the red shoes

Sometimes I think to myself... my, my... what was I thinking?  On our four wheeling trip last weekend I chose to wear my red Converse tennis shoes to break them in.  Mind you I don't wear socks with my shoes most of the time if I can avoid it.  I can't believe my heels aren't covered in blisters.  I feel this is the fastest way to break shoes in... barefoot.  While we were riding the trails on the mountains I thought it would be cool to take pictures of where my shoes rode thinking (and hoping) I would come home with them filthy.  Sadly they didn't seem terribly dirty when the weekend was over.  Guess I'm going to have to dunk them in the creek.  Why I prefer the dirty, worn in look I don't know. 

 

The pictures, in one sense, are repetitive seeing the same red shoes.  But to me I know where they were in each picture.  Each step of the way.  Sometimes travelling down a hill, almost turning over on a large rock or splashing through mud.  And on a side note This is always where my feet rest in our side by side while it's moving.  I don't hang out of the vehicle by any means.  This is the closest area for my feet to go and maintain personal stability in our "half beat the snot out of you" ride.  I know to jerk them in if the ride gets too rough.

 

 

I feel this picture would have turned out clear if we hadn't been moving and bouncing around.

I reckon I could have just dipped my foot into this and that would have taken care of the clean part!

I love this one.  It was taken through what I call Kudzu Valley which is a part of the trails pretty high up that is covered in Kudzu.  If it could somehow connect over the trail it would be a pretty cool tunnel.

Well now that's a bit dirtier than the first picture.



the reds

I don't know what it is about the color red lately.

Yesterday I mentioned a leaf hunt at the DC and could think of only red leaves.

I am suddenly drawn to it not knowing why because red is not my signature color at all.  

Every time I wear it my face drains of all color.  

So why not just have a look see.. hmm?

Delicious boots from freepeople.

That I would never afford. 

Scrumptious wallpaper from indiansummer blog.

Even though summer is gone for this year, a good summer hat at a good price

is always welcome... especially the color.... aaahhhhhh.

Found on clearance at shopterrain

Don't know if I could deal with "super skinny" jeans but for sure red skinnies.

Found at H&M

I love the splashes of red, especially the last picture with the roses 

and floral pillow from this post on indiansummer.

Can you tell I have a slight obsession with their blog?

I have a favorite beaded cuff that would look lovely with a 

dab of red on a neighboring bracelet.

Found at worldmarket.com

 And here is where the obsession really started..... the velvet mirror at the flea market.

Shoulda, coulda, woulda....

These last few pictures are all original Laurie... taken at the flea market a few weeks ago.

 And let us not forget the chenille bedspread that I seem to have blocked out getting rid of.
I must have been temporarily out of my mind.  
This was my guest room in my house before I married Shaun.
The only evidence is this picture I posted on flickr.

You know those days when you get the mean reds?

 The mean reds, you mean like the blues?

 No. The blues are because you're getting fat and maybe it's been raining too long, you're just sad that's all. The mean reds are horrible. Suddenly you're afraid and you don't know what you're afraid of. Do you ever get that feeling?

 Sure.

 Well, when I get it the only thing that does any good is to jump in a cab and go to Tiffany's. Calms me down right away. The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there. If I could find a real-life place that'd make me feel like Tiffany's, then - then I'd buy some furniture and give the cat a name!

Red...

Isn't it just dreamy? 

red

In This Skin

Me and my spotted skin... here we go.  I live with psoriasis.  My psoriasis is called Guttate Psoriasis.  Red spots form on my skin anywhere they want to, without reason or timing or cause from anything I am doing.  The cells in my skin produce at a more rapid rate than they should.  I have been dealing with the red spots for about six years.  Before that I dealt with white spots or areas of my skin turning into white splotches which happened mainly when I would tan and mainly on my torso.  It was like my tan would peel off. This I can remember starting in my late teens to early twenties.  Whether the white spots are related to the red spots I don't know.  Doctor after dermatologist can't make it go away.  Items help and sometimes make it lighter but never go away completely.  I feel that I am in a lucky stage right now because the red spots are mainly on my shins, the white spots remain everywhere. 

 

The sad part to me is that this is the first year that I have actually thought about hiding it from people.  When you go from long pants and jeans, because of warmer weather, to shorts and skirts and the kids at day care ask about my owees and does it hurt.  The truth is that it does hurt at times and it does itch and I do want to hide it.  The good thing is that I do have ways to make it feel better and please believe me that I have tried remedy after remedy over the years.  When you have something like this, that is visible to everyone, you try everything from tar to vitamins to teas to sunlight to lotions to medicines.  One tube of cream from the pharmacy had a retail price of $860.00.  Yeah.. that is what I said... and it doesn't work... for me anyway. 

 

So there is my confession and here is what it looks like and what I use to calm it down and the best lotion that I have found to use.  I wanted to share because I know I am not the only one and you may have it or may know someone who is at their whits end and maybe something I show you that I use may help flare ups or itching.  Or maybe you have a suggestion for me that worked for someone you know. 

 

 

 

And what I use.

 

 

ugh this is as big as the picture gets.  If you can't see something let me know and I will help you find it.  I didn't include links to the products and for that I apologize.  I feel as if I have said enough.  Sometimes I let people in on the blog here before I would ever let anyone in in person.

And by the way, psoriasis is hereditary and supposedly can go into remission.  Here's hoping!

 

 



A Quick Marinade

So, Sunday when we got home from church we laid out some venison steaks from the deep freeze to allow them to thaw in the sink in time for supper. Long about four o'clock I got the steaks apart, which were still a tad frozen in the middle, and put them in a cold water salt bath to get any excess blood out. This also takes the "strong" taste out if there is any. While they were soaking I realized that I was out of our normal "go-to" marinade that we like to use. It's a store bought bottle brand that I can usually mix a little water with and get two, maybe three soakings out of.

Now, I've been highly addicted to a couple of sets of The French Chef with Julia Child over the last month that I rented from the library. J.C. drops mention of wine in every show that she does. From using it in dishes to what wines for with the dish that she made. Well.. maybe not the baking, Queen of Sheba cake episode... I'll have to watch it again and see.

Needless to say.. she got me thinking. I drained and rinsed the steaks and put them back in the bowl. I added a generous helping of red wine to the bowl and sprinkled the tops of the steaks with fresh cracked black pepper. YUM. After allowing the steaks to rest for a good half hour, I flipped them over and peppered that side of the steaks. At this point I felt like they were missing something. I wanted a bit of bold taste outside of the red wine and pepper. I looked in the refrigerator and pulled out the Worcestershire sauce, poured in a tablespoon or two and swished it a tad to blend. After about another half hour the grill was hot and the steaks went on. Shaun took it from there. I did tell him it was OK to add a touch of seasoning, McCormick's Garlic and Onion medley, to each side. He likes to chef it up when he's at one with the gas grill.

When the first bite of these steaks went into my mouth I knew I had done something right that day. I absolutely love the smell in my house when I have included wine in a recipe. This marinade didn't exactly fragrance the entire house but it was fantastic. Juicy, elegant, magnificent.