My friend Linda's new foster pups

 I love their names.

 

Former Friend

Alexandra & Belle

I worked with a woman named Donna at Southwestern Bell/SBC/AT&T for about 20 years. We got set in a support role & worked well together. We became friends.  Actually she got a friend...I can't exactly say the same for me. 

I was there for her pregnancy & then for her bought with breast cancer. I ended up going back to regular desk & she was promoted. 

Looking back, we had very little in common. She is married to Danny & has a son, in his 40s now. I have none of those things.  And Donna's only life was her family. It was all she talked about. 

She is also one of the most selfish people I've ever known. She did nothing she did not want to do. When I went to her house in the metroplex, she'd decided what we were going to do & she was not about to make a change. A couple of times I told her I wanted to do something else & she absolutely refused. We watched the TV shows she wanted to watch (Rachel Maddow for stupid sake) or the movie she wanted to see. Her house was always freezing. Not asking for heat but a throw would have been nice. I took to taking my own. And I'd have to take it to bed with me too. They didn't care one ounce. Plus she kept the nastiest house ever. I swear there was a roach in her dining room that was there the year before when I was there.

I'd be mortified if someone was uncomfortable in my home.

A couple of years ago, Donna had knee surgery & was having issues.  I called every few days to check on her. She finally told me that I didn't need to call so often. If she needed me, she'd call me.  So I never called again & she didn't call me. It's been 2 years since I talked to her. 

I had already blocked her from Facebook but she felt the need to message me questioning my post. She wanted to know why I was following a brewery--my cousin's business. And she tried to take me to task when I posted about Dr Fauci being a fraud. She loved him. I told her we'd have to agree to disagree. I'm sure she was not pleased.

Donna & Danny were obnoxious, dyed in the wool Democrats & we definitely have different political views. But we never really discussed it.  But after the election this year, Danny wrote an asshole post on Facebook about losing the election & how he was cleaning out all his friends who did not agree with him. He burned a whole lot of bridges. 

So last week I got a note from Donna. She told me they were moving to be close to their son. She also said I was her dearest friend for 40 years & it was too bad that politics came between us. I had assumed that was the big issue but we did not discuss politics. And I have always been able to care about people even if they didn't agree with me on every thing. But I'm an adult, so there's that. I have to say the note made me angry. I shredded the note. And the only picture I had of the 2 of us. And I put the family cookbook she'd given me in the donation box. Did I mention I was angry?

The only thing I kept from her were 2 Boyds Bears years ago with 2 women on the phone...Alexandra & Belle. I'm confident I can still love them in spite of where they came from. 

 

 

 

Air Supply

I went to the Buddy Holly Center to watch the band Air Supply.  Lubbock was the 1st stop on their 50th anniversary tour. I've loved their music for all those years.  Basically, they are geezers, like me.

I've seen them 2x before...once at the Orleans in Vegas in 2015 & then at the local fair in maybe 2018. They put on a good show.

Neither of their voices are what they used to be but I'd hate to admit what I've lost as I've gotten older. Falsetto guy Russell still sounds good but partner Graham has lost most of his voice. However, G plays a mean guitar.  

They also had a young band behind them...one particular guitar player played "tortured" like he was in a hard rock band instead of a geezer band. It was humorous.

Russell had overdone the hair dye & the make up & was dressed in plain shirt, leather pants with studs & tassels & black shoes (or boots...couldn't tell) with rhinestones.  Graham looked normal.

My favorite song is 'Two Less Lonely People' ...because I relate to it:

I was down, my dreams were wearin' thin
When you're lost, where do you begin?
My heart always seemed to drift from day to day
Looking for the love that never came my way

Graham Russell

Russell Hitchcock

2025 Books

 

Books 2025

1. Hot Property             Mike Lupica  (Spenser)

Vintage Christmas

 I love the idea of a perfect Christmas...especially vintage.  

Chocolate Cherry Cookers

 

Cream together:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

Then add:

1 1/2 cups flour

2/3 cups cocoa

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder 

1/4 baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

2 tsp cherry juice 

1 maraschino cherry per cookie

Use 1" cookie scoop or roll into balls, put one cherry on top & bake 10 minutes.

I think I officially have a new favorite cookie.

Clydesdales

I technically should be embarrassed because I saw the Clydesdales were going to be at my United Supermarket. I wasn't sure what to expect but, like an excited little kid, I went to see.  We had to stand in line for a few minutes & then we got our picture made.  Today, there was one handsome guy but at the football game on Saturday, they'll have a  team hitched up.  Sadly, I'm not going to the game.  

The Budweiser Clydesdales are an American icon and one of the world’s most recognized brand symbols. Beginning this summer, they are traveling to communities across the country to military events and venues in support of Anheuser-Busch’s partnership with Folds of Honor. Through its scholarship program, Folds of Honor ensures that families of fallen or disabled U.S. service members and families of first responders receive educational opportunities and support.

Horses chosen for the Budweiser Clydesdale hitch must be at least three years of age, stand approximately 18 hands – or six feet – at the shoulder, weigh an average of 2,000 pounds, must be bay in color, have four white legs, and a blaze of white on the face and black mane and tail. A gentle temperament is very important as hitch horses meet millions of people each year.

I have never seen the official Clydesdales but remember being down in the Weatherford area & saw a field that had about half a dozen colts.  Beautiful.

Clydesdales at St Louis Cardinals opening day 2024

Art Deco

Art Deco Mailbox (Letter Box) French Building, 551 Fifth Avenue, NYC, 1927 by Sloan and Robertson and H. Douglas Ives.

Entrance door in Art Nouveau House on Rue du Lac,6. Brussels

 

ALOHA” PRIVATE HOUSE, Art Deco Revival from 1920s, Melbourne, Australia

Dalcrombie House, Olinda,Victoria, Austrailia

Car is 1937 Cord 812 Westchester Sedan

 

Lopez Boathouse, 1936, Iloilo City, Philippines

Robert Hosmer Morse House, Lake Forest, IL

Art Nouveau Building, Cannes, France

1930's Moon Lamp

 

Just a beautiful green clock..

Spiral Staircase

Glass House

Peacock Gate, 4 Seasons, Budapest,Hungary

Front door in a building in Prague

About my Daddy

This post will be endless.  I'll be updating...

Daddy was born in 1914, the second oldest of 6 kids. My Uncle Raymond was first, in 1912.  Then Uncle Dub, Aunt Dorothy, Uncle Jiggs & Aunt Allene.  Their dad died in 1924, in a fire. My grand parents lived on a share farm & my Granny didn't work or drive.  They moved in with one of my granddads uncle but all of the boys had to leave school early to support their family.

My Uncle Raymond was the oldest son, caring for a widowed mother & did not go to WWII.  All 3 of the others did.  Uncle never married & cared for his mom til she passed away. He was 74 when she died. He was always a lovable old grump but he never got to have his own life so I get it. To be fair, all the siblings contributed to Granny's care.

My dad would tell you he was a farmer from 1931-1932. He was a cow man.  He started cowboying at 17, working for several ranches. He did that solely til he got drafted in 1942. He said those days were the best of his life. Sleeping under the stars, eating off a chuck wagon.living what he thought was the good life. 

When he came home from WWII he met & married my mom.  2 years later they had 2 little girls, my sisters Cathy & Jo. (I came along in 1957) And they all lived on various ranches til 1960 when we all moved to Arizona & my dad went to work in an open pit copper mine with my Uncle Dub. He worked on a ranch on the weekends & in 1970, went to work for ranch solely.

In 1971, we moved home to Texas where he worked for ranches,the last one for 25 years til his retirement at age 82.  

After retirement one of the things he did was care for calves who were sick or having pregnancy issues.  The large animal vet would refer people to him because he knew everything.

He moved up to Lubbock with me at age 93 & passed away in 2009 at age 95.

I miss him greatly.

But that wasn't all of him.  

He always had a job & that allowed my mom to stay home with us. She wasn't forced.  She wanted to do it. She did drive school van for awhile & later worked in a sewing factory & a charity office.  I'll write about her later.

Daddy's job cowboying usually came with a house & beef & pork & chickens & a garden.  We weren't ever rich but we were also never poor.  There were always people with less than us. They managed to send us all to college, at least for a little while.  😅

**

I haven't mentioned that they raised my sister's Jo after she passed away in 1970.

**

Daddy killed all the snakes.  One time we were at a town festival & my friend & I were walking through an alley & there was a man laying in a doorway.  I didn't look for a cop...I found my daddy. (The guy was just passed out drunk).

**

The deal is, he was a man. He'd been a soldier. He adored his wife. He loved his little girls & his grandson. He loved his grandchildren. And he was a cowboy.

**

If we had a stopped up drain he'd try the normal stuff but then tell us to call a plumber if it didn't work.  He was not a car mechanic.  He was a "cow puncher" according to his army induction papers though I never personally saw him punch a cow. 

**

When he retired from his last job his boss got him an expensive black felt Stetson hat. When it was time to bury him, I was going to send it with him but my niece wanted it so I sent him to Heaven without a hat.  He didn't go to the mailbox without a hat.  

**

I 100% got my sense of humor & a genial attitude from him.  He found joy & humor in everything. 

**

I think about everything he saw in is 95 years. I remember showing him pictures my niece sent of her children.  He asked "How did they get in there?" and I had to admit I don't know.  

**

For the 58 years my parents were married before we lost mom, he brought home his paycheck every week & gave it to her. He got $20 & 1 check & if he couldn't account for the check, he couldn't have another.  Well, more if he came to Lubbock but he brought home receipts on paper, paper bags & napkins.  He never paid a bill as long as she was here. I paid them later.  For the record, my mom could have balanced the federal budget in 2 weeks flat.

**

He lived in our small town & his brother Raymond & sister Dorothy lived in same town.  They'd get into spats but he saw them every day.

**

He was a social butterfly & that's something I did not necessarily inherit from him.  His day was coffee at the co-op gin in the morning, then coffee at the bank, then home for a nap & then coffee with the boys at the Dairy Queen about 2.  He had a full day!

**

My friend Deb called him "cute" & he rode that wave for the last years of his life.

**

A couple of months ago I went to Spur to take flowers down to graves.  I stopped to visit with a dear friend of my dad's. Eric gave the eulogy at Daddy's funeral.  He is a lawyer & a very good storyteller.

He was talking about daddy's blue heeler dog, Pup.  Eric's father-in-law was JB, my dad's boss for the last 25 years he worked.  Eric told a story when Daddy, JB & Eric were trying to get 3 bulls into a trailer.  The first 2 just went right in.  The trailer had a divider & that divider was closed.  The last bull was fighting til the end. Eric said they were all really hot & they were ready to give up for awhile.  Daddy said they needed to let Pup get him in.  Daddy told him to get the bull into the trailer. Pup got in front of the bull & bit him on the nose & ran into the trailer & the ticked off bull followed him in & Pup slid under the divider & Daddy closed the back gate.  Daddy & Pup were a great team.  He loved that dog. 

**

Another dog story.  My nephew had Pomeranians & he had a litter of puppies & one was a big time runt & only one eye.  Steve brought her to mom.  Mom named her Sissy but Daddy called her Pup.  Not a lot of dog name imagination. 😀   My dad never was one for a dog in the house--all of the others slept in boxed in porch or sometimes in the backyard in their doghouse.  But Daddy loved that dog too. I went in one day & the 2 of them were asleep in the chair.  The foot part was up & Pup was laying beside him.  Daddy heard me come in & he put the foot down & pushed Pup out of the chair.  Pup barked & barked at him.  Daddy said "I don't know what she's so upset about"....I asked him how he'd feel if he was sound asleep & someone pushed him out of a chair.  He allowed that he might be upset too.

**

One Sunday morning, Daddy went with neighbor to look at show pigs for his girls.  While he was gone, I made a cake & left it on the counter & went to take a shower.  When I got back into the kitchen, I looked at my cake & told Daddy that I think we had a rat!  He asked what I was talking about.  I told I'm something had eaten a corner off my cake!  He told me it was a rat...he'd seen it!!  

**

Did I mention I miss him?

The King Banana Pudding

 

Pretty Rooms--Kitchens

 

Christmas prayer of thanks

We ask your blessing, Lord, on this gathering

We whom you’ve already blessed so lavishly,

With friendship, health,children,,comfort & love

If we knew nothing of your works except for the faces around this table,

Our feeling of gratitude would far exceed our power to express it.

For loved ones near & far we ask your protection.

We humbly honor you on this the day of your miracle

We are ever mindful & thankful that every day we live we’ll somehow be surprised by Grace. 

9-11=2011

So 23 years ago I was at work & our office went oddly silent. My friend Jason came in & told us about the 1st plane. Our entire office was in break room, watching TV when 2nd plane hit. We were stunned. The rest of the day, the rest of week is kind of a blur.

It was heartbreaking but in the days that followed we saw a unity & patriotism in this country that sadly we may never see again. In spite of today's canvas, we are still the best country in the world.

We went to NYC in September of 2019 & visited ground zero. It was eerie & everyone around was very respectful. The only other time I had that feeling was at Pearl Harbor. I could feel the souls in both places.

Cake

 

This is my Butter Pecan Bundt cake that I made today.  I'm not posting the recipe because while it's tastes good the recipe is not worth the trouble.  It's not something I'll make again.  Here are this cake's facts:

1. The recipe is just weird.  Starts off like a normal cake, then had me adding milk & vanilla in the middle of the flour adds & then sour cream.  I followed exactly but it could have been done easier.

2. Cake is pretty dry, expecially for a cake with 4 eggs, milk & sour cream.  Recipe says to cook 60-70 minutes. I cooked 60, too much apparently.  Doesn't matter...won't make again.

3. This is my 2nd Bundt cake I've made in the last of months & they came out perfect.  I'm so proud.  I love Baker's Joy.  I might be ready for a fancy Bundt pan.  Next year.

4. My first glaze didn't work.  I know what I did wrong now.

5. I toasted pecans for the first time ever.

6. I'm unclear how exactly my kitchen looks like a tornado hit it when I cook but luckily I can clean up my kitchen like a tornado too.

7. I like baking

Another cake story:  Back in the early 1970s I was 13 & we lived in the cookhouse at the Pitchfork Ranch.  My mom cooked 3 meals a day for the single cowboys in the bunkhouse.  The married guys lived in the ranch houses & the company provided groceries.  Part of the duties of the cookhouse were ordering groceries, stocking the commissary & then once a week, filling orders from the ranch houses.  There was one of the wives who made a cake every week & bragged that she was such a good cook & only made her cakes from scratch.  She publicly turned up her nose at cake mixes.  But the truth is she ordered one every week!  She'd order a strawberry mix & like magic, she'd make a strawberry cake.  My dad & I would laugh about it every week but we never snitched her off.  

Ok, one more.  I was probably about 11 when my favorite aunt & uncle came to visit.  Uncle's birthday was in the middle of the visit.  I made his cake.  I don't remember what kind of cake but his favorite color was green so I made green icing.  And I don't remember how many candles but I put one on for each year.  When we lit the candles it looked like a big green porcupine on fire.  He either really loved it or he was a really good sport.  I so adored him.

RIP Moondoggie

Actor James Darren died yesterday.

He was born in Philadelphia in 1936 & was part of the "Philly" teens that emerged in the 1950s. He did some acting, some singing, later some directing. He wasn't a superstar but he did ok in Hollywood.  I don't remember reading about tantrums or scandals.  Just a working guy.

I first remember him as 'Moondoggie' in 'Gidget'.  He was the college surfer dude who fell in love with Sandra Dee.  It wasn't Shakespeare but it was fun. He was dreamy.😍

Later he was in a series called 'Time Tunnel'.  I didn't watch that one.

He came in the last 3 seasons of 'TJ Hooker' & was the best thing on the show. 

He did some one shot things til he retired in 2017. In a show called 'One Day At a Time', mom Nanette Fabrey met him on a cruise & brought him home.  I could see bring him home. Even then he was dreamy. 😍

He was even immortalized on 'Flintstones' as singer 'James Darrock'. 

James Darrock

He was married to his wife for 64 years.  He had 3 sons & a few grandchildren.  That says a lot about a man to me. Family man, good husband, good dad. It sounds like a good life.

RIP Moondoggie

Cherry Almond Cookies

 I've been watching the Food Network cooking baking championship & have saved a ton of recipes to try someday.  

Today is Cherry Almond Cookie Day!

1 jar maraschino cherries, 10 oz, chopped up. Save juice

1 stick of unsalted butter, melted

3/4 cups sugar

1/4 cups brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp almond extract

2 tsp cherry juice

1 tsp vinegar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 3/4 cups of flour 

Cream butter & sugars. mix in egg, almond extract, cherry juice & vinegar. Sprinkle salt & soda over dough. Not sure what this step is about but I did it anyway.  Mix in flour till all combined, stir in cherries.

Bake at 350 for 12 minutes.

Excellent question...

 

Life

 

Yarn & Marketplace & Someone to talk to

 Just over 2 years ago & I broke my right wrist, my dominant hand.  Gradually, a little arthritis has settled in & I've lost nimbleness in my fingers.  I used to crochet a scarf a week but I have not been able to crochet at all since my hospital stay in December.  It's part mental & part physical.  I had a yarn buildup (23 skeins) on Facebook Market place for $30.  I just need them gone. Mentally & physically.  

I had several inquiries but no one had committed yet but one woman, Debbie, said she wanted & she'd pay $40 but she could not come til today.  I trusted my gut & decided to wait. She came this morning & picked up.  (And paid $50!).  And stayed & talked for 2 hours. She talked about crocheting, her husband, kids & grandkids. She is retired & 69 & "didn't have much to do" so clearly she just needed someone to listen to her.  She was making a Chiefs pillow & I said, send me a picture!  She sent several of her projects.  And right before she left she said "now that we're friends" & I'm not sure about that but it was a fine encounter.

I learned at a school I used to work at that everyone needs someone to listen to them sometimes.  I'm certainly that way.  Like Debbie, if I find someone who will listen to me I'll talk on & on. Sometimes I don't talk to anyone for a solid week, sometimes it's public people--cashiers,bank--but no "conversation".  I know when I'm talking too much & try to temper it but sadly it doesn't always work. 

Debbie & I are probably not going to be friends. She lives in a small town about 15 miles away We have nothing in common.  But, sure...maybe 

It's weirdly strange...

One of the restaurants we used to go to occasionally before Covid was Cheddars.  They have burgers, salads & general dinner-y things.  It basically tasted ok but nothing special.  

One thing they did well was onion rings.  ORs are my favorite thing in the world & I try them everywhere.  Some come out of bags like I'm sitting at Sonic so they are pre-fabbed.  But if they are hand breaded with or without a beer batter, I'm usually a fan.  

So we went one day in 2021 & they told us there were no onion rings because they were short staffed & could not batter things.  I kid you not.  So we just left...no point in paying their prices if no ORs.  When I got home I dropped them a note on their customer support sight nicely pointing out that that was a stupid policy.  I don't remember if I got a response.

So, last week, I got an email from Cheddar's customer support telling me onion rings were back!  3 years later. I then posted it on Twitter & they responded with the above picture.  It's way cool!!  I wish they'd have responded with a gift card but that was a no.  They also said their Monte Cristo which is pretty good was never off the menu but it indeed was at our restaurant because I asked.  It's a battered thing too.

My Tweet:

We used to go to #Cheddars a couple of times a year because they had great onion rings. They went away during pandemic. I'd sent an email to website in 2021 voicing disappointment. Got email today from them telling me they are back starting today. #Bumfuzzled 3 years later!