Posts

I Can See Fall Around the Corner

Growing up in the high-country city of Flagstaff, Arizona fall came quickly. When you are living at 7,000 feet above sea level, the nights cool down quicker, the sun seems to set much earlier, and it's easy to feel that fall holidays like hunting season, Halloween, and Thanksgiving will soon be upon you. As an adult living in Flagstaff, I remember one particular weekend where I went to an NAU football game on a Saturday where it still felt like summer and the next day, which was the first day of fall, felt 10 degrees cooler and much more blustery. It was almost as if a switch had been flipped and Mother Nature declared that summer was over. by mid to late September, Flagstaff had already received its first overnight frost which results in the death of the summer flowers and vegetables my dad would plan in his garden.  By the first week of October, Flagstaff often receives its first taste of winter with a small overnight dusting of snow blown in by the wind and by the middle of Octo

Sunday….

Update on the attempts to fix the sagging shower door: This morning, Wife and I tried to tag team the shower door problem and we were not able to fix the problem. By the time we (she) decided to give up, I was already a hot & sweaty mess and church started in 5 minutes. Thankfully, we live just around the corner from our chosen denominational branch so it didn't take to get there once I was all showered up and smelling of Versace Homme cologne and Old Spice deodorant.  we had a friend and her son over for dinner tonight. It was the third night this weekend we had them over for dinner and watching the Olympics. All for today! Good night!

My Wife is Back And I'm Already In Trouble

I have to be honest. I gave up blogging while Wife was away. I was very lonely and stories or comments about my loneliness would have been a running theme in my posts and nobody wants to read about that over and over and over again. I spent most of my non-working time watching a myriad streaming services (Peacock, Paramount Plus, Amazon Prime, Netflix, & YouTube) every day off and visiting the nearby Little Cesar's Take Away store too many times.  Wife returned from J-Land about 2 weeks ago. She had been gone for nearly one year. In that time, her father passed away and she experienced a case of shingles in her eardrum. Too much has been experienced for me to update & rehash it all today, but perhaps in coming posts, I can touch on the highlights.  I met her at the airport in Phoenix (WNBA All-Star Weekend) and then took her back to the hotel, a Residence Inn, I had booked for 2 nights. Her first meal back in the United States was at a Cracker Barrel in Mesa. We hardly go t

Lenten Fast Post #3

On Saturday, I fasted all day. I did have a breakfast in the morning after sunrise b/c I legitimately felt hungry, so I had 1/2 cup of instant oatmeal, some blueberries, an apple, 3 dates, and a banana. I did not eat again until well after sundown when I got some chicken nuggets and chicken fries from Burger King b/c I was waiting on a locksmith to let me in house b/c I had locked myself out.  Sundays are "feast days" in the Methodist tradition so I had a balanced breakfast and then did not eat until after 7pm, when I had spaghetti, salad, and 4 St. Louis style ribs.  I have eaten nothing today, so I'm very much looking forward to dinner, which I expect will be a roasted potato cubed with carrots, leftover ribs, and a salad. Prior to the breaking of the fast, I will of course offer up a prayer and then break the fast.  All for today. 

Lenten Fast Report Day #2

I realize today is day #3 of my lenten black fast, but this is a report of yesterday.  Yesterday, I didn't quite make it to sundown before breaking my fast. Actually, I wasn't even close! I made it to my lunch break yesterday at work and then I decided that I needed to eat a chicken caesar wrap and some cookies that were on special. When I came home, I was able to wait long enough for sundown for my meal of a banana, an apple, three dates, and 2 hard boiled eggs. I then proceeded to fall asleep on my sofa at ~8:15pm, wake up an hour later, and head straight to bed. I'm feeling very satiated still so I will attempt another full day fasting. My evening meal might be different because today is when I'm scheduled for my side-job....ride-share driving.  The side effects of this fast have been interesting so far, particularly because I'm also fasting from my daily coffee. On Wednesday, I fell asleep on the sofa as well, but I woke up yesterday feeling incredibly clear in

Ash Wednesday and the Start of Lent

 Today is Ash Wednesday and it is the 1st day of the Christian season of Lent. Now, I have never been much for fasting during Lent. About 10 years ago, I fasted as best I could from sugar and after 40 days, my pants were quite bigger than they used to be. Growing up, my Methodist church would distribute little coin banks in the shape of a loaf of bread called "Love Loaves" and it was in these little coin banks that we were expected to deposit our spare change. On Easter Sunday, we would bring these banks to the church and deposit them in the collection plate for some kind of obscure or lesser known charity I was not aware of at the time. Fasting or giving up something during Lent was never something stressed by my parents growing up.  This year, I'm trying to do what is a called a "Lenten Black Fast". Here is what Wikipedia has to say about this kind of fast:  Historically, using the early Christian form known as the  Black Fast , the observant does not consume

The COVID Chronicles #84: Turmeric Roasted Chicken

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  I have been experimenting and perfecting a recipe for the perfect roasted chicken. Now, I admit, I've had a lot of help from the Tasty website and their recommended roasted chicken recipe so I do follow the basics from that recipe, but what I like to do is experiment with flavors and seasonings. Today, my experimentations led to Turmeric Roasted Chicken You start with a whole chicken. I actually prefer to purchase whole chickens because it is the cheapest way to purchase chickens. I'm not kidding! The nearest Fry's often has whole roasting chickens for $1.49/pound, which means I  can purchase a whole chicken for less than $10. I often buy 2 at a time and I always look for the heaviest chickens, which are usually anywhere from 6 to 6.5 pounds.  I start by patting the chicken dry with a paper towel. Then I salting my chicken. This is called brining. Normally I like to leave the brine on for 8-12 hours prior to cooking to really dry out the skin which will make it very crisp