Choice Morsels

Today's Mama Kat blog writing prompt is "Write a blog post inspired by the word: Fired!" I suppose everyone has been fired from a job at least once in their lives.  There's no easy way to go through it. It's pretty much a slap in the face. The first time I was fired was from a job I had right after Hubby and I were married. He was still active-duty in the Air Force then and we were living in an apartment complex in Maryland that just happened to have a Day Care Center right in the center.  There was another young Air Force wife living in the same apartment complex that I was acquainted with and after she got a job at the Day Care Center, she helped me get one there, too. Now working in the Day Care business was never my ambition. I had no fondness for small children. Yet, at the time, I was interested in earning a little income and I could walk there, so why not? So, I got hired at the Day Care. As a child-care facilities go, it was okay. Howe

The bird-feeder traffic has finally slowed down now that the Goldfinches & Palm Warblers have moved on to their nesting/residence zones further north. Florida is just their winter vacation area. I still have Chipping Sparrows, Tufted Titmice, Chickadees, Purple Finches & Nuthatches visiting the feeder. All sorts of woodpeckers live here year round, too: Downy, Red-headed, Red-bellied & Pilated. I heard some Pilated Woodpeckers in the woods across the road the other day; they have a distinctive call. A couple days ago I captured this shot of a male Bluebird sitting on the hook above the feeder! The Mrs. was with him, on the ground closer to my patio. The female has the same white & tan breast, but is otherwise dun colored with only blue tail feathers & wing edges. The pair are nesting somewhere on the block. I haven't looked into a Bluebird nesting box yet, though I'd like to. Today's flower pic is my miniature Daffodils blooming in the

Well, the saga with my car continues.  The problem with it being too dead to start continued. The first time it cranked over with a jump last Monday was the only time jumping it worked.  A day later it was dead. Then we put in a new battery and a day later, dead again.  I've been through this before with this car and it usually means the alternator is gone--despite the fact the parts guy at the parts store  measured it as still working. And perhaps it was--for the last time.  So today, we had to have it towed to the local Pep Boys, about 2 miles away. Fortunately we got the tow through them, so it was only $20 bucks.  Today's Good Eating Recipe is German Brownies! It's a pass-along recipe. An officer in our Bible Study passed to me before she left and I think an officer in her unit in Germany invented the recipe--I'm not sure.  Anyway, it's based on a box of German chocolate cake mix and a tub of Coconut-Pecan frosting that goes with it. It create

The Mama Kat blog prompt option of choice today is: "Write a blog post inspired by the word "Embarrassed." Hmm, let me thumb through my mental files for a suitable embarrassment I wish to share...ah, here's one.  It was back when I was 24 and still in the Air Force. We had a small group Bible study back then that I was part of and one day I got asked to asked to present a lesson. (We took turns weekly.)  It was my first Bible lesson I'd ever prepared and presented, so, of course, I worked on it like it was a masters thesis. It was complex, woven like concerto with every point perfectly referenced with scripture--at least in my mind. I can't even remember what the topic was now, but I remember the mistake. I was asking various people in the group to read those scripture references as I went along, and, turning to a guy named Dale, I asked him to read, "Matthew 22:27." He found the verse, then looked at me questioningly. "Are you sure it

Yesterday's task was hedging the overgrown shrubs (since my car didn't start) and I also cleaned up the Hosta bed that's between those sets of shrubs as well. Hubby checked my car this morning and it started up fine.  So, since yesterdays yard work was major exercise, I did something lighter today: watering all flowers, flowering shrubs, herbs & pots with Miracle grow. I do this with a watering can & a also a plastic milk jug, so I can carry some in both hands.  I only have one usable outside water tap now at the back of the house and walking around with watering can is WAY easier then wrangling 200 feet of hose, believe me. Today's Garden Pics: Some of my new Hyacinths I planted last fall: I love these 2 purple ones! A total of 4 came up: these 2 purple, a pink and I think maybe a white. It's just a bud still, so I can't really tell. They were mixed bulbs. A Red-Bellied Woodpecker on the Feeder: I got this shot of the Wood

Greetings! Another new week in March! My Hyacinths outside are blooming and I snipped a pink one to bring inside jsut for the smell because they are soooo exquisitely fragrant! I'll probably feature photos of them on Wednesday! Today's Good Eating recipe is Pinterest cake recipe I'm trying out this week: Pineapple Sheet Cake! Though, I actually won't be making until tomorrow to take to Bible Study on base tomorrow night, so I'll have to report back later on how it came out!  All those Air Force guys & gals make excellent test subjects! Though it's a sheet cake, I'll be making it in a 9 x 13 pan like the blogger who posted it, so it will be thicker, as in the photo. She did recommend doing it as a thinner sheet cake if you want to take it to a crowd event, like a picnic. The recipe calls for 1 can of crushed pineapple with the juice plus 2 cups of sugar in the cake---with pineapple being so sweet itself, I'll  definitely be knock

The Mama Kat blog prompt topic for today is,: "Dig into your photo files and show us some of last summer's memories you want to re-live!" So, I dug around in my "photo trunk" to find some bright & sunny garden memories from last season I particularly enjoy! Lots & LOTS Of Black Swallowtail Caterpillars! I grow Dill & Parsley in particular for my little guests and the tall Dill was host to around 10 caterpillars! Red Climbing Rose This set of roses grace a pair of trellis's along the front walk to the house! Brown Belted Bumble Bees Loved Last Year's Zinnias! You can tell by the pollen on the leg this is a busy female worker bee!  Sometimes I'd find  drones  napping  on these flowers. Male drones tend to be driven out of the hive once they've fulfilled their duty, so they while away the days napping where they can.  (Click to link above to see my photo of a drone napping under a Zinnia!)  Giant Swallow

Last night at Bible Study the warm-up question was, "If you could have a theme song play every time you walked in a room, what would it be?" I knew that was going to be the question, so I had time to think about it, since I'm not all that savvy on music. I can never remember what artist played what song and I'm relatively ignorant of anything current.  I'm more familiar with classics of the 60's & early 70's. After pursuing a number of considerations via Youtube, I finally settled on the 1970 hit "Green-Eyed Lady," by Sugarloaf as my perfect theme song, since I do have green eyes.   It's more instrumental, heavy on the bass beat with a few stanza's of totally flower-child words. If it doesn't ring a bell, you can hear the original album cut  here via Youtube. Enjoy! My project today was trimming down another Pampas Grass; the 2nd one of a pair I have in beds in front on my property border.  Because of this location,

Greetings! Welcome to the first week of a still chilly March! I thought today I'd share with you my favorite Home-made Chocolate Pudding! This is a Hershey recipe. It makes a rich, fudgy pudding that thickens easily & smoothly. E nough for 4 servings of pudding or 1 graham crust pie or 6 graham crust tarts. The photo is pudding I decorated for Christmas a couple years ago with whipped topping & sprinkles just to be fancy, but usually I prefer eating it without topping. The pretty dish is one of a set that used to belong to my paternal Grandma. Home-Made Chocolate Pudding: Ingredients: 3/4 cup granulated sugar (I used 3/4 cup coconut sugar) 1/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa (or any cocoa, even Special Dark) 2 Tablespoons flour 1 Tablespoons cornstarch 1/8 teaspoon salt 2 cups of milk (I used 2% milk) 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten 2 Tablespoons butter or margarine (I used light butter) Directions: In a medium saucepan combine sugar, cocoa, cornstarch