A Little Catch Up

We've been busy.

Enjoying life and the break Mr. Dragon has had from treatments.

Tomorrow we start again with all the restaging procedures before surgery on March 9.

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Meanwhile, we love NPR - National Public Radio.

When we heard "Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me!" was going to tape in Houston, we knew we had to go. They were here two nights and both were sold out. This adventure was our Valentine's present to each other.

Peter Sagal started us off laughing by saying "all the liberals in south east Texas must be here tonight"!!! Two hours later and we were still laughing! Don't know when I have ever laughed so hard. You might have caught the broadcast that was taped in Houston. That was us! We heard it here on February 13.




The show was 30 minutes late starting as Carl Kasell had a hard time flying from Washington DC to Houston ... it was the weekend of one of the bad winter storms. Tom Bodett, Kyrie O'Connor (the Houston girl) and Paula Poundstone were the panelists. Too much fun.

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We've been to the zoo and saw, for the first time, the memorial brick we ordered for Mr. Rocket Man. (Oh, my ... how we miss that little guy ... still.) It is right in the middle of the entry way of the zoo. Perfect!

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Baseball is keeping us busy. We watched 6 college games this weekend!

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Finally, once again I'm asking for your prayers, thoughts, white light, juju, candle lighting, chanting, however you may call on the spirit you believe in - to watch over
Mr. Dragon as he begins the restaging procedures and has surgery next week on March 9.

Thank you!

Spoonsful of Goodness

Doesn't this look good?
It's from the Relish magazine that comes in our little community newspaper.

Here's the recipe:

Vegetable Bean Soup

6 ounces bacon, chopped
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 small carrots, diced
2 zucchini, diced
1 garlic clove, finely diced
1 (14 0unce) can chopped tomatoes, undrained
2 (15 ounce) cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt
Coarsely ground black pepper
6 cups fresh spinach, chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

1. Place bacon in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook 5 minutes or until almost crisp. Add onion, celery and carrot; cook 5 minutes. Add zucchini and garlic; cook 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans, broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Stir in spinach. Ladle into soup bowls and top with grated cheese. Makes 10 cups. Serves 6.

I have to admit - I haven't made this soup yet. But it looks so good, has ingredients I love and is easy! Here's a recipe I have made and I can tell you it is delicious. A friend knew I was looking for easy, nutritious soup recipes and this is one she found at the Food Network.

Rosemary White Bean Soup

1 pound dried white cannellini beans
4 cups sliced yellow onions (3 onions)
1/4 cp good olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large branch fresh rosemary (6 to 7 inches)
2 quarts chicken stock
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, cover the beans with wateer by at least 1-inch and leave them in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight. Drain.

In a large stockpot over low to medium heat, saute the onions with the olive oil until the onions are translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the garlic and cook over low heat for 3 more minutes. Add the drained white beans, rosemayr, chicken stock, and bay leaf. Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, until the beans are very soft. Remove the rosemary branch and the bay leaf. Pass the soup through the coarsest blade of a food mill, or place in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until coarsely pureed. Return the soup to the pot to reheat and add salt and pepper, to taste. Serve hot.

Camera Critters

Camera Critters is hosted each Saturday by the lovely Misty.

I'd like you to meet a Patas monkey from the Houston Zoo.

The Patas monkey is probably the fastest primate on earth, its long legs giving it a tremendous loping stride. Speeds reach up to 35 mph. They are highly terrestrial spending most of their time on the ground. The species has a wide distribution in the savanna and woodlands areas across sub-Saharan Africa from the western tip of Senegal to East Africa.

The conservation of patas monkeys is critical because of their already small population size, limited geographic range and the current destruction of their habitats. Hunting by humans has increased progressively, especially in West Africa. Hunters kill patas monkeys for meat in the Ivory Coast. The mountain Nuba people and tribal groups also hunt patas monkeys. Many farmers and plantation owners shoot these monkeys when they raid their crops. Patas monkeys are collected and sold as pets or they are sold to medical research institutions. Over 1000 patas monkeys are collected per year.

I think I'm in love!

Happy Critter Day!

Postcard Friendship Friday

The lovely Marie is our postmistress for Postcard Friendship Friday.

Today Marie has a card featuring the letter W and a story about Braille.

Go see it!

I thought today I'd celebrate Canada - in honor of the beautiful country to the north that has brought us the winter Olympics this year.
I don't have Vancouver postcards, so it's off to Toronto we go.

Toronto at night.

Toronto Island

Toronto Harbourfront

All of these cards were sent to me by a dear blogging friend of mine.

If you haven't met Sherry, you should!

Happy PFF!

Mail Call!

I've told you that I have a *thing* for calendars.

When I saw this on my travels during OWOH, I knew it was meant for me!

And it was!

Today it arrived in the mail.

Patricia is a wonderful artist.

Her illustrations are great. They make me smile.

Please visit Patricia at My Cosmopolitan Diary. You'll be glad you did!