Go Tigers! Go Red Sox! Go Cardinals?

I love this time of year! It’s pumpkin spice season, time to start getting goodie bag fillers for the ghosts and goblins at the end of the month and it’s baseball postseason! Yesterday was a good day as the Red Sox and Tigers both won! Let’s see them continue doing that. Those nasty Devil Rays, and they will always be the Devil Rays, threw a wrench in our postseason plans. Our big splurge this year with not one but two playoff games! We had tickets for the Indians home game on Monday against the Red Sox. Stupid Devil Rays. Now the other tickets, our now only game, will be for the ALCS; game two in Detroit. The plan, and I don’t want this plan messed up, listen this time Devil Rays, is to enjoy a repeat of our first date. It has to be no less than Boston at Detroit.

I’m almost embarrassed to admit that while watching the Pirates and Cardinals I found myself cheering for the Cardinals. Arch sports enemy of my Reds or not. the truth is that I have a lot of friends and good acquaintances that are Cardinals fans. I’ve also seen games a couple of times in both St. Louis and Pittsburgh. The St. Louis fans are just nicer and better sports. When it comes right down to it, arch rivals or not, I’m going to cheer with the people I enjoy more if I don’t have a vested interest. (shrugs)

This morning we were up bright and early, well early for a Saturday, to take Kaline back to the vet. After almost a week of torturing all three of us trying to get her medicine in her, mostly unsuccessfully, I called the vet desperately asking for suggestions. They said for a little more, and not a ton more, they can give her an injection instead of the liquid medicine. After she got her shot we asked if they can put a note on her records that when there’s an option for an injection when she need medication we always want that!


Sheri and I went out to celebrate our birthdays after the fact yesterday. I treated her to lunch at Cracker Barrel and she treated me to an ice cream and coffee at Starbucks. I brought a pumpkin spice scone home from Starbucks. Oh my; HEAVEN! It was a pretty awesome girls day. It’s always a pretty awesome girls day when Sheri and I get together.


Last thing I wanted to share before I call it a blog for the day is Noto! This is not me promoting for a sponsor. This is me raving about a product I finally found, bought and love.

The first Nani-thing you’ll notice is polkadots! Actually the polkadots are one of many different covers you can put on this wonderful planner on your desktop. I just, of course, chose the polkadots.

Noto is my weekly planner! I’ve mentioned a time or two that I have been looking for software that looks, is organized and functions like an old-school planner. I “test drove” this one for a couple of weeks and fell in love! It’s got a weekly view just like the Franklin-Covey planner I loved so much but it weighs a lot less and takes less space, which is important to me now. It has monthly views and daily views if I need more details or a large overview. It’s also got icons and stickers and highlighters and my inner child loves it too!

The inner child notwithstanding, it’s practical and it keeps me organized. I just love it!


I take my leave of you now to start my baseball afternoon and evening. Go Red Sox! Go Tigers!

Pirates Went Off-Script!

Last night’s “playoff game” was not what I would have written, but unfortunately what I was prepared to watch. The Reds have the stuff, but this year they just didn’t click, not in a going to the post season kind of way. Too many key players spent time on the DL. (Because losing Joey Votto to knee surgery last year wasn’t enough.) So we start again in the spring and guys, try to stay in one piece next year! I really hope they negotiate with Shin Soo Choo and keep him as a Red. He’s been magic this year. Also David and I have matching shirts so we say “Choo-Choo” when we wear them together and we want them to be correct when we wear them!

On the other side of things, Pittsburg has been building steam for a few years, just until this year that steam was gone by the All Star Game and the second half hasn’t been kind to them. I’m not ready to give them the whole ball of wax this year, not while the Tigers and Red Sox are still in it. Actually Cleveland has been pretty amazing this year too. I hope to see them carry us Ohio fans tonight. Of course next they’ll face the Red Sox so they’ll lose our house after tonight, but tonight, GO TRIBE!


As a segue to cooking I have to confess that I might have had something to do with our loss last night. I’ve been craving my mother’s baked macaroni and cheese. I picked last night as the night that would be my first try at making it. Mom was a huge Pirates fan. Could be that the power I summoned was too much for my Reds. But look at my first try!

I noted last night that it turned out okay. My first attempt at going to act baked macaroni and cheese pieces much like Mom’s as Olive Garden’s crostada tasted like Noni’s; just enough to make me want to perfect it. I’ll definitely make it again.

We’re starting to get just a touch of harmony in the house. I think a lot of the time Carla and Marco fighting is really Carla and Marco playing. They just playe rough. Kaline is still pretty sincere with her growls but we found out the spraying wasn’t so much her acting out as it was not feeling well. She has a mild urinary tract infection. Now our greatest challenge is giving her medicine. She has to take it twice a day for two weeks and she does not like it! We tried mixing it with “Kitty Milk” the first night and she slept in Marco’s room. She drank the milk and got the medicine and then we wrestled with her to get her morning meds. That was not fun. Last night she was on to us and didn’t touch the milk. And this morning I meds were an even bigger struggle. We’re going to try one night with a medicine mix–in. Wish us luck.

One of the popular items Carla and Marco argue about is Marco have decided he likes Carla’s hammock. Kaline used it too but nowhere near as much as Carla. Marco finds it very comfy. We’ll see what happens in this new feud.

The Chronicles Is Brewing Fresh Coffee Again!

Last week Wayne at Acting Balanced wrote a post pondering some of the things I’ve been thinking about lately. It seems to me that a lot of bloggers take blogging vacation in the summer. This might be because kids are home from school, personal vacations or that it’s just too nice outside to stay inside. Wayne suggested that a lot of formerly personal blogs have “gone pro” and have become more geared toward advertising. In commenting I suggested maybe a lot of personal blogs have jumped ship to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or some simpler less committed form of communication.

I have a Facebook account and I do check it every day because I have friends and relatives who don’t blog and don’t use email anymore. I visit Facebook a couplafew times day to check messages and run through a few the timeline headlines but I still get my occasional “I posted on Facebook, why don’t you know?” I honestly don’t have any problem using whatever means are necessary for communication. I will call if you won’t use any other media but phone calls. I email people who stick to email over social media and I use my Facebook account for people who don’t communicate any other way.

I don’t like to post a lot of things going on in my life on Facebook. To me Facebook “feels” like I’m standing in a warehouse full of people and when I post my status it’s basically yelling information about myself in the hopes that the person across the room will hear it. I’m more comfortable on my blog. That “feels” like I’m sitting in the cushy chair sharing coffee and stories with friends from around the web. Maybe I just have an old-school attitude but I think that’s okay. As long as blogs are still alive I’ll keep blogging.

I think that has a lot to do with my recent bloggers block. I feel like I’ve been going through the motions and not really putting any of me in my blog. There are weeks where the only thing I’ve posted has been memes. That’s taking the easy way out. Maybe I had bloggers block a lot longer than I thought I did. Taking a month off was inevitable.

I’m going to blog more short posts. There will be my formerly usual longer posts too, but I want to recreate my cyber presence. By recreate, I mean redo it like it was when it was more of me. I’m going to limit the number of memes I do and put Nani back into The Chronicles of Nani

I hope my regulars will still stop in for a cup of coffee!

How Do You Like It, Honey?

I’m moving back into normal after my blog break and that normal includes the Monday Quiz About Me hosted by Heather and Wayne at Acting Balanced.

1. Next Saturday is "Ask a Stupid Question Day"... in preparation for it, please share a stupid question you've been asked or would like an answer to...

I’ve always believed that there are no stupid questions. Questions asked as a joke aren‘t stupid, they’re funny, right?

Okay, maybe that’s my stupid question. If a question is asked as a joke and everyone laughs, then it’s a joke, not a question. But if a question asked as a joke is taken seriously, is the question stupid or the answer?

I can usually find the answers to stupid questions before I ask them seriously by looking them up online since most of my stupid questions have to do with a pop culture reference; the last one was “What is twerking?”


2. Do you believe that workplace dressing has become too casual?

I think that answer is different from workplace to workplace. I could write a full paper on this opinion, a term paper with a little research. Suffice it to say that it depends from workplace to workplace and person to person how what people wear to work affects productivity.

A suit (with tie for men, skirt or pants for women) should be worn when meeting with a client or appearing to speak with a group or on TV/video. But in the office/shop/store it totally depends on the proven productivity of the employees and the acceptance of the end users of the products or services.

In positions where I as the customer never see the employees in the office or shop productivity is all that matters. When I see the employees, for instance in retail, if the salesperson is dressed too casual for my taste, the product is probably not suited to me either


3. What technology is on your wishlist? Is there a technology that hasn't been invented yet that you want to see happen?

I guess I’d like to look at a tablet. I haven’t really looked and have no idea if it would suit y needs, but I know how much I love my e-reader. If I could have Photoshop on a tablet, I’d love it. I have no idea if they do that, but I‘d love a more portable scrapbook computer. So I guess that answers both questions. I’d love to consider a tablet, but I want one that scrapbooks.


4. September is Honey Month - are you a fan of honey? how do you use it?

I LOVE honey sticks, which I have often found at farmers markets or produce markets. The best ones are the sours; mix any sour flavor with pure honey and YUM!

I also use honey in oatmeal and occasionally in homeopathic medicinal teas.


Now question five, my questions for my visitors to answer toady:

5. What types of seasonal festivals or fairs are happening around you? What’s your favorite part of those celebrations?

It’s fall festival season in these parts. The ones I’ve been to over the years usually happen at apple orchards or cider mills and include arts and crafts, live music and of course apple picking and specialty food items. There's also usually pumpkin picking. I’ve loved apple picking and the special weekends in the fall.

I think I’d love to rent pen of those little 4-wheelers to pick in the orchards again. Hmmm…

Still I love going, having wither an apple cider slushie or hot cider, depending on whether I’m wearing a sweater or full-on jacket. A couple years ago Scotty and Kelly went picking while I stayed at the picnic table area to read outside. It was very relaxing and a gorgeous day for sitting outside. When they came back we had cider and donuts, because cider mill donuts FROM the cider mill are the BEST!

The best part of the festivals is spending time with family and enjoying the weather the flavors of the season.

I also add to that family flavor by bringing home tons of apples to make apple chips to send as college care packages for Rina and Tori.

Book Review: The Ex Who Wouldn't Die (Charley's Ghost #1) by Sally Berneathy

Finished September 27, 2013

Book synopsis at Good Reads

When Amanda's lying, cheating, scam-artist husband, Charley, saves her life in a near-fatal motorcycle accident, she can almost forgive him for dragging his feet on their divorce. Then she discovers he'd been dead for several hours at the time she thought he rescued her. And not just dead…murdered.

On the good side, at least they are no longer married.

But she's the primary suspect in Charley's murder and, as if that isn't bad enough, Charley's ghost shows up in her apartment. He was rejected, kicked back, not allowed to go into the light. The situation was bad enough when he was alive and trying to charm his way back into her life, but now he claims to be unable to go more than a few yards away from her. She can't even be certain he isn't peeking when she undresses for bed.

Even death did not them part.

As Amanda puts her life in danger in an effort to bring Charley's murderer to justice and send him into the light or the dark or anywhere away from her, she learns her knowledge of Charley's misdeeds is only the tip of a toxic iceberg. Charley blackmailed his murderer, blackmailed Amanda's father, lied about his family being dead when he is actually related to half the town of Silver Creek, Texas, and, with his treachery, has stirred up secrets that will change Amanda's life.



My review at Good Reads

2 of 5 stars

This book really should have gotten higher rating. It was an entertaining light mystery through most of the story. The main character was likeable and the ghost of her ex, a lifetime scam artist who finds himself unable to lie after death is interesting.

The characters are a little flat, especially the characters that are supporting characters. My biggest disappointment with the book was the end. Everything fell into place as if by some magic because it wasn’t realistic. There really wasn’t support for some of the amazing things that finished the book but the reader is just supposed to accept them. When the dust finally settled and the book ended everything was wrapped up neatly with unrealistically Pollyanna emotion but the story wasn’t over due to one more improbable character emption. This made way for a second book that I don‘t think I’ll be reading. I’ll stick with book 3 in Sally Berneathy’s Death by Chocolate series.