I Snagged a Neighbor

 He usually takes Tommy garbage can to the road and brings it back. He was returning it to us. I had things to say and questions. He told us two weeks ago he was going to drive his bus RV to the northwest two weeks ago. Well, the story is he became ill in Arkansas, returned home, tried again and never made it out of Alabama even though he was going to be gone six weeks. While he was here, I asked him about the grill. I was doing it right! However, he said the gas was not coming out right. He used a lighter. He told me to get one of the long lighters, which I can do. The guy from Lowe's has offered to come by, so I think I will take him up on the offer. 

At the store, Tommy went in and purchased $20.02 or 11.18 lbs. of boneless skinless chicken breasts. I told him to get at least ten pounds and ask for still-frozen packages. He said they were all frozen rock-solid. I suppose the meat guys had restocked the meat counter before they left for the day.  Four packages are still in the refrigerator and two are in the freezer. My back was hurting badly before I made more room. If I can clear out more room, I will get more bscb before the ad ends. 

If I can get two more packages in the freezer before they thaw, I will. Otherwise, I will bake the four packages and freeze one breast to a bag. Yes, I will need to clean out more of the freezer. I found a frozen package of American cheese, about an inch thick pack. Tommy was screaming that there was some in the refrigerator...lol...well, now there is more. 

At Publix I saw what appeared to be a mother and her three children. The mother could not take her eyes off her phone. The teen had his eyes glued to his phone. A five-year-old little girl was carrying a fat little baby that looked to be young enough not to be walking. The teen boy ran into the little girl carrying the baby. He was engrossed in his phone. The little girl stumbled, almost falling down with the baby. The baby was being tossed to and fro like a rag doll as the little girl stumbled and valiantly tried to regain her footing and thankfully did. And, all this was in the front of the store in the road! My heart stopped! 

Between an inhaler and guaifenisen, I hope to get my breath back. I was too weak and feeling breathless to go in the store. Really, I need to use two inhalers, maybe three different ones. 

When we came home and exited the car, the air was so much more comfortable for me to breathe. It must have rained around here since it is not so hot. 

I suppose we will cook the steak in a skillet tonight. 

I bought Truvia Monk Fruit. It was bogo, so this is a cheap way to try it. I wanted just Monk Fruit. However, this has erythritol. Well, Tommy brought it from my list.

He washed my towels and such, so I have to hang those up no matter how I feel. 

Every year, I refresh my stock of school supplies. It just seems the right thing to do for fall. I now have Crayola Washable Markers. As I see sales, I will get other items. Many of the items, I will give away. 

Dinner: Tommy will have steak, potatoes, carrots, maybe tomato. I will have steak and a can of green beans.

Do you still buy school supplies at the back-to-school sales? What do you buy? 

Do you juggle items in the freezer to add a good buy?

Do you see frightening instances of phones almost causing accidents or actually causing accidents? 

Di

Yesterday vs Today and One Hilarious Comment

 Tuesday was one of my most miserable days in a long time. I was not ill at all. Well, I did have a bit of congestion that was the least part of my problem. 

My problem was I was failing naptime. Plain and Simple. I was begging for sleep. 

We went somewhere we planned and that was cancelled. Okay, love that I got up too early for disappointment. But, we were both rather philosophical about the problem. But, I would get a nap, so I was happy. Only, I did not go to sleep. That was a bummer. 

Then, I got up just miserable all over, forced myself to eat lunch. I decided not to go with Tommy to the doctor and go somewhere else or nap. He said to miss the other thing. So, I did. When we got to the doctor's office, he wanted me to go in. No, sitting in the car and listening to bird songs on tape was good. He does not want me to go into the exam room, so I did not disappoint him on that. And, he was not ill, so no need to be supportive by being with him. 

I kept trying to take a nap once back home. I carried a list and realized we did nothing on the list. Finally, I told him to eat burger, sweet potato, and salad. He did. 

Sleeping in my chair was not working nor in my bed. My chest was pounding and I could barely navigate around the house.

Hilarious thing. Before I went to bed for the before cooking dinner nap that did not happen, I asked Tommy to peel potatoes for the oven and chicken. When I did not get up to cook, I told him to put them on the counter and cover with water. He must have missed all the instructions, because he asked me if covering the potatoes with a paper plate would work. ??? I had to laugh.

Finally, at midnight or just beyond, I went to bed and read about five pages. I slept until 9 am this morning. I feel very good! today!

Potatoes and Onions

For the last several months, I have had the worst potatoes and onions consistently than ever. I buy different places, on sale, full exorbitant price and given to me. All are so horrible. The potatoes either have rotten places, black spots or both. The onions are over-ripe and sprouting or just black, mushy rotten places. It is so discouraging. 

One was called Idaho White Potatoes. While I have heard of white potatoes, I never knew or forgot that they were called that as a variety or brand. Tommy says he does not like red potatoes. But, he never complains when he eats them. I think it is because I really like red potatoes with the skin on for mashing or just eating. I have to peel them for him although I have seen him eat red potatoes with the skin still on at church dinners! 

I suppose I have not bought Yukon Gold. As a matter of fact, I rarely buy potatoes or have ones given to me. When we do eat potatoes, I let mine get cold and barely heat them to just barely room temp to eat. 

The only onions that have been decent have been the three lbs. red onions given to me. Three pounds of yellow onions from Publix were all rotting to some degree. Finally, I needed onion for my potato salad and just bought one loose, good yellow onion at a premium price. It was very good.

When I went to Publix one day this last week, I took the three-pound bag of onions with three onions and no receipt. I told the cs person that I had no receipt and did not expect a refund. But, every onion was rotten, that they needed to buy better onions. The guy gave me $3.99+tax back on a store card that I used immediately. I now feel vindicated. 

If the potatoes are not filled with rotten spots, they have multiple black spots, tiny places that I don't like to eat. It has been a trial. Don't get me wrong. I don't mind the trimming that is sometimes inevitable. But, the continual rot is just annoying when  I have paid by the pound for produce. 

Last Friday, I saw the first Vidalia onions of the season, my favorite onion. They looked as though they had been chopped, harvested by a drunk person. And, the price was exorbitant--$1.19/lb., about twice what they should be. 

AND, I store onions and potatoes in different rooms. I am not spoiling them here by hastening their ripening. 

Has anyone else found that onions and potatoes are lacking, not high quality this year? 

Tommy's wounds are okay today. When we went for a drive on Sunday, he wanted the place on his Achille's tendon covered. I could not find a bandaid even though I have plenty in all sizes and gauze and tape.   He said to take tissue and put it on tape and use that. I took a square of my tp that does not shred, folded it and put mupirocin on it and applied the makeshift bandaid to his leg with packing tape. Then, I took another long piece of tape and put in along his tendon and under his heel so the shoe would not peel/scrap it off. This wound is worse than the finger but still does not look like it will fester. I will keep an eye on it. 

The person, neighbor who mowed Tommy's yard for free, a neighbor, just whizzed around and did not mow in corners. There are some weeds over 2 feet high. I hate Roundup, but had him use the handsprayer for about a half-dozen terrible weeds. The whole yard looks so ratty and backyard was not mowed, so something must be done! I was going to use vinegar, but I could not locate the empty sprayer I purchased two years ago. I was going to put vinegar and dish soap and water in it to kill the weeds. 

We can only do things in small increments around here, so we can never get it all done. Tonight, I will make strawberry shortcake. The strawberries have been macerating overnight. The shortcake will be just sweet, buttery biscuits. For dinner he had an incredibly old two drumsticks that I fear will make him sick and a salad. I had Romaine with a can of tuna on top. I put Miracle Whip and dill and sweet relish in the tuna. 

So, are you having a problem with potatoes and onions?

Shopping

 I feel well, really well, but I think the reflux and lack of sleep and less food drained me. My mood is great. Just zapped a bit today. 

At a big box store, the electric cart quit without warning. I sat in the middle of a large aisle wait for over 30 minutes! The stress was exhausting. 

I priced low-dose aspirin on Amazon and the price was about $39 for 332. I bought them in a store, 300 for ~$13. I only wanted Bayer as I am picky. We needed spoons, forks and cups, so I bought those. Also, more roach baits just to be sure and hurry this process along. I already see less roaches. And, I found pants that I bought in two sizes because I don't know which size will fit. I will take the others back for a refund.

Then, on to The Pig for a few things. The bell peppers were $0.57 this week where they were $0.50 last week. This week, they are large and shaped where I can make them into stuffed peppers. I got 4 or five items that were less with the app, and I forgot to use the app! So, that will be another trip. 

Peppers, potatoes, and Grill Mates were three of the items I forgot to use with the app. We have not had potatoes in two months except for the two potatoes I bought a month ago. 

I was going to Publix for a few things, but that wait on a dead electric cart used my Publix energy.  Maybe, I will yet today. 

Oh, I did buy cabbage, too. I heard about a new-to-me recipe that I am going to prepare--Colcannon. I am quite sure I will like it because it contains cabbage and potatoes. Have you ever had it or prepared it? 

I bought some pickled Vidalia Onions a month or more ago. Tommy assured me he would never eat them because he did not like pickled onions. No, he had never had any. I loved them but hesitated to use them because of his vehement talk against ever tasting them. Then, last night, I asked him what he put on his salad. Pickled Vidalia Onions!!! He swears I never told him I bought them or discussed them with him. ???

Have you ever prepared or eaten colcannon?  I forgot which blogger mentioned colcannon.

Plants, Food

 

This is such a pretty plant, Autumn Sedum Joy. At first all the blossoms are green, then it gradually turns from a pale pink, to darker pink and finally to a dark, dusty pink. The one above is in transition. It has beautiful seed pods all winter and pretty stalks. 

I had an Autumn Sedum Joy for twenty years until I didn't. It seems they are all gone when I get to Lowe's or wherever. So, when I found plants at the the Festhalle for only $2.99, I was very happy. 

Something else was trying to grow in the pot, also. Maybe a weed? I had them home for a week and outside. Thursday, I decided I would get the weeds before they really took hold. The little leaves were all less than 1/4 inch across. I put my fingers on the first two leaves, ready to pull, and recoiled. Those leaves were succulent leaves! So, it now appears I now have over a dozen tiny sedum plants. I will put them in pots, three or four at a time. I feel so lucky! 

Obviously, this plant was overwintered in the pot in which I bought it. I am glad she did not transplant it or pull the green leaves that really were about the size of a grain of rice. I got a bargain. 

Friday night, I asked Tommy if he wanted more chicken or a hot dog. Surprisingly, he said hot dog and then, "I have had enough chicken lately." That surprised me. I should have put bbq sauce on the chicken the night I forgot to do so. Oh, well. I thawed hotdogs and boiled potatoes he peeled and heated half a can of peas. He said he loved the peas and potatoes because as a child they had mashed potatoes and peas.  He did have to mash his own potatoes on his plate. 

As a matter of fact, when I was a child we had peas and mashed potatoes in the same meal often, too. Mama would put potatoes on our plate with a recess in the center made by a spoon. Then, she put green peas, English peas, in the recess, and that is how we ate them. Sometimes, we would have gravy over our peas. It was a "bird's nest."  That thought appealed to little children...lol. Did you have peas in a nest of mashed potatoes when you were young?

With the rest of the potatoes, I made potato salad for myself. It was heaven. It is getting late on Saturday, so I have things to do. Food for the big day is on my mind and should be at my fingertips. And, I need to repot these sedum. 

A Surprise

Wednesday dinner--bbq chicken legs and rest of potato carrot soup

Thursday dinner--meatloaf and cole slaw

Another meal of chicken legs is in the freezer. A meal of meatloaf and coleslaw waits for Friday night along with broccoli. 

The wind was very fierce Thursday afternoon as we left for a trip to store. The storm is over here, but I still needed batteries. I had on a sleeveless blouse and almost regretted it because of the strong, cold wind. The cold front came through with a fury. 

I had a surprise call today. The office of my new gastroenterologist called me and said all the blood tests  were okay or something positive. The last gastro would let me go through two office visits without mentioning the test results. Even when I asked, somehow he never told me. The office people resented me calling and asking. 

Blood was drawn for two other doctors, so I will call for those results if I don't hear from them on Friday. I go to a lab with orders from several doctors so that I will reduce the times I have to go through having blood drawn. My veins are not so apparent and I have been told they roll away so a needle going in is almost impossible. 

We are going to order larger, stronger flashlights while I still have Amazon Prime. There are a few things I need that are impossible to find in stores. Hopefully, I can find original Dawn. 

Okay, two surprises. Bad surprise first.

Tommy gets up earlier than I do, so he had me come to the kitchen to show me something. In a corner of the kitchen counter was a pile of potatoes. He shown the light on them and they had been gnawed on and were very old. I tell you I cannot see for lack of light in there!!! Who could not see six very large potatoes? He figured there was a rat in the kitchen.

But, we doubted that since there was no evidence of droppings. ANYWHERE! I shoved the potatoes back, especially the one that was partway into a hole the size of a quarter. The other thing we went for on Thursday was rat poison. I put down a square of tp and put a dozen little pellets on it. Friday morning, the pellets were gone.

The pest control guy came in spraying and I had to yell at him to make him stop. He asked me why he was there, then, if I did not want him to spray. This man was filthy. He had on the nastiest mask that did not cover his nose. GAH!

 He concluded it was not rats, maybe squirrel or a chipmunk. He would put out bait around the kitchen and see if they got it and maybe they would die. He walked around the house to see if he could find where they are getting in. 

When he came in he said he could not help us because we had so much stuff down, and he gestured to the living room. He said he could not help us and left. We can put out bait. I think someone needs to find where they are coming in, but that is not happening. We still have another pest control scheduled for 4 pm. So, we will see. 

While the guy was looking around in the cabinets near the half-eaten potatoes, we could not see droppings. But, I did see something. A LARGE, LOVELY, RED COLANDER!!!

After he left I showed it to Tommy and asked him why he told me he did not have a colander. He said it was not his and he had never seen it. He thinks it belongs to his boarder who cooked and was allowed to store her cooking things in the cabinets. 

This is huge, red, heavy metal. There are not a lot of holes in it either! At least it is pretty while it drives me nuts not draining. I think it is the heaviest colander I have ever picked up. But, it is pretty and free.

She has not lived here for about 12 years. She needed a place to rent that was cheap. One of Tommy's friends asked him to rent to her. She became ill with liver disease, then finally had to be moved elsewhere by her children when she had liver cancer. Her boyfriend and her sons moved her things out while she was not able to come and help. 

That is how I got the heavy dresser, all wood, with dovetailed drawers. The heavy glass bowl Tommy gave to me was something she left with 12-yr-old potpourri. So, add a colander if he does not want it. 

Now, we are left to figure out what is coming in. 

Soup Recipe and Thursday

I had planned to make potato, cheese, bacon soup on Wednesday night. When I found the beautiful, cheap broccoli, I decided to add broccoli. I added a lot of broccoli, probably equal volumes to potato! Tonight, I will drop more broccoli into the warm soup.

The potato and broccoli measurements are guesses. The rest of the measurements are correct. I am quite sure you can make this your own. I rarely make white sauce, but I did for this.

2 lbs potatoes, peeled and diced
2 lbs broccoli washed; cut florets smaller than mine were originally
2 cans Campbell's chicken broth
1/4 cup butter, melted
less than 1/4 cup flour mixed with butter
1/2 c milk mixed into the butter and flour when smooth...too much milk
6 oz. Cheddar cheese, diced and dropped on top of hot soup

The potatoes were still  a bit too crunchy when I dropped the broccoli florets into the crock pot. Of course, both softened perfectly.

Originally I had intended to put bacon into this soup. But, tomorrow night I will heat bowlsful and add the bacon to the bowls.

I imagine I will add another three cups of florets to the soup tonight which will be soft by tomorrow night. And, it will have all the flavor even though it sits in the warm soup tonight. The amount of potato and broccoli are estimates since I weighed neither.

Since I dropped the cheese in cut into little pieces, it was tasty to get a bit of cheesey broccoli or cheesey potato. Soon, the cheese melted completely.

I did not add salt! The taste of the vegetables and cheese and chicken broth were tasty enough. No, I am not going to make my own broth. Mine tastes terrible to me!

This was delicious and so warming. It is probably in the 40s, not frigid, but this warmed me to my toes. Still Wednesday night and the debate just ended.

Thursday now--We went to bed at 1 am and I slept to 12:15 pm today. I suppose the drive made me sleep soundly. Maybe it was the comfort food.  I awoke once to go to the bathroom and once was hot. The rest of the time was not disturb by wake and I slept more soundly than usual, maybe awake only 20 minutes between going to bed and getting out of bed.  The vertigo seems to be worse.

As usual, we are staying in due to rain. There are places to go, but it is dreary out.

Cooking All Day. . .

Okay, not all day. Tommy, who can never stay awake for 30 more minutes at night after midnight managed to stay awake and alert until 3 am for a movie he wanted to see--White Heat. It was good and had James Cagney. But, it was after 7 am before I finally went to sleep...ugh.

I awoke at 11:30 am and thought about cooking. Since I am supposed to wait an hour to eat after I take a pill, I waited. I was famished and had to eat. Then, I discovered I had no bananas!

About 1 pm I gave Tommy a pound of Navy Beans to sort. Well, I asked him. I usually do it over the sink with water in about five minutes or less. He took over an hour. I said nothing because I don't care.

In the meantime, I washed so many dishes and at 6 pm am not done. I can only wash a couple of pieces and then must sit.

When he finished sorting the peas, I brought him 3 pounds of potatoes to peel. That took over an hour, too. He barely skims off the skin and leaves many little black dots on the skin. You may eat those; I want them gone. So, I redid them and put them in the kitchen. He did do the hard part--peeling. Navy Beans are in the crockpot.

I could not find the package of beef ribs I thought were in the refrigerator. He looked and found them still in the freezer. sigh  Potatoes and beef ribs are in the oven, salted and peppered. I have no onions and forgot bell peppers and celery.

Then, I had him slice  the head of cabbage. His hands do not bother him. Plus, all I can find is my paring knife. I asked him to peel off the outside leaves first and came in to find him just peeling the whole thing...lol. Then, I had to show him how to slice it.  I will put ham in the cabbage or in the peas, not sure.   I had put water in the crockpot before I put the peas in. When I checked the beans, there was NO water. Thankfully, I caught it in time.  I don't smell scorched beans, so hopefully all is well.

I made coleslaw since I now had a clean bowl to mix it.

All the vegetables will last for at least three days after I freeze some of the one pound of cooked beans. The meat will be gone by Friday.

We have an outing planned for Saturday, so I want to cook chicken for sandwiches. I will put out chicken to thaw today.  Soooo . . .

ham
ribs
coleslaw
cabbage
Navy beans
potatoes

Jackie Clay said coleslaw can be frozen. I will try that. Also at least two helpings of the beans will go into the freezer for later.

This is more cooking I can usually do in one day. I think I am so sleepy and bone-tired I have lost all feeling. Plus, I have washed soooo many dishes.

I managed  to knock a small Corelle bowl off the counter and it shattered into so many pieces with 4 large pieces that I can find.. Okay, I cannot get rid of italics. There is no broom here, so Tommy is going to vacuum it. Is it gone? Yes, it is.

I have no idea why I have no onions or bananas! Me tired? Definitely.  I went yesterday out to the store especially to get Navy Beans. Then, we looked in the huge garbage bag of cans from the food bank and found two pounds of Navy Beans. We will have them later.

When I was reading the Birmingham newspaper and saw a new Jazz Festival in town. I was absorbed in wondering if we could get in with our problems walking. Usually, we have to walk so far I cannot make it. I pondered this, giving up going but really wanting to go. THEN, I read on and Anne in the Kitchen's son's name was in the paper. At this point all I know is he is one of two people's names. I am not sure if he is first person playing, joining the venue or one of the person's in charge. I don't even remember the venue. Now, I really want to go.

It's 7 pm and dinner will be done about 8 pm.  Maybe I can get some dishes washed that I used. I  went in and I had forgotten to turn on the oven. So, I had a bite of cabbage. I love cooked cabbage. I love everything in the list of what I cooked. I should have prepared the two pounds of carrots.

Mmmm...we had beef ribs, potatoes, and cabbage for dinner.

Potato Soup Night

I did not take my car in this morning to have the noisy and failed ac and heat things repaired. Instead, we went shopping about noon.

Publix
4 12-packs of Diet Pepsi for Tommy...b2g2
2 jars of Planters Dry Roasted peanuts...bogo
bananas not on sale
2 Red Delicious Apples. I rarely buy many apples at the same time so they will not get soft. Sometimes, they are not good even in the beginning. Tommy has one Granny Smith left that has been sitting in the refrigerator for two weeks. I refuse to buy more if he is not going to eat them.

Piggly Wiggly

4 cases of Dasani at lowest price I ever see...$3.40
chocolate Stage Planks for a quarter for package of two.

Another store
8 lbs. potting soil
lobster claw to repair my necklace that slid off my neck last Sunday
file folders in a case that is portable
single letter holder with a zipper. Often, I have to carry documents to someone. They just end up falling all over. This is sturdier than a manila envelope.
box of raisinettes and box of Milk Duds. We have not had any in a while.

We were going to have BLT for lunch, but before I could even think about making it, I looked over and Tommy was eating a pb sandwich. So, that will be dinner. Still, his job tonight will be peeling potatoes for potato soup for tomorrow. Neither of us became hungry when out and wanting/needing fast food.

There were no vegetables bought. However, the house has plenty of vegetables and fruits...all fresh, besides canned and frozen.

What do you put in potato soup? I am going to use potatoes, cheese, milk, chicken broth, bacon and salt and pepper. I see recipes that carrots and all sorts of ingredients. I have hated potato soup all my life. I ate some a few years ago that had cheese and bacon. I did not pay attention to the rest of the ingredients. Maybe I will put onions in large pieces and give onions to Tommy since I am not supposed to have onions. I love onions!

I suppose we will not have potato soup tonight. Maybe. He is peeling potatoes. I tried to read him a recipe and asked him about it. He said he could not peel potatoes and listen. I started laughing and he started screaming at me. I still chuckle.

It is 7:30 and maybe we will have potato soup. It is in the crockpot.

At 9:30. the soup was done. I gave a few pieces of potato for tommy to taste. He said it was good. When I told him I still had to put cheese in it, he nixed that. I only put in two ounces. When we both had a small bowl, he picked out the cheese he could find. Next time, I will put more chicken broth as the "soup" was more like hash, very thick. He thought it needed no more salt. Well, I put no salt in the soup. So, I call it a success.