Cooking On Christmas Day (12/25/13)...

Well this will be a quiet Christmas holiday this year. H is here with me for the first time in many moons. Typically he goes up to see his Mom but seeing that she recently moved out to Regina, SK that put a damper on those plans. He gets to hang out with his Dad, the cats and his friends this holiday season.

Next year I am putting up a tree so that it looks a bit more festive in the house. Hopefully Jynx has gotten old enough that she is no longer interested in using the branches of the tree as various sleeping spots and using fragile Christmas ornaments as cat toys. I guess I will have to tempt the fates then.

I gave H the last of his gifts last night. Christmas Eve was always the night for the opening of the Christmas presents growing up. Typically right near midnight. I did it a bit earlier. LOL. Staying up past midnight requires a pre-planned afternoon nap which I didn't have yesterday.

It gets harder and harder to get him gifts as he gets older and I don't like the idea of just giving him money as it shows a lack of creativity. I know I work with numbers so creativity is not my forte. I do try to get some surprises though.

This year I got him some stuff off the NHL.com website to continue to encourage his recent like of all things Canadiens. He got those gifts early as the box was delivered when he was home and I was at work. So the inquisitive type that he is opened up the box to find a Habs t-shirt, key chain and a chillsner that keeps the beverage of choice nice and cold.

I gave him a gift card to Mac's Speed Shop which he can use with his friends as well as a nice bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label. Maybe next year I will surprise him with Johnny Walker Blue. He and his friends fancy themselves as good scotch and bourbon drinkers all of a sudden. It is interesting to hear them discuss the merits of this brand next to the brand. It's a guy thing!

I also got him the requisite underwear and socks as it would not be Christmas without those products. It's like having orange, mandarin or tangerine in the Christmas stocking. It's a must! When my siblings and I were kids we always had a soft package of socks under the tree.

The last thing that Santa delivered to him was the result of my using up the last finite amounts of patience that I had yesterday and braving the traffic on Fairview Rd. Suffice to say that many French Canadian swear words escaped my lips right around noon yesterday. There is a good reason why I don't use that road much and yesterday only served to back that argument up.

Anyways I ended up going to Belk's and getting him a nice Calvin Klein fragrance gift set so now he can then use his own good stuff rather than raid my stash. LOL. I am a man with a plan.

So as the title implies I have already started cooking on this cold for SC Christmas Day. The temperature outside is right at freezing and it won't be getting much warmer. They are only calling for a high of 40F or 4C. That is cold for us. Brrrr cold!

So I have roast already going for late lunch thing I guess. I got to use some of the Pampered Chef items I received this past Monday. Happy Christmas to me! Now I just need to learn how to use them properly. There were some accidents involving beef broth and onions this morning. At least the cup of red wine made it to pot to correctly braise the beef. It better cook out during the process or I will be half lit by supper time. LOL.

I am going to do a roast chicken for later tonight as well. Ham is not a big favorite in this house so I went with a large chicken. I can use the leftovers for a soup base as well as for chicken salad I guess. I would have bought a turkey but they only had frozen ones at the grocery store and if memory serves me correctly it takes a couple of days for a turkey to defrost in the fridge. I will plan that better next time. I've never cooked a turkey so that will be a first. I will no longer be a turkey virgin. LOL.

That's it for now Journey fans. Merry Christmas one and all and peace out!

Another Rainy Day In The Upstate (12/22/13)...

So we have had a really dreary day here in the Upstate with a heavy downpour around noon. Warm temps in the 60s but constant rain. How effing annoying. It was coming down so hard that it awoke me from my nap. LOL. That's what happens when I wake up at 5am. Before you know it I will need a nap to get through the day.

I had a couple of my special coffees and had started reading my latest Randy Wayne White novel "The Man Who Invented Florida" when BooBoo Dammit decided to come and cuddle in the crook of my arm as I was reading. Given that she had marked her eminent domain territory on my arm I decided to close my eyes for a minute or two. Ha. That became about an hour and I only awoke because of the racket the rain was making out on the roof of the back deck.

Since then I have been puttering around the house cleaning up while listening to MC Rock Hits. Housecleaning is definitely not my favorite activity. Off white carpets. Good Gawd that color scheme does not work with two men and two dark haired cats in the house. It looks clean for about five minutes and that's it!

I made a wonderful salad for lunch with two kinds of lettuce (romaine and iceberg), roma tomatoes, green and yellow zucchini cut in razor thin slivers, red onion, green peppers, kale, whole wheat croutons and a Greek salad dressing. I should have taken a picture of the salad. The colors were wonderful. All shades of green with some red and yellow interspersed. It was yum. I had a Dos Equis Ambar with a lime wedge placed in the neck of the bottle and that upped the taste factor big-time.

I guess I need to get back to work. Peace out Midnight Oils fans!

This & That Before My Morning Coffee (12/22/13)....

So the other day I am heading to take a shower before heading to work and I notice in the mirror a large pimple right on the tip of my nose. It could not be in a more obvious place. How annoying acne at 51 yrs. old. Grrr. Adding to this disturbing picture is that a couple of days earlier I somehow managed to scrape up my forehead but good while shaving my head. I never do that. So for the last couple of days I have relived the early teens of my years with marks on my face. Not exactly the remember when that I want to have. LOL.

Yesterday afternoon I tried a new recipe with chicken breasts, hot Italian sausage and farfalle pasta. It turned out real well and it was really to make with few ingredients. I was worried that it would be a bit bland but the red wine and Italian seasoning brought out quite a bit of taste to the dish overall.

I wish I could say the same of the chicken noodle soup I made afterwards. It was so-so. I pretty much followed the recipe I have been using recently but I may have had watered down the stock a bit too much. I am not real good with salt and pepper to taste in dishes as I am not a big user and fan of salt. I always tell H that it may need some afterwards. The soup is still good but it seems to be missing an ingredient. Maybe it is carrots. I have forgotten to replenish that root vegetable on the last couple of trips to my local Food Lion.

If you need proof that our world has changed for the worse in many ways all you need to do is go on a comment section of a typical news site on the web and prepare yourself for low intellect, racist, unintelligible and disturbing comments on various subject matters. It is beyond belief what can be written on a website without any regard for truth and honesty. Add to the fact that most of these sites don't check or validate what is written and that most of these putrid comments come from people hiding behind avatars, fake names and false Facebook user IDs. It is like having the low intellect cave dwelling members of the KKK coming out from behind their sheets to spew their hatred and non-sensical vitriol. It has gotten to the point that I don't even go to these sections anymore in search of dialogue because all I get is the sense that I need to take a shower to rid myself of the stench of bigotry and hate.

Okay so that was weird as I went from my temporary markings on my face to my adventures in the kitchen to editorializing about "stupid is as stupid does" people. Well it has been bugging me for a few days. LOL. So I now I have written about it and I feel better.

Anyways time to make coffee Collective Soul fans. Peace out.

Well My Smoke Alarms Work (12/19/13)....

So I was listening to some 70s music play while reading up on Southern rock bands on the Wikipedia website when all of a sudden the smoke alarms went off. Damn that is one loud sound that emanates from a smoke detector. Both of them went off. One in the hallway next to Harrison's bedroom and the one next to my bedroom door.

The reason they went off was because I started the oven cleaning process. I guess that the high heat started to super burn all of the pizza bits that Harrison and his friends leave at the bottom of the oven when they super load up the pizzas that they have baked.

I had neglected to turn the overhead fan so I discovered how well the smoke alarms and sensors work and how effing shrill that alarm sound makes. LOL. I have my kitchen window wide open now trying to dissipate the imaginary smoke. Seems imaginary to me. LOL. I will have to close that window soon as it is only 46 out there and if it keeps up it will be 46 in here but quick. LOL.

I feel like the 1974 Ohio Players classic "Fire" should be next up on the imaginary turntable in my head. Peace out rock'n'rollers and be serene.

Meanderings Of A Sunday Morning In Schlewingstan (12/15/13)....

I had a real rough night sleeping last night. I had some serious bad dreams. I don't normally remember my dreams and even last night's memories are sketchy. I know my Mom played a central figure in it even though I never recalled seeing her in the dream. She was always off in the distance somewhere. That isn't surprising as it has been 11 years since she has passed on to whatever awaits us on the other side. Hmm I shouldn't get started there because I will ramble on forever on what I think happens to us when we pass on.

That topic along with Fox Non-News Host Megyn Kelly's thoughts on Santa Claus and Jesus being white or caucasian in politically correct language would tie up more than a morning of me hunting and pecking on a keyboard.

Somehow my Mom was there in some way and it involved my maintaining or not maintaining my house and property. Just to enhance things; failed romantic events or advances of recent times were thrown in. LOL. Like I said it wasn't a good dream. I know that I woke up around 635am and told myself I am not going back to sleep because these remembrances or dreams of mine sucked. Perhaps not the prettiest word to use there to use but it is rather concise and suits the situation to a T.

I ended up putting on some canvas shorts and headed to the kitchen to get some coffee going. H was up as he was starting work at 7am and he questioned my sanity then and there. On a day off, his idea of waking up in the morning is getting out of bed at 1159am. He never understands how I get up so early on my days off. It's like I told him; if I am tired later on I will have a nap. Ha. I usually do. It's a real rarity if I don't as I have 3-4 years of sleep deprivation to build back up. Having three large mugs of coffee liberally not conservatively laced with Kahlua, Bailey's or some other spirit may contribute to the nap factor as well. LOL. Trying to think of what I do or think in a conservative manner would be a short conversation.

To add to this day that was off to a rip-roaring start involved my having to grind some whole bean coffee to make a fresh pot. Suffice to say I had a coordination event occur at approx. 645am and I will likely be wiping up spilled coffee grounds for the next few days. Jynx Schlewing may be a tad hyper for the next couple of days because this morning's trial and tribulations occurred on her piece of the kitchen area. I can definitely say that she has been running around more than usual. That may be weight loss related mind you and not caffeine related. LOL.

Shortly after getting the coffee going; I ended up finishing up David Baldacci's "True Blue" that was published in 2009. I enjoyed the read. I was a little perturbed with Mace Perry the main character or protagonist in the book. She was a little too Jack Bauer like in the novel and at times I found her headstrong ways annoying. That isn't a bad thing as at least I had an opinion of her rather than just being indifferent. I kind of pictured Maria Bello in that role. I had to google her name as I wasn't completely sure that was her name. I ended up on the USA Network "In Plain Sight" webpage. OMG what a clustereffword of a webpage. Another one of my segues into whatever land. LOL.

Anyways rock'n'rollers and hangers on I sure hope your Sunday morning went well. Peace out.

State of the Marc (12/08/13).....

Hard to believe that Christmas is only two and a half weeks away and then before you know it 2014 is here and 2013 is just a memory. It does seem at times that as one gets older that time just flies by. Yes I know that isn't really the case but it does seem that way.

I think it is a culmination of 9 hour work days, an hour or so driving to and from work along with errand runs thrown in and then settling things down to make supper. Before you know it is 8pm and you are just beginning to unwind from your day. Some nights involve tedious and mundane housework tasks. Other nights include watching a Habs game with Harrison. Other nights may have a nap involved in trying to replenish the sleep bank. Before you know it is bedtime. That may be 11pm or midnight or even 1am depending on the day. Repeat that four or five days and nights and weeks really roll on by quick. LOL. It sure didn't seem like that when I was in my 20s or 30s.

Started off the day to rain coming down quite hard with temps just above freezing. Not exactly a rip roaring start to the day.

One of those days that you take a quick look outside and decide hmm perhaps staying in bed bundled under the covers with a steady stream of Kahlua coffees and a good book to read and catching up on 31 games of Words With Friends that I have going sounds like a perfect way to start the day. Toss in listening "Building Blocks of Rock" with Sharon Hyland on CHOM out of Montreal and that describes how I spent my Sunday morning. Breakfast and lunch consisted of a banana, some blueberries and two bowls of cabbage chicken soup I made on Friday night. Hint to self: don't use red cabbage in a soup as the color bleeds. LOL.

I finished reading "The Last Man" by the late Vince Flynn. I enjoy reading his Mitch Rapp books. They remind of Jack Bauer character on Fox's 24 which is probably the last episodic TV show I have watched faithfully.That means I haven't really watched network TV since 2010. Hmm. Seems that my TV is stuck on baseball, hockey, cooking shows and the Smithsonian channel. I guess I am not the advertiser's target market. Ha!

Well almost 1pm. I guess I should get productive. LOL. Peace out rock'n'rollers and hangers on.

Short Blog of Me Being Lazy Imagine That (12/01/13)...

Well at about ten to five this afternoon I decided to get going and get productive. Basically I have spent the day in my version of PJs (t-shirt and shorts) reading about three weeks worth of newspapers and my latest Randy Wayne White novel while listening to music on various radio stations on the internet and drinking some enhanced coffee. By enhanced I am referring to the new bottle of Kahlua that made into the Schlewingstan household yesterday afternoon.

I can confirm that the weather in Brisbane, QLD, Australia is in the mid 80s with partly cloudy skies per Triple M. In New Glasgow, NS, Canada it was around 32 or 0c with some snow flurries later changing to rain per East Coast FM. In Montreal, QC, Canada it's about -3c with light flurries per CHOM-FM. I can confirm that it was about 10c or 53F here today with clear skies. That's coming from temperature thingee on my back deck as I didn't listen to any Greenville stations today.

I can also confirm that my front lawn no longer exists as it once did. It is covered with thousands of leaves from the Bradford pears that I have out front. My neighbor on my right will not be happy with me as the other day he had some hired help out there on his property removing any leaf of significance whatsoever from his property. Once it dries up a bit more here, my leaves will be sneak attacking his lawn with total disregard of real and/or imagined borders or property lines. LOL. I wonder if that is what was meant by "love thy neighbor". Hmmm. Probably not.

Right now I have some country-style pork ribs in the slow cooker. They had a fire sale on them the other day at the store where Harrison works part-time. I bought a slow cooker recipe mix at the same time to use along with honey and ketchup. I am not crazy about store-bought recipe envelope mixes as I always worry as they seem to be loaded with salt and I am not a salt user. Also not crazy about using ketchup as a key ingredient. Not sure why but it makes me uncomfortable. Now there's some effing logic for you. LOL. Yes ma'am right up there with Einstein's Theory of Relativity is Schlewing's Theory of Ketchup Use.

I need to get back to the kitchen and start cleaning up. Between the curry and the chicken soup I made yesterday and these ribs from today I have used pretty much every pan, pot and cutting board I own. That implies that my weekend slothful ways have to come to an end. Bleh to that.

Peace out rock'n'rollers Monday is almost here. Hahaha. I can here Ode To Joy now in my brain NOT.