Category: Family

Lower Sixties in Mid-January … Unreal

All that is left of West Kay
What's Left of the Street I Used to Live On (no longer has access to Main Street at the top of the hill)

I work up early Sunday morning. Nothing unusual for me, really, I try to wake up at the same time every morning, regardless of whether I work or not. I flipped on the Wii to do my morning weigh in.  I’ve discovered in the last couple of weeks that contrary to my own belief, I eat less on weekends than weekdays.  Perhaps because I’m more busy or distracted by housework and errands or fun stuff (like the benefit concert Saturday night).  I am steadily losing the pounds, slowly but surely (or safely as both the Wii Fit Plus program and SparkPeople website reassure me).  I decided to adjust my Yoga and Training routine to shorten it, with a goal to do roughly fifteen minutes every morning after my weigh-in.  I’m finding it very easy to insert my cardio into my daily routine.  It’s the strength training that’s tougher (in more ways than one).

Since I thought Terry had had a rough night with no sleep since he crawled into bed after five in the morning, I let him sleep and opted to attend church remotely via WFC‘s online campus.  The lead teach pastor started a new sermon series last week urging us all to know Jesus (as opposed to knowing about Jesus).  The second sermon of the series focused on Jesus as Creator.  My notes haven’t made it online yet at my other blog, but will sometime today.  Our plan had been to attend church at WFC’s Speedway campus, which just happens to take place inside the Legends 14 Theater.  We prefer the praise band that leads worship there and had hoped to take in ‘We Bought a Zoo‘ at the first showing of the day.  As I learned when Terry woke up around ten o’clock, we could have gone had I woken him up.  But I did not know that he had actually slept most of the night in front of the television.  Oh, well. We can still see the movie on Monday.

I started preparing the marinade for grilling our chicken.  Since the temperature outside approached the unheard of lower sixties (in the middle of January in Kansas … beyond unbelievable), we decided to fire up the outside grill.  Or rather I did.  Terry supervised since he’s still only got the use of one arm for the next few weeks.  After the chicken had marinated for over an hour, I placed it on the preheated grill and lamented not purchasing some asparagus while at the grocery store Saturday afternoon.  Steamed broccoli and a spinach and baby spring mix salad would have to do.  Thirty minutes of grilling later, we had perfectly cooked Honey Garlic Chicken to savor.

Terry and I had started watching a Christian movie I had sitting in our Netflix streaming queue while cooking lunch.  The Encounter proved disappointing for me at least.  Terry expected company to arrive soon after we finished, so I decided Roxy and I would go for a walk.

I walked at an easy, slow pace to accommodate her arthritis (and the fact that she hadn’t been walked since Rachelle returned to Texas last week).  We crossed Main Street and headed west on West Mary Street, but rather than continuing west, I turned right on a newly re-installed access road that cut parallel to Main Street back north to Kansas Street, crossing over West Kay Street, and the house we rented prior to purchasing the home we now own on Bambi Street.  We turned around at Kansas Street and decided to climb the hill back up to Main Street via the abandoned West Kay Street’s crumbling pavement (see photo above).

Roxy did very well walking on my left, even with cars and trucks whizzing by her not ten feet away.  Of course, by that time, she just wanted to get back home and take a nap on the memory foam topper on the hideaway bed.  She perked up and even pulled me most of the way home because she spied another woman with two dogs (one small dog and a medium-sized dog) about a block ahead of us.  I even thought about taking both Roxy and Apollo to the dog park, but worried that Roxy always overdoes herself chasing after the little dogs and the younger ones.  It usually takes her a day or two to recover from her dog park adventures.

After Terry’s friend departed, we sat down to watch another movie, this one a foreign film called ‘Point Blank.’  I liked it and did not realize that French films could be just as good as an action flick produced in the States.  A good story (if predictable) but better than average acting (even having to read English subtitles).  I’ll write a separate review later today.

For dinner, Terry wanted to use the last of the chicken pot pie filling and gravy.  I had another tube of croissants (of a different type) so I improvised some turnovers by placing the filling (without any extra gravy) in one triangle and placing a second triangle of pastry over it and pinching the edges together.  I had enough filling for four turnovers.  I popped them in the oven for twenty minutes at 375 degrees and warmed up the gravy when I took them out of the oven.  Not bad.  For our after dinner movie, we watched the re-broadcast of the Hallmark Channel’s most recently original film: ‘A Taste of Romance‘ – better than average and a bit of a tear jerker a couple of times.

I checked my e-mail and social networking sites before heading off to bed, noting that before dawn on Monday I had an interesting conjunction of moon, planet and star I could witness.  I stepped outside this morning, first through my front door (but couldn’t see the moon at all from that vantage point), then out my back patio door and looked directly south.  And what did I see?  The same exact thing displayed in the graphic to the right.  Saturn, the quarter crescent moon  and the star Spica.  Sadly, I couldn’t locate my binoculars nor did I have my tripod available (it’s in the trunk of the car).  Not that attempting to photograph the moon (always too bright a light source) with the dimmer planet and star in the same from would have resulted in any post-worthy photographs.  A grand sight to behold first thing in the today on such a clear, still, not-quite cold morning in mid-January.

The Evening of Friday the Thirteenth

Our First Fire of Winter 2012 in Our Newly Repaired Fireplace

Good old Murphy messed with my Friday workday. Too many meetings, deadlines, herding of cats, things of that nature. Nothing catastrophic occurred, but much absurdity reigned. I fairly ran to the van when my time came to leave work and head home to enjoy a long three-day weekend (my last paid holiday until Memorial Day in May).  As I drove west, I wondered if the sunset would blossom into something interesting, but true to form, as I arrived home, I entered the house and completely forgot about sunsets or clouds or moons or stars.

Terry had called me earlier in the afternoon and expressed his desire to have a fire in the fireplace.  The wicked north wind had been blowing incessantly for a couple of days, leaving our great room feeling chill.  I rearranged some furniture safely away from the fireplace and then started carrying in armloads of wood.  Since we hadn’t had any fires for over a year, the wood in the wood pile was very light and dry.  I did not anticipate having any trouble starting the fire.

While the split logs began to crackle, Terry and I defrosted the remaining filling from the chicken pot pies we’d made earlier in the week.  Rather than making a crust from scratch (like I normally would), we opted to use a tube of refrigerated ready-to-bake croissants instead.  Even though it took less time, we both preferred my pastry, mostly because the croissants were too sweet.

The MGM channel aired the movie Valkyrie last night, which we recorded while making dinner.  We started watching the movie while we ate our improvised chicken pot pies.  Even though we saw this in the theatre back in 2008, I always enjoy rewatching a movie at home, where I can pause and scrutinize a scene or a frame meticulously.  As an example, I loved the detailed recreation of the interior of Hitler’s Berghof home in the Bavarian Alps, none of which survived the end of World War II.  And except for Tom Cruise (who has never been a favorite actor of mine), the international cast of characters delivered outstanding performances.  We reluctantly stopped watching at the one hour thirty-five minute mark so I could get my cardio workout done before I got too sleepy.  I did much better at Rhythm Boxing, but I still can’t beat Terry’s score on Advanced Step.

I fed the fire for a couple of hours, but eventually Terry warmed up enough that I could let it die down to coals.  A pleasant evening and a great way to start the weekend.

Friday the Thirteenth Eve

FW:no subject
Sunset Thur 12 Jan 2012 (KCI)

I said goodbye to my daughter early Thursday morning because by the time I returned home from work, she would be waiting to board her plane at KCI.  She did send me a couple of photos of the sunset.  She brought the warm Texas winter temperatures with her in late December, and now as she flies south for the rest of the winter, she seems to be taking those milder temperatures with her, at least for one day.  When I got in the van this morning, the thermometer registered barely ten degrees.

I came home to an empty house.  Roxy couldn’t be bothered to stir from the hideaway bed and Apollo wouldn’t budge for Roxy’s dog bed on the floor.  My dad called me about the sunset, as he and Terry were returning from KCI through Platte City and Leavenworth.  While I was on the phone with him, my daughter sent me the above photo text message.  No sooner than I hung up with dad, than Rachelle called to ask if I’d received her photos.  So, I got to speak with her one last time before she boarded the plane.  I asked her to call me as soon as she landed at Love Field in Dallas.

Terry made it home safely (this was the first time he’d driven himself since before his surgery in late December).  Roxy perked up as did Apollo but neither Terry nor I could be bothered with cooking dinner.  We opted for a quick supper at Pizza Hut, which was deserted.  Terry ordered honey barbecue boneless wings and I ordered a thin crust Hawaiian personal pan sized pizza (of which I only ate two slices).  We were back home by 6:45, ten minutes before Rachelle’s flight was scheduled to take off.

While I did my Wii Fit fitness routine, Terry returned a call to a friend who had left him a voice-mail message while he was driving back from the airport.  Terry retired to the band room while I beat his score on Advanced Step and improved my Island Cycling and tried Rhythm Boxing for the first time.

We sat down to watch the latest Bones episode and got about halfway through it when Rachelle called me.  It was only 8:10 p.m. (her flight was scheduled to land at 8:35).  Obviously, the north wind helped send her back to Texas.  Terry and I finished watching Bones and then the Rotts and I retired for the night.  They both wanted to be near me because they already missed Rachelle, just like Terry and I do.

May is so far away.  That’s the next time I’ll see her, when she performs her senior recital and graduates from the University of North Texas.

Recipe Test: Stromboli (via King Arthur Flour)

Stromboli: King Arthur Flour Recipe

My daughter continues providing meals to her father (and I benefit as well).  One of her suggested menu items happened to be stromboli.  She called her boyfriend last night for the recipe, but he had a bad day at work so supper at the Moss Home quickly became leftovers.  Rachelle called me later while I was out at the grocery store picking up items for today’s return of the chicken pot pie.  She needed French bread to make her stromboli.  I told her I needed a minimum of three to four hours to make that type of bread.  I asked her if I could make some French bread on Sunday afternoon so she could make the stromboli on Monday.  She agreed and eventually left to spend the evening (and night) with friends.

Monday morning, I reviewed the stromboli recipe via the King Arthur Flour web site.  I placed the ingredients for the dough in my bread machine and added time to the dough cycle so that the dough would be ready for Rachelle around 4:30 p.m.  I went merrily off to work and called her at 3:00 p.m. to make sure the bread machine started on time and that the dough looked like it should.  She told me it looked great and smelled wonderful.

Our Stromboli looked very much like this one (sorry, I forgot to take a photo of ours)

I got home at my regular time and the stromboli was already baking in the oven on parchment paper on the pizza stone.  The house smelled glorious.  Within a half hour, we took the baked stromboli out of the oven and let it rest and cool for ten to fifteen minutes.  I sliced it while Rachelle heated up some marinara sauce.  We each enjoyed at least two slices, if not three.

Later, after we’d stuffed ourselves, Rachelle realized she should have let the stromboli rise before baking it.  Neither of us had thought about that and had not allowed for that second rise time in our evening dinner planning.  Next time, we’ll definitely let the stromboli rise for at least a half hour or longer.  This recipe is a keeper!

Initiate Insightful Intuition

As I pulled into the Hallmark Corporate circular driveway, I realized, with some dismay, that the Mayor’s Christmas Tree had disappeared from it’s featured spot at Crown Center.  And as I walked one of the rider’s to the lobby entrance, the two Christmas Trees that had graced the corporate lobby were also missing.  Another Christmas season packed away.  No more twinkling lights on trees or houses.  No more hopeful, joyful carols on the radio nor piped through the overhead speakers at the grocery store.  I felt deflated.

At least Hallmark waited until the official end of Christmas.  Yesterday marked the twelfth day and today is traditionally celebrated as Epiphany.  On January 6th, we celebrate Epiphany as a Christian feast day commemorating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ. Western Christians observe principally (but not solely) the visitation of the Biblical Magi to the Baby Jesus, and thus Jesus’ physical manifestation to the Gentiles. Eastern Christians commemorate the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, seen as his manifestation to the world as the Son of God.

The Revised Common Lectionary for today, the Epiphany of the Lord (Year B), suggests reading Matthew 2:-12 for the Biblical narrative of the Three Wise Men:

1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6 “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ” 7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” 9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Matthew 2:1-12 (NRS)

Other definitions of epiphany include:

  • an appearance or manifestation, especially of a deity.
  • a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience.
  • a literary work or section of a work presenting, usually symbolically, such a moment of revelation and insight.

“epiphany.” Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 06 Jan. 2012. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/epiphany>.

So here I sit, disillusioned by the passing of another Christmas season.  I know that when I get home tonight, I need to pack away the Christmas decorations and dismantle the Christmas tree, storing both in the basement storage room.

Yet I am trying to initiate some enthusiasm for this new year.  I continue to persevere in my quest for living healthier.  Five days and counting now.  It helps that everyone else in the family (including the dogs) has joined me in my Wii Fit adventure.

What I’m truly looking forward to won’t happen for nearly half a year.  Rachelle will graduate from college in late May (or early June).  Sometime between now and then, she’ll give her senior recital, which I plan to attend (in person instead of via live streaming).

Terry’s right hand is progressing well.  The orthopedic surgeon saw him for a second followup visit this afternoon and prescribed some physical therapy and wants to see him again in six weeks.  We’re still ecstatic the biopsy came back negative last week for cancer.  Now begins the long grueling road to recovery and the welcome return of guitar riffs reverberating through the house.

I look forward to the ruckus with relish.

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas

I had trouble sleeping last night.  I stayed up too late watching the latest installment of Restaurant Impossible and then couldn’t get to sleep.  I think I finally dozed off after midnight, but that left me only five hours before the alarm woke me up.  I snoozed for ten minutes, even though I couldn’t afford to lose ten minutes out of my morning routine since Thursdays are also trash and recycle days in Lansing.  To top off a great start to my morning, I cut my finger on one of the cans in the recycle bin.  So now I’ll be typing awkwardly all day thanks to a bandage on my left ring finger.

The work commute got shortened by ten minutes or so this morning due to a sick child of one of the riders.  Before I hit the road and picked anyone up though, I made a stop at Baristas in Lansing to wake up with a mocha.  It would not be good form for me to doze off while driving everyone else to work.

Chef Rachelle fought my favorite appliance today (my bread machine) and won the battle to create pita dough. Her menu for this evening included gyros (lamb) with home made taziki sauce. Simply divine. Don’t tell the Wii I had two!

Soon after dinner, Terry and I went to City Hall to attend the City Council meeting (I will post a complete report in a separate post tomorrow). Agenda item number seven directly affected us (search for my previous post on the no parking zone sign installed last month on our court). We sat through a report on the Kansas Sampler Festival and the presentation of the regional airport site selection study by Coffman Associates. Interestingly, the ‘prime’ site suggested for the airport is on 600 acres just a half mile or mile south of our house, between Gilman and McIntire Roads.

When we finally got tothe parking agenda item, I was relieved to see a good bit of discussion and debate among the council members. Obviously, the voice of the citizens raised in thier wards had been heard loud and clear. The ordinace (No. 900) passed with two dissenting votes. The meeting quickly adjourned soon after and I asked the secretary to provide me with a copy of the ordinance, which would have been helpful to review before the meeting. She agreed to email me a copy.

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas

Second workday of the new year.  Gearing up for all the projects slated for 2012.  Busier (which makes the time go faster) and only one meeting (that went longer than scheduled, of course).  Basically, I survived another day at the office.

Hump day (also known as Wednesday) is also double-punch day at Planet Sub.  Since one of my New Year’s resolutions is a healthier lifestyle, I reviewed the Nutritional Information on their website before calling in my order.  While my second favorite sandwich (the Planet BBQ) had fewer calories than my first favorite sandwich (the Super Hero), it had gobs and gobs of sodium. So it was a toss-up between the Tuna (without mayo) and the Roast Beef (without mayo or cheese). The tuna won because it was the lowest in sodium.  Beautiful walk to and from Planet Sub thanks to the unseasonably warm weather we’re enjoying during this first week of January.

Even though Terry’s right hand is in a splint, WolfGuard will meet tonight to practice with the new drummer.  We decided to skip a home-cooked meal by Chef Rachelle in the interest of saving time.  We ate a quick supper at Mr. Goodcents (yeah, I know, two sandwich places in the same day).  I reviewed their Nutritional Information brochure and couldn’t find a single sandwich (besides the veggie one) that had less than 1,500 mg of sodium.  Way, way too high for my diet.  The lowest calorie and lowest sodium item that appealed to my appetite ended up being penne pasta with marinara.

On the way back home, we took a side-trip to Dillons to pickup a prescription for Terry and grab a few items.  We made it back home with plenty of time to spare before the band members started arriving.

As the band started rehearsing, I left to take Rachelle to visit some friends.  On the way home, I admired the constellation Orion, the waxing moon and enjoyed the unfrigid temperature.

Now that I’m back home, I can wrap up a couple of work projects while being serenaded (several times because practice makes perfect with a new percussionist) of vintage Rush (Finding My Way Home).  I’ve still got to squeeze in some cardio before slipping upstairs to read myself to sleep again.

Tomorrow is the final day of the Twelve Days of Christmas.  If it was a Friday or a Saturday night, I might be tempted to host a Twelfth Night party.  Instead, I’ll probably be attending the local city council meeting, since one of the agenda items tomorrow night deals with the recent appearance (and disappearance) of ‘no parking’ signs in several cul-de-sacs around Lansing (see my previous blog posts for further enlightenment).  I can only hope an Epiphany of policy is forthcoming.  (Feel free to chortle if you fathom my irony and/or sarcasm).

Tenth Night Addendum

I forgot to mention in yesterday’s post the fantastic dinner my daughter cooked for us last night.  She whipped up a batch of spinach lasagna roll-ups from scratch, including four of them without any cheese just for me.  Exceptionally delicious and spicy (thanks to a mishap with the red pepper flake dispenser).  I can’t find the exact recipe she used online, but many of the ones I found sounded very similar to what she did from memory.  My small contribution to dinner included my home-made sourdough re-purposed as garlic butter and Parmesan toast.  I also helped create our pre-dinner salad course with organic baby spring mix, red peppers, green onions and a bit of my home-made raspberry vinaigrette dressing.

On the Ninth Day of Christmas

I did not have to drive the van today.  I thought I might need to, since Hallmark decided the Monday after New Year’s Day would NOT be a holiday (day off from work) for it’s employees.  But I spoke to my newest rider (a second Hallmark person) and she said she had already planned to drive herself to work today, so I got to sleep in (by about ten minutes, since I forgot to silence my alarm before falling asleep last night).  I brewed some tea and finished composing the previous blog post (the one I forgot to finish last night and publish before falling asleep).

I woke Rachelle up just before nine o’clock since she had an eye doctor’s appointment after ten o’clock.  On the way to Leavenworth, we detoured to Dillons so I could fill up the Bonneville, taking advantage of the eleven hundred points I earned in December.  I opted to use five hundred points to save fifty cents per gallon.  It still cost over $45 to fill it up (because I had waited too long and only fumes remained in the sixteen gallon tank).  While at Dillons, we picked up a half dozen items we needed to make brunch after the doctor’s appointment.

I read about half of the January 2012 edition of Astronomy magazine on my Nook Color while waiting for Rachelle to finish her eye doctor’s examination.  The prescription for her contact lenses wasn’t ready yet, so I told them to just mail it to me.  We stopped at Walgreen’s so I could get a second ‘backup’ arch bandage to help my left foot heel and arch pain, especially since I’m attempting to increase my physical activity.  We also stopped at K-mart to price other Wii game titles, but decided not to purchase anything at this time.

Back at home, Rachelle and I sifted through all of her jewelry boxes and separated out the jewelry she does not want.  Some of that may end up as donations to our local Good Will store.  We also stripped the pantry bare, wiped down the shelves and re-organized the contents.  We did this prior to our ‘real’ trip back to Dillons to stock up for the coming week.  Rachelle’s Christmas gift to her father included cooking meals for him over the next week or so.  Tonight she cooked Garlic Honey Chicken with Sauteed Asparagus.  My contribution included Parmesan Garlic Bread (made with the Italian bread I made last week).

I learned a couple of Yoga positions today, did a couple of strength training exercises and got better at the step aerobics programs via Wii Fit today.  Both Terry and Rachelle are also using it – Terry to help maintain his current weight and strengthen his muscles and balance.  Rachelle makes us all feel old, of course, since she’s twenty-two and in great shape.

Our after-dinner relaxation includes watching Ironclad, a movie about the aftermath following the signing of the Magna Carter.  Not sure how historically accurate it is, but it’s gritty enough.  I’ll review it in a separate post later this week.

On the Eighth Day of Christmas

I wished everyone I met a very Happy New Year!  2012 has arrived, whether I was ready or not.  I even forgot to photograph the first sunrise, but at least according to my dad (who arrived at my house just minutes before said sunrise), the photogenicity of the dawn was suspect (i.e. no clouds).

Dad had dropped by so early on New Year’s Day to say goodby to Derek and Royna, who planned to return to North Texas.  I was the only one awake in the house (normal even on non-holiday days).  I woke Derek up so he could say goodbye to his grandfather and soon after Dad returned north to his home in Leavenworth.

Very much later in the morning, everyone finally woke and began packing.  At ten ’til noon, they boarded their rental and left Lansing.  They had lunch with their friends and eventually headed south towards their home.  I received Royna’s final Tweet a bit after ten o’clock while I was drifting off to sleep when they finally made it safely home.

I treated Terry to Planet Sub at a ‘new’ location I was previously unaware of on Johnson Drive.  He often complains about my easy access to Planet Sub (only a block from where I work).  After enjoying our Super Heroes, we drove back to the Legends (we passed it on the way to lunch) and enriched Nebraska Furniture Mart by purchasing a Wii (with Super Mario Kart for Terry) and the Wii Fit Plus bundle (and an extra controller) for me.  We spent the rest of the afternoon setting up the Wii and fighting my Denon AV receiver (which doesn’t automatically convert Composite video to HDMI so I had to find an RCA cable in the black hole we call a basement storage room).  I spent some time trying out the balance board only to discover, once Rachelle got home, that I had the board facing backwards (so no wonder all the balance activities kept failing for me).

We finally took a break from Wii Fit and sat down to relax and watch the latest episode of Leverage on TNT.  I wondered off to bed soon after, forgetting to finish typing up this blog entry that I started at the crack of dawn on New Year’s Day.  I will publish it before the crack of dawn today, no doubt.

My New Year’s Resolutions:

  • Increase my book reading goal.  Last year I read 75 books.  This year I have challenged myself to read 80 books.
  • Increase my activity level.
  • Healthier eating habits:  While I eat a good portion of vegetables routinely, I have a hard time consuming fresh fruit.  So I am making a concerted effort to eat fruit daily.

Happy New Year!

I pray 2012 brings all of us peace and prosperity.