Cooking

My kitchen adventures fell off a bit last week in the midst of a) leftovers and b) an unexpectedly busy few days. But my first attempt at beer-can chicken was a success. I used a can of mango juice and a sweet rub (homemade, of course). And Saturday morning in the humidity and rain (which

An epitaph

Looking back to 2013 . . . . From St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, at the John Howard monument: “He trod an open but unfrequented path to immortality, in the ardent and unintermitted exercise of Christian charity.” May this be said of me, too, when I am done and my days are no more.

In the garden

The finches do love the feeder! And lovely things are growing in the July heat. This is what I hope keeps the pellet smoker from walking way in the nighttime darkness: I’m still working on a good hummingbird shot, but here’s one for now: And my friend Jay took this slo-mo video last week:

A Nelson break

Because the world needs more Nelson! Fresh from the spa last week, we were having fun in the garden: I love how in two of these action shots his tail is the thing in focus….. And a shot in repose: Looking back at some 2013 travel entries, I was reminded of the most delightful meal

#TBT: Europe

Photos added to the blog on this day, 7 July, from my blog entries of the last decade . . . . For more of my Kew Gardens visit in 2016: https://jeffreycarter.wordpress.com/2016/07/08/kew-gardens/ And a couple of non-European freebies from sometime ago:

Random thoughts

Fireworks. Fireworks cause Nelson the Terrier to become Nelson the Terrified. Monday evening I had to put him in his crate, so terrified was he of yet another night of boom-booms and pop-pops. He finally quieted and then slept in his crate, until lights-out, when he promptly went under the bed and stayed there until

Commissioning

Thirty-five years ago today, my parents were set aside by their church as missionaries. The missionary-appointment process was a quick one.  My paternal grandfather had died in November 1985.  He was in poor heart health, and his death cleared the conscience for my parents to pursue a long-cherished calling, namely to be missionaries abroad. By

Before and after

Despite my ailing back, I spent some time over the holiday weekend working in little sprints of energy to clean the flower beds in the garden, since the flowers — both annuals and perennials — were in an existential crisis from the weeds. A portion of the garden before: And a portion after: I managed

Sacrifices

Independence Day means many things to various people, and various things to many people. Today I am mindful of living in a great country whose origin dates back to this day in 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was posted and read aloud for the free citizens of Philadelphia to hear. (We could point to

Stonehenge

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stonehenge-may-have-amplified-music-played-its-center-180975703/ How I’d love to hear what Stonehenge sounded like in its day . . . . And of course I recall fondly my last visit to Stonehenge eight years ago this month: https://jeffreycarter.wordpress.com/2013/07/13/stonehenge-photos/