Survivor

“I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done my share of eating too. I am not washed and beautiful, in control of a shining world in which everything fits, but instead am wondering awed about on a splintered wreck I've come to care for, whose gnawed trees breathe a delicate air, whose bloodied and scarred creatures are my dearest companions, and whose beauty bats and shines not in its imperfections but overwhelmingly in spite of them...”  Annie Dillard

I am in a Treasury way cool

over on Etsy, that was a nice surprise
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/MTI0Mzg3MDd8MTEyMDUyMjc1Nw/last-leaf

Broiled Fish with Spring Onion and Tomatoes

This is what i made today for dinner and it was actually really good. I never follow any recipes so everything i make is a total surprise when we eat it. I used wild caught cod as the fish and this is how you make it
1/2 pound Cod filet, 1 Tomato , 1 bundle spring onion, 2 Garlic gloves
you also need to preheat oven on broil to 350 degrees, medium rack and aluminum foil

cut the fish in half, put 1 half in aluminum foil, salt, pepper, ( any spices you like really), rosemary, on both sides, cut some spring onion and half the tomato in little pieces and mince the 1 garlic glove , put on top of the fish, a couple of drops of Lemon if you like, then fold the foil over the fish to make a pouch, leave a little area open for the steam to escape. repeat with the other half of the fish,
put in oven on the middle rack for 15-20 minutes, it may vary with the thickness of the fish, voila ready to eat. Now you may have noticed that i did not use any oil. Nope you do not need any with this kind of recipes not even a little bit, The fish itself has oils already so you don't need to ad which makes this dish very healthy.
As a side dish i used steamed veggies and i used the same spices on them.

Tutorial #2

2.) Second part of the tutorial. After you have finished cutting out the outer shape of the design you will need to cut the inside of it. drill a hole in each and every part you need to cut out. On the one i am showing i only needed to drill one hole and i actually did not drill i used a hole punch pliers one of my favorite tools. They work up until 18 gauge metal sheets if you use thicker gauges you will have to drill as the pliers will brake. Now, we have our hole in the inside of the design on the part that will be cut away. Loosen one end of your jewelers saw and thread the blade through the hole. Re-tighten and start sawing the inside. until you cut it out completely. If you have more then one cut out repeat until you are done.  My shape was a Maple leaf Pendant were i did not wanted a solid piece but rather the so called pierced and cut design. You are now done cutting out the shape and you can peel the paper off. I found that if i use rubber cement it will come off easy when i am done and will hold out through the whole cutting process

How to make a pierced and cut design pendant from sterling silver

1.) Choose a metal sheet that you like, you can take any kind of metal, like sterling, copper, brass, aluminiu, gold, titanium.............you get the picture? I use for my pierced and cut designs always 18 gauge sheets because it gives you a nice sturdy piece for your pendant so it will not bend so easy. I have noticed that when i take a 20 gauge sheet the metal is so thin that it will bend if you are not careful. I take 20 gauge metal sheets however when i am making earrings as you do not want them to be so heavy. After you chose your metal sheet i draw out a design on a sheet of paper with a ball point pen. Don't use a pen that you can erase with an eraser they can smear while you are working on your metal. Cut out the design and glue the paper to the metal sheet. I use rubber cement, it will not leave any residue when you remove the paper from the metal and it drys really fast. Usually i can begin cutting after 15 minutes. My jewelry saw is a standard size and the saw blades are a 1/0 which is very small. When you start sawing do not push with the saw you want to have not a lot of pressure on the saw blade . They will brake very easy. Slowly saw out your outer shape of your design. If you have to go around a corner you have to "jog" in one place with your saw and slowly turn the metal in the direction you are going.
Tomorrow i will post the next chapter of this tutorial

new new

I just made them and i could not wait to photograph and show around. I used 18 gauge sterling silver and cut the circles out by hand , dabbed them a little in my dabbing block, soldered on the posts, pickled, cleaned, patinaed and wire brushed. Oh boy, sounds like a lot of work for something so small. But they were quite fun to make i think i will make some more.

Water,water...........................................
If you are ever in New Mexico you have to visit White Sands. It is an area in between Las Cruces and Alamogordo were you have Gypsum sand which gives it that white color. You will need sun glasses though due to sun glancing off of the sand and hurting your eyes. White Sands is beautiful. The sand dunes stretch for several miles in any direction and you have several hiking trails that lead you into them. The sand itself does not get hot it is actually very cool when you walk without shoes even in over 100 degree weather. A lot of the local go there with their kids to sled down the slopes on plastic disc sleds it is quite fun and fast. We went there a couple of times and will never tire of it. Once we visited after the rainy season and the water stood on several spots knee deep in little lakes . Lots of kids and adults there that day, splashing in the water.

the second picture is my hubby and i on one of the sand dunes, horsing around. As you can see they are very steep.

Meet my Great-Grandpa, isn't he a handsome one? My Mom found that Photo and send it to me via e mail. I never met him but i wish i had. However i can still remember one of my Great Grandmas. I remember visiting her in her apartment in beautiful Leipzig, Germany my home town or actually City. She was living in an old old building with wooden floors. I remember the smell kind of old and musty but oh so comforting, at least as a child. I liked visiting her in that apartment which always seemed somewhat dark and mystical to me. And i loved that old wooden chest with the old toys in there. She had a tin bird with a key to wind up and it would move and hop about the floor. I don't know how old i was but she was very old . I have to ask mom but i think she lived to about 96. I still remember her smiling face so full of wrinkles and crevices and so beautiful.