Another visitor to the backyard

It was a ranger rick moment here at Buzz's house today. Lots of birds visit all the bird feeders everyday but this morning there was this very large turkey vulture.  I'm guessing that what is was as I don't see many of them. This one wasn't really afraid of me at all. The crows didn't seem to mind it hanging around their feeding table either. Bunnies running everywhere along with squirrels trying to sneak an easy meal at the feeders. I think there was a hawk flying around too but it rarely lands, just scares all the little birds. 

We had another beautiful warm day and spent a lot of time sitting outside especially with it's forecasted to rain tomorrow.

No tomato chili

Since I have access to a well stocked kitchen when I'm babysitting Buzz I do a lot of cooking. Not sure how I ended up with a huge package of hamburger but I had to come up with something. First thought of making burgers but I like those cooked on the grill. Then I thought of making chili. My body can't handle tomato based dishes anymore so this was my take on tomato free chili. I was going to use taco seasoning but having access to a full cabinet of spices, I went old school and made my own blend.  I think it turned out pretty good but of course I was really hungry. :)

Table Tent 2.0

I made this table tent to fits over a table down in Carmel. It was one of the things for the boys when they came out to visit over the holidays. I have to say it was a major failure. Something I didn't realize was the table down at Carmel is expandable so that means there are blocks under the table for it to slide over. When the kids first tried it, they would try and stand up. Everyone would hit their heads on the sharp corners.  

The other issue was the table was needed so it wasn't the best place for the boys to play. :(

Another challenge I had after coming home was not having a space big enough to work on the PVC frame. Since I was scheduled to babysit Buzz for a few weeks,  I'd planned to work on it. While I  was here I found a pile of PVC pipes and fittings in the back 40 they didn't want any more.  The other thing is they have a huge backyard with enough space for me to spread everything out.  The first frame was way to big so I had to cut everything down. Having the space to spread out was so nice! Now I'm working on making a book shelf and chairs out with the left over pipes scraps. 

Quick Dinner

This is my go to dinner most nights when I'm feeling lazy. All gluten free and very fast to make. Nothing fancy but very tasty.

Gluten Free Pasta - Barilla (is the best)

Bacon

Mushrooms 

Hard Cheese

Left over spinach and carrots 

Seasonings, whatever sounds good. 

Gluten free pasta doesn't hold over night like regular wheat pasta so only make what you can eat. 

While the pasta is cooking I sauté the bacon and whatever veggies I have in the refrigerator. Drain the pasta then toss it in olive oil, mix in the veggies and top with grated cheese. 

Shishito Peppers

Made a Costco run today (really I needed gas) and I always try to shop with a list because we all know how fast you can over spend. I'm usually in and out in 20 minutes because I don't go down all rows. I do allow myself one impulse food buy and these shishito peppers was it. 

I planned to make my gluten ramen noodles for dinner so I thought these would be a nice side dish.  A quick sauté in a really hot pan with a little olive oil and topped off with a little finishing salt. I hope to be able to grow some of these peppers out in garden this year if I can figure out how to keep the fat boys squirrels from snacking on everything!

Nom Nom Paleo Cook Book

One of the best kept secrets is how cheap the cookbooks are at the Happy Dragon thrift store. The children's books are even cheaper but that's a story for later. So if you're like me and cookbook reading is a thing you should stop by and check out the cookbook section. 

I've remember watching Michelle Tam's YouTube videos years ago and I knew she had written a cookbook. When this came into the store this week I snatched it up. It's 10 years old but I really like it. Not sure if it was her large, non traditional format or the fact she's from the Bay Area. I can totally relate to her cooking style even thou I'm not a paleo person. Her ingredients are basic and easy to find around here. 

I think the first recipe I'll try is her devil eggs. I'm not an egg person (that's also another story for later) at all but I think making one egg at a time would be fun. All the toppings sound interesting and being a single person all I need is one egg!

The Good Stuff

Ginger, Green Onion, Oil, Salt

During one of the family meals we had down in Carmel, my niece made what her family calls "the good stuff". It was surprisingly so good. Doesn't look like much but it packs a whole lot of flavor!  It very labor intensive and requires a sharp knife but it's well worth the effort. I've had all the ingredients for a while now but with dog sitting and getting my booth put back together at Cottage Crafts (that story later) I just haven't made the time to do it. 

Last night was the night. Turned on a classic movie for background noise and chopped away. It does have marinate for a little bit and will hold up in refrigerator for awhile. 

I did ask what type of oil but I guess it doesn't make any difference. The oil just makes it spread easier.

Loss of another friend

At my age it's not uncommon to hear of someone passing away. I was very sad to hear of the passing of one of my very first volunteers at the Thrifty Kitty store. 

Her name was Lynn and she just walked into the store while it was still in the set up stage and offered to volunteer. She had just moved to Alameda from the East coast a few years earlier to be closer to family. Her husband was older so she was his primary caretaker too. She was looking for something to do to get out of the house and the store was very close by.  In one of our last text messages, she said that she would probably not remember any of our conversations going forward. Makes me very sad that in less than 2 years, things changed so much for her. Will always have fond memories of her kindness. 

Cold weather cooking

I'm babysitting Mr Buzz so that means I have access to his very large and well stocked kitchen. This is a very simple but tasty meal. 

I usually get my baby back ribs at Trader Joe's but it's so much more cost effective to buy it at Costco. I decided to go for it! Yes, I'll have a freezer full of pork but I think it's worth it. 

With the weather being so cold I went with a slow oven cooking technique instead of the boiling method. Took over 3 hours and made the house smell so wonderful. This is the reason I don't use an air fryer. I love the smell of roasting anything in the oven! Added a simple spinach salad (had to add something healthy) with homemade vignette mustard dressing. 

I think I'll be adding this to the list of recipes I'll make for when the kids come out to visit again for the holidays. 

Start of my first scrapbook project in years!

Now that the big family vacation is over, I was thinking of doing a small scrapbook for the boys. I wanted to include recipes of all the home made meals we had. My daughter had a great time looking up recipes, which was mainly salads since fresh produce was so easy to get here. Guess not so much in Holland. I had thoughts of making a digital one but then I remembered all the scrapbooking supplies I still have even after all the downsizing of done.

While I was babysitting Romeo I saw this cookbook on the counter. His owner isn't much of a cook but it looks like she collects cookbooks from her many travels. The crossroads came together to inspire me.  It's really not much of a cookbook, more a family travel journal. The author added family photos and her own watercolor drawings to the book which gave it a very nice feel. The recipes are very basic (nothing fancy or new) but I think it was more to inspire you to make what's local to the area. California has a lot of offer no matter where you go!

The book is $40.00, which if you know me I not going to pay that much and it's too new for me to thrift.  Then the light bulb went on and I checked it out of the library. I'm going try a few recipes out as I tackle the Eatatani scrapbook. 

Yes, old dogs can learn new things

I'm currently babysitting this cute little guy. He has a lot of issues so I'm having to be with him 24/7. I know a lot of those issues have to do with his past and present owners but he was a rescue at an older age so who knows what he's life was like before. 

Anyways, Romeo is normally walked with a retractable leash. I think these type of leashes should be illegal! Because of that Romeo isn't really leash trained making it difficult to take him anywhere.  During our first meeting, I absolutely refused to use an extendable leash. I said he would be kept on a short leash, learn to walk next to me and at my pace. It's really for his own safety and for anyone else walking near by. I've seen way too many people tripping over the extended leashes or the owners have no idea their dog is doing behind them.

He also has major separation anxiety which I'm also working on but that's really more about retraining the owner. He's doing great with me but I still can't leave him alone. 

Still missing my fur baby.

Three years ago today, my sweet Annie crossed the rainbow bridge. There isn't a day I don't think about her. I always knew she would be my last dog and I got lucky as she was the best companion I would ever have. 

This Christmas pictures was taken years ago and still one of my favorites. I wasn't easy to get Annie to sit still long enough to get the shot, lots of wrestling going on behind the scenes!

The beach was a one in a million shot. The splash you see in the background is her ball hitting the water. We were rarely at the beach at sunset so getting that in the background was extra special!

When your bored

I'm dog sitting a very nice little dog named Romeo. He lives at the Villages which is a gated retirement community for active adults. If you know of the villages, you know it's out in the middle of no where. The only major downside to this place is how far it is from anything. You have to drive at least 30 minutes to get to anything and I mean anything. The plus side it's very quiet and a place where you don't worry about locking your doors. 

Romeo can't be left alone, so that means 24/7 babysitting. He's a very small dog but he's not leash trained (I'll rant about that later) and doesn't like being carried so for me to take him anywhere is a challenge. Being it's not my house, there isn't a lot for me to do. 

I've been doing puzzles and it got me to thinking why do I like some puzzles over others? Is it like a good books, either you like it or you don't. Then I was wondering maybe how they're made that is making the difference.  I know I like 500 piece puzzles but should I challenge myself to doing 1000? 

Do you have a favorite brand you like? 

Another project completed!

I know this is a rather blah picture but it was such a satisfying project to compete. 

I started volunteering at the Happy Dragon thrift store in Los Gatos. I was given the task of handling the notions department, which is one of the worse departments. Just imagine getting someone's junk drawer of crafting and sewing items. The price point is very low so I'm tagging hundreds of  things for .25 which can take hours to do. I took it as a challenge to get the department cleaned up and have a high sell through rate. By selling fast that means I have more  retail space so I can process faster.  OK so that part of my plan has gone very well and my area is almost empty most of the time, which is a good thing. 

In the back room I share a space with another volunteer who handles the fabric. She's been volunteering for awhile so I have to tread very lightly when making changes to our shared space. She's always looking for something because there really was no rhythm or reason where anything is. Part of the problem is when fabric or notions donations come in, everything is just dump in our space. Since we don't volunteer everyday things can pile up.

I just couldn't handle the dirty table, always looking for a working pen or the hole punch (I found three) anymore. It took me an hour to sort and clean up everything. 

Now we just have to see how long it stays organized. :)  

New Year's resolutions?

Do you make new year's resolutions? Pick one word to live by? I've been thinking about this for months and I just can't think of anything that I would follow for a whole year. Wonder if making a resolution not to make one is kinda a resolution? :) 

I still dealing with the fall out of all the things that have come back from being in Carmel for two months. Once again I have boxes everywhere, sorting and purging. I'm back to the loud sounds of living in a busy suburban area. There are two major building projects happening around me. A new home being built from the ground up and on the other side down the road an old office building (not sure what it was) being torn down. I did get a little time out in the yard doing a quick cleanup and weeding while the ground was still wet. 

The last few days while I was in Carmel there was a huge tidal surge. This does happen every year and it's called a king's tide. There is no beach and some times there's no sand. I remember years ago I was so shocked to see just the solid bedrock on the beach. Within a few days the sand will be back. The beach trail was packed with all the tourist who came into town, only to find no beach. The weather was so surreal, bright and sunny but still raining. It was a nice way to end my stay in Carmel.