ness

Looks like it’s sitting in my living room!

Worst one for me was: I left a fly rod on top of my car, drove away, realized it and drove back. It had stayed on top for a while and I ran over it before I got back to my parking spot.

What? Why grow strawberries when you can buy them already chemically sprayed, bug free, picked, on an easily accessible refrigerated shelf, and they taste just as good? Oh wait -- I see Sugar Britches is in the equation. Never mind.

As one of my favorite dudes -- John Wooden -- said: 'Be quick but don't hurry.'

One thing nice about the panini maker is the lid depth is adjustable so different thicknesses work. It's also got some heft to it so you can get some squish. Never had a George Foreman, so I don't know what it'll do. I can't hear George Foreman Grill without thinking of Michael Scott (The Office) burning his foot while cooking bacon in bed.

Finally got things in the ground last Saturday. Maters, peppers and lettuce transplants. Radish, beets, snap peas and beans planted. By 4:00 a rabbit had mowed down most of one pepper. By today all the peppers were gone and a lot of the lettuce. Maters got left alone-so far. Dang it! Those waskly wabbits may get a bb in the butt!!

Compound butter added a lot but needed more herbs I think. The recipe called for lemon juice at the end. I just plain forgot 😁

Saw this recipe on America’s Test Kitchen this weekend. Cod baked in foil over a bed of leeks and carrots. Compound butter with lemon zest, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper plus some Vermouth in the pouch. 15 minutes at 450. Roasted sweet potatoes and green beans rounded it out. Just ok. Beans and sweet potatoes tasted best to me. Cod was flaky and moist but kinda bland. Needed more lemon and spice. Would do again with some tweaks.

I’ve never left a shotgun anywhere, but I’ve left some fly rods behind. I hope folks have enjoyed my generosity. 😀

Visited Northern OK last fall and I was pleasantly surprised with the scenery. Rolling forested hills and also the southern edge of the Flint Hills.

Not a big fan of single-purpose appliances, but this panini maker is pretty nice. Ham, Swiss, spicy brown mustard and mayo. Dang! Now on to that pickle. Kathy had a student a couple years ago whose grandpa Bill makes dills with jalapeño. Kids love to give their teachers stuff, so we win! Really good with a little heat, and nice and crispy. She finagled another jar this year. I asked for the recipe and got it, but it’s one of those that’s not going to be duplicated unless you’re in the kitchen with Bill. So, hopefully we can milk this for a while longer. Don’t know if there are any other grandkids in the pipeline.

Welp, experimenting with leftovers is a good thing. Even if it’s a bust you’ve learned something. Pretty much repeats at my house the last week or so. No pictures. earlier in the week it was baked cod with dill, S&P and panko, sautéed yellow squash and onions, boxed rice pilaf with added...wait for it...peas. Last night Manwich and tots. When I was in IA a few weeks back I asked the guy at the B&B how they got their roasted potatoes so perfect and crispy on all sides. He said they always use convection on their oven. Heck, I’ve got convection but never use it. So I used in for the tots last night and there was a noticeable difference. Seems obvious to me now, just never thought to do it.

Thanks. If you care -- I just use a regular skillet on pretty high heat and do stuff in batches before combining it all back together. Had a nice steel wok but it just didn't work as well with its small bottom. Like the new avatar too

Face Time me in please

Stir fry last night. Chicken marinated in sesame oil, ginger, garlic, teriyaki sauce. Snow peas, broccoli, onions, celery, water chestnuts. Sauce of sherry, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar and corn starch.

Uncle.

Geez. Now let's argue about how good they taste. Or not.

Well heck, ya called my bluff. Maybe we compromise—Fed Ex me your phone and put a Post-It in there with your password and credit card info and I’ll turn your notifications off and send it back. Is this and iPhone or Android? Aunt Carol’s was Android but I managed to get her so she can play the only two games she felt she really needs. Can’t guarantee you’ll get important weather alerts when I’m done with it though. Gotta choose I guess. And, I’d love to meet up with you and fly fish. Honest. Life is cuh-razy for the foreseeable future though.

I’ve come to believe you just need to get out in the woods and look. They’ll orient to trees, both alive and dead. Moist soil with lots of organic matter around is best. Avoid areas with rocky soil or thick, woody underbrush. I’d recommend not worrying too much about specific trees. Put in the time and you’ll find some.

Maybe take a look here: https://www.pcmag.com/review/343872/jitterbug-smart-greatcall

A couple weeks ago I spent about a half hour clearing crap off my elderly aunt’s phone so it wouldn’t go crazy beeping and blinking every time she tried to use it. Do I need to make a trip down there to get the pollen alerts turned off?😁

Seems like I hear this talked about more and more, but I’m still using indicators. I guess I ought to get side by side with somebody and see how it works. For midges in slack water I’ll do a dry/dry—one I can see and one that they want.

Just for fun -- OA circa 1998 https://web.archive.org/web/19980211142545/http://ozarkanglers.com/ You've come a long way!

Got a little hole-in-the-wall just a few blocks from my new office that has always done a great burger. Gonna be quicker and easier to get to it now.

They're not restricted to using just beef down there.