It has dawned cold and rainy. Well, not really rainy, mostly just wet. The clouds in the forest give it an unworldly look, we probably shouldn’t have gotten a place surrounded by the forest, I waste so much time just starting into it.
Hubs isn’t feeling very well this morning and he thinks that he might not be up for visiting family tomorrow. I am sad, I know he was looking forward to it.
Good news for everyone, I’m glad he managed to gain a little weight.
Recipe saved, thank you. Things are rather disorganized here ATM but I’ll give them a try probably in the next month.
My Secret Santa sent two handmade kitty toys and Jolene broke into the box and got them last night. They are in different rooms this morning, so she must have had fun with them last night.
Morning all. At brother’s for breakfast and as usual there is a movie on (Murder in the First starring Kevin Bacon). Swear that is all they do is watch movies. Nephew is staying with them while he recovers from surgery. Have a bloodhound in my lap a lot, so that’s nice at least.
Cool but above freezing and no rain, but rain is due on Friday when I head home.
More this evening when rest of family goes to Church–me the heathen will head back to the hotel.
missred that potluck sounds absolutely amazing - my mouth was watering just reading that list!
Welcome Rilchiam! I hope your shirts arrive in time.
scareyfaerie good news about the kitty! Also, I am immensely jealous of your pub choices. Nothing like that around this area.
JtC I hope your husband feels better and that you’re able to make the rounds with family.
Quiet here this morning - it continues to be overcast and dreary. I’m putting off getting ready this morning but will need to get to it soon. Meeting at my sister’s at 1 to start cooking for a late lunch/early dinner. My family is small so it tends to be pretty relaxed and there’s no real timeline. We eat whenever everything finally comes together, which is usually at the mercy of the timing on the rolls - damn things never want to rise on time.
Got the YouTube fake fireplace on the screen this morning. It does add something to the season, other than the occasional blaring car ads. I’ve muted it.
It’s lightly snowing and a bit foggy this morning, which shouldn’t keep us from heading for my daughter’s place around noonish for a gathering of the clan. Tomorrow will just be the two of us, so a very quiet day. The wife wants to make latkes, which is a lot of carbs, but it makes her happy.
Ex-SIL’s family took pride in never turning their TV off - ever! It stayed on all night, whether they were home or away, whether anyone was in the room with it or not. We went there a couple of times and I hated it - Christmas dinner with TV blaring in the background! Absolutely hated it.
We’re home from Daughter’s - it was a nice visit and Roxy was extremely delighted with the pack of sticky notes that I gave her - 8 different colors, no less! She was making notes and sticking them all over the house. That kid cracks me up! It was starting to rain on our way home. We ran by CVS for FCD’s meds, then stopped and filled the car so we won’t have to stop tomorrow. Daughter and her spawn are supposed to be here by about 9:30. SIL wanted to spend the day with his sister and his mom, since he missed being with them on Thanksgiving.
And I’m about to start deviling some eggs. Onward to the kitchen!
Nice sleep in until 9:30, then a look out the window. SNOW!!!
Close to half an inch. Enough to look pretty, easyish to navigate. Nice.
Went to cvs to get a Covid test as I woke up with the start of a sore throat. Waking up with a bit of a sore throat is not uncommon. If I get stuffy at night mouth breathing happens. It usually goes away after drinking some water. It did not today… also something really upset my jaw. Huh.
Negative for Covid, whew. Had breakies out, and now home cuddling with the cats. Taking it easy today.
Deviled egg components are all ready to be assembled at bro’s house tomorrow. The colored halves are in 2 separate containers, the fillings are in 2 zippy bags - I’ll snip a corner and squeeze them into the halves. And there are pieces of pickle chips in another baggie to be added as garnish to the bloody mary eggs.
I ran to the dollar store and got a bag of little hershey bars which I’ve numbered. The gift swap game starts with everyone drawing a number, and pieces of paper are too mundane. The only other thing I’ll need is a coin - I’m pretty sure I can scare one up before tomorrow.
I’ve decided I don’t want to make cookies. Like we need the sweets anyway! But I did have enough dirties to run a dishwasher load, and that’s sloshing along right now. Time to read, methinks!
The original TH recipe included, “Refrigerate the dough overnight.” It was edited for the package, leading generations of baker to think the results were their fault.
I was looking in Da Jungle because FCD wants a set of shelves in his office. Before I set my filters, I came across a single shelf - the kind you put in a cabinet to double your storage space. It was $2.58 and shipping was $28 and change. Are people really that stupid?
Christmas dinner tomorrow is at my place. There will be thirteen people, huh, in all.
I’ll get up early tomorrow and put the spiral cut ham in the oven, and a little later make gravy. Tonight I’m baking a pie and croissants I made myself. Other folks will be bringing other food. I have a …FRUITCAKE… too. I happen to like fruitcake, and this is one of the best, the Collin’s Street Bakery fruitcake from Corsicana Texas. My sister came yesterday and helped do some straightening up and today she, along with my BIL were here to haul out the folding table.
After the 7:00 service at church I will come back and let the croissants rise, then bake them. I first made croissants around forty years ago, the day before Easter. They were supposed to be for dinner the next day. That night my father had a heart attack, and at 2:00AM we were sitting around in the hospital waiting room, like zombies. I went home, got the croissants, butter, jelly, plates, napkins etc. and brought them back to the hospital. Food is a comforting thing, and it broke us out of our daze. My dad fully recovered after surgery, but Easter afternoon they pulled a code blue on him that he got pulled out of. He said he felt no pain, he just woke up from what he thought was a nap and a nurse was pounding on his chest yelling at him to wake up. Dad was a man of faith and he said if he had died that day, what better time to go? That’s how it is with me, I’m not afraid of death, I’m afraid of dying. I don’t want to be in a plane that’s going down, or trapped in a tall building that’s on fire. I just want to blink and wonder, “What happened” when I realize I’ve passed.
Sorry, no link. I saw it in AARP magazine a while back. It was among things to keep your brain sharp. Consumer Reports’s “Guide to Natural Cures” (Jan-Feb 2025) makes no mention of it.
I don’t care too much for those ubiquitous Christmas inflatables. But I would totally buy and install a Futurama Santabot inflatable. However, I’ve looked, and I don’t think they make them. Too bad.
The neighbors across the street have Mickey and Minnie Mouse Christmas inflatables. They stand with their arms stretched forwards and upwards. The wind has pushed the inflatables around so that they pretty much face each other, and when gusts blow, Mickey and Minnie look like they’re having an all-in boxing match.
UPS website says the package is still at the local UPS office. Called them just now. They need a street address. No, they can’t get it from me. I have to reach out to the seller and have them update my info. WTF. So I messaged the seller, asked them nicely to give my street address to whoever they’re supposed to give it to, and also for a partial refund.
I’unno. I only remember one other time I got burned on an online sale, and it wasn’t this spectacularly.
Started Typing: 2:08 PM ET
Clicked Reply: 3:05 PM ET
Sometimes, at the bottom of an MMP all of the “suggested” threads will be past MMPs: every now and then I’ll click on one from “the old days” (before I started hanging out with y’all 3.5 years ago), just to see what was going on/who was posting. The other day I skimmed one from January 2013: swampy wasn’t an RDOS yet, and it was soooo weird!
Alas, yesterday’s sore throat was just the beginning and today starts the “worse before it gets better” part of this cold: my throat is less sore except when I sneeze or cough, but I’m coughing more and am much more congested (therefore sneezing regularly) and my sinuses are doing the “don’t bend down, you fool!” thing. I haven’t taken a second COVID test yet, but my temp has been back in the normal range since last night and I do believe it’s just a cold.
I decided against saying anything to my dad and brother, and will plan to meet them for our 2pm dinner tomorrow no matter what (well, mostly). I started thinking about what a “Plan B” might look like for them, and there really isn’t one – short of them getting sandwiches from a local convenience store. If there were a restaurant my dad was willing to go to up there that’s open on Christmas, he would have booked that instead of the restaurant near me. I know they won’t care that I might be contagious; Dad never even had much patience for COVID precautions. As long as this cough stays under control, everything should be alright. I just won’t linger after dessert for as long as I might have otherwise.
Work is super quiet today, so I’m planning to log off shortly and become one with the couch sooner rather than later. And then I won’t have to work again until Monday! Woo hoo! When I went to the grocery store at lunchtime yesterday for throat lozenges, I also picked up some emotional support Pepperidge Farm: if I can’t be with my BFFs on Christmas Eve, at least I’ll be home with my doggy watching holiday movies (Die Hard, Trading Places, Lethal Weapon, etc.) and eating cookies. And occasionally reapplying medicated lip balm to my poor nose. And maybe starting a new Lego set.
Thanks for the earworm!
life goes on without me…
Welcome!
!
I’ve been wondering about that movie; it’s on my “if I’m in the mood and there’s nothing better to watch” list. Sometimes “watchable” is all I need, so I might check it out sometime this weekend.
The name of that place made me smile, and think about jumping in rain puddles as a kid.
LOL! I likely didn’t mention it. However, your penance was acceptable.
Very nice! I’m a fan of earth tones, and love that you have a tendency to use browns/blues/greens.
Daughter just sent me a video of Tobias sitting on the toilet singing the We Will song (You know, We will, we will rock you!) Alas, he lacks his sister’s sense of pitch and rhythm. but it’s still a hilarious video, because he had no idea he was being recorded… That boy is a hoot!
Since Sunday,I’ve had a cough. It was bad. Then I had aches. Those are gone. Now I have a small fever and fatigue.
Also not hungry-I am always in eat mode.
I think I strained my throat as when I do cough, theres a horrible pain where a tracheotomy would be.
The buses stopped running so just lying down resting.
I’ve been breathing clearly the whole time.
This is my fault for being a procrastinator-I’ll get my flu shot eventually.
Sigh.
I am older now and should be more up on that.
life goes on without me… 
!