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 |  A Journal of our Adventures in Country Living.... |
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"Home is where the heart is" and this is the continuing story of our life on the farm....where our heart is and where we make our home. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** I want to thank janieruthryals for this wonderful Merit Badge: ![Merit Badge in Nature
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For the wonderful visit to your farm, all through the words in your blog.](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Nature-1125.gif) |
| I wasn't sure if I was going to do a blog or not. Just had nothing to say. Then I opened my email and received these little fun things from a friend of mine. They made me smile so thought I would pass them on. ********************************************** From a strictly mathematical viewpoint it goes like this: What Makes 100%? What does it mean to give MORE than 100%? Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%? We have all been to those meetings where someone wants you to give over 100%. How about achieving 103%? What makes up 100% in life? Here's a little mathematical formula that might help you answer these questions: If: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z is represented as: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26. Then: H-A-R-D-W-O-R- K 8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98% and K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E 11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96% But A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E 1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100% And B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T 2+21+12+12+19+8+9+20 = 103% AND, look how far *** kissing will take you. A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G 1+19+19+11+9+19+19+9+14+7 = 118% So, one can conclude with mathematical certainty that While Hard work and Knowledge will get you close, and Attitude will get you there, it's the Bullshit and ***kissing that will put you over the top!! Don't you just Love it!!! **************************************** This is a little prayer that was sent me: Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my shape to keep. Please no wrinkles. Please no bags. And please lift my butt before it sags. Please no age spots. Please no gray. And as for my belly, please take it away. Please keep me healthy. Please keep me young. And thank you Dear Lord for all that you've done. ********************************************* Five tips for a woman.... 1. It is important that a man helps you around the house and has a job. 2. It is important that a man makes you laugh. 3. It is important to find a man you can count on and doesn't lie to you. 4. It is important that a man loves you and spoils you. 5. It is very important that these "four men" don't know each other. ******************************************** Foot Note: One saggy boob said to the other saggy boob: "If we don't get some support soon, people will think we're nuts." Ok, thats it for today. Nothing original, but I hope it made you smile !!!! |
| I was born and raised a Yankee.... in the good old Northern state of Michigan. How I met and married a Texan is a whole story in itself. Moving to the South... particularly Texas.... well, lets just say it was like moving to a different planet. Tor flew up to Michigan and helped me pack up the car and clear out the house. Then we took off cross country, heading south. While on the road, Tor made me take an immigration test and pass it, before he would allow me to even approach the Texan border. I was to find out, real quick, what a proud and independently stubborn folks these Texans were. Tor made sure that I had at least 'talking knowledge' about the basic differences between Missionary Baptists, Free Will Baptist, Hard Shell Baptist and Foot Washing Baptist. I had to know the difference between a hissie fit and a conniption fit. A tick and a blue tick. The difference between a second cousin and a first cousin once removed. I had to learn at least the first verse of 'Dixie'. The difference between 'seerup' and 'sirup', sour mash and bourbon, how many fish are in a mess and where I could buy a moon pie and a RC Cola in the same store. I had to learn approximately how long boiled peanuts should boil. I had to be able to explain just exactly what 'catty-cornered' and 'cattywampus' meant. I had to know at least two recipes for biscuits, one for sweet potato pie, one for chicken and dumplings, one for hoecake, one for banana pudding and one for southern fried chicken. And I had to know the difference between 'prefab' and double-wide'. Once I was able to have a working knowledge of the above, I had no problem passing the immigration test to get into Texas and was able to complete my journey with Tor. Once settled into my new home, in this strange land they call Texas, I had to learn some do's and don'ts. One of the first things I did was learn how to say "Howdy" or more specifically "Howdy Y'all". I learned not to say 'you guys' . I had to buy a shotgun. Although I never have had to learn how to shoot it, I had to lay claim to one. All 'good' southern ladies own their own shotgun, and use them almost exclusively on their wandering husbands. Not only did I have to learn how to cook boiled peanuts, I had to learn how to eat them. Now this wasn't to bad. Boiled peanuts are actually pretty darn good.... if you like soft, squishy, chewy nuts !!! I had to know how to change the oil in the car, and put a new tailpipe and muffler on a pickup truck. Southern men pride themselves on having wives that can fix their trucks for them. Heck, there are ten year old girls here in Texas that can overhaul a tractor, lay brick and butcher a cow with the best of 'em. I had to come up with a nick-name soon after my arrival here in the south. Melinda just wouldn't get me far. Most women, I have found out, actually have two names, BobbySue, BillyJoe, BettyLou, LillyMay, and the men... well, just call them Bubba.... most of them will answer to that. Things I had to learn NOT to do...... ask for Cream of Wheat in a restaurant, or order HOT tea or quiche. I learned to accept the offer from any owner of a Pecan stand to roll the dice to see if I pay double or nothing for a bag of pecans I want to purchase. I learned to turn down a offer to drink any liquid that is clear as water and stored in a gallon job or quart jar. While it appears harmless, novice sippers of the white stuff have been know to do strange things after partaking of such liquid. I have learned never to put sugar on my grits, or attempt to eat fried chicken or fish with a knife or fork without eliciting stares from other diners. Tor has forbid me to say anything dealing with unions or arbitration in public. The local sheriff may just show up and ask you to leave this country of theirs. Never ask a woman at a church social, if her pie was store bought. This is the ultimate insult to a southern lady and you might end up wearing the pie instead of eating it. They're dead serious about their cooking. When ordering milk.... distinguish whether you want 'sweet' milk or 'butter' milk, and never ask for pumpernickel bread.... waitresses and cafe owners don't cotton to being insulted. I learned to never take it for granted that just because an oncoming car is signaling for a left turn with his turn signal, that he will actually make one. Somehow, it just doesn't always work out that way in Texas. Living in Texas has been quite an experience for this transplanted Yankee. I was surprised by the fact that everyone I met driving down the country roads signaled a greeting to me, even though I didn’t know them. This is done by lifting the right forefinger off the steering wheel and waving it back and forth. I realize that this was also done by the natives back in Detroit, but the big difference is that they use a different finger and its not quite the same greeting. And if you are in Texas and you wake up one morning to a yard full of plastic pink flamingos… don’t panic, the local church group will charge you a small penance to come retrieve them all. It’s their way of getting donations for a good cause. The book I have found most useful is “Bubba’s Thesaurus”. If I ever have a problem understanding what someone is trying to say, I just pop this little book open. Some examples: If someone mentions one of these little quips: So dusty the rabbits are digging holes six feet in the air. The wind's blowing like perfume through a prom. So windy we're using a log chain instead of a wind sock. I know they are talking about the weather. She could talk a coon right out of a tree. He's got a ten-gallon mouth. She's got tongue enough for ten rows of teeth. He blew in his own words. These are people who talk way to much for their own good Jumpy as spit on a hot skillet. Calm as a june bug. He makes a pressure cooker look calm. Hotter than a burning stump. He'd worry the warts off a frog. She's so nervous she has to thread her sewing machine while it's running. Describing nervous or skittish people. Yellow suits her. He's as yellow as mustard, but without the bite. Scared as a sinner in a cyclone. Scared as a cat at the dogpound. If he was melted down, he couldn't be poured into a fight. He's first cousin to Moses Rose," a reference to the man (also known as Louis Rose) who has long been said to be the only coward who fled the Alamo before the siege. meaning all the cowards out there. Do I like living in Texas….. Heck yes. It is a state full of beauty, with picture postcard scenes around every curve. Any artist would have a field day in Texas. The people are good folk who share the same feelings and emotions as my Yankee friends up in the North. They center their life around family and church. Sure, some of the customs are different than what I am use to, but that is what makes life so interesting. I cherish the years I spent in Michigan and the friends that I made there, the great memories that I have. But now I am making new friends, sharing new memories and cherishing the years ahead of me in the great state of TEXAS. Oh and Dan….. One day I will address the CHILI issue. We just might have to have a poll of our dear friends here at WDC to see if they make chili with or without beans. This has been a hot debate between Tor and I ever since I made my first pot of chili after moving here to Texas…. WITH BEANS. |
| I love Saturdays. Tor has the day off and we either do something spontaneous (no,no not that, Scarlett), I meant something more like running out to the lake, or up to the sale barn to see what's going through. Or, we just sit around the house playing (no Scarlett, not that kind of playing), I meant on WDC or on the X-Box. But you know Scarlett... I like the way you think !!!!! Today was no different. We laid around the house doing nothing but reading blogs and playing X-Box games. Heck, we didn't get out of bed until 9am. The cats thought we had died, since they were impatiently waiting for their breakfast (which is usually served around 5:30am). Tor's son called and said they would be here around 6:30 tonight to visit for a bit. He loves this meat pie that I make, so I ran out and bought the groceries I needed to make it, and also ingredients to make a peach/blueberry cobbler and some Homemade Vanilla icecream to go on top of it. I had everything ready to pop in the oven, so it would be nice and warm when they got here, when they called and said.... oh, you know.... I don't think we will make it tonight, we are both pretty tired and its an hours drive up there and another hour back... so maybe next weekend !!!!! Oh well, Tor has a lot of meat pie and dessert to eat... since that is not on my diet plan!!! Talking about Tor.... Thursday night was the night when Earth's orbit takes it through the debris field of the Perseid meteor shower. The two-week shower gets its name from the constellation Perseus, because the meteors appear to emanate from a point within Perseus. Thursday night was the peak time to see the most meteors. Viewers may be able to see more than 60 meteors per hour between midnight and dawn away from city lights. So Tor worked late Thursday night and didn't get home until 11:30. We sat around and checked out the blogs and watched a little late night TV. Finally, around 1:30 we decided to hit the hay. Wait, I said... lets take a walk outside. Why? Tor asked. I told him what was happening, and since watching the stars is not a favorite pastime of his, I got some really fine growls out of him. But being the good husband that he is, he dutifully followed me outside into the dark night. We walk out to the driveway and we laid on the hood of the car. We chatted and talked about the skies, the space station, life and 'falling rocks' as Tor so humbly called the meteors. Well, we saw three brilliant streaks fly across the stars and Tor was grumbling and whining about being bored. Bored?? Gawd, how can you be bored, I asked him. He said that laying between cool sheets in his airconditioned bedroom watching a good flick on TV would solve his boredom real quick. But, being the loving husband he was, he would sacrifice his comfort for my sake, and stand out in the hot, humid dark night and watch rocks falling. I made him wait out there another 10 minutes or so before I finally relieved him of his duty. I told him that tomorrow tonight, I was going to take a blanket and pillow out to the side yard, so at least he could be a bit more comfortable. Oh, that growl he makes.......it precious !!!!!!!!! |
| First, I promised to give you the answers to yesterday's word quiz.... get your red pencils ready... and let us know how you did. 1. Sergeant 2. Apparent 3. Gauge 4. Daiquiri 5. Rhythm 6. Weird 7. Dumbbell 8. Grateful 9. Medieval 10. Liaison 11. Minuscule 12. Lightning 13. Exceed 14. Millennium 15. (b)Accept means "to say yes or take something that has been offered." Except has two meanings. It can be used to modify a statement by showing some fact or detail that doesn’t apply. It can also be used as a verb that means "to leave something out." How can you remember the difference? Look at the X in except. When we cross something out, we sometimes use an X. So, if you like all vegetables except peas, it means you’ve crossed them off your list. 16. (c)Assure means "to guarantee." Ensure means "to make sure." Insure means "to protect against loss or damage." To remember the difference, remember this sentence: "I assure you, I’ve ensured I’m insured." The order of the first letter of each evil twin is A-E-I, just like those vowels you had to memorize in elementary school. And the meaning of each word meaning is clear from context: "I guarantee I’ve made sure I’m insured." 17. (b) Everyday, with no space between the words, means "ordinary." It works as an adjective. When working as the answer to the question "when," every day is a noun. When do you wear your everyday clothes? Every day. 18. (b)If you had baited breath, then it would smell like worm, herring, or some other sad thing used as fishing bait. Bated breath, on the other hand, is breath that you’re holding in anticipation. 19. (b)The kind of stationery you write on has an e--like paper. The sound-alike stationary means "not moving" or "staying on one place." So, if it has an a, it means to "stay." 20. (d) This cliché is a tricky one. While technically bicyclists could "pedal to the medal," the idiom means "at full speed." It refers not to swift cyclists, but to the time when the floor underneath the gas pedal actually was made of metal. The triplets petal, peddle, and pedal, mettle, medal, and metal all rhyme, but mean something different. It’s no wonder we find ourselves in a puddle of a muddle. 21. (a) Imminent. If this was the last question, then the end would be imminent, meaning "near." Eminent means "famous, easy to see, or in a high position." If you can remember how to spell the rapper Eminem's name, or at least remember that it starts with an E, you can remember the difference. 22.(b) Enormous. This is one even professional writers get wrong; we got an enormous chuckle out of a holiday catalog describing cookies so big, their “enormity” was not to be believed. This is because enormity means "extreme evil." 23. Absorption 24. Satellite 25. Abundance 26. Playwright 27. Occurrence 28. Pronunciation 29. Fiery 30. Embarrass ************************************************** Ok, now on to the BBQ.......just a little funny...... BBQ -- It's the only type of cooking a real man will do. When Tor volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion: 1) I buy the food. 2) I make the salad, vegetables, and dessert. 3) I prepare the meat for cooking, marinating it all afternoon and then place it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and take it to Tor who is lounging beside the grill -- beer in hand. Here comes the important part ..... 4) TOR PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL. More routine.... 5) I go inside to organize the plates and cutlery. 6) I go out to tell TOR that the meat needs turning. He thanks me and asks if I will bring another beer while he deals with the situation. Important again . 7) TOR TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO ME. More routine..... 8) I prepare the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and bring them to the table. 9) After eating, I clear the table and do the dishes. And most of all... 10) Everyone PRAISES Tor and THANKS him for his cooking efforts. 11) Tor then asks me how I enjoyed "my night off." And, upon seeing my annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend !!!!!! |
| I was sitting here surfing the internet while Tor was getting ready for work. I was going to talk about dieting in my blog today... specifically my diet and how it was or wasn't going. I then happen to run across the Encarta site of quizzes and I must tell you... I am a sucker for quizzes. I love quizzes. So I sat here and took quizzes; quizzes about animals, quizzes about movie stars, quizzes about history, quizzes about the body and health, fun quizzes, serious quizzes.... told you, I love quizzes. I then came to quizzes about language.... and thought I would past some of the questions here, since we are all involved in language in one way or another. I will post the answers tomorrow. There are 30 questions... see how well you do... this was ranked as easy !!! 1) Military rank: in the U.S. Army or Marine Corps, the rank immediately above corporal, or any of various ranks above that, or any of various equivalent ranks in the U.S. Air Force: Sergeant or Sargeant 2) Clear to somebody: clearly seen or understood: Apparent or Apparant 3) Calculate: to determine the amount, quantity, size, or extent of something: Guage or Gauge 4) Rum cocktail: an iced cocktail made from rum, lemon or lime juice, and sugar or syrup: Daiquiri or Daquiri 5) Pattern of beats in music: the regular pattern of beats and emphasis in a piece of music: Rhythm or Rhythym 6) Odd: strange or unusual: Weird or Wierd 7) Weight for exercising: an exercise weight in the form of a metal bar with a metal disk or ball at each end: Dumbell or Dumbbell 8) Feeling thanks: having the desire or reason to thank somebody: Greatful or Grateful 9) Of the Middle Ages: relating to, involving, belonging to, or typical of the Middle Ages in Europe: Medeival or Medieval 10) Coordination: the exchange of information or the planning of joint efforts by separate groups or individuals, often of military units: Liaison or Liason 11) Extremely small: extremely small or completely insignificant: Minuscule or Miniscule 12) Flash of light in the sky: flashes of light seen in the sky when there is a discharge of atmospheric electricity in the clouds or between clouds and the earth, usually occurring during a thunderstorm: Lightning or Lightening 13) Be greater than: to be greater than something in quantity, degree, or scope: Exceed or Excede 14) 1,000 years: a period of 1,000 years, especially a period that begins or ends in a year that is a multiple of 1,000: Milennium or Millennium 15) Which sentence is correct? a) I like all vegetables accept peas. b) I accept all vegetables, except peas. c) I except all vegetables, accept peas. 16) Which word means “to guarantee”? a) Insure b) Ensure c) Assure 17) What’s the difference between everyday and every day? a) Nothing (except an extra tap on the space bar) b) One is a noun and one is an adjective c) One is American English and one is British English 18) Which kind of breath is worse? a) Bated b) Baited 19) Which is correct? a) It’s easy to write on stationary that’s stationary b) Its easy to write on stationery that's stationary c) It’s easy to write on stationary that’s stationery. 20) Which is right? a) Petal to the mettle b) Peddle to the metal c) Peddle to the medal d) Pedal to the metal 21) Is the end imminent or eminent? a) Imminent b) Eminent 22) Which word means "great size"? a) Enormity b) Enormousness c) Both 23) Which is the correct spelling? Absorbtion or Absorption 24) Which is the correct spelling? Sattellite or Satellite 25) Which is the correct spelling? Abundance or Abundence 26) Which is the correct spelling? Playwrite or Playwright 27) Which is the correct spelling? Occurrance or Occurrence 28) Which is the correct spelling? Pronounciation or Pronunciation 29) Which is the correct spelling? Firey or Fiery 30) Which is the correct spelling? Embarrass or Embarass OK... give it a try and see what you come up with. I will post the answers tomorrow in my blog. **************************************************** My diet is coming along slow. I have mostly good days in which I stick to my exercise routine and keep my caloric count under 1000 a day. Its the only way I can lose. If I increase my calories in the least bit, I gain weight. If I decrease my exercise or skip a day or two, I gain. My doctor has advised me of what supplements to take and offered to give me an appetite suppressant to help. I must admit, I did use the appetite suppressants for the first week. It helped get through that addictive quality that food has on a body, especially the foods full of sugar and carbs that wrestle with your mind, causing midnight raids on the refrigerator. After the cravings went away, I found that I wasn't looking for food constantly anymore. I was able to stop the appetite suppressants and start eating healthy on my own. 1000 calories a day are not many at all. But if I eat the healthy food that I should, its really easy to maintain that count. Fruits, vegetables and just a bit of chicken or fish sustain my body real well. The doctor did suggest that if I had to skip a meal for some reason, to keep some Slim Fast or other meal replacement drink on hand. Its a quick fix when you are on the go, and it keeps the metabolism up and burning. I have lost 30lbs in 3 months. That was my goal, losing about 2lbs a week, 8lbs a month. I am ahead of schedule at the moment. But I am sure, as my body gives up its riches of fat, and muscles turn lean and mean, that the weight loss will drastically slow down. And that's alright, as long as the inches keep disappearing and the dress sizes keep decreasing. 30lbs lost and 90lbs to go. Someone gave me a button to wear that says: Hungry dieter, may bite if provoked! Tor told me one day, when I was discussing my weight with him and the trouble I was having loosing it: "you have a eating problem".... I said: "HELL NO, I HAVE NO PROBLEM EATING AT ALL!!!" I then told him that I only gain weight in certain places, and he said yeah.... the bakery, the pizza shop, the ice-cream parlor, the candy store.... Oh did he get bopped a good one for that remark !!! So I have posted little signs all over the house, things like: THALL SHALL NOT WEIGH MORE THAN THE REFRIGERATOR or A MOMENT ON THE LIPS - FOREVER ON THE HIPS or the one I live by THERE IS A SKINNY PERSON INSIDE OF ME JUST SCREAMING TO GET OUT, A CHOCOLATE COOKIE USUALLY SHUTS HER UP !!! Sorry, but no more cookies, the skinny lady gets out this time !! 30/90 |
| Today is our wedding anniversary... we were married on this day, Aug 9th, 2001. Gawd, on one hand it seems like yesterday, but then on the other hand it feels like ages ago !! Is that a good thing or not????? Well, I thought Tor had forgotten the date, as he had not mentioned it at all. I was getting ready to really growl at him today !! But that man is full of surprises.... and it started at 1:30 this morning. I was laying there sound asleep when I heard him whispering to me.... baby, wake up, I have a present for you !!!!! Happy Anniversary !!!! Well, a hour later, we both blissfully went back to sleep to be rudely awakened by the alarm at 5am. Tor left for work, and I did my morning workout, cleaned house, did some laundry. Around 11:30 the phone rings and its Tor. He said he forgot to grab a pack of cigarettes on his way out this morning and he was on lunch... could I run a pack up to him. Sure I said. So I run a pack up to him. He meets me in the store and hands me this little package... here, he said... its your other anniversary present. I opened it and there was this beautiful gold and diamond butterfly necklace. He reached down, right there in the middle of the store and gave me the most lushious kiss !!! Now, he said... I want you to pick me up after work at 3pm.... we are going to Huntsville... I am taking you out to a 'real' restaurant for our anniversary. So I am getting ready to leave right this minute.. to pick him up and head on out to a 'real' fine dining experience. No catfish, no bubbettes, no animal heads hanging on the walls..... a real restaurant !!!!! Gawd, I love that man !!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
| Mel pulls at hair and screams. Banging head on wall helps and swinging baseball bat at Tor really makes it feel better !! What has driven me to this insanity ??? Well, let me give you one example that happened this past weekend, and I decided to post here instead of killing him. Tor asked me to go over some writing for him that he posted in a document. "Please edit this new story for me honey, I am just plum tuckered out," he cried. So being the dutiful little wife that I am (yeah right, in his dreams)... I decided that I could do with a little reading, and agreed to the task. I got into reading the adventures of Billy Bob and forgot about Tor (I should have known better than that). Then I hear: "Oh Honey, come here for a minute, I need your help". I looked, and there he was in the MY kitchen.... I growled rather loudly... "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Well, to make a long story short, he was going to make a 'Blooming Onion', like the ones you get at the restaurant, a whole onion that is cut in sections, battered then fried. Well, I explained to him how you master this technique, got the deep fryer out of the cupboard for him and told him be careful, don't use to much oil, it will overflow and start a fire. His reply was: "Honey, I know how to fry a dang onion!" Ok, I am not going to get involved with this I thought.... and went back to the computer to finish my reading and editing that I was doing for him. He cut the onion, breaded it, heated the oil.... all by himself !! Then I hear, "Honey... come in here for a minute." I walked into MY kitchen... and there stands Tor next to the stove, with a spatula in his hand, and a fire BLAZING on the burner !!!! "How do I put this fire out?" he asked calmly. He had the bag of flour out. He said, "I tried flour, but every time I threw a handful on the fire, it just flared up more." I grabbed the box of salt, pushed Tor out of the way and smothered the fire. By this time, the fire alarm is blaring, the house is full of smoke and the animals are looking for escape routes. I stood there glaring at him. He mumbled, "well, I kinda just stood back and threw the onion in the oil as I didn't want to burn my fingers... and... and the oil sort of splashed out over the side of the pan... and...and..." (He stutters real well when he knows he's in trouble). "Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" was my only reply. Tor then proceeds to pull the CRISPY fried onion out of the HOT oil and looks at me and says (with his chest all puffed out), "See, it worked!" In the meantime, I opened all the windows and put on the fans to rid the house of smoke. I looked at MY kitchen and just sighed. Puddles of grease splattered all over, flour covered the stove top, the cupboard and the floor, almost all my mixing bowls were dirty and piled everywhere - it was a mess. So I just calmly returned to the computer to get lost in the story I was reading. Then Tor comes in with the onion on a plate, sits down in his chair and starts to eat. I just looked at him, snarled and shook my head. "Uh, Honey" I hear over my shoulder "do you want any of this before I throw it in the garbage?" Well, needless to say, his BLOOMIN ONION was a disaster. The oil was so hot, it didn't cook down inside and the batter was all gooey and raw. But he was kind enough to offer me some before he threw the dang thing away !!!! lolololol...... It took me the rest of the night to clean up the kitchen!!! And well, Tor has been permanently banned from ever picking up a pan again in MY kitchen.  |
| If you read Tor's blog from yesterday, you know that we went out for a dinner and a movie. Well, let me tell you my side of this lil' story !!!! We live in a small East Texas town. The definition of fine dining leaves a lot to the imagination.... but we did have a nice dinner. We visited the local catfish diner... and I have to admit, they do serve a mean catfish. The ambience is country-bubba all the way. Knotty Pine paneling with knotty pine picnic style tables, local business advertisements plastered all over the table tops, and the waitresses are healthy, home grown girls, stretching the seams of their uniforms from a bit of over-indulgence of the house fares. Oh, I almost forgot.... dead animal heads hanging all over the walls. You see, the owners of this quaint, mom and pop restaurant also own the local game farm and like to show off the 'trophy' mounts that the bubbas happen to harvest from there. Our waitress brought our first course, which consisted of a bowl of green stuff... I guess it was lettuce... it was green and swamped in dressing. I don't think they actually wanted you to know or taste what was under all that dressing. A small wicker basket of stale crackers accompanied this delicacy. But she did keep our tall glasses of sweet tea filled to the edge. Finally our main course arrived.... crispy, seasoned catfish fillets. Now I must admit, this restaurant does serve the best catfish around. I was never a connoisseur of catfish until I moved to Texas. It is not a fish that is relished up north. I guess the reason it is favored as such a prime dish in these parts, is that the fish grow to be up to 100lbs or more. Dang, one fish could run a restaurant for a month or more. They catch them locally in the river or in the lake. I was apprehensive about catfish, but have found it to be a delicate treat. It has a very fine taste when seasoned and breaded lightly, then cooked to a perfect crispiness. I really enjoy it now, especially because if you ask for any other type of fish, you are greeted with glares and growls from the locals. So the dinner was truly a nice experience !!!! We sat there and ate our catfish and talked about the world around us, or to be more precise… the bubbas and bubbetts around us!!! OK..... THE MOVING PICTURE SHOW... it doesn't really deserve to be called a MOVIE !!!! Ladies.... that was not worth the $5 it cost us to get into the dang theater. It was the worse excuse for a movie I have ever seen.... and I have seen some bad ones with Tor. Acting???? What acting??? The dang car did a better job of acting than anyone... except for maybe Willie Nelson. Willie had the best lines in the whole dang film, and that wasn't until the last 10 minutes of the movie. It’s a good thing that Jessica Simpson can wear a pair of shorts and a halter top well. I don’t think she could have managed over one line at a time. If she can act, she sure didn’t demonstrate it in this film. Oh and all you men out there….. Sure, when she shows up, she looks great….. But she doesn’t show up often, just enough to keep the men from walking out of the movie house. But according to Tor, just showing up once… made the whole film an Oscar winner in his mind. And the two guys who played the Duke cousins….. Phewy. What a waste of skin. At least they could have given us women some ‘eye candy’ to look at while sitting there exposed to this stinky trash. It might have made it a bit more pleasant to endure !!! Overall, it was a nice escape from the house. To just get out and do something together was great. To call it Mel and Tor’s Excellent Adventure... Well, lets just say it was an adventure alright. Tor didn’t get one bruise on him all night. I only growled at him once, and tightened the choke chain a few times. Other than that, he behaved himself with dignity, well for him at least. I was proud !!!! We had a great time, and everyone needs to get out, have a nice catfish dinner and see a movie ... Just not The Dukes Of Hazzard !!!!! |
| Sometimes I just hate to read the daily news. There was a story yesterday that I just found appalling. A young woman (I refuse to call her a mother) starved her almost 2 yr old son to death. The boy, named Marvin, was 23 months old and weighed 18 lbs. This woman had a long history with the CPS (Child Protective Services), but they had lost track of her and closed her record. An autopsy ruled the cause of death as malnutrition and dehydration, so investigators took the women who is 27, into custody and charged her with murder by omission. Child Protective Services had several investigations going on this woman, who had five children. In November 2000, the agency investigated allegations that she neglected another of her two children. In November 2001, that brother and a sister were turned over permanently to other family members. Marvin’s twin brother, who died back in November of 2003, was first ruled sudden infant death syndrome, but the case has since been reopened. Then in September of 2004, someone called in regarding neglect towards Marvin which was under investigation. But the woman was a transient, living from motel to motel and sometimes out on the street. CPS lost track of her. The woman was living in a north Houston motel room when Marvin died. CPS said that, by then, they had stopped trying to find her. Eventually the case was closed and they move on to the next case. Apparently, this woman noticed that her son was not breathing and called an ambulance. A neighbor stated that the woman came out crying and running around yelling that her baby was dead. Local police said that she claimed she was taking good care of her son, but upon a medical examine, it was proven that the child had not received the amount of nourishment needed to live. She had another three year old daughter with her which was taken away and put in CPS custody. I further read that this woman had a bad crack habit. But I feel so, so bad for this child. He did not ask to be born. He had no choice in the matter. Apparently the three year old was old enough to get her own, rancid food (what there was of it) out of the refrigerator... enough to at least live. But to let a 23 month old baby die of starvation, how can a human being do that????? Why not take the child to the police and say: “Hey, I can’t take care of him... Please take him away and put him up for adoption... Let this child of mine have a chance in life.” And how did CPS lose this woman? They had taken away two of her children before, investigated a death of a three month old baby, and had numerous calls regarding neglect to the two children that remained in her custody. If she was a transient... is that not enough to put her children in foster care, until she could prove that she was capable of providing for them? Is it really a invasion of privacy when officials probe into your lifestyle to make sure your children are provided for in a proper way, if you have given them cause to be concerned? I know that opens a can of worms... who sets the standard for “proper care”? But if a homeless person, who is a drug addict... Cannot care for her children... If previous children had been removed from this woman... If a child died in this woman’s care... Then how can we not interfere, how can they just be forgotten ??? Because of lack of interference, another child died the horrible death of starvation. This woman should spend the rest of her life in prison. And if for some reason, she gets out, one of the conditions should be that she be sterilizated. She had her chance, and she blew it BIG TIME. No way should she be allowed to bear more children. There is starvation going on all over this world... But when a woman intentionally starves her child...she doesn’t deserve any rights at all. |
| Some of you may have noticed CC pertaining to Tor as 'goatboy' or some other goat related name. Or has told you to ask Tor about 'goats'. Well, I thought I would come to Tor's rescue and tell you how this little 'goat' thing got started. As most of you know, I love critters. I have always had dogs, cats, and birds in the house. I trained and showed Morgan Horses for about 20 yrs, trained Standardbred race horses for 6 yrs, I have showed dogs, and I use to be a wildlife rehabilitator back in Michigan and have had an assorted variety of critters flow through my house from baby squirrels, Great Horned Owls, raccoons, oppossums, Great Blue Herons to Fox kits and Groundhogs. At one time, when my son was about eight years old, we had a pigmy goat. He was so much fun and all the neighborhood kids would come over and play with 'Poco'. I have never laughed so much when watching the human kids play with the goat kid. They would let him out of the yard and he would run along with them while they played in the neighborhood. Well I was doing some research on the internet one day and happen to come across "Tennessee Fainting Goats". I opened the link and I was captivated by these unique animals. The 'fainting' goat is smaller than the average goat and has a genetic condition called myotonia congenita. When the goat is startled, the muscles contract causing the goat to stiffen, stop moving and usually fall over. It looks like the goat has fainted... hence the name. It only last about 15 - 20 seconds, then the goat jumps up and runs off. This condition has also been found in some humans, but it is rare. It is genetic and is carried over from one generation to the next. The only reason that this mutated gene survived is that some smart sheep herder realized the usefulness of this goat. The sheep herders kept a small herd of fainting goats and would put one or two in with their sheep. When the wolves or other predatory animal would prey on their sheep, the sheep would run away, but the poor goat would fall over and the predator would have a easy meal and forget about the sheep. Talk about a sucky job!!!! The breed has really gained popularity in recent years because of thier 'novelty'. Tor and I want to get a small herd of these goats as soon as we get a place of our own. They are just so funny and so dang cute. When running across the pasture to be fed, they will 'faint' because they are excited. But then get up and continue on their merry way!! We discovered these goats about 3 years ago, and at that time we belonged to a MSN Community of real nice people. Of course, Tor posted in the community about these 'fainting goats' and everyone thought he was joking. He tried to explain to them that it was no joke, but the more he tried to convince them, the more they teased him about it. Before long, he was known as 'goatboy' and was the brunt of many jokes and stories. It was really quite funny!!! Go to 'google' or whatever search engine you use and put in 'fainting goats' and you will be able to read more about these little amazing animals. Here is a link that shows these goats in action... it is slow to load and if you have dialup, I am not sure you can get it. But if you can't, some of the links that come up in your search engine will have video of fainting goats in action. http://www.ebaumsworld.com/faintinggoats.html I hope that works.... and I hope its alright to post links in here??? If not, I'm sorry in advance. Just a month or two ago, Tor and I took a little drive up to Groveton, Texas to a breeder who had a herd of these goats and actually got to see them in person. They had a small pen up close to the barn with about 10 weened babies in it. They kept them up there until they were ready to return to pasture with the rest of the herd. All the babie ran up to us for treats. I asked about their fainting abilities and they said watch this.... and all she did was run at them yelling and screaming....sure enough.... plop, plop, plop, plop.... down they went. The stiffness last about 15 to 20 seconds and then they jump up and are just fine. But she told me to reach down and pet one of them while they were stiff.... and it was like petting a furry rock. The whole body was stiff as a board. Then the little thing losened and jumped up and came back for more treats. So if you see CC referring to Tor with some kind of 'goat' reference... thats why!! Now, just ask CC about the bucket he wears on his head.... or about Buckey the Monkey !!!! |
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