Modems, Tablets and Rain

I'm not sure if I mentioned that our modem at the shop died over the weekend, but it made Saturday sales difficult - we had to phone in each transaction for an approval code, and we weren't able to batch the charges for the day out at the end of the day. I purchased a new modem on Monday morning but I couldn't connect it properly - we didn't have the correct type of connection. Frustrated, I phoned Comcast/Xfinity - they handle my internet for me. After going through several people, I finally managed to get a tech scheduled to come by in the early afternoon. 

Although I had to go through a few people to 
get what I needed, once I did, I was back up 
and running within two hours of my call. In this 
day and age, that's great customer service. 

The tech actually arrived around 11:00 am. I explained the situation, showed him what I had purchased knowing that I would be returning it to the office supply store on my way home last night. He took a look at our set-up, said "You don't need this, this doesn't work either, and yeah - we can get you fixed up here without all of these extra things." Yippee! 

It's a pleasure having 5G at the shop. I'll need to 
get home upgraded soon too, but I can wait on 
that for a bit longer. The tech was very professional, 
had us up and running very quickly, and I'm loving 
the new set-up. 

He was good for his word. Within a half-hour, I had my internet back - not only 2.5G, but also 5G. Everything was reconnected, and I was able to use my charge terminals without problems. And, since I'm a customer, and it was a legitimate service call, there was no charge! SCORE! I'm totally relieved. I got my phone hooked up with the new server without problems, and DH (after some grumbling) also did. Chickie will have to get herself connected when she comes into work today, but that shouldn't be a problem for her. I have a small pile of electronics to toss (well ... to take to the electronics recycling plant on Friday along with a few other items I've accumulated). I returned the new modem I had purchased on my way home last night, and we should be set. 

DH spent most of the day in the back watching some 
episodes of a TV show he's addicted to on his tablet. 
I think I need a tablet of my own. It's how I used 
to be able to watch Le Tour de France, but if he's using 
it now, I can't do that. *sigh* I'm WAY behind on 
my Tour de France this year. 

It's raining, but the rain is supposed to be stopping before 5:00 am when the swimming pool opens. I'm hoping it will. Although I don't mind swimming in the rain, I do find it more comfortable if I don't have raindrops falling on my head. LOL "What difference?" you might ask. "You're in the water, so why be bothered about light rain?" True, that. I'm in the water, but being in the water and getting showered by raindrops at the same time is a very different feeling. I like to zone out when I swim - immerse myself in my laps and whatever book I'm listening to. It's hard to do that when you're being pelted by raindrops. But, rain or not, as long as there's no lightning, we'll be swimming outdoors. Have an excellent Tuesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Books, People and Pork Roast - A Bit of Something for Everyone on a Rainy Tuesday

It's raining in waves this morning - heavy downpour for a few minutes, then quiet. Totally weird, and leaving me quite unsure about appropriate attire for standing outside the gym doors this morning. I always have an umbrella in my car, but if we're also getting wind along with the rain, an umbrella won't be a lot of assistance. I can pull my yellow "Paddington Bear" slicker from the closet and wear that, I suppose. My Mother-in-Law gave it to me during my first year up here. I'd never needed one before - we didn't get long periods of heavy rain back in the desert areas where I was from. 

We've had our copy of "Crockett's Victory 
Garden" since the early 1980's and use it 
extensively. I remember watching the show 
on PBS when I was younger. I really enjoyed 
him - plain spoken and so very knowledgeable. 

There are times in the rainy days, when I stand in front of the YMCA doors and wonder if I could just swim through the raindrops - they can be that heavy. Today, however, seems like bands of rain followed by total quiet and no drops. Quite unusual and challenging for appropriate dress. My yellow slicker will probably be taken out of the closet for today. I'll use my umbrella too. But maybe I'll be lucky and the 5 minutes or so that I'm standing outside the doors waiting for our Gate Gargoyle to unlock will be in a dry period. 

Chanda is moving with her family from "I am very 
complex, really. I am kind of my own region." in the 
center north, all the way east to "I only use you for 
your lakes." It's not a large parish, but it'll be a good 
one for her husband to build and strengthen. He's 
excited, everyone else is working hard to allow him 
to live his dream. 

Speaking of our Gate Gargoyle, she's leaving us. Next week will be her last week before she moves to a small town in Ohio where her husband (a pastor) has taken a job. It's been a lot for her to do - getting the household and the kids packed up and ready to move, getting her current house onto the market, and generally, high stress. But she goes where her husband finds a job, and he found a church that needed him in Ohio. I hope things go well for her, but it's a pain. We just got Chanda trained and she's leaving us. She won't even be here when the outdoor pool opens. Instead, we'll need to train in another new Gate Gargoyle. *sigh* 

I love cooking my roasted pork loin. I put it into 
the oven with the thermometer in it, and just let it 
cook until it's at temp. I marinate it 1-2 days before, 
so it gets all flavorful. It's easy and it's delicious. 
A total win/win. If you're interested in the exact 
recipe, look up "Fall-Apart Roasted Pork Shoulder 
with Rosemary, Mustard and Garlic". It's a winner! 

Sunday's pork loin cooked up wonderfully - that recipe is a keeper. I've made it several times now and it's always perfect. It's the kind of meal that I love - little muss, little fuss, and great results. We're getting several more meals out of the roast, so it's definitely something I'd do again. I love easy in the summer months when I'd rather be outdoors in the garden than cooking in the kitchen on my Sundays. I'm wrapping this up and getting ready to get wet. Have an excellent Tuesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל. 

Jewelry, Rain, Chili and Plans - Sometimes Things Just Don't Work Smoothly

Yesterday was a lovely day of cooking and a few small errands. The only bump in the road was in my goal of getting DH's website uploaded to his URL. On that, I had no success. I put in a "respond" text to the Tech Support people, but didn't hear back. Then other things took my time and I logged off. I suspect I'll have to call their support line and actually talk with a human being. That's a bit more expensive - they charge by the 15 minute increment. But, I have some questions that I'm not finding answers for, and I simply can't get the pages to upload into DH's website at all. So, yes. I need some assistance. 

It shouldn't be that difficult to upload DH's company 
website onto his company web, but it's turning out to be 
more difficult than it would have been six months ago. 
His host sold to another company, and the website developer
software also changed their upload procedures. *sigh*

We're also in the middle of trying to get the store restocked for the holiday season. That means bringing back in our jewelry items. Originally we had thought we'd be out of business before the holidays. But that plan was shot to shit, and we're looking at Spring to early Summer of next year. But my jewelry cases are looking very picked over, and jewelry is one of the more popular gifts for the holidays. So, we're shopping long distance with our two favorite suppliers of Native American-made jewelry items. Mainly rings, earrings and pendants in the under $100 range. It'll be nice to have some pieces available once again, but we have to get those orders placed NOW. 

Just a simple set of earrings similar to this which 
would have retailed for less than $50 (depending 
on quality of turquoise) in the past, is now 
retailing for $75-$100. It's tough to stay within 
our budget and get things our customers will want 
to buy for their gifts (or themselves). 

Ice hockey season is up and running again. The Wild won their first game, and tonight is their second. I'm very pleased to watch hockey again. It's such a fast game - these guys just fly across the sheet of ice, under control, but at the very edge. Ice hockey is a very physical game (so's American football, come to think of it). It's almost like players veer around each other, occasionally bouncing into one another, hunting that puck to hit a very small protected target at a very high speed. It's super entertaining to watch - at least for me and DH. 

It's always nice to start the season with a win, and the Wild 
managed to win their season opener on Thursday. It 
was a beautiful thing! Now ... let's do it again! LOL

Yesterday was a dreary and very wet day - it rained all day. There were places in the Twin Cities area that saw 5 inches of rain through the day. That's a hell-of-a-lot of rain for us in one swoop. And we needed it. Despite the rains we've had over the summer, we're still in the middle of a five-year drought, and our trees really needed the moisture. 

This rather disgusted looking Burrowing Owl looks 
totally bedraggled after getting caught in the rain. 
Rain makes owls look unusually grumpy. I always 
smile to see them, even though I feel sorry for them 
because nothing enjoys getting wet and cold. 

I'm sure our owls were disgusted, however. Owls don't like the rain. Unlike other birds whose feathers have water-repellent features, owl feathers do not. So when it rains, they get soggy and wet and can't fly. They sit in or around their roost/nest and are miserable for the time being until it dries out once again. Since I adore owls, I always think of them with sympathy when it rains. 

I had used the grinder on my jalapeno peppers, and added 
a generous helping to the chili yesterday. I also added 
a nice portion of the dried tomatoes. It was absolutely 
wonderful! Really added depth to the flavor of my chili. 

I spent most of yesterday in the kitchen, however, cooking up a large batch of chili-con-carne. I added some of the ground up tomatoes and jalapeno peppers from my garden, and it has a delightful "pop" now. I'm thrilled that I'll be eating that for a few days. It's totally nummy! 

DH has a plan for his bulbs, now if they arrive so that he 
can get most of them planted. We're backordered on a 
few varieties that are still pending arrival from Holland, 
but the majority are now on a truck somewhere between 
Milwaukee and the Twin Cities. 

So, all in all, yesterday was a win - albeit a soggy one. I hope all of you have a wonderful Saturday. The rains have gone away, and even though DH's flower bulbs haven't arrived yet, he'll spend much of the day at the shop, but if his bulbs arrive, I'm sure he'll go home instead and putter in the garden. He has a plan ... kind of - LOL. Enjoy your weekend and I'll be back on Monday. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

It's Cold and Rainy - A Great Day to Make Chili and Warm Up the Kitchen

It's a cold, rainy and rather dreary day, but it's also a day off for me, so it's certainly not all bad. Given the weather, however, I've shifted into my cold-weather recipes, and I feel like making 13-bean chili today. I have almost everything needed except the onion, so it'll be a quick and easy put-together. I'll have to make sure I've got refrigerator room - after the baked pears with apples and the baked butternut squash, my shelving is getting crowded. 

I like a chili with beans, and use a 13-bean mix from 
Bob's for my chili recipe. It's wonderful for the 
colder months that we're moving into now. 

I have work to do in the house as well today, and some web work as well. I need to speak or at least text-chat with the customer service people and find out why the website isn't uploading onto our web, and I'm also curious about the photos that I've put in the private pages - whether those can be made to a "click to make larger" specification or not. With luck, getting this information on hand and actually succeeding will only take an hour, but given past track history ... I'll still have it unresolved after several hours by the time I close the laptop this afternoon. 

I have a lot of photos similar to this for DH's website. I 
need to make them visible on his website under a privacy 
block that will have specific photos for specific customers. 
They also have to be able to be clicked on to come up 
full-size on their screens, since I'm listing them in 
a 3-across teaser photo montage. 

Originally I had intended to make a beef stew today, but ground beef was on sale on Wednesday, at a really good price, so I really couldn't pass it up. The weather being colder and rainy dictates the meal, however. Chili instead of stew - it's a winner no matter which direction. I'll do the stew in another week or two. I'm actually looking forward to it. 

Minus the dairy products, this is pretty close to what my 
chili looks like when completed. It's thick and nummy, 
filled with lots of good stuff, and perfect for the colder 
days. Today is drippy and rainy, and we're definitely 
coming into the end of our growing season. I'll probably 
pull the last of the peppers and tomatoes this weekend, 
although I'll hold hope for a bit more than that before 
we have a hard freeze. 

I also need to pick up something I had dropped off at the dry cleaners. I don't even remember what it was, specifically. Only that it was something I couldn't clean appropriately on my own. The cleaners actually sent it to a restorer for specialty work, so it should be looking great. They're the people who helped clean and restore Mom's dresses for me last year and they do great work. 

On this note, I'm off to eat breakfast and start a busy day. I'll be catching up on everything I didn't get done on my normal Wednesday, including all of the laundry, so I certainly won't be bored - LOL. Have an excellent Friday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים עבור ישראל. For those who may not read Hebrew (which includes me, by the way), the Hebrew words I'm putting down here read "Life to Israel".

Good Rosh Hashanah and a Dreary, Wet and Damp Day

I'll start today's post by wishing everyone a good Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Although most Jewish people I know use a standard calendar, there's also the Jewish calendar, which dates back to 3761 BCE. According to that calendar, we are moving into year 5784 on Saturday night. I remember when I was a child, I would occasionally receive calendars as a gift from my Israeli relatives. I never knew quite what to do with them, because they began and ended in odd points on my standard calendar, and also everything was written in Hebrew, which I didn't read (and still don't). 

Rosh Hashanah begins at sunset on Friday and extends 
until Sunday. There are traditional foods that get 
eaten during this holiday, including Pomegranate, 
Leeks, and fish. 

I do, however, find it remarkable to have any single group of people in the world who have been keeping their history, calendar and timeline intact for such a long time. If the world manages to stay in one piece, and Jews still populate it, the year 6000 will be celebrated on the night of September 16, 2240. Not all that far in the future, although I'll be long dead. 

Celebrations around the world have specific foods tied 
to them. Don't forget those Christmas cookies your 
table always had, or the Chex Mix for the holidays. There's 
turkey and stuffing for Thanksgiving, and the 
bitter herbs in salt water for Passover. All celebrations 
have their associated foods. I'm quite fond of the foods 
for Rosh Hashanah - I love honey and apples and 
pomegranate. Yummy! 

Today is rainy and drippy and, of course, I have grocery shopping and other errands to do before I can settle down to cooking. I'm not 100% sure what I'm going to cook for the next few days. I'm mentally shifting over to my cooler/colder weather recipes, and things like stuffed cabbage or stuffed peppers are sounding really good to me. 

DH doesn't eat a lot of beef any more (or so he says), 
but he said I could choose where to do for our 
anniversary, and I chose Lindey's. I love it there. The 
food is excellent, the prices are exceptional, and 
they're very nice people. This is the entire menu - LOL. 
Not a lot of choices, and that's just fine with me. 

However, DH and I are going out to dinner on Saturday to celebrate our 44th wedding anniversary, and I know I'll have left-overs from that meal. So maybe some meatballs or something else that will easily carry me through until I can cook again on Wednesday might be the better choice. I'll have to check my section of the freezer before I head to the grocery store. 

My local grocer had these Kabocha squash, and also Red Kuri 
squash available on Wednesday. I was attracted to them, but 
have never cooked either of them. I'll have to take a quick look 
at recipes for them. I might buy one or the other to cook today. 

So, on this rather dreary Friday, I want to wish all of you a lovely day. I suspect I'll be spending it indoors because it's rather ooky outside, so maybe I'll get more work done on the AFS website. I did get some done yesterday, but the software just isn't intuitive to me yet, so I'm hitting my head against a lot of virtual walls. Still, I'll make my Ogre Juice and maybe one other thing, so I'll get some "cooking" done - somewhat. LOL Enjoy your day and Slava Ukraini. I'll be back to wrap things up for the week tomorrow. 

Today It's Rainy - Where Would You Live?

Of course, no snow as yesterday's post discussed, doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet. No snow transferred to rain, which started heavy last night shortly after 9:00 pm and continued throughout the night. It wasn't super heavy all night, but it was raining. On ground that is still semi-frozen. That can also lead to flooding since the soil is frozen and can't let as much water soak in as would happen with warmer temperatures. I was worried about our house for a bit there, but it looks like we managed to pass through another possible crises safely. The combination of frozen ground and a hard rain has led to my basement flooding several times in the past. 

We're getting some heavy rain. Since our land is still 
partially frozen, a lot of that rain will flow into our 
rivers and on downstream, adding to the flooding possibilities 
for places south of us. 

So, I'm a bit relieved. I checked the weather app on my phone and the rain is supposed to let up at around 5:00 am for a bit, before starting again. I'm not really much of a fan of rain. Grey skies just don't do it for me at all. In that respect, I live in the wrong part of the nation. Back in Colorado and New Mexico, I would get almost 300 days a year of sunshine.  But, although I don't always have rain, our increased humidity up here in the Frozen Northlands, guarantees I have more cloudy days than I was used to while growing up. I'm a BIG fan of blue skies. It's the only thing that would possibly pull me away from living up here. But, I really like being up here in general, so I'll probably stick around - LOL. 

If you could live anywhere in the world, where 
would you choose to live? Would you stay in 
your nation or be elsewhere? How about your 
continent? Stay there or move East or West? 
North or South? Let me know in the comments 
section. 

If you could choose anywhere to live, however. Based on the actual area - landmass, weather, temperature and topography, where would you live? Let's ignore the people this time - people can be a PITA anywhere. Let's just focus on the actual physical conditions surrounding you if you lived there. Where would you choose to live? 

I wouldn't mind returning to Colorado's Front Range 
area if I could live anywhere. Of course there are 
things I wouldn't like about it, and the area has changed 
a lot since I was a kid in Colorado, but I do miss my 
mountains. Still, I have a feeling I would miss my 
lakes and rivers if I moved back to the West. 

I actually think I'd live in the southern portion of the Front Range in Colorado. I'd love to be back in my home state - it's a beautiful place to live, and that general area is perfect with the plains stretching out to the east, the desert to the south, the mountains to the west. It's close to the area where Seth lives - so I guess he's lucky - he lives in a perfect part of the nation. 

I probably wouldn't live in Minnesota unless I could eliminate the issues with clearing out our snowfalls easily. Of course I can hire someone to clear the driveway - there are many people who hire out to do that. But they won't come unless it's a certain amount of snow, and they're not clearing down to the concrete - only close to the concrete. There's always some clean-up shoveling that needs to be done, and the snowplow scree is a complete PITA for everyone. But on the plus side, we have water - lots of it. That, in a time of more and more scarcity, speaks highly for staying up here. 

For such a small area, Britain has had a HUGE impact 
on the world at large - both good and bad. I don't think 
I'd want to live there, but it would be lovely to return 
to the British Isles for a long visit. 

I don't think I'd want to live in another country, although I do like a lot of aspects of the greater British area. I've never been to Europe, so really can't say on that one, although the Mediterranean coast looks lovely. But, to be honest, I think there are beautiful places to live in almost any nation, and that it would come down to weather conditions more than anything else. Weather and heat - those would make or break the deal for most of us. 

So, where would you live if you could live anywhere in the world? Comment and let me know. In the meanwhile, I'll bundle up for rain and wish all of you a wonderful Thursday. Slava Ukraini. 

Yesterday Was Rainy - I'm Quite Grateful Our Temps Were Too Warm for Snow

It's nice when things go smoothly, and yesterday was a smooth day. Maybe it was because it was a cold, rather dreary day - a day more like my memories of London than a Minnesota day. With the exception of an hour or so of glorious sunshine and clear skies, we were in a drizzle for the majority of the day, and the temperatures were colder. We're nowhere close to "winter cold" yet, but our bodies have started preparing for the deep freeze. How can I tell? Well, 60 degrees F is feeling comfortable, a month or so ago, that would be feeling much colder. 

We had a light rain for most of the day. My thoughts, as 
I looked at the rain was "It's a good thing we're not 
colder - we'd have a LOT of snow out of this one." 
I guess I'm grateful for rain, because I would have 
been shoveling a LOT of snow with an additional 
30 degrees of cold. 

So bodies adapt. The seasons change gradually and we adapt to move in sync with them. It's biological, but it's also mental. We prepare, we stockpile, we plan ahead. The ground is getting covered with fallen leaves (we'll have a lot of raking to do in a few weeks), the glorious colors of autumn are starting to fade and move into the past, to leave the starkness of winter upcoming. It's time to stockpile, to play ahead, and to (in the past) try to make sure that supplies have been put aside to fend off the winter starvation that used to happen in our ancestral lives. 

In the past, in some societies, people would have a 
cold cellar or root cellar where they would store 
the harvest and canning to be used throughout the 
upcoming cold season until new crops could be 
harvested. I'm not that organized, and I'm not that 
needy, but my pantry can easily carry us a few days 
if necessary. Sometimes getting out of the house 
can be difficult in a hard snowstorm. 

Many tribes would be gathering at this time of the year. They would harvest everything they could, then pull together into long-houses or communal dwellings for the upcoming season of winter. Winter kills, without doubt. Winter is harsh and unforgiving. Mistakes can't be made - winter will capitalize on those and the spectre of death is always just around the corner. The harvests of autumn needed to be dried or canned for the upcoming harsh season, and if winter was exceptionally cold or long, people would starve to death before the next spring. 

The Spectre of Death stands in front of all of us, but in 
ages past, it was closer in the Winter than at any other 
time of the year. Winter is harsh and culls the flocks 
and herds without mercy. 

Think about it - that's where "winter weight"  comes from - that tendency of the body to realize the upcoming change of seasons and prepare with a stockpile from inside to meet the challenges of the outside. It's a bit easier for us now - those of us with roofs over our heads and central heating - but our bodies are old things. They remember their genetic heritage and they do what needs be for the upcoming season. 

Walk-about is an Australian term and activity 
that is aboriginal in origin. To have that term 
applied to a line of code that made it impossible 
for me to post properly earlier this week 
made me smile. 

On a lighter note, DW is working properly for me again. I had a delightful note from Service regarding my issue. "The developers have figured out what made the RTE go walk-about, and it's back now!" I wasn't aware that coding had the ability to go walk-about, but I'm delighted they found the issue and resolved it. I'm off to the pool for my final swim of the week. Have an excellent Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Searching For Spring on a Soggy Day - My Day Off

I'm looking for Spring. Has anyone in the Northern Hemisphere found it yet? It seems to be settling everywhere but Minnesota right now, and I'm frustrated and a bit antsy. I want Spring to finally come and settle in. I have the buds of trees and bushes just waiting to burst into leaf. The birds are singing a bit more, and the temperatures aren't quite as vile - although they've actually been colder than I would expect for late April lately. Today, originally, was going to be a day of snow. It's more likely, at least in my part of the state, to be a day of rain. Better than snow, but still - rain on my "day off" means I'll be getting soggy while doing my errands. 

I'm not fond of the rain, although April Showers bring 
May Flowers. But I don't like being soggy, and if 
I'm shopping, I don't have an extra hand for an 
umbrella. *sigh* But ... it's better than snow! 

One week ago, I was going home from the grocer when DH texted me the "blue screen of death" that led to our computer issues and some serious stress. The computers seem to be working well again, now that Dale did his magic, and I'm totally "knocking on wood" that they continue to operate well. But I'm the captain of an aging fleet. I am running Win 98 at the shop, Win 7 on my home computers, and Win 10 on my laptop. I'm thinking about upgrading to Win 11 on the laptop - I can download it at no charge for a trial. It's tempting to at least give it a shot. 

There's nothing much worse than seeing the 
"Blue Screen of Death". Seeing it on my computers 
at the shop last week was heartbreaking since 
those computers are held together with bandaids 
and Dale's considerable skill. It ended up costing 
almost $700, but for what he did, that was cheap. 

I expect today, as my "day off" will be very busy. I've got some things I need to figure out, some charts I need to make (I made them once, a few months ago, and can't recall exactly how I made the magic happen - time to reinvent the wheel). I have to get the groceries, and DH was optimistic enough yesterday to purchase steaks to grill outdoors on Sunday - weather permitting. Of course my steak takes up freezer space I really don't have, but I can deal for a few more days. 

DH is pretty good at cooking steaks on the grill. We 
like a charcoal grill - the old fashioned kind, not the 
ones with the fancy bells and whistles. Just seasoned 
meat over hot coals. Yummy! 

So, I'm going to practice my house-holding skills today (which are minimal at best), try to get some computer work done, and talk with Aearwen this afternoon - last week's convo was cancelled by the computer crap. I've got forms to fill out and fax, other forms to revise and re-do, and generally, I'll be busy. But first, I'll be swimming, so my day will be starting out great. I hope you have an excellent Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Peace! Slava Ukraini. 

Isn't this a lovely Green Dragon? I had something 
like this in mind when I saw the dragon stealing 
cattle from the townspeople in my tale. The fact 
that we don't see magnificent creatures like this 
any more is very sad. 

PS - I understand that voting for my dragon fairy tale is for "registered" voters. I have no idea what/who that is, and basically say that if you feel like voting, do so. Let the powers that be figure out the definition of "registered". The link is here: 

https://www.dreamwidth.org/poll/?id=26884&mode=enter

Life Is a Challenge - I'm Reaching A Breaking Point

The summer Olympics are drawing to a close, and they've been marvelous. I loved the new sports added - Climbing, Surfing and Skateboarding. All of them were really fun to watch, challenging for the competitors, and I think were good additions to the pre-existing slate of sporting events. I was even able to catch the finals of Rhythmic Gymnastics All-Around this morning - the Gold being won by Israel. It was a pleasure to see the Israeli flag and hear the anthem again; it's been quite a while since I last heard it. 

It was really nice to see the Israeli flag in primary position 
and hear the anthem of Israel playing for the Gold Medal 
winner of Rhythmic Gymnastics All-Around. It was a 
hotly contested event and the young woman from the 
ROC came in second, after having her own gold last 
Olympics. 

I had hopes for our dinner last night. DH agreed on tacos for dinner, and I thought that would be easy to make in two batches, one for him and one for me. But when he came home from work and realized I was making two separate batches so that I could have my taco seasoning and he could have his, the shit hit the fan. Apparently I'm being selfish by not using the standard taco seasoning. I'm doubling up on everything and that's driving his crazy. The fact that I'm healthy and that my doctor is thrilled with my weight and bloodwork apparently means nothing to him. He considers WildFit a diet, where I consider it a lifestyle choice that I'm not turning my back on. He stormed off, and I ate alone and seasoned all of the beef with my own seasoning (Siete Taco Seasoning and their Taco Shells - really good!). I have enough for another meal tonight, and maybe Monday too. 

I love Siete products. Their taco shells were really tasty 
and I liked the taco seasoning too. I used the "Hot" 
taco seasoning which was really pretty mild. I'll use 
the mild next time and see what I think. 

I think I've got my back against the wall. I'm just not seeing any way out of this. I know he won't go to counseling, and I also know I can't live in a toxic environment. I foresee a lot of changes in the air, but I think the best thing would be a separation. I'm going to check out a couple of other things, and I still have a small bit of hope, but frankly, I can't live with someone who'e angry all the time. He's not physically abusive, but he is emotionally abusive and although I have deep roots and I'm strong, I'm thinking I could thrive if I wasn't under his shade. Time to get my ducks in a row and be ready for some serious changes. 

I look at other couples who complement each other, and 
support each other and I'm envious. That's what I always 
thought marriage could and should be. I'm not getting 
that - I haven't for a long time. I've cried out for 
support, and I keep getting pushed aside for his own 
wants and his own needs. I don't think I can bend any 
more without breaking. 

On that note, it's Saturday which is always good, and it's thundering outside, so maybe we'll get some much-needed rain today. That would be a very positive thing indeed. Have a wonderful weekend, all. I'll be back on Monday. 

A Dose of Sweetness - Baby Animals - a Photo Blog Today

It's a grey, rainy day today, and my hockey team lost last night, so I'm in a grey mood too. When I'm in "one of those moods", I look for things to brighten my heart. Baby animals came to mind today, so I'm doing a photo blog today of baby animal pictures, because we all deserve to smile first thing in the morning. 

So, let's start out with this cute pair. A baby hedgehog 
on the left, a baby bunny on the right. The baby 
bunnies I get in my yard are usually hunched over, 
eating my grass, but this little guy is adorable. 

Here we have a little baby turtle (or maybe a tortoise, I 
don't really know how to tell the difference) and a lovely 
fawn. Bambi could learn cuteness lessons from this 
little guy. The turtle reminds me of one summer day 
when DH had been mowing the lawn and came across several 
baby turtles in our yard, trying to get across our rather 
busy street to the open woodland. He ran inside, 
grabbed a laundry basket and gathered them together, 
then taking them across the street and letting them 
go. Since we specialize in snapping turtles around 
here, he could have been injured, but instead, he 
rescued them. Bravo for DH. 

Here we have an adorable pair - a baby squirrel and 
a lovely baby koala. I'm just in love with that 
squirrel - just too cute for words. 

Here we have a baby turtle just coming out of its shell, and 
a sweet and very sleepy baby hamster. This is cuteness overload! 

Finally, you get one of my favorites, that I know I've 
shown you before - two baby owls sheltering from 
the rain. Since I totally adore owls, I just had to include 
them in this posting. 

And there you have it. A photo blog today because it's a bit of a grey, misty day and I wanted to share cuteness with my readers. We all need a dose of cute every now and again. Daily life can get so blah and boring. I hope this little dose of sweetness will make your day. I'll be back tomorrow. Meanwhile, please stay safe, be kind, and wear a mask if you need to or feel you must. If you're vaccinated, go ahead - let yourself breathe again. 

Baby Steps - The Dryer and the Sandwiches

Today we're trying again with the clothes dryer. I decided, after much research, that I'd rather spend the additional dollars for the repair instead of purchasing new, and also insisted on "first thing in the morning" today for the repairman. That means he'll be at my door sometime between 6:30-8:30 am this morning. I might have a functional dryer before 9:00 am, and that would make me extremely happy. I have a full slate of things I need to do today, but if I can just get that one thing accomplished, I'll consider it a total win. 

I already did my morning meditation, and it's 
raining, so I doubt I'll be going for a walk 
(unless walking the aisles of the grocery 
store counts), I might listen to music ... or 
not, but at least this would be an easy 
To-Do list for me - LOL. 

It's raining, as it's been doing for the past 24 hours. If it was colder (it's in the low 40's at 6:00 am, so nowhere close to freezing) we would have a miserable blizzard. Instead, it's looking more and more as if we're going to have an early Spring. I'm hoping we won't have an April blizzard to mess things up, but I'm totally on board with an early Spring - 100% happy about that idea. 

By April 18th last year, we had the patio and yard pretty 
well cleared of the winter's detritus and were ready to set 
the patio umbrella into the iron table. It's looking as if we 
will be ready on almost the same time frame again this year. 

Of course, when I look back at my photos, we were cleaning leaves from the backyard patio on March 30th last year, but we still had snow on the ground in late March 2019. Our snow has been gone for most of March this year, so I have high hopes that we've dodged the weather bullet and might be able to enjoy our outdoors once again. 

DH bought himself a loaf of Pumpernickle bread, a can 
of sauerkraut and a corned beef yesterday, and had two 
sandwiches for his dinner last night. Although I adore 
Reubens, I wasn't even tempted. I had my own dinner, 
and it was quite tasty. 

DH broke down, finally realized that I'm eating differently than he, and bought himself a corned beef and some sauerkraut. Last night he made himself Reuben sandwiches and a salad. I'm trying to think about what fish I want for dinner on Friday. The salmon I've had for the past two weeks has been lovely. I might just go that route once again and repeat Friday's recipe because that garlic and ginger combination was amazingly good. 

My thoughts today are NOT deep thoughts. No ... my thoughts 
today are completely shallow. That's really not a problem. 
Not everyone can fix the world's problems, and if they 
think they can, they're so VERY wrong. 

So, that's my deep thoughts for today ... in other words, pretty shallow. Then again, I'm not taxed with resolving the world's problems, so shallow can be good - at least for my Wednesday. Have an excellent day - be kind, stay safe and please wear your mask. I'll return tomorrow.