Welcome home, A[sup]2[/sup]
Hugs to swampy et al
too much sadeness - before Hallowe’en, a chorus mate lost her mother. Last night another chorus mate lost her father - he’d had a stroke last Monday when a tree hit his house during the storm
Morrow’s…er, Carnivorous Plant’s First Rule of Cooking:
“Nothing that comes in a box is food.”
Mrs. Plant v.3.0 asked me to make potato soup. She chopped things. 
Onions and garlic cooked in a lot of butter. Celery added.
Chicken broth and potatoes added. Pepper corns crushed with a pestle in a mortar added. Boiled a long time. Potato masher utilized.
Some potatoes cooked in another pot to provide the “chunks” Mrs. Plant v.3.0 likes.
“Chunks” makes me think of nasty, evil smelling children hurling chunks of pizza at Chucky Cheese, but I digress in a most unpleasant fashion.
Above mentioned potato…pieces…added.
Soup ladeled into bowls; feta cheese added to melt. Heavy whipping cream stirred in. Garnished with chopped green onions.
Nom nom.
Irked. Hockey Lady was slammed at work, so just a brief chat tonight.
Welcome back, Ashes[sup]2[/sup]!
{{{{swampy}}}}
Saw about Autolycus on Facebook.
Sorry about your choirmates. rosie
Jeepers, it is a Monday, isn’t it.
Crappy Monday for everyone,
**
{{{{{Hugs all around}}}}}}**
Awful Monday, in several respects, isn’t it? Good thoughts headed out to swampy-SIL and family. So sad about Auto.
Thanks for the rescue story, Bobbio.
We’ve been the center of the world today. Woohoo. Both candidates stopped by, and one of my colleagues was surprised by a Mitt Romney blimp right near our building. :eek:
My Twitter feed had accounts of Columbus visits from both Germany and Mexico (via Spain). Coolest by far, though, was a BBC simulcast on my local NPR station. They took calls, tweets and emails from both the UK and the US and had a number of local experts in the studio (they were broadcasting from here in Columbus). Some really good questions and discussion simply explaining our election process and basic issues. Only election broadcast I’ve actually listened to this year.
Should be asleep. I’m getting up to vote first thing. Hoping to be at the polls as close to 6:30 as possible.
Hugs all.
GT
(((((Swampy and SIL))))) - all appendages, appropriate and otherwise, crossed for you and yours.
Nothing exciting going on over here today, I am at irk and irked by students. Last night I baked an apple dessert for the taster night at Fat Club tonight so I hope it survives the day without a cat sitting on it 'cos I left it out on the kitchen worktop (covered it with tin foil so they couldn’t get at it easily). I’m meeting a friend for lunchtime coffee and that is about the highlight of my day.
You know, at first when I read this, I thought, “hrmph, well la-de-da if he thinks he’s that high and mighty and eats so much better than me.” And THEN I remember this is the same person who also occasionally makes Hamburger Helper. I felt much better. 
I’m up too early for some reason, so I think I may go to the early water aerobics class. Then I’ll probably spend the rest of the day sorting out all of my new approximately 350 pieces of silverware and trying to figure out how I’m going to use them. (No, no, not for eating food either from a box or otherwise.) 
I hope we all have a much better Tuesday.
Good Mornin’ Y’all! Up and caffienatin’. YAWN 'Tis 54 Amurrkin out with a predicted high of 61 and rain with tstorms possible. We shall see. It did rain some overnight.
Ashes[sup]2[/sup]!!! LTNS! Glad to know things are goin’ better for ya. Come back and tell us all the news. Heh. Remember all our posts in one MMP about the big okra fight and all sorts of other silliness about Big Leather Bubba’s and Jose’s comin’ out party?
{{{Rosie}}} and chorus mates. How sad! I’ll remember them in my prayers.
flytrap it’s my turn to say I hate you. I want N.O.T. soup. 
That’s so awful about Autolycus!
SIL did not have her surgery yesterday. Today some more tests will be run and she’s scheduled for surgery to remove the tumor tomorrow. Continued prayers, good thoughts, appropriate/inappropriate appendage crossin’ will be much appreciated.
Now I need more caffiene and rumbly tummy demands to be fed. Then, alas, irk purtification must commence.
Happy Tuesday Y’all!
{{{Swampy}}}, {{{Rosie}}}, {{{anybody else wot need 'em}}}
about Autolycus
Hi Janis, Hi A-Square! (would the nickname “Abbott” be too obscure?)
All you USians, go out and vote (if you haven’t yet)!
Sometimes I feel like I should probably register to vote someday (I’m a US citizen, permanently ex-pat) but I feel that I can’t be certain that I’ll actually vote for what I see as the USA’s best interests (rather than for whoever I feel is “better for Israel”) – so I don’t.
Up, caffeinated, off to irk. Hope everyone has a better Tuesday.
Blurf.
I think I’ll just leave a pile of hugs here, help yourself if you need one.
I’m trying to decide if I want to apply for a job today- it’s for the local Jobcentre. I really do need some kind of work soon, but it sounds horrible -I’ve spend enough time in Jobcentres lately to know just exactly how difficult a lot of the clients are, and it’s an inbound call centre, so sitting down all day.
With my back being as dodgy as it is, (and it has been going crap again lately) I really need to be able to stand up and walk around pretty often, and I’m not sure if they’d allow that.
I think they’re only sending out the job to people they want to apply, so I’d probably have a good chance of getting it. It’s ‘apply in person, at 2pm today’, so I have about 30 minutes to decide… 45 if I’m willing to show up in a dressing gown.
Gaaaah… I just don’t know!
Off to vote and first day back to work since the storm hit! Kids still at home, but they’re back tomorrow.
Back from voting - ***DEMOCRACY IN ACTION, BITCHES!!! *** 
Once again, I awoke at a stoopitly early hour. **FCD **slept in also so that he could vote before going to work, so we had breakfast together then headed over to the middle school to do our civic duty. There was a bit of a line, but from the time they opened the doors till we left, only 15 minutes passed, so not bad.
As we were leaving, **FCD **said “I only do this for the sticker” and I said something about democracy and stickers for our inner 4-year-old. It was pretty funny. You had to be there… 
Now I’m home waiting for the stove installers to arrive - some time around 9, they tell me. I need to get the cat box into my bathroom, then capture Taz and lock him in my bedroom while they’re here. Ziva will hide under the bed, so that’ll work. I was going to run the vacuum, but I think it’s smarter to wait till they’re done and gone. I need to remove all the stuff from the hearth area so they can work. And maybe move the love seat a few feet… Anyway, by this afternoon, I should be warming the house with pellet heat!
Hey, A[sup]2[/sup]!! Welcome back. Tell us all your dirty secrets!!!
Hugs for all who need them, and even those who don’t. Happy Tuesday!
Even though I voted early, I’m wearin’ my peachy “I’m A Georgia Voter” sticker today just cause I can.
I had a package on my desk this mornin’. I am now the proud owner of a new name tag (same as the old name tag except new) and more bidness cards. Plus a whole lot of recertification paperirk to go in folks’ files. I have no idea why TPTB sent me a new name tag. Guess it’s always good to have a spare.
OOOH! I can attach files to email today! It’s a miracle!
Blurf, Left Coast edition.
Dammit, A[sup]2[/sup], I finally get back out here where I can hobnob with you, and you move on me. :mad: 
I voted last weekend, in the wind, rain, and cold of the outer bands of Sandy. Fear me for risking my life for the republic.
Filbert…show up in the dressing gown. If they hire you after that, then you know it was meant to be!
Going to add more {{hugs}} to the pile I already see here; yesterday was just so blech for so many people. And my legs are getting crampy from crossing them for yourSIL, Swampy, so tell her to get on wit’ it already!
I’m thinking we should have named Mouse Copperfield. Or Harry. Or Blackstone. Can’t name him Dresden, as the the cat would be PISSED that we gave away his name. Mouse is…sneaky. Way too sneaky for a dog who is so noisy otherwise. The house isn’t that big, but if I move 5 feet, so does Mouse. Thing is, he can be lying down flat-dog style, looking up at me from the floor, and I’ll move five feet, turn around…and he’s in the exact same position, but 5 feet closer, looking up at me. And he does this SILENTLY. He will do this all the way around the house. And if there’s a door opening, he’s in it, even faster and quieter and sneakier than the cats, which is saying a LOT. In the morning, MrTao gets up, the animals all follow him out, and he’ll come back and close the bedroom door in an attempt to keep the animals out so I can sleep longer. Hasn’t worked yet, 'cause the puppio is in like Flynn, and of course now he HAS to wake me up, 'cause hey, someone closed the door! :p:p
I hate the time change. <yawn> Gonna go outside and see the moon, awwroooo!
OK, it’s after 9 and the stove guys aren’t here yet!!! I hate when people aren’t prompt. Oh well…
**Bobbio **-- out of curiosity, did you end up still voting in NC (well, NC races) or in/for MD?
I voted!
Oh, come now, you know as well as I if voting could change anything, they wouldn’t let us do it.
Yes, I voted, although as I’ve mentioned previously, it just encourages the bastards.