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So...whats for dinner?

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  • auntienance
    auntienance Member Posts: 3,924

    We had snow in the forecast too but fortunately it decided to bypass us. I'm done with snow and winter. Wish the feeling was mutual lol. My garden is still sitting in the garage.

    I braved the supermarket yesterday which was as maddening as it was frightening. Because this county of 18000+ has only six diagnosed cases people around here act like it's a joke - standing in the middle of aisles in each other's faces yapping like they're at a church picnic, coming up on you with no regard for any kind of distancing much less 6 feet, people coughing with no effort to cover their mouths. About half the people in the store were masked. When they actually start testing people or as soon as one of the store employees tests positive perhaps attitudes will change. In the meantime, I'm avoiding it as much as possible.

    Tonight is a potato and onion frittata with a salad and garlic toast.

  • beaverntx
    beaverntx Member Posts: 2,962

    I braved the grocery store today. Since my trip last week, some employees of the grocery chain in a neighboring city have tested positive for the virus. Noticed today in our store all employees had masks (as compared to last week when maybe 1/3 to 1/2 had masks); also while I was shopping, they announced store capacity had been reached, the store was closed to any new shoppers, please continue your shopping...

    Still not all shoppers were wearing masks. The good news was I was able to get everything on my list for the first time in weeks. They also had toilet paper; brand did not look familiar but not in need yet so didn't go down that aisle. Also, snagged two small bottles of hand sanitizer!

    All that said, tonight's plan is left over chili, cheddar biscuits, and the rest of a 2009 Ken Volk Cabernet Sauvignon we opened last evening. Since starting Tamoxifen, my tolerance is one glass of wine, so no more declaring "that's a really good wine, let's have a second glass" at least for the time being (especially the 14+% alcohol California wines we have)!

  • chisandy
    chisandy Member Posts: 11,414

    (Seems as if) it's been so long since I'd ordered hand sanitizer & alcohol wipes on Amazon that I'd forgotten I did so--so their arrival on my doorstep yesterday felt like I'd won the Lotto...well, at least a two-buck "scratch-off" ticket.

    Passover ended at sundown yesterday. No breakfast today, as I had to get ready to take Heidi to the vet--finagling to get her into her carrier--plus deal with the bad news that my housekeeper's DH tested COVID+, which he no doubt caught from fellow dialysis patients at the V.A. (one veteran got flu symptoms and tested positive, so all that hospital's dialysis patients were tested due to the fact that the loungers were placed cheek-by-jowl and nobody except the staff was masked). So when I got back from the vet (Heidi's fine--we're awaiting her annual bloodwork results to determine why she was suddenly lethargic Tues. night into yesterday afternoon), I thawed out and toasted a couple of slices of low-carb bread and made myself an avocado BLT.

    Dinner tonight was leftover Costco ribs, supplementing our Cellars order of lentil soup, a huge Cobb salad (which I'll be eating for days) and gorgonzola-spinach meatloaf with mashed spuds, mushroom gravy (no roux!) & green beans for Bob. I could barely finish one rib and maybe a cupful of the salad. Had a really nice Mark West Pinot Noir, too. (Probably not finish my glass).

  • mountainmia
    mountainmia Member Posts: 857

    I went to the grocery this morning to pick up an order and also go in for produce. Now the cupboards are bursting and the freezer is full. Naw, it's not really that bad, but there is a lot of food in the house! So, most of my shopping was done by online order and I was only in the store about 15 minutes during the "senior hour." But honestly it was just stressful. Not many people in the store, still seemed like a long wait to check out. Everyone with masks. Produce was the busiest spot, so I felt like I was dodging people. Other aisles are one way, so if you just want one thing and you're at the wrong end, you have to circle around for it. Then you get everything home, wash, put it away, wash, sterilize the knobs and pulls and counter. You all know, as you're doing it, too. Then husband left for Costco for a few more things, so the clean-up process repeated once he got back. BUT. We won't need to do this again for at least a couple of weeks.

    One of the things he got was a rotisserie chicken. So I pulled it apart before dinner. We ate the leg/thigh quarters and the rest is waiting for some other plan. The carcass is already in the compost bucket along with the remains of a pineapple and the rest of the week's food trash.

    Besides the chicken, we had broccoli and some leftover sweet potatoes. I didn't finish my broccoli. I think I'll cook it up tomorrow for breakfast with some mushrooms and eggs.

    One of the things I ordered that was out of stock was a corned beef. That was disappointing, after setting my taste buds for it!

  • chisandy
    chisandy Member Posts: 11,414

    Costco chickens are da bomb! Bob's Union Health office is only a few blocks from Costco, so one day a week after work he becomes "hunter-gatherer" and brings home a chicken (also booze & whatever else we need they haven't run out of....so far, so good). Last week's chicken carcass became matzo ball soup.

    Cellars, from whom we order out at least one, if not two nights a week, has made its St. Pat's Day corned beef with colcannon (mashed spuds w/cabbage) and Brussels sprouts with coarse-grained Dijon mustard sauce a menu staple. It's usually the first item to sell out.

  • carolehalston
    carolehalston Member Posts: 8,352

    Last night's dinner was in the "blah" category. I had thawed a pork tenderloin. It was large so I cut it into two pieces, seasoned with s and p, onion and garlic powder, and dried rosemary. DH cooked it on the grill to the perfect doneness. Still pink in the center and moist. The side was a bag of frozen whole green beans. I started them in a skillet with chicken broth. Added a little Rao's. Sprinkled some Italian cheese, mixture of parm and romano from a jar. The result was still frozen green beans from a bag.

    The up side is that green beans always affect me like a diuretic so I was up a couple of times last night getting rid of fluid! I was disappointed when I stepped on the scale this morning. Then remembered I hadn't weighed after eating pizza recently so I probably really had dropped a couple of lbs.

    Tonight I will slice the leftover pork and heat it with barbecue sauce. Apologies for not being more inspirational.

    I did amaze myself yesterday by walking and playing 18 holes of golf. A walk of at least four miles. Afterwards I was tired but not exhausted, thanks to a gorgeous day with a high of about 72 and low humidity.

    A repairman came during the afternoon and diagnosed my washing machine's malady. Part and repair would be about $450, so no, thanks, I never liked the pricey machine when it was working. It lasted eight years so its service was a little less than $100 a year. The Kenmore gas dryer, bought used, has been giving service for 20 plus years.


  • celiac
    celiac Member Posts: 1,260

    Roast chicken is a weekly mainstay for me. DH bought an uncooked one on Tues and we roasted it on Weds, so should be set for another week.

    Sandy - You are so lucky to have such high quality take out available. Especially, since you can get wine as well.

  • minustwo
    minustwo Member Posts: 13,422

    I agree about Costco's wonderful rotisserie chickens. They're always much bigger than those in the grocery store, and so moist & tended. One is at least 5 or 6 meals for me.

    Oh Special, what a nightmare going on at that house. Hope the termites are easily dispatched.

    MountainMia - I love your story about wash, decontaminate - then do again. What did we ever do with all our free time when this wasn't the protocol?

    Carole - when I finally bought a new washer last year (top load, agitator) I kept my same old Kenmore dryer that is likely 25 years old. So they don't match - boo hoo. Remember back when we first had our own apartments or houses that had avocado green or harvest gold appliances? Who would have considered buying new? We were grateful we had a fridge & stove & dishwasher that worked?? And now working appliances are tossed out for stainless.'

    Dunch was two Oscar Meyer Wieners in one bun. On to something new tomorrow.

  • specialk
    specialk Member Posts: 9,262

    minus - termites won’t be easy or inexpensive. These are subterranean, the worst kind. I’ve already been warned by my bug guy it won’t be a simple treatment. Bleh.

    My parents built their first new house and had a front loading washer and dryer that were built in under a Mexican tile counter. They were butter yellow - and it was 1959. I have very clear memories of moving into that house. Orange groves, jack rabbits in the back yard, and the drive from the old house with our Siamese cat in a laundry hamper howling like a madman. All of the rest of the appliances - an electric stove built into the counter, a wall oven and a pull out dishwasher were also butter yellow. We also had a black and white linoleum floor, the squares were 12” - a classic look. My mom had a floor cleaning service once a month and they waxed and buffed that kitchen floor until you could see your reflection in it. I also remember cleaning and shining the fridge with Jubilee.

    Dinner tonight will be a corn, black bean and salsa salad and chicken and cheese enchiladas.

    DD is here waiting for her dad to come home - he had to go to his office today - and we will watch her in a tv show shot last winter. She is a guest host on a FL fishing show. She is also in a Yamaha boat engine commercial that happens to be on during the show - a double whammy! Very exciting! She came over this morning early and watched it with me, we recorded it for DH to watch this evening

  • reader425
    reader425 Member Posts: 972

    Dinner tonight came out better than expected. Crockpot chicken sauced with what was supposed to be molasses, Worcestershire, cider vinegar, mustard and hot sauce. Had to substitute maple syrup for the molasses as the lid was unremovable. But it came out pretty tasty if a bit thinner and less adherent than molasses. That, with sweet potato hash baked on a pizza stone, and a green bean casserole.

    There was one glass of cabernet sauvignon left from the other night so I took one for the team. 😘🍷🍗

  • carolehalston
    carolehalston Member Posts: 8,352

    For a while I may just check in and say, "We ate dinner last night." I actually dreamed about cooking dinner last night. The dream wasn't terribly stressful but it wasn't blissful either. In the dream I got out a container of cooked chicken from the freezer and made a Betty Crocker style casserole. I just may do that.

    DH has a Zoom meeting of the wood turners club this morning.

    Tomorrow Lowe's is delivering a new Maytag washing machine with an agitator. They won't bring it into the house but dh and I should be able to manage getting it through a door from the carport into the laundry room. He will hook it up. After reading a lot of reviews about washing machines, I concluded it's a "cr*p shoot" whether you get a lemon or a machine that works a few years. There seems to be widespread dissatisfaction with multliple brands and models. In a superstitious move to get 5 years of service, I sprang for the 5 year extended warranty.

  • auntienance
    auntienance Member Posts: 3,924

    I have the Kenmore washer to go with your dryers. We have had it for 25 years. The dryer finally gave up last year after 27 years of faithful service. Those days are gone I fear.

    Carole, I'm with you about dinner. It seems like such a chore to figure it out every night. Last night was a grilled ham steak and grilled fresh pineapple with some Florida corn on the cob. Tonight might be red beans and rice if I can snag some beans today.

    It's finally going to warm up enough to take my garden out of the garage and move it to the porch.

  • specialk
    specialk Member Posts: 9,262

    My washer and dryer are inexpensive, non digital, top loading with agitator washer and electric dryer. I bought the largest Kenmore set, for the least money, when we bought this house. We had so many other expenses I went with other priorities. They have been faithful servants, I fixed the door switch on the dryer myself for a $10 part off Amazon and a YouTube video. I recently had to replace the heating element on the dryer but that’s the only repair in 14 years. I bought Maytags for the new house, partly because they are American made, but also for the reputation. My BFF has her Maytags from 1983 - still going. My MIL went through several sets of digital front loaders in what seemed like short order

    It is raining here. DH just left to walk to the car repair place. His vintage 1996 BMW Z3 needed new gaskets. I’m pretty sure he just got rained on, hopefully he could duck under an awning along the route - rain come here in bands most often, so he may have some more episodes before he arrives there. I have a green pepper that needs to be used so I think I will make chili and cornbread for dinner.

    DD has offered to grocery shop for us on Monday since she has to go herself. I really only need produce and she said she is thinking about a trip to the farmer’s market that is near her horse.

  • minustwo
    minustwo Member Posts: 13,422

    Interesting - we're all focusing on what has to be used. Special - great that your DD will do the shopping.

    I was going to have an avocado filled with tuna salad, but decided the avocado could last one more day. So this is my plan for a really professional meal... I'm going to prepare a box of Stove Top stuffing and add celery & onions & sage. And I took a hunk of leftover cooked turkey out of the freezer. I pulled a can of cranberry sauce from the pantry for accompaniment. Probably I'll add a small salad of pre-packaged greens that need to be used. Such a fancy dinner certainly deserves an excellent wine, and I have several in the $10.00 range that will be delicious.

  • chisandy
    chisandy Member Posts: 11,414

    Had lunch for breakfast: a small tuna salad sandwich with lettuce, tomato & onion, plus black coffee. Spent all day feeding cats, cleaning the litterboxes, and laundry, laundry & more laundry. So far so good with the front loaders (Whirlpool). Had brunch for dinner: eggs Benedict (serrano ham, sliced tomato, over Mikey's keto English muffin, topped with nukable Hollandaise. Just me today & tonight: Bob is working the wards at Little Co. of Mary Hosp. and staying over at a hotel. He will come home tomorrow to strip, shower and have a good meal. Getting used to doing nothing but cat care and housework (mostly dishes and laundry) all day.

  • eric95us
    eric95us Member Posts: 3,182

    Dinner tonight was from Chipotles. There were probably 3 people inside and another 8 or 9 waiting outside...all spaced well apart....the staff said they are about 3/4 normal on business at night, but *totally dead* during the day. DD went to a vegan place a few days ago to get takeout and they said they were "90% of normal". So I guess it's a crap shoot for the restaurants.

    I kind of felt like I, too, had won the Lotto, and felt a bit silly at the same time when it came to toilet paper. I was in the store to get flour and other groceries and there were about 50 boxes of toilet paper (36 rolls of 1000 sheets per roll, 2 ply). The sign said 1 per customer so I grabbed a roll. When I got to the checkout stand, "We can only sell the toilet paper by the box. Do you want a whole box?" They even sent someone to grab the box with the missing roll. MIL is getting some, "Evil" twin is getting some and DD's roommates are getting some, so at least I'm not sitting on it. :-)


    Chi, I hope housekeeper's husband comes out OK and she doesn't get it. When I was working at the quarantine station, a lot of people that tested positive never showed any symptoms and they were nearly all 70+ years old...so maybe they'll get lucky as well.

    Is Bob going to completely retire or still do some consults with other doctors?

    How is Heidi?


    Special, how was the TV show?


    Nance, it's supposed to be 90F by next Friday. The garden is growing nicely and I'm already getting tomatoes (red cherry) from the garden. The Serrano pepper plants are probably 3 weeks off from having peppers. By mid June, I'll be having to shade the tomatoes so I can get another few weeks of harvest from them. After that, they'll get overheated and while they'll grow, they won't set fruit. The peppers and tomatillos will do fine throughout the summer.

  • carolehalston
    carolehalston Member Posts: 8,352

    I looked up Kenmore online and the brand is no longer owned by Sears (which has gone bankrupt?). Apparently washing machine manufacturers can no longer make "lots of water" machines any more. All the sensing and clicking and dribbling of water is a matter of law. The Lowe's employee who delivered our Maytag yesterday explained that even on "deep water" setting the amount of water is still limited. As a pro environment person, I guess I can't complain. In our case we have two wells on our property and do not pay more for water than the initial price of drilling the 2nd well, which is 900 feet deep.

    There was no cooked chicken in the freezer. The container was cooked okra. So I took out an 8 oz. package of ground chuck and Betty Crocker took over from there. DH was tickled with a macaroni hot dish for dinner.

    I may venture out grocery shopping today before the rain comes in the afternoon.

    As of yet we have no itinerary for travel to MN this summer. Have to see how things develop.

  • specialk
    specialk Member Posts: 9,262

    Kenmore was manufactured by Whirlpool, and actually Whirlpool - at least in more recent years - did better in consumer tests. One thing I have been confused about is that the newer water sensing machines save water, which is great, but they take twice as long to run - isn't that using more electricity, right? My solution has been to set it to speed wash because I never seem to have time for laundry that takes more than two to three hours to get through the wash and dry cycles. I have only used the front loaders when staying in AirBnb places. I haven't asked DD whether she likes the front loading Maytags - but I probably should check. My current old washer takes about half an hour to wash and the same to dry. Just how I like it.

    eric - watching DD on the fishing show was fun. It is always kind of surreal to see her on these shows - she was on Fin Chasers previously for two episodes, and has been on a couple of other shows. She is on a larger than life wall poster in the Columbia store, and on posters and little signs on clothing rounders for Columbia in Dick's Sporting Goods, and in Beall's, which is a Florida based department store. When we went to the Miami Boat Show a few years ago she was on the TVs in the Tohatsu boat motors booth, and she is featured as pro staff for several manufacturers of fishing gear and sunglasses. She does get recognized, which is weird for us because we don't think of her that way, but she is always friendly and gracious - she knows she has been lucky to have success, the fishing industry is hard for women who want to be taken seriously. She is regularly in fishing and outdoor sports magazines, and is part of a recently published book called 50 Women Who Fish. She has been on the radio here a lot as a guest on an Orlando based station that has a show called Florida Fishing Radio. She is comfortable in front of the camera or microphone - she took a lot of public speaking classes, and has also been an instructor for symposiums specifically for women's salt water fly fishing and fishing in general. She appeared on stage at the Florida Sportsmen show at the fairgrounds to talk about fly fishing and some salty old guys asked her why they should listen to her. Her answer was "because I have seven world records..." They shut up and listened.

  • celiac
    celiac Member Posts: 1,260

    SpecialK - Kudos to your daughter! She sounds like a heck of a woman. Love her response to the old guys.

    Re: Washing machines - I too, am frustrated by the water sensing machine that takes much longer to run. Guess we will not be able to return to the days of the 30 min. wash load.

    Eric - What an odd circumstance that you had to buy 36 rolls when you only wanted one. Guess the great TP crisis is not happening in your area.


  • eric95us
    eric95us Member Posts: 3,182

    The TP shelves have been wiped clean for about 6 weeks. So it surprised me when the "one per customer" sign mean one box instead of one roll. It worked out OK as everyone got a few rolls.

    The washing machines. I try, very hard, to keep the old ones running as they are easier to fix, have better parts availability and, as noted, are much faster. The newer units seem to be designed without care for repair.

    As a young teen growing up in a small town, I remember being in awe when I saw a TV commercial that mentioned my home town. I don't know what I would have done had it been someone I knew that had been on TV. :-)

    I'm guessing the "salty old guys" had the "little lady" attitude. I find that attitude very annoying. Good for her that she (politely) "shut them up". :-)


  • carolehalston
    carolehalston Member Posts: 8,352

    SpecialK, I always enjoy your posts talking about your daughter. She seems like such an admirable young woman. I'm sure I would love to talk to her and ask her about her experiences. I like fishing but am not good at it. I would do more fishing in MN if my dh had the slightest interest. His problem--and mine, I must admit--is killing and cleaning the fish. Of course, I have no problem with buying fish fillets at the seafood counter. Contradictory. Fish have to die for me to eat fish and I gladly accept fish from MN neighbors.

    I did massive food shopping yesterday at three stores. Which meant a lot of work portioning meat and stowing pantry and refrigerator items. And a considerable output of $$. The overflow food went to the extra refrigerator in an outbuilding. This outbuilding is turning into an extra pantry, too. We should probably start locking it.

    We had baby back ribs for dinner along with canned baked beans enhanced with some Splenda brown sugar. The salad was hand slivered cabbage with cucumber and avocado and mayo and vinegar dressing. The cabbage was on the limp side since it had been in the veggie drawer a while.

    Tonight I will cook salmon with yogurt and dill sauce.

    Quite a few people are wearing cloth masks. Quite a few aren't, too. I wish the science skeptics could go ahead and expose themselves and not harm others. I saw a meme on Facebook that I reposted: You can't fix STUPID and you can't quarantine it either.

  • specialk
    specialk Member Posts: 9,262

    carole - I am glad you like hearing about my DD - she is a unique girl. She grew up with her older brother - they are only a year apart - and was always a tomboy. She never had that many girl friends, but lots of guy friends, she seemed to get along better with boys. I grew up fishing but have not done it as an adult - I should have her teach me, because I do enjoy it. She is always catch and release and is very mindful of the fishery, she eats fish in restaurants and will cook fish that someone else catches - much like you! One of the requirements for her type of an IGFA world record is that the fish is released alive. I am going to post this photo, it says a lot about her - very much for you since you live in LA and will enjoy this. Her boat is 17.5 feet - that tells you the size involved here. This was legal and tagged and fully processed, nothing wasted.

    image

  • auntienance
    auntienance Member Posts: 3,924

    Special - she is quite a girl - you did good!

    Spent half of yesterday planting annuals even though it’s questionable whether I’ll be here to enjoy them and not moving instead. So many unknowns right now sigh.

    Lots of spring signs now - first hummingbird last week, first wren today. Shrubbery is greening but our trees are mostly oak and they are notoriously slow to bloom and leaf so not as green as areas south of here. Missouri’s weather is famously untrustworthy so flowering vegetation will be at risk until May.

    My biggest problem today is that I’m running out of bagels which I eat most mornings for breakfast. My choice is to make a trip to the city or make them myself. I have frequently made them (Peter Rinehart’s) but they are a pain so I’m thinking a trip tomorrow is in order. It will be the farthest I’ve traveled in weeks

    Still, it’s a beautiful day here so I’ll probably grill pork burgers for dinner with a salad. I still have two ears of Florida corn which while sweet, was on the tough side. I’ll probably grill it too.

  • chisandy
    chisandy Member Posts: 11,414

    Special, your daughter is really something! Not just a great fisherwoman (and gator-conqueror) but poised, smart and beautiful!

    Eric, Heidi is doing well--eating like a horse. Unfortunately, a little at a time--and I have to constantly turn her dish so she can see the food and not strain her (undoubtedly) osteoarthritic little neck. I have to stand over her to do that--and make sure Happy doesn't swoop in and finish it when she walks away temporarily. She comes back ever 10 minutes or so to yell at me that she's hungry again--lather, rinse, repeat till there are only crumbs for Happy to finish. He practically inhales large portions--but if I sleep in too long he gets hunger pangs and urps up clear fluid. It is what it is--he has IBD, but there isn't anything we can do about it so long as he is still otherwise healthy and playful. Heidi is reasonably spry for her age when it comes to playing but slow at going down the stairs (though she streaks past me going up when she thinks I'm about to go to bed so she can cuddle). Her bloodwork shows signs of very early kidney disease, but nothing (acc. to the vet) that would explain last week's bout of lethargy. I am dreading Friday, as she has a 7:30 dental appt., so she's gotta be NPO after 10pm Thurs. night. We'll take her up to the guest bedroom and put a disposable littlerbox in there, and her carrier right outside the door. Only hope I don't have to shinny under the bed and haul her out--Bob & I don't get down on to nor up from the floor easily these days.

    Bob admits that early on he had some digestive upset & muscle aches, but not in the past couple of weeks. I have a drippy nose & sometimes scratchy throat and morning headache--but that all goes away when I snort my allergy stuff (Ayr, cromolyn, Nasacort). Tree pollen levels have been insane this spring, and I am also trapped indoors with dander. It is what it is (how I hate that expression). We may have had early exposure (my supposed whooping cough in Dec/Jan may not have been pertussis after all)--only an antibody test will tell, and those are weeks to months away.

    Housekeeper's DH is getting his dialysis at a brand-new center strictly for COVID patients. That way other patients won't be exposed. The Hines V.A. hosp. needs all the dialysis machines it has because the most critically-ill ventilated ICU patients are experiencing kidney failure as part of the cytokine storm (immune system gone supernova) that results in the most deaths.

    Bob has decided to work through the end of the year. (His partner, per the new bc treatment guidelines, will likely be skipping radiation and just getting adjuvant aromatase inhibitor therapy. Had she not already had her lumpectomy a month ago, she would have been recommended to skip surgery as well, just getting AIs). If he does test positive and then recover post-quarantine, then he will close the practice and just do Union Health twice a week and the occasional consults. If he doesn't come down with the virus, that semi-retirement will come no later than 1/1/21. If we do travel at all once the pandemic has been tamed, it'll be by car. There are parts of this country he's never seen, and I've seen only passing through for my own gigs. (Sadly, that will likely not include NYC, our original home town--it'll seem forever "radioactive").

    He had a giant burrito at his office, so my dinner was defrosted Easter leftovers (lamb chop, 2 wings & green beans. I'll grill a ribeye, asparagus & sweet potato tomorrow night--maybe also a kale salad with dried cherries & toasted walnuts (I will pick around the cherries). Wed. is my weigh-in appt. which will be by phone. I reached my goal of 150! But I may want to keep going, just out of curiosity. This diet's not really a hardship. As long as I've got stuff to do here (cat care, housework, continuing legal ed videos), I won't need to eat except at mealtime. (My retainer is also a factor--can't eat or even have coffee with it in, nor keep it out for too long lest it feel tight when I put it back in).

  • carolehalston
    carolehalston Member Posts: 8,352

    Sandy, I think you will be able to travel in a couple of years. I have a lot of confidence in the medical scientists. I just hope that saving the world from Coronavirus doesn't turn into a greedy capitalist venture.

    SpecialK, that's a huge gator. It would be appreciated here in south LA where gator meat is sold for consumption. I personally have not bought any. I assume it's expensive. I've never seen it in supermarkets. What's the popular "saying" for exotic meat? Tastes like chicken?

    We have some small gators on our golf courses but I haven't seen any monster ones. We also have water moccasins in marshy water hazards. When my golf balls goes into such an area, I don't pursue searching for it.

    Last night we had a change of dinner menus about an hour before eating. We decided on hot dogs rather than baked salmon. How's that for a healthy switch? I asked dh what is a side dish for hot dogs? He answered, Potato salad. Sounded good to me. No leftovers.

    I haven't felt great the last couple of mornings and may have discovered the reason. When I got our the case with morning pills a few minutes ago, I saw that Sunday's and Monday's pills were still in their slots.

    Tonight will probably be the salmon and asparagus.

  • Lacey12
    Lacey12 Member Posts: 2,895

    It’s fun to read about your DD, Special. It’s so nice to see a young woman successfully follow her passion. Love the pic!
    I also grew up with a year older brother and, living next to a lake, we fished a lot. More exciting were the chartered deep sea fishing trips off the Jersey shore with my maiden aunt who treated us each summer. She was a unique woman in her time... an executive secretary in a large corporation, who also learned to be a “hairdresser“ (and I sported the perms to prove it!), an oils painter, and ultimately a local opera singer. Her love for her nieces and nephews lured her to the fishing boats when she wasn’t taking us to museums. How fortunate we were to have her in our lives.

    The washing machine info is interesting. I keep hoping our aged Maytag outlives us. Aside from some occasional imbalance “dancing” behaviors with small loads, it has been a great reliable washer. Fingers tightly crossed! I am so allergic to molds that I could never buy one of the front loading whiz bang new washers whose doors need to be left open to deter mold growth. With the water saving features, I’m afraid I would be using three rinse cycles to rid my laundry of all detergent. During my BC treatment my skin became so sensitive to chemicals that I started double rinsing our laundry, and continue to do so, with good result. I swear I can smell clothes detergent on some people who (used to!) walk near me. We recently installed low flow shower heads in our bathrooms, and I feel like I use more water (and time) now trying to rinse the shampoo out of my hair. DH doesn’t notice a problem....but his hair is way thinner and, until “distancing”, about an inch long!

    Nance, I feel for you. Living with even more uncertainty than the general masses now is so hard. I’m glad you planted your flowers though...and if you do move soon, what a lovely welcome for the new homeowners! Have you ever made those “two ingredient” WW bagels? In a pinch they are really easy, not bad tasting, and great point value according to my WW friends. Just thinking that if you had some self-rising flour and plain greek yogurt on hand, you could avoid heading out to any unmasked environs.

    Our local son keeps offering to food shop for us, and provided us with quite the bounty on his first trip, but DH obviously needs more frequent food choice fixes, so makes trips to the grocery stores whenever we get low on milk. I would probably also be tempted to go except my tree pollen allergies have gotten so bad that I have further quarantined myself in the house so I can breathe. Sadly, my daily outdoor walk is curtailed.

    I’m finally making masks that include all the features that I decided were most efficacious and user friendly, (and blended several patterns to do so). Am cranking them out waaaaay more slowly than the people who produce 20-40 a day of the Deaconess pattern.

    Cooking is so uninteresting to me of late. Yesterday, DH grilled chicken breasts I had marinated in teriyaki sauce. Sides were my typical veggie-full salad, nuked sweet potatoes, and some crusty bread from Trader’s. See what I mean

    Carole, your meme quote was sadly on target.

    Special, during a Facetime visit with DDG look what popped up in the background!

    Boy do we miss that little one! Last time she was here (a bit before Covid crisis) she was a baby who stood for the first time, now she is starting to walk independently and is a girl (trying to be) on the go, much to the chagrin of her working from home parents! Hard not to be with her for these little milestones. But, so far, everyone in our family has been safe....so there's that to be thankful for.

    image

  • auntienance
    auntienance Member Posts: 3,924

    Yesterday I picked up three previously ordered small chickens (3.5#) which as we know are a rarity . Today I froze two and a half of them. The other half is dry brining and will end up on the grill tonight. Sides will be the stuff that didn’t end up on the menu last night - a small salad and two ears of Florida corn.

    As for the bagels, I ended up ordering on line from Panera and picked up a dozen everything bagels curbside. We had to drive 50 miles to get them but it’s a beautiful day and it was nice to get out of the house (or should I say the neighborhood). I also ventured into one of the large city grocery chains and picked up a few things that I can’t get in my town. It was refreshing to see how organized they were, most everyone wearing masks and lots of cleaning going on after each transaction. There were few people in the store so distancing was a piece of cake. The customers who were there were considerate of each other. Big difference from my community!

    Lacey, I’m sorry you’re suffering with your allergies. I’m allergic to mold too- it’s my main offender - so I feel your pain. And unfortunately it’s not seasonal .

    I want to make a couple of masks but there are so many patterns out there I’m overwhelmed

  • chisandy
    chisandy Member Posts: 11,414

    Add another allergy sufferer here: ALL pollens and some molds. I keep my washer door open, clean the gaskets with bleach every few loads, and run an Affresh cycle monthly (per my housekeeper's instructions). So far so good. Tree pollen levels here are off the charts (today it was cottonwood, yesterday poplar, much of last week were various evergreens). Our magnolia finally bloomed, but windstorms last week had blown off many buds. Even without the pandemic, I'd probably be wearing a mask on my forays out to the sidewalks--and might have to do so while gardening as the weather improves.

    Had my weight mgmt. checkup by phone today. I'm at goal! (The symbolism of moving the big "clunk" weight from the 150 to the 100 notch on my scale has me choked up emotionally--even though the "little" weight is at 149.75. Haven't been there since 1991). Think I'll keep going and see where my body wants to be. At least 10 lbs. of that is excess skin, but since I'm not getting fungal infections from it and this pandemic has me reconsidering ANY elective surgeries except for pain relief when we reach the "new normal," I can live with it. I don't care if short-sleeve tees show my "bat wings," and I can always wear longer sleeves. As to my "apron," tighter jeans & bike shorts hide that--and I ditched midriff-baring swimsuits decades ago.

    Last night I did cheat royally, bec. I couldn't sleep (Bob's snoring, my restless legs & pulsatile tinnitus). So I went downstairs and ate a little no-grain paleo-granola (a cheat because it has a bit of maple), then a prune, a sheet of whole wheat matzo with melted provolone, then (gulp) a KIND bar (OK, but turns out I actually like the Atkins bars better). In desperation, took a Lyrica--which knocked me out and gave me interesting dreams till 1:30pm! Amazingly, the kitties hadn't thrown up from hunger pangs (they still had a little kibble in their dishes).

    Brunch today was a baby arugula/tomato salad with the toppings (sausage & anchovies) from leftover pizza. I normally detest S.Side thin-crust "tavern-cut" (hacked into little squares) pizza, but since crust is now a dietary "forever never" (along with corn & spuds), I'm okay with just the toppings. Tonight I will be grilling a grass-fed ribeye, asparagus and sweet potatoes (Bob gets a whole one, I get a half). Might make a kale salad with red onion, walnuts and dried cherries (Bob can eat the cherries, I can take them out of my portion).

    Somewhere in the freezer are sesame bagels (reg. & keto), but we've found that low-carb (4 gm. net) hi-fiber whole grain toast is just as filling a substitute in lox & schmear sandwiches (I add tomato & red onion) without the outrageous calories of regular bagels.

    Lacey, your little DGD is truly adorable!

  • eric95us
    eric95us Member Posts: 3,182

    Jessiecat was also a "grazer" when he ate. But, we had a Yellow Lab that was a vacuum cleaner and would gobble everything down in sight. The cat would blink and Gypsy (the dog) would zoom in and try to snag all the food.


    When I need more water in my top load washer, I add a couple of quarts of water wait a few minutes to let the water soak into the clothes and then start the washer. The washer starts up, does a quick drain cycle and a quick spin cycle, checks the weight of the load and determines that a lot of water is needed for a "HUGE" load. I keep an empty liquid detergent bottle on the shelf for use as a "fool the washer" water container. Most of the time, the washer does OK, but if the clothes are nasty, like when I've been working for several hours in the summer heat under a car, I will need to use this trick.


  • minustwo
    minustwo Member Posts: 13,422

    Special - love the pict of your daughter & friend. WOW. Lacey - so nice to see how the DGD is growing. I know you miss her. Nance - I agree about planting the flowers. You will enjoy them while you're there and planting flowers is more fun than cleaning tubs & toilets.

    I'm still walking 3-4 miles ever day. This was day #24. I'll be looking in the mail for my medal - LOL.

    Dunch was a large salad - greens, cukes, fresh mushrooms, celery, campari tomatoes, avocado, leftover turkey, carrots - pretty much all the little bits of leftover. Served with Panera Bread "Asian Sesame" dressing, which I try to keep in the fridge all the time.