Style Icon: Miss Bianca

When I was a kid, I was absolutely enchanted with Miss Bianca from "The Rescuers." And who wouldn't be? I mean, Bernard (seen below in his lovely rain slicker) certainly was bewitched.

If you haven't seen the movie or its sequel, the basic gist is that there is a mouse UN, and this mouse UN helps save little kids. Miss Bianca and Bernard work together to save a little girl in the first movie and a little boy in the second. She is brave and positive and supremely stylish. He is totally smitten with her, which makes him act bravely despite being very scared.

Who wouldn't be smitten? She's all eyelashes and European accent. She is always wearing a fabulous hat.

Plus she's smart and noble -- an excellent politician of sorts who wears excellent accessories.

And she enjoys a glass of bubbly here and there. Look at her hat! Look at her pearls! She is so classic. Oh Bianca, never change.

Misty mountains

Taken from the backporch of my parents' mountain house. So. Much. Rain. (So much mist. So many puddles. So much green.)

Who wears short(ish) shorts?

I realized I own one pair of shorts I mildly tolerate (eh, maybe two I mildly tolerate), and then I realized this problem could possibly be fixed with a trip to the thrift shop. I usually have trouble thrifting shorts/jeans and don't even bother trying, but I decided to give it a go, and found four pants in my size. And I liked them! That's unheard of! Well, one pair I didn't like, and that is the pair that became these shorts. Do I like them as shorts? Eh. They're okay. I think I might just dislike shorts. But it is 90+ degrees in North Carolina, and shorts are your friends in those conditions. So, yes, I cut up those jeans, made them shorts, and wore them in the shade (90+ degrees, people) in my backyard. I'm pretty sure they aren't cut straight, but, you know, that adds to the DIY, summertime charm of them, don't you think?

Also: That scarf pictured is my favorite scarf right now. And: Those polka-dot shoes are the most precious thing ever. Because of the polka dots, because of the bows, because of the power of the polka dot/ bow combo.

Brewing beer

For his 30th birthday, I bought Robert a beer-making kit. That was in January, he has since been a beer-making machine, and I love it. I knew he would like making the beer because he's great at baking bread and baking bread is a science that uses yeast... and so is beer brewing so there is my logic. Also he loves beer. That was another big piece of my logic. 

We have a "Brew Store" in the town next to us. It's a big warehouse randomly sitting in a residential area, and I find it to be a very interesting place. I went with Robert on his last trip (and took lots of pictures like a beer-brewing tourist). Robert had his recipe and picked up specialty grain and hops and other whatnot and other required for making trappist (an ale that monks are known for making or something along those lines).

So the process is as follows: we make some beer tea by steeping the specialty grains (or at least I call it beer tea, it is not actually called beer tea), then we take this beer tea and put it in a big kettle in our backyard and pour in the rest of the malt.

Then we hang out and stir it until it comes to a boil (lots of steam steams up my glasses). Then we add our first hops, a little bit later we added sugar that tastes like rock candy (trust me, I tried it) and then more hops to finish it off. When that's all done, we cool it off, then we strain it into a bucket. Not pictured: adding some yeast and letting it sit for a while -- this one for at least a month. Then we have beer!

Robert made this beer once before, and it was so good I told him he had to make it again. The recipe can be found here in case you're a brewer yourself or interested in more specifics. I think it's great fun, and when you're done, you have beer! What's not to like?

Rainy day pond

The mountains are my favorite. Last Saturday, fireworks were being shot over this pond despite a steady drizzle.

Shoes for him, shoes for her

I used to just be interested in buying shoes for myself. Now, I'm all about buying shoes for Robert as well. Those sneakers were eBay finds. Robert is much less excited than I am about my shoe shopping for him on an Internet auction site (he is a simple kind of man and needs only a few pairs of shoes that cover the basics to make him happy). But he seems to like these shoes, and he definitely wears these shoes, and I'll call that a success!

Mountain town parade

My parents are new residents in a little town in the North Carolina mountains called Todd. It is small. It is beautiful. It has crazy amazing parades. (Pictured below is my niece about to experience the best parade ever.)

I used to be a small-town reporter. I have seen many more parades than most normal people. (Yes. I used to write about parades at least three times a year. The Cat Square Christmas Parade is especially epic.) I know what to expect from parades. They have marching bands and old-fashioned cars with beauty queens on them and kids clogging. This is what makes a parade. But, oh no, Todd offered something completely different and totally magical, and my mind was pretty much blown.

There was not a marching band in sight. No Shriners. No church floats. What was there? A whole lot of beauty, and beyond that, I'm having trouble explaining it. 

There was lots of color and a little bit of drum playing and these huge paper-mache-looking-puppet-esque contraptions that were absolutely mesmerizing. I think the parade was representing the four elements? When everyone walked together down the street it looked so communal and absolutely magical. 

Everything was moving. People were smiling. This town obviously has some whimsical artists up in it. (I knew I loved this town. I think my parents basically bought a home in Sicily, Alaska.) I think Fire is pictured above. He's looking good!

Each creature looked amazing (check out that bear!), and they all had celebrants surrounding them. Everyone was enchanted. I was totally, wonderfully shocked by it. Sometimes it's good to go to something with low expectations! My parents loved it, my niece and nephew loved it, and I loved it. Three generations of love!

The parade ended in a field/park kind of place, and then everyone boogied down. As in: that giant bear was breaking it down summer-time style. It has been insanely rainy all over the state for the past week, and I love that there was enough of a break in the rain for these magical paper creatures to come out, show off and enjoy a dance.