AROUND AND ABOUT FROM MONDAY 10-28-24 TO SUNDAY 11-3-24

 

Monday, 10/28/24:  We were sitting in the family room today and had the door open for a while. We heard a loud bang and saw a flash of a furry tail disappearing at light speed. Now that Big Bunny has been removed, the same squirrel is now using Sophie Squirrel as a trampoline to get to the top of the feeding table. Poor Sophie had been knocked flying. She was not exactly clutching her pearls, but most definitely was clutching on tight to her acorn. She 'told' me once again how happy she is she has short ears. Big Bunny is still waiting for me to try gluing his broken one back on. I have been putting it off a bit.

  

Fortunately, Sophie still had hers intact and was none the worse for wear.  I would never have imagined that a small body like that (the naughty squirrel) would have the power to push Sophie as far as it did, and with such terrific force. 

Those tiny shoulders and leg muscles must be as developed as those of a wrestler. They are after all climbing up and down tall trees and jumping from branch to branch like little acrobats. I wish I had half that energy. That was our excitement for the day. Woo-hoo!  

Tuesday, 10/29/24 - 10:46 a.m: we had a quiet day at home. Can’t remember much about what we did so it was a good day, though couldn't have been anything exciting. I like non-exciting days (I am writing this on Wednesday the 30th.) 

Wednesday, 10/30/24 - 5.37 p.m: we have been out for a few hours. We picked our son up. Our daughter-in-law was out teaching her students. Son was on his way into DC again. We were on our way to our weekly lunch and we invited him along, thinking he would not have the time. Happily, he said yes. It is not a fancy restaurant but the food without fail has always been excellent. Son and husband can both be seen in this photo, son at the end of the counter and husband getting the drinks. It is sports oriented and there are several TVs for people to watch some game or other all around the restaurant.

We were going to find one of our usual drive-thru's but Santini’s came to mind. We ended up going to a different one closer to son and daughter-in-law’s place. You can view their menu here. Gregg had his usual cold-cut and son and I had steak and cheese. I took half of mine home to finish tomorrow. I had a few of these potato chips which were very good. First time trying them thanks to son's choice. A little hot and spicy but not too much so. 

We dropped son off at the metro station...

 and drove home in rush hour. In this picture we are going against traffic but if you zoom in you can see how much there is on the other side and we were thankful we were going in the other direction. We would have gotten off the freeway and gone home on side roads, probably joining a lot of other people doing that also. There is no getting away from rush hour, it always seems busy on the freeways, except that...

the GPS’s route showed us less traffic, and when we got closer to home, my dear knew another couple of short cuts.  

Thursday, 10/31/24 - Halloween: I have an appointment with a specialist to see about my knee next Tuesday (Nov 5th). I also have an appointment with my regular doctor two days after that, set up three months ago just for a “how are you doing” chat. It has become obvious that my knee is taking its own sweet time, in fact is getting worse. I am tired of using furniture to steady myself as I try to get around the house, and the stairs are extremely difficult. At the restaurant yesterday, husband and son's strong arms got me back and forth, but it was painful walking. I have slept downstairs for the last two night. Not a moan-fest, just saying and it is what it is. Onward and upward! 

Not too long after 6.00 p.m. the doorbell started ringing. Gregg was in the chair for handing out candy tonight. As he opened the door I heard young voices singing out, "Trick or Treat!"  There were apparently little pirates, witches, a southern belle, princesses and a Harry Potter. All told there were about a dozen children, the same number as last year. By 7.30 p.m. there were no more. The numbers have dwindled over the last few years. We go in waves, kids are growing up. Maybe we should put more Halloween decorations outside. Nope, not going to happen, the front steps light it is, bah humbug. Gregg is going to take the leftover candy to the fire station to see if they would like it. Or maybe our local church. We'll figure it out. Any ideas? Anyhow, that's another one over for this year.

Friday, 11-1-24: 1st Day of November! Where did that year go?  I had a late breakfast, a slice of toast and the rest of my smoothie. That took me through to dinner and we had rotisserie chicken leftovers that my dear turned into chicken salad. He bought this seasoning called Tajin, new to me but a recommend from son who loves Mexican Cuisine, in fact they both do. 

It is a blend of ground dried chili peppers, dehydrated lime and sea salt. I asked dear not to make my sandwich with too much as I wasn't sure I would like it. He gave it just a sprinkle on top. It was delicious! I definitely detected a slight hint of lime. Both father and son have been to Mexican restaurants when they get together at least once a week mid-week. They enjoy ordering corn on the side, which is made with a coating of this seasoning, plus Cojita cheese. Cojita is a Mexican cheese that is aged, white and crumbly, with a salty, tangy flavor. I just read about it. My dear wants to make our next purchase of sweet corn this way. They will have to be out of the freezer section as fresh corn is no longer in the supermarkets. I like Mexican cuisine but not often. I seem to be more of a plain cooking person more often than not. I do like a little heat added occasionally.  

I have just watched the offending squirrel jump onto the Kissing Bunnys umbrella, his latest trampoline. From there he jumped onto the water fountain, took a drink and then jumped onto the top part of the bench where he started eating out of the top feeder. Water fountain rocked from side to side, water splashed out. I momentarily thought that it would hit the deck, but not today. Little rascal! Kissing Bunnies stood their ground, though the umbrella wobbled a little. Sophie Squirrel gave him the side-eye. Now Little Rascal is back on the bottom bench to see what he else can find. Yes, it's you I'm taking about and don't look so innocent! The cheeky little blighter just waved at me. And yes, I'm spending far too much time at the house! Truth be told I would rather look at them than turn on the TV. They are my entertainment. 

On that note, we did actually go out for a short ride today. It is a beautiful day for the first day of November, 80 degrees F. I went out in a light short-sleeved dress. The big Halloween displays, including my favorite one up the road, have been removed. They have a few pumpkins and a fall-like scene now. It's very pretty! The gentleman who does this (I met him last year), has a wonderful eye for such things. Almost like it has been professionally designed. For a person who has never really been interested in Halloween, except for cookies that I used to make for our son and his friends when he was young, help him to come up with a costume, that kind of thing, I quite enjoy our neighborhood decorations, if they are not too over the top. 

We stopped behind this vehicle and I thought I wished I knew them when we had our pooch. What a great idea!

There's quite a breeze as I look out right now, and the leaves are once again falling like rain. Such a beautiful sight. Dear other half just walked by the window and spotted one of the squirrels tucked under the ledge on the top of the bench, sheltering itself from those falling leaves. I suppose not wanting to be interrupted mid-feed? We were both amused!

The temperature is going to be 65 degrees tomorrow with a low of 44.

Saturday, 11-2-24: A quiet day! Stayed at home and watched Little Rascal doing his push-ups. On Saturdays Gregg pops out early and brings home a doughnut from the supermarket, and a coffee from the coffee shop next door. We usually have a treat on a Saturday that we don’t normally get any other day. Lunch was a chicken salad sandwich with crudités on the side, and our main meal in the evening was a Cornish Pasty with a mixed veggie salad. He is now watching a ball game. I have just finished another jigsaw puzzle (the one below) on my iPad. I am definitely hooked on these things, but I usually give it a few days before I start another one. You'll notice today, that squirrels are very popular.

Sunday, 11-3-24: It is 2.38 p.m. and our son arrived at 8.30 a.m. It is such a blessing to chat across the breakfast table. His Dad made us breakfast. I had a bacon sandwich with orange juice, and they had plated egg, bacon and toast. Son shared this photo of our daughter-in-law when they went on a walk yesterday. I thought it was a perfect setting for the time of year. D-in-L crocheted that sweater. It's absolutely gorgeous close up. He left to pick her up at 11.00 a.m. and we are looking forward to seeing her soon, when their schedules slow down.

That's about all from last week.