didn't hear it raining

during the night, but the streets were all wet this morning.....no clouds and not much wind at sunrise....and not too cold really, just around 50 degrees......might get into the 60s for the high today.....I heated up the curry last night in a pan, put an egg in it to kick it up a notch.....going over to CVS shortly to look for a 2012 wall calendar for the kitchen.....that's where I've been finding them the last couple of years.....the kind with scenic views from national parks.....and I'll check and see if they have cashews at a good price like they do sometimes.....get some for my snack mix for this evening.....no movies again last night, was reading a library book some and also reading something on kindle.....not at the same time, but alternating if you see what I mean......I don't think I need to buy a cover for the kindle, since I never go anywhere so I probably won't take it out of the house much.....there's the Sun Bowl on a channel I get this afternoon.....haven't seen any bowl games yet with no ESPN.....maybe I'll stay awake long enough to watch the ball drop in NYC....for supper I'll do that bratwurst, potato, apple skillet.....I'll have a little piece of country ham with my french toast in the morning, and wait for the Rose Parade to come on.....

e-reader

Got the Kindle Touch in the mail, and as usual with any new tech toy I couldn't get it to work for a couple of hours since the instructions they give you with such things always assume some steps are obvious, when they aren't to me.......but eventually I got a couple of free books into it and am gradually getting the touch screen to work for me.....colder today than they said it would be, more clouds than they were predicting.....had the last of the smoked turkey for lunch.....walked over to a cafe on Musgrove to use their wi-fi and get a cup of coffee.....the owner there went to Helix High School in Le Mesa, so he never lets me pay for coffee, since Helix and Monte Vista were in the same league back in our school days.....his signal hits out on the sidewalk too.....I just wanted to see how the thing did wireless......I've got leftover pork curry for supper I suppose....just about finished a good Vernor Vinge book.....2:30 and it's getting dark enough from the clouds that I'll need to turn the lamp on to read some more.....

walked twice as far

as usual after lunch today....maybe make up for that day earlier when it rained.....according to the tracking number for the Kindle it is already at the Clinton Post Office, should get to me tomorrow I guess, a week earlier than their initial expected delivery date.....my wi-fi is "corrupted" according to phone company tech support, but the Kindle stuff says you can download content via the included usb cable, which is also the charging cable.....and the library has wi-fi and lends e-books .......we'll get this figured out..... I use ethernet cables for my laptop and roku box......the radio that CSX uses to trigger the crossing arms at the train tracks can blitz the wi-fi band anyway, so I was never very happy with the radio link idea even when it was more or less working.....there's a big CSX antenna a couple of blocks from here.....in theory this shouldn't happen, but there's always the problem of resonant frequencies, as I learned working with that kind of stuff at Radio Shack....FCC warning label: This device must not emit RFI , but may receive RFI (Radio Frequency Interference).....

Blue Hose Black Knights

not a song title.....PC beat Army last night, over there about half-way to the grocery store.....27 degrees here at dawn, heavy frost.....clear, calm.....we should all strive to be clear and calm.....so I'll wait a while before going on another walk, see if it warms up out of the 30s.....the weatherman is saying that a cold snap is coming with the new year, highs in the 40s next week, lows in the 20s Upstate....in the teens in the mountains.....tasty curry last night.....this morning it still had a curry smell in the foyer or entrance hall, where the down-draft is for the central heat....cooking odors always get sucked there ......didn't watch any movies last night, am trying to get through the library books stacked on the end table.....and next week I should get the Kindle Touch, and have all the reading material I desire, is what they advertise.....eight chili dogs for $2.75.....Bi-Lo had weiners for a buck, and buns for a buck, and that good chili-dog type chili for .75 a can.....not Texas Pete, but the east coast kind....forget the name at the moment.....I think I still have turkey for one more sandwich too.....so, cheap lunches this week.....

icy wind

must be coming over the mountains where they got a little snow lately.....so I'm going to sit and read the Clinton paper instead of going out walking right now....I did get the park walk done yesterday between spells of wind and rain.....and I got my shopping done fairly early today, including the gas station.....I've got food left from last week, so my grocery bill was lighter than usual.....got the stuff for New Year.....got a slice of country ham to flavor my little batch of black-eyed peas....today I'll use up the last pork chop to make pork rice curry with onion and garlic.....got a potato to make a skillet supper with sliced bratwurst, sliced potato, fried apples......got a can of corn chowder for an easy meal one day.....remembered more snack crackers so I can finish off the cheese-ball with champagne staying up late Saturday.....don't know how late, haven't made it all the way to midnight the last couple of years I don't think....so it's clear and bright today, but was freezing at sunrise, and not much warmer now.....

wet, cold, dark

two hours after sunrise and the street lights are still on....I think it started raining hard around two in the morning.....drove over to get the paper this morning, no cars or customers at the gas station/store.......so I'm holed up in the living room with all the lights on and the electric stove going.....tomorrow I need to go for groceries and gasoline.....actually I have food left for several days, but I would need to go before the weekend, so I may as well go my usual day.....maybe buy something for New Year, like the cornbread and black-eyed peas.....I might already have cornbread in the cupboard.....get some cheap champagne, like Andre.....I can have banger-and-mash this evening.....still making smoked turkey sandwiches for lunch.....still have at least half of that cheese ball, 'bout out of crackers, need to remember those at the store....still plenty of snax mix.....still raining right now, don't know if I'll get a chance to do much walking or not.....

why?

Of all questions, why? is the least pertinent. It begs the question; it assumes the larger part of its own response; to wit, that a sensible response exists. from Tales of the Dying Earth by Jack Vance

jack frost

nipping at your nose.....folks dressed up like eskimos.....etc.....cold clear calm....the second day of Christmas....the Feast of St. Stephen? Boxing Day is a holiday on this side of the pond this year too....sort of....a federal holiday anyway.....yesterday went well with the relatives, pretty mellow, everybody tired out looking from the Season I think.....I ordered a Kindle Touch.....talked on Skype to David and Tree.....I'm getting behind on reading my library books.....after reading for a little while I find my eyes closing, starting to nod off.....I can renew a couple if I don't get through them I suppose......it rained most of the afternoon Christmas, and the next front will come after midnight and hang around all day Tuesday is the forecast....I didn't even fix a supper last night, having eaten my fill and then some at the gathering.....meat balls, little sausages in sauce, ham and cheese croissants cut into halves and quarters, pineapple sandwiches, pumpkin pie, hash brown casserole, corn casserole, cake, cookies.....I didn't eat all those things, just most of them.....I did eat more of my cheese ball too before I went on to bed pretty late.....even the dogs seem to be sleeping late today....

Christmas morning

some sun is coming out.....was clouded over early on.....empty streets, but the Gate was open as usual to get my newspaper.....saw one car getting gas, but the highway was empty as far as I could see in either direction right then.....can't remember if I've heard a train today or not.....Chargers lost again? The Panthers game was pretty good, but I fell asleep with the Cowboys on later.....the cheese ball is tasty, but it's going to take a while to finish that sucker off....can only take a little of that at a time.....I'll eat a turkey sandwich sometime this morning, and then see what's to eat later over in Mountville....I'm sure there will be a bunch of stuff....probably little smokie sausages and/or meatballs....dip....snack mix.....I'm taking bakery cookies....small chance of rain in the afternoon.....got cold enough overnight for the heat to come on.....the fireworks stands are open for New Year, so of course some firecrackers are going off from time to time already.....but mostly it's a quiet morning.....

three day work week?

I can't keep up with the work-day world, since I'm not involved in it at all really.....and the pro football games are on Saturday this week? At least some of them seems like, the paper says the Bucs at Panthers at one this afternoon.....at Walmart the other day I got myself a port wine cheese ball, for my wine and cheese Christmas Eve extravaganza....I think I still have enough snack crackers to use up some of it anyway....$2.78 for a cheese ball.....and Eagles-Cowboys will be on in the evening, late afternoon, whatever......my bangers-and-mash supper worked well, I now have leftover mashed potatoes and onion gravy, to use either with a pork chop or another bratwurst some time.....leftover peas too.....I need to sweep the kitchen floor, and vacuum the carpet in the other rooms, and take another walk I suppose....colder today, some clouds at dawn....it will probably stay in the 50s, drop to the 30s overnight.....

four day weekend?

I didn't realize that's what's going on for lots of people.....this town is deserted.....no traffic to speak of on the streets.....PC beat Navy last night.....it rained yesterday afternoon, and then a real storm came through later at night, about the time I was going to bed....some thunder involved with that one.....those pork chops turned out to be real thick, so I butter-flyed half of one last night and that was plenty of meat.....with mac-n-cheese, and curried baby carrots.....this morning is clear and bright, should be fairly warm again today.....I'm going over to Walmart for a couple of things, and I'll look for some kind of dessert to take to Mountville Sunday afternoon.....cousins coming down from NC to Addie and Ed's.....hopefully Walmart won't be too crazy .....I finished off the tortillas and frijoles for lunch yesterday, so today can be a smoked turkey sandwich....supper can be a bratwurst, mashed potatoes, peas.....

warm Winter so far

fog, mist, 63 degrees ......was raining a little just before dawn, about the time of the Solstice....so 100% humidity and everything's damp .....I noticed those little carrots still in the vegetable bin....so I guess tonight's menu could change to sauteed carrots, pork chop, mac-and-cheese....I always used to make candied carrots, with brown sugar.....but I don't have any sugar in the house anymore....finished off the stew last night, with a piece of rye toast.....made a sandwich yesterday for lunch with that tasty smoked turkey breast, sweet onion, bread-and-butter pickle slices, a little swiss cheese, and mayo, on wheat berry bread.....two thumbs up .....had the last of the Australian merlot with that, so now I'm back to California burgundy.....should be able to walk again this morning, since the next rain isn't supposed to get here until later today.....in the form of thunderstorms maybe.....

raining when I went to sleep

raining when I woke up.....still raining when I went to get the paper, and when I went to get groceries.....raining right now....the windows are fogged up 'cause it's a warm system coming up from down in the Gulf.....on the radar it looks like there's plenty more on the way....so I'm going to eat an apple and read the Clinton weekly paper instead of trying to go for a walk....I got a bag of Gala apples this time.....and I got some "California" mix and some more Traditional Chex Mix and some peanuts and poured them together in a large bowl.....should be enough snack mix to last me until 2012 and beyond.....I also have orange juice, eggs, and bread enough for two weeks I think.....still some stew left, and I got a couple of pork chops, a package of brats, can of fried apples, mashed potato mix, country gravy packet......and such like.....I'll do bangers and a mash with peas for a couple of meals.....pork chop with fried apples and mac-and-cheese twice I suppose....I've got smoked turkey breast deli sliced to order for lunch meat.....they had a good price on that, 5 bucks a pound instead of 7....I asked for 1/2 lb. but ended up with 3/4.....oh well....

complications

As I was coming back from Laurens I was signaling to turn right but the guy waiting at a stop sign didn't go ahead and pull out....so I was wondering if my right front turn signal was working.....so when I got home and checked it, sure enough, it wasn't....so I went and got the bulb for $1.38 and followed the instructions in the Jeep manual for changing the bulb....but it was frozen in there so it broke and I had to get the base out with needle-nose pliers....I got the new bulb in after several attempts and checked to see if it was blinking....it was....then I put the whole assembly back together and checked it again.....it wasn't.....took it apart again and jiggled the wires, etc.....gave up and took it over to Carolina Automotive, where they had fixed an electrical problem one other time....it's over there now and they'll call me when it's fixed....hopefully some time this afternoon....the socket looked somewhat corroded to me .....I didn't think WD-40 was going to fix it either.....that bulb had been in there 8 years that I know of.....on another front, the Clinton City Facebook thing says that there will be no trash pick-up Dec. 26 or Jan. 2.....so the City takes those as holidays looks like.....but my library books are due the 2nd, so the County doesn't? But I can put my trash out on Tuesday instead.....

colorful sunrise

with those scattered clouds to the south and east.....I guess the sunrise is about as far to the south as it's going to get this year.....some moisture is predicted to come up through Georgia this afternoon and evening, it looks like things will stay dry enough this morning for another walk....and later in the day I might drive over to Laurens for some shopping.....gasoline came down ten cents overnight, at least at the Gate, where I go in the morning for the paper....I've still got 3/4 of a tank I think.....it won't use much to run over to Laurens.....I had leftover stew and the last biscuit for supper yesterday.....today I have the last of the pork steak and chili beans to use up, and then start all over with Bi-Lo shopping tomorrow.....Bi-Lo bought Winn-Dixie, a much larger grocery chain....the article in the paper says that this will improve logistics for both brands, or something.....for me it might mean starting to see whatever generics they sell at Winn-Dixie showing up here? The paper also said that two reasons for Bi-Lo's popularity are the senior discount and the fuel discount points.....exactly.....I mean those are big factors for me anyway....plus a couple of my neighbors work in there.....I'll look for some different lunch meat, since I'm down to the last of the corned beef.....maybe deli turkey?

35 outside

I usually go for a walk around this time of day, but it's still pretty nippy this morning.....I'll wait...maybe until the afternoon.....I stayed up late and watched the Chargers game all the way to the end, and then slept well enough.....you can count on the trash truck to wake you up plenty early on a Monday......the fun part of the football yesterday was that Carolina trick play....it's probably on Yahoo or You Tube or something if you haven't seen it.....that Stouffer's stuffed pepper was tasty.....I used to make those fresh myself but it's so easy to just microwave a frozen one, when you're only cooking for yourself anyway.....I would use cheese on top though, instead of so much tomato sauce....and put some onion in it.....wasn't a bad deal for $2.50......anyway, back to stew this evening.....the revised weather forecast seems to be calling for rain starting late tomorrow and going through Wednesday.....wasn't it raining the last time I went shopping?

Baltimore at San Diego

is the late game tonight.....maybe I can stay awake past half-time.....don't see many Charger games in this market.....and maybe I can see the Tebow Show too.....there's a Denver game around supper time.....haven't seen them this year either that I remember.....son-in-law Cory is a big Broncos fan......and the early game after lunch is Panthers-Texans.....maybe Carolina can win another game this season....maybe not......windchill of 22 at dawn.....streets were empty on my Sunday morning walk....the only traffic I saw on Broad St. was a gas tanker and the Krispy Kreme truck.....fresh daily I guess.....breakfast was french toast and two sausage links.....lunch might be a Rueben sandwich....and I'm thinking of the stuffed bell pepper in the freezer as an easy supper.....this clear-and-cold thing might go on until the middle of the week, and then maybe three rainy days before a clear holiday weekend.....they say no chance of a white Christmas, like we had last year....

last of the fruitcake

I ate it yesterday......one of those little $5 fruitcakes from somewhere in Georgia.....I'm tempted to get another one.....maybe they'll be marked down after Christmas....maybe two-for-one? The rain all stayed to the north and west of here, just clouds and colder this morning.....it got pretty warm Friday afternoon....I think I saw 72 once.....right now there's an east wind that's keeping it about 50 outside, so I'll wear a jacket I guess to go walk the park......I had a bean and cheese tostada for lunch yesterday, using up the last of that head of lettuce before it started rusting too much.....used up the olives too.....so now I have rye (with seeds) swiss and corned beef for sandwiches.....I've been eating that store brand party mix for snacks but I probably shouldn't buy anymore, I think it might be addictive.....there are these little things in it called honey-roasted sesame sticks.....

Shoe Goo

Last time I looked in Walmart they didn't have it anymore....at least not where it had been, with the shoelaces and shoe polish....but I found it this morning in CVS, which is close by.....I had checked on line first for Shoe Goo retailers, CVS was there.....I always wear out the left toe of any foot gear, because my left leg sort of drags.....old nerve damage or whatever.....stayed warm in the house overnight, around 60.....and it's mostly sunny again.....so I don't need to turn on the heat or wear a jacket out walking the park......the stew last night was delicious and hearty, and there's leftovers, of course.....this evening I think I'll iron skillet a pork steak with oregano and BBQ sauce, and have chili beans and a biscuit as the two sides.....I haven't found Ranch Style Texas Beans in my usual market, but these pintos in a chili sauce (the label says "just add meat") are close enough.....I don't add meat, just heat them up ......and then I can alternate stew with whatever up 'til next grocery day......senior discount day is on Wednesdays, because SS shows up on Wednesdays.....mine comes the third Wednesday of each month, which is the 21st this month.....and then after the new year there will be an SS cost-of-living increase.....won't amount to much, but any little bit helps, what with the rising food prices and all.....so Winter starts this Thursday too......

was misty early on this morning

now it's bright and clear, 46 degrees......predicted to get up to 68 in the afternoon.....chance of rain late tonight......the dogs were all barking a while ago, the city meter reader was walking around....so probably around Monday I'll get the utility bill.....it's going to take some months, but the City will eventually get new software from some company in Canada and put the utility bills online if you want to go paperless.....at least that's what it said in the local paper I got yesterday at the supermarket.....other projects include fixing the water intake point on the river to allow for greater capacity ......and upgrading the whole thing on the other end too, where the sewer plant is near Joanna.....so water can come in and go out in sufficient quantity to meet projected growth.....you can't expect any industry to locate here without a good water supply and sewer system....lots of wisdom in the paper.....Angus beef stew meat, packet of onion soup mix, diced bell pepper, diced sweet onion, half a bag of baby carrots, can of mushroom soup, oregano, black pepper, cup of red wine.....that's what I put in the crock-pot....in that order.....later I'll stir it up....I'll fix some biscuits too for supper....might make a Rueben sandwich for lunch, but with no thousand island dressing....since I don't have any....

fairly warm again today

didn't need a jacket for the park walk......I got fixings for beef stew at the market, I'll do that Thursday I guess.....slow cook it all day......I'm getting towards the end of the mexican food, beef and bean taquitos for lunch, probably a giant tostada for supper today.....the natural gas bill came in the mail, 50 bucks for the last two weeks in Nov. and the first two weeks of Dec. That's about the same as last year......That's all that was in the mail.....Besides the stew I've got a pork steak and beans for a meal, and a Stouffer's stuffed pepper for another.....I had a chicken pot pie yesterday for supper.....this warm weather should continue into next week they are saying.....I've got the front door open, with just the storm door shut right now, lets some light in the house anyway.....

turned out to be a lovely morning

for a walk in the park, pleasant conditions.....and when I got back the Tuesday junk mail had just been delivered.....two loan offers, two insurance offers, four different flyers for Dish, two for Direct TV, that thing you always see for custom books of checks.....who writes checks anymore? And the Fred's ad.....toys and Christmas candy, seasonal decorations.....the Tractor Supply ad.....an industrial air-compressor under the tree? The Bi-Lo ad is what I wanted to look at.....a good price on beef stew fixings, including those little peeled carrots, two-for-one onion soup mix.....might do a crock-pot stew this food week.....canned pearl onions.....small whole potatoes.....and I think I'll do swiss cheese and rye bread this time around....biscuits to have with the stew.....I need to remember oatmeal, and olive oil.....I'll look at their store-brand party snack mix.....they will have big displays of things like cheery cordials out at cheap prices.....resistance is not futile.....hopefully.....

today will be much warmer than yesterday

that's what it says this morning for Clinton on Weatherunderground.....it was 45, might get up to 65.....still chilly this morning, but that north wind isn't around anymore so walking for the paper wasn't too bad.....I made a taco salad last night, cut up a couple of tortillas and made chips for the bottom of the bowl.....the Taco Bell/KFC here doesn't have taco salads......remember when they had the Sea Food Salad, back in the 1980s? Shrimp and "artificial crab meat"......it was like $3.95 maybe, which was expensive fast food 30 years ago.....but it sure was tasty, with the tortilla bowl to eat, etc....I delivered mail for a while to Mr. Bell's mansion out in the orange groves south of Riverside......the Bell Estate sponsored that model farm and day camp thing out there on Cole Grade in Valley Center.....but they didn't serve tacos, just organic produce mostly.....so anyway I guess it's time for the park walk, or close enough.....corned beef sandwich for lunch today I think, with pickles and mayo......

they changed the forecast

now they think it might rain here today.....but the storm down around Columbia seems to be moving to the east, and it would have to move north to get to Clinton.....clouded over and cold though, with that pesky north wind still blowing......I didn't watch anything but football yesterday, and just one little spot of local news in there somewhere.....went to bed at ten, half-time of the Sunday Night game.....the library will open in a few minutes, so I'll head over there and turn in my books and look for some more......I don't think I need anything at the store while I'm out that way.....I can keep working on the tortillas, for lunch and supper I guess.....I've used up the pintos, but I have a can of frijoles refritos still......probably enough cheese to last 'til Wednesday.....

Atlanta at Carolina

in Charlotte at one this afternoon.....I liked that Army-Navy game, with all the running and almost no passing......well below freezing overnight, and the wind is keeping it cold again this morning....but blues skies and no rain in the forecast ......I should attack this living room with the feather duster, the sunlight through the south window is highlighting cobwebs and just plain dust build-up......I had three tacos and some beans for Saturday supper.....for lunch today I might do something not mexican, like a corned beef sandwich......and I could do huevos rancheros for a Sunday breakfast-supper, I've got everything for that.....we'll see, I might feel like something different by then.....I think Nick's birthday is this Wednesday, but Facebook didn't remind us of that?

tacos and pintos

were pretty tasty, and there's plenty left over.....watched a samurai movie from 1964 last night.....north wind this morning is keeping it in the low 30's , frost on the early walk again.....I'll go walk the park shortly I suppose.....I could make a tostada for lunch to use up some lettuce......yesterday's lunch was two small white corn quesadillas and some olives....I forgot to get the olives out last night at supper...oh well.... Army-Navy is on this afternoon.....the school district says that schools will have a half-day Friday the 16th......and then I think school is out until the day after New Year's.......I saw some hunters out on my walk, six guys had three large pick-up trucks, three vehicle trailers, and three ATVs.....seems like a lot of equipment.....I wonder if they found room to park all that at the Waffle House, or if they were just going to drive through Mc Donald's.....carefully.....

another morning

where you could see your breath and smell wood smoke from fireplaces on the dawn patrol.....high clouds, pink and orange around the edges on the horizon......right around freezing....I finished off the enchilada pie last night.....in the afternoon I had a snack of cornbread spread with marmalade.....this evening I'll cook up some taco meat with ground beef, onion, cilantro, garlic, and chili powder.....I'll do pintos with onion also.....I've got Old El Paso taco sauce....I'm going over to the store later today for wine and laundry detergent ......yesterday for lunch I had grilled cheese on wheat with grilled corn beef and sauerkraut in there too.....just a half sandwich of all that.....so it's 34 outside now, and I guess I'll bundle up again and go for a walk.....

that'll wake you up

stepping out of the warm house into the bracing dawn air.....with the sun just coming up through the bare trees ......32 degrees, some wind.....never did get any walking done yesterday, rain and wind kept coming and going.....snow on the NC mountains.....read in the paper that Harry Morgan passed away.....so long Officer Gannon.....I saw some old black-and-white movie a while back where he and the other Dragnet dude were the mobsters instead of the cops....they were robbing a race-track I think, but of course got shot down in the end.......the mini enchilada pie worked out well.....with olives all around the edge in my smallest Corning Ware casserole.....enough left for another supper.....I guess I'll do quesadillas for lunch today.....white corn tortillas, got lots of 'em to use up.....the walk around the park this morning will be cold, but doable......

pretty good storm

went through earlier....the power flickered once during the heaviest part.....looks like it has blown to the East now.....cold air should move in by morning, down to freezing.....I've got the smallest enchilada pie I've ever made in the oven, might be enough for supper and a lunch tomorrow.....and then I've got taco fixings for more meals.....and I got a can of corned beef, since there is still sauerkraut in the fridge.....

might rain all day

and on into the evening.....and then clear off in the middle of the night and drop down into the 30's as the actual cold front gets here.....so no walking today probably.....pretty soon I'll drive over to the supermarket, shouldn't get too wet doing that......saw a movie last night about Napoleon on St. Helena....that was interesting.....I need to remember to get eggs.....and the grocery ad had Chex Mix two for one......it got up to 70 Tuesday by supper time.....was 60 in the kitchen at breakfast this morning, with rain blowing against the window over the sink.....

68F, overcast

so when I got back from Walmart I opened the front door and cracked a couple of windows open a bit.....it was colder in the house than outside.....I was looking for jeans and fish-oil at a good price, and knew I could get both at wallyworld....so I walked up to the men's jeans table and the first pair I laid eyes on I bought....20 bucks for Wrangler 38X30, straight leg relaxed fit, slightly distressed style....perfect.....it's hard to find the 30 length sometimes, and I have to settle for 32 and roll up the cuffs.....my legs must be too short, is why the unusual size? And the fish-oil was two bottles for the price of one.....I did get my walking done before lunch.....which was the next to last kraut dog.....I'm looking at tacos or quesadillas for lunches the new food week coming up....I'm down to my last library book, but it's sort of hard to follow.....it's the sixth book in a series ( which I didn't notice when I got it off the shelf ) so it would probably make more sense if I knew what they were referring back to.....sometimes you can Google a series and get a synopsis.....maybe I'll try that......I think I'll go sit out on the porch for a while, since it seems a shame to waste such warm weather in December sitting inside......

spin-off showers

is what the weather guy called them.....the warm moist air coming up from the Gulf is sliding along against the cold front coming from the West.....leading to periodic rain showers....it was raining during breakfast, let up while I went and got the paper, is raining a bit more now.....so I wonder if I try to go walking will it start raining again, like yesterday? You can't really see these events coming on the radar, they just sort of come out of thin air.....meeting thick air, or whatever......I could drive over to Tractor Supply and look for blue-jeans, for something to do other than walking.....could walk around the store, they have lots of stuff.....and Big Lots is right next door, they have lots of junk......the fridge is almost empty, and so is the cupboard.....I do have hash and eggs fixings still for today's supper....and now I have leftover cornbread too....cold cornbread is good for a snack, or a side with the supper I suppose.....it's in the 60's this morning, but as the cold front moves down this way they say it will drop into the 30's again overnight in a couple of days.....maybe tomorrow.....

monday, clouded over, but warmer

didn't need to bundle up as much on my newspaper walk, 54 degrees instead of below freezing.....the weather guy last night seemed to be saying that stuff was coming from both the West and the North today.....moisture from one way and cold from the other.....all to get here this afternoon or evening.....so maybe cold rain this time tomorrow......I had wheat toast with marmalade along with with hash and eggs yesterday....supper between football games......today I've got cornbread and chili on the menu.....garnished with chopped sweet onion and sour cream.....I'm looking ahead to taco time for the next grocery week.....I figure if you can make a personal pizza, you can make a personal taco pie too, instead of a big one that lasts for days.....and then with a package of tortillas you can have regular tacos one night, and a giant tostado one time....taco salad....I'll get a head of lettuce I suppose, etc.....I have enough cheese already.....

dem old blue jeans

I had the left knee rip out of two pairs of faded jeans in the last week.....don't know why the left knee.....one pair I got for $2 at a yard sale probably 2 years ago....the other pair were $3 at a thrift store, around the same time.....so the jeans I have on this morning are still relatively dark blue rather than faded blue....but the knees are more faded than the rest? Time marches on.....things just plain wear out.....so I guess I'll look in Walmart or Tractor Supply for more jeans, since I'm down to my last not-raggedey pair.....french toast with apple juice in the egg this morning, and two sausage links.....box of link sausage was $1 at the store Wednesday.....I'm already thinking breakfast for Sunday supper again.....half a can of corned beef with an egg poached in it.....with some Cajun hot sauce ......cloudy and cold this morning, north wind.....

Christmas Parade day

lots of towns around here have their Christmas parades today.....ours is scheduled to start at 10, but I'm not going over there until around 10:30, 'cause that's when it actually seems to start....judging from the last 3 years anyway.....hopefully it will have warmed up some by then, and the north wind will have slacked off a bit......windchill of 25 on the sunrise walk today......looking out at the back yard, the wind is still blowing pretty good at the moment.....so I need to vacuum it looks like, and sweep the kitchen floor.....that will take up a little time until the parade starts......

no Walmart trip

I just went over to Bi-Lo after lunch instead.....got the two things I'd forgotten last time; apple cider vinegar and sour cream....the sour cream is for my baked potato tonight, and maybe to cool down the turkey stew some.....mellow it out maybe......and I went ahead and got one of those little fruit-cakes from Georgia that they have out this time of year....those suckers are really good.....just eat a small slice at a time, about a two-inch square.....at lunch time I steamed some sweet onion with the sauerkraut and wiener.....and steamed the bun.....the onion and kraut work well together.....got that idea from an article about a hot-dog place in Greenville or somewhere that mentioned they did their kraut dogs with onion....they also had deep fried wieners as an option.....and bacon-wrapped and iron-grilled....like the street-dogs at the Swap Meet.....don't know that I'll ever get around to looking for that place or not.....I did a fairly long session with the SG, jamming with "Deep Purple Radio" on Pandora.....the "kill-pot" on that guitar is a strange thing.....either awesome or plain silly.....depending on your use of it I suppose.....it warmed up enough after my park walk to sit out on the porch in comfort.....they were saying into the 60's today, but in the middle of the afternoon it's 55....but pleasant enough, no wind......

sun's been up for a couple of hours

but it's still right at 32 degrees outside.....the frost persists......sunny and blues skies.....with no clouds in the night and low humidity I've been able to see Orion from the kitchen window before dawn when I go and get a drink of water.....I guess the trees bare of leaves help with the star-gazing too.....the turkey stew came out pretty spicy, and filling.....I have another helping of Wednesday supper I can heat up tonight.....ribs, potato, butter beans.....watched a movie last night about the RAF in Germany....the Baader-Meinhof Gang? Was it Red Army Faction or Red Army Front? Anyway, a somewhat scary reminder of those years, late 60's early 70's......or is it Meirhof....or something......well, it was a good movie....seemed realistic.....last time I went to Walmart it was getting pretty crazy in there, a couple of days before Thanksgiving.....so I may or may not make a run over there today.....I don't really need to I guess......

December

and it felt like it on the early walk.....below freezing, heavy frost.....I've got the turkey stew going in the crock-pot, should make the house smell good today.....last night I fixed baked country style pork ribs with baked potato and butter beans.....lunch today will be a kraut dog.....I got a 3 lb. bag of Granny Smith apples instead of the Rome which are a dollar cheaper per bag, because the Rome just don't have the same crunch.....I have one Rome left for today.....I finished watching the "Dragon Tattoo" trilogy last night.....and overslept with strange dreams.....got started on the day about 1/2 hour late.....stopped at the bank while I was walking and got cash out of the machine, since I forgot to get cash back at the grocery store yesterday.....the cash is for the newspaper every day......it looks nice outside right now, but it's still pretty cold and windy for more walking....don't know if it will be much better if I wait an hour.....

ice on the windshield

freezing on the sunrise walk......on the street that a lot of people use to avoid the busy intersection where the highways cross the crossing arm was down and the red lights were flashing.....but there wasn't any train.....maybe the school bus drivers know who to call about that....they have the Christmas lights up on the lamp poles now.....Thursday night they will have the lighting of the Christmas tree.....and carriage rides on Broad Street.....or maybe they use some side street.....it's going to be around the freezing point overnight the rest of the week probably, so I could stop at the Shell station and fill up, and pour in a bottle of the gasoline de-icer too......regular should be under $3 with my Bi-Lo points.....$2.85 I figure......at the market I think I'll get wieners and buns, and sauerkraut.....for lunches, I've had enough turkey sandwiches.....tomorrow I'll fix turkey stew in the crock-pot, just let it go all day in there.....with corn, green pepper, onion, oregano.....what else? Chili powder? Today should get into the 50's by the afternoon, instead of the 40's like yesterday.....I might wait and see if it looks better for walking then, 'cause it's still dang cold here this morning.....36 or so......

cold damp afternoon

barely got into the 40's.....I've been staying inside with the electric fire, reading strange novels.....playing guitar some.....listening to the stereo.....took a nap after lunch I think......it was very brisk on the park walk before lunch.....on the radar it looks like some snow coming down in the mountains north of here......

yesterday in Birmingham

November snow for the first time since 1950......but the dip in the jet stream didn't get to the Upstate, so no snow here, wasn't that cold.....just lots of rain, some worries about the creek rising in the higher country.....down into the 30's overnight, won't get out of the 40's here today.....I made a curried turkey salad sandwich for lunch yesterday.....bought a loaf of wheat bread, used the last slice of rye this morning with my poached egg.....watched three episodes of DS9 last night....there was one story-line that went for three shows.....on 3rd Rock I watched the Christmas show.....and I saw the Thanksgiving show late last week.....nothing like an alien view of your own society to clarify matters.....I'm going to need the wool cap and scarf for the park walk looks like....there might be more rain coming this afternoon?

starting to rain

and on the radar it looks like a lot could be coming up from Florida over the next few hours.....so maybe I'll stay in and clean house some instead of trying to take another walk.....the streets were damp when I went for the paper, but it wasn't raining right then.....got up to 70 yesterday.....stayed around 60 in the house overnight, haven't had to run the heater much lately.....I need to go out sometime for a loaf of bread......

turkey salad sandwich

just like a chicken salad sandwich, but with diced up turkey breast meat.....and mayo and sweet pickle relish.....on lightly toasted rye bread.....next time I might do it with mayo and curry powder....I'm low on snack mix, but I think I have enough for Sunday afternoon football.....got "James Gang Radio" fed into Pandora on the big speakers.....might crank up the red SG pretty soon.......the Guitar Player came a couple of days ago....the cover story is 34 electric guitars for under $499.....some cool things in that article......I keep looking at that Kindle Fire on Amazon.....it works where there's Wi-Fi? My discount store denim jacket has these big inside pockets, like pouches.....the gadget could ride around in there.....if I needed one ........

ham on rye french toast

the last thin slice of deli ham......59 on the early walk, storm clouds to the south-east, and wind from that direction.....but no sprinkles here yet......stayed up until 11 last night listening to Tigers-Gamecocks on the radio, I don't pay for ESPN anymore.....actually the game was streaming online, but it was pretty glitchy.....radio was easier to put up with.....leftover turkey dinner last night, of course.....same thing for today, I imagine.....turkey sandwich will be lunch, etc.....no turkey for breakfast anyway, have to draw the line somewhere.....Carolina Panthers will be on TV this afternoon, but since they have only won two games so far I think I'll watch Bills-Jets instead, they are both at 5-5........and still have a chance for the playoffs......it might rain starting tonight and on through Monday night, seems to be what the newspaper says.....

"Freddy, I want to live my life."

"You must learn to live the life of the mind."

"And talk to plants?"

"Do you know why I talk to plants, Fredericka?"

"Why?" she asked.

"They listen."

"Rot."

from Freddy and Fredericka .......Mark Helprin.

ten degrees warmer

on the sunrise walk, than yesterday.....because of the cloud blanket? But it's not warming up very fast, for the same reason I suppose......I'll go out for the park walk in a few minutes.....looks like this afternoon there's Alabama-Auburn......Georgia-Georgia Tech isn't in the local TV listings, which I find odd......I cleaned some odds and ends out of the fridge, so there's nothing much in there but Thanksgiving leftovers and condiments....and some orange juice......and eggs.....but I'm good until grocery day I think.....I got a 3 litre box of California merlot when I was in Walmart, to see if it's any better than the 5 litre box variety.....can't tell much difference.....the price comes out about the same per litre......hardly any traffic this weekend out walking, the town looks deserted pretty much......

a lot of turkey

and it came perfect out of the oven, in my unbiased opinion.....it was easy to get it all off the bones when I was cleaning up after eating....ate early 'cause it was done and ready.....so now I have containers of gravy and stuffing in the fridge, another of white meat, and a bag of dark meat which can go into a stew with brown rice, corn, onion, bell pepper.....what else? Figure that out grocery day......anyway, now my lunches switch to turkey sandwiches, that's for sure.....

that strange friday

after turkey day.....long ago we always started a Monopoly game on this day....there's some football on later I guess.....the Dallas-Miami game last night actually got interesting for a while....I've got a turkey in the oven, with sweet onion and cornbread stuffing, spiced up some.....it's going to warm up and be another great looking day......I finished one library book last night and started another one that is starting off interesting....and it's a big thick one that could last a few days.....got my walking done.....35 on the first one, 54 on the second, some north wind....it sure is quiet around here, maybe the neighbors are all over the river and through the woods somewhere.....except the one guy who is always out on his front porch drinking beer when he isn't at work....he's out already....when the sun is to the south like this time of year it hits right on that porch pretty good......there used to be two guys there, but the other one went away I suppose.....still two chairs there, on either side of the front door......or maybe he is still there but never comes out of the house anymore? a mystery......it's getting too warm in the living room to need this sweater on.....

detailed food report

let's see.....turkey, dressing, gravy, green beans, rolls, cole slaw, hash-brown casserole, sweet potato casserole, mac-and-cheese, congealed salad, lemon merinque pie, sweet potato pie, pumpkin pie, cookies, snack mix, sweet tea.....I know I'm forgetting something.....all perfectly done and very tasty......pleasant company and conversation.....a good Thanksgiving.....going to watch some news and some football .....if I can keep my eyes open much longer.....

clear and colder

pretty crisp out on the early walk.....not much left of the newspaper after I took out the black-friday ads.....I'm certainly not going near a store tomorrow......yesterday I had something a little different for lunch, ham and fried egg on rye toast, with mayo.....BBQ chicken and beans for supper.....so now the fridge is pretty empty except for the thawing turkey......which will go in the oven Friday morning, or maybe around noon .....so by Saturday the fridge will have leftovers in it....I'll probably end up making a stew and cornbread some time next week.....the City crews got started the other day putting up the Christmas street decorations.....I think the parade always ends up being the same day as the one in Laurens, except here it is in the morning, and there it is in the evening......so the crazy guys in the funny hats with the little go-karts can kill two birds with one stone, as it were? I should look in the closet for something half-way decent to wear over to Thanksgiving dinner....something besides faded blue-jeans and a sweatshirt, my usual costume this time of year.....khaki slacks and a flannel shirt?

beautiful morning

after a large rain spell in the middle of the night.....the City was trying to get leaves out of the gutter yesterday with their trucks, so they wouldn't clog the storm-drains.....worked most places looks like, except right in front of the church on Academy, where a lot of that pine-straw they use as mulch under bushes stopped the drain and made a flooded sidewalk.....happens at that spot a lot.....real nice for walking, in the 60's with some wind, broken clouds.....Thanksgiving Day should be sunny, mild.....maybe down into the 30's overnight.....on the early walk everything looked deserted, light traffic and no school busses.....they take a five day weekend? We had to go to school the day before Thanksgiving, as best I can recall.....back in the old days......I got a tin of Original Gourmet Christmas cookies to take over tomorrow, so as not to arrive totally empty-handed.....I got the tin with Venice on it.....gondolas, St. Mark's Square in the background? I got that one because I remember having that exact same tin back around 1958 or so....when I was in Cub Scouts.....I kept my Cub Scout pocket knife, pennies, pebbles, sea shells, whatever stuff like that in it.....I can only surmise it's meant to depict Christmas in Italy.....the other tins have Santa's sleigh and more usual such images.....I looked online and it seems the company has been selling the tins since 1938.....did the Scouts sell them as a fund-raiser one year, or is it some school organization I'm thinking of.....the P.T.A. or band or whatever? When Caroline was in school they sold those huge holiday decorated tins of popcorn, various flavors.....

high humidity

mid-50's.....80% chance of rain tonight.....might have rained just a little last night, thought I heard some once ......I dozed off for a few minutes during the evening news, what with a gut full of beef curry.....today it will be back to chicken leg quarter, mac-and-cheese, green beans....or peas.....don't know what for Wednesday, but Thursday I'm invited over to Cindy and Matt's for turkey day.....so I'll cook my own turkey Friday....I think that's what I did last year too.....I didn't get any pecan pie, though I still could.....I'm sure there will be desserts at the family thing.....but I should probably stick to my no-sweets-in-this-house rule.....if they ain't here, yuh can't eat 'em.....I'll keep making high-fiber no fructose no salt snack mix for TV watching.....I watched a Kurosawa flick last night I'd never even heard of before.....three hours worth.....it was a good one, I forget the name of it, but it's the one where a warlord dies and the clan replaces him with a double.....it got up to 77 yesterday.....

reduced visibility

foggy early on, couldn't see all the way down the block.....but not very cold, 60 or so.....now it's burned off to just some high clouds, and 64 for the park walk.....went to the library, and went to the store and got a 12 lb. Butterball for 12 bucks.....when I'm more organized I'll go back and get a box of stuffing and whatever else....maybe pecan pie and whipped cream, really go hog wild for the Holiday.....just for myself all I make is the turkey, stuffing, gravy, peas....that's plenty.....turkey and stuffing sandwiches for lunches is what convinced me to go ahead and fix a bird again this year.....might warm up another 10 degrees by the afternoon, might not need to run the heat much this week.....

it is sunday

I woke up thinking it was Monday, but it's not......52 degrees and a light drizzle.....a few showers coming up from Georgia on the radar.....the last time I saw a weather forecast on TV they were saying no rain until Tuesday.....this must have snuck up on 'em......looks like a lot of rain over by Nashville......looks like rain in California too? I made my french toast with brandy in the egg batter this morning......as I was fixing the toast I was wondering why the sausage wasn't starting to sizzle.....it was because I hadn't turned the burner on....that would explain the cold frying pan.....anyway, did get breakfast cooked eventually, and it was tasty.....walked for the paper and sat down and went through it......the Walmart ad has computers and TV's damn cheap, it looks like to me....."while supplies last"......I think to use up some of that steak in the fridge I'll do curried beef fried rice with peas this evening.......a meal in a bowl kind of thing.....in case it didn't make your local news, the Blue Hose won their football finale 45-14, and the mens' hoops upset #20 Cincy Bearcats with a late three-pointer.....and the female Hose hoops won also.....Gamecocks won, Clemson blew it.....so they play each other next week in The Big Game, going in with identical 9-2 records.....there will be plenty of gridiron hoopla in this neck of the woods Thanksgiving week.....maybe I'll get a turkey after all.....I've got to go over there to the library in the morning anyway.....then it would have plenty of time to defrost in the fridge.....

Saturday, clouded over, cold

but no rain predicted until Tuesday.....will stay in the 50's today.....the Gamecocks are only on PPV, so to see them I'd have to go to the bar.....which is an idea, but I doubt I'll follow through on it.....too lazy and cheap to actually get out and do something like that.....and Clemson is on ABC, which I don't pick up on my antenna at all....I think it comes from Raleigh NC, the closest ABC station? If I watch any football this afternoon it will probably be Georgia Tech......let's see....for supper I can do BBQ chicken leg quarter, mac-and-cheese, green beans......still working on that deli ham for lunch meat.....still have some sausage for Sunday breakfast......so all on an even keel through another weekend......

remembered

what I was thinking I could get at Walmart as I was falling asleep last night....a doormat, or welcome-mat, whatever you call it....I got one that doesn't say anything, so I guess it's just a doormat...they had one that said "Got Dirt?"......anyway, I've been wanting one for a while because I keep tracking stuff off the lawn into the house....maybe I can remember to wipe my feet....and I got a couple of other things while I was over there.....never did warm up much today, though it looked sunny ......lots of people out shopping it seemed.....guess the Season is at hand....the guy behind me at the check-out had a cart with two frozen turkeys in it....nothing else.....

cold, clear, bright, windy

lots of frost on the roof-tops this morning, and on the lawns.....bundled up good for the early walk.....trying to decide whether to go out again now or wait 'til it gets warmer.....34 with the windchill still.....I fixed some green beans with a little ham to flavor them up.....and a chicken leg quarter and the last of that batch of cornbread.....not a bad little bit of supper.....this evening it will probably be steak and chili-beans.....they say it might be up around 70 before Thanksgiving Day......but only mid-50's here today as the high......I might take a Walmart trip later, maybe in the afternoon.....if I can remember why I was thinking of doing that....it was for something or other.....

"Oh dear,

you of all people must recognize a substition when you're possessed by it? It's the opposite of a superstition: it's real even if you don't believe in it. My mother taught me that; she was a goblin." from Snuff by Terry Pratchett.....

funnel clouds

were spotted yesterday evening over near the high school in Laurens.....on the TV the weather man was showing how the cells were heading north-east through the county at 50 mph.....I guess later they touched down about 40 or 50 miles from here, near Rock Hill, killing three people and injuring others.....there was one report of tornado debris near Ora last night but I didn't read anything confirming that yet this morning.....so the bad stuff slid north of Clinton, it wasn't even raining here as the worst of it went through.....it was raining hard around breakfast time, so I didn't do my early morning walk, maybe I can get out some in a while.....I fixed pork-fried rice for supper Wednesday, with cut green beans.....just a little curry powder goes a long ways....I'll start on the chicken leg quarters tonight.....I should have bought an onion while I was at the store.....I always forget something.....I did remember more oregano.....opened the new can of coffee this morning.....I'm using honey wheat bread for my poached egg on toast in the morning, and rye bread at lunch for grilled ham and cheese sandwich.....best of both worlds.....it's fairly warm again today, but going to get to low 30's overnight they say....

got wet getting groceries

but not soaked or anything.....on the radar it looks like another front is on the way for later today....coming through Birmingham about now..... it's all good for the crops....except growing season is pretty much over....but we need the groundwater....creeks and lakes are low.....over in Laurens I found the drive-up to pay taxes, but nobody was at the window...then finally I saw the button that said "Call".....and beeped that and the lady came and took my check.....it was raining pretty hard on that drive over there....folks drive funny in the rain, got to watch out for yourself I reckon......so at the store I got chicken leg quarters and some top-round steak....and the coffee.....peas, cut green beans, pintos in chili sauce, and some good sized cheap plastic storage bowls so I could use one to hold my own snack mix made of cereal and nuts.....I'm trying to add more fiber snacks....well, purely fiber snacks would be the good idea.....got something in the mail from the bank verifying my CD transaction, that was all the mail.....

walked between showers for the newspaper

one shower had just stopped when I left the house, and it started up again as I was sitting down to read the paper....."numerous showers and thunderstorms" is the forecast.....but it's warm....66 when I went out.....so now I'm going to go pay property tax, and then circle back by the supermarket and see what looks good......it's still raining, but my windshield wipers work.....

77 degrees, overcast

that seems to me like pretty warm for the middle of November.....I'm not complaining....the big bunch of rain is still up in Kentucky, but I guess it's coming this way eventually......my big excitement today was after lunch when the FedEx lady brought me my new guitar.....so I spent most of the afternoon playing with that....it works great....see photo below......don't I have enough guitars already? nah, don't think so.....if you want to play along with AC/DC you clearly need some sort of SG machine.....that's my flimsy rationale.....so now I'm wondering about supper....and I guess I'll do corned-beef hash with an egg poached in the middle and a chunk of leftover cornbread......the word "corn" is in both of those.....good enough......

early x-mas SG

indian summer-ish

a brief warm spell after the first frost anyway.....might get to 74 in the middle of the afternoon.....the trees are rapidly losing their colorful Fall leaves and becoming just plain Winter bare....suppose their's nothing surprising in that, just one more year wheeled around.....how many more are there? hate to think about it......I need some ideas for the grocery store Wednesday morning.....I could get a chicken to roast maybe.....or turkey sausage.....something different.....got to remember to get the coffee, it's almost gone.....

warmer today

comfortable on the early walk, should get up around 70 in the afternoon.....might rain by Wednesday.....finished off the mashed potatoes and gravy last night, with a pork chop and the last of the corn.....so today I'll do something with pintos and cornbread.....I might not even need a jacket for the park walk, a sweater might be enough.....watched a lot of football again, went to bed at half-time of the night game....looked like the Pats were going to win, which they did.....the Carolina and Georgia teams didn't do any good......10 days until Thanksgiving? The newspaper says ".....time is running out. Family and friends will be descending upon your home in a few days for the Thanksgiving Feast." It's an article with clever house-cleaning tips......I don't think I have to worry much about that......

football weather

cold gray morning.....nice and chilly and gloomy outside, so one must stay inside where it's warm and watch sports on TV......this afternoon there will be Falcons-Saints and then Giants-49ers on into the evening.....and Pats-Jets if I'm still awake ? College games were interesting yesterday, with Cocks and Tigers winning close ones.....and here in Clinton the Mighty Hosers thumped VMI.....Keydets? Enough of that......the honey wheat bread worked well for Sunday french toast, with OJ, black coffee, country sausage.....I think I'll select "Supertramp Radio" for Sunday morning stereo, sounds like the right mood to me for today.....sometime this coming week I could go over to the courthouse and pay property tax, get that done with.....should be warmer Monday....wind swinging around to ESE instead of that cold north wind....might get into the 70's....up from the 60's today.....

about like yesterday morning

maybe two or three degrees warmer.....but should get up into the 60's in the afternoon instead of staying in the 50's.....probably no frost Saturday night.....VMI football team plays PC here today, and after that game they have some kind of big-screen thing at the stadium that they will use to show the PC basketball team playing at Duke....playing with the big boys.....I'll be watching the Gamecocks play the Gators.....I think I get that channel.....I know I don't get the Clemson game....except maybe on the computer screen.....and there's some other college football on in the evening, I forget what right now.....for supper I'm thinking of the other half of the rib-eye, pintos, and cornbread.....sounds good to me.....the cornbread mix I like was two for a buck this week at the supermarket.....it's still windchill of 34 outside right now.....well, that reading comes from the airport which is 4 or 5 miles away.....but it's probably pretty accurate for here....so I'll have to bundle up good for another walk, or maybe wait and see if it warms up some a little later? The newspaper ads are full of Thanksgiving fixings.....haven't decided yet whether to bother with cooking a turkey this year or not.....

ski jacket morning walk

sunny bright blue skies, but a windchill factor of 25 degrees.....got up around 5 and turned on the central heat.....went into the kitchen for a glass of water and the full moon was lighting it up through the window over the sink.....went back to bed until 6:30.....it was warm enough by then....so now I'm considering how many layers to wear for the park walk.....I should use up the last bit of hamburger for lunch in a patty melt.....then I can start on ham and cheese sandwiches for a while, with the thin sliced deli ham and honey wheat bread.....for supper I can have a pork chop, taters 'n' gravy, kernel corn.....looking for a high of 53 this afternoon.....Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band are playing tonight in Greenville....tickets $45-$70.....that's how musicians make money these days since nobody buys records anymore? Says he's 66 years old.....must be...I could feed "Bob Seger Radio" into Pandora and see what comes out of the speakers....

couple of hours later

it was coming down pretty good when I went in to do my banking.....talked to Sally and moved some money around as best I could.....and by the time we were finished it was only drizzling ......so back at the house I went out to walk around the park in a light mist.....sat on the porch to eat my apple, enjoying the fresh air.....just enough moisture to keep the eaves dripping slowly.....I still have the makings for a quesadilla, might do that for lunch....and use up a few of those olives in the fridge still.....this looks like one of those days where if I start reading a library book I'll just start nodding off.....it's so dim, overcast, quiet.....and the eaves dripping....wouldn't that put you to sleep?

light rain

but it's not very cold....55 degrees this morning, but they say it will go down to freezing tonight as a cold front moves into the region.....so I drove over to get the newspaper....and I'll drive over to the bank if it's still raining around 9.....I'll talk to them about that CD....interest rates are so low it really doesn't make much difference what I do with it.....some people are saying just go ahead and spend money now while it's still worth something.....before inflation starts eating it up in the next economic disaster.....before China adjusts the yuan and there are no more bargains on imports from over there......before they start collecting sales tax on Amazon......it's starting to rain harder.....I guess I could do rib-eye steak, mashed potatoes, gravy.....and corn....for supper today....finished up the stuffing and all that yesterday.....I got honey wheat bread this time around....for lunch sandwiches and breakfast toast.....sharp cheddar cheese was on sale, so I got that ......the natural gas bill came yesterday and it wasn't too bad for the first month when I fired up the heater some.....

68F, some overcast

so I've been able to crack open a couple of windows and let some air through the place.....plenty warm enough for walking in the morning....and I went and did the grocery shopping, etc.....also washed down the tub and shower after lunch....the spray stuff I bought that said it took off soap scum actually worked pretty well.....they had Black Forest Ham on sale at the deli section, so I got a half-pound of that for lunch meat....next week I'll need to buy another large can of coffee....French Roast......tomorrow I can go the the bank and talk to them about a CD that's rolling over.....I'll take the interest off it to go towards property tax and Christmas.....I've got "Van Halen Radio" going on the stereo from Pandora....so I just finished about 40 or 45 minutes of shredding along with my Silvertone Wolfgang rip-off guitar.....there's a couple of models I've got tweaked on the Fender Mustang amp that work real well with that kind of trip.....I'm perfecting pinch harmonics with a thumb-pick....it's hard to drop a thumb-pick.....Christmas money might go towards an Epiphone SG Special....I've wanted an SG for a long time, and you can get one on Amazon at a bargain price....no tax and free shipping.....

mostly cloudy, 46 degrees

they are saying it might get up to 70 today.....right now it doesn't look like it, but maybe the clouds will burn off or blow away by the afternoon.....watching football over the weekend they kept showing the McRib promotion.....yesterday I thought about going and getting a McRib meal, but first I looked online and read the calories, fat, and sodium.....I decided to save my money.....there was a review online where this newspaper food critic lady decided to see what the hype was about, since she had never had a McRib before....she said she ended up with McRegret....anyway, I might drive over to Walmart after I take my park walk....or I might not....it's just that it's getting to the time of year when I could put some Heet in the gas tank....the stuff that helps the engine start after an overnight freeze.....you can get it cheap at Walmart.....there's nothing to vote on this Election Day in Clinton, no Laurens County polls today.....they are voting in Fountain Inn for city council I think, but nothing right around here.....I can have leftover pork-dressing-fried apples tonight, and then shop tomorrow.....I could get sandwich rolls and make my own BBQ pork sandwich, in lieu of the McRib.....

11-7-11

There was sure lots of sloppy football over the weekend.....some games seemed to consist entirely of interceptions, fumbles, dropped passes, and missed field goals.....well, nobody was forcing me to watch I guess.....it was around 40 when I went out for the paper....with the time change the sun has an hour to warm things up a bit before 7:30.....which is when I'm ready to go out......so I've read the paper and checked the things online that I usually look at in the morning, and I guess I could go out and walk around the park.....sunny and not too windy right now......

mid-40's, north wind, overcast

I stayed up 'til midnight watching the LSU game......and slept pretty well until six, which was really seven.....anyway, it was light when I got up.....the hard part of time-change is always convincing your stomach when meal time is......49ers-Redskins are on TV at 1:00, sounds like a good bet for an interesting game......and maybe I'll stay awake for Sunday Night Football since 8:00 will really be 7:00.....or will it be 9:00? to heck with it, too confusing......I put Strawberry Kiwi V8 Splash in my french toast batter this morning.....I have mild country sausage, since one time I bought hot country sausage that was too hot for my taste.....or for my stomach......I guess I can have steak and fries for Sunday supper......the pork under a pile of stuffing surrounded by fried apples was good last night, plenty of stuffing left......I can hear a train going by.....otherwise just a quiet Sunday morning.....I guess I could turn on the stereo and see what it plays.....yesterday it played Sir Douglas Quintet covering Bob Dylan.....that was different.....

not front porch weather

I tried sitting out there a while, but the north wind is just a little too brisk for comfort.....so I'm back in the living room where there's a south window for the afternoon sun.....but just sitting and reading in a nice warm room has me ready to take a nap.....oh well, go with the flow......

cold but clear

so I got my early walk done OK.....and I'll go walk again in a little bit.....bundled up with multiple layers and a stocking cap and scarf.....north wind is still blowing.....Raiders and Red Devils both lost in the opening round of playoffs last night......going to stay in the high 50's today they say.....there will be another SoCon game on PBS this afternoon, I'll look at that.....and then of course there's LSU-Alabama on in prime time, should be interesting.....I guess I'll make gravy with the pork-steak and dressing tonight.....with fried apples on the side.....can have sausage with my french toast tomorrow morning......the Associated Press says "surprising" Presbyterian takes on Coastal Carolina today.....I guess they are surprised that the Hosers won 2 games so far this season.....London went to standard time last Sunday.....I was wondering why I was getting the 10 o'clock news here at 6 instead of the 11 o'clock news this week.....happy Gunpowder Plot Day!

gave up and pulled off my boots

after lunch.....not going to get any walking done today......13 mph NNE wind keeps blowing showers into town.....so I took a nap on the sofa instead of getting outside at all.....standing on the front porch for a few minutes was enough to convince me to go back in the house.....well, I do have something to read anyway.....

steady rain

I drove over to get the newspaper......the rain that started around 9:30 last night was coming from the west and south, so it didn't get real cold overnight.....but the rain now is coming from the west and north, so it's not getting very warm out this morning.....the steak last night was good and tender, and the fries came out right.....so that was a successful supper.....I guess I can have leftovers from Wednesday tonight......there's no mall to do mall-walking in bad weather, walking around in Walmart isn't really that interesting.....can't think of anything I need over there either....I slept really well with the rain overnight going on, didn't wake up until six.....I'm usually awake before that......I've got some hamburger, I could make a patty-melt for lunch later......

the forecast map

shows the rain here around 11 tonight.....might still be raining around dawn.....right now it isn't bad out, fairly warm actually....with a west wind and lots of leaves blowing off trees......I guess I'll have a piece of steak and some fried taters for supper.....with peas as a side.....quesadilla and some olives was lunch today.....took a little nap after lunch.....

Thor's day

one thing about a belly full of "comfort food" like hamburger stroganoff is that I tend to dose off during the evening news.....I try to keep my eyes open for at least one weather report.....after the local news I've been watching the London news....it opens with the British isles weather report....and last night the forecaster was taking us on towards the weekend and saying that it might be rainy and wet for all of us out on Bonfire Night.....I don't think I'll have that problem, since I don't even know what that is.....hopefully it will be clear enough here Friday for the Red Devils hosting an opening round game of the regional football postseason......actually bonfire night has something to do with Guy Fawkes Day, the guy who tried to blow up Parliament way back when.....to hell with "Occupy Parliament"....just blow the sucker to bits! The London fire department is always busy on Bonfire Night they say......the rainy weather should get here overnight, and maybe clear out before gametime.....right now it's clear and chilly like the last few mornings....29 windchill on the early walk....about time to go walk some more.....

grocery day

Heavy frost again on the dawn walk, today might end up a little warmer than yesterday, and then Thursday there's a 40% chance of rain.....so I went to the store and got a package of pork steak, that's like cube steak....pre-schnitzled sort of....and some hamburger meat, and some country sausage......I got mushrooms and sour cream because what I want to do is make hamburger stroganoff .......I saw a recipe for that when I was looking for something else and decided to try that since I haven't fixed it in years.....I'll use the small whole-wheat shells as the pasta instead of egg noodles.....won't that work? And I got cornbread stuffing in a box, so I can make country sausage-cornbread stuffing to have with pork steak and fried apples.....and I got russet potato and new york strip steak enough for two meals of steak with steak fries....plenty of food for another week, in other words......got more Chex Mix, the stuff is addictive....for when you're watching sports or a movie.....walked the park after I got back, read the Clinton paper....put a load in the washing machine......

Halloween

11-1-11

feels like November.....low 30's, some frost on the early walk.....trick-or-treat was different this year, with the church event going on across the street.....I think they had something last year too, but this year it was bigger.....they had a bounce house, and hay-rides with trailers pulled by a pick-up and a golf cart.....so kids started coming by so fast by 6:00 that I just stayed out on the front porch....it wasn't too cold.....by 7:00 my candy was all gone, so I came in and turned off the porch light, and nobody knocked after that.....but the crowd was still there at the church until around 8:30 or so......I went with country fried steak, mac-and-cheese & limas last night....tonight I'm thinking breakfast for supper.....ham slice, eggs over easy, smothered hash-browns.....I still have country gravy to use up on something.....one library book I picked up yesterday is pretty fast-paced....I might finish it today.....

quesadilla and a handfull of olives

for lunch....looks like it's 52 here, and about the same in Oakland and Goleta.....ten degrees colder in Coos Bay....ten degrees warmer down around San Diego......I just read a thing that says trick-or-treat in downtown Clinton is from 6 until 8.....didn't know it was that well defined.....but Mill Village is a world unto itself in a lot of ways.....I bet people come by after 8 anyway.....might be pretty cold by then.....I've got either country fried steak or country ham slice for supper....possible sides would be mac-and-cheese, hash-browns, lima beans......put gravy on any or all of that......same choices for Tuesday, and then it's shopping day again Wednesday.....I got some library books OK.....got "Sonic Youth Radio" streaming through Roku from Pandora.....I could check the mail I guess......

another cold morning walk

with some clouds, windchill of 31 degrees.....might not make it up to 60 today......I'm getting ready to go over to the library, and might go into the supermarket while I'm over that way, if I could remember what I was thinking about.....it was something I could get while I was over there.....oh well.....I've got the candy for Halloween anyway, and a big bowl to put it in for handing out.....no jack-o-lantern or costume or scary things on the porch though.....some of the houses around here have been decorated all October will all kinds of stuff.....when did Halloween lights become popular? I don't remember anybody putting up strings of them in the old days......the church across the street will have things for the kids tonight, and the City is having some kind of Halloween carnival too around the square I guess......these doings are meant to keep the kids from going door to door? whatever......

lots of frost on the lawns

when I went walking right as the sun was coming up.....next week the sun will be an hour higher at the same time? The temp was right at freezing.....36 outside now.....no clouds today, bright sunshine but crisp......I've got one library book to finish before they are due tomorrow.....Panthers play the Vikings I think it is at 1:00.......that might be my football for the day.....yesterday I saw part of the Appalachian State-Georgia Southern game on PBS.....they don't have all the obnoxious commercials......and online I caught the end of Blue Hose vs. Flames, including the 2 OT's.....Hose couldn't extinguish the Flames after all......I fixed country ham with pan gravy, mac-and-cheese, lima beans for supper.....ham and french toast for breakfast.....they say the high today will be 60.....the band last night played 'til around 8:30 that I could hear, it was too cold and dark outside for me by then.....

report from the street

OK in the sun, not so nice on the shady side of the street.....50 and a 10 mph north wind.....it cleared off for a bit, but now more clouds keep coming over.....still there's a half-decent crowd of folks for the Festival......hopefully it will build up later....it goes on until 9 tonight.....the old cars didn't have any Studebakers this time.....it did have some old Dodge with big fins, a couple of woodies, and a real nice Hudson Hornet.....I went in the Pizza House bar when it opened at 11 and got a sub sandwich and a pint of Sharkshead lager....I thinks that's what it was called.....I like that old bar, has a good ambience what with the exposed brick walls, really high old tin ceiling and tall windows looking out over the deck.....sort of a wrought iron fireplace in one corner that must be an antique of some sort....the worn pine floors from when the building was a five-and-dime way back when.....so it was warm and quiet in the bar, I was the only customer right then.....I thought I should patronize the place at least once.....maybe they will stay in business....the barkeep said they had pretty good nights with the World Series.....and they do Monday Night Football....he says they'll stay open until 2 in the morning if there's still anybody in the place.....my lunch cost what you would expect for a hefty sandwich and a fancy pint....came with a bag of chips and a pickle spear.....I think I'm done with the street fair for the day though, walking around for an hour in cold weather got my back to stiffen up and ache some.....I'll probably be able to hear the shag dance band from the front porch when that starts up after supper.....if it's not too cold for the front porch tonight.....

43 and a north wind

but I guess the rain went through during the night, so it's cold right now for the street fair thing but at least it's not getting any wetter.....they could do a better job with the traffic signage.....it just says ROAD CLOSED.....nothing to tell people not familiar with the area how to detour around the blocked off part to get back to the highway, so some cars seem to be lost, going around in circles....maybe the idea is to just trap people at the Festival.....I'll go over there shortly and check it out a bit, maybe buy something to eat if something looks good......should get sunny by the afternoon and they might get some good crowd for the vendors and all.....I turned on the central heat this morning for an hour or so.....the football team won the Homecoming game, and so gets the second seed in the region playoff.....Laurens lost to Wren in their game......

that crazy baseball game

lasted 'til one this morning.....a comedy of errors.....so they do it again tonight and this will be the last one for sure.....the change in the weather got here this morning.....clouded over, north wind.....on the radar you can see the storm moving in this direction.....it will be a wool cap and windbreaker walk if I go ahead and try to beat the rain.....actually, the rain is still in Georgia....so I'll get out the door in a few minutes and walk, or I'll fuss at my self all day long about being too lazy to get any exercise.....enchilada and pintos leftovers sounds like a good cold weather supper....it will probably be raining by that time of day.....I might make a steak sandwich for lunch....the Chex Mix makes a good snack for watching the ball game....and I have some peanuts too, but no Cracker Jacks.....I haven't even seen any of those lately, but they must still make them? If tomorrow looks as blustery as today, that might put a damper on the Fall Festival thing.....we'll see what happens......

Cattle Drive

I went on a drive out through the woods.....looking at the Fall colors.....I don't know the names of all the different trees like WB did.....if you went driving through the woods with him he would tell you what all the various stands of timber were, and whether or not you could get straight lumber out of them or if they were pretty much worthless.....the Duncan Creek bridge is still out, has been for a long time now.....I saw where they might have money for it in the 2013 highway budget.....but now the whole SCDOT is in arrears or something and who knows when anything will get fixed.....so I took the way out to the churchyard in Ora where you go for a ways on Cattle Drive.....there's one old house you go by that way that's an old unpainted Depression Era kind of place like Grandma's.....but it looks inhabited still, cars in the yard and rocking chairs on the front porch.....I came back on Fleming Mills to the 121 near Ford School.....and went down and shot the shit with the guy in the guitar shop for a while....bought a Herco pick for $2, that kind of hybrid flat-pick-thumb-pick.....the one I had before broke a while back.....he still has pretty much the same guitars in there as months ago....he does make some money renting school band instruments......he didn't have anything to do right then but stand around and talk anyway, he allowed as how......

fried pie?

Every once in a while the church across the street puts out a sign that says "Thursday Hot Dog Bake Sale".....this morning there was an extra hand made sign that said "home made fried apple pies"......I hope that means they use fried apples in the pie, and not that they take the whole pie and deep-fry it.....one time the youth pastor stopped me as I was out walking, and told me to come by the church when the Thursday sign was out and they would give me a free hot-dog lunch plate.....maybe my carefully cultivated stumble-bum image had him thinking I must be one of the underfed elderly......actually I was pretty much overfed yesterday after eating beef enchilada....it came out tasty.....I was dozing off later waiting for the World Series, and then found out the dang game had been moved to Thursday night because of a rain forecast.....the pintos were good too, with onion, cilantro, cheese, and a little of the sauce in them.....cooked down to the proper consistency while the other was in the oven getting bubbly on top.....it was warm enough last night to sit out on the porch late, but they are saying it's going to get cold again pretty quick.....right now it looks fine outside, good for the park walk....

beautiful in the afternoon

just about perfect porch-sitting conditions.....72, a few wispy clouds, light breeze, trees turning color, leaves whirling around, butter-flys flutter by, etc......got an AAA magazine, and the ad on the back cover was for ordering your holiday fruitcakes.....I hope BiLo has those little individual size fruitcakes again this year, those are fine for the single Tingle.....today over there I got my Chex Mix OK....good stuff.....and I got the stuff for enchiladas tonight....with pintos.....and some top round steak, tenderized....and a country ham slice.....lima beans, early peas, orange juice, a loaf of wheat bread......a bag of candy for Monday evening.....walked the park, read the local paper....there will be a pickle eating contest Saturday at the Fall Festival.....and a street dance from 6 to 9 in the evening.....a talent show.....and the Little Miss Sweet Tea Beauty Pageant....whole thing sounds like a real trip.....anyway, tonight back to the baseball....something to watch .....turn off the sound and play guitar, that works......

fog at sunrise

could not actually see the sun rising......48 degrees, not much wind.....stayed about 60 in the house....it's time to go to the supermarket.....I guess I could get some candy for trick-or-treat.....the church across the street is having a festival that night too....the sign says there will be hay-rides......wonder how they do that.....just in a pick-up truck, or with a horse and a wagon? I want to look for some Chex Mix for myself, haven't had any of that in ages.... is it bad for you? Who cares......the fog is burning off, should get to the 70's again today, and then get colder over the next few days, with some chance of rain Thursday and on into Friday maybe....the weather page said it was 31 in Coos Bay......

from a strictly pragmatic point of view

an absolute idealism will test out exactly the same as a pure nihilism.....thought for the day.....

11:30

before the ballgame was over.....but it was worth staying awake.....most of the action was in the late innings.....and I slept through 'til morning pretty well.....looks like it's going to be another nice Fall day, like yesterday.....mid-70's, not too cold at night.....not cold enough for a frost anyway.....heated up pot-roast supper last night, that was easy.....had cold pot-roast with cheddar cheese on a biscuit for lunch yesterday, then had the last biscuit at supper.....I suppose there's enough of the roast left to make beef enchiladas.....I have olives, I could get tortillas and a can of sauce grocery shopping Wednesday.....I'll think about that.....it's about time to go walk around the park.....Monday I walked around it the opposite way from usual, made me dizzy walking backwards.....dogs that haven't barked at me in years got confused and barked at me because I was going in the wrong direction from every other day......

pink clouds in the sunrise

and it wasn't as cold on the early walk as it had been the last few days.....mid-40's instead of mid-30's......the denim jacket was enough, instead of the leather jacket....in a couple of months I'll need the ski jacket I imagine......might get to mid-70's in the afternoon.....I haven't seen any rain forecast, but it's overcast......stayed up and watched the World Series game last night....it was a good one, could have gone either way down to the last pitch.....so I'll probably take a nap after lunch, make up for lost sleep.....I can work on the pot-roast leftovers today......I watched a Robert Mitchum movie from 1956 between football and baseball in the evening, those as always good......

already?

another week passed by real quick to me......I was sitting at breakfast eating my french toast thinking that it seemed like yesterday that I was sitting there eating my french toast....which I only eat on Sundays......just a couple of months left in 2011......looks like it might warm up almost to 70 today, but it was another cold morning, turned on the heat and went back to bed for half an hour while it got warm inside.....37 and some frost on the sunrise walk.....Southern Cal-Notre Dame and the World Series were on at the same time, so I was switching back and forth for a while, but by 9:30 my eyes didn't want to stay open anymore, so I went to bed.....read the scores in the morning....Redskins play Carolina today in the afternoon game.....the paper picks the Panthers .....I'll believe that when I see it.....

walking around "downtown"

or maybe they call it "uptown", I'm not sure.....anyway, instead of my usual walk over by the mill I went past the Post Office and my bank that way and over to Musgrove and then back home past the Curb Market, etc......next Saturday is Clinton Fall Festival.....Broad St. will be blocked off a block more then they usually do, so there will be two stages for bands and whatever, and next to the old hardware store there will be a classic car cruise-in.....maybe the couple that sells the hash-dogs will be there again, I like those.....last year the classic cars included two or three Studebakers, that was cool.....and now there is a cocktail bar open again over the alley at the rear of 120 Musgrove, which is now Pizza House......the guy that owns that said in something I read that their room for private parties was just about booked-out for the holiday season....maybe they are going to make a go of it, I hope so.....I should go over there and get an Italian sausage sandwich sometime, but I hate to spend money eating out.....I'm too cheap.....

cold overnight

frost warning until 10 am......Red Devils beat Union last night, and if they win at home next week they should get into the region play-offs.....Raiders lost, but are still in a good position for their region.....regions are like leagues in California.....I keep looking at that back lawn, but I don't really want to deal with it while it's wet.....maybe it will dry up some by after lunch and I can get it done.....it was mid-30's at sunrise again, on the deserted Saturday morning walk.....I've got plenty of leftover pot-roast to make a sandwich for lunch.....with bread-and-butter pickle slices and mustard and mayo.....I think I'll go ahead and do drumsticks and brown rice and corn this evening, and then alternate leftovers for the rest of the week....except maybe have breakfast for supper on Sunday, hash and eggs.....can of hash in the cupboard.....the cloudless cold nights will be around for a while looks like, so the central heat is in operation now......augmented during the day by the duraflame in the living room.....with the ceiling fan on reverse low speed to push the warm air down and around the room.....that method works for comfort.....

thinking ahead already

to pot-roast sandwiches for lunch in days to come.....this evening I'll cut left-over biscuit in half and toast that, and cook some tender young peas.....and get myself a serving of the roast....and pour the pot gravy over all that.....it's up to 61 in the afternoon....so it's cool enough for a Winter-type supper......fried thick baloney in a grilled cheddar on wheat-nut bread sandwich for lunch....with a few BBQ corn chips and about the last of the merlot.....I've got burgundy in reserve....the park walk later in the morning was warm enough....the back yard can wait 'til another day to get cleaned up some.....pretty soon I should try to get more organized about picking up the pecans, instead of letting them go to waste so much....but my lower back isn't very good for bending over like that, to pick up little things.....maybe I can figure something out.....the squirrels take care of a lot of them anyway.....they don't listen to me when I tell them to leave my pecans and acorns alone.....I'm just jiving them, and they know it.....

patchy frost

In the 30's on the morning walk, but the wind is calm so it wasn't so bad.....did get out my stocking cap and a heavier jacket......got the chuck roast in the crock-pot, with mushrooms, mushroom soup, onion, garlic, black pepper, oregano......trying to decide whether to go for another walk, or to look at cutting the weeds out back....it's 41 outside, maybe I'll do neither....or maybe later.....

modified park walk

there was a big chunk of an old oak tree down across the sidewalk at one point, so I went down through the middle of the park instead of going that way.....and came back right alongside the mill, in the parking lot where there aren't any trees to drop limbs on you.....some clouds starting to blow over.....the wind is just nasty, so I'm staying inside now.....I usually go out front or back to sit and eat my apple this time of day, but it's more comfortable inside this morning.....

b-r-i-s-k

windchill of 38 on the sunrise walk.....clear, cold, strong west wind......50 in most of the house, but warm enough in the living room with the door shut and the duraflame running......GoClinton reports a windchill of 41 right now, so maybe I'll wait and see if it warms up some before trying the park walk.....high of 60 predicted today.....stayed up pretty late watching the World Series.....don't all those kids in the crowd have to go to school in the morning? Not my problem, I suppose......In the paper it looks like the game starts half an hour earlier tonight....or maybe that's just when the pre-game comes on.....they have like three years worth of 3rd Rock from the Sun on Netflix.....that's a pretty funny show, so I put it in my Instant Queue......so now in the evening after the local five o'clock news, the London news at 11 comes on, and then Paladin, 3rd Rock, and DS9.....create your own streaming reality......the wonders of technology.....life is what you make it......

rain/drizzle keep comein' and goin'

lots of stormy weather last evening and on through the night, was raining during breakfast, but let up enough to go walk for the paper.....but the park walk doesn't look feasible right now, unless I want to get wet like I did last Wednesday.....so I'll count the walking done in the store as exercise....I found a small enough chuck roast, and a small package of chicken legs.....that's the meat for the week.....I still have a pork chop I'm going to curry and have with brown rice and lima beans tonight.....this must be chicken soup weather, cousin Cindy and cousin Samantha both posted on fb this morning that chicken soup is in the crock pot.....I think that's what they said.....I got swiss cheese and thick bologna for lunches, with "health nut" bread as the bread of the week....I got mushrooms to go with the chuck roast when it gets slow-cooked maybe tomorrow.....

enjoy it while we can

going to be around 80 today, but by Thursday they are saying a high of 60, and wet.....nothing much in the grocery ads to inspire me, except drumsticks and thighs a buck a pound.....thighs are something you can do different things with, like just fry 'em up, or put them in some baked dish with rice or noodles maybe......I just ate the last apple, so I can get a bag of those.....and eggs this week, and butter, bread......I've been working on a large chunk of cheddar, so I'll look at swiss this time for a change......there's a good price on chuck roast.....which is a good cold weather supper, and it's going to turn cooler sooner rather than later looks like.....but it takes a while to eat up a chuck roast by yourself.....it does make for good tacos though.....

it's only a Monday

the mail truck went past without stopping and I thought "No Tuesday grocery ads".....to realize in the same breath that it's only Monday......clear, bright, sunny Monday morning.....it was in the 50's early on, so I went out and cut the grass in front.....without even getting very sweated up in this moderate weather......they are saying we might get rain tomorrow night and on into Wednesday again, like last week......but this afternoon might get up to 85......I still have two pork chops left to do something with.....maybe cook one with apple wedges, that's always good.....and I have meatloaf enough for one more sandwich for lunch today.....I was sitting out on the porch eating an apple when the mail went by.....admiring the neat looking lawn and the sidewalk with the leaves blown off it for the moment......

fine looking Sunday

70 outside.....was 46 at sunrise.....might get up close to 80 by the middle of the afternoon.....I stayed up 'til midnight watching Texas win the pennant.....at one today it's the Panthers and the Falcons, the two "local" teams......it was funny yesterday watching the game a few blocks away at the college, the camera looked across the field to the puny little visitors bleachers.....which didn't have many people in them.....and behind that all you can see is the woods.....no buildings or town or what all, just the sticks.....an accurate representation of Clinton for the TV viewer......the Hose won the game.....it was Homecoming, so they said the crowd was around 5000? They gave away 1000 cowbells to the crowd, something like that.....for school spirit.....to make noise......they only have 1200 kids at PC, and the school they beat has 4700.....Go Hose! What a silly name......I was drinking Scotch in the spirit of our proud Scotch-Irish heritage.....according to the game announcers, a Blue Hose is a Scottish Warrior.....the mascot has this big ol' claymore to swing around and vanquish the foe......blue and white tartan, school colors.....and the Tigers and the 'Cocks also prevailed in their gridiron contests, so plenty of happy campers at the Waffle House this morning I suppose.....

Blue Hose football on TV this afternoon

Live from Clinton.......might be amusing, if anything......looks like fine weather for it.....clear and cool at dawn today, some east wind.....I'll do steak dinner again today, finish off the rib-eye.....and Sunday an easy meal will be heating up the pork dirty rice......maybe grilled spam and cheese for lunch today, wheat french toast with country sausage for Sunday breakfast......there's a MLB playoff game that doesn't come on until 8 at night, so I probably won't stay awake through all that, unless it's a close game......the last two evenings I watched some overseas production of Moby Dick as a two-part miniseries I guess you would call it it......good show, old sailing ships and the evil white whale.......and I continue to watch episodes of Paladin and Quark somewhere between the overseas news and bedtime......there's some big Food Festival in Greenville this weekend, with samples from 40- odd restaurants .......one of those things where you buy sheets of tickets for the food, and you get a bracelet to let you buy booze.....state fair in Columbia too I think right now.....perfect conditions for all that, might get into the 80's Monday......

been a really nice day

sat out on the porch quite a bit just because it was so pleasant out.....walked the park after I got back from shopping in Laurens.....had a meatloaf sandwich with pickle slices, sharp cheddar, and mayo for lunch.....and the dirty rice dish for supper came out spicy and filling.....lots of it left for some other time......

59 degrees, blue sky, sunshine, west wind

some severe thunderstorms were moving through the region last night, but they missed Clinton, though Newberry got some action south of here.....we got a little rain was all, while I was watching the baseball.....Detroit sent the series back to Texas, etc.....I'm going over to WalMart for various sundries......I think I'll use the box of dirty rice mix in the cupboard and add diced sweet onion, diced bell pepper, and cubed pork for supper today.....always thinking ahead.....that will probably make left-overs for another day too.......

around 10:30 last night

Cruz hit another home run and it became obvious that the Rangers were going to win, so I went on to bed.....they do it again late this afternoon, and if Texas wins again they make it to the World Series? Two hour rain delay yesterday.....baseball in October......I think I heard it raining around five this morning.....eaves and trees were still dripping at sunrise, but it was warm enough to walk without a jacket.....in fact the temp is predicted to drop as the day goes by.....a cold front moving in from the north-west direction......drier air too comes with that, instead of the 100% humidity reading we've got here now......I had the last piece of pork from last week with bell pepper, onion, and BBQ sauce .....and hash browns and 3 bean salad for supper .....I'll have 4 oz. or so of steak tonight with mashed potatoes and gravy, and either more bean salad, or maybe seasoned lima beans as the veggie.....Wednesday lunch with the cold meatloaf on wheat was good, might be the same thing today.....I like those Southern Home bread-and-butter pickle slices, got a new jar yesterday......and I finished off the Fritos.....at the store I got the Southern Home BBQ flavor corn chips, on sale they were half the price of Frito Brand, and amount to the same thing as far as I can tell.......finished one bizarre library book and started another one....now it's time for the park walk......

misting

on the park walk.....didn't get too wet, just sort of.....dampish.....it rained all day yesterday, from when I woke up until when I went to sleep.....it was still raining when I woke up this morning.....but it stopped in time to go for the sunrise walk, which was clouded over.....so I went to the store today.....meals will feature steaks, chops, mashed potatoes, dirty rice, lima beans, corn.....gravy.....lunch meat will be meat loaf and spam....there's country sausage for Sunday breakfast, and if I want breakfast for supper some time......I got bread, pickle slices, peanuts, wheat thins, orange juice......I got a merlot this time instead of the burgundy, a couple of bucks more for the five litre box......I remembered peanut butter this time, which I'd forgotten at least twice in a row......can put it on wheat thins for a snack.....watched some of the baseball last night, but didn't stay awake until the end......