Daffodils are Blooming

Word of the Day

Beveragitation - The disturbing feeling of loss and bewilderment one experiences when looking into an empty cup or mug that they were sure contained at least another mouthful.

Cold! I finally set the thermostat at 68 degrees. This morning, I woke up to 58 degrees. It's kind of hard to get up and moving when it's that cold in the house. My workout clothes aren't designed for cold weather. I ended up wearing my sweatshirt over my workout top for the first mile of my four mile workout this morning.

It's another fire in the fireplace type day. However, before starting a new fire, I had to clear out the ashes from I don't know how many previous fires. I "think" I cleaned out all the ashes last fall but, I could be wrong. Regardless, it needed doing...badly. Plus, since I had a fire yesterday, I still had some live coals. I ended up having to scoop all the ashes into a metal bucket. The bucket is sitting on my front steps. I can't get rid of them until the ashes are well and truly dead.

Birds! Wow! My hummingbirds are back. My orioles are back. I even saw a pileated woodpecker today. Big bird. I'm going to have to re-fill the seed feeders tomorrow morning. I've had a lot of avian visitors.

A neighbor stopped by to ask if he could glean the stumps and toppings from our logging operation. I told him to go ahead. My yard guy has been helping himself to the toppings etc., but I'm pretty sure that there's plenty for everyone.

I know that #1 Son and #1 DIL vacuumed and cleaned before I got here to The Lake. I really appreciate all their efforts. Unfortunately, ladybug (Asian beetles)are a constant problem in the Spring. I vacuumed and vacuumed...thoroughly, and still they come. Oh well, at least I was able to get rid of the log debris that I brought in while carrying in the fireplace logs and the stray ashes, and the dog hair. The later three aren't nearly and bad as the lady bugs. I'll probably have to vacuum out my bathtub again before bathing tonight.

I hiked out to check on the nut trees that I planted last summer. It's hard to tell if they're alive or not. Things really haven't budded out yet. I'll have to check again in a few weeks when things warm up. However, I did note that they were all still there as opposed to eaten by critters.

Random Quote of the Day

Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.

- Dr. Seuss

Spring Wildflowers

Word of the Day

Alcohological - Things that seem logical only after consuming large amounts of alcohol.

I'm waiting. I called the roofing contractor three times. Nothing can be done until he returns my calls. HTP and I are going to ask him to give us a detailed estimate of three types of shingles. We may still end up paying an arm and a leg for the most expensive shingles but, we want to think about it for a while. In the meantime, to be on the safe side, we went ahead and stopped payment on the check that I wrote precipitously yesterday afternoon. I didn't sleep well at all last night due to worry about our roofing difficulties. I'll sleep a lot better when HTP and I can finally make a decision.

I boiled up some hummingbird/oriole nectar this morning and put out my three remaining hummingbird/oriole feeders. I discovered that I have LOTS of sugar. Plenty for making nectar AND jam this summer. Sadly, I haven't seen any hummingbirds or orioles since my first sighting the other day. Meanwhile, my seed feeders continue to attract lots of birds and a couple of stubborn squirrels.

Our yard guy stopped by last night to pick up a check for future work. He started on that work this morning by removing leaves from my borders. There are still a lot more leaves that need to be raked and blown but he didn't get it all done today. He also has other jobs for other people.

I've got a fire going in the fireplace today. It's cool enough to need it. I also spent some time cooking up future meals. The other day, I purchased some boneless country-style ribs. I'd decided to make a Moroccan recipe that I like. While I was cooking the meat with onions, lemons, olives and raisins, I tried out my thrift store purchased Rival steamer, making some brown rice. Unfortunately, it only kind of worked. It kept on shutting down. The brown rice finally ended up cooking but it took a LONG time and it looks over-cooked. I'm going to try cleaning the lime deposit off the heating unit but...just in case, I decided to purchase a brand new vegetable/rice cooker. We'll see if I can fix the other cooker by de-liming it. As for the Moroccan Pork, it turned out just fine and I'm eager to try some for dinner tonight. I portioned out single servings of brown rice, Moroccan pork and sauce, retaining one portion for dinner tonight and freezing the rest. I also portioned out two serving portions of Moroccan pork (ran out of cooked rice) and froze those. I'm going to eat well this summer. I've got some pork fajita burritos frozen from the other day and I plan to make some venison fajita burritos to enjoy and freeze tomorrow.

Kefir madness continues. I'm making some goat kefir milk which I plan to make into kefir goat cheese with ramps and herbs.

Random Quote of the Day

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.

- John Lennon

Bad Shingles

Word of the Day

Abolical - Something loathsome or unusually cruel perhaps associated with dire misfortune.


Normally, I adopt a live and let live attitude when it comes to the wildlife here at The Lake...unless the wildlife becomes a nuisance. The bird that decided to build a nest over my front door on the narrow space provided by the transom window became a REALLY messy nuisance. I had to drag out the 12-foot ladder to clean up the mess. Mud all over the window, building material all over the place. Bird dropping. Ewww! Sorry bird, you'll have to choose another spot.

Meanwhile, the estimate for our roofing project this year is way over what we were expecting....worst case scenario. Major ouch. It needs doing but....wow! HTP isn't happy. I'm not happy. But, we don't have a choice. We need new shingles. These shingles come with a lifetime warranty so, knock on wood, we'll never have to do this again. I wish our insurance had covered at least part of the cost.

And....full stop on the roof project. We need to do more research. I need to have the contractor give me a full price breakdown for the shingles that we picked out and on three other kinds of shingles that may save us some money. HTP is going to have to make the decision. It's not like we have a choice when it comes to who to pick as a roofer out here in the back of beyond.

Random Quote of the Day

"Life is like Stepping onto a boat which is about to sail out to sea and sink"

— Suzuki Roshi, Zen master

Last Summer....Right now it's too COLD for sandals.

Word of the Day

Acceptacle - A garbage receptacle that accepts all types of garbage - metal, plastic, glass, and organic.


It's been a long, full, day. I plugged in the Leslie Sansone DVD which uses a balance ball and....apparently, exercise, using a balance ball, doesn't agree with me. After a half hour, I thought I was going to barf. Maybe I should have taken a dramamine before starting. However, I did burn almost 300 calories. Was it worth it? Well...I avoided a LOT of calories due to the fact that I was too sick to munch on anything. I was barely able to keep down a cup of tea.

I took Kylee to the vet today. Sis came with me. Kylee had to have the whole boat of vaccinations today. She accepted all her shots with good humor. The vet is always amazed that Kylee still loves her. What can I say, Kylee loves EVERYONE...even the vet.

Sis and I stopped to see Ma and Pa. I'd noted that Ma needed a hair cut. I discussed this with Sis. We ambushed Ma and....we cut Ma's hair today. I figured that if we butchered her hair-cut....she would be forced to have a professional cut her hair. However, she seemed to be thrilled by our meager attempts.

Having not driven through the big city since last fall, I got a little disoriented when Sis and I were looking for the Co-op store in the big city. I turned right when I should have turned left. Sis doesn't drive so she didn't point out my error. Thankfully, the Co-op Store was still open when I turned around and finally ended up parking in the right direction. Why, you ask? Sis and I wanted to buy some goat milk. Kefir Madness rears its crazy head once again. Sis has once again started up her kkefir grains after I tweaked her bug. Plus, she discovered that she's allergic to milk sugars (lactose) and ....kefir milk. Plus, she's intrigued with the kefir sour cream and the kefir cheese that I've been making . Me? I'm eager to make some kefir goat cheese....and you can't make goat cheese without goat milk.

Next? Sis and I stopped and shopped at the grocery store. I must say that I was a bit upset that the grocery store didn't have any cilantro...other that the expensive organic stuff. However, I racked up some Gordy's gas points. Looks like I'll still be shopping at MarketPlace AND Gordy's this summer. I'm not happy with Gordy's fresh produce. The help at Market Place seem to be...unhappy. Selection for non-perishables is better at Gordy's is better. They have sushi but...it didn't look... fresh tonight so, though I craved...it wasn't worth the price. I may end up going to Market Place next time I'm in the city. Who doesn't have cilantro these days?

I heated up one of the salt-crusted baked potatoes that I cooked up last night for dinner tonight. I topped it with some Hormel Chipotle Chicken Chili and a dollop off my Kefir sour cream. Wonderful!

Random Quote of the Day

Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons.

- Woody Allen (1935 - )

Word of the Day

Destinesia - Going upstairs or downstairs and being unable to remember why.

After an hour of Walk Away the Pounds this morning,

I started a load of laundry, hauled boxes of empty jars to the basement, unpacked three out of three boxes of office and kitchen stuff, etc., started the freezer in the basement up and inventoried the fridge and freezer, hung the windchimes, installed the rain gauges, and filled and hung the bird feeders and...I'm looking at my first two goldfinches of the season. I saw a hummingbird too but I've run out of gas. Filling and hanging the hummingbird feeders will have to wait until tomorrow. I can't do everything in one day. And...there's a rose-breasted grosbeak. I'm so glad I hung the feeders.

I've got plenty of food so I don't think I'll be needing to go into town to grocery shop for a bit. However, I do need batteries. LOTS of AA batteries. Seems like everything electronic that we own here needed to have new batteries this spring.

It's been really gloomy today. I woke to heavy rain. However, there hasn't been any rain since and the weather remains quite warm. I still plan to build a fire in the fireplace for tonight. It's supposed to be quite chilly for the rest of the week.

I'm eager to start my outdoor work but things will have to dry off first. In the meantime, Kylee is eager to play...outside.

Random Quote of the Day

It's not a 9-5 job. It's an every moment you're awake job because you actually enjoy the work that you're doing.

- Jeffrey Kalmikoff, Designing for Community with Zero-Advertising Brands, SXSW 2006

Word of the Day

Abolical - Something loathsome or unusually cruel perhaps associated with dire misfortune.

Happy Mother's Day Everyone!

There's nothing like a warm shower in the morning. However, I'd prefer not to be fully dressed and loading the car during one. Thunder and lightning and rain, oh my! Oh well...the sweater that I bought in Ireland last summer helped keep my upper half dry along with the hat I purchased at the zoo yesterday. However, can you say Bad Hair Day? I think I'll be having one for the rest of the summer.

The car is all loaded but for my laptop and the cooler that DD Daughter will be bringing me this morning when we meet for breakfast. I'll put the laptop in when I mozy over to the Village Inn to snag a table in a few and the cooler in after breakfast in the hopes that the rain will let up a bit by then.

Once again, I'm sad to say goodbye to my grandchildren, Ms. En and Mr. T and my daughter, DD Daughter. I'm glad that I'll be seeing them all later this summer.

****

And I'm finally here at The Lake. Stormy weather chased me all the way from Nebraska and through Iowa. The rain didn't stop until I was twenty-two miles into Minnesota. And then, of course, Minnesota narrowed I-35 down to one lane each way which caused a massive traffic delay. However, nothing like Dallas. Frustrating, but....I sucked it up, took a few deep breaths and remained patient. The traffic construction delay...and by the way, no one was working on a Sunday, not to mention on a Mother's Day, added a full hour to my travel time. However, I arrived in the big city (20 minutes from The Lake)at around 4:40 PM. I rushed through some basic grocery shopping, just picking up the basics, and then picked up a flowering plant for my Mom. I could have picked up some flowers for her but...she's always preferred the living plants. After stowing the groceries in my car, I drove to my folks' senior living apartment in the big city. There's no way that I was going to stop in the big city...especially on Mother's Day, and not stop in to see them. They were in the midst of dinner but I know that they were happy to see me. I couldn't stay long because...hey, fully loaded car, coolers sucking my car battery, Kylee waiting in the car...but, I'm glad I stopped. I will be stopping in again later this week.

I arrived back here at The Lake at around 6 PM and promptly unloaded Kylee. "Dogging my footsteps" is such a descriptive and appropriate phrase. That's OK. She was so happy to be out of her kennel and FREE....FREE at last. No leashes necessary. I unloaded the car with Kylee at my heels. The groceries are all put away and my suitcases unpacked. The boxes will have to wait. #1 Son made sure my Internet was all hooked up. Yeah, I can blog and check email! And, I called DirecTV and I've got TV.

As for dinner....I have the ingredients but I don't have the energy to make anything. I've poured myself a glass of red wine, put my feet up and I'm calling it good. Tomorrow is another day.

Random Thought of the Day

Worry a little bit every day and in a lifetime you will lose a couple of years. If something is wrong, fix it if you can. But train yourself not to worry. Worry never fixes anything.

- Mary Hemingway

DD Daughter, Ms. En, and Mr, T - Sketching at the Zoo

Mr. STP and Mr. T at the Zoo

Ms. En, DD Daughter, and Mr. T 

Word of the Day

Caffeinatic - Someone who is a fanatic regarding their caffeine consumption.

DD Daughter's friend, Mr. STP, has a membership to the zoo so he got us all inside without having to pay lots and lots of money today. I like going to the zoo. I love going to the zoo with the grandkids. Ms. En and Mr. T brought their sketch books and drew pictures of the bats, the tapir, and the macaws. Mr. STP, DD Daughter and I took pictures. The zoo was really hectic today. Everyone and their mother decided to go to the zoo....including us.

Afterwards, instead of having lunch at the zoo, we stopped at McDonalds. I've decided to skip writing in my food diary today.  A visit to McDonalds is Reason 1.  Since we were close by, we stopped at Charming Charlies. I'm addicted to that place. It's a girl thing.  Ms. En was like kid in a candy store, only with jewelry and purses and stuff. So much to look at but you can't have it all because...where would you put it? There was a purse that I'd seen a few months ago and hadn't seen since so, of course, I had to get it. *sigh* And DD Daughter fell in love with a hat. And there was this cute kitty purse that Ms. En fell in love with. Mr. T felt a bit left out so we stopped to shop at Old Navy to get new outfits for the Ms. En and Mr. T. and Mr. T got a man purse (an Angry Bird lunch box). Fun was had by all and we even stopped for gelato.  Reason 2 for not writing in my food diary.

We met up again with Mr. STP at a place called Brother Sebastian's Steakhouse for dinner.  Reason 3 for not writing in my food diary.  Awesome food!  Great atmosphere. A bit spendy but I figured, I don't get to take my kids out for dinner all that often so.... Imagine my surprise when the waitress brought the bill and all it said on it was Paid and Happy Mother's Day!. Mr. STP seems to be a bit sneaky. I'm going to have to keep an eye on that guy. What a wonderful surprise! Thank you very much  Mr. STP.

I plan to meet up with everyone again tomorrow morning before I continue on to The Lake.  There's a Village Inn right next to the hotel.  I may skip my food diary tomorrow too.  Tomorrow should be my last day on the road. I'm hoping to see my own Mom to wish her a Happy Mother's Day in person tomorrow...late afternoon or evening.

Random Thought of the Day

You know that children are growing up when they start asking questions that have answers.

- John J. Plomp

Mr. T

Ms. En

Word of the Day

Abdicake - To give up the last piece of cake to someone else.


Got to the hotel I'll be staying at for the next couple nights at around 3:30 PM. I called DD Daughter to let her know that I'd arrived. The hotel room is REALLY nice. Perfect...except....there's this train. I don't care. I love the room AND the friendliness of the desk clerks. Bonus...they love Kylee. There's fresh cookies AND popcorn. Yum.

Since I wouldn't be seeing DD Daughter and the kidlets until closer to 5:30 PM. I decided to get in some exercise. Sadly, my Walk Away DVD's don't seem to want to play on my laptop. However, I did get in an hour of yoga and I walked Kylee around the block and a half.

DD Daughter brought me some See's chocolates for Mother's Day. I'm going to hang onto them and enjoy them all summer. Thank you DD Daughter.

We went to Outback for dinner tonight. I was great to catch up with everyone. Tomorrow, we plan to go to the zoo. Maybe I'll finally get some exercise....much needed. I may even slip in another hour of yoga tomorrow morning before breakfast.

But...for right now, I'm just too tired to do much of anything.

Random Thought of the Day

Just a word of advice. Whenever you're furious with your parents or you think they're terrible, just remember, you vomited on them and they kept you.

- John Green, Vlogbrothers, The Five Worst Places to Vomit, 09-04-12

Double Double - Little Jon in the Morning

Tammy, Sarge and Little Jon

Word of the Day

A crappella - Poorly, and without instrumental accompaniment.

Loaded everything in back in the car and after last minute pictures and goodbyes, sadly headed back on the road again. It's hard to say goodbye but I'm on my way to say hello to two more grandchildren this weekend who I haven't seen since last fall. I'm looking forward to my visit with DD Daughter, Ms. En, and Mr. T.

The drive today was NOT fun. The rain created flooding on the roads and there was almost zero visibility on and off from outside Houston until I got to Dallas. IN Dallas, the traffic was slow to no go with multiple accidents and flooded lanes. Thankfully, things cleared up for the most part, traffic and weather-wise after getting through the Dallas maze and the surrounding area. Word to the wise, don’t drive through Dallas after a rain storm. They just aren’t set up for it. My six hour drive turned into an eight hour drive.

I finally pulled into my hotel in Edmond, Oklahoma at 4 PM...totally exhausted and ready to put my feet up. Of course, putting my feet up had to be proceeded by a debate about the pet policy at the hotel after I was informed that there could be no pets in my room. What?! Then, after I told them that I reserved a pet room, I was informed that they only have four rooms that they allow guests with pets to stay in. I made my reservations ages ago and I specified that I'd need a pet friendly room! What the flaming....?! Yes, I finally got a room which they reluctantly gave me because it wasn't one of their pet rooms.... Needless to say, I will not be giving this hotel a good review and I WILL NOT stay here again. I also plan to lodge a complaint about the attitude of the desk clerk and all the NO PETS ALLOWED signs in this supposedly pet friendly establishment. I will NOT be staying here again. At least I got a room on the ground floor and it's only one night.

I contacted DD Daughter to have her call the hotel where Kylee and I will be staying for the next two nights....just in case. Yes, they are ready with a room for Kylee and me. Thank you DD Daughter for making the call and relieving my mind. I'll sleep better tonight, knowing that Kylee and I will feel welcomed tomorrow when we get to Nebraska.

Random Quote of the Day

When a thing is done, it's done. Don't look back. Look forward to your next objective.

- George C. Marshall (1880 - 1959)

Tammy Gets a Trim

Little Jon Gets a Mohawk

Dinner at Pappadueax

Word of the Day

Adoricious - The quality of being able to be adored. Used in place of 'adorable' which often tends to imply cuteness as opposed to the ability to be adored. Useful when subject or a quality of the subject is endearing, but not necessarily cute.


We had another full day today, starting at Walmart to buy the necessary and then moving on to the mall to buy the other stuff. Also, we were able to get some really cute hair cuts for the kidlets and I needed my bangs trimmed. Then, for a mere $3, Tammy got her nails painted and for $5, I got my nails un-painted. I needed to have the shellac on my nails that I had done for when HTP and I went out for our anniversary...undone...removed. I love the look of well trimmed and polished nails but for some reason nail polish and shellac tends to really wreck my nails. It's best not to keep that sort of thing on my nails any longer than need be.

After the mall, we all went to visit an awesome shop which I discovered in Arizona, called Charming Charlies. Tammy was more than intrigued with all the glitz and glam. She's such a girlie girl. Love it. Afterwards, we sallied forth to Target to purchase nightwear. Target has really cute kid clothes.

For dinner, we met D Buddy at Pappadueaux...a seafood restaurant. Yup...I had raw oysters. Love 'em.

We topped off my gas tank on the way home, removed the grandkid's carseats/booster seats, rearranged my multitude of boxes, dressed the kidlets in their new p.j's, walked Kylee...and, of course, everyone had to hug everyone and KYLEE goodnight.

*sigh*

Tomorrow Kylee and I will have to say goodbye to Tammy, Little Jon, Sarge and D Buddy, loading up the car and hit the road once again, continuing on toward The Lake. Next stop....Edmond, OK.

Random Quote of the Day

She was conscious that the things she did were the things she had always wanted to do.

- Zelda Fitzgerald, 1922

Little Jon, Tammy, and Sarge 

Word of the Day

Abdicake - To give up the last piece of cake to someone else.


I had a shorter drive today but a bit more stressful. Thank goodness for my TomTom unit or I would have been totally lost. I did get lost just outside Houston. I got in the wrong lane when I was getting off the Sam Houston Tollway. *sigh* Again...thank you TomTom for getting me back on track. My "detour" added a half hour to my drive so I didn't get to Sarge's new house in Texas until 4 PM. After hauling in my luggage and unpacking the coolers, we watched TV with Tammy and Little Jon. So cute to watch them singing and dancing with their favorite shows. Tammy showed me her toys and her new room. D Buddy and Sarge's new home is a lot bigger than their old home. Nice. Then, we took Kylee outside in the backyard to play.

It felt good to walk to the Blue park with Sarge and the grandkids. I really needed to stretch my legs. After that, we walked to a Mexican restaurant that is close to the new house. How nice to be within walking for so much! The food was wonderful! and I finally got my Cinco de Mayo margarita...Seis de Mayo. Yummy!

D Buddy, Kylee, me and the kids had LOTS of fun playing fetch with Kylee's Kong Frisbee and her footed blue ball before bed time.

We plan to go out to do some shopping and bopping around town tomorrow.

Random Quote of the Day

My theory of evolution is that Darwin was adopted.

- Steven Wright (1955 - )

Jasum and BBF1, Happy to Be on Solid Ground Again

Word of the Day

Abbonee - The agony or severe pain caused by attempting to stand or walk when a person's knees have seized up, primarily after a prolonged period of inactivity. Most commonly suffered by travelers using trains, cars, and planes as methods of transportation.

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go. After feeding Kylee, I loaded her and her kennel into the car. She was so happy! Over the years, when it comes to my relationship with Kylee, I've learned to put her into the car before I pack and load the coolers and my suitcase. We're going to have a long drive today so I'm happy to keep her happy and sane during this process.

Can you figure out the photo that I posted? I took that picture of my two friends AFTER their great skydiving adventure. Relief and joy to be back on the ground once again. I'm experiencing a similar relief that I've got everything done and I'm ready to start my journey back to The Lake.

And...as HTP headed off to work this morning, he reminded me that I REALLY need to check my Packing List one more time. If he hadn't mentioned my cell phone.... I sure hope I don't forget anything important as I finally head out.

***

And after over 10 hours on the road and two time zone changes, Kylee and I arrived safe and sound at our destination for the night. Fort Stockton, Texas. It was REALLY windy today so we witnessed some truly awesome dust devils. Thankfully, they stayed off to the side of the road. We got caught in rush hour traffic in Tucson AND El Paso plus we had to go through a border checkpoint (looking for illegals). Kylee is a good traveler but is a bit hyper now that we're in the room....to be expected despite a couple of stops.

Random Thought of the Day

We learn something every day, and lots of times it's that what we learned the day before was wrong.

- Bill Vaughan

The Oleander Trees are Full of Blossoms - Spring 2014

Word of the Day

Abacus - The process of baking an item for a person or group.

My intention is to take a full day for relaxation....as much as possible. I've packed everything that can be packed. My list of To Do items is completed. My packing list has everything checked off but the things that I need use today. I can't pack the coolers until tomorrow morning.

It's supposed to get up in the 100's today. Time to hit the road again.

Random Quote of the Day

There are a terrible lot of lies going around the world, and the worst of it is half of them are true.

- Sir Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)

Fun at the Zoo in Arizona - Me and Jasum

Word of the Day

Tangentalize - To go off on a tangent or bunny trail in a conversation.

My time in Arizona is coming to a close. I've been keeping busy doing the normal things that I do while I'm in Arizona. My friend, BFF1 and I purchased a membership to the zoo which we've been enjoying, sharing with friends and family. We discovered the joys of Groupon when it comes to adventuring. She and my neighbor, Jasum, jumped out of a perfectly good plane while I stayed safe on terra firma, cheering them on and taking pictures. I think I'll skip that particular adventure but there are a few similar adventures that I may try next fall. Over the winter, I kept up with Walk Away the Pounds AND Yoga. I managed to lose only 15 pounds but I lost two dress sizes so I'm putting this in the win column. Meanwhile, I packed my Walk Away the Pounds DVD's and plan to continue the program on my own this summer.

I also let myself get sucked into Kefir Madness once again. It all came about when I had a craving for buttermilk. Kefir milk is so much better for you and tastes a lot like buttermilk so I ordered some grains online and I'm back at it. Making Kefir-Leban, Kefir cheese and drinking LOTS of Kefir milk which I like to drink with a sprinkle of seasoning salt. I'm bringing some of the Kefir milk AND my grains to The Lake this summer. I can't wait to try making Kefir-Leban with goat milk. The resultant "cheese" is similar to Alouette cheese when you add garlic, salt and herbs. Yummy with crackers. I also discovered that I can make my own sour cream that tastes a lot better than store bought. Pretty cool.

I had a wonderful time here in Arizona but it's time to return to The Lake. I'm all packed and everything I want to bring to The Lake is going to fit in the car. I spent over two hours this morning, packing and re-packing to make sure everything would fit. I even managed to get ALL the canning jars into the car! HTP is thrilled to get them out of the garage. It was a close thing. Those last two boxes (out of six), were a challenge. However, I AM the Tetris Champ when it comes to loading stuff into the car. Of course, after all was done and Kylee's kennel and my overnight bag were brought back inside the house, I was dripping more sweat than if I'd done a Five Mile Walk Away the Pounds Express WITH weights. And...now that I've had a chance to dry off, change clothes, and re-hydrate, I wonder if I can fit in that large pressure cooker that has been taking up space here. Ummmmm..... We'll see. Nevermind, it would have fit but I discovered that it was a Presto. I'm a Mirro gal.

Random Quote of the Day

There are only two kinds of people who are really fascinating: people who know absolutely everything, and people who know absolutely nothing.

- Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)

Back in Arizona

Word of the Day

Tizite - Cool; Awesome; "tite" (tight).

~~~~

Needless to say, I'm back home in Arizona and have been here for a bit more than two weeks. Not long in the grand scheme of things and with all that's been going on here. The trip back from The Lake took almost a week. I spent two nights in Omaha visiting with DD Daughter, Ms. En, and Mr. T. While there we spent a day a the zoo. Nice zoo. And then, as a surprise, HTP flew in to join me and us. He hadn't seen the kidlets for quite some time and didn't have much time to see them before we had to continue on our journey. One night spent near Oklahoma City and then we continued on to spend a couple of days with Sarge, Tammy, Little Jon, D Buddy and Jessie. Sarge was REALLY surprised to see her Dad in the car with me. HTP was thrilled to meet Little Jon. We had a wonderful time in Texas before continuing on for one more night on the road and then home.

Home! Lots of doings here. Aside from unpacking, BF had lots of plans for things to do. LOTS! We had a garage sale that first Saturday, and then the Women's Expo on Sunday, and Bingo that same night. Not to mention that I ended up with cold...again...and so did HTP. I think Mr. T gave it to us. Aside from not being able to hear out of my left ear for almost two weeks, I didn't feel all that bad.

Meanwhile, I'm back at yoga AND I've started going to Walk Away the Pounds. Monday, Wednesday and Friday for yoga. Tuesday and Thursday for the aerobic Walk Away the Pounds where I "walk" for THREE MILES. I can do this and maybe, just maybe, I'll lose some weight while I'm back here in Arizona.

Cleaning. I did my best but ended up hiring a crew to come in and do a one time cleaning. My friend from church gave me the name of the gal that does her house. They're actually inside right now cleaning my house while I'm out here on the deck keeping Kylee out of their way. Kylee would really like to go inside and visit with them all. There must be twenty of them all cleaning. Wow! I'm shocked at what a thorough cleaning and how many are all attacking my house at once. My house will be REALLY clean and this is supposed to be only a light cleaning? I may just have to have them come out every year when I get home from The Lake. They've been at it for two hours and I expect that they'll be at it for another hour. My house really needed cleaning. There's no way that HTP will think I did this all on my own.

~~~~

Random Quote of the Day

Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling.

Margaret Lee Runbeck

One Last Night

Word of the Day

The ness - A series of positive or complimenting words that all end in "ness" like greatness, coolness, awesomeness, sweetness, sexiness, etc.

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And so Kylee and I have arrived at our last night here at The Lake. The car is loaded with space remaining for those items that can't be put in until tomorrow morning. My coffee pot has been programed for one final pot of much needed coffee for on the road. A final fireplace fire has been built and is being enjoyed.

I took Kylee to the groomer's today. While she was having a bath, a blow-dry, her nails trimmed and her undercoat stripped, I was having a relaxing pedicure at our little mall across the street and afterwards, picked up some last minute items at our local Walmart and lunch at Arby's.

And then it was time to say goodbye to my folks at their assisted living apartment...and that was really difficult. I won't be seeing them again until next spring....and then a similar goodbye to my sister, BW, who lives across the lake from me here at The Lake. *sigh*

Last minute details have been taken care of and will continue until those final items are loaded into the car tomorrow morning. Every item checked off my To Do List and my Packing List. BW Babe and JC gave me some more of the venison from last year's hunting season. DD Daughter has assured me that she'll keep my frozen items frozen while I'm visiting with her, Ms. En, and Mr. T...tomorrow night and the next day. We plan a visit to the zoo and a visit to the airport. I promise that I'll try to take pictures.

I'll try to blog but... If I fail to blog during my cross-country, 2,500 mile trek back to the Arizona home, I'll catch you up on things as soon as I can.

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Random Quote of the Day

Anyone who truly loves God travels securely.

Saint Teresa of Avila (1515 - 1582)

Fall Colors

Word of the Day

Tjuzs - To fashionably roll up the sleeves of a shirt. Also: tjuzing, tjuzed.

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I've been busily adding and checking off things on my To Do List. This morning, even though it wasn't on my list, I mixed up the pie crust that needs to sit and chill in the fridge before I can roll it out and make the pies that I promised to bake for tomorrow and the next day. Then, again not on my list, I washed and detailed my stovetop and my kitchen sink. I still need to do a bit more canning but, I just couldn't stand it anymore. Besides, I really don't have too much to can anymore.

I pulled in the hummingbird and oriole feeders and cleaned them...in my clean sink. I'm not sure how the wasps ended up inside my bee/wasp proof hummingbird feeder but at least they were dead. Yucko! I ended up having to clean the sink again. I'm waiting to pull the seed feeders in until they're empty. By the look of things, they'll be empty tomorrow. The woodpeckers have hit the seed really hard. They'll have to find a new source since I really don't have much more time here at The Lake and refuse to store the feeders away with seed that could mold. And...since I haven't seen any bugs that are bugging me (no mosquitoes) I unplugged and stowed away my Stinger BugZapper. There's LOTS of wasps out but I'm keeping my handy-dandy tennis racket style bug-zapper a the ready when I'm sitting out on my cushion-less rocking chair.

Since I was out on the deck with the six-foot step-stool, I decided to bring the wind chimes in and store them (now I can only hear the wind)...and then I moved on to the rain gauges. I plan to leave the temperature sensor out until Thursday or even Friday morning. In the past, I've been too quick to pull the sensor and then I have no idea what the real temperature is outside.

I brought the geraniums inside and stowed them in the basement service room. I had planned to throw them out but there is a possibility that they may survive the winter without water if they're in the basement. It's happened in the past. If they don't make it, I'll throw them away when I get back here next spring. We'll see.

Meanwhile, I emptied out the freezer in the basement and unplugged it. Done! I thawed out the steaks and will bring them over to BW's place tomorrow for our meal on Tuesday night. I thawed out the ground beef and made meatballs (also going over to BW's) for our meal on Monday night. I thawed out three quarts of tangelo juice...guess where they're going. Yup, BW's, along with three packages of my homemade spaghetti sauce (Monday night). Are you noticing a trend? Actually, some stuff I'm keeping. I vacuum-sealed three packages of ground beef and some lasagna, and I'm keeping a couple quarts of lemon juice and a couple quarts of grapefruit juice. Some stuff will keep. Other stuff....I'll either toss or gift to BW Babe, or #1 Son and #1 DIL.

I've decided that I've done enough for one day. The hoses will have to wait until tomorrow and I'll finish cleaning out the fridge after I bake those pies. That way I can bring a load of things over to BW's before The Harpist and Lord Douglas get here AND on the way back here, collect the garbage barrel and store that away for the winter.

My mind is really trying to do things in a logical fashion. I'm itching to load the car but that can't be done until Wednesday...or even Thursday since I've still got things that need tucking in and laundry to do with more things to tuck in. Oh well, this isn't my first parade.

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Quit worrying about your health. It'll go away.

Robert Orben

Harvest Moon - Photograph Taken by Willie

 

Word of the Day

Tubswizzle - To slide oneself back and forth in the bathtub in order to mix the extremely hot water with the cooler water.

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Six Days and a Wake UP! ACK and CRAP! There's so much going on here that it'll actually be a relief when I pull out of the driveway on my way back to Arizona. Don't get me wrong. I really love being here at The Lake but all the To Do Lists and Packing Lists tend to spike my blood pressure and cause endless nights of spotty sleep.

I'm packing. I'm canning. I'll start loading my car sooner than HTP would think necessary. I sit here writing my blog, feeling guilty that I haven't blogged since the end of August and, as the same time, feeling guilty that I'm taking the time to blog. I've got so much to do and so little time for the doing of those things.

Since I blogged last, I harangued my folks into a trip to The Big City to see Willie and his family. I guilted Ma into it. Yes, she was going to back out at the last minute but this might be the last time she gets to see Willie's daughters and wife. Ma is turning 90 in January. I brought Willie back for a short visit...really too short. He stayed two nights here at my place and one night over at BW's. JC took him for a wild ride through the woods on his UTV. Fun times. Willie took the moon photo here at my place. I'm planning on blowing said photo up and framing it for here...and probably for back in Arizona. However, maybe, just maybe, DD Daughter can paint me a picture of it. I'd love that.

I have a new tooth! OK. It's not a real tooth but it feels like a real tooth. It's an implant. The implant process started last summer and yesterday was the culmination of the process. I'm amazed at how real it feels. No tribble at all. My tongue isn't even flapping around feeling the oddity of something strange after dealing with a gap for the last year. I was a bit stressed by the sharp instruments entering my mouth but....I DID IT! No gas, no meds. OK...let's be honest, I thought I was going to go a bit crazy there for a bit...sweaty palms and all...but...I've got a new tooth and even though I forgot to bring my mouth guard in for adjustment, my mouth guard fit just fine last night. I will not have to go to the dentist again until next year. Yeah!

I made ten more pints of salsa from the last of my green peppers. I'm out of onions now. I still have more tomatoes ripening on the top of my kitchen table. I expect that I'll end up canning a few...maybe. Or, I'll end up gifting them to BW Babe. I already gave her all my remaining green tomatoes along with their vines....attached. This year was an awesome year for tomatoes and all my efforts to fight the blight paid off. I've put all my gardens to bed for the year and covered my Earthboxes with a HUGE, REALLY HUGE, tarp. I got fed up with the two smaller (free with rebate) tarps that I used last year and that the mice nibbled. For goodness sakes, what was I thinking when I bought this new tarp? It's big enough to cover my entire deck...and I have a HUGE deck. Oh well...at least it isn't too small.

I've brought the Acadia in for an oil change and a tire rotation. It's all ready for my return drive to Arizona. The leaves are starting to turn. Fall has arrived. The only birds at my feeders are the Flickers, the woodpeckers, the nuthatches and the chickadees. I need to bring in the hummingbird feeders but I'm reluctant to battle the wasps. LOTS of wasps.

BW and I will be attending a farewell dinner/celebration for a good friend that will be moving from The Lake to Idaho. *sigh* I made a vegetarian lasagna from some of the last of my summer produce. We'll miss him but have only best wishes for him. Then, The Harpist and Lord Douglas are coming on Monday (staying at BW's place) for a couple of nights. It'll be great to see them. However, I'm soooo glad that they're going to be staying over at BW's place. The Harpist and Lord Douglas are going to a harp exposition in Canada...driving. Both BW and I are going to gift them some of our summer produce and some of the Arancello and Limoncello that I made last winter in Arizona along with some of my summer wine. I wish I could have had them stay here but I've only got six full days and a wake up before I'll be heading back to Arizona. NOT a good time to entertain. However, I plan to make two more pies (desserts) for while their here. Lemon meringue and rhubarb. This I can do.

Meanwhile, in the news, #1 Son and #1 DIL have purchased a home...closing in November if the home inspection checks out. Happy Belated Birthday to Little Jon! DD Daughter's divorce is still processing. Ms. En has started school. Kindergarten.

I will blog but don't be surprised if there's gaps. Six days and a wake up don't allow for too much free time.

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Random Quote of the Day

The function of science fiction is not always to predict the future but sometimes to prevent it.

Frank Herbert (1920 - 1986)

Dill Pickles!

Word of the Day

Tellum - The complete opposite of a mullet; Short in the back, long in the front.

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BW Babe and I went to the Barron County Market yesterday. Very nice. We didn't have to wait until Saturday to buy produce from the Farmers' Market in the city. I wanted to buy some pickling cucumbers and some dill so I could make more of my Spicy Dill Pickles. I thought, last year, that I'd make a life-time supply of dill pickles but, apparently, my dill pickles were a "HIT". I'm down to four jars here at The Lake, and a similar amount in Arizona. DD Daughter requested more and HTP's brother loves them. I love them too. So, I needed to make more. #1 DIL's Dad commented, when I said that I made another 23 quarts of my dill pickles today, that I made a life-time supply. I made a similar amount last summer. Am I going to have to go through this every year? Who eats this many dill pickles? Oh well, I bought a bit more than a 1/2 bushel of the smaller cucumbers at the market yesterday and ended up with 23 quarts of my own Spicy Dill Pickles. I always add a bit of heat to my dill pickles. You can't find that on the shelf at your local grocery store. I also bought 50# of sugar at the market. Hey! It ended up costing 45 cents per pound....no limit. I have paid less but only at the opening of a new grocery store. That doesn't happen too often.

My life here continues as normal. I end up watering all the plants every other day. I pick tomatoes EVERY day. I've canned six quarts of seeded and diced tomatoes. I have 1 1/2 quarts of raw tomato juice in the fridge for the best Bloody Marys that you've ever tasted.

I'm not a vegetarian but I've been eating mainly vegetari1an meals lately. I made an awesome Zucchini and Potato Bake that I jazzed up using onion, mushroom, and tomatoes...no meat. I've made some awesome little appetizer pizzas using zucchini as the crust. And tonight, I enjoyed some guacamole with corn chips. Yummy!

It's Friday! Not that it makes much difference when I'm not cued into the working day schedule but....I am working. The weekenders have returned to The Lake. After all, it is Labor Day Weekend. #1 Son and #1 DIL are having a special event in the city for all their friends. I won't be doing anything special but I remember weekends, celebrating similar events here at The Lake. I was thinking about that. What will I be doing this weekend? I'll be bottling my summer wines this weekend. And? I'll be canning more tomatoes.

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Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.

Epicurus (341 BC - 270 BC)

Tomatoes!

Word of the Day

Tworp - Describing one who is a twerp and a dork or dweeb.

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Happy Belated Birthday to HTP! So much doings this weeks. I sent a HUGE tub of popcorn to HTP for his birthday. Not nearly enough but we'll celebrate his birthday again when I get back to Arizona in October.

Meanwhile, the tomatoes are indeed ripening with the heat and humidity that has returned to The Lake. I've been picking every day and have gifted boxes of tomatoes to my folks and to BW Babe and JC. I'll be canning...probably tomorrow. There's no way that I can eat all these wonderful tomatoes by myself.

I did cook up a batch of oven-fried green tomatoes and ripe tomatoes and some oven-fried summer squash this morning. No, I didn't eat it all. I saved some of the oven-fried summer squash for tonight's dinner. I'm thinking about making an Italian-style meal, using the oven-fried squash as a base, topped with spaghetti sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese with fresh basil on top. Mini-Margarita pizzas without the high carb crust.

With all the heat, I decided to get an early start this morning on watering all the plants, picking the ripe tomatoes, and picking the pole beans. The pole beans have grown so tall that I have to use my 6-foot step stool to get to them. I ended up with enough beans for a meal AND enough to pickle. Three pints of Spicy Dilled Green Beans. I love pickled beans. Even with my early start, I ended up "glowing" all over the place, having to shower and change clothes before I could continue with my day. Thank goodness for air-conditioning. Today was certainly the day for it as The Lake remains under a heat advisory.

On Thursday, BW Babe and JC brought Toby over for me to dog-sit again. Kylee and Toby spent a great deal of time while Toby was here playing but I had to stow away Kylee's more fragile toys after Toby decapitated one and spread fluff all over the living room. After that little incident, they ended up playing with the Kong-style toys. BW and JC picked Toby up on Saturday night....and I got two bottles of wine out of it. They really didn't need to bring a gift. Toby is a nice boy and a perfect guest.

Friday, I had my mammogram....not my idea of fun times but necessary. Though there is no history of breast cancer in my family, I don't like taking chances. As it is, I've had to have a needle biopsy which was NOT fun due to a questionable dense spot on a past mammogram. The result was negative but they still need to keep an eye on the area. It's been several years since then but I still feel uneasy until the results come in every year.

I've started to think about my return trip to Arizona with only a bit more than a month remaining of my time here at The Lake. There's a lot that needs doing between now and departure day. But, I'd rather not think about that right now. My cold is better but is tiring me out faster than I'd like. Things that I wanted to do this summer are going to have to wait until next year. Right now, I've got wine that needs to be bottled, more jam and jelly to make, tomatoes to can, and, and, and... I'm not ready to make hotel reservations...not yet.

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Random Quote of the Day

Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.

Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

Mystery Bird

Word of the Day

Tubarine - A margarine tub.

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Happy Belated Birthday to Ms. En. I didn't forget. I sent a present. She'll be starting school this fall. I'm looking forward to seeing her in October. Happy Birthday to my nephew, Mr. Lego Man. I got to talk to him for a bit on the phone this afternoon. Family is important and I don't get to connect with family nearly enough.

#1 Son and #1 DIL left early yesterday morning because #1 Son had to leave for a business trip on Sunday afternoon...again. While they were here, they picked the raspberries and cooked every single meal so I didn't have to do diddley. Nice...since I didn't really feel up to doing much of anything (still have my cold). They also rescued a tiny bird that banged into one of my windows. Poor thing. I'm not sure what kind of bird it was but I'm pretty sure it wasn't a female goldfinch. Regardless, it eventually recovered and flew away into the woods.

After my company left, I racked the wine. In two weeks I'll be bottling. I'm not sure if #1 Son and #1 DIL will be there to help me but, I've done the bottling on my own before...I can do it again.

Life goes on here at The Lake. I spent over an hour watering plants, a chore that needs repeating every other day...and sometimes every day. My tomatoes are just starting to ripen. I hate to start thinking about leaving here but...it is what it is. I'm glad to see the tomatoes ripen. Hopefully, I'll be canning tomato juice (V-8) and diced tomatoes soon. Whatever tomatoes remain "green" I'll have to make into Green Tomato Salsa and Piccalilli Relish. It seems like I need to buy some pickling cucumbers at the Farmer's Market too. DD Daughter tells me that she loves my spicy dill pickles and, apparently, HTP's brother likes them too. I "thought" I'd made LOTS of dill pickles last summer but, shockingly, most of what I made is gone. Eaten and gifted. I need to buy more Pickle Crisp too.

I'm making oven-fried eggplant for dinner tonight. I'm not sure how it'll turn out...it's an experiment using Shake and Bake for chicken. Smells good.

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Random Quote of the Day

I've grown to realize the joy that comes from little victories is preferable to the fun that comes from ease and the pursuit of pleasure.

Lawana Blackwell, The Courtship of the Vicar's Daughter, 1998

Fun on the Deck

Word of the Day

Tractionate - The act by which a creature without apparent feet will move from place to place, such as with a snail; this only applies to creatures that can move across walls and/or upside down. Note: Snakes don't tractionate - they slither.

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No sooner than my friends arrived on Saturday, I succumbed to a cold, gifted to me either by my sister, BW Babe, or Ma. At this point, it doesn't make a difference. Nasty stuff. However, with the help of added supplements, LOTS of water, plenty of anti-viral tissues, and cutting back on too many strenuous activities, I muscled on and my friends were VERY understanding.

While my friends were here (BFF1, Mr. Fix-it, and Le Chimiste), we took some short hikes, enjoyed spending a great deal of time out on the deck, picked raspberries and watched three Transformer DVD's that BFF1 and Mr. Fix-it's daughter, Le Chimiste hadn't seen before. And then, of course, we had to all go out and watch the Perseus meteor shower on the last night while they were here. It was a bit cold but the bugs stayed away due to the new Stinger (a bug zapper) that Mr. Fix-it installed for me out on the deck. Works great...along with the tennis racket-like bug zapper that takes out even the biggest bumble bee. Fun times. We got a few giggles out of that little toy.

While Mr. Fix-it was here, he took on lots of the To Do items from my list. After I purchased a new chain for our chain-saw and more oil and gas, he easily took care of the huge oak tree (double trunk). It had fallen this spring and while not actually blocking my driveway, would have given the snowplow people an excuse not to plow my driveway this coming winter. Then, he put up two new shelves in the garage and then helped move almost everything that remained sitting on the floor (bushel baskets, coolers, gardening supplies, etc.) onto the shelves and off the floor. Nice! My garage is looking WONDERFUL! He found a plug to cover the hole in the control panel of the boat left by the repair people because I was afraid the mice would find it too tempting. And, he installed The Stingerwhere it should take care of invading mosquitoes out on my deck. We didn't get too much of a chance to give it a workout but I didn't notice any mosquitoes while we were out watching the meteor shower. That's a good sign...right?

My friends left on Tuesday morning and I'll miss them. I gave Le Chimiste some preserved lemons and a Moroccan Chicken recipe that she seems eager to try and she gave me some stinky cheese that is incredibly tasty...despite the smell. I know I'll be seeing BFF1 and Mr. Fix-it this fall when I get back to Arizona, but I'm not sure when I'll be seeing Le Chimiste again. I hope she'll keep in touch.

With the departure of my friends, it's back to reality here. Reality with a cold. Laundry still needs doing. Garbage doesn't take itself out. Mail doesn't come hand-delivered to my door. Plants need to be watered. Bird-feeders need filling. And, Kylee keeps shedding. I did make myself a bit of home cure for my cold and I can feel the cold germs dying as I write this. There's nothing like Hot and Sour Soup when it comes to curing the common cold and even the uncommon cold. I made a huge batch of Hot and Sour Chicken Soup yesterday which I'll be enjoying for the next few days. Yum! I'm feeling better already. I took care of a small HOA problem for my folks' home in Nevada that is being rented out and I ordered propane for the tank out back. They already came out and delivered it.

And now? I'd better get downstairs and remake the beds with the sheets I washed yesterday. #1 Son and #1 DIL are coming this weekend.

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Random Quote of the Day

There is no need to go to India or anywhere else to find peace. You will find that deep place of silence right in your room, your garden or even your bathtub.

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

Word of the Day

Twinkidue - The residue on the inside of the wrapper that every junk food addict eventually gets to.

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I'm looking forward to having one of my best friends and her husband and daughter here at The Lake for a few days. I've been cleaning and prepping for days. Plus, I've had all the other daily stuff that needs doing on my To Do List. All the beds have clean sheets on them. All the bathrooms are clean and have CLEAN towels. I've got possible menus dancing about in my brain. In the meantime....

I made two loaves of 9-Grain bread. I went shopping...grocery shopping...with the goal of tempting the most demanding pallet. I even went out and bought the sweetest of sweet corn and the juiciest and best of vine-ripened tomatoes. I've got prime ribeye steaks thawing...but....also....bratwurst. There's nothing like grilled bratwurst with sweet onions and sauerkraut. So many options. And...BW Babe and JC offered their pontoon boat for an evening ride out on the lake. Appetizer night.

And then, today...I ran out to dust my tomato plants and water the plants on the upper deck. It's amazing how much water container and Earthboxes need this time of year, even with the cooler temperatures. Plus...I needed to do some "wining". Clarification. I needed to add the stabilizer and special "stuff" to the wine that I've been making to clarify the end product. It won't be long now before I'll be bottling.

Meanwhile, BW Babe called me this morning. We're part of the "Oreo Generation"...which isn't all that big of a deal...at this point... but, on occasion, issues come up that need attention. "Hello, we're from the government and we're here to..." ACK!!! God Bless America! Somehow, my Dad's Social Security check went missing. BW Babe and Me to the rescue. Thankfully, we didn't have to drive all the way to Superior, Wisconsin to take care of the problem. Thankfully, my folks moved to an assisted living facility that is serviced by a Social Security office...closer to home. Such would not be the case if they still lived here at The Lake. Thankfully, both my folks are still able to communicate (off and on) and we were able to add BW Babe onto their SS account so she could take over maintenance of their SS account...just in case...in the future. All this took over three HOURS but...it could have been worse. The guy who eventually helped us when our number was called wasn't too nasty and short with us. So...it's this bad at the Social Security office...and don't get me started with the DMV office....and BW Babe sat on hold waiting to have someone help her with my folks' Medicare problems for several hours...so....add on to this Obamacare? I don't want to even think about it.

I have a package waiting for me at the post office here at The Lake but I didn't get back home in time after "a day in the city" to collect it. I'll have to check the mail tomorrow morning before my guests arrive and pick up the local free newspaper, The Early Bird. I have a long To Do List before everyone gets here tomorrow afternoon. *sigh* The house was vacuumed yesterday but Stan came and mowed and now I managed to spread grass-clippings EVERYWHERE and Kylee felt the need to spread more shedding fur so...I'll be vacuuming again tomorrow morning. It'll all get done but I know my friends don't care if it gets done or not so...that's what good friends do...or don't. I can't wait to see them tomorrow and share special Lake-Time with them.

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Random Quote of the Day

Don't be discouraged by a failure. It can be a positive experience. Failure is, in a sense, the highway to success, inasmuch as every discovery of what is false leads us to seek earnestly after what is true, and every fresh experience points out some form of error which we shall afterwards carefully avoid.

John Keats (1795 - 1821)

Jelly !

 

Word of the Day

Tripendicular - Akin to, or the disorienting view one has while falling or moving as in an arc, or in a direction other than just horizontal or vertical.

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One of the most difficult parts of making jam and jelly is the prep work. I dug through my supply of jelly jars in the basement, hauling all of what I had upstairs (28 jars), washed them, removing labels, and sterilized the bunch. I set out my ladle, my funnel, my spoons, my bowls, collected more sugar from my stash, found my recipes, got the lids sterilizing in a small pot, got my timer set and at hand, and got the rings and the pectin in reach along with a clean dish rag for wiping off the rims....oh...and butter so that I wouldn't end up with too much foam. Ready, set, go...

After making two batches of Prickly Gooseberry Jelly, it became obvious that I didn't have enough jelly jars for the five batches of jelly I planned to make, having already used up twelve jelly jars. I figured that I'd need at least two more jars. I called BW Babe and she told me that she indeed had a dozen jelly jars that she could give me if I would replenish her supply when I got the chance (I'm going shopping on Wednesday...it's on the list).

Upon returning home with the jelly jars that BW Babe gave me, I noted that it looked a bit like rain. I decided that it would be a good idea to pick the raspberries while the picking was good. The remaining three batches of jelly would have to wait. Actually, I would have loved to postpone the picking until tomorrow but, rain and raspberries don't mix. I could just imagine the smashed and moldy fruit on the bushes. Besides, it's supposed to rain on Monday AND Tuesday too so... Thankfully, it looks like the season has peaked. I only ended up with two buckets of berries which I'll take care of tomorrow.

Back to jelly making. In total, I ended up with twelve jars of Prickly Gooseberry Jelly, six jars of Black Currant Jelly, and twelve jars of Raspberry Jelly. Plus...I had enough leftovers for sample jars of each to enjoy. I brought BW Babe a small sample jar of the gooseberry jelly to try. There's always that little bit leftover that doesn't fit into a sealable jar.

My kitchen is once again clean. I'd have made myself some dinner but exhaustion set in so I made do with some chips and the guacamole that I made the other day. There are days like this that you just don't have enough remaining energy to eat....not a bad thing if you need to lose weight.

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Random Quote of the Day

Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858 - 1919), Speech in New York, September 7, 1903

Juicing

Word of the Day

Tinger - A taste that is pleasantly sweet and sour like that of an orange.

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I started my morning with a project in mind. Juicing. But, before I could juice, I had to go down to the basement and bring my steam-juicer and the steam-juicer that Sarge loaned me upstairs. Sarge's steam-juicer was...not in tip-top condition. It looked like the hose had been chewed. I fixed it, removing the chewed part. As for the rest of the juicer, for some reason it was full of dents...even the lid. I fixed that...as well as I could, knocking out the dents in the strainer pan with a rounded rock and in the lid with the judicious use of a pliers. The clamp which clamps the hose so that juice doesn't flow when you don't want it to flow was....what the heck? I had to use my clamp as a model so I could figure out "what the heck"...using two pliers. I fixed it. I'm glad that she loaned me her steam-juicer because I really NEEDED it today and...I feel good that I was able to fix it so she'll be able to use it when I return it. As for my steam-juicer...it was fine. OK...two juicers, ready and useable.

I cleaned three trays of raspberries, saving the best ones for dessert and had one steam-juicer full of the remaining berries. I picked my black currants, mourning the loss of my red currants from some mystery disease...or old age. I ordered five new plants from Burpee's and I'll plant them as soon as I dig out the old ones. Another project for my friend's husband? I knew that I had enough black currants for one batch of currant jelly but I also knew that the woods are full of wild gooseberries...ripe for the picking?

After hiking the woods, I ended up with two buckets of gooseberries. Nice! It looked like the guy that mows my lawn got to some of my bushes before me but, he doesn't know my woods. Two buckets of gooseberries were plenty for me to try my hand at making gooseberry jelly so I wasn't upset with him, especially since I told him that he was welcome to harvest what he wanted.

I set up the juicers, one with raspberries and one with the black currants. The black currants only yielded on quart of juice (as I thought) and I added the gooseberries to that juicer, keeping the pulp of the black currants in the juicer to lend color to the gooseberry juice.

The raspberries yielded three and a half quarts of juice, some of which I'll make into jelly, some that I'll add to other raspberries to make a jam with half the normal amount of seeds. As I said, the black currants only yielded one quart which I'll make into one batch of jelly. As for the gooseberries, so far I have two quarts of juice and...the juicer is still working so...three quarts? I'll make jelly from some of it and add some of the juice to liven up whatever blackberry jam that I make later this season.

OK...by this time, you're probably wondering what the heck I plan to do with all this jam and jelly. HTP and I can't possibly consume all that I make. Not to worry, I never have any problems finding welcome homes for my jam and jelly. DD Daughter and her family, Sarge and her family, #1 Son and #1 DIL and her family, my folks, BW Babe and JC and their family, AND my friends. I'm lucky to have enough left for HTP and me after I'm done gifting. But before that, I'm running out of the special low sugar pectin that I use. I discovered that it costs a lot less if I order it online so...done and did. I'm set for pectin for the rest of the season...I hope.

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Random Quote of the Day

Strive for excellence, not perfection.

H. Jackson Brown Jr., O Magazine, December 2003

RASPBERRIES
Four Minus One Equals Three

Word of the Day

Transvert - A psychological type that alternates between introversion and extraversion and combines features of both types.

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I picked the boat up from the repair place in Hayward yesterday. It's fixed. Now, I have bruises that I didn't have before that event. Actually, towing the boat from Hayward to The Lake wasn't that big a deal...aside from the hour that it takes to drive to Hayward and the hour driving back. The problems came about when I unhitched the boat and tried to muscle the boat around so that it would be lined up and easy (easier) to push into the garage for storage. That bugger boat is HUGE and HEAVY. Patting myself on the back, I did manage it but ended up getting stung by a wasp for my troubles. No...I didn't push it into the garage all by my lonesome. I'm not that strong.

BW Babe and JC returned early from their trip to The Big City so JC helped me muscle the boat into the garage when they came to pick up Toby. It was LOTS easier to move the boat with the added help. The help deserved the wine and the beer that I served. The boat is going to stay in the garage now until next season. I consulted with #1 Son and #1 DIL and they don't think that they'll be visiting here at The Lake for more than two more weekends....hardly worth the expense of launching the boat and having it winterized. To be a bit girly...I must say that the new throttle looks nice. However, I'm going to have to figure out what to do with the hole that remains from the old throttle. My friend's husband likes to figure this sort of thing out so I'll add it to the To Do List that he wanted me to make for him. They'll be here next weekend.

I picked FIVE full buckets of raspberries today. The humidity, despite lower temperatures, makes berry picking a VERY tiring activity. I ended up having to divide the project into five sessions, separated by a short time to dry off and re-hydrate. It took me lots longer today than I was expecting. The currants didn't get picked and they won't get picked today. I'm just too tired. I called BW Babe and told her that she could have one of the trays of raspberries that I picked. JC came right over and picked it up. Five buckets of berries fill four large trays. I'll have to get busy cleaning my three remaining trays...I'll get right on it....later....maybe tomorrow. I plan to bring my steam-juicer up from the basement and juice the raspberries, the currants, and...eventually, the gooseberries (when I find the time to get out and pick).

Berry-picking wasn't the only thing that I did today. I fertilized and watered my tomato plants on the lower deck and watered all the plants on the upper deck AND picked some more beans and my very first large ripe tomato. I'm pleased that I only had to pick off four green tomatoes with blossom end rot and dispose of them. I think those already had the problem before I treated the tomatoes with the hydrated lime. None of the newer ones on those plants are showing signs of the disease. There is some blight but not as much as I had last year. I'm hoping that fertilizing will boost the plants' strength enough to battle the problem...along with my dusting. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to enjoying lots of ripe tomatoes this year.

I'm going to nosh on guacamole (BW gave me a couple of avocados that really needed using) and ceviche (also from BW Babe). I'm just too tired and hot to make too much for dinner tonight.

Random Quote of the Day

Give me the luxuries of life and I will willingly do without the necessities.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1869 - 1959)