Friday Fragments - August 26, 2011

Tired, worn out, ready to curl up in a ball and sleep for a very long time...

I feel like I've been running my butt off and yet I don't have much to show for my time.  Reviewing what I've been doing at work shows nothing but meetings - how on earth do people accomplish anything when their time is consumed with sitting in a conference room?  Usually I would make up my lost time from meetings by pushing out a ton of reports and whatnot while watching TV at home, but that's not happening with getting stuff done for my husband's new business.

The business is going great.  There are a lot of bumps along the way, crazy stuff by the way, but we are moving forward.  It's a furniture consignment shop that has been open since mid-July.  The guy with the truck has fallen off the face of the earth so this week we bought a new truck... from the same place where we bought a truck last year for our other business and then sold it back to them this past spring.  That salesman is loving us.  By this weekend we will be ready to start pick-ups and deliveries.  And the timing couldn't be better as our shop is nearly depleted of its stock, meaning sales are climbing.  Like I said, business is good but not without bumps.

Youngest son started high school last week.  Parent fail as I never got a picture of him on his first day or his first week.  Ugh.  He is liking school as well as a kid could possibly "like" school.  In other words it's not a struggle to get him out the door and he's not whining about anything.  That will change soon enough, I know.

Oldest child spent a few days in Las Vegas this week for work.  Earlier this summer she got to go to New York.  I know she's enjoying these opportunities even if they are small glimpses and not full-on tourist events.  Still waiting for her to post pictures (hint hint, little girl).

Middle child is working his butt off to make up for the time he took off for the baby's birth.  Lil Momma is finally reporting exhaustion - I was waiting for that to finally kick in.  She has been keeping an insane schedule of visiting family to show off the world's cutest baby, my precious grandson.  Now her facebook posts reflect a world mired in exhaustion and dirty diapers.

CSA Box 8/22/11

•Watermelon
•Roma tomatoes
•Bell peppers
•White eggplant
•Pears
•Trout - sitting in the freezer
•Eggs
•Dip (this could easily rot in the back of the fridge before we decide what to do with it)
•Squash - DO YOU SEE THIS THING????  It's HUGE!  I could carve it into a jack-o-lantern!

Okay, so this bigass butternut squash had me intrigued.  I researched online and everything says to make it into soup.  I don't hate soup, but I also am not a big fan.  There was one other recipe that jumped out but I didn't need a whole bunch of squash either.

I tried to peel it with a vegetable peeler but the grooves made that a little difficult so I chopped it into big chunks and just used the knife to remove the peel.  It came down to TWO baking trays!

I also scooped out the seeds

But dumbass here left them in the oven too long.  (Son says they look like cockroaches)  I went ahead and ate most of them even the burnt ones.  I discovered that eating them with M&M's (don't ask) took away most of the charred taste.

I roasted the chunks and put nearly all of it back for soup some later date.  Good thing I have a deep freezer.  The left over peaches from last week and the strawberries I bought are also being stored away for later this year.

I warmed up the chunks in a skillet with a pear and some dried apricots.  The recipe called for dried cranberries but I didn't have any on hand, but yes, I had apricots.  The apricots were definitely a good selection!  Also added butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.  I had also made wild rice (from a couple weeks ago) and this concoction tasted great on top of it.  We decided maybe the rice would be good in a soup?  We'll see.

Not pictured were the additional peaches my husband bought a few days ago.  He got a whole case for $10 so we've been sharing peaches with everyone.  I chopped a few up and tried to make smoothies with the yogurt and honey from previous boxes.  It wasn't as good as I hoped so I guess I'm going to have to make cobbler in the next couple of days.

Sunday In My City - August 21, 2011

Let me share one of my favorite lunch stops - they have the best frozen custard and I really really like their sandwiches.

It's the old Ferguson train station converted into a sandwich and ice cream (frozen custard) shop.  The trains still rumble through several times a day.  The workers behind the counter pull the whistle every time a train go by.

 

My son pointed out that I actually captured him in the window!  I looked at this three time before he pointed that out - never saw him in there!

They have a picture on the wall of the old train station

CSA Box 8/16/11

•One large ass cantaloupe - I swear it was as big as a small watermelon.  As of breakfast today it is all gone and I didn't get one bite.
•Frozen pizza - Dinner two nights ago
•Soup mix - save for later
•Sliced bread - shoved it in the fridge will use in a few days
•Six ears of corn - just finished off last weeks corn.  I'm almost getting sick of it, but have to admit it's pretty tasty.
•Tomatoes - hubby is happy
•Orange Soda - I was happy.  It was made with pure cane sugar - very light.
•Frozen black beans - I'm going to have to check what I did with the last batch.  Currently it's sitting in the freezer waiting for me to figure that out.

Sunday In My City - August 14, 2011

My brother and his family are in town this week so we took this opportunity to hijack the nursing home for a mini reunion.  Yes, we forced my son to bring out his five day old baby, but hey, we got the not-so-frequent five generation picture!

My brother and his boys

My brood (plus significant others, but hey, they're mine too)

Five generations

Great-great-grandma

Great-grandma

Friday Fragments - August 12, 2011

I AM A GRANDMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

All of the other bits and particulars of my week totally do not matter.  I spent Monday night through all day Tuesday sitting at the hospital with my mom as we waited for baby to arrive.  We didn't know whether it was a boy or girl and were nearly panting with anticipation.  We watched other families get their happy announcements and they would drift out of the waiting room to be replaced by another hopeful family.  In and out they went and there we sat. 

WAITING SUCKS!

Finally at 4:21 in the afternoon my grandson arrived!

7 lbs and 9 oz, 20 3/4 inches long

AND HEALTHY

WHEW!

The poor child is surely blind after the flurry camera flashes.  I'm pretty sure my blog posts from here on out are going to be loaded with grandma bragging and snuggly baby pictures. 

 

Procrastination Folders

I needed a way to address the growing pile of to-do on my desk.  The pile was stuff that needed to be done, but not necessarily right away.  Notes were getting lost as I shuffled the more important toward the top.  And it looked messy so I would hide it away only to drag it all out again to remind myself of the next project on the list.

Yeah, lists are pointless with my brain.  I need a note to remind me to look at the list.

A couple of months ago I tried something using file folders to hopefully get my act together and keep my desk clean.  I'm using a desktop file folder rack with folders labeled for each day of the week.  When I get a new project I figure how many days away I can postpone it, keeping in mind the activities and meetings scheduled on those days.  Since I avoid committing myself to anything on Mondays, I dump bottom of the pile stuff in there.  Each day I pull my folder accomplish what I can and move what's left to another day.  Monday's pile is reviewed every week to see if I can schedule that mess any time soon.  Some stuff continues to get shuffled week after week, but I touch it regularly so I don't completely forget it.

The constant shuffling of paper, postponing to a later date is why I now call my folder system "Procrastination Folders".  Surprisingly it works.  Notes are no longer lost and I'm able to lump similar activities together and actually have become more productive.

But none of that matters, does it?  Nope - here's what's important

Grandbaby!!!!

BABY IS HERE!

Arrived 4:21 pm yesterday after 38 minutes of pushing, my first grandchild.

A BOY!

7 pounds 9 ounces, 20 and 3 quarters inches long...

CSA Box 8/8/11

Our CSA box last week:

◊Watermelon - gone in two days
◊Squash - diced up with zucchini from the week before and sauteed
◊Corn - had some with dinner once, still have some left
◊Cucumbers - diced up and made into a salad, but I did the dressing wrong so it was tossed in the trash
◊BBQ sauce - waiting to be used
◊2 pork steaks - St. Louis favorite, a cut from pork butt.  I find it too fatty, but earlier this summer a friend made it low and slow like ribs so that the fat melted away.  I'm going to have to try it that way.  Most places make it on the grill, slathered in BBQ sauce, served on white bread - as if you're supposed to eat it like a sandwich.
◊Heirloom tomatoes - they were beautiful but The Husband says they taste funny.  Not sure what I'm going to do with them. 


This week's box:

◊Cantaloupe - Will be eaten by the end of the day
◊Vanilla yogurt - I'm really picky about my yogurt that I eat every day so I'm searching for a recipe
◊Wild rice - Saved for a later date
◊Jalapeno sauce - Not a chance in hell Husband or I will eat it.  Will see if youngest son likes it - otherwise we'll be sending it to his dad (jalapeno fan)
◊Green peppers - Need to use soon
◊Peaches - a full peck.  The last batch was delightful, so I can't wait to do something with them.  Maybe just eat them as is.
◊New potatoes - Probably diced up with bell peppers and onion
◊Tomatoes - This time I got to pick them out so they're all red and firm and The Husband is happy.  They'll all be eaten raw.

Sunday In My City - August 7, 2011

Sigh.....

We planted tomatoes.  We tended them, watered them, and loved all over them for weeks.  We counted the blooms and then the tiny green balls, anticipating tomatoes.

Then we got up one morning and all twenty were gone.  Dammit, it was probably raccoons.

Suck it up, we have plenty more blooms.

And when twenty were on the vine, nothing ripe yet

They disappeared.


GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

So the planters have been moved.  It won't stop harvesting off the bottom branches, but it will eliminate the balancing act along the chain link fence.

The husband has given up.  He comes outside when I water them, but he's stopped anticipating his favorite food, a juicy red tomato.

Saturday Survey - Card Games

When was the last time you played cards?  Do you have a game you prefer playing?


My husband came from a family that played a lot of cards.  I mean A LOT.  Nothing but a bunch of card sharks!  Their most frequent game is 500, a form of rummy.  We play it quite a bit and over time I've improved enough to win more than a few hands.

Most importantly it was quick to learn - deal 7 to each player and one for the discard pile.  At the start of your turn you can pull 1 card from the pull pile, or as much as you need from the discards.  If you need the fifth card down you have to take all of the cards on top of it, but you absolutely have to play the bottom card of what you pull (ideally more if possible) and keep the rest for your hand (except one discard).

A play is if you have 3 of a kind or a run of 3 (or more) in the same suit - lay those down during your turn, don't wait until the end.  You can also play off sets from other players.  No restrictions on how many you lay down and it can be without having any of your own cards out on the table, but you keep your played cards in front of you so you can count your points at the end.

Aces can be played high or low (AKQ, or A23) but it cannot be both (KA2)

Make sure you have a discard.  Be careful because if you discard something that can be played, someone can call rummy and steal that card for their own use - don't throw away points!

The goal is to be the first to empty your hand WITH a discard.  If you have an empty hand without a discard, play continues around the table.  If your next draw is another playable card, play continues.


Points:  Ace = 15 (no matter how it's played)
             10, J, Q, K = 10
             2-9 = 5

Add them up an the first person to reach 500 wins.

Friday Fragments - August 5, 2011

I took some time off work and somehow that translated into a vacation away from the Blogosphere.  Did you miss me???  On the upside I have all sorts of stuff to share!

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Last Thursday was my birthday.  I decided to share the day with my mom and daughter, all three of us  Majority Members of Job's Daughters International.  It happened that Job's Daughters was holding their Supreme Session, their annual international conference, in downtown St. Louis.  So my plan was to take off work and sit in on the Supreme Bethel meeting at 7:30 am and then come back that night for the Miss International Job's Daughter pageant.

IT WAS FABULOUS!

Okay, it was boring and we each knocked out several sheets of a sudoku puzzle book I brought along.  My mom said afterward she was glad she got to attend.  Some people travel to these meetings every year, but for most of us it's a once in a lifetime opportunity.  Actually this is my second session as I went to one in Indianapolis in 1983.  The three of us stood with a room full of both active and majority members, renewing the obligation we took at initiation.  The words came easily and it was meaningful.

Every Job's Daughter meeting concludes with a closing formation, frequently a cross although other options are available, and singing Nearer My God To Thee.



We had lunch at Crown Candy - this time I got a picture of the bigass BLT they make.

Isn't that HUGE?  My mom scraped about half of the bacon off and took it home for breakfast and lunch the next day.

Here are the three of us getting ready to watch the pageant.

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Monday was spent tooling around the house and playing with quilts.  I need about 30 more days like that.  I might get my recipe cards sorted out, the bathroom scrubbed, the basement rearranged and several Christmas gifts made.  Oh well, one day was enough to get me back on track and itching to sit at my sewing machine.

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Tuesday we gathered at my son's sandwich shop (did you know my son is a business owner??? Quite proud).  My college roommate was in town and met up with us.  She and I need a lot more time together but squeezing out a little time for lunch was wonderful.  Her mom is very sick and not doing well (end stages of Parkenson's) so Vicki is spending most of her time at the care center.  Please keep Vicki and Virginia in your prayers.

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GRANDBABY IS DUE!!!!  At some point in the next 72 hours I will be a grandmother.  Induction has been scheduled for Monday, but bets are on anytime this weekend.  If I was smart I would compile my Sunday post now because I'm pretty sure I'm going to be busy.  YIPPEEEE!!!!

And yes, I will be posting all sorts of bragging grandma pictures.

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Make sure you check out everyone sharing their fragments!

Vacation

I could blog but I'm on vacation. 

BUT I just had to share a deliciously evil idea.  Go read The Bloggess!


...see ya in a few days!