We started out the day actually going to a trainer space out in Weston to do a free weight strength training exercises with a trainer for a hour to help get a little bit in shape. We did squats, and dead lifts, curls, and all kinds of stretches. Not the worst way to spend a free hour in the morning. Then it was off to what I wanted to check out, this fine dandy of place, right in my hometown. It’s only open to the public once a year. It’s run by a couple who have transformed their house into this place. It’s quite a sight. The crown jewel of the house is surely its Grand Hall at the top of the staircases. Every inch of the walls and vaulted ceiling in the auditorium is intricately painted with bright colors featuring the artists’ interpretation of creation stories from different cultures. There are 57 murals of about 5,200 square feet in total.
(The last pic above is actually from Weston next to the town green where we worked out.)
After that we decided to try a place in the Ville that I had always heard great things about and since it was in the area we went to try it. A little place called Three Little Figs. It was good. Then we came home and bought some flowers to be planted soon as part of our gardening tasks.
Yesterday we attended a celebration ceremony for LD’s former landlady’s husband who recently passed away.
The service was held at a charming little church in town, and afterwards we were all welcomed to a local restaurant for lunch and to chat with the family, etc.
It was a good time, albeit a little hectic. After that, we pretty much slept all day on the couch. As I previously stated, the weather was quite wet and cold.
I ended up taking several naps, something I rarely, if ever do. It was that type of day.
I went ahead this morning to a church that’s located in town and delivered some food that we had around over to the local food pantry. Hopefully it’ll will go to some people in need. I haven’t been able to update much this week because my stomach was upset, mostly due to what I think must have been something I ate. It wasn’t too bad, just one of those things that has to work it’s way through the system. I appear to be pretty good now though, so that’s a relief.
I picked up this special card 8.5×11 card a little while ago and wrote things in the circles from Carson and I and then covered them up with scratch off stickers, so that when the circle is scratched the saying I wrote will be seen. Pretty neat, huh?
I also have a special unique thing planned for LD, but it isn’t quite ready yet, which is a shame, but I’m hoping it’ll come relatively soon and turns out extremely well.
The new couch got delivered this afternoon! Yay!! Great Laz-E-Boy store pickup. Just hope that Carson doesn’t take clawing to it. We’ll have to watch that.
So much for a snow day! They really messed up on this one, a real blockbuster ended up being pretty much of a dud! Don’t get me wrong, I prefer to have little top no snow, and I appreciate the day off (I have to move my regular duties to this Friday) but it’s like I said before. The better the technology gets in weather predicting, the worse the forecasts are. Actually I don’t think it’s the tech, it’s the analysis of the models. Plus the media likes to hype stuff up ridiculous. I actually don’t really pay attention to them anymore to be honest. Rather just use my phone and see the day before what the day after will bring.
So what exactly is Galentine’s Day? The iconic celebration is an unofficial holiday that takes place on Feb. 13, the day before Valentine’s Day. Its entire premise is that women forget about any significant others for the day — and solely focus on celebrating the female friends in their lives. Contrary to the popular criticism that Galentine’s Day patronizes single women, the celebration is meant to be a day of empowerment, and a reminder for women to support and uplift one another. It’s about “ladies celebrating ladies,” as Poehler’s character, Leslie Knope, would put it.
This afternoon we made a lemon orzo chicken soup, and it came out really good. Today was the perfect afternoon to make a soup, in my opinion. I’ve already eaten three bowls of it and plan on having more of it tonight, that’s how much I liked how this one came out!
Surrounded by silver balls. We’re back to watching season of NYPD Blue since we took a break to watch the entirety of seasons of Nip/Tuck. We just got through the gut wrenching sad death of Bobby Simone , which goes across 5 episodes and what I thought was extremely well done.
Other than nothing, nothing earth-shattering to report just yet. Oh, a countertop guy did come by this afternoon and fixed a couple of things in the kitchen but he was done within the hour and it looks great.
Capybara Cuddles for my Valentine? You betcha! More to come on this development!
Just playing around with some AI this afternoon. Doing a little face swapping on things. Like me on this Greek artwork. At least I think it’s Greek? Could be Roman I suppose. Anyways, it’s pretty good except I don’t think it got the hair quite right.
Not much to report on about today. Just shuffling around town doing my thing. It’s amazing that on the days you don’t think you’ll get a lot, you do, and when you think you’ll get a lot, you actually don’t. It’s so strange. Meanwhile, the head honchos want to have a meeting with us in a couple weeks to discuss some “issues.” Sounds ominous but that’s just the way these guys talk. Not sure what that’s all about but hopefully nothing too earth-shattering.
Currently Reading:Released: Conversations on the Eve of Freedom by Gypsy-Rose Blanchard. Looks like this will be an easy one, it’s only about 100 pages. I already know the story from all the television shows but it popped up as available, so I figured, what the heck. Give it a go You know the story, the one about the Munchausen by proxy.
I don’t know if it’s the weather or just the activities I’ve been involved in this week, probably a combination of both, but both my knees have been killing me a bit. The joys and rigors of aging I suppose. Still, I don’t like it very much. So in the down time of trying to rest them, I ended up playing around with some video and plowing through my current read. I’ve also queued up a bunch of new books so I’m off to a great literary start to the year of book reading, so there’s that..
Once again I thought it would be fun to list what I felt were the top ten moments of my life from 2023!
As always, it wasn’t easy coming up with this list and truth be told, with the exception of maybe the top two or three, any of these could be in any order. I’m sure I’m missing some things as well here and there, but these are the moments that stood out the most to me from the past year. I probably would have added meeting Jackie the House Duck to this list but you can read my previous post about all that. As usual the images I’ve taken during the year helped me to remember and capture some of the moments. You can click on many of the smaller ones to see a better view. And now without further ado, let’s get right to the list!
We had an opportunity to spend a couple of days out on the Cape and recharge. Although it was partly cloudy for most of the time, the only really sunny day was extremely windy which it made it feel really cold, so I didn’t go crazy getting photos, but I was pleased with I was able to capture of which a small sampling is here on this post.
We had some great food and hot chocolates and spent a bunch of time just hanging out, relaxing and reading. One weird thing about the place we were staying at is that they had their own photos on the walls with you could purchase. Just seemed a little weird to me. Also we could never figure out how to get the automatic candles to light in the fireplace which would have been really cool, but it was a fun place to crash.
I had some interest in some of the cape photos from this trip so I’ve made them available on the store page. Check it out if you like my work. Ironic, don’t you think?
Nauset Beach (available for purchase!)Nauset beachThe “new” Capt. CassSnow on Rock HarborSunset at CrooksNauset winds and wavesOrleans viewSkaket Love
Number 9: Fourth of July party!
This was the day of the BBQ that I had been hoping for since early in the year! The weather was a bit overcast but that’s alright by me, as long as it didn’t pour on us it would be fine. In fact, maybe it would even keep down the heat of the day, although it was pretty muggy out. At least the plants are all loving this kind of weather – they are growing like gangbusters. As the festivities went on though the sun came out and stayed out. It ended up being a successful outing! I was a master at grilling dogs, burgs, salmon, corn, and veggies. Did a quick fire pit, admired the garden and relaxed in the sun and for dessert….I invited my mom and sister over to partake in the festivities. I think they enjoyed themselves.
Here are the treats we made last night for the days BBQ. Aren’t they cute?! LD can be so creative at times, as she comes up with these ideas or finds out about them and we try to implement them. They are little grills with food on them! It’s actually just Little Bites for the grill, some food coloring to get the grill lines and Mike and Ike candies for the meats and vegetables. The legs are lollipop sticks. Let me tell, these were not that easy to make, but they sure were a huge hit and totally worth it!
Number 8: Bristol Rhode Island Birthday Trip!
One this day we took an afternoon trip down to beautiful Bristol RI and I got to have a nice lunch by the water. We saw some herons and egrets too. I ended up getting a Del’s Lemonade Cucumber Spritz with Vodka and a nice Seafood Linguine. I would recommend this place called the Beach House. I found my dish to be super delicious.
The before heading back we took a detour to stop by Like No Udder down in Providence to get some ice cream and slush goodies.
I also got some cool books, and a neat bamboo cutting board that includes different mats for cutting different types of foods on top of it, which will replace the current cutting board I’ve been using for a long time now.
Number 7: Father’s Day Trip
In front of a New England classic
On this day I was jonesin for a little bit of Kelly’s Roast Beef out in Revere Beach, so LD was kind enough to get us there. I also wore my Carson sweatshirt which was a gift from last year but I wear it only on special occasions because it is so special. It’s actually a hoodie, with the face of Carson on the front and the text “Carson’s Dad” all hand stitched from a photo that LD sent to a woman in the Ukraine who made it. Truly a one of a kind! It took a long time to arrive but I’m amazed it came at all seeing as there is a war going on over there! I enjoyed my roast beef sandwich loaded with cheese and sauce, but I did switch hoodies when it came to eat on the beach because I would not want to get the Carson hoodie damaged in any way! It only comes out now on special rare occasions.
Revere Beach LovinBringing a bit of Carson to the beachCarson and his daddyS’more time
Then we had some friends over for an impromptu BBQ and fire pit night. We ended up just getting takeout from a great Greek food place in town and then did the S’mores thing. It was supposed to happen on Saturday but the weather looked to be crappy so it all got moved up to Friday night and it was wonderful. We did need all of Saturday to basically recuperate from it all though. Being social can take a lot out of a person!
Number 6: Going on a Hayride with Goats!
It may look like I’m walking a goat, but Ralphie here was actually walking me!
Going on a hayride with baby goats? And then walking them after? Hell, yes! Thankful that all the rain we were supposed to have pretty much held out for most of the day up in Georgetown, Massachusetts! Good memories were made this day my friends! You can click on any photo below for a bigger look.
Giving Snowball a tratWalking Ralphie and SnowballRalphie walking meRalphieSelfie Booth!
Number 5: A Visit to the Catskills!
Oh look, another entry with goats. Seems to be a theme! Back from a lovely Easter weekend in the Catskills of New York. We got to stay in a pretty cool Airbnb , pretty much a log cabin, with a wood stove fireplace and that is attached to an actual goat sanctuary across the way and they had baby goats, which of course we snuggled! We also got to “paint with goats!” Actually we got to do a lot of things there but one of the highlights was probably LD with a sweet baby goat that fell asleep in her arms for two hours. Pretty amazing to experience. Her name is Alora by the way and she is the cutest. Probably my favorite. Click on the pics for full length versions.
Afterwards we took a little drive over to the old Catskill Game Farm, where LD went to visit as a little kid. It’s abandoned now but we visited anyway. We also passed by the largest garden gnome statue in the world (at least up until 2007) on the way.
One cool thing about the place that I forgot to mention earlier is that it was fully stacked but also had this somewhat amazing gameroom in the basement, with Poker, darts, air hockey, basketball, foosball, and even a full length ping pong table. I also spent some time in one of the various hammocks around the property. The place was pretty cool, I would definitely go back, and the drive is not bad at all.
Oh, there wasn’t even supposed to be baby goats there. we lucked out on that one. They got some goats in previously and apparently one male somehow slipped through the process and basically ended up impregnating a bunch of the ladies one night. That goat was super busy. Is that what the kids mean nowadays when they say that goat had rizz? Anyways it worked out because baby goats are the best and it ended up being a great surprise and made the experience even better in my opinion.
Number 4: Prelude in Kennebunkport!
I know, this one wasn’t that long ago! This particular weekend we went up to see the Kennebunkport Maine’s Prelude festivities. We arrived at our Airbnb on Friday night, a place that we stayed a couple of years ago for Prelude. Yes, in Arundel again, the place with the sulfur water! But, for whatever reason, it didn’t seem half as bad this time, plus the place is great otherwise. They even have a microwave now. It is a bit on the minimalist side but it suited our purposes just fine. The bed is very comfy if a bit low to the ground. Very modern type of place/look. Anyways, we didn’t attend the actual tree lighting in the center because that’s bat-shit crazy town, but we met up with our friend “E” who grew up there for a nice evening dinner at a place called Ultramar. I ended up getting this seafood bouillabaisse which was very good. I’d have to say that all the restaurants in the area are pretty top notch. Hung there for a few hours having a good time. Then we went back to our friend’s parents’ place where we played with the dogs, Pippa and Boomer. LD loves Boomer – he’s a very large dog, a Chesapeake Bay Retriever. When we got back to our place to crash I decided to be a little Zen, as you can see in the photo.
Saturday was the busiest day for us as we had a lot of things planned and I’m happy to say that we got to do them all and even a bit more! .It started out with us going to check out a donkey that was going to be visiting some of the little craft shops in a corner of the town. We were so excited to see him. His name is Sylvester of all things and his fur was so so soft and he such a gentle creature. Naturally we had to get many pictures with him, which we did. Both singularly and together. Some old lady also decided to get into some of our group shots but she was cropped out of Couse. Sorry lady, No beuno!
Then it was off the to the beach for a little bit because you can’t go to Maine and not have some beach time, plus LD needs beach time. “E” brought her dog and we watched as she played in the sand, chasing balls, and meeting other dogs. The weather was actually pretty nice and there was no rain throughout the day even though that was a possibility, so we lucked out there big time. Couldn’t stay at the beach too long though because we had reservations for a trolley ride!
After that it was to the Seashore Trolley Museum to take a ride along the tracks on an old 1920s rail trolley with our couple-friends (M&M) who came up for the day! The train ride itself wasn’t all that long but it was kind of neat to be on an actual rail trolley from back in the day. What I didn’t realize is that I though since Seashore was in the name, that this ride who go along the sea shore, but alas it just goes through the woods of Maine. Still, it was an experience and we got some great pictures there in the actual museum which hosts a bunch of old train stuff.
After that we all went out to lunch back in the center of town at a place called Old Vines Wine Bar. I didn’t have any wine but we did have chicken meatballs, and I specifically had Ricotta Herbed Ravioli. The baked brie was pretty amazing as well. After that there was a hat parade going on in the center, which we weren’t a part of but got stuck in with anyway. While that was going on, there was a couple of stops in some shops and a coffee/hot chocolate run.
After saying bye to M&M who had only planned to stay for the day we headed back to the Airbnb for a few hours to recuperate before the next round of activities. It’s a good thing we did too because we’d be really dragging and hurting if we didn’t. Age is catching up to us!
It started off by visiting the Kennebunkport Conservation Trust to check out this lighted meditation labyrinth in the woods. We eventually found it, although it was much further in than we had anticipated. But we made it and did the whole follow-the-path-to-enlightenment thing. Took some pictures there but it was pretty dark so they really didn’t come out all that well. You’ll just have to experience for yourself!
Dinner was at THE BURLEIGH, a place we had all dined at before, once again meeting up with our friend. It definitely has an interesting look as the bar area looks like Christmas threw up with it’s over the top decorations. I ended up having a burger there which was great. The fries were pretty great too.
By this point it was approaching 10 pm and most of the crowds had dispersed for the night. So it was a great time to hit the lighted bridge over by the Boathouse. We got some great pictures there of all of us. We also got stuff for Carson at a little pet shop in town that we like to hit up whenever we’re in the area.
Day three was a little more of the same, although less because it would also be the day we’d be heading back. We started out by going to a charity for dogs event at a place called Vinegar Hill Farm where you can win a Christmas tree or a wreath or something of that nature, and get a pic of your pup with Old Saint Nick himself. “E” brought Pippa and her dad brought Boomer, LD’s favorite. But Boomer apparently can’t really be in this setting because he’d be like a bull in a china shop and knock everything and everyone over, even though he’s a love. He just doesn’t know his own body size or strength. In fact, while taking pictures of Boomer outside with LD and Santa, Boomer got too excited and knocked both Santa and LD over. LD actually face planted, which wasn’t good and got some back and blue on her chin, but it could have been worse. Eighty pounds of Boomer is like a Sherman Tank. Don’t worry though, everyone was alright, thank goodness.
Before heading back a went around and grabbed a few scenic pictures of the area, hitting the famous Clam Shack by the river, the Love KPT sign of course, and the truck out in front of Batson’s. We were bummed this year that Batson’s didn’t have the outdoor fish shacks which is part of the reason we went to Old Vines instead. Oh, and just before leaving the state we hit up Yummies for some candy!
Did I forget anything. Most likely, we did so many things, and there were so many people, and there was so many laughs and good times. Prelude has gotten so big now that it’s been so publicized! It’s a pretty special place and we always enjoy our time there.
Oops! I did forget something! Before heading out we went out for brunch at a place called Musette, a little tiny café where the actor Patrick Dempsey (aka McDreamy) likes to hang out. We didn’t see him there that day bit the food was tasty and the vibe was small-town-ish.
Number 3: A Brew-Tea-Ful Day!
Fancy Tea Time!
Reservations finally came through for a little get together at a fancy tea house to help celebrate our anniversary. The food was great! I ended up going with a white tea called the Bartlett Pear which consists of White tea, pear, apple and peach pieces, pear flavor, nutmeg, cinnamon, white cornflowers, peach flavor. I must say it was quite good, very pleased with my choice. We were seated in the cutest little room, very pink and very Marie Antoinette-ish, for my lack of a better description. It was fun day to celebrate our special day!
Number 2: First Ever Bat Mitzvah
Attending our first ever Bat Mitzvah. Let me tell you, our friends know how to throw a party! From the signature cocktails to all the custom everything! The service was wonderful as well. There was so much I’m having a hard time remembering it all. I know there was a ton of dancing, and some eating, and taking pictures and just whooping it up. It was a fun time. Will most likely do it again in a couple of years when the next kid has his!
Before I get to Number 1, how about some Honorable Mentions?
HM 1: Momma Bunny Pays a Visit!
This happened on a day that was spent cleaning out some of the kitchen cabinets in anticipation of the new work that was going to be done soon. While we were in the process of doing that, LD noticed that a mother rabbit was creating a new nest for babies over on the side deck. Not the greatest place to put one since we come in and out of that door all the time, but momma is going to do what momma wants!
We’ve taken to naming this mother bunny Katherine. I’m not sure why but LD came up with it and we’re going with it. In the end, momma decided not to use this nest (what a disappointment!) must likely we believe to be because a squirrel came by later and dug up around all the work she was doing. Perhaps it spooked her. It was still really interesting to watch the process though, and we’ve been really lucky with rabbits birthing their kids in out flowerpots many times now in the last couple of years!
Momma bunny in action!
HM #2: Biking the new GLX Line!
Cruising under the Zakim
Another BTS shot!
On this particular day I needed to run to Somerville and while I was there, I was figuring, since it was a rather cool day out, that I’d go and do a quick bike ride down the GLX and get some exercise in. So that’s one of the things that happened
I must say that they did a really nice job with this path. I mean, it took them long enough to build it, but the wait was worth it, I would say. It’s a straight shot into Boston so it’s very convenient. Plus the scenery along the way isn’t too bad either. It ends basically just before going under the Zakim bridge where it ties in to other bike/pedestrian routes there, over that park by North Point.
HM #3: Round Hill Beach Excursions!
Can you correctly identify these four creatures? Three birds and some sort of sea creature apparently with it’s arms up out of the water.
We had so much fun on this day, we did this a couple of times. The waves were better and we basically ended up staying there until closing, Once again, thanks to LD’s friend for allowing us to use her resident pass so we could access this private beach. For lunch we munched on a Jersey Mike’s but one thing I learned is you have to eat there kind of with your food hidden, because the gulls are pretty aggressive. In fact before I knew this I was divebombed by one of them trying to get the sandwich out of my hand! It basically crashed into my head, and it kind of hurt a little, I was more surprised than anything I suppose, but it ended up empty handed as I was able to hold on to my sandwich. I also find that I like swimming at beaches with boats in the background.
HM #4: The Kitchen Renovation!
This vid was taken when it was about 98 percent done! It’s all done now. Bought a bunch of new stuff to go with the new décor, etc. It’s been a little over a month of hard work but the results are paying off now! Everyone who sees it, loves the transformation. The backsplash is the real star. LD spent a very long time on all the details and it shows! This is where I prep and cook a lot of our meals now!
And Now on to The Number One Top Moment, actually Moments,
Drum Roll Please
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It was the Summer Cape Trip This Year! But Specifically One Certain Day During
Endless Summer Nights
Did you ever have a day where you wish it would never end and you wished it would just last forever. That’s what this day was for me this year.
This whole week was pretty much amazing, but one day in particular really stood out. One of LD’s former colleagues also came down for a couple of days and happened to be there during this stint. The visit to Harding’s beach in Chatham on this particular day was incredible and one that I’ll remember forever. We swam and swam. The water was warm, warmer than it’s ever been it seemed, like really warm, almost crazy warm, the waves were high which made riding them and splashing or jumping over them as they came in quite fun, and I was having a blast. I think we all ended up staying there from like 1:30 to 6:30. It was just the most perfect day.
And of Course by the end of the day you have to check out the sunsets.
Rock Harbor never disappoints and I got what I consider to be a great shot and one that caps off this year for me personally. I decided to walk further down along the marshy area then I have in the past. I covered myself up appropriately so that I wouldn’t get eaten by any bugs too badly and that was a smart move by me. This isn’t my first rodeo! What’s really cool about this pic is how the sun’s reflection kind of forms the shape of a heart! The universe was telling me something that day.
“Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.”
—Eckhart Tolle
Well, that’s the wrap. I also could have added the Winter Lights Outing, or the many visits to the sanctuary, the million little trips and jaunts we do, the various other hangouts with friends and family, the snuggles with Carson (that could be #1!) but I had to draw the line somewhere. Just keep following me and you will see all the craziness. It’s not all party and happiness all the time, there were some scary and sad parts, a couple of funerals to go to and the like, but I am blessed and extremely lucky that a lot of it is happiness. This post is one way for me to reflect on things and a chance for me to practice some gratitude. Growing up from the circumstances that I grew up in, I know how lucky I am but there was always love and that helped me and continues to ground me. Sooooo….
Happy New Year Everyone, let’s hope the new year is filled with more happiness and love and good stuff for you all! If you’d like to look back further into our adventures here’s the link to my top ten moments of 2022!
We went to see the Winter Lights over at the Bradley Estate in Canton last night, with another couple that we know. Before that we had them over for a quick dinner outing. They were impressed with our jukebox and played a bunch of tunes on it! Carson even came out again and didn’t hide even though he doesn’t like the jukebox because it’s pretty loud. After feasting on some nice salmon and roasted veggies that we had prepared and got finished just as they arrived, we chatted and some gifts were exchanged. LD finally got one of those Bibi Pins, and I got some swag as well. Then we were off, it’s actually not too far from us.
You get to go inside the first floor of the house as well and let me tell you, it is beautiful! Wonder what it would be like to live in a place that big, a mansion. Probably would end up misplacing my things and wouldn’t be able to find them. Anyways, after going through some of the rooms, there’s one room with a guy playing the original piano that’s in there, and he was good! He was taking requests and one of our guests requested the Peanuts theme song and he blasted right into it, all the folks in the room at the time loved it including us. He also complemented me on my scarf. I’ve been getting a lot of that lately! In the room you also got to write a wish on a card and strung in up on various tree like structures throughout the room, all in white. Really a beautiful scene. Then you head outdoors and essentially follow a lighted trail that goes through all the various light displays and finding reindeer structures made out of logs along the way. All in all, it was a very fun night.
At the half time show? Not really, but did spent a lot of time on the phone with insurance companies today. What a royal pain. Also picked up some home baked pies from a local place in town here for Thursday’s dessert festivities. This year we are having my family over so that should be interesting, to say the least. I had to run a bunch of errands today so I was a little busy. I did go out and buy some blue daisies for a vase in the kitchen. I thought the blue would match really nicely.
We had some friends over Saturday night and ended up actually playing some board games, Golden Girls Clue and Sorry. Ended up being pretty fun. For some unknown reason the GG version of Clue seemed unnecessarily complicated. Perhaps because the directions were not well written at all and in some instances didn’t not seem to make any sense. We trudges on and got the hang on it eventually and we learned that Stan stole the cheesecake in Blanche’s Bedroom absconding with it in Sophia’s purse. Hardly ever play board games anymore these days. LD won at Sorry and they won at Clue. Yes, I did not win any games. It was a good night for that kind of activity though because it was a rainy dreary day.
On Sunday I went solo to check out the Somerstreets Monster Mash. Basically just a thing were everyone gets dressed up and there’s vendors, artisans, musicians, etc. Like a street fair basically.
At a music stageThis girl was amazing swirling inside this hoopA bunch of animals?A pair of juggling witchesSpidey came by!Been meaning to take this forever. The strangest advertisement ever. What’s up with the kid’s face?
The utility guys are out front of the house this morning, tearing up the lawn and jackhammering the street out in front. Joy of joys.
Been watching old shows lately since nothing’s really on anymore. Kicking it with some classic NYPD Blue. Remember that show? I also am a little proud of myself after making a nice shrimp succotash gemelli for dinner and it came out pretty good!
Yesterday morning I went out and did some yard work on the other side of the house. Apparently I discovered another one of those vine-like invasive rose-like tendril plants and had a nice little home for itself so I got the pruners and went to town cutting all the arms down the base of the stalk. This was an offshoot of that giant rose that I spent two days over last month cutting down that monstrosity, so I was glad to get to this one before it got unmanageable. That reminds me that I need to cut the dahlias and bring them in and put them in a vase. Soon I’ll need to dig up their tubers for winter storage.
In the afternoon LD wanted to take a trip to get some apples so we went to Stow and other surrounding areas for a drive. We ended up getting two bags of apples – we didn’t pick, just bought, and plan to bake some today in something. Also got some cider donuts and hot cider. We visited a couple of places and they were packed solid with people. We ended up at a little place that was quieter off the beaten track and got our donuts and cider there, but we did get the apples at Honeypot Hill.
The room directly abutting the kitchen is finally getting painted to match the adjoining kitchen, using the same colors as the kitchen walls so it will match nicely.
Unfortunely today I accidently broke one of our ceramic/plastic ornamental pumpkins. We have one with a “P” on the front, and one with an “M” on the front, and guess which one fell out of my had and smashed to the floor in a bunch of tiny bits? Yup, the “P”. We got these years and years ago at the Christmas Tree Shop and have had them for probably close to a decade now. But now one is sadly gone forever. I’m not sure if I’ll ever find the exact replacement again, so I’m a bit bummed about that.
Woke up to see this creature just hanging out on the back patio this morning!
I’m really digging my new Samsung Smartwatch. It’s really cool how it integrates so seamlessly with the phone. I suppose it’s similar to what the Apple Watch does with the iPhone.
Been playing around with some more AI image generation tools. Here’s a cute thing of Carson I was playing around with.
Took a trip to Rexhame Beach yesterday, it was kinda crazy how warm it actually was outside so we wanted to get some sun and fresh sea air. The hurricane was long gone and it pretty much missed us entirely but the waves were still a bit high, though nothing like the day before.
One the way home LD treated us to some Gerard’s turkey sandwich dinners. Yum! Then I watched her at the pool at the gym because she wanted to get some swim time in. They had just finished putting the pool cover over the rooftop in preparation for the colder weather. It basically is like a big tent.
For dinner I grilled up some burgers and a squash that we grew. We learned of a new way to prepare the squash on the grill. Basically just cut it in half lengthwise and grill it flat side down until down. Lot less prep than slicing it into rounds and putting in foil.
In the evening I painted one of my fingernails on each hand. Why? Just to be a little artsy I guess. Keep people thinking. We’ll see if it stays around but in a weird way, I am kind of liking it – it’s so not generally me.
I want to get through a bunch of stuff this week in anticipation of a house guest coming next week for a few days, I definitely want to get more wood for the firepit, do some mowing and some landscaping. I want to try to tackle taking down at least some of this weird rose bushy tree like thing that used to be nice but has overtaken too much and needs to go. I also need to buy some goggles and gloves as I want to tackle refilling the backup battery for the sump pump in the basement. Safety first!
What was up with all the traffic today? Anyways, not too much has been going on, hence the lack of updates. I did put a trampoline together over the weekend, so there’s that. My Fitbit says I’ve achieved climbing up 14,000 flights of stairs thus far since I started recording three years ago. Other than that, it’s been business as usual, but there are some fun things coming up so look for those updates soon.
The above picture is now available in the store if anybody would like to have it adorn their spaces.
I was walking with LD along a college campus. It was a mix or where she used to be but had a large campus like Harvard, so somewhat of a mix of the two. We ended up sitting for a while and listening to some kids’ stories since they were about to graduate soon. One girl we focused on ,mostly because we could hear her, and she was regaling all her wild escapades to her friends. After a while we got up and starting walking across the campus because LD needed to get back to work or something. When we eventually get to the the building she needs to go in, I somehow got behind a pillar or something and LD lost sight of me. I recall the stairway out front had a series of platforms with stairs and ramps in parallel a few times. I called out to her and she started looking around. Eventually she found me to say bye for now and now unfortunately the dream is fading from my memory as I’m writing this, but we were going to hug but then LD said something to me and then all the kids were watching us and we ended up kissing in front of the building. Then I woke up with happy tears in my eyes.
The dream had more to it I’m sure, especially at the end but I can’t seem to recall it all now but I wanted to get down what I could. Why? Because I didn’t want to forget it anymore than I already have.
We have so many different varieties of lilies popping up all over the garden this year. It’s quite spectacular!
Yesterday was a crazy day and I spent a good chuck of it over at Earth-1. First I went to get my car inspected by my mechanic. That passed with flying colors, I had no worries about that. Then I took my mom over to Dunkins to grab a coffee. I had to drive her over to the Stop & Shop because she wanted to get a few things using her card but for some reason at the checkout the card wouldn’t take, even though there’s never a problem. While that was happening I decided to play the a Powerball. What the heck, right? We were there for a while but the card just wouldn’t take so we had to abandon that mission for a bit since her other cat had an appointment for its yearly checkup and rabies shot. He ended up getting a clean bill of health, although he is a bit over 20 pounds (he’s a big cat!) and he has some dental issues, but not unusual for a cat of his age. Heading back to Earth-1 I dropped the cat off at the house, releasing him from his pet carrier, and then we proceeded to hit a different Stop and Shop, this time in Medford, to see if the card would work there. No dice there as well, although I was able to purchase a crossword puzzle book. Basically the only one that I like because it’s the only one I found that isn’t too hard or too easy. It’s called Superb Crossword Jumbo y Kappa and comes out monthly. I’ve thought of subscribing to it a million times but never do. Eventually my mom ended up calling the card people and they’re going to send her a new card. It could be that from too many swipes the code has worn off too much. Hopefully that will fix the issue she was having.
painting at the vet’s
Heading back to Earth-2 I got stuck in traffic. Took me about an hour and a half to get back. Typically I can make the trip in 30-45 minutes. I had to pick up some meds for LD on the way so I did that as well. Then I ended up grilling us a couple or burgers for dinner. We ended up not watching tv or anything, just enjoying the silence for a change. Then we passed out in the living room but eventually found our way up to the bed.
The backsplash guy has been here all week! Mostly because of all the intricate cuts to the glass tiles that he had to do to go around corners and such, He should be finished today. As a final step he’ll be applying the whitest grout that the grout makers make! Looks real good! Getting to the very end of the reno now! Hurray!
Currently reading: Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs
Picked up some authentic Dedham pottery this week. Shown here are two candlestick holders, but we’ve also obtained salt and pepper shakers and a larger singular egg holder that we had from before. Dedham Pottery was an American art pottery company opened by the Robertson Family in Dedham, Massachusetts during the American arts & crafts movement that operated between 1896 and 1943. It was known for its high-fire stoneware characterized by a controlled and very fine crackle glaze with thick cobalt border designs. The most common and recognizable design is a repeating crouching rabbit referred to as “the Dedham rabbit”. The rabbits crouch on the ground with their ears back. They should match the colors of the new kitchen rather nicely.
Latest Work: One of my latest Cape shots has been put up for purchase. I think the notebook would be really cool. The metal print large would look pretty sick too.
Spent the morning weeding out the prarie area a bit, ans then added mulch to the central lily area in the middle of the back yard. I want to do more but then it got a little too warm out for me, so I’m going to wait until later this afternoon once it cools down a bit to maybe try to finish some of the things that I started. I don’t want to overdo it.
I spent some time with LD down at the gym, watching her do her amazing swim routines. It was quite the beautiful day for being in the pool for sure.
Below is a shot from Nubble I discovered I took from last year. Figured I’d share it because it looks kinda cool.
