It's National Candy Corn Day !!!!

Well, after that rant about Mr. Lucas, I had to go to my happy place..my blog reading list that is. As always, Miss Janet over at " Dying For Chocolate" cheered me right up.

Chocolate Candy Corn Truffles.

I love Candy Corn, I really, really , really , really do.
November first is my day to go see if I can scoop up some of that pure sugar destined for my ass marked down to half price after Halloween. Much like Peeps on sale after Easter, I know I thing or three about sales...mwahahahaha.

http://dyingforchocolate.blogspot.com/2012/10/chocolate-candy-corn-truffles.html

Gently tap Mr. Linky for Miss Janet's post .

I know better than to assume that I can successfully stash a bag until I have some time off in December to play with this recipe..unless.............insert ebil chuckle here.

Have a safe Halloween  and please be careful if you are in an area that got bitch slapped by Sandy.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

How Much Money Is It Going To Take George ?

http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=771595

From  MSN:

Smack Mr. Linky for the information.

Oh George,

How very noble of you to give up your baby ,  so that you may give over the creative BONANZA   ( or not depending on how one feels about the continual clusterfuck of editing  )  to a new generation of film makers.

How gallant of you to recognize that fresher faces and younger non Viagra driven minds may have new insight into the epic saga that you have created.

It is interesting that no mention has been made of the publishing rights that Lucas Arts may or may not retain.

Exactly how many shares of Disney did this garner you and what pray tell is the stock classification ?

Gaia forbid that the proposed 2015 film actually be that which has been so long promised to the faithful...you remember...the one about the Old Republic ????

Ring any bells ?

Hard to be a pimp on the street , right Mr. Lucas ?




GGRRRRR .


Aunty Pol

It's National Cat Day !

I don't know why this bit of nonsense that I found on Pinterest has given me a fit of giggles off and on all day but it has....yeah..I'm wondering about it too .

Before I go off on my usual tangent...Lisa and all y'all on the East Coast...please , please be careful. I know that you are all smart people but really...this storm is nothing to mess with..please be careful. 
I do worry.

Onward.

Things are coming along at the house. SU built 2 shelf units for the patio that are stained ( first of two coats ) the same color that the deck will be so progress is being made . Some of the furniture is back on the deck but no plants yet and nothing that can't be easily moved yet again . I talked to Jere about moving one pot of jasmine and we decided that it would work,,one of those deals where if it doesn't work , you move it back....yeah real rocket science there ....anyhoo....derp de derp de derp....I trot over to pick up the pot and I guess I'd forgotten that the jasmine had been there for a couple of years since it had rooted out of the hole in the bottom of said clay pot..I guess it's gonna be there for a while...LOL !

New primer is up in the hallway so we can slap more paint test areas up..yeah....the hallway looks kind of quilty now......

Not much else is going on with us..Southside Johnny is facing some more oral surgery..poor dude..he's had a hell of a time with this lower denture /jaw issue. I doubt he has really grasped the fact that the surgery is going to be very painful but he has no choice in this ...I guess I am the exception and not the rule here. He and SU have both had some tremendous issues..me..not a one in 16 years .

He is off to play cards tonight and I have a patio and a kindle.

Life is good.

ALL Y'ALL BE CAREFUL ON THE COAST ...OK !!!

Don 't make me get after all ya'll.


Ciao,
Aunty Pol

OMG ~ Finally ! !

http://www.bravotv.com/lolwork

Anyone who know me at all knows that I LOVE I CAN HAS CHEEZEBURGER .

On a daily basis , this site makes me smile and often is the best part of my day ...which is an odd commentary on my life but there you go .

The genius's at BRAVO recognize the global need for moar I CAN HAS and so beginning this Wednesday at 10 pm central US time,....

TAH DAH !

Right after " Life After Top Chef" featuring my favorite Fabio .

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY  !

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !

Have a great week !

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Best Comfort Food in Dah Known Universe.

Lord knows my favorite food is roast beef, fluffy taters and gravy .
Hands down..death row, last meal..yup.

This summer has been super busy, hells bells , the whole damn year has been super busy as is noted in the lack of posting here. As Lady Lisa says, " Blogging Without Obligation"..sometimes I just had nothing to say , or I had hit a wall or was out of town or couldn't move my fat ass off the deck ( formerly known as the patio slab) and put down the kindle.

Pick which ever one floats your boat.

I couldn't even find any real recipes that I was all giddy over.

Yeah .

Losing Munchkin in June did not help but life moves on and so there you are.

http://www.laurenslatest.com/slow-cooked-tri-tips-gravy-with-mashed-potatoes/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+laurenslatest%2FyMlk+%28Lauren%27s+Latest%29


I got back into the habit of checking blogs I used to be faithful to and found this over at Laurens. The recipe is super easy and crock potty ( lol) so it's perfect for the long lazy " Not dragging my ass out of the house today."

Go check out her blog , it is still a favorite.
As we progress towards the end of the year and the looming insanity , I am sure that there will be less gee dunk postings ( baked goodies/Scooby snacks etc..gee dunk was my late fathers term for it ) and more real meal postings.

We haven't had a meal with the girls in a while , they are both huge sports fans , me not so much so Footyball jacks with the Sunday dinners .....and I kinda miss that ..

Onward.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

The Renovation Adventure Continues....

I had to throw this up here because since I have been obviously living under a rock, I had no idea what " Gangnam" style was ..so I googled it.

All I can say is " WTF ?"

SU , bless his heart threw up some patches of the sample paints to look at ..lol..yes that was a headache in the making but well worth i t. One color we immediately knew was just way too light in the bathroom so it was out. He did the same thing in the two hallways and the guest room and we noticed that there was a huge difference between the way the paint looked in the guest bath and the way that it looked in the hallways ...be we would look at them...discuss....look again etc.

I started to make a remark about the difference and then the light bulb moment hit. He and I have watched enough design shows on HG to know that when folks have a designer come in for a consultation that they show their presentation on a huge WHITE board.

Well duh.

The reason that the  colors in the hallway look so bloody different than the bathroom is blindingly obvious.
The bathroom walls have primer on them,...white primer.

The hallways do not , the test colors are over that wretched taupe.

DUH !

So ,  we will get some primer up on other walls in the hallway for a truer test , and we will also get the light fixtures up in the hallway that we want so that we can get an accurate feeling.

Sounds pretty stupid to not get that but what the hell.

I have to see how I actually feel about a color for a bit before I decide, feelings are a very real part of this process to me  . We have both on our own decided that there is no real time line in any on this in a realistic manner.

These things take time as we have learned the hard way and if you rush it , you won't be happy...ie taupe hallway walls.

I know what I want and I am not going to settle.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

Proceed To The Nearest Exit !

Now , some might think it mean spirited of me , but this made me LMAO ALL DAMN DAY !
Obviously, the person that photoshoped this had no clue whatsoever what a cat means when it's ears are flat.
It means " Run like hell..".
If at the same time the tail is bushed , it means :
" Too late, you will never make it to the door in time ."

Good times, good times.

This is the time of the year that makes me crazy.
It's been in the mid 80's during the day here which is nearly perfect ..but then at the same time it's still hurricane season so there is that bit to be watched in the gulf and it's also supposed to get down to the 40's over night this weekend...YES.............THE FORTIES !

Which means that SU and or I  will decide to turn the furnace on for the first time this year and I will have the epic furnace heater on headache.

In other news .............

The deck is up and for the most part the lights are replaced ( clear rope lights that edge the underside of the patio cover ...except for the part that decided not to work.)...and so we are waiting for the deck to dry out so SU can buff some of the labels off the planks because someone forgot to turn them all the right way but in the Morons ( the contractor , not SU... and Moron is a name given in genuine affection ) defense, he probably thought this was a non issue since we are going to stain the deck. I made the initial mistake of not thinking it through and opting for solid paint for the deck and then realizing that solid was NOT what I wanted ..after SU had tried his very best to get ahead of the game and buy the paint.Fear not, at some point we are going to have a decent ( ie. non metal trailer trash rusted out metal one ) garden shed and ...VOILA...we already have the paint to paint that bad boy....WHEEEEE !

And I finally got smart and got some paint samples....

More to follow....

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

OK...This Should Be On My Fridge !

This made me laugh all damn day, until I saw the news about Big Tex ( previous post) .

I had to laugh about the hub bub about the settlement between Amazon and various publishers. Anyone who has an e reader knows that you are buying the e reader at cost and the profit margin is set in the purchase of the books. Hell , Bezos admitted as much recently.

I read tons of blogs and  one in particular is called " Good Reads ".
Many of my favorite authors are there such as Terry Goodkind and so on. Many of those authors are now self published in order to retain  some control over their product for lack of a better term. It is no longer unusual to see young authors self publishing...( is it me or does that phrase sound vaguely risque ? LMAO !) and I think that it is in many ways , more of a trend than a fluke.

I have some friends that have converted their entire library to e  format.
Personally, I think they are idiots for doing so.
Why ?
Anne McCaffrey, Lillian Jackson Braun, Marion Zimmer Bradley , Robert Jordan and David Eddings  to name a few.
The world lost these wonderful authors within the last  few years and I still mourn their passing.
I have ALL of their books in hardbound first editions.
ALL OF THEM.
Many are no longer available and won't be available until their publishers contractual rights expire.
The world  will be a sad place if the written word does a " Newsweek".
There is a place for all formats.
Would I buy an e version of a cookbook  ?
Oh Hell No !
I tend to make notes where needed regarding a recipe.
I will still buy books for SU ..( Yes dear , I know that you read this and we both know that I am going to buy you the new Cusslers...so calm down dude) who does not have an e reader because we both know that he will leave it in the car and that is a big no no .
Oh and for the record..the big kerfuffle about settlement..it won't be much more than store credits.
Do the research.
If you opt for a paper check, you must remove yourself from this  and ANY FUTURE settlements in this suit.
And if the publishing industry has no fear of taking on Jeff Bezos, they won't hesitate to do the same to Barnes and Noble.

Have a great weekend.
Aunty Pol

Oh Noes ~ !

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Tex http://www.chron.com/news/texas/article/Fire-destroys-State-Fair-of-Texas-icon-Big-Tex-3964333.php



Big Tex has burned almost to the ground.
I hope they plan on replacing it, he  is such an iconic figure to everyone that I can't think of the state fair with out it .

Slap Mr. Linky above for details and a backround on Big Tex.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

Happy Friday ~ Bruce Of The Day ~ !

Happy Friday everyone !
Since SU, the Crazy Cajuns and I are heading to Ren Fes this weekend, I thought the two photos above were appropriately theme related..yeah ..I do stuff like that .

Control freak...Moi ?

We have been busy lil beavers this week after work, policing the joint ..oops...cleaning up the house a bit since we won't be home all day tomorrow, and frankly , I have no energy to do much beyond laundry the last few weeks after fighting sinus/allergies. And as always, I am grateful to have a spouse who pitches in, it really makes a huge difference.

So after leaving the house at OMG WTF thirty on a Saturday am, we will forage for breakfast and head up there. The Cajun said when asked that for his birthday, he/they wanted to go to the Kings wine tasting..which is at 1 friggan pm.

1 PM.

OMG...

I did some research and it is a true wine tasting so there won't be any of the usual drink your ass off behavior that has become rampant some years ( not us honest to Gaia....but you know how festivals can be,,and frankly I am really over a lot of that shite ) ...and lets face it ..folks our age are the ones that will be more than likely the majority of the limited number of people group .

Hippsters don't do wine tastings.

Hippsters , come to think of it don't really do Ren Fes anyway and the Festival itself does a very good job of policing stuff..so just because you don't see them doesn't mean that the Po Po aren't there.

I do know that I want to get some more incense and do a bit of Christmas shopping if I can , but we shall see....I am spending enough on the renovations as it is ..LMAO !

Have a great weekend !

Slainte

Aunty POL

WOOT !!!

Lookey who's coming to the Arena !

WOOT  !

Yes, I am a HUGE fan.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

Just Another Manic Monday ~ !

No...I didn't fall off the face of the Earth.
Finally after almost 3 weeks of allergy suffering , I can make a passing attempt at breathing..if I pace myself.

It's that time once again guys and gals..where Aunty and SU lose their friggan minds as we renovate La Casa.
And I am hearing Freddy Mercury singing " I want it all" in my head right now..which of course I do .
Oh Lordy , it just occurred to me that there is a distinct possibility that my contractor " The Moron " ( said with love sweetie ) and Mr. Trejo, the lawn dude may cross paths on Wednesday...awwww crap monkeys.
I am sure they will work it out...the back yard being cut can wait a week..my deck won't.
Luckily for me, SU and I have the same ideas about the next project.
We are gutting the guest bathroom...or I should say the Moron is.
SU took his new phone ( Samsung III , which he loves ) up to Lowes and got some basic photo's of the style vanity , hardware and so on to show me that was pretty much along the line of what he and I have been discussing for well over a year. I already had the shower curtain that is the basis of this scheme and he stripped all of the old wallpaper of the walls while I was out of town.
And I have paint chips coming out of my ears.
Seriously.
I had to walk away from it all for a day or so..they began to resemble a drunks delirium .
EEK !

It will all work out, we just have to focus on one project at a time, it's literally all I can handle.
Other than that , life is all good..Southside Johnny's recovery from the lower half of the denture surgery is coming along nicely , Xena is doing pretty well and we are traipsing up this Saturday to the Ren Fest for the Crazy Cajuns birthday celebration....the wine tasting....quick...get me a turkey leg pronto..this shebang starts at 1 pm....OMG.

Have a great week.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

Happy Friday ~ Bruce Of The Day ! ~

Well, getting back into the swing of things is as much of a pain in the ass and a drag as I anticipated..le sigh.
I have to admit, I am surprised at a couple of instances that happened while I was out..and then..why the frak ( LMAO..much the same as I did when I was around Dakota, now that Carlee is a part of my life, the Fairy God Grandmother is going  to try to watch the potty mouth..well...I'm gonna try..LMAO )   am I surprised ?

My department/section if you will is made up of 3 people.
When one of us is out, we jockey coverage and it usually works out. It is  , or should be understood that when one is short staffed that it is not the optimum time for one of the other 2 to take 2 hour lunches or leave early.
Yep..that is exactly what Cha Cha did..on more than one occasion while I was on the coast.
I mean really ?
She has developed a really bad habit of pulling this crap. She won't share when she wants to take off they way the other gal and I do , she just does and screw anyone elses life. She is going to try to sneak and sneak is not me being snarky, it is literally her MO....out of here early today  because she and her hubby are going to fly to Denver for the Football game. Yes dear hearts, she is the same one that habitually takes off the Monday after a game because her  ass is so hungover she is quite the porcelain Buddha hugger.
Chronic to the point that the whole bloody office knows and expects it. She hinted broadly that " If it's a late flight back from Denver that she " might " not be in on Tuesday, "  to which the third of our trio replied...." No...I have jury duty that day, beginning at 7:45 am. "
Any bets Cha Cha takes it off anyway ?
Didn't think so, you clever things, you .

Her panties are going to be in a royal twist when she figures out that she cannot take the day off after the Christmas party as is her custom as the third gal is going to be out of town. That time was properly submitted and approved long ago. Cha Cha thinks it is her God given right to take that day off and she was quite irked a few years ago when she was actually turned down..thank you again for that on general principal ,  Malibu .
She then started to submit the request a FULL 6 MONTHS in advance.
Yeah, she really did .
And they had no call to not approve it .

I have put in a request for time off in December, from the 21'st through the end of the year today.
Yes, I know I just came back from vacation.
Yes, I know that Cha Cha is used  to me being more prudent with my accrued time off in the last quarter of the year because I carry over a month and cash it in to pay federal taxes.
I haven 't taken time off during the holidays since a trip to meet Dakota ..6 years ago.

Except I don't have to worry about that any more.
If I am short on time , and I don't care if I am , they can dock me.
I can afford it.

We are getting a new full time HR for the original office on October 2'nd. The gal who has been doing the job was the HR for the Atlanta office and took over that function for Houston in addition when Malibu retired.

I can't wait to see how Cha Cha thinks she is going to pull this crap with a new HR on duty.
The HR who is our direct supervisor in the chain of command here at the firm.

Good times, good times.

Have a great weekend .

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

Another Theophile Steinlin Fan - Who Knew ?

http://dyingforchocolate.blogspot.com/2012/09/chocolate-poster-of-day.html

I am trying to get semi caught up on a ton of shite, including all of the blogs that I follow . I always read " Dying For Chocolate " because yeah...
Anyhoo, this post stopped me in my tracks because I have both of the posters in question in the guest room and am a HUGE fan of Theophile Steinlin.

Evidently, Miss Janet and I have more in common than a love of chocolate.
Who knew ?
Boop Mr. Linky to pop over to her blog.

Ciao,
Aunty POl

Lava Butte ~ 2012 ~

This is Lava Butte, south of Bend Oregon, and no..we DID NOT drive to the top. As it was, parts without guard rails scared the crap out of me on the way up On the way down , the mantra was " Hug the rock, pretty rock, hug the rock...pretty rock.
The lil dude is a yellow chipmunk. He and his running buddy were all over the parking lot, cuter than hell...so of course Sistah and I had to feed then a bit of a cracker.
Then we saw the sign.
" Please do not feed the chipmunks."

Aw CRAP !
Hmmm...if no one saw, did it happen ?

Then near the visitors center , we saw the second sign :

" Human food is bad for you ."

Obviously, the US Park Service has an elevated belief in the literacy level of Alvin and the rest of the band.

Remember, if no one saw....it NEVER happened.

Google Lava Butte  for more information.
Class dismissed.

Ciao,
Aunty Pol.

Crater Lake ~ 2012

http://www.nps.gov/crla/naturescience/index.htm

Hit Mr. Linky to go to the Crater Lake site.
Yes folks, I do think it's cool and I was at the site of the deepest lake in North America !

Ciao,
Your Park Ranger,
Aunty Pol

Talk LIke A Pirate Day ~ 2012 !

Yes, it's Aunty Pol's second favorite holiday, Bastille Day being the other .
It's " Talk Like A Pirate Day " !
So...Arrrrr..grab yer Captain Morgan's and have a tot of rum or 3.

The trip to the coast was wonderful. The PCH ( Pacific Coast Highway ) is amazing and for the most part has guard rails along the higher elevations. I say for the most part because to be honest , there were some areas that I had my eyes closed.
I have this thing with heights.
It's a mutual hatred.
Sistah has a love for the lighthouses along the coast so off we went.
It was really rather mind boggling to imagine the complete isolation of the lighthouse keepers and their families if they had one. They grew their own food, both crops and flocks and I was stunned to realize how hard it must have been for them to get anything to grown in that sort of wind and salt air, but evidently they did.
The most amazing bit about the lighthouses to me was the mechanics of it all, and I won't even pretend to understand the process...suffice to say.." Shiney " seemed to cover it pretty much.

Another interesting fact about the Oregon coast is that it appears that there is a thriving Classic Car Club or Society. Everywhere we went, Crater Lake, Florence, Depoe Bay, Newport , Bend ...you name it they were all over the joint.
And not just for looks.
These cats were driving all over in them.
It gave Aunty Pol a case of the vapors I tell ya.

More to follow...


ARRRRR

Your Captain,
Aunty Pol

Happy Birthday To The Sistah Of My Heart !

Happy Birthday Sweetie !
I miss you , Double Oh, the kids , the folks, Buster, Molly, Shanaia ( sp) and CARLEE bunches.
Oh, I just am enamored of Carlee..yeah....Noodle Baby did it again.
I had such a good time, and I wish that we could do it more often , yet at the same time ,  because we can only do it every few years, it makes it that more special...yeah , I know that doesn't make sense but you know what I mean.
In other news...LMAO..
The job that the Crazy Cajun got with the brown short folk is part time but it is management and it does have medical insurance so huzzah. SU thinks it may very well work into full time.
He is also very proud of himself because he got all of the wallpaper in the kids bathroom removed and 2 coats of kilz up so Lordy , let the renovation begin.
We bought a new dishwasher that was delivered yesterday and that the Moron is going to help SU install....I trust yours made it too today as planned ?
The punishment phase from the kittehs was not as long as I expected, perhaps the fact that I give them more treaties than the Daddy does might be a factor in all of this .

Happy Birthday Sweetie..!!
BTW..You do know that it is National " I Can Has Cheezeburger Day " today too..right ?

Love,
Me.

Some Things Never Change .

Hey Sistah..............
Remember 7 Layer  Bars ?

Check this out.
Never in my wildest imagination ( don't go there y'all ) would I have ever thought of serving them ala mode.
Check out the post by one of my favorite bloggers. Bake At 350.
The pictures are hers , aren't they wonderful ?
Gently tap La Linky below to go visit the entire post.

http://bakeat350.blogspot.com/2012/09/7-layer-cookies-a-la-mode.html#comment-form

And I wonder why I am starvin Marvin !
LMAO !

Ciao,
Aunty Pol

I Can't Wait For The Coast !

OK..So I don 't do the best job in the world with photos..I know.
In 3 days , I will be on a plane headed for the Big Paloose ...aka Pullman...wheeeee.
Then Sistah, Double Oh and I will be headed to Oregon.
The bottom 2 pictures are of Bend Oregon, a really gorgeous place in the middle of the state.
Then we are headed for the coast as depicted in the top two pictures.
Since it's 100 friggan degrees without the heat index factor ,  can  you blame me ?          
I am so ready to go.....
I just hope I remember to leave reminder notes so that SU remembers to water the potted plants and the garden..
I know you will try honey, won 't you ?

WANNA GO NAOW !
Ciao,
Aunty Pol