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I am so sorry to hear this. May she find peace and comfort. When one of my sisters was living in France I spent the summer with her. One Sunday we decided to go for a hike. I picked out a tres facile trail from a guide book for the Vosge mountains. We loaded her dog, all 135 pounds, in the car and set out. Somehow we lost our trail and our 2 hour tres facile hike turned into a 5 hour torture. Normally Moose loved to go for walks and for a long while he was out in front acting like a trail guide. When we realized we didn't know where we were going, Moose decided he had had enough and laid down on the trail and refused to budge. It took a bit of coaxing to get him to continue on. We found him a lake to swim in and then he was happy. The ceiling is all done and tomorrow I start on the walls. Besides the living room I have to do the staircase and the upstairs hall. If I can find someone who can do it, I am paying someone to finish the last two rooms.

This is one of my favorite beach pictures. An evening stroll along North Beach in South Haven.

I booked Rowe's water taxi the last time we were in Boston. I called them as they requested and told them we were leaving the ship. They said call back when we had our luggage. Ten minutes later I called and said we had our luggage. They replied that they had just left without us and it would be at least an hour before they could come get us. And, they do not refund what you paid when they leave you behind.

Good morning, everyone! Right now it is a pleasant morning but storms are moving in shortly. At least it has cooled down a bit. It was so warm and muggy yesterday that I broke down and turned on the air. Today I'll finish up the ceiling in the living room and hallway and then start on the walls and trim. I want to get this painting project done before I head up to Michigan to look at houses. I am happy to announce that Tina @0106 will fulfill the Meal of the Day responsibilities while I am in Michigan. I am staying with my sister who shuns technology and does not have internet. She actually likes it and uses it when she is at other people's houses, but won't get it for herself. Today's meal was a tough one. The recipes were all identical. I kept searching and pulled up one recipe that had a picture of a nicely roasted turkey. Hmm, not what I was looking for. While the recipes were identical, the pictures weren't. You can get a dark pink sauce or a light pink sauce depending on how much half and half you use. One recipe called for heavy cream. That is not one for those watching calories! This first recipe is the one you'll find on most sites. The only variation is the amount of half and half and whether you use white wine or chicken broth in the sauce. I'd go for the wine myself. https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/blushing-penne-pasta/ This next one is a totally different dish, but uses what the author calls sun blush tomatoes. https://simons-sauces.com/2012/09/11/spinach-and-homemade-sun-blush-tomato-pasta/ Ok, so what are sun blushed tomatoes? They are really quite easy to make. I love the measurements in this recipe. A glug of good olive oil. That's the way I cook. https://thegreeneyedgirl.co.uk/2014/06/08/homemade-sunblushed-tomatoes/ This last recipe calls for heavy cream but you can substitute something lighter if you wish. https://simplegraytshirt.com/pink-sauce-pasta/ Wishing you all a wonderful day!

The problem does need a solution because it could morph into something more serious. It is causing my body to harvest calcium from my bones. There are other symptoms I am dealing with but they are more annoyances than serious. My recent bone density scan did show a noticeable decrease in bone mass in my right hip. So, the sooner I get it taken care of, the better. It isn't a difficult surgery at all. Outpatient and done quickly. Recovery is a couple days.

I think that someone doesn't like it when patients aren't meekly submissive. All I wanted to do is be sure it was covered by insurance. Why is that such a threat? My endocrinologist agrees with me. He said this is not someone I want treating me. We decided that I would wait until I moved to Michigan and got established with someone up there and they would forward my records. I think it sounds like good news, too! Let's celebrate!

Well, I just had an odd thing happen. I was supposed to have an appointment with an endocrine surgeon on Wednesday. He wanted a bone density scan of my forearm. The reason I was given was because he requires it. Huh? Why does he require it? No answer. So, I called the insurance company to make sure it would be covered since I just had a scan in June. Insurance said they would need a preauthorization request for an additional scan. So, I called the surgeon's office with that information and they claimed they did have preauthorization. Last week they said they didn't and the insurance company had to record of it. So, she sent me over to the department that has the preauthorization information so I could get the confirmation numbers and call the insurance company back. Well, less than 5 minutes later, while I was still on hold with the preauthorization department, the surgeon's office called back and said the surgeon had reviewed my case and determined that I did not need surgery. She added that they would be referring me to a medical endocrinologist. I said no thanks to that because if the surgeon had reviewed my records he would see no need to make that recommendation as I had been referred to them by my medical endocrinologist. I'm not sure what to make of this. I have a call into my endocrinologist to see what he thinks.

We visited Montreal on the Rotterdam in 2018. It was a b2b Boston/Montreal/Boston and Montreal was our turn around day. We didn't take any excursions as they all were airport transfers. One of the things we did do on this trip was explore the cuisine. Montreal was smoked meat sandwiches and poutine. We did like the gardens we saw. And, we enjoyed coffee at a sidewalk cafe.

Good morning everyone! Today has dawned with abundant sunshine and abundant heat and humidity. Thunder bumpers are supposed to roll in this afternoon and cool us down a bit. That would be a good thing! The only thing on my agenda is painting the living room. The room is bigger, but there is more room to maneuver around than in the kitchen and dining room. I think that will help make it easier. Today's meal is pure comfort. It is thick, rich, and creamy. It would be wonderful on a cold night in January. It is not for the calorie or carb counters. https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/chicken-gnocchi-pesto-soup/ This next one is a little lighter on the calories and the carbs. More broth used helps do that. https://thekitchengirl.com/10-minute-pesto-chicken-gnocchi-soup/ This is a vegan version. The chicken is left out, but could easily be included. https://www.delishknowledge.com/gnocchi-pesto-soup/ If you want to skip the soup version and just go for the chicken gnocchi pesto, here's the recipe. https://www.chiselandfork.com/chicken-pesto-gnocchi/ One last version: https://www.healthyfood.com/healthy-recipes/pesto-gnocchi-and-chicken-bake/ Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Good morning, everyone!! It is another nice start to the day here in northeast Ohio. It is going to be a scorcher, though. Temps in the low 90s are forecast. I am packing up Grandma's Belleek china and Mom's Waterford crystal in preparation for painting the living room. One more box and I'll be ready to unload the room and tape all that needs taping. Then, on with the paint!! Today's meal is a nice one and would be excellent for a hot day like today. Fattoush is a Levantine salad made from toasted or fried pieces of khubz (Arabic flat bread) combined with mixed greens and other vegetables, such as radishes and tomatoes. Fattoush belongs to the family of dishes known as fattat (plural of fatteh), which use stale flatbread as a base. Fattoush includes vegetables and herbs varying by season and taste. The vegetables are cut into relatively large pieces compared to tabbouleh which requires ingredients to be finely chopped. Sumac is usually used to give fattoush its sour taste, while some recipes also add pomegranate molasses along with the sumac. We'll start out with this recipe. Most of them are very similar and only vary in a vegetable or two or in the dressing. This one has a lime vinaigrette which sounds lovely. I'm not sure where to get the sumac though. https://www.themediterraneandish.com/fattoush-salad/ Oh, my! Doesn't that look delicious? I might have to stop by the store and get some pita bread. I found the sumac: https://www.amazon.com/Ziyad-Gourmet-All-Natural-Preservatives-Flavorful/dp/B00B03X2XI?dchild=1&keywords=sumac+lebanese&qid=1620534950&sr=8-4-spons&psc=1&smid=A2R4B1L3A6K3AY&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzTEw5MlRWODNHN000JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwOTIwODUzM1EzR0lTMzZXVzJCVSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTczMDUzMUJPWFRVQkYyNU9GUyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU%3D&linkCode=sl1&tag=feelgoodfoo03-20&linkId=60fadd98e2d98f018049c9782e88e7ea&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_tl You can also get sumac from Penzey's. Ok, now that we have our sumac, we can proceed on to the second recipe that calls for a lemon vinaigrette and includes green pepper. https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/lebanese-fattoush-salad/ This next recipe uses red onion and includes some mint. https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/fattoush-salad/ This next one is the meal version and contains some chopped chicken. https://www.simplyscratch.com/fattoush-salad/ All the recipes say there are no rules as to which vegetables are included and which ones aren't. It all depends on the season and what if available fresh. So, be creative! Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Good morning, everyone! Today is starting out cool and crisp with abundant sunshine in northeast Ohio. I will celebrate Speak a Kind Word Day happily today. That should be a daily event. What a difference we could make in this world. @Cruzin Terri I'm happy to read that you are going to put the incident behind you and move on. Better for both of you. I am going to finish packing up Grandma's china and mom's crystal today and get the living room ready for painting. I'm hoping it won't take as long as the kitchen and dining room as there are no cabinets to do. It should be an easier job. Penne alla vodka is a pasta dish made with vodka and penne pasta, usually made with heavy cream, crushed tomatoes, onions, and sometimes sausage, pancetta or peas. The recipe became very popular in Italy and in the United States around the 1980s, when it was offered to discotheque customers. The recipe thus became an icon of the fashionable cuisine of the time, which preferred the use of cream in first courses. Penne alla vodka remains popular in Italian-American cuisine. Our first recipe comes from Ree Drummond of The Food Network. There is a whole cup of vodka in the sauce! One caution is to cook it long enough for the alcohol to evaporate leaving just the flavor. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/penne-alla-vodka-recipe-2014981 This next one only uses a 1/2 cup of vodka and cautions us to use only fresh ingredients. No bottled garlic! https://www.cookingclassy.com/penne-alla-vodka-sauce/ This next recipe only uses 2 tbsp of vodka. It gives directions for including pancetta, bacon, or Italian sausage along with other vegetables. https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a26556220/penne-alla-vodka-recipe/ The other recipes I found were all the same, only the amount of vodka changed. So, enjoy and let us know if you have a secret ingredient. Wishing you all a great day!

We were in 8197 and loved it. There was an occasional sound of chairs being moved, but nothing that woke us up or prevented us from sleeping. We did get sunshine on the balcony, but the big overhang was great when the weather was a little wet. I'd book it again in a heartbeat.

Good morning, everyone. Today is another beautiful day in northeast Ohio. It isn't supposed to be as hot today as yesterday. We shall see. Today I am putting my kitchen and dining room back together. My packing boxes came yesterday from U-Haul, so I am set to go! Halászlé is a traditional soup enjoyed both by locals and famed with tourists. An important ingredient is a broth made of fish trimmings such as fresh carp heads, bones, skin and fins simmered with vegetables that may include red onions, green peppers and tomatoes for two hours. It is then strained, and ten minutes before serving hot ground paprika and two finger-thick carp fillets, the roe and coral are added to the boiling soup. Traditionally, fisherman prepare the soup in small kettles on open fire on the river banks. When prepared in kettles, chopped onion is fried in the kettle with some oil until it is caramelized. Then, ground paprika is added and the kettle is filled with water. When the water comes to a boil, other seasonings (such as black pepper, white wine, vinegar, or tomato juice) are added, and finally the fish, chopped into large pieces. Entire fish, including heads and tails, are often added to the soup. The soup is usually prepared with mixed fish, most commonly carp, catfish, perch and pike. It is famous for being very hot and spicy. When prepared on-site the soup is served directly from the kettle and eaten with bread. Competitions in preparing the soup are popular and are usually held at fairs along river coast. White wine (such as Riesling) is served with halászlé. Diluted with soda water it forms a sort of spritzer, called fröccs in Hungarian. Halászlé is a traditional dish for Christmas Eve dinner in Hungary. Here is our first recipe for the dish. While this fish soup is traditionally made with hot paprika, you can substitute sweet paprika if you prefer. https://www.mygoldenpear.com/traditional-hungarian-fish-soup-with-red-paprika-powder-halaszle/ A number of versions exist, some are served over pasta, others include cream, but all are made using freshwater fish such as carp, perch or pike. Fried fish are also served at the festive dinner, along with warm potato salad. https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/fishermans-soup-halaszle You can use any mild white fish you like. Cod is often substituted for the carp. https://www.bestofhungary.co.uk/blogs/recipes/fishermans-soup Enjoy! Wishing you all a wonderful day.

I'm here when you are ready.

Terri, I know that pain. Reach out if you'd like.

I am staying at the Chateau Frontenac for one night, fulfilling my grandmother's dream. I get in at 3:41 pm on the 7th. The area around the Frontenac has some fun shopping. I booked this last November so I didn't have to wait as long, but I also had Norway in July to help me through the wait.

That is so sad. Prayers for Linda for recovery and support and healing in losing David. That is so sad. Living alone that is a great fear as one ages.

Good morning, everyone! It is another beautiful morning in northeast Ohio. Mornings tend to be cool and crisp, but it is supposed to warm up today to the mid 80s. All my hardened left over paint from the garage went out this morning with the trash collection. Now, I have to get rid of the stuff the previous owners left in the basement back in 1987. Something tells me they are already hardened. I am waiting on delivery of my packing boxes and then I can put stuff away in the kitchen and dining room. And, prep the living room. Last night I was ready to give in and call a painter. This morning I think I can do it. I had Elote in Mexico City years ago. I was traveling with friends and students. We loved it. They didn't grill the corn, though. It was boiled, dipped in a sauce and sprinkled with cheese. Elote would be wonderful with fish tacos. This first recipe has a little history and some suggestions on what to pair it with. The flank steak sounds good as well. https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/grilled_mexican_street_corn_elotes/ Slightly different seasonings in this recipe, but lots of great information. https://www.seriouseats.com/mexican-street-corn-elotes-recipe This is Tyler Florence's take on street corn. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/mexican-grilled-corn-recipe-1947651 You can do more than just eat it off the cob. Here's a recipe for street corn salad. https://www.loveandlemons.com/mexican-street-corn-salad/ Or how about some street corn dip with your tortilla chips? https://houseofnasheats.com/grilled-mexican-street-corn-dip/ Or how about street corn casserole? https://saltandbaker.com/mexican-street-corn-casserole/ Enjoy the corn and make extra! You'll want it. Wishing everyone a wonderful day.

I have declared the kitchen and dining room done. Now, I just have to put them back together. That means hardware on the cabinet doors and furniture in the dining room. I'm waiting on some boxes from U-Haul. I ordered their packing supplies kit. I want to box up Grandma's china instead of putting it back. I'll do the same with Grandma's Belleek china and Mom's Waterford crystal. I'm using the garage for storage, so the poor car is out in the cold.

I have been heading to the MDR lately. After the rush of embarkation I like to relax a bit and don't enjoy the crowds in the Lido. I can sit in the MDR and have a nice glass of wine and a decent meal.

Both the kitchen and dining room all have one coat of paint on the walls. It will need a second coat, but that generally goes on faster and easier since the walls aren't so thirsty. I'll get busy on that after lunch.

We always stopped at Howard Johnson's in Niagara Falls on our way to and from Grandma's in Binghamton, New York. I guess my parents felt it was safe to stop there with six rambunctious kids that had been trapped in the car for half a day.

Public wifi in Eidfjord outside of the Tourist Information office.

Good morning, everyone. It is looking like a beautiful day here in northeast Ohio. The heat is returning, though. I'm going to do laps this morning and then get back to my painting. I should be able to finish up the dining room and kitchen today. Then I can reload the furniture in the dining room and start clearing out the living room. I take out all the little furniture and drape the big stuff. Gyūdon , also known as gyūmeshi ), is a Japanese dish consisting of a bowl of rice topped with beef and onion simmered in a mildly sweet sauce flavored with dashi (fish and seaweed stock), soy sauce and mirin (sweet rice wine). It may sometimes also be served with toppings such as raw or soft poached eggs, Welsh onions (negi), grated cheese or kimchi. A popular food in Japan, it is commonly eaten with beni shōga (pickled ginger), shichimi (ground chili pepper), and a side dish of miso soup. After the arrival of Buddhism in Japan in the 6th century, consumption of meat became rare in Japanese culture (especially those of four-footed animals such as beef or pork) and in many cases frowned upon, both for religious and practical reasons. It was only after the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and the subsequent westernization of the country that meat began to be widely eaten. Gyūdon is considered to be derived from gyūnabe , a beef hot pot originating in the Kantō region of eastern Japan. Gyūnabe originally consisted of cuts of beef simmered with Welsh onions and miso (as the beef available in Japan at the time were usually of poor quality, the meat was cooked this way to tenderize it and neutralize its foul smell), but by the late 1800s, a variation that used a special stock called warishita - a combination of a sweetener such as sugar or mirin and soy sauce - instead of miso and featuring additional ingredients such as shirataki (konjac cut into noodle-like strips) and tofu began to appear. This version of gyūnabe (known today as sukiyaki - originally the name of a similar yet distinct dish from the Kansai region) eventually came to be served with rice in a deep bowl (donburi), becoming gyūmeshi or gyūdon. This first recipe uses sake and seems to be a pretty easy one to do if you can find the ingredients. They do give some substitutions. https://www.justonecookbook.com/gyudon/ Here's one with an egg topping. https://thewoksoflife.com/gyudon-recipe-beef-rice/ In this one the eggs are a little more cooked. I like my egg whites cooked through. https://www.seriouseats.com/gyudon-japanese-simmered-beef-and-rice-bowl-recipe I would tinker with this quite a bit and use riced cauliflower to cut the carbs and come out with something I think is similar, but totally different. Wishing everyone a great day.