Like this salad I made for the 4th of July
As you know, I love to mix fruit in with my salad, but this time I added a garnish of hemp seeds that were healthy and delicious!
My odd combinations had me thinking, so this post is a collection of photos of things that popped up in odd places.
It started with this.
I was walking to work and noticed the pretty roses - and then I realized they were growing in the middle of a huge evergreen.
That got me noticing other things.
Like this flower that sprouted from a crack in a front yard.
Or this pinwheel in a garden.
Probably the funniest was this random ear of corn sitting on the sidewalk. I'm assuming it fell out of someone's shopping cart.
As you can see, it made a great dinner for some critter since this was what it looked like 24 hours later!
I noticed these signs today. Someone has a sense of humor.
There was another one that I didn't take a photo of because the sign said it was only for crows, so if you were a human, stop looking at it!
As you might imagine, living in the city, I do a lot of walking. Noticing all the unusual or pretty things along the way helps pass the time.
So, tell me, what unusual things have you noticed in your neck of the woods?
I bet someone is sad they lost their eggs! I am trying to walk almost every morning, but we live in a pretty quiet area so I don't usually see anything strange. That salad looks yummy!
ReplyDeletePS: I made a kale salad Sunday for an after church lunch. I read an article saying if you massage it that takes away the bitterness. Have you tried this? If so how do you "massage" kale?!
Katie, you just squeeze it in your hands (kind of crunching it, I guess you'd say). I've heard it helps! But I've never tried it.
DeleteMaybe I'll try it next time
DeleteMissy did a good job explaining the massaging part. I think the vinegar and oil and motion are supposed to break it down. Personally, I prefer my kale blanched so I don't massage it. I boil for about two minutes and then rinse in cold water.
DeleteOkay, those carton of eggs would scare me to death! It's like any unattended luggage at the airport! Freaks me out.
ReplyDeleteMary Cate, I have to ask about a term you used above. You said that flower was sprouted from a crack in the front yard. Do you call the front a yard, even if it's tile/concrete/sidewalk? Small town southerners want to know! :)
It's funny you should ask that, Missy, because my daughter and I were talking about that the other day. Most of the houses here are brownstones and they have stoops that come down from the parlor floor into a small area that is set back from the street. Some people have created elaborate gardens, and some have simply let it be a concrete space. The photo I took was of a large apartment building that is surrounded by a concrete area which, for some odd reason, they decided to paint the same color as the building. It didn't weather well.
DeleteSo the short answer is, yes, we call it a front yard mainly because I don't know what else we'd call it.
But you've given me an idea for a future post. I'll take photos of some of the different ways people have dealt with the "yard" and it's contents.
So interesting!! To us, a yard has to be grass (or I guess it could be dirt in some cases). :) Otherwise it would be a porch or a courtyard or sidewalk.
DeleteMary Cate, I think I would be reporting those eggs as a suspicious package. I mean, who leaves eggs on the subway? Or anywhere else, for that matter.
ReplyDeleteLoved all of the pictures. Life is full of random things. And if we don't take the time to notice them, we might miss out on a blessing.
NYC makes it really easy to report things via Twitter, so she did it right away and they said they would alert the train crew.
DeleteOooohhh -- those eggs!!!! What if some jewel thief thought egg cartons would be a clever way to transport his goods across town only they got left behind and now he's in big trouble with the boss? Or some sweet farmer girl type was carrying fresh eggs into the city to her auntie only she was kidnapped right off the subway! Endless possibilities there.
ReplyDeleteI love your city sightings. Appreciate the grit and determination of that rose to claw her way up and over the evergreens! And don't you just love it when a flower defies the odds and actually grows where she is planted? Life lessons there.
So...unusual things in my neighborhood...In recent years we've had some crazy wildlife sightings as the city sprawls out every which way and eats up woodlands and meadows. So sad. Saw a coyote roaming around in the early morning. At first I thought it was a dog and I tried to get closer to catch it and find the owner. Thankfully, I realized it was wildlife not a stray pet and beat a hasty (for me) retreat.
And there's been a saucy squirrel scalping zucchini plants and leaving the flowers strewn about my street. At first teenagers were considered to be the culprits but then repeated sightings of this squirrel making his stealthy way into gardens in the wee morning hours and making off with the flowers vindicated the maligned teens who are getting their own back by playing basketball in the street until midnight.
I love your imagination, Kav. We're always told, "If you see something, say something," so she did.
DeleteWe've had those wildlife sightings too. I had a similar experience to yours only it was a raccoon we met on an early walk. I've had them on my fire escape too. Not a sight I like to see.
This morning I was greeted by a group of squirrels playing a raucous game of tag up and down in the branches of the tree, onto the fire escape, back to the tree, shouting at each other the whole time!
Oh, Kav, midnight basketball! Hello earplugs!!!!!
DeleteAnd a flower-eating squirrel.... they are busy little buggers!!!!!
Such an interesting peek into city life!
ReplyDeleteOne sight that I always love is similar to your sidewalk flower - Ponderosa Pine trees often grow in the smallest bit of soil trapped in the crack in a rock. If they survive, you see that single pine growing out away from the rock face and then reaching toward the sky. Some of these trees are more than 100 years old, and still clinging to that crack in the rock!
And with everyone else on the egg cartons...there's a story there!
I would love to see those Ponderosa Pines, Jan! We have oak trees doing that now.
DeleteNow this is a cool idea for a post. Love it! And you must be an awesome cook, Cate--the best cooks are always the ones who try out new combos in their dishes.
ReplyDeleteNo idea about the eggs--but I like Kav's ideas! Somebody write those books and send 'em my way!
Awesome is kind, but I thank you, Laurel.
DeleteOh, this is so much fun! The eggs!!!! I would do that. I've done it. I left a bag of LINDT CHOCOLATE in Washington Square Park in Manhattan a few years back because I set it down and someone made a great find....
ReplyDeleteI hope they loved them and didn't call the bomb squad!
I pictured some homeless person coming upon that forgotten bag and being so happy....
Or a whole family of squirrels!!!!
Cate, you are a born storyteller!