The Northeast Corridor Tour Has Ended

The last day of the Northeast Corridor mini-tour was Tuesday November 23rd, in Syracuse, NY.

My old stomping grounds!

They seemed to get through it all OK, minus Michael Leonhart, who came up positive and had to quarantine for 10 days.

I think they learned a lot along the way and will be better prepared going out next year.

People who went to the shows all seemed to enjoy it and Donald was very upbeat and cheerful.

May 27, 2022 is my date at the Hollywood Bowl. We will see if it feels safe enough to go to it.

A Second Look At Walled Lake

My Water Post For Today.

A trip in the wayback machine. It's the 4th of July in Michigan and we spent an hour at Walled Lake. Which is right down the street from my Son's home.

Very tony and well worth the stop.

I am glad there are spots that the public is allowed to go to. We actually could have had a picnic here, if we wanted.

I love the rocks, the shore and bridge. I hope you enjoy.

Thanksgiving Weekend Is Over, Let's Bring On Hanukkah! (2021)

In between writing and correcting my Thesis, I managed to take down the photos on the credenza and dust it. Preparation for decorating it for Hanukkah, today.

I have gelt that I bought a few weeks ago at Rite Aid and I found 2 boxes of candles (also at Rite Aid). Since when did Rite Aid become my Hanukkah holiday headquarters? LOL

So I brought down the boxes that have the decorations in them and the house will begin its yearly transformation.

Enjoy the last look at Thanksgiving...and Happy Hanukkah.

The Decorated Cookies

I spent an hour or so on Thanksgiving morning decorating the cookies that I bought from Confections.

It was quite a process and I learned a lot along the way.

Definitely do not get close to the edge of the cookies, with the icing. Give the icing some room to move a bit, without falling over the edge.

Do one cookie at a time and decorate it immediately. The icing dries fast and you end up making a mess when decorating, otherwise.

Don't bother adding names to the cookies, the icing is too wet to do that.

All in all I thought they came out excellent. Yum.

The Post Office In 2021

The U.S. Post Office has made some changes since October 1st.

One of them is that it takes MUCH longer for a letter to get where it is going. Forget 3 days, it takes upwards of a week or 2 to get anywhere. I am sure morale is quite low now days.

So it was with quite a bit of fear, that I saw my package of sugar cookies from Confections sent to me this way.

Obviously, fragile means drop other things onto the box and smash it.

I opened it and they were just fine. Thank you Confections for the way you shipped the cookies inside the box. Very cushioned and loved.

Now off to decorate them for the next holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving (2021)

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Ours is quiet, once again.

Only the three of us (Makenna counts, right?)

It is going to be small, but hopefully good food. The photo is the prep for the stuffing. Got it done a day ahead and we will combine it and cook it today.

No big turkey, just turkey parts this year.

Enjoy the day.

London Fog Latte

First Off, Happy Birthday Husband of mine. :-)

My Son was drinking something during our Facebook video chat. It looked good to me, so inquired as to what it was.

It ends up being London Fog Latte.

He nicely sent me the link and I tried it. Yum.

Earl Grey London Fog Latte

Ingredients 1 cup (8 oz.) strongly-brewed earl grey tea, brewed with 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender

1/2 cup (4 oz.) steamed milk* (any kind)

1 Tbsp. granulated sugar**, or more or less to taste

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract, store-bought or homemade

Notes:

Brew earl grey tea and lavender together, and steep for 3 minutes (or according to tea instructions). Remove tea bag and strain out the lavender. Stir in remaining ingredients until combined. Serve warm.

*If you — like me — do not have a milk steamer, you can just heat the milk in the microwave or in a saucepan over medium-low heat until it is simmering but not boiling. (Very important – do not let the milk boil!)

**You can use any kind of sweetener for this tea

Booster Shot Done!

I got my booster on Monday and what an easy process.

Compared to the 2 hours I waited on line at Magic Mountain, this was a piece of cake.

Check in, jab, done!

Maybe 15 minutes...tops.

I didn't even have to wait.

Side effects: Arm hurt for a day. That's it!

Windsor, Ontario, Canada

My Water Post For Today.

I have only been to Windsor, Canada twice. Once in 2006 and once with my Son and Husband in 2018. This was the later date.

We booked a hotel just across from downtown Detroit and spent an hour or so walking the parks that are on the waterfront, in Canada.

This is a photo taken looking south at the Ambassador Bridge.

A very beautiful view, as are all the photos taken from that area.

For a city that has had so much trouble over the years, Detroit is truly beautiful, too. Canada, is (of course) stunning.

I hope you enjoy.

Confections

I read about a small bakery in Lufkin, Texas last June. I urge you to read the story first, HERE.

I don't remember how I heard about it, I assume, Facebook and I "Liked" them. I knew I could not get to Lufkin, during the Covid crisis, at least, and they do not do online selling, so I thought a few likes was all I would be able to do for them. It has been a fun 5 months, as they bake the most unusual sugar cookies I have ever seen. A month or so ago, they came up with an online cookie selling kit and they sell so fast, that by the time the West Coast is up and running, there are no more cookies left.

They heard our plea to sell the cookies when the West Coast wakes and so on Saturday, they did put the website up at 8AM pacific time.

By a pure fluke, I had finished my normal look at Facebook and came back to the top and there it was...at 2 minutes after 8AM. You can see their website, without logging into Facebook HERE.

I bought some.

Not cheap, but I wanted to show support to them, in a tangible way.

Thanks for the LGBTQ love and love for all humans and animals.

Confections...you are great.

Makenna Sitting In My Chair

Makenna decided to take my seat on Friday.

At first, she was trying to get to my food at the desk. I would have nothing to do with that.

So about 10 minutes later I saw that she was sitting at my couch chair.

I couldn't resist, I took her photo.

She is a strange cat.

Eclipse Today

It is happening on 11/19 at 1AM on the East Coast and 10PM today on the West. You can watch it on the website of the Griffith Observatory, HERE.

I thought I would give a heads-up to go walk outside and see what is going on in the sky.

I figure I will take a quick look before bed at 11PM.

What can I lose. :-)

Valencia Pool (AKA: Rockwell Canyon)

We have been swimming several times a week at LA Fitness.

It ends up that we do Tuesday and Thursday at this pool.

Wednesday and Saturday we switch to Golden Valley AKA: Santa Clarita or Canyon Country.

We had started at the outdoor pool in Stevenson Ranch, due to our fear of being near others.

As we realized that it seems to be pretty safe, we moved to the other pools, as they opened up.

It has been almost 5 months and we still do what we have done from the start. We do not shower there, we just rinse off by the pool, get dressed and shower at home.

We appreciate seeing our friends, once again and getting in our exercise.

Winter Sunset

Just a month to go, before we hit the height of winter.

The shortest day of the year known as the December Solstice or Winter Solstice, here in North America.

Looking to the west, you can see that the sun sets way to the south of my house, at this time of year.

Always beautiful to capture.

The windmill just adds to it.

A Rose In Late Fall

As things are dying for the winter, this rose decided it was time to bloom.

Double Delight is a wonderful rose and unfortunately, I planted it all the way in the corner of my backyard, by the windmill.

It took a little walk without my shoes on, to get this photo.

Hopefully, nothing attacked my feet. :-)

So worth it, though.

View From The Empire Builder

My Water Post For Today.

I have shown off other photos of this journey on the Empire Builder, but not this one.

I grabbed 4 photos to add to a group I now belong to on Facebook about the Empire Builder.

I wanted to show those who dismiss Portland as less beautiful than the Seattle journey.

Spending hours following the Columbia River was definitely worth it to me.

I hope you enjoy.

Anyone Else Missing Those 6PM Sunsets?

I know I am missing those sunsets at 6PM.

I literally look up from what I am doing and it is dark out my back door.

Then I have to go running to water the plants and make dinner.

I thought I would bring back a photo from a few weeks ago.

When life had 6PM sunsets.

Arthur M. Anderson

On Wednesday evening, the Arthur M. Anderson came chugging up the Detroit River to Port Huron.

There just happens to be a Streamtime Live camera there and so I checked it out.

It was raining, but it seemed to be moving along on its way back to Lake Huron and then Superior.

46 years ago Wednesday, it was the ship that was with the Edmond Fitzgerald, when it went down.

I can't believe it is still going strong, moving iron ore.

Another Great Nephew!

I just got word that another great nephew has arrived.

That makes two great nephews in the past 4 months.

Both pandemic babies.

Glad to welcome you to the family, little one.

Much love your way.

Veteran's Day (2021)

Happy Veteran's Day to all who serve.

As always, I appreciate all you do, to make this Country free.

I love this photo of my Hubby, during his military days.

I came into his life 11 years after he served, so minus a few photos and a duffle bag, I have nothing from this time.

Proud of him and of all who serve.

Get those freebie's!

You earned it.

Another Year Passes: The Edmund Fitzgerald

46 years later and it is time to ring the bell, once again.

We visited Whitefish Point, MI and paid homage to the Edmund Fitzgerald.

We saw the bell, too.

Today, November 10th, they will once again ring the bell 29 times for each man on the ship that broke in half and sunk on the Canadian side of Lake Superior.

Then they will ring it one more time, for everyone else who has been lost at sea in the Great Lakes.

Here is the link to the Live Stream.

Per the Shipwreck Museum: The event will be live-streamed, and viewable on local TV station Fox 32. For people out of the viewing area you can stream it live on https://www.vuit.com/ just search 9and10 News on VUit and it will be there at 7pm on November 10th.

Edmund Fitzgerald Rememberence Will Be Tomorrow

It is time once again. The freighter, filled with taconite ore pellets sank in Canadian Waters near Whitefish Point on November 10, 1975.

I am giving you 24 hours notice on this event.

Here is the link to the Live Stream.

Per the Shipwreck Museum: The event will be live-streamed, and viewable on local TV station Fox 32. For people out of the viewing area you can stream it live on https://www.vuit.com/ just search 9and10 News on VUit and it will be there at 7pm on November 10th.

The gales of November came early...

Port Kent, New York

My Water Post For Today.

October of 2018, when we took the Amtrak down to NYC from Montréal we passed a town that we visited after a ferry ride from Burlington, VT.

It is a small port town, but more active than many, because of the amount of cars that come off the ferry.

You can see the state of Vermont, off in the distance and the ferry dock area on the NY side.

A lovely area along Lake Champlain. I hope you enjoy.

America (By Simon and Garfunkel)

Let us be lovers, we'll marry our fortunes together...

I love this song and it so is my feelings, as I work on my Thesis/Applied Project. America by (Simon and Garfunkel)

My vacation this year, brought me to Saginaw, MI and a decade ago I visited Pittsburgh, PA. Of course, as a New Yorker, I KNOW the New Jersey Turnpike. :-)

Then there is my name. It is part of the song, too.

Thankfully, no cigarettes though. I never liked them.

I am itching to spend time in other parts of the country...but not quite yet.

Havana Savannah

We have a new gourmet coffee shop in our neighborhood.

Havana Savannah is its name and their thing is Tornado Brew.

I pass the building several times a week and it is just 2 miles from my house, so I couldn't resist adding the app.

It took some effort, but I now can use it. I just need to be sans Husband. :-)

Nice to see something besides Starbucks in the neighborhood.

Medicare Plans

It's that time of year for the Medicare crowd. Open enrollment.

KCET used to air Scan "underwriting" spots, though I am not sure if they still do.

This year seems even more filled with plans I have never heard of. It used to be Scan, United Healthcare, Kaiser Permanente, Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Humana and Aetna, here in California.

Plus, the plans that are already in the group, keep adding new ones. Take Blue Shield Balance, for example (see photo). It adds in to a bunch that were there last year.

For now, we are staying with our plan, but they make it more difficult each year.

Metrolink Cars On Their Way To Wisconsin

There is nothing like tuning in to watch the Amtrak train pass Fort Madison and seeing three Metrolink cars leading the pack.

The cars are going to be refurbished like the ones I showed off a month ago, which you can see HERE.

So for right now, they are old and their paint jobs are terrible.

It was still a trip to see them out in Iowa.

We will see these cars again, I promise you.

A New Grill In Our Lives

We have had our grill for the past 12 years. I got it shortly after I bought my red Saturn car. It fit in that car perfectly and so we did the pick-up ourselves.

This time, we had no way to get it home. So we bought it via Amazon.

2 days later it was delivered right to our front door.

Hubby ran out of light on Sunday evening and finished it up on Monday afternoon. Just in time for me to cook our steak.

He put the old grill out with the trash and it was gone before the trash man came. Win!

Red Sky At Night (Two Saturday Sunsets)

Sorry for having two Saturday sunsets, but this one is nothing like the one from last week.

You can revisit it HERE.

It was doing the American Flag thing in the sky and in the time it took me to grab my camera, the stripes were gone.

You can imagine them, if you want.

The Blue And Gold Line

My Water Post For Today.

San Francisco Bay, always worth the visit.

I got this photo from the dock by Pier 39, which is where the Blue and Gold line ships take off.

It made me want to buy the boat ride around the bay, but we both knew we were going to do that exact same thing the next day, on our ship. Plus, it was free!

On a blue sky day, it was a nice sight to see.