Garden Variety Math

Last year I started vegetable gardening. I grew mostly just heirloom tomatoes, 10 different delicious kinds in fact, as well as a few cucumbers, lettuce, and peppers. I have continued that tradition this year, and actually expanded both of my gardens. (one side ground level garden, and one raised bed). I planted; 2 varieties of cucumbers, zucchini, 13 different types of heirloom tomatoes, 3 types of string beans (purple,white,and green), red bell peppers, 2 types of carrots, and beets all from seed. (I also planted eggplant but it didn’t grow so I went to the store to buy some eggplant plants and ended up coming home with jalapenos as well). I also plan on returning to another store to purchase okra, because it’s delicious. Oh I also have 5 different types of lettuce growing that I bought as seedlings, during an earlier trip to the store.

Surprises also were in store from the garden, as I have about 40 volunteer tomato plants that I’m letting grow until I decide how I’m going to arrange the tomato seedlings (currently still in-house) around them. The problem with these tomato plants is they’re bigger than my seedlings, but I have no idea what type of tomatoes they will be, probably 10 different kinds. If I get 10 different kinds from the volunteer plants, and I plant the 13 different kinds I grew this year, I’ll have 21 kinds! (I know, I’m not really actually terrible at math, I only chose to plant 2 of the types I grew last year this year. 10 old kinds plus really 11 new kinds equals 21- garden variety math ((is the math making sense now?)) !)

 

This year's garden so far

 

Most exciting volunteer plant growing in the garden is the pumpkins. They’re already pretty large. I keep having to pluck more from the garden, but I let 2 grow because it’s pretty sweet they grew with no encouragement from me. How random to have pumpkin plants growing all over my garden? Couldn’t have anything to do with my father composting an entire pumpkin directly into the garden, could it? No I doubt that, some pumpkin-loving squirrel must’ve planted some seeds when I wasn’t looking.

Side garden lettuce growing

So if you were paying any attention at all, you would’ve learned that if all goes according to plan I will have 32 types (give or take 10 types of volunteer tomatoes tbd) of vegetables growing in my backyard gardens. I do love variety. My garden is a lot of work, but I do love it. Nothing is more rewarding than eating a tomato (or other veggie) I grew from seed myself. If you have never grown your own meal, I highly recommend it.

Groundlevel, Beets in foreground, carrots in the background

 

Do you grow your own veggies? Do you have a backyard garden? I’d love to see.

 

The little helper taking a break...

Frankly, Me.

Delightfully Delicious Book

Currently, I am devouring the series by George R.R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire. It’s the series that HBO based their new show, “Game of Thrones” on. I am already on the fourth book of the series and I started reading in mid-April. Now that might seem like a small feat, but each book hovers around or above the 1,000 page mark, and I work, and I was away for 2 weekends in a row.

Now I’m not usually a “fantasy” reader, besides Harry Potter (Is Harry Potter even considered fantasy?) but the world of A Song of Ice and Fire is incredible, the characters are dynamic,crazy, and believable, and the prose is nicely written. I cannot recommend the books enough.

Frankly, when I overheard 2 gas attendants discussing books (true story) while they were pumping my gas, I was a quarter of an inch away from joining in the conversation and recommending A Song of Ice and Fire. I resisted because I don’t want my regular gas attendant to think I’m weird (it’s bad enough that one time I was a dollar short of being able to pay for my whole tank of gas at this gas station). BUT the next time I went, I made sure my copy of the book was displayed prominently on my passenger seat so he had a high chance of noticing. THAT my friends, is the sign of a good book.

Unfortunately I’m nearly finished with the fourth book, and the fifth doesn’t come out until July. Anyone have any recommendations in the meantime? What is everyone reading? Let me know! Have you read A Song of Ice and Fire? Are you a fan? Who’s your favorite character? Which storyline do you like the best? Do you think the HBO Series is as good as the book? Let me know this too!

Frankly, Me.

PS: If you didn’t know already, you probably have a better idea of where I live..

Reason Number One I am Lucky to Love Jon

Introducing my love, Jon. We’ve been dating for nearly six years, and he never ceases to amaze me. I’m pretty lucky, though I don’t always act like it. To consistently remind myself of this fact, I plan on documenting some of the silly, maybe a few of the major, and a bunch of everyday reasons why I’m lucky to have Jon. Guess where? Here on the blog.

Jon and I before his cousins wedding last January

So here it goes. Reason Number 1.  The Best Black Bean Burger I Ever Tasted. ( Were you expecting some sappy reason? Of course this first one is about food… it may be the way to man’s heart, but it’s also the way to Frank’s heart, as I get pretty cranky when I’m not fed properly.)

The other day I was at work when I got a text from Jon; “Dean’s coming over around 5 for dinner, will you be here by then?”

My reply, “Yes.”

Jon, “Good what should we eat?”

Uh really, you plan to have dinner with your best friend and then ask me to figure out the food situation…(insert slightly annoyed face here) Anyway a series of texts later and I was on my way to the food store to pick up some ingredients that Jon would then cook.  While having to run into the Shop Rite in the rain did not exactly please me, the end result did. Oh did they. Jon made the most delicious black bean burger I have ever tasted. It is definitely the best burger I’ve had since I stopped eating meat, possibly the best ever. Sinanara Bocca Burgers, I will never eat you again. This recipe is relatively easy (I didn’t actual do anything so I can only take Jon’s word for it) and so, so, so good, I am sure we, he will be making it a bunch for barbecues this summer.

Without further adieu, here is the recipe for Jon’s Frankly Delicious Black Bean Burgers*

(*disclaimer: when I asked where he got the recipe from he said, “I just looked at a bunch of recipes and then made it up.” So in my mind, it’s mostly his recipe)

Jon’s Frankly Delicious Black Bean Burgers:

2 cans GOYA Black Bean Soup
1/2 Vidalia/ yellow onion
1/2 red pepper
1 cup corn
3 cloves of garlic
2 eggs
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tablespoon of chili powder
1/2 tablespoon Cajun spiceChop up onions, garlic,  and red pepper in the food processor. Remove it from food processor. Rinse Goya black bean soup in a strainer under water. Then put them in food processor, and process. Take beans out, place in bowl, mix in eggs, chili powder, Cajun spice, and bread crumbs. Then add the veggies and the corn. Form burgers.  Place burgers on hot pan, cook on each side for about 4 minutes, Put cheddar cheese on top and then place in 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

Then put finished burgers on delicious whole wheat buns, that were previously toasted, Add baby arugula and tomato. Put hot sauce/mayo mixture on bread top, Bite into your delicious burger! YUMMMY.

This recipe makes about 6 burgers.

Farmland

Yesterday, my mom and I went to the farm where we have our CSA share, for their kickoff event. It was so exciting to see the large expanse of land with so many different vegetables growing. I could not be more excited about having a half-share for the first time. We got a little tour of the farm, saw what was growing and were able to dig up and take herb plants home. We already have a pretty expansive herb garden going with lavender, thyme, sage, mint, and lemon verbena growing.

CSA Farm

So the person giving the tour was the “head farmer,” a guy about my age. Small children kept asking him what everything was, I may or may not have answered before him several times, with the correct identification of said plants. Sorry dude, for my rudeness. Did I mention that I was that girl in class who shouted out answers before anyone even had a chance to raise their hands? Hermione Granger anyone…. I can’t help it, I just get so excited when I know the answer, I wanna share my knowledge with everyone, regardless of who’s actually listening.

We also got to take home our first little mini share. It contained: one bunch of red leaf romaine, broccoli rabe, broccoli, arugula (delicious already ate a bunch), collard greens, and bok choy. Not bad for an unexpected haul. I’m so excited to get our shares every week! It’ll be like a cooking competition where I don’t know the ingredients ahead of time and I have to get creative, with ingredients I never used before (i.e. collard greens). I get to be surprised every week by what’s in the share. I love surprises. Really, I do.

Lots of Veggies

But why you ask did we join a CSA when, we have two pretty expansive gardens in our own backyard in which I grow 32 varieties of a dozen or so vegetables (Garden Variety Math Post to come)? Well, I don’t think we can ever have too many vegetables. There’s a multitude of ways to preserve them for use in the winter, not to mention bringing a basket of veggies to a host or hostess when you’re a guest at someone’s home (even just a dinner guest), is a genuinely appreciated act of kindness… in most vegetable loving households that is.

So whose up for the excitement of my CSA adventures?….anyone?….any takers?… hello…. is there anybody out there?   No. that’s what I thought. Well, I’m excited.

Frankly,Me.

Sibling Debauchery

A few weekends ago, my brother Erik and I went to visit my sister, Cassie at college. She’s graduating soon and Erik had never been to visit, so we went. Overall we had a great time, we ate sushi, went out, ate or devoured some yummy crab dip, Cass and I went shopping, I met some of her friends I hadn’t met before, and visited with her bff’s whom I love. It was an awesome weekend of sibling debauchery.

That Friday night, two pretty notable things happened. One: I threatened to shove my stiletto up some drunk guy’s ass, because he squeezed the loveliest Lauren’s butt ( Apparently whiskey makes me very tough that and/or I have a lot of pent-up anger/frustration.) Well like the good big bro he is, Erik sent me and Cassie’s friend, Dani, home in a cab.

Dani, Cass, Me, Lauren, and Jessi

Second Notable Thing: Upon arriving back at Cassie’s apartment complex, Dani and I found a rather large brown dog. We brought him into Cassie’s side yard fenced in area, and proceeded in our state of slowed wits, not to know what to do. Once Erik, Cassie and Lauren came home, everyone thought they knew what to do, arguments followed, Dani sat crying on the couch saying “Nobody even knows his (the dog’s) name is Chauncy.” And that my friends, is when I went to bed.  I woke up the next day to a dogless apartment because apparently Erik had “freed him” in the night.  I am now beginning to wonder if maybe we all made up the existence of the dog- because after all the pictures we took, there is NOT ONE of Chauncy.

My handsome, single, older brother Erik.

HILARIOUSNESS-  is what a weekend hanging out with siblings will always get me, besides drunk.

-Frankly, Me

Oh yeah, and I was sad because Cassie pretty much ordered me not to wear a handmade seashell clip in my hair to the bar, and she made fun of me for my brand new favorite red high-waisted skirt. Jessi made me feel better by saying, ” Seriously you’re gonna take Cassie’s fashion advice, the girl still wears velour sweat suits out. Come on.” So I wore the seashell in my hair AND I got complements. See sister, I march to my own drummer, or beat my own drums, or march to my own beat… (whatever that phrase is) and people still kinda like me.

PS: When I spell checked this post I realized that drum is not spelt like crumb as in with a ‘b.’ I’m quite glad someone invented spell check.

Newly Yellow Shirt

On friday night, I used RIT dye for the first time. I had a white shirt (that was my favorite shirt ever when I bought it) that got stained the first time I wore it. How did it get stained you ask? Ummm, I forgot I was wearing my new favorite shirt, and I held a bunch of veggies cut straight from my nonna’s garden up against my body. Cucumber juice (the slime that leaks from the stalk when you cut it) left a daringly noticeable stain that would NOT come off.

So I decided, if I couldn’t wear it white, I could atleast wear it another color, which brings us back to the RIT dying experience. I chose yellow (specifically goldenrod) dye, made sure to put a cup of salt in with the mix so the color would be bright. I was so excited to use RIT dye for the first time, I totally forgot to take a before picture, but while using a stick to mix the shirt in the dye, I remembered photographic evidence might be necessary. So I snapped this photo:

Just as evidence that I truly did actually dye the shirt myself. Anyways, I’m not going to go through a step-by-step for this, because all I did was follow the box’s instructions. Except for the part where it says to stir constantly for 20-30 minutes. I would’ve been very bored sitting in Jon’s basement, stirring a shirt in some dye around. I lasted 5 minutes before I decided if the dye was darker in some places maybe the shirt would be cooler, and left it. One half of an hour later, I rinsed it out in the sink, threw it in the washing machine,then dryer and got a sweet perfectly dyed yellow shirt.

So you can still see the stain if you look for it, but I decided I’ll wear it anyway. What do you think of my newly yellow shirt? I’m obsessed with it as well as RIT dye.

I spoke with my grandma to tell her what I did. (She likes to hear about my crafty and cookish adventures. Before I could get the words out she said, “oh did you use, R-I-T RIT dye?” I was shocked was she clairvoyant. Nope turns out the stuff has been around FOREVER, and her and her friends used to dye everything; “Even if we already liked the color, we just dyed it again for fun.” I kind of, really like, love that I did something my 80 something year old grandma used to do with her friends, pretty snazzy.

In other news, did you know Michael’s sells RIT dye? Just be careful that you use cash to purchase it, as some computer hackers stole people’s credit info at many Michael’s across the country…

Have you ever used RIT dye? Have you ever dyed something using a ombre effect? I would like to try this sometime soon…

Frankly,Me.

First DIY: Flower Pots

Welcome to my 1st DIY. It’s super easy, don’t be afraid. I made the most awesome flower pots, from your basic $3-$5 terra cotta pots. I really love the way they came out, so I’m going to share a little tutorial. Even though I could probably just post a picture of the finished product, and you could figure out what I did, I’ll post a tutorial anyway.

1. First, I cut out blocks of color from old magazines (mostly Vogues, and Cosmos). It was kind of painful to cut the magazines apart, as I just love them, but I suffered for the good of the craft. Any expanse of a pretty color that lacked text was cut, and then put in an envelope with the name of the color written on the front. This part is time consuming but I did it while just hanging out with Jon and Dean, (my bf and his bf respectively), or while waiting for Jon to cook me dinner.

2. Next I cleaned old terracotta pots that I painted as a preteen and were therefore worn and ratty.  I used an old rag and water. I had to clean them twice, because after I cleaned them the first time, I put them in a flower bed on newspaper to dry, right near where my dad subsequently mowed the lawn and got grass all over the newly cleaned pots.

3. I took spray black board paint, and sprayed the bottom of the pots. ( As per my father’s instructions, I went all the way back near the woods in my yard. As per my own notions of not making a mess, I placed the pots  on old newspaper and then on the grass. Since I never used spray paint before I did not realize that the paint would get everywhere, EVERYWHERE. I guess that’s why my dad wanted me to go all the way in the back by the woods instead of on the patio.) Oh and I wore gloves.

4. After the paint dried, (like 20 minutes in the heat of the sun), I got my magazine color strips, and some Mod Podge. I put the Mod Podge on the pot, put a strip of color on the pot put the Mod Podge on top. I repeated this about 300,000 times (this is an extremely accurate amount), around the rim of all three pots. I chose to do each pot’s rim in monochrome. I thought it looked nice like this. I also alternated putting the strips horizontally and vertically.

5. I’m still currently letting the pots dry. Eventually before I plant anything in them, I’ll spray them with sealer (or make my dad do it). I’m unsure about the chalkboard paint half though. I imagine, I don’t need to seal that part, because we’ll be using chalk to draw on them at my sister’s graduation party. What do you think? Should I seal them too? It would stink if the paint ran during the first time it rains.

Also I made a pot with nothing but magazine strips. It took a very very long time, and I don’t really like it as much as the others. Here it is just to show you.

I really loved the (nearly) finished product. What do you think? Should I make more? What type of flowers should I plant in the pots? What’s your favorite way to decorate pots?

Frankly,Me.

Hello world!

Hello (internet) world.

It’s nice to meet you, finally. Let me introduce myself. My name is Francesca but most people call me some variation of Frank, despite my trying in highschool, college, and the work force to go by my given name. It’s ok because I realize, while I am a Francesca, I’m also wholeheartedly Frank. So call me what you will, Frank, Frankie, Franks, Franjessica, Francesca, or Steeve, just don’t call me a bitch, because that might hurt my feelings. Also avoid calling me Fran for the time being; when I turn 80 perhaps I’ll allow it.

So I’m starting this here blog, “To be Frank,” for a multitude of reasons, none of which include documenting a major life change. I’m not pregnant, planning a wedding,documenting my children’s growth (I only have a child of the canine variety), moving across the country etc. I’m just a twenty four year old lady, who likes reading blogs and books, doing crafty things, gardening, cooking, baking, watching movies, watching television- some lame and some awesome, hiking, shopping, impulse etsy purchasing, fashioning clothes into outfits, spending time with the people I love, and most importantly playing with and adoring my little fella, the one and only, puppy dog, Tex.

Some things to expect from this blog; garden ups and downs, recipes, DIYs, an occasional outfit post, random inspiration, an adventure or several, results of my following others’ DIYs, attempts at sewing and other foreign (to me) trades, tad bits of sarcasm, and of course lots of puppy love.

Stay a while, I’ll take your coat. And if it doesn’t fit me, I’ll even give it back.

-Frankly, Me.