Hoeing out!

A friend of mine mentioned on facebook that he was getting rid of 75% of all of his personal possessions. There must be something in the air because we have been cleaning out this weekend in our house as well. Sometimes I get stressed out just looking around at all of the stuff that we seem to accumulate. Actually, I blame it on school as the kids seems to bring stuff home every single day. We recycle about everything and paper is one of our biggest loads each week as we haul it out.

So, anyhow, the junk-induced stress hit a peak on Friday night so I started piles…a pile to donate, a pile to keep and a pile to throw in the can. I am honestly not sure which pile was bigger. It was excellent therapy at any rate. The kids sort of avoided the whole process until, in my hoeing-out frenzy, I strongly urged them to make piles with their stuff. Isaac fussed a little until I started into his stuff making the piles for him. His ideas did not match mine and I think he caught on.

I remember a family in my home town when I was growing up. They seemed to let things just completely go for awhile and then they would clean in a frenzy, pitching every thing in sight. It was pretty hilarious but their place went from one extreme to the other in the course of a day. I remember the mother of the house saying that she was going to “red up the house” Is that Pennsylvania phrase? I think most people know what I mean when I say we are hoeing out so that must be pretty common…but redding up the place?

Things are calmer at our house and my blood pressure is much better. I know most people like the therapy of redding up the house. I am not sure why collecting stuff is so easy yet causes so much stress. You would think that we would be better at avoiding the stress of junk but it just doesn’t seem natural. Maybe it’s called redding up because when your face finally gets red with stress, you gotta de-junk!

8 Comments

warren, January 30th 2012 | Tags:
Posted in Thoughts

Warren and Betty

It just doesn’t have a ring, does it?  We watched Julie and Julia the other night and it just has a ring that makes it perfect.  But forget the ring.  I really really liked the movie.  Now don’t tell my guy friends but I might even buy a copy of the video for my collection.  I am not sure what made me like it so much but I have been walking around the house talking like Julia Child.

Goofy Eyes

Warren & Betty Crocker

There were all sorts of neat things that Julie and Julia made in the movie but one thing in particular stood out to me.  I guess I needed to shoot for my something in my ability range but I really liked the scene when Julie was trying to make poached eggs.  Unlike Julie, I have eaten a lot of eggs in my life but never have I had a poached egg.  Julie struggled cooking poached eggs so I thought the challenge would be fun for me.  So, I consulted Betty Crocker and followed her recommendations.

Making Poached Eggs

Betty and I are like peas in a pod I guess.  We even had the exact same custard dishes that she used in the pictures in the cookbook.  Perhaps I channeled Betty but the steps seemed pretty simple.  I boiled 2 inches of water, cracked my eggs into custard cups and poured the eggs (quickly..that’s the secret) into the water.  They foamed a little bit but I let them boil for 4 minutes and scooped them out with a slotted spoon.

Making Poached Eggs

Making Poached Eggs

Making Poached Eggs

I didn’t have any trouble like Julie did and I am so glad.  Poached eggs are a lot like hard boiled eggs without the shell except they aren’t quite hard boiled and they do seem to taste a little different to me.  I am not sure why but it was a good taste and I will definitely make them again!

Eating Poached Eggs

Eating Poached Eggs

So, after eating my poached eggs, it occurred to me that there are probably other things that are kinda well known but that I have never cooked or eaten.  I started making a list but I would really like it if you, my friends, could suggest some stuff that I should cook and eat that are sort of famous…I am going to make Eggs Benedict next.

Eating Poached Eggs

Yosemite Sam always used to say, “Sufferin’ succotash” and it occurred to me that I have never had succotash.  And then I got to thinking about fancy stuff that people are supposed to know about…like bananas foster and cherries jubilee.  I have never made ratatouille either…it’s a cool movie for sure but I have no idea what it tastes like…not like the rats/mice in the movie I hope but I am willing to try.

Eating Poached Eggs

Anyhow, I promise I won’t go down some cooking-blog-road (not that there is anything wrong with that) but can anyone help me with some more things I need to make?  I am not trying to find myself or escape from my job like Julie was, but I could probably use a new excuse to sample a little wine and eat too much. Help!

9 Comments

warren, January 16th 2012 | Tags: ,
Posted in Food, Thoughts

Welcome Spring!

I get these streams of consciousness in my head sometimes so it may be tough to stitch my thought pattern together but I was listening to XM radio the other day. The WWI-Snoopy-Red-Barron song came on and it made me think about time.

I got to thinking about how time flies and the Snoopy song made me realize that my Grandpa, who is 97, was alive during WWI. My paternal Grandpa fought in WWI. I suppose it doesn’t seem quite like yesterday, but with the rate at which time is flying for me, I can imagine it might not seem like such a distant past to my Grandpa.

This scene was quickly followed by a headlock and noogie!

This scene was quickly followed by a headlock and noogie!

Isaac turned 12 and Abigail is going on 9. Where did that time all go? Why am I spending time at work? Wouldn’t it be nice to just enjoy every minute of their fleeting childhood? Hmmm…well, maybe not every moment. Isaac is a pre-teen now and showing his colors very well.

Spring is in the air? Really?

Spring is in the air? Really?

Anyhow, I got to thinking about why time flies so fast and it is all about retail, I am convinced! I was in the local grocery store the other day and noticed that they have Easter candy out already! It’s not even Christmas! I get building up for a holiday but really? Easter in December? Time flies though so it will be here soon enough.

Easter candy is almost gone...in December?

Easter candy is almost gone...in December?

We received a catalog in the mail from a big outdoor clothing place. They were advertising their end of Winter sale…it wasn’t even Winter yet but it’s over already?!

I don’t want time to fly as a general rule.  I do enjoy (almost) every moment with the kids and with Emily and I want those times to slow down.  But Winter?  Nope…come on Spring!

4 Comments

warren, December 21st 2011 | Tags:
Posted in Thoughts

Only one reason to get dressed up

I am very fortunate to have the type of job I have. For the most part, I can wear whatever I want to work. I usually go with some sort of business-casual costume but I could almost as easily wear a clown suit. I only own khaki-brown pants and brown shoes so it is pretty easy for me to get it all together in the morning and I sort of like the simplicity of my wardrobe.

Both of us...at the same time...6 years ago, the last time we got dressed up I think!

Sometimes, I suppose different dress is required. I always said there is only one reason to get dressed up – to honor the end of a life…like at weddings and funerals. For those occasions, I have exactly one suit.

I think he actually liked the tux...or is that a scream of pain?

Isaac has a band concert tonight and he had to wear something a little more special than the usually middle-school-wear of jeans and a hoodie. He had to wear a collared shirt…gasp! Of course, he forbade Emily to buy him anything with a collar in August when we bought school clothes so they had a shopping trip yesterday to prepare for the band concert.

His usual outfit...

For me, clothes are a nuisance. I am not ready for the nudist camps but I just don’t care about wearing the best designer clothes or anything but my one pair of brown shoes. Isaac is much like me though he had definite opinions on what new clothes he needed. He was so proud and excited to wear something different I think.

He is such a great kid, though it is nearly impossible to get a serious shot of him

You might think we are cheap-skates by how he justified his new clothes, “I can wear them at Easter too Dad!” I know better though…he is growing far too fast for those clothes to fit at Easter. Still, I appreciate his thrifty suggestion.

So, the boy turns 12 on Friday. It’s hard for me to believe that it’s been 12 years since his beginning.  He is about the same height as Emily and wears bigger shoes than I wear (my brown shoes are safe!)  I think the only other occasion, besides the band concert, for which Isaac can wear his new fancy clothes is his birthday party.  He is a fantastic kid and I am so proud to be his Dad and to watch every minute of his journey to adulthood.  I think I have the perfect birthday gift for his 13th birthday.  My suit will probably fit him just fine by next year…

3 Comments

warren, December 15th 2011 | Tags: ,
Posted in Family, Thoughts

Best party ever!

I turned 40 last week.  Holy CRAP!  I am 40!  Oh, I know, you can’t believe it since I look so incredibly young and fit, but it’s true.  I am 40!  The night before my birthday, one of my friends texted me wanting me to meet him for breakfast.  I didn’t think anything of it so I agreed and we had a good feed at Panera.  I wandered into the office around 9 and found my office fully…uh…decorated.  It didn’t occur to me that I was being stalled at breakfast, honestly.  I texted pics to Emily and she said, “you idiot, what did you think he was doing?”

40th birthday cake

40th birthday cake

I took off  the day before my birthday and my…uh..friends in the office spent a good deal of time…uh…decorating.  They didn’t quite finish so breakfast was for the final touches.  Anyhow, they did an awesome job and it was a great start to my day!  I pretty much walked around in circles all day and admired myself in the mirror as well as the decorations in my office.

40th birthday balloons 40th birthday - trashed office

4 rolls of toilet paper went into the making of this surprise!

40th borthday - trashed office 40th birthday gifts

They were so generous!  They even got me Geritol and Ensure!

Handicap parking sticker on my chair mat

This was my favorite part - on my chair pad

After work, Emily had set up a big party with some family and friends at a local bowling alley.  A few months ago she was talking about a more formal dinner party and I said that it wasn’t really my style.  I am more bowling alley than sit down dinner, you see.  So, we switched gears and I had a great party in the bowling alley!

I guess most people stress out about turning 40.  They feel old and out of touch and sloppy and all of that but I just don’t feel any of that stuff.  I still act like a 13 year old most days actually.  I don’t know, I like turning 40 and I am pretty proud to cross over into a new demographic on all of the forms and surveys from now on.  Someday I may be tempted to buy a Buick, but for now, I am not ready to grow up!

9 Comments

warren, December 7th 2011 | Tags:
Posted in Thoughts

I already know all of those words Dad

We don’t watch a lot of television and I am often reminded of exactly why.  The other day, we were sitting down to watch some tv show during prime-time.  Things started out pretty much as most tv shows start…you know, with cussing.  I cringed a little inside because as much as I enjoy a good cuss now and then, it is an odd situation when you’re sitting with your 8 year old and some stranger on tv demonstrates the range of their vocabulary.  I am pretty realistic and a bit sexist I guess but I figure Isaac already knows most of the standard compliment of cuss words.  In fact, he has used a great number of colorful words on me.  Anyhow, there is just something not right about hearing cussing around your little daughter.

I looked over at Emily and then at Abigail and I guess she picked up on my discomfort.  ”Did you hear all of those cuss words, Dad?”  ”Yes Abigail, I heard them.”  ”Don’t worry Dad, I already knew them.  Isaac taught me most of them.”  That’s a relief…I guess.  My gaze turned to Isaac and he had the sudden need to go study…something.

So, we still have tv and the kids still get to watch it.  They can watch any channel they like so long as it is the Weather Channel.  The kids still yell at each other, but I don’t mind.  ”Hey Cumulonimbus face, your occluded front is running down your chin like the Noreaster tears across New England.”  ”Oh yeah, well  the barometric pressure is making the dew build up on your weathervane of a nose!”

5 Comments

warren, December 6th 2011 | Tags: , ,
Posted in Family, Thoughts

On the way to the outhouse

So, we are building our cabin, right?  The land is completely raw so there are absolutely no amenities, if you catch my drift.  So, we work hard about every weekend from morning until dark.  We drink fluids and nature does with fluids what nature is supposed to do with fluids.  Yeah, we have to pee sometimes when we go out to the property.

Last week and this week are deer hunting season in WV.  I promise this is related.  So, let’s pretend that one of the females who may or may not be my wife, drank some fluids during deer season on a piece of raw land out in the woods in WV.  As nature takes its course, such a person may feel a little fearful of being mistaken for a deer….a white tailed deer in that exposed condition, while dealing with…uh…natural things.   The obvious solution to such a dilemma is to announce one’s presence in the woods like so: “I am not a deer.  I am not a deer.  I am not a deer”.  So far, there has been no mistake and we have had done very well with this method.

Mushrooms on a log Mushrooms on a log

Now let’s say that a guy who may or may not be me also had fluids while working on a piece of raw land out in the country in WV.  Now for a guy, the world is pretty much a fair target.  Oh yes, it is all about the challenge of a good target.  Anyhow, with the world as a man’s urinal, the concern over being confused as a deer is less pressing.  Instead, a man is able to take in the sights in Nature’s lavatory.

Mushrooms on a log Mushrooms on a log

It seems very late for mushrooms, but the whole point of this story is to lead up to how a guy who may or may not be me, found a really cool log that had the most exquisite collection of mushrooms growing on it.  I like to touch mushrooms.  Is that weird?  These mushrooms were silky and really fleshy and difficult to stop touching.  That’s weird I know, but I think it is fascinating that there are things in the woods that keep the place cleaned up but still look so delicate and soft.  I mean, they were chewing up a log for goodness sakes!  I have been making far too much contact with wood as I build this cabin and my head is suffering greatly from how hard wood is.  These beautiful mushrooms eat the same wood for breakfast!

Even in the most basic of times in the woods, I am continually amazed at the power and beauty that is around me all of the time.  I like to pay attention to these things, even on the way to the outhouse.

7 Comments

warren, November 30th 2011 | Tags:
Posted in Cabin, Land, Nature, Thoughts, WV

Country Neighbors

I grew up in the country and it was just a natural thing then I guess.  People always waved to each other and talked as you passed and left extra zucchini on your porch and helped out when you needed it.  It’s been 20+ years since I lived in the country though and my city life has sort of become ingrained.  We moved to Nashville and it was a huge culture shock to me…from a town of 600 or so people to a town of a million and a half.  I remember as we drove in to Nashville on one of our first visits, there was a guy in a car ramming another guy in a car going full speed down the interstate among how-ever-many lanes of traffic there were then.  It wasn’t a wreck…yet.  They were road-raging and ramming each other.  I knew this wasn’t quite like where I grew up.

Ridge board to support rafters Ridge board to support rafters

The ridge board that supports the rafters at the top end

So, I became a city boy and all that friendly stuff had to be put on the back burner.  It’s not that people in a city aren’t friendly once you get to know them… it’s just that you have to find a way to get to know them first and sometimes even neighbors aren’t interested in getting to know one another.

Getting ready to raise rafters on our small cabin

So, fast forward a bit.  The folks from whom we bought the property still live on the land they retained the next hillside over.  Larry, Granny Sue’s husband, delivered some scaffolding he had over at his place a few weeks back.  He showed us how to set it up and use it and has let us keep it up there as long as we need it.  And then last weekend as we were working on setting up our rafters.  One of the boys (they are grown men but we call the brothers that live near us, “the boys” and I think they would be ok with that) came by on his 4-wheeler to ask if he could hunt on our property.  I told him that any of the boys and their family could hunt but I didn’t want anyone else who didn’t live up there hunting.  I would have never known whether they hunted or not during the week but I am really glad he asked.

A bunch of rafters in place on our small cabin Securing the rafters in place for our small cabin

Anyhow, we agreed that he could hunt so I figured he would go on to do other things with his day.  Instead, to our surprise, he asked if we needed help.  I was thrilled because Emily and I were trying to maneuver 16 foot long 2×8 boards around by ourselves on the second story of the deluxe shed.  It was going to end up with a bout of intense negotiation.  So, our friend climbed up and we started to work.  We worked an hour or so before we had to head home.

Half of the rafters done in our small cabin

That’s about half of the rafters done!

Now that’s one thing, helping a guy for an hour, but the next day we got up there and my friend came over and brought his brother with him!  We worked together all day long and got half of the faters in place and secured!  They were a huge help and I was delighted to get to know them a little better.  We had met on other occasions, but we hadn’t really talked or goofed around before.  Aside from their tremendous help, I absolutely loved the sense of community and belonging that we have felt up on the ridge.   The neighbors across the way (she’s a sister to the brothers) came to visit the first day we showed up.  Our kids have played with their kids every time we are up there.  They invited us to a potluck dinner one night where we talked about all sorts of things and may have solved the world’s problems.  The brothers who helped with the rafters along with Larry and Granny Sue have been so kind and helpful as we work on the new place.  With the utmost respect I say that I am so glad to have country neighbors!

 

See all of the progress on the cabin

 

3 Comments

warren, November 23rd 2011 | Tags: , ,
Posted in Awesome, Cabin, Family, Land, Thoughts, WV

The Eastern time zone

When Emily and I lived in Nashville, we used to go to bed at 10:00.  We were on Central time so prime-time TV started at 7 and the news came on at 10pm.  It seemed natural, you know…turn on the news, ignore it…brush your teeth…then off to bed.  I don’t know about you, but I am asleep before my head even hits the pillow.  So, in Nashville, we were asleep by 10:30 and we got up at 5:30.

Here in WV, things are a little different.  We still ignore the news when we bother to turn it on and we still brush our teeth, but it seems like the only consistent thing in our nighttime routine is the fact that we don’t go to bed until 11:30.  We still get up early at 5:45 so I have no other option but to blame our lack of sleep on the Eastern time zone.

I know that getting six and a quarter hours of sleep isn’t really ideal.  It may shorten our lives a bit even.  The only way I see to handle it is to leave the Eastern time zone or to start paying attention to the news.  I am not sure that I like the taste of either option so I will just have to live on the edge in the Eastern time zone.  EDT/EST baby!

7 Comments

warren, October 14th 2011 | Tags:
Posted in Thoughts

We are Falling

We were cruising along pretty well with the summer bit.  The sun was hot and the leaves were green.  Each morning we could pretty much count on wearing short sleeves and shorts.  We were in Summer until Friday.  Rains came and wind came and Isaac had a soccer game.  The temperature got down to somewhere in the 40s and that’s about how many inches of rain we got too…40.  Not really of course.  Isaac ended up being ball-boy for the second game after the game he played.  He was soaked through to the bone after the second hour in the rain wearing only his uniform.  Emily and I were only slightly better.  I was shivering like a 5th grade boy at a Sadie Hawkins dance.

Well, all of that is to say the Fall is here.  Some parts of Fall suit me well.   I love the colors and cider and finishing up the garden.  I hate cold and all things cold related though.

 

I thought it was probably good for my own mental well-being to find some pics of the awesome things of Fall…you know, so I don’t drink my sorrows away in a vat of apple cider (which by the way, is almost ready to be made!).

I have been collecting pics of our travels out to the bee farm and some of them really feel like Fall to me (minus the cold and misery).  I am not sure what makes them feel like Fall.  Anyone else have things that just seem like Fall?

4 Comments

warren, October 3rd 2011 | Tags:
Posted in Nature, Thoughts, WV
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