December 1st

Can you believe it is December 1st already. It seems every year Christmas comes around faster and faster. There is a shorter shopping time between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. I heard Black Friday was kind of a disappointment to merchants as sales were down about 18%. Today is Cyber Monday so maybe the sales by computer will make up for the difference and then some. At least that is what the stores are hoping. It is so bitter cold it is not fun to go outside at all today. Tomorrow is supposed to warm up some and get better as the week goes on. Sure hope so.

Good Food

I had cataract surgery on Tuesday and my son-in-law and daughter have been sending me over many kinds of great food. Last night he came with a big bowl of hot chili right off the stove and was that ever good for supper. Also have cookies, banana bread cupcakes, biscuits, garlic bread, spagetti in meat sauce, and a very good chicken dorito casserole. Also have a home made enchilada that I am going to have for lunch today. It is great not to have to cook. I don't cook anymore anyway, just microwave stuff. Nothing like homecooking.

Fall and Winter

It is getting cold too soon. The leaves are turning and some are falling already. There has been frost. There has also been enough rain to keep the farmers from harvesting. There was snow in Wisconsin where my relatives live and in South Dakota, Nebraska. That is just too close. IT is too soon also. I read yesterday the spiders are showing up indoors more now and that means a early winter. Also if you have lots of crickets it means lots of snow too. This could be a winter we will hate more than usual.

October Tomorrow

It will be the first day of October tomorrow. It is really looking like Fall now. Trees are turning and some trees are even beginning to lose their leaves. Think the lawn has been mowed for the last time now. The Mums are really blooming. We have had a couple frosts but they are hardy and keep blooming. I hope this isn't a long, cold, snowy winter ahead.

Early Snow

There has already been too much early snow west of us. Montana got 6 inches the other day. Utah got some too, I think. Then yesterday, South Dakota Black Hills got a lot of snow. That is too close to us. It is way to early too. I sure hope that doesn't mean we are going to have a long long cold winter with lots of snow. I dread walking on ice. At my age, it is really dangerous. It means staying in the house a lot too when it get slick outside. Today we are having cold temperatures, 48 degrees today is our high so far and going to freeze tonight. I don't like that - at least not in early September.

Blueberry Bagels

I have not had bagels in a long time. I decided while shopping to get a package of them and see how I liked them. I like them toasted with lots of butter. I also love them with lots of butter and cinnamon sugar on them. Guess I am spoiled as have always loved cinnamon toast. I like raisin bread too and it seems similar having blueberries in the bagels. It's kind of nice to try something different. I think they are better than they were years ago. I always thought they were quite tough to eat but these are nice and soft. A good improvement over the ones I got years ago.

Garage Repair

In June a high wind blew down a tree on my garage and did some damage. The contractor planned to put new shingles on and fix the damage then. However, we got rain. Then he thought he could get the job done and sure enough, more rain. Days became months and everytime there was a dry day, there were 4 wet ones. It was a good thing the roof didn't leak thru onto the car. That was one good thing. Then Monday, they came and by Tuesday they had the roof completed and everything cleaned up by just past noon. And sure enough it really poured that night and all the next day and has been raining overnight every night. We aren't going to see much dry weather over Labor Day and that is too bad. Families want to get together for that last hurrah before cold weather sets in.

Broasted Chicken

Sometimes I get hungry for good broasted chicken. I know I can always go uptown to the Pizza Ranch and get the best broasted chicken and potatoes too. They have a huge selection of pizzas. Sometimes I just order a chicken dinner or a small pizza and go get it and bring it home to eat. It is so handy. They have a wonderful salad bar too. It is a good place to eat after a matinee movie too. It's close to home so you don't mind going out at night. And if you don't feel like going out, they will deliver anything you order. It is always great food. You are never disappointed.

Roofing

A while back a tree fell on my roof. The landlord told me last night he plans to start roofing the garage on Friday. The weather reports are talking of rain. Now they say it could be put off a couple of days and not rain till Sunday and Monday. I wish it would keep moving back long enough to get the new shingles on the roof. He is going to add a couple roof vents too, to help the heat escape. That will be great. He has a couple helpers and they are good and they are fast. It will be great to have that taken care of.

My Birthday

My birthday is Saturday. Some good friends from church are getting married that day. I am going to the wedding. Eleven years ago my best friend's daughter got married on my birthday. We went to the reception and it was just beautiful. The food was great and I felt like I had the biggest best birthday celebration ever. I am going to do that again this year. It will be so much fun. Another best friend, I grew up with, has the same birthday as mine but she is one year younger. It is a major big birthday for her and hope she has a wonderful birthday out in Colorado too.

Mexican Food

I believe Mexican Food if my most favorite food. I went Tuesday for lunch at my favorite restaurant. I brought home enough for another meal. I never tire of it as there are so many different dishes to choose from. We now have a new Mexican restaurant in our town. It is very popular as it is a small town without many choices. However, businesses are growing and more of the workers are going out to lunch as they don't have far to go and they can choose American, Chinese, Mexican and more.

Home Cooking

I went over to my daughter's the other night for home cooking. She made a delicious salad, garlic bread and the best chicken marinara. I got to bring home enough for a couple of meals. I will enjoy it for lunch today too. It is a beautiful sunny day here. We have had cooler days and no rain so things are drying out. I feel so sorry for those who have terrible flooding in their homes. North Minnesota is really bad. The Mississippi is really high.

Storm Warnings

We have really had the heavy rains. I don't remember hearing so much continuous thunder. It seems to go on for a very long time. The eves can't even carry all the rain, it is coming down so hard. The storms are coming in waves and it is going to be a very wet day. We got a 1/4" in a few minutes.

Wedding Anniversary

One of my neighbors are celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary. They decided to go to Branson for a week. They have 2 cats. They depend on me to go over twice a day and make sure they have plenty of water and plenty of food. They have an electric pooper scooper that is quite a deal. However, it was plugged up twice now and today I really almost took it apart to clean it out. It is really a neat machine when it is working properly. I don't know how it got so plugged up but will advise the owners so they can check it out further.

Family on the Way

Oldest son and family on there way here. Going out to lunch and have a good visit. It is still sunny but they are talking rain. It looks like we may luck out and have the rain late tonight. However, they are talking really severe chances of storms tomorrow and Monday too. The whole USA is a mixture of storms. Snow out west seems funny since it is almost May 1.

Jesus is Risen

Jesus is Risen, he is risen indeed. He has made a way for us to get to Heaven and spent a wonderful eternity in a place we can't even begin to imagine how beautiful and wonderful it is. All you need to do is sincerely repent of your sins, and we have all sinned, and accept Jesus and his forgiveness. He comes to live in you and then he sent the Holy Spirit to come into you to teach, lead, advise and help you along life's way. It is a wonderful lifetime journey. I feel so sorry for those who do not have Jesus in their lives. He is the one and only way to Heaven and to God.

Gas Prices

Gas prices are really going up again. In my hometown, it is quite a lot higher than in the bigger towns. I filled up yesterday in the town where I go to church. I saved quite a bit per gallon. Then stopped at the Taco Johns connected to it. I brought home to grilled beef buritos that are each a meal in themselves. It was a beautiful warm day yesterday. Not quite so good today as rain this morning and wind warning all day.

New Television

Well it looks like my television set is going to bite the dust. The picture flutters all the time and no one works on them for miles around. My son-in-law has located a new one for me at a good price so I will be getting that. He knows how to hook it up too so I am happy. This one will be better than the one I have also. I am anxious to see it.

Family Visit

After church today, I stopped in and had a nice visit with my brother. We have always been very close ever since we were kids. He gave me a bottle of Lipton's peach flavor tea. It is excellent. I think I will have to get some tomorrow when I go to the grocery store. While I was there a friend and her two little girls stopped in to visit him too. That was nice. It was a beautiful sunny day although the wind was cold.

Winter's Grip

Yesterday we had temperatures in the high 40's. Many people opened windows and let fresh air in. Much snow was melting and I watched it fall off the neighbor's roof. There is lots of standing water everywhere. Today we got some light rain and it changed to the biggest snowflakes. I think it has stopped almost by now. That is good. We have plenty on the ground as it is and huge piles. Everyone is very anxious to have Spring.

Weather Reports

The weather reports aren't very encouraging. They have been saying we would be getting rain this morning and it would freeze on the roads making for even more dangerous driving than we have had already this winter. Then there could be about an inch of snow on top of that ice. Today it should reach 34 degrees. It is 28 degrees now. But tomorrow it drops to 22 and Sunday is to bounce back up to 40. That would be great. The roads have been so bad, I have stayed in a great many days this winter. Spring is really going to be welcomed by everyone this year more than ever.

March 1

Here it is, finally March but it isn't any warmer.  We have had at least 2, maybe 3 Polar Vortex systems go thru here and we are freezing.  It is 1 degree right now and snowing.  It snowed an inch yesterday and they say we will see some tomorrow too.  I pushed an inch of snow off the deck this morning so now it can add another 3" today.  I keep a shovel in the house because in past years, it has gotten so deep I could hardly get the door open to go out and get the newspaper.  So far I have shoveled some many days.  They sound like it won't start getting any warmer till Mid March.  I sure hope March goes out like a lamb and is much warmer and we get done with this cold freezing, snowy, blizzard, winter.

Weather Report

Another bad weather report.  They are saying we will have another blizzard tomorrow.  People will have trouble getting to work.  If they get to work, they will have trouble getting home.  Yesterday was a beautiful day.  Much snow melted but it left a lot of ice behind.  It is 30 degrees already which is quite warm for the winter we have been having.  It will melt a lot of snow again today but we are due to get icy conditions and 3-7 inches of new snow again.  We will all enjoy Spring whenever it gets here.  It will be appreciated more than ever this year.

Family Visit

My daughter is coming this week and stay overnight one night.  I am excited to have company.  I haven't seen her in a couple months.  She works all the time in a retirement apartment place called Sunnyview.  It is a beautiful place for retirees to live.  You can find it on the Internet.  She has a dentist appointment and she's not looking forward to that.  We will go out for supper and that will be fun for a change as it has been a terrible winter for eating out.  Lots of snow and ice on the roads and always worse at night.

Below Normal

This winter has been below normal for so long we are beginning to get used to it.  That is sad!  It is bad when zero and no wind feels warm.  We have been running at least 10 degrees below zero all winter and even more.  Our roads have been solid black ice.  So many people have been in the ditch this year and many killed, as well.  I have stayed in as long as 3 days at a time without even going out to get the mail.  It has not been a fun winter.  One thing about it, the snowmobilers are having a ball.  Several have been killed on those too.  I think they tend to drink and drive their snowmobile and end up in an accident.

Arctic Blast

We now have the first day above zero in some time.  It is way up to 32. Yippee!!  It has been so cold that so many people have had their pipes freeze up this winter.  Whereas, they have never had their pipes freeze before.  Also many city water mains have broken and caused people to go without water for awhile while they fix it.  We are going to get more snow tonight and wind to blow it around again.  Then we will have one day of 22 degrees and the bottom is going to drop out again Sunday night for the next three days.  I heard it hasn't been this cold since 1982.  I remember those years.  The 70's were extremely cold too with lots and lots of snow and ice.  Many bad winters back then and we didn't miss them but we are getting a taste of them again this winter.

Terrible Winter

This has been a terrible winter.  It has been the coldest winter in over 20 years.  Reminds me of the winters of the 70's and 80's.  The wind chill temperatures have been way below zero.  We finally got some temperatures during the daytime that are above zero.  But today our high is about 27 and going downward and wind gusts up to 50 mph.  We got a little freezing rain during the night which makes for slick highways and dangerous driving with the wind blowing so hard also.  I know everyone here will be so happy to see Spring this year.  We have had small batches of snow and a White Christmas and New Years too but it hasn't been too bad. Not as far as snow goes at least. It actually almost got to 40 a couple days and melted the snow down some, but it didn't last long enough.