Clare Davis Etheridge

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Cape cod soul photo challenge

The Cape Cod Soul photo challenge. I found the list on Instagram and decided to play along while I was on holiday in lovely Cape Cod.

I started on number 3.

3. Blue

4. Smile

5. Organic

6. Favorite Place. Buddha and Beads

7. Kindness. Bodhi bought me this lovely cup and saucer at a flea market.

8. Simplicity

9. Light. Gorgeous light on a little fairy castle at The Cape Cod Lavender Farm.

10. Peace

11. Silhouette. A flock of birds on a foggy morning.

12. Selfie

13. Green

14.Balance

15. Wild

Thanks Cape Cod Soul for a fun challenge!

I have a mint patch with aspirations to take over the world, one garden at a time. So, before it achieves that, I thought I would put a few handfuls of it to good use.
Mint tea sounds nice, but mint, basil and lemon with some honey sounds like a summer dream in a hammock.

Mint and Basil Sun tea

2 quarts water (I used filtered, but tap or stream water will be good too I am sure)
2 handfuls of mint
1 handful basil
1/4 cup honey
2 lemons – juiced

I am taking these measurements as a start as I expect to need more lemon or mint or something (vodka?!).

Wash the herbs and give them a squeeze to release the herby flavour.

Mix everything together and put the tea in a sealed glass jar or two and stand it in the sun for a couple of hours to brew. I would think this would also work in the fridge, but then you would have to call it ‘fridge tea’ to avoid misleading people.

The tea is a success!

I did give it a good shake and prodded about with the end of a wooden spoon to get as much flavour out as I could. Just the right amount of mint and lemon, maybe a bit more basil needed. My basil patch needs to be a little more plentiful first.

Now, what else could I use? Lavender? Rosemary? Lots of possibilities. Now I just need that hammock!

New York City almost made me pop.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

As soon as I started my journey to New York and back, my brain popped wide open due to stress and excitement. It stayed that way nearly the whole trip and even though I document well, it feels like it hasn’t been me.

I think I need a lie down in a cool dark room followed by a notebook session with all of my photos, an attempt to make it all mine.

It doesn’t feel like it was my trip, mainly because it is something I can’t believe I did by myself and didn’t throw up, not even a little bit.

I did have a super amazing time and met some new people, listened to some great speakers and got to share cocktail time with some wonderful friends.

Couldn’t ask for more really. So when I have sorted my brain out, I will post my ‘New York city/Alt Summit Greatest Hits’!

How are you with travelling by yourself? Are you a scaredy cat like me or are you a brave little engine?

catseatdogs goes to New York City

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

I found some cool books and an intriguing CD at the library.
Zakka is a style I have only just heard of, I recognize it, but didn’t know it had a name and books!
I am so inspired to bust out the sewing machine and make fabric into lovely stuff. The clothes book has some lovely versatile patterns in it. Clearly I am in need of a good fabric shop.
Any recommendations? I am tempted to hit up a few in New York this weekend, but I fear I will not be able to contain myself!

Did someone say New York?
Guess where I am off today, I know- today!
I am the perfectly hysterical mix of excited and nervous.
My destination is Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia for the Alt Summit design blogging conference.
I may well pop with inspiration and ideas by Friday morning!
I will be posting photos on Instagram using the hash tag #catseatdogsnyc. My user is @catseatdogsmakes and you can use the link on this page to my Instagram too.
Can’t wait to share my trip with you!

Veggies from the Garden

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

We are back in humid St Louis and the garden and flowers are looking great thanks to our neighbours watering skills.

I planted garlic way back in October last year and I harvested this weekend. It is now drying in the basement. I am fairly sure I will be roasting some sooner rather than later.

So far we have dug all of the garlic, some turnips and the snap peas and snow peas are wonderfully ongoing. I love to have a big mint patch and a healthy parsley plant, so that I can make mint tea and add the herbs to salad. My basil is doing well, in fact I think I feel home-made pizza in the air! Even the cucumber plant has itsy bitsy cucumbers growing.

We are going to have lots of turnips, but I really don’t know what to do with them! Mash them with potatoes or add to a stir fry. I did see a recipe for turnip crisps which I may try. I will let you know how they turn out. Do you have any turnip recipes for me?

Garlic right out of the ground.

Nearly going home

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Aren’t holidays brilliant? I love them and this has been one of the best ever, two weeks in Cape Cod. We have have had all the weather available except snow and loved it!
What else is brilliant about holidays? Going home! I love the going home part. I don’t love the trip to the airport and the waiting and waiting and taking your shoes off and holding up your jeans while they check your belt for any deadly metal. Mine has no deadly metal, it is a very kind belt, but it is needed in the ‘holding up my jeans and not flashing anyone while I take off my potentially killer shoes’ department.

The boys went fishing and caught weed and something so huge it chewed off the fishy lure thing on the end of the line.

We spotted lots of wildlife, including horseshoe crabs, gray seals, a coyote which was very cool and just behind our cottage (eek), birds birds and more birds, fiddler crabs (whoever invented those things was clearly drunk) and chipmunks by the scurrying load.

I found some fabulous loot at a flea market (check my wooden soldier in the first photo). There was a whole box of vintage toys I nearly got the lot, but I managed to restrain myself.

The beach combing is a treasure fest and I managed to find lots of shells with natural holes (thanks to the drilling moon snails) and lots of tiny pebbles I am sure I can make something with.

There are some great eating places here too, our favorites were Hanger B at the Chatham airport and The Corner Store where they make the most amazing burritos and equally amazing whoopie pies.

We have seen the smallest library I have ever come across.

And a rather large wood pile on the dunes at Chatham Beach.

All in all, I am happy to be getting ready to go home with all of my treasures, but I will miss the lovely Cape Cod.
Where are you vacationing? Have a fab time wherever you go.

More fabulous finds and Hanger B Eatery

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

I can’t wait to hang these on a pendant or two when I get home to my jewelry equipment, they even have natural holes. I have also collected some more smooth shell shapes and pebbles which I am hoping to drill and make jewels from.

We found these empty oyster shells attached to rocks at the local beach. They are like little ready made display items or little ornaments.

Yesterday Bodhi wanted to bring back a big sea star which was a bit whiffy to say the least. After a lot of huffing and puffing he was persuaded to leave it and I said I would find him a more desirable sea star, expecting to make a trip to the gift shop which sells dried out sea critters. Little did I know that today I would find this teeny tiny fella washed up and dried out with some seaweed.

We ate at Hanger B Eatery today and they had this fab weather station! My favorite is ‘tornado = no stone’!

Hanger B at Chatham airport is one of the best places we have eaten at since we have been here and I am sure we will be back. Today I had the lemon ricotta pancakes, but I have my sights on their fish tacos for a lunchtime trip.

As you eat and relax you can watch the planes take off, land or just be pulled around the airfield.

Ten on the 10th June 2013

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

For this month’s ten on the tenth, I decided to use Hipstamatic and use ‘shake to random’, so I don’t have to spend time agonizing over the best film lens combo. Some seem to have turned out well and some a bit crazy. My Hipstamatic seemed to like the bonkers Salvador film today!
I have put the film/lens combo under each picture.

Melodie and Ina’s 1982
This casual sign on the beach makes me smile in a nervous manner. The nonchalant mention of seals, jellyfish, sharks, strong currents….. Should it not read seals, jellyfish, SHARKS (aaarrrrrggghhhhh), strong currents?

Tinto 1848 and BlacKeys B&W
Bodhi trying to catch a shark

James M and Rock BW-11
My reading matter even though the beach was bloody freezing!

Salvador 84 and Big Up
Crazy bonkers photo of the Chatham Light.

Salvador 84 and AO BW
Very pretty flowers made creepy

I think I cheated here and forgot to shake to random.

Watts and RTV
Ice?

GSQUAD and Rock BW-11
Shark!

Salvador 84 and Blanko
The fish market was open for fish and chips

Americana and Cano Cafenol
Buoy

Chunky and AO DLX
Oopsie that was eleven, here are a few bonus shots

Sunset and Driller Moon Snails.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

We tripped over to Breakwater beach in Brewster to catch a Cape Cod sunset and what a stunner it was.
We arrived at the beach about an hour before the sun was due to slink down the horizon. Plenty of time to explore tide pools and check out the Moon snails and Hermit crabs.
I liked the buoy’s waiting patiently for the tide to come in.

A pretty impressive sunset, thanks Brewster!

Here is a lovely slimey Moon snail. I learned that they can drill holes into other shellfish in order to eat them up. Which explains the perfect round holes in some of the shells we have found. Delicious!

Abandoned towers and weeds

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

After much research and unhelpful YouTube videos, we found the way to the abandoned Air Force Base of North Truro and the infamous Jenny Lind tower.
I imagined a spy mission, scaling chain link fences and possible barbed wire and dodging ‘keep out’ signs. Amid no drama whatsoever, we arrived with no problem and parked next to a wooden box with ‘trail maps’ and a sign explaining the area and the base and the trail around it. Not very James Bond at all.
The base now houses the Highlands Centre and has lots going on. Seashore research, buses coming and going and a performing arts centre. Having said that, the whole area still looks to be completely abandoned, the grass is tall, the plants overgrown, ‘keep out’ neatly stenciled on most doors and out of service fire hydrants. The buildings which are in use are only apparent by the signs on the doors and in the tall unkept grass around them.
It is almost as though they are enjoying the solitude and peace the old base provides in it’s empty state.

We could see the Jenny Lind Tower as we wandered around the Air Force base, but couldn’t figure out how to get to it.
I found some vague directions online, so we followed them until we got to the radar station which is still in use and surrounded by lots of official looking keep out signs. To creep ninja style around the fence surrounding said radar station and risk capture? Of course!
The tower was in sight but still not accessible. They really don’t make this easy. Not sure why, but it is in hardly any guide books and information on the tower is scarce, how to get to it at least. The tower was originally part of a railroad station in Boston and a Truro businessman bought it when they demolished the station and put it back up in it’s present and illusive site.
The Jenny Lind connection is the famous opera singer of the 1800’s sang from it to appease fans who didn’t get into a concert she was giving in Boston. She climbed the tower and gave an impromptu session from the top. This was while it was part of the railroad station. Now it is called the Jenny Lind Tower.
We soon spotted a beaten narrow path through the woods surrounding the tower and tramped through, like explorers in a fairy tale. The tower stands all alone, no castle, no railroad station, no Rapunzel or Sleeping Beauty. Impressive most likely because of the trouble it took getting to it.