Good Morning!!!! 46F @ 9:15AM. Sunny. High near 50F. Winds light and variable.
A belated Happy New Year to all, old hands and new faces alike. The more the merrier, I say!:welcome:
My mother had a special way with all vegetables, especially green ones, and most especially Brussel Sprouts. She boiled everything to a pulp, a mushy, bitter tasting pulp. Ruined me for green vegetables until some friends showed me how to properly steam vegetables to preserve the flavor and vitamins, but I still prefer fresh salads with broccoli and cherry tomatoes to anything cooked. But once in a while I'll drag home some Brussel Sprouts and steam them, and serve them with maybe a little salt but not so much as to mask the sweetness...
The local weather guesser showed a diagram last night of the Pacific jet, and how it will obliterate the high pressure system we're enjoying now and bring half a foot of rain for the weekend. The following week looks soggy, too.
My New Years was spent with my birthday boy riding buddy, at his place. He's a young 63 this time around. We enjoyed a nice meal out, as his cupboards were bare owing to the week long vacation we'd been enjoying. Fancy Italian restaurant where the owner parked several old Italian motorcycles around the premises for us to ogle. The oldest dated back to the '30s. My dish was yummy but tasted like a nice beef stew, not the garlicky dish I'd asked for. The waitress apologized that the cook didn't agree with her idea to add garlic to it, and showed his protest by providing the diced garlic raw in a tiny side dish. He also way overcooked the pasta; I've had better leftovers at my place for a very small fraction of the cost. Froze our butts off on the walk home, and after a bit of computer fussing, we both turned in well in advance of midnight. Neither of us remember hearing any explosions, just contented snoring.:laughing:
The last few day's motorcycle ride was very windy, as my buddy let me talk him into crossing the Los Angeles area, landing us in Morro Bay on the coast. I had something of a dizzy spell on the way, not a good thing on the bike, but a break for water and food got me going again. Los Angeles traffic was the usual slow-n-go, and we split lanes for many miles. Glad I don't have to put up with that anymore. A new battery had provided rescue from Johannesburg, and only minor issues marred an otherwise wonderful trip. Sent the bad one back to the supplier the next day, using a Post Office "if it fits, it ships" flat rate box for a very bit savings. The Anza Borrego Desert was cold and dry during our visit, but the hot springs were as therapeutic as ever. As was the food and drink, and the fellow riders who shared it with us. Always nice to see old friends and make some new ones.
I finished the last leg of the trip yesterday and was greeted by a large black oak down across the driveway, leaving just enough room to get the bike by. That was all the excuse I needed to put the tractor back together, but it was nearly dark before I finished. So today's job is to drag the tree down to the wood lot, and that'll likely involve exercising both the chainsaw and me. No wonder I'm here procrastinating on TBN.:laughing: