Miscellaneous Home and Family

With late spring and summer upon us, we are expecting a couple of visits from various family members.  With that garage sale is behind us, we're looking forward to the visits as well as the relatively stress free change in our normal routines.  Not that there isn't always a bit of stress...it's called life...and life isn't all that simple to navigate.

Miscellaneous is the best description for this post.  A little of this and a little of that...

Let me introduce you to "Stumpy".  Why did we give this squirrel such a nickname?  Well, Stumpy is missing his tail but he's a survivor.  Squirrels use the tails for balance and as a blanket on cold nights.  Despite his handicap/physical challenges, Stumpy is now at least 5 years old.  Typically, adult gray squirrels life to about 6 years old but exceptions have been noted... They can live as long as 12 years.  One of the reasons we like Stumpy is that he generally leaves the bird feeders alone.

The two photos above are the last you will see related to our stressful but relatively successful garage sale.  With the exception of the table, all of these items and related cartons are now being sorted out and being priced by the volunteers at our local thrift store, The Good Neighbor's Shoppe.  

Items included that Ethan Allen leather ottoman, golf equipment, wall decor, assorted china, crystal stemware, LP records, a pair of sconces, purses, both men's and women's collared shirts plus a selection of Hummel figurines. 

We are the second owners of our home.  This room with exterior siding originally was a breezeway, but at some point the home owners started with a breezeway between the house and the oversize garage.  Shortly after that, they enclosed the breezeway, adding HVAC to make it more usable.  Now that we sold the buffet, baker's table/hutch and an old dining table, our plan is to remodel the space.  Up to now it's been referred to as the 'plant room'.  We are replacing the ceiling, siding, that 'lovely' red carpet and then adding bookcases, blinds, new lighting, etc.  Of course Laurie will have to find a new home for her plants until after construction is completed.  

Work starts in mid-July.  Wish us luck.  Hopefully no ugly surprises will pop up!

As I've previously reported, we've been trying different pre-prepared food items.  The goal is to always have something we like at our fingertips for quick and easy meals.  We noted this box of "Boomerang Shrimp" at our local Food Lion and we decided to give it a try.

This was our Boomerang Shrimp appetizer, 'crispy shrimp with a creamy, spicy garlic tossin' sauce.  We thought that it was pretty decent, not too spicy, but we couldn't taste any garlic.  We would buy it again for a snack or appetizer...about a 7.5 on a scale of 10.

Margaritaville Foods product line include seafood (mostly shrimp with some calamari), salsa, tortilla chips, BBQ sauce, wing sauce, salad dressing, dipping sauces, and more.  The company's website can be found at https://www.margaritavillefoods.com/.

After a recent medical appointment, our 'favorite', or at least most frequent type of 'social' event, Laurie and I decided to eat at a restaurant that is located almost right across the US Hwy 321 in Lenoir City Tennessee. (Close to the I-75 interchange)

I went over the top and ordered a 12 oz. ribeye steak with thick fried potato chips and both lemon caper sauce and ketchup on the side.  Water with lemon was my beverage of choice.  The steak was decent but a bit overcooked.  I'd ordered medium rare and the steak was medium.

Laurie ordered one of our perennial favorites.  She started with a glass of wine ($6.00 before 5 PM), and a side-Caesar salad.  For her entree, she went for Aubrey's panko crusted Alaskan pollack with those fantastic thick cut potato 'chips' and more lemon-caper sauce.  She was very happy!  One side benefit of our meals were those leftover thick fried potato chips.  I sense a breakfast side item at home...

I will admit that the prices for eating out (or at home for that matter) are a bit out of control.  Our entrees plus a glass of wine and a side Caesar salad ($3.00) came to $68.95 with taxes and tip.  Result: we have cut back on the number of times we go out to eat in 'better' restaurants.  

As usual, we enjoyed dining at Aubrey's.  Aubrey's food is quite consistently good and so is the service. The website for Aubrey's in Lenoir City Tennessee can be found at https://aubreysrestaurants.com/lenoircity/.

Believe it or not, Aubrey's was not the last place we stopped to eat.  For the first time this year we decided to stop at the Tic Toc Ice Cream Parlor in downtown Loudon Tennessee.  It was a warm day but not crowded when we arrived at about 5:30 PM.  When we left at about 6 PM, families with lots of kids were headed in for their summertime treats.

My dessert is the one on the left.  I had a 2-scoop cup.  One generous scoop was the house-made caramel crunch and the other scoop was Tic Toc's blackberry cobbler ice cream.  Laurie got fancy and went for the Yukon Gold Rush Sundae.  It consisted of coffee bean ice cream covered with hot caramel and whipped cream, then topped with a cherry.  Too much food for the day...but it was all good.  

You can view a lot of photos and pick up on ice cream lover's feedback regarding Tic Toc by going to https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g55167-d834598-Reviews-Tic_Toc_Ice_Cream_Parlor-Loudon_Tennessee.html.

One last photo for this post...

This photo shows our youngest grandson (21) in his Silicone Valley apartment in northern California.  He had the distinction of being selected as a summer intern by Google.  The reports so far are that he's doing well, the work is certainly challenging and he's made a number of computer friends.  I did note that he brought a University of Nebraska pennant with him...lying on the chest of drawers.  Keep up the good work Emmett!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Odds and Ends Around Our Home

...taking yet another break from our October 2024 road trip blog spot 'saga'.  This time its all about 'not much', or as the title reads...just odds and ends. 

What a difference just two years make!  While the seasons are obviously not comparable/matchy-matchy, the view from our front yard tells the story.  None of the houses in the second photo existed about 2 years ago...and, while the building in the area continues, demand has dropped off so new construction has slowed as well.  

As winter's end approaches, Laurie and I are digging through drawers, closets and boxes, rediscovering 'stuff' as well as heirlooms that we'd sort of forgotten about.  One 'discovery' of note was this half-moon petit point rug.  It was made by my grandmother, Estelle Sibbald Weed, back in 1951.  It now complements an antique brass double bed that Laurie and I bought many, many years ago.

Grandma Weed also created this much larger (roughly 4' x 6') oval petit point rug that we have on the floor in the middle of our bonus room.  We have both of them in locations that keep them out of direct sunlight so they won't fade.  The larger rug has to date somewhere between 1950 and 1952.  Just another 25 years or so and both rugs will qualify as antiques... 

Petit point is a type of canvas embroidery.  These items are worked on an even-weave needlepoint canvas instead of a tightly woven fabric.  A blunt-tipped tapestry needle is used to create petit point pieces.  Petit point is more difficult/complex than needlepoint.

These photos show one corner of the dormer room in our home in which I pay bills, focus on my postcard and other collections, and more... I have bookcases, a nice desk and artwork on the walls.  As you can see, I've been sharing this room with this big HVAC unit.  For the last 15+ years, I've been 'hiding it' with that folding screen that I 'improved' with photos from my annual Smithsonian week by week calendars.  

FYI, until last year the room also featured ugly indoor/outdoor carpeting.  We never understood why the dormer rooms weren't carpeted like all the other rooms on the second floor of our home.  

So recently we had a closet built for the HVAC unit, using folding doors so the unit can be serviced as needed.  For those that are attentive, the unit needs to breath and the cold air return vent is in the hallway outside on the other side of the wall on the right... In any case, I now have a much nicer view as I pay the bills!

A week or two ago, Laurie and I were at Terry's home.  She is our new neighbor and she live right behind our house.  There is a narrow strip of woods and brush between our homes and it does attract critters.  We've seen Mr. Fox before, most recently trotting down the street in front of our house.  Of course, we didn't have a camera on hand at the time.  This time, Mr. Fox was foraging for mice, voles, and other rodents along the tree line in Terry's backyard...and Laurie had her new smart phone at the ready!  

Some cabinets and drawers in the kitchen were recently 'deconstructed' as regarded their contents.  We have so too much stuff, much of which we don't use.  In addition, reorganization was badly needed.  As a consequence, we loaded up that laundry basket with items we don't need or use, much of which will be donated to some deserving organization.  As for those 17 glass plates, (or are they chargers?), neighbors Sue and Steve entertain more than we do so the plates have a new home.  

What else will we discover this spring as we root through the closets, nooks and crannies in our home?  More items for charity, some throwaways and perhaps a few things to sell on "Nextdoor"...  

That's all for now.  Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Staying Home...

Time for a change of pace!  Leaving our October 2024 road trip just for a bit, this time its all about things, food and happenings around our home in East Tennessee...truly bits and pieces.

Let me introduce you to "Gopher", our tailless squirrel and frequent visitor.  He/or she has been around for about 4 years at this point... With a typical life span of around 6 years but with exceptions up to 12 years, Gopher may be around for a while.  Without a tail, we're a bit surprised that he/she has survived this long.  Grey squirrel's tail assist in balance when moving through the trees and they also provide warmth in cold weather.  In cold weather squirrels just wrap their tails around them like a blanket while in their nests.  Will Gopher survive a protracted Artic blast?

FYI...In Europe and in Western Canada the Eastern Grey Squirrel is considered to be an Invasive Alien Species as it is displacing native species of squirrels. 

Around New Years Day, our neighbor Jane baked this lovely and delicious Rum Cake for us...and for other neighbors as well.  I'm usually not a 'cake guy' and some flavor enhanced cakes are too over the top intense for me.  However, we devoured all of this cake.  It kept well in the refrigerator and we found that whipped cream went well with it.  Not healthy but very tasty!

We do have a tendency to buy items that catch our eye, especially antique or collectible goodies.  Frequently they just sit around and look nice...but in this case Laurie's new/old cast iron corn bread fry pan was put to good...and satisfying use.

Laurie decided to make a chicken recipe she saw on-line that grabbed her attention.  It involved chicken thighs, garlic cloves, soy sauce, butter and brown sugar...served over rice.  I didn't think that I'd like it but the caramelized sauce with the chicken and rice resulted in a fine meal...and I had leftovers too!

Time for breakfast!

My breakfast creations are not as adventuresome or imaginative as Big Dude's at https://bigdudesramblings.blogspot.com/.  However, neither of us like to waste leftovers.  In this case I fried up some left over beef pot roast and cheesy potatoes, siding them with over-easy eggs and a slice of toast.  Excellent!

Another recent breakfast 'winner' was my combination of leftover breaded and seasoned Tilapia filets topped with over-easy eggs... While I indulge in my 'healthy' breakfasts, my better half 'enjoys' yogurt with granola.  Ugh!

One more breakfast just to avoid leftover waste... This time it was Guinness flavored Mac 'n Cheese with fried segments of leftover Klement's (Wisconsin) hotdogs.  This was a truly satisfying breakfast although it almost demanded a nap long after consuming it. 

Now for a bit of Mother Nature...

Laurie's Christmas cactus in her plant room, both pink and red, are doing their thing and looking good.  But, if you look out the window, you might note that something weatherwise was going on...

Shortly after taking the photo in the plant room, Laurie took this picture of our front yard looking across to neighbors Roger and Jane's home.  What is that white stuff coming down from the heavens?!

After the snow 'storm' passed, I took this photo of our front yard looking across at Roger and Jane's home.  We were snowed in!  Those who live a bit north would consider this a minor snowfall or inconvenience.  In East Tennessee it is a big deal.  At our stage and age, I can't shovel snow and Laurie shouldn't.  I know that the usual sequence is that it melts the following day or, at most, a couple days later.  

However, kudos to the strapping 18 year old entrepreneur who showed up at Jane and Roger's house and cleared their driveway and sidewalk.  His next job was clearing our driveway and sidewalk.  He'd cleared 6 driveways the previous night and after these 2 jobs, he had 10 more booked.  Some of the driveways were much longer than ours... I'm estimating that his prompt recognition of opportunity had to bring in over $1,000!  Not too bad...

Of course, our local birds are a bit like the residents...just not used to truly cold and snowy weather.  Mr. Robin looks confused...but I'm sure he was waiting for food bits to drop from our feeders.  As for the bluebirds, they were patiently waiting for Laurie to replace the ice in their birdbath with some hot water from the house...

This view from Laurie's 'plant room' shows our 2.5 inches of snow on the grill and railings and looking at the trees and bushes that sill remain after the building spree we've experienced in the last 2 - 3 years.

Early weather forecasts for our area claimed that we would have a warmer than normal winter.  Through January 16th, every day this month has recorded lower than normal high temperatures and lower than normal low temperatures...and we have an "Artic Blast" headed our way.

Now for a bit of retail humor...  

Laurie found this storefront photo on the Internet.  Love the name!  It actually is a store located in Berkeley California... This is our favorite kind of store...and that sign rivals the one we saw in front of an antique store in Georgia a few years back.  That one read "We Sell Dead People's Stuff".

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Family Tradition - and then Our Road Trip Continued...

Folks tend to talk about family traditions as those annual family activities that span generations.  However, some family traditions resonate with just a single generation and, if you think about it, all family traditions have to start somewhere.  Laurie and I are all about road trips along byways and single lane highways through the countryside, exploring villages, small towns and cities along the way... That is our personal 'tradition'.

Our son, David III and his wife Amy, have created their own family tradition.  It may start and end with them...but it is something different...and its an experience that they are committed to.

Amy and David II have now stayed at 3 tiny cabins, this most recent one being a bit southwest of Duluth Minnesota.  The others were in Illinois and Missouri.  It is their escape from the world's craziness and it provides time together with minimal distractions.  Each cabin is equipped with a small (tiny) bathroom as well as A/C and heat.  The company providing their tiny cabin opportunity was Postcard Cabins.  You can see the other amenities in the second photo... 

David and Amy get a lot of reading done during their down time at the cabin but backroad exploration is also a part of their experience.  The cabins are each set apart by a few hundred feet and generally they back up into the edge of the woods.  Nearby hiking trails are provided.  Postcard Cabins are always near state and national parks and a decent sized city is within an hour or two.  They dine in local restaurants and sometimes stop by small shops.  They already have booked their tiny cabin for next year.

A brief search on the Internet revealed a lot of 'tiny' cabins for rent.  Apparently it is big business.  Postcard Cabins and Airbnb are two major providers.  In East Tennessee, many 'tiny' cabins are available from different sources...although in many instances, the use of "tiny" is questionable.  Postcard Cabins' website is found at postcardcabins.com.  

As I mentioned above, when David II and Amy are experiencing one of their tiny cabin stays, they do drive into nearby towns to look around and to dine at local eateries.  Knowing my obsession with old railroad depots, David II took a photo of this old depot in Superior Wisconsin, which is now a brewery and restaurant.  They stopped in for one of their meals.    

The Thirsty Pagan Brewing and Restaurant is first of all a brewery.  But they also serve appetizers, salads, pizzas, calzones and desserts.  You can check out their website at https://www.thirstypaganbrewing.com/. 

This depot was built in 1908 by the original Wisconsin Central Railroad.  In 1909 it was leased by the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad, aka 'the Soo or Soo Line".  Three former Presidents stopped at this depot, including Presidents Coolidge, Hoover and Truman.  The last passenger train departed from the depot back in 1965.

...and now, back to our own road trip!

As we headed toward our next overnight stay in Bardstown Kentucky we drove through Murray Kentucky, the county seat for Calloway County.  The Calloway County Courthouse was built in 1913 in the Classical Revival style.  The previous courthouse had burned down but this replacement was finally funded through 'blatant election tampering'.  Votes authorizing the issuance of bonds for construction were falsified.  Voters had actually turned down the needed funding.  Those in favor of the new courthouse cheated to get what they wanted.

    

Since the George Floyd killing in Minnesota, public memorials or statues like this one are unusual, with many being destroyed or moved to private property or cemeteries.  This Confederate monument is located on the northeast corner of the Calloway County Courthouse property in Murray Kentucky.  Featuring Robert E. Lee, it commemorates the 800 residents of the county who served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War.  The monument was originally funded by a chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1917.  Despite repeated and vocal calls for its removal, including pressure from Kentucky's Governor, the Calloway County Fiscal Court has ruled that the statue will be kept in place.

In downtown Cadiz Kentucky we came across a plethora of painted pigs!  Over the years we've seen eye-catching painted cows, dogs, roosters, foals, cougars and more, but we'd never seen painted pigs.  A local artist painted the pigs...some with ads and many without.  We didn't come into town via the Interstate so we missed "Big Pig", a 10-foot sow that features painted images, stitched together like a quilt, showing scenes landmarks significant to Trigg County.  The whole pig statue project was completed to promote the County Ham Festival... The festival pulls in something between 30,000 and 50,000 visitors each year.

That purple pig at the end of the group of pig photos shown above just happened to be placed right in front of The Purple Pig Antiques and Artisans retail store.  Yes indeed, we did make a couple of small purchases... It was an interesting store with a lot of variety for those who enjoy browsing for 'treasures'.  To learn more about The Purple Pig retail establishment, you can just go to ThePurplePigAntiquesAndArtisans.com.

Our next stop was in Cadiz Kentucky.  This town's Downtown Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places back in 1988.  A total of 16 contributing buildings are included.  That includes the former commercial building at 63 Main Street as shown above.  A portion of the building now serves and the Cadiz City Hall.  Although I'm sure that this structure was built prior to 1920, I couldn't confirm a completion date.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave