Under a Red Roof

Local Color

May 19, 2025 in Gardening + Nature, Learning by Colleen | Permalink

The patio is open for business! Please note the utter lack of blown debris on the concrete. This took what, at times, felt like a Herculean effort, as the area is a literal wind magnet, bringing in leaves, seeds, garbage from way off yonder, and, of course dirt, dust, and gravel. A real treat.

Not pictured, but delightful, is our babbling brook of a fountain, as well. We live large…

The light!!!

Juniper continues her modeling career, to great effect!

neighborhood poppy

I used to think I knew what this was, but I really don’t.

penstemon

Grandma’s rose! It is going bananas, even suckering to produce multiple bushes, about which I have no complaints.

wild garlic

mallow?

many flowered puccoon – such a dreadful name for a lively flower!

Vetch, methinks, based on those teeny leaves.

yucca

How about the local color, the majority of which are wildflowers. Thank you, Mother Nature. Thank you, very much!

The light made tree stumps of my legs, but whatever, my body is leagues away from perfect!

This reminds me, a few weeks ago, I went for a hair trim at Great Clips because my other delightful lady moved, and I didn’t want to bother with the hullaballoo of seeking out a new “salon” person. I’ve been going a couple years and never had a problem.

Anyhoo, at the end, she asked if I would like some layering at the bottom. Turns out, I’d been thinking texture and said yes, believing she’d pull out those funny scissors that do just that. Before I even had a moment to discuss it, she raised a hunk of hair and lopped off ten inches. I shuddered, but thought she knew what she was doing. I was VERY incorrect. After it was over, it looked as though I had two hair cuts: one a-line bob starting at the back of my head, down to mid neck in the front, and another very long layer below, only I couldn’t actually see it until I got home because she brushed it just right.

When your not terribly detail oriented husband says your hair looks “weird,” you know you have problems. I returned early the next morning, to a new batch of clippers and shocked them with the horror of my cut. It was repaired as best it could be (for free, thankfully), including the loss of about five inches off the bottom to make the two hairdo situation a little less so. I am hoping to have righted the ship by Christmas!

Let’s end on a literal high note (14,107 feet!), shall we? The beauty of Pikes Peak – cause it can’t, it won’t, and it don’t stop, to nearly quote the Beastie Boys.

My head is such a marvelous jumble of song lyrics…

Endurance

May 15, 2025 in Quoting by Colleen | Permalink

When everything goes wrong, what a joy to test your soul and see if it has endurance and courage! An invisible and all-powerful enemy—some call him God, others the Devil, seem to rush upon us to destroy us; but we are not destroyed.

Nikos Kazantzakis

Tags: Quoting

Our garden now…

May 10, 2025 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Nothing like the green of spring after the long brown of winter. It is on, and I am loving it!

Almond Pulp Recipe: Cinnamon Rolls

May 9, 2025 in Cooking + Baking by Colleen | Permalink

These are so lovely and very tender. If there are only two of you, I recommend making a half batch, unless you are gunning for a little over indulgence, tee-hee.

Dough:

1 T active dry yeast

1 T sugar, divided

3/4 cup almond pulp

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup (4T) butter

2 eggs, at room temperature

4 1/2 – 6 cups flour (675 – 900 grams, if you’re weighing)

Filling:

2 T melted butter

1 C brown sugar

1/2 cup almond pulp

1 T cinnamon

1/4 C golden syrup – Lyle’s is what I use, but you could substitute corn syrup for a less tasty result

Dough: Put one cup of warm water into a large bowl, and add the yeast and a big pinch of the sugar. Let sit until it gets foamy. If it doesn’t get foamy, your water may have been too hot, or your yeast is dead.

Meanwhile, put the almond pulp, milk, and butter into a small pot, and heat until everything is warm but not hot (no killing the yeast!), and the butter is melted. Add the eggs, and mix until combined. Add to the yeast mixture, along with three cups (450g) of flour, and stir until combined. Add flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough. Knead on a floured surface until it is smooth and elastic. Return to the bowl, cover with a tea towel or loose fitting lid, and let rest for about an hour, until doubled in size.

Filling: With the exception of the butter, combine the ingredients in a bowl, stir until well mixed. Set aside.

Divide dough in half, and roll each piece on a lightly floured counter. Depending on how you like your rolls, go really long and thin, which is what I do, or a 14″ square for a more typical style. Brush half of the melted butter on the rolled dough. Spread half of the filling over top. Roll up jelly-roll style. Repeat with second half of dough and filling.

Using a very sharp knife, cut each roll into six-ten even slices. Place in greased 13×9″ pan(s). Cover loosely, and let rise for 30 minutes. Or, you can do this entire process in the evening, and put your sliced rolls in the fridge to rise overnight. If you do this, let them get to room temperature for about an hour before putting them into the preheated oven in the morning.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, until golden. If you like, drizzle with a powdered sugar and whipping cream/milk glaze once cool enough to touch. Enjoy!

Give In to Joy

May 8, 2025 in Quoting by Colleen | Permalink

If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.

Mary Oliver

Tags: Quoting