Recent Good Reads

Update:

I started this post sometime before September 2022 and just found it in “drafts” this morning. I’m going to go ahead and publish it; I still remember these books as good reads.

It’s been a good few weeks for reading. I finished two books for local book clubs and made progress in my Kathy Reichs book series.

West With Giraffes, by Lynda Rutledge

Passing, by Nella Larsen

How the Word is Passed, Clint Smith

Monday Mourning, by Kathy Reichs

I also ordered 4 paperbacks just now from eBay. I was looking for Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons, which I found, and because it was buy 3, get 1 free, I added a Frommer’s travel guide to Florence, Rome, and Venice, a novel by Kristin Hannah that I somehow missed: “Home Again”, and another one that I tagged to read long ago and wandered off: “The Boy in Striped Pajamas”.

My need for “Angels and Demons” revolves around my bucket list trip to Italy to see Art and this book was heavy inspiration for that many years ago. I just started a list of places to see while in Rome but I want to quick read the book again just for atmosphere.

What to Cook for Dinner

There’s an endless refrain in every extended conversation among friends: What to cook for dinner. I have a simple trick that I use whenever I get frustrated with menu planning.

Whenever I’m stumped I grab a trusty spiral notebook and turn to a clean page. Those notebooks are plentiful in my house, so this is the easy part. Then I list Monday – Sunday across the top. Then I just assign a type of meal to each day, including 1 or more delivery or takeout or eat out options.

Coming up with ideas for what to cook for dinner:

Stack of 5 cookbooks plus one open to chicken recipes. Each cookbook is for a different label: desserts, vegetarian, healthy, cooking, recipes,
What will you cook for dinner?

Here are some examples but the possibilities are endless:

Monday – chicken

Tuesday – Vegetarian

Wednesday – breakfast for dinner

Thursday – pasta

Friday – eat out, or pick-up, or delivery, maybe even frozen pizza

Saturday – Fish or seafood (tuna casserole or salmon patties count)

Sunday – crockpot favorite

Once you have a category, the ideas of what to cook will flow!

As an example, I can think of 5 or 6 meals based on chicken easily. Same with something in the crockpot. Laying out categories is the secret and that’s actually more fun than any part of what’s for dinner other than dessert.

More What to Cook for Dinner categories

Here are more category ideas just so you can see how easy it is to get the ideas flowing: Chinese food, Anything over rice or noodles, Air Fryer favorites, Mexican food, Thai, Leftover buffet, Quiche or Pot Pies, Italian, Beef, Pork, InstaPot favorite, Soup and Salad, Grill out, Picnic favorites, and more. Your imagination is everything and it can change every time you use this trick.

Ready for your 2023 Planner? Careful!

I made this mistake last year so I speak from a place of experience. Back to school fever hits and I start looking for next year’s planner. My planner holds my life together and I won’t even try to live without one.

Planning calendar with flowered cover
Watch those planner dates!

Watch the Planner dates!

The shelves are full of planners right now so it seems like a really good idea to grab one while there’s tons of choice. But take the time to notice the dates because every single one I looked at for the last two weeks has been for the academic year and not the calendar year.

I made that mistake last year and ended up buying a new one after the first quarter when I realized mine had no August – Dec. It created a lot of work trying to move important things from one to another.

Most planners on the shelf right now go from July to June or July, not December.

Wedding Anniversary and a memory on Facebook

Today is the 37th Anniversary of our wedding day. Dave and I got married in the courthouse in Rockford and it provided plenty of material for funny stories. Ten years ago I posted this on Facebook and it popped up today.

In 2012 I posted a memory on Facebook on our anniversary

Screenshot of a Facebook memory from 2012 describing our wedding day in 1985

Here’s what it says in case the image doesn’t show up:

Today is a funny, happy memory day. 27 years ago, Dave and I stopped in a courthouse and got married. We had planned to do that for 4 years running during that week of vacation, but one or the other would get cold feet.

We had a suite reserved for a honeymoon, but when we stopped at home, the cat was in labor so we cancelled and stayed. Nothing would do but she had the kittens in a box at the foot of our bed and woke us up all night long to show us each new baby. 🙂

We could hardly ever remember the exact date of our anniversary, so all those years we had together we celebrated this whole week and any time we wanted to make an extravagant purchase, we would bring it home and say “wedding present!”

Time to revive an anniversary tradition

I used to love bringing frivolous things home and claiming they were a “wedding present”. The purchases were usually household things like fancy cocktail glasses or fun dishtowels. I’m trying to remember a few of the more extravagant buys, but nothing impressed me enough to remember I guess. But this story has made me feel like a trip to Home Goods to revive a feel-good anniversary tradition.

I cleaned the freezer and made a vow

I just finished something I’ve been avoiding for years. And when I say years, I’m thinking 2018 or before. I have called my freezer the “black hole” for that long and still continued to buy stuff and shove it in, never to be seen again.

My black hole of a freezer was taunting me

Upright freezer full of storage bags with frozen food and an arm reaching in to place a small bag

Today I fixed that. I motivated myself to clean the freezer with “just one shelf” and it worked. The empty shelf was motivating and I kept going. Now I have a few things left in the freezer and plenty of cleared space.

I go way back with freezer stories, including a recent kitchen drama when a sausage link came out of my ice dispenser at the worst possible moment. We are not completely recovered from that yet, although it has provided several people with snorts of laughter at my expense.

A freezer is easy to clean if you can be ruthless

Today’s haul included things labeled “best by June 2016” if that gives you an idea of how much was freezer burned and trashed. The one thing that kept me from mulling over possibilities for too long was that we had a big power outage in August of 2020 and I was able to tell myself that anything prior to that needed to go. And it did. I carried bag after bag to the trash.

So the vow I mentioned? I’m making a list – an inventory if you will of what’s left in the freezer and I vow to plan my eating around those things and then replace only what I truly will eat. And the rest of that vow is that I will not buy anything, no matter how “on sale” it is, that I don’t have a plan to use before the expiration date.

What’s next if the freezer’s clean?

Watch out pantry, I’m coming for you next. It has to be easier than thinning either bookcases, right?

Birthday Flowers Reminded Me

Some NSFW language, but it’s real.

A favorite story from the adventures of Dave and Judi is about flowers, specifically flowers on special occasions.

Basket of flowers, multi colored
Birthday flowers

We had been together nearly 20 years and I came home from work ready to deal with a problem. “Dave”, I said. “We have to talk. Every time a special occasion rolls around I watch the flower deliveries come hour after hour, always for everyone in the office but me. I want flowers, too!”

I want flowers, too!

“But you hate flowers” he said.

“Where in hell did you get that idea?” I asked.

“I saw you completely destroy a big bouquet of flowers one day at the radio station. You tore them out, dropped in the wastebasket, stomped them down until they all fit and then left.” he said.

“Let me tell you about that day.” I said. “It was the day my divorce was final. I had just come in to the station to drop orders and copy and go home and I saw those flowers on the desk. They were the size of a casket spray. Everyone in the place was head down, busy, so I later suspected that someone had read the card before me. it said “Hope you’re happy now, bitch”.

Dave was quiet. Probably thinking about 20 years of missed opportunity, LOL. He said all the right things and the next day when I got to my office in Wheaton there were dozens of red roses on my desk. Damn I miss that man.

August musing

I’m a Leo, born in August. Tomorrow’s the big day when I advance further into Senior Citizenship. But somehow Facebook reminded people today and the greetings started to flood in.

For a minute I thought I had really overslept and missed a day – that was a little unnerving. But a text about lunch plans tomorrow quickly verified that it was indeed still Tuesday. Whew.

I’m not upset about getting older. The alternative has taken too many people I love already. I just thought I would be wiser and have just a few more adventures under my belt. My vision is getting worse and my bones yell “Hey” throughout the day, but I am extremely lucky in many ways.

I do still have adventures booked and friends to roll along with me. Not many days from now we will be exploring new territory and praying our luggage keeps up with us. When we recover we have a list as long as our collective arms of more things to see and do.

The best thing about reviewing my life at this advanced age is that I am extremely happy and feel lucky every day. I live in a wonderful community and I have awesome family and friends here and scattered elsewhere across the country and I count that as my biggest blessing.

Matter of fact, I think the wisest thing I could do today is hit publish on this rambling post and head out to enjoy the August sun. I might mention how we already did August sun weather in May, but that feels like a “geezer check” moment to me.

Price of Chocolate

We’re all dealing with inflation (and a host of other things) but I found a tiny silver lining today. I have been battling my sugar addiction forever, but in a serious life-or-death mode since March.

I realized why grocery shopping today that my frugal nature kicks into overdrive at certain price increases and candy is currently out-of-sight price-wise. Which protects me from myself because it’s so easy to keep walking when a large bag of M&Ms is $10+. The image below is for the smallest “fun size”.

I did read yesterday that Hershey’s is saying they can’t meet the fall demand for candy that is Halloween in the USA. They are managing normal everyday supply, but their seasonal lines are just not up and running yet. So I might even be able to skip “Half-price candy day” Nov 1st.

Image is a yellow M&Ms fun size bag with a price of $3.99 for the fun size
It’s easier to avoid sugar when I have been priced out of the casual chocolate market.

Medicare Open Enrollment Ends December 7

Affects Part D prescription plans and Advantage plans

Medicare open enrollment starts October 15 and ends December 7th for those who want to explore different Advantage plans or change a Part D prescription plan. This does not affect your regular Part A or B and if you have a supplemental, often called a medigap plan, it will usually go by your anniversary date.

Medicare Open Enrollment Period affects Part D prescription drug plans and Advantage Plans. Parts A and B are not affected and neither are MediGap supplemental plans
Medicare Enrollment Form – Open enrollment starts Oct 15th and ends Dec 7th

If you fit the profile of someone on Medicare, your mailbox and phone are full of marketing messages about Advantage plans. Why?

Advantage plans are a special kind of private insurance managed care. Medicare pays the insurer a contracted amount to take over the management of your healthcare payments.

Most Advantage plans are an enticing mix of marketing messages about lower costs, free money, extra services that Medicare does not provide. Also in the mix are the restrictions and the details about your annual out-of-pocket max.

I personally chose a supplemental Plan G, which is also private insurance. Your choice has to be right for you and it will depend on your own situation. Just know what you’re getting and how much it will cost.

Life Skill – Learn to RSVP

There’s a life skill you need if you ever go out to meet up with people or if you attend various activities. Learn to RSVP. Whether it’s an organization meet-up or a lunch dates with friends, your response or lack of one makes a difference.

How to RSVP

Responding to an email reminder of a social activity is as simple as hitting reply and saying “I plan to be there”. Done. How do you know if an RSVP is needed? Usually the email will say “Please let us know if you plan to attend”.

Why RSVP?

Why is it so important? Let’s look at a recent example. I belong to an interest group that meets monthly. The first organizational month, there were 19 people. The hostesses were interrupted just once to find another chair and expand the circle for an unexpected latecomer, but it was mildly irritating to try and get back on track.

Month 3 – now there are 39 members signed up. The lovely demonstration was interrupted 6 different times to find room and chairs for latecomers who were not expected. A simple RSVP by all of them would have meant that chairs were already in place. So simple.

Table for 2?

Another example is when 2-6 friends try to plan a lunch date. If the meeting is at a popular time for the restaurant, the number of people who will be showing up is critical. Will you be trying to cram 5 into a booth meant for 4? If only 2 actually committed, can you risk a two-top in the corner?

Choosing to respond is the simplest way to move through your social life. Please make it a habit.