AMANDA'S BASKETS: August 10: Summer Enjoyment

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

August 10: Summer Enjoyment

The weather today was even better, still warm but not as close as yesterday and tomorrow is forecast for lower temperature and less humidity and Friday and Saturday look like winners. Temperature 80 and low, low humidity. Maybe I can get some work done in the garage workshop and Duchess.

Still no word on the house...same holdup. But bank still wants to close this month. Guess the only thing stopping progress is that number!

I have watched a couple Netflix series. 'Cursed' is the first one and it is a continuing series so I will have to wait until next season to find out what happens. It takes place in England around the time of Merlin and magic but a completely different story.

The second one. 'Midnight Mass', is a limited series so there is only one season. Let me tell you, this one seems slow moving simply because I was not aware of things progressing in the background. It's a stunner. I won't tell you how it ends, but I was thoroughly mesmerized and surprised.

Wednesday's topic is reading. There are a lot of movies based on books, as well as books based on movies which I find kind of weird. I was wondering if you enjoyed watching a movie first and then reading the book the movie was based on or vice versa?

For instance, I read all the Harry Potter books first. I did love the first movie in the movie series and I enjoyed all the movies. But, there was so much more in the books that I am glad that I read them first.

Some movies are so different than the books they were based on that the only thing in common was the title.

But there are some movies that were so interesting that I did read the books that they were based on and I enjoyed both versions...written word and movies.

FYI for those of you who love Laura Childs' Tea Shop Mysteries. Her latest is out. I bought it on Kindle but have yet to read it. Saving for this weekend because once I start, I can't put it down until I finish!

What ever your interests are, continue reading, it's keeps your mind working as well as a nice respite from your busy schedule.

Talk with you tomorrow...

CRAFTING IDEAS

I am always looking for a small piece of paper to write down something which will later be disposed of. I decided to use some of the scrap paper of which I have a ton. I mostly use the paper for glueing projects. I decided to cut the paper into a small size. (Six pieces from a piece of copy paper.). But just having them sitting on my desk would get messy without a container. So, using a cardboard box, I cut it down to size and using a hot glue gun I glued the ends together. Using a picture from a magazine cut into pieces and stick craft glue, I glued the pieces to the box inside and out. I also used some decorative tape for the outside edges. And to finish the top corners which were not covered, I used straight pins with colorful tops. Looks nice and works well.

MAGAZINE IDEAS

(New) One article in the Farmer's Almanac 2024 is a list of trends. One I knew about is the trend to downsize in just about every area. Another trend that I was surprised about was called ''The Human Library' which offers people on loan to talk about specific subjects. Finally, more folks are adding pets to their family and as a result, stores are adding more pet food, toys and medication to their offerings. There's also a nice garden article which suggests mixing vegetables and flowers together for success.

RECIPE IDEAS

Have you every made Cherry Dump Cake. It calls for 2 cans of Cherry Pie Filling (21 ounces), a white cake mix, 1/4 -1/2 cup butter, melted & 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. In a 9 by 13 pan, spread both cans of cherry pie filling. Add the melted butter to the cake mix and break apart the resulting mixture and crumble it evenly over the pie filling. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the mixture. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 - 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream. Fast, easy and very delicious.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

What if you want to establish better habits, then decide what habit you want to work on. Again, try an easier one first for that good feeling of success. Let's consider more exercise. Start small. Don't try to run a marathon right away. Set the amount of time, the type of exercise and when to do it to begin making sure that it is within your reach. If it works for you each week add a bit more. Walking is one of the best ways to get good overall movement but there are many exercise videos on YouTube of varying lengths and difficulty to check out. Change your exercise routines to eliminate getting bored. For hardcore exercise with weights, give yourself a day in-between to recover. Even on days you would rather not exercise, do it and see if you feel better. It takes an average of 66 days to establish a habit. Just think 66 days to establish a good habit for a lifetime. Sounds like a good thing to me...how about you?