Hi Everyone! It’s time to stop and put the kettle on! Get 
yourself a cup of something and come back so we can catch up. As always and forever, home is what you make it. And that’s true even and especially in the time of Pandemic! We’re living through a very sad time for so many, our friends, and neighbors that we love. So let’s put on a little MUSICA, and sing along, and for the lucky of us, all that is not so good, becomes a blessing.❤️ 
If you like this song, go tell your remote that you want to see the old movie Without Reservations with John Wayne and Claudette Colbert! Have you seen it? Sometimes I feel like I’ve seen every good old movie ever made . . . and then something like this comes along and surprises me and makes me wonder what else they’re hiding! The stars spend lots of time on the train (you get to see lots of 1946 scenery) ~ you’re listening to the theme song now ~ how could it not be darling? It’s free on TMC.
We took off our storm windows yesterday. The doors are open now, the sun is shining, it’s about 68º, the wisteria’s in bloom, so are the lilacs, and the sea breeze is blowing fragrance through all our rooms. Sleeping is heaven! We’ve waited months for this! Do you believe that purple? Mrs. Bowditch, the woman who lived here before us, planted that maybe 50 years ago and I thank her every spring.
Why does fresh laundry flapping in the wind make everyone so happy? I don’t know, but it’s true. I think because we’re in love with
And we know it when we see it, smell it, hear it . . . There’s no place like home.
Have I ever shown you my kitty graveyard? Where Girl Kitty (in fact, two Girl Kitties), Bill and Man Kitty are buried? The history of my world.
Every spring I go out and move the debris off their graves and sweep them. Sweet little corner of my garden.💞
Days get longer, sun rises earlier, casting long shadows through the morning windows . . . Makes me run to get the camera.
Everything I need is here.
The sun through the leaves makes these shadows move and dance like sea water with the sun shining on it. Gotta take a picture!
It is so quiet on the island . . . Notice how our walk hasn’t been “prettified?” It is as it always was. Woods and dirt roads, potholes and all. Just the way we like it. New spring leaves, wild blueberries, beach roses, and the sea.
I thought you’d like a little ocean view this morning.
We’ll never forget this Memorial Day . . . it’s never been this quiet. No one came! Except of course for these guys. The ferry went back and forth to the Mainland but stayed mostly empty. We are all so grateful that people are choosing to stay home. It’s strange and we miss them and the excitement they bring, but we’re just not ready for it yet.😷 When all this is over, we will happily welcome them back with open arms.💞
We hung our flag as we always do . . . Everyone did, the island has gone back in time to how it was before it was discovered! Very 
quiet. We’re still coping with the virus. We get a new case almost every day, our curve, small as it is, hasn’t flattened. No stores are open, no restaurants either. The Island has always been a little cut off from the real world, but now more than ever. Actually it’s a lot like it is in the winter, when we have it all to ourselves, only the sun is shining! So we do what we do in the winter, entertain ourselves! Only now, we can do it outside. Usually my friends are working and we don’t have much time for fun in the sun!
XOXO
It was my dear friend Lowely’s Birthday . . . so we decided to try having a party . . . we miss each other!🎉 We’re all extremely virus-aware, none of us go ANYWHERE, except maybe every three weeks to get food, fully masked and gloved! We want this thing to end as FAST as possible, so we do our part by staying home. We’re the lucky ones. So many MUST go out, I’m sure many of our girlfriends too, are needed to keep everything running and to take care of the sick. I join with the whole world when I say, on bended knee, thank you for what you are doing.💞 
For Lowely, I asked everyone to bring something with a candle in it, even the birthday girl had to bring her own “cake,” and this was hers, a beautiful triple-cream cheese! Isn’t it cute? A true “cheesecake!” Notice she put her ring on her candle? We all put our rings on what we brought (mine was a Honey Crisp apple with a candle stuck in it) so we could join in on Lowely’s wish, and blow out our candles when she did.
This is how we normally do it . . . the birthday girl (OR boy!) blows out the candles and we all get our wish.
I miss doing what I would do for a NORMAL birthday party . . . setting the table, and making actual food too!
This is the view from our upstairs window. I learned a lot. I learned that a circle seems right and looks good, but when a person is in her chair, the person straight across is THIRTY FEET away. That’s a little too much social-distancing. More distancing than social. Hard to hear anyone from 30 feet! Next time I’ll do two rows, with ten feet between them and stagger the chairs. This would work at a park or a meadow too … if everyone brought their own chairs, their own masks, their own food. The smaller the group probably the better. I’m looking forward to lots of one-on-one this summer.
So something awful happened. I accidentally whacked my very first cup, called Little Things, on the kitchen faucet and chipped it. Joe tried to sand it down and save it, but the first time I poured water into it, a crack appeared, and it sprung a leak. It was the end of that cup and, here’s the hard part: it was my only one!😱 I LOVED this cup (I saved it, might put a plant in it or some pencils).
It was like an old friend, being my first and all. And “Little Things!” The one on the left is paper, my first mock up. I went around for the last two weeks moaning. Then yesterday . . .
I said to myself, who is in charge here? And made the executive decision to RE-ORDER it. Now, of course they won’t let me order 
just one ~ they have a minimum order requirement. And I started thinking that because it was the first, maybe someone else wants one? I told Twitter I was reordering it, and from their reaction I realized perhaps my cup had sacrificed itself for the greater good.😇 With one life to give for her fellow girlfriends. So Little Things will arrive in our Studio in August and is up for preorder now. Because this is a re-order, I only got the minimum, which I think should be enough, I hope. This time I’m keeping two. Taking no chances.✔️
Then I noticed one of my other favorites, my Bluebird cup, and realized, eeek, I only have one.😳 Way too precarious a situation. So I ordered that one too . . .
I remember painting for it . . .
And then it came in and I loved it. And it will do the same in August, and I will love it just as much. And all because of the self-sacrifice of Little Things.💞 If you missed either of these the first time, we are getting a second chance!
And last but not least, a little preview of my new Christmas book due this August or September, depending on when I get it done. I have a deadline! When I’m not walking in the morning, or hanging clothes on the line, this is what I’m doing. Writing, painting, drawing, erasing, and re-drawing. Thank GOD in heaven for erasers.
Am I having fun or what? Painting jammies!
I have never painted Nipper before . . . he was our childhood dog. I can still hear my brother calling, “Here Nip!” before going out on his paper route. Isn’t he the PERFECT 1950s family dog? Sweetest boy in the world. I loved painting him. I never realized how feathery his paws were, or how long his ears were. You get to know people when you paint them.💞
DamPanic or no DamPanic, my dreams never change.💖
Bye for now dear ones. Back to work I go! I hope you are safe and sound🙏, getting some fresh air, and enjoying this one amazing life we were gifted with. Learn the words to that song, sing it around the house ~ singing makes your heart lighter.😘 
Me and Millie. Jack would have loved Millie.💞
all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed. Now I get to start painting and putting it into my “good handwriting.” I’m thinking I’ll call it a Susan Branch Christmas Story. All the other titles have been taken. Would LIKE to call it A Christmas Carol, but that perfect title is definitely gone! It’s been lovely writing this book, spending so much time with my mother at least in my imagination ~ the book is about the joys of Christmastime at our little house when I was young, circa 1957, the oldest of eight children, and my mom’s right-hand person.
much every card and letter she ever sent me, my mom was a prolific letter-writer for as long as she was able . . . I pulled out excerpts from just a few things for this page … so she could actually see some of what she’s put out there all these years. She will never know, it all seems so normal to her. There, in the middle, you can see who she is: “Bye– your very own Mommy, Patsy, Popsy, Pooples.” My very own. That tells me she knew.💞
Making me hum old songs like 
while I’m thinking of it, my prayers join yours for the suffering, the poor, the vulnerable, the sick, and for those that have lost loved ones. Such a scary time. My tears join yours for the tremendous acts of courage, compassion, and selflessness we are learning about daily ~ and our gratitude goes out to all those who are sacrificing so much for the greater good. This is America. It’s what we do for EACH OTHER that matters. Be strong, as Queen Elizabeth put it so perfectly, “with quiet, good-natured resolve.” And listen to your Governors. Unless they are insane. Then listen to yourself, you with the common sense.♥️ The sun will come out, tomorrow.
from a painting I did of him with a rubber band in his mouth… she made this paper mock-up just to get an idea of what it might look like, thinking she could probably fix that rubber band if we decided to do it. But when I put this thing in front of my face it was so frightening, we realized that unless it came with matching ears we would scare everyone at the supermarket. Might even be worse with ears, might need a tail too. So, no … we decided we love it, but we’re never going to make it! Gone, but not forgotten!
at the top of my home page, click on HOME SWEET HOME, or I LOVE ENGLAND, ABOUT ME, or VISITING MARTHA’S VINEYARD ~ for more little stories, things you may not have noticed. I’m getting lots of questions about art lately, so you’ll find information about drawing and painting under ABOUT ME.🎨
My problem is, so far, I don’t have enough violets. They’re coming up in our lawn, but not very many and the recipe calls for 8 cups of unsprayed, pesticide free, well-washed, common wild violets ~ petals only ~ 
Eeek. Send your kids to do this! Wash the petals well, divide into two glass bowls, 4 cups in each, and add 4 cups of boiling water to each bowl. Let sit 24 hours. In the meantime, sterilize 1/2 pt. jars and lids (she didn’t say how many, probably 4). Pour petals and water through a sieve, pressing down the petals to get all the water and flavor 
from the flowers. Keep the flower water, put the used petals in your compost. Boil the flower water with 1/2 c. fresh lemon juice (no seeds), and 3 c. sugar till sugar is dissolved. Add one box (1.75 oz) powdered pectin and boil 2 more minutes. Ladle hot liquid into clean, sterilized jars, leaving a quarter-inch headway, put on lids, cover with water and boil for 5 min. Take them out and make sure they are sealed tight when cooled. “Delicious” Carolyne said, “Beautiful purple-pink color. Spread on homemade biscuits, toast, or cornbread. Enjoy!” Let us know if you try it . . . Thank you Carolyn!
