July 19, 2019

The newest scam on the block...

Here's the deal...if my phone rings and I don't recognize the number (well actually, it's more of a scenario of, if I don't see a name I know) I won't answer it.  Shocking, I know.  This actually used to drive Man-Child utterly insane.  He insisted that I *should* answer it because, "What if it was an emergency?!"  I informed him that if it was an emergency they would leave a message.

And guess what?  Nine times out of ten, they never left a message.

He now understands why I won't answer the phone after he was inundated with over twenty or more calls in one day.  Listen to your mother, children, she may actually be on to something after all, despite the fact that you think she doesn't know a darn thing and is living in the dark ages.

So today when the phone rang - as usual, I hit Ignore and went about my business.  Only to be alerted a few seconds later that I had a voicemail.  Considering this isn't usually how this goes down, I listened to the voicemail.

Now, to be honest, I don't think I would have fallen for it - but just the day before I had heard about the latest scam on the radio - because, seriously?  The Social Security Administration is going to CANCEL my number because of suspicious activity - I don't think so.  And I certainly don't think they would call me to tell me about; mainly because how would they even know where to call me?  It's not like the SSA and I are in constant contact.  Heck, we don't even follow each other on Twitter!

At any rate, they called me again and left another voicemail, from a different phone number - of course.

When I mentioned this to The Husband, his eyebrows shot up in alarm.  I told him that it was a scam and how I knew it was one.  I then told him that he needed to tell his mother - although my mother-in-law is pretty savvy, this one might unnerve her considering she's living on Social Security. 

So here's your mission - we all have at least one or more people in our lives who might/could fall victim to this scam - or others - so pass on this information to those people in your life.


July 14, 2019

*wipes the construction dust off the computer*

Since I last called you all here together, you may have noticed a few changes.

I have just spent an inordinate amount of time trying to update/clean things up around here.  I should warn you - there may be a few more changes in the works as I'm not completely satisfied with this update...for the most part I like it, but it still needs a few tweaks here and there.  And since I am in this on my own (i.e., I'm figuring it out as I go) there may be a few hiccups.  Hiccups, which I hope, you will alert me to - broken links, etc.

On the back end, it looks pretty much the same to me.  But on the front end - your end - I think the changes are a bit more pronounced.

I have changed the template to a more simple, streamlined look.  I'm in the process of updating all labels so that you should be able to click on a link over there to the right under "the for now" working title of All the Categories Right at Your Fingertips and find all relevant posts in one spot.

After being a true empty-nester for how long now (?!) - I have finally updated the profile info - and you can see that one does not just regain ones sanity once the baby bird leaves the nest...apparently.  Eventually, I hope to get around to changing the profile picture...hopefully.

I opted for black text with a white background because, at least for me, that is easier on the eyes.  (At least, to me it appears black - but when I preview the post, it appears gray.  Hmmm.  What say you?)  I've also opted for a larger font - which will, hopefully, make it easier for everyone. 

Surprisingly, the hardest thing to accomplish was changing the favicon way up there at the top...despite the fact that I did a whole post on how to accomplish this task.  Feel free to follow that post if you like, if you are attempting to create one - but for me it did not work this go round for whatever unknown reason.  This time I created the icon in Powerpoint, saved it as a jpg file, uploaded it to Pixlr.com and was able to edit it to 16 x 16 and was finally able to upload the icon.  It took me days people, days, to get that to work...so frustrating.  The kicker?  I know (fingers crossed) that it shows on your end but on the back end?  Not working.  I'm trying to ignore that fact.

So, poke around, see what's working and what isn't and report back any and all findings and opinions, please.  In the meantime, I'll be over here playing behind the scenes.

July 9, 2019

If you don't have 16 hours to spare...but maybe 5-ish hours?

When we last left off, I had just finished binge reading book while mindlessly dropping pistachio shells into my drink...

I also forgot to mention that I took today and tomorrow off just because.  Occasionally, one just needs a four day weekend for no real reason at all; so I did.

Yesterday found me ready to wander out into the big bed in the back yard for just an hour.  Yeah, right.  That easily morphed into two and a half hours, thanks to (say it with me now!) "that damn blackberry bush" and a new-to-me weed that seems to be immune to Preen.  And I'm still not done.  But the rest will have to wait until next weekend, I'm afraid.

At any rate, today - the last day before I head back to work - I decided to make it a more relaxing kind of day...so I decided to tackle making bread...again.  Although, in retrospect, today the weather would have been kinder for outdoor work.

Oh well...too late now!

Long time readers may recall that many, many, many years ago I somehow was able to successfully create a perfect bread on my very first attempt.  Any and all subsequent attempts have been utter failures.

Today I searched out a quick and easy no-knead bread (because I didn't have or want to spend 16 hours or more on it) and came across an adaptation of the original recipe, which that link takes you back to my original blog post; as the original is now behind a paywall, I believe.

The recipe I used today can be found here...for how long, who knows?

Now to be fair, I did not watch the video, so I didn't use any of the "tricks" that were mentioned in the Cooking Notes/Comments section.  But I did do a couple of things that weren't mentioned in the recipe, I'll share them below. These couple of things were key I think to this bread turning out perfectly!

So perfectly that The Bread Snob (aka The Husband) has been raving about this bread...which came out of the oven right before he walked in after work.


Printable Recipe

Ingredients

3 cups bread flour (I used regular because that's what I had in the pantry)
1 packet (1/4 ounce) instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt (I thought that was too much so I used maybe half a teaspoon?)
1 1/2 cup of water
Oil as needed

Before anything I started the oven just to get it warm; this isn't mentioned in the original recipe, but based on other sites I read, I thought it might be helpful.  In my opinion, it was very helpful!  Particularly, since it's summertime in the South and the air conditioning means the house is cool.

Combine flour, yeast in a large bowl.  Add the (warm!) water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap.  Here's where I turned the oven off - and let the dough rest for about four hours in the warm oven.

Lightly oil a work surface and place dough on it; fold it over on itself once or twice.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap (I oiled the wrap that would touch the dough, this was key, as it kept the wrap from sticking to the dough) and let rest for thirty minutes.  (Notice, this recipe does not require you to add flour to the working surface...that was the downfall on my last couple of attempts - it made the bread too flour-y.  Using a canola oil spray was genius!)

As soon as the dough was resting for the second time,  I put my dutch oven into the oven and let it heat to 450 degrees while the dough rested.

When the dough is ready, carefully remove the pot from the oven.  Slide your hand under the dough and put it into the dutch oven; seam side up (I didn't have a seam for some reason?  Also, that oiled surface?  Made picking the sticky dough up so easy!).  Shake pan once or twice to distribute uneven dough.

Cover with the lid and bake for thirty minutes, remove lid and bake another 15-30 minutes; until the loaf is browned.  Cool on a wire rack.

SOOOOO good!

Enjoy!

If you try it, let me know what you think.  Also?  This success completely absolves me of the abject failure of the cake I made (and didn't blog about) on Saturday...

July 7, 2019

All the Missing Girls...a book review

It's been a while, a long while, since we've had one of these...almost a year; how did that happen?  As much as it saddens me to say, I really haven't been reading actual books lately - a fact I am trying to remedy.  I think the main reason for this is because I keep getting stuck in books that I don't really care for and in an effort to slog through, I find something else to do instead of just setting that book aside and finding another one.

I received this book as a Mother's Day present and was only able to finally get to it after putting off finishing another book that I didn't enjoy that much.

All The Missing Girls by Megan Miranda.

This has been the book that I've been looking to pull me out of my reading slump.  I started it a few days ago and have spent the majority of this afternoon finishing it.  At one point, I was so engrossed in the story that instead of tossing the shells from the pistachios I had been snacking on into the trash can on my left, I dumped them in my drink!

According to the author's bio; this is her first novel for adults.

From the synopsis on the back of the book:

"It's been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left Cooley Ridge.  Ten years since she broke up with Tyler, the man she thought she'd marry.  Ten years since her best friend Corinne disappeared, never to  be heard from again.

When the call comes that her father is ailing.  Nic is living in Philadelphia-light years away from her younger self.  She drops everything to care for her dad, but within days of her return another girl goes missing and Nic experiences a terrifying sense of deja-vu.

As Nic works to unravel what happened to the missing girl, shocking truths emerge about her neighbors, her family, and what really happened to Corinne that night ten years ago."

What I did not initially realize was that the story was being told backwards.  Yes, if I'd initially paid attention to the chapter titles, this would have been clear from the start; but all my life I generally ignore the chapter titles in a rush to get on with the story.  Lesson learned?  Knowing me; probably not.

As mentioned above, this book was riveting the further I went (particularly after I figured out that the timeline was going backwards!).  Only one point seemed to be left unanswered to me, but it was a point that could be answered many different ways by the reader; maybe that's what the author intended.  Or perhaps I just missed the answer in all the details.

This could have been one of those stories where you could see the culprit from the start; it is not one of those types of stories.  You are constantly questioning each of the characters and pondering possible motives.

This one deserves to be included in the list of Books I Love Enough to Tell You About (PSST, you can find all my book reviews there at the third link on my header).  If you read it, let me know what you think.  I will definitely be looking for other titles from this author.

July 4, 2019

Living with other people - part two...

So you remember the notebook that I posted about only two days ago?

The notebook that I use to keep score when Man-Child and I play cards or Scrabble.  The notebook I use for various games (Boggle, mainly) from the newspaper (yes, I still get a paper - don't look at me like that!  I'm personally trying to keep the industry from dying).  The notebook I use for various lists, reminders, etc. (I know I could use my phone for lists, etc. but I have found, for me, I prefer a handwritten list, don't ask me why, I don't know.).

I went looking for it this morning only to discover it was GONE.

Notebook - MIA

The Husband wasn't home for me to give him the third degree, unfortunately.  As I stewed over the lost notebook it dawned on me what must have happened. 

The Husband is a facilities person for several buildings and about every three months or so, he either gets up extra early or stays up extra late to run "light checks" to make sure all the outdoor lights are working at the various buildings and makes a note on the ones that need attention.

He ran a light check the day after I brought that notebook home; so it appears he absconded with the notebook without even noticing the strongly worded note on the front!  How?!  And, it's a new record.  A new notebook gone in under twenty-four hours.

When I asked him about it this evening, he admitted he took it.  And looked puzzled when I asked if he had noticed the note - he had not.  *sigh*

Why he took this notebook is a mystery - especially as we shared a car for the majority of  last week while mine was in the shop - I noticed that he had the last notebook I had brought home was in his car!

So my plan is reclaim my notebook and hide the darn thing.  Apparently, that's the only way I'll be able to keep one on hand.

July 2, 2019

Living with other people...

Living with other people means I find myself writing things like this on a random notepad...

The blog is the reason that I have to take such random pictures. 
In the event you can't read it, the text reads "This notepad is not to leave this
house under any circumstance. Love, Mom"

The names have been blocked out to protect the guilty.  The guilty, you may wonder, are both The Husband and Man-Child.  Why they are guilty, you may wonder, is because EVERY. SINGLE. notepad that I have brought home has disappeared; due to one or the other needing a sheet of paper - yes, you read that right; A SINGLE SHEET OF PAPER - so they decided that the entire notebook was needed, so they would take it and run.  Leaving me to scramble whenever *I* might need a single sheet of paper.

In sum, they seem to think that it is perfectly acceptable to abscond with household notebooks.  At this point, I'm ready to raid both of their cars and rescue the "hostages" that I've witnessed languishing in their automotive prisons.  The prisons where they have been ignored; once their initial usefulness expired.