TeamReedBlog.2020

I have harvested a forest full of tiny oak trees this year and I blame the squirrels: They're laying down on the job, man.  There have been studies that suggest these furry rodents can't remember where they bury more than half of their acorns, and others that dispute that finding, but it's clear that it is  THEIR job  to collect and eat the acorns that fall from the oak tree in my front yard. And if they can't keep up, the chipmunks are the next line of defense against me having a forest instead of the lone sentinel. The Captain is off to Dark Lord weekend, so I started my day in the yard, planting bulbs that might be too dried out to flourish. Getting them into the ground required a lot of weed- and more tiny oak tree removal than I find acceptable. But how to harness the little rats? I just don't know.  In other news, we're finally addressing some home improvement needs that have gone ignored too long: front door painting/revarnishing and screen repair; kitche...

So many people have posted their eclipse photos that it seems silly to do it, as well, but you know, it's a big deal, so I'll pile on. We had planned to witness the phenomenon at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but as the day approached and my foot remained in my clumsy boot after bunion/bone spur surgery, it just seemed silly. Post-surgery, I was instructed to stay off my foot as much as possible for up to six weeks. I was optimistic, but it wasn't to be. So we went to Niki and Ehren's countryside instead, and had a fabulous time. It was everything it was hyped up to be, except for the color changing thing that was predicted for people wearing red and green. Our colors remained the same, but the wind and temperature drop and the progress of the moon obscuring the sun was just tremendous. Jeff snapped this:  Niki snapped this:  And this is from the Indianapolis Star:  I was such a fun thing to experience with good friends. Kate Shepherd's son Joey, 12, was on again ...

 Alison is in town for the Indiana Comic & Pop Culture convention, and by that, I mean she is in town for the Indiana Comic & Pop Culture convention. We have barely seen her as she got here about midnight Thursday and has been up with the dawn to apply makeup and meet up with friends downtown. We've laid traps baited with bacon and crescent rolls to slow her down long enough to chat, and she's been good about giving us updates at the end of the evenings. Today is the final day, but she has dinner plans with a friend from Purdue. We'll have a bit of her attention tomorrow at least for the drive back to the airport. The Captain complained that we're essentially a hotel for her, but neither he nor I really mind. She's having fun, and we still get to see her. If you'd like to sign my petition for more of these anime'/entertainment gatherings in central Indiana, I'd appreciate it. I don't have photos of her full-out in any of the three costumes sh...

 One day early in my relationship with the Captain - so early he hadn't yet earned the moniker as I define it - he was talking to my father. I don't remember why, but it was a sunny day and they were at my childhood home, walking up the driveway, I think. At any rate, something had happened that hadn't gone to plan and my father looked at Jeff, sighed, and said, "Sometimes, that girl just don't listen." I'm sure I protested vociferously, but truth be told, he was right. A fact the Captain likes to remind me of from time to time. Like when my surgeon advised me that once he'd cut off my bunion and its painful cousin, a bone spur, "You'll be able to walk right out of here." Now. I'd already learned that today's bunionectomy procedures were much better than past year's work and a minimally invasive procedure was much less painful than when they used a hacksaw and whiskey. Or whatever. So, I didn't cancel any plans. I actually...

We made a quick trip to Orlando to cash in a Christmas gift. Ali had made reservations for us for our wedding anniversary. For three, of course. So, sure, she had a vested interest in us coming down. But when your 22-year-old wants to hang out with you, you pretty much go. And unlike our other visits, we weren't searching for a place for her to live or outfitting it, so we had time to see the area. We'd been to the parks, so we explored Winter Park and found a great antique store where we scored some Fiesta ware in hard-to-find colors; Ali and I had fun drinks in the outdoor seating area while the Captain searched for beer at a brewery; we went to the beach; we shopped; and we had great food and fun drinks all over the place. We visited the Orlando Museum of Art, which was really interesting and had a wide array of exhibits. One was a long table of items - A pelican, beach animals, a cat, boxes, bananas, etc... - crowded together and doused with a thick layer of magenta paint, ...

When it comes to decorating my house, I'm a minimalist not because I hate clutter (I do hate clutter in my own space) but because I'm pretty sure I don't have more than a tiny sliver of good taste. Which has led me to "decorate" my basement (cellar for you Mainers) living space with photos. I've been thinking for a long time that I need to either take down all the photos and paint the slightly scarred walls.   There's a lot of formerly blank space down there. The space off the stair is about 12-feet long, and the family room is about 24-feet long, give or take with a big television screen at the west end and Jeff's home office at the east. We have things from Jeff's childhood home and his former office, and we have more photos of Ali as a child rather than the grown up she actually is. So an update, at the least, is due. I started in on that project this weekend on another sub-zero day. It'll take at least as long as this cold snap lasts or unt...

Before you say "that's not chili," I will remind you that it's Grammie's chili, so reset your standards, people. This is a dish Jeff's mom sprang on her family years and years ago. I don't know the origin of it. (What say you, Maine Reeds?)  Marian was a wonderful mom. She stayed home when the kids were little, keeping them in line and dealing with a frugal budget. She often clipped recipes from the local paper and relied on Marjorie Standish's Cooking Down East to feed the brood.  She could feed five on a can of Spam, but no one would confuse her with an adventurous cook. She once wanted to get fancy and created some sort of seafood salad probably courtesy of ol' Marjorie. She was rewarded by all three of her ungrateful offspring by their refusal to eat it. She made them sit at the table for hours in the boiling heat, if you can believe their side of the story. But Grammie's chili is a family favorite. Upon waking to minus 3 degrees today, i...