Indian Summer

Indian summer is a period of sunny, warm weather, late October, early November after the leaves have turned, in the Northern Hemisphere-that per Wikipedia.

Well, if you have never experienced this gift, I feel badly for you. We have had many days in a row and a few more expected of 60 degrees plus. Someone even mentioned yesterday that maybe this is our spring! We really had a lousy spring and summer, wet, cold, especially the weekends.

SH said that we are predicted to have an El Nino winter-milder than usual in the Northeast. That is so us we are the Northeast!

We did have an El Nino a few years back (well it must have been quite a few years back because SH and I were not married and I was drinking a glass of wine-not my MO now) and I remember sitting on the back steps on Christmas Eve in shirtsleeves! In WNY!!!!! Did you hear me singing that last sentence? Just the memory makes me happy and hopeful for some of the same. Let's meet here in April and we can talk and compare snow or lack-there-of stories..

Autumn is the time of year when we try to "GET READY" here in WNY. That term can vary from person to person, household to household.

Those dedicated to their yard work trim, cut back, mulch, cover bushes so the rabbits and deer don't find out that your burning bush tastes really good, and then there are pansies and bulbs to plant. The cars get winterized, the summer toys/bikes, hoses put away.

Some people fill the larder,

freezer and every nook and cranny with food, paper products,

pet food and anything you think you might need in case the big storm does come. The last few years, they may have added printer ink to that list! Some people make sure the snowblower will start, gas is ready, wood is ready, shovels are moved to the front of the garage, and one put on the porch (you need to get rid of a few feet of snow sometimes from the porch before you can do anything about the mess in the driveway-and sometimes you can only push the front door out only so far because the snow is so high-not often, but it happens here in the "snowbelt"), bottled water aplenty is in a non-freezing place, and generally we get everything ready to get warm and stay warm. Flannel sheets have been on the beds of many for at least a month. Some people take advantage of this kind of weather to put up Christmas lights and decorations. It is usually done on a weekend, when the weather is unusually warm-and you know you might not get another time, so it is not too uncommon to see Christmas Decorations in place before Thanksgiving. Hey, whatever, I don't pay their electric bill. Let their kids and grandkids talk to them about "going green", using less energy, smaller footprint, blah, blah.

I have done most of these things, with the variety changing as the years pass. This year I did nothing more than toss out hanging plants and pull up most of the annuals for my yard work. We had a project in the front that is still not completed, yard dug up, many bushes were moved, many plants lost completely in the process. I just decided what dies back and regrows does. Period. Next spring will be surprise after surprise to see what makes it.

SS and I ran the massive snowblower about a month ago to be sure it is ready when we are. I feel like such a wimp now, I cannot start the snowblower unless I use the electric start. The "easy start" operation apparently only applies to people under 60 without arthritis in their hands. I really look comical when I use the snowblower-it kind of drags me around the driveway, any speed it wants-I just have to hope when it is done, it leaves me near the steps. SS does most of the snow removal-he is really so good to us, but sometimes, we need to get it done before he is available, so I take out my typed up instructions, reminding me where the choke and other things are that I have to set properly to get it to do more than start and quickly stop. I use this time to practice new swear words also-my "Me" time that all the magazines stress that you must find time for.

Warm clothes, blankets are ready, new gloves bought in multiples for SGS-where do they go?

What is done is done.

So listen, the reason for this description of our usual Autumn activity is because, most people have done whatever they needed to do by now, and these are our bonus days-enjoying the mild weather, blue skies and generally just soaking up some pleasant sunshine-free vitamin D.

Wherever you are, I hope you can experience your own version of INDIAN SUMMER, even if it is just in your heart.

Veterans

Kiwanis is a service organization that SH and I belong to. For the past few years our club has been putting yellow ribbons in the center of town, along the route that our Veteran's Day Parade takes. Today we refreshed those ribbons. This is a view looking up the steps of the Veterans Memorial Park to the flag area. The steps are made of inscribed paving bricks. They were purchased in honor and memory of Veterans. It is very moving to walk those steps and read those names and ranks. We also have a section of bricks honoring Killed In Action soldiers, ranging from the Civil War to the Iraq War. The names on all the bricks are of the soldiers, but they represent many more people-their parents, their wives, their children, their siblings, their grandparents, neighbors and friends. We honor all Veterans in this small way. Thank you to all of them for what they have done in such a large way.

We've only just begun!

This morning we had the first snow here-large, huge, phony-looking flakes. They only landed for about two minutes, then quickly melted-so if you wanted to tell someone, you couldn't finish describing them, and poof- they were already gone.

But just now, we got some very loud-this will get your attention you sitting inside snug as a bug non-believers: HAIL. OK, OK, enough already. I believe.

So listen, last night we were watching our wonderful Yankees win the World Series, and today it is Winter.

I need more of a transition than that, some very cold days, a few light sprinkles, seeing your breath outside, a few neighbors cranking up the wood burners. After a few of those things, I wouldn't mind waking up to the absence of outside sound-you know how it is when the roads have snow on them before the plows go through and all traffic just goes by like it was wearing soft slippers, not wanting to wake anyone?

I love the way Winter looks, I just don't like how it feels: heavy to shovel, fighting with the tires for domination of the road at the end of your gas and brake pedals, bone-chilling (isn't that a great way of thinking about the power of cold?), and let's not forget those frozen, wet clothes dripping on your hardwood floors, making a cold, wet, dirty, gritty-salt encrusted puddle.

Then again-what do we always say about snow in Western New York " At least you can shovel it, not like all those hurricanes in Florida, or mudslides and forest fires in California".

Grass in not always greener-especially when it is covered with snow.

Pumpkin Passions

So listen, is there anything better than Pumpkin? Pumpkin coffee, pies, latte, doughnuts, muffins, soup, candles, it's everywhere, it's everywhere!

From my picture you can see that my SH is a thin guy, me: not so much. Every time I am out of the house, I call to see how he is and "Do you need anything", he quietly asks if I could pick up a few pumpkin muffins or doughnuts. Of course I will do anything he asks of me, he requests so little, and he is so polite (I love good manners). I stop at Tim Hortons (we call it Timmy Hos), or if needed at Dunkin' Donuts and order 4 pumpkin muffins and a pumpkin latte or coffee for me. Since I don't use sweetener anymore of any kind in my coffee, I think the pumpkin flavoring at Timmy Hos is really horrible. The pumpkin latte that Dunkin' sells must have a ton of sugar-it is reaaaally good.

The Kwik Fill Gas Station near my house sells pumpkin flavored coffee-right in the coffee grounds, Green Mountain brand I think. It is delightful, I am taking a deep breath right now just thinking about it. I even whined one time about wanting to buy some, so the owner (who knows me) allowed me to purchase three bags of grounds-I gave two bags away, and now I am hoarding my stash, a little bit added to regular coffee now and then for SS and me. SH does not drink coffee.

This pumpkin product plethora is temporary, and with all things that are good, it is always nice to have something to look forward to. (How do you not end that sentence in a preposition?)

p.s. Sometimes a muffin top has a piece missing by the time I drive home-it must be the bumps in the road that knock it off and clear out of the car. Are you buying that? My SH just smiles when he opens the box.

Oink me Not!

So listen, I told you all that my SGS had swine flu (I know it is officially H1N1, but a nasty thing deserves a nasty name-no scientific moniker for this guy!), so he took tamiflu, got better, now my SM has it, she also has tamiflu, but it will be a time before she bounces back like he did. At least she is getting better, gratefully. My SS and her husband also have the flu, as does their SG. Don't know if it is oinker or not, but I bet it is.

So far, SH and SS and I do not have any symptoms-but I wish I would have bought stock in hand sanitizer and clorax wipes. Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda.

Please take care, cover your mouth, keep your hands off your face and wash 'dem hands.

And FYI, the pictures on the header of my page were taken on my trip of a lifetime with SS to Italy in 2006. I will try to remember to change them monthly. This is at the entrance to the Vatican Museum. Because we were part of a tour, we got to wait at the "special" entrance with reservations at 8am. By that time the poor slugs that were not part of a tour were in line around the block (and their blocks are very loooooong), just hoping to be admitted. Remember that if you go to Italy, be part of a tour, your guide steers you around to all the must-see places, you ride in beautiful new bus, are provided everything and if you are lucky, your guide is a real charmer likes ours. Here he is. He told us he still lives with Mama. Why not? He gets his favorite food, his clothes beautifully ironed, and I am sure his cute cheeks kissed every day. We all should be so lucky as to be loved like an Italian son.

Swine flu, and our TV star

So listen, SGS has Swine Flu per his Pediatrician. We babysat him last night and today. At first we thought it was just his winter cold, then the fever started.

He starts Tamiflu today, missing a week of school, but his real concern is Halloween. He has his favorite costume: that horrible Freddy K. So sad for me, I used to always buy his costume, but when he got old enough to start liking the yucky-gory stuff, I told him I would not buy them. It did not work to sway his choice, but that is life.

Since SH is immune compromised, we were very careful to keep coughing germs from him, SGS had his own hand towel and kept all his used Kleenex in his Boogie Buddy Bag (a plastic store bag). Sometimes if you give things a funny name, they hold more importance~ Lots of antibacterial hand cleaner and many reminders to cover mouth when coughing and keep hands off his face.

321-+ Whoops, our Sdog just decided to jump on the laptop and typed a few very important symbols. I wonder if this was a request for a treat in doggie shorthand?

Back to the flu-SD is very concerned, especially because he usually has a healthy appetite, today he ate about 1/2 cup of Halloween shaped pasta and crackers. We pushed clear fluids, and rest-which meant he could watch TV-in the daytime-see being sick has it's perks.

Hopefully he will feel well enough to carve his pumpkins here tomorrow night when he comes back. He very sadly told me last night that I could carve them all, he does not feel well enough! Does that break your heart or what? It is so hard when kids are sick, you just want to make it all better right away.

Other news: SS is a TV commercial Star!

He works at a sheltered workshop for people with disabilities, and there is a public service announcement running here locally promoting the organization. The commercial in on between 5:30 and 6pm on WGRZ Ch 2. We had many phone calls from family and friends telling us they saw him-but we didn't! Finally SS's Dad narrowed down the time of when it was played, and YEAH, we saw it! Lots of hooting and hollering when we saw him tonight-he is the one at the very end with the big sweet smile and the Buffalo Bills 50th Anniversary red shirt. He is also sporting his annual SABRES season beard-a tradition he is carrying on from his paternal SGF.

He does not shave until the SABRES have played their last game. It gets a little nasty looking towards the end of the season, but luckily he allows me to trim it a smidge just to keep him from looking like skid row. (Skid row-that term used to be humorous, the same SGF used to use that word, it referred to someone down on their luck, but really, it is heartbreaking how that number has increased over the years, I will from now on, not use that term.)

That is all the news on this beautiful Indian Summer Day. (Is that politically incorrect and hurtful too? Should I have said Native American Summer Day?)

p.s., our Sdog looks very similar to the dog in the Samson painting-lower left area that was in a few entries prior.

Fleece duster cloth

So listen, everyone who knows me knows I can not sew. It is not a genetic flaw because I have 2 sisters and an Aunt who sew like no tomorrow. It is just not one of my skills. I have sewn-when the kids were little-hated every minute of it, so now I do not even own a sewing machine-which of course I regret when it is time for repairs, or something like this little project.

Our SCwife, mentioned in Octoberfeast gave me one of these fleece dusting cloths that fits onto the Swifter floor duster. I tried it, I liked it, washed it and used as dusting cloth, it works so nicely. Here is her pattern-gee I didn't ask her if it is OK to put on Internet, wait, she said she found it on the Internet! That means once taken, can be shared. That is Internet etiquette rule #101.

Fleece Duster Cloth

-one piece of scrap fleece 9"x 10.5"

-three pieces of fleece each 1"x 10.5"

Lay three pieces along length of large piece, one in center and the other two about one inch away from the center. Sew to larger piece, using streeeeeeeeetch stitch, going down the center of the thin pieces.

Use scissors to cut into thin pieces about every 1/2 to 3/4 inch-these are the dust picker-uppers. They will curl when washed/dried.

Now there is no excuse...............

Samson Syndrome

So, listen, maybe someone on the Los Angeles Angels team never heard the Bible story about Samson losing his strength when his hair was cut? It was said during the YANKEES game last night that a few of the Angels had their hair cut between the last 2 games. One went from dreadlocks to a shaven pate!

I am not saying that my Yankees could not have won without their opponents messing with their hair, but hey, everything helps.

On to the World Series!

I wonder if they could have a seniors early bird special on a few games-these late nights are tough on us early birds.

Aida, Celeste Aida

Today SH and I attended a simulcast of an Opera from the Metropolitan Opera at the local Regal Cinema. It was Aida by Verdi. When I was thirteen, my homeroom teacher was brand spankin' new out of school-her name was Miss Mary Louise Nanna. We all loved her-boys and girls. She played the violin we knew, but the most important thing she ever did was to bring in her record player-small portable with a turn table-just like we all had in our homes then. And she played music during our homeroom period. Not just any music, but MUSIC, stuff like we never heard before. That is the first time I heard AIDA. I was so struck by the power of the Triumphal March-the horns caught you as soon as the first few blasts were heard. I have always claimed that as MY Opera. I have seen it in video form, and on TV and listened to certain selections and many versions of CELESTE AIDA. It means Heavenly Aida. Now, it is all on youtube! I tried to upload it here for you, but apparently it is not meant to be. Type in Placido Domingo Celeste Aida in youtube for a wonderful version. I followed Opera from afar for most of my life, never really pursuing it much-wrong time or wrong place. I always remembered my SGM loved Mario Lanza, and she would hum a bit to her shadow granddaughter while we were lucky to have her live with us for a few years. It must be in the blood right?

When SH and I were dating, we started talking about our mutual love of Opera-of course he actually knew something about this art form-I was mearly a wannabe. On our honeymoon (that word might seem silly to some since I was 48 when we married), we actually went to a real live Opera-at the Glimmerglass Opera House near Cooperstown NY. You can just be swallowed up in the music and the costumes and breathe with the performers. There is nothing more wonderful than to follow the mostly tragic love stories and have your pulse beat to the music. Comedies are nice, Gilbert and Sullivan really have so much to offer, but the love and usual death story is so intense. Especially when you are lucky enough to love someone else at that level.

This was a difficult summer for us, SH was very sick. It was a sad time to not be able to fix everything, so helpless. We had made reservations to see two performances at Glimmerglass, but that was one of the many things that became unimportant.

Then, around 3 weeks ago, SH started to return. Sleeping, eating, stronger if not yet strong. We talked about going to see Aida, he knows it is my favorite, but I tried not to jump up and down with excitement (like I could jump up and down???) in case it did not happen. But all worked out, today we drove (way too fast since it took longer to get organized), but no speeding tickets for me, no handicapped parking spots left-who cares, we flew with a big old wind at our back, and plucked down in the last handicapped spot for SH's chair and a sweet usher managed to find me a folding chair so we could sit together. A very few minutes later, it all began, and let me tell you, a happier 13 year old girl could not be found. The next 4 hours were so special. My heart and soul were filled, I was holding SH's hand, and my fanny was numb.

And what of Miss Mary Louise Nanna you ask? She was the first woman to conduct the Washington National Symphony Orchestra, and over thirty years ago she founded the Ars Nova Musicians Chamber Orchestra which she currently conducts-performing Vivaldi. I once went to a performance she was conducting of the Cheektowaga Community Orchestra. I think I very shyly said hello-but I might be imaging that I really did say something. What I should have done was very sincerely thanked her for exposing me to a wonderful world that eventually became an important part of who I am. We go to sleep listening to one of our zillion opera or classical music cds, and we have many from which to choose .

Thank you Miss Nanna, Celeste Mary Louise.

Nixon flashback

So listen, do you all remember the famous "V" that President Nixon used as his peace sign/greeting, etc? There are many photos showing him making a "V" gesture, sometimes double-handed. The most widely circulated version of this was of course his farewell to the presidency after his resignation. Well, when the Catholic Church began it's "Sign of Peace" portion of the Mass, many people used this "V" as their Peace gesture of choice, while others hugged, shook hands, kissed, nodded or looked straight down. We all have our own ways of approaching situations, and there should be room and acceptance for all under those vaulted roofs. I once belonged to a church that was very theatrical, so the Sign of Peace was a "leave your pews and strike up the traveling band music" format. If we ever had a substitute priest there, who was not forewarned about this, he never won if he tried to continue the mass without letting all the touchy-feely happenings go to the absolute last greeting. I was one of these revelers to a degree, but SS as a youth who always needed to be able to move around after a certain time period, went front to back greeting his church friends. SD went though that "would not be caught dead acknowledging family" stage, so she was either singing in the choir, being an alter server, or avoiding us at all costs. It was very hurtful for me at the time, but now, hey, you gotta do what you gotta do, and for her this was just getting through those years-No hard feelings.
So, back to our poor Tricky-Dicky, when the Nixon peace sign was used in mass, it always made me laugh, I probably laughed smugly because I was just so much more evolved and could actually reach out and touch others. Then it became just a cute little thing that people did, and I always found it pleasant to see that sign suddenly flash. So, here is the point, finally, are you still with me or did you go get a cup of coffee? Was it pumpkin flavored? I love pumpkin flavored coffee. sorry
The Bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo and Western New York announced yesterday that effective IMMEDIATELY, there would be no distribution of Holy Communion through the cup, and a nod or verbal greeting should replace a physical Sign of Peace greeting. Since I take meds that preclude any alcohol consumption, omitting the cup is not a problem for me, and honestly, when I was an active Eucharist Minister, distributing communion in both species, I was so paranoid about cleaning the cup between communicants that I was probably rubbing the dreaded germs right into the metal. It was such a production-we were taught to refresh the cloth after cleaning by refolding. How many times can you refold without being back to the beginning?
Now for the Sign of Peace, here's the deal, if we are going to abstain from physical contact-won't it be so right in these days of War to please use a sign of Peace that would mean more than just a greeting to a fellow parishioner, but in our hearts could we extend that greeting to our soldiers-Peace and God's protection to them everywhere. Just a suggestion.

Octoberfeast for sure.

Octoberfeast, a new word-feel free to make it your own. SM, SH, Scousin, Scousin's wife and Sme went to a German restaurant for lunch today. It is in Buffalo, and called Scharf's-(scharfsrest.com for menu, location and coupons). Small building, in a neighborhood that originally was mostly German settlers. German music pipped in, German flags on each table, and German decorations to enjoy. We were one of the first lunch customers, then it quickly filled with those who ordered quickly-surely they were the "regulars", and a few other interlopers like us, chatting, comparing "what are you going to have?" choices, dawdling I am sure the very efficient waitress was thinking. We just so enjoy each other's company that we all fell into way too many conversations and had to quickly decide what to order so we wouldn't lose our waitress' attention (the word "server" like so many announce themselves to be at chain restaurants when they greet you is definitely not the term for this lady-she was an "expediter"-take order, deliver it, see you later. She was also covering the entire lunch room herself-not an easy job, and doing a fine job thank you very much).

Do you know about real German food? Very Earthy-which of course means gravy, and great flavors. Four of us had Rouladen-which is similar to the Italian method of cooking beef rolled up with great STUFF inside-called braciole. Rouladen has seasoning and a dill pickle inside while baking-no kidding-it has the nicest, tender flavor, great gravy served with it and hand-made noodles-but of course we also ordered a dish of spatzle-what are they you say? Little oval nuggets of heaven-they make a noodle type of dough, then grated over boiling water to be cut right into the water to cook. Then they are lightly sauteed I guess, because they have a little crusty flavor to them. You can buy spatzle in the freezer section and for those who have never tasted the real thing-this will do nicely.

But wait, I skipped the lettuce salad-just regular lettuce in a little bowl-but then, they put on their own house dressing-which they sell, it has a sharp taste-can't tell you what flavor is the cause of that-but a small bowl turns out to be just the right size-even for someone like myself who loooves her salads.

So listen, Shusband ordered what this restaurant, which has been around for 40 years (do not go by the outdated label above) calls their WORLD FAMOUS POTATO PANCAKES. HE DID NOT OFFER ME A TASTE. No, I am not stuck in CAPS, I just wanted make a point. I of course would never ask for a taste-he was so sick this summer and lost weight from a frame that was already way too thin. But if he had offered, I would have maybe taken the most smallest, tiniest-ever-piece to make him happy (always trying to please him of course).

Scousin and Scousin's wife ordered the most beautiful glasses of beer I had ever seen. Tall, I think the style is Pilsner-it looked like this:

The color of the beer was golden, the bubbles were rising to the top, slight foam, it was just too beautiful to imagine drinking and spoiling the image. I don't drink, but it just looked so beautiful. I am pathetic, I know you need to find beauty everywhere, but a glass of beer? Time to tone it down maybe?

But, I digress, Scousin and SCousin's wife were celebrating their 50th anniversary this week-can you imagine what an accomplishment this is? 50 years with the same person, accepting all their gifts and faults, and having them do the same for you? What a blessing it is to make the right spouse choice the first time. Me, I needed to try twice, but I hit the jackpot with this smart, sweet and loving husband, jeeze, I am about to cry, and all this because of a story about lunch!

When all had finished with their meal-I was the only one taking some home-hard to do, but I wanted it that way-and SH can have it for leftovers tomorrow, so anyway, we had to order dessert-our waitress said she ONLY had coconut cream pie-ONLY? Has anyone ever met a cream pie they didn't like? We ordered three pieces to share, let's see: three pieces, 5 people, someone will need to eat the whole thing without sharing-yep, anyone who knows SH knows it had to be him. My guy loves his desserts, and now that his appetite is back, they are all on notice-their end is eminent.

I ordered a take-out of goulash for SS, no cooking for me tonight, and we were all set to go, but wait, one more quick story. Scousin's wife is such a fun, smart person to be around, I told her earlier this week when she had me laughing like I had not in months that she was such a bonus relative-and I love being with her. Scousin and SH could have been brothers-they look alike and when put together they hunker down into their bro love cocoon-a major event could be going on, but they are talking so intently to each other that it would go unnoticed. SM looked lovely-hair done yesterday-dressed up, loving to get out. then SCousin's wife and I noticed a man who looked so totally European, we debated whether he was Polish, German or Russian. He had a face that just reminded you of the way world leaders from Slavic Europe look-sharp, thin features, different style haircut. We had a whole story worked up about him and the people he was with. One man we could see was "packing heat", could he be a body guard? What was the real reason he was in this small restaurant? Secret meeting? We were really having fun. Scousin speaks a few languages, so we were trying to convince him to walk by the table and start saying the Russian alphabet or say something in German-he would not cooperate with our insanity. My only fault with our European theory was that when he left the table-he had khaki pants on. What the heck? Do they even sell khaki pants in Europe? But of course Scousin's wife had an explanation-he spilled something on his regular pants, so had to get these instead!

A few minutes later, I was standing in another part of the restaurant, and Mr. Europe was standing next to me and said something in ........perfect English, with a local accent. Oh no! I started laughing, and had to tell him our bizarre tale. He got a kick out of it and at my request, he said hello to Scousin's wife by name as he walked back to his table. She giggled like a schoolgirl, and so did I. Life comes at you in the cutest ways sometimes. Next time you are looking around this great country, make up a story about one of your fellow travelers, it could lead to a giggle.

Thanks for sharing lunch with me today!

Pumpkin Bok Choy Soup

So listen, if you don't cook veggies like Bok Choy, you might want to try. It is one of those double bonus vegs, dark green on top and sharp white flavor on the bottom. Now you can buy it all year too. Just wash well, blot dry, slice white stems like you would celery 1 inch pieces, slice green tops into 2 inch wide pieces. Heat 2 tbsp canola oil and 2 tbsp. smart balance margarine in heavy pan on med-hi, add about 1 tbsp. dried basil, 1 tbsp. oregano, coarse pepper and salt to taste into oil and cook for about 1 minute to give the oil flavor. Stir, do not let scorch. Add veggie and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring, do not let it scorch, then add about 1 cup vegetable stock (chicken ok too, keep an open box in your fridge so you can just pour what you need), after bok choy starts to caramelize a bit, cover, lower heat, add more stock if needed and cook on low for another 10 minutes. Serve for supper, then the next day add one cup of pure canned pumpkin and another cup of stock to your leftover bok choy, heat gently. No additional seasoning is needed because you already did the work-now you have great, healthy soup in a flash, that you would pay a big buck for in a new trendy restaurant! I wish there could be a scratch and sniff website feature for you to smell what is left in the pan above.

Family, Games, Refreshments, and the Yankees=The best ever family night.

So listen, SS#1 and her Shusband told me about a new game that they played at their friend's house called TOSS UP. You can only order it online at patchproducts.com. It was very reasonable, I think I paid $6.99 or so plus s/h.
Sooo much fun, for all ages. It is based on stoplight colors: red means stop, yellow means you may proceed, green is a point earned. You throw the dice, one point for every green that shows, you then can either stop your turn and keep your points, or roll all the non-green dice to try for more points. If at anytime, your rolled dice colors do not contain a green-you lose all your points accumulated on that turn so far. As seen in the picture, all green are showing, I actually threw that-yes baby, of course I went on to lose that game, but hey, no one else in our group has done that magical roll! SGS said I am famous-love that kid!

Sounds like an easy game right? No brain numbing chores like in pinochle or hearts, but oh my, can it get exciting. When a player reaches 100 points, his turn ends usually (you can go on for more, put why?), then each remaining player gets one more turn to "beat the champ" (that was also the name of a local bowling show when I was a kid-flashback to more simple times, sorry). This game has become a ritual for us, SH, SS, SGS and Sme get it going and so many playing styles emerge. For instance last night I did not have one recorded score on the entire game! How is this possible you might ask, well, I was really pushing it after losing my few rounds of small points each time, when my score finally did get high, I kept pushing, wanted to get a big number, and then, BOOM, I threw only reds, and flush the toilet Tessie, my score went down to nothing for that round! SS was trying to hurry up the game so he could end it before the Buffalo Sabres game started (they lost 6-3), so he was pretty fast and furious, finally left before game ended with a score of 80. SH got 103, so the pressure was on for SGS to come through, yep, he managed to get 108 on one series of rolls without a red, and while talking non-stop through the game! SH was figuring out in his head the mathematical probability when I threw 3 reds out of three dice-he is such a brainiac.

I made a few pots of tea for us while we were playing: 2 bags of Morocco Orange Spice, one bag of India Spice to the pot (SB#1 taught me that you need to preheat the tea pot with very hot tap water before you make the tea-this keeps the tea warmer longer). Also, I made heart shaped shortbread cookies last week and saved them (as in hid from SS) so we could have them for Sweetest Day (Happy Belated Sweetest Day to you Sreader). SH bought me a heart-shaped shortbread dish for our anniversary this year (online at cookieartexchange.com), and the original shortbread idea came from fellow blogger Pattie Lockwood at morningramble@blogspot.com. She has a few other recipes that I made, very nice blogspot-try it you'll like it! ( are all my phrases from tv?????)

Anyway, back to the evening, fun, fun, we played and sipped and munched our cookie.

When the game was over, SGS said he wanted to also make us a special fall surprise, so he made: Pumpkin Fall Surprise.

I had some Pumpkin Bread (recipe taken from another fellow blogger Beth at bethsblog43812@blogspot.com . The original recipe was for cupcakes, I changed it to mini muffins with my favorite little muffin pan that makes 24 muffins at a pop, and I made another batch, this time making 2 loaf breads-bake at same temp, but for 45-50 mins. Then pop into freezer-well wrapped).

SGS loves to make many steps concoctions, so we softened chocolate chips, spread them on the bread,

nuked for 30 seconds, then sprinkled on Heath Bar chips and fall leaf sprinkles.

Bribed SS to come downstairs and watch Yankee game with us to eat it-food always works for him.

Thanks SGS for making a nice Fall Surprise for the family.

So, then the Yankees Game, did any of you stay awake for the entire 13 inning game? (I wish I would have made caffeine laden tea). SH said he was going to bed at 10:15 because he could not sit upright any longer, then at 11pm he really did, but not to sleep-oh no, the game was still going, so he watched in the bedroom, SS fell asleep in his room watching game, I finally made SGS go to bed when the 12th inning started-I can't tell you what time, you will call Child Welfare on me and he would never be able to stay overnight again! I trudged to bed, pulled covers up to stay warm and half-listened to the game fully intending to hear the rest. And the next thing I know, SH is kissing me goodnight and saying "The Yankees WON!" That was the end of a wonderful family night, thank you family. Thank you Yankees! Thank you spellcheck!

How many Colors?

This is our view from the front window. How many colors can you count? Don't miss the subtle reds hiding behind the trees on the left, and each color on a leaf gets counted also. Can you see why we would never sell this land? This is our buffer zone, sometimes we watch as birds come and grab a seed from our feeder and then fly across the street to crack and eat. They fly back and forth, it seems for hours, but they could be different birds of the same species, just like running a relay: they hand-off the baton to the next one, and the race continues.

In the spring, a good assortment of wild plants and flowers pop up to share their beauty with us. We are blessed.

One time, when our SGS was about 5, we sat looking out that window for a very long time, talking about what animals could make that wooded area their home. He of course mentioned bugs and snakes and then went on to explain the process of snake hunting their prey. I knew then that if I was to be a good grandma, I would have many "boy" conversations. Since then the topics have changed, the electronic wave has jumped into our world and he taught me to text (which I almost never do), how to play Super Mario on Wii, how to appreciate a movie on his PSP, all about ecology, the important info Karate students need to know about sparring with a weapon (are you kidding me? my only grandchild sparring with a weapon, deep breath, OK, I am better now) and every topic in between. I hope you have grandchildren, if not, please get involved with some kind of youth program at your church, school, library. We belong to the Kiwanis Organization, so we also have involvement with children in our community. Sometimes as you get older, you look at things differently than children do, we get bogged down in all the things that make up our world. This can really put a brake on enjoying life, we all need a little "youth infusion" to keep us balanced and smiling. Who knows, you might find out that Wii really promotes WE.

Matriach Moments and a great Recipe

So listen, this is the annual "Birthday Week". My SM has her 86th. birthday this week, so my SS(#2) flew in from out-of-state, and the party started! Sweet sister#2 is 2nd oldest daughter, you will also see references to SS#1-oldest sister, SB#1, oldest brother, etc, we have the following kids in my family: girl, boy, girl, boy, girl-me. SS#2 is great fun girl-loved to seeher looking happy and healthy!

SS(#1) is a great organizer amongst many other abilities, so she had lots of ideas lined up: of places to go and people to see. So far we've done them all, and loved every minute. We had supper that SS#1 made, breakfast at Bob Evan's with SA(sweet aunt) and SC (sweet cousin),

went to a makeup store-sales clerk/owner was not in a professional mood-we were not pleased, but when she realized the 4 of us were going to spend money-oh how the mood changed; went to our annual market visit near Lockport, great produce (we were all going into withdrawal because blue concord grapes seemed to be late this year, but we found them on Thursday to tide us over), went to Tim Hortons for soup, we all had hair appts this week so we looked fab, dinner with spouses, etc at Salvatores Italian Gardens Restaurant (very opulent place, but SM's favorite) food and company were the best-one of the best times which we have had there. Here she is with my two SB's.

And on the 7th day we rested (sounds sacrilegious to say it that way doesn't it?)

Tomorrow, we go to Hobby Lobby (a craft and decorating massive store which is new to our area, then to Dave's a newer grocery store to look for different things that local chain stores night not have. The SS#2 returns home on Tuesday, and we celebrate SM's real birthday on Wednesday! What is left to do?

I hope you are able to celebrate your SM's birthday, if not, say a little prayer for her.

Today we need to buy SH a new TV, the thing is only 5 years old, and shot, we will be avoiding this major brand for today's purchase.

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I wanted to share SS#1 recipe with you that is the best chicken ever:

Crock Pot Barbecue Chicken

place 1 bottle of Barbecue Sauce in crock Pot-try to find one that does not have high fructose corn syrup.

Add 3.5 lbs of boneless-skinless, trimmed chicken breasts-left whole. ( I stir lightly to coat here).

Cook on low 7 hours, -after 6 hours, use 2 forks to separate into shreds, cover again and cook for final hour.

Serve on hearty rolls with a salad-the best! Thank you SS#1.

My SD makes this recipe with a bottle of chicken wing sauce and then serves with a little blue cheese stirred in at the end for Buffalo Chicken Wing Barbecue.

Chili and other ramblings

Veggie Chili and other ramblings

So listen, Is there anything better than a bowl of Chili now that the weather is starting to tease us with cold temps? You make a huge pot, freeze a few containers for later or to share with others, and there you have it! Supper that is healthy and good tasting-what could be better?

Today, I am home and gone-busy driving, etc. day. Drove our overnight guest, SGS to Sunday School for 9am class, stopped at SM with a mum, and some other things from our Farmer’s Market trip yesterday with SGS, unfortunately, she had gone to an earlier Mass, so no visit. I did see a new sign today in a Pawn Shop window “Gift Certificates bought”. Unique new business.
Stopped at Mass on the way home, nice to have a wonderful Pastor for our Priest, you really feel “filled” when you leave.
Then, drove SS to meet his Dad and Uncle for a Buffalo Bill’s 4pm football game, this was only 12:30, but can not get to Ralph Wilson Stadium late! (The stadium is really called “THE RALPH” by most WNY fans and others, and sometimes when the Bills are really doing poorly, it has the other meaning: ralph as in to hurl). We had rain a few times already today, so convinced/made SS wear his waterproof pants to keep his coolou (read as fanny) dry and take a rain jacket. Not well received, but parenthood is not for wimps.
Then I made veggie chili (recipe at bottom of this post), picture above is ingredients in the pan before the simmering started.

I will pick up SS after the game at our half-way point meeting place, Alton’s Restaurant on Transit near Seneca Street. They have a huge parking lot, and the best salads, my fav is Tuscan Chicken, it is really well balanced with walnuts, dried cranberries, baby greens, and well marinated/grilled chicken breast. I always can get another full meal with the leftovers that I take home. While waiting in the parking lot, I usually take something to read, but once it get’s dark earlier, I just search through the radio stations for anything non-sports to peak my interest while I am waiting. The parking lot has other cars there who use it as a “Park and Ride” lot with friends. If the Bills have won, oh baby, a happy crowd, beeping horns as they pull away, laughing, lovin’ life. If the Bills lose, deep despair is so visible, very quiet as they move chairs, grills, coolers from the transport car to their vehicles. It is really so interesting how much the fans are affected, and it carries over to water-cooler conversations the next day. A football game loss seems to be a physical and emotional problem instead of a game.
Here is that recipe, if you try it, please let me know.

Veggie Chili:

-In large heavy pan, heat on high:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Canola Oil
-Add:
1 large white or yellow onion, chopped fine
3 peppers chopped into 1 inch pieces
(red, green, yellow looks nice, but any you have is fine)
-Cook for ten minutes, stirring every few minutes, do not let burn.
-Add:
2 packages of dry Chili seasoning
1 tsp. Dried Cumin
-Do not add liquid yet, cook on low heat for 5 minutes to infuse the onions and peppers with the seasonings. Watch and stir so it doesn’t burn.
-Add (all undrained, about 14.5 ounce cans):
1 can corn kernels
1 can black beans
1 can butter beans
1 can dark red beans
3 cans sliced stewed tomatoes with onions, chilies (break tomatoes apart before adding)
1 tbsp minced garlic
-Stir well, cover and cook for two hours on low, stirring about every 45 mins., then uncover and cook for additional hour, being sure to scrape the brown bits off the sides into the chili when stirring-that is where the seasonings are hiding.
-ENJOY!

You can vary this many ways, brown some ground turkey, chicken, or my family favorite is chicken Italian sausage meat, while you cook onions and peppers.
Use whatever beans your family likes, add a jar of salsa for extra flavor and use whatever heat strength your family will tolerate!
If you prefer thicker chili, add 1 can of creamed corn during last half hour of cooking or a small can of tomato paste and be sure to remove cover.
You can make this in crock pot, just transfer from saute pan to crock pot before adding all the cans,and add a can of tomato paste and cook on low for 5 or 6 hours.
I sometimes brown meat and onions, etc and freeze in bags the size of one batch. Then, I can just defrost that bag and use as a quick starter, heat before beginning, using microwave if making in crock pot.

Ramblin'

So listen, did you ever notice that when someone thinks others are watching them walk that they walk differently? I do, so since I am a "people watcher" this is something I look for. This morning a man was walking into a school. In the parking lot, he was doing what we all do sometimes, schlepping. Then, he stepped onto the sidewalk, and started that swagger, you know that rolling and pitching walk, that says I am just so cool and young! A marked contrast from his prior pattern. Then today, I was walking out of the grocery store, back was bothering me so I was being very "tender-footed", but then I realized that I was walking so "old lady", so I pulled my shoulders back, straight posture and managed to get in the car hopefully not looking as decrepit and old as I really am! Ah! Vanity, what we do to change our own perception of ourselves, when really who is watching that we care about anyway?

Burning Bush earns it's name

Just a few weeks ago, this was a lovely shade of green, a haven for our chickadees to break their sunflower seeds on it's stiff branches, but now, look, a more beautiful color does not exist. We unfortunately had to remove about 1/3 of this bush to do some entry changes to the front of our home, but we were able to save it from removal. Last winter the rabbits decided that it tasted good, so the bottom 1/3 was eaten by them- as the level of snow rose, so did their feeding station. This year we are planning on wrapping the bush in burlap, not that we don't love our little guys, but geez, we live across the street from our woods, go help yourselves there!
p.s. the Buffalo Bills won yesterday!!

Bappy Birthday Buffalo Bills

Today is a big Sports Day in Western New York-our beloved Buffalo Bills Football team is starting the 50th. season-first home game. The population here really supports our sports teams, it is a big highlight of the year when the "football season" starts. Today, long slowing evaporating jet contrails in the bright blue sky add to the festive mindset. Fans are being "warned" to expect traffic problems due to construction in two very important routes, and to be aware that DUI checks will be everywhere.

DS has season tickets with his father, so he will be attending, we just need to drive him to a local restaurant before the game, and pick him up after the game-we have a system-he calls me when the 4th quarter starts, and off I go. Sometimes, if the weather is warm, I take sd for the ride. Since it is a 4pm start time, pickup will be 9pmish. By then the temp is expected to fall, so heater will be pumping in the car-we have a Toyota Rav 4, heater is fine-but our previous Ford Taurus had a quicker steam of heat-but that is the only thing I liked better.

Even though our DGS does not go to games yet, he along with so many others is excited today. So, the tailgaters are ready, the Bills are ready, Good Luck Bills.

Ofenschlupfer

So, my SH had a wonderful mother who cooked many traditional German receipes, and then his equally wonderful sister carried on the tradition and made all of his favorites. He mentioned yesterday that he really liked Ofenschlupfer, which is a bread and apple pudding. He just happened to have a German cookbook "Original Schwabisch, Swabian Food & People", and the receipe was in there! SEE?

The panic set in as soon as I read the list of ingredients, it had THAT phrase in it "EGGS, SEPARATED". I do not do that, well, I have tried, but it is barf city for me, I tried the little seperator thingy that stores sell, but using all methods you need to LOOK at the egg! That ain't happen' with me. I had a childhood trauma, (well not a trauma, just a disgusting thing happen with eggs, so I have convinced myself that I never can look at an egg without heaving-ho). I have perfected the unfocused glance when using eggs, and quickly cover them up after cracked-hey, a girl's gotta do what a girls gotta do!
So anyway, I needed to change this receipe. I have another receipe that I use at Christmas Brunches, so I decided to kinda adapt this, and hope for the best.
Here is what I did:

OFENSCHLUPFER-SALLY’S VERSION


Preheat oven to 350deg.
4-5 medium Yellow Delicious Apples-peeled and sliced thinly

3 tbs. Splenda brown sugar blend

3 tbsp. Water



4 stale egg flavored sandwich rolls-broken into 1 inch pieces

½ cup milk (skim)



6 eggs-slightly beaten

21/2 cups of milk (skim)

2 tbsp. Splenda-white

2 oz. Smart Balance butter spread-melted

½ tsp. Cinnamon

1 tsp. grated orange peel (lemon or dried ok)

1/4 cup raisins

1 tsp. Vanilla

6 small pats of Smart Balance butter spread to put on top
sprayed 9x9 pan-glass or ceramic

Heat heavy saute pan-add first three ingredients-cook until apples softened but not too soft-approx 10 mins.
Let torn egg-rolls soak in ½ cup milk. (If not stale, slice, open, and put in 350 deg. Oven for 10 mins).
Mix eggs and 2 ½ cup milk till smooth, add remaining ingredients except pats of margarine, stir to mix.

Place ½ of bread into pan, then ½ of apples, repeat, then pour egg mixture over top of all. Place margarine pats on top. Bake until brown on top-approx 35-45 mins. Serve warm, Plain or with vanilla ice cream or whipped topping.
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This is what it looked like just before going into the oven. Five minutes after it went in, I thought that I better add some more milk-I added 2cups, pouring over all and continued baking. Did you notice I have it in a metal pan? Well, I started in a 9x13 ceramic dish, but soon realized that there were not enough ingredients to fill it so quickly-without thinking grabbed a metal dish. Which of course meant that after baking and setting for a few minutes, I needed to remove it and put into a

pyrex dish to store leftovers.

Here is what it looked like-ready to serve:

And guess what? SH said it tasted superb! He even suggested that I make it for his family the next time we get together! Now isin't that just the best? I met my goal of making something that he requested, and that reminded him of his Mom.

SS and I of course will eat anything that is even remotely in the dessert family, so we liked it, but SGS passed on it-can't please everyone.

If you make it, please let me know how it turned out.