'Fraidy Friday

[One of those cool caves, in Virginia, I think]

Glad this day is over. My back hurts from standing in the kitchen for about 6 and a half hours slaughtering pumpkins. I froze 12 pounds of cooked pumpkin. That should be enough pies and breads for the year. The crazy thing was, all through the process I kept thinking "Aldi's has this stuff for .89 a can" Arrgghhhhhh......

I roasted all the pumpkin seeds too. The main batch, from 2 pumpkins, I just roasted with canola oil, worcestershire sauce and sea salt. The second batch, I made spicy roasted seeds with granulated garlic and cayenne and sea salt. They are wonderful. Got about 6 cups, at least, of roasted seeds.

We had no trick-or-treaters. Never do. But that's okay. I buy candy anyway (whatever my favorite kind happens to be in any particular year) and then I just eat it all myself. Brahahahahahaha....

Nothing exciting today, puppy played outside a lot and always came back in the house to check in with me. Got an email from an old friend in California that I have known for about 30 years and hadn't heard from in a while. That was nice.

My gratitude list today is based on all the things I don't have today. No high drama, no rages, no chaos, no screaming fights with anyone. No hangover, no "where the hell did I put my car?", no fear of what I did or did not do last night.

The blessings in this life just keep on coming. It's all good!

Threatening Thursday

[My favorite bandit in the whole wide world]

For Halloween this year, she's a pirate--just got a picture message on my phone this morning. When I took the picture above, and showed it to her, she said it was a stupid picture. I said --I love it! She said, very matter-of-factly: Then you like stupid things. It isn't easy being a 5 year old, almost 6 prima donna....lol

In the cities tonight around here was trick or treat night and one parade, but the big parade is tomorrow night, I guess. I opened the women's meeting, but apparently all those mothers had princesses and spidermen and skeletons and pirates to take around, because there were only 2 of us there. Like good soldiers, we kept the meeting open the whole time anyway, just in case someone od'd on candy and needed a meeting at the last minute. lol It was a chance for some good one on one time with my sponsee, so it wasn't a wash at all.

I baked that peach pie today and it turned out beautifully. The peaches were off our tree (and it's only 3 years old!!) and the thing was superb, if I do say so myself. We also had the brats and kraut. Tomorrow I have 3 pumkins set for slaughter, lol, and that will be canned. I have no idea how much it will make as I would never bother with them in the past--way too much work. We'll see how it goes. I may never do them again.

Tired tonight. I'm grateful to be a card carrying member of AA. I'm blessed to be walking upright. I'm blessed to have morals and ethics today. I'm grateful to have so much love in my life.

We had an invasion of lady bugs today. The temps warmed up into the 70's and the little buggers came out in hordes. I hate them in my house, and love them in my organic garden. I went around after I got home tonight and sucked them up in the vacuum cleaner. Every fall and every spring we go through this. YUCK! But I don't want to call an exterminator either. Ladybugs are a beneficial insect. IN THE GARDEN !!!!!! lol

I have to get up early and go feed the neighbors dogs while they are in Florida the next few days. Guess I'd better get to sleep--they don't like to be kept waiting. lol

It's after midnight here already. sheesh....

Wacky Wednesday

[Click to enlarge] Baby brother's 46th birthday


A homey kind of day today. I puttered. Started putting the garden beds to rest for the winter, pulled out the tomato cages and picked the last of the green tomatoes. Cleaned the chicken coop. Straightened the house and (naturally) vacuumed up enough pet hair and feathers to build my own zoo. (Or at least make a really cool Sasquatch-birdman suit).

I baked butternut squash for supper with a walnut and stuffing filling, with a side of pan fried carrots, onions and cabbage sliced really thin. Threw a dollop of home made applesauce on the plate too, just for fun. It was a very deliciously satisfying meal. We had some butter pecan ice cream for dessert, since I didn't get a pie baked like I'd planned. I promised it [again] for tomorrow though. I think tomorrow we'll have bratwurst and sauerkraut, and I have some left over mashed red potatoes with the skins on and added garlic. And peach pie. yum. Peaches from our own trees too...makes it extra special.

Tomorrow night is the women's meeting too. And after, over to my friend's Halloween extravaganza. Apparently her neighborhood looks forward to her little soiree every year. I'm excited...

Everything's done that needs doing before bed, so I'm about ready to head that direction. Hubby's lunch is made, dishes are done, animals are fed and watered and have been outside for their last hurrah.

I'm just grateful for almost everything about my life today. Love, troubles, joys, and family. Trying to live in the anticipation of the next great miracle coming my way....

Dream on, fellow travellers....dream on....

Tender Tuesdays

[A boy and a dog]
{Tristan and baby Lucy}

Winding down a chilly and productive Tuesday. Kept the car and went to town...picked up some groceries at the market, got some cat food and rice milk at the dreaded Wally World, went by the CSO and picked up new where and when's that just came out as well as about 20 newcomer packets for my homegroup. Then I went to a noon meeting , which just happens to be where my home group meets, so I was able to drop off the goods in the cabinet that our stuff goes in and enjoy a meeting on the 10th Step. It was a small meeting, but had diverse perceptions and varying amounts of sobriety, so it made for lively discussion. From there it was home to put things away and start some chicken breasts thawing in the microwave, and then off to pick himself up from work.

We briefly considered going to a speaker meeting tonight, but it was just too much to get going again once we were home. We are so lame.

I made a nice supper of chicken fajitas with red, yellow and green bell peppers from the garden, as well as lots of onions.I cooked the 2 breasts in the electric skillet and then tore them apart. For some reason I had one package with just the 2 small breasts in it, so this was a good way to use that up. I made a pot of a texmati rice I had in the cupboard...it is Texas red rice, white rice and lentils all together. Then I sauteed some finely chopped bell pepper and onion and garlic, ground some cumin seed with my mortar and pestle, and put in a can of black beans. It made for a satisfying simple supper, and after that, believe me--we weren't going anywhere, lol.

I'm chock full of gratitude tonight. For a loving spouse, for a sweet little homestead, for all my furry babies, for grandchildren, for relative health, for my handosme son and his adorable wife, for a sister-in-law (2 of them, actually) who are like sisters to me (and maybe love me MORE than my own sisters, lol). I am grateful that I found onions on sale at 3 lbs. for a dollar and bought 9 pounds. I'm grateful that the price of gas has come down for now. I'm grateful for a sober life that is beyond my wildest expectations.

Hope you are all finding a streak of gratitude in your lives too...

Madly Monday

[Lily...the little Halloween Cat]

A cold and windy Monday here in Corntown. The farmers are fighting to get the corn and beans in before it freezes (tonight-estimated temp22). Hubby went off to a job and me and the furbabies all stayed home. Spent the bigger part of the day inside, either on the computer or huddled under the big flannel comforter reading. Made a spaghetti with putanesca sauce for supper with garlic bread and a lovely coconut cake for dessert. Hubby is out to his food class and should be home any minute. I was getting up to make popcorn, and remembered that I needed to make birthday cards for his dad and brother. Then one for a 37th AA anniversary for a friend. Then thought I might as post and just turn the computer off for the night...so-here I am.

Grateful to be snug and warm in this 38 degrees tonight. Grateful to have a full tummy. Watched a documentary about the ANC and the underground and apartheid called "Memories of Rain". Grateful to live in this time on this planet.

Grateful my husband had work today and probably the next 2 weeks.

Feeling blessed to have popcorn to pop and butter to dress it with, along with sea salt and brewer's yeast. Yum.

Blessed that my food co-op carries rooibos tea.

And that brings me to goodnight....

Silly Saturday

[The Visiting Clown, making a house call....]


Quickie post tonight, as it's after midnight. I have guests and we are going to an early meeting tomorrow. We have had a fun day of playing outside and eating yummy stuff and making monster noises, while hidden underneath an Afghan. Chamomile teas and hot chocolates with tiny marshmallows and assorted and sundry relaxing and comforting things.

I am blessed today. I am grateful today.

The doggies are in for the last time, the kitties are all posted around the house in their sentry postitons and I am ready to go to sleep.

All is well in my world.

'Fraidy Friday

[Cats in the windows, cats on the bed, cats everywhere you look]

A low key kind of day today...the kind of boring day that would have sent this alcoholic out in search of some real "FUuuun!!!!" back in the day. I did some housekeeping and some cooking. Baked a chicken and rice casserole for supper, the kind that you put in the oven at 250 degrees and leave there for about 3 hours. The kind that smells up your house to the point that you never want to go out again. The kind that makes you think of when you were a kid and used to go to granny's place and she'd be cooking up all that wonderful old fashioned real food. THAT chicken and rice casserole.

Was supposed to have guests, but at the last minute there was a shift in plans and so they're coming tomorrow instead. She was worried I'd done all kinds of stuff, and she was going to cause a real problem by not coming. I said no, honey child, you're family now. I don't do extras for family. And I am absolutely flexible.. not a problem. I just wanted her to make it easy on herself-that is the whole point of the little getaway.

Talked to a neighbor. Bad news, his 401k has lost over a hundred thousand dollars, which is putting the kibosh on his retirement plan. He thinks he will have to go back to work. We are thinking about taking our IRA out as well, and just pay the taxes and penalties and put it into a savings or CD. We've already lost a lot of it, and Alan Greenspan says this economic tsunami is just beginning.

It's a hard call to make...I am feeling just a little pessimistic about the nature of investment banking these days.

At any rate, again....my pantries are stocked. We have the means to survive....although I am, nearly out of toilet paper. *grin

Lots to be thankful for as we round the corners into November. I am grateful to have family close by, something I did without for years. I am blessed to have a loving home to live in, not like the war zones of years past. I'm grateful that there are 12 steps to help me live my life one day at a time. I'm grateful that, at least in my little family, the chain of alcoholism and addiction has been broken. I'm blessed to have a fuzzy little puppy asleep at my feet. I'm grateful that there are meetings close by, that I can attend AA almost any time I want/need to. I'm blessed by the spirit of sharing and giving that I find everywhere I look.

Time for a nice hot shower and off to see the Sandman....