Baking

whole wheat bread
soon to be in the oven
then I can go hear my darling daughter play
with her Orchestra.
I had my paddle today
only a couple miles, too much wind
and never above 39 degrees.
I did snap a pic or two of the sea gulls

Sit, stay!

if God were a dog trainer
and I were a pup
what would He say?

If he could use weather to
reign me in, this weeks message would be
"get into THE BOOK,
start praying
and do not jump about so much!"

it looks like a week of storms with a few breaks for grocery runs
plenty of snow shoveling, little use for the kayak buried in the snow.
I need to hear Him and learn, NOW
pray for me.

------------------------
its all working out just fine
so I am making cookies
with mom.

holy smokes, who said sharing a kitchen would be easy?

Head Chef reports:

Last night mom had 4 cheese ravioli and a Italian sausage with a dinner salad.
I had the same while listening to some OLDIES, and concocting a very light chili in the crock pot.
it smells yummy after simmering all night, and I have high hopes that it will be tasty enough without too much spiciness.

( Have you read the email joke about the inexperienced chili taster at a Texas chili contest?
email me for it, very hilarious, rated PG-16)

Today my sister Laurel ( see amazon) is coming so I am making a special 5 star lunch.
Her visits to mom are so helpful and her encouragement to me is like water to a thirsty hiker.
We have always shared so much, but the bond is closest now. For that I am ever so grateful.

in reviewing some of my old posts, I am finding and marking some of the better poetry, which I will be re-writing and refining as time allows, for now the all have the label poetry if you want to search that way. Thanks for reading.

I better start on the fruit salad, yum!

what I am cooking

the cross rib roast, a particularly flavorful roast,
can be used for pot roast or roasted like a sirloin roast.
For the latter, preheat the oven to 450 degrees,
then brushing the meat with some balsamic vinegar and applying an herb paste made of 2 tablespoons minced garlic,
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme (or 2 teaspoons dried),
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried),
2 to 3 tablespoons salt (depending on the size of the roast),
1 to 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper (depending on the size of the roast) and
1 tablespoon olive oil.
Roast in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 350. Continue cooking 35 to 45 minutes.
After 25 minutes check the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer--much better than a meat thermometer.
Remove when the temperature reaches 125 to 130 degrees for medium rare. Take the meat out and cover loosely with foil for 15 to 25 minutes at room temperature.

saturday night

and I am invited to dinner at Gary's house
a special treat to be sure!
Tomorrow is reformation Sunday!
All Lutheran church members get excited ( i am told )
I am always excited, as you know.

God is in the business of blessing His people everywhere.

we had RAIN today, to cool our fires, yahoo!

Splitsville: episode two, Condiment wars!

in case anyone in Television is reading, I though of this FIRST!

A real time, non scripted show featuring former roommates, or ex-lovers, or used to be boyfriend-girlfriend couples that are now parting ways and having to divide all the stuff that has accumulated during the years.

Disclaimer: this is not based on my life, just came out of my insanely fertile brain, as I am looking at the packing of all things "here" into two sets of boxes.

In this weeks episode the refrigerator is being cleaned out and the cast members are deciding who owns the mustard, and in particular the Grey Poupon. You know that roommate A is a type A who only buys the finest, roommate b has few funds for feckless frivolity, and buys store brand 'Old yeller" mustard in the jumbo quart jar. This one is a no-brainer, but who will take custody of all the seven types of BBQ sauce, or the Extra Virgin Olive oil???? Stay tuned!

20 days to new habitat

I should be excited.
something new
leave all this current load of "stuff"
and go make a new home for myself and Hannah.

But the MOVING, Arrrgggg!

oh well,
pray I get god deal on a nice place near to my mom,
and that our transition there goes smoothly.

in "canning" news, I made a big batch of dill pickles,
more peach jam and a new mango- spiced peach blend.
I have sweets, just no where to eat them, yet.

cooking: teaching this old dog new tricks

I learned how to peel and section a grapefruit from this talented woman, Giada De Laurentiis.

it was so easy, even with my drool bib in place, to see exactly how she worked the blade just under the skin and the cut out each section so that there was no skin.

I think I may watch the show "Everyday Italian" again.
Her smile and joy in the kitchen are contagious.

I also could use new recipes for eggplant, as I have three of them in the garden, along with cucumber, tomatoes ( 4) plenty of lettuce, beans and peas. It is going to be a fabulous summer.
Delicioso

ciao!

Rainy days and mondays always make me blog.

hi
how are you?
I am so glad you dropped by, cause I was looking at the dripping off the eaves while my breakfast cereal was cooking ( wheat, yum) and wondering if anyone would come by today.

Used to be when it got gray and cloudy that I would too. Now I get even!
I write about it, and turn a damp dreariness into a piece of literary ----ness.

now I will do the slipper shuffle over to the stove and feed myself,
which is rather amazing for a man of my advanced years.

Last night I even made THE MOST DELICIOUS BBQ beef sandwiches!
and since today is Sunday, better pull on my least tattered threads and hop on Bessie the mule and amble on over to church. ( If I am not there , they could talk about me!)

Hope you have a very nice day, watch the steps, it's a bit wet out there.