The fish story

 Once upon a time, as a young college student  

walked to and from classes at UConn, 

she looked down and spotted a fish.  

Well, no, it wasn't exactly a fish.  

It was a squashed beer can top, 

but it looked exactly like a fish!

Fascinated, she picked up the fish and put it in her pocket.  

When she saw a friend that lived in the next dorm over, 

she turned it so it looked just like a fish and asked, 

"What do you see?"

"A smooshed beer can top!"  he responded.

"Doesn't it look like a fish?" the young woman asked.

"It looks like a smooshed beer can top!" he insisted.

So much for that.  

The young woman asked another friend or two, 

who provided similar responses.

What, was she the only creative thinker here?  

Maybe she was just nuts.  

Soon she would be seeing her boyfriend.  

If he didn't see it, perhaps she was being silly.  

She pulled out the smooshed beer can top, 

set exactly so that it looked like a fish, and asked,

"What does this look like to you?"

"A fish!" he exclaimed, without hesitation.

The young man got points that day.  

This is not to say that correctly identifying a fish 

was the reason the young woman eventually married him, 

but the event stuck with her.  

He identified the fish.  

The young woman kept the fish in her jewelry box forever.

Covid Chronicles, Week 34

 The coolest event from this week is my "Coffeepot story". 

It's a bit long, but a heartwarming story for me:

We'll start with my parish priest, Father Mark.  

Father Mark is awesome.  

He came to us a few years ago, with his two dogs, Harry and Oliver.  

Father Mark is inspiring when he gives his homilies.  

He gets your attention with his understanding of events and feelings.  

Father Mark has attracted many new parishioners, built up many of our programs, 

and created a true sense of community.  

Father Mark built up a website, a Facebook page, 

and set us up with an app that provides all information anyone might need 

at the touch of a finger.  

He's probably the best parish priest we have ever had!

When Covid hit, Father further showed his forward thinking and innovation.  

We were quickly able to watch Mass at our parish via either Facebook or directly online.  

He has been giving weekly video messages in addition to the recorded homilies.  

The Coffeepot story begins about two weeks ago, 

when I was getting shipping notifications about some sort of mystery box.  

I couldn't figure out what might be coming from Walmart!  

I don't even have an account there!

Perhaps something I ordered from Amazon was coming via Walmart?  

Who knows these days?

A large box was parked on my doorstep.  I opened it to find......

a coffeemaker???

Oh, rats.  Gotta spend my time fixing this now.

I first went the route of the online chat.  

What's your order number?

I don't have an order number!

Oh, what's your email?

I can't see why they need my email, but I give it to them. 

Etc.  

I learned that the item was ordered by 

an obscure one-truck shipping company, 

and I learned that they paid for it.  Not me.  

(I've never heard of them before this!)

In the end, I was supposed to get a shipping label 

and it would be picked up by the USPS, to return to Walmart.  

Well, I never got the shipping label 

but I did get an email from the USPS that they were picking it up.

What do I know?  

I set it out BEFORE our mail came, with the email attached.

I left it out all day.  We were away for part of that day.

We came home and it was still there. 

It got dark and it was still there.

I figured that I'd better bring it inside.

(Who wants their house to look like no one is home 

with a big box on the doorstep, anyway?)

The next morning, I got an email from the USPS 

that they attempted to pick up my package but it was not there.

No mention of when this might have occurred.....

Oh, no.  

I got on the computer and found a phone number for Walmart. 

What's your order number?

I don't have an order number!

What's your email?

Good grief!!!

After talking to TWO people there, 

my second person said that if I didn't hear back, 

I could keep it, donate it, or do whatever I'd like.  

The box sat in my TV room for 10 days, awaiting its fate.  

Finally, we decided no one was going to call us.  

We don't need a coffeemaker.

On a daily basis, we use the low-tech Mellita filter method.

With company, we already have a different drip coffeemaker.  

I opened everything up again and took a picture of the item.

I sent the picture with an offer to Father Mark:

Did he want it?

Did he know where it can be of good use? 

Well he took it!

I think it's for his use, but that's FINE with us.

He certainly deserves a break!

Peter dropped it off at the parish office yesterday afternoon.  

Well, I'm sure you have experienced the happy effect of giving away something.  

I'm grateful for that opportunity!

Covid Chronicles, Week 33

 The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting chillier.  

We attempted to take our weekly picnic last Friday at the Jones Winery in Shelton.  

When I researched the website, it was apparent that they do not allow outside food.  

Wine is served by the glass with a reservation.  

However, you can stop in and purchase just wine bottles without a reservation.  

We packed up our little cooler, coordinated our driving with some other stops that needed to be made (which included a free boxed lunch from Yale-New Haven Health for pharmacy week), and pulled in just as it started to drizzle a little.  (What?  No, that was not in the forecast!)

Two bottles of a chianti-like wine.  Can you please open one?

Believe it or not, the answer was no!  

Note to self:  Keep a bottle opener in the cooler from now on.  

We drove to a nearby state park, named "Indian Well."  

(Okay, I'm sure it was named a long time ago!)

It was drizzly, but we parked by the river and enjoyed a "car picnic."  

We talked about how "car picnics" might be fun once December hits.

(Gotta do something to get out!)

We got out of the car to walk around after we finished our lunch. 

It was beautiful!  

(Except for the wet grass, which resulted in wet socks under my sneakers.)  

Here are some photos:  

I was fascinated by the glittering effect of the raindrops on the clover!

Finally, here's a cool thing I found.....

Glastonbury, Connecticut - Fall Drone Tour

Glastonbury, Connecticut - Fall Drone Tour

It's a four minute aerial tour of Glastonbury in the fall.  

Covid Chronicles, Week 32

 Not a lot new this week.

We went up to Katie's house and finished the power washing on Thursday.  

It was a beautiful autumn day!  

This is the scene in her front yard. 

Our outdoor heater (aka "The Towering Inferno") worked well on Saturday evening when we had John come to enjoy some chili and cornbread on the back porch.  It gives off light as well as heat.  I'm so glad we got this!

Covid Chronicles, Week 30

 Getting that crisp autumn air now!

We have always enjoyed doing funky things 

like naming chipmunks which we catch and "relocate" a few miles away.  

We start with A and move to Z.  

Last year we went through the entire alphabet 

with chipmunks that were successfully moved.  

This year we have far fewer chipmunks!

I recently learned of a recipe for catching fruit flies.  

You put some red wine into a shallow bowl,

 add some sugar and blend, 

then give it a squirt of dish liquid and stir that in as well.  

Cover with plastic wrap 

and poke a few holes in the top with a toothpick.  

Leave out in the area.  

I have caught 15 fruit flies so far, 

and I don't really see them hovering 

over our fruits that sit on the counter this time of year!

Peter decided it was time to name these little guys.  

He loved the name, "Flew."  Especially because it sounds like "flu."  

And it means that guy is no longer flying.  

Fruit flies are annoying, like viruses.  

So our names are all viral/illness related.  

Here they are, for your chuckles.  

(We recently caught "Outbreak," #15.)  

Asphyxia

Bosophil

Covid

Drosophila

Eosinophil

Flew

Globidin

Health-no

Infectious

JusticeMet

Poison

Linger

Morbidity

Novel

Outbreak

Pandemic

Quarantine

Relapse

Spike

Transmission

Undiagnosed

Viral

Worry

Xenophobe

Yikes

Zoonotic

Have a fruit fly free day!!

Covid Chronicles, Week 29

 Lots of "house stuff" this past week.....

In August I ordered an outdoor heater, similar to the kinds you see at restaurants that have patios, and they are trying to extend the use of the patio through the colder months.  

Well, now it is all set up and we've given it a go, when John visited on Wednesday evening for dinner.  

Then, on Friday, just as we were leaving for our weekly picnic,

our little tables arrived, which we purchased 

for the sides of the new gas fireplace in the living room!

They were made in Ohio, 

either by Amish or Mennonites, 

but it's "Amish furniture."

Cherry wood with a cherry finish.....they look great!

You can see the doorway to the hall, at the left.

That's the one we cut into the wall.  

Now I can be in the living room and hear what is going on in the kitchen!

It's much better for "flow," if we ever get to have company inside again.  

(Silly me, of course we will.  It's just a matter of time.)  

Wishing you warm evenings with a gentle glow!

Covid Chronicles, Week 28

 

A follow-up to the bathroom story:  Insects appear to be gone!  

The weather has been cool.....I finally turned on the heat on the main floor.  I wasn't much good to anyone while I sat and shivered.  The weather will warm up later this week and I'm sure the heat will be turned off again soon. 

--------------------------------------------------------

This past weekend a new car wash opened up in town!

They were offering $10 off any of their car washes, which made their lowest priced car wash free!

Of course, Peter decided all of our cars needed a wash.

He took his Ford Ranger through on Friday morning.  Then he came home, and we swapped cars for our weekly Friday picnic, bringing his convertible through before heading out.  On Saturday, as we left for a 6 year old's birthday "party" (just us and the parents/child, very small), we brought my VW  through as well.  

I always find it fun to take photos in car washes.  The colors are beautiful!  

This new car wash had some especially pleasant results.

I absolutely love this photo!

(I've always been partial to blues/greens.)

Kind of crazy how these little things brighten a day!

Covid Chronicles, Week 27

 On Friday night Katie called.  We had been texting back and forth about what she could use for a second monitor as she works online with her students (in Worcester).  Peter was able to hook up an old flat screen TV to our computer, so it was all set to give her.  We made plans to meet in Sturbridge, at a park there.  We weren't quite sure what the park was like, but we each packed our own lunches and met at noon.  She brought Dogmatix with her, but left Uhtred home because it would be too difficult to watch both dogs in a park.  (Uhtred is the puppy.)

It was nice! The Westville Lake Recreation Area wasn't officially open, but you could still park in the parking lot and walk around.  Just as good, it seemed.  We had lunch at a picnic table, then packed up our trash and went to walk the 1.8 mile trail around the lake.  It was well groomed, and the weather was absolutely fabulous.  Here is a picture:

The basement bathroom saga continues.  After five days, Peter didn't think the boiling water routine was working and decided to pull up the toilet to get a better handle on the situation.  (All the while continually expressing how he hates this job....) So yesterday he pulled it up, and I tried to be nearby to help when possible, like grabbing old towels for the floor or getting some paper towels and cleaner.  He put insecticide in the hole and we left it open, but plugged up, overnight.  So far so good.  

Covid Chronicles, Week 26

 How was your Labor Day weekend?

Ours was very busy!

On Friday we went for our weekly picnic lunch at a local winery, this time in Woodstock, CT.  As we drove there, we went by a street where friends live.  The husband is a trained chef, and was the chef in Peter's old dorm at UConn.  (Peter was a waiter, so Ben was his boss.)  I said, "Hey, let's stop to visit Benny and Elaine on the way home!  We can call before stopping, we have our own chairs, and we can all sit outside.  We can also get them a bottle of wine."

So there we were in the afternoon, ten feet away from Ben and Elaine, enjoying a beautiful day in the shade.  Being a trained chef, I'm sure Ben will enjoy the wine!  Little did we know that his 89th birthday was Monday.  Stopping there was a good move!

On Saturday, our next-door neighbors got married!

It was a very small ceremony, of course.  

We had plans to drive to visit Katie in the afternoon.  We got takeout from a Texas Roadhouse restaurant.  Another lovely afternoon in the shade on her back porch!

After we got home, we wandered over to the neighbor's house when we saw their outdoor firepit lit.  (Yes, we had been invited.)  People there sat a little closer than I'd like, but we spaced out a bit from them and enjoyed the fire and conversation.  We saw a few pictures of the wedding ceremony, which was nice.  

On Sunday we decided to bite the bullet and get the flu shot from our local CVS.  We were able to make a reservation and it was all fairly quick.  

In the afternoon, we harvested our "Chinook" hops!  Peter cut down the strings that held the "bines" up.  We brought them home, and sat on our front patio to remove each hop.  They then went onto a drying rack.  Peter is now looking at making beer......no real surprise.  He'll probably have more success with beer than I had with mozzarella, LOL!  

The bines are actually very pretty.  I took a piece of them and used them as a decoration on our table outside for the evening.  

Monday was more relaxing, except for the part when I went to do my weekly bathroom cleaning.  In the bathroom on the basement level I have been seeing dead winged insects around the base of the toilet.  Gross, right?  I've seen these before, perhaps a year ago, but they went away.  Now they are starting up again.  

Now they have ALL been found dead, mind you.  I have been simply picking them up and then spraying the area with Raid every week.  In the past four weeks there have been more each week in spite of that. 

I decided I needed another person's perspective.  So I pulled Peter down there.  

Apparently he has seen these before when he had to get septic systems dug up.  He was despairing that perhaps he will need to take out the toilet and re-seal it, something which he absolutely abhors.

I said perhaps we should google the critters, and maybe we can do something simple before considering such a drastic measure.  He agreed.    

I suggested that he google, "Winged insects around base of the toilet," but I guess he googled "septic flies" instead, and was successful.  They are also known as "drain flies,"  but I'm sure that's not the official entomologist's term.  

One site had some simple household interventions, like pouring boiling water down suspected drains twice a day for two weeks.  After that, you can put baking soda down the drain once a week for maintenance.  

Considering that the drains in that room don't get a lot of use, I decided this is a good thing to try.  Perhaps they fly out of the drains and get drawn to the bottom of the toilet, only to eat Raid and die.  

So this project has already begun.  I hope it is effective!

Onward to our next season......

Covid Chronicles, Week 25

 Happy September!!!!

This week I am pondering my "Covid Dreams."

You know, the kind of dream where you are in a really crowded place,

and you suddenly realize that no one is wearing masks,

and you aren't either?

I had one where I was at a house party.

People were EVERYWHERE.

No masks, indoors, lots of people!

I realized I didn't want to be there.

I had to search from room to room to find Peter.

I said, "I want to go home!"

He indicated that now wasn't the time.  

I must have freaked out enough to realize that I was in a bed. 

But I thought the bed was in this crowded house.

Yikes, I was sleeping all night in this crowded house?  

Then I actually woke up.  

It's comforting to be able to keep saying to yourself, 

"Relax, it was just a dream.  It didn't really happen."  

I have a feeling others have these types of dreams, too.  

Peter noticed having a few of these after I shared mine with him.

I've had a number of them so far!

Have you had one?

--------------------------------------------------

On Sunday my Facebook page reminded me of a memory from August 30, 2013.

It's definitely a keeper!

I decided to re-post it onto a Speech Pathology group page that I belong to.  

I got OVER 1,000 "likes," and over 26 ALL-POSITIVE comments!

1092 at last count.  

I'm so glad they could relate.....

Here it is:

Today I made a quick stop at a local grocery store. An elderly man was outside selling raffle tickets. After I asked what it was for, I knew he had a communication impairment because he only pointed at the prizes.

I didn't have money on me at the time, so I went back to my car after accumulating my $1.50 on bottle deposits. I needed $3.

He was so pleased that I returned! He then thanked me using his assistive communication device, a older-looking model on which he typed in a sentence and it spoke for him.

"I'm a speech pathologist. I know about things like that," I smiled.

"I don't like the girl," he replied, and I realized that he disliked the female voice it used. He pushed the device toward me.

I was reluctant. Perhaps this unit had broken a bit, and there was no male voice.

"Oh, I don't really know about these...." but he persisted.

Okay, look for what makes sense..... After a few of my attempts, a loud male voice resounded from the unit.

He was so thrilled! He wanted to GIVE me more raffle tickets, but I didn't think that would be right.

Gosh - It's amazing how doing an act of kindness can perk up a day.

Feeling happy

Covid Chronicles, Week 24

 Our hot summer is continuing!

Meanwhile, the cheese saga continues.....

On Saturday, I decided to try again.

I had a bottle of whole milk, no organic or grass fed this time.

Plain old regularly pasteurized whole milk. 

No ultra-pasteurization.

I was encouraged when I saw initial curdling 

as I heated the milk and citric acid to 90 degrees.

I added my rennet solution.

I stirred gently, covered it, and set it aside for five minutes.

No luck.

I covered it again for five minutes more, as directed.

No luck.

In an attempt to salvage my investment of time and money, 

I gently heated the milk mixture to 190 

(the temperature at which I have made ricotta), 

then poured it (using a ladle) through cheesecloth.  

I collected much less curd than I do when making ricotta, 

only enough to fill a 6-oz custard cup.

When I tasted it, I discovered that the texture is GRAINY 

and not appealing at all.  

At this point, I am giving up mozzarella cheese making.

I wrote to the company that makes rennet, 

and suggested that if they think the rennet is at fault, 

they might send me more.

However, I told them, 

otherwise I am limiting my cheese-making to ricotta.  

That has always come out pretty good!

They responded that this problem happens 

if the milk was pasteurized above 168 degrees.....Sigh.  

That's it for me!

That's okay, the regular ricotta recipe hasn't failed me yet!

I used to make ricotta with citric acid, 

then I discovered that the vinegar method worked fine.  

Here's a basic recipe, similar to what I've done in the past.  

Some other recipes call for heavy cream to be added for a creamier ricotta.  

How To Make Homemade Ricotta Cheese

How To Make Homemade Ricotta Cheese Milk, lemon juice, and about a half-hour of your time — that's all you need to make a batch of fresh, creamy hom...