Archive for October, 2008

The Electrician was Late

October 22, 2008

And he didn’t finish.  So what else is new?  It means another day when I will have to get dressed when I get up.  It’s almost like having to go to work.  Boy, I don’t miss that 4:30AM alarm.  Half the year, it wasn’t even light out by the time I started work.  I don’t miss that job either.

Here’s my new handbag.  Isn’t it cute?  No gagging.

It was nice enough to sit outside for a while this afternoon and knit. 

I finished the decreases for the heel and now I am heading for the toe.

It is really starting to look like Autumn. 

Got Oil?

October 21, 2008

Well.  We do.  The truck was supposed to come this morning, but didn’t show up until 1:30PM.  I went dog walking this morning by myself.  Bummer!  I used to walk all the time alone, but since the hip replacement, Doug has been walking with me.  At first, I couldn’t stand it, but then I started to like it.  I don’t feel as much like he is watching over me as I used to. 

So, the furnace cleaning guy doesn’t show up until 5:30PM.  Supper was almost ready.  I didn’t think he was coming.  He said they got a lot of no heat calls.  We haven’t even turned ours on yet.  It’s not that cold.  He was down there for about two hours.  He has to crawl through a hole in the wall to get to the furnace which is partly in sand.  I assume that’s the way those things are done here.  It didn’t seem to faze him.

One of my new handbags came today, but I forgot to take a picture.  Maybe I’ll do that tomorrow.  The Einstein coat is coming along.  I may have it finished in a few days.  I should say I may have the bottom edge done.  I really think that I need to do something about the collar.  This coat is so boring.  I have got to make it right.  It would be so wasteful not to wear it.

I just hope that I don’t run out of yarn.  If I do, I’m screwed.  Speaking of stupid, I joined another sock club today.  Why do I do these things?

Knitting Group

October 19, 2008

There weren’t very many there today.  Most of my favorites were there so it was enjoyable.  Again, we were unnecessarily shoved into a tiny space.  We were also told that we couldn’t meet there from mid November until January.  Our second gathering in November will be at Stacy’s, but I understand her space is small.  Someone knows of a place at the mall and is looking into it.  Afterward, I went out to supper with two others and had  very nice time. 

It has been pretty cold for the last few days, and windy, too.  We are finally having real Autumn weather.  We tolerate it during the day and have a fire going all evening.  About half an hour before bedtime, we turn on the electric mattress pad.  We hate to put the heat on before November.  We don’t want to give in to the cold.  

All I Wanted was a New Handbag

October 18, 2008

I looked at a couple of nice stores in town and even hit the outlets in Rehoboth to no avail.  I knew what I wanted and I knew what I didn’t want.  It didn’t seem that difficult.  You know, there must be millions of handbags for sale on eBay.  I found several I liked and wound up getting two.  I had placed five bids.  Now my eyeballs feel like they are about to fall out.  I looked at fabric and embroidery designs, too.  After a while, I stopped looking because I was so tired that I couldn’t make a decision.  There’s no rush. 

No work has gotten done on my socks, but the too long sweater is coming along.  I’ve also been sewing.  I have knitting group tomorrow and I will take my socks.  There has been talk of moving the location.  Originally, the store invited us, and now, we feel like they are trying to push us out.     

Zip helped me get some sewing done.

Another Quickie

October 17, 2008

Yesterday I wanted to turn on the air conditioning.  Today, I want to put on the heat. 

We’re hanging with the neighbors tonight, so this is all there is for today.

It Was Doug’s Birthday

October 17, 2008

Maybe that’s why it was so hot.  I think it got up to 85 today.  I’m not used to sweating in October.  It is supposed to be 20 degrees cooler tomorrow.  Everybody is going to be so sick.

My son was off from work today so he came for a visit and brought two gallons of Weber’s cider.  I finally thought of a good birthday present this evening.  Doug is so hard to buy for.  When I find what I want, I’ll post a picture. 

Thawing frozen bananas is gross.  Peeling them and mashing them is even worse.  If anyone ever saw me making this cake, they would never eat it.  I don’t tell what’s in it.  They wouldn’t believe me.  They just say that it is the best chocolate cake they have ever eaten.

The mail person brought me a package today.  Now I have to figure out how much I still need.

I think I want another green.

Good night.

Meat Loaf for Two

October 16, 2008

I don’t know about you, but I am not one for reheating more than once.  If it’s not finished by the second meal, it’s dogfood or garbage.  So, here is my recipe for meatloaf.  If you want no leftovers, invite a friend.  Sometimes, Doug eats more.  It makes a really good cold meatloaf sandwich.

1 lb ground round or sirloin; 1 egg, beaten;  1 cup chopped cheddar cheese; 1/4 cup onion, chopped fine; 1 tbs. parsley; 1 tsp. each of thyme and rosemary;  1/2 tsp. sea salt; 1 clove garlic, chopped fine; 1/4 cup salsa; 1 tbs. salsa verde; 1/4 cup bread crumbs.

In a medium bowl, beat an egg.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Form into a loaf pan and cover top with catsup if you like it.  Bake for one hour at 400 degrees.  Slice and serve.

I usually make it up early in the day and put it in the refrigerator. 

Roasted little red potatoes are good with it.  They take about the same amount of time.  I cut them into wedges and toss them with a little extra virgin olive oil and plenty of garlic, rosemary and thyme.  Cover them, but take the cover off for the last ten minutes.  If cooking them alone, turn up the oven to 450 and cook for about 40 minutes.  Check the potatoes for doneness.  Is that a word?

Ocean City

October 15, 2008

I had an IRA that matured.  I had gotten it at a little bank in Reisterstown.  As happens, it was bought by a bigger bank.  The closest branch was in Ocean City so we rode down there today.  I said I had to take some pictures while we were here.  It was a perfect day.  It was sunny and in the upper 70s.  Since it was out of season, there was no parking problem.  We just pulled up to the end of a side street and walked down.

A sitting area!

There were lots of gulls.

People were sunbathing!

Even Doug enjoyed himself!

New Header

October 13, 2008

I’m not sure whether I like this one.  It seems too busy to me.  Maybe I’ll change it to this. 

Now that the weather is getting a little cooler, we sometimes have mornings like this.  I like the fog.  Everything seems different.  When I was young, we used to go camping in Maine.  I liked to walk along the rocks and watch the waves.  I would pretend that I was the only person on the island.  I’d like to go again sometime, maybe with Nancy.  Doug doesn’t like to travel.  It’s hard enough dragging him to the ocean in Delaware.

Einstein Coat

October 13, 2008

I started pulling the coat apart last night while trying to find something to watch on TV.  There is never anything on Saturdays any more.  I don’t watch reality shows, game shows or sports.  Most comedies are so bad that I find myself grinding my teeth in under ten minutes.  Most dramas might as well be fantasy for all the sense they make and I usually figure out who did it by the second commercial.  Often, I pretend that the comedy is a drama and the drama is a comedy.  It’s much more believable that way.

Here, I have starting unraveling.  I didn’t get any done toady because Maude took a very long nap.

She was out until midnight last night.  She got up at 6 this morning and went out.  It was almost noon before she had breakfast.  She slept right through the boys’ supper.  We finally woke her up and pushed her out the door around 6PM without any supper.  If we had fed her, she probably would have stayed out until 2AM.

It was a nice afternoon so I worked on my sock. 

I normally use six needles at this point.  There is a lost less stress on the needles and there is no gap going down the bottom of the sock.