and I agree with Ms Maizoon, v Lynchian how you wear it.
The snowman looks like the sort of film where the murderer turns out to be the nice policeman, no? What year is Roland originally from? Have you used him as the head on consecutive winters of snowmen?

Vix said...

Red loves you! That dress is ace on you, hence the reason the old guy had to say something.
I'm quite keen on seeing Dunkirk, it's got three of my favourite actors in, Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy and Mark Rylance although I'm a bit put off by Harry Styles having a cameo.
xxx

ThriftyParka said...

Gorgeous!!! I'm in love with your clothes. The red dress is SPECTACULAR! Although I'm kinda scratching my head at the behaviour of your fellow Omahanians. Why on earth would they shout things at you? Do they not have manners?

Thank you for posting the closeup of your pretty thermoset. Alas, I wore a thermoset bracelet yesterday, only to have the clasp open and the bracelet fall to the ground. One of the thermoset pieces popped out - another victim of brittle glue (sigh).

Hope to see more of that pretty red dress!!

Happy thrifting ;)

Polyester Princess said...

Your blue dress and jacket combo is gorgeous, and exactly the thing I would have picked up too. I wouldn't mind having those shoes either, and obviously you now need a matching handbag. That Mexican embroidered dress is fantastic, and I'm glad you are overcoming your dislike of red, as it looks perfect on you. Maybe I should have bought the inflatable snowman at last weekend's flea market, in case we get another heatwave. You're sure Roland is still in there, right? xxx

Miss Magpie said...

What better excuse do you need? go hunt down that bag I've have great faith in you finding ones with your extreme bag hunting skills!

I too have a sunny kitchen, when the sun hits and reflects off the shiny metal sink drainer it melts eyeballs. too, too hot at this time of year.

Beth Waltz said...

The red dress is exactly what the heat wave demands, but it's the red flower in your hair that probably caught the old dude's eye. Let's charitably assume that a) not many women in Omaha have the taste/guts to wear flowers in their hair and b)the old dude is not a Nebraskan.

We had a break in the heat and humidity, so I seized the opportunity to catch up on deferred housekeeping, i.e., cleaned up the garage, retrieved the ladder, and sallied forth to replace xx lightbulbs. In the process I uncovered the holiday decorations that escaped me last season -- your penguin friend is inspiring me to do something amusing in the front yard with snowmen. (Will the blue muumuu fit the big one?)

I covet those blue patent sling-back, open toed shoes! They'd be an improvement on the black patent version I wear with an ancient black gauzy pantsuit, accessorized by fun faux turquoise jewelry. Much more Hawaii, much less VFW dance night.

Goody said...

@Bibi
Now you have me hearing Roland like something out of Naked Lunch! "So long, flatfoot..."
We finally got rain-it is very, Miami in August outside.

@Radostin
Roland was from last winter-and he needs to go as my freezer is on the small side.
I wore plenty of red as a child because my mum liked it. I've still not got past the indignity of being forced to wear a very un-cool Hudson's Bay blanket coat in red and black. She bought it large enough that I never properly outgrew it and had to er...lose it on the bus ;)

@Vix
Harry didn't have much dialog (no one did), and he did okay with the part. I do shake my head a bit at the critics complaining there's no backstory. I knew education was going to hell in the States but really, you don't know about Dunkirk?

@Thrifty
You have me wondering if it would be best with thermoset to pry them loose and re-glue them with super-glue before wearing? I might try it with a less-nice set and see how it goes-odds are it won't discolour like some of the older glues which I suspect were little more than rubber cement.

Yeah, people are dickheads-and it is 99.99% of the time, guys.

@Ann
I was thinking of you when I pulled that dress out-I'm sure you must have something similar in your own closet.

@Miss Magpie
I'll take that as permission to shop ;)
With such a warm kitchen you can't be expected to cook.

@Beth
I LOVE the idea of a snowman on a Hawaiian holiday-do it! (and post photos). Nothing wrong with dance night at the VFW-fifty cent Pabst and frozen pizza have a certain charm in a small town with nothing else to do.



Mim said...

Red looks fab on you. We all like you in red! The blue looks jolly spiffy too.

Mmm, peach pie. Americans do so much more interesting things with fruit than we Brits. (Though the peaches we get in our shops are probably rubbish compared to yours, they're all hard and flavourless this year.)

As long as it's only snowmen's heads in your freezer, that's fine...

Goody said...

@Mim
My sister at one point had several dead pets (hamster, fish, lizard) in her freezer as they died in the depths of a Chicago winter and her kids wanted to bury them in the spring.

Our peaches are hit and miss. The growers pick them too early so they look good, but they are harder to ripen. I have my "magic" carnival ware bowl that seems to help fruit ripen-no idea why. Sometimes if I'm in a hurry I toss them in a brown paper sack with a banana which seems to help. I can't guarantee it, but if you have any carnival it might be worth a try.

Radostin said...

Oh, I had ghastly school uniform skirts that my mum bought about 5 sizes too large! We had a shirt that was supposed to stay tucked in, and an elastic belt (maybe that's why I almost never wear belts? Hmmm....), which I suppose she imagined would keep the skirt up (no belthooks, though), and the amount of rearranging in the course of the day, to keep everything in place, was most annoying. I did like the little zip change pocket concealed within the belt, however. All this to say, I'm so proud of you for loosing your coat!
@Mim, my paternal grandmother, whose cooking I always enjoyed, maintained that fruit cooking was actually supposed to be done with not sufficiently ripe, or not sufficiently tasty, fruit - the heat and addition of sugar (& perhaps lemon juice sometimes) bringing out the flavour, and the too-firmness working to prevent the cooked fruit becoming mush. So, maybe try?

Goody said...

@Radostin
If you're going to buy the skirt that large, the least she could have done was purchase braces. Probably wouldn't have passed the dress code.

I'll second the underripe fruit, at least for pickling, or preserving. After enough time in brine they soften and absorb the flavours.