My Weblog

Happy Birthday to...........

Deanna. I know you are a faithful reader here and I appreciate that so much. I value your friendship more than you could know. i know you spent your day with family, so, of course, it was a blessed day..........

What's up here? Not a whole lot. I thought and thought about what to do with the Instant Pot and the Slow Cooker. I really wanted both off my countertop. It doesn't look like I'm gonna manage that this trip around the kitchen. But I did manage to stash the Instant Pot though. And, in lieu of stashing the slow cooker, I will manage to stash 2 more small appliances--the blender and the can opener. I use the slow cooker more often than the Instant Pot. I'd like to use the IP more often, but I feel like that will require me to learn a whole new way to cook, and, honestly, I'm pretty happy with the way I cook now. IF I were still working and had someone besides me to feed, I think I'd probably feel differently. 

I've been watching videos from a new person on YouTube. New to me, not new to YouTube.........Anyway she does a lot of cooking videos. She seems to track down recipes on the 'net and then cooks them and does the whole taste test thing, in addition to rating them as to amount of prep work and how well her family liked them. She did one recipe I've made before and really enjoyed. But, somehow, through one traumatic event or another, I'd forgotten about it. Well, I've just added the necessary ingredient's to the shopping list and it'll be back on the menu this week. There is also another recipe she tried and recommended and I've added ingredients for that to the list as well. I'm planning on a pickup tomorrow. 

Last month's food budget was way out of line, due primarily to a high dollar order that was to be delivered. Yeah, well, Instacart swore it was delivered, but I swear it was NOT delivered to me. I complained to both the store ("that's between you and instacart, Ma'am"). Instacart flat out refused to refund what I was charged. Sadly, that pretty well means I won't be shopping at Smart & Final any more in that they do not have pick-up. The good news is that I've managed to keep this month's food budget in line, with some left over to help atone for December's overage. Yup, even with the two new casseroles mentioned above.

Of course, I love casseroles. They enable me to prep once, cook once, and eat 6 or more times. I just freeze the leftovers in single servings and pull one out when I want it. With the two above I'm going to try something I've never done before. I'm going to try prepping both and baking both at the same time. I figure that will save a bit on the gas bill.

Speaking of the gas bill, I'm about to cause that to go up. I have been accumulating ground beef. A pound here, two pounds there, whenever I see it on sale. I am sure I now have enough to fill at least one layer in the canner. I use only the wide mouth jars when I'm doing meat. It's a lot more of a painstaking experience to get the meat out of a regular mouth jar. Anyway, I can fit about 7 wide mouth jars in a layer in the canner. If I have more jars because my treasure hunt in the garage freezer yields more meat, I can double-stack the pints. And one gets about a pound of meat per jar. I know I have about 5.5 pounds of ground beef in the inside freezer, and there's more outside. At this moment, I'm not sure how much I have outside but at least several pounds. I generally figure I get about 5 meals, minimum, from a jar of ground beef, so if I fill 7 jars, that will give me the main ingredient for about 35 meals already cooked and ready to go. If I do 14 jars, that's about 70 meals worth--in addition to what is already on the shelf. Hoping to get this done tomorrow. And that main ingredient will be shelf stable and already paid for! And now you see why my Instant Pot does not get used that much...........

Well, that's all from me for now. I'll probably be back to let you know how the casseroles turned out and how many jars of meat I managed to can. I know you'll be holding your breath for that information.........

 

 

Mysterious Ways

You've heard it before: "God works in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform". Well, I'm here to tell you it's true. Last Monday, late in the afternoon, a lady rang my doorbell. She handed me a business card from something called Purple Leaves. She introduced herself and a second glance at the business card told me she calls herself a "gardener". What came out of her mouth next rocked my world. My yard is truly horrible. In fact, just that day I'd directed a new client to the house in this little community to "the worst looking yard around". Yeah, he found it, so it must be a valid description............ The main part of the yard features at least 2 types of what I would call desert weeds. Also a tree stump and an overgrown olive tree that desperately needs to be trimmed and shaped. And, then don't forget the hedges along the walkway to the front door. They're brown now. You will remember I went into last summer with very limited ability to get around. I've managed to keep those hedges alive for more than 5 years by manually watering them. But, at the beginning of the warm weather last year, just walking out into the front yard was an adventure. When I finally got up enough courage to try to operate the hose, I found that I could not get any water. I had just paid a plumbing bill of almost $1000 to fix 2 broken pipes inside the house. I promise you there was no more money for plumbing. So, I had to let the hedges die. 

So, what did this lady have to say for herself? She wanted to know if I'd allow her to install desert landscaping in my front yard, at no cost to me. In exchange, she wanted to take photos to show what she could do in her advertisements. You coulda knocked me over with a feather. FREE? You wanna do it for FREE? To me, it looks like a mountain of expense and hard work and I'm not capable of managing either of those things. 

Every now and then I remind the good Lord that he is the husband of widows and my other husband is singing praises to Him in Heaven. Yup, I'm a widow as the world sees me, but the Lord is my husband. In my generation, it is normal for husbands to take care of outside stuff, like landscaping and painting. I've been telling Him all about how badly our house needs painted and about how bad our yard looks and asking Him just what, as my husband, He plans to do about it. To be honest, He and I have discussed the painting problem most often. I don't love living in the house with the worst landscaping. But, i'm more concerned about potential wood rot on the trim of the house as the old paint is peeling and the wood is exposed. I quickly informed her as far as I am concerned her name is "Angel" because she was sent by God as an answer to my prayers. It was almost sunset so she said she'd be back the next day.

Of course, when she was gone, I had to hold a praise and worship service all my very own. However, the next day came and went and she didn't show up. I thought maybe she'd thought better of her offer or maybe it was just some sort of stunt she was playing. Nevertheless, I kept her business card front and center on my desk and showed it to the Lord frequently as a reminder. After all, wives are supposed to be nags, right? Today I went to pick up a grocery order and when I came home, she was here, working in the yard. She told me that she'd gotten busy in another part of town and couldn't get back before dark til today. According to her she is having quite an uptick in her business. Funny thing, part of my Bible reading yesterday was "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom..........." She may not get back for a few days, but the way I look at it, any little thing she does has to be an improvement. Please help me pray that God will continue to bless her business.

This Crazy Life

I can be so obsessive/compulsive. I have been stewing for several days now over Corning Ware. If you've been here a few times, you are almost certainly aware I love the stuff. I truly think Corning Ware provides one of the best non-stick surfaces around. I don't care what kind of stuff you cook in CW, it is always easily cleaned. You might want to soak it for a few minutes if it's really messed up, but, after soaking, it is highly unlikely you'll need any elbow grease at all to get that piece of CW clean. So, the last thing I want to do during the great purge is give up any Corning Ware. That, however, means I need a good place to store it. I had a place where some of it was stored, but not all of it. Now that I've pulled it all together, it won't all fit in that space. I can get most of it in that same old spot, the top shelf of a bottom cupboard. The logical thing is to put the remainder right below it. However, this one of those goofy cupboards that has a blind corner. I have the remaining CW to get in there as well as a dutch oven. I was really hoping to store some small appliances in there as well. I want to get my crock pot and my Instant Pot off the countertop. And this weird blind cupboard is the space that is available. I'm not even sure those items will really fit through the narrow opening that is available. Then I have to try to figure out what should be front and center, what can go behind that and what should go in the blind spot. All of this is further complicated by the knowledge that one of the CW pieces I need to situate somewhere is a 9 x 13 baking dish. So, should that go with the Corning Ware or with the baking pans? Stew, stew, stew..........I can't make up my mind. And, just getting this stuff into that bottom cupboard is going to be tough since I'm afraid to kneel down there for fear I won't be able to get back up. What if, in my debilitated state, I get everything in that cupboard, only to decide it doesn't work for me? I would have a tough time trying to reach it to move it to another spot. The craziest thing about all this is that, in that I can't decide, I've had the dining room table covered with Corning Ware for days and nothing's getting put away. And, being OCD, I just can't seem to give myself permission to move onto some other area that needs work til I've finished with this stuff..........

I have the funniest dog. She and I are still getting to know each other and she's different from any other dog I've ever had and hard to figure out. It is part of the pack instinct when your dog goes with you to the bathroom. In the wild, it's important to safeguard oneself from predators. However, when a dog is following nature's call, it is in a vulnerable position. So, the pack will stand guard to ensure the safety of the at risk member. So, a dog does not just follow you to the bathroom because he/she loves you. He/she is there to help protect you from predators. However, I'm convinced that somewhere along the way, this dog has been trained NOT to go into the bathrooms or kitchen. So she "patrols". My house is laid out sort of u-shaped. The hall bath is located on the shorter leg of the U, right at the end of the hall. Alissa spends my potty time marching back and forth in front of the door to the bathroom. I guess that reconciles her pack inspired protectiveness with her training not to come into the bathroom.

She "cries" a lot. I really can't figure out why. She has water. She has food. She has free access to her multitude of toys. She has free access to me. Why is she crying? I dunno.

I spent all those years with Parker who didn't bark. Not even when someone was ringing the doorbell or knocking on the door. THIS dog barks at doorbells on TV. This means I have to be paying attention to what's going on on screen, otherwise I get to make a lot of trips to the front door, only to discover there's no one there.........

Another thing she does that is weird is she bends in half. She'll get out in front of me when I'm walking through the living room or down the hall. Then, she will stop and bend herself into an almost perfect u-shape to look at me. Weirder still, while she is in this oddball position, she will lift her back leg on the side that bends inward. It is really strange to look down and see this. I'm going to start wearing the camera on the strap around my neck so I can grab a picture of this. I think it's truly unique and in this case a picture sure would help make what i'm trying to explain more understandable. 

She throws her dog food all over the floor. It's like she digs in the bowl and maybe gets too much food for her mouth to hold. So, maybe it falls back out of her mouth a piece or two at a time. So, my office floor is covered in pieces of dry dog food, particularly in the area within 2 feet of her dish. If I delay feeding her, she will clean up most of it, but otherwise, it's just left there to decorate the carpet........

I have walked this earth for a LOT of years. Now, at this ripe old age, I seem to be hatching a cold sore. I noticed last night that my upper lip seemed sore. Then it began to swell. Now there is a distinct spot that is both swollen and sore and "hard". I looked closely at it in the mirror and it kinda looks like it has a "head" on it. But, it's far too sore to squeeze. I read somewhere that some people take a needle & pop that head. I am going to have to consult Dr. Google as this is an entirely new experience for me. I have no idea how i ended up with a cold sore for the first time after 70+ years or how I should "treat" it.

Well, that's it for now. I'm going to go stare at my collection of Corning Ware and pray for inspiration...........

I deserve a small celebration, but...........

I hurt too bad. I believe I have finally sorted all the pots and pans. I'm a little confused because I have matched everything with its lid but I have one lid leftover. I knew the dishwasher ate Tupperware tops and bottoms and i knew the washer ate socks. But, what the heck eats a metal pot? I dunno. 

Did I get rid of everything I should have? Probably not, but I did get rid of one small saucepan, one small skillet two large skillets, and when the dishwasher finishes running, I'll add a pressure cooker (never used) to the donate pile. One small saucepan is in the dishwasher and everything else that I'm keeping has been put away. I can see my dining room table again. I'm guessing that means it's time to put away the few Christmas things I put out on the table to mark the season----just a lighted cardboard "church" and a Christmas-y table cloth.

My next puzzle is Corning Ware. If you want to know the truth, I love the stuff. If I decide I should donate some of it, it will hurt. I love that I can take it from the oven and put it in the freezer or vice versa. And it's my experience that with a 20-30 minute soak, it cleans up better than most any metal piece of cookware. Sadly, I know if I reduce my Corning Ware inventory, I will have a place IN a cupboard for the Instant Pot. I'd love to get that off the countertop. In a tiny kitchen, it takes up a lot of space on a countertop.

However, for reasons unknown, I'm hurting tonight. My back, which has been relatively well-behaved for months, has decided this is the night to make my life miserable. It, thankfully, has not spasmed, but it's out of place and sore. It makes the act of standing up from a seated position, much more painful than just the arthritic knees. And, being in a standing position, walking or bending are all prohibitive. I have felt 2 vertebrae "thunk" back into position throughout the day, but when I get like this I usually have a total of 4-5 vertebrae knocked out of proper position. As long as it doesn't spasm, I'll be okay in a day or so. Meantime, I should be able to survive on Ibuprofen if need be. 

I watched Saving Private Ryan for the 4th or 5th time this evening. Then, curious about some detail of casting, I went over to the IMDB website. On that website, there is quite a long list of FAQ's. Just for the heck of it, I decided to read through those as well as the answers. If those questions are actually "frequently asked", I've come to the conclusion I ought to be a retired Colonel, at least. Some of those questions are so dumb, I wonder if people who have watched this movie are generally folks of IQ 70 or below..........Many of the questions are answered right in the movie. Others are so elementary it's pathetic. Apparently we've not done a very good job of teaching history for quite some time. No wonder our world is in rough shape..........

 

It's too simple to be good, right?

No, not right. I saw this on youtube the other day and I was NOT sure I'd like it. But, it looked SO easy (with modifications) so I decided to try it. 

I used a pint (16 oz) of canned chicken breast, 1 can of creamed corn, and some leftover mashed potatoes. Oh, and don't forget--a handful of shredded cheese--mine was Mexican blend.

Instructions: dump the chicken, drained, into an appropriate sized baking dish. You are going for a dish that will allow you to cover the bottom with chicken, patted down evenly. On top of the chicken, dump a can of creamed corn. On top of that add your leftover mashed potatoes (kind of like if you were making a shepherd's pie). Sprinkle the cheese on top. Place in a 350 oven and bake til it is heated through and the cheese is all melty. 

The last time I made mashed potatoes, I intentionally made more so I could have leftovers for this and for potato cakes. I used a pint jar of my home-canned chicken. My mashed potatoes were kind of watery (mistake I made). Nevertheless, this took maybe 5 minutes to throw together and was really quite tasty. An added bonus for me is that most of the chicken I own is pressure canned in pint jars. Very little frozen chicken around here and NO store bought cans of chicken. And I'm always looking for ways to use my canned chicken............Win/win.

Of course you could lightly brown some chopped frozen chicken breast if you wanted to. And you could stop everything, peel, cook, and mash some potatoes if that appeals to you. I actually had 2 helpings of what I made. That's one way to stretch one pound of chicken to feed 4 people. I have 3 LARGE (firsts and seconds) servings to go into the fridge or freezer for another night's dinner.

Oh, and the chicken was canned in its own juices, so there's about 2/3 cup of very nice broth to put on Miss Alissa's dog food. She'll think she's gone to heaven! If you don't have an Alissa, save that broth and use it in lieu of water when you make your next batch of rice. 

 

Is advertising of the devil?

I spend a LOT of time on the internet. I comfort myself by reminding myself that at least I am learning something there. For example, I learned to preserve food by canning from youtube. I am watching frugality type videos, searching for ways to save a bit of money here and there. I have also been watching a lot of videos on minimalism. It's not that I think I'll ever get my house to "minimal", but I'd rather I deal with all the stuff in my house than that I keel over someday and leave it all for my daughter or grandkids to deal with. But, I have to learn how to make the decluttering decisions and youtube IS helping with that. 

But every 4 or 5 minutes, in the middle of whatever I'm learning, there's an advertisement for health insurance for senior citizens, or a special medication for breast cancer, or for one of those services that delivers the uncooked meal kits to your door, or...........It's a constant barrage and it's a foot from my face. 

I am seeing changes in advertising that I'm put off by because they're pushing a "social" agenda with which I don't necessarily agree. I am thankful I no longer have a 5 year-old looking over my shoulder! I've noticed a lot of ads which feature a group of people now have mixed race couples. And of course, in these ads, everyone is living an idyllic life. I don't have anything against mixed race marriage per se. However, marriage between 2 Caucasians or 2 African Americans are ending at an alarming rate. And, generally, (and I recognize this is a generalization) we believe that young people looking to get married should have similar backgrounds, similar life experiences. After all, our backgrounds and experiences from childhood, heavily influence our expectations for what our marriage will look like. These expectations, when not met in the way with which we're familiar can cause disappointment, confusion, and conflict. Years ago I had two friends who were madly in love. They truly had much going for them. However, he was raised in lower middle class white Chicago and she was raised in a poverty stricken black area of the south. He was Caucasian, she was an African American. They became engaged and decided it was time to introduce their future spouses to their families. While visiting both families, they were stared at and snide comments were made within their hearing and to their parents. People on the street threatened them and so on. Once they began thinking about how well they could stand up to a constant barrage of the same stuff for a lifetime, and what their children might have to bear, they decided to break it off. It hurt each of them deeply to walk away and it was only after a long period of weighing the situation that they arrived at their decision. This is not a popular thing to talk/think about, but with all those idyllic corn flake ads, will our own kids take the time to consider the long term consequences of a mixed race relationship into which they might enter as they grow to adulthood? There is always hope that the differences between white culture and black culture will even out, but with kids being taught Critical Race Theory in grade school, my own hope of that is diminished.

There also a lot of advertising that features same sex relationships. I am a Bible-thumping Christian and, as such, I cannot approve of that life-style. Yet, one of my favorite people in the world has been living with his same-sex partner for 20 years. I thoroughly approve of this particular fellow as a person. He is one of the kindest, most giving human beings I've ever known. And I know he has been much abused by his "Christian" relatives. But, I would not want to be watching those ads with a young child looking on. I wouldn't want my grandchildren to be influenced to think it is "normal" when I believe it is sinful. But all we need to create the idea of "normality" is repetition. After all look how Hitler, through repetition, managed to cause Germans to hate Jews. I am well aware that other people, looking at my lifestyle, would undoubtedly find things they think are wrong. In my mind, if I am doing something you think is wrong, that is a far cry from me doing what the Bible says is wrong.

I know my opinions on this sort of thing don't match popular culture. However, "everybody's doing it" doesn't necessarily make it best or right. And this is MY blog for which I pay money every month, so I figure I have the right to express my opinions here. The broad theme of this post is for all of us to become more aware of the messages (both directly product-related and "social") of what we allow into our hearts and minds. 

Stymied again........

I have been dithering about the kitchen decluttering again. Dithering isn't much help unless the good Lord decides to drop something revelatory on me in the middle of my dither..........

I have my dining room table covered in pots and pans and lids. My first act was to match up all the pots with their lids. Then I noticed the lids were kind of yucky. So, they all are getting washed. I'll do a second load today. Then I realized that the bottoms of the cupboards in the back, is the place where most of the easily donatable stuff lives. It is, however, the place hardest for me to get to. Getting down on the floor is both painful and scary. There is the ongoing challenge of getting back up once I've gotten down there. I really don't want to starve or die from dehydration right there in the middle of my kitchen. 

After much thought I had just about decided to skip looking at the stuff in the back of the bottoms of the cupboards. On these bottom cabinets, there are two shelves. The top shelves slide out. But the bottoms are stationary. Maybe I could just go through the things I could reach easily and hope to get the remainder of the bottom cabinets sometime later when I'm stronger. 

Then came the revelation. I was trying to reach something difficult in the garage the other day. When I couldn't I grabbed one of Joe's golf clubs. I managed to use the golf club as if it were a long-handled hook and my problem in the garage was solved. The revelation is to try the golf club trick on those bottom cabinets. I'm betting it's gonna work...........Stay tuned for an update.

Okay, do you think people would think it's crazy to have a golf club in your kitchen? Well, that means either people are gonna think I'm crazy or they're going to adjust! Yes, I really DO have a golf club in my kitchen and it's a BIG help. I've used it to clear out the backs of two shelves in there so far. I've filled up two brown paper grocery bags in the last two days. I donated 12 pie plates and I'm still wondering if I kept too many, LOL. I also donated my waffle maker. I may have used it once or twice in the 30 years I've owned this place, but, for sure, not in the last 20 years. I kinda don't think I'll miss it. I should have donated a springform pan, but I kept two. I may end up getting sensible on that and deciding to only keep one. We'll see. Donated a microwaveable bundt type pan and numerous little kitchen gadgets. 

Haven't made the final decision on the pots and pans yet. I have gotten rid of a steamer pan and a pan designed for poaching eggs. I've never used the steamer pan so I won't miss it. As for the poaching pan, I had totally forgotten I owned it so I'm pretty sure I won't mourn about it being gone. Besides, way back when, when I did use it, it was a demon to clean. 

With the pots and pans, there are two main puzzles. The first puzzle is with regard to 3 large skillet type pans. They are all 3 about the same size except that one is much deeper. In other words, you could fry up some beef and have plenty of room in the pan to put together a stroganoff sauce without spilling. Of the other two, the primary difference between them is that one has two handles and the other only one. Cooking for one, I surely do not need three of these pans. The other mystery concerns two large 5 or 6 qt stockpots. One is one of those pasta pots that was so well advertised on TV a number of years ago. The other is just an ordinary stock pot but much better quality. One of those is gonna go; I'm just not sure which one........(Probably the pasta pot.)

So far, I have gone through all the bottom cabinets but one. I still have one upper cabinet to go. And, I've been through all the drawers. And, of course, I have to make the final cut on the pots and pans. Darn, I almost managed to forget I also have to do the upper cabinet that will require me to climb. I chickened out when it's turn came up so now I'll have to circle back. Anyway, then there are 3 open shelves that contain dry goods. Mostly, as best as I can figure it, that will require wiping down the shelves and searching for duplicates that I can combine somehow to save space and sanity. And I have shelves in a bay window, mostly used for mugs and cups. I foresee many of those going away. I have 4 favorite mugs, giant things, I use over and over. There are probably 6 large mugs I don't use and at least a dozen odd mugs, various souvenirs, etc., that are never used. It seems better to make them available to someone who will use them.

I had a client help me get the bigger of the 2 dog beds I inherited when I got Alissa out of the house. I just put it on the curb, hoping someone would want it and would quietly take it home with them. No such luck. I felt bad about ditching it but, by today's standards, it made the master bedroom feel minuscule. I lived in fear of stumbling over it in the middle of the night on the way to the bathroom. It ate up a major portion of the walking space at the foot of the bed.............

That's it for now. See ya later.......

 

Slowly, Slowly..............

Last night I cleaned, decluttered, and organized a cupboard. Doesn't sound like much, does it? One cupboard? Well, it was! I've been trying to talk myself into it for several days. First of all, it's a lower cupboard. That meant I was going to have to find a way to work at floor level. Second, the cupboard was full of lots of little things. And, I was going to have to haul all those little things out of there and sort through them, one by one. Then I'd have to find a way to get what I was keeping back in there. The big problem with all that is this body I walk around in. I've lost a lot of strength and flexibility due to last year's accident. I am also not as well-padded as I used to be, so kneeling or sitting on the floor is painful.

I grabbed a cushion, threw it on the floor, and tried kneeling on it. Kneeling uses thigh muscles. That is one of my strength issues--my thighs. I gave up on the kneeling and sat on the cushion. I am not exaggerating when I say that after pulling all the stuff out, getting back to vertical was both very difficult and scary. I truly didn't know if I'd be able to do it. I made it, after asking the good Lord for help, but I think it was about 75% Him and 25% me. And I still had to sort through the stuff and get it all back in in some organized manner. The sorting involved a whole lot of bending. There was stuff under there I'll never need again, and if I do, would cost me a very small amount to replace. So, a lot of stuff went into the trash. But I was still faced with the challenge of putting a lot back in, and by then, a sore back. I latched onto a big box lid, like the size of a box of copy paper. That became a "drawer" of sorts which was a big help with the things that needed to go in the back. Instead of contorting myself to try to reach the back of that deep hole, I just slid my "drawer" forward. That helped a lot and will help a lot in the future if I need something from the back. However, I still had some leftovers which wouldn't fit in my "drawer". So, I needed to try to be a contortionist after all.

It would be a great help if I had one of those wire basket-y things which can be installed in a cupboard and pulled out/pushed back in on a whim. But, money for that is not in my current budget. It would also be nice If I had a nice plastic bin instead of a cardboard box lid, but money for that is also not in the budget. So I guess last night was one of those "do what you can with what you've got" kinda nights. My box lid is not pretty and you'll never see it on Pinterest, but, for now, it works. 

So, I've faced up to two of the hardest cupboards I have--the Tupperware cabinet a couple of weeks ago, and the under-the-sink cabinet last night. I still have 5 floor level cabinets to go. That's a scary thought, but none of them will be as tough as last night. I'm feeling as if I've crossed a major hurdle.

Miss Alissa and I crossed a major hurdle together on Monday. I was meeting with some new clients. I've known one of the two guys for 20 or more years. The other I just met. Anyway, they picked up lunch and we met here--first time there's been anyone in the house other than Alissa and me. Alissa barked when they came to the door. She also barked a little more as they invaded her territory. Then she quieted down. Though we had food, there was no begging. She didn't demand to be petted; she didn't jump up on them when they came in. All in all, for a first time experience, I think she did very well. I have to say that even with the barking she made noise but she was in no way aggressive. She gets an A+ from me!

 

 

Budget challenges..........

I have been fighting with my grocery budget for days. I have gotten my on-line shopping account for Smith's working again, by some miracle from the hand of God. And, after going through Smith's food ad I've loaded up my cart--a combination of some wants, sale items, and replacement items. Again and again I've reviewed what's in the cart. By now, all the wants are gone. As the days have passed, my replacement needs increase. And, I've dug in my heels on one sale item. I AM going to, come hades or highwater, buy at least 2 whole frozen chickens, on sale for $.89 a pound. I HAVE, in days past, seen a better price on whole chicken, but not in a long time. In fact, I've been watching for whole chickens to go on sale for weeks and weeks. I know, if handled properly, I can probably get at least 14 meals from one chicken. That's about $.32 for the cost of meat in one serving, assuming about a 5 pound chicken, with other items already on hand and not costing any extra money. 

So, first I'll roast the chicken, make some mashed potatoes, and use up an open bag of frozen veggies--probably broccoli or peas. That will probably account for one or two chicken legs. I will use the pan drippings to make a thin gravy for the potatoes. I will take the remainder of the meat off the bones. I will make "potato pancakes" from the leftover mashed potatoes. I can use some of the breast meat to make chicken sandwiches or chicken salad. I can use some of the remaining meat, chopped, to make shredded chicken and top it with barbecue sauce. More sandwiches, but with a different dominant flavor. I can use more of the chicken to make fried rice. And finally the scraps will go into a broth made from the leftover gravy and broth made from the carcass and skin to which I've added carrots, onions, noodles, and celery to make a very satisfying chicken noodle soup. So you can see why I refuse to give up on those whole chickens. And when I've eaten all that, I'll still have another chicken in the freezer. Or, I may just throw caution to the wind and buy 4 chickens. After all, I have both last week's budget and this week's budget to play with. 

In any case, anyway I look at my shopping list, pared as much as I can, it's well over one week's budget. Maybe my best move is to count this a two week shop. My last food shopping bill was on December 29. If I hold out on going to the grocery store til Monday, that'll be 13 days between shopping adventures. So, I can manage it. But, my inability to get the total down to the proper budgetary total for a week bothers me. 

 

Fresh wind............

It's amazing what walking away, a night's sleep, and some prayer will do for a person. I have conquered that last part of the "baking" cabinet. And, once I got into it, it was easier than I had thought. I'm glad that's done! 

I've been thinking about the "Valley of the Dry Bones" and how Ezekiel was directed by God to prophecy those bones back to life. Ezekiel got to watch as the loose bones were pulled together into whole skeletons, then he watches as tendons and ligaments formed, then muscle tissue formed, and finally covered in skin. Then God breathed into those old, dead bones and they were resurrected to form an army. I'm thinking that any condition or disease that existed to contribute to those dead bones was gone when God breathed into them and restored life to them. I don't think God's resurrected army limped into battle because they had arthritic joints or were born with one leg shorter than the other. I have been praying over myself, reminding God of the great creative miracles He did in the Valley of Dry Bones and reminding Him that the Word says He "is no respecter of persons". And so I've been asking for that same resurrecting power to manifest in me. I am certainly managing to hold onto my motivation better. And my knees and my wrist are much less painful than they were. I just love when God shows up!

So, today, I tackle the last of the kitchen drawers and the last of the upper cabinets. That cabinet will be a challenge as it is above the fridge. I shall be required to climb. But, for resurrected dry bones, I'm sure that is no challenge, right? 

I have mucho trash to get out of the house. And the garbage bin is still out by the curb. I went out late in the afternoon yesterday and found that only the recycling bin had been emptied. So, I left the garbage bin out there, in hopes that the sanitation people hadn't just ignored it, but rather were running late and might still come. I guess I'll have to tote some trash out there and check on that. Funny, last week it was the recycling bin they didn't empty.........