Old Branches + Vine Cuttings

My flowering branches have flowered and wilted, but I really enjoyed their height and peaceful branchiness :)

No other cut i came across got me excited, so i decided to forage at home. I've really enjoyed the scent of this flowering vine we've got sprawling along our back fence.

I've never tried vine cuts indoors, but I noticed my grandmother had a little ivy cut in a glass in her kitchen window. It's been on my mind the past few months so I decided to give it a shot.

Yes, the branches were pretty much blitzed but I thought the vines might have more of a shot with something to prop them up, plus, they're pretty.

This might be a "duh", but it's MY duh.

What's Wrong With the World Today?

The Times once sent out an inquiry to famous authors, asking the question, “What’s wrong with the world today?”

The shortest and probably most thoughtful response was:

“Dear Sirs,

I am.

Yours,

G.K. Chesterton.”

Removing Wax from Irregularly Shaped Glass

The Goodwill on Santa Anita and Arrow, once again, blew my mind.

I found a pair of blown glass candlesticks a few days ago. They've got a ton of loose bubbly, whirley inclusions, like on the recycled margarita sets people like to bring home from a trip to Cabo.

The only problem: one has a gang of red wax hanging out in the hollow base, which is probably why they were donated in the first place. Thanks to remembering some rudimentary chemistry, I know I can get this thing cleaned out in minutes back at home.

We live in a world of rules. One rule is that wax and water won't mix. The second is that wax floats.

I fill up the candlestick with water and place that in my nifty asparagus blanching pot, which also happens to be the only pot I own.

The pot has a really nice heavy base, but the diameter is narrow and from there it sits about 10 inches tall. It holds a heaping helping of soup for two, and boils a tiny amount of tea water in short order. The pot came with a wire basket that fits just so, making blanching easy as pie, and it fits the candlestick perfectly. It was born to do this.

As soon as the water boils up plops glob after glob of wax. All I have to do is dip the end of a soup spoon in to retrieve it. After i bring the candlestick out to cool, i noticed some small specks of wax hanging on for dear life on the inner walls. I stuffed a paper towel part way down the glass and the wax came up with it.

Good as new :)

I think using them as bud vases for a few chamomile shoots would be nice, too.

A New Friend Named Sharon