SIGNS OF THE TIMES

 This was one of many big leaves in the parking lot when I took Judy to her PT appointment yesterday.

It's a good reason we call the season "Fall".

In this photo I included my big foot for comparison to another leaf.

I think they all (the leaves, that is) came from this tree or others like it.

Judy said it is a Sycamore Tree.

And, by the way, the FedEx driver smiled and nodded as he entered the parking lot and observed me taking a picture.

I guess he thought I was photographing him!

Monday, Monday

Ah, the weekend is over and we're back to another work week.

Well for some of you.

Speaking for myself, as an old guy on his porch, it's just another glorious week in retirement.

And speaking of old, apparently I fooled a few of you with one of the memes in the past Friday Funnies.

That one apparently stumped some of you.

So here's the explanation, from one of the early forerunners of  rock and roll music, Bill Haley and the Comets.

Just the fact that I remembered that song from the 1950's shows you how old I am

Now that that's all straightened out, we can go on to other items in the news.

Judy continues to improve from her knee replacement surgery as she comes up on one month with her latest bionics.

She's moving about more easily and with less dependence on her rollator and the pain is lessening . . . . somewhat.

Another physical therapy session is scheduled for this afternoon so we'll see how she does.

I just finished reading my latest book from the library last night, The Last Gunfight by Jeff Guinn, which purports to be the true story of the battle at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona.

I've been fascinated by the legend of that fight for years.

And if Guinn's book is to be believed, legend is a good way to describe it.

Wyatt Earp appears to be far from the "good guy" image portrayed in movies and television shows and the gunfight never occurred in the O.K. Corral at all but in a vacant lot off another street.

Be that as it may, it was a good read.

The weather has turned cold here in my part of Arizona.

Cold by my standards, with highs only reaching the 50's F. for awhile.

But this week it's supposed to top out at near 70 and I'm ready for it.

That may sound strange if you know I grew up in North Dakota, only about 50 miles from the Canadian border, but I've been gone a long time and I've lived in Arizona over half of my life so my blood has thinned.

Have a great week, youngsters!

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

Hey!  

Happy December!

Now the countdown is really on.

Let's see . . . what can I show you from our kitchen today?

Hmmmmm.

Oh, WAIT.

It's Friday!

TGIF!!!

I don't have to tickle your palates today.

I just have to tickle your fancies with a wee bit of comedy.

So let's get started and see what I've found in Ye Olde Humor Bank.

So, is your funnybone tickled?

I hope so.

And I sincerely hope that y'all will endeavor to have an exciting, fun-filled, pleasing weekend.

And never forget to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

KITCHEN EXPERIMENT

 I came home from a visit to our nearby Mexican market the other day with 5 huge Jalapeño Peppers.

The price for all five was only 86 cents!

When I expressed surprise the young lady at the checkout said she hadn't seen them at that low a price for quite a while.

For me it brought back memories of our first visit to the one-day-a-week street markets (tianguis) we visited in our first days living in Mexico and the low prices for everything by U.S.A. standards.

Anyway I was determined to make Jalapeño Poppers and yesterday I did.

Being careful to wear protective gloves, I split the peppers and scraped out the seeds and membrane to avoid the heat.

Then I filled each half with a mixture of cream cheese, cheddar cheese and garlic powder.

Each was topped with Panko (Japanese bread crumbs) mixed with a little melted butter and then baked in the oven.

They looked pretty good.

But surprisingly the flavor was kind of "meh" - only so-so.

I think I could have left some of the heat in the peppers.

But, accompanied by some (Costco) Spanakopita, a couple of Kalamata olives and some sliced apples, it made for a pretty good International dinner.

SUNDAY DINNER

 We had an exemplary dining experience tonight.

Starting with Judy's Homemade Beef Stew.

Complemented by Bruce's Garlic and Butter Sauteed Mushrooms.

And Judy's Exceptional Tomato Salad.

Trust me.

It was delicious.

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

Hey traditionalists, here's what WE had for Thanksgiving Dinner.

Judy's classic Beef Stew, though done in a slow cooker.

Delish!

Now that Thanksgiving is out of the way you can all begin to concentrate on the important stuff.

Re-tightening your belts.

And fasten your belts because today is FRIDAY!

(ba-da-bump!)

So that's it, folks, we've begun the short slide downhill to Christmas.

And New Year.

And Valentine's Day.

And Easter.

And . . .  okay, I get it . . . I'll shut up.

But before I do let me wish you a slimmed down but super, sensational, spectacular weekend.

And always remember to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

( . . oh, I'll bet we've all been there . . )

TURKEY DAY

When I was a lad in North Dakota, Thanksgiving was a true feast day.

A huge turkey was acquired from a farmer, killed and plucked and I remember Dad singeing it with a rolled up burning newspaper to get rid of pin feathers, then putting it in a big roasting pan and tossing it in the oven for what seemed like days.

The house would fill with the aroma of turkey and all the sides that Mom would create.

When it was time to eat we all gathered around the table and Dad would carve the bird right in front of us, filling each of a stack of plates and passing them around the table so we could "load up" on the mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes or yams, dressing (or in those days "stuffing), green bean casserole, cranberries, rolls and butter, and whatever other wonders had appeared from the kitchen.

Later there was pumpkin pie and whipped cream (not the stuff from a can).

I couldn't find it but somewhere I have a photo of one of those memorable occasions.

It was a great day.

But I was just thinking how much simpler it would have been if I had grown up in Hawaii instead of North Dakota.

Aloha!

and Happy Thanksgiving!