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You can’t beat a Thin Mint. To my mind, it’s the ultimate cookie.
Put the box in the fridge, eat with a cold glass of milk. Perfection.
While I do enjoy the occasional Girl Scout Lemonade and Toffee-tastic … those pint size femme fatales are pulling out all the stops this year and introducing a new cookie to tempt me.
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No arm twisting required.
I’m in.
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Tired of giving the same old saccharine sweet and sappy Valentines Day card to your other half?
I’ve got you.
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Take that Hallmark!
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I live in Maine. Birthplace and home of Stephen King. It’s perfect!
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I never did like that song.
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If that doesn’t melt their heart, I don’t know what will.
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And a very challenging month to say the least.
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(Okay, it’s not that bad. But my husband retired December 31rst and won’t see his first monthly pension check until June. Such are the joys of working for the Federal Government.)
As I’ve said before this was a difficult decision for my hardworking spouse. He struggled with it for years and I knew it wouldn’t be an easy transition. What I didn’t know was that I would suddenly be living with a 74 year old toddler who bores easily and must be entertained.
Since Covid ruined our original retire and travel! plans, the husband has been having trouble finding ways to while away the hours. It’s winter in Maine and we are not skiers, snowshoers, or ice hockey enthusiasts. There’s a lot of indoor down time and one can only play so much pool.
On the plus side? My auxiliary desk that has looked like this since he started teleworking two years ago…
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Is now free of post its and back to normal.
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On the down side? My husband has recently been on the phone with coworkers and clients trying to find a way to worm his way back into the aviation industry.
32 days of retirement and he already wants to go back to work.
Sigh.
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You might well ask what it is ….
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Because it’s an odd looking duck to say the least.
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Heading out on its maiden voyage from Bath Iron Works recently, the new Zumwalt class of Naval Destroyer chugged down the Kennebeck River two years over due and massively over budget.
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And while that’s nothing new for the department of defense, the fact that this multi billion dollar redesign was such a complete disaster the program had to be scrapped is.
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I don’t begin to understand the massive technological advances this ship claimed to possess, but I do know people who’ve worked on her and they are not impressed.
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I’m no expert, but a neutered destroyer doesn’t sound like a good thing.
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Because it could be fun, that’s why.
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Let’s check out some of the good answers.
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I feel you Dean, it’s been a while for me as well. Though not that long thankfully.
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I don’t think that qualifies as a band, but… wow.
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I know who they are! And saw them quite a few times in my youth.
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Now you’re talking!
As for me, the last concert I saw was James Taylor. I loved James back in the day, and still enjoy his music when I’m in a mellow mood. Seeing him in concert is like sitting in his living room… very laid back.
So Thanksgiving dinner with Sweet Baby James in the Berkshires? Count me in.
How about you?
Who are you feasting with…
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The recent death of Betty White got me thinking about that popular old show The Golden Girls. To be honest I never watched it, but I caught glimpses now and then.
They were women of a certain age dealing with retirement, the loss of spouses and age related illnesses. They were witty and sarcastic yes, but let’s face it…. more than a little frumpy.
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The show I did watch religiously? Sex and the City. Four women in the prime of their lives romping their way through midtown Manhattan boudoirs with unrestrained glee.
Frumpy? Not hardly…
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And in case you’ve been living under a rock, SATC has returned to HBO under the new name “And Just Like That”. We catch up with 3 of the 4 women ten years later… and while they may be older? They’re still gleefully experimenting.
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To recap:
Golden Girls in their early 50’s.
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Sex and the City girls in their early 50’s.
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My, how times .. not to mention the perceptions of age… change.
And if you think that was bad? Here’s some more food for thought….
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Damn.
😳
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Let’s jump right in shall we?
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Spit. If you read this book you’ll learn more about it than you ever dreamed possible.
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I hope so too Mary.
Yikes!
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A new stomach lining every three days?
Color me impressed.
Did I mention this book has some rather odd photographs?
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I just finished a section devoted to the myth of Jonah and the Whale… as well as other improbable stories of surviving inside a stomach after someone has swallowed you. Spoiler alert- they’re all hogwash, it’s impossible. But Mary offers some handy advice all the same.
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I suppose there worse places to live than in a penguin.
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Sometimes it wants to come in the house…
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Sometimes it makes it past the storm door.
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I got a kick out of this picture our neighbor posted of her son wanting to go out the back door yesterday.
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Now that’s a drift!
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Walking out to check on the man cave after the Nor Easter was challenging.
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You had to guess where the steps were.
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Drift crests on every side.
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And the porch furniture didn’t look quite as inviting as before.
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A tunnel dug to make passage less of an aerobic exercise.
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But the best part about snow pictures?
When your husband asks for your phone to take a shot of something fantastic and it comes back with five of these….
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Well, he tried.
🤣
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We woke up to a slightly different landscape this morning.
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And after a solid day and night of howling winds, it was time to take stock.
And pictures.
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There were some impressive drifts.
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And swirls.
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The backyard had its own mountain range.
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And the front?
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Buried.
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The snowblower had its work cut out for it finding the driveway…
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Did I mention the wind was still blowing?
This didn’t bother Lord Dudley Mountcatten as he was enjoying the early morning sun….
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Though the table drifts did block his bird viewing. It’s rough to be a cat.
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News from rural Maine…
The Abominable Snowman requires assistance.
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And I don’t know if this is a thing elsewhere, but Mainers save their egg cartons. Even if we don’t have chickens.
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Why do we do this?
Because winters are long, and we can.
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You know it’s officially cold when the ice shacks start appearing on the river.
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Wildlife sightings continue…
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It’s a good thing she got a picture. I wouldn’t have believed her otherwise.
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River's world..... 