Looking for a different topper for your Christmas tree this year?
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How about the Abominable ( but quite cute ) Snowman.
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Can’t say I’m crazy about letting him climb the tree at will….
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But he does make a great addition to that gift of champagne.
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How’s that for a shift in topic? (Spellcheck just changed ‘for’ to ‘fur’. I am not amused.)
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And I thought stupid ad campaigns couldn’t get any stranger.
In other news, we had lunch at a pub the other day called The Depot. It was loud, dark and though our meal was decent, I can’t say I’m in any hurry to go back.
For the first time in two years we’re venturing out of our Thanksgiving Covid bubble and spending the holiday with friends as was our tradition. It will be a small gathering with a large amount of love.
And food. As well as drink.
In that spirit… I went shopping yesterday for the ingredients to whip up my contributions to the feast. To say I had sticker shock is a gross understatement, and while I’ve been cringing at the checkout counter for a while now, this trip was solely to make three things which made the cost positively ridiculous.
Harvest sangria –
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And mind you, I already had the vodka.
Crabmeat toasties –
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Already had the mayo.
And a cappuccino mousse trifle.
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Already had the milk.
To assemble a drink, an appetizer and a dessert in 2022 without the items I already had at home?
$211.76.
Granted the fresh crabmeat is an indulgence at … are you ready? … $40 a pound. In Maine! Two pounds are pictured, which a few years ago cost me roughly half that. And sure, I could have brought cheese and crackers but everyone loves these and looks forward to them. Probably because they’re too cheap to ever make it themselves, but still.
On the flip side of my extravagance, I have a frugal girlfriend. Every year she challenges herself to make an entire Thanksgiving dinner for six people for under $30. She’s so proud of her ability to do this she lists her purchases on her Facebook page if anyone wants to follow her lead.
I thought this year, with its astronomically high food prices, she wouldn’t be able to do it.
I was wrong. And I’m including her post because she just impresses the Hell out of me.
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I’ve been asked by so many people if I was going to do a Thanksgiving on a shoestring post this year. Well, I did it. I’ll give a shopping list with prices, menu, and break down how I did it. Turkey $6.14 (.47 #) 13# bird 1 1/2 # sweet potato .56 2# sweet onions .87 Celery $1.50 1# carrots .50 2.5# potatoes $1.00 Squash $1.00 Turnip $1.00 Fresh herbs $1.99 Graham crackers $1.25 1 large banana .40 1# flour .75 2 cups sugar $1.00 Canned whipped cream $2.50 1qt. milk $2.19 Butter $3.99 Vanilla pudding $1.49 Cranberries $1.00 Stuffing $2.49 Grand total $31.62
Thanksgiving menu Roast turkey with stuffing Mashed potatoes Squash Roasted Root Vegetables Homemade cranberry sauce Homemade gravy Chai pie Banana cream pie Biscuits
This was probably the most challenging budget Thanksgiving Dinner. My goal was to keep it at or below $30.00. I could have done it if I went with with cheaper options, like margarine, instead of butter, but I refuse to skimp on quality. Another option was to get a loaf of bread for 1.29, at the off price bread store for stuffing, but $1.00 savings in the meal didn’t make sense when it cost more in gas to go get it. A lot of things, like potatoes, flour, and sugar I buy in bulk, but I used store prices for those items. By making things from scratch, like pie crust, biscuits, and cranberry sauce, you can save a lot of money. I got canned whipped cream, because whipping cream was sold out. The price is about the same. My menu is looking a little different this year as well. I talked to those who were coming for dinner, and we decided on two pies that we all liked. There’s no sense in baking a bunch of pies that aren’t going to be eaten. Six different side dishes aren’t necessary, so we decided what our favorites were. We grew our own Squash, turnip, and herbs, but I priced them for the dinner cost. This list can be tweaked to your personal liking. I didn’t include beverages, because we already have that stuff on hand. In the end, Thanksgiving dinner for 6 breaks down to $5.27 per person. That is, until I turn leftovers into more meals 😉………Happy Thanksgiving all! I hope this had helped 🙂
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Proof positive it is possible.
That’s also proof I’ll never do it myself, but hey… to each their own.
So however you celebrate Thanksgiving , or even if you don’t… I hope your day is filled with food, friends, family and fun.
I always see news reports of the traffic jams in California and sigh. While I grew up in New Jersey and saw my fair share of highway clusterf*cks, I have to admit the traffic issues in rural Maine are much more pleasant to deal with. Like this one we came upon the other day…
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Someone got loose and decided the grass was indeed greener on the other side of the fence.
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While it wasn’t a heavily traveled area, that section of road was a straightaway and people tend to fly by. Not wanting to see a large pile of hamburger on our return trip, we tried to coax the soon to be road block back into the field.
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That did not go well so we knocked on the farmhouse door. No one was home, so we tried a neighbor.
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No luck there either, so we tried again to convince the bovine to rejoin the herd.
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Ever try to argue with a cow?
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We lost the battle, but left a note on the farmer’s door.
The road was happily pot roast free when we came back from our appointment so that’s a good sign.
When the universe speaks, you have to listen. And the other day? It was screaming clams.
It started when the husband and I dropped by our local pub and had clam chowder for lunch. This was an oddity because they rarely make it.
The clam-athon continued when this story popped up in my news feed.
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I never even knew a purple pearl was possible.
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Good thing he didn’t trade them in on French onion soup. Offers have been made but the man is going to give the pearl to his daughter.
The third clammy thing that happened was a friend of ours showing up with a bucket. Her son had dug too many and she was willing to share. After a dinner of fried clams?
I heard about this:
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Yes, this time it’s real.
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Last year the crazy people behind Cards Against Humanity spoofed an old jar of Hellmans in a Black Friday ad campaign, but now? It really exists.
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You can’t say this company takes themselves too seriously.
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Or even the least bit seriously. Nope.
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I feel like I’m going to have buy a jar at some point, just because.
Every fort needs a kitchen and while this one probably didn’t contain many time saving appliances, it was large.
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This box was used for dough.
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And this was the table to knead it on.
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That’s a serious amount of bread.
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The enlisted mens quarters seemed to go on forever, but ironically construction of the fort was never completed and only 20 to 54 troops were garrisoned here during the Civil War. When 575 troops were stationed here during the Spanish-American War, they bunked outside the fort in tents.
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The powder magazine was found behind an extremely thick door and was heavily guarded.
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I’m hoping there was a no smoking sign posted as well.
One last walk around outside, past the D Battery cannon mounts.
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And we were done.
So that was Fort Knox. Impressive, well cared for and a big tourist draw.
My Facebook and Apple News algorithms are always coming up with ridiculous products they think I need to purchase.
I’m passing on all three of these.
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#1…. Swimsuit season is not approaching quickly in Maine, unless you count the Polar Bear plunge in February and I’ve never be crazy enough to do that.
#2…. My derrière is awake as it’s ever going to get. No caffeinated butt cream required. 
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No.
Just… no.
While I spoil Lord Dudley Mountcatten far more than my husband thinks I should, even I have limits.
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Do I want to carry around a 28 ounce gelatinous pouch of my own urine? I most assuredly do not.
Also, I spent my teenage years on an island in Maine where there were no public restrooms. I’m completely familiar with pissing in the woods if necessary.
These strange discs were lined up on the parade ground so the husband had to investigate.
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Having had my fill of stairs that day, I let him.
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Turns out they were storage vaults for ammunition.
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Alongside of that wall was a room with a broken water line that fed from a 27,000 gallon cistern…
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And next to that…
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A room with a giant rock. Because who doesn’t love that?
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The officer’s quarters were far from luxurious. Geesh, look at that lumpy mattress.
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But as cold and damp as Maine can be, at least they had a fireplace.
Now let’s take a strange turn here shall we?
Please note the mock up of a Revolutionary War officer seated on the right and the blanket draped over his chair. I wanted a better look at him and took this untouched photo from his other side.
Notice anything strange?
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*cue the Twilight Zone music*
You. Can. See. Through. The. Blanket.
What the Hell!
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Where there's only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.
River's world..... 