May 31, 2005
Wow! Another month gone by.
I hope everyone had a great weekend. Here’s a few unusual holidays to celebrate if you choose to do so.
I’m quite partial to “Name your poison day” on the 8th,
and “Smile Power Day” on the 15th
Hollerin’ day on the 16th sounds pretty great too.
I haven’t hollered in a long time. Count me in!
May 29, 2005
Every day a new adventure
A man wearing a Zorro mask and nothing else, has women in one Bucks County community on alert. He's no Hollywood hero.
The naked suspect has been terrorizing women in downtown Doylestown, PA, showing himself and then disappearing. Police are on his trail.
Anything new and exciting in your neighborhood?
May 28, 2005
I've been Tagged!
And here is the information:
Total number of films I own on DVD/Video: I’m embarrassed to say – quite a few, maybe less than a hundred.
The last film I watched: Chicago
Five films that I watch a lot or that mean a lot to me: Somewhere in Time, Out of Africa, Chicago, Harry Potter, the first one, When Harry met Sally, Benny and Joon. (I especially like Benny & Joon, although it didn't make too much of a splash to the general movie-going public)
And now I'm off to tag someone else.
May 26, 2005
Happy Blogaversary to Me
It’s been two years since my first post, at which time I posted one of my favorite recipes.
I thought I’d repeat it in celebration. This is the first recipe I entered into my personal cookbook.
Thanks, Mom.
(The recipe is listed in the extended entry.)
2 cups elbow macaroni, cooked
1 10 ounce package cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 cup flour
8 tablespoons butter
3 cups milk
---------------------------------
Butter a 2 quart casserole with about 2 tablespoons of butter
make a cheese sauce with 6 Tablespoons of the butter, flour, 3 cups milk and the grated cheese.
Mix with hot cooked pasta, and let sit till cold. (very important)
Top with additional grated cheddar cheese.
Put in well (use the remaining butter) buttered casserole dish and bake at 375 degrees for about 40 minutes or until quite brown and bubbly.
May 25, 2005
Celebrate!!
And a Happy Year to follow!
May 23, 2005
What a treat!
First time this year!
May 20, 2005
Trying out a new word
It is the practice of working at home and communicating with your fellow workers through the phone, typically with a computer and modem.
It saves the employee getting to and from work and saves the employer from supplying support services such as heating and cleaning, but it can also deprive the worker of social contact and support.
So far, I'm lovin' it!
May 18, 2005
A DAY OF COOKING
Last weekend Don came home with a big bag of Vidalia Onions (my favorite). I decided that I’d better do some cooking.
I made a double batch of my World Famous Chili, and thought I’d like to try something new as well .
I went on the internet and looked at some onion soup recipes, and decided to try my hand at an easy version of Cream of Onion Soup. Well, the recipes all looked good, and I took the best of several different recipes, and created a big pot (doubled the recipe size) of this soup.
I was a little dubious, because I love French Onion Soup so much, and thought this might come in a poor second.
NOT! It is delicious! So, if you’re looking for something a little different, you might want to try this:
CREAM OF ONION SOUP
2 large onions (Vidalia onions if available)
1 clove. Garlic, smashed
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup flour
3 cans of chicken stock
1/2 cup cream
Cut the onions into fairly small pieces, and sauté with the garlic very slowly in 4 tablespoons of butter.
Add flour and stir till well blended with the onions.
Add the chicken stock. Bring to the boil stirring continually, then simmer for 20 minutes.
Add cream and serve. Top with chopped chives (optional)
May 16, 2005
Dinner Guests
We feed the birds year ‘round, and really enjoy seeing the different varieties who come to dine.
Today we had two new guests – a pair of Mallard ducks – hard to believe.
We’re a long way from any source of water, that is unless you want to count swimming pools!
Update – Don just spoke to a nearby neighbor who has a pool.
They spend part of every day poolside at his house!
I think that the chlorine in the pool wouldn't be a good thing.
May 14, 2005
Weekend Exercise Routine
I just received in an email message this exercise which is suggested for seniors, but I think it would be good for people of all ages.
This exercise is meant to build muscle strength in the arms and shoulders.
It seemed so easy I thought I'd pass it on to some of my blog friends. The article suggested doing it three days a week. 
Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side.
With a 5-LB. potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides, and hold them there as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, then relax.
Each day, you'll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.
After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb. potato sacks, then 50-lb. potato sacks, and eventually try to lift a 100-lb. potato sack in each hand and hold your arms out straight for more than a full minute.
After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks.
May 13, 2005
Paraskevidekatriaphobia
This great long word means Fear of Friday the thirteenth.
Friday the thirteenth is considered the unluckiest of days, unless you were born on Friday the thirteenth. If you were born on this day then Friday the thirteenth is your lucky day.
If you'd like to read a LOT about this day, click here.
So far, I have managed to avoid Paraskevidekatriaphobia.
Anyone superstitious?
The origins of Friday superstitions are many. One of the best known is that Eve tempted Adam with the apple on a Friday. Tradition also has it that the Flood in the Bible, the confusion at the Tower of Babel, and the death of Jesus Christ all took place on Friday.
May 10, 2005
Yet Another Hierarchial Officious Oracle
It started out as Jerry's Guide to the World Wide Web," named after co-founder Jerry Yang.
The name is an acronym for "Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle," but Yang and co-founder David Filo apparently looked up the word in the dictionary, and insist they selected the name because they liked the general definition of a yahoo: "rude, unsophisticated, uncouth."
Today, both Yang and Filo maintain the title of "Chief Yahoo."
The word was originally invented by Jonathan Swift and used in his book, "Gulliver's Travels". In the book, it represents a peron who is repulsive in appearance and action and is barely human.
May 09, 2005
Good Dinner
We had an impromptu dinner with good friends the other night, and he fixed French Onion Soup.
It was a little different than the kind you get at a restaurant, and it was really delicious.
Thanks again for the great dinner.
And the great company.
French Onion Soup - Alton Brown
10 sweet onions (like Vidalias) or a combination of sweet and red onions
3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups white wine
10 ounces canned beef consume
10 ounces chicken broth
10 ounces apple cider (unfiltered is best)
Bouquet garni; thyme sprigs, bay leaf and parsley
1 loaf country style bread
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
Splash Cognac (optional)
1 cup Fontina or Gruyere cheese, grated
Trim the ends off each onion then slice from end to end. Remove peel and finely slice into half moon shapes.
Set electric skillet to 300 degrees and add butter. Once butter has melted add a layer of onions and sprinkle with a little salt.
Repeat layering onions and salt until all onions are in the skillet.
Do not try stirring until onions have sweated down for 15 to 20 minutes. After that, stir occasionally until onions are dark mahogany and reduced to approximately 2 cups.
This should take 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do not worry about burning.
Add enough wine to cover the onions and turn heat to high, reducing the wine to a syrup consistency. Add consume, chicken broth, apple cider and bouquet garni. Reduce heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes.
Place oven rack in top 1/3 of oven and heat broiler.
Cut country bread in rounds large enough to fit mouth of oven safe soup crocks. Place the slices on a baking sheet and place under broiler for 1 minute.
Season soup mixture with salt, pepper and cognac.
Ladle soup into crocks leaving one inch to the lip. Place bread round, toasted side down, on top of soup and top with grated cheese. Broil until cheese is bubbly and golden, 1 to 2 minutes.
May 07, 2005
May 06, 2005
HAVE A LITTLE LIQUID REFRESHMENT
According to my May Holiday Calendar, Today is beverage day.
May I suggest you have a glass of the beverage of your choice.
And Have a great weekend!
May 04, 2005
EMOTICONS
Emoticons are ASCII glyphs originally designed to show an emotional state in plain text messages. Over time they have turned into an art form as well.
Emoticon etiquette."
Don't overdo the use of emoticons. More than one in a paragraph and three in a message are a good indicator you are a "newbie."
Please note: The nature of the internet has always been an "anything goes" type of culture.
In most cases, emoticons are constructed to be viewed by tilting your head left so the right side of the emoticon is at the bottom of the "picture.
For lots more emoticons, click here.
Near as any research can pinpoint, the emoticon was invented by Scott E. Fahlman on 19 September 1982 in a message posted on Carnegie Mellon University bulletin board systems.
Fahlman is quoted as saying "I propose that the following character sequence for joke markers: :-). Read it sideways.
May 03, 2005
The List
This is something that I hardly ever do, but I don't want to disappoint Dawn. Warning - I'm not very good at this sort of thing.
I have been tagged by Dawn
The object of this exercise is simple. Pick five from the list and complete the phrase. Feel free to add additional occupations after you’ve done yours. Pass it on to others. Silly? Yeah. Fun? Of course!
If I could be a scientist…
If I could be a farmer…
If I could be a musician…
If I could be a doctor…
If I could be a painter…
If I could be a gardener…
If I could be a missionary…
If I could be a chef…
If I could be an architect…
If I could be a linguist…
If I could be a psychologist…
If I could be a librarian…
If I could be an athlete…
If I could be a lawyer…
If I could be an innkeeper…
If I could be a professor…
If I could be a writer…
If I could be a llama-rider…(by Ogre)
If I could be a bonnie pirate…(By Teach)
If I could be a servicemember…(By Jeremy)
If I could be a business owner…(By Blue 944)
If I could be an actor… (By Blue 944)
If I could be an agent…(By KelBel)
If I could be video game designer…(By KelBel)
If I could be a comic book artist…(By Stoli)
If I could be a hooker…(By Pollo Loco)
If I could be a crack addict (by Elizabeth)
If I could be a porn star (by Elizabeth)
If I could be a mime (by Garrison)
If I could be a domestic engineer (by Rick)
If I could be a chimney sweep (by laine)
If I could be a masseuse (by laine)
If I could be a taxi driver (by Brian)
If I could be a priest (by Brian)
If I could be the Sherrif Of Nottingham (Karen)
If I could be a dancer (Karen)
If I could be Santa Claus (Karen)
If I could be on a reality TV show (Dawn)
If I could be a magician (Dawn)
If I could be a librarian, I'd be sure to have children's hour reading at times when working parents could bring their children.
If I could be a gardener, I'd have the prettiest lawn in the neighborhood.
If I could be a chef, I'd invite all my blog friends for a gourmet dinner.
If I could be a chimney sweep, I'd be sure to shower every night.
Well folks, that's all I got.
Have a nice day!
May 01, 2005
May
As I was looking at this calendar of unusual holidays for May, I was simply amazed at how many days I would like to celebrate. I can usually choose one or two events, but this month I don't think I can limit it to so few.
Happy May.