500 Piece Jane Wooster Scott

Another one done, boo-yah!

Not KFC...

These are leftover chicken wings that we had the night of the superbowl - you'll just have to trust me on this! We had (2) flavors; spicy buffalo and teriyaki, which are easy to identify in the above photo. They were both very tasty and went down nicely with a cold beer or two.

We didn't want to waste them, so we threw the leftovers in the oven last night to heat them for dinner. Mmmm, the smell was great as they were heating up and we couldn't wait to dig into them.

Now this is where the story takes a turn... You see Emilie was given a Wii for her birthday - thank you grandma! Once the wings were in the oven Emilie and her mom began playing one of the games - tennis or golf or bowling, I'm not sure which and it really has no bearing on this story but I digress. Anyway, they were in the other room playing away and having a good time. I on the other hand was in another room working. You guessed it, who was watching the oven, hmmmmm?!?!?! The answer, no one - doah!

The end result is pictured above, which actually look worse than they really were. We were able to salvage most of them and they were still pretty tasty.

The end.

New Kicks

Emilie's new birthday sneakers; cool, rad, kicks otherwise known as Skechers.

Rock on!

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

Parents often tell their children that eating too much candy will rot their teeth; however, cacao is said to have antibacterial properties that can actually fight tooth decay!

Klaussner

BC (Before Christmas) 2009 -

AC (After Christmas 2009) -

Out with the old and in with the new.

We finally broke down and purchased a brandy new sofa, chair and a half (similar to a love seat) and ottoman, hooray!

The decision to make this purchase was facilitated by a Christmas gift! Otherwise we'd still be using the old.

We walked through the store, checked out their offerings and mutually agreed upon, in short order too, the set and color, BAM, done deal! In stock and delivered a couple days later.

The old sofa, which has been around for ~15+ years, has been rehomed and being put to very good use.

All's well that ends well! And our ends, well they're well and comfy!

Farm Fresh Hankering

Working from home today. Had a lunch time hankering for some eggs. Put on the ole boots and trekked out to the chicken coop. Needed to shoo the Rhode Island Red pullet off the nest and low and behold, it was like opening a present at Christmas time, two freshly laid and still warm eggs.

Mmmm, mmmm good - BURP!

You just can't beat (again, no pun intended) farm fresh eggs, especially one's just laid! On sale soon...

Chain Link Kennel

Here are a couple pictures of the chain link fencing we're using to house and cage our pair of Muscovy ducks. If you look close enough you should be able to see the ducks too, just beyond the fence.

The duckies doing just fine and seem to be ill effected by the cold, snowy New England weather. They've managed to fly out of their cage, which is really a kennel, twice to date but didn't venture too far. They sat patiently in front of the gate versus behind it like the pictures show until I arrived with their breakfast and willingly in they went. It's about time to cut their flight feathers to prevent this from becoming a habit.



Drake (male) on top and hen (female) on the bottom.

Public Service Announcement

Too much of a good thing isn't alway good!

I'm just saying.

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

Pomegranates are a good source of vitamin C and potassium.

Cheaper by the Dozen

Despite the short days and cold temperatures the pullets are finally beginning to lay, hooray!! Although, not consistently yet and not all from the same birds each day. There are seven ladies and we're getting from one to three eggs a day with some days none but again due to the current New England conditions this is to be expected.

The picture above shows an extra large egg in comparison to one that didn't even register as a small. There's one pullet that has been laying these extra large, monster eggs - yum yum! The small egg was more than likely the first egg laid by a particular pullet. This is normal and not to worry. We have the following egg scale that grades the eggs for us, although it's not an antique, it works just fine and the majority of our eggs to date are on the large to extra large size!

Once the girls begin to lay on a regular basis we'll be selling them by the dozen - interested?! You just can't beat (no pun intended) farm fresh eggs! They're no Egg Beaters either...

State Birds

Here is a cool 1000 piece puzzle that I got for Christmas. It has a picture and the name of each state's bird. It didn't take us too long to put this gem together and as you can see it just fits on the table with Florida it's own island of sorts. Next...

Find the Critter

Can you find the critter in the above picture?



Here is a better pic of our visiting Cooper's Hawk. He is sitting in the peach tree, which just so happens to be within a few feet of the previously posted 'Kill Zone". You can also notice a couple of our chickens cautiously watching this dude from the safety of their coop.

Kill Zone

A blanket of snow on the ground can be very telling. In many respects it give you some insight to the ongoings in your yard, aka a map; the visitors and who they are, what direction they come from, where and what they visit and how they leave.

For example, one walk around the yard and it's plain to see that the neighbor's dogs visit! Now one possibility is that their Invisible Fence® is not working. However, since they're inconsiderate my guess is that they simply can't be bothered to put the Invisible Fence dog collars on the animals before letting them out - but I digress.

OK, back to what I was saying - any idea what this is a picture of and who or what may have made it?

Well, this is a "kill zone" for lack of a better term. This is where a bird of prey, which I can say with a very high degree of certainty was a Coopers Hawk, took down it's victim/meal (bird). You can make out the wing marks in the snow, perhaps due to a bit of a struggle and, as one might expect in such a conflict, the blood stain of it's victim.

Interesting, yes?!

My next posting, another installment of "Find the", just might contain a picture of said Cooper's Hawk - Oh, the anticipation!!!

"Awnya" "Awnya"!!

So, I went to watch Stephanie's varsity ice hockey game Wednesday night. It was an exciting game. The Walpole Rebels carried the play for most of the game but unfortunately found they themselves trailing 2 - 1. With about a minute and a half remaining in the game Walpole pulled their goalie for an extra skater and with just 15 seconds left Walpole scored - the place went wild! They were fortunate enough to walk away with a tie 2 - 2.

NOTE: Stephanie got the assist on the game tying goal. She is also the Walpole Rebels girls ice hockey program's all-time leading scorer to date!!

On a side note - throughout the entire game, one of the dads was rooting and yelling words of encouragement to all the WHS girls. He was constantly yelling "Awnya" "Awnya". The name didn't sound familiar to me. I didn't know of any girl on Stephanie's team named Awnya. I checked the program they handed out at the door; went down the list and sure enough there was no Awnya. I was puzzled and thought to myself to ask Stephanie about this girl Awnya after the game.

All of a sudden it HIT me, daaaaaaah! He wasn't yelling Awnya, a players name, but rather "on yeah"! He was yelling to let the girls know that an opposing player was "on yeah" and to be careful with the puck.

It was a long day...

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

The United States Census Bureau estimated that 36 million children between the ages of 5 and 13 trick-or-treated in the United States in 2008!

Snow Cover Visitors

With the recent snow fall mother nature dumped on us you can get an idea of some of the visitors that pass by. It's easy to see where the blanket of snow cover is disturbed and who's lurking around -

Here is a single bird's foot prints, just hoping along -

This is a picture of the ground beneath the post holding our bird feeders, which are shadows. You can see that we've had a lot of birds looking for a bite to eat in just a short while -

These are squirrel foot prints. Yup, we still have some of these varmits around -

These tracks were made by a deer. They come across our front lawn, across both our driveway and the neighbors driveway, their front lawn and into the woods beyond their house. It's been a while since we've seen the deer but as these tracks show, they're still out there...

Happy New Year!

2010

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010!

The picture above is the vasilopita ("βασιλόπιτα"), also referred to as the dime cake, that JoAnne made this year and which was very tasty - my mother would be proud! Emilie and Ryan were the lucky ones who's pieces contained the dime, yippie!, which is said to bring good luck in the coming year.

*** Note ***
The name "βασιλόπιτα" comes from two Greek words: βασιλεύς 'king' + πίτα 'pie'.

You Know You're Getting Old When...

So, I stopped at the medical center, where my primary care physician resides, yesterday morning to have some blood drawn for my up coming yearly physical. I was in the area and hadn't eaten anything since the night before, so the fasting requirement was met, and wanted to have this taken care of before my appointment. This way my doctor has the results in hand at the time of my checkup.

I'm not sure if it's because I'm getting older or softer, maybe both, but this blood draw REALLY HURT!! - more than I remember or expected! Not to mention the bruise that was left behind. Yeah I know, weenie!

Since we're on the subject of getting older and softer -

This medical center has two racks hanging in the lobby that contain 2"x6" information cards of the doctors that practice out of that facility along with their expertise, medical background and picture. A nice value add that puts a name to a face. However, as I was looking at these cards it hit me and I realized that I recognized and had been seen many of those doctors at one point or another! YIKES!! - You Know You're Getting Old When...

Merry Christmas 2009!

Καλά Χριστούγεννα

I would like to wish a VERY Merry Christmas to my family and friends!

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

The world's largest gingerbread house was made with 14,250 pounds of gingerbread and 4,750 pounds of icing, and is approximately 1,496 square feet.

Eeewwwwwwww

Before -

After -


Other than a public service message about how keeping the fridge coils cleaned improves refrigerator efficiency, means the motor doesn't work as hard, so the unit lasts longer and will also saves energy. I got nut'n to add. The pictures pretty much speak for themselves. See we're striving to be greener!!

Find the Critter

Can you find the critter in the above picture?

Bbbbrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

"When the frost in on the punkin..."

Well, you can rest assured that the frost in on the punkin here in New England and then some, yikes!

As you can see our thermometer registered 9 degrees outside the other morning; Thursday (12/17). It was very cold and that was without the windchill, which lowered the temps to zero and below and it's only December. I'm fearful of what February has in store for us.

As luck would have it too (that dam Murphy's Law, I curse you) I was scheduled in the Boston office on this frigid day. I took the commuter rail into the city, which wasn't too bad, as far as the commuter rail goes. However, the walks to the train stations and to and from the office were incredibly cold I tell you. Especially in the city where the winds do some amazing things as it zips between the buildings.

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

There are about 2,500 different types of apples grown in the United States and more than 7,500 types worldwide.

Find the Critter

Can you find the critter in the above picture?

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

The first snowfall of the season has come and gone. Well, the storm is gone, not the snow, alas - it's shaping up to be a long winter. Here are a couple pictures taken the morning after the snow - pretty yes?!





I'm also happy to report that my brother, who was visiting from Miami, still knows how to use a snow shovel. I guess some thing you just don't forget, like riding a bicycle.

South Division 1 Field Hockey CHAMPS!

The Walpole High School varsity girls Field Hockey team, also known as "The Porkers", won the Massachusetts South Division 1 championship, HOORAY! Including the playoffs the girls had an 20-0-2 record.

Stephanie, a.k.a. "The Frye-A-Lator", finished the season with 16 goals and 11 assists to lead the division. She was also selected to the Massachusetts girls field hockey 1st team All Star and the division 1 Best of 60 All Star teams. Quite the accomplishments for both the team and individually for Stephanie!



The picture above was taken at the end of the semi-finals game. The entire game was played under a VERY heavy fog. From the bleachers, at times, you were unable to see the girls on the far side of the field. They had no problem seeing on their way to an 8 - 2 final.

"I didn't want to let go of him" - Paige

There's nothing more to add to this story other than it brought tears to my eyes!

"Little Girl Can't Let go as Sergeant Daddy Leaves For Iraq"

Enjoy the Day Everyone!

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

According to William Bradford's book of Plymouth Plantation: 1620 - 1647, turkey was on the menu at the first Thanksgiving.

Find the Critter

Can you find the critter in the above picture?

The Fat Lady Has Sung!!

Finally, lawn mowing/lawn care season is officially over for 2009!!

I spent yesterday putting my dads yard to bed for the winter; cleaned the gutters, raked and blew leaves (and cussed at then too), cut and bagged the grass and leaves, and finished by putting a winterizer fertilizer down. Of course the latter is SO counter productive in term wanting to cut the lawn less - what was I thinking...

Here are the mowing numbers for 2009:

• My dads lawn = 16 cuttings
• A clients lawn = 14 cuttings
• Our lawn = 29 cuttings
  

All my lawn care equipment has also been put up for the winter - I'm one for the season!

Little Pecker Heads...

Care to take a guess at what caused the damage on the side of this house?

You might not be too surprised to learn what caused this but you might be when you hear the reason why!

Woodpeckers - woodpeckers are to blame. Yup, them cute little pecker-head-sum-bitches.

My first thought was that they were after something to eat; something like termites or ants or some other little insect, however, that's not the case.

The home owner made several calls in an effort to determine what caused this and why. One was to the local animal control officer, one was to an exterminator and one to Audubon.

It was Audubon that told her the reason was not to find food but rather an attempt to build a nest site. If you look close enough you'll notice that each hole was made directly under the over-hang of the shingle above, which is an indication of their intent - nest building versus feeding.

Interesting stuff!

Senior Health Care Solution

So you’re a senior citizen and the government says no health care for you, what do you do?

Our plan gives anyone 65 years or older a gun and 4 bullets. Your are allowed to shoot 2 senators and 2 representatives.

Of Course, this means you will be sent to prison.

There you will get 3 meals a day, a roof over your head, and all the health care you need! New teeth, no problem. Need glasses, great. New hip, knees, kidney, lungs, heart? All covered.

And who will be paying for all of this? The same government that just told you that you are too old for health care. Plus, because you are a prisoner, you don’t have to pay any income taxes anymore.

IS THIS A GREAT COUNTRY OR WHAT?!

Mark Your Calendar...

Sunday, November 15 has been nominated as "Steve Irwin Day" by the Australia Zoo in Queensland.

Also, an Australian scientist has paid an unusual tribute to the late conservation star Steve Irwin by naming a rare species of snail "crikey steveirwini".

"It was the khaki colour that immediately drew the connection to the late Crocodile Hunter."

To read more - Crikey steveirwini! Snail honour for late Aussie star

Bones

and I'm not talking about the Fox TV show Bones but real bones!

What you're looking at is or was a shrew (rodent).

We found this particular dude, dead and floating in our pool during the early summer. Of course at that time he looked different - well, like a shrew would normally look only wet and dead, again, because he was in the pool. Are you following all this?!

Well, Emilie was in charge of his removal and she did a super job. She got the skimmer and scooped him out in one nice, fluid motion. However, her attempt at launching this dude over the fence fell short and he landed on the second rail of the stockade fence - which is exactly where he's remained and still remains today, only no longer wet and missing his epidermis. An indefinate science project of sorts.

Stop by an see him if you're in the neighborhood.

Calling in the BIG Guns - UPDATE

Here is an update on our Muscovy ducks, as you can see they've grown...

If you recall we "adopted" three ducklings. The number three was chosen in an effort to increase our odds of having one male and one female. Of course we ended up with two males and one female. Since keeping two males is out of the question, one of the males has since been re-homed, which also saves on feed and boy can these quackers eat! So, we're down to a strikingly handsome pair (the female is the one sporting the black cap) - we've accomplished our intended goal.

We also purchased a used 5' wide x 5' deep x 5' tall chain link dog kennel that we're using to house these guys. It's working just fine for us and the duckies seem to enjoy it too. Since Muscovies are notorious fliers and escape artists I'll need to clip their wings soon otherwise the kennel investment will be for not. They'll always come home, but I'm sure our neighbors wouldn't appreciate their visits. This should be done twice a year and only needs to be performed on one wing. All I need to do it cut the flight feathers in half - like a haircut of sorts with no pain or discomfort to the animal.

Plan B is in full swing! Think Spring...

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

The term "granola bar" was first recognized in the late nineteenth century as a term for foods made up of whole grain products that are baked until crispy.

Identify It

What bird did this feather come from?

Put to Bed (for the Winter)

Our gardens and yard have all been put to bed for the winter - night night...

New compost was added to each garden and tilled in. 12-days ago Emilie helped me sow 5lbs of Winter Rye in each, which has taken root and is already beginning to grow.



The closest bed above contains our strawberries. I mowed them down and weeded as best I could. Once the cold weather sets in I will be covering these berry plants with pine needles to help protect them during the winter. Removing them is one of the first order of business come late winter - well before the soil warms and the plants begin to grow.



We've also planted 3-rows, approximately 60-cloves, of California White Garlic (above), which have also begun growing and now stand about 3" tall. I've spread leaf and grass clippings on top of their bed to help protect them during the winter.

Think SPRING!!

"I'm wearing two different shoes."

So, I'm sitting in my office (cubicle) yesterday feverishly working away on my computer when I sense someone come up behind me - it's Vlad.

He says, "Hi, what's up?"

I nod and say, "nuttin, same ole thing!" and keep on typing, which was then followed be a period of silence.

Vlad then voluntarily and out of the blue says, "I just realized I'm wearing two different shoes."

I fell on the floor laughing! One of the funniest things I've heard in a long while.

Once I composed myself I said, "that might be true, however, it's not something you should freely admit".

To his credit the shoes were the same make, model and color just one old and one new, so it wasn't too bad but hysterical just the same and par for the course in the life and times of Vlad...