FOOTBALL AND PUMPKIN CARVING!!!

Of course it is Sunday, and my big thing was looking forward to the Steelers kicking Brett Favre's butt!! Hooray - it was awesome.

We have found out that thegrandson's elementary school has an outbreak of the H1N1 - and what does he do today - spike a temp of 100.8*. He is lethargic and has a bad headache as well. He will not be attending school tomorrow and possibly for a few more days. We are playing this one by ear. I have the runniest nose - and a headache...but what's new????

Since thedaughter managed to break her arm last year - after carving pumpkins, we took no chances and carried out the process on the kitchen table this year. All went quite well. Thegrandson is not allowed to play with knives yet...so he was relegated to "cleaning" out the pumpkin as you can see from these two pics.

The expressions he was making were hilarious. The upside is - he can't wait till his pumpkin seeds have finished baking, for his consumption.

The "spider" carving, is the same as last year. We lost the template, but I blew up last years picture and made a new template. It looks great. I have combined the pics of the pumpkins with and without a flash. Thedaughter carved the Spider and the Grim Reaper....I carved the ghost on a tombstone. I think we actually did a wonderful job this year, if I do say so myself.




Hopefully, thegrandson will be well enough to Trick or Treat on Saturday evening. Right now, he is plain miserable. He is such a tiny little guy, when he gets a "bug" he can't fight it off well. Now we start the worrying - I have mastered that art over many years.

Now....for more "pretty awful" Halloween costumes:

Poor attempt at humor - or atrocity!!!

Originality counts for something!

"W" never looked better! And I mean that!

(Cough, cough!) This is just plain sick!!

Gonna run for now...hoping the Colts get their butt kicked tonight also! Medication time - ahhhhhh drugs!!!

Have a wonderful evening and I will get back here tomorrow.....sometime.........

DON'T FORGET TO STOP BY: PAST THE VELVET ROPE (FRIDAY POSTINGS)

Football & Comfort Food........ahhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!

vs.

January 18, 2009

6:30 pm

I am on pins and needles, with the upcoming games today. I know, how stupid is that, you say...but I can't help this. My idea of a great Super Bowl, would be Philadelphia and Pittsburgh - battle of the Pennsylvania's, but I have a feeling Arizona is going to be the winner of that game. Ken Whisenhunt, coach of the Arizona Cardinals, was the offensive coordinator for the Steelers before taking this job (right after Cowher retired). He has been fortunate in creating a substantial foe with the Cardinals, I might add.

So, I have been to the grocery store, early this morning, while the snow was coming down. The chili is made - ummmmmm - now doesn't this look great???

I have some shrimp, leftover meat loaf (if anyone wants a sandwich) - and I made a sausage/salsa dip. Unfortunately, this dip will not last till tomorrow. It is so good - everyone devours it immediately. This is not the best picture (looks kind of gross actually), but yummmmmmmmmy!

1 pound Bob Evans original recipe sausage (bulk)

1 jar Tostidos salsa

1 pound Velveeta cheese

Brown sausage and break into small pieces while cooking. Add salsa. Slowly add Velveeta cheese (cubes) till melted. This dip is exceptionally better warm. Can be microwaved to reheat. Delicious.

Thegrandson and I have our Steeler gear on - and I mean gear here. I have earrings (studs & dangles) rings, bracelets, jerseys....I even have Steeler outerwear, but I know I won't be needing all that in the house. Yes, have you caught on that I am a die-hard Pittsburgh Steeler fan?? No doubt about it!

Everyone have a great Sunday - and I may return, one never knows.....Later..................

Can you spell S*T*U*P*I*D????????? Whew...

P. T. Barnum once said "there is a sucker born every minute," and I have to wonder what his statisitics were for the STUPID!!

We are not talking rocket science, when it comes to very large animals, with very large teeth and claws, kept in very secure cages, and the security provided for the people to view these creatures. So here, we have a 20 year old China man, who says that the Panda bear looked so cuddly, he just wanted a hug!?!?! It appears the STUPID young man will survive his injuries, but I have to wonder what his next ridiculous act will be. Surely, this has not taught him any kind of a lesson with his absurd attitude. Oh hell, maybe it has and I am not giving him any credit.

I just get all weird when I read about such senseless, stupid acts. What kind of parenting did this individual have, has he read any biology books, or did he just hear of this new breed of "gentle bear - we will call a Panda"? Give me a break! My patience level for stupid acts is extremely low - can ya tell?

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I got up early this morning, dressed and of course make-up on, and I was going to get all the grocery shopping and my dollar store (paper) purchases made before anyone else got up. Well formulated plan - shot to hell. Thegrandson got up and wanted to go with me - why, he would want to go out in 27* weather escapes me, but I caved.

He is really no problem at all, he is in charge of the buggy and marking off the items on my list - which he does well. He has a few problems with rushing the buggy around corners and sometimes knocking someone down - but such is life. Having found this picture, gives me a good laugh - as I LOVE my Crocs. I have summer Crocs and I have lined winter Crocs. I wear them all the time - and I know some people thing they look awful - NOT ME!! Hey, I still love bell bottom jeans, what can I say. Fashionista I'm not! Dress for comfort - you betcha! They work well in grocery stores just fine...so I ignore any looks or sneers.

Our final destination was Movie Gallery, and I was going to let thegrandson get a movie and a Playstation game. He lucked out and found what he wanted...and back home we came. Bless his heart, he lugged the 12 packs of pop in the house, even the huge bag of dog food - and I didn't even ask. This does scare me a wee tad.

I made some chicken salad, which we will feast on for a couple of days - great weekend food. I think thegrandson and I will make some blueberry muffins in a little while - he loves them and we really don't have anything else to do. His mom is at work and we can do any crazy thing we want - my rules!! Ohio State just kicked Michigan's ass (expected) and WVU trounced their opponent - that all makes for a good mood also.

Have a good weekend. Stay warm and healthy. Later......

My 3rd and FINAL tattoo...I think !!!!

The rose beneath the butterfly is my newest addition. I discussed having the rose done with my kids and they all said it was a neat idea. There is a method to my madness though...Mom2!

Since I lost my friend in October, I can hardly think of anything else, and above all, we had discussed having roses woven through our butterflies, as we know, tatts are addictive. Mom2 was ecstatic after she got her butterfly in April, and as for me having this one done, it is all for my friend Jean. I had one petal colored red, which signifies my friendship and bond. As I explained to the kids and the artist who did the tatt - this would mean absolutely nothing to anybody but ME.

The funny thing was when we went to get Jean's butterfly, afterwards, when we had the entire staff rolling on the floor laughing...she told Chad (the artist) that she was seriously considering coming back and having him do a BATTLESHIP across her chest. Chad said if she would allow it - he would do it for free. Needless to say, Chad remembered my friend and was very sad to hear that she had passed away. Jean and I left a definite impression wherever we went...maybe not always good, but memorable.

Our big snowfall is all gone now as it has been raining non-stop for 2 days and the temps have been rising steadily. Tomorrow is going to be close to 60 degrees.

I guess theson won't be here for Christmas, as he and Jules will be driving to Florida Christmas Eve. That makes me so sad, because he will be leaving for Egypt Jan. 2nd for heaven knows how long. He was home last year for Christmas, but in India for 2005. I don't see how I can ever allow him to move away and have his own family - toooo traumatic. I may need lots of medication.

So much for now, going to snuggle in and watch TV - football night. Damn New England Patriots - sorry my Boston friends. The Steelers looked like shite for sure. Falcons and Saints tonite.

Stay healthy and TTFN.

Still dangerous situation...fire still burning!

Amazingly enough, the fire (previous blog) is still burning, almost 26 hours later. I was just back at the scene, and water is still being poured into the remaining structure - it is a mess! Also, considering it has been raining all night, one would think that would help - but the center of the structure still is being supported by 16" oak beams which have all dropped and piled into this one area. The firemen told me that when that area is totally consumed the possibility increases considerably that the entire structure will collapse.

Eight companies have been contacted to have the building dismantled, and the stock answer was "No, too dangerous!" Governor Strickland has sent a representative who has now contacted a firm in Cleveland to see if they will tackle this job - the gentleman is expected to arrive in town early this afternoon. There is always the chance that this building will not wait for a "company" to tear it down...every minute that passes, collapse is more imminent.

With this side view, it is easy to see that the entire building has been gutted. This one hose has been directed on one of the hot spots in the center. An interesting fact, after I spoke with the Water Superintendent of the treatment plant, he stated that over 2 million gallons of water had been sprayed on this fire in the first couple of hours. When our resources were seriously depleting, the tanker brigade started getting water from the Ohio River and filling portable "ponds."

I am posting this for my friends in other states as they are also familiar with this business and its location. That's all for now...football day (NFL) and have to get my fix. Especially since WVU managed to get beat last night and that depressed me...I was hoping to see WVU and Ohio State mix it up. BooHoo!



Take care and stay healthy...TTFN.



I found this humorous - firemen
taking at break - using the table & chairs from Country Square this morning. Just manning the hoses and chatting.