"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." ~George Bernard Shaw

"Look at everything as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time." ~Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Monday, February 25, 2013

Hodas!!!

One of the tastiest Lebanese Restaurants
in Portland !!

New interior


A Mango Margerita
So tasty.....  


Baba Ganooj...my all time favorite!
Take a peek:

It's Awwww Monday! 2-25-2-13

Remember all that Meyer Lemon Marmalade I made??


Well!!! Here's Oliver making sure they are all sealed!


Awwww Oliver!!! Get Down!!!

For more Aww Mondays sashay over here:
Thanks Sandee

Eric Alders Monday Photo Prompt 2-25-2013

photo by Eric Alder 

Oh no! More?
I thought spring was on it's way
Damn damn damn....

Damn damn damn
Now where did I leave that shovel?
Let me think....

Let me think
Oh yeah I remember now
Out in the shed

Out in the shed
Where all the tools are sleeping
Wish I was....


~~~~~~~~~~
That's pretty much what we said the other morning
when we woke up to 5 more inches of that pretty white stuff.
To view other takes on this snowy image go here:

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Magpie 157-A Cute Puncture

Venus de Milo with Drawers, 1936, Salvador Dali

There once was a gal named Venus
Whose doctor was from Salinas 
Her arthritis drove her wild
Prickly sea urchins were applied
 "Thank god the pain is gone-you genius!"

~~~~~~~~~~
For other takes on this image go here:

Finnish Pancakes with Lemon and Cranberry Sauce


A foggy Sunday morning....leads to
Finnish Pancakes for breakfast...
gotta use up those lemons!
Paula and Jay create a tasty breakfast....


Jay's Lemon and Cranberry Sauce is almost done


Paula's Finnish Pancakes almost ready to be devoured!


I was so eager for tasting the pancakes with
Jay's Lemon Sauce that  I forgot to take any
more photos! Trust me- they were delicious!

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Lemon Marmalade Extravaganza

When you have lemons ....make Marmalade!
(And use Meyer Lemons !)


A summer wedding prompted
 this marathon of Meyer Lemon Marmalade making 


The facts:
9 batches of marmalade to make 132 4 oz jars

Took 81 lemons= 9 lemons each batch
22.5 cups of sugar= 2.5 cups each batch
27 cups of water = 3 cups water each batch
We used the wonderful Pomona's Universal Pectin
and used only 5 or maybe 6 boxes total!
Follow their directions!!!
It's a wonderful pectin and I will never use any other.


and it really helps to have Chef Jay's kitchen available!


It took us a total of just 6.5 hours from start to finish
Notice please I am now allowing myself a beer! Whew!


Here's a photo of the marvelous pectin!
Used so little sugar compared to other
dextrose laden pectins- which made
our Marmalade much healthier and tastier.


So- where's the sunshine and lounging chairs????
Happy Weekend everyone!

Go here to see other Six Word Saturdays:
and go here for ShadowShotSundays:

Friday, February 22, 2013

Feline Friday! 2-22-13

LISA!
No petting this kitty....
our neighbors cat- she loves them
and that's it!


Thursday, February 21, 2013

Timber!!!


We had a Douglas Fir tree that was leaning
way over our driveway....


We opted to have it removed safely
rather than wait for a storm to
take it out and block our driveway...


This machine manueverd all the logs up
closer to our house so we cna
more easily this summer buck it up
for firewood...
just another day in the wild woods of Weed....

The art of nesting


Looking at this random bunch of twigs
who could imagine how complex
and neatly woven the inside is.....


Voila!!
This nest was built by our local Stellar Jays
who raised 3 babies last summer.
When we repainted the exterior of
our home we had to remove it.
Hopefully they will build another this year.


And then here's this little cutie pie nest!
Not sure who the architect was-
it was about 3 inches or so across.
Forgot to use my ruler....


Have you ever found a birds nest or some other
animals home??

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Overnight Transformation!



For more than a week we have had
cloudless days with brilliant blue skies.
It was inevitable that eventually winter would
return. And it did! Only 5 or so inches, but we
put on our snow fighting clothes and went to work.
Russell snowblowed for 90 minutes or so while
I used my new snow shovel to clear the decks,
pathways and part of our 1/4 mile long driveway
 near the garage.
You have to admit- winter is beautiful and
we need more snow before summer arrives! 


Monday, February 18, 2013

Awwww Mondays 2-18-2013


Lucy aka Lucifer
Hah! She may look innocent....
but she's a pistola- very, very smart,
clever and persistent.
Relentless might even be a better word.
There's no sleeping in with her around.


For additional "Awww Monday Photos go here:
Thanks to Sandee at Comedy Plus!

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Magpie 156 Stormy Weather


Life is a challenge
For those who brave this tempestuous life
Seeking safe harbor
~~o~~
Upheaval and tempests
Winds howl and floodwaters surround them
Looking for the light

~~~~~~~~
Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales kindly provides weekly images for us.
Go here to read more:

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Company's coming - let's make meatloaf!


I never really liked meatloaf until I figured out how to
tweak the basic recipe. It's all about how it's prepared.
My recipe is below the ingredients collage.
Enjoy- bon appetit!
(if you are a vegetarian...I'm sorry...


Kathe's Famous Meatloaf

1 pound lean ground beef
3/4 pound Italian ground pork sausage
1/2 cup each chopped onion and celery
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1-2 Tablespoons of good ketchup
1 slice bread-preferably the heel
3 nice slices of bacon cut in half
Freshly ground pepper to taste

With your hands thoroughly mix
ground beef and sausage in a large bowl.
Put chopped onion, celery, egg and milk
in blender and blend until it's one consistency.
Add ketchup and torn up slice of bread and 
blend again until totally blended.
Pour this mixture over the meat
and with your hands mix this all up until
it is one consistency.  
Put all of this mixture into a loaf pan** 
and place the bacon slices on top
Add freshly ground black pepper to taste on top.
I don't use salt as there is usually enough with
the sausage and the bacon.

Bake at 350F for 1-to 1.5 hours depending on your oven.
I usually bake it close to 1.5 hours
About half way through the baking you will
want to take the loaf pan out and very carefully
drain off some of the accumulated fats and juices.
Serve with baked or mashed potatoes and a big salad.
YUM

**(the loaf pan I use is about 8.5 inches long..
I used to use it to bake bread.)  
PS the reason I have Russell in the ingredient collage
is because it's his favorite thing for dinner after
Garlic Spagetti.
For other Six Word Saturdays go here:

For other Shadow Shot Sundays go here:

Friday, February 15, 2013

Feline Friday 2-15-2013


Lola ....
Every year towards the end of October we spend a week
or two in Zihuatanejo Mexico. We've been doing this
for years and for the last 5 years or so we've always
stayed at the Hotel Catalina right on Playa la Ropa-
one of the nicest beaches in Mexico.
 Lola is one of the three resident cats and is the friendliest.
~~~~~~~~~
Thanks to Burnt Food Dude for this meme!
http://burntfooddude.us/

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Icy Abstract


A few days ago I noticed this sheet of ice inside
the large metal pan under our kerosene tank.
It was a photo op I could not pass up. 


Same ice after Russell dumped it out.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Eric Alders Monday Photo Prompt 2-11-2013


Vanishing
A point beyond one cannot see
Democracy

~~~~~~~~~~
for more contributions to
Eris Alders Monday Photo Prompt
go here:


Look at what Russell found!!


Bob cat scat..
Remember the post I did not too long ago
about the Bob cat we spotted 10 feet
Well, we spotted this on a trail
not far from our house.
Note the small mandible with teeth.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Weapon of Massive Fires


Today was the big day for finishing up the Manzanita
removal project that was started last May of 2012. 


With the help of Todd and Tim of Cut-Wright
and their amazing machine short work was made
of the remaining burn piles!


Tim had about 6 fires going simultaneously
and Russell kept moving around
making sure everything was burning safely.


Pretty damn amazing how flammable this
Manzanita is- thank goodness this is a
controlled burn as opposed to a Summer wildfire.



Russell with a fire fighting tool....


We highly recommend Todd and Tim Wright of Cut-Wright
They offer a full range of services for the home/land owner
 ranging from small scale logging to pruning fruit trees
Address: PO Box 410, Mt Shasta, CA 96067
Tel: 530 926 4388
Fax: 530 926 4388
We could not have accomplished this task
without their professional advice and help!
~~~~~~~~~~



Monday, February 11, 2013

Awww it's Monday!


Don't even think of using my blanket
~~~~~~~~
Awww Mondays is brought to you by Sandee
of Comedy Plus!
Here's the link to this weeks Awww Mondays
so you can see everyone elses posts
and post yours too !

What Did the Mouse See?


This is what I saw.....

This is what the little mouse saw....


And the little wren saw this....

What are you seeing in your backyard?