Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Tea With The Dames, lavash for lunch, sunflowers

I don't post often about food, since cooking for one is not that interesting to me, but I discovered Lavash recently, a flatbread, just bought it on a whim. It seems to stay fresh longer than a loaf of bread, about a week. I cover it with grated cheese, tomatoes from my garden, taco sauce, put it in the microwave for 20 seconds, and then roll it up and eat it. Yum. Nice with olives and an avocado on the side. The traditional way to enjoy lavash is to spread it with cream cheese and add things like sliced ham and lettuce before rolling it up.
Above is a native penstemon, which is purple with undercurrent of blue. There are 4 different purple native penstemon, some with a white throat. My five plants are all purple and bees and butterflies and people like them.
After a decade of dropping cable and not watching much TV I have discovered the delights of streaming channels. I subscribe to Hulu and recently watched the documentary Tea with the Dames. Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright and Eileen Atkins (she is Aunt Ruth in Doc Martin which I am watching). I found it delightful as the four actresses shared laughs and career highlights and family and husband moments. Some of the laughs are bawdy. Other Hulu favorite shows for me are Blackish, New Tricks and Elementary.

Below is another photo of the penstemon with some of my new bottle bush plants on the left. I had 11 bottle brush planted on both sides of my driveway and they are the kind that only grow to 3 or 4 feet tall, which is what I wanted. Many bottle brush grow to 6 or 8 or even 10 feet tall and all are gorgeous when covered with their red flowers.
And my neighbors faithfully plant many sunflowers from seed each year and the flowers are blooming now.
I thank their perseverance because last year they barely had any plants survive an onslaught by squirrels and birds as the squirrels dug up the seeds and birds ate the seedlings. Last year they kept planting more seeds and even put netting over the planting area to little avail. This year the sunflowers are back and didn't bloom til September and they are very welcome.




35 comments:

  1. I also enjoy Hulu. We subscribed this summer and all of us are enjoying it.

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  2. Four awesome actresses. Gotta find it.

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  3. My hubby introduced me to Lavash a few years ago … love it! Like you, I don't watch much television so left the decision making up to Tom. DISH is 'ok', but I wish he would consider a streaming alternative like Hulu.

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  4. We used to have one of those native Penstemon that we dug from the wild. Loved it, but eventually it did not love us.
    I see that the squirrels are not attacking out sunflowers, but at least they got to bloom. I much prefer the chickadees pecking away at the seed heads.

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  5. The bread sounds interesting. The native penstemon looks pretty. Absolutely love the Sunflowers, they are a favorite of mine. Glad you are enjoying Hulu. We don't have that one yet because we still have cable. I hear that you can get most TV shows streamed on Hulu.

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  6. Gorgeous flowers, both your purple ones and the sunflowers. I have never tried lavish but have thought about it. I may pick some up soon.
    We still have cable as we need high speed internet for Dennis' work and the triple-play, (cable, phone, internet), are cheaper than high speed internet by itself. We do have Netflix and enjoy some British mysteries on it.
    Have a lovely Tuesday. :-)
    Blessings,
    Betsy

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  7. I used to watch Hulu ages ago when it was 'free'.

    Your penstemon are wonderful and I love your neighbors sunflowers.

    Enjoy your week ~ FlowerLady

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  8. The flowers are pretty! There's nothing like a sunflower against a blue sky.

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  9. Tea with the Dames sounds just like something I'd enjoy watching. I'll see if I can access it.
    Your penstemon is pretty. I've never grown it but I should look for it next Spring.

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  10. I'll have to look for the lavash bread - it sounds good especially with the additions.

    Love all the flowers!

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  11. I loved Tea With the Dames! Saw it awhile back and would love to see it again.
    Next year I intend to plant an abundance of sunflowers! Both at home and at the ranch!!!

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  12. I'm definitely going to to look for Lavash. If I treat myself to carbs, it's usually something I can add good healthy additions to.

    Not many of your plants on the West Coast are doable for me, but they sure are pretty! And I'm going to try my hand at sunflowers next year. I say it but never do it! I guess if I plant enough of them, some may hang in there in spite of the birds!

    I think I get Hulu---I'll have to check. I love anything British--especially their humor!

    Jane x

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  13. I loved the Tea with Dames film too.

    Those sunflowers are magnificent.

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  14. Your native penstemon looks very pretty.

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  15. I love to find odd things to watch on Netflix or Amazon Prime. We still have cable, but it is sorely lacking and the amount of commercials drives me crazy! Thank goodness for other options!

    I love the sunflowers along the white picket fence! BUT...if you plant sunflowers, you are just welcoming wildlife to come along and enjoy them. Isn't that the point?? Oh wait...I guess not everyone plants for the animals in their yard!

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  16. Have not seen it! Now it's on my list!

    I soooo love visiting you. A breath of fresh air...

    <3Rebecca

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  17. I have never heard of Lavash but will look for it in the store. I don’t have Hulu and now wish I did. I so enjoy those lovely Englis ladies. We have so many venues to choose from today and it is difficult to decide on which one to spend our money. Right now, we do Amazon and Netflix.

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  18. I saw Eileen Atkins on stage when we were in London. She is amazing. I don't have Hulu but that would be enough to make me think seriously about it!

    Sunflowers -- Oh, I love them and that's a gorgeous photo!

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  19. When I buy a nice loaf of bread, I always freeze it otherwise it will certainly get moldy.
    Easy to just take a slice or two out and toast it up. Those sunflowers are very cheery, aren't they! The penstemon is a nice native. I need to get some seeds planted though we are still having triple digits during the day. Really hoping things cool down by the end of the month, which isn't that far away. Gosh, how time flies. Have a nice weekend.

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  20. Your sunflower pictures made me smile. Soooo pretty!

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  21. We are putting Turkish doner inside the lavash and eat it. Yummy! :)

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  22. Hello Terra....Those sunflowers are lovely.Your lavash sounds good, too. Thank you SO MUCH for your visits and your comments. It was so nice to see that you stop by Writing Straight from the Heart. It means a lot to me. Have a great week ahead! Susan

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  23. i think there are a lot of creative things you could do with that flatbread, for every meal!! your neighbors sunflowers are so beautiful, how nice that you get to enjoy them as though they were yours!!!

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  24. so many neat things in this post. The pizza looks so good and the flat bread is so much healthier looking than dough. AND oh my...the gorgeous yellow flowers are stunning. BEAUTIFUL!!

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  25. Your way of eating Lavash sounds delicious!

    You reminded me of "Tea with the Dames" I wanted to see it when it was in theatres but missed out and forgot all about it. I'll try to chase it up because who can resist a conversation between some pithy, wise women :)

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  26. Oh my, this was good. I must try that Lavash flatbread sometime. That sounds good, the way you fix it. I love your little purple flowers...and those sunflowers are divine! Wow! What an abundance!!! We also use Hulu for our tv, and are enjoying it. I haven't discovered that program you are speaking of, so I must look it up. Thank you for this delightful little visit with you today!

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  27. Girl, you've got me starving right now... wish I had some of that lavash. Never heard of it but I do love flatbread. Yours sounds divine.

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  28. Tea with the dames was great. Such brilliant women. And that flatbread looks yummy.

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  29. Woo hoo just look at your neighbour's sunflowers. How brilliant is that? You get to have all the pleasure of enjoying their growth and none of the work!
    Wren x

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  30. I just found your blog - how did I miss it before now?- lovely photos. I too am a widow and retired and living quietly enjoying my garden and family and books

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  31. Those sunflowers are just awesome. Your flowers are very pretty too. Lavash sounds good! xoxo

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  32. I'm putting Tea With the Dames on my to-watch list. I had the good pleasure of seeing Eileen Atkins in a play last week and then meeting her. She was -- not surprisingly -- so gracious and patient with those of us waiting at the stage door.

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  33. Oh Buttercup, I am a tad jealous you saw Eileen Atkins in a play and then met her at the stage door. I think you will doubly enjoy Tea with the Dames. They tease each other a bit being long time friends.

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