Perhaps. There were two Asian (Taiwanese and Vietnamese) restaurants in our Portland neighborhood alone that should have been Beard awardees. But there are also two not far from us here that are better than the one in my earlier post.
For sure. It’s a major worry off my mind.
That’s way, way, waaaaaay overdue Dear. I’m so happy you’ve had this good stuff happen in your life. Here’s hoping it’s the start of a trend.
If only you’d met Swampy at the right time. If only. j/k; you two would not have hit it off.
But he’s certainly the RDOS to emulate. I for one know exactly what I want to be when I grow up: Swampy’s disciple.
Lotta people read the “best of” lists, go do the #1 [whatever], then post a rave review to prove a) they went to a #1 place like all the other cool kids, and b) convince themselves they were right to do so. Which of course boosts that place’s standing in the rankings. It’s self-fulfilling prophecy all the way down. Carefully gamed by savvy managers everywhere.
And good news about dear wife’s skin. I make light of getting cut on every couple of months, but it is a PITA, albeit not a life-threatening one. I can’t undo the past, so I’m stuck with it. My (probably self-deluding) attitude now is I can’t do much more harm in the next few years versus the last 50, so … What? Me worry? Probably stupid of me.
HOo-ooooray!!!
Flyboy: Your vacation sounds like it’s a pleasant combo of personal relaxation / rejuvenation and being productive on the home front. Those somehow seem sorta prosaic in the planning or telling, but always feel the best in the doing and immediate aftermath. Good on 'ya.
FCM congrats for surviving the church visit, and double hooray for impending breakfast date & boat driving. You two are way overdue to focus exclusively on one another for a few hours or better yet weeks.
As to me …
Went to bed relatively early and slept relatively late, so about 9 hours. Felt good; real good.
Up, procrastinated, sheveled, and fed just in time to greet the housekeepers who will now be a regular fixture of my Wed mornings. Once they were gone I launched off for errands and a quicky lunch, about which more below. Then home just in time for a rain shower with lightning to settle in our neighborhood. The air was warm and full of yummy ions so I opened up all the doors and took a nap to the sound of rain. All the best naps are taken in those conditions.
For whatever reason in FL we get a lot of lighting and thunder out of rather insignificant storms. So the noise and lightshow doesn’t imply torrential downpours, beastly winds, large hail, and all the scary stuff it would mean in the e.g. Midwest or mid Atlantic. Which is nice. Shame about the hurricanes though.
Now late afternoon shading into evening and I’m considering my dinner options.
I mentioned lunch …
Metalmouse and maybe flyboy: today I went to 5 Guys for lunch.
Like many burger joints these days they’ll make your burger bunless if you ask. Which for me is real valuable because any burger bun is useless carbs that I’d much rather spend on hot salty FFs. Anyhow I asked for “no bun” which was the term on the menu board. To which the order taker responded “Do you want it on lettuce or in a bowl?” I was shocked. I’d had their bunless before and it came on too-small lettuce and basically exploded all over the table and down my arms and shirt. Yuck! I had resigned myself to Yuck again.
What is this “bowl” of which you speak, Stranger? He explained they just assemble the whole thing in a deep foil to-go tub and you eat it out of there with knife and fork. Sold!! The tub is large enough that you could order a big burger with every topping they offer and still not overflow the tub. Try that with a bun. Not gonna work.
Anyhow, for those watching carbs or cals and not wanting to wear their burger proudly on their sleeve the rest of the day, (at least some) 5 Guys have tub-burgers. Can recommend.
Cheers all as the day winds down.
Having lived in small, one bedroom apartments with tiny kitchens for more years than I care to count, I added a baker’s rack and microwave cart years ago. My current kitchen doesn’t have room for both, so the micro cart is the flat space for the Cricut in my studio.
Far too often, that’s forgone too.
Irked, came home, took Nelson out and et.
Hooray! Nelson ate a big bowl of his usual kibble (I didn’t pour a bowl of the soft stuff when I came home) and instigated a game of tug-o-war! He’s also brought Rocky Raccoon and Señor Pescado out of the toybox to play. Other than his sore bottom, my boy is back. 
I likely bored y’all to death with my worries, but he’s my sweet boy.
Stay safe and healthy y’all!
I posted this in the motorcycle thread, but I’ll mention here that my ‘new’ (salvaged) cylinder block arrived from Poland… just ten days after I placed the (eBay) order! Unfortunately, the seller didn’t send the block. He sent the cylinder head.
What a blockhead! 
One hopes translation / terminology issues aren’t the real culprit and your vendor doesn’t have any cylinder blocks and never did.
The listing did have pictures. I’m thinking someone else may have ordered a head, and got a block instead.
Good evening all. Spent a good part of the day riding Metro trains and a bus from Dulles to the Museum (Oopsie, you were right on where I needed to go, but I didn’t pay enough attention so ended up at Dulles, and the bus took us right back over to the previous station before going to the Museum). Had a good 3.5 hours there, it is a very good place to see, and then spent about 2 hours getting back to my hotel. The hotel had given me a card for a $29 discount at their restaurant, so I ate steak and salad…and still (with tip) paid $39. Big cities can run up your costs of dining. Train leaves tomorrow at 1:45pm, so probably will just hang out at the hotel for a bit, then use the Metropolitan Club (for bedroom riders on Amtrak) for further hanging. Didn’t seem as hot today as yesterday, but maybe that was due to doing a lot less walking today (still got mucho steps in). Also, Krispy Kreme glazed donuts are better than Dunkin’ Donuts and I will die on that hill.
So let’s see what y’all been up to…
FCM, glad FCD has apparently decided the car issue is a battle not worth fighting; hope MIL managed to talk BIL down some. Enjoy actually doing some boating, as brief as it may be.
JtC, a portable kitchen island sounds like a good idea; my brother and SIL have one and it serves many uses.
doggio, hope the squeezing doesn’t affect you (except more $$$ on your paycheck).
Cookie, great news about wifey. Hope the blinds come through. And sometimes the worst thing that can happen to a restaurant is to get a great reputation and long lines of customers…IMHO of course.
Oopsie, I can hardly tell that that is a Lego radio; looks very realistic. Looking forward to the Cathedral.
Flyboy, we have some train tracks in the middle of town here, two roads have bridges across the tracks, but the center one does not, and while most of the trains are fast once in awhile we have one leaving or taking cars from a siding and traffic gets backed up while others try to get around it on the bridges.
And hope you get the right part–eventually…
Pilot, thanks for the 5 Guys recommendation, I’ll look into that, but I’m good with the buns, it’s cutting back on those just-so-damn-good fries of theirs.
red, happy to hear Nelson is doing better.
And that is the extent of my communication skills for the evening. Need to re-organize the packing and be ready to move out tomorrow for the train to Chi-town. Take care all.
There’s talk about building a bridge there, but I can’t see where there’s space for one. Nevertheless, it’s in the planning stages. If you absolute, positively have to get across the tracks when a train is using them, your only option is to drive a few miles down the parallel road, or wind around the roads on the other side (the side I was on today). And there’s another crossing a mile further south, so you could use that one too.
It rained from noon to 6 so I didn’t go out.
Tomorrow and Friday, training so I can have a little something in next weeks check. So far I got 5.5 hours.
My church got me a bus pass that will last me about 5 weeks.
I, on the other hand, am brutally honest in my Yelp reviews. I wrote one on this place and gave it a 3/5, listing the reasons why. Not that it will make any difference, of course.
We got a little rain this evening, and more is promised/threatened around midnight. We shall see.
I need to figure out some money stuff - specifically related to MIL’s estate. Lucky for my, my brother is a big shot accountant and money guy, so he can give me an answer for free! YAY!
Guess I need to dash off an email to him now.
Just sticking my head in the door to say hiya, as my son and the granddogs will be here any minute. My, you’re a good-looking group!
Why wait? Join Swampy’s Kids today! Earn badges for Beerverage Retrieval, Cement Pond Cleaning, and more! Act now and you could be selected to mow Swampy’s Lawn for FREE!
GENIUS!!! I can put stuff on that and move it into the back room to help keep the kitchen somewhat de-cluttered. There is a lot of floor space and it has more cabinets and counter space than the kitchen in my childhood home (which was built in 1956) but I’ve gotten spoiled over the years.
GO NELSON!!! W00t!!!
You didn’t bore me at all, I was worried about him too and wanted constant updates. I’m so glad he’s feeling better 
That’s sounds like a challenge! I’ve never had either, but there is a Dunkin’ on the way to Logan and I’ve heard their coffee is not bad. I’ll see if there is a Krispy Kreme around here. I’m all about exploring my new home
Today I put my big girl panties on and spent HOURS UPON HOURS signing up for another Medicare plan because of course the one I had in AZ is only good for travel so I had to sign up for a WV plan. I had horrible flashbacks of reading the rights and responsibilities form to food stamp clients while hearing the poor CSR having to read All. That. Stuff to me.
Thank goodness for speaker phones and the mute function, she didn’t know I was playing on my tablet and smoking weed during most of it.
Next I looked up how to get my MMJ card. That requires a valid WV drivers license so I looked into that. It requires two specific forms of verification of WV residency so Hubs went to the insurance company that has our homeowners insurance on his way to the grocery sto.
My name is not on the policy, which will be fixed post haste. If our house burns down with him in it, I want to get paid!!!
He did get our auto insurance changed over so I do have a current auto registration card which should work and we have the deed (with my name on it of course) so we will get that dealt with tomorrow.
After I get a hair cut so I look good for a horrible photo I’ll never want to show to anyone, LOL! I also need a passport photo for the MMJ card, but I can get that at Walgreens on our way home.
Once that is done I can schedule an online appointment with a licensed and certified MMJ physician. So far I haven’t been able to find out how much that will cost, but I’m guessing it will be in the 3-4 hundred range.
They will give me a form to send to the State with another 50 bucks and in a month or so, I will receive a physical card in the mail.
I could drive to Virginia until it is full legal here for less bother than getting the card, but I’m lazy and won’t want to drive all that way in the winter so whatever.
It has been raining on and off all day so Hubs filled up the gas can while he was downtown cause he’s pretty sure he’s going to be mowing again tomorrow.
Dunkin is great, especially with mocha.
Happy Hump Day!
I would like to apologize to everyone for my outburst.
I am sorry for shitting in your thread, Boo Fae
A special apology to you Pilot.
I did not mean it to seem as though you are a problem. It was an accumulation in which I usually stay silent even though I find a number of political statements very offensive.
I have friends and family on both sides of the political spectrum. These are people I care about and when sweeping generalizations are made about any of them, well it’s just rude.
In the past the term Trumpanzee has been used in this thread, and this board is filled with Trumptards and MAGAts. Saying Trump supports are evil, stupid, in a cult, etc. is offensive.
When I hear those words, I think of my Trump supporter friend who was one of the first to be vaxxed. He and his wife were moved to the head of the line because they take in foster children, the kind that nobody else wants. He also volunteers for an organization similar to Habitat for Humanity, that is through his church.
So much evil there.
Another also takes in foster children, and has paid for lawyers at her own expense to keep children from going back to their abusive parents.
Another TNR’s feral cats, at his own expense, and makes sure the ferals have food and water, and heated houses in the winter.
He has been cussed at many times because if he sees a homeless person with a dog, he will buy food and water for the dog. Humans are on their own.
Hard to view these people as evil.
Many Trump supporters I know have masters and doctorate degrees. Hardly stupid.
Hardly in a cult.
The nastiness and arrogance, the hubris, is unnecessary.
I’m not saying this about you, or anyone else in particular.
FWIW, I find the terms LIbtard and Demonrats equally offensive.
But you’ll never see those words on this board.
So much nastiness, so much division.
Thank you for your post Nettie.
You said everything better than I can.
I also cringe when people say nasty things about religion. Even though I am not religious. When I see it, I think of you, and Swampy, and CatGlove, and Cupcakes and think, is it necessary? I don’t have to agree with your religious beliefs but I respect your right to have them. I don’t understand them, but I don’t have to.
Sometimes I wish I could believe, because it seems to bring comfort to those that do.
And like you, I find the nastiness coming from the left pushes me further to the right. The right are not the ones calling me names because I don’t agree with them.
Anyway, I have said way more than I wanted, when Nettie said it all so well.
Once again, I apologize.
And…
Everybody who lives alone, please please get yourself a Life Alert.
I have a friend, K, that I have not been able to get ahold of. Some other friends and I were talking and nobody has been able to get her. One friend who lives near her thought she might drive by. However, K has some issues and dropping by unannounced is not appreciated.
She finally answered my call. She has been in rehab for over 60 days, after a month in the hospital. She fell while getting out of bed and couldn’t get up. Her phone was just inches away, but she couldn’t reach it. She sat there for four days until her sister called for a welfare check.
She was near death when the firemen broke down her door and got her out.
She has been told she will never walk again.
She is the third person I have known to fall, not be able to get up, and lay there until somebody finally checks on them. Each of them was close to death when found.
This friend was in agony the whole time because of the way her legs twisted under her.
But she is alive, and grateful to be alive. When she is finally able to go home, we are going to have to make a plan to check on her.
Well, crap.
A young robin (not fully coloured) flew up onto the railing of the catio. Goo got it. She brought it inside and I got her to drop it. It was still alive when I handed it to Catmom, but it’s dead now. There are no wounds, so Goo broke the poor thing’s neck. The adult robins are very upset. We’re sad now. 
Whether it’s due to limiting carbs or cals, you can eat more fries if you eat less bread. IMO white bread and FFs trade about evenly bite for bite. I hit and surpassed my carb limit just a bit today. But I also got to eat 2x the fries I can withstand if I also eat the bun. For me at least that’s a no-brainer.
Sounds like your trip is going awesomely,
Coppertone, the good news just keeps coming!!1! Go you!
Wise man there Cookie; I’d do something similar were I arsed to leave reviews. For sure I don’t pick places off reviews. I’ve met the general public while waiting at the DMV and I don’t just trust their judgement.
Yaay Jane for all that administrative progress. Including the 1 step back of finding you weren’t on the insurance.
As to me …
Dinner was basic Indian at this nearby storefront eatery. Arun’s Indian Kitchen & Taco Masala. It’s modest, it’s cheap, but it’s real good. Their signature innovation, that I’ve never tried, is to make a “taco” by folding a naan in half and filling the channel with whatever Indian goop you want. Sounds very messy, but fun to eat.
I just had a normal plate of basmati and paneer saag. Which was filling and healthy and yummy. Successfully resisted the temptation for an Indian beer and for some of their very tasty naan. Neither of which my pancreas can really withstand if I’m also eating the basmati rice which I especially enjoy.
Now home, and enjoying a glass of wine before bed soon.
In exciting (to me) news, HL this evening has taken her share of our joint funds as we’d planned. It’s an odd sensation to be cheering as big blobs of your money are siphoned off forever with nothing tangible to show for it. But I’m long ago resigned to this outcome, so I’m just experiencing the relief of “Done-ety done done!” And considering all I’ve gained from this saga, it’s money well spent.
I’ve now triggered my own transfer of my share of our joint funds and when the bank’s gnomes get done with their goose quills and eyeshades overnight, those accounts will be drained and we will have no economic connection whatsoever. Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray!
On that note the bedtime alarm is reminding me to nod off soon since tomorrow starts early with many activities.
Cheers all; sleep well!!
Sari snuck in while I was typing. …
Sari, I’m very happy to see you back, and I’m very sorry to have caused you pain. We’ll all move forward in the MMP spirit of mutual support through thick and thin.
Spot and I napped. then it was martini, salad, and tortellini and meatballs for dinner.
Gonna crack my knuckles and jump for joy, got a clean bill of health from Doctor McCoy!- Star Trek. hope Cookiewife finds a good anti-ich product, though.
I’m sure there is a cancel clause in most plans if you aren’t licensed/registered/sober.
{{{{sari}}}}