HOUSTON - WE HAVE ANOTHER PROBLEM!!

It seems we can't make up our mind.  One day it's 80 degrees, the next day it's 60.  Maybe it's a typo, but by the end of the week, 95 is here.  YIKES!  I suppose that means I have to turn on the sprinklers.  Hopefully there are no problems there.  Yeah, that's never happened.

As for Mr. Cooper .... he's doing VERY well.  I'm so thankful his leg is healing up fairly quickly.  He's now running in and out of the house, despite my hollering to slow down!!  I will still have to be very careful since he's always around my feet.  He doesn't see me well and gets too close.  That causes him to scramble ... not good.  BUT ... Mom is a happy camper once again! 

Well at least I WAS!!  Until I saw THIS IN COOPER'S MOUTH!!  Yessiree ... my little hunter dog had snagged this from the floor and jumped up on the couch with it.  OMG NOOOOO!!!  It's NASTY!  I instantly grabbed it and headed for the outside trash can.  That's when I discovered the even WORSE part.  

It let go ... if you now what I mean ... and it was all over the kitchen floor, which of course I stepped in!!  

Guess who almost got strangled!!  Sitting there so proud watching the melee!!  I will definitely be glad when all the gophers are GONE GONE GONE!!  This Houston does not need any more problems.

I locked the doggy door, closed the back door and went for a run.  Maybe that will get the sight of Cooper on the couch holding that thing in his mouth out of my brain.   He was not willing to let it go by the way!!!

Things are definitely blooming.  These sunflowers were over six feet high!!  Two miles later, I was back at the house, STARVING!

But FIRST ... let's check out the starter.  But what's this?  It's in a box?

Yup ... it has its own house now.  I keep my house too cold in the winter and spring for it to work very well.  When the temperature isn't quite right, I can just MAKE it right.  Only wait ... Houston, we have ANOTHER problem.

Good grief ... this sourdough stuff has almost become more trouble than it's worth, though it does keep me off the streets.  It was as runny as could be, and smelled slightly of vinegar.  I hit the internet.  IT'S HUNGRY!  What?  When it gets runny like that it means it needs to be fed.  Apparently I will have to feed it more often, or stick it in the fridge.  I fed it the required breakfast and away it went.  It now looks like this and is in the fridge.  

That's when it dawned on me.  You feed it early, let it rise and bake with HALF while feeding the remaining half for the day, instead of baking with ALL of it.  No one ever said I was good at figuring out BAKING stuff.

What's this you ask?  Why another kitchen gadget to stuff in my already full to the brim cabinets.  THIS is a bread slicer.  I could have gone for the electric model, but I would probably cut my hand off, so I got the manual one instead.

This thing is the BOMB!!  My fancy dancy bread knife doesn't hold a candle to this baby.  

Turn the handle with your right hand, push the bread ahead with your left.  It slices like butter.  You can even change up the thickness if you want.  It will slice up other things as well, but then I'd have to take the blade off and chance losing a finger.  

Just look at this!!  This is the loaf where I actually followed the directions correctly, and it has a much more sourdough flavor.  Maybe, just maybe I have corrected the problems and will be able to make my own bread from now on.  WOOHOO!!!

With nothing else on my plate ... well there was, but I'll show you that disaster tomorrow ... I spent several hours squaring up eight of these panels and sewing borders on this one.  I changed up the colors after the picture was taken.  I tend to like a solid outside border instead.  So much indecision goes into that process.

I also watched the Kentucky Derby run.  I don't miss too many programs that have horses.  I'm sure someone got fired on this run, but I'll post pictures tomorrow.

Here's hoping I have NO gophers in my house when I limp into the living room in two minutes!!  Running does that to you!!

BAKING AND MORE BAKING

 Well here we are, still hanging out on the couch.  I imagine that's going to be my life for these five days I actually have nothing to do at the Elks Lodge.  That should improve my outlook!!

On the other hand, babysitting is not the most exciting thing I've ever done.  In this case however, I am cherishing every moment with my sweet pup.  The good news is he's doing better.  I'm VERY careful where he is and where I step, as well as lifting him up on the couch.  Those red and white checkerboard tablecloths cover the 6" step to make it slip free so he can get down by himself.  He's not limping hardly at all and now trots from the back yard to the door.  SUCCESS!  His leg is healing.

I admit, I'm bored to tears, so I'm trying to make room in my freezer for more loaves of bread.  I know, bread certainly isn't good for the diet, so I have small pieces once a day.  I may even have to give some of it away, as in an entire loaf.  

I followed the directions more carefully this time, giving it another 2 hours to rest up before sticking it in the fridge overnight.  They say that develops the flavor.  And so I baked this one this morning.  Trouble is, my oven does not come to temperature any more, as in 500 degrees to heat, 450 to bake.  

She sure looks PURDY though!  I haven't tasted this one.  It's in the freezer.  I'm waiting for the bread slicer I ordered so I can have more reasonably sized pieces.  I feel bad for whoever will have to clean out my house when I'm gone.

I'm hopeful that the King Arthur starter keeps going and going like the Energizer Bunny, now that I only have ONE to feed.  They say some people keep theirs for 4-5 years.

About 10:30 as Cooper was sleeping, I snuck out of the house to catch my ride to the repair shop.  My Jeep's oil change and tire rotation was done and she wanted to come home.  It needs a new battery, mostly because I don't drive it enough, but she smiled as I pulled into the garage.  I've been really lucky with vehicles ... both the Jeep and the truck haven't really cost me much at all over the last 21 years.  More money to spend on crap I don't need, yes?  I'm keeping them both around because you never know when you will need that second vehicle.

Yup .... still babysitting on the couch.  I'm trying to stay very close for at least three days to keep him quiet and get his leg back in shape, then maybe I can head out for a ride in the van.  

Bored to death, I was perusing Walmart online when I found this.  As you know, I taste these things so you don't have to.  And you don't have to try this one AT ALL.  In fact, I instead found a recipe for sourdough pizza dough that I will try some day soon.

So I rolled it out, WAY too big, and had to cut it down to fit the pan.  It's okay, I like thin crust.  I loaded it up with ham that I never should have bought from Costco, mozzarella cheese and pineapple tidbits.  

It's my fault really, because I used spaghetti sauce instead of thick pizza sauce.  I suppose it was edible.  I at least got two pieces down, but could not taste the ham even a tiny bit.  The crust was AWFUL with a capital A.  More cheese might have made it palatable.  I mean really, I was hoping for the flavor of the pizza Miss Terry made for me many years ago.  It wasn't even close.  I'll try to choke down two more pieces today, but I'm pretty sure it's going on a wonderful airplane flight straight into my trash can.

While Cooper lounged on the floor in my sewing room (one with carpet), I trimmed up two quilts ready for binding and squared up six panels for Veteran quilts.  If I'm going to be sitting around, I might as well be sitting next to my sewing machine.  

Very late in the afternoon, Mr. Cooper began panting a bit.  It's a warm 75 degrees in the house because I have been leaving the back door open so he can get in the grass.  That has worked out VERY well, but it's hot.  

To his dismay, I plunked him down on my kitchen counter (not the side I prep food on) and gave him a haircut.  He looks five pounds thinner.  

And so ended a lovely day of babysitting, baking and brevity.  Okay, there was no brevity, other than me laughing at the horrible pizza I had to eat!  

Let's hope today offers up something better .... like pizza from Dommmmino's!!!  It's all we have in this little town and it's quite good!

SHE'S HOME!!!!

 I had this brilliant idea on Wednesday, but didn't follow through.  So THURSDAY, I drove my Jeep into town and left it at the shop for an oil change and a tire rotation, so I could pick up my truck.  SHE'S HOME!  The good news is she runs SO much better ... so maybe that shorting out wire had been affecting her for a while.  They said the flow rate on all the other injectors is excellent.

The Jeep on the other hand ... needs brakes.  That's not happening until I gather up some more moolah however.  The Jeep is 14 years old and never had anything but new tires, so I guess I can't complain.  

I cancelled the Van appointment for the smog fix.  I need to stay home with Mr. Cooper for at least a week and keep him quiet so the leg can heal up a bit.  Every so often he gets it caught on something that makes it hurt, so I'm watching him like a hawk.  

He was not the least bit impressed with the diet thing.  Bark bark bark, but I cut him back by 1/4 cup a day, and he survived.  He's just such a sweet boy, I have to do everything I can for him.

Mostly that involved keeping him sleeping on the couch.  Hopefully the kennel will arrive today that will keep him from walking the hallways.  Yeah I'll probably have to be in there with him.  That will be a sight to see, yes?

Here's one of the duck eggs.  They are HUGE, as I suspected.  I can tell you right off the bat, I was not a fan, but Cooper thought the tiny bit I gave him was okay.  Not GREAT, but okay.  But then he will eat anything!!

And THAT is when I messed up big time.  All these sourdough recipes are so complicated.  I guess it's just that I'm old and can't think ahead very far.  I had saved the starter in the fridge ... pulled it out and mixed up the batter.  

OH NO!!  I suddenly realized I had used the ENTIRE JAR full, meaning I no longer have any STARTER!  It's okay because I have TWO jars ... one from my friend and one from King Arthur.  Sadly, my friends starter is entirely in this loaf of bread. 

The other loaf I baked was K.A., so we shall see how this one turns out when I bake it today.  The K.A. starter rises beautifully and fairly quickly.  My friends, not so much.  No, I am NOT telling her.  We shall see in a few short hours how this one turns out.

I'm trying to keep myself occupied with something other than my phone, while keeping Mr. Cooper down.  Kitters does her part.  This happens about five times a day.  I've never seen a cat who allows brushing with a dog brush.  Apparently it feels REALLY GOOD!!  And yes, I now have cat hair everywhere!!

April went out like a lamb around here ... disappearing in a flash of light.  It's May already, time for the FROG MOON.  I used to love hearing them out on the ranch.  The noise was so loud it kept you awake most of the night.  Also the flower moon, because obviously flowers bloom in the spring.  

My favorite, it's the moon of the shedding ponies.  Horses gather up lots of hair in the winter to keep them warm.  They then shed it off in huge clumps a hundred times worse than a cat.  Even more fun, it sticks like glue to everything you are wearing!!  This May we will be regaled with not one, but TWO full moons!!  Lucky for me, neither are on Bingo night.

I'll be getting my Jeep back today and baking a big loaf of sourdough while babysitting my Cooper Kid.  Not the most exciting life, but I'm good with it.  There's always tomorrow for travel.

The Truck Kid and The Dog Kid

 Well ... it's been an interesting week.  It's only Thursday and I'm feeling like it's never going to end.  I hoped yesterday would be a rest-up day, but that didn't happen.  When it rains, it pours I guess.  

First off, head on over for some accounting work.  I wasn't feeling it, but the business property tax deadline is three days away.  Luckily I pawned it off on the official business accountant.  

Next up, get fuel for the Jeep, since that's what I'm driving.  $5.69 per gallon is a shock to the system.  From there, I'm going to provide you with a big laugh.  It's sucks to get old.  I have two debit cards.  I received a new one in the mail.  I do what I always do, I took the old one out and cut it up into a million pieces.  Two days later I couldn't find my debit card I use for household stuff.  Yessiree ... I had to laugh or I would cry.  I cut up the wrong card, as evidenced by two cards from the same bank, one which had expired.  

That required a trip to the Credit Union for a new card.  Amazingly, they make them right in the bank, so no waiting a week for it to arrive in the mail.  WOW!  On the other hand, I had to listen to the life story of the 40 year old teller who has 3 dogs, 2 cats, and who is getting married next week to a guy with two kids.  I wished her good luck!!

Then I headed to the repair shop to pick up my garage door opener that I left in the truck.  HAPPY NEWS!  My expensive truck kid is done!!  Already?  Wow .... that was fast.  Had I been smart, I would have driven the truck home and left the Jeep for an oil change.  That part comes in later in the blog. 

Just to throw you off, THESE are duck eggs.  My new cashier, now moved to the Bingo kitchen, has ducks by the dozen.  She also has seven dozen eggs and offered some to me.  I've never in my life had duck eggs.  Yes they are covered in duck poo and HUGE.  I'm not sure I have the nerve to eat one.  Be sure and WATER them she said ... to see if it floats, in which case it's rotten.  OKAY THEN .......

On the other hand .... SUCCESS!  I finally had the time to bake a loaf of bread.  Truly, I'm not sure this is worth the time or the hassle, other than to say I bake my own sourdough bread.  I was surprised at how nice it looked.  

The hard part is letting it cool completely before slicing.  I have the perfect HUGE bread knife, but it's still hard as all get out to slice it up.  Now for the taste test.  It needs salt.  I forgot to put it in when I was supposed to, and it probably required more kneading than I gave it.  It's also not quite as soury as I like, but it's quite tasty.  Hopefully I get better at this!!

And so we get to the not-so-great part of the day.  The repair shop was to pick me up at 2:30 to get my truck.  At 2:15, Mr. Cooper slipped badly on the hardwood floor and hurt his hind leg for the umpteenth time over the last three days.  I of course PANICKED!

I was calling to get him into the Vet when the driver arrived.  I got in the car, but just could not leave Cooper.  I told them I was sorry, I had to take care of Coop first.  I know the driver ... ex of a friend ... and he said no problem.

And so Mr. Cooper and I rushed off to the doggy hospital.  X-rays ensued.  I cried like a baby, afraid I wasn't going to be able to bring him home again.   He appears to be okay, but may have a pulled muscle or ligament in that leg.  He doesn't limp, but he slips easily, that leg goes wonky and it hurts him a lot.  

She said to keep him locked up, but he's not having it.  Previously he pawed at the kennel until his paws were bloody.  So now it's my job to keep him from jumping up or slipping on the floor.  I took every rug I have in the house and spread them all across the route he walks.  As long as he's on a rug, he's fine.  I'm sure you know, I'll do anything for this kid.  I also ordered a large outdoor doggy fence I'll set up in the living room to keep him quiet when I'm gone.

Just like his Mom, he also needs to lose weight.  Oh yeah, that's going to be like pulling hens teeth.  This kid eats like a horse, followed by lots of pawing and barking when he thinks he didn't get enough.  On the other hand, I'm thrilled he's back home.  We have gabapentin twice a day, a nasty tasting liquid that ended up on his head, me and the floor, along with some relaxation pills when I have to be gone for long periods of time and have to leave him in a fenced area so he doesn't jump up on the couch.  Doctor's orders.

And of course I had to cancel the smog repair appointment for the van, which is this morning at 8:00.  I'll try for that next week, when I'll be twice as busy!!

It was a long day ..... but we're all still here, and that's what counts!!  

OH WHAT A NIGHT!

 Look out folks ... May is coming around the horn really FAST and it has not one, but TWO FULL MOONS!  Oh won't that be fun!!

It really was a long day as I contemplated my truck.  The shop called to say they think the wire they replaced had shorted out for so long it killed the injector.  Surprisingly, they suggested only replacing the one.  They think the rest are just fine.  When did a shop EVER suggest a cheaper solution?  

What to do, what to do.  I called six different people for advice (even one expert who is on vacation in Germany) and got six different answers!  In other words, I'm winging it!!

First things first, I had to run to Costco to pick up my glasses.  They have a locker system now and of course I could not get it to work.  A VERY nice kid from the optical department showed me the ropes and VOILA!!  I can SEE!  This female optometrist ... she did an amazing job.  I was having lots of trouble seeing up close and mid distance due to the lens in my eye shifting.  Oh the joys of getting old!

In no time I left early for Bingo.  Once again I heard rumblings of YOU ARE CLOSING AT 8:00.  Good grief.  Why do people have to upset the apple cart and end up with a lot less moolah!

Sure enough, someone thought they were in charge instead of the Board that runs the lodge.  AND the guys that said they would work late, are refusing to work past 8:00.  Thankfully we were covered this week, so two of us got our heads together and got three more volunteers to take their place.  Won't they be surprised when they show up and we tell them we are covered.  Gosh, can't everyone just get along?

Then it was a mad rush to get set up when two MORE people called in sick.  These are the pull tabs I got  out to sell in the back room.  We sell out every single bingo night.  A little over 4,000 tickets, and on this night 5,000 with 124 players.  Pretty crazy!

That's when I panicked.  My card counter was not going to be there and I donated my new cashier to the kitchen.  It's okay, I'll get Jackie.  Nope ... ok the other Nancy.  Nope ... I went through six people before I snagged a gal from the back room.  It was a madhouse!!  Even the KING actually had to work his butt off!

By 8:00 I was exhausted from the stress and strain, but I had to stay until 10:00.  It's okay since the King and I had lots of laughs over the state of things and how we handled it right to the very end.  He's a great guy to work with.

Believe it or not, there were NO slings and arrows on this night.  Well maybe one having to do with something that happened two weeks ago.  It was a little too late to manage that one!

I have no doubt there will be more "experiences" coming up, but OUR crew outvotes them.  It's a shame we have to go through this, but there are many personalities in the world, some not so easy to work with.

I got home late in time to see the almost full moon.  Lucky for me, it will be mid week this time around.  

The final outcome on my truck ... I am only replacing the one injector.  If I have more problems, I'll replace them all at that time.  In the meantime, if I'm driving any distance, I'm taking my trusty 14 year old JEEP!!!

Here's to a great day of REST because tomorrow morning I'll be on the road to get the VAN fixed!!!  

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER TOW

 GOOD MORNING ... at least it's better than the last day!!    We had some cool weather and nice puffy clouds to admire in the morning.  Gosh, even my HEATER turn on.  We are all hoping this is just one last cold hurrah before some warm arrives.

I had a lot on my plate for the day, mostly trying to get my truck repaired.  All Kitters had on her mind was the lizard lounging on the front porch.

Back to Saturday, here we are at the Fairgrounds Pavilion.  They have so many buildings on the grounds and so many events that parking is a premium.  There is one secret however that only three people know.  The concrete lined one vehicle wide section that looks like it's a driveway, is actually parking.  I pulled right in, meaning I didn't have to walk half a mile to the shindig.

These guys, The Dueling Pianos, play mostly old time rock n roll, which works pretty good for this OLD crowd.  This is the fund raiser for the Court Appointed Special Advocate group locally.  They provide people to help foster kids.  The Elks Lodge donates pretty BIG to this group.

So big that we have our own table under the lights, our own bar waitress and our own servers, which serve us first.  It's rather nice to be pampered. 

There are lots of Judges, Lawyers and big business owners at this party, all of whom got their pictures taken.  I have to admit, the two piano players are always over the top nice to us and thank us individually for sponsoring them.

Dinner was fabulous!  A lovely salad, fresh baked bread and this HUGE plate of chicken, tri-tip and cheesy mashed potatoes.  Rather hard to cut hard broccoli with a bread knife however.  Note to self ... bring a steak knife next year.

How do I know I'm coming next year?  Because one of their auction items was our exact table for eight with all the extras PLUS a round of golf at a fancy club for two.  Yup ... we bought it for half of what we paid for this year's table with NO golf.  Not that I play golf, but a couple of the guys do.

The dessert auction was amazing.  Is this not a gorgeous lemon cake?  

Or this cheesecake?  Though two at our table were having their 39th Anniversary, we passed on buying a cake.  We do have to watch our money a bit ... and each one of the 12 cakes went for over $600.00.  Mostly because they also had a slew of politicians there, who wanted to get their names out!

I left about the time the pianos started playing.  They are SO very loud you can't hear yourself think.  Great music, but I had that early EARLY trip to the meeting.  

Speaking of the meeting ... I got an email yesterday.  Believe it or not, I had to write a Note of Excuse to the Lodge back East and explain why I did not attend this function.  Are you kidding me?  Are we not adults here?  Well as you can imagine, I wrote a good one, and included SIX pictures of me getting towed from the side of the freeway.  

On to yesterday morning, I called my OTHER tow company (I have TWO now don't ya know) and asked for a pick up.  I might have tried to drive it into town, but that country road has NO place to pull over.  I'd rather not chance it.

Lunch was quick and easy as I tried to use up the last of the commercial six month old sourdough bread from my freezer.  It was all pretty tasteless.  

My tow truck driver showed up with another car on his truck and wanted to tow mine in.  Ummmm no thank you.  I know that will save you a trip, but I'd rather have it ON the truck.  He came back two hours later and she is now in the shop.  

But WAIT .... not a single code shows up on the truck.  HOW CAN THAT BE?  No engine light, no codes.  So I sent them a picture I had taken ... thank goodness I did that ... and I haven't heard back.  I'll stop by today and see what's up.  

I did get a little bit done yesterday ... I baked a loaf of homemade sourdough.  I'll bring that up tomorrow since for right now ... I have to get my armor on.  It's going to be a doozy since we are now struggling to find volunteers to cook in the snack bar.  SOMEONE who shall remain nameless told them they didn't have to stay past 8:00, even though they agreed to stay until 8:30.  It will be a fight to the death I'm sure.

It's always something!!  

BAD LUCK, GOOD LUCK

 Well THAT was fun!  You know me, if I didn't have bad luck, I wouldn't have any luck at all.  

I got home from the Gala late, which I will tell you about tomorrow, only to get up at 4:30 to get ready to head out to the Elks Meeting 90 minutes North.  What could go wrong, right?

I cruised right along with no traffic other than the six cars playing the race game.  They passed me so fast I didn't even seen them coming up ... and I drive by my mirrors.  They were swerving all over the road, thankfully missing the traffic.  

I'm almost there ... maybe 15 minutes away when my cruise shuts down and this pops up.  Oh good grief.  Not again!!!  This is REALLY bad news cuz I'm on the freeway.  

Luckily it kept going enough that I made the next exit and pulled into a parking lot that said NO PARKING.  I pulled out my handy dandy code reader once again and got this.  This is the same message I got last time!  I thought they fixed all of this at the shop!  Oh this is not good ... not good at all.

The truck still ran, so I limped back on the freeway going home.  I'll just see how far I can make it.  If nothing else, the tow bill will be a tad bit cheaper.  

So yes ...... here I am stuck on the freeway when it died a horrible death.  I had to drive it a mile at about 10 mph just to get to a good spot to pull over.  BIG SIGH!  I called the people that were expecting me and told them I was dead in the water.  

WAIT ... NOW I DON'T HAVE TO GO TO THE MEETING!  OH DARN!!!

So I called my AAA card number for a tow.  Easy peasy.  EXCEPT ... they didn't answer the phone.  The message said we will send you a text.  Click on it and we will take care of you.  Thirty minutes later I thought to call them back since no one called ME!  

WE HAVE NO RECORD OF A SERVICE CALL FROM THIS NUMBER.  Are you kidding me?  I called and placed another order.  Ten minutes later I called BACK and got the same message.  What a blankety blank waste of money THIS place is.

I got on my phone and looked up tow companies in the nearest town.  The guy sounded like I woke him up.  Well it is Sunday and it was 9:00.  I called a second one to be connected to a nice guy who said YES, but it's going to cost you.  He's going to tow me over an hour away and go back empty.  

Like I had anything to say about it since I don't own a tow truck.  I'm now $400 poorer.  But you know what?  It was worth every penny.  He was there in 15 minutes, put me in the cab to listen to his Mexican musica and loaded my truck up.  

What a nice guy.  We talked all the way back about everything from buying houses to investing money to him being an owner operator.  I decided it was money well spent.  Here's a guy working really hard to make a living.

So here I am, safely home over an hour later.  Unfortunately, I will have to pay yet ANOTHER towing bill to get it to the shop.  I'm going to have a nice little talk with those guys ... didn't they check ALL the wires, or just ONE from last time.  

And so ended a lovely day ... BAD luck, being stuck on the freeway, but GOOD luck I got a very nice tow truck driver, but even BETTER luck, I didn't have to attend that meeting after all.  

Now to get to work having it fixed.  I think this trip is going to cost me $$$$$ before it's done.