The Bag Lady and the Rancher did some work in the corral yesterday. The weather was very warm, but windy, and they accomplished quite a bit. As they were finishing up, the Rancher looked at the sky and commented that there was a storm coming.
He was right.....
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Truths
Perhaps staying home was just what the Bag Lady needed yesterday. She feels much better today, and her brain is functioning almost normally. Well, normally for her....
She did a few domestic chores yesterday, then spent some time in the kitchen. She made a big pot of her home-made beans, and a loaf of bread. The Rancher was home, so he plowed the driveway and tried to clear away some of the ice in the pasture so the cows have an easier time getting to and from the waterer.
Here are some things the Bag Lady has learned lately:
1. If you are foolish enough to wear your tightest jeans when you are painting your fingernails, your bladder will require immediate attention while your nails are still wet.
2. If you want the phone to ring, stick your head in the sink. As soon as you apply the shampoo, someone will want to chat.
3. If you want the doorbell to ring when you are home alone, apply a cleansing mask to your face, preferably one in a vile shade of green.
4. If you shampoo the carpet, your dog will discover the only mud for miles around, right before someone lets him in.
5. If you get up in the middle of the night without turning on a light, you will discover that your cat finally got rid of that hairball.....with your bare feet.
The Bag Lady knows these to be true. From personal experience.
She did a few domestic chores yesterday, then spent some time in the kitchen. She made a big pot of her home-made beans, and a loaf of bread. The Rancher was home, so he plowed the driveway and tried to clear away some of the ice in the pasture so the cows have an easier time getting to and from the waterer.
Here are some things the Bag Lady has learned lately:
1. If you are foolish enough to wear your tightest jeans when you are painting your fingernails, your bladder will require immediate attention while your nails are still wet.
2. If you want the phone to ring, stick your head in the sink. As soon as you apply the shampoo, someone will want to chat.
3. If you want the doorbell to ring when you are home alone, apply a cleansing mask to your face, preferably one in a vile shade of green.
4. If you shampoo the carpet, your dog will discover the only mud for miles around, right before someone lets him in.
5. If you get up in the middle of the night without turning on a light, you will discover that your cat finally got rid of that hairball.....with your bare feet.
The Bag Lady knows these to be true. From personal experience.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Paint Drying
Wow. This week has flown by - it's already Thursday?!
The Bag Lady has another physio appointment today. She really hopes her therapist isn't quite as rough on her this time as she was last time. Her therapist believes in a whole body approach, and has worked on several areas other than just the Bag Lady's back. At her last appointment, she worked on the Bag Lady's collar bone area and it is still sore!
Update: the freezing rain has caused the Bag Lady to cancel her physio appointment. She totally chickened out about driving on the icy roads. Now her day stretches ahead of her, empty and forlorn. But she'll think of something.....
The Bag Lady doesn't have a lot to share with you right now. In fact, her mind is pretty much blank.what else is new?
The weather has been relatively mild. Very windy here, which has caused some drifting, which can make driving challenging. The forecast says there is a possibility of rain or snow, or a mixture thereof. Hopefully it will be nothing like the ice storm that punished a lot of the country!
Goodness, this is probably one of the most boring posts in blogland today! Rather like watching paint dry. The Bag Lady will stop now. Thanks for reading her blog. She apologizes for her lack of imagination today.
The Bag Lady has another physio appointment today. She really hopes her therapist isn't quite as rough on her this time as she was last time. Her therapist believes in a whole body approach, and has worked on several areas other than just the Bag Lady's back. At her last appointment, she worked on the Bag Lady's collar bone area and it is still sore!
Update: the freezing rain has caused the Bag Lady to cancel her physio appointment. She totally chickened out about driving on the icy roads. Now her day stretches ahead of her, empty and forlorn. But she'll think of something.....
The Bag Lady doesn't have a lot to share with you right now. In fact, her mind is pretty much blank.
The weather has been relatively mild. Very windy here, which has caused some drifting, which can make driving challenging. The forecast says there is a possibility of rain or snow, or a mixture thereof. Hopefully it will be nothing like the ice storm that punished a lot of the country!
Goodness, this is probably one of the most boring posts in blogland today! Rather like watching paint dry. The Bag Lady will stop now. Thanks for reading her blog. She apologizes for her lack of imagination today.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Memory Lane
The Bag Lady is feeling a little nostalgic today. She misses summer. She needed something to remind her of the warmth and beauty of summer, so she decided to share this with you....
AAHHH, that's better.
AAHHH, that's better.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
The Good Ol' Days
The Bag Lady wanted to discuss something serious with you today..... but she couldn't think of anything, so she'll spare you the agony!
She and the Rancher sat down last night and watched all the videos that she has made for her blog. He doesn't get much of a chance to see them - in fact, there were a few he had never seen. The Bag Lady is pleased to report that he almost fell off his chair laughing at the A(u)ntiFit video! She was a little worried that he would think she was totally crazy, rather than the slightly touched that he already knows about. Of course, she then had to show him one of Mizfit's videos so he would understand why she did what she did. The Bag Lady is sure that Carla will be pleased to hear that he thinks she has bigger muscles than he does.....
Speaking of muscles, when the Bag Lady and the Rancher were having supper at his mother's house last week, they got to reminiscing about the "good old days", and the Rancher's mother was telling the Bag Lady about a few of the things she used to have to do. First, though, you need to understand that the Rancher's mother is not a very big woman, even if she does claim that she's five feet tall!
She was explaining to the Bag Lady what life was like on the farm before they had electricity. They had some kind of set up to keep the water for the cattle from freezing in the winter. The Bag Lady won't go into great detail about it, except to say that it had a diesel engine that, as she understands it, was rather persnickety. It was prone to refusing to run in the cold weather, so Mother would have to bring it into the house to warm it up. Once it was warm, she would get it running, shut it off and take it back outside, where, naturally, it would refuse to start again!
The fuel for this engine was kept in a 45 gallon drum, which would be almost the same height as Mother, and probably weighed quite a bit more than she did! She would have to tip the drum over in order to get the fuel out of it. Around about this time in the story-telling, the Rancher piped up and said his mother could beat him arm-wrestling until he was 17 years old!
The Bag Lady is off to town today for yet another physiotherapy appointment.
Have a great day!
She and the Rancher sat down last night and watched all the videos that she has made for her blog. He doesn't get much of a chance to see them - in fact, there were a few he had never seen. The Bag Lady is pleased to report that he almost fell off his chair laughing at the A(u)ntiFit video! She was a little worried that he would think she was totally crazy, rather than the slightly touched that he already knows about. Of course, she then had to show him one of Mizfit's videos so he would understand why she did what she did. The Bag Lady is sure that Carla will be pleased to hear that he thinks she has bigger muscles than he does.....
Speaking of muscles, when the Bag Lady and the Rancher were having supper at his mother's house last week, they got to reminiscing about the "good old days", and the Rancher's mother was telling the Bag Lady about a few of the things she used to have to do. First, though, you need to understand that the Rancher's mother is not a very big woman, even if she does claim that she's five feet tall!
She was explaining to the Bag Lady what life was like on the farm before they had electricity. They had some kind of set up to keep the water for the cattle from freezing in the winter. The Bag Lady won't go into great detail about it, except to say that it had a diesel engine that, as she understands it, was rather persnickety. It was prone to refusing to run in the cold weather, so Mother would have to bring it into the house to warm it up. Once it was warm, she would get it running, shut it off and take it back outside, where, naturally, it would refuse to start again!
The fuel for this engine was kept in a 45 gallon drum, which would be almost the same height as Mother, and probably weighed quite a bit more than she did! She would have to tip the drum over in order to get the fuel out of it. Around about this time in the story-telling, the Rancher piped up and said his mother could beat him arm-wrestling until he was 17 years old!
The Bag Lady is off to town today for yet another physiotherapy appointment.
Have a great day!
Monday, January 26, 2009
As Promised....
...here is a little video the Bag Lady put together for you from her journey to the bush with the Rancher.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Moose for Supper
The Bag Lady was busy again yesterday. She chopped ice away from the waterer so the cows were less likely to put their foot in it. Then she hurried to town to her physio appointment. While in town, she ran a few errands, then came home again to finish up a few chores. The roads were not in the best condition and she was a little tense, to say the least.
Once home, she tried again to download her pictures and videos from her trip to the bush with the Rancher. She thinks she may finally have them somewhere accessible, so keep an eye out for the video in the next few days!
She also had to chop some firewood today, so she's pretty much axed out.
She and the Rancher were just sitting down to supper last night when they noticed movement in their yard, and went to the window to discover two moose investigating the Rancher's pick-up! The Princess insisted on going outside to rid her yard of the evil intruders, but even the stout-hearted Princess knows better than to get too close to those long legs! The moose moved away from the truck, but were not the least bit intimidated by the dog. They weren't even worried when the Rancher went out on the deck for a better look.
Unfortunately, it was too dark for the Bag Lady to take pictures to share with you. The moose ambled around for awhile on the driveway, then headed off into the darkness. For all the Bag Lady knows, they are bedded down in the yard behind the house - that has happened before! Several times last winter, the sun would come up to reveal mama and her yearling just getting up from their night spent sleeping in the Bag Lady's garden!
Have a great weekend.
Once home, she tried again to download her pictures and videos from her trip to the bush with the Rancher. She thinks she may finally have them somewhere accessible, so keep an eye out for the video in the next few days!
She also had to chop some firewood today, so she's pretty much axed out.
She and the Rancher were just sitting down to supper last night when they noticed movement in their yard, and went to the window to discover two moose investigating the Rancher's pick-up! The Princess insisted on going outside to rid her yard of the evil intruders, but even the stout-hearted Princess knows better than to get too close to those long legs! The moose moved away from the truck, but were not the least bit intimidated by the dog. They weren't even worried when the Rancher went out on the deck for a better look.
Unfortunately, it was too dark for the Bag Lady to take pictures to share with you. The moose ambled around for awhile on the driveway, then headed off into the darkness. For all the Bag Lady knows, they are bedded down in the yard behind the house - that has happened before! Several times last winter, the sun would come up to reveal mama and her yearling just getting up from their night spent sleeping in the Bag Lady's garden!
Have a great weekend.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Stormy Weather
The Bag Lady had a frustrating day yesterday. She spent part of the day trying to fix her computer. It refuses to allow her to download the pictures and videos from her camera. Sigh. She will try again as soon as she has time.
She and the Rancher went to his mother's for supper last evening. The Princess had to go, too, because Grandma is one of her favourite humans. While they were there, a blizzard blew in and the drive home, although short, was not exactly pleasant. The Bag Lady was happy she didn't have far to go. She was also happy to get into the house and thought she was in for the night.
She was wrong.
When you live in the country and have a well supplying your water, occasionally things go awry. The Bag Lady turned on her kitchen tap and discovered the water pressure was down. This happens when the cows are drinking from their waterer, but they do not usually drink at night. The Bag Lady waited a few minutes and tried it again, and when the pressure did not return, bundled up and went out into the storm to check the pumphouse. This sits over the well, and contains the pressure tank. Occasionally, if the weather is really cold, the pumphouse cools down enough that the water freezes. The Bag Lady didn't really think it was cold enough for that to happen, but she decided she had to check, just in case the heater had quit working, or something else had gone wrong.
There was nothing wrong in the pumphouse - the heater was working and everything looked okay, so she trudged out to the corral in the blinding, blowing snow to check on the waterer. Sure enough, it was overflowing. Back to the house she trudged and she and the Rancher spent the next hour and a half fixing it. It has a float in it similar to what is in your toilet, and when the cows drink the float rides down with the water. When it rides down, it opens a valve that allows the bowl to fill again.When the bowl is full, the float shuts the valve. Simple.
Somehow, the cover that sits over the float had gotten bent around the float, preventing it from rising high enough to shut the water off. The Rancher, after much struggling with iced and frozen bolts, managed to wiggle the cover off. He straightened it, then went back to the pumphouse to turn the water on. Fortunately, the float was not damaged and everything worked properly. So he replaced the cover and finally got to go to bed for his much-needed rest.
He and the Bag Lady determined that due to the ice built up around the waterer, one of the cows must have slipped and put a foot in the waterer, bending the cover. So the Bag Lady, who is supposed to go to town today for a physiotherapy appointment, will first take the axe out and try to chip away as much of the built-up ice as she can. When she is in town, she will pick up something to help melt the ice.
She and the Rancher went to his mother's for supper last evening. The Princess had to go, too, because Grandma is one of her favourite humans. While they were there, a blizzard blew in and the drive home, although short, was not exactly pleasant. The Bag Lady was happy she didn't have far to go. She was also happy to get into the house and thought she was in for the night.
She was wrong.
When you live in the country and have a well supplying your water, occasionally things go awry. The Bag Lady turned on her kitchen tap and discovered the water pressure was down. This happens when the cows are drinking from their waterer, but they do not usually drink at night. The Bag Lady waited a few minutes and tried it again, and when the pressure did not return, bundled up and went out into the storm to check the pumphouse. This sits over the well, and contains the pressure tank. Occasionally, if the weather is really cold, the pumphouse cools down enough that the water freezes. The Bag Lady didn't really think it was cold enough for that to happen, but she decided she had to check, just in case the heater had quit working, or something else had gone wrong.
There was nothing wrong in the pumphouse - the heater was working and everything looked okay, so she trudged out to the corral in the blinding, blowing snow to check on the waterer. Sure enough, it was overflowing. Back to the house she trudged and she and the Rancher spent the next hour and a half fixing it. It has a float in it similar to what is in your toilet, and when the cows drink the float rides down with the water. When it rides down, it opens a valve that allows the bowl to fill again.When the bowl is full, the float shuts the valve. Simple.
Somehow, the cover that sits over the float had gotten bent around the float, preventing it from rising high enough to shut the water off. The Rancher, after much struggling with iced and frozen bolts, managed to wiggle the cover off. He straightened it, then went back to the pumphouse to turn the water on. Fortunately, the float was not damaged and everything worked properly. So he replaced the cover and finally got to go to bed for his much-needed rest.
He and the Bag Lady determined that due to the ice built up around the waterer, one of the cows must have slipped and put a foot in the waterer, bending the cover. So the Bag Lady, who is supposed to go to town today for a physiotherapy appointment, will first take the axe out and try to chip away as much of the built-up ice as she can. When she is in town, she will pick up something to help melt the ice.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Bills and Fleas in Cattle Hair
and Ice Cream Castles in the air...
(Good thing the Bag Lady didn't write that song, eh?)
The Bag Lady had a very busy day yesterday. Between yet another round of phone calls with her ex-satellite provider over the erroneous bill (which almost made her miss the inauguration), and the delousing of calves (which went very well, and very quickly) and going with the Rancher out to his jobsite (yes, even on his day off!), the day flew by.
She is hopeful that things are now straightened out with the satellite company, but only time will tell. She never did hear back from the supervisor, as promised, but did get a call from the Collections Department! She almost went ballistic, but called the billing department yet again, spoke to another supervisor, who, after almost 45 minutes on the phone, succeeded in cutting the Bag Lady off! Rather than call back immediately, the Bag Lady sat down and watched President Obama's speech. She found it very inspiring.
She then called the satellite provider back, spoke to yet another supervisor (the third one) and thinks everything is finally straightened out. She hopes.
She and the Rancher herded the calves into the barn where the delousing took place in record time. The product that they used is a liquid that is poured along the animals' spine. All of the calves should be parasite-free, and the Bag Lady and the Rancher, too! Actually, the Bag Lady managed not to get near as much on herself as she has in past years, so now she's wondering about that itch in the middle of her back..... nah, can't be!
When they finished the chores, they had to go out to the Rancher's jobsite and fuel the machines and do a few little maintenance-type chores. The Bag Lady took her camera and (if her computer will allow it) will put together a video for you, if you are interested. Let her know in the comment section if you want to see a little bit of what happens in the logging sector.
(Good thing the Bag Lady didn't write that song, eh?)
The Bag Lady had a very busy day yesterday. Between yet another round of phone calls with her ex-satellite provider over the erroneous bill (which almost made her miss the inauguration), and the delousing of calves (which went very well, and very quickly) and going with the Rancher out to his jobsite (yes, even on his day off!), the day flew by.
She is hopeful that things are now straightened out with the satellite company, but only time will tell. She never did hear back from the supervisor, as promised, but did get a call from the Collections Department! She almost went ballistic, but called the billing department yet again, spoke to another supervisor, who, after almost 45 minutes on the phone, succeeded in cutting the Bag Lady off! Rather than call back immediately, the Bag Lady sat down and watched President Obama's speech. She found it very inspiring.
She then called the satellite provider back, spoke to yet another supervisor (the third one) and thinks everything is finally straightened out. She hopes.
She and the Rancher herded the calves into the barn where the delousing took place in record time. The product that they used is a liquid that is poured along the animals' spine. All of the calves should be parasite-free, and the Bag Lady and the Rancher, too! Actually, the Bag Lady managed not to get near as much on herself as she has in past years, so now she's wondering about that itch in the middle of her back..... nah, can't be!
When they finished the chores, they had to go out to the Rancher's jobsite and fuel the machines and do a few little maintenance-type chores. The Bag Lady took her camera and (if her computer will allow it) will put together a video for you, if you are interested. Let her know in the comment section if you want to see a little bit of what happens in the logging sector.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Prattling Along
The Rancher is off work today, so it sort of feels like it should be Sunday. He and the Bag Lady have plans to do some ranch-related tasks today (they have to de-louse their calves - doesn't that sound exciting!?), and he will try to catch up on some much-needed rest.
The weather is supposed to stay mild for today, then start cooling off to more normal winter temperatures. This past week or so of warm weather was a sweet break from the cold, but it is far too early to even hope for spring. We have the rest of January and all of February to get through yet. March can be terrible for lots of snow and there is still the possibility of extreme cold weather. We can also experience huge snowfalls in April or May, but the chances of extreme cold are reduced by then, due to the longer daylight hours.
There isn't much to talk about around the ranch today, and the Bag Lady is sure that many of you are going to be busy anyway, watching the inauguration in the United States. The Bag Lady is going to try to keep an eye on this historic event herself!
She hopes everyone is having a good day!
The weather is supposed to stay mild for today, then start cooling off to more normal winter temperatures. This past week or so of warm weather was a sweet break from the cold, but it is far too early to even hope for spring. We have the rest of January and all of February to get through yet. March can be terrible for lots of snow and there is still the possibility of extreme cold weather. We can also experience huge snowfalls in April or May, but the chances of extreme cold are reduced by then, due to the longer daylight hours.
There isn't much to talk about around the ranch today, and the Bag Lady is sure that many of you are going to be busy anyway, watching the inauguration in the United States. The Bag Lady is going to try to keep an eye on this historic event herself!
She hopes everyone is having a good day!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch...
The Bag Lady put together a little video for you depicting a day at the ranch. Hope you enjoy it!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Odd? Says Who?
The Bag Lady has been having all kinds of strange things happening with her computer. She tried countless times to download photos and videos from her camera, but the program kept telling her it wasn't working. She finally used a different program and was successful in downloading the photos, at least.
Imagine her surprise when she looked for the photos to include with this post and found all her photos and videos clips in the original program. Sheesh.
Anyway.
Here is an odd photo. The Bag Lady thinks she should run a caption contest for this one.....
And here is another odd photo.
What the heck do you think this is?
She needs to try to find those video clips now and do some editing so she can post some calf video.....
Imagine her surprise when she looked for the photos to include with this post and found all her photos and videos clips in the original program. Sheesh.
Anyway.
Here is an odd photo. The Bag Lady thinks she should run a caption contest for this one.....
And here is another odd photo.
What the heck do you think this is?
She needs to try to find those video clips now and do some editing so she can post some calf video.....
Friday, January 16, 2009
Cheerio!
The Bag Lady is taking a page from Tokaiangel's book today and asking everyone who reads her blog to de-lurk today!
She knows you are there - she sees you in her sitemeter. She isn't asking for much, just a quick hello to let her know who you might be. It would be great if you would tell her where you live, but that's not essential! And while you're at it - tell her what you like about her blog, if you are so inclined - she'd love to hear some feedback from you.
And even if you aren't a lurker, stop in and say hello today!
She had some video of calves that she wanted to share with you, but life got in the way and she didn't have a chance to download it from her camera. If she has time later on today, she might just add a little to this post!
Have a great weekend everyone!
EDIT: The Bag Lady is absolutely loving hearing from all her lurkers!! She had no idea so many people from so many different places and walks of life were enjoying hearing about her simple life out here on the farm (snow and all!!)
She knows she promised to post her calf video, but is sorry to report she is having some trouble downloading it from her camera. ~~sigh~~ If she gets it fixed, she will definitely post the video. Sorry to disappoint any of you who were looking forward to seeing the calves.
She knows you are there - she sees you in her sitemeter. She isn't asking for much, just a quick hello to let her know who you might be. It would be great if you would tell her where you live, but that's not essential! And while you're at it - tell her what you like about her blog, if you are so inclined - she'd love to hear some feedback from you.
And even if you aren't a lurker, stop in and say hello today!
She had some video of calves that she wanted to share with you, but life got in the way and she didn't have a chance to download it from her camera. If she has time later on today, she might just add a little to this post!
Have a great weekend everyone!
EDIT: The Bag Lady is absolutely loving hearing from all her lurkers!! She had no idea so many people from so many different places and walks of life were enjoying hearing about her simple life out here on the farm (snow and all!!)
She knows she promised to post her calf video, but is sorry to report she is having some trouble downloading it from her camera. ~~sigh~~ If she gets it fixed, she will definitely post the video. Sorry to disappoint any of you who were looking forward to seeing the calves.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
From the Bag Lady's Test Kitchen
As you may have surmised from yesterday's post, the Bag Lady had to spend some time in her house yesterday, waiting for the phone to ring. Which it did not. She decided that she should put that time to good use because she hates to just sit around, wasting time blogging isn't a waste of time, is it?
She had done some cleaning in her pantry a day or two before, and discovered a large unopened bag of dried apricots and a large supply of pecans, so she decided some experimenting was in order. Apricots and pecans should go together fairly well, she told herself. So she grabbed a handful of pecans and tossed them in the oven to toast, and chopped up a couple of cups of apricots. Here is her recipe for:
Apricot Pecan Matrimonial Cake
1 1/4 Cups flour
1 Cup rolled oats
1/2 Cup chopped toasted pecans
1 Cup brown sugar
1 tsp soda
3/4 Cup butter
Mix dry ingredients, cut in butter as for pastry.
filling:
2 Cups chopped dried apricots
1 Cup brown sugar
1 Cup water
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Mix apricots, sugar, water and lemon juice in saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cook until thick.
Spread half the dry mixture in a 9"x9" (or 8"x8") square pan. Cover with filling, then sprinkle remaining dry mixture on top. (The Bag Lady added some extra chopped, toasted pecans on top because she had so many!)
Bake at 300F for 1 hour.
Cool completely. Cut into squares.
This recipe originally calls for using dates instead of apricots, and does not call for pecans. The Bag Lady likes it that way, too, but this makes for a nice change.
(The Bag Lady has no idea why this was called Matrimonial Cake, but her mother used to make it, so the recipe is quite old. Not that the Bag Lady is old.....she's just sayin' the recipe has been around a long time....)
Edit:
Here is a little explanation I found on another blog as to the origin of the recipe.
She had done some cleaning in her pantry a day or two before, and discovered a large unopened bag of dried apricots and a large supply of pecans, so she decided some experimenting was in order. Apricots and pecans should go together fairly well, she told herself. So she grabbed a handful of pecans and tossed them in the oven to toast, and chopped up a couple of cups of apricots. Here is her recipe for:
Apricot Pecan Matrimonial Cake
1 1/4 Cups flour
1 Cup rolled oats
1/2 Cup chopped toasted pecans
1 Cup brown sugar
1 tsp soda
3/4 Cup butter
Mix dry ingredients, cut in butter as for pastry.
filling:
2 Cups chopped dried apricots
1 Cup brown sugar
1 Cup water
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Mix apricots, sugar, water and lemon juice in saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cook until thick.
Spread half the dry mixture in a 9"x9" (or 8"x8") square pan. Cover with filling, then sprinkle remaining dry mixture on top. (The Bag Lady added some extra chopped, toasted pecans on top because she had so many!)
Bake at 300F for 1 hour.
Cool completely. Cut into squares.
This recipe originally calls for using dates instead of apricots, and does not call for pecans. The Bag Lady likes it that way, too, but this makes for a nice change.
(The Bag Lady has no idea why this was called Matrimonial Cake, but her mother used to make it, so the recipe is quite old. Not that the Bag Lady is old.....she's just sayin' the recipe has been around a long time....)
Edit:
Here is a little explanation I found on another blog as to the origin of the recipe.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
A Wee Rant
subtitle: RING THAT, BELL
The Bag Lady is on the warpath.
She is ordinarily quite easy-going, and easy to get along with. Some might say she is just plain easy, but that's not true! She has standards and morals and all those other good things.....
Anyway.
She has had satellite television on the ranch for many years now, and has been mostly satisfied with it. One tends to get in a rut, a wee bit, and when things go wrong, one tends to let it slide, thinking it will get better. Such a thing happened with her satellite provider. The television would simply go blank. No audio, no picture. At first it was rare, and brief. Then it started happening with more frequency. Until it got to the point where the Rancher and the Bag Lady decided that perhaps it was time to switch providers. There were other considerations, too, but that was the main one. And no, before you ask, they didn't bother to call their provider and complain because neither of them felt like sitting on hold on the phone for the required hours, waiting to speak to a service representative who could not speak clear English. (Lord forgive me for being politically incorrect, but it damned well pisses me off to not be able to understand someone who is supposed to be serving me! I don't care what colour someone is, or what country they originally hailed from, but for God's sake, if they are working in a position where their main contact with the public is verbal, they should be able to speak English clearly! Damn - is my redneck showing?)
*ahem* Anyway.
The Bag Lady took advantage of a *deal* offered by the satellite provider's competition and, for the most part, has been very happy with it so far, thank you very much. She waited a week after switching in order to make sure that she was going to be happy with the new provider, and to make sure any kinks were worked out, then she called her old service provider and canceled her service. The (non-English-as-first-language speaking) fellow that she talked to tried to convince her not to cancel her service, but she was determined, and had already purchased the new satellite. He told her that because they bill in advance (of course!!) her next bill would reflect the fact that she canceled her service at the beginning of December, and would be for an amount in the neighbourhood of $9.00. Fine.
The Bag Lady finally received said bill and opened it to discover to her shock and dismay that not only was the bill for the same amount as usual for the month of January, but they had dinged her (again) for the month of December, putting her bill in arrears. She called the service provider in a rage and when, after being on hold the requisite half an hour, she finally got to speak to a (non-English-as-first-language speaking) service representative, she immediately requested to speak to a supervisor. She then had to sit on hold for another half an hour, only to have the first fellow come back on the line and tell her that his supervisor was still too busy to speak to her and would call her back.
By this time, the Bag Lady was beyond annoyed. The (non-English-as-first-launguage speaking) fellow tried to tell her that she should go ahead and pay this bill and that the NEXT bill would reflect a credit balance of almost $70.00. She proceeded to tell him that that simply was not going to happen. Why would she pay them for services she did not take advantage of? She has not used their satellite since before the end of November. He said that they required 30 days notice to close her account. Well, that would be the end of December, wouldn't it? She was under the impression that her account was up-to-date, except for the $9.00 which her next bill would consist of. And now she is so angry she doesn't even want to pay them the $9.00! If you add up all those blank spots in the programming, surely that was $9.00 worth of television that she paid for and did not get to see!!
And why would she want a credit balance with this company? She has no intention of ever dealing with them again in any capacity whatsoever, so a credit balance would do her no earthly good. And in her experience, getting them to cut her a check for the credit balance would be like asking for an audience with the Queen of England. There is a very remote possibility, but........
She rarely loses her temper, but cannot see this ending well. Especially considering that she has to wait for this supervisor to call her back. She has things to do which require not being in the house, waiting by the phone for a call that, more than likely, will not come; unless, of course, she actually physically leaves her house to go do something important. Like feed her cows. Then the phone will ring. GRRR. Perhaps she should take a shower - that usually makes the phone ring, doesn't it?
^^
^^
^^
(those little marks represent time flying, which, BTW, it did NOT!)
The deadline has now passed, the Bag Lady has not received a call from the esteemed supervisor. She now feels especially vindicated in her decision to turf this satellite provider. This, in the Bag Lady's lowly opinion, is just another example of how sick our society has become. Big corporations are not willing to go that extra mile, or to put any effort into customer service or customer satisfaction. They are just like the sleazy, slimy guys who hang around in bars, looking to pick up *broads* or *chicks* (insert derogatory descriptive word for women currently in fashion here), oozing charm until they get what they want, then forgetting to call when they promise they will! As soon as the big corporations get you signed up and have your money, forget about getting anything else from them! Oh how the Bag Lady longs for the good ol' days where if a company did you wrong, you had some sort of recourse, even if it was simply to bad mouth them around town and do some small harm to their reputation! ~~sigh~~
So the Bag Lady will now go out and feed her poor hungry cows and will call Bell-frickin'-ExpressVu in the morning and go through this all over again. (and believe me, she would never have called them by name in this blog post if they had simply kept their word and called her back when they said they would!!!!!)
The Bag Lady is on the warpath.
She is ordinarily quite easy-going, and easy to get along with.
Anyway.
She has had satellite television on the ranch for many years now, and has been mostly satisfied with it. One tends to get in a rut, a wee bit, and when things go wrong, one tends to let it slide, thinking it will get better. Such a thing happened with her satellite provider. The television would simply go blank. No audio, no picture. At first it was rare, and brief. Then it started happening with more frequency. Until it got to the point where the Rancher and the Bag Lady decided that perhaps it was time to switch providers. There were other considerations, too, but that was the main one. And no, before you ask, they didn't bother to call their provider and complain because neither of them felt like sitting on hold on the phone for the required hours, waiting to speak to a service representative who could not speak clear English. (Lord forgive me for being politically incorrect, but it damned well pisses me off to not be able to understand someone who is supposed to be serving me! I don't care what colour someone is, or what country they originally hailed from, but for God's sake, if they are working in a position where their main contact with the public is verbal, they should be able to speak English clearly! Damn - is my redneck showing?)
*ahem* Anyway.
The Bag Lady took advantage of a *deal* offered by the satellite provider's competition and, for the most part, has been very happy with it so far, thank you very much. She waited a week after switching in order to make sure that she was going to be happy with the new provider, and to make sure any kinks were worked out, then she called her old service provider and canceled her service. The (non-English-as-first-language speaking) fellow that she talked to tried to convince her not to cancel her service, but she was determined, and had already purchased the new satellite. He told her that because they bill in advance (of course!!) her next bill would reflect the fact that she canceled her service at the beginning of December, and would be for an amount in the neighbourhood of $9.00. Fine.
The Bag Lady finally received said bill and opened it to discover to her shock and dismay that not only was the bill for the same amount as usual for the month of January, but they had dinged her (again) for the month of December, putting her bill in arrears. She called the service provider in a rage and when, after being on hold the requisite half an hour, she finally got to speak to a (non-English-as-first-language speaking) service representative, she immediately requested to speak to a supervisor. She then had to sit on hold for another half an hour, only to have the first fellow come back on the line and tell her that his supervisor was still too busy to speak to her and would call her back.
By this time, the Bag Lady was beyond annoyed. The (non-English-as-first-launguage speaking) fellow tried to tell her that she should go ahead and pay this bill and that the NEXT bill would reflect a credit balance of almost $70.00. She proceeded to tell him that that simply was not going to happen. Why would she pay them for services she did not take advantage of? She has not used their satellite since before the end of November. He said that they required 30 days notice to close her account. Well, that would be the end of December, wouldn't it? She was under the impression that her account was up-to-date, except for the $9.00 which her next bill would consist of. And now she is so angry she doesn't even want to pay them the $9.00! If you add up all those blank spots in the programming, surely that was $9.00 worth of television that she paid for and did not get to see!!
And why would she want a credit balance with this company? She has no intention of ever dealing with them again in any capacity whatsoever, so a credit balance would do her no earthly good. And in her experience, getting them to cut her a check for the credit balance would be like asking for an audience with the Queen of England. There is a very remote possibility, but........
She rarely loses her temper, but cannot see this ending well. Especially considering that she has to wait for this supervisor to call her back. She has things to do which require not being in the house, waiting by the phone for a call that, more than likely, will not come; unless, of course, she actually physically leaves her house to go do something important. Like feed her cows. Then the phone will ring. GRRR. Perhaps she should take a shower - that usually makes the phone ring, doesn't it?
^^
^^
^^
(those little marks represent time flying, which, BTW, it did NOT!)
The deadline has now passed, the Bag Lady has not received a call from the esteemed supervisor. She now feels especially vindicated in her decision to turf this satellite provider. This, in the Bag Lady's lowly opinion, is just another example of how sick our society has become. Big corporations are not willing to go that extra mile, or to put any effort into customer service or customer satisfaction. They are just like the sleazy, slimy guys who hang around in bars, looking to pick up *broads* or *chicks* (insert derogatory descriptive word for women currently in fashion here), oozing charm until they get what they want, then forgetting to call when they promise they will! As soon as the big corporations get you signed up and have your money, forget about getting anything else from them! Oh how the Bag Lady longs for the good ol' days where if a company did you wrong, you had some sort of recourse, even if it was simply to bad mouth them around town and do some small harm to their reputation! ~~sigh~~
So the Bag Lady will now go out and feed her poor hungry cows and will call Bell-frickin'-ExpressVu in the morning and go through this all over again. (and believe me, she would never have called them by name in this blog post if they had simply kept their word and called her back when they said they would!!!!!)
Wednesday. Again?
Oh, dear. The Bag Lady has taken to sleeping in! She is just so tired these last few days, and doesn't know why! it certainly isn't from working too hard! She has been maintaining her normal routine, except that she isn't getting out of bed at her normal 4:30 or 5 am! And she has fallen asleep in front of the television not once but twice in the past few days! This is rare - in part because she so seldom sits down in front of the TV.
She did manage to stay awake through a program called "How to Look Good Naked". The show works wonders for women with low self-esteem. It really is amazing to watch the transformation.
She has also been having a little trouble with her computer, which makes it challenging to actually write a post. Her computer "freezes", and refuses to keep up with her *ahem* speedy typing. Consequently, she finds it difficult to keep her train of thought, which translates into not being able to actually write an interesting, intelligent post. (Easily frustrated? Who?)
So her question for you today is this: do you care if she posts about her solutions for all the problems in the world, or would you rather read just anything her computer will allow her to finally get onto the screen, even if it's drivel like today?
She did manage to stay awake through a program called "How to Look Good Naked". The show works wonders for women with low self-esteem. It really is amazing to watch the transformation.
She has also been having a little trouble with her computer, which makes it challenging to actually write a post. Her computer "freezes", and refuses to keep up with her *ahem* speedy typing. Consequently, she finds it difficult to keep her train of thought, which translates into not being able to actually write an interesting, intelligent post. (Easily frustrated? Who?)
So her question for you today is this: do you care if she posts about her solutions for all the problems in the world, or would you rather read just anything her computer will allow her to finally get onto the screen, even if it's drivel like today?
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Visitors!!
It was visitors' day at the ranch yesterday! The Bag Lady had a huge contingent of birds - Chickadees, of course, but also Common Redpolls, Downy Woodpeckers, and Pine Grosbeaks. Every time she raised her camera to take a picture, the birds would fly away! She finally managed this rather blurry shot of a male Grosbeak caught unawares:
She also had a very early morning visit from 5 or 6 mule deer, but it was too dark to take a picture.
Much later, when it was almost dark again, she had a return visit from this fella:
He was disappointed, though, because all those birds earlier in the day had emptied the feeder.
The temperature has risen dramatically overnight and it is +4C (about 38F), but is supposed to drop throughout the day. Weird!
She also had a very early morning visit from 5 or 6 mule deer, but it was too dark to take a picture.
Much later, when it was almost dark again, she had a return visit from this fella:
He was disappointed, though, because all those birds earlier in the day had emptied the feeder.The temperature has risen dramatically overnight and it is +4C (about 38F), but is supposed to drop throughout the day. Weird!
Monday, January 12, 2009
MONDAY FACE(plant)TIME
Sometimes what seemed like a good idea in the shower........
maybe wasn't.
Edited to add: Disclaimer - the Bag Lady has no idea who this A(u)ntiFit woman is, nor how she got this video onto the Bag Lady's blog! It cannot possibly be the Bag Lady because the Bag Lady's voice is much more melodic, and doesn't sound like she's choking on a fishbone, and the Bag Lady is much slimmer and less well endowed! Now head on over to Mizfit's site and join in the discussion on Personal Responsibility!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Wee Weather Weport
The weather finally warmed up enough for the Bag Lady to do a little reconnoitering and have a look at the conditions in her yard. Here is what she discovered:
There is a little accumulation of snow around.
(In case you can't tell, this is a barbeque.)
With the temperature hovering around the freezing mark, conditions were just right for doing a little snow shoveling and roof-clearing. The Bag Lady has a scoop with a very long handle with which she removes the excess snow from the eavestroughs so they don't ice up too badly.
The Princess was more than happy with the weather yesterday and spent a good portion of the day playing, running, barking and chasing sticks, birds and anything else that moved!
At day's end, the Bag Lady glanced outside and saw the moon rising over the barn:
The weather is supposed to stay mild for a few days, which pleases the Bag Lady (and the Princess). It is so much easier on everything and everyone when the weather is not bitterly cold. It wouldn't hurt the Bag Lady's feelings if it stayed mild for the rest of the winter.
(She can dream, can't she?)
There is a little accumulation of snow around.
(In case you can't tell, this is a barbeque.)
With the temperature hovering around the freezing mark, conditions were just right for doing a little snow shoveling and roof-clearing. The Bag Lady has a scoop with a very long handle with which she removes the excess snow from the eavestroughs so they don't ice up too badly.
The Princess was more than happy with the weather yesterday and spent a good portion of the day playing, running, barking and chasing sticks, birds and anything else that moved!
At day's end, the Bag Lady glanced outside and saw the moon rising over the barn:
The weather is supposed to stay mild for a few days, which pleases the Bag Lady (and the Princess). It is so much easier on everything and everyone when the weather is not bitterly cold. It wouldn't hurt the Bag Lady's feelings if it stayed mild for the rest of the winter.(She can dream, can't she?)
Friday, January 9, 2009
A Day AlMOOSt Wasted....
Well, the Bag Lady had to go back to town yesterday. The Rancher's truck had a broken spring, so it was in the repair shop, and needed to be picked up.
The Bag Lady asked her good friend to take her to town. Her good friend consented. The Bag Lady bought lunch for her very good friend, and they had a nice visit. They did a little shopping, although neither of them actually needed anything, while they waited for the call to tell them the truck was ready.
The Bag Lady finally called the shop only to be told it wouldn't be ready for a couple more hours! The Bag Lady and her extremely patient friend wandered around a few more stores, then finally drove to the repair shop to see if their presence there would perhaps encourage the repair along. When they arrived there, they were told the repair wouldn't be completed for a couple more couple hours! The service manager very kindly offered to drive the truck to a place where the Rancher could pick it up if that would help any. So the Bag Lady and her incredibly kind, patient friend came home again, leaving the matter of the truck to be sorted out between the repair shop and the Rancher!
When the Bag Lady and her friend were almost home, they spied something straight ahead on the road in the distance. They were actually supposed to turn off the road, but when they realized what they were seeing, and the Bag Lady remembered that she had her camera in her pocket, they drove on to have a look.
Mama moose and her calf did not seem to be the least bit bothered by the presence of the Bag Lady and her friend, and continued pruning the tasty little willows whilst the Bag Lady tried to take at least one decent picture. The Bag Lady's friend is an extremely talented artist who would paint a picture of these moose if the Bag Lady managed to take a good photo. ~~sigh~~ Of the half dozen or so photos the Bag Lady took, these were the best.
The calf was so intent on his dinner that he refused to pose for the Bag Lady, instead presenting his posterior in a rather determined manner! His mama at least acknowledged our presence, but seemed singularly unimpressed with the idea of having her picture taken. Of course, she could have decided that we were annoying paparazzi and gone on the offensive, but she chose the high road and ignored us instead!
The Bag Lady asked her good friend to take her to town. Her good friend consented. The Bag Lady bought lunch for her very good friend, and they had a nice visit. They did a little shopping, although neither of them actually needed anything, while they waited for the call to tell them the truck was ready.
The Bag Lady finally called the shop only to be told it wouldn't be ready for a couple more hours! The Bag Lady and her extremely patient friend wandered around a few more stores, then finally drove to the repair shop to see if their presence there would perhaps encourage the repair along. When they arrived there, they were told the repair wouldn't be completed for a couple more couple hours! The service manager very kindly offered to drive the truck to a place where the Rancher could pick it up if that would help any. So the Bag Lady and her incredibly kind, patient friend came home again, leaving the matter of the truck to be sorted out between the repair shop and the Rancher!
When the Bag Lady and her friend were almost home, they spied something straight ahead on the road in the distance. They were actually supposed to turn off the road, but when they realized what they were seeing, and the Bag Lady remembered that she had her camera in her pocket, they drove on to have a look.
Mama moose and her calf did not seem to be the least bit bothered by the presence of the Bag Lady and her friend, and continued pruning the tasty little willows whilst the Bag Lady tried to take at least one decent picture. The Bag Lady's friend is an extremely talented artist who would paint a picture of these moose if the Bag Lady managed to take a good photo. ~~sigh~~ Of the half dozen or so photos the Bag Lady took, these were the best.
The calf was so intent on his dinner that he refused to pose for the Bag Lady, instead presenting his posterior in a rather determined manner! His mama at least acknowledged our presence, but seemed singularly unimpressed with the idea of having her picture taken. Of course, she could have decided that we were annoying paparazzi and gone on the offensive, but she chose the high road and ignored us instead!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch.....
The Bag Lady had a very busy day yesterday. She lured the calves out of the hay yard with oats and, after securing the chain that they miraculously unhooked, she tied the gate shut for added security!
Here is the hay-yard after the calves were convinced to go back where they belonged:
Then she fed the cows a bale of hay.
Then she ran into town for her physio appointment and some errands. The drive to town was fraught with danger (don't you love that expression? - always wanted to use it!!) as the road conditions were less than ideal. It was snowing light, fluffy stuff, which swirls around in the least bit of wind. Of course, big trucks on the highway create quite a bit of wind, so there was quite a lot of swirling happening, as there were quite a few big trucks on the highway. It was also very icy in places; especially at intersections in town. But the Bag Lady made it to all of her destinations with only a couple of near-misses (including one on the highway when two big trucks came toward her out of the swirling snow side-by-side, which meant one of them was, inconsiderately, using the Bag Lady's lane and almost side-swiped her!)
She heard on the radio that there have been over 130 accidents in this area in the seven days since New Year's Day! The population of the city is only around 50,000 people. WTF? Winter comes every year, you would think they would be accustomed to driving in winter conditions by now!
She was very glad to make it home safely, but had to turn around and go back out on the highway with the loader to take a bale to the horses who are pastured at the Rancher's mother's place.
It was snowing even harder, but she waited at the highway until she was positive there was no traffic. The loader doesn't go very fast, and she is always worried she will be rear-ended. Fortunately, the worst thing that happened was a big tanker truck passing her so fast that she was blinded by snow for long enough to piss her off!
This is how much it snowed - look at the tracks the loader tires made - it was almost over the top of the Bag Lady's boots (the loader tires are almost chest-high on the Bag Lady):
Once she was finished with the ordeal of driving on the highway, she fed her cows another bale because it had snowed enough to cover the first one.
She was a wee bit surprised to see that the cows had a couple of visitors:
And even more surprised when, despite the noise of the loader, they were joined by another:
Here is a wee sample of what the driving conditions were like:
The Bag Lady had to stop filming in order to concentrate on driving! This was NOT filmed on the highway, BTW - this was on the side road just when she was leaving her driveway.
Here is the hay-yard after the calves were convinced to go back where they belonged:
Then she fed the cows a bale of hay.
Then she ran into town for her physio appointment and some errands. The drive to town was fraught with danger (don't you love that expression? - always wanted to use it!!) as the road conditions were less than ideal. It was snowing light, fluffy stuff, which swirls around in the least bit of wind. Of course, big trucks on the highway create quite a bit of wind, so there was quite a lot of swirling happening, as there were quite a few big trucks on the highway. It was also very icy in places; especially at intersections in town. But the Bag Lady made it to all of her destinations with only a couple of near-misses (including one on the highway when two big trucks came toward her out of the swirling snow side-by-side, which meant one of them was, inconsiderately, using the Bag Lady's lane and almost side-swiped her!)
She heard on the radio that there have been over 130 accidents in this area in the seven days since New Year's Day! The population of the city is only around 50,000 people. WTF? Winter comes every year, you would think they would be accustomed to driving in winter conditions by now!
She was very glad to make it home safely, but had to turn around and go back out on the highway with the loader to take a bale to the horses who are pastured at the Rancher's mother's place.
It was snowing even harder, but she waited at the highway until she was positive there was no traffic. The loader doesn't go very fast, and she is always worried she will be rear-ended. Fortunately, the worst thing that happened was a big tanker truck passing her so fast that she was blinded by snow for long enough to piss her off!
This is how much it snowed - look at the tracks the loader tires made - it was almost over the top of the Bag Lady's boots (the loader tires are almost chest-high on the Bag Lady):
Once she was finished with the ordeal of driving on the highway, she fed her cows another bale because it had snowed enough to cover the first one.
She was a wee bit surprised to see that the cows had a couple of visitors:
And even more surprised when, despite the noise of the loader, they were joined by another:
Here is a wee sample of what the driving conditions were like:
The Bag Lady had to stop filming in order to concentrate on driving! This was NOT filmed on the highway, BTW - this was on the side road just when she was leaving her driveway.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Sheesh!
The Bag Lady does not as a rule watch very much television. That said, she caught the beginning of a brand new program on television last night that made her cringe. It actually made her squirm with embarrassment, and she only watched the first few minutes. It supposedly depicts life on a ranch in Alberta....... gah. She wonders if this is how folks in Dallas reacted when that program made it's debut all those many years ago!
She's pretty sure this is only on Canadian television, which is notorious for being *yawn* a wee bit boring. She's pretty sure this show is trying to break out of that mold, but unfortunately only looks ridiculous. She's also pretty sure that it won't last. She is also pretty sure... nay... positive, she will not be watching any more of it!
In other news, the weather sucks. Oh, wait, that's not news, that's normal for this time of year! It's cold and snowy. Meh, it's Alberta.
She has a busy day ahead of her. She has an appointment in town with her physiotherapist, cows to feed, horses to feed, and calves to chase out of the hay-yard. They must have figured out how to open the gate between their corral and the hay-yard. Brats. So the Bag Lady will have to figure out how to fix it so they can't open it again! And it's not like they don't have plenty to eat in their corral. I guess the hay is always greener.....
She's pretty sure this is only on Canadian television, which is notorious for being *yawn* a wee bit boring. She's pretty sure this show is trying to break out of that mold, but unfortunately only looks ridiculous. She's also pretty sure that it won't last. She is also pretty sure... nay... positive, she will not be watching any more of it!
In other news, the weather sucks. Oh, wait, that's not news, that's normal for this time of year! It's cold and snowy. Meh, it's Alberta.
She has a busy day ahead of her. She has an appointment in town with her physiotherapist, cows to feed, horses to feed, and calves to chase out of the hay-yard. They must have figured out how to open the gate between their corral and the hay-yard. Brats. So the Bag Lady will have to figure out how to fix it so they can't open it again! And it's not like they don't have plenty to eat in their corral. I guess the hay is always greener.....
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Blue January
The Bag Lady was unable to leave her house yesterday. She spent a goodly portion of the day in bed, mostly feeling sorry for herself. What a wimp.
The Rancher has threatened to take her to town to seek medical attention. She is starting to come around to his way of thinking, except that she is sure there is nothing that can be done. This is probably something that just needs to run it'sextremely long freakin course! But there are still errands to be run in town, and if the Rancher is willing to drive, the Bag Lady will definitely go with him!
January is traditionally a month for hibernating, and the Bag Lady has that down to a science. She has all sorts of little plans and ideas for things she would like to get done around her house, and the cold weather is certainly an aid in accomplishing those tasks. When it's nice outside, the Bag Lady (like most kids) would much rather be out there! Her housework (never something high on her priority list) definitely suffers in the summertime, so she tries to make up for that in the winter. She needs to do more deep-cleaning (there are a few more storage areas that need to be explored) and has mountains of paper to deal with. Unfortunately, her little affliction is interfering with her plans. It's hard to concentrate on anything else when your tummy is in an uproar.
What about you? What do you do to help conquer the January blues?
The Rancher has threatened to take her to town to seek medical attention. She is starting to come around to his way of thinking, except that she is sure there is nothing that can be done. This is probably something that just needs to run it's
January is traditionally a month for hibernating, and the Bag Lady has that down to a science. She has all sorts of little plans and ideas for things she would like to get done around her house, and the cold weather is certainly an aid in accomplishing those tasks. When it's nice outside, the Bag Lady (like most kids) would much rather be out there! Her housework (never something high on her priority list) definitely suffers in the summertime, so she tries to make up for that in the winter. She needs to do more deep-cleaning (there are a few more storage areas that need to be explored) and has mountains of paper to deal with. Unfortunately, her little affliction is interfering with her plans. It's hard to concentrate on anything else when your tummy is in an uproar.
What about you? What do you do to help conquer the January blues?
Monday, January 5, 2009
Still.....
The Bag Lady is still suffering from her affliction. But at least the weather has warmed up to a tolerable temperature.
She has many tasks to take care of today, including going to town. She is not eager to leave her house, but has no choice.
She was going through her archives of photos, trying to distract herself in order that she might post about something other than her health, and came upon this photo, which always makes her smile:
Wasn't the Princess just the cutest pup?
She has many tasks to take care of today, including going to town. She is not eager to leave her house, but has no choice.
She was going through her archives of photos, trying to distract herself in order that she might post about something other than her health, and came upon this photo, which always makes her smile:
Wasn't the Princess just the cutest pup?
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Health and Weather Update
A day in the life.....
(Warning: this post is not for the faint of heart - contains graphic language!)
Leap out of bed, run to bathroom, squirt half an ounce of liquid from your butt. Sit there and wait until the cramps subside and you can no longer feel your feet.
Gingerly take a swipe at the brightly burning star in the middle of your butt with what the commercials tout as pillowy soft toilet paper, but has been secretly exchanged for sandpaper.
Readjust clothing, consisting of pajamas, long underwear, warmest housecoat.
Wash hands with soap (again) until they resemble shiny plastic replicas of the soft smooth skin you had a mere 4 days ago.
Shiver your way to the kitchen and peer through the frost-encrusted window at the thermometer which still has not budged from minus 40 (is it broken? It can't possibly still be that frickin' cold).
Open door for dog to go out. Confirm that yes, it is still that frickin' cold.
Huddle deeper into housecoat, waiting by door for dog.
Open door again as dog scampers inside, holding one foot close to body.
Shove as much wood as possible into wood stove.
Curse once again at satellite TV receiver that isn't working (unless you want to watch TSN!)
Shiver your way back to bed, crawling under 14 quilts, shoving 2 cats out of the way. Rub cat hair off face.
Finally warm up, start to drift off to sleep, leap from bed, run to bathroom, squirt half an ounce of liquid from butt.....
(Warning: this post is not for the faint of heart - contains graphic language!)
Leap out of bed, run to bathroom, squirt half an ounce of liquid from your butt. Sit there and wait until the cramps subside and you can no longer feel your feet.
Gingerly take a swipe at the brightly burning star in the middle of your butt with what the commercials tout as pillowy soft toilet paper, but has been secretly exchanged for sandpaper.
Readjust clothing, consisting of pajamas, long underwear, warmest housecoat.
Wash hands with soap (again) until they resemble shiny plastic replicas of the soft smooth skin you had a mere 4 days ago.
Shiver your way to the kitchen and peer through the frost-encrusted window at the thermometer which still has not budged from minus 40 (is it broken? It can't possibly still be that frickin' cold).
Open door for dog to go out. Confirm that yes, it is still that frickin' cold.
Huddle deeper into housecoat, waiting by door for dog.
Open door again as dog scampers inside, holding one foot close to body.
Shove as much wood as possible into wood stove.
Curse once again at satellite TV receiver that isn't working (unless you want to watch TSN!)
Shiver your way back to bed, crawling under 14 quilts, shoving 2 cats out of the way. Rub cat hair off face.
Finally warm up, start to drift off to sleep, leap from bed, run to bathroom, squirt half an ounce of liquid from butt.....
Friday, January 2, 2009
Welcome, 2009!
2009 has not had the best beginning for the Bag Lady. She's been sick since before New Year's Eve.
She and the Rancher spent a very quiet New Year's Eve at home. The Rancher watched Clint Eastwood movies on television while the Bag Lady mostly studied the decor in the bathroom! (She really needs to paint in there....)
The weather remains cold and slightly depressing. But the Bag Lady and the Rancher and his mom made the journey into town over treacherous roads for the annual New Year's Day feast at the Rancher's brother's house. And it was well worth it. Fabulous food, great company and a good time was had by all. (and the Bag Lady thought she was better before she went or she would have stayed home... but she's pretty sure that everyone there had already been exposed to this virus because she wasn't the only one who was sick!)
She has a physio appointment today that she is going to have to cancel - the nature of this illness is such that she doesn't get a lot of warning between "gee, I need to..." and "uh oh!" Her regular therapist is still away this week, and she has never met the therapist who is supposed to work on her today. And won't, because she really doesn't want to spread this disease around. She's hoping it will be gone soon, so she can resume her normal life.
How was your New Years? Did you have a fabulous time celebrating?
(and you really have no idea how long it took the Bag Lady to write this post, in between trips to study the bathroom decor. That wallpaper has to go. The pattern on it interferes with the shadow pictures you can make with the light from over the vanity.....)
She and the Rancher spent a very quiet New Year's Eve at home. The Rancher watched Clint Eastwood movies on television while the Bag Lady mostly studied the decor in the bathroom! (She really needs to paint in there....)
The weather remains cold and slightly depressing. But the Bag Lady and the Rancher and his mom made the journey into town over treacherous roads for the annual New Year's Day feast at the Rancher's brother's house. And it was well worth it. Fabulous food, great company and a good time was had by all. (and the Bag Lady thought she was better before she went or she would have stayed home... but she's pretty sure that everyone there had already been exposed to this virus because she wasn't the only one who was sick!)
She has a physio appointment today that she is going to have to cancel - the nature of this illness is such that she doesn't get a lot of warning between "gee, I need to..." and "uh oh!" Her regular therapist is still away this week, and she has never met the therapist who is supposed to work on her today. And won't, because she really doesn't want to spread this disease around. She's hoping it will be gone soon, so she can resume her normal life.
How was your New Years? Did you have a fabulous time celebrating?
(and you really have no idea how long it took the Bag Lady to write this post, in between trips to study the bathroom decor. That wallpaper has to go. The pattern on it interferes with the shadow pictures you can make with the light from over the vanity.....)
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