Holes, Cakes and Owls - Yes, My Brain is That Random

I remembered to bring my drill home from the shop, so I'll mount my new keyboard drawer on Wednesday when I have time to tape it up properly and drill the holes without having DH breathe over my shoulder and tell me how I'm doing everything wrong. I'm not sure why he would feel that commentary necessary, since I mounted the previous drawer successfully and actually know my way around a tool shop, but I know him well and I'm sure he would. I feel that a small wait of a few more days is the better choice. 

Two of these bakers were eliminated last night, eight remain. The
schedule says a total of six episodes, ending on December 21st. I'm
not sure how that works out to a single winner and a runner up,
but I haven't checked my calendar either. 

I'm rather zombie-like today. Last night was the first episode of Season 3 of the "Great American Baking Contest" and it was 2-hours long, keeping me up an hour later than my usual bedtime. It was absolutely worth it, though. Ten American bakers are in England baking in the "Great British Bake-off" tent for judges Paul Hollywood and Johnny Iuzzini. Last night's double episode featured Cake and Morning Treats for the two segments. The structure is the same as the British Bake-off uses and I've always loved their set-up of separate stations and work areas. Every baker has a totally self-contained area within which to work - none of this running around like crazy chickens the way it is with most of the American cooking shows. It was worth staying up for, but I'm exhausted today. 

Among the owls of Minnesota is this one - the
Long-eared Owl. Isn't it a beauty? There's
something so wonderful about owls. 

Yesterday, while writing my blog for all of you, I had an owl serenading me from my next door neighbor's tree for almost an hour. There's something so wonderful and haunting about an owl's "hoot" in the darkness of the night and pre-dawn. I've adored owls since I was a small child, and I'm still totally addicted to their beauty and their amazing skills in the air. Owls fly in complete silence and air-movement studies on flight comparing owls and other birds prove that owls barely disturb the air as they pass, unlike any other bird. 

Owls have a unique structure to their feathers allowing
them to fly in almost complete silence. 

So my post today jumped around from drilling holes to cakes to owls. No theme here, just my cold and sleep-deprived brain firing on odd circuits. Perhaps the swimming pool will help bring my thoughts into some form of stability and order before I head off to work ... or not! In any case, have a wonderful Friday and stay warm.