STILL LOVING THAT COOKER

From this:

To This: in 25 minutes

With This:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

CUTE OVERLOAD

WELSOPHYLIA BRAIN CORAL-XMAS PRESENT FROM MY AQUARIUM MAINTENANCE PERSON

Care Level: Moderate Temperament: Semi-aggressive Lighting: Moderate Waterflow: Medium Placement: Bottom Water Conditions: 72-78° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, sg 1.023-1.025 Color Form: Green, Red Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements Origin: Indonesia Family: Trachyphylliidae The Trachyphyllia Brain Coral is a Large Polyp Stony (LPS) coral, often referred to as the Pacific Rose Coral, or an Open Brain Coral. It is easily collected from the reef because when mature, they are not attached to the substrate. Therefore, it is often found washed up in the shallow water lying on the sand bed. It is found in varying shades of green, metallic green and red and can be recognized by its irregular round shape, deep valleys, and fused walls with numerous folds. These characteristics originally identified Wellsophyllia corals as separate fromTrachyphyllia corals. This distinction is less commonly used now, and the Wellsophyllia Brain Coral is often referred to now as a Trachyphyllia radiata coral.It does best in a well established reef aquarium that incorporates moderate to strong lighting and a moderate water current within the aquarium, along with the addition of calcium, strontium, and other trace elements to the water. These corals prefer to be placed on a sandy substrate, with plenty of space between it and other corals, as it is sensitive to stings from its neighbors. It contains the symbiotic algae zooxanthellae from which it receives the majority of its nutrition through photosynthesis. They also benefit from occasional feedings of meaty items, like shrimp, clam and squid. They should only be offered food when the tentacles are fully expanded, which is typically during the night time hours.

YEAH I REALLY LIKE THE PRESSURE COOKER

Decided when I got the new electric pressure cooker and it was SO EASY to use that I would not only use it for beef roast.  If I did I wouldn't get much use out of it.  So tonight I made Mashed Potatoes and just at the last minute decided to pressure cook them to see if it worked.  

A total of twelve minutes after cutting the potatoes into quarters and putting them in the cooker I had totally cooked potatoes ready to be mashed.  No waiting for the water to boil for fifteen minutes and then waiting for the potatoes to cook for fifteen minutes.  Just twelve little minutes start to finish and they were perfect, ready for the butter and cream.


And since this cooker is SO EASY to clean since the pan just lifts out and everything can go into the dishwasher it was not any more trouble to do it this way.  Another thing I noticed was that the potatoes weren't waterlogged.


Great deal, I don't think I will ever boil potatoes again :)

OKAY THE RUST HAS BEEN BANISHED-SO GO AWAY!!!!!!!!

Went out this morning and banished the rust on the bottom of the wrought iron fence.  Not a great job, in fact it pretty much sucks, and I would fire anybody that did it that way.  But, with a couple of weeks of weathering I think it will blend in enough to make it to Spring.

 I could barely reach the damn fence and the wind was blowing 25 miles an hour.  So all it got in the way of prep was a quick swipe with the steel brush.  Just enough for keep it from chipping back off tomorrow.

CHIM, CHIMNEY, CHIM, CHIMNEY CHIM CHIM CHIREY

Had a Chimney Sweep in today to fix the fireplace that wasn't drawing the way it was supposed to be.

He got the drawing problem fixed, but it still isn't burning right so we are having it overhauled with a new burner and sand and embers and stuff.  Then $260.00 later it will be all better.

I was going to show you the actual "Chimney Sweep", but I think he used to be a plumber and I have decided to "JUST SAY NO TO CRACK"

SIGNING UP

Spent two lovely hours in this line today trying to get signed up for Commercial Piano II.  I tried to register online, but the computer kept rejecting it because I hadn't had Commercial Piano I, which the instructor had said I didn't need to take.  I hate registration time.  It never ever goes totally smoothly.

Finally got in though.  Funny thing is five minutes after getting through this line I got an email that Carole in Fine Arts Dept. could have done it for me in two minutes :(

UPS -LET BROWN DELIVER YOUR TURKEY THE OLD FASHIONED WAY

Today I was playing my piano which is right in front of the window when I saw this.  After watching this guy for a few minutes trying to decide what he was doing I realized he was a UPS delivery man and he was delivering a Greenberg Smoked Turkey to the house across the street............................by bicycle and wagon.

If you look real close, you can see his little electronic scanner thingy that they always make you sign with a horrible pen on a crappy surface that you can't even read your name on.


Really?  OMG, is this UPS's new green program?  Wonder what the delivery guys think about it and do they always have to turn only right hand turns on those bikes??????????????????

OUT DAMN RUST!

I've been getting letters from my Homeowner's Association about my violations of the Community Covenants and Declarations to keep my painted stuff painted.  And I have TEN DAYS to correct the very very offensive offending wrought iron fence.

So..........here it is, the problem that is making our neighborhood look bad.

I agree, it could use some paint, but really we are talking over a thousand dollars of paint and labor here as this fence is 65 feet long and I think it needs to get a little, well actually a LOT worse before I spend that much money to paint it.  I mean you can't even see it from the street.  You can see it from the sidewalk if you really pay attention, and you can absolutely see it from a couple of inches away.  Really, give me a break.


So I am going to do a self repair until I feel it is bad enough to warrant the concern they have for it.  I am going out tomorrow, brush off the top layer of each rust spot and give it a squirt of SPRAY PAINT and voila, painted fence, no rust.  Probably won't exactly match, but YEP IT WILL BE PAINTED :) and they can shut the hell up!

THANKSGIVING 2010

My dinner table ready to dig in for Thanksgiving 2010.  Twelve of us and one Delanio. A very pleasant dinner and day.  But later went to bed with the Advil and heating pad for my legs and back :(

Tryptophan kicks in...................................

GETTING GORGEOUS AND THE CARNAGE LEFT BEHIND

This is the tragic aftermath of my trying to become gorgeous before the Expressions 2010 Fall Concert.  Sad huh?

It doesn't "take a village", but a team of makeup artists would have helped.

NO MORE SPANISH, AT LEAST NOT THIS CLASS!!!!!!!

Not a fun class and certainly not my favorite instructor.  So..................no more Command Spanish for me!

YOU CAN'T SEE IT ON A GALLOPING HORSE OR A LIMPING ONE EITHER

So yesterday we got a letter from our Homeowner's Association telling us that we were in violation of the architectural codes rules and must immediately remedy the situation.


They were talking about this:

Can you see the problem?  

Well, apparently if you get really close you can, but you have to be really really close. 

It's the rust on the fence at the bottom................

....................really????????????

CUISINART ELECTRIC PRESSURE COOKER

Used the new pressure cooker tonight for the first time.  Wow, what a difference from the old stove top one that has the round bottom and goes shshshshshshshshshs!!!!!!!.  This one will brown the meat, saute the veggies, simmer, have high pressure, low pressure, automatically keep warm and self time.  And it is very very very very quiet!


I think I'm going to like it and I think I will try to make more than just one recipe in it.

CROCHET LESSONS

Giving my cousin Crochet Lessons

Bailey thinks he's having lessons too :)
Well, he certainly thinks the yarn is for him anyway. 

ANEMONE'S DINNER?

Remember this guy?

Haven't seen him for about two weeks.  Think he finally may have become the Anemone's dinner........so sad :(

HOLA!

Started an 8 week Beginning Spanish class last night.  It's supposed to be conversational, I just wonder if I'm supposed to be conversational............in Spanish I mean :)

STAY DAMMIT!

NEWEST ADDITION TO MY FAMILY. GONNA MAKE SOME MUSIC!

THE POTATO SALAD PROJECT

Had to make Potato Salad for 25 people. Turns out this is plenty!

LEVEL 2 - MORE ANGRY BIRD PERFECTION ;)

BAD STORMS TO THE EAST, GREAT TIME FOR PICTURES!

I thought by the structure and size of this storm cloud that it was probably tornadic - it was!

Both pics taken from my backyard :)

LEVEL 1 - ANGRY BIRD PERFECTION :)

CHICKEN LOMBARDY-NOT SO MUCH

So after the exploding coke disaster it was time to cook dinner.  Tonight I had planned a dish called Chicken Lombardy from Southern Living Magazine.  It was supposed to be over linguini and I made steamed green beans to go with it.

It was just okay.  Actually the chicken dish was good and had a good taste, but what the recipe called "sauce" was really brothy and ran all over the plate.  It was also a lot of trouble.  Probably won't make it again.  Next time I will just made Chicken Marsala.


Side Note:  I did double the liquid thinking that it would make a sauce, which obviously it didn't, it just stayed brothy.  Maybe that made a big difference, but then there wouldn't have been sauce for the pasta.  Still think it's not really a keeper.

MORAL OF THE STORY: ALWAYS SET A TIMER

If you are going to put a canned coke into your freezer to get cold..........................................

ALWAYS SET A TIMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TOOK MY SELF TO THE TEXAS STATE FAIR OF 2010 TODAY

BIG TEX - UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL

TEXAS STAR

THIS YEAR'S FRIED FOOD WINNER - FRIED FRITO PIE

FRIED PEACHES AND CREAM (LAST YEAR'S FRIED FOOD WINNER)

TOWER BUILDING

THE MANDITORY CORN DOG - FLETCHER'S OF COURSE