This and That

The sun came out yesterday.

It brought 100% humidity and record temps.

It's a little too early for me for sticky weather and running the AC.
So I went across the street with my book and had a cup of tea!

It was nice to get out after all the rain
and I picked up some meringue hearts.
YUM!

I'm getting ready to put up my Valentine decorations,
But I think I'm going to leave the Lori Mitchell figures out for awhile.
They are just too cute!
The Emma Bridgewater teapot and mug have been put away in 
my Grandmother's buffet -- a place of honor.

Today is the Lunar New Year - the Year of the Dog.
Traits of those born under this sign are:
Affectionate, Faithful,
Straightforward,
Courageous, Smart,
Inspirational, Loyal,
Honest, Trustworthy,
Warm-hearted

The table is all set except for the water glasses.
Mandarin Orange Chicken will be the main course. 

World Market had these cups in all the Chinese Astrological signs.

If you didn't celebrate the New Year in January,
or even if you did --
here is the chance to celebrate again!

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Willy Nilly Friday

Feathered Nest


Mosaic Monday

Keep In Touch

Share Your Cup Thursday

Happy New Year!

It's 2017!

Did you stay up and bring in the New Year?

Did you make some noise -- beat a drum or pots and pans -- 
set off fireworks?
Have to do something to frighten off the demons!
 

Did you eat lucky food?
In my neck of the woods, black-eyed peas are the tradition.
I like the tradition of eating 12 grapes like they do in Spain.

Did you drink a special beverage?
Wassail?

I didn't make it to the magic hour.
I climbed into bed with the kitties, listened to the New York Philharmonic's
New Year's concert and had a glass of Prosecco. 

If you missed all the festivities, 
you can celebrate the new year again later in January
on the Lunar New Year.

Thank you to SageGoddess.com for the photo.



My Christmas cactus started blooming the day after Christmas.
Close enough!

Santa was full of Walkers Shortbread and now has what is left
of Trader Joe's mini-gingerbread men.

All the outdoor decorations are down and put in their resting place,
but the tree is still up!
I've had back problems and decided it was just easier to leave it,
enjoy it and maybe by Valentine's Day it will be down! Ha!

My friends and family know me well.
I love Tea anything!
I have a new holiday mug -- nice, big, sturdy and I love the red and white. 
Yes, the teapot was a gift, too.
My beautiful step-daughter sent me a box full of "made in Washington"
goodies -- the chocolate covered Chukar Cherries go well with tea!
The towels have lovely snowflakes.

This is the second Shin-yu Infinity Scarf I've made with Caron Cakes.
My beautiful god-daughter saw the first one and walked out the door with it
before I got a picture of it. 
This is a wonderful crochet pattern by ChiChi Allen.
The directions are clear and precise and she includes photos.
The pattern can be found on her Ravelry site or her blog.

I just started The Glass Universe.
An interesting look at astronomy (before it became astrophysics)
and the role women played in the early days.









Wishing YOU well and much joy!


Mosaic Monday

Yarn A Long

It Makes Decision Making Hard

There is a lot going on in February.

College Basketball will be ending and College Baseball will begin.

*

It's the Chinese New Year.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

(Mandarin for Happy New Year)

It is the Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival.

The date changes every year as determined by the Lunar Chinese calendar.

This year is the year of the Red Monkey.

Found on Elephant Journal and Pinterest

The monkey is intelligent, smart, wise, curious, energetic, impulsive, inventive, hyperactive, cheeky, strong minded and vigilant. Red monkeys are problem solvers and work well within group environments, while retaining their individuality.

*

I love this time of year.

Tulips are abundant at the grocery stores.

Daffodils appear at TJs.

It makes decision making hard.

Should I buy tulips or daffodils?

I decided to get both.

*

Mardi Gras is coming to an end.

Fat Tuesday is around the corner...

the last big party of the year before lent.

To celebrate I bought a small king cake and it is delicious.

Instead of the usual cinnamon interior, I got cream cheese.

YUM!

A King Cake is a type of cake associated in a number of countries with the festival of Epiphany at the end of the Christmas Season.

Here on the Gulf Coast it is associated with the pre-Lenten celebrations of Mardi Gras/Carnival.

In the southern United States, the tradition was brought to the area by colonists from France and Spain. 

The King Cake comes in a number of styles. The most simple, said to be the most traditional, is a ring of twisted cinnamon roll-style dough topped with icing or sugar, usually colored purple, green and gold (traditional Mardi Gras colors) with food coloring. King cakes may also be filled with additional foodstuffs - the most common being cream cheese, praline, cinnamon or strawberry.

Finding the baby in the cake is said to bring good luck and you must supply the King Cake for the next years party.

*

At the Kitchen Table

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

I'm joining:
No Place Like Home
Bernideen's Tea Time, Cottage and Garden Party

On the Second New Moon After the Winter Solstice

On the second new moon after the winter solstice
we celebrate the Lunar New Year.

This year the new cycle also falls on the same date as
Losar, the Tibetan New Year.

Known as the Sheep, Goat or Ram, it is considered the most feminine sign of the zodiac and corresponds in may ways to the sign of Cancer in western astrology.

This astrology system interprets how the five elements -- or the alchemical forces of nature
affect our human experience. This year, Yin Wood mingles with the Yin Earth of Sheep.

In honor of the Lunar New Year, I'm having a Lunar New Year tea.
It's a great excuse to share another of my YiXing tea pots.
This one is very special.

It is carved to look like a flowering tree ... complete with knobs and flowers!

I'm brewing superfine Jasmine Downy Dragon Pearls Green Tea by Teavivre.
This is a delicious, slightly sweet tasting tea.
I love the reflection in the cup!

The cup is one I found at the Glassell Art School student sale.
I love the feel in my hands ... the interesting shape.

The more kind and compassionate heart of the Sheep offers an opening for us to recognize how interconnected we really are, and cheers humanity on to choose peace over separation.

Now is the time to clean out whatever needs clearing, whether it's letting go of negative mental and emotional patterns, doing a physical cleanse, jettisoning clutter, or a major space clearing of your environment.

In the Tibetan tradition, the next to the last day of the old year is a most powerful time to purify any negative energies in our homes and bodies from the previous year.

I've shared bits about the Year of the Sheep from an Elephant Journal article.
You can find more there.

I'm joining several tea parties:

Tea Time Tuesday 

Teacup Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

Tuesday Cuppa Tea

Share Your Cup Thursday

Wishing YOU well, much joy and a delightful cup of tea!

Happy 4712!

Potpourri

First things first.

Happy Lunar New Year!

Welcome to the Year of the Horse.

I made several of these for a postcard swap.

**

I've spent most of the icy days catching up on the television shows I've missed.

I'm now caught up with CASTLE.

***

Speaking of icy - how about another Snowman?!

This little angel may be as tired of winter as the rest of us are.

I think she's helping them melt!

No artist listed but there was a suggested 1939 publishing date.

Thank you to Beth for hosting Postcard Friendship Friday.

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Do you have a favorite flower?

I love roses and daisies are such a happy flower.

But there is something about the iris.

It calls to me.

What is it about irises

in the garden

whether blue flag or yellow,

deep purple, white with red

why do they catch the attention, the imagination

more than lesser blooms?

A certain allure

that Georgia O'Keefe didn't taint

a beauty that draws you in to ponder and marvel on

a delicacy that is real

but a perennial that wears well

the seasons in New England too

bitter cold and short summers

whether in bog or flower bed.

~Raymond A Foss

*****

It's time for "Spring" baseball practice.

Even the umpires have to get their practice before the season starts.

The Owls will start the season in California against the Stanford Cardinal.

Go OWLS!

Thanks, Nancy!

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Lunch

Beautiful God Daughter (BGD) joined me for lunch to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

The food was delicious and the setting extra special.

The only place in town I can think of where lunch costs less than $8.00 a person

and the tables are covered with tablecloths!

BGD had the garlic chicken.

I had the Hunan beef.

My little friend joined us for jasmine tea.

Thank you to our hosts: 

The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday

Mary for Mosaic Monday.

Wishing YOU Well and JOY!

Lunar New Year

A big welcome to the Year of the Dragon and the Lunar New Year!

In the Chinese zodiac, the dragon is the only animal that is not real.

(Unless you are a dragon lady and believe in dragons!)

The dragon is a highly auspicious symbol and represents the unification of the ancient tribes in China.

The dragon is a symbol of power, superiority and wisdom.

Unlike the wicked, fire breathing dragons of Western mythology,

China's celestial dragon symbolizes power and can have a soft spot! 

Dragons are ancient, majestic, wise and intelligent and

dragon years are considered auspicious for new business, marriage and children.

Dragon years also tend to boost individual fortunes and the world economy.

Happy New Year to You!

Celebrate!

Thank you to our hosts: 

The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday

Mary for Mosaic Monday

and the lovely ladies who host tea blogs:

Tea Time Tuesday
Friends Sharing Tea
Tea Party Tuesday
Teacup Tuesday
A Return to Loveliness

Tuesday Cuppa Tea

Wishing you WELL and a JOY filled New Year!

Mosaic Monday

Mary, at The Little Red House is the hostess for Mosaic Monday.

Not only was yesterday Valentine's Day, it was also the Lunar New Year, the Year of the Tiger.

I enjoyed both!

Some of the photos are of the money envelopes that are commonly used for Chinese New Year, Weddings, birthdays - any special event. During the Chinese New Year, money envelopes are normally given by married to unmarried individuals, regardless of age. Tradition is to give an even numbered increment of money enclosed in a red envelope and include wishes of peace, good fortune, prosperity, success and happiness.

On Mosaic Monday, I wish for you: peace, good fortune, prosperity, success, happiness and time with your loved ones.

Celebrate!

There's lots to celebrate today.

It is the Lunar New Year. Losar, the Tibetan New Year.

The Year of the Iron Tiger.

And, it's Valentine's Day.

The Tibetan New Year Festival, Losar, can be traced back to the time before the introduction of Buddhism in the sixth century C.E. when the Bön religion was predominant.

Every winter, a spiritual ritual was performed in which incense was offered to calm the spirits, deities and protectors of the land. It was said to have been started when an old woman introduced the measuring of time based on the different phases of the moon.

This later evolved into an annual Buddhist festival. Since the 13th century, Losar has traditionally fallen on the first day of the first month of the calendar year, which is lunar-based—unlike our solar western calendar.

However, before the coming of a new year can be celebrated, unfinished business and unhappy memories must be dealt with. And so, on the 29th day [February 12] of the last month in the old year, there is a festival called Gutor, in which everyone whitewashes and cleans their houses. The last day of the old year is spent preparing for the new year. People go to monasteries to make offerings, and to participate in the ceremonies conducted during the day. Many rituals take place that are designed to chase away any evil spirits. One of these is a play in which the lamas perform masked dances to symbolize the triumph of good over evil. New Year's Eve is Lu Yugpa, an opportunity to banish evil spirits from the old year and clear the way for starting the new year right.

In modern times the preparations for Losar consist of collecting fresh roasted barley flour for phyemar (this symbolizes good wishes); lophud, a young wheat sprout that is the symbol of the birth of a new year; chang, a mild barley beer; sweet rice, tea, butter, fried biscuits, sweets, fruits and butter lamps.

A complete collection of these seasonal foods is always placed on the family's Buddhist altar as an offering. The entire neighborhood is cleaned and houses are freshly painted. New clothing is sewn and new curtains are put over the doors and windows. There is a saying in Tibet, "Losar is Lekar," meaning the new year is new work!

On the first day, at sunrise, the wife runs to collect the year's first bucket of water. She burns incense at the well or river, ties a white scarf around the tap or nearby tree and gives a food offering of the first portion of the special foods for the celebration to appease the nagas (subterranean serpents and spirits).

A special breakfast is prepared, everyone wears new clothes for the year, and a special Buddhist practice is performed at the family altar. When the formal family ceremony is over, the household members run to their neighbors' houses shouting Tashe Delek!—literally, "Good Fortune!" As on Christmas morning in the west, on the morning of Losar the children love to fill their pockets with sweets and show off their new outfits.

According to Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal, "Each new year is an echo of the changing cycles and Losar reminds us of the true nature of impermanence. Everything that is born is bound to die. The old year is gone and will never exist again. The new year gives us the opportunity to come together and celebrate; to notice and appreciate each moment, in the moment, and to realize the blessings of the teachings."

—excerpted from a story by Margret Dunham from the Padmasambhava Buddhist Center's website at www.padmasambhava.org .

***

How about Valentine's Day?!

This is my Valentine -- everyday of the year.

"I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself, but for what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out."

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Happy Valentine's Day!

May you be with those you love.