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December 2013

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Sunday, December 29, 2013

Sweet & Sour Pork

With the leftovers from the Christmas Roasted Pork Tenderloin- I made this Sweet & Sour Pork dish for lunch, except I used Emeril's Tempura Batter [for Fried Oysters without the Essence to keep the integrity of the sweet and sour dish].





The Sweet & Sour Sauce from this recipe is so good, I could pass on going to my favorite Szechuan restaurant and have this instead. That's to say, I think it is restaurant quality.

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Saturday, December 28, 2013

Mom's Office Space

My mother has her own little office space in her bedroom. Before Christmas [this year], she had an inkjet printer connected to her desktop computer but no way to print from the HP Notebook she received last year for Christmas.

The other problem- though she did very little printing, the ink cartridges needed to be replaced often. Ink drying up may have been part of the problem.

In recent years, I have noticed color laser printers have gone down drastically in price, so this year I decided to get her one. I was very concerned about toner replacement issues, however I think I found a solution for that too [more on this later].

Here is her new setup.


You can find the two port printer switch hub- I selected, in my Amazon Business Solutions Store.

When I need to print- I use one of two black and white laser printers [one being the Brother FAX also listed in the store]- or an Epson Color InkJet. That said, I am envious of her new color laser printer and installed the printer driver on my netbook [used the HP Notebook connection for testing]. Works beautifully.

My sister purchased extra supplies for the printer, so my mother should be good to go- insofar as printing, for years to come.

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Thursday, December 26, 2013

Christmas '13 Events

I got up late Christmas morning-- so we did not gather in front of the tree until 10:30 a.m. or so.

My mother got a color laser printer so after I finished hooking it up [printer sharing hub, details later] to both of her computers and installing the print drivers, I began cooking.



Today, I did not get up until 10:00 a.m. and then went to the [using Mom's car-- mine still has a dead battery] bank to deposit the money I received for Christmas. After I returned, I had leftovers and started this post.


News from Washington? New promises unkept. Not sure what's going on. I will start worrying about my car next week. While out today, I noticed tons of [local] police action in the vicinity of the house. I would not have known they were around had I not gone out.

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Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Just Posting About Events...

Yesterday, I cooked and cleaned the kitchen several times. I was feeling a little ill-- but well enough to cook. I went to bed around 9:00 p.m. last night and got up around 6:00 a.m. this morning.

The house was quiet-- and someone asked to see the other-side of the living room so I took these photos.


I actually had the English Muffin and sausage around 11:00 a.m. I do not have a lot of cooking to do today-- tomorrow, yes. I have not been feeling that well. I posted a couple of posts to forums I belong too and simply wanted to post about what's going on today.

Feeling a lot better right now, however not sure how long that's going to last. I am in good spirits when not trying to quash a dizzy feeling or that I maybe ill.

Some family will gather here tomorrow morning, then I will finish cooking. Everything according to plan except dizzy spells.

News from Washington? Lies. Not sure why.

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Sunday, December 22, 2013

Holiday Menu For Christmas 2013

I am up at o'dark thirty because I went to bed too early. I was exhausted at 7:30 p.m. last night. I am having my first cup of espresso and running my normal checks [websites, email, etc.].

I am going to start my holiday cooking today. On the menu:

  • Honey Glazed Roasted Pork Tenderloin
  • Dressing
  • Cranberry Apple Sauce
  • Macaroni & Cheese
  • Sweet Potato Casserole
  • Dinner Rolls
  • Apple Pie w/Vanilla Ice Cream
  • Pineapple Upside-down Cake or Sour Cream Butter Cake w/Chocolate Icing

I like for the cornbread [main ingredient in the dressing] to be at least a day old, before I start adding the other ingredients. I will probably make one of the cakes tomorrow.

Do you have old traditions? Every year [for as long as I can remember], my parents filled the nut bowl [shown] with mixed nuts for the holidays. It is a tradition we still observe. Last year, we had Roasted Pork Tenderloin for Christmas instead of turkey and this year we will do the same. Both work for me-- however the Roasted Pork is slightly less work.


It's a quiet balmy morning here-- and I am enjoying every moment of it. This post will be time stamped 4:45ish a.m. but I have been up since 3:00 a.m.

Hope your holiday preparations are going well.

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Friday, December 20, 2013

Holiday Finds...

I am in the holiday spirit and thinking about holiday outfits. Where clothes are concerned, I love spending money on a business suit and eveningwear.

These days, though I rarely get the opportunity to get out-- I still manage to spend hours looking through online catalogs for seasonal outfits. Here is what I have recently added to my wish list [or in some cases, what I love- but for someone else].


Are jumpsuits in this season? I have found many I love.

Yesterday morning, I found this cute little red dress [also came in black] that I thought would be great for someone else. It was gone shortly after I listed it in one of my Amazon stores. Abstract noise provided the clues. Sold out.


I have also been downloading fonts.


In my last post to this blog [Monday], I indicated I was going to take my car out for a spin. I did, but only after I jump started it. I think [hope] the battery is dead. I plan on dealing with the issue after the holidays-- so this was kind of a downer.

News from Washington? Odd.

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Monday, December 16, 2013

scenes from last week...

It is pretty quiet around here today. The snow melted yesterday, so I am going to take my car out for a spin. It has not been driven in almost two weeks and I need to take it around the block.

Other things around here-


For those wondering about my Banana plant after the spider-mites? She's doing okay. I had to trim back some of the leaves-- and in my opinion, she is not as pretty-- however I am hoping I can bring her back. I think the pot is too small-- but I really do not want it to get any larger-- so I am simply going to wait on the new leaves to start coming in.

Not much else going on. Updates to my Amazon Stores.

This morning, I also noticed the WiredPages ZipCode Retriever located on the Business page is no longer providing Zips for street addresses. The Geo Coordinates Tool on the Reference page works. I really need to get busy on several updates [deleting bad links, etc.] to WiredPages. Maybe after I return.

News from Washington? Full steam ahead with the tease. Not sure why? Already explained I may cry starting in January. Right now-- in good spirits, busy.I have decided I love shopping online for my stores.

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Saturday, December 14, 2013

Missing Costco, not the crowds..

Yesterday, my mother came home with our annual tin of the Kirkland brand of European Cookies from Costco.


Have you tried them? I love almost every variety that comes in the tin. For some reason, this reminded me- I miss shopping at Costco.

Because my load now- is almost more than I can handle-- I do most of my shopping online. Yes, I often peruse Costco flyers both online and in hand, however I rarely go to the store these days.

Most of the load- insures legal issues can be dealt with quickly, thereby requiring I never leave the bag anywhere. That said, this process has become elongated and tiresome and I miss not being able to travel [shop, etc,] the way I used to.

I look around and see a lot of the things I have purchased spur of the moment from Costco, like deeply discounted designer jeans, jackets, kitchen appliances, the mat in my bathroom...


.. and know, I really miss perusing their aisles.

So what else? Here it's snowing again for the third time this week.


I have been reading blogs, eating lunch, downloading web-ding holiday fonts and enjoying Christmas music. I also found another watch [Anne Klein] that I added to my Amazon Store. A girl can never have too many watches.

No-- I cannot enjoy shopping at Costco at this time, however it has been a nice Saturday nevertheless and perhaps with the holidays in full swing- it is just as well.

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Friday, December 13, 2013

moving on- doing what?

I am not superstitious, however I did note it is Friday, the 13th.

What have I been up to?

News from Washington? Continuing to provide information about others I wish to divest myself of. Not sure what the point is. News, not good.

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Wednesday, December 11, 2013

home shopping...

Are you wondering why there is a can of chalkboard paint under the Home Furnishings & Kitchen Category [lower page 2]?

Several years ago-- when Naomi [blogger I read], moved to DC she had areas of her kitchen done using the paint. I liked the idea.


Also- the other night I watched part of the movie "The Words". Dennis Quad's character- had in his apartment, an extra large mirror leaning in the entryway which was the inspiration for this Home Furnishings find.


Sometimes, I pretend I am furnishing a large home with all of the things I love. My Home Furnishings & [Kitchen] Category reflects some of the finds I would like to have.

I have not included this item yet, however I decided this Enclume MPB-06 RACK IT UP Bookshelf Pot Rack would be perfect if we had higher ceilings with wall space in the right location to hang my mother's beautiful set of MPS pots & pans.

I have finished wrapping all of the presents I am giving and have started planning the menu for Christmas day. Have not started updating WiredPages-- but hope to get to it later this week.

News from Washington? Not good.

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Saturday, December 07, 2013

holiday projects update 12.7.13

Happy to report most of the gifts I ordered for Christmas arrived yesterday. We put up the tree Thursday evening and Friday I waited on gifts and wrapped them. I had one or two-- so I finally wrapped those and put them under the tree too.

This has gone so smoothly I am pleased.

I need to update WiredPages-- [not the widgets/software], mainly revisions for links and ready the sites for the new year, so in addition- I will be backing up a lot of things from the bag to the new hard drives I purchased earlier this year.

This should keep me busy for the next week. I also want to plan a nice dinner for Christmas day- so I have several projects on tap, including updates to my Amazon aStores.

Hope your holiday plans are going well. News from Washington? Mixed.

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Thursday, December 05, 2013

Doings Lately, 12.5.13..

Yesterday, I had a fuss fest on Q's Wire. Today, its back to business. I ordered my last gift this morning and I am pretty pleased with myself.

The other day [Tuesday, December 3, 2013], my mother gave me an early gift. A Mandolin Slicer. I have wanted one since arriving here- and at last I have one. I am always slicing up potatoes, onions and green peppers, or grating cheese- so she decided I needed one, too.


This model works pretty good, however if you think you are a gourmet chef, check out some of the more pricier models available. This is all I need for right now.

I love gourmet hot chocolate [Godiva, Ghirardelli-- check out my "Gift Ideas"], however SwissMiss is pretty good too. The other night I made a hot chocolate with some of the whipping cream I had leftover from Thanksgiving.

Yesterday, my mother went to lunch and one of her girlfriends gave her a new plant.

I am a little concerned she does not want to put water in it. As I write this, she is on her way to find a water mister. It is an "Air Plant" and does not need soil. The instructions indicate one should soak in water for 30 minutes once weekly-- however she has decided that is not what it needs. Sometimes I feel tested [glad I did not put water in it last night when she left it right there for me to worry about]-- and in this case, I am going to let her worry about the upkeep of it. What does this say about me? Newcomb [old observation], I am rarely that fast. Never was.

News from Washington? Odd.

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Monday, December 02, 2013

leftovers...

We have leftovers. Was the food pretty good? Yes. Still, we have leftovers.


We have also started putting out our Christmas decorations. Last year, I thought they were up too early-- so this year we are starting a little later and doing it in a more gradual manner.

Thus far, we have only one real Poinsettia [sitting on the table in the entryway] and existing items decorated with some of our many "forever" poinsettias.


I am not a big fan of "forever" flowers unless of the dried variety, however I do love the brass bucket that holds our red berries arrangement [year round] and the "forever" Poinsettias [at Christmas] that used to sit on the fireplace.

Earlier this year, I moved the bucket to the dining room [quite frankly it looks nice in both locations] when I wanted to place a new plant on the fireplace, so I have no one to blame but myself. Once the stockings are hung, perhaps I won't miss it so much.

Did you start your Christmas shopping? I am a little bummed out that this morning I noticed an item I wanted- went up in price because it was no longer being sold by the same retailer. Snoozed, I lost. Other than that, I am in pretty good spirits. News from Washington? Odd.

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