Happy Halloween

Jack was a big hit today at work with his Hamburglar costume. I especially like the Zorro-like hat and mask and am hoping he'll model those again for me sometime...

We will have no trick-or-treaters - in fifteen years of living here, I have yet to lay an eyeball on a ghost or goblin of any sort whatsoever. We do have candy just in case.

When I got home a little while ago, Jack informed me that there's a bird in the house, and he's right. Not that I doubted him or anything, but the first thought that ran through my mind was, "with THREE cats?? Jeez."

I had it cornered in the bathroom, trying to capture it in with some boxer shorts, but it went under the door. I really hate to think what will happen when CarltonKitty (aka the big, yellow hunter) eventually wakes up and spies this thing. He's going to go nuts. I'd really like to get it out of here before then...

It's bound to be exhausted from the five minutes spent in the bathroom with me in pursuit from the shower rod to the top of the vanity fixture to the showerhead and back. Good grief, I'm so incompetent when it comes catching small woodland creatures in the bathroom...

(Insert flashback to Jack's birthday squirrel a few years back).

I did get a good look at that bird, and if nothing else, it's done a good job cleaning cobwebs from the high spots on our exposed beams in the great room. I'd hate for it to die in the claws of our housecats - death would be less gruesome if I just whacked it out of the air with a tennis racquet...

Thankfully I'm not that annoyed with it yet, and in my opinion, getting birds out of the house is a "boy job".

****************

And now to update without deleting what I've previously written, since it does sound pretty good - I take back what I said about my incompetence. Thanks to Yours Truly and a second trip into the bathroom with that bird, it's now a free creature.

When I was a kid and much to Sis' horror, I had no problem catching birds in my bare hands. Thank goodness I outgrew that --

On to other news, Girl is back this evening.

Jack said she was waiting for him when he got home this afternoon and has been in the house since then, hanging out with Jimmy and Dudley. A little while ago she was spooned-up with Dudley beside us on the couch, absolutely wearin'-it-out on a rawhide chip. She LIKES it here.

She and Jimmy have been out to rip & romp for a little while, but now they're back in and seem to be settling for the night.

Oh, the perils of loving dogs.

And, as a treat fit for all, one of the stupidest Halloween jokes ever --
Where do ghosts stay when they're in Las Vegas? (scroll down for the answer)




The BOO-llagio!!


One last note, as October is drawing to a close, is that the pink color scheme is going away tomorrow night. I haven't scheduled my mammogram yet but plan to do it soon. I DO have a doctor again, which is a step in the right direction!

Anyway -

Eat candy, it's Halloween.

Girl wasn't here when I got home. I was late getting home (7:46 by the JettaClock), and Jack was playing tennis. She may really belong to the redneck down the hill, which really kind of sucks. She's a great dog.

We're playing things by ear... More often than not a dog ends up choosing a family instead of a family choosing a dog. For the most part our pets have chosen us.

Dudley is currently the only "intentional pet" in the house. And really, I accidentally found him on petfinder.com - I wasn't really LOOKING for a dog...

I'm expecting unpleasantness with my boss tomorrow at work --

She's pressing me for a resignation date now that she knows I plan to leave, even though I clearly told her last Monday, "This is NOT my resignation, I'm just giving you the heads-up..."

I always learned that being "courteous" is a good thing - something to definitely be, but I have yet to learn that being courteous backfires EVERY single time. Perhaps I need to turn courteous into something else on the big flipchart of life - something that works in practice, since courtesy seems to taste a lot like blood when there are sharks in the water.

Halloween is upon us, and Jack and I are certain that we will have no trick or treaters - we had them when we lived in town, but since moving back to the sticks, we haven't had a single ghost or goblin. One of my co-workers has a little boy that's absolutely adorable, so I'm taking some M&M's for him to her tomorrow, since he can't actually come trick or treating here...

Jack is bringing pumpkins home from work tomorrow, and we're going to carve a few for the porch. We intended to do that this past weekend but didn't get around to it...

Well, it's late, and I must hit the hay, so goodnight all!!

I had to stay home today with a bug.



There are some things that shouldn't be experienced "on the road", and my affliction today is the #1 thing on that list. I'm feeling much better this evening, though, and feel that I've recovered from whatever the problem was.



In dog news --- She's back.



She's been back since this afternoon sometime and seems to be settled in, making herself at home. Right now she's behind me on the futon, spooned in with Thing 1 and Thing 2...



Mom called this afternoon around 4:30, and dog was banging on the sliding door and scratching on the window during our conversation. At some point she began to bark and whine out on the porch, and Jimmy and Dudley started their thing inside. After dark, I opened the door to let Jimmy outside, and she came in...



We shooed her back out, and she did play for just a little while, but after I walked Dudley on the leash, she was ready to come back inside with us.



She has good indoor manners and is terrified of the cats, which is a good thing.



When we've asked her if she wants to go back out, she's just snuggled in a little bit deeper. I don't know what we'll do when bedtime rolls around...



She needs to go outside, but, as we all know from experience, need is one of many variables, especially when puppy dogs are involved. Right now she's happy as a clam, and we're just letting her relax and enjoy her time inside.

deja' Boo?

--as in Beulah...

Isn't she pretty?

A little nervous and shy initially, she's made friends with all of us. I threw a ball for her this morning, and she jumped around like a jackrabbit.

Jimmy is dying to go out and play with her, but he's on daytime house-arrest due to a reported deer-chasing incident and the threat of him being shot graveyard dead. Sometimes living in the sticks is the pits, but we deal with it as best we can. Deer season isn't forever, is it?

Anyway, dog showed up and has been on the deck or out in the yard since mid-morning. She's really sweet. And really skinny. And not wearing a collar. And still there -- I just played with her again...

We've given her goodies and a much-needed dose of wormer.

I found the "stray bowl" at the corner of the deck, cleaned out the leaves and poured a bit of food for her.

She's beautiful with great, flashy markings and those natural, "crazy" ears.

Is this deja' Boo? (I'll try to locate a picture of Beulah during her first days "straying" here)

Halloween Regrets

Jack and I did NOT make it to the Halloween party...

I guess we were both more tired than we thought, because as soon as we finished our dinner, we both started feeling more ambivalent about going. The UT-South Carolina game came on, we got sort of involved in watching it before falling asleep.

Jack cashed in his chips, wedged between both dogs on the futon, around halftime. I lasted until South Carolina took the lead in the fourth quarter.

Though we undoubtedly missed out on a good time, it's always nice to get to sleep early and have a genuinely restful night.

Habitat for Humanity Chili Cook-Off

Yesterday was the annual Chili Cook-Off benefitting our local Habitat for Humanity.

By the time we arrived at 12:15, a few booths were already out of chili, but we got to sample lots of different recipes and visit with lots of familiar folks nonetheless. The weather was perfect for the event, and it appeared that a fabulous time was had by all.

A bake sale was also happening, so we brought home a delicious orange pound cake.

Heading to a Halloween Party Later

Jack had to work today, which is never great on a Saturday, but he had early hours and got to leave at 4:00 this afternoon. Normally he's scheduled later when he has to work weekends, but somehow he lucked-out this week. Plus, he's off tomorrow, so we'll be able to spend a nice, relaxing Sunday together.

We're going to the annual Halloween party at Marina del Bradshaw this evening, so there should be interesting pictures and stories on the blog tomorrow. We initially considered dressing in costumes, but have decided to just go as Pam and Jack wearing seasonally-appropriate apparel. Last year, as "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes", we were dressed in red fleece and STILL got cold...

Sure, we could've planned something, but last year's tomato suits were time consuming to make, and we have so much happening right now, thinking about (much less making) Halloween costumes has been low on the priority list.

In the past, our marina party costumes have been really, REALLY good, and we're both of the opinion that either we do it great or we don't do it at all.

The party won't get underway until later - nine o'clock-ish is when we plan to head down the hill... In the meantime, we're watching college football - Go Bulldogs!!

Comfort Food on a Drizzly Night

We're still getting little bits of off-and-on rain this evening - like a dripping faucet. It's OK. Our yard looks seasonally-appropriate for the first time in months. Fall may be officially on the downbeat with this week's little weather system.





It's the perfect time for comfort food, and Jack created a new one this evening - a tasty zucchini casserole that you might enjoy making yourselves:




Jack's Zucchini Casserole

3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8" - 1/4"
1 medium onion, diced
1 can, low-fat cream of mushroom soup
1 cup whole milk (use heavy whipping cream, if you're feeling indulgent)
1/2 cup shredded parmsean cheese
1 3/4 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease or oil spray a 9 x 9 pan. Layer zucchini slices, onion dices and bread crumbs, reserving enough crumbs to cover the top. Mix soup with milk and pour into pan. You may have to loosen with a fork to get all the liquid to fit in. Spread breadcrumbs and parmesan on top. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Allow to stand until juices absorb and it cools enough to eat. YUM.

And Rain Came

Amazingly enough we've had great rain the past couple of days. The air feels and smells much cleaner today, and for that, Jack's sinuses are thankful! Mine too, but his are particularly edgy this time of year.

Despite being glad for the much-needed end to the drought, a wet commute is never a fun one. Never. The past two days I've spent more than ten hours on the road - as my friend Ani says, "That commute time is like a part-time job."

My commute time isn't going to change anytime soon, especially since I'M TAKING A NEW JOB!! The details are still being worked out, but I've already told my boss that I'm leaving (with the permission of my new boss!!) I'll post more as I learn about what the position is going to entail - it's already exciting. Just having a new job is exciting, and well... I should know; I've had enough of them, but that's par for the course in my line of work. Every now and then you run across some old hag that's been around a hundred years and whose last original thought was a bad color choice at the beauty shop.

Seriously, those people that stay with the same company for years and years are either rare and exceptional or really, really mediocre. There are exceptions to the rule, I'm sure. My personal belief is that employers simply don't provide the long-term benefits that create loyal, career employees.

Aside from that, it's hard to be loyal to executives that bring home exponentially larger salaries than the average worker and exploit their good fortune with those "stay in touch" e-mails to DL.ALLUSERS. Most recently MY executive recounted how much he'd enjoyed his ten days in Italy with the missus and how fabulous the wine is in Verona... I know my morale was boosted by his attempt at a Conde Nast-style overview, and I can only imagine that every other employee felt just the same.

If wishes were salmonella...

My decision has nothing to do with my current employer or vacation-envy. I've simply been offered a much better opportunity with more room for professional growth and career advancement, things that are very important to me when making a decision like this.

Anyway, bedtime looms, and tomorrow morning will be another long commute, but I am taking Friday off, so my week is half over. YAY!

Be safe, and we will too.

To Wrap-Up and Kick-Off

WALKING WITH DINOSAURS

Wow, the last few days have passed in a flash!

To help ease my commute time and exhaustion, I've been staying with a friend from work and her family every now and then during the week. This friend and I both had the same early morning meeting on Friday, so she invited me to spend the night Thursday and go to the big dinosaur show at the arena with the family. Her husband saw the opportunity to have a night at home by himself and offered his ticket to me, which gave both of us a goodie --

The show was fabulous! The life-sized dinosaurs, narration, music, lighting, set effects, EVERYTHING was awe-inspiring. I'm sure I sat there with the same amazed look on my face as all the children in the audience did. The pictures I took during the show turned out better than expected, but they still do not do justice to the production.

Here's a link to someone's video on YouTube that shows bits and pieces of the show. It's only about six minutes long and well-worth watching, because you can see all of the dinosaurs and their movement. The larger ones are controlled by remote radio devices, and the smaller ones are people in 75-pound costumes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_9GnP-lhaY

I expected to have a good time, but I didn't know that I was going to be so amazed and entertained!

IN OTHER NEWS

Some pleasant things are going on for me professionally right now, and Jack & I are so excited we could just pee! The details are still evolving, but expect a big announcement by the end of the week --

The weather has been gorgeous, more like fall than we've had so far, but it still doesn't appear that we'll have much color this year. More trees are starting to turn, and rain this past week certainly didn't hurt, but lots of leaves are just drying up and falling from their limbs.

After hearing of my sister's recent home-cleaning blitz, I flew into my own domestic frenzy yesterday and accomplished quite a bit around here while Jack was at work and then later on into the evening. Jack had to work until 7:oo, and I met him in town for our Saturday night grocery ritual. By the time we finished talking and cleaning and got settled in for TV and dinner, it was quite late, so our schedule today is a bit "off" but I still have cleaning on my mind...

Here's to a safe and happy week for all!!

Middle of the Week

We're finally over the hump...

I took Monday off and really shouldn't feel this tired on Wednesday evening, but at least I'm staying with a friend's family in the city tomorrow night and will be spared one full commute this week. I have an early meeting on Friday, so that's going to work out well -- I give my inservice that afternoon and will be able to leave immediately after that.

I think Jack is off on Sunday again - maybe not... I can't keep up with his schedule for the life of me. It really fluctuates a bunch, which is something I'm not accustomed to. Even before I started working Monday through Friday, my schedule was routine and rotated on a regular basis so that I could plan well in advance of any happening for a day off if I wanted one. With his job, that degree of flexibility is TOTALLY out of the picture. Frustrating sometimes.

Different topic... Tonight was the weekly installment of "No Reservations", my new favorite TV show. Tony was in Indonesia tonight and ate all kinds of wonderful, beautiful food in Bali and Jakarta. There was a roasted pig that had our mouths watering even though it was on TV and some of the most beautiful food that we've ever seen - appetizers garnished with native orchids picked from the garden gate, fruits and vegetables like we just don't see here. It's enough to consider a vacation there if we ever hit "the big time". Beautiful surroundings and scenery... This week's episode was a certain departure from the bush of Africa with it's barely cooked gazelle and ostrich egg cooked in dirt and ash!

'Tis bedtime - goodnight all!

I took the day off to spend some extra time with Jack who didn't have to work today, just because his schedule happened to fall that way...

We ended up not doing much - we'd thought about a fishing trip but never got our act together enough to get the boat out. There was quite a bit of dirty laundry that needed to be addressed, and I guess we just sort of decided we needed more rest.

Jack cooked pancakes and link sausage for breakfast - YUM! I mentioned yesterday that such might be tasty, so Jack picked up the stuff to make them while we were at the store. Wow. Not something I could "go for" all the time, but every now and then NOTHING beats pancakes and link sausage!

Dudley and I took a walk this afternoon - close to two miles altogether - which was nice. I took the camera and ended up with pictures of not much in particular. With the exception of the late-season wildflowers that I've already shared here on the blog and some scraggly crepe myrtles, not a thing is in bloom. Butterflies have all but disappeared, and I'm having difficulty getting close enough to the few birds I've spotted to get anything but blurred, poorly-representative shots most of the time. I was able to get a couple worthy of sharing, but my "most wanted" of the day didn't turn out.

About halfway to the "mile mark", I spotted the neighborhood hawk and tracked him for several minutes, getting a clear shot but not a close one. I'll have to wait for another day to get him... Sometimes in the winter, he perches on the power and phone lines that run through the field across from the house, so in a matter of months, so there will be no shortage of opportunities.

I took another stroll up the hill later to enjoy the sunset -

Tonight I'm thankful for a strong and healthy mother; and that's all I'm saying about that.

Jack is home - he ended up going to work an hour early today and was home earlier than expected. I met him in town for end-of-the-day grocery shopping, and we 'scored the goods' to have hot dogs for dinner. It's been awhile since we've had them, and we're both big fans. With such good football outcomes today - Tennessee and Kentucky (over LSU in an unbelievable triple-overtime victory) both winners - hot dogs seemed in order.

Last evening we had a little visitor on the front porch... Luckily he wasn't THAT interesting to the dogs, and by the time I took Dudley out for his final business trip of the evening, this dude had made an exit, thank goodness. Hopefully getting blessed-out by Jimmy and having multiple flash photographs made by me has convinced him that ours is NOT a porch he wants to frequent. Since getting the vermin-proof garbage containers we haven't had nearly the problem with unwelcome company.

I let Dudley out for a romp early this early this morning - it was still foggy - and he enjoyed it much-ly. He rolled down the hill about the same time Frank let Dixie out for her first business trip of the day, so the two pups had an opportunity to play without the distraction of Jimmy... Frank just got home from a pheasant/sesaonal bird hunting trip to South Dakota with his brother. I gather from the short conversation I had with him that a fabulous time was had by all.

We're fresh on the backside of the New Moon following the Harvest Moon with a mere sliver visible in the sky this evening. It doesn't take a genius or more than a calendar astronomer to predict that the next full moon will bring with it a blanket of frost. Cold weather is coming. We'ved slept without air conditioning for four nights in a row. I swept around and under the stove today...

Thank goodness the week is coming to an end...

I'm not quite as tired as I was last week, so perhaps I'm getting adjusted to the new schedule somewhat.

Interesting experience this morning on my way to the city -

I left a few minutes early and beat the log-jammed interstate traffic that turns the downtown loop into a parking lot after 7:45 and was thrilled that I would make it to my desk WELL before 8:00. Traffic WAS heavy and moving slower than the speed limit as I approached the downtown exits and spotted the metro motorcycle officer on the shoulder of the road. Not giving him another thought outside my initial glance at him, I was SHOCKED when he immediately pulled in behind me and motioned for me to pull over.

"What the...?"

Officer McSomething was very polite in informing me that my tags had expired at the end of September, which I had NOT realized.

Luckily his writing me a ticket didn't delay my arrival at work by more than just a few minutes. If nothing else, I respect his ability to write fast and not keep me sitting four feet from three hundred or so cars a minute for any longer than what is minimally possible.

Jack thought he was going to have to work until 8:00 tomorrow night but found out today that he'll be working the early shift, so our Friday night won't be spoiled after all!!

Sunday Afternoon

The brisket is divine!! We didn't get a chance to eat any of it until lunchtime today, and it was well worth the wait - tender, delicious and perfect.

It was still cooking at bedtime last night, so we left it in the oven, and Jack checked on it periodically until "done time" at around 1:30 this morning. I was unaware of any activity until 2:30, when I work up to the smells of a barbecue joint and found Jack in the kitchen pulling the meat.

And there's a pile of it too - We'll be able to eat on that for several days. I know what I'm having for lunch tomorrow!!! I've never had barbecue in a wrap, but I think it's a good idea, and I'll let everyone know how it goes.

This afternoon I noticed that the tall yellow weeds near the road in front of the house are a haven for wasps and hornets. Yes, I had to be careful, but I didn't get stung and ended up with some great photographs.

Jack's Cookin' a Brisket!

"I'm thinking about doing some smokin' this weekend," Jack said.

It was 7:00 this morning, and we'd been up for a little while. We've gotten accustomed to going to bed with the chickens and getting up at the crack of dawn. That today was Saturday was irrelevant. Both dogs started hitting us up for a "business trip" at six o'clock, and with them, one can only procrastinate so long...

To have two whole days together AT HOME has become a huge deal for the two of us, and having good eats for the experience is an important factor. Jack LOVES to spend time crafting wonderfully smoked meat when he has time, and today seemed the perfect opportunity.

After an hour-long tennis workout at the HomeTown courts, we took a swing through the grocery store where we picked up a brisket and a bag of mesquite chips (and a whole cart-load of other stuff!).

We're now three hours into the long process of perfecting a big piece of smoked beef - Jack just made the transfer from smoker to oven. In four or five hours - WOW! will it be delicious and fallin' apart tender. Tomorrow it will be even better...

In case you're curious - Jack built our smoker from scratch after seeing Alton Brown use one like it on David Letterman's show. A garbage can, a hot plate & extension cord, a couple of feet of chain, assorted nuts & bolts, meat thermometer and a grill rack in the hands of a man on a mission can become a thing of beauty and a chamber of delicious-ness. Chicken, fish, beef and pork -- Jack's done it all. Successfully!

A Day with Butterflies

Here's another little video for your enjoyment.

I did this a few weeks ago but am just now getting around to posting it here on the blog.

Only Wednesday

I can't believe it's only Wednesday...

I've worked twenty-four hours - I've driven twelve.

This is exhausting, though I do love being home with Jack and the critters of the house at night.

One of my friends from work - probably my best friend at work - has invited me to spend the night with her family tomorrow night, and I'm taking her up on the offer. That way I can go in early on Friday morning and get out of Nashville at a decent time, before rush hour. This friend is the same one that invited Dudley and I over for dinner a couple of weeks ago. Apparently "the boys" in the house are disappointed that Dudley will not be coming with me this trip, but Dud is having a blast being here with Jimmy and not having to be transported back and forth. I just can't make him stay in the car down in the garage two days in a row - it wouldn't be fair to him.

If they want to see Dudley badly enough, I'll show them the YouTube video that I posted here on the blog.

The finale of our show, "Top Chef" (GO DALE!!!!), is about to come on, so I'm calling it a night.

I do plan to take the laptop for my visit tomorrow night, so who knows, you might get a Thursday night post.

Home on Monday Night

Boy, it's been awhile since I've been home on a Monday night when it wasn't a holiday or sickness...

I always try to do a Monday night post as a weekly kick-off and welfare check to let everybody know that I'd made it to the city and all, and even though I'm not staying in the apartment anymore, I'm going to keep up my routine if I can.

I still haven't made the train, but this morning I didn't even try. I "slept in" until a little after 5:00 and drove all the way in, which took two hours. I left at 5:00 this afternoon, and it took almost two hours to make it back home. Rush hour wasn't even that bad on the trip home, but mornings, WOW! If I can make it in early, say by 7:00, it's still moving, but holy moly, 8:00 is bad.

Jimmy is still sore and having some pain tonight. He periodically cries out or howls a little bit. I gave him a pain pill -- hopefully he'll settle down soon.

Goodnight - it's bedtime!