News you can’t use.

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There’s definitely a rat problem in Washington, no doubt about that. Problem is we keep electing them.

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Now, that’s just rude.

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You wouldn’t think it would take 100 years for American politicians to decide lynching is wrong, but here we are. See my comment about Washington rats above.

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It’s hard to see a legend fall. Sorry Sam, there’s a new kid in town.

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When too much of a good thing really is too much.

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We had dinner plans with friends the night of my husband’s birthday, but on the way home from the antique barn we stopped at King Eider’s Pub in the coastal town of Damariscotta.

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It’s a quirky old place famous for their crab cakes and liberal pours.

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One Winter Paloma in, I agreed whole heartedly. It may have been pink, but it tasted like straight tequila. Our plan was just to duck in for a quick appetizer that would hold us till dinner. And then my husband ordered the mussels.

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Cooked in white wine, butter and garlic… the picture isn’t a good representation of quantity. The husband ate. And ate. And ate. And didn’t seem to put a dent in the bowl.

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On his second bowl of empty shells he decided to count exactly how many mussels he received for $16.99. Care to hazard a guess?

30? 40?

How about 72. We were both dumb founded. Granted, this time of year they’re small. But when’s the last time you had that much seafood for under $20.

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It made my delicious but small and similarly priced crab cakes seem positively non existent.

And in answer to your question, yes. The husband ate every single last mussel in the bowl… though it took him nearly an hour. It was at this point the man next to us at the bar struck up a conversation and bought us a round… that to be honest, we didn’t want but also didn’t refuse. While chatting he told us his favorite movie, The Shawshank Redemption, was filmed right down the road from his home. And considering it was actually filmed in Mansfield, Ohio I’d say he either had one very large lawn or an overactive imagination. Bar stories, ya gotta love ‘em.

We floated out of the pub stuffed with seafood, feeling no pain and saw this sign on the way to the parking lot.

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Amen to that.

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Fuzz…. Part 6.

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Ever wonder why wild creatures are so often run over by cars? The roadkill count in my state is high and I can never figure out why seemingly clever animals always fall victim to large noisy vehicles.

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Mystery solved. Evolution just hasn’t caught up.

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I will now be distributing Cheer detergent to every hunter I know.

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When my husband worked for the Federal Aviation Administration drones were the bane of his existence. I’d love to have one for photography purposes, but his hatred runs deep.

Although this drone?

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Now that’s something special.

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I wonder if it would work for red squirrels…

😈

Because when it’s my husband’s birthday…

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You know there’s only one answer to the question, “ what do you want to do to celebrate?”

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Antiquing of course.

This time around it was the semi famous, at least in Maine… Elmers Barn. A ramshackle place that looks small from the front but feels like it’s 10 football fields deep once you’re inside.

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In other words, husband heaven.

And because technically it was a barn at one time….

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This lovely fellow greeted us upon arrival.

My husband turned 75 that day and to be honest, for the last few years he’s been feeling his age. The combination of a global plague, retirement, health issues, multiple deaths of friends and family, and the general weariness of aches and pains that are more prevalent when you spend considerable time on this side of the dirt have finally caught up to him. This winter the twinkle in his eye has faded and there’s not much spring in his step. Once the weather turns and he’s able to soak up some sun and fresh air I’m sure he’ll perk back up… but for now all I could offer was a day sifting and sorting through piles of useless crap untold treasure and a promise he could buy whatever he wanted without nary an eye roll from me.

Oh, the sacrifices I make for love.

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This was one of the first things we saw when we walked in and I fervently hoped he wouldn’t want to buy it. Dolls in general creep me out, but dolls with dead eyes who look ready to consume your soul in one easy gulp?

No. Thank. You.

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Needless to say we spent hours in this store and saw our share of strange things. Vintage snow sled with training wheels?

Check!

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Taxidermy with stylish chapeaux?

Check!

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I lost the husband in the aptly named ‘tool room’ for a long period of time, but surprisingly after spending half the day in a creaky old barn that promised 3 floors of odd and unusual…. there were very few items that could be described as either. Quite disappointing, that.

And though I fully expected to strain my eyes in a valiant attempt to stop them rolling… my beloved only made one small five dollar purchase that day.

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An antique wooden tap for the man cave.

Color me surprised.

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Where we speak of brains, groceries and memories that make us cry.

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It never ceases to amaze me what’s currently popular on Amazon.

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Is there really a plethora of suburban housewives eager to present a Jello brain at their next dinner party? I have my doubts, but whatever.

Being retired military, my husband and I try to take advantage of all the benefits that provides. For years we bought cheaper, tax free groceries at the commissary…. until George W. Bush closed our local base. There was a huge outcry from retirees in our area and talk of shuttering the base but keeping the commissary open. Sadly that didn’t happen, and now the nearest base is over two hours away. A four and a half hour round trip for groceries seems extreme but with the prices of everything going sky high, we decided to take a day and check it out.

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Perdue boneless skinless chicken breasts for under $3.00? I’ve been paying close to $9.00! Needless to say I filled a cart and then some. Even using half a tank of gas I still saved mucho dinero. Looks like we’ll have to make a monthly pilgrimage from now on.

If you’re on Facebook you’re familiar with the “memories” that pop up on your feed. I don’t normally pay much attention… ten years ago today I posted a picture of a woodchuck? Shocking! Please alert the press. But the other day this picture gave me pause..

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Not because we were younger and thinner.. although, damn. I really do miss thin… but because when I took a closer look, I realized four of the 13 family members pictured have passed. My husband’s brother, brother in law, mother, and aunt. Being an only child of an only child, my list of relatives is ridiculously small. I’ve lost both parents so I’m pretty much done. But the husband is one of nine from one of six, so the chances of someone missing from his side of the family photos increases exponentially.

😰

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So much thinking.

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The husband has a standing Sunday afternoon pool game with the little old man up the road. He’s a widower my other half met years ago at breakfast, and as soon as we remodeled the barn into a man cave… the weekly game commenced.

Last week a few other friends showed up and team play got underway. There was a lot of laughing.

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And a great deal of thinking.

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It seems like every time I went out to refresh the snacks, there was one shot taken…

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And then more thinking.

So much thinking…

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More often than not, the mild mannered 85 year old widower cleaned the table while the rest of the men continued thinking.

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He may be small, but every little bone in is body is competitive.

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No matter. Beer, chili and cornbread are great equalizers.

😉

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Chicken helmets

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Well color me surprised. I never even knew these things existed..

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But now that I do? I really want to buy a set for our neighbor’s birds.

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I’m not exactly sure what purpose they serve… do chickens play football? Or crash motorcycles?

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Or as that picture suggests, go to war? Whatever the reason, a helmeted flock of chickens must be a wonderful sight to behold.

While researching this important topic I also came across this:

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Because every well dressed chicken needs a good hat.

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And if you think that’s ridiculous get a load of this-

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A helmet and T Rex arms might be a bridge too far..

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