.jpeg)
The concept of Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds is pretty meta. I got the bag from someone in my local Buy Nothing group. The seeds ended up being really good, and I went back to Trader Joe's for more. They were sold out.
One little Halloween lion ready for Trick or Treat.
Five years ago today: On the Road Again
My area's had warmish weather with (highs in the low 80s), but a cold front's coming through tomorrow which will cause the highs to drop from the 50s into the 40s by Monday. Everyone and everything is getting ready for the change. Including the stink bugs, which are sneaking into our house on a daily basis.
This dialogue from Season 5, Episode 20 of M*A*S*H (“The General’s Practitioner”) first aired in 1977. However, the exchange between Hawkeye (Alan Alda), and Father Mulcahy (William Christopher) could have been ripped from last week's news cycle.
Hawkeye: War isn’t Hell. War is war, and Hell is Hell. And of the two, war is a lot worse.
The ceremony took place at 1:30, and the reception started at 6:00. At the
last minute I second guessed my choices of purse and earrings, substituted
items more appropriate for daytime use, and brought the fancier ones to change
into for the evening. I also couldn't decide if I wanted to go bare-legged or
wear panty hose. I ended up going without, because the sandals were open toed.
The inserts that were supposed to make the shoes less loose helped, but they still fit like flip flops and I knew I wouldn't be able to walk for long distances in them. I ended up bringing a pair of black comfort shoes to use in between events.
The wedding was lovely. It was held in a historic church just south of
downtown. The pews were filled with family and friends, all dressed in some
type of dress clothes, and the bridal party was in black tie and gowns. The
musicians were in the choir loft in the back.
The ceremony lasted a little over an hour. The reception venue was at a
downtown hotel ten minutes away. Although we could have gone home, there would
have been very little time to rest before driving back to the same section of
town. We decided to stay in the area, attend Sunday mass at the same church at
4:30, then drive five minutes to the hotel.
During our down time I changed my shoes. Tony left his suit coat in the car.
We walked several blocks to a coffee shop, then around the area. It was warm
enough that I shed the jacket to my dress. We received several doubletakes
from the casually-dressed people we passed, and one woman stopped and told me
she liked my dress.
The second mass at the church was quite different from the first. There
were less about 50 people in attendance, and everyone but Tony and I was
dressed casually. This time the hymns were a cappella. At the end of the
service the deacon mentioned the earlier wedding and asked the congregation to
pray for the newlyweds.
We knew exactly where the reception hotel was, but it was a challenge to figure out which garage was offering complimentary parking for the event. Before I got out of the car I changed back into my fancy shoes and swapped my purse and earrings for evening ones, then Tony and I walked across the street to the venue to start the second part of the day.
Although we didn't know everyone at our reception table everyone melded well, and by the end of the evening I felt like I had made some new friends. The dinner was typical hotel banquet food, but the staff was attentive and moved everything along.
Close to the end of the evening I realized that Tony and I should have a photo to commemorate our big day and asked one of our table mates to take one. Unfortunately the room lights bounced off the room's windows in a weird way and half of the photo was overexposed. I didn't realize the mistake until I was in the car coming home, so we'll just have to remember the event without physical evidence of it.
Five years ago: As Good A Reason As AnyIn the middle of planning our parish Sausage Supper kitchen project Hubby Tony and I figured it would be nice to have a short break from the real world when we got done. We researched some options and decided on a trip to Galena Illinois, which is close to the Mississippi River not too far from the Iowa and Wisconsin borders. The city is five hours north of our house, and we hoped there would be some leaf color to see.
We left on Sunday and arrived home last night. Sadly, there wasn't much leaf color yet but we still had a good time.
GALENA
Our home base for the trip was the De Soto House Hotel, which has been in continuous use
since 1855. The building was right in the middle of the Main Street shopping area, which made it convenient for doing tourist things. Across the street there was a set of stairways to the upper streets, and two blocks in the other direction a bridge went over the Galena River to a historic residential area.
Many notable people have stayed at the De Soto House, including Abraham Lincoln, Stephan Douglas, and Ulysses S. Grant. Grant lived in Galena after he left St. Louis and worked in his father's leather good store. Later, he actually used two of the hotel rooms as his presidential campaign headquarters.
In the present day each guest room was
named after a person who had stayed in the hotel. Our courtyard-facing room was called the Simpson Grant (who was one of Ulysses'
brothers).
Tony and I took a trolley tour of the town and then went back and walked
through many of the historical areas. We browsed through the shops, and made a
few purchases. We ate dinner in two of the hotel's three restaurants, as well
as several others around town, and compared and contrasted coffee from several
of the places that offered it. We even had a flight of samples of five
different root beers that were on tap at a root beer store.
IOWA
The first night at dinner we were talking to the couple sitting at another
table. The man asked if we were going to visit the baseball
Field of Dreams
movie site, which was a nice day trip. That hadn't occurred to either of us,
but sounded like a great idea. Tony made reservations for a tour.
Dyersville was about an hour from the hotel. Our map app had us take a state
highway, then turn on a series of two lane roads. There was no directional
signage, and the only indication we had arrived was a sign just outside the entrance
gate and some baseball field light poles.
We arrived twenty minutes before the tour started. The gate attendant told us
we could walk around, and borrow a ball, bat, or mitt from the available
selection. She did suggest that if we walked into the corn surrounding
the outfield it would be a good idea not to go too far.
The farm house is up a small rise from the ball field. We waited with several
other couples for the tour to start. The tour was led by a woman who had been an
extra in the movie. She shared a lot of facts about how the history of the
property, how the movie came to be filmed there, and trivia about the filming.I haven't seen the movie for several years, but now I want to watch it again.
After we finished at the movie site we drove into Dyersville for lunch and a
walk around the small downtown area. We stopped into the
Basilica of St. Francis Xavier, a church designated as important by the Pope because it carries a special
spiritual, historical, or architectural significance. St. Francis Xavier is
one of 53 basilicas in the United States, and one of three which are not
located in big cities. I thought it was interesting that the Basilica Coat of Arms included ears of corn and a bundle of wheat.
Galena is about a half hour away from the Wisconsin state line. I had never been in the state before and wanted to do something there "just because". One of the tourism guidebooks we picked up had a list of day trips. Tony did some research and we decided on the small town of Shullsburg (the state's third oldest community, which figured predominantly in Lead Belt history).
Unfortunately, we found out that the Badger Lead Mine and Museum were only open
seasonally, and just as we started looking for
Gravity Hill
it started to rain.I wonder if we'll ever get back there to try it out?
THERE AND BACK
On our drive we stayed off the interstates as much as possible. Instead we took the
Great River Road, which follows the Mississippi River. Some times the river was visible,
and often the road veered away from the water,
but it was always scenic.
Five years ago: Laugh Out Loud
It was over a month ago I bought a formal dress for a wedding. The dress hung in my closet while I pondered what type of shoes I wanted to go with it. They had to be flat or extremely low heel, have padded insoles, and (ideally) have adjustable straps to accommodate my strange feet that straddle the line between normal and narrow width.
And to top it off I preferred to not have to pay a bunch of money for them.
My first stop was a comfort shoe store. I explained what I was looking for to the associate and showed her a photo of the dress. She measured my feet and then sprung into action, bringing out a stack of five potentials. I fell in love with the first pair. They had just enough glitter to be fancy, fit like a glove, and I could easily walk in them. However, when I took a look at the price I found out they were almost $200! If they were a more practical color I could have gotten a lot of use out of them, but since I don't get invited to many formal events I was loathe to spend that much.
However, despite the price I went ahead and bought them. With my luck if I couldn't find anything else the store would be out of my size, and the store policy allowed for returns within 30 days.
I kept looking. One of the big box shoe stores had a 40 percent off sale. Most of their dress shoes weren't for me, but there was one style I liked. It was even blue like my dress! My size wasn't available in the store, so I pulled out my phone right there and ordered them from the website. With the discount these shoes were significantly cheaper, such that if I only wore them a couple of times I wouldn't feel like I was wasting my money.
The store website said it would take somewhere between four and seven days for the shoes to arrive. A week later I received an email the shoes were ready to be picked up. When I tried the sandals on I found out they were comfortable, but the straps over the top of my foot were a little loose.
The next day I stopped into a shoe repair store and explained the situation. The associate gave me two suggestions. The first was a set of adhesive half-sole inserts that would fit under the ball of my foot and hold it in place. The second was to have him tighten the straps. I went with the easy, quicker, and cheaper first option, and the next day I returned the first pair.
Five years ago: Time For Reading
I walked by a store that sold essential oils, popped in, and sampled a blend that purported to relieve headache symptoms. It didn't work. A block later I saw a cannabis store. I have never been in any type of dispensary but I was desperate enough to stop in and see if they had anything that could help.
The friendly young clerk said there wasn't; the only thing they could suggest would be a honey stick that contained CBD. I learned that there was no solid research that it would work, but in their opinion it wouldn't hurt to try. That opinion might have been biased but I agreed with the assessment.
My Colorado Hemp Honey stick was only $3. It tasted just like honey. It gave me a bit of a sugar rush but didn't do much else. At this point I can only I wake up tomorrow headache free.
When I woke up this morning I thought I knew how my day was going to go (paperwork, computer stuff, and straightening the house), but then a friend of Hubby Tony told him about a weekend event called Walktoberfest in Old Webster (Groves). The neighborhood was featuring shopping, food and drink opportunities, crafting, and polka music. This afternoon's polka band was one Tony was familiar with and wanted to see. He asked if I wanted to join him 'for an hour or so'. I did, and all of a sudden my day took a completely different turn.
Tony had some errands to run. He sent me a text when he was done and I met him in front of the bandstand. We tapped our feet to the So. Grand Polka Band, then walked around the area, popping into stores that interested us. At one we were offered a sample of apple cider. Later, a sidewalk popup was promoting a wine bar down the street by serving tiny cups of sangria. In between I made a few purchases and got some ideas for things to buy down the line.
We walked back to the stage and listened to the band again. Tony struck up a conversation with what turned out to be one of the
musician's parents and learned a little bit about the band and its
history. It was a chilly, blustery day, so I left to get a cup of coffee at a French pastry store a couple of storefronts away. Tony followed me, and before I knew it I was adding a piece of chocolate tart to my order. We split the rich, decadent treat, then went back to the bandstand a third time.
When the band announced they were taking a break we walked around for a little bit then came back for their last set. Tony decided to purchase their CD, which included this song:
I've seen beeswax wraps in stores before, but they were pricey and I wasn't exactly sure what I would use them for. Back at home, when I opened up the refrigerator I saw a partial lemon in a plastic container. I wrapped the lemon up neatly in a beeswax cover, and I'm excited to see how well it lasts there.
A couple of months ago I posted about issues leaving comments on Blogger blogs. The problem came on suddenly, and ended just as quickly. Since that time the annoyance has returned sporadically. It's very annoying when I can't comment with my profile, but I've come to accept the Name/URL option (and even the Anonymous option, which means I have to remember to identify myself within the comment).
But then things got worse. Last week I experienced a big blue box that told me to Sign Into Google where there should have been a comment form. But clicking on that blue box did no good. I couldn't leave comments on a good percentage of the blogs I follow!
Eventually I figured out that the issue was internet cookies, small files utilized by web browsers to track and save information about users. Cookies from Google domains (including Blogger) are now treated as third-party. Firefox, the browser I use, has a feature called Total Cookie Protection. It is designed to protect a user's privacy by eliminating third-party cookies. However, some websites or features on a web page may not work if you block third-party cookies. I guess that includes signing in to comment.
Now that I've figured out the issue I'm happy to say I've found a work-around. If I come across a blog that won't let me leave a comment with my Blogger profile, the first step is to click on the shield to the left of the address bar:
Five years ago: Fall Foliage Map
Over the course of the 5-hour meal we cooked 56 commercial-sized cans of green beans and 27 commercial-sized cans of sauerkraut. After the serving line closed there was approximately two cans of each left over. The kitchen clean up crew transferred the leftovers into disposable aluminum pans so they could be donated.
The event wasn't without hiccups. The serving line ran out of mashed potatoes and applesauce for short periods of time. Our kitchen wasn't responsible for either of them, other than Tony calling the person running back and forth between the restaurant to check on the status.
The day was long but enjoyable. The best part, though, had nothing to do with cooking. Someone told me she
had recently been introduced to my blog via the promotional signature I attach
to my emails. She said she enjoyed reading through the posts and thought I was a great writer. I'm pretty sure I was blushing as I thanked
her profusely.
Five years ago: Famous In Their Field
During COVID the Sausage Supper took a hiatus, and this is the first year since then it is completely back to normal. Planning got a late start with a Sunday morning meeting 10 weeks ago. I was busy with my cooking gig for the clergy, but Tony went and signed us up to oversee the kitchen.
Since then he's taken the lead in the planning and organizing, including attending meetings (always held on Sunday morning), quarterbacking correspondence, and soliciting volunteers so we don't have to do everything ourselves.
The menu for the event hasn't changed in the 30 plus years we've been attending. There's sausage and/or fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, sauerkraut, green beans, applesauce, bread, and homemade donated desserts. (They used to make apple butter, but there was no talk of resurrecting the item this year.)
The sausage links are grilled by a group of volunteers. About 20 years ago the
organizers decided to outsource the chicken to a nearby restaurant, and a
couple years ago added potatoes and gravy to the list of items to purchase.
That meant that this year all we had to quarterback was the sauerkraut and
green beans.
Tony heard anecdotal evidence of a master recipe for both dishes, but in the end the green bean 'recipe' was just some notes jotted on a piece of paper. There was nothing written down for the sauerkraut, but in talking with people who had worked in the kitchen in the past Tony came up with ingredients it might have included. I also did a Google search for sauerkraut recipes, then put together a taste test using different combinations of ham base, dehydrated onion, and brown sugar.
After taking a couple of bites of each one we decided on the winner, then
scaled up its quantities for commercial-sized cans.
|
|
Four flavor combinations, and a control in the back |
We did a similar test with a can of green beans, but since our 'recipe' listed ingredients it was just a matter of coming up with proportions.
The Sausage Supper is this Sunday, with set up on Saturday. Other than last-minute details I think we're pretty much ready. I understand that before the serving line opens we will get a visit from one of the church staff. The person has been in the parish (and to way more Sausage Suppers) than we have, and will taste to see if our dishes taste 'the way they're supposed to'.
Five years ago: Trucking
Today Hubby Tony and I did something that was new for both of us. A relic of
St. Jude has been traveling throughout the United States, and the church we
attend was hosting it this today. We were there.
What is a religious relic? Wikipedia says :
"A relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Relics are an important aspect of some forms of Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, shamanism, and many other religions."
St. Jude (sometimes referred to as Thaddeus) was one of the twelve Apostles. He was Jesus' first cousin and a brother of St. James the Lesser. He has come to be regarded as the patron saint of lost causes and desperate situations.
St. Jude was martyred in Beirut in about 65 AD. His body was buried there, but transferred to St. Peter's Basilica in Rome during the time of Emperor Constantine. Several centuries ago, his arm was removed and the bone placed in a wooden reliquary carved in the shape of a priest's arm imparting a blessing.
We arrived at 3:15, and left an hour and forty-five minutes later. I had no
preconceptions of how the event would go, but the nearly-full parking lot
surprised me, as did the line of hundreds of people that wrapped halfway
around the gym, down the side of the school, turned and hugged the side of the
church before doubling back to the entrance.
Inside the church the line snaked across the back, then down towards the
sanctuary where a large glass box held the relic. Along the way there were
large signs that gave information about St. Jude, his life, the
history of the relic, and the etiquette for venerating. To keep the line
moving each person could pray for a few seconds in front, and if they desired touch the glass
case holding the reliquary. Once a person's veneration time was over they
could leave or move to a pew for quiet prayer and reflection.
While Tony and I waited we saw a lot of people we knew, and caught up with some we hadn't seen for decades. I talked to the man behind us, who said that he had a son named Jude who was diagnosed with cancer two years ago. The treatment was successful, and the man was coming to give thanks to St. Jude.
Five years ago: Will Summer EVER Go Away?
I suppose there's someone somewhere who would be fooled by an email with the subject line RE Post Docs! Your Tax Return for fiscal year 2023 is being Held For Processing ID-#645124348 that came from TAX IRS (with an email address containing of 7 random letters, a dash, 19 more random letters, a domain name from the UK, and nothing but a downloadable PDF in the body. I know it won't be me.
This seems like an unnecessary product to me...but I'm not a dude. If you are and have a different opinion let me know, please.
I can't even begin to imagine who the target market for this is. Thoughts?
