|
Post by Siren on Dec 26, 2006 15:14:14 GMT -6
I hope all are well, and enjoying some time off. Make merry!
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Dec 26, 2006 23:25:28 GMT -6
Always one with wise advice you are, Siren, and I'm following it. Plenty of merry-making this season.
Joxie - good to see you pop in here; hope your Christmas was a good one as well.
Remember the story of the Christmas Ship I posted last week? Kind of ironic - on Christmas Eve, Hubs and I were waiting to make sure the girls were absolutely, positively, no-chance-of-coming-downstairs asleep before we brought the gifts up from the basement to set under the tree. A quick check to the Weather Channel to see if there'd be a white Christmas here - we'd heard while driving across state there was a chance, and I love a snowy Christmas. Not to be this year - the first since 1982 where there wasn't even just a trace of snow on the ground or in the air - or so our neighbor claims, and he could be right - I can't remember since moving back to Michigan not having snow on Christmas.
Anyway....because I'm rambling again...back to the story - it was on the Weather Channel: The Christmas Ship. A few of the details were different than the story I heard - there was no mention of the tree tied to the mast, no bottle was ever found, (the maritime historians disputed those details as myths), and the captain's wife did not sail from the Upper Peninsula to Chicago for the next twenty years....but, she did have the trees brought down by train, and gave them away off a ship docked to the pier in Chicago, just as her husband did, and though it was not the tree tied to the mast, trees were found intact crammed in the hull at the bottom of Lake Michigan when the wreck was discovered in '71. Otherwise, the story was the same, (though I got the date wrong: 1912, not the 1800's), and our captain - the one who sails the tall ship from our harbour - even gave commentary during the show. Really interesting; I'm glad we caught it.......though now I have to admit to watching the Weather Channel.
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Dec 27, 2006 17:52:42 GMT -6
A sure sign of advancing age: watching The Weather Channel. And I'm guilty too, Gams!
|
|
|
Post by xenavirgin on Dec 27, 2006 18:06:52 GMT -6
Our former lodger was real Meteorologicalphile and watched the ruddy channel 24/7 it seemed. However, they do sometimes have really interesting pieces, but for normal folk you usually only stumble on them accidentily. XV
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Dec 28, 2006 7:04:47 GMT -6
I am normal! It was an accidental stumbling, I swear, and has nothing to do with advancing age. pfft. Although, I may be at that age where I've graduated to advanced accidental stumbling.
I blame my always-underfoot cats.
|
|
|
Post by xenavirgin on Dec 28, 2006 7:25:13 GMT -6
I am normal! It was an accidental stumbling, I swear, and has nothing to do with advancing age. pfft. quote] Indeed Madam P, that was exactly my point, that you had stumbled on the story, and no need to dis' the cats. lol. XV
|
|
|
Post by Mini Mia on Dec 28, 2006 17:10:05 GMT -6
Joxie - good to see you pop in here; hope your Christmas was a good one as well.
It was indeed a good one. I got all 3 seasons of Roswell and had to delete them from my Netflix Queve. Plus I got a Presto Pizzazz pizza oven. Way cool! I'm watching season one of Roswell, but I haven't opened the Presto box just yet.
I hope you, your family, & everyone else here at Whoosh had a fine and dandy Christmas as well.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Dec 30, 2006 14:43:41 GMT -6
Ah...X-Virgin - there is always need to dis the cats. Because for every dis I don't give them, there are five more they deserve but don't get.
Joxie - indeed it was a grand time with my family; it was the first time in a long time that we all spent Christmas together. And you gotta tell me...what is a Presto Pizzazz pizza oven? Sounds interesting. It's not like one of those George Foreman fat-drooling frying thingies, is it?
It's so unwinter-like here it's almost scary. Fifty degrees! I think it's only snowed twice since November, and I am missing it. We are supposed to be buried in snow this time of year, damnit! I've only had my x-country skis out once so far!
I was able to get out yesterday and this morning to roller-ski, though. Yesterday, I felt it - or rather, my thighs and rear did -it had been awhile since I've been. Amazing how quickly the body forgets, and it let me know by screaming at me with each step I took when I got home. Today - it was just beautiful. Sunshine, but still crisp this morning, and each body part responsed as it should.
Tonight, a friend is coming to dinner - just a casual thing; Hubs is making chili. Excuse me now - I gotta go taste test.
|
|
|
Post by Mini Mia on Dec 30, 2006 21:06:50 GMT -6
Joxie - indeed it was a grand time with my family; it was the first time in a long time that we all spent Christmas together. And you gotta tell me...what is a Presto Pizzazz pizza oven? Sounds interesting. It's not like one of those George Foreman fat-drooling frying thingies, is it?
So glad to hear you had a good time with the family.
The Presto Pizzazz pizza oven is a neat machine that cooks your pizza. I'll really like it in the summer, as I won't have to heat up the whole house when I'm in the mood for pizza. [url=images.google.com/images?q=Presto%20Pizzazz%20pizza%20oven&sourceid=ie7&rls=com.microsoft:en-US&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi]Google Image Search[/url][/b] The news station in my area test things out to see if you should buy it, and this machine passed inspection, so I put it on my Christmas list. [/font]
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Dec 31, 2006 9:47:38 GMT -6
It's raining today. Argh! I'd rather it be snow.
Dinner was fun last night, though my friend is feeling out-of-sorts this season. Recently divorced, these are the first holidays since, and her ex has had the kids for the last week. But she's a riot; a woman with an attitude.
The chil Hubs made was good - Cincinnati style chili. Anyone ever have this? It's an acquired taste for some; it's very different than typical hot and spicy chili. It's made with lots of cinnamon, and is served over spaghetti noodles with layers of cheese, onions, and oyster-crackers. (That's the way I like it - a Four Way. Without the onions it's called a Three Way, though the more, the merrier I always say.)
Your pizza cooker sounds neat, Joxie. Amazes me, all the kitchen gadgets out there. I'm not a gadget sort of person - my kitchen only has the basics, (surprized?). When my friend and I made cookies at my house, she had to bring a mixer. And my brother bought me a toaster one year when he came to visit - just because he likes toast for breakfast, and thought it was strange that we broiled bread in the oven to make toast. That was about fifteen years ago, and the toaster we use is the same one. The most recent gadget addition to our kitchen: a silicone oven mitt thingy that I stuffed in Hubs' stocking....and the only reason I bought it is because I had fun in the store slipping it on my hand and using it as a puppet - it's bright yellow and looks exactly like a ducks bill. The customers around me when I was "trying it out" got an eye-roll work-out at my Daffy Duck impression.
|
|
|
Post by xenavirgin on Dec 31, 2006 19:53:09 GMT -6
SNOW GLORIOUS SNOW!!!!! SKIS, SNOWSHOES AND SNOWBALL FIGHTS!!! Heh, only two more days and away we goooooo! Of to Park City Utah, with my Slurpee Map at the ready Madam P, thanks for that! Oh we are gonna have some fun. Well my Lady Wife will anyway, she'll be doing the skiing. Me I intend to build one snowman, do at least a dozen snow angels and plaster some wifely and brother-in-lawly hides with a healthy number of snowballs. ;D The rest of the time will be relaxing doing NOTHING for the week, enjoying excellent dining, lots of reading, much writing and loads of snoozing. heheh Can't wait. And when we suddenly understand once again that snow=cold, we'll be off to sunny California! XENA CON number 3. WOOHOOO! So many friends to see and catch up with, so many room parties to go to, so many presents to buy.... oh and of course seeing Renee and Lucy and the gang too, I mean they will be there too. LOL I really can't wait. I hope my new T-shirts will be ready for me on Tuesday so I can have something new to wear. I toyed with a new shirt reading... Born Again XenaVirgin - on the front. But that might lead to Laid again XenaSlut - on the back, Actually I just went with Lucy's comment on the personalised autographed picture I got this year. The Original XenaVirgin (Yeah Right! LL) heheh XV
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 1, 2007 22:54:03 GMT -6
Ooooo, sounds like a fun vacation, X-Virgin; have a grand time....and a Slurpee or two for me!
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 5, 2007 14:36:07 GMT -6
Just got back from going ice-skating with the girls. Dang, I love ice-skating!
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Jan 5, 2007 20:57:24 GMT -6
I have never been ice skating, Gams. I need to take advantage of a seasonal treat here in OKC - the Braum's skate pond. Braum's, a local ice cream store chain, sponsors a man-made outdoor skate pond every holiday season, in front of our civic center downtown. They have a little cafe on-site where you can get hot chocolate, coffee, and sweet treats. It's quite popular, but I've never gone down there.
Believe it or not, OU has a hockey team. Yes, here in land-locked, far-from-frigid Oklahoma, we have a hockey team. A few of the fellas have gone on to play for the OKC Blazers, our Central Hockey League team.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 6, 2007 22:02:03 GMT -6
Never been ice skating, Siren? No way; I thought you'd tried everything at least once. Oh wait...maybe that's me.
Anyway - you must go and give it a try. Breaking your ankle is not an excuse; most rental skates now have a rigid boot - like a downhill ski boot sort of. It's almost impossible to twist an ankle.
Your Braum's sounds like our ice rink here; it's an outdoor rink downtown each year from November to March. Up until this year it was completely open; you could skate under the stars. This year though, an anonymous donor gave millions to build a pavilion type thing over the top. It's still open-air, but now with a cover to keep the rain and snow off the ice. And you still skate under the stars, but now they are tiny white lights strung to the ceiling of the pavilion.
I wanna drive a zamboni.
The pavilion is permanent; in the summer the fruit market is set-up underneath.
Today, BP and I covered a bunch of pine cones in peanut butter, rolled them in birdseed and crushed Cornflakes, and strung them on long strings to hang out in the trees for the birds.....or the squirrels, who can't quite figure out yet how to get to them. I give it 'til morning. Squirrels...pfft. They get into everything. But if it keeps them out of the real birdfeeder for a bit, then let them eat pinecones.
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Jan 12, 2007 22:58:40 GMT -6
That would be us, Maeve. Coupla inches of sleet on the ground since this morning. And coooooold, about 20 degrees. The tv weathermen here have hyped the hell out of this, one even calling the storm "historic". Well, that remains to be seen. We have ice storms every year, complete with dangerously slick roads, power outages, closed schools, and cancelled flights. But you'd think this was the first one ever, the way people are acting, thanks to local tv hype. My friend David works at a Walmart that opened about a year ago. He said yesterday was the best day they've had so far, sales-wise. He said people are buying stacks of lunch meat, pounds and pounds of fresh meat, huge sacks of potatoes, like they'll be snowed in till spring. It's just ridiculous! Stupidity reeeally gets on my nerves.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 13, 2007 7:37:53 GMT -6
And that would be? Who?
It's been a most unwinterlike winter here. No snow, warmer-than-normal temperatures - they keep saying it'll come; they keep predicting snow- the local TV hype keeps hyping it - but nothing thus far, though it has been getting colder this past week. And snow is predicted...just as it was last week while I was doing the weekly grocery shopping and had to buy a quart of 2 % milk because every gallon was already gone, (sheesh!)
Maeve, tell STP I need those puffy booties; my Heater turns down the thermostat everytime he walks past as I follow turning it back up. And I'm not talking roasting, just a comfortable 68 degree toasty.
The only typically winter thing here is cold and flu season, and we are in the thick of it. Ah-choo!
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 14, 2007 8:40:34 GMT -6
Big, fluffy flakes gently falling from a quiet sky. It's snowing! No wind, no icy pelting - just nice and peaceful. Bliss!
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Jan 14, 2007 14:36:32 GMT -6
Yay for you, Gams! Glad it's snowing. We got about another inch of sleet last night. Thank goodness it's Sunday. Won't have to drive on it till tomorrow. I've been spreading birdseed today. Very satisfying, watching the birds eat. My (and Maeve's) Bears are playing Seattle right now, and looking pretty sluggish. I hope they get their act together.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 14, 2007 18:24:45 GMT -6
They did get it together; glad for your Bears.
Our snow petered out pretty quickly. Just enough to cover the roofs, sidewalks and streets; the grass is still showing. I had some time to get out today and not enough snow to ski, and too much for the wheels. Sigh. Hubs says last he heard, (shhh....he watches the Weather Channel.....only "on the eights", of course), I should be able to get the sticks out tomorrow; we are supposed to get a few inches overnight, and a few more during the day. We'll see.
Take care driving on that sleet, Siren. Hope it's clear by the time you have to get out on it. I saw some pretty scary accidents out your way due to the driving conditions, and that many people there were without power. Stay warm and safe.
My birds never had a chance with the pinecone, peanutbutter and birdseed feeders that BP and I hung. The squirrels figured out how to get to them in just a few hours, and all that remains are empty strings dangling in the breeze. I saw a squirrel so fat that other day sitting in our yard that I swore it was a cat.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 15, 2007 22:53:52 GMT -6
We got ice instead of snow last night. Everything covered in a layer of sparkling glass; the trees and shrubs beautiful in their new shimmering gowns, glowing in the street lights.
Today, maybe an inch or two of snow fell; not a thick enough layer to cover the grass to make for good sledding or skiing. More is supposed to fall tonight; more tomorrow, and hopefully by Wednesday I'll be able to get the sticks out on the trail.
Nothing much else wintery to report. What a sucky Weather Channel announcer I'd make.
|
|
|
Post by Gabbin on Jan 17, 2007 1:20:07 GMT -6
Hey Gams. Well, you could work on the enthusiasm a bit but I think a new suit would probably get you the job. After that you could just get pregnant. I love the pregnant profile of way too many a weatherforcaster. Is that one word? Let us make it one, okay?
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2007 7:25:26 GMT -6
Oooo, a new word! Weatherforecaster; think of all the new variables to follow...adverbs, adjectives, verbs. Wow, I'm excited.
Her over-enthusiam had a certain weatherforecasterness to it.
Her pregnant profile looked quite weatherforecasterish in that new suit.
She, with her plastered-in-place hair, recited her speech through her plastered on smile with a very weatherforecasterly-type voice.
Oh, and The Voice. Damn, I gotta work on that too. I could take lessons from my Answering Machine Guy, Clark; he has The Voice. And the name. Sh!t, there's more to this weatherforecaster stuff than new suits and getting pregnant; now I need a new name too.
Actually, I have a love affair with my weatherforecaster. It's a love/hate thing. He's been the cause of me getting all hot and sweaty; he has the power to make me wet, then the next day, his words will leave me icy-cold and chilled to the bone.
He's led me wrong so many times.....and still I listen.
Because my job requires I dress for the weather.
And shoot; he's done it again - we've gotten nothing but a dusting of snow the last couple of days. Nice to be off work; listening to him, and I would have been tromping around in heavy boots over thick layers of socks, building my heifer-calves from all that added weight on my feet.
Instead my girls were. And the minute he says "no snow in the forecast" and I send them to school in tennis shoes, we'll get "the big one" he's been promising me.
Has ever a love relationship been so wrong?
|
|
|
Post by Gabbin on Jan 18, 2007 22:54:15 GMT -6
Hey Siren! I chuckled the other day when I read about the storm running through three states near you but, that the Okies had HUGE pile-ups. Now don't tell me pile ups is not hyphenated. I am rusty.
Yeah, I think weatherforcast is one for the Gabbinese book.
Minus 8 this morning.
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Jan 18, 2007 23:09:56 GMT -6
Minus 8?? Sheee-it! My sympathies.
They say another blast is coming our way, with up to a foot of snow this weekend. Hooooley moley.
|
|
|
Post by Gabbin on Jan 18, 2007 23:22:53 GMT -6
Yeah. I love snow.
Yep, well, the washing machine froze up for a few days. Car doors and windows froze shut. My nose froze inside (a lovely feeling), my hair froze.
Oddly enough, my PC didn't.
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 20, 2007 23:22:25 GMT -6
Day Seven: we're still on the weather map with a Big Snowflake, and still, we've got no snow.
|
|
|
Post by Siren on Jan 21, 2007 8:52:57 GMT -6
We were told we'd have up to 10 inches of snow accumulate. You know how a cake looks when you dust it with powdered sugar? That's about how much snow we got.
Sorry for you, Gams. Weird weather for your area, huh?
|
|
|
Post by Phalon on Jan 21, 2007 12:39:37 GMT -6
It certainly is, Siren. The weather prediction for your area - it was exactly the same here. And it did snow - it just blew somewhere else. It's snowed every day this week, actually, but comes out of the sky horizontally, passing us over.
Weird even still is the Lake. I walked on the beach yesterday, and played "chicken" with the waves washing on shore....normally only a summer/fall game. In winter and spring there is usually a wall of ice built up on the shoreline preventing me from getting close to the water. Not even so much as an ice-cubed size chunk yesterday.
Today, we have snow. And it's falling vertically. Maybe....I'm hoping...it'll accumulate. What good is winter without snow?
|
|
|
Post by Gabbin on Jan 21, 2007 23:21:29 GMT -6
So, the old lighthouse, symbol of virality in even the coldest storm, where it shrinks not from frothy frozen frigidity, stands destitute of ice and warmed like some forgotten bottle of beer in summer. That is sad.
It snowed today.
Luv, Gabbin.
|
|