Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions. (Thanks to Jo from Simply Being Mum for sponsoring FWF this week.)

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions

This week has been more unusual than normal since we started the work on our kitchen. That is because Thanksgiving has been a two day event with a lot of eating with extended family. The good news is that the work in the kitchen is done and we've started to move things back in. The bad news is that the outlet we plugged the refrigerator into wasn't working and the fridge wasn't running for 12 hours until we realized it. I don't think there were any immediate casualties, but I won't be surprised if some things in there don't last very long.  Tune in next week to see what happens.

Thanksgiving has been a two part event with both Ward's and my families. There was a lot of complicated scheduling, but let's just say I think the carnivores were happy to have two chances for turkey, as well as a turducken. 

I'm not sure what next week holds because we have more moving of furniture to get one more floor refinished. But we do have working appliances in the kitchen. And for that I am most thankful.

Until next time... 

Hero Dogs

or Service Dogs for Veterans

Recently, I attended a program about service dogs for injured or disabled veterans.  While we learned about the overall program, my attention was focused mainly on York, an older puppy in training who was there with his handler.  To demonstrate some of the things a service dog might do, he retrieved hidden keys, opened doors, pushed buttons, pulled a chair, and all the while was very happy to be doing them. That's what so great about dogs. They are eager to please. (Not so with our cats. They have a way of making YOU eager to please them.) Another one of the important things the dogs are trained to do is help if a veteran is getting agitated with an impending panic attack or similar problem from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The dogs also learn how to take their owners through narrow spaces which can also be a problem with PTSD. It's amazing what a service dog can do and the difference it can make in someone's life.

As you can imagine, the show was fun to watch. A couple of times, York got to be off duty and let all of us pet him. (Service dogs are not to be petted or played with while they are on duty.) A special treat for him as well as us. However, during the Q&A session, he got a little restless and started to talk to his trainer with a bark then and again and a pull on his lead. He was just like a child who was trying to get his mother's attention when she had been talking too long. The trainer said that that is one reason that York is not ready to be placed yet. He's still a bit too young and impatient to be a good service dog at this point.

There are many service dog organizations out there that could use your help. First of all, they need money--it takes approximately $30,000 to raise and train the dog until it is ready for placement.This organization provides the dog at no cost to the veteran. However, there are many other ways to help. They also have need for puppy raisers, trainers, and people to play with the dogs. They could also use donations of materials such as paper towels, wipes, and old towels. If you are interested in helping, you can google service dog and your location to find out what organizations are available close to you.

Want to Read More:

--Ever wonder what the difference is between a service dog and a therapy dog? Here's a good explanation. 

--There are several prison programs where the inmates raise puppies that will become service dogs. They are quite successful in changing the prisoner's behavior in positive way. Here's a story about one of them.

Thankful Sunday--November 24, 2013

I am thankful for National Public Radio.

Yesterday we were out and about visiting. During the morning ride, we listened to Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me and during the evening ride we listened to Prairie Home Companion. Just what we needed to enjoyably pass the time after Ward and I exhausted our topics of conversation for the day. Actually, we've been married long enough, sometimes we don't need to talk. Just being together is enough. For that I am thankful. And when there is no need for conversation, I am thankful for NPR radio.

Trivia:
My nephew works on another NPR show called From the Top. This show showcases amazing young musicians from around the country. He is an amazing young musician himself. Listen sometime to the music between segments. That's some of his handiwork.

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Nov. 22, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions. 

This Week's Food Waste

None

We're in Day 28 of our remodel and the eating out continues. Consequently, when you don't eat at home much or go to the grocery store much, it's pretty easy to not waste your food. I'm looking forward to eating at home again with the potential of more food waste. :)

This Week's True Food Confessions

The end of our construction is in sight. I hope. The counter tops are scheduled to be installed next week and after that, the sink and other appliances can be hooked up. Then the the move back in can begin and that should be interesting. I'd like to believe that I cull stuff from my kitchen fairly often and don't have a lot of extra things. However, we lost a couple of cabinets during this process. We'll see if I can make it all fit.

In the meantime, we continue to eat/live in the basement with a microwave and no prep space. This was the week of popcorn, apples, and peanut butter sandwiches. That was our go-to when we couldn't figure out what we were going to eat. The special night was when had some pretty good chicken soup from the freezer. However, the majority of the time we ate out for dinner and had our favorites of Chinese, pizza, and Subway. Luckily these provided good leftovers.

Until next time...

 

A Second Look--November 19, 2013

Most of my Second Look was done at 5 o'clock in the evening when the sun was starting to set. That made it hard to see much. However, my camera did a pretty good job capturing what light there was--meaning the pictures make it seem lighter out than it really was. However, the operator of the camera didn't do a very good job of holding the camera steady in the low light--meaning many of the pictures turned out blurry. I've got to work on that.

Here's what I saw this week during a Second Look.

The sun was going down as well as the temperature when I was out. I'm not sure what the temperature was, but it felt cold to me.

There are still occasional maple trees that haven't lost their leaves yet.

This is the "artsy" picture I took of the above maple trees when I wasn't holding the camera still enough.

The wind had blown the top off one of our bird boxes and I got a chance to peer in. Last summer, a sparrow laid four eggs in here, however only one of them hatched. Surprisingly, two of the eggs are still intact.

Even though I couldn't see much, I still got the pleasure of crunching through the leaves.

There aren't as many blooms as last week, but the pansies are still providing color in the front flower beds.

Another "artsy" picture of browning mums. It was pretty much dark by the time I got to this part of the yard.

One afternoon earlier in the week, these three deer were relaxing in the yard.

Einstein

 or I Was Wondering

While Ward and I were waiting for a table at a restaurant this past weekend, I was looking at all of the pictures they had on the walls. It was an eclectic collection including the photo where Albert Einstein is sticking out his tongue. I've seen that picture many, many times and never thought about the circumstances under which it was taken--until then. When Ward, who is my expert on all things I don't know, didn't know either, it was time for a little googling when we got home.

Luckily, the first five sources I read agreed about the picture and the occasion when it was taken. So, I didn't have to do any guessing about what might have really happened. For those of you who also don't know about the picture and are very mildly curious about it, here's why Einstein stuck his tongue out.

Einstein was celebrating his 72nd birthday, March 14, 1951, at the Princeton Club, and the event was heavily covered by the press. At the end of the evening, a very tired Einstein was getting a ride home when he was asked by UPI photographer, Arthur Sasse, for one last picture. Einstein, who tired of the pictures, stuck his tongue out instead of smiling. Sasse was the only one who captured the now iconic pose. The original picture had Dr. and Mrs. Aydelotte (whose car he was in) in it, but they were later cropped out. As it turns out, Einstein really liked the photo and asked for nine personal copies of it. So there you have it. The mildly interesting story behind the most famous Einstein photo.

But Wait There's More: 

-- Did anyone happen to notice that Einstein was born on Pi Day (3.14)?

--There's a Facebook  page for the picture called That Picture of Albert Einstein Where He's Sticking Out His Tongue.

--More reading: http://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2009/06/01/einstein-sticks-his-tongue-out/

                            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein_in_popular_culture

Thankful Sunday--November 16, 2013

I am thankful for the exhaust fan and light in my shower.

If you have been reading here recently, you know that I am getting new enjoyment from my shower. This reminded me of how much I also appreciated the light and exhaust fan that was installed a couple of years ago. Before that, it was rather dark in the shower, and we had a hard time fighting mold. I am thankful that these are no longer problems today.

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Nov. 14, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions. (Thanks to Jo from Simply Being Mum for sponsoring FWF this week.)

This Week's Food Waste

Who knows?

I don't remember any waste but we're into day 21 of our construction and I've hit the wall. Meaning living in cramped quarters with near constant loud noise is wearing on me. Trying to keep on schedule, the workman have been working into the night. I really appreciate their dedication, but nevertheless, it's wearing on me. However, the good news is that we now have level floors which is what started this whole thing.

 

After the floors were leveled, we had oak put down so that the entire downstairs has the same flooring. Above are some before, during and after pictures of this.

 

This Week's True Food Confessions 

Amidst the noise and the dust, we've just about given up on cooking at home. Eating at home now means eating Chinese takeout in our basement instead of at the restaurant. However, we did manage to cook bacon and eggs one night in the microwave, and we've had a few frozen dinners and bowls of cereal at home, but that's about it.

On the other hand, I had the best veggie burger I ever remember having at a new burger place we tried (Kraze Burger) and we had a decent meal at a grocery store one night. Over the weekend while we were out of town for the day, the whole family went to IHOP for their fix of pancakes and sausage. Not sure what the upcoming weekend holds, but the counter tops and sink are now scheduled to be installed just before Thanksgiving.

Until next time...

A Second Look--November 12, 2013

Even though I was shivering in near freezing temperatures with a damp wind blowing, I enjoyed doing a Second Look this week. The trees were definitely past their peak and most of the leaves were on the ground. This provided a perfect opportunity to crunch through them while smelling their fragrant earthy smell. I had forgotten how much I like that fall smell. The dark colors of the trees were more apparent without their summer leaves and provided interesting sculptures to see. However, in the midst of the dark and muted colors, there were still some bright flowers and leaves popping up here and there  I always thought that I didn't like fall much because it brought the beginning of cold weather. Maybe I'll have to reconsider after the Second Look I did today.

Here's what I saw this week during a Second Look.

The pansies are one of the few things that haven't been affected much by the colder weather.

With most of the leaves off the trees, it's easier to see into the field behind us. However, the cattle were not grazing there today. They are there most of the summer, but are in other fields most of the fall and winter.

There is one mum among the bunch that has not faded in the cold.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The Japanese maple with its brilliant red leaves.

The dwarf Japanese maple still has most of it's brilliant red leaves also.

This is what many of the flower beds look like these days.

After the Second Look in my yard, I went shopping and saw this interesting sunset in the parking lot.

The Water Flows Freely

or I'm Happy

We live in a house that uses a water well so we have a pressure tank to manage the water pressure through our pipes. The tank is usually set at moderate pressure which I am told is best for all of the pipes concerned. However, moderate pressure really means low. At least that's what we thought when we moved here and switched from city water to well water. The "moderate" water pressure in our new house took some getting used to.

However, time went on and we adjusted. We still enjoyed taking a shower at a hotel or a friend's house with city water, but mostly we didn't notice anymore. That is until recently. The pressure seemed to be decreasing. First we attributed it to air in the lines from the water being turned on and off by the workman working in the kitchen. But after a week or so of trying to explain the decreased pressure away, we knew it was real. The shower was not flowing much more than a trickle, so there was no doubt now. There was definitely a problem.

Yesterday, however, my hero arrived--a local plumber who knew a lot about wells and pressure tanks. He tested the well flow, he tested the pressure tank, he tested the electricity, he tested the water neutralizer, and he cleaned the filters.  And by the end of it all, the water flowed freely. We had the best water pressure we've had since we moved in 16 years ago. I immediately jumped in the shower and was able to get wet all at the same time. What a luxury. A wonderful luxury that we can enjoy while we're still saving water with our "moderate" pressure. :)

I am thankful for the beauty of the earth.

"For the beauty of the earth

For the glory of the skies

For the love which from our birth

Over and around us lies

Lord of all to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise"

From the hymn: For the Beauty of the Earth

I am thankful that I have gotten to see this beauty both at home and away.

Lake at the Biltmore, NC, 2011

Sunset this week as seen from our front door.

Albuquerque Desert, NM, 2013

Daffodil last spring in our backyard.

Yosemite National Park, CA, 2012

Sandia Mountains, NM,  2013

Ice in our backyard last March.

Yellowstone National Park, WY, 2010

Dusk last August--view from our side yard

Teton Mountains, WY, 2010

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Nov. 8, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions.

This Week's Food Waste

Cole Slaw 

Aunt Martha gave us some extra cole slaw last week that we didn't quite finish before it needed to go. I think that was because I was the only one eating it. It was very good but I could only eat it twice a day for so long before I needed to give it a rest. Too bad. I hate to waste anything especially a food gift. However, that's how it goes sometimes.
 
 

This Week's True Food Confessions

While we still have no floor or appliances, this little bit of finished work is exciting. It shows a  promise of good things to come.

It is Day 14 of construction and the work is progressing well although certainly not ahead of schedule. The basement is our main center of activity including our eating as our midlevel is in upheaval.

Highlights from last week:

--The foam cooler "refrigerator" is working well. We change out a gallon jug of ice every morning and the milk and other things we store in it are kept very cool. Once a day or so, we uncover the regular fridge from it's hiding place in the living room and restock the cooler. 

--We are getting better with the dish washing procedure after the drying rack fell into the clothes washer and a plate broke. Now we use towels to drain onto instead the washing machine tub. 

--We made another mistake when we put very ripe bananas in with the rest of the food like cereals and bread. They are in a plastic storage box to protect them from mice that occasionally get into the house this time of year. (And yes, one little mouse can sometimes escape four cats.) The banana smell was strong enough to flavor most of the other food in the box. Now stronger foods get their own box.  

--We've had breakfast burritos, hot dogs, bagel pizzas, spinach, and cereal to eat this week. We also tried out a new diner one night when were out choosing a light fixture for the dining room. I had a huge serving of tuna salad that was enough for 2+ meals and Ward had a New Orleans burger that he gobbled up entirely. (You know how those carnivores are.) I also made some trail mix for snacks to justify eating the last of the Halloween M&M's in a healthy way. :)

--We are certainly not suffering by eating in the basement. However, the lack of prep space and kitchen tools make things awkward.  We'll see how next week goes.

Until next time...

A Second Look--November 6, 2013

The leaves were at their peak over the weekend and I saw many spectacular trees while I was out and about. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me. However, I found plenty in my own yard to enjoy and share.

Here's what I saw this week during my Second Look.

 



 

 

Today...

Today, I'm going to try to not lose the mail.

Some days it's good to just have a simple goal. That's what I have for today--to not lose the mail. We are in day nine of construction and the chaos continues. To put order to some of this, last night I set up a station in the basement that will hopefully take the place of our desk and drop spot upstairs. The mail will probably get sorted into the bins here just as it always has. Hopefully, it will not go the way of the hats and gloves that are nowhere to be found. Now where did I put those? :)

Boys vs. Girls--A Visit to Teddy Roosevelt Island

Before I had kids, I thought that each child was an individual, and didn't believe much in gender stereotypes in children. Little boys ran and jumped a lot because that's the kind of games they were taught. Little girls played with dolls because that was the kind of toys they were given. I thought that if all kids, regardless of gender, were exposed to the same things, they would have the same tendencies. Then I spent some time in the real world of kids and figured out that I was wrong. Possibly there were some differences between boys and girls. From time to time, I'm going to share some of my experiences that led me to this conclusion. However, so as to not bias you, I'm going to let you guess, who are the boys in the stories and who are the girls.  

Today's Story--Sticks
( Blogger is REALLY not cooperating, so no pictures today. :(

Ward and I visited Teddy Roosevelt Island in Washington, D.C., yesterday. It is an island in the middle of the Potomac River and has a memorial to Teddy Roosevelt on it as well as several hiking and biking trails. We visited the island several years ago, but had been meaning to go back again since I read a biography about him.

We visited the memorial section first which included a statue as well as four granite monoliths with sayings from Roosevelt. Shortly after we arrived, another family joined us. They appeared to be made up of a grandmother, mom and dad, and three kids of elementary school age. The mother was carefully reading all of the quotes to the kids and asking them what they thought our former president meant. The dad and the grandmother would occasionally chip in comments to help the mother. The oldest kid sort of listened but kept repeating the story they had heard about the Teddy Bear. The middle one was maybe listening but was mostly digging in the dirt with a stick, and the youngest one was definitely not listening and was hitting everything they could see with a stick including their siblings. So what do you think? Was this a group of three brothers or three sisters?
_________________________________________________________________________________
 It was a group of three brothers. Not that little girls don't play with sticks, but they don't seem to seek them out no matter what and continuously hit things with them. Or least that has been my experience with Wally, Theo, and lots of Cub Scouts. 

But Wait, There's More:
My favorite quote that I read at the Island.
  "Keep your eyes on the stars, but your feet on the ground."

Thankful Sunday--November 3, 2013

I am thankful for slip-on shoes.

We are having our floors worked on, so these days the chance of getting a splinter from just walking around is high. I am thankful for these shoes that are easy to slip on and off and make the whole process of walking and lounging in the house a lot easier and safer. 

Food Waste Friday and True Food Conressions--Nov. 1, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions. (Thanks to Jo from Simply Being Mum for sponsoring FWF this week.)

This Week's Food Waste

Two Stalks of Celery

At least that's what I can remember. When I got the celery out to put into some chicken soup, two of the outside stalks were bad. The fact that only two of them were bad was actually quite remarkable because I have had this celery at least a month. I contribute this to the fact that I stored the celery with a paper towel to prolong its life.

This Week's True Food Confessions

Highlights from the week:

Last weekend we went to a cookout at my-father-in-law's house. This smoker was made by him from an old hot water heater. Two briskets, stuffed squash, and a pork roast were cooked in it for the picnic.

At the cookout, I got to try a new thing--black rice. It was in a Thai dish with fruit, nuts, mint and other spices and was quite good. I will share the recipe later.

Monday, work started on our kitchen and downstairs so the house is rather discombobulated making regular food prep difficult. We were thankful to be eating leftovers from the weekend some of the time.

This is our temporary refrigerator in the basement. One day I used the slow cooker down here to fix pork barbeque.

It was raining on Halloween, so we got no Trick-or Treaters. Ward and I took the opportunity to go out for dinner at the local pizza place. We couldn't remember the last time that just the two of us went out together and really enjoyed it. We had Halloween candy for dessert. And if we're going to have True Confessions, I broke into the bag of candy bars during the afternoon. However, I made it a whole week before I gave into the call of chocolate, so I consider that a major success. :)

Until next time...


But wait there's more,

This is a fire pit that my very clever father-in-law made from a dryer drum. A couple of these helped keep people warm during the cookout.