Good Enough To Eat

Waiting for an Introduction

CLICK ON THE IMAGE on the left, to see more of this archnids charms.

This long-legged beauty greeted me in the bathroom last night, while I was brushing my teeth. She jumped a little when I made a noise and scuttled back into the corner. Then she popped out again to, check me out I guess. Do spiders actually notice us as fellow creatures, or are we simply a big noise to them?

Is she a Callobius in the Amaurobiidae, or Tengellidae family of arachnids? I think she looks most like the photos of Ground Sac Spiders - CorinnidaeAmaurobiidae

Sami and Catnip at Spider identification.org thinks she might be one of those. We're waiting for more input. At this point she's still a bit of mystery.

And, typical of her sisterhood, she's crept off to find a more reclusive habitat. I doubt I'll see her again.

I altered the original photo a good deal. I created the colorful tiles from the colors in this red-legged beauty's body as viewed by the mosaic filter in Photoshop CS4.

On the Fence

I also like to be as many places at once, as possible. I agree with these roses. The fence is often the best place to check out the world.

Jazz Came To America In Chains

Love-In-A-Mist - Nigella damascena

Please CLICK ON THE IMAGE to see the lovely details of this Love-In-A-Mist seed pod that I photographed and altered in Photoshop CS4.

I had no idea the spiky blue clouds of Love-in-a-Mist” were in the buttercup family. I’m pretty partial to most members of Ranunculaceae. There are native buttercups that bloom in early spring, in nearby Mid-Peninsula Open Space lands in the Santa Cruz mountains. But they look like you expect a buttercup to look – round shell-like petals, low-growing and bright yellow.

These are from a seed packet I scattered several years back along my driveway. They flourish in our hard adobe soil and re-seed themselves generously. These particular specimens have spread themselves into my neighbor’s front yard.

God midsommer!

Nigella damascena

Summer: Blackberry Dreams

Please CLICK ON MY CREATION ABOVE to see all the glorious detail.

Ima’s Easy Buttermilk Biscuits

These are very good split, with some fresh, sugared blackberries and whipped cream.

Bake 400 degrees Bake 10 -12 minutes till tops brown (fork test inside to make sure they're totally baked)

In a bowl Mix the dry stuff: 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda,1/8 cup sugar, some cinnamon (½ teaspoon?)

Make a little well in the dry stuff pour in ¼ cup corn oil and 1 cup buttermilk (if using regular milk*, use 1 tablespoon baking powder and no baking soda). Do not beat, just mix softly until combined.

Pam spray/oil muffin pan/ cookie sheet/pan

Additions: Raisins or a few blackberries or blueberries (mix these w/ dry stuff) or A spot of berry jam in the top of each muffin (jammy muffins). You need to bake them a little longer if you do this. Just watch 'em and fork test.

*or make buttermilk substitute: A tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice plus enough milk to make a cup, let stand 5 minutes

I created this collage using Photoshop CS4 and some more of my own blackberry photos I took in the park. I used a filters and the stamp tool generously. I extracted color from the photos for backgrounds and for tinting.