What I Did on My Summer Vacation

Everyone repeats the trope that, in grade school, middle school and, perhaps, high school English, they had to write something about what they did during their summer vacation. I don't actually remember doing that in school. Maybe it was something I have blocked from memory. "Selective Memory Retrieval" can be a very good thing, until it backfires and you can't remember where you put your car keys.

Anyway, I happened to think about this when I got home from my July visit to Carole and Larry and looked through my photos. (Warning. Extreme cuteness.)

Faux

Tobey

Faux

Tobey, who is not fond of belly rubs, but loves to lie on his back, particularly in the sunshine.

Faux and Larry. This gives you some idea of how big Faux is. He's a Maine Coon. He loves having Larry scoop him up, flip him over and walk around the house like this.

Tobey. This seems to be a favored sleeping spot. 

Faux. They both like to go outside, kind of. 

Tobey will sit by the back door and meow. Then, when you open the door, do the classic, "I'm not sure I want to actually go out there" action. They aren't allowed out unsupervised and noises will, as with my girls, scare them back inside. 

But then, so will Kola. Kola lives next door. She's an outdoor cat. The neighbors tried to get her to come inside, but she's not interested in living indoors. She lives in their garage. She comes to the back or front door and looks in. There is much hissing. 

Usually, Kola is on the front porch and there, Faux and Tobey have encountered her. 

Kola chased both of them back inside. But, she made the mistake of coming in the open front door and they would have none of that and chased her back outside. 

Their house is wonderful but it's extra special that all the windows have wide sills. 

The boys love being able to sit in the windows and that the windows are long enough that they don't have to jump up on something in order to see out. 

Sooooo, what did you do on your summer vacation?

I took photos of my daughter's cats.

Beverage:  Water

Deb

Rearrange of the Brain

A new grocery store opened in town last Tuesday. Saturday morning, I checked it out.

It's called "Mariano's". According to a cashier I know who works at Dominicks, the guy who started Mariano's used to be a VP of Operations for Dominicks. When Dominicks was faltering, some 20 years ago, he offered to buy the chain. But there was some kind of falling out, so he went north, to Milwaukee, started a grocery store there and has come back down to the Chicagoland area. Mariano's merged with Roundy's, which is a long-time Wisconsin grocery chain. New reports said Mariano's is looking to open 13 more stores in the Chicagoland area over the next 18 months.

The Wheaton store is built on the site of the old Hubble Middle School. It's right off Roosevelt Road, the main road through Wheaton. Hubble was built in the 1930's and was the only high school in Wheaton for years. When Wheaton's population  grew enough that there were more kids than Hubble could handle, Wheaton North and Wheaton South high schools were built and Wheaton Central, as it was known, was created. Then, the population shrank and the middle high school was turned into a middle school for grades 6-8. There was a city-wide renaming contest and Hubble was selected. It was named after Edwin Hubble, an astronomer who grew up in Wheaton. I spent some time looking for photos of the school. I know I have some, but wasn't able to locate them.

When renovations at Hubble became too costly, the school district built a new Hubble Middle School in the far southwest of the district and the property was vacant for years. The Wheaton Park District bought the gym facilities and, after some contentious board meetings, Mariano's bought the rest of the building and razed it. This is the only part of Hubble remaining.

I feel kind of self-conscious about taking photos inside a business so I don't have any from my first visit. It was a touch confusing as to how to get into the building. They have an abundance of shopping carts even for the numbers of people in attendance at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning. The place has been packed by noon in these opening days. It's the "new car smell" of a brand new business. We'll see how busy it is come mid-March.

As with any new place, it was confusing as to where things were. I just wandered. I don't like the size of the fresh fruit and vegetable department or how it's shunted off to the side of the prepared foods section. There was staff all over the store, all smiling, all asking if there was anything I needed. At 9 a.m. on a Saturday morning, there were people with food samples in every department. I went in with a list but allowed myself to impulse buy up to the size of my grocery cart and they had an abundance of the small carts I like so well. Once that was full, and I had everything on the list, it was time to leave.

There are two aisles of "foreign" foods. That's where you'll find kosher, Hispanic and Asian offerings. I got a laugh at the "London" section. Tea and biscuits. Come on. England is so much more than that. Once crowds die down, it will be nice to look through what they have at leisure.

I spent an amount comparable, perhaps a few dollars less, than what I would spend at Dominicks. They have pretty much everything I consume, although I couldn't find the Spam. You may laugh or go, "Ewwwww" but I eat Spam and would loathe to have to go to Jewel to get it.

I like the covered areas for cart returns.

This is the size of a parking space so it will hold a lot of carts and there are a lot of them scattered through the parking lot. In a typical year, soaked or snow and ice covered carts are a reality. While this won't stop the carts from getting wet when the rain comes sideways, it will help.

I was impressed by the salad bar. I came home with a giant fruit salad that I ate over the course of the afternoon.

The container is that cardboard that disintegrates when composted. The lid is recyclable plastic. All the fruit looked good and, more importantly, tasted fresh, as if it had been prepared that morning, not cut the night before. It will be interesting to see if, coming in after work produces the same quality in their offerings.

Safeway, who owns Dominicks, is leaving Chicagoland effective January 1st, 2014. Any store not sold by December 31 will be closed. The Dominicks just over the hill from the office won't be sold. There is a Trader Joes and a Jewel within 5 minutes of the office. While I was told this Dominicks is one of the more profitable ones, there is too much competition for someone to want to keep a grocery there. A Fresh Market is opening this month between the office and my house. So many choices. I'll check them out too. Of all my choices, this Fresh Market will be the closest to the house.

So, my first impression of Mariano's is favorable. It will take several visits to get used to where things are. I need to get a frequent buyer's card to take advantage of the sales. Downtown Wheaton, which you can see from the parking lot...

...had long needed a good grocery store. There are condos and sufficient population within just a mile to keep the store solvent. With Dominicks leaving, they have arrived at a good time to woo people like me who won't shop at Jewel even if our lives depend on it, but want a good, full-service, grocery. I have to go back this week. I forgot to add garbage bags to the list. What aisle are they in?

Beverage:  Lady Gray tea

Deb

Day 9- A Book you’ve read more than once

Yes, I'm a day late. I just didn't feel like posting yesterday. I have a lot of gripes lately and am debating if a griping post would make them easier to deal with. They are the kinds of things that annoy more than anything else.

Plus, yesterday's topic caused me to spend a lot of time thinking about it. The way my reading goes now, it's rare that I read a book more than once. I love reading Terry Pratchett and Jasper Fforde. Pratchett's Discworld series is filled with wonderful lines that can be quoted again and again. But other than the, "Which book has that one line in it?", which causes me to skim them again, I haven't gone back to read the books once I finish them. I have a large library of books I don't want to give away, but will I go back to them? Probably not.

Hence, finding something that I've read more than once was a bit of a challenge. I thought about the cookbooks I return to again and again. I have been known to sit down and read a cookbook as a novel. After all, I don't think you can get the flavor of the book by checking just the recipes for chocolate cake.

As I sat in the office last night sorting some piles my eye caught one shelf of books. I have most of J.R.R. Tolkien's books. He wrote more than just the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. He wrote a prequel of sorts to the Hobbit, a very dense book called The Silmarillion. He wrote Letters from Father Christmas and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Legend of Sigard and Gudrun. He was quite prolific but he will always be remembered for Bilbo and Frodo Baggins and their 4 book adventure.

I have read those 4 books at least 3 times. I didn't see my copies on the shelf upstairs. It's possible they are on the bookshelf in the basement. Each time I read them, I discovered something I hadn't read before.

For voracious readers, these are kind of "Well, yeah. Everyone's read them more than once." So, I struggled to find something else that I have read more than once. Shakespeare falls into this category as I read one of his plays every year. But, I have already talked about Macbeth. I'm looking for something I might have read that you might not have since I have rather eclectic tastes.

I don't know what triggered the thought this morning as I was searching Barnes & Nobel.com for a photo to illustrate this and Day 10's post. The book leaped into the front of my mind just like a teenage cheerleader at a football game.

In 1971, Gene Hackman won a Best Actor Oscar for the movie, "The French Connection". I don't remember how I came by the book on which the movie was based, but it had a photo of Gene Hackman on the cover. I didn't see the movie until the 1980's, but I read the book at least 3 times. In fact, my copy was so worn, the back cover fell off at one point.

I remember being gripped by the story; raw heroin being smuggled into the US by a suave Frenchman and the initially unlikable cop who intends to stop this guy. I'm thinking this might be the first "I can't put this down" book I remember reading. I know I read it during the summer when being glued to a book until 2 a.m. didn't impact the next day's schooling. I also know I raved about it and got rather confused looks from schoolmates.

So, I'm going to list these two, one kind of obvious and one very much not. I far prefer Gene Hackman on the cover of the book.

Beverage:  English Breakfast tea

Deb

Blogging Before Breakfast

Ox Yoke Bakery Poppy Seed Muffins are smelling up my house. This is a good smell, a very good smell. The recipe makes 2 dozen but I got 2 and a half dozen so there will be plenty of muffins for future breakfasts.

I like this time of morning. It's quiet. Pilchard was in the bedroom this morning to meow at me to get up. She's getting bolder or more comfortable maybe, with jumping up on the bed. Of course, I want both of them sleeping with me but there must be some sort of comfort factor here. Mija's "territory" includes sleeping with me, so perhaps there are silent or not so silent negotiations going on for a corner.

It's a beautifully sunny day. Last night's wind that seemed to go through the house regardless of winterized protections has died down. I used to get up religiously at 6:30 a.m. I used to really, really be a morning person. I went for walks in the morning when Carole was in school. I left the house on winter mornings at 6:30, walked for 45 minutes and was back just in time to get Carole up for school. When she was in high school, I walked after taking her to school. I don't do that anymore, either take her to school or walk in the mornings.

Admittedly,  this is a lifestyle change, a choice. I'm up later at night and then that means I don't get up as early in the morning. I've grown used to sleeping in on weekends. I remember when I used to say I did more before 9:30 than some people did all day. I was also home all day, did not have a full-time job, and that contributes to the ability to get a lot done.

It's on days like this, when the sun gleams and I know it wouldn't have been at all a bad idea to go for a morning walk, that I feel wistful. Yes, I could stop what I'm doing and go for one, but I know I won't. I stand at the front door with my tea and remember that I used to be more active. I am content, don't misunderstand me. Although I remember those days with fondness and a bit of envy, I am content to sleep late, bake muffins and drink tea while watching the sunlight. This is peace.

Beverage:  China Black tea

Deb

Maybe it's just me.

Perhaps it's because social media is just that, "social", that I found myself cringing this morning while reading Facebook updates. You all know how much I love language and the turn of a phrase. I also consider myself to be an above average speller. There is absolutely no way I could spell half of the words asked of the National Spelling Bee contestants even though I do know what at least three quarters of them mean.

The basic premise behind Facebook, a means to keep in touch with people, encourages the reduction of a life to a few phrases. I can do that, but I can't do it with the truncated language that seems to be in use.

I remember the "write how you talk" movement and I shudder. Good communication is vital. I get incredibly frustrated if you cannot tell me what I need to know. You get frustrated when I can't adequately explain what I need to know to you so you can reciprocate with the information I seek.

And, let's face it, spelling is not the most fun subject to learn or teach. Hand a student a list of words and tell them they have to memorize this list and be able to parrot it back on Friday. I remember those lists both in my grade school life and in Carole's life. Who decides what's on the list? I remember them being tied to whatever they were reading; desk, chair, school, street, etc. I'm sure there is a guideline learned in college teaching courses about how many syllables a word should be for a first grader to learn it.

I'm trying, as I read the posts and updates, to be charitable and assume the writer doesn't like to spell and struggles with reading and is not just lazy or sloppy. "Rediculous". I know it sounds as if it should be spelled this way, but it's not. And I actually complained to a friend about a post where the writer, a college educated woman, said the initial post was "interesting and full of incite". ARG! Perhaps I should "incite" people to use more "insight" into their posts?

I do hear-by give you permission to correct, in the comments, the spelling errors I may make in this blog. I edit myself, oh do I edit myself, but I can read something as correct even when it is not. Plus, I am not above learning. If I cease to learn, I cease to live. That is another post.

I'm going to Panera for lunch today. I need a chocolate croissant to settle my nerves.

Beverage: English Breakfast tea

Deb

Comfort Food

Yet another post as I'm rediscovering foods.

Jello.

I mentioned on Sunday that I had finished cleaning the cupboards, tossing lot of stuff I don't need anymore. I found some tubes of Wilton frosting. They were like concrete. I don't remember the last time I actually decorated a cake using any of the Wilton stuff I accumulated 20-odd years ago.

I did discover several boxes of jello.

I make a box and then have it for lunch the next day. I've had cherry and mixed berry so far. The cherry wasn't as set as I would have liked but the mixed berry was very nice. I don't know what's next and I don't remember exactly how many are in the cupboard to be used up. Eventually, they will all be gone and then I won't buy jello because it will just sit.

Growing up, we had jello with pretty much every supper. I kept that as I cooked for my family. I have a number of salad recipes which call for a particular flavor of jello. In August, I made an applesauce salad that had cherry jello mixed with applesauce. I'd forgotten how good that was.

And, if, like me, you had jello with pretty much any kind of fruit in it with your meal, you know about the pink mashed potatoes when your jello would melt and mix in with the other food. In my mind's eye, I can see corn swimming in green jello, peas in orange jello with a thin film of melted butter over both, red tinged mashed potatoes and slightly soggy bake and serve rolls whose bottoms sat on the edge of the plate but not far enough off the melting salad.

Thanksgiving dinner ALWAYS had red jello with fruit cocktail in it which meant my turkey, rolls, smashed potatoes and dressing took on a rosy hue. Few things brought smiles to kids' faces faster than serving jello topped with Cool Whip for dessert. One of the first things I learned to make in Home Ec as a 7th grader was a whipped gelatin dessert. I had been cooking with my mom for several years now and when our first real assignment was to make jello, it was a piece of cake. Heck, I even knew how to make layers. It still baffles me when someone says they can't make jello. I did know a gal in college who, even supervised, could not get jello to set.

This period of forced poverty has caused me to revisit some foods I had forgotten, such as tuna casserole and jello. I was thinking how nice beef stew would be. I have to grocery shop this next weekend. I'm thinking stew meat, potatoes and carrots need to be on the list. I'm cooking more and certainly enjoying it more.

Ah jello. I need a can of sliced pears and a small tub of Cool Whip. Dessert anyone?

Beaverage: Earl Gray tea

Deb