So...whats for dinner?
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Monica, you do indeed need a break. We've had massive storms too--the ceiling in our attic guest room just collapsed (it was a crummy patch job done 30 yrs ago after a roofer's crew member got drunk* on his break and fell through the (substandard) plywood decking and the ceiling. (*Part of the debris included beer cans). It was a crummy patch job because the crew wanted to get home. Surprised it lasted this long. Storms also shorted out the GFCI box in our detached garage--even though I managed to close the window louvers over it. Drywall services (as well as water damage restoration) for the ceiling are swamped (no pun intended) with business, and I probably won't get a repair for several days if not weeks. The GFCI dried out for now, but the ceiling is a higher priority. Bob can work the garage door manually and I can take rideshares, transit or delivery services if need be,
Eric, I play mountain (aka Appalachian, or "lap") dulcimer. Mazel tov to you & Sharon for the weight loss. Willing to bet that the reason travel often leads to a weight loss is a combination of more walking, less opportunity for mindless snack eating, and smaller restaurant portions (at least abroad). Speaking of travel, the International terminal at O'Hare flooded an inch deep in places. The freeway exit spur (I-190) flooded so deep at underpasses (some cars halfway up the windows) that passengers got out of taxis or & Ubers and walked on the grass, hauling their luggage, to the terminal...only to find, of course, that the flights they'd feared missing had been cancelled.
Our party went well, though of course we had to cook and eat entirely indoors. The shishito peppers were hit-or-miss: far more than the claimed 1 in 10 were hot. Gave one guest with a sensitive tummy hiccups. Tonight was leftovers. (I cut the elotes corn off the cob--per my dentist's admonitions at my cleaning this afternoon).
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Yikes, Moon! You have been going through a lot! I also remember that cute caterpillar ornament from posts past. I do hope things are calming down for all of you, am sorry for all your material losses, and I send healing wishes to your daughter. Hopefully being with that adorable granddaughter helped you through such a challenging time.
Illimae, we could just about cluck we eat chicken so often! Thus, I rarely order it out. Hope yours was tasty!
Today was a gorgeous beach day here, (really amazing heat for the Northeast in September...good thing we don't have Global Warming;) and yet we were doing house clean up, and removal of all things on porch and deck in preparation for some carpentry work and a house exterior paint job. Tomorrow I will finish interior cleaning and food and clothes pack up, and we will head home. I think this is actually the longest continuous time we have stayed here at the lake, so it's been feeling like home. We will miss our lake neighbors...many of whom are now full timers here. Not that I could ever easily make this my primary home....just a tad too far away from city life for us. It is beautiful though....
Last night we grilled a pork loin that I'd marinated with a teriyaki mix, and for sides, we had grilled zucchini, microwaved corn on cob, and of course a salad.
Tonight we finished the veggie pasta casserole I'd made for our beach potluck, and a salad made with any possible ingredient that could qualify for salad (read canned artichoke hearts, kalamata olives)since our lettuce volume was paltry. Other than lettuce, it seems we have a lot to pack up. Maybe DS2 is right...we keep our fridge overly full!
Not looking forward to facing the mound of mail at home, and the rush to get my soc wk license renewal coursework completed in the next four weeks, (don't ask me why I keep this license!?) but will not miss the explosion of mice here that has resulted in them taking up residence in our cars! Only one bit of evidence of them in the house, so hopefully, when the pest control folks come (after we are gone...not planned that way, but this happens when upcountry),they will determine that we don't need to pay a fortune to rid our property of tons of mice! My sister almost lives with them comfortably in her barn/home. We are not that accepting! Has anyone else heard of an explosion of mice as we are experiencing here? Not sure if it is climate or just a cyclic thing. Sorry to be so off topic.
Carole, I'm wondering if you are also heading home soon.
Eric, I was also surprised that you were not called up to deal with the fires. Thanks for explaining the process. And congrats to you and Sharon on the weight loss! We qualify for “weight found" in this house. But back to the gym once home. The heat and humidity this summer was not at all conducive to exercising outdoors, (which we've done other summers) and there are few gyms in this area. Aside from those excuses, I have to admit that we have been regular members of the not infrequent cocktail hours on the beach. We need life to get back to normal!
Our last boat trip yesterday....beautiful day, and the cumulus clouds were not connected as much by the fire residue (excuse incorrect term) that has made its way to NH over the osst two weeks
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Lacey, our neighborhood population explosion has been rabbits. (Yeah, what they say about them is apparently true). Not only is it impossible to grow salad greens around here, they even nibble on my hostas & begonias. As the weather gets colder, though, the big problem is alley rats getting into garages, climbing up cars' undercarriages, and gnawing on wires. I might try spraying some Bitter Apple under the car (too bad the only capsicum spray out there is mace--which itself might rot the rubber insulation).
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Oh Monica, you have had some trials. I'm so sorry about Mr. Chrisapillar, I know he was a beloved member of your family. But your granddaughters are so cute and growing so fast!
Minus, I do put tart apples in cole slaw from time to time. I like it for a change.
The mice in our neighborhood move into the garage when it starts getting cold. We go to great lengths to keep them out because they attract snakes into the garage. We can't park the cars outside the garage for any length of time because squirrels chew the spark plug wires. It's happened twice to us and it's a pain.
We to have had an explosion of rabbits. There is one about 6 inches long living in my front flower bed snacking on my plantings. I'm surprised about the rabbits because we've had the pair of foxes around a lot but on the other hand, the fox seem to have developed a taste for squirrels (yay!)
Carole, I hope you don't go home to a mess from hurricane Gordon.
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Moon, I missed your post. Wow. You are busy...and I, too, remember Mr. Chrisapillar. I hope the rest helps your daughter's pregnancy. Again, wow....
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We have rabbits, too! My neighbor Mary, the gardener, has tried to lure them into a live trap but no luck so far. She says they are eating some of her flower plants. Yesterday afternoon they were darting under our deck in plain sight during Happy Hour on Mary's deck. They looked skinny to me.
We will be heading south at the end of this month, so plan to arrive home in early October. As far as I know, the tropical storm didn't damage our area.
Monica, you've had all you can handle lately.
Lacey, having fun and enjoying social life is not always weight friendly! How well I know that.
Tonight will be half a pork tenderloin. Maybe corn on the cob to use up some of refrigerator contents. And definitely salad with home-grown tomatoes.
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Met my Sis-in-law for our bi-monthly lunch. Because she was at the med center, she choose a restaurant that was close for her so we could eat by 1:30pm. My favorite entree there is rainbow trout, French green lentils and spinach sauteed with pecans. And they have homemade bread. Today was something like a wheat nine-grain. I indulged in a nice glass of Hahn Meritage. No dinner for me. Just hopeful that I can make it to water aerobics at 6:30 and be able to float.
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quick update: Stan has to wait for another CT to see where we are on healing, then get 2nd opinion on that on the 13th.
DD2 went home on this weekend because her DH was off. Shes off work 2 more weeks, but friends helped her clean up, and got a meal train going for them. Whew. DD1 stayed over 2 nights when DD2 was at her home, so at least everybody had a bed. She helped sort through some stuff too. Basement is now cleaned and drying, dumpster is full and waiting for pickup. Everything they could save is in the little room waiting for us to go through it. Will have to wait til DH can lift things again. They did manage to save our cradle, so it needs, extra bleach, hydrogen peroxide and vinegar and then refinishing, but its still here. The kids used it after baby stage for boats, trains, pirate ships, etc. Its really sturdy oak! LOL, so im glad that made it through. Im down to 2 people on maid duty, so cooking cleaning and laundry is now only 3 x a week. LOL. I forgot how 4 people and a kid add up to way more dishes and laundry. Just went grocery shopping and refilled much, so I can cook tomorrow. Tonight its leftover bean casserole served over salad for me, potato for DH. Tomorrow will be spaghetti.
Chisandy, sorry about the ceiling. Yuck. And yes, everyobe is swamped with all the damage! There are 8 dumpsters in our subdivision, with as many picked up already. Many flooded, not just backups. Im guessing you will have to wait until the finish up the exterior holes before they can get to interior problems. That sucks.
Lacey, good luck on getting back to your primary home! Safe trip and I hope packing gies well. The only thing worse than mice in the walls, are dead mice in the walls! Glad you wont be there when they work on that! LOL
Eric, you and Sharon deserve a medal for losing weight on vacation! Good work!
Auntie, dont know what is worse mice, or snakes, oh goodness!
Carol, i too, hope youre safe from Gordon.
Theres been so much rain everybody here goes around all the spots that get flooded often. But you know its bad when the close the main expressway. It is supposed to get better.
Well I guess I talked all your ears off, so Ill wish you all much love, especially if I didnt say your name this time. I think about all of you and try to come up with a way to get here more often. Take care, stay dry!
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moon - oh no, not Mr Chrisapillar! Since you have pics can he be recreated? Girl, you have your hands full - sending you some energy!
Tonight is ribeyes on the grill - yay!
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Dinner was easy tonight - used a frozen pasta meal and salad kit that had planned on eating at CraterLake OR but got side-lined on trip due to annoying tooth. Have to have root canal tomorrow. Darn it! We have rabbits and deer here too. Deer came in early this year and have enjoyed my green beans. We have squirrel issues eating “ stuff” in our camping van at times. Not sure how to dissuade them yet. Going to try a capsium spray.
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The half pork tenderloin made a delicious pork piccata. Haven't made that in a long time, quick and easy. Side was fresh corn cut off the cob and added to frozen green lima beans.
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A pot of spaghetti sauce is simmering on the stove for tonight's dinner. The pasta will be pappardelle that I found, of all places, at Walmart. The inspiration for the sauce was a lb. of ground pork in the freezer. I turned it into Italian sausage for the sauce meat. Closer to dinner time, I will grate a generous amount of asiago cheese. This is the first time all summer that I am making sauce instead of opening a jar of Rao's!
Amazingly, the Rao has come down to eye level at the local Walmart's. The price is good--$7, or $6.98. Apparently others besides myself are willing to pay for a quick and delicious alternative to making sauce.
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Carole, our Wal-Mart has started to sell frozen pastas, such as tagliatelle, much to my amazement. No pappardelle though, it's a smaller store. I end up making it usually. With the pasta machine, it's a 15 minute operation.
Tonight is Trader Joe's potluck. DH and I made a run today after my mammogram and DEXA scan. Choices are tamales, chicken burritos Verde, pizza di fromaggi (sp), Mac and cheese, cod sandwiches, mandarin orange chicken with vegetable fried rice and spring rolls or chicken balti pies (which I haven't had before.) Ah, mindless dinners to match my mental vacuity these days.
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I could do a surf & turf from leftover steak & fish & chips, but Bob wants to go out for Mexican food. So probably Mas Alla Del Sol.
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Nance - hope both your Dexa scan and your mammo produce good results. I can't remember - are you doing Prolia shots like Special and I for osteoporosis? Or did you escape that 'wonderful' SE of cancer treatment?
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Dinner was wild caught Cod pieces (steaks?), individually flash frozen from Costco. I rolled them in Penzey's Foxpoint seasoning, then dipped in Panco crumbs and baked. Accompaniment was coleslaw w/apples and one piece of San Francisco Boudin's sourdough bread.
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Thanks Minus, the mamm was all good (big breath WHEW), the scan not read yet. I have fortunately thus far escaped that side effect. This was a routine scan. It's a concern though because there is a lot of osteoporosis in my family, including my dad.
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Wow! I’m definitely feeling like our mouse spottings pale in comparison to several of your stories...clearly a national explosion. Same with squirrels due to last year’s acorn glut.
The exterminator ended up doing an “inspection” AFTER we left, and he got so many details wrong about our house that it was clearly a boilerplated report. Then he listed about 27 pests they will protect us from! I am only concerned about the current mice situation which is new as we have a sonic noisemaker deterrent and always put a box of dcon (now apparently outlawed, but am sure the regulation destroyer will bring it back) in attic and except for an occasional whiff of a dead mouse in walls, we have gotten away with arriving in the Spring to an unmolested home. I’m not paying a thousand dollars for a problem that might be remedied more simply. Will figure it out when we head back there in a month.
And how have I lived for over 70 years and never before heard of mice (and orher rodents) making their way into people’s cars and doing damage. I guess folks just don’t mention it! Nance, the snake in garage possibility is definitely creepy! Our resident rabbits here have obviously been chowing down on our clover, and are quite robust.
Today it was so hot that despite our empty fridge, we never ventured out to the grocery store. So dinner was odd.....a delicious speciality linguini pasta my DIL1 gave me in a gift basket that was garli/lemon flavored. I sauteed some summer squash from my sister’s garden, a chopped vidalia onion, pressed garlic and a can of artichoke hearts, added a bit of chicken bouillon and added all that to the al dente cooked linguini. At the end I added some grated mozzarella and parmesan. I have not a “green” in the house, so on top of this “yellow creation, I added the last of my grape tomatoes and some kalamata olives. It was delicious! But a no salad meal was quite odd for us. Below is the “meal”.
Carole, I have also noticed that Rao’s has a consistently reduced price (below 7.00) now for which I am thankful.
Moon, glad things are calming down for you a bit.
While this certainly doesn’t look special, it was the best pasta I’ve ever eaten....and I am amused at the faux“salad” attempt atop the dish!
Tomorrow night we are meeting DS2 and wife at a local restaurant, called The Local to finish up celebrating DH’s birthday since they didn’t make it up to the lake to celebrate. Then Sat evening we are meeting our long time friends from here who moved to California a few years ago. We will dine at La Voile a fave French Bistro in Back Bay. And then I hope we can just eat at home for a while.
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Lacey, mice can get into cars and do damage. Happened to my hubby and I in early last year.They got into the intake manifold and did a couple of thousand dollars in damage. We don't think they got into the car at the house, but rather where my hubby works. They even found a mouse in a paper tray of a copier at his job.
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Lacey, looks like primavera to me! Yum!
Between the snakes and the mice, the snakes are far better behaved guests (as much as I hate the surprise of them.) It's usually a black or milk snake, both harmless.
I accidentally left the car window open in the garage once, The next day I found an entire box of shredded Kleenex in the car and mouse poop EVERYWHERE. There must have been a mouse party goin on! Since we no longer have pets, we now keep ramix in the garage at all times. In the small shed where we keep the lawn tractor we get a lot of mice because it's open. They winter in the tractor and Jim had even had one run up his pant leg in the spring. Yike! It's not unusual to see a black snake in there either. They are more welcome there lol
Everything bagel for breakfast this morning with whipped cream cheese.
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Ah yes, the mouse up the leg is how DH discovered he had them in his car. He is not terribly observant. I had noticed some droppings in my car the day before, (and promptly sprayed the inside with peppermint oil:) and told him to check his, but he “saw nothing”. He was driving back from an errand and fortunately did not drive off the road (like I would have!) when he went to scratch an itch on his leg and met a climbing mouse! The next day, he noticed an odor in his car, but saw nothing again, and newly installed traps were empty. As I walked thru the beach parking lot (he drives, I walk later), I decided to check for sure. Well, I saw a small curled up “something” that looked suspicious and upon closer look discovered that it was a mouse fetus, he’d missed seeing. Ick! Maybe we should rent some pet snakes to live in our cars when up country until this rodent glut is over. But, so far, we seem to be fine now that we are back in the Boston burbs.
Looking forward to our dinner with DS2 tonight.
Nance, yes it does look like pasta primavera, but the delicious factor comes from the actual hand made (not by me) linguini with lemon garlic flavor. Ooh la! Do you make flavored pasta with your machine? I am happy for you that the mammo went well, and hope the other results are also favorable!
Finally today, a break from our hot weather! What a relief....😊
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Lacey, I have made a lemon pepper pasta and a spinach flavored, which were quite pretty and I gave as gifts.
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Many car manufacturers are using wires with a soy based insulation instead of the older (and less environmentally friendly) petroleum based wire insulation. Supposedly the number of incidents of rodent damage to car wiring has gone way up.
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Eric, we were told something to that effect when the squirrels ate our car!
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If my back doesn't interfere (it spasmed again this a.m., only a month after the last episode--usually, I go 1-2 yrs. between backaches), we'll probably go to Eataly for dinner. Jonesing for arancini or suppli, spaghetti cacio e pepe or tagliatelle Bolognese, a Margherita "pizza gastronomica" or any combo thereof. Last night we shared shrimp & cod ceviche and pollo mole (with saffron rice, tamal "pancake" and tortillas, and coconut flan (it was that or the espresso tres leches cake) at Mas Alla Del Sol down the street from us.
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Tonight was pan fried pork loin chops with Brussels sprouts and broccoli/cauliflower.
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There are two storms...Mangkhut, threatening Guam and Florence, threatening the eastern seaboard of the USA. Both are forecast to be strong.
"My" medical team has been put on alert. Since it's our on-call month, this doesn't mean much as we are expected to be ready to go with little to no warning. Most alerts end with nothing happening.......hopefully that will be true for this one.
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Eric - fingers crossed.
Played dominoes today with a group that used to meet twice a month. Now we play maybe twice a year. Long story - but the death of one lady two years ago has changed everything. She was the "glue" that held the neighborhood together.
Anyway - we play at 2:30 for a couple of hours & have good food 'snacks'. Today was several salads: carrot & raisin with pineapple, chicken salad w/avocado as a binder instead of mayo to hold it together, three bean w/green peppers & onions & tarragon, fresh garden vegetables w/quinoa & Italian dressing. One lady made a banana cream pie. Also a Lemon Greek Yogurt seed cake. Needless to say, no one needed dinner.
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Watching Florence really closely. I have family and friends in the area where they think she may hit.
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September is an active hurricane month. DH has been watching the weather channel to keep up with brewing storms.
Dinner last night at the Y restaurant (which will soon close until next summer) was enjoyable. Apps were half price. I ordered walleye bites, served with tartar sauce. DH and I shared. He had a burger and fries. I snitched a few fries and they were crispy and good. I had a chicken Caesar salad.
I think tonight will be a ribeye steak.
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