Dackel Princess

The Sadness

I was watching TV this morning, when there was a news alert: Two reporters in Roanoke, Virginia, had been shot and killed while doing a live interview on the early morning news. A reporter, Alison Parker, 24, and a cameraman, Adam Ward, 27, were the victims.

They were not sure who could have done such a heinous thing, at first, but then a somewhat blurry picture was released of the gunman.

I said to Hubby, that the picture was good enough, that people would be able to make his face out, and know who he was.

In less than an hour, they knew who it was. A former, disgruntled employee, that had been fired nearly two years ago. From all accounts, he was difficult to get along with and was a disruptive presence at the TV station, which led to his dismissal.

And then, for two years he waited. He waited and he planned and obtained a gun and illegal bullets, and planned again. The biggest question now is, how did he know they were doing the live interview at this shopping area at 6:45 AM on Wednesday?

I guess it doesn’t really matter now. We cannot bring back those two wonderful, young, lives. And the shooter is dead, having taken his own life, once he felt that he had finally been the center of attention on the TV and the Internet.

Yes, this very sick man, filmed himself shooting these innocent people and then posted it to Facebook. They got it down pretty quickly, but the segment is out there.

I told Hubby that what bothers me, is that this man was criminally insane, and should have been in a mental health facility long ago. However, the USA, in all their progressiveness, no longer does anything for the truly mentally ill.

Men and women like this man, are out these and will commit terrible crimes against humanity just because our country is failing to protect our communities from criminally insane people.

What Hubby wants to know is, how this TV station could have hired such a troubled man, who had been released from 6 other stations before being let go by this one.

My heart aches for the family and friends of Alison and Adam. Their lives should not have ended doing a live interview at 6:45 in the morning.

My 4000th Post

Today is my 4000th posting on Dackel Princess! In 15 years it has been a joy for me to write each day and share my world with all of you! Thank you for reading and commenting!

1. It’s hard to believe, but next week’s Hodgepodge will find us in the month of September. What’s one thing you want, need, or hope to do still before summer officially ends?

Have our Lobster Bake with my cousins, Janet & Dave. They are coming up on Sunday and we will share a wonderful New England Lobster meal!

2. When were you last at ‘your wit’s end’?

Yesterday. It seemed no matter what I was doing, nothing was coming out right. Frustration mounted, and at one point I just broke down into tears!

3. Describe a time you were figuratively thrown into ‘the deep end’?

I think with the cancer surgery and repair afterward. I do not think anything could have prepared me for that. I felt like I was tossed into the deep end of the pool, and it was sink or swim. Fortunately, I am a strong swimmer!

4. Does the end always, ever, or never justify the means? Explain.

No. I believe in following the rules and doing things honestly. It may take longer, it may be harder, but in the end, I will be proud of my efforts.

5. What makes your hair stand on end?

A serious thunder and lightening storm. Not a fan. My cousin, Janet loves them, but they make me nervous. Imagine my scare when lightening hit the transformer outside my home in Florida! I was lying on the sofa one moment and on the floor the next!

6. I read an article on the website Eat This! Health, that listed 11 foods we can eat to help end bad moods. Basically it’s a feed your brain so you’re less anxious, grouchy and lethargic. The foods are-mussels, swiss chard, blue potatoes, grass fed beef, dark chocolate, greek yogurt, asparagus, honey, cherry tomatoes, eggs, and coconut. Which of those do you think would most help end your own bad mood? Which do you fear, if forced to eat, would put you into a bad mood?

All of the above would put me in a good mood, and since I am a lifetime member of Weight Watchers I will tell you that since I am a food-a-holic there is not much that makes me get into a bad mood. Maybe collard greens, but that is about it!

7. What project around your home, office, or life in general feels like there is ‘no end in sight’?

Painting. I need to repaint the entire interior of the house, as well as the trim on the outside. I’m thinking I will hire someone for the outside, but the inside I think I can handle!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Me 15 years ago with my Shubi, when I started Dackel Princess.

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greta

Greta.

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Arnie..

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Anneliese

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Lili

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And me, 15 years later.

This & That

On Monday I harvested 22 Ichiban Eggplant and made a second eggplant lasagna. It came out really well, but even I get a little tired of it after a few meals!

So, I am cutting it into individual servings and putting it in the freezer for a quick mid-winter meal. I do the same when I break down and make regular lasagna.

Hubby and I watched the Stock Market open and crash this morning, making us very happy that we are in simple Money Markets right now. I feel pretty sad for people whose retirement savings has been affected.

Greta continues to be a little snuggle bug. Imagine that at the age of 11 years old! She sure has mellowed in her golden years!

Arnie and Anneliese, at the age of 8, are both at that perfect age. They love to be out, running around, and their behavior is really good. Most of all, they just adore each other. I guess that is the way it is with Litter-Mates.

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It’s been a joy to watch them grow up together!

El Jimador

I have lived in this area for 16 years, and we have yet to find a local Mexican Restaurant that was any good. That was, until last night.

When we arrived at El Jimador, the parking lot was full and as we were shown to our seat, I glanced at what people were eating. It all looked good!

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Four of us went and each of us ordered a wonderful meal. My husband started off his meal with Sopa De Pollo, a wonderful chicken soup! We all tasted it and declared it marvelous!

Between us we ordered a Taco Salad, Steak Fajitas, Chile Relleno, a Tamale, Enchilada and a Beef Burrito. The portions were more than generous, and we brought home what was leftover for our lunch tomorrow.

The décor was nice, the staff was friendly and efficient, and we can hardly wait to go back. It is so nice when you find these places right in your back yard!

Crazy Saturday

Life can sometimes be a little crazy. Today was one of those days. It wasn’t that it was bad, it was more that I was really busy from the moment my feet hit the floor until, well, I sat down to write this post.

I made the third (and thankfully better) batch of Heavenly Jam. It took quite a bit of cooking time, which meant standing over a hot stove. But this batch seemed to come out better.

After that I began the rather arduous task of peeling and cutting up the cucumbers, onions and peppers for a half batch of Moon Glow Pickles. Tomorrow I will can it.

I then pronounced that dinner would be leftovers, as I simply couldn’t face preparing another meal tonight.

Yesterday I tried a new recipe for Wiener Schnitzel and it was less than great. It was edible, but that was about all you could say about it.

I have also been trying to get the house whipped into shape, and I am failing miserably. I need about three days of doing nothing but making trips to the recycling center with JUNK! Maybe that should be a week! But I think sometimes, just getting started is the hardest part.

Although the garden did not live up to my expectations, it has produced a fair number of cukes and beans. Oh yes, and also eggplant. The tomatoes are starting to come in, and spaghetti sauces will be made.

Eggplant Lasagna

I love eggplant, and currently have six plants in my garden. They have grown long thin eggplants, and this year, it seemed that many of their long fingers ripened at once. Yesterday I harvested 24 Ichiban Eggplants. I thought about what I could do and it came to me…Eggplant lasagna!

So I peeled the Eggplant, sliced them in half, and tossed them in Italian bread crumbs. Then I put them on a PAM sprayed cookie sheet, gave them a little pray on their upper side, and roasted in the oven at 425 degree for 20 minutes, turn and cook for another 15 minutes or until they are nicely browned on both sides.
Once roasted, I set them on wire racks to cool.
Meanwhile, I had my own Spaghetti Sauce, made with Italian Sausage, that I thawed and had standing by.
I used 8 ounces of Ricotta Cheese mixed with 1 egg. (Or 1/4 cup of egg whites) Whip it thoroughly.
Cook 6 lasagna noodles.
Get a 9X11 inch glass pan. Spray with PAM or other nonstick spray.
Layer:

Spread a small amount of spaghetti sauce on bottom of pan.
Lay one layer of lasagna noodles in pan. (mine hold three across.)
Spread spaghetti sauce on noodles.
Place a layer of Eggplant in the same direction of the noodles.
Take some shredded Mozzarella cheese and place over eggplant lightly.
Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of that.
Then place dollops of Ricotta mixture on top of that, and then spread all over the top of the eggplants.
Then place the second layer of noodles across this.
Cover with spaghetti sauce.
Then place the second layer off eggplant on top of this.
Then sprinkle a fair amount of Mozzarella cheese.
Lastly, take some Parmesan cheese and sprinkle on the top.

Cook in a 350 degree oven for 50-55 minutes. Make sure cheese is melted and bubbly.
Take out of oven and set on the top of stove, turning off the heat.
Let sit for about 10 minutes so it will “jell” and be easier to cut.

If you have any questions, let me know. I will be trying this with regular eggplant this winter, when my garden stops producing.

Mom

It’s been two years since my Mom passed away. Ours was a difficult relationship, while she lived, but there were those moments, the good memories, that seem to be coming in and taking over, and the sad and bitter memories fade away.

Rosamond Ruth

June 28, 1929 – August 21, 2013

Mom in April

I hope you are happy, and resting peacefully

with all of our loved ones, who went before.

TBT: Me Age 10

Mom said, I was always bringing home strays, and here are the kittens from one of the strays I brought home.

I was walking home from school, when I saw a dirty, but fat cat in the road. I spoke to her and she followed me. She seemed very hungry and so, when I got home I fed her milk and some of the cat food we had for our Siamese, Smokey.

About that time, Mom came in and questioned me about the cat. It was determined that the next day we would bring her to the animal shelter. Mom suspected she was not fat, but expecting kittens!

Sure enough, that night, the cat had three kittens, and then she passed away. Mom, Mel and I all took turns feeding the babies and they all lived. We even had two of them with us for a while.

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The two we kept were Ebony and Endora, which I am holding.

I still look out for, and rescue critters when I can. I sure hate to see anything lost or suffering. I guess it just was in my genes, and started very early.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Way back when (the Hodgepodge bicentennial to be precise) several of you submitted questions as part of a giveaway I was hosting. I went back to that list for inspiration today and found a question submitted by Marla, who blogs over at Marla’s Musings. Thanks Marla!

She asks-At what age did you feel like a ‘grown-up’? What keeps you young now?

I felt grown up at 26. I was faced with a life changing event. That was when I knew I was an adult. It was sink or swim. What keeps me young now? Easy…Savannah!

11915443_10207306395999851_4128664911584445531_n (2) 2. When did you last buy a vehicle? Was this by design or because you had no other option? Was the car/truck purchased for your own personal use or was it bought for someone else to drive? On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being delightful and 1 being ‘pass the Excedrin’) how would you rate the experience? Okay, it is a year and a half ago. We bought our Toyota Highlander. It was by necessity. Previously we owned an old 4 wheel drive Jeep, which was our winter car. That Jeep was really old. Anyway, midwinter a year and a half ago, Hubby and I drove to the grocery store in a snow storm. We got out of the car, closed the drivers side door and all the rusty metal, just fell off!!! We knew what we wanted to buy, but it wasn’t until we saw an add a few months later for a 2012 Highlander, with 8000 miles on it.

Highlander

The car was pristine, one owner, and around what we wanted to pay. But the dealership nickled and dimed us, and after getting half way home with our car, we realized they’d only given us one key fob! We called them and they claimed that Hubby had lost it! Finally they said that it only came to them with the one fob. Oh, and a new one would be $150.00 and another $100.00 to program. We quickly associated ourselves with a better and more trusted dealership, that got us the key fob for a reasonable price and programmed it for a lot less.

So although we love the Highlander, we detested the experience with the Dealership.

3. Corn bread, corn chips, corn pudding, corn on the cob, cornflakes, corn chowder-your favorite of the corn-y foods listed? What needs to be served alongside your selection?

Corn on the cob. It needs no accompanying dish. Good summer corn is a delight all by itself!

4. What’s something in your life that regularly requires you to ‘put your thinking cap on’?

Meals. Although I love to cook, I get into a rut with meals. Some days I wish we could just go out, as I get too tired to even cook!

5. Share a favorite movie set in a school or classroom, or whose theme relates to school days in some way.

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I think I relate to that movie now, because I realize how different we all were back then in school, but how alike we were too. Full of doubt, wondering about our abilities. Yes, The Breakfast Club for sure!

6. Reading, writing, and ‘rithmatic’ are commonly referred to as the three R’s. What are the three R’s in your life right now?

Running around, as I try to can and freeze the produce we have from the garden. Rheumatology, as I am working to find just the right mix of meds to take for my arthritis. Reservations, as we will be attending an Army Aviators Reunion in the Fall.

7. What’s something you’ve learned or tried recently you can say was as ‘easy as ABC’?

We went out to Olive Garden and I tried their Minestrone Soup. I do not like Minestrone Soup, but thought, what the heck. Well, I loved it! Their soup is awesome!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I got my stitches out today and the hand is just a little sore, but really, it is all good. I now have official therapy to do with my hand, and in about 6 weeks I will be better than ever!

Life

Tuesday afternoon, I get my stitches out. Two neat stitches just under my middle finger on the right hand. I had the bandage off to shower, and it looks great. I expect that once the stitches are out, it will be easier to do my physical therapy.

As it is, I have really come a long way. I can almost open my fingers up perfectly straight, and I no longer wake with that finger locked. Really, the hand isn’t just good, but great!

I managed to can 9 half pints of Heavenly Peach Jam! It tasted so good! After that I sat down and did half of the prep work for another batch.

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I cooked our meals, hand washed a ton of pots and pans, and got it all done by 7:30. But, I do admit to being tired tonight.

We’re having a tremendous heat-wave here in New Hampshire. Actually I think it is all over the USA. And currently, there is no end in sight.

I love the new vacuum and plan to get it out on Wednesday and completely do the house. Miss Lili is just one giant shedding machine!