Riding On

Well, we're just about at brunch time on the day after Christmas.  A winter advisory will be taking effect very shortly.  Snow, ice, and freezing rain are in our forecast for this afternoon and this evening.  Now, doesn't that sound simply wonderful.  Our temps are sitting just below the 30 (F) degree mark and are not expected to rise much.  This is how it goes.

Yesterday was Christmas and it was nice and quiet... mostly.  My neighbors did pop their volume up for a bit, so filled the same Christmas spirit, I popped mine up, too.  I put on some terrible Christmasy romance on Netflix with voluminous string orchestrations.  And, as expected, they shortly dropped their volume down to an acceptable level.  This was me being the good neighbor and reminding them that I can be just as loud as they are, something they are not too particularly fond of.  

Otherwise, yesterday was fairly quiet.  Howie and I ate ham and scalloped potatoes.  Both were delicious.  I have leftovers will will keep my belly happy for the next week.

I did have breakfast with my brother this morning, the reason this is a mid-morning post rather than morning.  He's fine.  He has a well paying job now.  It's 12 month contract.  He's going to try for an extension, if you getting himself permanently hired.  He hasn't said so, but I suspect he and his wife had accumulated a lot of debt.  He also reminded me he's out of touch with what's been happening with the Orange Anus.  So, I did some enlightening.

And I watched City of Shadows on Neflix.  This is an intense psychological thriller.  And it was good.  Some might find a few of the scenes a bit grisly, burnt cadavers can be disgusting.

Our outside temp is 34 (F) and we have drizzle, with some occasional sleet and flurries thrown into the mix to make driving fun.  The temps should climb up into the 40s (F).  That's fine.  The  sun will not peer down at us because the clouds are going to keep him entirely shielded.  I don't mind the drizzle as long as the temps stay on the milder side.

Yesterday retail was slow.  Not a single customer walked within talking distance of the flooring distance.  One or two did a rapid walk through on their way to some other location in the store. I did cover a lunch at the paint desk at the end of my shift during which I mixed a 5 gallon bucket of a variation on white for an Asian couple.  They wanted a paint that would allow them to wipe off ink and crayon marks; they have at least one child who likes to write on the walls.  I told them there is no such paint.  I peeved them off a bit when I told them that.  I peeved them off even more when I told them the best solution was to keep their kid from writing on the wall.  My words brought a frown to the mother's face.  Whatever happened to simple parenting?

I was supposed to have breakfast with my brother this morning, however he texted me last evening to tell me his daughter's flight from Florida was delayed and he wouldn't get home until nearly 0230.  I replied that these delays were normal now that a reality TV star was running the Department of Transportation.  He did not respond.

Christmas lunch is going to be baked ham and scalloped potatoes.  

And since not everyone follows me on Insta, or Threads, or FB, here 's what I posted this morning.  Hhhmm, just who is the Ginger Lad?

 The temp was 48 (F) this morning when I got up.  The skies were then, and are still, cloudy.  A constant drizzle is falling which will last into the afternoon.  Even though I've pretty much had enough of the rain, I know that soon it will disappear and Summer will only give us the occasional shower until hurricane season arrives.

Yesterday was a rather slow day.  I did do things:  3 loads of laundry, however I had to use the dryer since it was drizzly, rainy outside.

I had breakfast with my brother this morning.  His contract expired on his job and it was not renewed.  He's rather happy about that since his immediate supervisor showed bi-polar tendencies.  While working in the tech industry can be rather lucrative, it's my understand that this tends to quite frequently be the case.  Deadlines present themselves and since these people are salaried, every waking hour needs to be applied to the project.  It is definitely a field that I would not want to be a working in right now.

I get to work this afternoon.  Joy.

And... wow, did you hear that low rumbling?  I do think that there's a thunderstorm approaching!  Historically they were blamed on the gods.  There are, no doubt, some alive today who still believe we are living in that history.

Well, wasn't yesterday tasty?  And I'm not just talking about breakfast with my brother, who's now sporting a full beard.  I had Eggs Benedict, if anyone is interested.  They were quite tasty.  Because it's just 2 eggs on an English muffin with a bit of hollandaise on top with a side of hash browns, I don't feel overly full after the meal.  Some people believe they need to leave the restaurant feeling bloated in order to get their money's worth.

And while we didn't get any rain yesterday here in Central PA, the sun was out most of the day, it did rain elsewhere.

There was an interesting article on age and friendship on the Washington Post page which linked to AARP.  Evidently it's good to have younger friends, as well as those in your age bracket.  Of course, I've known this for years and believe it or not, my friends come in all ages.  There is a bit of an age issue in not only this country, but in the world; too many see age as being stratifying, and you really should associate with those in your own layer.   Well, that's just horseshit.

And I have gladiolas!  They haven't bloomed is so many years, so I'm suspecting it's all the rain we've been having.

 I had baked a pecan pie on my birthday.  Since it's recommended I cut back on high carb / high calorie foods and I didn't want to throw it away, I ate it yesterday.  The entire thing.  I mean, I wasn't about to throw it out.  Why would I waste food?

My brother's taking me out for breakfast this morning to celebrate my birthday.  I will probably eat toast, and several other things.

I am going to stop baking bread for a while.  I bake it frequently, and just as frequently, I eat it.  So many carbs.  I am a carboholic.  Always have been.  Candy, too.  

Today is also a work day.  I really am tempted to call in and take a personal day.  Probably won't.  Either way I'd get paid 8 hours. 

The woman fixing the drywall on the ceiling just realized she had scheduled the repairs over Thanksgiving, a natural mistake since I didn't really know when the holiday was.  She sent me an email asking to start a day earlier.  I just sent her an email asking if she could start after Thanksgiving since the Electrician is scheduled to be here on 11/22.  I'm waiting for a response.

Here's a shot looking out my front door.  Notice the bright golden leaves of my gingko?

 Late start today, not because I slept in, I had breakfast with my brother.  The conversation was interesting.

Weather wise, today our temp is supposed to max out in mid 90s (F).  The A/C is ready to go.  We might have hit the mid-90s once or twice before this summer, but a no time were forecasters predicting more than one or two days in a row.  This forecast is calling for daily highs in the mid 90's for the next week.  All of the heavy heat seems to be staying south of us.

I saw where a celebrity couple made headlines by getting married.  Nothing says ROMANCE like a drive-through, midnight wedding in Vegas.  I wonder how much alcohol was involved in the planning of that extravaganza.

Lily has developed a new habit of sitting halfway up the staircase.  I don't if it's because it gives her a better viewpoint of the downstairs or not.

 

 When I got up this morning (for the 2nd time) the temps outside were a crisp 30 (F), and they're supposed to drop below freezing for the next few days.  That's fine with me.  I was also up at 0300 because Biggie had to go potty outside.  Just like an old man, he gets up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and grab a midnight snack.  Of course, Lily joins him; she likes her biscuits, too.

My Thanksgiving schedule was posted yesterday - 4 days off in a row, only 19 hours.  It took me a few seconds to realize those hours didn't include holiday pay.  I'm not working Black Friday.  Though, surprising, I'm considering going in from 1100 to 1600.  Of course, I'm also considering I might not.  One of the nice things about being part-time is that I can volunteer to work hours if the need them.  This is not that complicated.  I tend to do what I want.

And this morning, breakfast is an egg over easy (with fresh thyme) and a slice of homemade Italian bread.  A very uncomplicated meal.

 Well, the Staycation has begun.  Nothing is really planned for the next 6 days.  This means I'm wondering if I'll end up taking a personal day next Saturday.  Now why would I do that?  I'm scheduled  off on Sunday, and that would give me 8 days in a row.  The temptation is there, believe me.

I watched the Disney / Pixar film Coco last evening.  It was entertaining.  I was surprised, I thought it was going to be a musical.  The song at the end, the one that won the Oscar?  I thought it was nice, but evidently didn't find it as emotional as some did.

And there's now a movie on tap for tonight.  

Biggie's laying on the floor looking at me. I didn't have my regular breakfast, which has changed from the oatmeal.  Now it's an egg over easy and a slice of homemade Italian bread.  Usually, he and Lilly get a lick at the bowl, but this morning I had cottage cheese with blueberries and walnuts so that didn't happen today, and now brown eyes are damning me to hell.  

And yesterday The Guardian published an article blatantly points out what many of us have known for months, that Republicans are killing their own voters with Covid.  For them, the comparison of Republican Governors is to Nero, who's now seen as a psychotic.  You know?  Letting Rome burn while he fiddled away on some hill.  And, evidently that ass Abbott went to some loon festival celebrating no masks and no vaccines and played his fiddle.  I think it's funny, they call themselves Patriots and I call them suicidal.  Truthfully, I wouldn't be surprised if everyone in the picture has been vaccinated.  You know how Republican minds work.  It's always the little guys who pay the price.

 So, we're entering another slow weekend.  Outside the temps are a cool 58 (F).  Now ain't that nice.  Quick reminder to myself, we're still in summer.  The dog days of August haven't even arrived on the scene yet.  Just wait.  They're forecasting thunderstorms for tomorrow.  That always means hit or miss.

I've started eating breakfast when I write this.  Breakfast has changed.  No longer am I chowing down on oatmeal, and nuts, and berries.  Now I'm serving up one egg over easy and a slice of homemade Italian bread.  More protein and less carbs.  I'm not worried about the cholesterol from a single egg yolk.  You usually don't really need to worry about these things if you're physically active.

I had an interesting customer yesterday, a rather large man in his late 30's (I'd guess) and his son (early teens, I'd guess) looking for indoor / outdoor carpet.  They were fun.  And the carpet wasn't for a deck, or patio, this gentleman runs a fish bowl booth for high school fundraisers.  You know?  Where you toss ping pong balls, trying to get them into little fishbowls to win a prize.  They were nice.  I do suspect, however, that being as large as he was, their life was not always going to be nice, and I felt bad for that.

For the past couple of days I've had this craving for pancakes.  So intense was this craving, I actually mentioned it to associates at work.  I was just really, really hungry for pancakes.  Last evening, on my way home from work, I decided to take action and quell this hunger.  Normally, when I make pancakes, they're made from scratch, of course that would have entailed purchasing eggs as well as flour.  It's just a craving I told myself, and convinced myself into buying a box of Hungry Jack Funfetti Complete.  How could I resist confetti pancakes.  Anyway, as my pancakes cooked on the griddle, I started checking out the box just see what it was I was eating.  I was really surprised to read the following blurb: Make  breakfast time family time! When your family is hungry for something delicious for breakfast give them Hungry Jack pancakes."  Holy Crap!  This was going to be my dinner, not my breakfast!  I must have missed the edict outlawing pancakes for any other meal.

Of course there was no such ruling.  There are a lot of people out there, however, who have been brainwashed into thinking you can only eat pancakes at breakfast.  Like bacon and eggs, where is it written bacon and eggs can only be eaten at breakfast?  Years ago, returning from a day trip to Washington DC with a friend, we stopped off to get something to eat.  Let me tell you, he was so excited to discover the restaurant served Breakfast for Dinner I thought for a moment the Rapture had arrived.  He was almost as surprised that I had been raised without any "breakfast food barriers."  That's right.  There were times when we had pancakes for dinner.  Sometimes we would have scrambled eggs and bacon!  My brother was a cold cereal aficionado.  Booberry, Frankenberry, Count Chocula and Captain Crunch were all he ate... ever.  Did they stunt his growth?  Did they do him wrong?  Nope.  Today he gets paid rather well to write code for things hospitals use, don't ask me what, I don't know.