Broken

 The other day, Tim took himself to McDonalds to eat. I had a couple appointments, but I was also going to take advantage of the day to get some groceries for Christmas, and pick up a few odds and ends that we needed from various stores, pick up some pictures I'd gotten printed off, things like that. 

Anyway, later he told me about something that really bothered him a lot. There was a man sitting at a table in the corner with a cup of coffee. He was thin and tired looking, but he was quiet. Tim watched him curiously as he ate. The man dozed off. 

An indignant woman came up to the table and in a harsh voice, woke him up. "Get out of here! Kelly doesn't want you here! Go on. Get out!" 

The man quietly got up and left with his coffee. 

It bothered Tim a lot. "She wasn't anybody," he said. "She didn't work there. She was just another customer, and the guy was not hurting anyone, sitting quietly." 

We do have a homeless guy who sleeps outside. I'm not going to say where he is, because some high school boys found his sleeping place and took all of his things, his sleeping bag and his rucksack and threw it all in the river some time back, which I found horrifying. 

Anyways, today we drywalled the ceiling in the front hall at the rehab. It was kind of tricky because it is a small tight place with stairs on one side so it makes the work space even tighter, but we got it done with a minimum of problems. In fact, I think it is the first time that we've ever done a drywall job and got all the pieces to fit perfectly on the first cut. No trimming or rasping required. Maybe we'll be professionals by the time that this job is done. 

When we were done, we headed out. Tim said, "I want to go to McDonalds and grab lunch." I had an idea he was still thinking about that fellow from last week. 

We placed our order and sat down to wait. The place was hopping busy. I'm not sure what the hold up was, but we waited for a half hour. The table next to us had a snappish mother and two young children who were hungry and fretful. A small group of door dash delivery people stood at the pick up, waiting for their orders, talking loudly. people came walked in. People walked out. An elderly man sat at a table with a small cup of coffee, dozing quietly. 

I said to Tim, "Is that the guy you saw the other day?" Tim looked behind him. "Yep," he said. "That's him." We sat in that noisy place, waiting for our food, discussing what to do, and making our plan. In spite of that noise, the man dozed, his white head bobbing just the slightest bit.

A lot of people would see a broken man sitting quietly in the corner, trying not to draw attention to himself because it is cold outside. But as we eat, we watch the people coming and going, walking past him with their large bags of food to go, or the people dumping their partially eaten food in the trash, or the people sitting together talking merrily as Christmas carols play in the background. I think they must be broken too, that they cannot see, that they do not notice, that they are not moved at the sight.

3 Days before Christmas

 Since I got my sushi maker, I've been quietly collecting the things that I need to make sushi/kimbap. I've found everything that I need except for the nori. The good news is that I found a source for it about a half hour from here. Between the weather and the holiday rushing around, I just haven't gotten there. 

Anyways, a couple weeks back, I'd stopped by the thrift store to peruse the bookshelves for the box of books I was collecting for a Christmas gift, and much I was a bit shocked to see, right there on the book shelf where it absolutely did not belong, a little rice cooker. 

The videos that I'd watched for this sushi thing all acted as if a rice cooker was a necessity to make good sushi, but I didn't get that. I make my rice in a pan on the stove and it is okay. But sticky rice is a requirement. 

Was my rice sticky? I couldn't tell you for sure, because usually I'm adding it to something else, but I kind of felt like it would be sticky enough, and I hate sinking a lot of money into something until I'm sure that it is something that I'm going to do in the long term, so I decided against a rice cooker. 

Except, now there was one right there in front of me, priced at $4.99. The universe was whispering 'yes. You need a rice cooker.' So it came home with me, along with some books, and a Steeler's cap with tags that Tim found. 

Today, I used that rice cooker for the first time to go with stirfried vegetables and teriyaki beef and discovered that the universe knew what it was talking about. I did need a rice cooker. 

Anyhow, the big news here is that a local hot shot business man had one of his businesses burn down this afternoon. What makes this remarkable is that he had another business hit by a truck on the 21st of December 2023. He had a business burn down on January 30th, 2024. Another place burned down on April 18th. Now a third fire. 

One fire was determined to be caused by a gasoline spill. Another fire is undetermined. The investigation for today's fire is ongoing, of course. 

I can't figure out how he manages to get insurance coverage. 

Anyways, it is 3 days before Christmas. Tomorrow we'll work on the rehab.

 testing....testing....

Well, Thelma, save the tutorial. I have figured it out!

All is Revealed

I was very excited to get my sister's gift to her. I'd been keeping this secret for an awful long time. She had the lid but her dish came up missing after a family celebration. For two years, she has hoped for its safe return, no questions asked. Hope springs eternal. 

So...no Andrew, this did not turn out like an O. Henry story. She opened the box, was gobsmacked, leaped to her feet, went straight to her cupboard to grab the lid, and lo...it was a perfect fit. 

(that was actually my big fear...that the lid would be slightly different.)

 She had the picture on the family facebook page within minutes. So. That was happy. 

Last night was happy too, up at the top of a snow covered hill, inside a toasty warm wood heated kitchen. The lanterns glowed from their corners and the rockers had been pulled from the living room next to the wood stove. 

The kids burst out the door and quickly took gifts and warm pans, fresh from the oven and wrapped in thick towels. Rudy was delighted to see a package with his name on it. So much excitement. Even one of the older boys had to be scolded by his mother for 'snooping'. 

We enjoyed a leisurely supper, stretching it out just a little to pique the excitement, and then they were turned loose. 

It was over in the matter of minutes. They separated out two packages that were specifically for the younger two. David loves horses, and so we bought him a Schleich horse and a picture book of horses. There was a ball and a pull toy that was a line of ducks that quacked as it rolled along. 

Rudy got a box with his own ball and a school bus that was a toy, but also played a game with the kids asking for them to find letters. He started school this year. He also got a letter picture book. He loved that school bus. 

 Steve would have glowed with happiness to see them going through that box of books. It really does tickle me to watch how excitedly they sort through books. In fact, Andy was engrossed in one of them before the excitement even died down. He was anxious to learn The Secret of the White Tail Deer. A book about turkeys lay on his lap. 

We played several games of Shut the Box. I think they will love that. 

I had come across a book called 'Old Bear'. A large teddy bear held the book on his lap. They loved that bear. He passed from child to child, hugged and studied, his soft fur marveled at. 

There is something quite magical about sitting in a warm kitchen by a large woodstove, watching the kids all playing, from the oldest to the youngest. There was plenty of chatter as they all examined everything. The air was filled with the sound of happy farting. (They all got cans of flarp). When the first flarp fart was released, I saw Mattie's shocked face as she stared around trying to figure out who'd made that horribly rude sound. She was much relieved to discover that the sound did not come from one of her children, and burst out laughing. 

Except for the two youngest, there was no squabbling at all. They passed the things around agreeably chattering, and everyone seemed to gravitate towards something. Of course, David screamed like crazy because he wanted Rudy's school bus and Rudy howled because he was still playing with it. Two year olds are not so patient about waiting their turn. 

 Mattie said, "They will read those books and I will enjoy the peace and quiet." Levi watched Rudy playing with the perplexus ball and said, "He will sit there for the longest time trying to work that out." 

We watched them, as we drank coffee and chattered about this thing or that, and in that way, three hours flew by, the keywound clock ticking off the seconds from its place on the wall.  It was a contented ride down their hill and back home, the snow flying in the dark. 

I love that celebration. 

Secrets

 It was a long day. The wrapping is done, except for one thing that arrived tonight. And another thing which I found upstairs that I forgot, which should have gone into the package that I mailed. Oh...and a gift that was larger than any gift bag I had. (At this point, fearful of what I will find, I'm not looking around much.) 

Can you all keep a secret? My sister's birthday is Saturday. Her favorite baking dish was a yellow pyrex one, probably from the late 40s. She loved it. It had a glass lid. Somehow, under very tragic circumstances, that dish came up missing after a family party. She had her lid, but the dish itself was gone. She sent out a mass message to the family, but no one ever got it back to her. Every holiday, once again, she does a message about her dish, just in case someone comes across it in the course of getting ready for the big day.

Vintage pyrex is pretty pricey, and she's a practical sort who is not going to spend $30 on an old dish (it is genetic, I suppose), but she really did love that dish. Out of curiosity, I was looking on line. I found the same dish, the same size, even the same color! It was going cheaply because the woman did not have the glass lid that goes with it, which made me laugh. So that is my sister's birthday present and I honestly think that I'm more excited about this than I am about any Christmas present I have bought. I cannot wait until Saturday! If you see her, DO NOT BREATHE A WORD!

The day started early. I was up at 6:30 for an appointment. Then we went to the school to see my husband's grandson receive a special award. He is a math genius, in the true sense of the word. He loves numbers, and when other kids were learning to add and subtract, he had taught himself to multiply and divide by watching you-tube videos. He's a neat kid. 

Then it was off to take care of the cats and crows at the new build, and Tim had an appointment to get two new tires on the car. Johnny works at that garage, and it always gives me a chuckle to think that an Amish man is making his living working on cars. 

A nothing day, really, but I kept myself busy and I got a lot of nothing done.

 Tomorrow is a big day too. I've got pulled pork barbecue to do, a cake to bake, a pan of macaroni and cheese. At 5:30, we are headed over to have a Christmas party with Levi and Mattie and the kids, which is always a good time. When we pull up in the driveway, the kids coming running out. They are excited to unload the car. They carry in the gifts and stack them on a table in the corner, chattering away in Pennsylvania Dutch. We eat supper by lantern light, and the kids' eyes keep darting over to that stack of gifts while we eat.

It is just fun to watch their excitement. The big box on the end is something that will tickle everyone...it is full of books, and it delights me to no end how thrilled they all get over a simple box of books. There's probably 40-50 books in there, books for everyone, even grandma. The gift I am most excited about is a game. It is called 'Shut the Box'. I can't wait to teach them how to play it. I know that they will catch on very quickly. They all have very quick minds. 

On that bright note, I'm going to bed. I hauled the wrapped box of books out to the hall to put with the other things. It was heavy enough that it really aggravated my knee. I will let Tim haul it out to the car, and as I mentioned, we won't have to worry about unloading the stuff from the car.

 

Christmas preparations.

I went down to feed the cats today, and to pick up some extra insulation batts that we did not use at the new house, and brought it back to the rehab. It was snowing like crazy by the time that I finished there and headed out. Big fluffy flakes after a night of rain made for slush, and a tricky drive home. I saw spots where cars had slid around on the road and I was sick to my stomach as I drove, but I was awfully glad to get back into town. 

I dropped off the insulation. Tim was doing some wiring, and there was nothing I could really do without interrupting that, so I came home and spent the afternoon wrapping.  

I need to buy Tim's gift. I have one thing. I am getting one more, but it is kind of difficult when we're always together. We are not buying a lot for each other this year. He wanted a heated vest for hunting, which I found and bought for him, but there was no use making him wait until Christmas for it. He bought me a new stove and then we both picked out our flooring. That is more than enough Christmas, I think.

I bought two dozen farm fresh eggs for the Christmas strata, which is what we have for breakfast. I like it because you make it the day before, and stick in the fridge over night. Pop it into the oven when you get up the next morning, and you have a good breakfast that feeds whoever comes by. 

8 cups of dried bread, cubed (I like to use a loaf of Italian bread from the day old discount shelf.)

Brown the sausage. I also add my onions, peppers and mushrooms to that, and fry it up all together. If I have some spinach, I toss that in at the end. Drain off any liquid/grease, add it to your cubed bread. 

I use a dozen beaten eggs, 2 cups of milk, 3/4 cup heavy cream blended together. 

Season with 8 ounces of grated cheddar. 

I season with a teaspoon of thyme, 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 tsp of pepper, and a dash of cayenne, mixing it into the egg and milk mixture. Add that to the bread cube/meat vegetable mixture, and stir all together. Put in a greased 9 x 13 pan, cover with foil and stick into the fridge over night. Next morning, remove the foil, bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven, for 50 minutes or so. Watch it. It's done when it is puffed up and golden and doesn't jiggle in the middle. Don't overcook it or it will be dry. 

The cool thing is that if you are not a meat eater, leave the meat out. (If you do not eat eggs or dairy, well...I would suggest something else for breakfast.) You can vary the vegetables used. Just google 'strata' and you will find them, I'm sure. 

Put some juice on the table, and you've got your breakfast. 

My favorite carol this year: The Wexford Carol is the oldest known Christmas carol, dating back to the 13th century. It is as Irish as our Dave. Stop over and check out his dogs all done up in their Christmas finery. 

There are many version of it out there. 

It is a quiet Christmas season here, but there is peace, and that is good. I've been doing a lot of reading. The Tao Te Ching has been providing clarity to these days that I simply do not understand. There is a great deal of anger right now. "Fight, fight!" I don't feel that. What I believe is that we should pay very close attention to what is happening, believe what is being said, and plan accordingly. There is nothing to 'fight'. We can't fight about what will happen, because there are people who simply do not believe that it will happen. Their unbelief will not change the future, however. 

It seems wise to prepare. My sister asked me what I wanted for Christmas. Cow poop, I told her. I told her not to bother wrapping it, but I imagine she'll drive the tractor over, dump a load or two, and then put a bow on it just for giggles. After Christmas, I'll place an order for my seeds. 

Errands.

 Today was a different day. Tim found a factory on line. They custom make tongue and groove flooring, and we've been debating what to put down in the 'big room' which is the combined living room and kitchen area. He wanted to see what they have. They are located in Titusville, about 16 miles from the new house, so we did a bit of work, but quit early and headed off. 

First stop was to the post office to get a package mailed. I was waiting in a line that continued to grow. Behind me I heard a woman's voice. She was speaking to a man. "Here," she said sweetly, "you go first." He was a bit surprised but thanked her. She continued on, her voice losing sweetness "I could tell that you were in a hurry. I saw you whip out into traffic at the light on Third St and you had absolutely no business driving like that!" She continued to bitch him out loudly in front of everyone. He looked dumbfounded. In a jolly voice, I said, "Merry Christmas everyone!"  

Second stop: We stopped at the new build to feed the cats and to measure our room once again. Just for grins, we took a measure of the bedrooms as well. Tim was quite impressed that a large flock of turkey paid a call in the the yard. 

Then we headed off for our next stop, to find that factory. The address 701 E Spring St. covers probably 40 or 50 warehouses, which are home to about 30 different businesses. To make things even more difficult, we found a sign that listed our destination as building 29, which we found after much looking. It was behind building 63, which was across the road from Building 6...there was really no rhyme or reason to the layout. To make things even more 'interesting', we approached the building from behind, so we weren't even sure we had the right building until we circled around and found the front entrance, which did not look much different from the back entrance. There was no sign with the name of the business...only the building number. 

I didn't hold out much hope. I figured that they made the product and sold through venders. Turned out that I was very wrong. The business is owned by a husband and wife team. The wife was quite knowledgeable about her product, and she strode through the factory showing us what they made. We were able to choose hickory, circular sawn. Tim thought we should not stain it. It was light, like the cupboards, light like the walls. 

My fear was that without a little bit of contrast, our space would have all the ambiance as a card board box. Tim was convinced as soon as the lady said that they would give the boards a light stain using a wood dye that they import from the UK. She says that it doesn't coat the wood, it soaks into the wood, and that if we ever end up with damage to the floor, we can buff it out, and the color will remain consistent. 

It was more than Tim wanted to spend, but the boards were 3/4 inch thick, which is much thicker than any flooring you would buy at a big box department store. The boards were straight and true, nothing flimsy about them. 

So we took a deep breath and ordered our floor. We saw some other stuff that might work for the bedrooms. She looked at us, and said, "Do you hire out?" We said that we did the work ourselves. She was quite impressed with that. She said, "I don't know if you want to bother..." She took us into a back room and showed us some boards. They were too short for their purposes, but she showed us how they piece together to make a pattern. She offered to sell us those for $3 a square foot. Tim snapped them up. 

Do you ever get the feeling that you are meant to meet someone? It was just the most interesting thing. We had people in common, experiences in common. We talked far longer than we should have, but what a wonderful thing to find a kindred soul! She has a dog there, a blue heeler that they have to watch very closely. She's not a friendly dog, nervous, wearing a thunder vest. But we talked so long that I made friends with that dog. 

She watched me closely. I kept my hands in my pockets but leant forward to talk to her each time she approached. She'd look at me and back away growling. The dog was reprimanded sharply (she was leashed), but I had a hunch. I said, "She's making my acquaintance. I'm keeping my hands in my coat pockets so I don't get bit, but she's very curious. Let's let her decide what happens next." 

Before that visit was done, I was forehead to forehead with that dog, and her tail wagged wildly. I told her she was a sweet baby, and her owner watched with no small surprise. The detente was reached within an hour. I love that feeling, of seeing an animal decide.  You can see the actual moment that the decision is made to trust. You can see it in their eyes. Their whole body language changes. That is no small compliment there. The owner said, "You must have dogs." When I said no, she said, "Well...you should."

So today we made new friends, quadrupeds and bipeds alike. We also bought all the rest of flooring for the house for $3200. It is a lot of money, but we both felt that a cheap floor would cost more in the long term. We just want things to last. 

After that, we headed off to Corry for our next stop. Our old friend Geez needed to stock up on his grains and beans and asked if we would stop in at Happs, the discount grocery, where you can pick up the microwaveable pouches of organic grains for  59 cents. Since we've been meaning to go there anyway, we decided to tick multiple boxes today. 

We stopped to have lunch at a pub in Spartansburg between the two towns. We'd never eaten there before, and it was filled with taxidermy, deer and elks mounts, antler light fixtures, the like. Tim said there was a stuffed alligator there, which I didn't see, but I did see the porcupine standing on his hind legs next to a sign that said, "Don't be a prick. Leave a tip." Made me giggle. 

I had probably the best chicken salad I've had in a long time. Tim ordered a turkey and bacon salad. I'm not sure that I've ever mentioned this before, but if you order a salad in western Pennsylvania, you are very likely to get your salad topped with an order of french fries. True story. 

Our last errand was for Levi. He called and asked if we would be willing to pick up two bb guns for Ruben and Amos' Christmas. Sure, we said. He explained exactly what he wanted. He couldn't buy them. Walmart doesn't sell BB guns to the Amish. 

"WHAT????" I said incredulously. He said he had a friend who tried to buy a BB gun but they had refused to sell it to him. Craziest thing I ever heard, but we headed to Walmart. We did the rest of our Christmas shopping, and picked up the two BB guns Levi wanted, and printed out the pictures from our trip to the zoo this summer to put into a photo album for one of their Christmas presents. 

We went to the self checkout. When we scanned the BB guns, the sale was halted and an attendant needed to come over and verify that we were adults. She looked at us and scanned her badge to bypass that step.

So Tim told her about Levi's friend. She was a little bit shocked. All she was required to do was to make sure that it was not a teenager or a kid buying it. She mused for a moment and said, "Well, maybe the employee wasn't sure of the age." I laughed. That comment is sure to delight Levi who has a beard halfway down to his belt and it has plenty of gray in it just like any other Amish man in the community. 

Tim thought perhaps it was because he didn't have a picture ID. The employee explained that he did not need a photo ID, that a hunting or fishing license was adequate. She wondered if perhaps the other employee simply did not know. In any case, we can now explain it to Levi and the word will spread through the community. 

Amish Christmas will be Friday night. I am very much looking forward to it.