Good morning!!!!

[PJSprog]

30°F and light fog this morning, going up to 38° today.

Was heading out the door yesterday with my phone in hand, and while closing the door behind me, the phone suddenly started vibrating with a loud alarm. When I looked at it, it was in a 3 second countdown to auto-calling 911. Apparently, I accidentally stumbled across the secret handshake to initiate that. Turns out, after a little searching, that pressing the side button five times fast is the trick. Note to self: put the phone in the pocket next time.

Drew, sorry to hear about your neighbor. Also sorry to hear about your postponed trip. Some of us were quite looking forward to the Good Morning Thread Meet-n-Greet Tour. Smart move, though, to get things at home in order first.

The range where The Wife and I shot our qualification for our CCW licenses is out in the country near Columbia IL, and had about a dozen peacocks running around outside. Magnificent, and noisy, birds.

I've tried tofu on a couple of occasions, and found it simply isn't for me. Not at all a fan of the texture of that stuff.

As for milk, I was a formula baby. Milk never much agreed with me as a youngster. As an adult, I can drink it, but I just don't care for the taste. I use it to cook, or pour over cereal, but that's about it.
Now chocolate milk is a different story all together. I drink a small glass of that pretty much every day.

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

Good morning to all! Low of 31, going for a high of 47 today, chance of some rain or snow showers, but only a slim chance. Most of the precipitation will be up north of here.

I am with LNF.... I eat whatever I want. The secret is moderation. Do not eat that 18oz steak .... only have 4-6oz. Do not eat the whole bag of chips....only have a handful. Do not drink the whole bottle of alcohol.... have a couple of ounces.

To deprive the body of some nutrients, will cause harmful effects to the balance of other nutrients. Our bodies want to be in homeostasis... a balance... that holds true for all aspects, wether we can control it or not. We may be generally the same as a species, BUT we are all inherently genetically different.
Why can some people smoke cigarettes most of their lives, live to be 95, and never have lung cancer.... BUT, the next guy never smokes, or was not even exposed to smoke, but develops lung cancer. Just sayin....

Drives, wow! That is some damage! Beautiful yard.... I would be really devastated if I looked out the door and saw that! Lots of landscaping work done there! Picture perfect!

Randy, Italian Wedding soup sounds fantastic! I / we have not had that in a few years. Looks to be a good batch!

Thomas, the deer knew you were waiting / watching for them. As soon as you do not have the camera.... they will be there! The raccoons just want to steal the camera!

Ron, maybe you can get Thomas to speak to the deer and he can tell them specific directions on which shrubs they can trim for you..... might save a bunch of work!

Today is quick errand day, then some more time doing some woodworking. I am now making an oak table top with a small drop leaf extension. I glued up the main section yesterday, today I will do the drop leaf. Maybe get to start sanding the first section. I will get some pics of the project / progress.

Everyone have a great day and start of the week!

 

[toppop52]

Good morning. It’s 54° and very foggy here with expectations of 70° this afternoon. Looks like the fog will be with us for a while today.

Sad about Koby, daughter and others.

I’ve worked to make small changes to my diet, over past 15 years, no added salt, reduction in fried foods (air fryer), etc. My portion sizes have just shrunk in recent years ... I can feel “full” eating half of what I ate years ago. I quit carbonated sodas about 5 years ago. Retirement and not being tempted by great food all over the world, has made the biggest difference IMHO.

Drives ... it looks like the grass sod never really took root in the base material and was very easy to move around. Like others, I’m skeptical about that being raccoon damage.

Don ... your point about milk sources makes sense ... I never thought about it that way?

Randy ... I can’t recall ever having Italian Wedding Soup. What’s in it?

Hope everyone has a great start to your week.

Prayers to all.

1 tablespoon olive oil 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots1 cup sliced celery
Celery
1/2 cup diced red onion1 teaspoon dried parsley 1/4 teaspoon dried basil 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 6 cups no-salt-added chicken broth 20 Italian meatballs, preferably home made 1/2 cup pastina pasta6 ounces baby spinach 4 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: thanks for the nice comments about our yard. it used to be a parking area for the kids when we had 3 drivers and their friends until they left for school and eventually bought their own homes. the first picture was the neighbors 1 year old lawn, but I re sodded our lawn and with my bride's help filled up the rest of the yard with plants maybe 8 years ago. so within an hour about 3-4am on evenings in late October/November 2016 the raccoons would tear up our front lawn. I replaced the 7+ year old sod like a bad golfer had been in our yard and it still took me over an hour to replace what they did in an hour. i even laid down some green vinyl chain link fencing to keep the raccoons off the lawn and they worked around it so I ended up leaving our yard alone and then pulled out the damaged dirt (with all the crane fly larva and grubs) and re sodded it 2 years a year and a half ago and no issues with raccoons since. we don't have ferral pigs cause we live about 15 minutes south of downtown Seattle and about a mile from a busy downtown area of our smallish 80,000 people city. no skunks either that i've heard can do this. we get a few possums, a fox, a coyote, but I think crows also are destroying lawns, but not like this. so far this winter several neighbors have had the raccoons digging up their yards.

another thing that might be keeping the raccoons out of my yard are these Sweeney's mole noise makers I put in the yard cause we also have a few moles stop by that usually play/eat in our flower beds.

anyway I thought I'd ask you all what you thought and sounds like it's sorta new to you too.

the SEATTLE 50's DRIZZLE is happening again, but better than freezing and snow so I hope all of you that are dealing with that will stay warm.

have a great day everybody!!



one thing that keeps me smiling is to keep a few of these pictures as screensavers to remind me that spring and summer is coming soon.

 

[Big Barn]

Drives ... it looks like the grass sod never really took root in the base material and was very easy to move around. Like others, I’m skeptical about that being raccoon damage.

Drives , I’m not sure if that is raccoon damage or not, but Rick is correct in his root assessment. Your concern with newly laid sod drying out has worked against you. It only needed daily watering for the first 7-10 days to keep the roots moist.

After that, INFREQUENT deep watering (typically one inch, once a week ) is all that’s necessary to develop and encourage deep roots growth.

Frequent, regular watering will give you a beautiful green lawn but you will always have a shallow root system which would most like result in die back during water restrictions or drought.

 

[Big Barn]

just eat whatever the He11 you want, 'cause some health zealot is bound to declare whatever you pick as the worst thing in the world for you. But at least you'll die happy...

I’m with you on the die happy part!

 

[drivesitfar]

BB: this is a 7+ year old lawn that had roots about 6 inches deep that the raccoons did this in about an hour 3-4am. thanks again for the watering tips for new sod and i'm about 100% it's raccoons because of the amount of time and we don't have skunks or pigs here. when I dug the damaged areas out I had to dig easily 6 inches down to get out all the roots and the grubs and crane flies.

 

[Big Barn]

Drives , you may not want to do it but spraying for the crane flies would eliminate the grubs the raccoons search for.

Where I live, pesticide use is banned.

A shame your lovely yard is wrecked.

 

[drivesitfar]

BB: this damage was from Oct/Nov 2016 and I spent March of 2017 repairing it and knock on wood my crane fly and grub hand removal while prepping dirt sent the raccoons to the neighbors yards. in fact one neighbor that has a year old sodded yard that the raccoons were picking on had their lawn service almost guarantee their spray would deter any more damage and they had more damage a week later.

maybe my Sweeney Mole noise makers are also helping along with my 12 pound cat that tends to go out that time of the morning now. i'm just going to fertilize regularly, but i might add the grub killer cause we get a mole or two now and then too.

 

[jbrumberg]

An overcast 31ºF for today’s low with light snow flurries; 34ºF presently and it is still lightly snowing; and I anticipate a cloudy afternoon with temperatures in the mid 30ºF’s.

I/We essentially follow the Mediterranean Diet. We have cut back on the salt and fats and do not eat sweets, processed snack foods, processed white flour products, etc. Over the past 2 years we have cut back on the less healthy foods and cooking practices. My biggest dieting challenges are the empty calories from booze, portion control, and recent late night binge eating where I am eating as many calories on average as my main meal. I need to reprogram my late night eating practices and cut back on the boozing. This binge eating at night is a new/recent challenge. It’s probably stress driven.

Drives- I’ve never seen raccoon damage like that before. You have a really well manicured lawn. Thanks for sharing the pictures and the sunset picture. I have my Costa Rican sunset picture as a screensaver.

Kyle- I hope that you, your Wife, and the doctors figure out what’s driving the allergic reactions. That’s a nasty looking rash; at least the Prednisone is working.

RNG- Good luck finding the “magic mix” of foods, the leveling, the generator, and the solar installation.

Frank- It’s good to see you posting. I hope that all goes well for your Wife and pup.

Randy- I have not eaten Italian Wedding Soup in a long time. Yours looks delicious.

“… So far I have not sucumed to any of my bad habits over the years.”- RonJH I resemble that statement.

Actually thanks to Don and the other healthier eaters here I am more motivated to moderate my more unhealthy food choices and dietary practices.

“… The secret is moderation”- Ted I am working on it.

Randy- Thanks for the recipe.

I hope that everyone is having a decent Monday morning start.

My + thoughts, wishes, and prayers.

 

[hawkeye08]

Got oil changed in Tahoe and Equinox yesterday.. didn't take long, was cold and wet out so didn't do anything extra.. got the console safe for Tahoe USPS late in the day, went ahead and installed. Pretty easy install (Lock'er down brand). Was not sure we would loose the tray, but there is not enough space on top of safe for tray so will get some containers that will fit.

Started converting Sony video tapes to digital. Watched some as they were converting.. good fun seeing old movies..

Stay safe, prayers for all

Also working on open questions around medical and income for retirement

 

[sodamo]

66°F and no rain.

Guys won last night

Arm sore from pneumonia shot.

Hope to pull out carport base and get started.

Going to a bee class tonight.

Prayers for all
Be safe
Have a great day

 

[Looking4new]

My booze consumption has gone from at least one 40 oz bottle/day to 2 oz once a year on my birthday. I drink no sugar and carbonised water drinks. I drink no milk or partake of any dairy products, another old peoples' downfall. I used to really like cheese and milk, until it started doing what it is doing to me. It is called lactose intollerant, in realality it is the sh1ts.

 

[drivesitfar]

Looking: i'm most likely lactose intolerant cause yep the crapper needs to be close by when i drink or eat certain things. that said there are a ton of options you can try. some milks have me running and others don't. same with yogurt and other things. some things i'm ok with are Almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk, goat's milk, and some brands of milk in a real glass bottle. some yogurts I can hear the gurgling and some not so much, but most do something so i usually add some homemade granola or some other things to my yogurts.

I can't say i've drank a fifth a day since my early 20's, but I do drink a gallon of ice tea daily now (which might help to the quick trips to the john too), but at 64 i'm not taking any pills and feeling pretty decent. I could afford to lose maybe 15 pounds cause i've been laying on the syrup and homemade jam on pancakes this winter, but summer I should burn it off building a fence and deck.

hope this gives you some options and just eliminating something that you like can be tough if you need to. processing and ingredients are the key so keep trying other brands or make your own.

good luck!!

speaking of fences i have all the cedar 6x6's and 1x6's that have been drying on racks that I got from a local mill and wondering if any of you have a fence you own or like you'd like to share pics of? i was going to build this 8 foot tall fence, but my bride wants me to end up with more like a 6-7 footer so i'm leaning towards this one without the lattice on top.

 

[Looking4new]

drivesitfar; I quit drinking large amounts of booze in 1991, quit beer the next year. I might have a beer or two in summer IF the temps get hot enough AND I am not driving anywhere.
Yogurt I can do in small quantities, the same for frozen yogurt. Goats milk, almond milk and all that stuff is very expensive here.

I put apple juice on my raw oatmeal in the mornings. Cooked oatmeal, I do not like, but if it sits in the pot overnight to get good and cold, I will eat it then with nothing on it.

I think the fence with the lattice on top looks better. Maybe do the fence on the right and put lattice on top of it?

 

[txdon]

What a marvelous time to be pursuing a diet. There are so many choices, seemingly one for every fad out there. And now even the national news is covering it...

Good article!

 

[txdon]

speaking of fences i have all the cedar 6x6's and 1x6's that have been drying on racks that I got from a local mill and wondering if any of you have a fence you own or like you'd like to share pics of? i was going to build this 8 foot tall fence, but my bride wants me to end up with more like a 6-7 footer so i'm leaning towards this one without the lattice on top.

The second one without the lattice work would be a lot easier building and staining. Just the little arch on the top rail adds a lot. I would keep it simple unless you have all the materials and a lot of spare time.

 

[daugen]

Kyle, that looks like a seriously itchy situation. Our nervous systems seem to have some strange triggers
hope that healed up quickly.
Propane man fixed heater in greenhouse so am off to turn that on for first time.
Have six trays of flowers and I really should to do some more but I think the sun is over
the yardarm.

Plus want to go take pics of new landscaping done. Now that opening into the woods opens up opportunities including taking my larger Massey with grapple
over that little bridge and having a good old time in the woods, blazing a trail to the pond. That bug infested pond...looking primordial full of oozy unknowns that
you step back from the edge. I've never found an alligator around here, we're just a little North, but if one were to be here it would be back in that
cypress lined pond. Bugs will eat you alive.

 

[jbrumberg]

Bug infested primordial bogs can support all kinds of creatures.

 

[Big Barn]

Drives I’m not a fan of lattice work although the one in your top pic is nice because it is only a short section highlighting a landscape feature.


I like the one in bottom pic.