The Yearly

JWise Photo of the Day

One of our cactus in its yearly bloom cycle on the balcony of our apartment in Phoenix, Arizona

A cactus on our front balcony has been blooming for us every year for the past 7 or so years. According to the photos I posted in previous years from this unknown species, it typically blooms in early April. Maybe it was the especially wet winter or the extended cold beginning to the year, but for whatever reason, the cactus is about a month late in popping open this little gift for the eyes.

(Note by Ed. aka “the wife”: The botanical name of our cactus friend is Echinocereus rigidissimus ssp. rubispinus. We’ve had it for almost 10 years.)

Blood Spaghetti

JWise Photo of the Day

Hand dyed yarn with Madder by Caroline Wise in Phoenix, Arizona

MMMMM…Yummy blood spaghetti. A delicacy popular in Germany that goes well with Blut Wurst (blood sausage) was on the menu for Caroline and me this evening. While this is typically made of pig blood we had to substitute fresh chicken blood as that was all that was available locally. With a little vinegar in the blood and some time to set in the refrigerator, the blood was soon congealed and ready to be worked through our pasta cutter. In moments we have a huge bowl of blood spaghetti. Normally I would have cooked up a pot of meat, bread crumbs, spices, and blood to make my own sausage but time was short and we were hungry. Instead of parmesan, we substituted ground chicken feet….oh wait a minute, this is actually a bowl of yarn Caroline had dyed at home using madder – sorry about that.

My Valentine

JWise Photo of the Day

Caroline Wise playing house frau on Valentines Day in Phoenix, Arizona February 2010

Domestic bliss is the wife pretending to be the perfect house frau. What you are witnessing is a once-a-decade event where my wife, Caroline Wise gets into costume to tackle a chore she hasn’t performed during the previous ten years and gives it her all to see if she still has mastery over the mundane, such as ironing clothes. I’m not sure, but I believe this year should have been the “Clean The Toilet” event, come to think of it, I’d bet she hasn’t done that – ever. Oh yeah, Happy Valentines Day.