Happy Thanksgiving 2018

Like most years, it's best known to me as a 4 day weekend with one day spent with relatives.  This year we're staying close to home and visiting my wife's side of the family.  Other than that I don't know if we'll be leaving the house much as this Black Friday weekend will make it a madhouse on the roads and at the shops.  Feast of the cash registers, as some might say.  I do need to start shopping for gifts, but that will probably be entirely online.


I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend and thank you for stopping by!

Snow and 2018 Flood VIII

Late Thursday/early Friday we got a small layer of snow that has somewhat stuck around due to our temperatures have stayed below freezing.  Not much, but if anyone was still in denial then here's their slap in the face - winter will not be stopped.  I've yet to get out the full winter gear, and until it gets even colder more consistently I don't see the need.  Looking ahead in the forecast, we have temperatures above and below freezing and even some more snow toward the end of this week.  Well, you can't control the weather so we'll have to roll with it just like every other year.

In this picture of the back yard you can also see, on the top left, workers installing a new telephone pole.  While it might be tougher in cold weather my guess is they do it now purposely, after the loss of foliage that would surely be in their way going through back yards.  You can also see in this picture that I finally got the leaves cleaned up last weekend, knowing the snow was coming.  I also cleaned the gutters, started the snow thrower and got out the salt and snow shovels.  That means I have all my outside work done in preparation for winter - finally.

Friday afternoon I walked to our favorite local bar and grill Brothers Three (currently under new ownership after 33 years) and had the opportunity to take a couple more pictures of the creek.  I did notice it had gone down further yet, but still not down to where it should be.  A quick check of the lake levels shows that - while much better than a couple months ago - they are still a couple feet higher than they should be and I know they are still working on lowering the levels and still talking about how best to manage lake levels in the future.

Looking up this stretch of Starkweather Creek you can start to see the top of some of the big rocks on the sides.  On each side there is at least two rows of big rocks that had been underwater for several months now.  It is nice to see it go down, but this should still be considered significantly high.

Just because I like side by side comparisons, after the break is the view of the Milwaukee Street bridge from pictures I'd taken Friday and previously.

Happy Halloween 2018

Halloween can be more fun on the weekend, but I've liked this holiday more than most every other holiday for a while now no matter what day its on.  (Not that that's saying a whole lot.)  Like last year, I put the mummy up in the front windows and donned my ape mask for answering the door - and I scared the crap out of the first kid of the night!  I was a bit more careful from then on. 

This year I added a little projector that shines a shaky spider web complete with spider.  I had it out back trained on the garage door for only the sharp-eyed halloweener as they pass.  If you look real close you can see it in the picture.  Not quite what I expected, but it was cheap.  I did not take pictures of any kids in their costumes because, like most, I'd be afraid of being called creepy in this day and age.

My guess would be more than 50 trick-or-treaters came to our door last night.  Hard to say as they all came in groups of at least 3 and up to 8 or so kids, with most groups in the middle and always accompanied by many adults laughing it up on the sidewalk.  We saw many good and good-effort costumes, mostly the usual or else siDney or other characters I have no idea.  I learned you don't call the SpongeBob with no shoulders a banana, methinks he'd heard that enough on his treat venture!  We didn't run out of candy but one more group may have done it.  We waited until about 8 o'clock but no more came.  That means there's candy in the house - dammit.

Burning Bush, Apples, Cats and Fire

It has been cold, damp and dreary lately but we did manage to get the yard and garden cleaned up for winter yesterday.  A few notes and a full pictorial is over at the garden blog.  Stop over and have a look, it's probably the last big post for the year over there.  As we were finishing up it started to sprinkle, so I think we lucked out.  Otherwise, I don't have anything grand to say today, just wanted to post a few recent pictures and note a few things.

The burning bush is at its red-leaf peak before they join the growing number of leaves blowing about the ground.  The walnut trees next door are finished and I have those leaves mulched into the lawn, the rest will be gathered soon to be mulched for the flowerbeds.  Since we had the tree removed we get more leaves in front even though that yard is maybe one third the size - it has all the big trees that line the street out front.  Once the leaves are done then all that should be left to do outside before the snow comes is the gutters.

Kate brought home a lot of apples recently after a trip to an orchard.  Yesterday the house smelled lovely all day as she made apple butter.  Even though it was a double batch there are still lots of apples left.  I think we'll be having apple pie soon with lots left for the freezer.



I haven't really posted much on the cats in quite some time, but no news is good news as they are happy and healthy.  Some time ago there was another neighborhood cat that used to come around and see our cats inside the back door and through the windows.  Basil now 'patrols' the perimeter at times, going from window to window, looking for that cat.  I don't think he's upset or anything, but he is very curious.  Hamish doesn't seem to mind, knowing his brother is on the case.

I spent some time by the fire on Friday evening.  The cool weather and break in the dampness made it a pleasure once again to sit by the fire and figure out all the world's problems - or stare blankly into the flames and relax.  Same difference.

First Snow of the Season, 2018

I was watching the Badger game today when it started snowing on TV.  Realizing the game is here, I turned my head and saw the snow out the window.  Today has been very windy, with snow and wind, then sun and calm, then hail and wind and then more wind and sun.  Enough snow to cause blizzard conditions for a time at the game, and while the whole football field was completely white with snow for much of the second quarter we had no accumulations here at the house.  The sticks blown from the trees are certainly accumulating, though.  In the twenty second video below, the car alarm in the background seemed strangely appropriate at the time.



I know I've not really written much of anything for some time, but that's just how it goes.  I've been doing overtime at work that has me tired often at home and, well, not a lot has been happening worth writing about.  Winter is definitely on its way, so there are chores to be done to get prepared.  Perhaps I can get a few things done this weekend and I should get some pictures over at the garden blog.  Otherwise, I hope all are well.  Cats are still cute, the lakes are still flooded, and I'm still tired.  Normal posting shall resume eventually.

LLP Bonus - Ledger

I don't remember how I came across this but I think it was in my Youtube recommendations or I saw it in a list, something like that.  Ledger is a side project by Jen Ledger, drummer for the band Skillet, which I heard of before but now found out is a christian hard rock band.  I watched a recent show of theirs last night and yes, they are definitely christian as Jesus was mentioned during 3 or 4 talks in between songs.  Still, I've been playing the Ledger EP lots the last couple weeks, mainly the song Iconic.  Not enough for a full post, but I do like it enough to be a bonus Latest Listening Pleasure.  I like her voice, and basically that's what made me keep playing the EP.  The songs are more pop than I usually listen to, but it's fun.  Odd fact:  She relocated at 16 from Coventry, England to major in drums at a religious school here in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Ledger - Iconic