I love to cook, but I also like quick and easy sometimes.
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And this recipe certainly fit the bill.
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Since it’s autumn, I chose spice cake mix and apple filling.
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The batter worried me as it was thick and chunky…
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But the cake baked well, even if the finished product was a bit ugly.
I made a quick glaze from powdered sugar and milk to make it look slightly more appealing…
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The cake was moist and flavorful, though a bit heavy for my taste. But the husband liked it and if I make this particular combination again I think I’ll chop the apples into smaller pieces for more even distribution.
A blog friend recently commented on my post that included this support pickle.
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She said her family had a stuffed pickle they took photographs with every year… for holidays and special occasions like one does. Since she understandably didn’t want to share photos of her grandchildren online, curiosity got the better of me and I clicked the link she provided to see the photogenic Mr. Pickle of which she spoke.
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Wow.
If that creepy anthropomorphized gherkin is on her family’s Christmas card photo every year? I really want to be added to their list.
Thanks for the chuckle Grace.
Thinking that was the end of it, I continued with my morning and moved on.
Or so I thought. Because now that Amazon knows I’m interested in stuffed pickles?
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Yeah.
In hindsight clicking that link might not have been a good idea.
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Dancing pickles?
Yikes.
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A yodeling pickle that repeats what you say?
Hell no.
But then, just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse..
The recommended pickles took a turn to the dark side.
We had a really warm week in Maine with temps hitting the lower 80’s. Not my idea of fall, but lots of people were thrilled summer is still hanging on.
With cool nights and warm days comes fog.
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So much fog the deer who usually only show up at dusk are here at dawn.
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This next picture is of a poor starling who smashed into our living room picture window.
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He was okay and eventually flew away after recovering from the shock. But he sure drove our cat crazy.
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Yes, people here still believe caterpillars can predict the weather.
Here’s a drone shot of a section of our farming neighbor’s property. It was so pretty I thought I’d share.
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I’m in awe of all those perfectly aligned weeded garden beds.
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In case you ever wondered what type of finish you should be using.
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A local Maine man who did well for himself and ended up owning half his town’s businesses just implemented this program. Free food for school age children. Proof positive there are still good people in this world.
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As you know, once we install new living room floors I’ll be shopping for new furniture. And while the husband is fine with replacing the couches, armchairs and coffee tables he started mumbling that we really didn’t need to update the dining room table and chairs we’ve had for almost 40 years.
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I beg to differ.
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A new medical study has revealed women who have frequent and long lasting hot flashes… read, me… are at a greater risk for heart disease and stroke. Women who have frequent night sweats… read, me… are at a greater risk for dementia.
On a walk with Lord Dudley Mountcatten the other day I noticed he found something in front of the garage.
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Batting it this way and that, I stepped in to rescue the poor praying mantis he was harassing and carried it to my flower garden.
Our yard used to be full of these delightful insects (Females bite the males heads off after mating. What’s not to love?) but in the past few years we’ve seen their number drastically decline.
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And while I’m used to the green version, this mantis was completely brown.
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So I’m not sure if it was a different species…
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Or just going through some sort of molt.
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Either way, I was pleased with the rescue.
His Lordship on the other hand, was not.
P.S…. did a little research on the mating ritual of the mantis and have to share.
Males of some mantid species mate more effectively when decapitated. Why? A nerve center in the male’s head inhibits mating until a female is clasped. If this nerve is removed, such as when the female bites off the male’s head, all control is lost and the result is repeated copulation.
While I’m not a huge tv watcher, I do like a variety of series HBO has developed over the years. Every once in a while I can even get my husband interested… which is what happened with Carnivale.
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It was a dark and wonderfully bizarre show that immediately garnered a rabid fan base.
It’s the mid-1930s, and we’re in the middle of the Dust Bowl, a time when sandstorms and disease were running rampant across the Great Plains. After his mother’s death, teenage fugitive Ben Hawkins is picked up by a mysterious traveling carnival run by an unseen force known only as “Management.” Surrounded by magic, Ben reconnects with his long-dormant supernatural powers. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, an evangelical preacher is plagued with apocalyptic visions. What the two of them don’t know is that they’re set to become players in the great (and heretofore hidden) battle between Darkness and Light.
We loved it and though it was immensely popular with its followers and slated for six seasons, it was cancelled after just two leaving viewers with an awful cliffhanger and no resolution. When asked, HBO said the reason was falling ratings but I read the religious right took an instant dislike to it and pushed for it’s removal. Funny when you think about all the other shows that are filled with blood, gore and rampant sex.
Fall is here and leaves are turning….though the temperatures have crept back up to summer numbers. 82 degrees is not the crisp cool air I love, but in honor of the season I wanted to share a few glimpses around my state. .
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It’s a two hour ride to this farm that takes corn mazes seriously…
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And sadly we’ve never been. Doesn’t stop me from being impressed though.
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Good news … as long as the decorations don’t block the windshield and mirrors? You and your skeletons are fine.
Our farming neighbors went away for a few nights recently and asked us to watch their wonderful dog Peaches.
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She’s the quintessential lovable mixed breed and we’ve loved her since she was a hurricane rescue 13 years ago.
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Unfortunately, Lord Dudley Mountcatten did not share our enthusiasm for a house guest.
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Peaches is extremely mellow and very used to cats. She doesn’t chase or pay the least bit of attention to them.. but His Lordship still couldn’t figure out why this creature was in his house.
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Bad timing there. Lord Dudley was so close… and then someone knocked on the door.
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It’s a credit to Peaches temperament that our cat would even be in the same room.
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Of course the fact that she spent a good deal of her time with us sleeping might have had something to do with that.
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But I still think I’m going to pay a price for disturbing His Royal Highness’s routine.
After our visit to the fair, we tried a place I’d been hearing good things about for dinner….the Old Mill Pub in Skowhegan.
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It didn’t look like much and since the inside dining room was packed, we headed outside.
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Where the view from our table wasn’t half bad.
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Things started well with a fabulous blueberry mule.
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And an amazing French Onion soup for the husband.
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This is his go to appetizer so when you’ve tried hundreds, you always appreciate when it’s done right.
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Dinner for me was yummy maple bourbon glazed steak tips with garlic mashed red potatoes and sautéed broccoli (not pictured) …. and a light and lovely lemon butter haddock and mashed for the spouse.
We’re not often in this part of Maine, but I’m putting the Old Mill Pub on my list of places to revisit if we are.
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Weird sign in the parking et al.
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Where there's only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.
River's world..... 