THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

Hey there lords and ladies, lads and lassies and all the rest of you Gentle Readers . . . Happy Friday!

As always, it's time for The Friday Funnies so without further ado . . .

All right that's enough for this week.

I'm exhausted, how about you?

But gather up your energy, this is not an era for enervation, get excited, eager to embark on an expedition to enormous erudition, replete and complete with exotic and emotional endings.

In other words, have a great weekend!

And always remember to keep laughing.

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

(ohhhhhh)

KITCHEN FROLICS CONTINUED

Being the continued adventures of a baking novice . . .

Today I tried to create a Sour-Cream Coffeecake.

Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it?

Well, except for the so-called Strudle topping.  

That called for sugar, flour, cinnamon and chopped nuts.

Do you bakers out there notice anything missing?

Well, my roommate did but she DIDN'T TELL ME!

She said, after the fact, that she was concerned that there was no fat in that topping, i.e. NO BUTTER!

I was concerned about it, too, because the sugar didn't stick to the walnuts but I figured maybe the cake batter would provide the necessary moisture.

When the cake was done and the sugar part of the so-called Strudle topping just lay there, looking pale and pallid and un-melded, THEN, AND ONLY THEN, did SWMBO say "Well, I thought it should have had some butter in it."

Gadfrey!

I read these recipes to her, I show them to her.

Doesn't it seem that I am begging for help from her decades of experience?

Oh, well, it smelled terrific and I'm thinking it will taste terrific, once I get past that dry taste of the so-called Strudle topping.

One other thing, since this is a Throwback Thursday.

I received this photo from one of my classmates of many decades ago.

It shows Lenora, Carolle and Ona . . . three young ladies from my high school graduating class.

They still look like the cheerleaders of my past young dreams to me.

A COLD AND LOVELY DAY

I awoke this morning to find a very thin layer of snow on the ground.

And it was c-c-c-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-l-l-l-l-d-d-d-d outside.

As the sun rose over the yardarm the snow quickly disappeared but the temperature never really rose all that much.

It says the forecast high was 37 for the day and that's exactly what it rose to.

Now as you may recall I was born and raised in North Dakota so I'm familiar with cold weather.

But I've been gone from that dismal climate since 1969, which I calculate to be exactly 50 years ago.

And most of that time has been spent in either Arizona or Mexico or Texas.

So I'M NOT USED TO THIS!

Fortunately the BRD . . . . and may I just say she's as beautiful as ever . . . had invited us for brunch at our favorite restaurant, the vaunted Iron Springs Cafe.

They feature a menu of Mexican and Cajun recipes and I ate heartily of a cup of Gumbo, followed by the speciality of the house, Blackened Catfish.

And of course I had to have one of their very special Bloody Caesar's.

(In case you're not familiar with this it's about the same as a Bloody Mary but made with Clamato juice.)

So I was feeling no pain as we departed and made our way to a couple of grocery stops, at Trader Joe's and Sprout's.

But damn!

The wind in those parking lots was brutal and we were mighty glad to get home.

I think I'll stay inside until about May.

A MONDAY KIND OF TUESDAY

It was a strange day weather-wise today.

One minute it would be spitting rain, the next the sun would be shining.

The view over toward the city center was pretty bleak with very low clouds drifting around.

By sundown the sun was totally obscured and the view toward the west was dark and stormy.

The top of Glassford Hill was hidden much of the time today though it was at least temporarily in view this evening.

And the cattle didn't seem bothered by the weather at all, as they just kept grazing throughout the day.

SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) said they have thick coats to keep themselves warm.

WAITA (Who Am I To Argue)?

SUPER BOWL MONDAY

SWMBO and I just dined at a gala luncheon celebrating last night's Super Bowl victory by the Los Angeles Rams.

Meantime fans of the Patriots had to put up with New England clam chowder and lobster rolls.

FOOD FUN

SWMBO was busy in the kitchen yesterday preparing repasts for the weekend, especially today since she knows I'll be transfixed by the television, watching the Super Bowl.

But even SWMBO outdid herself.

For example . . .

. . . the initial prep for a wonderful potato salad that we dived into last night.

And (prepare to drool) . . .

. . . a Dutch apple-cranberry pie.

You're right.

It's to die for.

STILL LIFE

Arizona Winter - February 1st