My name is Katherine J. Krein. I lost my father in June of 2013, and then I lost my mother in November of the same year. After they both died I went through a mind-warping number obsession that has taken me years to control. This is my story. It is now 2026. I still use this site to post some poems and thoughts. My obsession has faded, however, I still notice the numbers. Faith, hope, and love is what guides me now.
I have been on hold several times today with the same company trying to get through. Each time I have given up because of necessary interruptions. The last time I was on hold I was walking around my kitchen, and when I looked outside I could not believe my eyes. There next to the Crocosmia Lucifer I spotted the first Gladiolus of 2026. I was out there earlier today and nothing was open, and then suddenly I see 4 blooms open. Amazing! I went outside and there are many gladiolus of this same color showing their colors now. I guess the rain we have been getting is fueling their growth.
I will try calling the company I am trying to reach early tomorrow morning. Wish me luck.
As I have been cleaning and organizing our home and going through cabinets and closets, I have been finding all sorts of interesting things that I had forgotten about. When an item is found it brings back memories. I ran across this chalice still in its box in a china cabinet. The charity partnership between Stella Artois and Water.org that was going on in 2018 motivated me to buy this chalice. When Amazon.com had the Smile option where you could have a percentage of your purchases go to the charity of your choice, I explored the participating organizations and that is how I was introduced to water.org.
I do like the beer Stella Artois, though, I rarely drink these days. I definitely thought at the time that it was a worthy promotion for water.org and Stella Artois. You should check out the Stella Artois website. They are an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026.
The USPS issued a new stamp yesterday. I read this in the news this morning, so I went to their website to check it out. I ended up buying a sheet of 20. I like the way the feathers are arranged to make the date 1776. This got me to thinking about some recent feathers I have found in my garden this summer.
About 2 to 3 weeks ago I was looking out my kitchen window, and I wondered where the hawks have been going these days because I had not seen any in a couple months. About 3-4 days later I witnessed a hawk visiting our garden. It was smaller than any I had seen before. I guessed it was a young hawk. You would think I would be a hawk expert by now, but I am not. I cannot determine whether the hawk was a Cooper’s Hawk or a Sharp-Skinned Hawk. The Sharp-Skinned is the smaller of the two, however, a young Cooper’s would be smaller than an adult. I was very excited when I found a feather in my garden that must be from the hawk I spotted. He has visited a few more times since the first sighting. I will show you the hawk feather with a dove feather, and 2 catbird feathers. All are from our garden.
Update on 7/9/2026 -- The hawk was back today. It was sitting on the old raised bird bath. A very heavy solid bird bath that looks like stone, though because of the worn look on the bottom of the bowl makes me think it is a composite of materials. I got a better look at this hawk through binoculars; and because of where it was sitting, I could judge its size better than previous sightings. The hawk has no red or rust coloration, possibly because of age. I also got a good look at its talons (claws) They did not appear nearly as big as other hawks I have seen. I also got a better look at its tail feathers, and they looked more squared off than rounded. I am becoming more convinced that it is a relatively young sharp-skinned hawk. The yard was clear of all other birds, so it is still capable of frightening the other birds. (Sorry, no pics) I would have to already be in the yard with my camera in a hiding spot to capture a good picture. Its visits are too irregular, and I am too busy inside to spend time doing this.
Here is a picture of a hawk hunting in our garden many winters ago. We have had several hawk sightings in our garden over the years. I work in a neighboring town at the middle school, and the mascot is a hawk! I see this as evidence that hawks see our area as a great habitat.
The reason I was able to capture this picture is because I already had my camera set up on our deck with a long lens before the hawk came hunting. It was pure luck, and as I recall it was my birthday, so I had taken the day off work. My husband and I later traveled downtown for some sightseeing, though I don't think anything we saw there was as exciting as what I saw at home in the morning.
Making toasts has a long historical record in America. I looked it up and you can too. There were too many for me to choose one, so a simple “cheers” is my toast today.
Stay alert and do not drink and drive. We are home for the night watching the festivities downtown on television.
I was planning on an indoor dinner celebration before the extreme heat arrived. I went outside early this morning to give water to areas in my garden. Already it was hot! I am so glad that I am not cooking outdoors today or tomorrow. All food will be prepared inside. I already have cooked a big pot of hearty seafood stew using a variety of vegetables with jumbo shrimp and catfish. I will be making a big fresh salad with lots of red including: radishes, red cabbage, red pepper, and tomatoes. Of course their will be green such as red leaf lettuce, cucumbers, and avocado on the side. My favorite salad dressing will be made using a Good Seasons Italian packet. I am getting ready to make for the first time Anthony Bourdain’s Rouille to spread on toasted organic sourdough bread.
The table is partially set. I put out the big pot with the seafood stew in it for this picture. More preparations will be done today.
We are a small family of three. It will be a small party. 🙂
I included a flower spotlight for today- Rudbeckia hirta -- Lion's Cub.
Closest flower to fireworks that I have blooming right now.
I hope anyone that might read this has a fantastic Independence Weekend!
JULY 4th Update: a couple food pictures.
Hearty seafood stew This salad selection is Laura’s. She likes radishsI like red cabbage.My husband has no one preference. He likes it all.
I mentioned recently that I have been working on cleaning and reorganizing some areas of my home. Our linen closet has to be my next project! It is crammed full and not that organized. I saw these brand new tea towels that I purchased years ago, and decided to take them out and use them. They are kitchen towels, though I don’t think they go well in my kitchen, so I decided to use them in my bathroom. This morning when I looked at them, my attention was drawn to the sea urchin on the bottom left side of this picture. My nudge was the word ‘discover’. It got me to thinking about the sea urchins I inherited from my mother-in-law many years ago.
Next, with the word discover foremost in my brain, I went and found the ones I inherited. Look below to see them.
I decided to take a picture of them. I had always wondered why they had stoppers in them on one end. While taking their picture I discovered the name Ben Rickert. I looked up his name and the words sea urchin. I was surprised to learn that they have stoppers on one end because they are intended to be potpourri diffusers. They are made from real sea urchin shells found in the English channel and crafted in England.
While researching sea urchins the memory of me tasting one came into my mind, though they did not look like the sea urchins in these picture. The one I remember tasting was purple and spiky. In my early twenties I was vacationing with my sister and her boyfriend. He was part French and he owned a yacht. We were staying with his mother in Cannes, France, and we were out for the day exploring off the coast of France, which is known as the French Riviera. I can’t remember exactly where we were anchored, however, swimming was possible and someone on his boat dove under water and brought up some purple spiky sea urchins. They were split in half and an orange substance was inside and we tasted it raw. I thought it was horrible.
I wanted to try and find a picture of the type I tasted. There are between 950- 1,000 different species of sea urchins according to people who keep track of these things. I was able to find a website with information about the sea urchins off the coast of France and in the area where we explored. https://news.cnrs.fr/slideshows/sea-urchin-under-threat — (Warning: this link worked for me when I read it, however, it does not work now. It will take you to the website, it states page not found, however, if you type sea urchins into their search box, you will find the article. It clearly shows the purple spiky species I remember.)
Then, I decided to research edible sea urchins. They claim that only 18 species are edible. For more information about this look below. https://pangeashellfish.com/blog/about-sea-urchins-facts-and-guide — (Warning: this does not work either. If you scroll down to the bottom you will see a link for their blog. Then search their blog site for sea urchins, and you will find the information I read.) I learned that the edible part of the sea urchin is their gonads, also known as uni.
Well, I did end up discovering and learning a few new things today!
Mission accomplished.
None of the links posted here work. Perhaps, I missed something in typing them or linking them. The information is still out on the web if you are interested in finding them. My apologies.
My indoor anthurium has 3 normal blooms and this unusual development. A Calathea rattlesnake leaf is in the top right corner
I will post a few outdoor flowers. The echinacea flower keeps coming back in the same spot year after year. It is one of my oldest perennials. The Crocosmia Lucifer is my second oldest flower in today’s spotlight. It has an abundance of flowers this summer, and last is a new gaura flower named Siskiyou Pink. It has long wand like flowers.
Before this weekend I had not used my Big Green Egg outdoor cooker in 2026. I have been too busy cleaning and organizing inside and outside, trying to make this summer as enjoyable as possible.
The duo of Father’s Day and Summer Solstice occurring on the same day seemed like the perfect time to start my outdoor cooking adventures.
At Food Lion the other day I was looking for some type of beef to cook. I was amazed to see Beef Ribs! The meat department worker was right there putting out meat, and I exclaimed to him, “I can’t believe you have beef ribs. I have never been able to find them before now. I remember my parents preferring to cook beef ribs instead of pork ribs.” The meat department worker responded, “we occasionally get 1 or 2 boxes of them. I put out 6 packages this morning and now we are down to 2. Sometimes one person will see them and buy all of them. Next time you shop here, if you don’t see any, ask the butcher to look in back.”
I decided to also pick up 3 yuca roots (also known as cassava or manioc.) My mother used to make it frequently since her husband was from Paraguay. She would boil it. I have never made it until this weekend. Peeling it and cutting it up is a chore. Then I just covered it with water and boiled it, and drained it. It turned out just like my mother’s. I chose yuca over potatoes or bread because the glycemic index for it is very low, and as a matter of fact, all this food has a fairly low glycemic index. My husband was diagnosed with adult onset diabetes several years ago. He has been very good about eating the right food ever since then. He thought the beef ribs were a little too fatty. I loved them! They were slow cooked at low heat, so the meat was very tender. I used a dry rub for seasoning.
Today is Juneteenth and my official start to summer break.
My garden is showing off many colors this year. The featured picture shows a few.
I have many white Asiatic lilies and an abundance of Going Bananas daylilies blooming. The dark Asiatic lily is only one plant with several blooms.
I have several other flowers blooming now. Some are new additions and others have been with me for many years.
I am patiently watching some Sweet Purple asparagus beginning their first season of growth. I was so busy that I planted the crowns at the tail end of what is acceptable. I will not be able to harvest any until their 3rd season. (They are a perennial vegetable.) It is a learning experience for me. Across from them in another raised bed I am growing 3 types of beans: cranberry, lima, and goldilocks yellow. They are doing well.
I will end with showing you a cranesbill hardy geranium I planted in a big planter.
The picture is not the best, however since I already posted a picture of a beautiful annual geranium, I thought it would be nice to show a perennial geranium.
Here is another throwback. This one is from 2017. I have seen many catbirds so far this spring. They are very bold. I almost think I could train one to land on my hand
movingforwardslowly 