My new robot friend

I am always looking for new ways to keep my house cleaner. Sometimes I win and my house looks pretty good, but often the dirt and clutter get the best of me.

That is why I want to introduce you to my favorite cleaning tool. It is my Roomba, cleaning robot. I love this little machine. I just got a new one and it is even better than my old one. This one gets over area rugs, is a little quieter and I am very happy to have it. It is like a little friend I let loose on a new room each night.

We have a two story house and the upstairs is only used when we have company. I will admit I have closed it up and not even ventured up there for weeks. It can get very musty between cleanings. With the Roomba, that doesn't have to happen.

I just take it to a new room each evening and press a button. I still need my regular vacuum cleaner but this really helps to keep things clean. I also use it in my bedroom. It cleans the room while I take a shower. I love it.

If you don't have one, you would probably love it -- unless you are a person who always gets to everything in a timely manner. I on the other hand need all the help I can get.

Time out for tea

Today was just the perfect day to try the new tea room in town. Really any day would be a good day to go. It is not just a tea room, but a real experience. Newnan really needed a good tea room and Linda Rivers, has done a wonderful job with her authentic English tea room. This one has everything -- atmosphere, good tea and good food. I think one of the best things is that Rivers is an authentic English woman herself.

My friend Angela has been a few times and has talked it and featured it on her blog, so I was really anticipating my visit. When she suggested we go today, I was really pleased and she didn't have to ask me twice. Our friend Debby agreed to go, too, and we really had a wonderful lunch. Soon I would love to go for afternoon tea.

I was so excited that I forgot my camera. I had to take cell phone photos, so I don't have any inside shots but take my word for it. You have to go. It's not just for the ladies either. There were several gentlemen there, too and the menu is versatile enough for any appetite.


I loved the teapots with their cozies, the tea was excellent and my gourmet lunch (I chose the light lunch with soup and salad) was just perfect.

I can't wait to return. It really brightened an otherwise dreary day.

Early peas and greens

We've spent the last few days waiting for the rain to get to us. According to the weather reports we should be getting the same rainy weather that Texas has been getting the last few days. We did see a little bit of rain, but not quite as much as we need.

Even without the rain we are seeing some positive progress. In the center, above the kale is doing well and there are some turnip and spinach coming up, though you can't tell what is spinach and what is grass. On the right, next to the butter pea row is a row of English peas. It is hard to see the broccoli and cauliflower on the right side of the butter peas.

The turnips above will certainly have to be thinned.

I am very excited about the beets, above. I have never grown beets before.

As I finished taking these photos, the rain started falling again so, hopefully we will get enough to make everything spring up.

Tomorrow evening, I will be picking the grass from the rows. I will have to do this until things grow tall enough to mulch. I really hate that grass.

A walk through the past

I knew I would love this Grantville store before I ever visited. (A couple of years back it was a feature in Newnan-Coweta Magazine and I always meant to go but never made the time.) I couldn't wait to see it and take a nostalgic walk through the past. The store is named Reuse the Past and the goal of the Palmer's of Grantville is to reuse and restore things that would normally be destroyed.

Palmer salvages and sells things he finds from old homes that are being demolished to make way for new things. Talking to him, you can tell he is on a mission. He feels it is a shame to trash all these vintage items. It is also enjoyable to hear him talk about the history of all the old objects.

The building itself is an old hosiery mill that is filled to the brink with all kinds of things that are waiting to be restored or re purposed. Today I want to take you on a pictorial tour.

Outside there was huge prickly pear cactus. Most don't know that the fruit, growing nicely on this cactus, makes tasty jelly. Mr. Palmer offered me a cutting and I thought about taking him up on the offer but, cactus and I just don't get along. If I go anywhere near a cactus, the thorns seem to jump out and attack me. It is uncanny.

There are so many things that can be reused, like these old doorknobs.

If you go, don't wear your nicest clothes because you may need to dig a bit to come up with what you need.

There are frames, signs and old light fixtures.

And great windows and old shutters. These windows are really wonderful.

Many of the old, solid wooden doors are from local demolitions.

Old fireplace mantels, molding and wood are stacked everywhere.

Old stained glass, dishes and piles of windows line one side of the building.

Spindles and spools that may be from the old hosiery mill.

There were photos and mementos from old Newnan homes.

Old tiles with examples of how they can be reused.

Palmer also collects pottery from Georgia and Alabama.

Can you see why this is my favorite place in Grantville?

A visit to Grantville

The other day I was asked to to come along on a visit to Grantville, a town in my county. I might have been there once, a very long time ago, but I didn't remember it at all. After seeing it with fresh eyes, I honestly thought it is a place with great potential.

Coming into town, there was evidence of growth with subdivisions, businesses and potential businesses popping up along the highway. Turning off the highway, we saw plenty of vintage homes surrounding a downtown area that was larger than I expected. There were a number of businesses downtown and I thought there was a special charm about the quaint town.

We had an enjoyable lunch at Nick's Pizza (I forgot to take a photo!) and then had a tour of the town. They have a number of events going on periodically, including events for Halloween and Christmas. There is a newly renovated antique theater, a newly constructed ball park and a number of new businesses.

We visited a gift/antique furniture store, and walked past a couple of unopened thrift stores and a downtown convenience store. There were even a few shops that had opened this summer and which sounds promising in this economy.

I felt this town should do well after the new grocery store (slated to begin construction after the economy improves a bit) and health clinic are opened. I would think it would keep the folks in town for shopping. With the antebellum homes and old store fronts, it is worth a bit of your time just to visit.

Tomorrow -- my favorite shop in Grantville.

Preparing for fall with tea

I don't want to rush cool weather, but I think it is time to get out my favorite fall dishes and things. I know I am not the only one who enjoys the pleasant weather that fall brings. I also love the beautiful leaves, football games, and wearing cozy sweaters, but I think my favorite fall treat is tea. Tea is always a good idea, but it is even better on a cool day.

The one tea I must keep in my cupboards is Celestial Seasoning's India Spice Chai -- not because it is my favorite, but because it is my husband's favorite. I like to mix up my tea choices and will drink everything from a good strong black tea and flavored green teas, to herbal tea, but my husband always says, "Make me some of that chai." He really loves it. I also keep a selection of Republic of Tea brands and I must have Tazo teas. Something I can't stand are teas made with anise.

As far as fall china and dishes go, I really love to get out my Old Mill, Johnson Brothers tea cups and saucers. I don't have a whole set, but they just look like fall to me. I love to use them and I love the deep saucers. I really like the size and the way they feel. I enjoy making a pot of tea in my brown Betty and sip several cups in the evening.

Last year I forgot to get out some of my fall serving dishes and I don't want to repeat that. It's probably why I may be getting them out a little earlier than necessary, but I really want to enjoy them longer this year. I have some colorful leaf-patterned serving dishes that need to be used.

I also need to make a trip to the grocery store because I am sure I will need some more Chai.

Continuing the havesting

In addition to planting for fall, we are in the process of gathering the end of summer bounty. We only are getting a few tomatoes from time to time, but we really have the peppers. We are still picking some green beans and our butter beans are coming in, not quite as plentiful as I thought they would be. We are getting a few squash from our new squash plants, too but not very many -- maybe a couple a week which is not very good. We still are getting okra, too, more since we put up the fence.

Our peppers are beginning to turn red. Our sweet peppers are very sweet and flavorful while our hot peppers seem to be getting hotter as the summer progresses. We are still getting some good things from our garden but the summer harvest is almost done.