Couscous Salad

I love it when I find Real Simple in my mail box. They had an article on a speedy way to clean a bookshelf that I am just going to have to try and this delicious couscous salad. My husband was leery when I told it to him, but after making it he went back for seconds and ate the leftovers a day later. I made it with the full box of couscous and increased all ingedients appropriately, but here was the recipe:

Ingredients
1/2 cup couscous
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 cup crumbled Feta (2 ounces)
1/2 cup halved red seedless grapes
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
kosher salt and black pepper
pita bread, for serving
Directions
1.In a bowl, combine the couscous with ½ cup hot water; cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
2.Fluff the couscous with a fork and fold in the walnuts, Feta, grapes, parsley, olive oil, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Serve with pita bread, if desired.

I couldn't tell from the recipe if it was a cold dish or a hot dish, but I served it cold and loved it!

The Rower...

I have wanted a Concept 2 rowing machine for years. I think between 2003 and 2006, I checked craigslist and ebay daily hoping one would pop up that I could afford. I tried just about every other brand,but could not find one that felt like actual rowing. I fell in love with rowing my first year of college - I'd gotten a letter in the mail saying "Your application indicates that you might be the right size to be a heavy weight rower. Are you interested in rowing, come out to...." and so on. What that letter meant was, well, you are over 5'5" and weigh more than 160 lbs so you might make a good rower.

I ended up rowing all 4 years of college (and got my letter), but was never able to keep with the sport after college. I am finally old enough for a masters rowing program, but do not live close enough to a boathouse to join.

My husband and I found this rowing machine on craigslist! Now I'm planning on getting in shape and being ready to row in D.C. when we should be moving up there in 2013.

The new look of etsy...

ICK... was all I thought when I saw the look of my new shops on etsy (of course I've been a good shop owner and failed to check in at all in both shops over the past two months.) I'm fine with the picture layouts and everything - my problem lies in the word wrap for my shop announcement... Guess I need to get off my butt and learn a new trick to fix that.

Richard Triebe - Author and Tent-mate for a day

So Monday I mentioned that I got to share my tent at the last minute with an author over the weekend. So here he is - Richard Triebe: He was showcasing his book, On a Rising Tide, historical fiction set in the Civil War and a non-fiction work on the soldiers who were captured at Fort Fisher,NC and taken to Elmira, NY that will be released this fall. Conversation with Richard made my entire day flow by very fast.
And this is a picture of my new book! Yet another addition to my library (that is running out of space). I've been reading it over breakfast in the mornings and have almost made myself late to work since I'm finding the beginning such a gripping tale - Chapter 1 opens up into the middle of a blockade run, lots of cannon balls, and some surprise...

Daydreaming...

That's my excuse.

I can't believe almost 2 months have gone by since I last openned blogger. Recently, the idea of blogging has been... oh, I should write about "that" - I'll do it next Monday. And next Monday keeps rolling by over and over again.

Well, enough of that. This past Satuday was my first of what I call my fall show schedules... (I know it is still 100 degrees outside, but when I did my big yearly planner, I divided my shows by spring and fall for the year.) And look at this view:

taken about 25 feet from my booth. I was at Fort Fisher, NC for the North Carolina Historic Sites 2nd Saturdays event. I could have stayed all week (but I guess they have laws about vagrants down there).

They put the artists up in this lovely grove of live oaks:

and I had tons of fun. I'll definitely be looking for whatever the NC Historic Sites program puts out next year.

And here was my little display - the big change from my shows last year is that I spray-painted all of my display things black (the ones that weren't already black).

At the last second, I was privileged enough to share my tent with an author, but I'll tell you about him another day.