Drinking and Driving

With the Holidays upon us I would like to share a personal experience with my friends
With the Holidays upon us I would like to share a personal experience with my friends about drinking and driving.

As you may know some of us have been known to have brushes with the authorities from time to time on the way home after a "social session" out with friends. Well two days ago I was out for an evening with friends and had several cocktails followed by some rather nice red wine. Feeling jolly, I still had the sense to know that I may be slightly over the limit. That's when I did something that I've never done before - I took a cab home.

Sure enough, on the way home there was the usual seasonal police road block but since it was a cab they waved it past. I arrived home safely without incident. This was a real surprise as I had never driven a cab before. I don't know where I got it and now that it's in my garage I don't know what to do with it.

Everybody please have a safe and Happy New Year---johnnyb

Thoughts

Lots of thoughts going through my mind this morning.  As usual nothing much of importance though.   One of those cloudy, cold winter mornings when the best thing to do is just sit, drink coffee, and go through the massive amounts of seed catalogs that we have received over the past couple of weeks.  This one of the the things that helps get me through the winter.  Garden time is still a ways off, but planning is in order.  This year we are going to use all heirloom and organic, non GMO.   We are going to start some plants inside this year.  Tomatoes and peppers especially.  Maybe some herbs.  We have been given a bunch of cattle mineral  tubs, so we are going to do some container planting.  Especially herbs and some of the root crops like carrots.  Our ground is very heavy here and carrots have a problem growing well.  It is easier to put them in tubs with good soil than to work the soil loose and deep enough for them to grow.  Hopefully our plans will work out.  I had  been amending the soil in  the planting beds this winter before  the weather turned cold.   I have added some leaves, grass and other composting materials to them.  Eventually we will get things closer to where want them, if we live that long.  Hopefully we can have a more successful garden this year.  We always had a good garden in town, but we spent a lot of time on the soil to have a good garden.  It just takes time.  This will be our fourth summer here, so things should start coming around. 

We have been dog-sitting for the new pup for a couple of days.  He is really growing and getting ornerier every day.  He is definitely all puppy.

He is going to be a monster.  Legs are like tree stumps.  Right now it is quiet.  He is outside bunny hunting with the big guys.  We love him to pieces, but sometimes wears on us a little bit.  He wore himself down yesterday, so he slept all night.  He is kind of house-broken.  A couple of "happy" accidents were the cause of our not listening to him when he needed to go.  He will go back home today.  We will miss him, well kind of.  No, that is not right we will miss him.  Our dogs will not miss him.  They are ready for peace and quiet and the ability to do a power nap.

Time to wander on to bigger and better things.  Not really.  Nothing on the social calendar for today.  Matter of fact, there is not much on the social calendar tomorrow either.  Matter of fact, there is no social calendar!!  The only reason I would write anything on a calendar is to keep from forgetting things , like my name or other important facts that us "old" people forget from time to time. 

God Bless--johnnyb

Day After

After I typed in the title, I got to thinking, (which Carol considers a very dangerous thing for me to do).  I stopped before any real damage was done.  There was only minimal smoke damage to the dining room!   Anyway,  My idea was, here it is the day after Christmas.  People are heading back to work or traveling back home if you are lucky enough to have an extended time off.  But, today is always the day after something.   Everyday people are heading into work.  So there always a happy day after,or not.  Where did that come from? My coffee must be too strong this morning.  Maybe I should check the creamer.  I might have grabbed the Baileys by mistake.  Not really, just weird stuff that wonders in and out at times. We all have those moments.  I just like to share them. Then again, it could have been the package and a half of bacon wrapped LiL Smokies smothered and cooked in brown sugar that I ate yesterday.   Almost better than turkey!  Or maybe the tortilla rolls with cream cheese and salsa inside.

We had a real quiet Christmas day.  There was just the two of us.  We just mostly vegged during the day.  Watched some movies, read, ate smokies, napped, ate smokies.  We went across the line into Nebraska on Monday for food, you guessed it-- Smokies--and other decadent things.  We played some Scrabble, did some last minute shopping, you guessed it ---Smokies and bacon, ham and ammo, before Wally World closed for Christmas Eve.   Kids from Nebraska are coming over this evening for Ham Beans and homemade cornbread.  I may just eat myself into oblivion yet.  I probably should go to town and get something for lower GI discomfort.  If not, I may give the dogs a little competition on the SBD's.

Actually I think that is a very good idea.  I will cut this off here and do it.  The temperature is up to 0 degrees from -10 during the night.  Heat wave in the making.

God Bless all--johnnyb

White Christmas

Merry Christmas to all.  May God Bless each and everyone of you on this morning. 

We are having a true white Christmas here.  It is snowing and blowing a little bit.  Not much expected, but it is nice.---johnnyb

Hamburger Stew

I had a request from Stephen for this:

HAMBURGER STEW

2 lbs hamburger, browned in the kettle with some chopped onion (1/2 cup?)
salt and pepper to taste
3tbl of powdered beef broth or to taste  (this is very scientific)
1 large can of diced tomatoes or 1 qt. canned
1 cup sweet whole corn
carrots as many as you like chopped
potatoes as many as you like chopped
shredded cabbage 1/2 head, this I add toward the last as I don't like it too soft
Simmer until all veggies are cooked and enjoy with a fresh loaf of sourdough bread and butter.

Other spices could be added but I like to keep it simple, enjoy.--carol

This is very tasty, especially on a cold, blizzardy day. (Computer does not recognize blizzardy).  What does it know.  Chilly morning here today.  I need to rephrase that statement--It is damned cold here this morning!  We have kids coming for Christmas lunch today.  Home chicken and noodles on mashed potatoes with fresh sourdough bread.  Don't know what there is for dessert, but It will be good also.  May have to have dessert later.

Since I woke up this morning, the world didn't come to an end overnight.  I hope not too many indulged in a kool-aid drinking frenzy in anticipation.

Please, everyone,  be extra careful this Christmas and holiday season.  Lot of crazies out there.

God Bless, all----johnnyb

Winter storm update.

The snow started about noon yesterday and blew through by 10PM.  It is hard to tell how much snow there was because of the wind.  Straight winds in the 40-50 MPH range. A lot of drifts around.  The first picture was taken a couple of hours after it started.  It got worse for a few hours.  We could just barely see across the road at one point.  The snow was horizontal for most of the afternoon and evening..  The moisture will be good if any of it stayed where it will do any good.  Temperature was 13 degrees this morning with the wind chill at 0 or lower.  The wind has come up again, so it is still chilly.  I haven't heard of any power outages in the area.  All of the rural power lines and poles were replaced in this area in the last 5 years, so that probably helps.

The dogs have enjoyed the snow.  They have been romping around and acting plumb stupid in the snow.  the chickens are a different story.  They would not come out of the coop until I scooped a path out and around.  They came out for a bit, checked things out and decided it was better inside.  They have plenty of food and water inside and plenty of room.

Carol fixed a big pot of hamburger stew and homemade sourdough bread for supper last night.  It was just the thing for a snowy winter evening. 

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas.   I am being very optimistic that we will still be around for it.  My son posted on FB that all power companies should off power for about 10 minutes on Friday just to spook the EOTW people!  To any that will be traveling, please be careful.  It's going to take us all to get through the BS that is being handed to us.

God Bless all---johnny

Draco

Winter storm Draco is supposed to hit today.  Why do we have to put a name to a damned blizzard.  What's wrong with " the big one of 2012"?  Or the blizzard of all blizzards of "aught 6"?   It's not like we have 15 or 20 major winter storms go through each winter. I can sometimes, thanks to older age, forget what day of the week it is, but can still usually remember a major blizzard that blew through.  I guess it gives the weather Channel an extra thing to talk about.  Which brings up another burr under the saddle or in my shorts, whichever comes first.  It seem like since TWC was bought by NBC, there is less weather and more reality shows.  If I want to see the weather, I have to wait while someone gets rescued by the Coast Guard, which is usually a re-run, or while an air cargo plane has to battle high winds and foul weather with an old WWII plane with one engine out, (which is also a re-run) until a commercial comes  on and then give the Local on the Eights.  Then if my clock is off a little bit when I turn over to it, I miss it and have to wait until the next 8.  I am convinced it is just a conspiracy to screw up my "busy" daily calendar.  Sometimes I am even forced to look out the window like in the "old days" to check on the weather.  So very unreasonable.   Life is such a bitch. The things we have to endure just to survive.  Whatever happened to the days of "Weatherman Snider"  on  KXXX AM?   You just have ,miss them.   Anyway, we are still expecting a blizzard of sorts.  Forecast to be 4-6 inches of the "white stuff".   That isn't bad in itself,  but also 50 MPH winds to accompany it.  We will see.  It is getting darker from a heavier overcast, so it should be starting soon.   We had a couple of hundred gallons of propane delivered yesterday.  We don't use much propane, hot water heater and kitchen stove.  If the electricity goes out, we have a propane fired furnace that doesn't need electricity for heat.  We have not had to used it.  The pellet stove keeps our little house warm.  But it is nice to have a back-up.

We are having Christmas for some of the kids on Saturday.  They had requested Chicken and home made noodles over mashed potatoes, so Carol has been busy in that aspect.  We have noodles drying over the pellet stove.  We will also give some as gifts.  I told her I would help peel potatoes, but only on Saturday morning.  If the world comes to an end sometime Friday, I would be royally peeved to have peeled all those spuds for nothing!

Can't think of any words of wisdom today.  The old brain is taking the day off.  Actually my whole body might take the day off, especially if it snows.

God Bless All and especially to those who are in deep grief  and at this time of year.--johhnyb