Fall at The Lake. The sky is indeed that blue today.

Word of the Day

Servelence - The sudden lull in conversation that occurs at a table of diners when the food is served.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Packing continues. I've been consolidating things in the boxes I've been packing in the hallway but I'm going to have to put together at least one more box before I can continue with my packing...not to mention suitcases at this point.

I canned two last quarts of tomatoes. HTP and I will enjoy those few tomatoes that I didn't can in salads or on hamburgers. My pressure cooker/canners are all cleaned up and ready for storage until next summer. A friend of mine asked how many gallons of tomatoes I've canned over the summer. I'd never thought of it in those terms. Gallons? I suppose I have canned several gallons of tomatoes in one form or another this summer. V-8 juice, tomato sauce, tomato water, diced tomatoes, piccalilli relish... Gallons! I guess it doesn't add up.

I probably should have brought the hoses in last night...before the temperatures dipped below freezing...but I don't think they were harmed. I did drag the hoses and sprinklers all into the garage after things dried off and warmed up a bit this morning. I also brought in my last hummingbird feeders which have been empty for some time and only seem to be attracting wasps at this point. My windchimes have also been secured and brought inside. I'll miss the gentle sound but with only one week remaining, I can't leave everything on my To Do List until the last minute.

Random Thought of the Day

How the heck are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality.

- Jules de Gaultier

DD Daughter and Mr. T

Word of the Day

Seriosity - An amount of seriousness that a given subject measures.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Only one more laundry day before we hit the road. The urge to drag suitcases out of the closet and start packing is almost irresistible. However, I've started piling stuff into boxes and I'm busily working on my To Do List and Packing List. Stress is setting in.

The weather was cool enough today that I finally caved in and turned on our furnace...to 65 degrees. Sweaters still work. It didn't freeze last night but 40 degrees felt darn cold to me this morning. I've dug out my winter coat and donned scarf and gloves this morning when Gypsy and I took our morning perimeter walk. It IS supposed to freeze tonight. Sis told me that she and her hubby were planning on picking all the veggies from their garden. I imagine that my folks will have already hauled their container gardens into their green house.

Random Thought of the Day

I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Letting your customers set your standards is a dangerous game, because the race to the bottom is pretty easy to win. Setting your own standards--and living up to them--is a better way to profit. Not to mention a better way to make your day worth all the effort you put into it.

- Seth Godin

It's Fall!

Word of the Day

SEO - Search Engine Oaf; one who knows absolutely nothing about search engine optimization and other items related to Internet marketing and the dealings of Internet marketers.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

It feels like Fall. There are freeze warnings out for the overnight hours. Since I've already harvested all my crops, I'm not too concerned about the freeze warning. Today was a perfect day to start using the logs HTP and I split and stored out in the garage. It's been a dreary, drippy day which makes it difficult to get motivated. I'm enjoying a lazy day sitting in front of a very picturesque with my laptop. It's a major effort just to add another log to the fire.

However, I did make a batch of Mulligan Berry Jelly from some of the Mulligan Berry Juice that Sis and I canned the other day. Mulligan Berry Juice? Mulligan Berry is a mixture (a stew) of whatever fruit Sis and I have found stored in our freezers at the end of the summer. This year we even added some fruit from my Mom's freezer (from when her fridge died). Mulligan Berry Juice is a mysterious entity and changes depending upon what we find in our freezers. We've made it into wine, juice and now...jelly. If I remember correctly (Correct me if I'm wrong Sis), this year's concoction contains: wild cherries, wild gooseberries (ripe), rhubarb, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, and pomegranate seeds. After steam juicing it all, we ended up with 10 quarts of Mulligan Berry Juice. I used one of the quarts to make the Mulligan Berry Jelly. Sis and I plan to brew some of the juice into Mulligan Berry Wine next spring...however, we've decided to cut back on our future wine production. We'll still be making wine but it's a hobby. I'd like to keep it that way. So, if the Mulligan Berry Jelly is a hit, I may make a couple more batches of it next spring...but...I'll still have plenty of the juice leftover to make a batch of wine.

I've got a batch of pizza dough mixing up in my bread-maker. It's Monday night Pizza Night. We're looking forward to watching Big Bang Theory.

Random Thought of the Day

Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy.

- Rabbi Abraham Heschel

The Boat

Word of the Day

Semanticize - To start or begin an argument purely over semantics.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

With rain predicted for Friday night, I harvested all the veggies from my deck garden and disposed of all the plants. I made six pints of piccalilli relish from the green tomatoes and pickled three pints of hot peppers. I harvested and cleaned the last of the lettuce from my window boxes. #1 Son and HTP helped drag all of the Earthboxes and containers to the garage for storage and I gave my petunias and geraniums to my folks. The deck sure looks naked without all the plants.

Fearing rain, I brought all the fishing gear up from the dock and out of the boat. And...I was right. We got rain. Thankfully, it held off until all my outdoor work was completed. Unfortunately, even though we only had 1/4 inch of rain... My boat doesn't leak, but it collects and holds rain water just fine. HTP complained that a 1/4 inch of rain in a boat looks and weighs lots more than one would think.

We pulled out the dock and the boat. Well...the dock is almost all pulled out. HTP and I are going to have to hire some additional muscle to pull the dock entirely out of the lake. The darn thing is just so incredibly heavy and HTP and I aren't getting any younger. Even with #1 Son's help, we couldn't get the rolladock's wheels up and over that last barrier. The concrete steps by the lake. HTP had feared that we'd have problems with the boat but it wasn't really all that difficult to pull it out of the water and tip it over. The hardest thing to do was find a scissors to open up the padlock that HTP and I bought to get lock up the boat.

It was great to take a break last night, enjoying dinner and conversation with my folks. We'll be seeing #1 Son again in a week but this was the last chance he'd have for a while to see my folks.

Today? #1 Son finished up his laundry, packed up his car and headed back to The Big City. Me? I'm enjoying a day of rest.

Random Thought of the Day

There is a great need for sarcasm font.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

A vigorous five-mile walk will do more good for an unhappy but otherwise healthy adult than all the medicine and psychology in the world.

- Paul Dudley White

The Summer 2009 Wine

Word of the Day

Seethroughity - The measure of an object's transparent property. Often gauged between opaque and completely transparent, or see-through.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Due to the short time HTP and I have left here at The Lake this year and the incredible amount of items on my To Do List...morphing into my Packing List...blogging is going to be hit or miss for the next couple of weeks.

I picked 15 pounds of green tomatoes from my tomato vines on Friday. Despite how poorly Sis was feeling, she helped me get a batch of piccalilli relish brining on Saturday. On Sunday, I canned fifteen pints of relish.

Monday morning, I got a call from Sis' hubby telling me that Sis was in the hospital. Her bout of flu...wasn't. Pancreatitis. No fun...really....no fun. So, Sis wasn't able to help me bottle wine this year through no fault of her own. HTP stepped in to help out. Between the two of us, we got all the wine bottled by Monday night. Tuesday was spent labeling and getting the foils shrunk onto each of the bottles. I even quickly designed a Concord Grape Wine label (temporary) until Willie's creative genius unsticks itself. We ended up with 34 bottles of Concord Grape Wine, 33 bottles of Prickly Gooseberry Wine, 27 bottles of Rhubarb Wine, and 95 bottles of Rhubarb/Strawberry Wine. LOTS of wine! I had to use most of the bottles Sis and I had accumulated and recycled. We'll have to step up our recycling program. I'm already starting to think about my bottle recycling program in Arizona. Arizona wine-making will be commencing in about three weeks but, a lot depends upon my pomegranate tree...and my neighbor's prickly pear cactus fruit. But...I refuse to give any of that more than a passing thought. In the meantime, I've boxed up all of Sis' share of the wine to bring over to her place. I've boxed up all of Willie's share of the wine to bring over to Sis' place because I probably won't be here to give it to him. I've boxed up half of my share of the wine so I can bring it to Arizona. And, I took the other half of my share of wine down to my basement to store and age in the brand new wine racks that my Dad made for me. Thanks T-Square! You're a life-saver! The wine racks are beautiful!

I've only got two weeks left here. I'm still harvesting ripe tomatoes from my deck garden but I have to face facts. I canned three quarts of tomatoes this morning but I can't continue to can right up to the day of our departure. The deck gardens need to be put to bed for the winter even though we still haven't seen our first garden-killing frost. I plan/need to harvest EVERYTHING by Friday. Green tomatoes will be made into either relish or into green tomato pickles. Peppers need to be pickled or fried, depending upon the variety. Earthboxes need to be cleared of all vegetation and hauled out to the garage.

#1 Son will be coming this weekend to help us pull out the dock and the boat. I'll have to bring all the fishing gear up from the boat to store in the basement. Lots to do. Lots to do. However, I'll try to blog...maybe. Everything will get done. I know this because...it alway does...even if it means sliding into home base with a pair of skinned knees. And heck, if I had more time to get ready for our winter exodis, I'd still end up with skinned knees.

Random Thought of the Day

Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no Internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

America's greatest strength, and its greatest weakness, is our belief in second chances, our belief that we can always start over, that things can be made better.

- Anthony Walton

Word of the Day

Seductivity - 1. A measurement of one's ability to seduce. 2. A further measurement of ones ability to entice another by physical, logical, or other unregistered means.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Saturday is winding down and tomorrow is Sunday. The wine remains untouched in the buckets that HTP hauled up from the basement. It seems that life is determined to throw out obstacles in our wine-bottling path. However, I did get the piccalilli relish bottled today. I also made two loaves of banana bread. The fruit flies were circling around the aging bananas in an ominous fashion. I had to do something. I also hauled another four boxes of empty wine bottles from the basement. I also discovered that we only have 100 corks. 100 corks may sound like a lot to most people but having reviewed my label history from last year...we corked a lot more bottles than that last summer. *sigh* If...and I'm using the big IF...Sis is feeling better tomorrow and we start our wine-bottling project tomorrow, it may end up as just that...at start....to be continued at some future date....sometime between tomorrow and before the time HTP and I are all packed up and on the road for Arizona.

Murphyism of the Day

Cochrane's Aphorism

Before ordering a test, decide what you will do if it is (1)positive, or (2)negative. If both answers are the same, don't do the test.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Most people are bothered by those passages of Scripture they do not understand, but the passages that bother me are those I do understand.

- Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

Deck Gardens - Spring 2009

Word of the Day

Seagull - To enter someone's workplace, make a lot of noise, mess everything up, and then leave.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Let me count the ways. Tuesday was laundry and cleaning up my kitchen in preparation for bottling wine on Wednesday. Wednesday morning...change of plans. Ma's fridge died. Sis and I leaped into action. We spent the day cooking and canning. We made a batch of V-8 copycat juice from tomatoes that I'd picked from my vines and various things from Ma's freezer and odds and ends from Sis' and my crisper drawers. All this in Sis' steam juicer. Then, in my steam juicer, we piled all the frozen fruits from Ma's freezer, Sis' freezer, and my freezer. A mixture of this and that. Ten quarts of Mulligan Berry Juice...to be made into Mulligan Berry Wine...next spring. Beef and Venison was tossed into Sis' crock pot with a bit of wine, various soups that Ma had made and frozen.

Thursday? Today? I picked 15 pounds of green tomatoes from my vines out on the deck. Sis and I WILL bottle wine tomorrow AND start a batch of green tomato relish. Piccalilli Relish. HTP carried all six buckets of wine that we've been processing over the summer up from the basement so Sis and I can work on them tomorrow. We won't even try to bottle all that wine on one day.

Random Thought of the Day

The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

In religion and politics, people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second hand, and without examination.

- Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

Ms. En's new baby is bigger than her new brother, Mr. T.


Word of the Day

Scrumptuleasant - Describing a seemingly enjoyable treat that one consumes. But after the fact, one feels nauseous and wants to kill one's self. One with a weak stomach would find such items unpalatable.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

I cleared off my countertops in preparation for bottling wine today but...oh well, it shouldn't take much to clear everything off again on Wednesday. Sis was in a pickle, a pickle-making project and couldn't get away to help me bottle wine today. So...looking around me, I decided to mess up my clean kitchen again. I picked more tomatoes. I'll have to can tomatoes again tomorrow. I watered all my plants on the deck. I picked all my pepperoncini and cherry peppers, cleaned them up and pickled them. I decided to hold off on picking the Italian peppers for a bit. I've got some time yet for that.

I made croutons today which heated up the house a bit on a rather sticky, late summer day. I also baked a couple of loaves of bread. I've got to make some stew for Gypsy but I've got time yet for that. However...

Time is fleeting. HTP and I have about three weeks remaining here at The Lake. I've got to start on my To Do List. I want to have the gardens all done, Earthboxes stowed away in the garage and produce canned, pickled, or frozen by the end of this month. The wine all needs to be bottled, labeled and sealed...also, by the end of this month. That's just the tip of the iceberg floating my way in the coming weeks. The few days in October that we'll be here, I want to dedicate to packing and cleaning. HTP has his own To Do List which at times intersects with my To Do List. These intersects can sometimes end up in crashes which can cause delays but...it's to be expected. We do this every year and haven't suffered any fatalities...yet.

Random Thought of the Day

I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The secret of life is to appreciate the pleasure of being terribly, terribly deceived.

- Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)

DD Daughter and Mr. T.

Word of the Day

Snuggable - Capable of being snuggled; something or someone that is both snuggly and huggable.

Time to catch you all up on the events that I didn't take the time to blog about since the last time I blogged. Tuesday was Laundry Day...of course. Nothing new there. Wednesday, I had a dental appointment. Look, Mom! No cavities. Such a relief! Thursday?

HTP had an eye appointment in The Big City on Thursday. It takes three hours to drive to The Big City and, of course, the same amount of time to return to The Lake. As you all know...if you read my blog...HTP and I have been expecting to hear at any moment that DD Daughter might go into labor. We had decided that we'd drive on down to greet our new grandson whenever this major event should happen. But...you can't really schedule these things.

After a bit of discussion, HTP and I decided to pack our suitcases and the baby gifts and arrange for my folks to take care of Gypsy...just in case. Me? I picked and canned my tomatoes...just in case. Wednesday was a late night.

Thursday morning, HTP and I loaded everything into the car, took Gypsy to my folks' place and drove to The Big City. HTP had his eye appointment and I went shopping. After HTP's eye appointment, we headed over to pick up some photographs that we'd ordered from Walmart and planned to grab a bite to eat for lunch before heading over to HTP's folks' place for a visit. It wasn't long after sitting down for lunch that I noted that I'd missed a call on my cell phone....from DD Daughter. I'm not sure how I missed the call but when I tried to call her back, her phone went right to voice mail. Frustrated, and a bit concerned, HTP and I continued with our lunch when...my phone began to vibrate. This time, it was a call from #1 Son. He told us that DD Daughter had gone into labor. Sometimes it pays to plan ahead.

We headed off to pick up #1 Son so he could join us on our journey to greet his first nephew, our first grandson. #1 Son has a wonderful boss. After collecting #1 Son, who happens to be one of the fastest packers that I've ever known, we headed off to the hospital....the hospital located six hours from The Big City. We received a couple of calls from DD Daughter, en route, keeping us up to date on the events and finally arrived at the hospital at around 8:20 PM.

Upon arriving at the hospital, we raced up to the floor where we knew DD Daughter was laboring...and...they denied us access. I'm still a bit miffed at this. I think the nurse on duty at the desk was being overly negative and nasty. However, cell phones are a great tool. I think we'd still be sitting out in the waiting room if it weren't for our cell phone. We called DD Daughter and GI Joe picked up. Our new grandson had just made his debut! He arrived at 8:24 PM. They'd just cleaned him up when GI Joe came out to get us.

Welcome Mr. T! What a beautiful young man! He has a full head of blond hair. Eye color has yet to be determined but I'm betting that he's got the same color eyes as his sister, Ms. N. He weighed in at 6 lbs. 12 oz. and measured 20 inches long/tall. I'm not sure how big he would have been if he'd stayed in utero as long as he was supposed to but he proved that he's got a great pair of lungs when the nurses proceeded to poke and prod.

After spending a couple of hours admiring Mr. T, and chatting with DD Daughter and GI Joe, we headed off to see Ms. En, who was being well cared for by GI Joe's sisters. Ms. En was sound asleep by the time we got there so...

Friday was spent visiting with Ms. En and another visit with Mr. T, DD Daughter, and GI Joe and GI Joe's Mom. Mr. T. had been moved to NICU in another part of the hospital. After all, he go here a couple of weeks early. He's doing well but they wanted to make sure that he stayed well. We enjoyed more time with Ms. En and GI Joe's Mom which allowed GI Joe to spend more time with DD Daughter and Mr. T.

Saturday? It was time to head for home. #1 Son needed to be back at work on Monday, and Sunday would be needed as a day of rest. I'm glad that DD Daughter has such wonderful in-laws. GI Joe's sisters are miracles which I attribute to GI Joe's Mom and Dad. I know that DD Daughter, Mr. T. and Ms. En are in good hands. Plus...HTP and I will return to visit Ms. En and Mr. T. again in early October. I'm always amazed at how fast children grow...however, although I expect that Mr. T. will have grown some, I don't think he'll even notice our absence.

After an uneventful trip, HTP and I arrived home at around 6 PM on Saturday after collecting Gypsy from my folks' place. Thank you very much Mom and Dad for taking care of my Gypsy. My Dad was a bit upset that Gypsy had refused to do her business at all on Saturday but...not to worry...I think she was waiting for us to come home. She ran right outside to take care of "everything" as soon as she set foot on on her home territory. As we unpacked the car, she raced around the house multiple times but...we didn't trip over her.

We're home! I'm exhausted! We've got a brand new grandson!

Random Thought of the Day

Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have one.

- Leo J. Burke

GI Joe took Ms. En to the Fair

Word of the Day

Scrumpled - To make rumpled or appear falling down.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

The leaves on the trees are just starting to suggest that they're thinking about changing to into their fall colors. Our weather here at The Lake has been variable. Today is warm enough to think about digging out the shorts but it wasn't so long ago that areas north of here got an early frost. I'm thankful that the early frost didn't hit us here. My tomatoes continue to ripen. I plan to make green tomato relish but I'd rather not have to make tons of the stuff. Hopefully, the majority of my tomatoes have a chance to ripen before HTP and I hit the road back to our Arizona home.

Yes, HTP and I have tentatively decided upon a departure date. I won't add a new countdown ticker until hotel reservations have been made but we've got a date in early October in mind. Frost or no frost, my garden will be put to bed by the end of September.

In the meantime, HTP and I continue to keep our ears glued to the phone. DD Daughter could be going into labor any day now. We're keeping flexible and I'd pack a bag but HTP would make fun of me.

Random Thought for the Day

Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug.

- Patricia Neal

Giant Puffballs - 2007

Word of the Day

Scrith - The narrow lengths of paper one discards after removing the tear-offs of a package or envelope. Likewise, the edges torn off computer paper after discharge from a continuous feed printer.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Gypsy and I took a hike today. Gypsy loves taking long hikes. She's not to happy about how I tend to veer off the beaten path and into the woods. However, she's adapting to my vagaries. I very seldom take off on a hike without some sort of bucket to collect whatever bounty I might find on my hikes. Blackberries, gooseberries, puffballs. One never knows what one might find. Today I found a nice batch of ripe gooseberries, a hand full of blackberries, and nice bunch of puffballs. I cleaned up the blackberries and gooseberries and froze them for future use. The puffballs tasted wonderful with the steak that I grilled tonight for supper. I haven't found any more giant puffballs since the ones I found in 2007 but these small puffballs, though not as spectacular, are just as tasty.

Random Thought of the Day

More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Sometime they'll give a war and nobody will come.

- Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967)

The Log Pile in the Woods

Word of the Day

Scribline - The blank area on the back of credit cards where one's signature goes.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Three blind mice, three blind mice,
See how they run, see how they run,
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a thing in your life,
As three blind mice?

Well...they weren't blind and HTP and I didn't chop off their tails with a carving knife or the axe I was using, but, there were three mice. I want to assure you that no mice were physically harmed in this story. I can't promise that they didn't suffer a bit of mental anguish but...there was no tail cutting done.

The other day when HTP and I were splitting wood, two mice scurried out of the log that HTP grabbed from the log pile. The log had a hollow area. I noticed that there was one more mouse hovering in that hollow area as HTP set the log up on end for splitting. It was peeking out at us. After a couple of hits with the axe, the third mouse decided that it'd be a lot safer to make a fast exit from the log that had been its home. Off he scurried, right over my feet. Even though I was expecting it, I squeaked. Cute little buggers. I don't mind mice as long as they stay in the woods where they belong. I'm sure these three mice have already found another hollow log in our wood pile (the one in the woods, not the one in the garage), where they've taken up residence until HTP and I chop their home into fireplace wood....which...won't be until next year. At least, I don't "think" we'll be having to chop any more wood this fall.

Murphyism of the Day

Dolman's First Law

The first time you screw up a colonoscopy, your patient is a lawyer.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Silence is the virtue of fools.

- Sir Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626)

Old Grey Frog Enjoying An Evening on the Deck

Word of the Day

Scrapper - Someone who designs scrapbooks.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

Still no word from DD Daughter. #1 Son called to tell us that he's all set to hitch a ride with us should we receive a call tonight and tomorrow. However, he told us that should we receive a call on Sunday...he has to be back at work on Tuesday morning so...

In the meantime, I decided to continue to spend my time doing things that need doing. I made another batch of pesto and froze it in usable portions. I really do like that Chicken with Pesto recipe but it only calls for a half cup of pesto. How much pesto does one person need? I grated the what remained of my block of romano. I used a half cup of that in the pesto and reserved the rest of it for "on top of spaghetti". I'm not fond of romano cheese on spaghetti but HTP seems to expect it. I really don't think I'll need to make any more pesto this summer but should the need arise, I'll have to buy another block of romano cheese....which...probably won't happen.

I've been diligent in my goal of using up tomatoes without having to resort to canning. However, like pesto, there's only so much one can do with tomatoes before they have to start preserving them for the winter months. The blight has really hit my tomato vines hard but...there's LOTS of green tomatoes that will continue to ripen. And...failing that...I'll begin thoughts of making green tomato relish. However, we've still got a few weeks before the first frost hits...I hope.

If I don't hear from DD Daughter tonight...or tomorrow morning...I'll probably make another batch of Savory Tomato Sauce/Juice. I've got another zucchini that I should pick before it gets so big it might be mistaken for a fireplace log. Note to self...I was right to only plant one Earthbox with the four zucchini plants that I planted from seed.

HTP and I had Chicken Marsala for supper tonight. HTP wondered about the lack of potatoes or pasta but I figured we really didn't need the carbs. I served it with a nice garden salad.

Speaking of salad, I picked a huge batch of lettuce from my fenced, raised-bed gardens. The lettuce is finally starting to bolt. I may be able to pick a bit more lettuce from that garden in a couple of weeks but I noted that the red lettuce seems to have more staying power. The lettuce in my window box gardens is still recovering from my last picking but I think I'll be able to get one more picking of lettuce from it before HTP and I have to put all the gardens to bed for the winter and head back to our Arizona home for the winter months.

I was looking forward to a new episode of Monk, Psych, and Eureka tonight. I didn't realize that the new episodes wouldn't air on this Labor Day weekend. Who'd have thunk it.

Random Thought of the Day

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

I live now on borrowed time, waiting in the anteroom for the summons that will inevitably come. And then - I go on to the next thing, whatever it is. One doesn't luckily have to bother about that.

- Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976)

Soon to be, Big Sister En

Word of the Day

Scoopulate - 1. The act of scooping all but two of the many pills that poured into one's hand, back into the bottle. 2. The act of trying to get only one noodle out of a pot of boiling water to check for doneness.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

I'm trying to get everything done that needs doing before HTP and I get "the call" from DD Daughter or GI Joe that Ms. En's little brother is getting ready to make his big debut. DD Daughter called us to let us know that all signs are in place pointing toward the big debut within the next few days. HTP has gone off to get his hair cut. Me? I just washed my hair. I could use a hair cut too but...it'll have to wait. As soon as HTP and I get the call, we'll toss our suitcases in the car, take Gypsy over to my folks, pick up #1 Son (if the event occurs over the weekend), and head off to meet our first grandson.

I've got a bunch of tomatoes sitting out on my counter, ready for canning but, I'd rather have a few more accumulated before I start canning. The ones on my counter and be transferred to the fridge until the ones I've got sitting by the window are ripe enough for canning.

Murphyism of the Day

Barron's Law

When a doctor gets ill it will be in the area of his own specialty.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.

- F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896 - 1940)

Le Pew!

Word of the Day

Scirish - A person of mixed Irish and Scottish descent.

Woodtick Count of the Day - 42

I've got three more jars of tomatoes canned. This time I tried a different recipe. Savory Tomato Sauce/Juice. In other words, although it is primarily tomatoes, I added zucchini, peppers, and onion. The juice is very good and I think the juice will make a nice Bloody Mary mix. As for the sauce, it will make a nice smooth spaghetti sauce as well. I ended up with two quarts of the juice and one quart of sauce. I'm getting the hang of using the steam juicer. Clean up was a lot easier this time. It works best to let the steam juicer do its thing and then put the leftover pulp through my Foley food mill. My Foley food mill works LOTS better than my high hat when it comes to working with the pulp. It's also a lot easier to clean. Anyway, after putting the pulp through the food mill, I ladled the undiluted sauce into a quart jar and then mixed the rest of the sauce in with the clear juice and then ladled that into quart jars. It looks like I'll be canning about every other day here at The Lake. The tomatoes are starting to ripen faster than HTP and I can eat them. I haven't decided whether or not I'll make any more Savory Tomato Sauce or not. We'll see. I don't have all that many zucchini or peppers in my garden and I refuse to buy any. I think the plain tomato sauce will end up being more versatile. I can always doctor up the juice for Bloody Marys.

There's a black and white critter hanging out near our house....and it isn't Gypsy. HTP and I have had to rush around closing windows and doors a couple of times in the evening. Stinky little critter. Le Pew! I'm not sure if the critter is a Pepe Le Pew or a Drucilla Le Pew but there's no mistaking the Le Pew perfume.

The blight has hit my tomato plants with a vengeance. I continue spraying but it feels like a hopeless task at this point. HTP reminds me that we'll only be here for another month and at the rate the weather is cooling, I'll be putting my deck and fenced gardens to bed long before the end of that month.

Murphyism of the Day

Howlands Law for Physicians

You never catch your patient's cold until you're about to leave on vacation.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The Argument from Intimidation is a confession of intellectual impotence.

- Ayn Rand (1905 - 1982)