Secret Diary. Do Not Read

Yes; that is at 4:19 a.m. And yes, videos are uploaded automatically and stored for 1 year.

 

Here is the cop's driveway camera images. First is before the floodlight is triggered, then the second when the light comes on. You can see the "getaway car" parked in the background with headlights on.

 

No, this is something new for us. It's normally very quiet here since we are on a cul-de-sac and everyone notices "outsiders."

 

Thanks for my morning laugh! I haven’t taken mine out of the box yet, but I will be following your example.

It’s the same with my quilting. I read on forums where people will rip out an entire seam if a few stitches are crooked even though they’ll be on the backside of the quilt and never seen, or they agonize over pieces that aren’t perfectly aligned. Of course, these are the same people who enlarge everyone else’s pictures and pick them apart or give unsolicited advice on colors or whatever.

 

OMG... my pet peeve. (One of many, I should say. ) Nothing sets my teeth on edge like people who offer advice when none was requested.

 

So I'm sitting here watching a "Twilight Zone" marathon on SYFY channel. Rod Serling was a strange fellow. I didn't realize he died at age 50 of a heart attack. Sheesh.

Today was a "goof around" day. I was by myself so I got to eat weird stuff and enjoy the quiet in the den without Fox News blasting.

My husband went over to my son's house (that burned) to help him remove the bed from his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck. As much fun as that sounds, I decided to stay home. Why remove the truck bed, you ask? Well as it happens, it was backed in the driveway when the house burned, damaging the bed, melted the tail lights, etc. So... since son only had liability insurance on the truck and the homeowner's policy won't cover that for that for whatever reason, he's going to try to fix it himself.

He has located a replacement for the bed including the tail lights and stuff, so he needed help (and an impact wrench) to remove the damaged one. He also had one of those huge metal truck toolboxes that they had to remove before taking the bed off. Yes... a fun time.

But back to me. I messed with Aerogardens and set up my newest one. I haven't decided what I will plant in it yet. While putzing around the kitchen I noticed a strange smell in the pantry and took all the potatoes and onions out of there. Found a rotten tater so I tossed it into compost and washed the rest of them. A rotten potato smells really funky, folks.

I've been picking up a few odds and ends from after Christmas sales. I'm sure I'll be wondering what the heck was I thinking when the packages arrive. I decided to try another dehydrator since I really want to put up more herbs.

I got the Panetone that I ordered but it is a disappointment. I guess nothing tastes as good as I remember. I toasted a slice and put some cream cheese on it; that helped a little.

 

Sounds like a good time @Beth Gallagher

 

January 1, 2024. Wow. Another year rolls by; they just keep going faster and faster. Three years ago I didn't expect to see another new year so I'm grateful to have made it this far.

We are having a relaxing day today. My sweet husband is dozing in front of the TV after having pecan pie while watching LSU football. Texas will be on later so he'll be sofa-bound for most of the evening.

I just got the ham into the oven and some cabbage chopped. We'll be having the "traditional" New Years meal of ham, blackeyed peas (for luck), sauteed cabbage (for money), mashed potatoes (because we like them ), and corn muffins. We're not particularly superstitious but it never hurts to make sure we have our bases covered for the coming year!!

It's cool and overcast but not a bad day. I was outside puttering around and managed to turn the soil in my raised beds. I'm getting Garden Fever and the seed catalogues are stacking up. We have a lot of landscaping work ahead. Once again we'll be replacing the front hedges and stuff, plus we will finally replace a tree that was taken down a few years ago.

My MIL's estate is slowly getting settled; all insurance and investments have mostly been distributed, and family members have taken things that they wanted or needed from her house. The estate sale of remaining household goods will begin on the 8th of this month with an inventory by the group handling the sale. Her two vehicles will be sold; she had a Lincoln sedan and my FIL's 1996 Chevrolet pickup truck... neither of them has more than 30,000 miles and we have had a lot of interest in the truck. Then the house will be sold after a bit of cosmetic updates; painting, carpet cleaning, etc.

Dealing with the estate has been a challenge for my husband and I don't feel that he has had time to grieve for his mother. He was very introspective on Christmas; she absolutely loved Christmas and it was always a huge deal for her, so I think it sunk in with him that she is truly gone now. There has also been some ugliness on the part of his brother which has hurt him quite a bit. I imagine that once all the estate business is settled they will never speak to each other again. So sad that things have to come to this... and for what?

Our daughter and SIL have 9 more days in Europe. So since December 20 they have been to Germany, France, and Belgium and they are having the time of their lives. A couple of years ago they visited Italy and the UK; they love to travel. All the rest of our kids are doing well, thankfully. Our youngest daughter was having a bumpy spell with her marriage but maybe they can repair things... we're staying out of it but are anxious for her.

So that's the start to 2024. I'm glad to be here to see what happens next.

 

We are certainly very glad you are still with us @Beth Gallagher. I hope the new year brings happiness to you and yours, and that your hubby can complete his grieving for his mother.

 

Thanks, Don. I certainly wish the same happiness to your family as well.

 

So does anyone else put permanent press clothes in the dryer, forget and leave them in there a day or two, then run the dryer again for a few minutes to "warm them up" and get the wrinkles out, then forget about them again? I know I can't be the only one to do that. Those clothes have been in that dryer most of the week getting random spins.

I had another crop of Fairy Tale eggplants (about a pound and a half) and wanted to make something other than "roasted with olive oil." So I hunted for an eggplant casserole recipe. I remember years ago the old Wyatt's, Morrison's and Luby's Cafeterias all had some version of eggplant casserole and they were all very tasty. I found copykat recipes for all of them online and decided to try making the Morrison's since it was the simplest of the 3. After all, how bad can something be that has bacon, onions, and is topped with melted cheese??? Anyway, it turned out pretty dang good.

Have I mentioned that my husband's twin brother is annoying? Yes, there is more to this story but I'll give y'all a break. Here's a hint, though... he listed my MIL's car on Facebook Marketplace and some woman from north of Dallas said she wants to buy it. So she asked him if he could deliver it or meet her in Dallas with the title and a copy of MIL's death certificate. (Dallas is 4 hours away. )

My husband blew a gasket and told his brother that he was not signing the title to hand to some woman who may or may not be legit, and to "deliver" the car is absurd. Plus the death certificate has MIL's social security number and other info that a random used car buyer does not need to have. (My husband is executor and this stuff is giving him an ulcer.) So yet another mini-drama unfolding; cue the organ music.

 

@Beth Gallagher it has been 6 years at least and we still cant close out his dad's estate.. So it=irritating and too long to go into.

 

I settled my mother's estate, but got a surprise letter from the state two years later that I had not submitted an inheritance tax form. I did not realize I had too. How often do you settle an estate anyway? The state has their hands in your pocket even when you're dead.