Chocolate Paint

 

After eight years in our current home we decided to sell. Our touch up paint from the original can was too light because one area behind a mirror had not faded. “Perfectly normal”, they said at Sherman-Williams. So I bought new paint and it still did not match when dry.

I went back and they added a tad of black pigment to the paint, and it was close, but close does not count when painting. In frustration, I looked around the house for something to add a little more brown to the paint and came up with a perfect choice. Cocoa powder. I used a little at a time and it took of stirring to make it smooth. It blended perfectly and smells like brownies while you’re working! 

Test Area

 

Perfect Formula

 

 

A Gift of Bookmarks

I received a wonderful gift from my cousin Steve today. Vintage bookmarks! He and Mary Ann found them when they cleaned out his mother's books. I do so appreciate them. 

There's a wonderful assortment of paper, plastic, brass, leather, rope, and cloth. They are in celebration of fun, the arts, wisdom, bookstores, publishers, authors, holidays, London, dogs, nature and more.

I will add them to my precious collection and always be grateful for the kind gesture.

Thank you cuz. 💖 

After a Winter Storm

Lovely view of Granite Mountain in Prescott, AZ after a winter storm today. Tumbleweeds in the foreground are awaiting their turn for the next Tumbleweed Roundup. (Photo taken from Paulden, AZ looking south).

Western Style SNOWMAN

 

Have you ever wanted to build your own tumbleweed Christmas tree? We had some nice big parts and accessories delivered to us by surprise in last night's storm. 

FREE to forever homes - come and get 'em!

 

 

 

 

54 Years and Counting...

Our wedding anniversary is this month. Looking back, we were just kids, but we knew what we wanted and it was to be together. Well done, you say? OK. But we're not finished yet.

In 2022, you can find us moving toward another destination. Hopefully, our final home will be built in Nutrioso, Arizona. It will be small, easy to care for, close to riding, fishing, hiking, mushrooming, and exploring. We plan to have a wild time.

💕 

 

 

 

Veteran's Day 2021

Happy Veterans Day to my dad, Lloyd Irwin Coppock

Best dad I could ever have. Miss you always.

 

 

Blister Beetles (My Bane)

A few words about blister beetles. Most equine owners know to check hay for the beetles, as they can cause serious health hazards. Their defensive secretion of a blistering agent, cantharidin (orange or yellow fluid). About 7,500 species are known worldwide. Many are conspicuous, and some are brightly colored, announcing their toxicity to would-be predators.

Blister beetles are my nemesis. As an organic gardener, I've learned to carefully stomp them. But today we were invaded by thousands as they attempted to reproduce. I had to spray with roach killer and emptied the large can with many still crawling or flying toward the 

garden. And they eat anything! A horde of these beetles can completely defoliate a mature tree in one day!

 

Their only enduring trait is that they lay their eggs in areas surrounding grasshopper eggs. The immature stage (larvae) feed on these grasshopper eggs.

 

 

 WARNING. If you unknowingly brush against one of these beetles (as I did in 2008), the results can be terrible. I was just cleaning out an old hen house that I wanted to make into a tool shed. The next day, my ankle itched, and I noticed swelling. The doc and I decided not to puncture or lance the growing blister due to possible infection. Instead, I covered and let it go down on its own. Four months later, it shed its skin. I continued to cover and treated for protection and cleanliness. Thus, I dislike the crusty creatures.