j. adam giese

Our young friend J Adam Giese filmed a project last year with Nick Watts. 

We followed Adam on facebook as he traveled the world with Nick 

and now the series will air 

Tuesday Nights at 10 p.m. on the Travel Channel. 

Looking forward to seeing it.
Some sneak previews

Watt's World: Looking for UFOs in Campfires on Mt. Shasta

Watt's World: Top 3 Reasons to Visit Albania

Watt's World: How to Move to Italy

Watt's World: Life in Slab City

What Nick Watt Learned By Traveling the World

stylin in 1957

I know that Father's Day has past but 

I just came across this photo and couldn't resist posting it.

 How about those rolled up jeans and argyle socks?

stylin in 1957

four shakers

Happy Father's Day to the dad of these four Shakers.
{circa 1995 Hancock shaker Village}

morning walk

A new walking route this morning 

through McCormick Place

up the access stairs

along the canal

 through Sunflower Landing

past the pond

 and back to Summer Hill

 What to join us some day?

4,400 steps, 1.75 miles, 40 minutes

garlicky beef stir-fry

Garlicky Beef Stir-Fry

{4 servings}

Ingredients

4 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

8 teaspoons minced garlic

4 tablespoons peanut oil, divided

1 (12-oz.) sirloin steak, thinly sliced across the grain

1/2 pound fresh or frozen green beans

1 red bell pepper, cut into ¼ inch-wide strips

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into ¼ inch-wide strips

2 teaspoons cornstarch

3 cups cooked brown rice

Preparation

1.     Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in 3 Tbsp. oil.

Add steak and let stand at room temperature 15 minutes.

2.     Transfer steak to a wok or large frying pan, reserving marinade.

Stir-fry steak in 1 Tbsp. oil over medium-high heat 1-2 minutes or until browned.

3.     Remove steak and set aside.

Add beans and bell peppers to the pan and stir-fry 3-5 minutes.

4.     Whisk cornstarch into reserved marinade. Stir cornstarch mixture into vegetable mixture.

Stir-fry 30 seconds or until sauce thickens.

5.     Stir steak into vegetable mixture, and stir-fry 30 seconds.

6.     Remove from heat, and serve over rice.

Adapted from a recipe in February 2015 Southern Living

wise thoughts

I know that our "online attention spans" are pretty short but 

if you have 17 minutes to really listen you won't be sorry.

{guaranteed or your money back}

up up and away

New to us was watching the launch of hot air balloons.

It was such an amazing process as they spread out, fired up

and lifted off.

We can only imagine what it must be like to be on-board

as they hovered in the Letchworth State Park Gorge

{this photo from @news8Rochester twitter}

Thanks Dave and Debbie for including us in this adventure.

portable beach table

Portable Beach Table Tutorial

{just in time for summer outings}

Materials

4 yards - 1" strapping or webbing {available at Jo-Ann fabrics}
staple gun and ¼ “ staples
15” velcro strip (cut into ten 1 ½ inch pieces)
strong adhesive glue {we used super glue}
15 wooden stats 1 1/2″ x 1/4″ cut into 30″ lengths
{we bought 8' lattice pieces and Lowes cut them for free}
4 small plastic baskets

Directions

1. Sand the slats and paint if desired.

2. Space thirteen of the wooden slats parallel to one another with equal space in between each one. They should total from the first to last 30″ forming a square shape.

3. Cut the strapping in half, so you have two strips equaling two yards each.  Fuse the ends with a flame to prevent raveling.

4. Start at one end of the parallel boards and lay both strips of strapping 5 inches in on both sides so they transect each board.

One end of the strapping should be even with the first board; the last board should have the excess amount of strapping. This excess side will be used to wrap around the table to carry it. One end of the strapping should be even with the first board; the last board should have the excess amount of strapping. This excess side will be used to wrap around the table to carry it.

5. Staple the strapping once to each board. Then put some strong glue under the strapping on each board and staple a second time.

6. With the remaining two boards (boards #fourteen and fifteen), glue and then staple the loop side of the velcro strip to both ends of each board and one piece in the middle. Then about six inches in, staple and glue the soft side of the velcro to boards one, seven, and thirteen. This will provide the cross beams to the table.

7. Take the soft side of a velcro strip and add (staple and glue) to the end of boards one and thirteen. This will allow you to attach the cross beams to the first and last boards so you can roll all the boards together for travel purposes without losing the cross beams.

8. Attach the cross boards to the end pieces {on top of and even with the first and last board} and then roll up. Wrap strapping ties around table to form a shoulder strap for carrying

9. When you get to the beach, unroll the table. Detach the cross beams from the end slats and velcro then across the table to form the cross boards. Flip the table over and support it with the four plastic baskets. Enjoy!

We adapted this project from one shown in Basics Magazine.
This video shows their similar table and how to set it up.

They used 11 slats, we used 13 to make spaces between the slat smaller.

mother's day

a little trip down memory lane

circa 1992 

the free design

When I was growing up my best friend Stefanie’s family formed 

a singing group that had moderate success 

although I am sure you have never heard of them. 

It was quite a surprise while watching TV last week that

I recognized one of their songs on a delta commercial . . .

And then I found the same song in a toyota commercial  . . .

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The Free Design was a Delevan, New York-based vocal group whose music can be described as sunshine pop and baroque pop. They were all members of the Dedrick family: Chris Dedrick, sister Sandy and brother Bruce were the original lineup. Chris Dedrick wrote most of the songs. Younger sister Ellen joined the group later, and youngest sister Stefanie joined near the end of their initial career. They formed the band while living in New York City. Chris has said the group was influenced by vocal groups like The Hi-Los (who performed in Greenwich Village frequently at the time) along with Peter, Paul and Mary and the counterpoint experiments of Benjamin Britten. Their trademark sound involved complex harmonies, jazz-like chord progressions, and off-beat time signatures, all products of Chris's classical training. The band released seven albums from 1967 to 1972,