Exceedingly Mundane

“I think I can…” “I think I can…” “I think I can…”

That’s what Tim says when I ask him if he can fix everything. I’m not sure how many of you noticed, but this blog, my Project365 blog, my sisters blogs, our main website (hambones.org) and everything associated with it, has been down most of the day. We’ve had a big meltdown here with some very important hard drives.

We’re sort of back up and running, but it’s only temporary. We have a patch in place, but it’s just a short-term fix. We’ve purchased one hard drive and may need another one. We might have to order some updated software. I’m not really sure what all is going to be required. The main thing is that to get things back to the way they were before the meltdown will require quite a bit of work on my hubby’s part. This, in addition to his regular, full-time computer geek job he does. We’ll have some more down time, but I can’t say when, as we don’t know right now. Oh, and most of my email is down too, so if you’ve emailed me and haven’t gotten a reply, that would be why. Sorry, but I can’t get my mail right now either 🙁

So, the moral of the story is, if you try to visit here, one of the other blogs, or our main site and can’t get to it, that’s the reason why. I’m not taking a bloggy break on purpose, but I won’t have much choice when things are down or being worked on! 🙂

Hope everyone else is having a good week. When I can get access to a computer for any length of time, I’ll try to stop by and visit some of your blogs soon 😀

It’s that time of the week again! Time to get things ordered for the week, and also time to hop on over to Laura‘s and check out all of the yummy menus that everyone is sharing.

Here’s the basic plan for our week…. lots and lots of chicken!

Sunday– We had Crispy Ginger Ale Waffles for breakfast. Tim said these are the best waffles he’s ever had! Dinner – leftover spaghetti

Monday – Grilled chicken wraps with avocado, Parmesan oven fries, veggie or salad

Tuesday – Gail’s Savory Chicken Breasts, smashed potatoes, sauteed zucchini

Wednesday – Grilled Chicken Salad (or tomato soup)

Thursday – Golden Potato Soup, homemade sourdough bread

Friday – Sloppy Joes (didn’t get to this last week) or Date Night

Saturday – Pizza or Date Night

Saw this over at Marianne‘s blog a while back. There’s a new version of this out there, fun fun stuff!

… scatterday does not necessarily fall on the same day of the week. It seems to occur more or less whenever I can get my act together… lol

Hey all, know what day it is???? It is Scatterday! Today is the second edition of Scatterday Scategories Meme, come join the fun.

Rules: Using the THIRD letter of your MIDDLE name, provide a word that describes each phrase.

My letter: E

Names used in the bible: Esther
Junk food: Elephant Ears
Things that grow: Evergreen trees
Companies: Enron, Ergon
Articles of clothing: Ear muffs
Desserts: Egg Custard Pie, Eclairs
Car Parts: Engine
Things Found on a Map: East pointer
Athletes: Emmitt Smith, Jahri Evans (Saints player), one of each 🙂
4-letter words: Even, Ever, Echo
Items in a refrigerator: Eggs
Farm Animals: Emu
Street Names: Eastpark Drive, Evans Avenue
Things at the beach: egret ?
Colors: Ecru, Eggshell
Tools: Eyelet setter
Heroes: Elektra
Gifts/presents: Earrings
Terms of endearment: ??
Kinds of dances: Electric Slide

This was harder than I thought it was going to be. I could have picked the third letter of my given name before I got married, but choose to use the third letter of my maiden name, since it’s technically my middle name now. E was kind of tough, and I really struggled on a couple of these. 🙂

If you play along at your blog, be sure to leave me a comment and let me know, so I can come over and check it out!

Karen, over at Blog Talkers, is on a mission to help us come up with topics to talk about at our own blogs. She posts a new question every Sunday, and we have all week to talk about it. Go check it out if you ever want an idea about something to blog about. And, if you play along this week, leave me a comment and let me know, so I can be sure to come check it out. New questions are up on Sundays, so I’m really late this week!

This week’s question is – What is your most annoying habit? The thing that drives someone else crazy…..

I didn’t have to think on this very hard, since I think there are a lot of things that I do that probably annoy other people. But, to be fair, I thought I would solicit Tim’s opinion. I think he could have come up with a lot of things, but the one he blurted out first was one I knew bothered him. Tim’s answer is “you come behind me and pick up and move things and then I can’t find where I put them.” I do do this, and I can remember being younger and my mom doing this, and I always hated it. I always swore up and down I would never be like that, but here I am, all grown up and I do it all of the time! I guess we truly are destined to turn out like our moms in a lot of ways! 🙄 Here’s the reason I do what he’s talking about – I think everything has a place. I’m very ordered and I like things in their places. When he comes in and tosses his keys on the kitchen counter when I’m trying to cook supper, I hang them up on the key rack (where they’re supposed to be). When he comes in from the back yard and tosses his baseball cap on the couch, I pick it up and put it back in our closet with his other caps. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon when the coffee pot has long been washed and put up, I pick up his coffee cup from the living room and go put it in the dishwasher. Things like that. But see, from his point of view, when he comes back a half hour later and wants his cap, he can’t find it because I’ve put it where it belongs, not left it where he drops it. I’m sure if I gave him half a chance, he’d probably come up with a really long list!

My answer to this question would be that I apologize all the time. It’s a self-esteem thing, but I’m always saying “I’m sorry” or “Sorry about that” or “Excuse me” when someone else runs into me in the store or whatever. I do catch myself doing it a lot and have tried to not say it so much, but it is one of those things that is ingrained in me since childhood. I apologize for everything 🙂

What about you? What’s your most annoying habit? 🙂

Friday, February 23, 2007
Feast One Hundred & Thirty Two

OK, I realize I am excruciatingly late with this. 🙄 Sorry about that! My sister Gail and I have been out shopping all day and I haven’t had a chance to get anywhere near the computer. You can also check out my photo for today over on my Project365 blog. I just got it posted too.

Appetizer
Where on your body do you have a scar, and what caused it? I have a tiny scar on my forehead that I got when I was very small, maybe 3 or 4. A brick fell on my head! 🙂 Yes, that’s what is wrong with me now 😀

Soup
What is something that has happened to you that you would consider a miracle? That I finally found Tim 🙂

Salad
Name a television personality who really gets on your nerves. First one that pops into my head is Kelly Ripa. I used to like her when she was on All My Children but now she grates on my last nerve. I absolutely cannot stand her.

Main Course
What was a funny word you said as a child (such as “pasketti” for “spaghetti”)? I have absolutely, positively, no idea!

Dessert
Fill in the blank: I have always thought ______ was ______. I have always thought chocolate was a necessity in life!

I’m going to piggyback off of my Project365 photo from the other day, since it’s gotten a lot of comments. Of course, many of you may have already commented and sort of answered this question over there. 🙄

I blogged about the new Cherry Coke Zero that I found at our Kroger the other day, and bought. I’ve since found it at our Super Walmart and also our Target, by the way. Anyway, we’ve tried it and we really love it. Actually, the whole “Coke Zero” thing is new for us. I was buying Diet Coke and didn’t even think to try Coke Zero. Then, I read on someones blog about it and gave it a try, and now, of course, we’re hooked.

So that’s today’s Question of the Day: Do you drink soft drinks? If so, are you loyal to a certain brand and flavor, and just drink a certain one? Which one? If not, why do you not drink soft drinks, because of the caffeine, carbonation, calories or what? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Writing in Books, Part Two

A couple weeks ago, we asked about how you take care of your books, with one of the questions asking whether you write in your books. Well, what about books that are meant to be written in? Like, say, a journal or diary? Do you keep one? Obviously, if you’re answering this, you have a blog–do you just let your blog be your journal? Or do you also keep one for private stuff also?

OK, another great question! I had previously answered that I don’t mark in my books in any way. I don’t turn down the corner of a page, I don’t underline or write in the margins. The most I *might* do is write my name in the front or write something in it such as “Happy Anniversary Tim, Love, Stacy”. And those are only in special books, that we want to keep and not loan out and lose.

Now, for today’s question: No, I don’t keep a diary or journal. Just my blog. And I don’t blog too much of a personal nature or things that I don’t want the world to know. When I first started, I was writing some private posts that were not published, but I don’t do that much anymore. I’ve actually been really surprised that I’ve been able to keep this blog going for over two years. Growing up, I got several diaries or journals over the years, and I was horrible at keeping them. I’d have a few entries written in January and maybe into February, but by March or so, it was pretty much empty. I still have most of those diaries, so I have the proof! I could just never keep them up. I tried year after year, but never could. So, as I said, this blog has been a real change of pace for me. 🙂

Even though I’m a huge TV addict and watch a lot of TV, I don’t normally blog a whole lot about it. But, they just announced the new contestants for Dancing with the Stars, and we watched Idol last night, so I feel the need to blabber a little bit about TV. Bullet-style:

Just a couple of random pictures… I think the folks that peruse my Project365 blog are probably already getting tired of seeing pictures of birds and of my boy Beau 😀

We might have had robins here before, but I honestly don’t remember seeing them. I think they must be here some over the winter, or on their way home. I just noticed them a few weeks ago, since late January, and now I’m seeing them everywhere. I really don’t remember seeing them all over the place last winter or the winter before. They’re really pretty though, their orange breast is very colorful!

One of Beau, resting. He’s really supposed to stay in the kitchen and breakfast room, on the tile floor. He’s not supposed to come “over” in the living room, where the carpet is. But, he cheats whenever he can and inches across (he has his blanket in the doorway, since he cheats a lot!). He wanted over so bad the other day that he was willing to put his head onto my metal magazine rack and rest. Ouch, I bet that hurt! He looks pretty comfy though 😀

I haven’t done this one in a while, but today’s topic is pretty easy. Click here to go check it out! If you decide to play along at your blog, leave me a comment and let me know 🙂

10 Foods You Hate:

1) BEETS!
2) Bell Peppers
3) Oysters
4) English Peas
5) Liver
6) Cilantro
7) Duck, goose, venison, any dark meat wild game
8) Celery
9) Sardines
10) Greens – turnip, mustard, collard greens

Bonus: Tomato slices or wedges. I’ll eat tomato products like spaghetti sauce and pureed tomato soup, and even most salsa, but I won’t eat a burger with a tomato slice on it, or tomatoes in my salad. Weird, I know!

BR-549…

Please let me know if you have any problems with this blog or our main website. Back later with a “real” post!

Fairly straightforward menu this week. I seem to just be pulling up recipes that I have made before, and I know we really like. I keep wanting to try some new recipes, but I can’t seem to get either motivated or organized or inspired enough (or something!) to get them added to the menu. So, here’s the general plan:

Sunday– rumien

Monday – Honey Mustard Chicken sandwiches, coleslaw, parmesan potato wedges

Tuesday – Mini Meatloaves, garlic smashed potatoes, sauteed cabbage

Wednesday – Light night before Tim weighs in – eggs, oatmeal, toast

Thursday – Cheeseburger Soup, homemade bread

Friday – Sloppy Joes, oven fries

Saturday – Date Night or Spaghetti

Be sure to hop on over to Laura’s site and check out the rest of the menus. There are tons of links to some really good-sounding menus, a lot of them with recipes or links to recipes. Go check it out, and play along if you would like! 🙂

Today’s Question of the Day is a short one – can you drive a stick shift? I can only drive an automatic, as I have never learned to drive a manual transmission. It’s something that I know I should know how to do, and I realize I should have learned, but I never did. When Tim and I got married, he had a truck with a stick shift and I never could drive it anywhere. Even in an emergency, which always worried Tim. So when he got a new truck, he made sure to get an automatic so that I could drive it. Now, I often take his rather than mine, because it’s easier and bigger and it drives great!

So, that’s today’s Question of the Day – can you drive a stick shift? As a bonus, do you have a standard or automatic transmission in the vehicle you drive most often? Could you drive one if you had to? And, any other interesting tidbits you might like to provide!

P.S. My sister Gail‘s blog is called “More Than A Song” and she almost always titles her blog posts with either lyrics from a song or a song title. This might possibly be the first time I’ve done that – do you know who sings this old song “Baby, you can drive my car…. Yes, I’m gonna be a star…” 🙂

Happy Birthday to my sister Gail! Today is Gail’s birthday and we want to wish her Happy Birthday and many, many more happy years to come! We got to see Gail and her husband Don yesterday, for supper, and then they came over to hang out, watch a movie, and when it got to be pretty late, they ended up spending the night with us! Today is her birthday, and we got to sing Happy Birthday to her (loudly, badly) this morning when she got up, and then we all had a big birthday breakfast of pancakes, eggs and deer sausage.

Happy Birthday Gail, we hope you have a wonderful day!

P.S. You can go and check out my Project365 blog for a picture of Gail and I last night at my favorite Italian restaurant. 🙂

I’ve finished 2 books in the last several days, 2 of the 6 that I checked out of the library on Monday. That’s pretty good for me, I read a lot, but this may be a new record! 🙂 Tim has been out of town on business, and it’s been really cold, so it seemed like a really good time to curl up by the fireplace with a big quilt, a mug of hot chocolate, and these books.

I thoroughly enjoyed both of these books, although they were very different from one another. First, the book by Debbie Macomber (“Susannah’s Garden”) was not one of my favorites by her, but I still liked it. It was a light, easy read, as most of hers are, and although I liked the characters and plotline, I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as her Blossom Street books or her Cedar Cove books. Still a really good book though (and it ended well, which is always a big thing for me). The Elizabeth Berg book, well, I don’t know where to begin with that one. I just read my first book by her earlier this year, “The Year of Pleasures”. I loved and adored that book. This one (“We Are All Welcome Here”) I loved also, but in a very different way. I could relate to the main character in the “Year of Pleasures” book and I really loved Berg’s flowing writing style. This book had a totally different feel to it, yet, it read like her other one in a way. I don’t quite know how to describe it. Probably because the characters and subject matter were so different, but I was equally engrossed in this book. It takes place in the summer of 1964, in Tupelo, Mississippi (birthplace to Elvis Presley), during the Freedom Summer. This is all very familiar to me, as I live in this part of the world and have heard about these events all my life. Yet, the book was really all about a woman and her daughter. A woman who contracted polio, gave birth in an iron lung, and was a quadriplegic who came home to raise her daughter, with the aid of caregivers. The book was hard to put down, and had a very satisfying ending for me, two hallmarks of a great book in my mind.

For the record, that makes a total of 11 books so far this year, with a total of 3,601 pages read. Up next is the last ‘Miss Julia” book, I think, that I have yet to read – “Miss Julia Stands Her Ground”. Another library book from the stack, and after that one, I’ll start on the “Yukon Quest” series by Tracie Peterson. Peterson is a new author to me, and I’m looking forward to reading these. After, of course, I enjoy Miss Julia, little Lloyd, Hazel Marie, Sam, Lillian and the whole gang. I have to see what light-hearted escapades they will be up to next! 🙂