Only Me

This year I supported a Youtube content creator by purchasing his page-a-day calendar about animals. Mamadou Ndiaye’s Casual Geographic clips are both witty and educational.

Dumb me, I bought a 2024 version. I decided not to let this bother me as the snippets remain enjoyable.

 

Do you enjoy nature shows? Is there one particular animal you most appreciate?

Lucky Us

The other day my husband and I foolishly didn’t assess the snow piled at the end of our driveway. I got stuck and we spent perhaps twenty minutes digging/rocking the car out, even adding some fresh cat litter for tire traction. It’s a good thing we left early for his dental appointment.

A neighbor helped me shovel upon our return home. He’s perhaps thirty years old and said he took a pain pill for his back, planning to clear our entire driveway. We convinced otherwise. Our cars can power through several inches, after all.

Interestingly, the young gentleman offhandedly reminded me that the paved portion between sidewalk and street is called an apron in US lingo. I suppose it’s due to tapered ends resembling an apron’s skirt.

Meanwhile more snow fell, as did darkness, and while shoveling gets harder as the years pass, I grew determined to retain passage. Discovering a light powder had fallen I grabbed my shop broom.

Dragging and even pushing light loads proved easier than expected. I proceeded to do the same for several neighbors. One fellow came and helped, shoveling more of my driveway after seeing me. He felt guilt despite the times he’s done the same winters past.

Our area seldom sees more than a few inches of the white stuff or we’d consider purchasing a snow blower. Perhaps we’ll hire a service in future years. I wish our drifts could be air dropped over fires around the world. ~sigh~ At least we’re getting plenty of ground water here.

My mother gifted me this
waterproof fedora
decades ago...
Cool, no?

Do you enjoy seasonal changes? Do you have a favorite? -

Another Loss

I’m always saddened when folks lose loved ones. Not too long ago I discovered a fascinating couple through the wife’s blog. Now both are gone. On the bright side, they lived long and fruitful lives.

Don’t misunderstand me; I believe every honorable human uplifts the species. But this couple’s contribution amazes me. For those who never knew their story, here is her obituary. I am sorry that my links will not work tonight and you must copy and paste if interested. Blessings to you all.

https://www.stanleyfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Mariette-Van-Den-Munckhof-Vedder?obId=34153025

Yum

I regret being absent of late and hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season. My brain seems not to have caught up with how much my husband’s health and mobility have improved. Some days I have trouble getting out of bed when my heart and mind should be rejoicing. Please do not feel bad for me, though, as I will get there.

That said, he keeps me entertained with Youtube videos, including one by a darling food blogger named Emmy. I don’t use social media beyond blogging and thus am grateful she covered a recipe for tuna salad shared by actor Mathew McConaughey. As my title proclaims, it’s fantastic (!) to someone who’s not even a huge fan of canned tuna.

The balance of heat, mild sweetness, and crunch proved astounding. I generally dislike raw onion yet didn’t omit it. And, wow, the small amount didn’t upset my stomach one bit. Also, I didn’t try any until it sat overnight; that might have helped mellow the small bits of onion.

In case you’re unaware as I was, the recipe is below. Please let me know if you try it and your resulting opinion.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup mayonnaise, plus more as desire

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons wasabi paste

2 teaspoons Italian dressing

3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

3 tablespoons finely chopped dill pickles

1/3 cup crispy jalapeño chips (my guy found these on Amazon)

1/4 cup chopped apple

1/2 cup fresh corn kernels (I cooked them along with the peas for two minutes in the microwave and let them cool)

1/2 cup frozen peas

10 ounces quality tuna packed in olive oil, drained (my Albacore tuna came packed in water so I added a drizzle of olive oil)

Directions:

Stir mayonnaise together with vinegar, lemon juice, wasabi, and Italian dressing in a medium bowl until combined.

Add in onion, pickles, jalapeño chips, apple, corn, and peas, and stir.

Fold in the tuna until well combined. Add more mayonnaise if desired.

Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Do you enjoy any canned fish? And isn’t amazing how some foods, like many soups and stews, improve with a day or two refrigerated?

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Progress – & – Projects

All the kind words left on my almost abandoned blog are much appreciated. My annoying upper respiratory infection is fading every day to the point my husband and I went grocery shopping together. I consider this not only progress in my health but also attitude.

The fact our lives turned around so fast has left my emotional responses behind. We all know many caregivers never see conditions improve and I have unending respect for their forbearance. Thus I also feel shame over some lingering depression.

But his regained interest in food, and thus my cooking and baking adventures, has provided a huge boost. Roasting my homegrown pumpkins, their seeds, and trying my hand at smoking meats and baking various breads, pies, making apple butter, and even turning apple scraps into apple cider vinegar are rewarding busywork. We are even considering a little distillery kit to make my vinegar less watery.

Did you know there is such a thing as Mother of vinegar, and that it’s a symbiotic relationship between beneficial yeast and bacteria? Are you a fan of vinegar in general or specifically?

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Turning a Virtual Corner – & – Virtually Coughing Up a Lung

I’ve learned over the years that even with the best health care available we must advocate for ourselves. Sometimes, though, we need the help of a bright physician who’s on his game. This has been one such occasion.

When the awesome Dr. T advised my husband to stop taking a multi-purpose medication his kidneys not only improved but his appetite returned and dizziness went away. He has also been taken off all blood pressure medication that was described decades ago. I thought once you got on meds for high blood pressure you never stopped.

As I type my husband is seeing the kidney doctor again. We agree the specialist will be happy with ongoing improvements. I’ve been driving my husband everywhere for months and his regained confidence behind the wheel is a blessing in more ways than one because I developed a nasty upper respiratory infection, no doubt due to stress.

I cannot recall the last time I fell ill, having learned a long time ago that I must wash my hands after traveling even a short distance and to never touch my face while out and about. It probably looks odd if other drivers notice me scratching the side of my nose through clothing. I don’t care.

Pasts illnesses have been much more painful; my throat isn’t aching and my headache mild. Last night, though, I couldn’t stop coughing up phlegm between around 2am and sunrise. It finally eased up and my man bought me some cough syrup. For a while there I feared coughing so hard that I ended up with a detached retina.

Can you believe my husband thought he was dying just a week ago? And how fortunate are we to have such a great medical team?

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My Mundane Adventures

My husband spent three days hospitalized for kidney issues. His primary care doctor thought taking him off a certain medication would turn things around but the nephrologist disagreed.

Fortunately, Dr. T was correct while the kidney doctor’s hospitalization order gave me a tiny respite. I remained busy, such as taking one of our two cars in for repairs, yet otherwise enjoyed extra peace and quiet.

Now he is home sleeping as I type this Wednesday evening around 6pm. Fingers crossed, changes made to medications will improve our quality of life. He regained a reasonable appetite following weeks of forcing food down. And I hope his downbeat demeanor improves.

On a funny note, my adventures regarding the auto repair shop proved a bit crazy. We scheduled a tire rotation, oil change, and the impetus for the appointment was having a check engine light investigated. Knowing all this would take some time I asked for their free shuttle service and had the driver take me to a local gourmet market.

I’ve done this once before. The shop encourages folks to linger in two comfortable seating areas. I settled in with a bagel and interesting beverage. They offered a turmeric and ginger spiced chai latte. I enjoyed the interesting warm drink most and anticipated a tasty lunch of perhaps a lamb pie or fresh made sushi.

However, just before noon I received notice that the diesel fueled vehicle needed serious repairs to the tune of over $1000 (USD) and a necessary part wouldn’t arrive until the next day. We decided to make the investment.

All I needed to do now was get a ride home. Upon calling I was told that our home ranged well beyond their complimentary car service area but she’d check with the manager.

I’m happy to report he made the correct choice. After being customers who’ve spent thousands of dollars over the last two decades I planned to raise hell if refused transportation.

What looks like snow is residue from the
failed diesel exhaust residue tank...

When dropped off by the driver I went to dig out my house key. I’m sure you can guess that it was attached to the car key fob left behind.

We are blessed with kind neighbors, one of whom gave me a ride that took forty minutes total round trip plus the time it took recovering my house key. In gratitude, the least we can do is offer him and his wife fuel point savings from grocery shopping, most of which will expire before we can possibly use them all.

Are you a fan of any particular herbs and/or spices? Have you ever found yourself locked out of your home?

 
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My very Biased Toktoberfest 2024 Family Winner

My husband accused me of faking this... Nope.
How can anyone fake silly Polly's pose?
All I can say to our silly girl is,
"Please don't ever change."