Just call me Pat the Plumber

What a week! Sorry for the delay in posting, but I have been extrememly busy. Just finished my latest project today. I replaced the faucet in my kitchen sink. The one in there was an off white color and had gotten chipped, marred and was just an eye sore! I replaced it with a stainless steel that has the sprayer as part of the faucet nozzle. I'm sure most of you know what I am talking about. The hole where the old sprayer was, now has a liquid detergent dispenser. It was a little more of a job than I anticipated, but I did it! Getting the old one out was tricky. I almost gave up until I found the tool I needed. It was $22 but worth it. I'm saving it as a trophy...lol. In putting the new one on, I take after my father. When I tested it I had the hot and cold water reversed. So back under the sink I went to fix that. It works like a charm. Ended up with a few pieces left over but it works so I'm not going to worry about it.
I also repaired a hole in the wall. We won't go into detail about how my sons foot got stuck in there but needless to say he helped me with that repair.
Well tomorrow is the beginning of Lent, and that means today is Fat Tuesday and I lived up to the name! It may not seem like much to you, but I ate two Paczki today. You can read the tradition here.

Most of us think of Lent as a time to "give something up" It is also a time of new beginnings. I've kept you in suspense long enough. Let me tell you about my change. I have started a new blog. This is something I've wanted to do for a while and if you read the first post it will explain a little more. I had thought about just ending this one, but I've decided to keep it going. For a while anyway. We'll see how this goes. I may eventually merge them. In the mean time I am going to be doing a little change to this site so please be patient with me. I'm not sure exactly what is going to happen but I am changing it to the new blogger format and it says it may lose some of my formating. So feel free to visit my new site and I hope many of you become regulars there as well as here. Welcome to my New Blog

Flushing blogrolling!

I have finally given up with blogrolling. My Coffee Breaks list on the side bar is a bit outdated and I am using blogrolling for that list and they have been down for quite some time now. So this morning my one accomplishment is going to be updating that list and putting it into my template. If any of you have a better way of doing this I'm open to suggestions! I have a couple of new readers that I would like to add to that list, so if you don't see your site on there and wouldn't mind me adding you to my Coffe Break list please let me know and I'd love to add you. This is not the Big Change I was referring to in my earlier post. That is still yet to come. Next week. Come on, you can wait one more week! Patience is a virtue. (I have been quite patient with Blogrolling and will possibly use it again once they are up and running again)Have a wonderful week everyone!

Snow, Snow, go away.....

....come again another day! (In about 10 months!) I can't believe I go to bed with all the previous snow melted and wake up to a blanket of white! I had no idea this was even coming. I have to admit that it is beautiful, it really is, and I'm thankful that I don't have anywhere to go. This is what I actually look forward waking up to on Christmas morning, but not Valentine's Day. By now I'm ready for sunshine and warmer temps. Oh well.
Speaking of....Happy Valentines Day! to each of you. I hope your day is filled with little surprises and affection overflows.

This is the start of 5 days off for me. This past week was my training week. Although I have been in my job for almost a year now, a new training program has been developed and we each have to go through it. It was actually quite informative. Showed me where to smooth out some edges and gave me some new tools to use to make me more efficient at my job. I'm kind of excited to get back to work and use all that I was shown.

T-Day

Yes, it's that day for me....Tax day. I'm taking all my information to the tax guy today. I'm actually looking forward to this because I should be getting a nice refund this year. I could sure use it!
On another note, there is a change coming soon. I'm not going to reveal anything yet, but I'm working on something that I'm really looking forward to. I will share it with you in a couple of weeks. No hints, you'll just have to wait.

Super Bowl XLIII

I'm not a big football fan. I mean I like football, don't have anything against it, but I'm not a die hard fan. But hey, this is the Super Bowl! It's un-American to not get a little fired up about it. Even if it's just for the commercials (hey, that's why I watch!). I have no predictions, except that some guy will throw the ball, another guy will catch it, sometimes miss it. Some guy will kick it a few times. A bunch of guys will tackle and be tackled and a few touchdowns will be scored. I missed my calling - a sports commentator...LOL. OK, but if I have to pick a team.....GO STEELERS!! (They are playing aren't they?)

Wal-Mart Scam

Ladies,
This is something I felt was important enough to post on my blog. Please read and take heed. (You can click on image to enlarge) I would hate to see any of you fall victim to this horrific scam. Please share with your family and female friends.







Well let me run, I need to go to Wal-Mart to get some dog food! Really!!

Comfort food

Lately I have come across the term 'comfort food' a lot. What do you think of when you hear that term? Some may think of chocolate, or ice cream, something to comfort you when you are down. My first thought is a little different. It's a comfort of warmth and familiarity. I'm sure everyone has their own comfort food that conjures up memories, and a peaceful feeling. So I stopped to think, what would my comfort food be? I didn't have to think for long. In fact I think I'll fix it for dinner tonight. I wouldn't be surprised in years down the road if you were to ask my children what their 'comfort food' was, they may give you the same answer. It is truly scrumptious and I encourage you to try it, I'm sure it will become one of your favorites.



CORN CHOWDER

8 oz. salt pork diced (I use 6-7 slices of bacon diced)
2 onions, chopped
1/2 c. chopped celery
1/2 bay leaf crumpled
2 Tbsp flour
4 cups water
3 c. diced potatoe
2 c. cream corn
2 c. evaporated milk
salt, pepper, parsley, paprika

Cook pork till brown & crisp. Remove and pour off all but 3 Tbsp. Add next 3 ingredients & cook for 5 min. Blend in flour. Add water & potatoes. Boil & simmer covered for 15 min. Add corn & milk. Heat well. Season and add pork. Makes 2 quarts.

To make it easier, I use 2 cans corn and 2 cans milk. I increase flour, water, and potato by 1/2. This makes for a larger amount, but I have NEVER had the left overs go to waste. They are usually eaten by the next day. Hope you enjoy.

Happy New Year!

Ok, ok, so I'm a little late. Better late than never. I'm off to a terrible start on my New Years Resolution. That was (I repeat "was") going to be to post at least once a week. Well, I guess it's not too late to start.
The new year started off good for me. We had a lay-off at work and I was spared. At least for now. There are no plans for a future lay-off any time soon, but you never know. So for now, I still have my job. This Winter has been an absolute BEAR! I mean COLD!!! My sister called me from Tallahassee, FL to tell me how freezing she was at a low of 24 degrees. PLEEEEZE! I'd be happy with a high of 24. Our lows have gotten down below 0 and highs in the single digits. Yesterday was the first time we went over 32 since Winter has started. Lots of snow and wouldn't you know it the kids snowmobliles are broken and no money to fix them. I really feel bummed for them.
I am trying to stay motivated and get things organized and packed around here to put my house on the market. The payments, insurance, taxes, and utilities are just more than I can handle. There's no extra for anything and no getting ahead. I think I am going to find a place to rent for a year or so and then think about moving back down south. We'll see, only time will tell.
Well, I hope everyone is off to a great start, and I wish each of you a Happy, Heathly and Blessed New Year!