florida tourism campaign 2

florida tourism campaign 1

detangler cuts the cord mess

A nifty idea from Blue Lounge: Put your surge protector inside and voila … a very neat electrical center. $29.99.

avocado recipe 1

I have a plethora … and they seem to fall by the dozen at the same time and ripen at roughly the same time, so I’ve been scrambling for recipes. I’ve been improvising and some have been better than others. I won’t give you my avocado and sauteed onion omelet recipe (yet) as I think [...]

avocado anyone?

My avocado tree is bountiful. Right now I have about 3 dozen, some a pound apiece. I’ve learned that my friends are not as fond of avocado as I am, so I have some to share!

your last hour on earth

I found this essay from Cheryl Richardson thought-provoking:
Facing Reality
“If I were to trade away all the things I have for all the things I want I would be bankrupt. All I need has already been given. All I want I can’t get without all I have already.”
–Neil G. White
This week, while on my way to [...]

missing child: caylee marie anthony

home

low places

tears in heaven

you raise me up

one of my favorite things

One of my favorite things (not that I have the discretionary income to buy anything not discretionary these days, lol):
The Barefoot Dreams line of robes, blankets, throws and baby stuff. They make wonderful gifts. Nordstrom carries their products and sometimes puts them on sale. You can also find them at online boutiques a little less [...]

fay is on her way …

Eegads. Stay tuned for further details.
Also, I’m not sure what the purpose of this little activity it, but if you’d like to create your own online hurricane (naming, locating, defining speed, altitude, etc.), click here: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/weather/hurricane/sfl-edge-t-canemaker,0,5014506.flash?track=markadmail-orl-aug-stormmaker
They’ve closed all the school districts in Central Florida for Tuesday. Hell of a way to get a day off [...]

cabinets in kitchen design

I stumbled across the website of some Atlanta kitchen designers. http://cdga.wordpress.com/category/portfolio/
I loved many of the ideas and photos. For example, this one features cabinets atop and drawers below. Notice the bump out on the stove, which they also do on the sink side.

Love the raised dishwasher.

Same idea for microwave that creates a bar height counter.

Nifty [...]

to the dream home diaries group

For fans of the New York Times’ Dream Home Diaries, this just in:
BREAKING NEWS
Hurricane watch extended north to Anna Maria Island
A hurricane watch is in effect for the Florida Keys and has been extended along the west coast of Florida northward to Anna Maria Island, according to the latest advisory. Details and continuing coverage at [...]

you are missed

Life is truly fragile. Rest in peace, my friend.

on the road again

This moving from house to house throughout the week is getting ridiculous. I feel like a gypsy carrying clothes, computers, work stuff and fresh food in cloth sacks. It actually looks a bit like I’m living out of the car, where I’m stowing stuff that I may need at either place. Footloose and fancy-free is highly overrated. [...]

picture perfect

If you have shoeboxes full of old photos, a new service is available at a very reasonable price to scan and archive them to a CD. Having just lost many photos stored only on my computer, I will no doubt check out: www.scanmyphotos.com.
The New York Times offered this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/14/technology/personaltech/14pogue.html?em=&pagewanted=all

the view from the top

I don’t know if you have been paying any attention to development on Dubai It’s truly fascinating and awe-inspiring. Manmade resort islands that mimic the world’s geography. Ginormous skyscrapers. A friend of mine is working on a project there.
Here’s a link to one incredibly tall building. I remember how wobbly the top floors of Chicago buildings [...]

good morning: it’s a moving target

If you have trouble getting up in the morning, meet “Clocky.” This alarm clock jumps off the dresser, and to turn it off you must get out of bed and hunt it down. Funny.

the many faces of the sea dip redux

Just as soon as I posted some old postcards I’ve found over time, two new ones emerged. So, I’m going to start the chronology over again, more so I have an archive for myself than any other reason. I lost a ton of pictures when the relatively new Lenovo ThinkPad took an unrecoverable powder/failed harddrive, [...]

don’t worry … be happy

In lieu of anything remotely related to home renovation, envirnmental concerns, self-improvement, family, books, articles, current events or even shopping, I would just like to share this little picture emailed to me from mom today. I hope it brings you a smile too.

steps to health, steps to gas savings

How walkable is your neighborhood? An interesting article in the New York Times highlighted a website, www.walkscore.com, that rates proximity to key “quality of life” amenities from any address.
I rated the two neighborhoods (turns out the new one is slighty more car dependent, mostly I think because major roads surround a small, insular neighborhood. So [...]

new tax package may cost higher-end homeowners

An unintended consequence of the new housing-stimulus rules: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121798585043615583.html?mod=RealEstateMain_1

renovation challenges

My exterior renovation is done. Officially, though I don’t have the final draw invoice just yet.
From the New York Times comes this article on reluctant renovators: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/27/realestate/27cov.html?em=&pagewanted=all

one more vintage view

I shared some old postcards that show the various incarnations of the sea dip from the days in the 1940s (or earlier) when it was just a couple of bungalows.
Ebay just had this card which shows the oceanside, I’m guessing in the 60s based on the cards. Can anyone identify the year by the car [...]

catch of the day

Here’s today’s avocado harvest. Almost 10 pounds (that’s a very large bowl). I read that avocados are a good source of the good fatty acids, so I’ve been eating them for breakfast or as a snack. Fortunately, there are dozens more up in the tree. Next year: tomato and cucumber plants. Lots of them.