It’s Amazon Prime Day. The first two items on offer “just for Tom” were dog poop bags and skimpy women’s panties. Neither item has ever been on my Christmas wishlist, nor Dwight’s for that matter. My one purchase will arrive Thursday: a 5-pack of COVID tests–we’re running low. I can now go outside and engage…… Continue reading Amazon Algorithm Fail
Category: Home Living
Run, Toto, Run!*
A morning thunderstorm coincided with a reminder in my calendar to clean the air and water filters in our Japanese toilets. We’ve had our TOTOs over five years, now, and they’ve worked flawlessly. We had an early issue with reduced water flow due to construction sand in the water, but the filter did its job.…… Continue reading Run, Toto, Run!*
Sunday Dinner: Some Assembly Required
Feeling a bit lazy today, reduced Sunday dinner to an assembly operation. I like to cook bean dishes a day ahead as they improve by standing. Ingredients include ham shank and hot-soaked beans from the freezer, and fresh mirepoix (ready cut up from Trader’s). I’ll sweat the mirepoix and freeze half for another time. Rice…… Continue reading Sunday Dinner: Some Assembly Required
Sunday Roast
Tonight: wild salmon from Alaska on a cedar plank on the barbecue. Snap peas and new potatoes from the local farmers market. Parsley to go with the potatoes, ultra-local, from our balcony.
Simple Sunday Routine
Bedtime, looked out at the route of our regular Sunday morning walk: up one side of the river, back on the other. Sunday afternoon I read on the couch, occasionally glancing outside at the swollen river. Dinner was cooked on the barbecue: chicken and sweet potato. In the evening, we blocked the view to watch…… Continue reading Simple Sunday Routine
Sniffles and Snail Mail
We’re both a little subpar with colds, thankfully not COVID. Peeped in a shoebox and realized it contained six weeks of snail mail I hadn’t reviewed since returning from my travels in early April. Nothing required my attention, so everything went to recycling, some via the shredder. At least I did something useful today!
Sunday Roast
Veggies from the barbecue, chicken thighs still on the barbecue. Simple Sunday dinner, easy cleanup.
Halibut and Gratitude
Tonight’s our anniversary, so I whipped up a special (well, for a Monday night) dinner. Halibut baked in parchment is so easy, yet feels a touch exotic. Accompanied by an eight buck bottle of New Zealand Sav Blanc from Trader’s we had a fine meal, grateful for our years together. The extra halibut (in the…… Continue reading Halibut and Gratitude
Starting Low and Slow
Prepared a dry rub and applied it to baby back ribs which I then placed in an oven at 250°F. Low and slow. This was a chance for a slow cycle ride, ducking occasional rain. As the afternoon progressed, the sound of thunder intensified, prompting me to crank harder on my return home. Back home…… Continue reading Starting Low and Slow
Happy Grass, Smart Watering
Relaxed day: walking, reading, troubleshooting, …. Here I’m troubleshooting a plant watering schedule on a Hubitat home automation hub. I finally set up schedules for a water pump that irrigates the long line of grasses on our balcony. Back in the day, a plug-in mechanical timer would’ve done the job.