BIRDS, BIRDERS AND BAKING

 It's starting to look a lot like fog!  That's okay though because it's a lovely 45 degrees this morning with a high of 70.  This is my kind of sunny California weather!!  I'm thinking I might not be enjoying it for long however.  I'm on the hunt for a new state.

This was a nice surprise.  Green grass.  No that isn't it, you have to look very close.  To be honest I don't even know what these little birds are, but they are cute as can be, fast as lightning and the bane of Kitters.  They take up roost in the rose bushes for the entire winter.  I guess there are lots of worms just waiting to be breakfast.  

Yes I really was supposed to be at the lodge at 9:00 am.  I was a no-show.  Instead, I baked another batch of those yummy chocolate chip cookies.  Gee ... only 16 dozen to go.  I probably won't buy a box again because they take up my entire freezer!!  Sure is nice not to have to MAKE them however.  Just plop on a pan and bake.

Hard to see this girl, but while I was distracted, I caught her perusing the aisles for lizards.  She found one that escaped last week, so I guess she was double checking to make sure it was gone.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING ... GET DOWN FROM THERE!!  Who me????  She's so black, she's almost hard to see.  

At 11:30 I took off for some creative accounting.  So creative that I had to call the Official CPA for some advice.  What a great gal she is with a fabulous sense of humor.  The first words out of her mouth were OH SHIT.  I laughed because that's exactly what I said when I found the problems.  In two seconds she had it fixed.  I have to admit doing everything online now where things can be quickly corrected makes my life MUCH easier.  

My backup girl showed up right on time and we paid a gazillion bills.  I would like to dispense with my watchful eye when it comes to that, but having so many accounts can be daunting ... and mistakes have been made.  It's better I spy with my eagle eye the entire time.  Errors aren't allowed.

With that done, mostly because when it comes time to file everything I sneak out the back door, I was off to Walmart to actually buy some groceries myself.  The last couple of times, the veggies have been less than perfect.  In fact, that last package of Brussels sprouts I got from Costco?  100% rotten in the middle of every single one.  

I was lucky enough to sit with one of our Bingo gals who just lost 30 pounds.  She gave me this soup recipe that she swears by.  That's where most of this will end up.  Hopefully it works for me too.  Oh ... and just ignore that green box sitting there, perfectly camouflaged.

Okay, I'm a pushover for pizza.  It's one of my all time favorite food groups.  I've been ever so good for at least four months now.  When I paid for the groceries at Walmart, I was left staring at a Dominos sign.  They were having a $5.99 special.  All my self control went out the window.  Not that I had any to start with.

Let me just say that this is the best pizza I've had in a long time.  The entire crust, top, sides and bottom is crispy and tender.  I could have used eight more slices of pepperoni, but this was DELICIOUS!!  It being two meals makes it even better.  I'm hooked.  Maybe this will be my once a week splurge!!!

And then THIS happened.  I keep watching all these sourdough clips online, seeing them make bagels, English muffins and sourdough bread.  Most all of them use this machine.  Instead of all that kneading with arthritic fingers, this baby does it for you.

Yup I ordered it and Amazon was kind enough to send it to me.  It's not your grandmothers mixer, that's for sure.  I had to read the directions six times, mostly because it was printed in 1/32" writing.  They need to make that bigger for us old folks.  This should keep me busy for awhile.

It's not going to be used today however, since it's Veterans Night at the lodge.  Another friend and I invited the entire Honor Guard (and their wives) to our tasty steak dinner, on us.  They deserve that and so much more.  If you have never seen a funeral with these guys giving their gun salute and placing that flag on the casket, you should go at least once.

We will also be giving away at least two of those quilts I made, along with one extra for the raffle.  All the rest will be given out on actual Veterans Day where we feed every veteran and their family who walks through the door at no charge.  I'm looking forward to that one too.

Next up ... a new kitchen vacuum to suck up all that flour that's going to end up on the floor from my bread baking!!!