new kid in the kitchen

Posted on February 28, 2022 by is there any more pie?

This is my new Elite Cuisine Model 4829 toaster.  And yes, this sucker is very long.  It’s designed to toast those long slices of sourdough bread of which Banjo Man is so fond.

Two weeks ago our toaster died and my two-month-old portable heater died.  I loved both of them, but they are now belly-up in the dumpster.  Remember when the tree fell on the house?  Well, we’ve had a dumpster in our parking area in the driveway for over four months now as we wait for our front and back doors to be replaced.

I really, really wish it wasn’t there.  We have to park in the driveway, which is a great big circle and very hard to back around.  Just ask the Amazon drivers, UPS guys, mail lady and propane deliverymen.  One of us runs out and drives the car around so these people don’t have to back up.

Not exactly “back up friendly”, especially when there is snow and ice layered on it. (photo from 2019)

But I digress…

So, I ask you, when did toasters stop costing $12.00??????

This one was $30.  Huh?  If I’d wanted the black version I would have had to pay $41.  Stainless steel?  $44.  Some were $129.  I was amazed, but of course I shouldn’t have been.  After all, we’d paid 2 1/2 times the price for an upright freezer last fall than when we bought one ten years ago.  The price doubled in 2021.

I didn’t set out to buy an extra-long toaster.  Sure, I wanted those 1.5″ wide slots.  But I live and die by Amazon reviews and the toaster reviews were so confusing that I almost gave up.  Toasting a piece of bread on a stick over an open fire (think “Outlander”) began to sound like a good idea.  I have a gas stove top and a package of wooden skewers.  What could go wrong?

The reviews on the thirty or forty toasters I looked at online ranged from, “I love this toaster so much!”  to “This monster set my kitchen on fire,” to “If you buy this toaster you’re an idiot.”

And so on.

I had to get on with my life and finally clicked on this particular model of toaster and sent it to my shopping cart.  It hadn’t set any kitchens on fire or burst into spontaneous flames or died after three weeks, at least not that any reviewers had reported.

So…fingers crossed.

I have yet to plug it in, but I’m going to do that now.  And will open a jar of apricot jam to celebrate having toast again.

I can’t wait to make apricot jam this summer.

 

 

 

 

Posted in food, rhode island, shopping | 1 Comment

drink up

Posted on February 22, 2022 by is there any more pie?

There’s a bit of bright news this morning, in the last week of February, in the so-far-disappointing and grim Year of 2022,  with cold temps still surrounding us with ice and misery.

(I am feeling dramatic this morning).

And the good news, you ask?  It’s National Margarita Day!!!

Dancing Mandolin Player.

I think we should all celebrate, don’t you?

A Christmas vacation margarita in Austin.

More margaritas in Austin. SXSW makes me thirsty.

No, Funny Grandson!  Do not imitate your Party Grandma!  It’s Margarita Day, not Root Beer Float Day!

And here we have a little partying goin’ on at the Floater, on the lake.  We were in the midst of a heat wave and needed lots of fluids.

Margaritas are meant to be enjoyed with others.

So grab a friend tonight and dig out that blender.  I’m sure you have a bottle of tequila somewhere…

 

Posted in just for fun, rhode island | 2 Comments

looking ahead to spring 2022

Posted on February 18, 2022 by is there any more pie?

No, we are not buying an RV, though the urge to get in the car and head west on yet another road trip is always tempting.

My friend Ruth and husband went to the Springfield RV show for the weekend.  I suspect a new RV is in their future…and maybe an adventurous trip or two.

Harley Chick and Hot Rod Russ, who already own a super-large motor home, are heading south in about three weeks.  I suspect they won’t want to come back after experiencing warm, sunny weather.

I was inspired to make plane reservations this morning.  I had to cancel the April flights and rebook for early June, but that’s okay.  We’ve had lots of medical issues to deal with during this Winter From Hell, but we still have lots to look forward to and the fun starts in June.

We need fun.

I know my gardening friends (and there are so many of you!) are waiting for the seed catalogs to arrive in the mail and for the snow and ice to melt.

And here in Rhode Island?  We had a wild, windy rainstorm last night, but you’ll be pleased to know that no trees fell on the house.  The sun is shining now and it feels like spring.

Hurray for spring!  We’re expecting a cold weekend, but it warms up again next week.  Yes, just as it does every year.

Only ten more days of February. 

 

Posted in friends, rhode island | 1 Comment

be my valentine 2022

Posted on February 14, 2022 by is there any more pie?

I decorated.

This is an aloe Vera plant I brought home from Austin.  Son Will grows massive aloe Vera plants, so at Christmas I asked to take a small one home.  I have great respect for the medicinal value of its gel and wanted to have my own supply on hand.

He hesitated.  He hesitated????

Clearly he didn’t think I could take care of a plant.  I’m not a plant person.  My thumb is not green and never shall be, but…I try.

Despite my son’s protectiveness this little plant came home in my carry-on bag and has survived quite nicely, thank you.

I frequently send Will pictures like this one to prove it is still alive.

Six inches of snow dumped on us yesterday and overnight.  The plow just came.  I don’t think anyone expected a storm.  We were all focused on Super Bowl food.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY from the Northeast, where it is still winter and the sun is shining.

 

Posted in rhode island | 1 Comment

superbowl sunday 2022

Posted on February 13, 2022 by is there any more pie?

Guess who we’re rooting for.

I will never be a cake decorator.  Obviously.  But the urge to make Cincinnati Bengals-themed cupcakes was something I Had To Do.

I don’t know why.  My sewing room/office smells like a dead mouse.  Maybe the fumes affected my brain.

I thought black and orange sprinkles would make cute toppings when I bought them at Michael’s last week.  In practice they look a bit messy, but let’s call them “artistic”, shall we?

It’s the thought that counts.

Banjo Man and I are also going to consume boneless pork ribs with an Asian honey ginger sauce, air-fried mozzarella sticks, sweet potato fries and coleslaw.

We’ll be eating leftovers for days, a good thing.

We are also rooting for the Funny Grandson’s college fund.  He and his father started collecting football cards during the Covid lockdown and are in the possession of a rare Joe Burrow’s card whose value will soar if the Bengals win the game today.

The family even has a special cheer whenever the Bengals score:

“ROOK–IE–CARD!!!  ROOK–IE–CARD!!!”

Feel free to shout it in your own living rooms.

Did I make too many?????

Posted in family, food, grandmother stuff, rhode island, television, texas | 1 Comment

the case of the broken window

Posted on February 12, 2022 by is there any more pie?

Thursday afternoon our propane fireplace was finally fixed.

Sound the trumpets.

If you remember, it stopped working right after Christmas.  It heats 3/4 of the upstairs.  We moved down to the basement and waited 25 days for the repairman from the local fireplace store and repair shop to fix it.  And then the next day, when I turned on the thermostat, there was a delay between flipping the switch and the fire lighting, resulting in a very loud bang, high flames and the alarming earthquake-like rattling of the glass and frame.

I googled the problem and diagnosed “delayed ignition”.  I would not be able to fix it myself with the help of a Youtube video.

Damn.

I timed the stove.  A five second delay meant a lovely little “poof” noise. Twelve seconds caused a significant but not scary “bang”.  The sixteen-second range was the bad one and happened at least once a day.  We called the stove repair shop and were told they would call us back.  They didn’t.

I should have raised a fit, but there are a number of people who don’t call me back.  There’s a contractor in Austin.  And one here in Rhode Island.  And an electrician.  No, two electricians.  And the guy who is going to take down the rest of The Tree.

BUT Thursday I’d had enough.  I was pissed at the world and about to kick ass (I’d successfully taken on the Austin contractor on Wednesday and was still basking in the glow of accomplishment).  I was prepared to explain that I was sending them a registered, certified letter so that if the stove exploded and took out part of the living room I could sue them.  I dialed the number and put steel in my voice.

Sadly, I didn’t get to say the letter part, but I said a few other things and a very experienced repairman showed up an hour later.  The previous repairman (who was new) had made some serious mistakes when installing new parts.

But that’s not the point of this blog.  Really, you ask?  Then what are you babbling about???

After the stove was fixed I went into the upstairs bathroom, a room that had been closed off since the stove broke, and decided to open the window and air it out (it was 52 degrees and sunny).  I raised the blinds and saw what looked like sugar on the sill.

It was glass.  The top portion of the window was cracked.  All over.  There was a screen on the outside and no dents or holes in it.

What looks like tree branches are actually cracks.

I went outside, but there wasn’t a bit of glass on the gravel.  No obvious rock, dead bird or tree branch.  Conclusion:  the window had imploded all by itself.

Huh???

Did this have something to do with the tree falling and shaking the house?  I would have to call the insurance adjustor and give him a heads up.  He always answers my calls, which is refreshing.

Last night Banjo Man came upstairs for dinner (chicken noodle soup and corn bread) and said, “You have to see this.”

This was not said in a, “There’s a Pekingese puppy who needs a home at the back door” tone.

I braced myself for trouble.

Sure enough, another window had cracked.  Facing south, not north.  Different window, installed at a later date than the bathroom window, but the same style of cracks.

What fresh hell is this????

We will be inspecting all of our windows on a daily basis from now on.  And we’re putting plywood over the broken ones until Spring.

If you have any ideas or suggestions or experience with shattered glass, please please please let me know.

 

Posted in rhode island | 2 Comments

we were way beyond cool

Posted on February 9, 2022 by is there any more pie?

Just wanted to share.

Posted in family | 2 Comments

sewing for spring

Posted on February 8, 2022 by is there any more pie?

The Wild Flower Snowball quilt top is finished, as of yesterday afternoon.  Here you see a portion of it.  It’s comprised of 120 snowball blocks and ended up approximately 75″ X 90″ in size.

I like it.

What’s next?  Figuring out a backing, pin-basting on the kitchen island while watching “The Gilded Age” and then machine-quilting it on my trusty Janome machine.

I now have four–FOUR–quilt tops to make backings for, along with basting and quilting them.

Yes, I have been busy.  I call it “stress sewing”, because, well, it’s the Winter of 2022 and I am not a fan.

But when I’m sewing I think of good things, happy things, hoping to fill the quilts with joy and love as I sew them.

Banjo Man and I attended an exhibit at the Shelburne Museum, near Burlington, Vermont, in 2007 while on a mini-vacation.  It was there I saw the quilts of Rosie Lee Tompkins for the first time and I was in awe.  I read that she felt that her quilts were a form of protection for her loved ones; she prayed while sewing.

The show, “Something Pertaining to God”, was curated by her friend and devoted collector, Eli Leon.

If you have a few extra minutes and a fresh cup of coffee, here’s an article about Eli and Rosie that is quite fascinating.  Eli was a hoarder whose collection of quilts (3100 of them!) was eventually donated to the Berkeley Art Museum.

Here’s the link:

Posted in quilting, rhode island | 2 Comments

keep the faith

Posted on February 2, 2022 by is there any more pie?

Brother George sent this in a recent email and it made my day.  Those of us who experienced the 1960’s will especially appreciate this story of a father and son’s experience on the road.

 

Posted in family, friends, rhode island | 3 Comments

needle in a sort of haystack

Posted on February 1, 2022 by is there any more pie?

Have you ever lost something and never, ever found it again?

I guess that’s the definition of “lost”.

Sigh.

Yesterday I sat at my desk with my needles, thread and scissors to hand stitch a label onto a quilt I’d been trying to finish for a very long time.

The night before while watching football I’d finished the binding, but I’d been too tired to stitch those last five inches of the label.  Before leaving my chair I’d carefully removed my two special needles from the magnetized holder and popped them into their bag.

This is where these two expensive needles live.

I sat in my office chair with the quilt on my lap, label face up, and shook the little bag so a needle would drop out.

It did.  It dropped and bounced into the sleeve of the turtleneck I wore underneath my sweater.  I said a bad word and reached inside to retrieve it.

No needle.

It was not on the floor.  Or in my chair.  Or on the table.  I took off my turtleneck and my sweater and turned them inside out.

No needle.

I found my magnetized wand, designed for picking up pins and needles, and waved it over the floor and rug and chair.

No needle.

A few months ago daughter Nancy told us a story about one of her patients at the assisted living home who was an avid seamstress.  While sitting in her recliner and happily sewing, she lost a needle.  Days later she found it–deeply embedded in her thigh, under the skin, and of course infected.  She went to the hospital for surgery.

This story came back to me.

I didn’t want a needle wiggling its way into my body, so I took off all of my clothes.  Turned everything inside out and right side out and inside out again and shook them.  I examined my right arm.  I examined my thighs.

No needle.

I got down on my hands and knees with a flashlight and examined every inch of my carpet.

No needle.

Was it in the quilt?  I couldn’t see anything, so I hung it up in front of the windows so the sun could shine through.  Surely if there was a needle inside the quilt it would show up, right?  I examined every block.

No needle.

It was time to call in someone with much better eyesight:  Banjo Man.  I donned a fresh set of clothing and headed downstairs to ask for help.  He did his best, but neither of us could find the needle.

Surely you can get another needle on Amazon, he said, eyeing the snow-covered driveway.  I think the truck can make it in.

Um, that’s not the point.  I reminded him of the scary needle-in-the-thigh story.  He grabbed the flashlight and searched the carpet and my chair once again.

We went downstairs and looked on the carpet and in the chair just in case I only thought I put both needles in their bag and one had slipped to the floor.

We never found the damn needle.  Was I upset?  Understatement.

Banjo Man started to ask things like “Are you sure you had two needles?”

Yes.  Last night I had both needles on their little magnet holder so I wouldn’t lose them.   That’s what I always do, with any kind of needle.  I am careful like that.

He gave up and returned to work.

I had to take a time out and hike down the driveway to retrieve the car and get the mail.  I had to fix a mug of green tea and eat two Milano cookies before I tried sewing on the label again.  It didn’t help that my television, on which I was going to watch a relaxing dvr’d episode of ESCAPE TO THE COUNTRY while I stitched, had an issue with its volume–as in not having any sound– and I had to change three cords and unplug the damn thing before I could get it to work.

I did sew the label on and the quilt is officially finished.

Today I’m still twitchy about that missing needle.  I hope I don’t step on it.  I really hope I don’t sit on it.

And I hope the Quilting Gods will be kind and the needle will appear in a benign and odd place, leaving me free to get on with my life without worrying about damaging a body part as we navigate through the winter of 2022.

Thanks to OysterEnglish.com

Posted in quilting, rhode island | 4 Comments