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 So playing the trombone wasn't getting me in enough trouble? |
| I need someplace to write down the often confusing thoughts that enter my mind, while my stories give voice to the characters that wander through periodically, this is the place for my voice. Join me if you wish, comment if you wish, all are welcomed and appreciated. |
| Yesterday, I asked for some slow cooker and cook-ahead recipes. I got many good suggestions! Thank You!! While they were piling into my notebook, I did some cooking. Since I was in the kitchen, I decided to make it count by knocking off a few meals at one time. I made "Thick and Hearty Minestrone Soup"  , it says it serves ten, so that will get us through a couple of meals. I am also going to freeze a meal's worth so we can stretch it out and use it up without wasting any.While the minestrone was simmering away for last night's dinner, I prepped dinner for today "Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken" This is a try-it-and-see. This is the first time I'm making it, so hopefully we enjoy it!I did modify the recipe. The original calls for putting the chicken in the slow cooker raw and whole. I cubed and browned it a bit, then made the sauce and used it to deglaze the pan. I put the meat and sauce in a container to marinate overnight. I'll get it into the slow cooker later today. This should be good for multiple meals. I plan on serving it with vegetable fried rice. |
| Extreme minorism, but some that tweaks me a bit every two weeks or so. So every couple of weeks, give or take a day or two, I get a haircut. Not a big deal, I really hate taking the time, which isn't such a problem now that I'm retired and can go when the barbershop is empty. But what frosts me is the cost. The cost of a haircut is equivalent to a visit to my internist, who spent several years studying her trade and performs it exceptionally well. Okay, I'm basically bald, not much on top, a fringe on the side. I get a relatively simple cut. A number one buzzcut all around. Trim the back of my neck and around my ears, and you're done. If I'm in the chair for ten minutes, it's because the barber stopped to check his phone. And yet! I pay exactly the same as the guy getting that special fade, razor cut, with a blowout. You know, the guy in the chair for an hour. My haircut, with tip, costs $25. If we give the very generous ten minutes, the barber could do six of my style cuts. Which means he's billing me at $150.00 an hour. The least he could do is let me pick the radio station for those ten minutes. |
| Somehow, I'm blaming the proliferation of Monkeys here; our normally temperate Long Island has been moved further north into the colder, snowier regions of New York. We've had unseasonably cold weather in the lower twenties for the last couple of days, and over that same period, we've woken to a layer of snow on the ground in the morning. We are expecting additional snow on Monday at some point in the day. Now the recurring daily snow hasn't been bad; it usually melts and is gone by late morning. But, just the fact that it happens regularly is both unusual and, to a non-snow advocate, unsettling! This much snow, even if it melts, and I don't have to move it, isn't welcome—especially this early in the year. We had our first snow just after Christmas this year! Last year, it had the decency to wait until the end of January and fell just that once. I suppose you can tell that I am not a fan of snow, White Christmases are not enjoyable, and you can keep your snowmen, snowball fights, and sledding. However, I am a fan of a good cup of hot chocolate, tea, or some nicely fortified coffee. Fortify as you wish! Oh well, Winter has really just started, I'm sure there'll be more white stuff to scrape, shovel, and snowblow. Wonderful!! Oh, and by the way, I did mention yesterday that it was colder than A Brass Monkey, of course, I may have used the more extended version of that particular um, adage. I was surprised to learn that the saying has no basis in actual anatomy! From Google AI: Mythological Naval Term: A purported brass tray for cannonballs on old ships that would shrink in cold, making the balls fall off, a popular but historically inaccurate sea legend, according to the Naval History and Heritage Command. |
| These aren't as much Resolutions as they are longer-term goals: One of the primary things I've noticed this year is that when I become involved in something, like playing on the PC, working on my musical tasks, and the like, I tend to forget there are other tasks. Lenore pointed out that for years, my day was divided by bells, which kept time and broke it into workable segments. Towards that end, I intend to institute a bell system of sorts, adding a bit of flexible structure to my day. These periods would include: Time for Playing on WdC, and time for more serious pursuits like actually writing. Specific time for working on music, without wasting the whole day. Less time getting aggravated on Social Media - people can be stupidly uninformed without me. Time spent on areas that aren't confined to the keyboard. Last year, I missed doing things in the garden. I am in the process of setting up a calendar to show me what needs to be done and make every effort to stick to it. I also intend to document my garden progress in my How it Grows blog. There are a ton of projects that need to be done around the house. I'm making a list, checking it twice, and getting things done. Everything from decluttering to replacing faucets and lighting fixtures. We own three weeks' worth of Timeshare property, all in the same Southern New Jersey location. That needs fixing! I intend to sell at least one of the low weeks (i.e., winter months) and buy a new one in a warmer climate. Nothing's written in stone, and I don't intend to give up my retirement flexibility. But, a bit of structure and direction seems like a good idea! |
| All Righty Then — here's something that really frosts my glasses. Around 30 years ago, I wrote a march for Elementary, which was picked up and published by XYZ Music Publishers. XYZ was later purchased by ZYX Publishing, which has since merged into a megolomanic, moronic monopoly in the music publishing business. Now, the little march I wrote went out of print close to 15 years ago, meaning it's not listed in ANYBODY's catalog, you can't buy it on any marketplace, and, for all intents and purposes, it no longer exists. I was contacted by a teacher in the Midwest, who had somehow heard the march, probably from a very old recording, perhaps even the original publisher's advertisement blurb. I do remember recording it with a High School band and sending it off to them. She contacted me to see if the tune was still available and asked if I could send her a copy. Now here's the frosting: Even though the score was published by a now-defunct publisher, which was bought, rebought, and rebought yet again before merging into said megolomanic, moronic monopoly. And even though it's been out of print for decades, I cannot send her a copy of the tune because said megolomaniac, moronic monopoly still claims ownership of a score they no longer publish, and verbally indicated they do not intend to reissue. I did manage to get the last laugh and perhaps remedied the situation. I was recently commissioned to write several pieces for assorted ensembles. Through my agent, I was in negotiations with several publishing houses to publish my work. Megolomanic, Moronic Monopoly, was one of them, and had expressed a very strong interest in the new charts. They were quite surprised when my agent contacted them to close the process. The first question they asked was, "What can we do to get this back on track?" They are now reviewing the little march for republication. The Midwest school, you ask? Well, they got a brand-new little march named after their school, and I've got an open invitation to come spend time with them — maybe when it's not so cold! |
| So, yesterday we, kinda sorta celebrated Thanksgiving in June, which is appropriate given the Christmas in July schtick. We had an off-the-bone turkey breast in the freezer, and we decided to cook it. I brined it in a beer-based brine overnight and cooked it on the Weber charcoal grill. It took about three hours, using two chimneys of charcoal. We rounded out the menu with baked sweet potatoes, regular baked potatoes, cauliflower cooked on the pellet smoker, and corn on the cob, wrapped in foil and grilled. The cauliflower was an experiment, and one we won't repeat. It received four out of five NO votes. Back to the drawing board on that one! Everything else turned out great and was well received. The best part is that it was something a bit different, challenging, and fun to cook. Tonight, I'm grilling my version of Teriyaki Chicken Tenders, along with leftover baked potatoes and corn on the cob. My Marinade recipe is here "Teriyaki Chicken Tenders" |
| I decided to post an update here on my blog so it won't clog the news feed. And if you don't want to read it, you can ignore it! Well, if you don't know, let me start by saying that I have prostate cancer; fortunately, it is contained within the prostate and has not spread, which is an excellent thing. It's still cancer, but far more treatable and curable. I am treating it via radiation mainly because it has fewer potential side effects. The treatments last about fifteen minutes; I have them for twenty-five consecutive days. They leave me a bit tired, which, coupled with our current heat wave, has knocked me for a loop. Preparing for the treatments is a topic for another blog post. Part of the therapy includes a hormone shot. This serves a dual purpose of both shrinking the prostate, making the radiation more effective, and stopping the flow of testosterone. The cancer feeds off testosterone, so the hormone injection sends it into remission. But!! The hormone shot has a few side effects. I now experience what the Doc calls Manopause, among the symptoms are hot flashes, an enhanced emotionality, some hair loss, though it's hard to tell if I've lost hair. All in all, things are going well, except for the occasional hot flash and feeling tired, I'm doing well! |
| Life is full of petty annoyances, and we all have some that are personal to us. Heaven knows I have more than a few. But this is one that really tweaks me, bringing out the Grumpy facet of my personality in full force. Fees for using a credit card to pay a vendor for services rendered or products delivered. Here in New York, vendors aren't allowed to charge a fee for the privilege of extending your credit card debt. So, instead, vendors offer a cash discount. When all is said and done, this amounts to a surcharge for using a credit card. Now I completely understand that Credit Card Companies are sucking funds from both ends of the transaction. They charge the vendor a processing fee and the consumer interest on any balance they carry. I can also understand a sole proprietor, with no employees passing that fee onto me. I don't like it, but I understand it. But here's what bothers me about larger business passing it on; I spent enough time in both retail and fast food work to know the following. Any business that has more than two employees will invariably experience cash shrink — more recorded sales than cash collected. Whether it be human error or theft, it is going to happen if cash nis involved. While working for Arby's during High School, the manager saw me as a candidate for advancement, one of the things he always talked about was shrink at the POS (point of sale). Just before I left to start college, we began taking credit cards. Guess What? Shrink dropped dramatically; it seems it's very hard to miscount or steal cash that's not there. Credit Cards were actually saving Arby's money. The same holds true in retail; the less cash in the register, the less opportunity for it to disappear somehow. And yet, Retailers and food purveyors add that cost to consumers, even though in reality, the use of credit cards ultimately protects their bottom lines. |
| So far, Pubby's Christmas Quest has generated 23 Merit Badge Commissions, which is a great deal of work for The StoryMistress, so I hope everyone has shown a great deal of patients and grace. Pubby is beside himself with excitement, and like all hyperactive bunnies, he wants more. But I think 23 in the first week is pretty good. He was a bit taken aback when I presented the tab for the 23 badges, but like a good sport, he paid up tonight, transferring 11,500,000 Gift Points into Recovering Richard 🥂🍾 account. He has also graciously agreed that Richard deserves half a day off to go to far of Head of the River, at the far reaches of the Isle of Long, to view the festive Christmas Light Show. So I'll be on for a bit in the morning to check in at "Pubby's Christmas Quest Raffle ~ Closed." and "Pub Bunny's Merit Badge Sale ~ Closed" , but for now, my bleary eyes need to get off this blue-lit beast. |
| When I was a little guy, no wait I'm still a little guy, I meant when I was younger, I enjoyed wandering through woods and forests. Actually, I still do. Very often I would get so preoccupied with the sights and sounds of my journey that I'd lose track of my path. That was wonderful for discovery, but annoying when it was time for lunch. A trick that I found was to remember the Down/Listen Advice. The principle is based on the fact that most civilization forms in valleys, so to find the valley you head — down. This will also very often lead you to a road or stream, that's the listening part. You can hear a road before you'll see it, likewise for a stream. I have found my way out of the trees quite often using this advice. I have never really minded getting a bit lost, whether hiking or driving. Sometimes the best adventures start with being lost!  ...I'm only the trombone player! |
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I do like chick peas, but would omit the carrots!
