Archive for the ‘Stuff’ Category
July 26, 2013
Last night we slept with the windows open. It’s so great to have the air conditioning off and real air flowing through the house. Yesterday, it was raining in the morning, but today we were able to walk down to the pier over the river. It’s been a while. It’s hard to do anything outside when the air reminds me of warm dog breath. You big dog owners what I mean. I’ve also managed to do some weeding. Yeah. I really should buy some more flowers.

Another sock. This time I used Tofutsies and a Sockupied pattern. The skein wasn’t full, but I have three partial skeins that co-ordinate so I figured I could make one for each foot. No . I don’t have three feet. Thank you very much. I have enough trouble with the two that I have. Hmm. Would they charge me more for a pedicure if I had three feet? Anyway, one sock weighed 36 grams and I have 38 grams leftover. Another Yeah. A good digital scale is a godsend when you throw stuff together the way that I do.
Tags:big dog owners, digital scale, Sockupied, Tofutsies, warm dog breath
Posted in Knitting, Stuff | Comments Off on Second Decent Day
July 2, 2013
Yea! It even works.
Tags:range hood
Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on Range Hood
March 8, 2013
I got a nice ham hock at the market last week, so naturally, I wanted to make soup. I bought a bag of soup beans and sort of followed the instructions on the back. I added more onion and garlic and tomatoes than called for, and added about a cup of baby carrots sliced lengthwise. I cooked it until the meat fell off the bone. I removed the bones and as much fat as possible and shredded the larger pieces of ham. It turned out great.
I hadn’t made any socks lately, so I made these. Purple and brown isn’t something that I would normally choose, but the little flacks of many colors were very intriguing. I can’t find the label. It probably fell behind the rolling carts in my long closet. The cats like to rummage around in there and I had the yarn sitting out. I know the yarn company, I’ve made socks with their yarn before. It consists of four letters that I can never remember, but easily recognise. The yarn is quite sturdy, but still comfortable on my feet. I really like the way they look on my feet. The pattern is Mona from ‘knit. sock. love’ by Cookie A. I used the eye of partridge on the heel and made a rounded toe. I love the yarn. I love the pattern. I’m happy.
Tags:baby carrots sliced lengthwise, bag of soup beans, Cookie A, eye of partridge, ham hock, knit. sock. love., Mona, purple and brown yarn
Posted in Knitting, Stuff | Comments Off on Back to the Soup
March 6, 2013
Looking out my window while trying to blog.
The rain started last night and it’s still going strong this afternoon. My old friend says Baltimore and DC are closed. I wonder. Is he and his bud out playing in the snow? (Insert hysterical laughter here). I am so glad I live on this side of the bridge.
So, I’ve been cooking. I found some strawberries yesterday that didn’t look too violated. And I thought, ‘pound cake would be nice with them’.
Perfection! A nice crust on the outside and smooth as butter inside.
After a taste test, I cut it into thirds and froze two of them. You didn’t think two people were going to eat all that in a couple of days, did you? Be right back. It’s time for cake and strawberries.
Tags:'pound cake, cake and strawberries, taste test
Posted in Stuff | 2 Comments »
February 7, 2013

I remember reading the recipe, but when the time came, I couldn’t find it. But, I believe I did a good job of winging it. It called for a boneless shoulder, but the pork loin looked too good to ignore. I also didn’t bother to sear it before putting it in the slow cooker. That’s one less thing to wash. I sliced about half a white onion and put it in the bottom. It was a very big onion. I sat the pork loin on top of it, dumpt in a can of enchilada sauce and the equivolate of one package of taco seasoning. Sweetems believes everything is better with taco seasoning so I buy big jars of it. I don’t, however, let him touch the jar. That’s just too dangerous. Anyway. Put the lid on and set it on high cook. After about three hours, I put in a can of chopped green chilies. Let it cook until the meat falls apart. My pork loin was four pounds and it took about six hours before I considered it ready. I also removed bits of fat as it was cooking. I could not believe how good it was! This recipe is definitely a keeper.
I had to have to sandwich rolls with it. So I made some. I love to make rolls. I make a big batch of dough and keep it in the refrigerator. About an hour before hand, I roll out the amount I need, let them rise, then pop them in a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes. I try to use it all up under a week. They are always so good. And the perfect complement to carnitas!
Tags:carnitas, refrigerator rolls, sandwich rolls, slow cooker
Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on Carnitas! sort of
January 23, 2013
When you have five cats and a dog and its nineteen degrees outside, that’s what happens all day. At least Sweetums is getting some exercise. Me? I’m trying to hide. I haven’t recovered from my ophthalmologist appointment this morning. It took forever to get dressed. There was the silk long johns and the heavy socks and wool clogs and the turtleneck and the wool sweater and the pants. When it was time to go, there was the neck scarf and the coat and Angora Bohus hat and the Sanguhar gloves. Oh, yeah. Don’t forgot the knitting. At this point, a nap would have been nice. But I managed to make it out to van. And, you know what? It started right up. I love my metal box, even if it is sixteen. Maybe it’ll make it to twenty. On days like this, I think about when I lived in California. Then I remember all the heartache and how happy I am in Lower Slower Delaware.

I made apple cranberry walnut spice muffins with the last three apples. The smelled so good. And they tasted wonderful. My son inhaled three and took a bag home with him.

Tags:apple cranberry muffins, Bohus hat, Sanquhar gloves, winter
Posted in Family and Friends, my pets, Stuff | Comments Off on In And Out And In And Out And In And Out And In
January 1, 2013
Am I getting a cold? Or has this weather just put me in a dismal mood. We went for a walk. We went to the market. All I wanted to do was stay home and put my feet up. I even thought about taking a nap. Sweetums naps every day. I tried it. All I did was stare at the ceiling.
Ever try those zinc lozenges? They taste awful. And they kill your taste buds for hours. Nothing tastes right. You might as well eat dirt. Don’t waste your time eating anything good. You know, those things would make good appetite suppressors. The food looks good, smells good. Take a bite and the zinc makes it taste so awful that you may never eat it again. Now there’s a thought.
Oh, yea. Happy new year.
Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on Dreary Cloudy Raw Day
December 29, 2012
I’ve got apple cranberry bread baking. With my kitchen in the center of the house and no dividing walls, my house smells wonderful. And it will linger for hours. I love it.
Tags:apple cranberry bread
Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on The Joy of Baking
December 22, 2012
Decorating my tree is always an adventure. I never found the star for the top and I still don’t know where my Minnie Mouse tree topper is. Oh, well. It’s full of brightly colored little lights and looks great from the bridge over our creek. Up close, it’s filled with a lifetime of little memories. When I decorate, I always have Bing or Luciano sing to me. I sing along. I laugh. I cry. Now. I am ready for Christmas.
Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on Ready As I Ever Will Be
November 24, 2012
Thanksgiving is hard for me. I get sad and grumpy. Sweetums understands. I don’t want to publish too much sad and grumpy so I’ll wait a few more days. And work on my ‘happy thoughts’ mantra.

Posted in Stuff | Comments Off on Avoid the Blog?