They show Maine’s favorite fast food as Long John Silvers. Now, the husband and I travel our state pretty regularly and I don’t remember ever seeing that chain. Turns out there’s a reason…
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Bad map.
Baaaaad.
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Who knew Kansas was so popular in Germany?
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I was born in New Jersey.
I say waw- (as in saw) -der.
Wawder.
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This one they got right.
We have the world’s largest globe and her name is Eartha.
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Eartha is the world’s largest rotating globe, located in the former DeLorme headquarters (now Garmin) in Yarmouth, Maine, and is a free, public attraction open on weekdays. This massive, 41-foot-diameter globe rotates weighs 5,600 pounds and revolves on a 23.5-degree tilt, mimicking Earth’s movements, It offers detailed views of the planet from multiple levels in a three-story glass atrium.
We’ve visited, and it is pretty cool. In a geography nerd sort of way.
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Father jamas for me.
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I’d add a few more to the extremely tricky list. Nebraska and Kansas for sure.
Since I recently posted about the good shows I’ve been watching, I thought I’d be fair and blog about the shows I tried watching but didn’t like well enough to continue.
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I liked Breaking Bad years ago so I figured this series would be right up my alley. Prequel/sequel, whatever… I was here for it. Maybe there was too much time between viewings but I just couldn’t catch the vibe of this show. To be honest I found it more than a little annoying.
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I loved Yellowstone, 1883, 1923 and The Madison – so clearly I’m team Taylor Sheridan. And when I heard he was spinning off a show for Kayce Dutton? I was totally on board … until I saw the first two episodes and realized Marshals had none of the gravitas of its predecessors. Too much bang bang machismo action, not enough character development. I lamented the fact Taylor had let me down, until I read he didn’t write this show after problems with the new management of the Paramount/CBS merger. All I can say is… it shows. Hard pass.
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A friend recommended this comedy to me a while back and after the three stupid episodes I forced myself to watch? I might have to reexamine our friendship. It was that bad.
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I know a lot of people love Ozark but I’m afraid I’m not one of them. We sat through five episodes hoping it would click but all I can say is… meh. It just didn’t hold my interest.
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This is a show I was dying to watch when it debuted. So much hype. So much great press. But we had slow internet then and couldn’t stream. Now that I can? My disappointment was palpable. Yes, the retro vibe was fun but I found it rather boring and honestly… post Me Too movement? The treatment of women was hard to swallow. I stuck it out for 7 episodes but just couldn’t.
Watch Jon Hamm in AppleTV’s Your Friends and Neighbors. That’s so much better.
Sometimes I can’t help but share funny cat things.
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And while that made me smile, this next one might actually help Mark whose cats have taken a sudden dislike of each other.
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Odd, but I figure it’s worth a try.
The next photo belongs to a friend who has horses. She got a few goats as stablemates and then a few mini trampolines because goats like to jump.
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Seems they also like to lay in the sun on individual bouncy beds.
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I do remember that. And curse myself for getting rid of the almond Montgomery Ward refrigerator that dominated our kitchen when we moved in. There was nothing wrong with that vintage fridge, I just wanted something newer and prettier.
It’s been over twenty years now and we’ve had to buy an expensive new replacement every 5 years.
Somewhere in Maine… that ugly Montgomery Ward is laughing. And probably still running like a fine Swiss watch.
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Another one for Mark because summer is right around the corner.
Our grey squirrels are determined fellows. As evidenced by the never give up attitude of this little guy during a recent rainy morning attempt at reaching the bird feeder.
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Wet poles be slippery.
🤣
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If you like shrimp?
Give this recipe a try.
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In a large stainless steel skillet over medium heat, melt 1 Tbsp. butter. Pat shrimp dry; season all over with Old Bay.
Arrange shrimp in a single layer in skillet and cook, turning halfway through, until translucent, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a plate.
In same skillet over medium heat, melt remaining 1 Tbsp. butter. Add shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften, 2 to 3 minutes .
Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until garlic is fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add wine to deglaze skillet, scraping up any browned bits, and cook, stirring, until liquid is almost completely evaporated,
Stir in broth and bring to a boil over high heat.
Stir in orzo and return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, until orzo has absorbed most of the broth and is almost cooked through,
Add cream and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened and reduced,
Return shrimp to skillet along with any accumulated juices.
Stir in lemon zest and lemon juice; season with salt. Top with parsley.
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My tweaks – I didn’t have vegetable broth but used low sodium chicken broth and it was lovely. I used salted butter, so I left off the salt at the end. And since my husband isn’t a spicy food lover, I ignored the red pepper flakes. There was plenty of flavor so I think that was overkill anyway.
Use large or jumbo shrimp. You won’t be disappointed.
Yum!
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Mother Chuck is back and her runt from last year’s litter is still here.
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Though not for lack of trying to kick him to the curb.
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There are daily squabbles over food and squealing arguments over bolt holes.
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Momma isn’t subtle, but Junior refuses to take the hint.
My husband and I were watching the news the other day, some sad story about the Middle East, and he asked me a question I couldn’t answer.
(Yes, that happens occasionally… though I’m loathe to admit it.)
And as one does when searching the internet for information, the husband fell down a digital rabbit hole while trying to distinguish the difference between Sunni and Shiite Muslims… and what started out as a simple search for an answer turned into a wild journey of discovery through various world religions. Including one he’d never heard of –
Pastafarianism.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Pasta.
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I could do without a stripper factory in the afterlife but I’m okay with the beer volcano.
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Clearly they’ve given this a lot of thought.
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Though I don’t think the headwear is very flattering.
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Poland?
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If the Nantucket RMV allows it, who am I to argue?
A new grocery chain opened its first store in Maine last month and the hysteria was off the charts.
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I’d never shopped in an Aldi before and had no idea what to expect, but everyone was raving about how much money you could save so after waiting a few weeks for the craziness to die down…
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(Actual picture of how happy people were to shop there.)
The husband and I drove to Portland to check it out.
Marketed as a discount grocery, I expected no frills and that’s exactly what I got.
This was a brand new store…but the first thing I noticed when we walked in was how dirty and disorganized it was. Apparently their cost cutting measures include a lack of brooms and dust pans and employees to operate them.
Starting with produce, which was stacked haphazardly in it’s original shipping boxes, I was hard put to find a banana, apple, pepper, tomato or cucumber that wasn’t heavily bruised, browned and looked ready to toss.
There was no deli, no bakery and no seafood counter. No frills, for sure.
There was also no rhyme or reason to product placement… cheap fake flowered wreaths were next to the mayonnaise. Plastic outdoor thermometers were next to the crackers. And did I mention you have to “rent” a shopping cart? They’re out front where you pay a quarter to unlock one and get your money back when you return it.
I was unaware that 95% of the products are their own versions and not brand name. Having been burned one too many times with tasteless substitutes I had no desire to fill a cart with mystery cereal or soup.
We walked out of there with nothing. And it’s a good thing, because there were only two registers open with no DIY kiosks and the lines to check out were insane.
I seriously doubt I’ll ever go back, so if you’re an Aldi shopper? Please tell me what I’m missing, because I don’t understand the allure.
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Where there's only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.
River's world..... 