Loving these temperatures.

Not.

What? 

Did you think I meant that? 

Give yourself a shake.

I mean, it’s (was) a beautiful day out.  It’s sunny.  Gotta wear shades.  But flippin’ cold.

Matter of fact,  if the Buffalo Weather Dude puts up a map of Canada to explain all the temperatures,  then you know it’s worth a mention.  Most times, the weather report in the States is only the lower 48, with Canada being this big space up there.  Nothing to see there folks, just move along. 

I could do a whole thing on blinkered thinking when it comes to the “American News”.   You can deduce what I might be inferring from the use of those quotation marks.  And that’s all I’ll say about that.   Don’t need no hate mail.

 

Speaking of shades…(did you like that one?)

 

Got a call from the distributor letting me know that our new shades had arrived.  Thought I was in a time warp.  Had to go back and check the date on our correspondence and sure enough,  I had ordered these things exactly a week ago.   And it’s a custom order!  I guess things are slow this time of year? 

That’s just crazy.  It’s usually “four to six weeks”,  so I just figured “OK then,  it’ll be April.  No big deal.”

 

Getting so a feller can’t even count on people taking their sweet time.  Don’t get me wrong,  I hate calling up and asking where the heck my order is,  so it’s not like I’m complaining.  

Turns out I had soup on the stove when I got the call,  but that’s not such a big deal,  since I just shut it off and fired it up again when I got home.  I wasn’t gone long enough for it to even cool down much lower than scalding.

Figured I should start in using some of the noodles that Travelling Companion bought from the church Ladies on Sunday.

Do you think we have enough?

 

The last time,  she bought ONE bag,  and I thought that was plenty.  These are home made noodles.  I have a vague idea how to make home made noodles,  but I haven’t a clue how they get them so tiny.  Seriously.  In some restaurants you’d call it “Angel Hair”. They’re mighty fine,  in more ways than one.

Geez,  the puns are just a flowin’ ain’t they?

 

It’s a good day for soup.  And it’s another of those easy meals.  Never was much of a cook.

Which might explain why I just might have overdone it in the noodle department. Damned things always swell up more than I count on.

Still good though, even though it was more like gorp.  That might not be an accurate term.  “goop”?  “stew”?  It was a bit thick.

 

Are there many TV watchers out there I wonder?  There are only a couple shows that I can watch/tolerate.  I regularly watch Jeopardy,  although I’ve read that some of the fussier fans aren’t too keen on the current champion.  Seems he’s “smug” or something.  I think most anyone who thinks enough of themselves to go on Jeopardy must be just a tad smug.  Or definitely “something”.

He also messes with his competitor’s heads by jumping around on the board.  No rules against that.  AND,  he often finds all the daily doubles that way.   What is it we say to whiners and complainers?  “waaa”.  

Now shut up.

Um,  I think the point of the whole show is to walk away with as much money as possible,  or did I somehow miss that part?

Anyway,  there’s not too much else on.  I’ll watch “The Blacklist”,  ‘cause I’ve always liked James Spader.  His character NEVER answers a direct question,  and readily admits to being a criminal.   Lots of plot twists,  and scummy folks getting shot, because that’s what they had coming to them.  Fun stuff.

Now,  I’ll tell you what makes me gag.  During one of those lengthy commercials,  Travelling Companion made me flip over to “The Bachelor”.   I didn’t have a puke bucket handy,  but I could feel the bile rising.  It didn’t take a degree in psychology to see how shallow and self centred these people are.  And then, after I had to endure some sort of “heart to heart” two of them were trying to have, (some chick and “The Bachelor”)  I finally said, “Well, I know why he’s a bachelor,  he’s an asshole!” 

What a stupid show!

Speaking of somebody needing to get shot who deserves it.  Maybe there needs to be some sort of “cross-over”?  You know, James Spader can come along and plug the idiot full of buckshot.  Not quite lethal,  but sends a definite message.  Go back to your Momma.  Or better yet,  try listening instead of talking.  Asshole.

 

I think I’ll go sit in the corner now. 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by.

 

Oh and….all grammar mistakes are intentional.

Screwed the pooch, mostly.

There’s a slightly more colourful version of that expression,  but it basically means to do nothing. 

Well,  I did manage to run around a bit,  but not much else got done. 

Travelling Companion figured it was time to head off for her turn at the blood sucking,  so I offered to drive this morning.  The deal is,  if you get to the doctor’s office right at 8:00 a.m.,  there’s a good chance the nurse,  or whatever she’s called,  will simply get it out of the way and then you’re done.

Of course,  I had our coffee at the ready for when she came out,  since it’s that whole “nothing to eat or drink” routine.  Choosing to go into coffee withdrawal as some sort of act of solidarity,  I hadn’t had my first coffee of the day either.  

I was just at the brink of headache territory. 

I managed.

 

For a few months now,  I’ve been mulling over the idea of getting a replacement for the laptop I’m currently using.   I think I’ve explained this,  but it’s not just a matter of running out of room to keep cr*p on the drive,   which I can sort out from time to time,  but moreover the fact that the Mothership is no longer going to support Windows XP after April of this year. You knew this, right?

That’s what they say, anyway.   If you have to be weaned off the teat of the Mothership,  you’re not going to get your nourishment in the form of updates. 

That could be bad.  

We ended up with the Blue Screen of Death when we were in the Netherlands,  since the PC that we had shipped over wasn’t actually hooked up to the collective.  She died.

Well,  and was resurrected with Ubuntu,  but that computer is sitting down in the basement.  All by its lonesome.

 

I’ll keep the laptop, but I’ll probably load some open source OS such as Mint,  and use it to surf the web or whatever.  The thing is,  Mint doesn’t support Live Writer.  So that kinda sucks.

And there was no way I was going to pony up the dough for some version of the Fruit either.  Not for what I do.  Surf the web,  write a couple words?  That’s it.   1500 bucks for a Mac to do that?   I don’t think so.  OK, maybe 1200, but still.

 

As it happened,  Futile Shop had a dealski on an Acer,  which is now sitting here on the desk.  I already had the monitor,  and the speakers.  

It’s got a few things going on. 

Hey,  it’s been five years since I bought my last computer.  We’re onto what?  USB 3 now?  Hey, maybe that hard drive I have sitting there won’t be giving me so much grief anymore?  That would be refreshing.  “This device could run faster”.   No kidding.

 

Here, let me just copy and paste the information about this new thing, rather than try and decipher it all.

I think I need to get a job writing this kind of hooey.  ‘Cause I’m sure I can shoot the shit just as well as whoever wrote this malarkey.  

Try not to gag.

 

The Acer AXC-605 is a snappy little PC that takes up barely any desk space while simultaneously providing you with the versatility to satisfy your home computing needs. At only one-third the size of a traditional PC, this sleek machine offers unexpectedly large power with its 4th generation Intel Core i3 processor and whopping 1TB of storage space for all of your multimedia files.

More Information

• 4th generation Intel Core i3 processor capable of 3.4GHz for super quick performance
• 6GB of RAM for ultra-smooth multitasking action
• A massive 1TB hard drive easily stores all of your favourite movies, photos, music, and more
• Intel HD Graphics powers HD videos and some video games
• Features Windows 8.1
• 16X DVD+/R/RW Super Multi Drive
• 802.11a/b/g/n
• Includes a power cord, keyboard, mouse, setup poster, and warranty card

Please Note: This product contains both English and French operating instructions and system software. In this context GB or Gigabytes refers to 1 Billion Bytes. The actual formatted capacity will be less.

You know,  when they use words like “snappy” “versatility” and “whopping”? 

Really?   I just mutter to myself,  “Oh fer fucks sakes”.

“Home computing needs”.  That sounds kind of salacious.

 

Anyway,  it’ll certainly do.  And it was on for $399.99.   Not that I wanted to come in under four hundred bucks or anything.   (why not just say $400??)

I have to school myself a little more on Window 8.  I still haven’t figured out how to shut the damned thing off.

They were offering it on line with free shipping,  but I procrastinated by ONE DAY,  and I ended up having to go to a store to pick it up!  Gah! The bother.  

*ahem*

Anyway.

Moving along.

 

I had my cooking assignment spelled out for me this morning by Travelling Companion.

Something to do with pork tenderloins that she wanted to cook yesterday,  but after getting unexpectedly stuffed at her sister’s place yesterday afternoon we weren’t willing or able to eat any more food for the day.  So I had to do “Sunday Dinner”.   Today.

 

You Vegans might want to look away.  Well, Vegetarians too I suppose.

Did you get that?

Actually,  it’s dead easy (otherwise she wouldn’t have entrusted two pork tenderloins to me!).

Involves sautéing the medallions cut from the tenderloins with a cut up onion, (in butter, hello!) adding a couple cans of cream of mushroom soap,  two or three potatoes cut into smaller pieces and put into a 350°F oven for about an hour…or so.   I shut it off after an hour and twenty minutes and went to fetch T.C.   It was still hot after we came home.  Like…really hot.   I threw in some salt and pepper,  but that’s probably not even necessary.  Good for two nights!   Yup.

My kinda cookin’!   I think probably after about three days I’d have to change it up or something, but you probably have a pretty good idea just where I am on the creative cooking end of things.  Waaay down there on the end.   You can barely see me.

 

Hellooooooo!

 

That’s it for today kids.

 

Keep those sticks on the ice.

 

Thanks for looking.

Welcome to Crazy Town.

Population:  One.

For whatever reason, those words popped into my noggin a few hours ago.  Like an annoying tune,  I can’t seem to get it out of my head.

Wonder why.

I mean, it’s OK.  Really.  I’ll plug away.

And,  I do realise it looks a little extreme to cover just about everything,  but I *know* there’s no flippin’ way I can paint the ceiling without dripping here or there.  And that would be bad.

I don’t even want to talk about it anymore.  Seriously,  I’m doing this, and then I’m taking a nap.

 

Now,  I realise that I tend to limit the scope of ze blogue so as not to inadvertently upset any random individuals whom I might encounter from time to time.  It’s just the way it is.  I’ve found myself “in trouble” in the past when I’ve gone on a little too much about others.  Especially when it comes to relations.  I still contend that I can make fun of my siblings.  If any of them take exception,  they can start their own damned blog.  So there.

In spite of my general reluctance to speak of others, I have to mention an activity that we took part in last night.  It was kinda fun.

First,  a bit of a preamble.   In our circle of friends,  one of the offspring recently went on a little adventure.  Don’t ask me why.  Sometimes a young man’s fancy turns to wild thoughts,  and it turns out he just might have to act on them. 

Nothing salacious,  don’t worry.

 

This is Ben.

 

He’s the son of some friends of ours.  We gathered at their place for a little “show and tell”.  

And, just as an aside,  back in the days before the internet,  I remember going to the community centre close to where I lived as a young man and watching a “Travelogue” put on by some folks who had spent some time in Africa. I think I had to cough up a few bucks too.  This was essentially the same. (Nowadays,  we just click on some blog or other.)

Only the slide projector was a laptop.  Oh, and note the lack of wires!  I realise wireless is pretty run of the mill,  but I’m of “a certain age”,  and still get a little giddy at the technology that’s readily available.

Anyway,  there was plenty to eat, along with a few libations,

 

which helped us keep up our strength,  as he proceeded to tell us of his trip last summer (and on into late fall) when he hiked the Appalachian Trail.

Yes,  you read that right.   He started in July (sometime,  I forget the actual date)  and finished on December 11th.

And as you may recall,  there was that brief period of time when the National Parks were closed as a result of the budget shortfall in the States,  which very well could have scuttled the whole deal.

He went from Maine to Georgia, and that’s North to South, for those of you who think it matters.  Most folks go South to North.  Depends on what type of weather you want to finish up in.

You can read the wiki article I linked to above to try and absorb the scope of the hike.  Let me save you a couple minutes by pointing out that it’s roughly 2,200 miles or 3,500 kilometres. 

 

 

Crazy, huh?   Well,  I don’t know.  He’s a young guy,  and just figured he wanted to do it after graduating from University and before figuring out the next bit.

Somebody should have told him that the type of photo below is NOT the kind of thing you send off to your parents.

 

I could have told him that.  Save that one for later.  Or for never.

The picture was taken at McAfee Knob,  for those of you with score cards.  I could certainly go off on a tangent here about some knob named McAfee who was the first to do this, but I think I just did.

Let me just say this about that.

Both my parents have long since passed away,  but there were things that I NEVER ever shared with them when they were alive.   Wouldn’t have mattered who was on the death bed.  I wouldn’t be muttering “Rosebud” or any such thing.  A feller needs to keep a couple cards close to the chest.  And hey, I realise that some people feel the need to blurt shit out as some sort of “therapy” or some such hokum,  but I was never going to go there.

Nope.

 

That’s all for today.  I’ve put in my laborious three hours of ceiling painting. 

Gotta let it dry to see what I’ve missed anyway,  so that’s that.

 

Keep those sticks on the ice.   Enjoy your weekend.

 

Thanks for lookin’.

 

.

Too much stress in the bleachers.

I like that one.

 

I have to say,  I don’t get overly excited about the Olympics,  and can only watch certain events.  And even then, only sometimes.

I also have to say,  I tend to get a little “verklempt” in certain situations,  which is why I tend to not watch.

It then follows that I had to switch off the Canada/USA Women’s Hockey game after Canada was down 2-zip.   Oh Lordy. 

If you don’t know how it turned out,  then it’s of no interest to you,  and if you do know, then there’s no point in me rehashing one hell of a game. 

In addition to that kind of stress,  both Travelling Companion and I are skiing right along with the competitors in some of the events.  I even had to have a shower after this morning’s workout.  *phew*!

Something called Ski Cross.   Crikey. Four of them hurtling down the hill AT ONCE!  

Seems we tuned in just in time to see the Canadian Ladies do OK.   (OK fine, gold and silver)

And just a few minutes ago,  Daughter Number One came over to fetch some frozen thing or other out of one of the freezers,  and suggested we watch the men's Hockey game..   Yet another nail biter!  My arse still hurts from all that puckering. 

Now they have to face Sweden. 

This is one of those situations where,  it’s almost better to play for the bronze since, if you’re playing to get to the final game for the gold,  you either get to that point,  or you’re out.  This is the unfortunate fate of the US team,  who played very well,  by the way. 

I mean,  they’re ALL NHL pros,  but it’s a different “Gestalt” when you’re playing for your country.  One of these years the spell will be broken,  but let’s not jinx it. We’ll just ride that wave for as long as we can.

 

I had some other sh*t that I was going to go on about,  but I think I’ve bored you enough at this point.

 

Oh,  here’s one for you:

 

 

This is why I was out there in the wet snotty snow that we got yesterday afternoon clearing it away,  since I figured it would a big mess if I didn’t.   Neighbour Dude across the way chose not to.  (Well,  he would have had to move all those cars too I suppose)

This is the reason why he had to gingerly escort his wife to the car.   It was just a wee bit slippy.  She wasn’t taking any chances.

There but for the virtue of my snow shovel go I.

 

We had our share of rain,  and now it’s turned curiously mild yet windy.   It’ll freeze again soon enough.

 

Enjoy your weekend.

 

Thanks for stopping by.

Slight mayhem.

Not sure if “slight” is a proper modifier for mayhem.  We’re experiencing a certain amount of disarray,  but it’s no where near the level of “cluster-f**k”,  yet it’s definitely somewhere higher than say,  “somewhat buggered up”.  

That of course,  is due to the continued efforts in the painting department.

Well really,  at this very moment,  I’m sitting here on my ass, but you know what I mean.  I plug away.

 

Now,  the thing about covering up the darker colour (some sort of green,  which I quite liked)  with primer is,  we can now see just how dirty the carpet is in the upstairs landing. 

Poop.

Well,  not literally.  I hope.  There were two pets living here, but I think the dirt is mostly of the run of the mill “pets be messy” variety. 

 

Plus of course,  one of the bulbs was burnt out in the lamp overhead,  so that was helping us be blissfully unaware of just what the situation was.

Soooo…after a bit of a discussion,  we ordered a little something on Sunday night.  I mention the Sunday night thing,  because that has been the time slot when we do tend to do these things.  The subject gets rattled around over the weekend,  and by Sunday night we’ve made a decision.   That’s how the TV was ordered.   It took a week to arrive.

Not so with the little item we ordered this time around.

 

This was there to greet me when I got home yesterday afternoon after gallivanting about in the fore noon.

I’m pretty sure I stood there with my mouth flapping for at least a couple seconds.  That was really fast. 

 

 

I mean,  fast delivery is awesome and all, but you know,  I could have waited just a few more days (maybe weeks?) for this item to show up.  Really.

I’ve cleaned my share of carpets when I was with my previous employer,  so I’m no stranger to the job.  At least this little beasty isn’t so huge that I’d need a second person to help hoist it up the stairs.

We’ll see how it performs.

 

You might be wondering,  why oh why would we have carpet on the landing,  when there’s some form of laminate or hardwood everywhere else in the house?

Well, as I was working my way through the various areas on my quest to rip out the old and put in the new a few years back,  I became painfully aware that the stair case leading down to the ground floor was slightly out of whack. 

As in *crooked*.  Gah!

I’m not sure I could have even remedied that issue before I did the tiling at the front entrance or not (ripping out a staircase?)  but I knew for sure,  that if I were to put down laminate in the upstairs landing,  it would the one thing that would draw your eye to the crookedness of the first tread.

So, carpet it was.  And now it needs to be cleaned. 

I think I’ll keep working on the painting issue first though.

 

I’m just *so* excited. 

 

 

Watch out for the puddles.  I say that because,  the snow has not yet melted,  and we’re due for some rain.  That should be interesting. 

 

Thanks for stopping by.

And that makes a thousand.

Posts,  that is.

 

I realise it shows 999,  but I haven’t hit “publish” yet.  Wouldn’t want to go over.

And so,  big deal.  Doesn’t mean I’m about to quit any time soon either.  When my brain goes completely to mush (probably next month some time) and my fingers won’t move anymore (later today?),  then I’ll pack it in.

Plus of course, you realise that I’m not even here every day.  Recently it’s been on the order of the frequency of a hen laying an egg.

You know how that works, right?

The morning of one day.  The evening of the next day,  and then she’ll skip a day.  That was according to my old Man anyway,  you can correct me if you have other ideas.  Anyone?  

Buehler?  Buehler?

Sorry,  so easily distracted.  

 

Finally got my picture night before last.

Something fascinating about icicles.   Well, until you get impaled by one.  I’m usually a little nervous when I round that corner.   At this point it’s already broken off and crashed to the ground.  Just so happens that it’s right at the corner of the house where there’s a walkway.

We’re blissfully ignorant here of the raging storm that has swept up the Eastern Seaboard. Holy crap on a cracker!

Not that I’d want to sneer or anything,  but usually we’re the ones “getting it” here in the Great White North.   We do have our “allotment”  of snow,  so it is pretty freakin’ white out there.   I don’t recall having snow banks quite that high since moving to this house back in ‘92.  But maybe I’ve blocked that from my memory.  It’s entirely possible.

 

Plus,  it’s supposed to go above freezing in a few days.  Ruh-roh!

I’d better find that catch basin out on the street under the snow bank, or it’ll be a bit of a flood out front.

 

Of course,  it’s just another day of patching and painting here at the Ponderosa.  I’ll be the first to tell you though, I ain’t killin’ myself here.  I work until I get either fed up or tired. 

Made a little discovery this morning.

 

No,  that’s not some sort of mouse hole.

I started poking away at that area to clean it up a bit,  and ended up making a hole.  It would have given away eventually anyway,  and that’s my story.

Since the chimney/fireplace/whatever doesn’t move,  and the house in fact does,  some of the plaster right there was kind of weak.   Plus,  I have my suspicions that it may have suffered over the years from the odd leak around the chimney.  It’s sorted out now,  but any time there was rain from the east,  it would leak.  This too is what happens when you’re away for almost five years. 

 

Not a very ostentatious 1000th post I realise,  but I set my expectations low,  and then they’re easily met.

 

Hope you’re enjoying your day,  wherever you are.

 

Keep that stick on the ice,  or as I said to one of my musician friends recently,  keep those valves lubricated. 

Good to keep your valves lubricated in an RV I realise,  but that’s not the kind I’m referring to.   Ew.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

.

Done with the Doc.

Well,  not forever. 

But he did say something to the effect that he didn’t want to see me again until maybe next year.  Seems the “Cholesterol-o-meter”  is registering back down in the normal range.  You could shoot a cannon through my veins. 

Alright, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration.

I did whine a little bit about the cramping in my right foot,  but in the grand scheme of things,  I’ll suck it up.  Some days it’s hardly noticeable,  but there are times when it starts to act up with no provocation whatsoever.  He suggested taking some Tylenol. 

Like I couldn’t have come up with that one myself.

 

So now of course,  since the temperature has gone up to something relatively close to the freezing mark,  all the snow on the roof is starting to melt off.

Got this one creepy looking icicle just outside the window here.

 

Took me three tries to try and get that picture.  Still not happy,  but the sun is going down. 

Not much excitement today.  No painting.  Just running the roads like most Wednesdays.  Travelling Companion only worked a half day today (I know!) and had a sewing lesson in the afternoon.   Oh,  a FREE sewing lesson.   She didn’t even realise it was going to be free.  She bought her machine in 03,  and apparently there were some lessons involved that she forgot she had coming to her?   A pleasant little surprise.

She always seems to be in a pretty good mood after these lessons.  There’s usually some quirky little thing that the machine will do that she either didn’t know about or had forgot.  

Whatever floats yer boat, I guess.  Some folks go and get a massage.  She goes for sewing lessons. Who knew?

 

She’s in the next room watching the Olympics.  I’m sure she could watch each and every event.   They’re currently showing the double Luge.  Have you ever seen this one?

Now,  I have to say this about that. 

First of all, my testicles man parts where starting to hurt a little just watching this,  so I left the room.

Secondly, it would seem that the team to beat is from Austria,  and it’s two brothers.  Andreas and Wolfgang Linger.    This is their fourth Olympics.  But that’s beside the point,  or at least the point I’m trying to make. 

Here’s the thing:   I love my brothers.  All of them.  No really.  I might poke fun at them once in a while but hey,  they’re my brothers dammit,  and I’ll poke fun if I want to. 

HOWEVER,  hurtling down a Luge track at over 120 k.p.h. in that fashion?  Oh boy. 

Who’s going to be on top?  Who gets squished?

Erp.  Man parts hurtin’ again.   Let’s move on.

 

Meanwhile…this just in.  The Germans took the gold.

Not brothers.  Two dudes who just know each other.  I wonder if the *know* each other?   Wink wink,  nudge nudge?

Think they’d make Putin nervous?

I’m getting over into some sort of “danger zone” here,  so I’d better shut up.

 

Enjoy the rest of your day.

 

One more to go.

 

 

Thanks for stopping by.

The enthusiasm is overwhelming.

I’m not sure whose it would be.  Maybe some of our Olympic Athletes?  Don’t want to jinx it,  but we seem to be doing OK in that respect.  It’s only taken our illustrious politicos eight or ten decades to realise that, if you spend more than 50 cents on your Olympic Athletes,  they just might be able to accomplish something.  But then again, maybe it’s a coincidence? 

OK, maybe not.

I don’t even want to talk about the venue.  I’m sure I have more snow on my front lawn than all of Sochi.

You’re welcome to go to that wiki link and scroll down to the chart having to do with average temperatures.   

At one o’clock local time there,  it was “clear and +13°C!

 

See?

Ясно 

13:00
 

OK fine,  it helps if you can read Cyrillic,  but you can figure it out.  And no,  I’m not confused.  The time is 13,  and so is the temperature.  Geez.

I’m sure that’s not entirely fair.  I’d be ecstatic if it were plus thirteen right about now.  Fark!

I guess they didn’t want to have to shovel the snow between venues??  That’s all I got.

 

Mind you, if it got that warm too quickly,  we’d have one helluva flood,  so I’d better be careful what I wish for.

 

 

My days mostly consist of hauling out the drop cloths,  the roller and brush and moving on with the painting. 

Of course,  since we’re going from the green that you see down below there,  to some sort of yellow, (don’t ask) that whole “one coat” thing is a bit of a stretch I'm afraid.

I don’t even think priming it would make much of a difference,  since that just means another coat of paint,  when you get right down to it. 

The one thing that I’ve noticed,  and I won’t be taking a picture of it either,  is that it does brighten up the centre hallway a whole heap.  That’s kind of a good thing.

Of course right along with that, now I can see just how dirty that carpet really is.  That’s not such a good thing.  I think I see a carpet cleaner in my future.  Yay me.

I’m closing in on a thousand posts,  if you can believe that.  I never really thought I’d get much past 10,  since I don’t really ever have anything much to say. 

Can’t talk about the weather,  since it sucks.  Not doing any travelling, ‘cause that ship has sailed. 

Just…painting.  And there’s not even an easel involved.

 

I suppose I could mention Shirley Temple.   I’ve never had a Shirley Temple. 

Looks kind of sweet.

But you know I don’t mean the drink.

I guess I hadn’t really been thinking too much about her. I mean, it’s not like I wake up in the morning and say to myself,  “Gee,  I wonder how Shirley is doing today?”

Then of course,  you hear by way of her “publicist”,  that she died peacefully at home at the age of 85. How does that work exactly?  What if you outlive your publicist?

Well, I hope she didn’t suffer.  She had breast cancer back in the 70s,  but they didn’t say if that was related to her demise.

Of course,  then it hits the media and we’re bombarded with her image and snippets from “The Good Ship Lollipop.”  Oh geez.

After hearing it for about the twelfth time,  it wasn’t really working for me.  I might have been interested in hearing about her later life.   I mean, she didn’t go off the rails like a lot of child stars.  Not mentioning any names.   So for that at least,  she earned a modicum of respect.  

Too bad she couldn’t have been an example for the likes of say, Lindsay Lohan or Justin Bieber.  Sorry, I went and mentioned a couple names.

I’m sure I could come up with a list of those on the “more money than brains” roster,  but I have to start supper soon,  and I’d hate to do it on an upset stomach. 

I’m feeling a tinge of heartburn just now as a matter of fact. 

Best be off.

 

You know the drill.

Sticks.  Ice.  All that.

 

Thanks for stopping by.

One snow bank looks like the next.

Which is why I didn’t take any pictures today. 

However,  there was one thing that I thought I might like to share,  and that was the awesome eggs I made this morning for breakfast.  Now don’t get me wrong,  this isn’t necessarily the exception either.  Not that I’d want to boast or anything,  but breakfast is one of my specialties.  

No really.   Ask the kids.  Ask T.C.  Ask any of the folks who came to visit when we lived in Europe. 

Even though I called it,  “Bob’s Bed and get your own Breakfast”,  I’d always relent and make breakfast for our guests. 

Or better yet,  just take my word for it.

But that’s beside the point.

 

I give you, the perfect eggs.  The toast is only there to take up room on the plate.

 

 

I probably should have used a coloured plate,  but then that would have meant having some sort of plan.  Or something.

But this egg theme makes me think of a little story,  and it involves eating in restaurants and hoping to get a decent breakfast.  It doesn’t always happen.  But you may already know this.

Typically,  in most European hotels at least,  they have some sort of buffet type spread put out,  and you go and help yourself.  Once in a while though,  you find yourself in a place where they might have certain items out,  but then they’ll ask if you’d like to perhaps have a couple eggs?  Of course, there follows that brief moment of excitement,  when you think that maybe,  just maybe there’s been some sort of “communication breakthrough” or something,  and that you might actually get a couple fried eggs. 

And, AND have them prepared “over easy”. 

Let me just dispel any grandiose expectations you might have right here and now.  It aint’ gonna happen.

I tried it a couple times in Austria,  and just figured I wasn’t explaining it well enough. 

I mean, I have a fairly decent grasp on the German language and all,  but explaining “over easy”  is a bit of a challenge,  I’ll admit.   So fine,  it never did really happen,  and I ate my eggs “sunny side up”,  with the bottoms over cooked and all crusty like.  Gah!

‘Cause let’s face it,  at a certain point in time,  you’re just too damned hungry to start sending stuff back to the kitchen. 

Well,  I might only be speaking for myself here,  but I think you can relate.

So, at one point in time, we find ourselves in Birmingham (and no,  not the one in Alabama either),  and the young waiter asks me if I’d like a couple eggs from the kitchen?  Seeing as I had just seen a van pull up from one of the local chicken establishments to deliver eggs I figured,  “Hell yes!”.  Because at least the eggs will be fresh.

Besides,  I thought that,  beens we wuz all speakin’ English,  getting a couple eggs “over easy”  should be a slam dunk,  right?  There was of course, the in-depth explanation,  followed by a knowing nod.   I still remember that moment of, well I’d almost call it excitement, waiting for those “over easy” eggs. 

I was sure it was going to happen this time.

I think you already know how this turns out though.

This was in England, after all.  Have you ever seen what they eat for breakfast?  *shudder*.  You think they have a clue how to fry an egg?  Let alone the highly developed skill involved when trying to do “over easy”? 

Nope,  same damned crusty on the bottom runny on top eggs. 

I ate them. 

By that point I was too hungry to quibble.  I’m sure they thought they had made some huge steps on the culinary end of things, but I didn’t have the heart (or stomach) to say otherwise. 

But their eggs sucked just as badly as any that I had had over “on the continent”.  

That’s the term they use for the rest of Europe,  by the way.

 

 

May your eggs always be (slightly) runny.  And not crusty on the bottom.

Hope you had a good weekend.

 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Hiring a painter.

No, I’m not. 

But I’ve noticed that things like question marks don’t translate well in blog headings.

 

I suppose the bigger “news” is,  we had yet another snow storm.  Yay. 

If you thought that “Yay” was kinda weak?  You can still think.

Unfortunately for a lot of my teacher friends, (well, those who are still toiling away in the trenches) the higher up gurus who make the decisions about whether to close schools or not,  chose not to.   Mind you, they cancelled the school buses,  since of course,  it would be safer to have the kids get driven to school.  Or something.  I could never figure out what the hell their logic was.  It snowed most of the day,  and I believe we are well on our way to a new record.

This following pic is for all you folks in the South,  just to help you justify having driven all those miles. 

 

It’s a completely different mindset when you don’t *have* to go anywhere.  I took T.C. to work,  and still went to breakfast with the Wednesday group.  We were somewhat fewer in numbers,  but that’s OK too,  since then it’s easier to chat.  I never in my life thought something like that would be a *good* thing.   So lame.

Matter of fact,  most of the stores and such were pretty darned empty.  I had two “associates” willing to help me in the paint department at Canadian Tire.  I didn’t mind.  A bit of a change from normal,  when they seem to be running around doing most everything except be helpful. 

 

I took the following photo the other day for all you panicky types who figured I’d be doing some sort of high wire act with a paint roller in my hand. 

Um no.  I was born at night,  but it wasn’t last night.

 

It took a bit of “higher larnin’”,  but I managed to figure out just what ladder type device I needed to get up to that other part.  Had to take apart the extension ladder and clean it up.  Mostly.

Not the easiest to snake twelve feet of ladder through the house either.

Once I get that part out of the way,  I won’t be needing any more elaborate props.  Some how I seem to recall it was heaps easier before the installation of the air conditioner?   It’s been a long time since I painted the green.  I still like the green,  but my opinion when it comes to colours counts for nothing.  We touched on that in the wedding vows.  Or maybe there was some fine print when we signed those documents?  Memory fades.

“And thou shalt henceforth have no opinion whatsoever as to the colour of the walls in your house.”   Amen.

Lumped in there of course,  is a sub clause regarding clothing,  women’s in particular,  and whether or not you should have an opinion.  You do not have one.  You are a mute.  Remember that.

 

 

 

Had a brief moment of concern yesterday just before dinner time,  since I had made chicken soup and wasn’t entirely sure if we had any more of *those* noodles.  We had been using some home made noodles that the “Ladies from the church” had made,  but they had been used up.  Fortunately,  I still had the package that was shipped over from the old country.   I think we’d call it “Angel hair”. 

Mind you,  I’ve never actually seen these, “Ladies from the church”,  and for all I know,  it could be a specialty shop called “Ladies from the church”,  where you can buy such specialty items.  I think that’s a concept that would work.

“Krofi” is one product that comes to mind. 

The Austrians and Germans call them Krapfen.  Sounds a bit like “crap”,  I know.  But they’re good.  Really.  Especially the ones with filling.  *drool*   And that site lists some 87 different recipes.  Well, they’re all in German,  but you can look at the pictures.  Fill yer boots.

 

 

OK,  I guess I had better get back to work. 

Oh look,  the sun is coming out.  Yay.  Bitter cold and sun.  Just fabulous.

 

This sums it up.  Mouse over the picture…

 

 

Keep those sticks on the ice.

 

Thanks for stopping in.

And so, life goes on.

We’ve certainly had a few “events” over the last few days.  Super Bowl parties,  teams getting trounced,  Ground Hogs making nasty predictions.

Wait.  What?

I think that last one is the most upsetting,  to be honest.  Little bastard saw his shadow.  Or at least the one in Punxsutawney.  He was in agreement with Wiarton Willie as well.   I think I prefer the verdict given by Shubenacadie Sam.    Seems that Nova Scotia is going to have an early spring!   *pfft*  Aren’t they lucky?

Right.

I suppose it’s something to pass the time when February rolls around and you’re bored outta yer gourd.

I’ll offer one more prediction.   After hearing a little story relayed to me by my brother from down on the farm in Nova Scotia,  if any of them were to show up there,  shadow sighting or no,  he’d fill them full of lead.  As he has horses,  groundhogs aren’t exactly welcome “down on the farm”.    Seems he has something called a “22”?   Hm.  And it’s a semi-automatic. 

And the question mark is somewhat rhetorical,  since I’m well aware of what a 22 is all about.  And a twelve gauge,  and a 30 ought six.    These are fairly standard fair in rural parts.    Gotta keep them varmints at bay,  especially when it involves the well being of the livestock.   But let’s not get all philosophical here.

Hm,  now that I think about it,  it mustn’t be the same 22 that we had when I was a young ‘un,  since that one was “bolt action”.   That kinda sucked, basically.  I think the whole semi-automatic program would work for me.  But I’m not much of a one for ordinance, to be honest.

 

I’m showing you a picture of a pile of something or other,  covered in snow.  Everything is pretty much covered in snow,  which is why I had to bring that top “something” inside overnight to melt off the frozen bits.

Just love that heated garage.

 

Had to dig out that ladder as well,  since we’re going to set off on a new adventure.

OK well,  that’s a load. 

Just means I’m back to the painting again.  I’m pretty stoked.   I can barely contain myself.  Can you sense my enthusiasm?

 

And why do I need the big honkin’ board,  you ask?  Well you didn’t, but whatever.

 

Just gotta get up in that corner.  

That looks like a hoot,  dunnit?  This is the only place in the whole house where there’s no way to reach with just a roller on an extension.   Well you *can* reach it,  but there’s the ‘cutting in’ that needs to be done.

It’s unfortunate that I wasn’t able to paint before we installed the ductless AC unit there,  but that’s the way she goes.  I certainly wasn’t going to put that off until I had painted,  even IF I had started just as soon as we bought the paint.  That’s fine.  I got some newspaper and painters tape.  No big deal.

And by the way,  that railing there isn’t the way it normally looks.  I’ve taken out the balusters so I get over to the other side. 

I don’t think that lack of baluster arrangement would meet “code”. 

 

Well,  pitter patter.

 

Thanks for stopping in.

It’s alive! It’s alive!

This is the big excitement of my day so far,  so please bear with me.

It has to do with our coffee maker,  and that’s a pretty damned important subject.  At least here at the Ponderosa.

We have one of those Tassimo gizmos,  and we quite like it.   A cup of coffee can be anywhere from 50 to 65 cents a pop, with some varieties being well over 80 cents,  but just the same there’s no waste,  and you get whatever fancy schmancy flavour your little heart desires.  

Travelling Companion likes Nabob’s Cafe Crema, 

 

 

 

And as for me,  I’ll drink most anything that’s on sale.  Well,  providing that it’s not overly fancy schmancy.  I can’t abide by flavoured coffees.   Bleah!

Well really,  I prefer this one:

 

 

Anyhoodle,  from time to time the machine comes up with a little light that tells you that it needs to be cleaned,  which I dutifully did.   However,  it didn’t seem to be behaving itself,  and was determined to simply pump all the water straight through the machine until it ran dry. 

That’ll never do.

So I dragged out our drip coffee maker that we keep downstairs that serves as both a back up as well as the go to machine for when we have copious coffee drinkers waiting for their java fix.   You can’t very well serve 10 guests coffee from the Tassimo gizmo unless you’re willing to stand there for quite some time.  It does one cup at a time after all.

 

I had it sitting there hanging over the edge of the sink because I’ve never had good results trying to prop a container under the thing when it's doing its purge.

I also found a tiny little piece of foil lodged in the spigot when I took it apart, but it still didn’t want to behave.  I just figured its time had run out, and started looking on line for a new one. 

 

I left the machine overnight,  and it’s now working. Maybe a bit of moisture where it shouldn’t be?  Coffee makers are that weird combination of electricity and water that I’ve always wondered about. 

It might be time for a back up machine,  but I’d prefer to get one on sale. 

 

Just thought I’d keep it handy to the sink there while testing it out.  Didn’t explode.

I’m now on my (*mumble*)  cup for the day,  and all is well.

It’s snowing out,  but we don’t care.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.  Any Super Bowl predictions?  I’m saying Denver by three points.  But I really have no clue.

 

Thanks for your indulgence,  and for stopping by.