Saturday mad-dash

Go go go...non-stop go lately. Recipe on the way.  I'm trying to cut and paste from a PDF but not able so I may have to take the time to type it out for you.
I did manage to make the recipe and took some to work so my colleagues could try it. 
No matter how busy I get I always find time to cook (good) food from scratch. 

Today I participated in the subdivision annual garage sale. Three words of advice: Don't do it! 
Hardly worth the time and effort it took to clean out the closets, move the stuff outside, get it organized and think about pricing. On a good note, I did clean out the closets and move stuff outside and it is NOT coming back in. I'm hauling the remains of my morning activities to Goodwill. This was one of the baby steps towards moving in the next few weeks. 
Have you peaked in your closets lately? This will be my 4th move in 7 years. In my early 20's I think my parents counted 8 different addresses for me in a period of 3 years. I did not own furniture so it was a few boxes of clothes in the trunk of the car and I was off and running. Then I settled into a house for over a decade. Now I'm back on the move. I don't know where I am going yet but it's sure to be new and exciting. 

 why yes, that is a flower in my hair!

 Co-worker's birthday. Made some cupcakes. Spinach Empanadas too...just because. 

 This is the Black Bean and Quinoa salad in process (recipe coming)

And here to your right......the leftovers of the morning endeavors. 
And now I'm headed for some people watching and a hot cup of tea up at The Domain. (I can't afford to shop there but it's great to linger and watch) 

New stuff

Hey Ya'll. 
I'll start with the fact that there is absolutely nothing going on with the hair. It is amazingly-frustratingly slow!!! Bald was easy. I didn't mind at all. The growing part appears to be complicated. I've not yet resorted to odd products and gimmicks and I'm thankful for my friends who tell me every day how much they like my short style. 

Just after my last post I did get what I thought was a dramatic cut and I was excited to post but no one really even noticed and when I took photos I  realized it didn't look that different (to you) It was only a big deal to me. I had the bottom half clipped on a #4 guard and left the top hoping to create enough visual difference to "appear" longer. Think something like the new Miley Cyrus "do". (But she has about 8 inches up top to my measly 3) 

The new News. 
This week I started taking a 6 week cooking class offered to Cancer survivors. I love to cook and have been using a lot of the ingredients and recipes I read while researching what to eat while coping with cancer last Fall. I feel lucky to have scored a spot in this (free!!!!) class. I'm excited to meet some new people and learn new recipes. 
The class is sponsored in part by the Sustainable Food Center. 
I look forward to sharing what I learn and I will be posting the recipes and tips here in this blog so check back soon.

End of the month silliness

here's what I have to play with, this is freshly washed with no product.

 

that's a ruler in my hand

 

Its Been A While

Howdy. 

At this point in the grow-out I had thought I would wear more clips and pins and headbands to have some daily variety but when I put them on I (think I)  look silly. 

It's been a year since the shave. I keep a folder on the desktop labeled "short hair styles". Most of them require about 6 inches more hair than I have. Maybe I should start a folder called "Men's long hair styles". 

Last week I had one of those moments. Have you ever cut your own hair? Armed with some electric clippers and a mirror I had a go at the curly stuff at the back of my neck where it was getting straggly. Thank goodness for wavy hair, it hides all of my faulty cuts. 

I read a hair magazine that says one trick of growing out out your short style is to keep the back trimmed and let the top grow longer until it all meets somewhere in the vicinity of a short Bob. Since my June trim I'm just now at the stage where a bit is curling over the ears. To cut or not to cut?????

Here are a few August photos

Tufts and spikes

Feeling very Julie Andrews a la Victor Victoria these days.
Little tufts of hair sprouting from the sides once again but manageable with the sticky stuff. I believe the top is about 3 inches now. No plans for a trim for another month or so. 
I have quietly and unremarkable passed the one year mark of the diagnosis, the surgery and the first round of chemo. 


this is what 5 full months of growth looks like... From February till now.

Showing off my ear tufts

No Gel 

A little spike

This was my Sunday afternoon project. Paint color is Valspar 5008-10B Tantalizing Teal. Lowes will custom mix any color in a small 7.2 oz sample for only $3.00. The sample size  was plenty for two coats on this table. 

Finished 

Details count

 It's been too hot to work on any recipes lately. I'm still on a kale kick eating it almost every day in  green smoothies, lightly sauteed and added to pastas, veggie mixes and pizzas or smooshed with avacado in a salad. 

Monday meditation

Meta Meditation – Loving-kindness ~ Buddha

May I be well
May I be happy and content
May I be free from danger and suffering
May I be filled with loving-kindness

May you be well
May you be happy and content
May you be free from danger and suffering
May you be filled with loving-kindness

May all beings be well
May all beings be happy and content
May all beings be free from danger and suffering
May all beings be filled with loving-kindness

***this guy  is for sale on Craigslist. Makes me smile just to look at that big happy face!***

the hair the hair the hair

I  thought I would have had so many more styles by now. It grows so excruciatingly slow. The very front is finally filling in with all those little baby fine hairs that don't really grow but stick to your skull and the side of your face.

 It's starting to hit the "break point" in the curl like it did a few weeks ago when I had it trimmed. I bought another product; Bed Head "manipulator" blue Hair Gunk. It is a bit more relaxed than the DiFi paste but overall I think I prefer the DiFi. 





Here's a photo from a day I wore the blue gunk. The gray really shows in this picture and you can see the hair looks a bit fluffier, not as slicked back.  
I do  like how easy it is to wash and wear and lots of people tell me that it suits me but I am still a bit shocked every time I catch myself in a mirror. I keep expecting to see this:

(only 11 months ago)  Realistically having hair this long again is  another 2 years down the road. I tried on my wig last night. I thought maybe it could be an option. To wear it on occasion. It looked so fake I couldn't stand it.  I've packed away most of the hats and scarves but I think  I might get  more wear out of them when it turns cool  and as it continues to go through all the icky phases of growing I might find a way to use them as good camouflage so I haven't donated them yet. 

I'm having a case of hair envy. I'm sure it will pass shortly. 

Read any good books lately? Last month I started a few and put them down unfinished. Normally I would keep plodding through and keep waiting for it to  grab me but not so much lately. I finished  Open  The Andre Agassi Autobiography and I really liked it but I'm finding the Steve Jobs memoir slow going. I've been working on that one for a few weeks now. It sits in my car and I occasionally read a few pages when I am stuck waiting somewhere. 

I am reading and re-reading (and loving) When Things Fall Apart; Pema Chodron. This little book is  stuffed full of Buddhist wisdom, I would like to buy a zillion  copies and hand them out to everyone I meet.

Showing off my bangs and a little length up top  

 Rockin' the Foux Hawk

 At the end of the day you can focus on the things that break you apart or focus on the things that hold you together.  
no I don't know why some of my text is highlighted. I went back to edit but it does not appear highlighted on this screen that I write on at all. I'm lacking some computer skills.