My daughter woke up early Thanksgiving morn to a police officer banging on her door.  Her truck had been stolen after she had fallen asleep at 3:30 a.m.  Right out of the driveway.  Of course, she left her keys in the ignition, but who could believe anyone would steal her 1991 Mitsubishi - well, it's not really a truck, but a 4-wheel drive jeepy/boxy thing, that won't start for her, even if she shuts it off for only a few minutes.  She always has to get out and get under the hood with a wire brush and clean up the battery terminals.  But of course, it started right up for the thief.

It was some 22-year-old youngster, having left a late-night drinking party, very drunk, who thought he would just walk home in the very cold night.  Perhaps realizing his mistake, he first stole a bicycle and went on his way.  But he was completely lost and didn't know where he was.  He must have been near frozen when he turned into my daughter's driveway, threw the bike into the back of her truck, fell down once, but started it up and prepared to drive away.  But failing to realize that the driveway could have been used to drive out, he tried to go through the woods - backed up and smashed my son-in-law's car and finally got away.  Until he somehow drove through an unplowed woodland road until he came to another road, where he completely mowed down a utility pole, breaking it in half and totally destroyed the Mitsubishi. 

A police officer, who lived nearby, was just leaving to go to work, when he spied the broken utility pole lying in the road and saw the poor vehicle all smashed up.  Realizing that someone was inside, he got out of his car and went to see, found the kid still trying to drive away.  Then the kid got out and fled on foot!  Well, the arraignment is this morning, but my daughter and son-in-law are home-bound, as both their vehicles are undriveable, to say the least.  The kid was not hurt at all, of course.  But the Mitsubishi is totalled.  The car can be towed in and repaired, though. 

The only other news is that we all enjoyed a good Thanksgiving Day feast anyway at my daughter's house, except for one thing.  She had charged me with making the pumpkin pie, and wanted me to use the pumpkin I bought at Halloween, which I suspect now was a field pumpkin more suited for making a jack-o-lantern, and not for making a pie.  Something was not quite right about it, and I warned everyone that they probably wouldn't like it.  They were brave enough to agree with me, and I hope that Suzie, the chicken, will like it, as that is where the rest of it is going.  What a disappointment!  But we all agreed that none of us is that crazy about pumpkin pie in the first place, and next time, there will be cherry, apple, cheesecake, or some other dessert, we all agreed. 

I called my brother and he is doing well, having been invited to a friend's house yesterday for turkey/duck dinner.  I watched a program on tv about stuffing a turkey with a duck and then stuffing the duck with a chicken, calling the whole thing a turducken.  All day long, I was going around saying "turducken" every so often.  I ate this dish once at a restaurant, but didn't care for it as much as the traditional feast, and tomorrow, I think, I am going to do the roasting of the turkey that John brought home.  It has been thawing for 2 days in the refrigerator, and I believe it will be ready to roast tomorrow.  We'll finish up an English pot roast made day before yesterday, tonight.  Gosh, all I ever talk about is food? 

I am beginning to feel the stirrings of something like an urge to clean house and decorate, which I have not begun to do yet.  The weather has been fairly mild and still, there is a very light covering of snow everywhere.  This can't and won't last much longer, I think.  I feel the need to do something interesting, or crafty, for a change. 

The turkey is thawing in the refrigerator, a 14-pounder; the pumpkin I bought for Halloween has been stored most of the time in the side room, next to the sunflower seeds.  Now it has been washed, scraped out, cut into big hunks and baked until it is soft.  Cooling down now, then I'll scrape it away from the shell, cook it a bit longer with spices, sugar, milk, etc.  I've got to make the pie crusts now, and bread is rising in the pans.  Once the pie shells are filled with cooked pumpkin, they will be baked, and tomorrow I'll bring one to my daughter's house, where my son and son-in-law have a tradition of deep frying the turkey outdoors, while passing a football back and forth.  But my kids only like the jellied kind of cranberry sauce that comes in a can, so I won't bring my cooked from scratch kind along.  

We here at home will be cooking our own turkey on Friday, with stuffing and all home-made side dishes, like pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, and home-made bread. 

Aside from these preparations, I have been in hibernation mode for at least a week now.  It's true I have been getting over a very persistent cold that just will not give up, and I'm looking forward to being well enough to make progress on whatever it is I'm doing these days. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!  And we will try not to overeat in the coming days. 

The temperature dropped below zero last night, but I kept the place warm by getting up every few hours to add more wood to the fire.  Today the temperature rose to over 20 degrees, so it was a beautiful sunny day, for the first day of deer hunting season.  Strange to say, I haven't heard much in the way of gunfire around here.  Maybe the deer have left, or the hunters are going elsewhere.  I saw no deer tracks at all on my walk, but I did see round poody toes, which means a cat of some sort walked by.  It was bigger than a housecat, but not as big as a cougar, so that leaves Mr. Bobcat. 

After much ado, which means trying to stabilize the horrid aluminum ladder, we got the beef suet hung up high on an oak tree in a coated basket.  And today, the pileated woodpecker has been on it twice when I went outside to feed the chicken.  And Miss Suzy, the chicken, is very happy in her sheltered, sunny location.  And I am happy to go out and feed her, because everything is so much easier to do now.  Her water freezes up though, so I bring hot water out and pour it in her jug.  It stays liquid long enough for her to get her fill. 

I'm feeling lazy these days.  My list of things to do sounds like this now:  call about my tire; bake bread; get the mail, etc.  Not the heavy schedule I was on during the fall, and I am really enjoying extra relaxation time.  I now have new books to read and new puzzle books to work on.  And today, to add to my enjoyment, yes, even before Thanksgiving, a seed catalog for 2009 came from Pinetree Seeds   The fire is crackling in the stove, the birds are enjoying the treats I put out for them, and my Pepper is lying by my side after our walk. 

Although the temps are in the 20's, the breeze is brisk, from the north, and it is definitely wintry.  Snowflakes are falling, they tell us it's lake effect snow, but north of here, this lake effect snow is really dumping many inches.  Soon the ski hills and trails up north will be open. 

We had a birthday celebration for my son the other night at the restaurant where my son-in-law is the chef.  That boy can cook!!!  On Wednesday night, they have a buffet, featuring all of the things on the menu.  I also got a salad, a relish tray, home-made bread, along with veal parmesan, shrimp in linguini sauce, cheese dumplings, spaghetti with marinara sauce, Italian beef, barbequed pork, Sicilian breaded chicken.  There was pizza, mussels on the half shell, and other goodies I couldn't get to, because my plate was too full.  I told myself I would come back for more, but that never happens.  After eating as much as I could, I was just comfortably full, so didn't go back.  I settled back with a cup of extra delicious coffee and contented myself with a few spoonfuls of my son's birthday ice cream.  He got lots of nice presents, and the restaurant brings a camera and a big birthday hat; all the employees stand behind singing "happy birthday."  Well, it was a good time, lots of good food.  My son and his new wife look so happy together. 

But my left front tire was almost flat when I came out later.  I had to hurry to a gas station and put air in that tire.  This always happens with that tire, and I'm going to have to take it in and find out what's wrong.  My daughter attended the birthday party too, but the next day, she was very sick with her multiple sclerosis.  I had to spend an hour with her before she could even go to the party.  Yesterday, she came close to being hospitalized.  And just then, she got a letter from her neurologist, saying the neurologist was transferring my daughter's case to another doctor.  She has decided to go to a different clinic altogether.  I can't wait until they finally come up with something that will stop the immune system from destroying the myelin sheaths of the nerves that go to the brain.  I don't want her to get worse.  So yesterday was a scary time. 

If nothing else, I am beginning to work in the house, cleaning and decorating for the holidays.  There's no end to that work, is there?  I won't comment on the political scene, as that has enough commentators already.  My son is gearing up for the hunting season with his friends and father gathering for this coming weekend.  I hope he brings me a deer.

Just got back from a walk with Pepper and have constructed a fire in the wood stove, that is taking off very well, and it will soon be warming up in the house.  There's about 3 inches of snow now, and I believe I may be safe from having to blow more leaves this year.  It's snowing sideways, the wind is roaring in the upper branches of the barren trees, and I'm loving this weather, of course.  I bought some "barn boots" awhile back for only $12.00 at Walmart.  They have a lug sole, plastic toes, fake felt sides and are lined with fleece.  I bought them a size or two big for me, and I like the extra room-iness they give me.  I got them big so I could just stick my feet in when I want to go outside.  As I walk along, I pluck twigs and dead branches, and old birch bark off dead wood, and bring it home with me for fire-starting.  Works very well. 

Soon I will be eating the chicken noodle soup I made the other day for my lunch.  I love home-made soup.  Browsing through the frig, I found a head of cauliflower that is recent, so I'll make a cheesey-cauliflower soup again today, using some smoked turkey brats I bought (low-cal stuff), but don't like at all.  I'll put those turkey brats right in there with the cauliflower.  My daughter keeps trying to steer me to the turkey brats, but all I could find was these smoked ones.  I hope it tastes all right. 

Seems that not much is happening in my life right now:  I'm hunkering down for winter.  So politics is on my mind.  I got an email the other day, and apparently, I've deleted it, but it has stuck in my mind.  It was about the "One Drop Law" that states:  black man, black woman = black baby; white man, white woman = white baby; black man, white woman = black baby; and white man, black woman = black baby.  The email said that this constituted a racial mindset, and I agree that this was (and is) a discriminatory practice.  So that is why Barack Obama's white heritage is never mentioned, because of this "One Drop Law?"  I had actually been wondering about this for quite awhile now. 

I don't want to take away from African Americans' joy at having an African American President elected for the first time.  I can understand what a major event this is for them.  But shouldn't he be referred to (to be totally correct) as an African-American/European-American?  Of course, it's a huge description, and I look forward to the day when racial prejudice is such a thing of the past that we don't have to make such discriminations anymore. 

Now, on to the bailouts...where was Congress?  Sitting on their hands?  Daydreaming out the window?  Giving billions of dollars to the very people who were responsible for destroying our economy WITHOUT CONDITIONS.  And watching these same crooks take the money and say no.  We're going to do other things with the money, we're going to have our golden parachutes, beef up our stock portfolios, take some time off at posh resorts.  Screw the American taxpayers, the people who are losing their homes, the small businesses that are in dire straits.  I'm with Keith Olberman on this one.  He calls the bailout "the reason daddy went to prison."  I want these people punished and the money returned and given to those who need it to save our economy. 

Now the auto industry, seeing the possibilities of cashing in on Congressional generosity without oversight, is screaming for another bailout, too.  Have they come up with high-mileage vehicles?  No.  They haven't made any of the desired changes to the gas guzzlers.  Last night on Bill Maher's show, Ashton Kutcher came up with the brilliant idea of having the oil companies bail out the auto industry with all their enormous profits they have made, with the auto companies going along with the gas-guzzling, heavy SUVs they have built for the oil companies.  Brilliant, but we still need to have CONDITIONS before giving them any money. 

And President Bush!  In the last throes of the worst presidency in many years, we have him trying his best to establish regulations that would prevent any future president from changing things back to the way they should be.  He is again attempting to slaughter wolves in the lower 48 states, and is giving out uranium leases in Yellowstone Park, oil and gas drilling leases right and left.  The greedy businessmen who are his supporters will stop at nothing in their attempts to strike the death blow to this country.  Bush has extended the spying he loves so much to give local law authorities the right to spy at will on anyone they choose, without a warrant. 

Then, the Supreme Court has recently ruled against the whales in the Sonic Blast trials in the Pacific.  Why do they have to do it?  They could perform their tests right up to where they actually do the sonic blast and call it a day.  Sound kills!  And it's extremely painful.  Talk about not agreeing with the Supreme Court - this must be one of their worst decisions in awhile. 

Today, making chicken soup and tinkering with a recipe I dreamed up for salad slaw.  We'll see how it turns out.  It's cold outside and I still need to get those leaves off the driveway. 

Or is it?  Yes, it is.  It's snowing, but not heavily.  Yesterday's dusting was still on the ground, and it was snowing when I got up, but the temperature is warming now, and it turned to raindrops.  I love this weather for being inside the house.  My chicken is warm, dry and happy.  The dogs love colder weather, but not wet conditions, so they are asleep now inside.  I still have a lot of things to do outside, but they are not critical. 

Sunday's debacle was the Green Bay Packer game, which loss I could see coming all along during the game; so I slept and read, not doing anything.  On Monday, I baked bread and made a crockpot of store-bought frozen meatballs with 2 packages of brown gravy mix (a "recipe" from my new daughter-in-law).  I added 4 home-grown potatoes into the top of the pot and put it on low for a number of hours.  It was tasty, but the package told me I was getting a lot of cholesterol in the meatballs.  I've been eating a few of them each day since, with potatoes and green beans.  I feel the need to cook something low-calorie now.  I have been eating a lot of fresh fruit since I went shopping.  Two bunches of grapes, one pink and one dark red, oranges and grapefruit, and today, I got out some frozen blueberries.  Think I'll make blueberry pancakes for supper.  Is that cholesterol free?  How about calories?  I think it depends on what you put on those pancakes. 

Well, I obviously don't have much to talk about, even to myself, today, and I'm tired of expressing my political opinions now, too.  But I'm glad that Obama is going to close Guantanamo.  That has been a stain on America for long enough.  I hope he restores all of the lost Constitutional rights to the people, too.  I hope he does something to insure that voting is carried out in a generically safe and sure method, with no hanky-panky allowed at the polls or registration.  And the more I hear about these spendthrift companies crying for more and more bailouts, the more I think they should either be allowed to fail, or that their officers, etc. should go to prison for their corruption and mis-management. 

And please, please start bringing our troops back home.  I was thinking about those contractors in Iraq, too.  The Blackwater people that are each making $400,000 salaries to do god-only-knows-what over there.  They are being paid by American taxpayers, we being the ones who are indebted to China, etc. for their pay.  Barack's head must be spinning when he lies down to sleep at night, with all the many huge problems he will have to tackle immediately to save this country. 

I know that Barack wants to bail out the auto industry too, and though I think he knows we have to do these things, I really want to believe that these people will not get off the hook for free.  They were complicit in the mis-management and corruption that's been going on for a long time now.  Barack is saying that we have to forgive them, because they were just going along with what was "the way" at the time.  But can I forgive AIG for taking the bail-out money and twice going to fancy get-togethers at taxpayers' expense?  No, I can't.  They should have cut back like the rest of us and gotten together in a much cheaper locale.

Monday, my daughter and I went Christmas shopping at Kohl's.  We didn't spend too much, and had a good time, getting into every department they had.  It was a long trek and I was so tired at the end, that I spent all day Tuesday recovering and resting up with my aches and pains.  Today, I can say that I feel much better and will probably get a goodly amount of housework done.  It surely does need some cleaning around here. 

Taking today off, I am.  Except for whatever I get done in the house.  I managed to get outside on Friday and put the finishing touches on the greenhouse, which consisted of bracing up the sides and roof, spreading the mulch on the ground and tucking some rolled-up chicken wire between the cage and the chicken's house.  It was very hard for me to do, and I groaned with every effort, moving slowly.  I didn't work outside yesterday, either.  It's been threatening snow, and we just have a dusting this morning, but the temps are down there.  I built a nice fire in the wood stove last night, which makes life worth living. 

I am concentrating on doing some Christmas shopping, putting my thinking cap on to see what I might be able to afford to spend.  Or actually, what I am willing to pay for on my credit cards.  I usually get done paying for Christmas presents by April 30.  I want to say this is a foolish thing, but that's not the point.  It's just the extra effort that is required to participate in our culture. 

Although I have a lot more work to do outdoors, my thoughts are naturally turning to staying in.  But on nice days, I'll be out there again, trying to get things done.   

The recipe for guacamole I found on the internet - just googled guacamole recipe and there it was - I only tinkered the recipe just a bit.  

                                    Classic Guacamole

2 ripe fresh avocados, peeled, seeded and mashed with a fork in a bowl; 1-2 tblspns. freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 tsp. minced garlic, 1 small tomato, chopped; 1/2 cup minced onion; 1/4 tsp. ground cumin; 3 drops hot pepper sauce; 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves; 1/2 tsp. sea salt and a dash of white pepper.  Mix this up well and transfer it to a food processor.  Pulse away until the mixture looks smooth.  Put into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator until ready to use.

Avocados, I have read, contain the best kind of fat - the HDL kind - that brings the bad kind of cholesterol (LDL) to your liver where it is destroyed and eliminated!  Yes! 

I did force myself to go outside as soon as the pattering rain let up and worked in the wetness on the greenhouse sides, stapling up plastic sheeting all around and laying boards on the bottom of the plastic.  Also dragged/carried the bale of straw into the greenhouse and put it on a sheet of plastic at the north end of chicken house.  Then dragged the bag of wood chip mulch into the greenhouse, where I intend to spread it around her cage and create a nice floor for me to walk on.  I anticipate spending some time in there with my gardening pretty soon.  It began to rain then, and I went inside with Pepper.  My back and shoulder are very sore now.  All that remains of construction is to apply bracing to the side and front walls, and across the ceiling panels for strength and stability. 

Today, I hope that is what I get accomplished.  The temperature is falling and winter-like conditions will soon be upon us.  I never got the leaf blowing done, nor all the clean-up of the garage.  But there may be better weather still to come after this blast.    The guacamole recipe I got off the internet was superb, and so sprightly.  What a treat to go with our fried tortilla strips, breaded, fried chicken strips, black olives, sour cream, sharp cheddar cheese, tomatoes and the really good, refried beans John made after I cooked up a batch of beans all afternoon.  I went through the cupboards and found that I had no black beans at all.  So I cooked up what I had - soy beans, garbanzo beans, pinto beans and great northern beans.  To 3 cups of mixed beans and 6 cups of water in the slow cooker, I added a lot of chopped cilantro, salt to taste, a few dashes of hot pepper sauce and one tomato, chopped.  Then John does something with some of them in a frying pan.  This must be the refried thing.  I don't know what he does to them, but they are good.  I froze the rest - two containers for next time. 

Well, I got to the voting place before 11:00 a.m. and I was already 734th to vote.  As usual, I saw my friends there and chatted awhile, so it was an enjoyable experience, too.  They didn't need any more volunteers, so off I went to shop for groceries.  I surely needed food in the house, as the frij was barren and the cupboards were spacious.  I used coupons and only bought things that were advertised sale items or absolute necessities.  I even managed to get an English pot roast for $2.89/lb.  I haven't had a piece of beef, other than hamburger, for a couple of years.  I'm looking forward to this pot roast - a special occasion.  I also got avocados, tomatoes, cilantro and lemons.  I don't know what else goes into making guacamole, but I'm going to try my hand at it.  I need to look up a recipe - I'm not sure if tomatoes go in it at all.  So tonight, we are having Mexican food. 

The voting results were watched until Barack spoke, giving his acceptance speech.  The tears of joy!  It looked like half the people, including myself, were moved beyond anything we have seen in this country for a long time.  Even John McCain's speech had me weeping in appreciation for his life's work for this country.

Next morning, again I burst into tears when Nancy Pelosi spoke, telling us that the Senate and House are Democratic in the majority.  I know we still have to fight for a lot of things, but the fight will be fair from now on. 

One thing I don't like about our media is that they are behaving like vultures now, picking over Sarah Palin's defeat, as if she was the reason for McCain's loss.  She shouldn't be treated like this.  She did her best, rising to a huge challenge.  I hate that they are deriding her and her family.  No wonder some Alaskans wish they could secede from the Union.  This cat-calling won't help at all.

I went back into town on Wednesday, to go to two other stores, to pick up items that I know are cheaper there, and more cold medication that seems to work for me.  I have been gobbling my zinc, immune essentials, deglycerated licorice, vit. C, Sambucol tablets, and elderberry for days now, trying to avoid getting a nasty sickness that I was exposed to last Sunday.  So far, so good. 

Well, back to work!  It is still 60 degrees out, incredibly warm for this time of year, and I now need to finish the greenhouse sides and do some more leaf blowing.  It is supposed to get cold now and snow is on the way, they say.  I don't see any way I can finish all my outside work this fall before snow is here to stay.  All I can do is keep going for as long as possible.  My right shoulder is so sore!  I need to rest it soon.  But for now, I got to get out there and staple plastic sheeting and chicken wire onto the sides of the greenhouse.  I'm looking forward to planting winter lettuce in there.

Slept well, I plan to be at the polls by 10:00.  That would be the time of day with the least voters there, according to the news channel.  I will also volunteer to man the tables later in the day, when and if they need me.  John is a volunteer, standing outside, conducting after-voting polls, and checking off known voters from their lists.  What's that all about? 

This country - we need a whole overhaul of the entire voting system!  Back in the 60's, we finally got Truth in Lending, Truth in Packaging, and Truth in Services(?) passed, and aren't we all much better off for it.  Now lenders can't con you into loans that have hidden costs buried in the fine print.  Now items you pick up at the supermarket have labels on the back announcing what the contents are, a tremendous help in shopping for food.  And now, auto mechanics have to give you an estimate of the charges for repairing your car and stick to it.  These laws have helped, and now we must have TRUTH IN VOTING.  I am going to start a bill, if necessary, with my (new) congressman, and try to do something myself to get this country straightened out on voting.  No more should we have roadblocks set up to reroute voters into detours.  No more flyers announcing that Democrats are supposed to vote on November 5.  No more should there be only three voting machines when there are thousands of voters.  No more exclusion lists.  No more intimidation and dirty tricks.  We just have to do this thing.  We have to overhaul the voting system on a national basis.  I am making this my commitment after this election.  No more monkeyshines in voting!

And we must look at re-apportionment to see exactly what effect this has on the electoral college.  I know that I used to be in a district that was pretty solidly Democratic until they re-apportioned this whole area, and now I have a Republican representative who lives far from our area.  I never really understood what happened there, either.  I know that this was done to hopefully give electoral votes to the Republicans, and they said, "there!  it's about time!" etc.  Hmmm, got to see just what re-apportionment is and what it does or doesn't do to the electoral college.  Well, off to the polls!

Went to my son's house on Sunday to watch the Packer game with her family there, and we had a good time, eating snacks and drinking soda.  But the Packers went down to the undefeated Titans, and we could feel the loss coming all along the way.  My daughter-in-law is the only (and fervent) Titan fan and always has been, so she would run to the window, open it, and scream out every time they scored.  I can't imagine what the neighbors must think.  "Isn't she a cop or something?"  "They just got married - what is he doing to her?" 

That flu shot I got on Halloween is spooking me out.  I've never had any kind of reaction before to a flu shot, but this one is different.  I had a nasty bout of diarrhea along with a bloody discharge, back pains, and I'm very tired, with ringing ears.  I hope this is the end of it.  I did manage to get out there today and do some leaf blowing, but for some reason, I would rather have the leaves than the bare ground.  The leaves are a natural insulation.  Well, I just blew off my rock collection and a short path - that's enough for now.  Washed clothes, dried, folded and put away.  But I'm still tired and will lie down soon.  I have lost 6 lbs. since the wedding, and hope to keep losing by eating much better food.  Also, my blood pressure is going down.  I wish I could check on my own cholesterol, but if I just stick with the program, I should be going down on that too. 

Well, tomorrow morning, I will get up, get dressed, and go to the polling place to vote, and I hope all my friends and family do too.  I imagine we will be up late into the night to see who will win. 

A truly beautiful day again!  Over 60 deg. and I had to go into town on Halloween Day to get my annual flu shot, which didn't take very long.  I had made an appointment at the local hospital, and was the second in line.  I also took all my recyclables to the landfill, then went to the feed store and loaded up on goodies for the dogs and the chicken.  I took a couple of bags of old clothes to Good Will, a nice Pendleton jacket of my mother's and a good corduroy shirt, boy sized.  Then on to Menards, who has the best price on suet cakes for the birds.  I got 16 suet cakes and let's hope they last for awhile.  I have a new woodpecker or flicker (or both) that really eat a lot. 

In my birdbook, I have found the woodpecker, but it is called the red-bellied woodpecker.  There's a long streak of red on the back of its head, but no red on the belly.  I suppose it's a case of the namer of these birds not getting this one confused with the red-headed woodpecker, whose entire head is red.  Still, couldn't they have named it something a little more in line with its appearance?  I think the other one is the flicker, maybe the female.  If it would call out, I would know for sure.  There's the pileated woodpecker here, but they hesitate to get onto the little suet basket.  I need to get bulk suet from the butcher and hang it in a big basket right on the tree trunk, but I want to wait until the bears have gone to sleep for the winter.  And of course, we have the hairy woodpecker and the downy woodpecker.  The hairy is larger than the downy; otherwise, they look the same. 

I also bought a package of window plastic to keep cold drafts from coming in.  I've never used this before, so should be an interesting effort, getting it on the windows.  A tiny bag of candy, peppermnt patties, in case trick-or-treaters come by (they never have), and another electric cord and a cube for many plug-ins.  And they had a 1/2 price sale on wallpaper borders, so I bought a cute green-blue border with happy frogs and lily pads.  This will sit in a drawer until I need it (?)

Then gas in the truck and home.  I would be in a terrible state, if I hadn't made up my mind not to even think about the coming election - tension is high, so I limited myself to the 5:30 news with Brian Williams, Keith Olberman at 7:00, and a start of the Rachel Maddow Show, but I find her a bit abrasive, carping on things that she should just leave alone.  For Halloween, I watched a scary movie called "Second Subject" or something, that was truly nasty.  I worked the very last puzzle of Sudoku in my little book, and that's all there is to October.

On a breezy, sunny day, 65 degrees and likely to be the warmest day of the autumn season, I got out there and took apart the greenhouse, with deep regret.  In spite of temps in the teens lately, things in there were still alive and growing; Only the Lonely Nicotiana, now in the house, and some ripe tomatoes, with vines still producing blossoms and setting fruit.  The greenhouse was the best idea I'd had in a long time, but it would not survive the winter under the roof where snow and ice slide off and crash to the ground.  I am going to put it back up, covering up the chicken house and yard, on the west side of the house, where snow and ice have never fallen, just melted and flowed into the rain barrel.  This will save it and will give the chicken a sheltered location to live in for the winter. 

So I got the greenhouse completely dismantled and put away all the things that I had stored in it (amazing number of things), dragged all the parts to the west side, and began to put up the header.  That's when I realized I would have to put the header up using a ladder.  I simply do not have the upper body strength that a man would have.  When I really lean into the job of screwing in the screws, the whole ladder raises away from the wall and it just doesn't work out.  So that is where I'm at now.  I get so frustrated with my limitations. 

Since I have stopped drinking milk for the past two months, I realize that I have gastric distress now, and I may need to take ranitidine or some other acid reducer.  I also want to eat more cruciferae vegetables that have all the calcium you need in them, and in an easily available form for the body to assimilate.  I still have one glass of milk left in my regimen, as I love milk.  I used to drink at least two quarts a day.  So going down to 8 oz. is quite a drop, and my stomach certainly feels it. 

But the most aggravating thing of all to me is listening to the pundits on TV talking about the election, and how McCain is gaining on Obama now.  It is hard for me to believe that the Republicans are so stubborn that they would vote for four more years of the same.  I doubt our country will stand much longer if we don't get a change from what we've had.  I will be calling friends and family to make sure everyone votes, but I will be very discouraged if Barack doesn't get elected this time.  My deep disgust with the way things are now IS possibly the reason for my gastric distress, in fact.  Well, I can't do much more than I have done, and will continue to do whatever I can, but I feel very discouraged today, after listening to the pundits this morning.  Maybe Keith Olberman can cheer me up this evening.

I found this today on the Center for Media and Democracy website's weekly email to subscribers.  At least there's a place to go to if we are subjected to voter suppression tactics on Nov. 4.

The Weekly Spin, October 29, 2008 Citizen Journalists Protecting the 2008 Election Source: New York Times, October 27, 2008 The New York Times notes, "There are at least two wikis intended to let voters collaborate to collect examples of problems with voting, whether exceptionally long lines or more direct actions meant to scare off voters -- the Voter Suppression Wiki and SourceWatch's Election Protection Wiki. Since 2006, the Video the Vote project has sent out volunteers to monitor voting around the country, and this year the group expects to dispatch at least 2,300 volunteers with cameras in all 50 states to videotape potential trouble spots. ... The ultimate home for much of this content could be the video-sharing giant YouTube, which has created a channel, Video Your Vote, in collaboration with PBS, to encourage submissions. ... While his organization is partnering with YouTube (and received 300 cameras as part of the Video Your Vote project), [project founder Ian] Inaba says he sees their missions as different. 'YouTube is there to generate content, to generate eyeballs,' he said. 'We came at this from more of an election protection framework. We want voters to oversee the election process - it requires citizen oversight.'"

I am wondering about that election!  It seems so obvious that the people want Barack Obama for their next President.  So why does McCain keep saying he's got him just where he wants him?  Is the election rigged?  Will Democrats come out to vote?  Or will the screwed-up voting machines work to the Republicans' advantage?  Will people be turned away for no good reason?  Could even I be turned away because of some minor clerical error?  I see the Alaskan senator, convicted of 7 counts, can still run for office, but can't vote for himself.  This is truly a messed-up voting situation.  My personal beliefs are that you should not be able to run for office if you've been convicted of a crime, but felons should be allowed to vote.  So this country has gotten things just opposite of what they should be, in my opinion.  But the potential for having the election stolen again remains the most worrisome thing, to me.  After all the hopes for change, will it all be ruined on Election Day?

I woke up Monday morning to about 2" of the white stuff all over, and for some reason, it makes me so happy, even worshipful, to see the first snowfall, even though we've been dreading it for awhile now.  But we all experience that first rush of joy.  After all, it's only frozen moisture.  It is still here today, but warmer temps are coming in a few days. 

I made pumpkin nut bars yesterday.  It bothers me when a recipe such as this calls for less than 1 can of pumpkin.  What am I supposed to do with the leftovers in the can?  I suppose it can go to the chicken, or be made into another batch of the same thing.

                                  Pumpkin Nut Bars

Combine all this in a big bowl and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  One cup of flour; one cup firmly packed brown sugar; 1/2 cup liquid shortening; 3/4 cup canned pumpkin; 1-1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice; 1/2 tsp. soda; 1/2 tsp. salt; 1 tsp. vanilla; 2 eggs; and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts.  Beat together for 1-2 minutes and spread in a greased 13 x 9" pan.  Bake at 350 deg. for 20-25 minutes.  Frosting:  2 oz. cream cheese, softened; 1/4 cup soft butter; 1/2 tsp. vanilla; 1 cup powdered sugar.  Beat together and spread on cooled bars. 

Went to lunch with my daughter; we were the only patrons in the diner, which had been completely full only an hour before...we commiserated with the waittress and cook, had them laughing at our own stories of waiting on people and they said we made their day, just cheering them up.  After lunch, we went to the liquor store and got liquored up (for the holidays).  I bought the usual gin and vodka, but didn't see the spiced rum until too late.  Then we went to the meat market, but didn't see anything there we wanted.  Got gas, $2.79 a gal. and home, to bed.  I am truly sick, probably caught a cold somewhere along the way, with all my many encounters with human beings lately.  But I am also aching and sore.  So I soaked in a warm epsom salts bath, drank decaf chai tea, and took many cold medications. 

I was asleep by 7:00, but got up later to view Sat. Night Live, to see what sketch they would have about Sarah Palin.  They had a truly classic one with "President Bush," "Sarah" and "John McCain."  It was the funniest one ever.  They even had an appearance by "Todd Palin" in a snowmobile suit, having run down and dragged McCain in to be "endorsed" by Pres. Bush.  So funny and so true.  Only 9 days until election day!

And I feel pretty good today, I mean, better than yesterday.  I went outdoors with Pepper and we went for a walk, her favorite thing.  It is supposed to SNOW today, the wind is picking up, and the raindrops feel harder than usual, with almost a tinkling sound.  I stayed outside for awhile then, picking up things and pampering my chicken with shovels of dirt full of worms, her favorite thing.  Then, with firm resolve, I marched right up that shaky ladder and just stapled that last bit of plastic that was hanging there undone, up into the peak of the porch roof.  It might not be the job I dreamed of, but it is up there and solidly in place.  Rearranged the remaining boxes of "stuff" in the porch, and I can finish dealing with that, some other day.  At least it's down on the floor. 

We're back in the house now, having had lunch of chicken stew, listening to the sounds of approaching winter, and feeling closer than ever to getting things done around here.  But the forecast for the coming week shows 50 deg. temps coming, and there will still be time for firewood-making, and applying the underlayment insulation to the back side of the house.  After that, it's cleaning out the garage, and picking things up that need putting away or throwing away.  Taking the rest of the day off, I am.    

It rained all day yesterday and most of the night, was still drizzling this morning.  I couldn't sleep, read until I got a headache, which is still with me.  About 1:30 a.m., a lot of howling out there.  I opened the window and listened to a serenade by coyotes for a couple of minutes; sounded like a lot of them getting closer.  Worried briefly about my chicken.  But nah...

I am groggy today, dizzy and tired, of course.  My daughter wants me to go to lunch with her today.  I suppose I will, even though it will be an effort to do anything.  I still have my headache, so will take meds.  John should be half way through his race by now.  I have no ambition to do anything.  It has finally or temporarily stopped raining, but the temperature is falling.  It is supposed to become bitterly cold tonight.  My daughter-in-law mailed a link to the wedding photographer, who has put all the wedding pictures up for view, and to order them if we want to have any.  Things sure are done differently these days.  I spent the whole afternoon yesterday viewing the hundreds of pictures online.  I became depressed, don't know why.  I think it must be because I am old, and looking at pictures of myself and all those I know IS depressing.  It's because I have seen people become old in my lifetime, and there's only one way out of here. 

So I'll go to lunch with my daughter, take in a store or two, get more gas to last me another week, and hopefully, the sun will come out again sometime, and I'll feel better soon.

It's warmish, but drizzling rain under a gray sky.  No leaf blowing today, and there's a dead porcupine on the road, so the dogs will not be allowed out and about either.  They should know better than to mess with a porcupine, but maybe they will have forgotten by now their harsh lesson when they were pups.  Seeing a porcupine and thinking it great fun to harass it, they both came home with strange white things hanging from their mouths.  At first, I thought it was frosty icicles, but when they got close, I realized it was going to be a bad experience.  We had a different vet then, whose partner was not sympathetic to us, at least.  When I picked Pepper up from the vet's, she was snarling furiously in her cage, but stopped when she saw me.  The partner followed me out to my truck, saying there was no such thing as an Australian Shepherd, and that I must have bobbed her tail myself, which was cruelty to animals.  She seemed to be very attentive to my relationship with Pepper, wondering at how loving she was to me.  When I got home, I saw that there were many quills in the roof of Pepper's mouth which had only been snipped off.  I suppose that was all they could do under the circumstances, but I worried that the quills would work their way into her brain and kill her.  Anyway, they didn't, but the whole affair was trying to both of us. 

But John has finally gotten under way to Baraboo, to take part in the 13 mile race (a half marathon).  I've always wanted to spend some time in the Baraboo area, where there are many scenic/historic/cultural  places to visit.

The luncheon held yesterday at the Peking Chinese Restaurant was delicious.  I had the sweet and sour pork with egg drop soup and lots of hot tea.  There were several topics of conversation which alarmed me a little.  A few women live so far out in the country that they claim wolves come right to their door, trying to snatch their dogs.  And one dog put out at 2:30 at night on a run (a lead tied to a cable) was grabbed by a bear.  The owner heard his dog barking incessantly, then squealing in pain.  He rushed out with a broom and beat the bear off, but had to call the vet in the middle of the night for emergency surgery.  The dog is okay now.  Naturally, these women are in favor of killing the animals who are hunting their pets. 

Then, there's the Democrat who insists on voting for McCain/Palin because she likes how Palin talks - that she sounds girlish and silly.  That's my friend who, back in high school, had all of us talking in a falsetto voice, talking silly "valley girl" talk.  Cute then, and lots of laughs, but this is serious time, friend.  I was a little disturbed by all this talk, and probably ingested cholesterol and MSG besides.  I had a bad night, idiotic things running through my troubled brain.  I think I'll stay inside today, do some housework, make soup.... 

Today is Thursday, the day we girls get together for lunch and talking.  We're going Chinese today.  I am still working hard on controlling cholesterol, so I hope I eat wisely today.  Last night, I made spaghetti, it's so good I had to eat twice.  Here's the recipe: 

Cook 1/2 lb. (dry weight) spaghetti in salted water until al dente, drain, toss with a spritz of olive oil to keep the strands from sticking together.  Saute 1 lb. hamburger in a teaspoon of olive oil.  Crumble the hamburger to small pieces as it browns.  Add 1 cup chopped sweet onion; 1 clove garlic, minced; keep frying.  Lower heat.  Add 1 can of spaghetti sauce or 1 small can tomato paste.  Add 2 tsp. vinegar and 2 tsp. white sugar, 1 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. Italian spice.  If necessary, add 1/4 cup water, stir well and turn down heat.  Simmer gently for 5 minutes or so.  Serve over spaghetti, and make garlic toast by buttering bread slices, sprinkling liberally with freshly minced garlic.  Toast in toaster oven. 

Yesterday, John helped me move the chicken house (with the chicken still inside) to the new location.  The day before that, I had spent all afternoon digging a trench outside the porch wall.  I filled it in with gravel and pond pebbles, covered that with plastic sheeting, leaves and straw.  I dug the whole yard level with the edge of the trench and raked all smooth.  I also dug a hole where the rain barrel would sit, and where there is drippage all winter as the snow and ice melts off the roof.  I put a large black plastic pot with the bottom cut out, into the hole, and filled it full with stones.  Then covered it up with dirt level to the surrounding surface.  Next day,  we placed the chicken's house right next to the side room wall and moved her yard up against her doorway, right next to the porch wall.  Out she came, and was very interested in all the new stuff in her yard.  She now has a southern exposure, and I was glad to see she was already in sunshine most of the day.  She will be much more sheltered and yet part of all the goings on around here.  I spent the rest of the day placing rolled-up chicken wire and rocks into the gap between her doorway and cage.  She can hear talking through the walls of the house and now answers with chirring.  So cute, and so much happier. 

I feed her twice a day; bread or cooked spaghetti (just the noodles), a few oats, at least 2 kinds of vegetable, cut up pieces of anything fresh (like fruit), sunflower seeds, and yes, chicken feed.  Her house is covered with 1" styrofoam insulation, 2 tarps and she has a lightbulb on all the time in her house, which is kept several inches deep in straw.  I thought to move her water jug to a new place in her cage, but she grabbed it and threw it aside.  She likes things to be just so, I guess.  I had to refill it and put it where it was. 

Every evening, as I watch the political/economic situation in our country, I always get fired up and think I should blog about it.  But I have been so busy getting ready for winter, there's no time for blogging.  I still have to dismantle the greenhouse from the front of the house and rebuild it over the chicken's quarters.  I have to get my leaf blower up and running and blow all these billions of leaves away, especially from on top of my rock collection.  I haven't quite finished the porch yet, either.  John got up on the shaky extension ladder with a piece of wood that I had measured and created with nails already in most of the way.  His effort was to bang those nails in while holding the piece of wood in the correct place.  Amazing, up there at the peak of the porch, he was able to get 3 out of 4 nails in, but on attempting to get the 4th nail in, the ladder was so shaky, that he had to stop and come down.  He muttered something about a screwy idea, but I don't take it seriously. 

That peak effort is where I was when the ladder I was on completely slid out and down just as I reached that very last place up there.  This was about 6 or 7 years ago, and I was one black and blue, very sore person for a couple of weeks.  How I fell with my arm under the ladder I will never understand, but almost broke it, as the rest of my body landed on top of the ladder.  It's the very worst place to get to on this house. 

John has to leave tomorrow for another marathon run in Baraboo, so I better not try anything too fancy while no one is here to pick up the pieces.  I've been thinking lately of my novel(s) that I need to finish and possibly rewrite after so long away from them.  At least one of them might be worth sending to a publisher.     

It's been last Wednesday since I posted; let me see if I can remember the days since...  On Thursday, I attended, for the first time ever, an Obama rally.  Of course, Barack wasn't there, but Jim Holperin, running for a state senate seat, spoke briefly; he introduced the governor of Iowa, Chad Culver(?), who spoke about the differences between Obama's plans for the country and McCain's.  It was kinda different for me to be politically motivated.

It being held at the public library, I finished the afternoon by picking up a few books to read (not that I needed any more books to read).  When I got home, the house was cold, and subsequently, I discovered that John had once again turned the floor heating system off.  I wish he would quit trying to save money while I freeze. 

I had a doctor's appointment on Friday, but cancelled it.  That should have freed me up to get a lot done around the house, and I believe I emptied the water barrels, which were full, around some cedar trees and hydrangeas, turned the barrels over, and coiled up all the garden hose around the barrels, putting the sump pump inside one of the barrels.  I can't remember what else I did that day, as I seemed to be very tired; maybe it was housework that kept me going.

On Saturday, the turkey I had bought for a large portion of my food  for October was finally thawed in the refrigerator, so I prepared the bird with stuffing and got it into the oven.  I also roasted a butternut squash, made cranberry sauce with fresh cranberries, instant mashed potatoes and gravy made in the pan after the bird was done.  It took hours, of course.  There was one other thing that kept me working in the house, but it was probably just laundry or something mundane like that.  To make sure I don't explode with weight gain, I put my entire turkey dinner on an 8" luncheon plate, muttering "If it doesn't fit, you must a-quit."  I may have gotten away with about 800 calories there, but I ate 2 of these mini meals, plus toast and coffee for breakfast, so that was plenty for me. 

Sunday, I thought I might get out there and finish the porch, but procrastination is hitting me hard these days.  I'm sure it's the cooler weather.  The leaves are falling, falling fast, and you can see the distant tree line all around the house from the top of this hill now.  I live on a round, flattened hilltop in the forest.  I called my son and asked him to bring me a deer this fall.  He need only shoot it and gut it out - I will do all the skinning, butchering, wrapping and freezing of the meat.  He said he would do that for me.  I asked him for pictures of the wedding, but he said he is no ways near getting that done yet. 

The deer around here are bold and they obviously know me well.  Now they have pushed the fence down on one side of the garden, too lazy to jump it anymore.  My chicken is very happy these days, and my next chore, after finishing up the porch, is to move her cage and yard to the side of the house, build a sort of lean-to over her quarters, so I don't have to struggle with new snowfall every day to get into her area.  Last winter was a killer for my back, and I don't want to repeat that. 

So, today (now it's noon), the weather is beautiful, it's over 50 degrees out, and there's the porch to finish......ohhh.

So the past two days, I've been back at the job of closing in the porch, getting ready for winter.  I have so much to do before snowfall, that I found it hard to fall asleep last night.  I always get up and have a bowl of cold cereal when that happens.  But last night, in addition to the cereal, I needed a hot bath and a cup of decaf chai tea to fall asleep. 

The weather dropped back to normal temps for October, so working outdoors got me cold, at least when I came in.  I didn't bother with a fire, but John came and started a fire in the fireplace, so soon I was comfortable.  I had a ring of pain across the bridge of my nose, around to both ears and the back of my head.  I used a heating pad on my head and that helped.  I should be finished, or close to it, by the end of this day.  I do have to go back into town, and get a prescription filled, plus I have an oil-filled space heater on a raincheck that I need to pick up.  I also want to buy (credit card, of course) a small electric frypan and a hand-held mixer.  Both are on sale for $8.88 at Shopko.  I haven't had a mixer for many years and would like one, and the sandwich-sized electric frypan can and will be used for steaming my sinuses, keeping my coffee cup warm (maybe), not to mention grilled cheese sandwiches.  

I have cut down on meat consumption, using meat only in small amounts in all my cooking and making it last for days.  Today, tuna salad, small roasted potatoes with olive oil and salt, and corn that John put up in freezer bags.  I oven-roasted the smallest of the potatoes yesterday and they were heavenly.  I don't usually use words like that to describe potatoes, but home grown is so much better than commercial grown. 

Tonight, the final Presidential debate!  I only hope that people will realize that it is very important to get out there and vote, in spite of Barack's lead in the polls.  It would be terrible if people thought they could stay home and not vote, because he is ahead. 

What a beautiful day for the wedding of my son and his fiancee!  The trees are at peak foliage, and the drive to the wedding was spectacular.  It was held at a big resort deep in the forest, surrounded by sparkling lake waters.  I did not know that I was going to weep like that.  It was so beautiful, and the service was held outdoors in a pavilion.  Right near the end of the ceremony, when all the vows had been made, the minister continued with a solemn demeanor, and asked, "Now my son, do you promise to always respect your mother-in-law?"  The audience roared with laughter at the expression on his face.  Sure, he and his mother-in-law have a very good relationship, with lots of joking around.  My son didn't know they had inserted this question into the end of the ceremony, though, so he was completely surprised.  When they were pronounced man and wife, they kissed, and the music became something like "Turkey in the Straw."  The bride and groom hee-hawed and danced and twirled down the stairs and through the crowd.  So there was laughter and tears both, and it seemed to me that everyone, even the minister, was weeping for joy, and laughing too.

Everyone adjourned into the dining room after a prolonged bout of picture-taking, and enjoyed the food.  The room became stuffy and loud, and my son shouted, "Let's go!"  We all got into our cars and drove to his house for the bonfire party, with a half-barrel of beer, little meatballs, pickles wrapped in cream cheese and bacon(?) and pretzels.  It was very enjoyable.  There were about 24 people in all, friends and relatives.  All the friends were my son's friends, mostly from the years he had spent in the big city.  There were no friends or relatives on her side, except for her immediate family.  Wait, there was one aunt and uncle. 

Well, I am very, very happy for the bride and groom.  I just love her and her family, my son's friends I have known for years and adore them all.  They are the same as family to us.  I left the festivities about 10:00 p.m., being the first to go, since I have quite a drive home, besides.  I wore a long, navy-blue dress with a flounced hem; it had pink leaves on it, was lined, and I wore a pink, puckery, long-sleeved, dressy t-shirt under it, as it had short, flutter sleeves.  I wore ear-rings, a necklace, a bracelet, and 2 rings, all picked out of my mother's jewelry box, and having been given by different family members, black velvet heels with sparklies, and black hose.  I got my hair cut by 3 inches, straight across the back, and trimmed my bangs a bit. 

I am still weepy today, but I understand it.  I'm feeling that my life is complete, my children are married, and my grandson is a grown man now.  I've been walking around in the gathering, warm gloom of a still-beautiful day, with Pepper by my side, taking in the smells and sights of this autumn.  I know the weather will turn soon, and my little work on my house will go on.  Who knows if I will ever finish it?  It won't matter.  It's a material thing, and the important things of love and family are all that really matter. 

I pray that Barack Obama wins the election.  If McCain wins, I believe our country, already teetering on the brink of disaster, will be forever ruined.  Imagine a country of 300+ million people, under the health "care" that McCain  has proposed.  He says that each family will get a $5,000 tax credit, which will go directly to our preferred insurance company to help us buy health insurance.  What is that tax credit?  We may get a $5,000 tax deduction on our tax form, but we will not see any money.  Will the insurance company be satisfied to accept our $5,000 tax deduction?  I doubt it.  I think the insurance companies will want $5,000 cash, don't you?  Where will they get it?  Is John McCain proposing to give $5,000 in cash to our insurance companies?  It will come from our taxes, of course.  What kind of bill is that going to amount to, that we, the taxpayers, are paying the insurance companies? 

Then, imagine the person who is seriously ill and needs a major operation.  The bill is perhaps thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.  John McCain has proposed that we, the taxpayers again, should pay income taxes on any health insurance benefits paid to our health care providers.  What percentage of tax will be applied to those payments that we never see, and have no control over?  Can you imagine anyone choosing to remain in such a system, that completely eliminates any control by the patient, and gives all your money to health insurance providers, health care providers, and the IRS?  You are simply the vehicle by which billions of dollars traverse a circuit that bypasses you completely, while you fund the entire process. 

We will all be going to backwoods country doctors who are not in the system.  Of course, women will soon be having back street abortions anyway, if McCain is able to appoint more neo-conservative judges on the Supreme Court.  So welcome to the new reality-based health care system. 

Next, McCain wants to cut our Social Security benefits in half.  If that happens, I will be out on the street, unable to make ends meet at all or make my tiny mortgage payments.  Of course, he will be hard at it, "winning" the war in Iraq, spending China's money at a fantastic rate.  Sooner or later, China will foreclose on America, own America, and the Corporations, who have individual rights according to the Supreme Court, will have all the available money offshore, where it will be safe from making payments to China.  We will be stuck with all the bills, and we will be working for the Chinese to make the payments.  Sounds like a good plan, if you are one of the 1-2% of the wealthiest people in this country.

Thank God we have Barack Obama and Joe Biden.  Let us all, good Democrats and good Republicans, come together and save our country from a McCain/Palin ticket, elect a decent, intelligent President and Vice President who may still be able to bring us back from the edge of chaos.      

It's cold, then warmer, the sun shines and it's beautiful, the clouds appear and spatter, drizzle rain for minutes or hours.  Many of the leaves near the house are still green, but there are a lot of fallen, brightly colored leaves as well.  Hopefully, autumn will last for a longer time this year.  We have often been kicked in the rear with a snowfall in early October, just to keep us humble. 

John went to Munising, Michigan to run in a 15 mile marathon, and did very well this time, but I believe he is more sore than usual.  Now his brakes are out and he is having to work on them under a tarp, lying on a piece of cardboard, in the drizzling rain. 

My work in the garden, digging potatoes, harvesting everything (except the rest of the cabbages), plus all the yardwork and organizing I did, had me so sore that I could barely walk into the house afterwards.  It's my left foot that aches so badly.  Maybe I have plantar fasciitis(sp?) or maybe my back is so screwed up now that it affects my foot as well.  I haven't done anything more on the porch for two days because of soreness, but I am feeling much better.  I guess this is what old age does to a person; you just have to slow down and rest in between doing things. 

I made an autumnal soup yesterday, using veggies I harvested the day before or two days ago.  I used hamburger as the meat base, browning that in the pot with onions and carrots, then adding water (only 6 cups this time) and all the veggies, like cauliflower buds, tiny zucchinis, small potatoes, tomatoes and patty pan squash.  Also added orzo, spices, and at the end, some couscous.  It was delicious, but upon my first taste, I realized that it contained much rendered beef fat from the hamburger.  So I had to put it all in the refrigerator and let the fat congeal at the surface of the soup.  Sure enough, there was soon formed a 1/4" layer of cholesterol right there on the top.  I scooped it all off with a spoon and am now resigned to eating the "healthy" version of soup. 

My cholesterol this last time was 249, down from 255.  It is supposed to be, ideally, below 100.  So I am going to make a very serious effort to lower it on my own, as shown by the above progress.  The results could save my life, and I can't abide the terrible side effects of the medications the doctor wants me to take.  I hate those statin drugs. 

But last night, I woke in a panic, feeling very depressed and anxious.  I believe it may be the pre-wedding jitters, and I'm only the mother of the groom.  I have my outfit to wear all lined up, but haven't tried on the whole thing yet.  I should do that today, since it is raining out again, and I don't really need to go shopping for food until I go in to pay the light bill tomorrow.  I also believe I am depressed about the national economic crisis.  I do business with at least two of the ones that need to be bailed out.  You'd think my regular monthly payments would be enough to keep them afloat...

So McCain doesn't want to debate or talk about real issues?  He just wants to focus on personal attacks against his opponent?  I'm glad that Barack Obama is going to strike back at McCain for his involvement in the Keating Five debacle.  I was never satisfied with the "justice" that was obtained back then, and all we hear about these days is how we don't need to be pointing fingers of blame.  Hell yes, we should be blaming somebody for all these giant rip-offs of the American people.  Why isn't "white collar crime," which is far more serious and costs everyone much more, punishable, and why aren't we hearing about getting the money back to those who were ripped off? 

But enough of that.  I got up and ate something, read a chapter of my book "Two Years Before the Mast" by Richard Henry Dana.  Then finally, fell asleep, feeling much better about things.   

I think it was Howard Fineman who got me laughing with his analogy of Sarah Palin being like the wolverine who rushes out to attack the pant leg of a passerby.  I am still trying to remember if Palin ever called Biden "Joe" except for the zinger she used, "There you go again, Joe."  Sort of like, you have to invite the vampire in before he can bite you.  She was very well rehearsed and stuck to her talking points like glue. 

She IS Bush/Cheney, in a more attractive package.  I got the feeling that she, like Bush/Cheney, can hardly wait to increase the powers of the President/Vice President and become dictators.  And how about deciding NOT to answer questions that would show honestly what the differences are between Obama and McCain?  Especially when McCain has been the deregulator all these years.  That's right, change the subject.  I now believe that her answers to Katie Couric's questions (or non-answers) were deliberate.  This woman is not stupid.  She's very much in charge, and you can go to hell with your questions.  And that's how she and McCain plan to run the country, too. 

The Vice-Presidential Debate is tonight.  Palin has been under so much criticism all this time, that I'm afraid that she will do well tonight, just to befuddle the media pundits.  I lay in bed last night, trying to think how I would have answered some of the questions that have been put to her.  Reviewing my answers, I can say that I must be fairly well educated about the Supreme Court, and I am just Joe Sixpack.  I certainly could have bent somebody's ear for at least an hour! 

I am therefore going to keep a sharp eye out tonight, looking for some sort of device tucked into that hairball on the back of her head.  I suspect she will need coaching from an invisible source.  I remember when W. debated Kerry, he had a small oblong thing visible on his back, that stuck out enough to be seen through his jacket.  I doubt it could have been his cell phone, since it was so high up on his back. 

I think Sarah is a small-town girl who made good in her home state of Alaska.  She and her family are probably going through hell right now because of her being picked by McCain.  I cringe when I hear some of the nasty comments about her, but it can't be helped.  I laugh along with everyone else.  It reminds me of the fun we had with Harriet Myers and Dan Quayle. 

But back at the shack here, yesterday began as a rainy, windy day, but my daughter and I planned a picnic lunch at the cemetery.  I forgot my half of the food, and she forgot the silverware, so we decided not to eat there.  We walked around in the cold wind, with the sun beginning to take over.  My son's headstone had moss or lichens growing out of the indentations that made up his name and dates, so we found twigs and cleaned that up.  My father's headstone was turned slightly and we found it to be free of any attachment to the base.  Someone must have hit it with a vehicle.  That will have to be cemented back in.  It's been 32 years since my son died, 27 since my father's passing.  My mother's ashes are still in a cardboard box in a drawer, but I have the urn standing on the kitchen table to remind me to do something soon about her inurnment.  It's going on 4 years since she died, and not quite a month since her dog, Daphne, passed away.   

The house was cold yesterday, and I officially lit the underfloor heating system on October 1.  It will be days before the floor heats up enough, though.  In the meantime, John cleaned out the chimney and started a wood fire, which promptly went out, as the wood is wet.  The weather is so typical for this time of year; pattering rain, with wind and intermittent sunshine.  I still have too much work to do outside, but today, I need to get my bills made out, make soup, clean out the refrigerator, make a shopping list, and think seriously about getting some firewood inside to dry.     

When I was growing up, I was always hearing in school, newspapers, etc. how the Free Enterprise System and Capitalism was the Best in the World, and didn't it seem to be the case?  America became the envy of the world.  Those who were successful rose, and those who were failures fell.

Then came the era of bailouts, beginning with Chrysler, many years ago.  It was mind-boggling, to me, to think that a company, who obviously hadn't been doing something right, should be "bailed out" by the taxpayers, who had also been their customers.  This flew in the face of the very principles of free enterprise.  As time went by, the era of deregulation came on, and the upper management of large companies went completely crazy. 

The progression goes from bad to worse, until we have the present day scenario, with Paulson coming out and basically saying to the Congress and the American people, "We screwed up, we are in a terrible situation, the country could be plunged into a depression, so we are going to stick it to you again, to the tune of $700 billion, and you are going to bend over and take it.  Don't try to ask questions, there will be no oversight, and everything will remain the same for us.  For you and your progeny, not so good.  And we want it TODAY.  No questions, no oversight, no delay."

Barack Obama came out right away with changes to the plan.  I signed up on email to support those changes - protection for homeowners and taxpayers, no golden parachutes for executives who oversee the failures and excesses, and regulations and oversight of the whole process to make sure they follow the rules this time.  I signed on to make sure these changes would be implemented before the people gave them that amount of money, but I was uneasy, not sure WHAT the plan was, or how it would affect us all. 

I'm not sure what exactly John McCain did about the plan - suspending/not suspending his campaign, flying/not flying to Washington to put his country first, canceling/not canceling the debate, taking credit for a new plan/old plan to save the banks, and blaming the bank failures on Barack Obama!  But this is John McCain's pattern of rhetoric and behavior, apparently designed to razzle/dazzle the electorate. 

And the House Republicans, who wisely rejected the plan altogether, in a fiscally responsible mood, and altogether rejected Dick Cheney's attempt to drag them to the poisoned food pile - yes, I thought that was a good thing.  But as a few details of their new plan leaked out, including an insurance plan (other than FDIC insurance?) and Paulson still wanting golden parachutes (unbelievable!), I began to have grave doubts about the new plan. 

Nancy Pelosi was a bright spot on the scene.  Looking sick and tired of the irresponsible rhetoric, she made a speech that went right to the heart of the situation, laying blame for the mess at the feet of the Bush administration, and the deregulation of the industry (McCain's favorite thing, until 2 days ago), and the excesses of the failing banks themselves.  Then a tearful Boener came out and blamed Nancy Pelosi for the rejection of the plan by the very Republicans (many of them) who had created the "new plan!"  Barney Frank made fun of Boener and the others; apparently they got their feelings hurt by Nancy and couldn't go on!  That did it for me.  How can we support a plan made up by a bunch of woosies who are trying like crazy to insert certain "factors" into the new plan that will favor themselves?  In fact, I've been too busy and tired to read the "new plan."  I have too much work to do.  Anyway, it was rejected.  Thank you, Nancy, for telling us the truth.

Then last night, another revelation from Dennis Kosinich, who reminded us all about the way business is supposed to be done in this country, in the free enterprise system.  He was absolutely, 100 percent right!  Let the bad banks, run by greedy evildoers, fail!  Let them go down.  There are other banks!  Help other banks who will take the side of homeowners, who will restore decency and capitalism to our country.  Barack Obama's latest idea (along with many other's) is to raise the FDIC limits to $250,000.  That will definitely help small businesses.  There are a lot of other ways to deal with this problem, and we need to get back on track.  We HAD a wonderful system, the best in the world, and we see now that trickle down-deregulation doesn't work, especially when backed up by bailouts.  If they want trickle down-deregulation, then let them suffer the natural consequences - death by capitalism!  No bailouts!           

And I'm back on antibiotics again, this time it's Cipro, for 7 days.  Let's hope this time it's enough to kill whatever the infection is within me.  I think it originates in my sinuses, or inside my left ear, where there is most likely to be pain.  As soon as I take the antibiotic, the pain in my ear lessens and my sinuses drain.  And of course, I've been working on the porch amid flying insect killer, and the dust and mold that accumulated out there over the past 7 years or so. 

The weather has turned sharply colder.  Only a few days ago, we had 80 degree weather and now we're lucky to get into the 60's.  And I am so reluctant to go out in colder, rainy weather.  But today I must begin, as I now feel fairly well again.  

It's been a couple of days, and the debate has been circulating through me long enough to calm down and form an opinion.  I was shocked that McCain can look into Putin's eyes and see goodness, but could not bring himself to look into Obama's eyes and see his goodness, nor even bring himself to speak to his opponent directly.

His low-voiced, insinuating rhetoric does remind me of Cheney, though.  One expects a snarl at any minute.  But McCain did make a few good points.  I think we can all see the bad side of ethanol; we all want government to stop wasting money; we all want to win the war in Iraq, etc.  But what is winning in Iraq?  Why are we there still, having already declared "mission accomplished" years ago.  It seems to be another giant taxpayer rip-off, and it's obvious now that oil must be the reason, basically; along with the "need" to establish military presence in the Middle East. 

McCain emoted that he was going to take care of veterans when they came home from his wars, yet he has consistently voted against all benefits that might help our veterans for all of the Bush years.  He claims that he is going to deny all spending, except for "the military," veterans and one other thing I can't remember off-hand.  Sorry, I don't believe that.  The slashing of government spending under a McCain administration consists of just one thing - the further destruction, abandonment and suffering of the American people in order to achieve their war-mongering, neo-conservative goals.  And you can bet that there will be government spending of American tax dollars to special interests, lobbyists, oil companies and other giant corporations, and payoffs to foreign dignitaries who pretend to be our friends. 

McCain is pro-life (until the child reaches military age) because he really doesn't like women to have that much power.  He certainly doesn't want them to receive equal pay for equal work.  He never votes "yes" to insure children, so they can receive the care they need, and doesn't ever mention education.  Health insurance?  A credit so you can be "on your own."  Not his problem.

I also resented his many slurs against Obama, repeatedly saying, "he doesn't understand that..." or "he just doesn't get it."  I can't get it out of my head that McCain is one of the Keating Five who participated in the swindling of American workers in the Savings and Loan Scandal, and was only reprimanded. 

McCain is getting up there in years.  There is every chance that Sarah Palin could end up in the White House as President.  But, not to worry.  Just as in the Reagan years, and certainly in George W. Bush's administration, these are figureheads, and merely make pronouncements given by policy-makers in the background.  We could even be putting up with Cheney, Rove etc. for four more years.  Look at the men who surround McCain.  Are these the advisors we want to be whispering in the President's ears?  It's the Republican machinery that keeps the wheels on the cart.  And we all know that they are champing at the bit to get their hands on the Social Security money.  Yeah, wouldn't it be lovely to see it all disappear down the magic sinkhole of the stock market.  But I am getting out of control here.  For I still believe that Soc. Sec. is the one best idea that we have to provide a decent life for the elderly, and I hate that they want to ruin it. 

However, I must agree with the real conservative Republicans who have made a stand against the current Bush attempt to stampede the dogies into giving them the money.  I honestly believe they do have the right idea.  See?  I'm not against real Republicans doing things properly.  I just hope that bit about insurance companies getting involved doesn't happen.  Because we know how the insurance companies have messed up health care, so that patients and doctors have to go to the insurance companies to find out if doctors can treat patients for their ills.  It just sounds fishy, like maybe the insurance companies will soon be telling prospective home-owners and mortgage companies whether they can buy/sell houses or not.  Is this really oversight?  Or just more of the same interference and dictatorial policy masquerading as oversight?