Wednesday was a busy day for me. I woke up at 7 and my damn dog Owen had eaten 3 loafs of my mom’s bread and crapped on the floor. I didn’t start the day well, to say the least. I brought Yvette and Lola some burritos. Yvette wasn’t so sure she could really eat yet. She was till a little flimsy from the bug she’s been kicking. We set out to get our marriage license and the damn clerks office was already closed for the holiday. They told us on the phone they would be open until 2. Rude.

We ran some errands and knocked out a few more things we needed for the wedding. I could tell that Yvette was overdoing it by the time we were finished. I brought her home and carried in the groceries. I needed to go meal prep for Thanksgiving and finish putting up my outdoor Christmas decorations. . I had a pea salad to make the night before. Thawed the frozen peas, chopped up red onion and sharp cheddar cheese and grilled some bacon. The sauce was a mixture of sour cream, mayo, black pepper, brown sugar and apple cider vinegar. Damn. I was excited about the addition to the spread. I like to introduce new sides. It keeps the meal fresh. This year I’m bring two new dishes. Hope they are both well received.

After the meal was prepped I met up with my mother and brother for some food and drinks. It’s always a good to see my brother. I went back to my mother’s and hung out for a little while before going home to my slumber.

Thanks giving I woke up early and went to hang out with the kids and Yvette. She had a ham going for the lunch festivities with her family. I always look forward to being with them, which is kind of the opposite of my last situation. Today’s turkey day starts at her brothers. Thanks giving us such chore for me these days with the diabetes. We had our lunch and my blood sky rocketed, as it does. It’s once a year so I never can really accurately prepare for how much insulin I’ll need. It doesn’t matter. Sure, it doesn’t feel great to have sugar swings like that but it’s part of my life and I’ll be damned if it will infringe upon my fun.

2 1/2 hours later I left to go make my next side for the next meal that was to be at 6:30. I was roasted carrots wrapped in bacon and glazed with maple syrup and sriracha sauce. This was another new idea I had been wanted to try ever since my friend Paul started talking about making this months ago. It took a little over an hour to prepare and cook, which gave me more time to digest lunch. Hard to fit all this food. Once it was done I went back out to my mother’s. Yvette, the kids and the sweet baby came along and we all had a Thanksgiving dinner. Somehow we all survived eating so much. We watched some football and had a good ole time.

Friday I slept in and made a little breakfast. I had some eBay sales I needed to get out. Lucky my mother has a printer for the packing labels. I ran into a guy working the post office that I had not seen since pre-covid. He use to work at the downtown location and I guess moved to the south side office. It was nice seeing him. He was always trying to get me to leave the college and come work for the USPS. Anyhow, he had 27 days left before retirement. Lucky man. He was going to be moving out of state to be near his grandchildren.

After leaving the post office I made a quick run to get Yvette a Christmas present. I had an idea and I couldn’t pass up the Black Friday sale. I hated having to go on Black Friday but goodness lord if it didn’t save me a good penny.

Yvette, my mother and brother and I all went to see Wicked. We couldn’t all sit together but oh well. The movie surprised me. I fully went into it expecting to hate it. Almost 3 hours of a musical. Nope. I was taken by the acting and the story. I actually liked is e of the musical numbers. I have to say I had a jolly good time. It was made better by the company of Yvette. I was actually looking forward to the second half and even asked when it was coming out. Next November, it seems.

After the movie Yvette and I went to dinner at Chilis and split an appetizer. We talked wedding and the movie and just stuff. It was a nice little date night after a holiday. Those are some of the best. When you get to spend some time with just each other. Love this woman and can’t wait to be able to call her my wife.

Saturday was all about putting away fall decor and putting up Christmas, sans tree. It’s always a little bittersweet switching the home decor. I love fall. I keep the decorations up for 3 months kicking off September 1st. As much as I do love Christmas, the decorations are only up for a month. I just don’t get as much out of them. I have a modest amount compared to the abundance of fall decor. Anyways, I put up everything but the tree.

After putting up Christmas I ran some errands around town. Now that Black Friday was behind us the stores were much less crazy. I got some paint to start the trim and doors in Teegan’s room. I also found some really good Christmas candles on sale 2 for the price of one. I needed some holiday scents. After running around I made a brief stop by the store and went out to my moms to assemble the drink cart for the wedding cocktail hour. that was fun and I think should be practical for what we need it for.

Once home i put together two Christmas tree we are using for the wedding. I needed to make sure that they would light up. What a bummer that would be if they didn’t. Satisfied with that I made a little Mongolian beef stir-fry over some rice. It was a cozy evening and I was tired from all the holiday excitement.

Gremlins. My first Christmas/horror film of the season. I mean, what a classic to start the season with. I’ve seen this film as long as I can remember. My parents had little restraint on what I could watch as a kid and besides, this is a good wholesome film. It kind of made me a little sad. I sure miss my dad this time of year.

Sunday Sunday. The holiday week is wrapping up. I slept in to 8:30 and made a little breakfast for myself. I had some potatoes and some chorizo. What to make. Oh, corn tortillas. Let’s make some chorizo con papas. Such a fantastic simple meal. I had thought about adding eggs but in the end figured they might deduct some from the flavor. Keeping things simple can be the best policy.

Mostly I just relaxed, played Zelda and had my coffee. it was cold outside. I made a major discovery within the game. I am well on my path to the end and that really worries me. What can I do to prolong this great experience longer? I have only a few side quest left, sadly. What a great game and I will be sad.

Once the coffee kicked in I started cleaning like crazy. My floors. Dusting areas I have probably never dusted. That’s really rather gross, come to think about it. I found out the kids wanted to put up tree decorations so I climbed into the attic and got down the tree. I later decided to get down a second tree. Now I had 3 trees in my living area. Can’t really have too many, can you?

After that I went to Yvette’s once I realized the time. I was supposed to have lunch at her place. I had to reheat my meal. It was still good. I loaded up some of her Christmas stuff and headed to the store and then to my mother’s to grab the left over turkey so we could use it that night for dinner.

Next up was our final meeting with the Pastor Bill for the wedding. Our final couples counseling. Very exciting. We had a good and very informative session and a mini wedding rehearsals. He helped us with some wedding details we hadn’t even thought of yet and it’s was only a week away. Haha. He is a good friend. I trust a man that has officiated over 300+ weddings. Once that was done we went back to the house and made dinner. The kids put up ornaments and we had a nice dinner and watched a great movie.

The Christmas Chronicles. This new classic came out in 2018 and stars on of my favorite actors ever in what just might be the best Santa Claus ever, Kurt Russell. It’s has that good Christmas spirit that is needed. Funny, sweet and hits the spot. I love it. With the tree lit up and Christmas all around me with the family I was feeling a little warm inside.

Happy Thanksgiving Holiday!!

Saturday I woke up a little stuffy. Damn that. Annoying. I took a hot shower to clear up, popped some pills and downed some coffee. I was about to let this crud stop me from enjoying my weekend. I had a busy Saturday and I’d be damned if it let a little crud get in my way.

Made a simple breakfast. I guess we were going to the early RamJam at 11 so I rushed off to the post office to mail off my $200 item and then I went and filled up all my 5 gallon water jugs. I needed to go by the store later but that could wait. This might be the last tail gate we have this year. Honestly if they were not playing so well, we wouldn’t have even had one Saturday. Alas, they lost the game. 14-24. It was a good season. At least I got my last taste of those delicious ribs. Oh how I’ll miss thee. Till next years. When that was done it was a few errands before the movie with Teegan.

Gladiator 2. We prepped by watching the first one the night before. Good times. I was more excited about taking him to the movie than the movie itself. Just exciting. The movie ended up being rather good. Great spectacle. Good acting. Good villains. Nice to see a few familiar faces from the original. What it was lacking was the heart that beat throughout the first film. That film had an emotional impact that this film didn’t. It still was better than I was expecting with some truly amazing moments. We both left happy.

Sunday I woke up somewhere around seven and proceeded to make breakfast. I made a quick grocery list for the short cooking week. I kept having to remind myself that I only work 2 days. Monday & Tuesday. I was kind of in a medicated haze. I thinking I over served myself allergy/cold meds. A single DayQuil fucks me up so I’m not sure what I was thinking by taking 2. I also took a Mucinex. I didn’t even feel bad, just a little scratchy throat and congestion. It’s that time of year.

I brought Yvette and the kids some donuts from a new place in town that they seem to like. It’s utter torture for me to walk into a donut shop. The smell alone. I can’t eat any of that good stuff anymore. Back I. The pre-diabetic days I could eat so many. Pig out on them. Anyhow, enough about my pains. They seemed happy. Yvette was still feeling like crap so it took a little breakfast burden away from her. I hate seeing her not feeling well.

After that I went and met my mother for lunch. It was a good time. I arrived a little early and before I knew it my neighbor that owns the place had already poured me a tequila shot. This used to be the norm. Oh well. The meal was fantastic. We had a good time with good conversation.

All weekend I’ve had a visitor at my house. Miss Chicken. What do you do when a chicken gets out of someone’s yard and decides to call your driveway home? I just thought on Saturday I wouldn’t see her again but she was there all day Sunday as well. I worried that something would get her.

Thanksgiving week. Only a two day work week. Many people decided those two days were better spent as vacation days because the campus was dead. Yvette took a sick day because she is still under the weather. Real bummer. I don’t like seeing her sick. Really, she never gets sick. Her not being at work is kind of sad, honestly. Weird, right?

Tuesday was more of the same. A sick Yvette and a slow boring work day. I honestly just played Zelda during the morning. I picked up some yummy tortilla soup from Chick-fil-A for lunch and brought it to Yvette. The afternoon I had a little more to do but not much. I even volunteered to help with other people’s work just so I wasn’t sitting around. Terrible is the time leading up to the holidays.

That night after work a went to do a little Thanksgiving shopping and I gathered my belongings for a night out. At my mom’s. I was dog sitting. I figured it would be easier to load my dogs up than pick her up and all they need to stay at my house. It felt very much like a Tuesday and the start to a holiday. I was going to cook but got lazy and since I was at my mom’s it seemed like extra work. Just get the usual Thai food carry out. I chilled and watched some BS while playing Zelda.

Jalapeño.

Chorizo con papas breakfast tacos.

Beer Bratwurst with a bed of honey mustard potato’s, pepper and onion served with some fresh slaw.

Chorizo con papas w/ over easy eggs.

BBQ chicken stuffed baked potato.

Sesame chicken

I was going to cook bout decided to save that for a meal tomorrow. Lunch. Since I was dog sitting at my mom’s and the night was cold I opted for some Thai from down the street. I guess that’s just my new thing when I stay at her house.

Saturday I got up early and made some breakfast, enjoyed my coffee and played some Zelda. After the leisure time I went off to the post office to drop off an eBay package. I made another sale. My first vinyl. I was a little intimidated on packing it because I’ve had some arrive in bad condition. Afterwards I went and picked up Yvette and it was off to Sam’s to pick up the gender reveal cup cakes. What a deal. We did some more shopping and then went back to her house to decorate the cakes. Blue and pink pumpkins.

I went home to chill a little bit and relax. Unexpectedly, I think my doggy Owen had a seizure while I was there. It scared the shit out of me. He tried to get off the couch and fell down. He couldn’t get his legs to work. He couldn’t walk on my floor so I got him outside. He still was on the verge of falling over. He was shaking and drooling and his tail was between his legs. I held him and he just kept his head between my legs. After what seemed like a lifetime he stopped shaking and his tail started wagging. It was so weird. He was chasing a squirrel not 2 minuets later. I guess I need to bring him to the vet. I was about to bring him to the ER for dogs but he was just fine. I worried about it the rest of the day. Hate when something happens to my dogs.

Ram Jam was on the agenda next. This might be the last one unless they make the playoff games. Honestly it was the most tame one yet. I thought because of how nice a day it was and how it could be the last it would bring more people out. They didn’t even have free shirts. Oh well. We had fun even though we couldn’t stay for the whole time. We had a gender reveal.

Yep. The oldest son, Noah and his dear Nadia are having a baby. I loved being a part of this. It’s such an honor. I still get taken back by how much I get included. I love it. Well I got to hold one of the reveal confetti canons. Guess what? IT’S A BOY!!!! Holy shit. I got teary eyes again like I did with Lola’s almost a year ago. I didn’t see that coming. I was so happy for them. We had a nice time and some very good food. It was an eventful Saturday.

Sunday I woke up and it was already cloudy and a little damp outside. Damn. I needed to clean up the mess made from that last big rain. It had finally dried out about. I made a breakfast and I got to work. I filled up a trash cans worth with still more to do later. Yuck. The price one pays for living at the bottom of a hill.

For lunch my mother took Teegan, Yvette and I out for lunch. It was a belated birthday lunch for Tee. I arrived late and found my mom and Tee. I’m glad they really like and feel comfortable together. They asked where Yvette was. I was thinking the same thing. She was later dropped off by Lola. We had a nice little lunch and good conversation as we tend to do.

At 3 we met with Bill the Officiator. The mad making us husband & wife. I have known the guy for years. Damn near 20 years. Hard to believe but it’s true. My mom worked with him when he was the Pastor at the First Presbyterian Church. Yvette had never met him. I warned her and so did my mom that he is a character. Well we went to talk. I figured he wanted some ideas what we wanted from him and we would be gone in 15 min or so. I was wrong. He was I control for this. It was a get to k ow “US” scenario. Asked about which parent we were most like. Wheat our families were like. All sorts of things about us. Building a character profile. Figuring out who “WE” were. It was almost 2 hours, and we were not done!! We were to meet again on Wednesday after work. Haha. It was like a couples sessions, I guess. It was a lot of fun though.

That evening I watched a little football, tried on my wedding outfit for my mother to see how it all came together as one looks good if I must say so my self. It was a rainy night and I decided against grilling and picked up some take out lo mien noodles. Winning decision. They hit the spot. Finished up all my meal prepping and listened to it rain with my dogs. Hazel even took a seat on the bench next to me. On the tv I had old episodes of The Simpsons playing. That’s a relaxing evening.

Monday I had a rondevue with the vampires. It was the follow up visit from my experimental flu vaccine and they wanted to run test on my blood to see how it was affected. They took a whooping 15 vials of my red. Hungry. At least I don’t have a problem with needles and my blood. It was the easiest $50 I’ve made in a long time. I hope I get called back for more test. Money money.

Staff senate was a fucking bore. This one guy keeps harping on one issue every time. He was present today to address it AGAIN for the 4 time. I think the majority of us are tired of hearing it. He wants a portion of campus named after a secretary that worked there for 40 years. Yes, that’s impressive but isn’t really that big a deal. No one will know who she is. Just buy a bronze plaque and be happy with that. It’s just horrible listening to this guy on the subject over and over. What should have been a 30 min meeting lasted an hour and likely would have kept going had they not tabled the motion for a later date. Great. I will not be going to that. I don’t know what this guy wants by brining it up. We don’t have the strength to make what he wants happen. I generally skip these meeting and watch them from the office but I made the poor decision to attend this one in person. Poor choice.

Tuesday morning I woke up around 3:30 and fought to go back to sleep until about 5 when I just gave up. I made a nice omelet, had some coffee, cleaned my floors, played Zelda and watch the weather channel. It was going to be a long day. Yvette pointed out when I picked her up for work that I’d already been awake for 4 hours. Ouch, she was right.

If any blessing was to be had for the day it was that I was very busy. I could never keep up. This was nice because otherwise I’d have been fighting to stay awake. Just think, by 5 I’d been awake for almost 14 hours. That’s a day for me and I generally go to sleep at about 15 hour after waking up. What the hell!

After work I dropped off my wedding shirt to have it pressed and lightly starched. I was pooped. I was going to my mother and couldn’t help think about how big a chore making dinner would be. Normally I’m not like that. I eventually decided to do some catty out. While waiting for my order I had myself a beer and entered the relax zone. I knew I had made the right choice. Maybe not financially but a paycheck was coming soon. I wanted nothing more than to play more Zelda and hopefully not get off my couch.

Wednesday was much better. I woke up with 9 hours of sleep and felt alive once again. Work was steady so I didn’t have any down time. Yvette had a luncheon on campus so we ate at work outside. A nice day for a picnic. After work we had our officiator. It was once again fun. Lots of laughs. I even got him to show me how to tie a tie. I’ve always liked this guy. Afterwards Yvette and I went to HEB and came back to my house for some slow cooker chicken and dumplings. Good meal, great day.

We had our first frost this week. It’s finally dipping into the 30s. What a week it’s been. I like that cold.

Friday was the day of miscommunication. It pissed me off because it all had to do with me somehow. First, someone flat out lied to my boss about me doing something which I explained was not true. After lisenting to my account he said it made sense because he didn’t think what was told to him really did. Second, a dumb lady on campus who has a history of doing dumb shit told us one thing and expected another so I was attacked by AP at the end of the day because they were expecting something from me which I knew nothing about yet this dumb lady told them I was going to provide them with. This also went back to my boss because I didn’t do this thing I didn’t know about. He understood that one because he k owes this dumb lady and knew it was on her from the get go. I was done with the week. At least Yvette and I had a nice Asian lunch date. The Asian Market by campus. The spicy beef soup was amazing and actually sort of hot. The lady working warned me. Haha. I make meals with more heat.

That night I made egg roll stir fry for Yvette and Teegan. It was yummy and after dinner Tee and I watched some Gladiator. Great movie. We bought tickets for the sequel for Saturday. Should be good fun. The evening made up for the days BS. Happy Friday!

Jalapeño.

Saturday breakfast of eggs, bacon and hash browns.

Breakfast quesadillas. Bacon, peppers, eggs and cheese. Sausage.

Dinner noodles. Asian noodles. Chicken lo mien.

Citrus chicken with a cheesy squash and rice.

Need tips with gravy and cheesy mashed potato’s.

Chicken and dumplings. First soup weather.

Tapatio’s with Conchitas.

Egg-roll Stir-fry.

The weekend was nice. I brought the kids some McDonalds sausage biscuits and hung out a bit before gathering up my dogs and some stuff to go dog sit. I wanted to drop off my pups with my mom early and not deal with it later. They will have fun.

It was Tee’s birthday. The boy is 17. He acts so much older. Love him. He wanted to go to Cielo for a burrito baby. I got him some Pokemon card. Yep, he wanted them. Makes me love him even more. He wanted lunch because he had dinner plans with friends. Good for him.

Someone kicked on of Yvette’s fence picket out from the alley and the dog got out Saturday while I was there. I decided while I was at Lowe’s I would but a picket. Damn vandals. Should be an easy fix.

I was dog sitting at my mom’s because my place was a mess after all that rain. I love the rain but until I get grass it’s always going to be an issue with a mess. I picked up some to-go food and had a beer next door while I waited. I had not been to both locations in years. They were different places back then. Brought me to some weird memory lanes. My dad. My old friends. My ex wife. Hastings. It’s always funny to go to a location you have not been to in many years. Anyway, I brought my food to my moms and ate and watched the dogs and watched some horror. I really wished Yvette was with me.

I had the best intentions of sleeping in at least till 9 on Sunday, but my mom’s dog Molly had other plans. I was assaulted with barks before 7am. I fought for a while but eventually couldn’t take it anymore so I tossed in the towel. I left my dogs and went home to make breakfast. MY intention was to clean the yard but it was still not dry enough. Damn shame. What I did notice was that just those 24 sheets of grass made a difference with the run off. My lower patio was much less a mess than it would have been otherwise. I need to just go ahead and buy more. 2025 will be the year.

We went and had some lunch at her parents. Guiso. Yummy guiso. She also made a noodle dish that was delightful but I don’t know what it was. I ran errands the rest of the day and I fixed Yvette’s fence. Someone kicked a few pickets out and on Saturday one of the dogs finally figured out that they could get out. It was an easy fix. The biggest surprise was how much fencing material has gone up. Lord.

That evening I went and got my dogs and just chilled. .

Veterans Day we had to go to work. It was a damn long day. I was on office duty and tethered to the damn place and couldn’t get out. I hate that. Same bitch, different Monday. The clock moved at a snail pace. I wanted to scream and the damn thing by the time 5 arrived.

Tuesday things got moving with the wedding. Decided against a keg due to prices and likely too much beer. Just look for beer specials. Bought 90 beers for starters. I also talked to the Pastor officiating us. We set up a time to kind of gather a game plan and figure out what we all want. I was happy with this development. He is a great man and I look forward and am honored to have him marry us.

For dinner Tuesday Lola invited me to go have eat with her, the baby and Yvette. To say I was moved by that is an understatement. I had something at home I could have made but I wasn’t going to pass this moment up. I was touched. Love that kid. We went and had a little Mexican food/ steak. I had the Mexican food, they had the steak and fries. Haha. It was a nice time.

Hump day! After work we took Teegan to go test drive a car. It’s about time he had one of his own. He liked a Jeep Compass. I thought it was a nice car and it was exciting to be with him for his first test drive. It can be a little nervous with the sales man sitting with you. I think he did well. Very exciting g for him.

The rest of the week was a bore and I couldn’t wait for Friday. I’ve been a bird in a cage cooped up. It’s sad. It’s been the opposite of exciting. A little work drama in my general area but not my department. It was comical. We plowed through the week. I did get the final piece that was the puzzle of fitting my wedding attire together. I felt good about that.

Dinner on Friday was so much fun. I made pizza bowls, requested by the kids. Teegan and I watch John Wick 4, Lola and her friend put together their baby crib, while Yvette and the baby bounced between rooms and various places to sleep. The dumb ass baby’s daddy eventually came over. I’ll have to get okay with him. Anyways… it was a great night.

Happy Friday!!

Jalapeño.

Chicken chow mien from a place I hadn’t heard great things about. The crab Rangoon was great.

Breakfast bowl. Eggs, sausage, red bell, onion, green chilies, mushrooms and gravy. It was delightful.

Pot roast with potato’s, green beans and a mushroom gravy.

Italian nachos!!

Dinner out. I had some sort of steak tacos. Oh my lord they were delicious. It wasn’t even what I wanted. They were out of what I wanted. This turned out to be much better.

Brisket street tacos. I really have been wanting tacos.

Ginger soy sriracha chicken over rice. Yummy.

Pizza bowls with the family. The kids wanted it. Fun night.

Saturday I woke up a little bit in a haze. I had a little more wine than I’m use to drinking these days. I got up and wiped together a breakfast pizza with sausage, eggs and cheese with a country gravy mix as the sauce. It worked and I delivered it to Yvette and the kids. We all ate some. After that I ran to my moms, walked the dog, his the store for some dinner plans and took a shower to make myself presentable.

That afternoon we went to the RamJam. It was a beautiful day for it. The weather was ideal. Oddly, not a lot of people were around. I guess they were afraid it would rain. It never rained. We had some drinks, free food, people watching fun and just all around good time. Only one more left and we will have to wait until next year. So sad.

Sunday was the time change. I had to turn the clocks back. It will take me a while to get adjusted. It always does. It gets dark so early!!! We had a very lazy morning. I made breakfast and we just lounged around. I took my time putting away all my Halloween decor. I had that it’s already over. Makes me a little sad every year.

We went over to her folks house for a little lunch. Spaghetti and salad. I was honestly pretty full when all said and done. Breakfast was kind of late so I didn’t need much to fill my belly. It was good food as always. After eating we ran to both Sam’s and HEB. We both needed some bulk items, mainly water and coke. I found I can also snag my keto bread at Sam’s for much cheaper that I have been getting it. It’s white bread rather than wheat but oh well. Worth trying. Hate how high keto items cost. I’m not going it for a diet, I am diabetic and need it. After our shopping excursion I grilled us some lunch for the week, chicken breast and sausage. That done, it was off to my mother to visit and use her hot glue gun to fix one of my favorite Halloween pumpkins I broke trying to put away. It was a nice easy fix and an enjoyable visit. So happy she is doing well.

Monday. It was a slow long day made much worse because of the time change. Bloody time change. I did what I could to pass the time. No one seemed to be doing anything which made it hard for me to do anything since I was the buyer for the week.

“The Empty Man”. I had been wanting to watch this but never made the time. I will say I rather liked it. It was… weird. An evil entity and a rich cult that follow it. Missing teenagers. A down and out ex detective. I like how it never allowed itself to fit into a form. It jumped when you thought you knew the direction it was going. It had some truly creepy moments. One of those lost forgotten films that suffered from obscurity due to the pandemic. Shame, it worked and I think with time when more find it it will become talked about.

Tuesday was Election Day. I was happy to leave all the bullshit behind us. I dislike one much more than the other. The damn Orange Man. Either way, we as a country have some serious problems. I voted early so on E-Day I just kept my head in the sand. I didn’t want to hear about a damn thing. Fuck all that. I really think it’s unhealthy to always be thinking about politics.

I guess America wanted The Orange Man. It is what it is. I find in unbelievable that a felon has won the presidency. A man that has already proven to be unfit. What is reality anyway? This sure doesn’t feel like it. I just personally can’t stand the man. I have no idea how anyone likes him. This man is always referenced with religion while this man that is an abomination to all the lord stands for. I grew up in the church and it’s an insult to me when I see anything bible or religious related in the same sentence as Trump. This man is a walking sin. When judgment falls upon us he will try to buy his way out of hell.

I can’t stand seeing or hearing him. He looks constipated all the time and his incoherent bullshit vitriol is infuriation. For Christ sake, the man cusses during his speeches. How professional. Don’t get me wrong, both parties are a mess, but no way in good conscience could I live with voting for that disgusting man. No offense to those that love him. I don’t see what you must see. I just wish the slimy piece of trash had crawled back into the swears where he belonged.

Thursday we were almost done. Friday Eve. Great colleges to work. The free lunch was a bust. They ran out of food. Yvette and I got our blankets. The poor girl was hurting. A migraine came on and it became full on by around 3. I gave her a ride home on the pleas from her boss to get her home. I was brining her ice cream hoping to make things better and she approached me. I had hoped she was feeling better. Migraines are terrible. I’ve only had a few, thank god.

That evening we finally had rain. I was at HEB getting so Aleve for my back and ran into Tee. He was grabbing some sausage for Yvette. He said it was coming down outside. He wasn’t lying. When I left it was freaking pouring. !!! I was so happy. The sound of thunder. The sight of lightning. Love it. It was so dark. I could listen to the rain all day. It was especially special because I laid a little sod as an experiment. Hope that rain water does me well.

Friday morning I woke to 4.8 inches of rain and counting. Crazy. I imagine I will have some yard clean up come the weekend. Friday was busy as one would expect after a rain like that. Things happen. I was happy with it. I was sad no Yvette on campus. It’s nice to see her at work on my breaks. She was till feeling under and had a doctor’s appointment at 11 that morning. The day sure did move though.

After work I picked up Yvette’s meds from the pharmacy and hung out for a little while. I played peek a boo. I just found out that you NEVER change your voice during the game or you risk frightening them. I do not know these things. I felt bad. I love that girl.

I went to my moms to have dinner and we watched a movie that I have seen a few times. The Fall Guy. It’s just good clean fun. It was a nice mellow evening. Happy Friday!!

Jalapeño

I made breakfast pizza.

Bbq steak bits with grilled okra and corn on the cob.

Chipotle ham and cheese omelette with hash brown bites.

Italian pork meatballs with pasta, spinach, cherry tomatoes and parmesan cheese.

Leftover. This was the meal I made for my mom and us last Friday. The leftovers are soooooo good.

Fried chicken wings, mac n cheese & green beans. Just some comfort food.

Fish & chips w/ slaw.

Grilled chicken thigh, veggies and white rice.

Steak tips, mashed potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts.

Saturday was fun. Woke up early and experimented with breakfast and crawled into bed with Yvette and napped for a little while. I trimmed another tree and cleaned the porch. Ran around town like a loon. We had RamJam to attend. I ate too much. The food was great and the company better. It was a nice Saturday.

Sunday Sunday. It’s Halloween week. Exciting week. I woke up early and made some breakfast, filled my water bottles and decided it was time to mow the freaking yard. I didn’t want to because my bloody back was screaming but I didn’t want to put it off for another week. Besides, it was a beautiful morning. The mowing took a little longer than it should have because I had to stop twice to deal with a barking dog. Damn Molly!!! Oh well.

Once done I showered and took jalapeño poppers to Yvette and the kids and hung out with the little angel before starting a pork butt and picking up some Schlotzsky’s for my mom and I. It was a nice long lunch visit. I brought some leftover flat bread to Teegan after I left and Yvette and I went to Sam’s. We were supposed to have a movie date but that fell through. It happens and the day was better enjoyed for it. I was happy.

I guess two years ago I was having some problems. I almost died. I believe the last message I posted on Facebook before my head injury popped up today. “I didn’t know a headache could last for days. The light hurts.” Well, they are not supposed to. I now know that. Yvette kept telling me to go to the doctor. I had hit my head and was suffering a brain hemorrhage. I just almost died. I’ve learned to listen to her. I really don’t remember much other than having a pillow on my face. I guess I was leaving goofy voicemails. How crazy is life. How many times must I have hit my head? I’m sure I had a concussion. It’s scary as hell tot think back upon.

Monday was a very slow day at work. I guess some people might like that but not me. I like staying busy. I had signed up for a trial experimental flu shot a few months ago and finally had my appointment Monday at 12:30. An hour of paper work, 4 vials of blood, an injection and a 15min wait and I was rewarded $100. They will do additional blood work and pay another $100 down the line. I have no problem doing this. I wish I’d know I had the easy cash option long ago. It will help go towards the weeding.

Short horror night. “The Viewing”. I do love this film. Panos Cosmatos is a fantastic up and coming horror writer/director. His previous two films, “Beyond the Black Rainbow” & “Mandy” are bit amazing and not like anything else out there. He has a very audio visual style. This one is just fun and funny. Creepy good time. The legend Peter Weller is fantastic. Highly recommended for a nice trip.

Tuesday I woke up at 4am with a headache that never subsided throughout the day. Allergies and sleep induced. It made for a rather long day. The highlight was that the wedding invitations arrived. Yay!!!! they looked great. Now just need to slap the addresses down.

“The Ring”. I love this movie. The atmosphere it spot on and it truly has some upsetting visuals for a movie that is only PG13. This movie was one of those early 2000 horror films and you can just tell when watching it. But this one is good, with a good story and good cast. It brings back good times. I remember old TVs with static and how after seeing this movie waking up to static was kind of creepy. Do kids these days know what that is?

Wednesday I woke up early very well slept and went to our morning meeting. Active shooter training. What to do. My goodness. Oh well, it was 30 min pains BS. The majority of the day was mundane. When it was all over I came home and carved a pumpkin. What a chore that can be.

“Land of the Dead”. George Romero. Might not be his classic zombie movie like “Night of the Living Dead” or “Dawn of the Dead” but it was still good fun. More comedy involved but also social injustice.

Happy Halloween!! It was such a good day. I guess I wanted a few more hours of it because I awoke 1 hour before my alarm thinking I was running late. I wasn’t. Oh well. I cleaned the floors. Work was fun. I decided to bring candy to people across the campus. They seemed happy. I saw lots of neat outfits. I love how many students dressed up this year. I kept saying “have a nice weekend” forgetting it was only Thursday and not Friday. It was my Friday.

After work is was time to dress up and prepare for the trick or treat. The kids and the baby came over and we had pizza and handed out candy. Just had a fun time. It was the engagement anniversary, after all. What a day. My favorite time of year. I’m happy to spend it with this family that I love. I will say as fun and scary as my costume might be, it was uncomfortable.

Now it’s time for the true Halloween movie, “ Trick ‘r Treat”. I make a good point to watch this every Halloween night. It’s just a good collection of stories all centered on a single Halloween night and loosely connected to each other. Some really good horror. I’m glad it’s developed a cult fallowing.

I had Friday off. I slept in till 8 and made some breakfast for myself and brought some to Yvette up at work. Bacon egg street tacos. After hanging out with her and her daughter I ran around town knocking out errands that are normally much harder to take care of on a weekend. My lord, I just picked up $1,057 in pharmaceuticals for only $110. How do people survive without insurance. A sadness washed over me. I finished up all my BS for the day, brought some lunch to Yvette and decided to treat myself to a movie. “Smile 2”.

“Smile 2”. Goodness this one kicks of with a bang and didn’t slow down. It truly scared the crap out of me. Some really big creeps. Unnerving. I thought the first one was good but this sequel did it right and surpassed in all the right ways. I was really wishing that I wasn’t I. The theatre all alone. Haha. I usually can handle that but not really with this movie. I highly recommend to all my horror fans out there. It’s not for the faint of heart. A good post Halloween. I really wished Yvette had been with me. Jesus if I didn’t jump. Lord.It also makes you cringe. You have to feel sorry for the girl. She thinks she is going insane and so does everyone around her. That’s just what the demon does. A parasitic demon. It’s hard to know what’s real and what’s in the protagonist head. Crazy film. A real trip. I was on the edge of my seat.

After the movie I made a trip to HEB for some wine and Italian green beans. Oh yeah, my mom made a meal. So I cooked for her, Yvette and Teegan. Lola and the baby joined us. We decided to watch the first “Smile”. It was a nice evening.

Hope everyone had a happy Friday!

Jalapeño.

Breakfast Mac & Cheese. Bacon, egg and green onions.

Menudo.

Poppers and a ham and cheese omelette.

What to do with my pulled pork? Cuban sandwich with spicy slaw.

Pulled pork street tacos. Cabbage, pickled onion, cilantro, green sauce and La crema. Spanish rice was a last min side.

Gumbo. Chicken, beef sausage, tomato’s and okra. Rice and a roux. Best Seasoning. Good stuff.

Korean BBQ pork ribs with some seaweed salad. Yummy.

Papa John’s pumpkin pizza.

Mom’s fake lasagna, Italian green beans and garlic bread. The lasagna gets its name from using egg noodles, mix of sour cream, cream cheese and cottage cheese with a marinara meat sauce. Really a comfort meal and always better the following day.

Saturday I woke up around 7 and made some coffee, opened the doors and let the cool breeze in. Nice to have screen doors. I played some Zelda and made a breakfast burger with chorizo and beef. It was nice.

I decided it was time for work. I cleaned up after all the dogs I currently have and dove right in to the main task at hand, trim the tall hedges. The last 2 years I’ve had a spotter on the ladder. Not now. I had to learn to do this on my own. Yes, it’s always wise to have someone around when you are on a ladder but sometimes it’s silly. It took me 15-20 min. I don’t want to burden someone for that time. The job was an accomplishment.

I brought Yvette and Tee some burritos and hung out for a little bit. The little lady was 4 months. How crazy. I got to play with her for a little while. Her smile will melt your heart. Went back home and sprayed the clover in my yard. While doing that my phone buzzed and I was having a major diabetic low. 49. I had a real Dr Pepper and some skittles. I think the new device might actually be set up correctly. The reason I had the low is because it was giving me calculated insulin and I also gave myself some insulin so they collided. On the old device it would have been okay but I guess not with this. Heck, this might be a good thing.

I went and helped my mom move some medical equipment and stopped back by Yvette’s to see her and the sweet baby before I went to a baby shower for 2 friends. The baby shower was at a bar they both work at near my work. It was a rather nice turn out with some really good food. I was happy for them. They had a guess the date raffle. I decided what the hell. Why not. 50/50. The baby shower wasn’t bad. I watched some Texas Tech football. I don’t get to see college ball often. I was happy to see them supported because lord knows they need it. I hope they work out but I really want the best for the child.

That evening I cooked a little and just chilled with all the dogs.

Sunday Sunday. The weekend just doesn’t last long enough. I made some breakfast and cooked some sausage jalapeño poppers outside while I drank my coffee. It was a pretty morning. I brought the remaining poppers over to Yvette’s. Her, Lola, the baby and I packed up and went to my friend/brother Samuel’s garage sale. When I got there he made it clear that none of the stuff for sale was his, it was all his wife’s, and that he “hates doing this kind of shit”. Haha. We looked around, he was able to see the baby. He has a baby of his own I wanted the little girl to meet but the child was sleeping. The babies are only 2 months apart. Oh well, they will get another time.

After the garage sale I went home to clean up before meeting everyone at Yvette’s parents for lunch. Her dad made steak, fries, Texas toast and salad. What a treat. Steak for lunch!! Her parents are truly amazing. It’s just special that they cook these big lunches for everyone on Sundays. I am a very lucky guy.

So this new control device for my insulin pump that I set up late Friday. IT FUCKING WORK!!! I initially had some issues with it. I gave myself insulin before a meal like I did with the old one. Well a few hours later I crashed hard with a low. I mentioned this before. After just rolling with the device and trusting that it might be smart enough to take the reins I was pleasantly surprised to find out it kind of was. I didn’t need to take insulin like I had been. It was in control. I was 80% in range over the weekend. That is impressive. What did it do differently in the setup I do not even know. It’s working and I’m happy.

Monday I was stuck in the office. Not an eventful day at all. I made it through work, barely. After work Yvette and I went to The Mall and I found some shoes for the wedding. I wanted her approval. She liked. I opted for the pair that was most comfortable over the pair I liked better visually. Who cares, right? I went to my mother’s afterwards to see how she is progressing. She is better everyday I see her. I know she wants her dogs back but I think she understands that me keeping them is for the best until she recovers a little longer. If anything else, she is getting to sleep. That’s fantastic for recovery.

The short horror Monday was “Graveyard Rats”. Grave robbers. A rather amusing film. I suppose I have no reason to fear rats as they have never been in my life aside from horror films. I’m sure they are rotten creatures. These rats are also grave robbers. Or is the guy crazy. Questions. Well, he wasn’t crazy. Something more was happening under his graveyard. Bad things. Greed is a sin. Giant rats be the least of the worries. A terrifying claustrophobic tale. I liked it.

Tuesday was “Lot 36”.the lead is a total racist asshole. The story is good. What is it that is kept for years in a storage unit? What might one uncover? Lord only knows. You might find something best left alone. Secrets not needed to be found. I will say that the acting was top notch.i love tales of ancient evil and Satan. The occult. Creepy stuff.

Wednesday Yvette’s dad had his second heart surgery in a damn year. They don’t do it right the first go round back in December. Incompetent fuckers. I went and saw him after he came out and had a little lunch while Yvette vented about the service that was provided. I can’t believe our medical options in this town. This was another reminder that procedures such as these are best sought elsewhere. Not in this town.

One of my favorite homecoming events happened after work, the Blue & Gold bash. The kids just have fun with it. If you have been following me all these years you will know what it’s all about. Just a fun tradition. Lord, how many years have I been to this now? 5-6. I don’t even know. I was solo today like I was in the past but the joy was still strong.

That night it was another short horror. “The Murmuring”. It was a tale of loss. It was horror but more a sad horror rather than a scary one. A ghost story. What happens to a couple when a child is lost. Are they always haunted. Ghost stories are the best. Usually very grounded in human loss. Life is full of ghost. Everyone’s. Whether they know it or not. I believe in ghost. I’ve witnessed some things. The most believable horror.

Friday Eve. I swear the weeks that I’m stuck in the office are just one long day. It’s hard for me to differentiate one from another. It’s so repetitive. Nothing of worth happens at work. Nothing stands out. It’s just wake up, repeat. Wake up, repeat. Isn’t that monotonous. I did have a good day though.

“Dreams in the Witch House”. And H.P. Lovecraft story I love and has been adapted at least twice. This one was a little different. My personal opinion is it’s shit. I didn’t have fun watching this on. I know the book and I know better adaptations. Oh well.

Friday. Work went by. Lunch was busy. Yvette and I voted and picked up some poor woman that fell down and couldn’t get up. I made a meal for my mom and us. It was fun and everyone was happy I didn’t make it hot. I went to the homecoming bonfire. It was fun. Yvette and Teegan didn’t care to go which is fine. I’m a pyro. I went home and had a glass of wine and that was my evening. Happy Friday!!!

Jalapeño

Chorizo egg breakfast burger with tots. .

Orange beef. This was a first time for me that worked well. I had leftover steak from the night before I needed to cook. Orange sauce, peppers and onion. Tasty.

Chorizo egg and bean tostadas with some jalapeño poppers.

Rosemary chicken thigh with squash, onion, peppers, Parmesan cheese and rice with Italian rice. It was an experiment that turned out really good.

Cheese ravioli with a meat sauce. A simple Monday meal.

Hot spicy meatball ramen.

Hoisin steak with seaweed salad and crab Rangoon.

Mushroom asparagus risotto with some steak.

Tex-Mex chicken and squash casserole. I made dinner for my mom, Yvette and Teegan.

Saturday I woke up early and did a lot of shit. I came home to find the roofers already at my house. They were going to start Monday!! That’s okay. I can adapt. Yvette and I went and picked out some shingles we liked. The baby tagged along for some errands and had some smiles on her face while doing so. It was fun.

Ram Jam 2024 pt 2. We all got together for family weekend and hit the tailgating. Yvette, Lola and the little one. Talk about some damn good food. It’s always fun. Bummer we missed out on a really cool free shirt. It was family weekend so it was busy. I left full and happy, no less. Dunkin’ was around and posed for a picture. He was looking good and very photogenic. The stoic beast.

We came back to my house and Yvette was the translators between the roofer and I. Thank god. We worked out some business and went to Sam’s to get the kids some water and food and came back home for popcorn, pickles, s’moors and a little alcohol. It was time to watch a Halloween movie. What a great day!

“Beetlejuice”. What a classic. What can I really say about this movie that hasn’t been said. I really wanted to watched it again after recently watching the sequel with my mother a few weeks ago. This one just kick that’s ass. Yes, it was good but damn. I think the Maitlands were missed. They kept it grounded while nothing like that existed in the sequel. Such a great movie. Micheal Keaton. Jesus. What a man. What a move. 1988.

Sunday morning the roofers arrived just around 8:30. They were getting right on top of it, literally. Yvette slept in some and I made breakfast. Chorizo biscuits and gravy with fried eggs. I wouldn’t say it was a masterpiece but it hit the spot okay. We lounged around for a while listening to the roofer work away. We left at 12:30 to go have a press of a lunch at her parents. Meatloaf, barbacoa, pinto beans, green beans, mac and cheese, the works. It was a fun two hours.

I kind of fiddled around for the next few hours. I was trying to wait out the roofers. Home Depot for a new screw driver and a head lamp. Best Buy, Academy, CiCi Pizza, Pet Mart…. I just roamed for a bit. Finally made my way to finish up with a little shopping. I didn’t need much. A new toothbrush, according to Yvette. She was probably correct.

The roofers left about 5 and I headed out to my mom’s. The last time I’d see her before the knee is replaced. My youngest brother and middle nephew were also around. It was good seeing them. It’s weird how much time has passed since I have. Patrick was the only boy and he was being so good and having his best life. We went for dinner and had a drink. It was a nice evening. I’m glad my mom had a good fun weekend before her surgery to help take her mind off the anxiety kick. Love my family.

“Prince of Darkness”. A movie that I’ve seen100 times. I’ve written about it here. The movie my cousins made me watch at a very young age while they were babysitting. Scared me. I love to revisit old scars I had to watch it. God. It’s a comfort movie at this stage in life. Damn near 40 years later. It’s a dark creepy film that will always hold a spot in my heart. Maybe I’ll require a viewing upon my death. Haha. Anyway, I watched in bed after the long weekend. I have to get Yvette to see this with me.

Monday was more roofing and just a day at work. When all was over I picked up my mother dogs for the dog sitting I was doing and Yvette and I went and talked to our venue lease lady. We needed more detail on the location and how her end would work. We got a good amount of info yet I still feel like something more is needed which we have not touched on. I guess that’s the looming date. It will be here soon. Crazy.

It was hazels birthday. Somehow this bitch has turned 9 on me. I can’t really believe it because wow Todd’s time fly. 9 years ago my ex wife found her and I’ve loved “almost” every moment of her. She can be a real turd but it joy that she brings me. I just wish she wasn’t so old. She had an egg, ham and cheese dinner. Her favorite.

I love horror shorts. Sometimes that’s all you need. A quick rush without any fat. “The Outside” was a nice little creeper. Social commentary on what lengths women will go to in order to fit in. The sacrifice made to looked “beautiful”. To become the “new me”. It’s really a rather sad tale and fairly unnerving, which might be why I liked it. Dan Stevens of Downtown Abby fame has really etched a name for himself in the horror genre over the last decade.

Tuesday work was a blur. My mom had her knee replacement surgery and I was anxious about it but I was very busy. I was in the office maybe 2 hours and the rest of the time I was out doing business. Why so busy, fuck if I know. Glad it wasn’t Monday. The surgery went well and the doctor was happy. Talking to her she seemed just her usual self. High lights were being out of the office and seeing a little lady after work. She is just perfect. So happy my mom has this knee behind her.

Another short horror. “The Autopsy”. I liked it. Kind of a cool story. I liked the acting and I enjoyed the twist.

Wednesday. The roofer finished and my house was mostly quiet, sans dogs. My mom and brother made it back into town. I went to see her and my brother and I went to grab a quick meal. She has a bit of work ahead of her before she recovers but I know she can do it. I’m so happy this she is back and I can’t wait to see her in less pain once it’s all said and done. It was a really long day.

Oh my lord in heaven! I woke up at 6:30 on Thursday under my blanket and chilly. It was 46 degrees outside!! Yay!!! I actually put on a long sleeve shirt for the first time this fall. I am so happy it’s cooling down.

It was an interesting day. My pump control decided to tell me to fuck off and die. Just stopped working. No one in town had one so I had to contact the manufacturer. Lucky for me it will be free. Unlucky for me it will take 1-2 business days. I don’t have what I had in the past to sustain off so what a real treat. At least I can see my levels.

My neighbor and friend Klingemann had his little goodbye party. I hate going to these types of things but I assured him I would be there and of course I would. I’ve always liked the man and had it not been for a certain person I’m sure I’d have seen much more of him in the last few years. I wish him well. He is going on to a beautiful land and I’ll visit someday. I’ll hit him up.

The evening it was dinner at my mother’s. Yvette and Teegan came over. My brother cooked and we all had fun with wine and conversation. He knocks it out the park with his Italian meals. I suppose it’s because he doesn’t get to eat it much since his girlfriend doesn’t like marinara sauce. When he does make it he makes it with heart. It was a nice evening.

One thing I can’t shake that I witnessed during the week was the student and the dog in the UC food court. The students dog pooped all over the floor and the student was aware but just continued to go order food. I notified people of the mess and when they gathered to clean it the student just laughed and did nothing. She didn’t even bother cleaning up after her dog. What utter trash. Kids these days. Sometimes working on a campus really makes me worry about the future of our species.

For Friday night horror I went with a family film, “Goosebumps”. It was a fun ride. Jack Black was great as the author of the books. I liked it because it brings back all the classic monsters. See, I read these when I was a little boy. I grew up with these scary beast. The movie did a good job of brining my childhood fears to life in a good humorous way. The little girl liked it until she say the big ugly dog, the werewolf. She didn’t like the pooch. I honestly didn’t even think about the movie being at all scary. I wonder if that’s how my dad was life. Haha. Look at me now.

Happy Friday!!!

Jalapeño

Eggs and avacado toast with bacon.

Chorizo biscuits and gravy with a sunny side egg.

Chicken enchilada bake with a salad. Oh, and a fried egg.

Tapatios!!

Dinner at Chilis with my brother Chris. We both enjoy this place. It’s really one of the few chain restaurants that I can easily find an enjoyable meal that satisfies. For me it was a bunless mushroom Swiss burger with a side of mashed potato’s with a cold beer.

My brother made some delicious chicken Parmesan with spaghetti squash.

Beef Bulgolgi with kimchi and pot stickers. Yvette and the little lady joined me.

Saturday morning I woke up early and left the house to fill up propane and my water bottles. After that I got out the pole saw AGAIN and proceeded to cut some really big branches out of another oak. This time I was focusing on my back yard. I’m trying to take care of as much as I can on my own. So far I’m doing a pretty good job, it just takes work. My electric chainsaw is great but it does have its limitations. Anyways, I created a big mess I’ll have to clean up. Most of the clean up I decided could wait till Sunday. It was getting late and I didn’t want to dump branches.

I made Yvette and I some breakfast and I hung out with her and the little girl before I ran away to run errands. It was a busy morning and I decided to relax by going to the movie. I went and saw a horror movie called “Speak No Evil”. It’s a remake of a much darker European film that I saw a few years back so I wasn’t going in blind. I wanted Yvette to see it with me even though horror isn’t her thing. At least she wouldn’t already know the twist but she ended up babysitter for the day. The movie was pretty good. I really like just about anything James McAvoy is in and he hit the ball out the park. He can play unhinged really well. The movie was good. I’d say it was awkward. It’s hard to explain. I guess that awkwardness between people who were raised different and shared different ideas on how things should be done. One should always trust their gut.

After the movie I finished up a few errands and went to Yvette’s. We decided to go get banana splits with the baby girl. Yvette’s old son and his girlfriend thought that sounded good and tagged along. It was fun. The girl did just fine, as always. I definitely ate more banana split than I needed but oh well. Can let the diabetes take all the fun pleasures out of life. Yes, my blood sugar did sky rocket but at this point in time I know what I need to do to get this back on track. It was a fun outing and I’m glad everyone came.

Longlegs. A horror file I’ve been wanting to watch since the summer. My sister-in-law didn’t like it but I wasn’t sure she knew what she was getting and the hype was very high. I’ve seen this directors movies before and knew what to expect and I also didn’t go in thinking it would be flat out scary. Creepy, but not scary. Previews and movie hype kill good films sometimes. I actually enjoyed the slow atmospheric vibe. It was mostly serial killer detective work with a nice subtle hint of supernatural. In this case, psychics. Well, that’s not going to spoil anything. Devil worshipers are also involved. I enjoyed it. Nic Cage was in it so what’s not to enjoy.

Sunday I slept in till 8 and had some coffee before starting my day working in the yard. I got the chainsaw going and proceeded to clean up yesterday’s tree branch mess. It took me two dump loads. I still had a lot of leaves to gather and just patio clean up. My lord was I sore. Working the pole saw the day before was more taxing than I thought. It was a busy day of chores and cooking. I cleaned and meal prepped both breakfast and lunch for the early portion of the week. I also seared some boneless pork ribs and threw them into a slow cooker to have for dinner. I really didn’t finish everything until around 4 when I went to Yvette’s and fell asleep for a quick cat nap before she went to her parent for The Cowboys, pizza and wings. I was a sleep boy and went home to see how my dinner was coming along.

For my Salinger night horror (I know, I’m skipping the Cowboys) is decided to go with a movie based upon a series of books I read at the ripe age of 7-8. The illustrations were amazing. See, I was born a horror fan. “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark”. Some of you might remember these. They sold them in my elementary school during book club week. I bought and still own all three volumes. The choices they went with for the movie made sense. Teenagers messing around find a book and start reading the stories and they end up happening in on grotesque way or another. Log course it’s set in the times of drive up theaters, as all horror films should. Btw, I hate scarecrows. The film was great the way it was adapted. I love a good horror anthology, which this was a nice take on. Scarecrows,ghost, gouls, spiders etc. God I love this time of year.

Monday was a real freaking Monday. It started off with my transmitter adhesive coming off while drying from the shower. That’s never happened. Those suckers are hard to pull off and usually hurt like hell. Like usual I went to go pick up Yvette on my way to work. Oops. Last night when I was half awake talking to her I guess she mentioned she didn’t need a ride. I made it all the way to her house before I was aware of this. Yep. What a hell of a start, and I hadn’t even made it to work yet. Yikes.

Work was needy people. Lots of them. My brain wanted to melt. I kept some at bay but it was still hurting my head. I can’t help you if you lost something I gave you. It’s no longer my problem. Oh, so you say I didn’t give you it? But I have proof that I’d did. That’s what I felt with. Just a lot of bullshit. I was actually exhausted after work. I was gearing up for a horror movie but ended up on the phone with Yvette for almost 2 hours. That was a rather perfect way to wine down my evening. I slept like a rock.

Tuesday evening I watched “Alligator”. This 80s film that road the waves of Jaws success. I’d heard of it for years and I finally watched it. It was shit but well made shit. The acting was good and the humor was perfect. The late Robert Foster. I regret never have watched it. It was just fun. The gore was also top notch. I mean, a mutant alligator in the sewers of Chicago. Mutated because of a pharmaceutical waste dump. What fun.

After work on Wednesday Yvette and I went to happy hour for a drink and a snack. We were both tired from the long day. That relaxation down I went and played with the little girl and gave her some dinner. She was such a sweetie. Upon leaving Yvette’s I met up with her father and some roofers that he knows to take fixing my roof from that late May hail storm. He was using the same folks he has used twice. We set up a date for them to start on Friday. What a long day. I wanted to pick up dinner but I needed to cook.

“Messiah of Evil”. This horror film came out in 1973 and somehow I’ve missed it all my life. I read that it’s getting a re-emergence now that it’s available to the streaming world. It was just another forgotten VHS. I decided to give it a try Wednesday night. Lots of neon lighting.its about a daughter that goes looking for her missing father in some isolated beach town. The people are weird. Weird things seem to be going on. I like these type of movies. Isolation. Being cut off. This had it with a bit of cosmic dread. Good time. A theatre scene might actually have fucked me up when it comes to wanting to see a movie in an empty theater. Yikes.

This week I decided to use nothing but canned meats for my weekly protein. Canned chili, pot roast, salmon and tuna. Let’s just say you can make much more versatile meals with that guideline as opposed to the hot dogs I used the week before. The tuna and salmon were a real treat. It was fun.

It was a good busy week. Friday Yvette and I joined my mom and her oldest friend and her husband for dinner. It was fun and we had a. Couple drinks and some good food. I went back to Yvette’s house for a little while and hung out with the baby. I was tired and went home to crash out. Happy Friday!

Jalapeño

Saturday brunch. Chorizo eggs with cream cheese bacon wrapped peppers. Yvette had been wanting poppers.

BBQ burger, grilled onions/peppers topped with cheese and fried garlic onions served with a homemade spicy potato salad.

Chicken & waffle w/ hash browns.

Braised BiBiGo pork. I started this at around noon by searing the meat on the grill and then I threw it in a slow cooker with some broth and carrots and let it cook for 5 hours. Served with rice and broccoli.

Chili baked potato with onion rings. Canned chili. This is canned weak. 😂

A little pot roast with mashed potato and green beans.

Salmon stuffed bell peppers with cheesy squash.

Easy tuna fettuccini with lemon juice, butter, asparagus, parsley and peppers.

Guess what? Saturday I slept in till 8:30. A real rare feet for me these days. I made a small breakfast and decided to do some yard work. This means I cut more branches. I’m sort of over branch cutting but I have more to go another day. I ran some errands and eventually met up with my mom at a local plant nursery to look around. They have some really fun stuff.

We had a little late lunch at one of our favorite locations. They have updated the menu since our last visit and we both felt compelled to try something new. I was very excited to see ahi tuna poke bowl on the menu. I love poke and I’ve always loved this places ahi tuna. We both had a beverage and enjoyed our lunch. It nice spending time with her.

I finally made it to the art museum. When did they start charging $10 a person? Good to know. They had some good exhibits but honestly I wasn’t as impressed as I have been. ASU had one promoting our institutes art professors. Some of them were good but many felt very familiar. Still, I’m very proud of them all.

I kind of roamed around downtown for a little bit after the museum. I happened upon a little jam session and found a friend of mine. He and his girlfriend asked if I wanted to get a beer so we walked to a local brewery where I had a beer with them. They talked about how excited they were to attend the wedding and asked me if we could all get together sometime. Yvette and I used to see them regularly at brunch but we haven’t been in a while. The beer was good and the company was great. I left and went shopping. The rest of the day was blah. I missed Yvette. Funny how you miss someone when you don’t see them like you are use to seeing them. I could have gone to a chili cook off. I didn’t. I hear it made the local news. That sounds like a hard time. I do like chili but not that much. Sounds stinky. After making a snack dinner I talked to Yvette on the phone for over 2 hours and eventually crashed out.

Sunday I woke up with low blood sugar. By device was having a little bit of a fit. I had some issues with it all day. I made a fair breakfast and decorated for Halloween. It was spooky season. I know it’s goofy to wait until October but that’s what I do. I have my fall decor and my Halloween decor. They go together but the Halloween stuff waits and it goes away come November. That’s turkey time. I love my fall.

Had lunch at Yvette’s parents again. It’s becoming a regular norm for me. Her dad made burgers for everyone. We stuck around for a good 3 hours or so and talked wedding ideas and just general BS. I left and started some chicken thighs for lunch meal prep in the oven before heading over to my mother’s. I watched a little bit of the Sunday football game. The Chiefs won after a neck and neck game. Still kicking ass. After this I went home to Yvette’s and hung for a bit while Teegan gave the doggie a bath. I went home and made us some fish tacos and we just hung out the rest of the night.

So the week begins and I’m the office man. Yay!!!! It actually was a rather great Monday for various reasons. I woke up in a good mood and it carried throughout the day. My lunch turned out good and Yvette and I were happy we had something for the week that we can toy around with. My biggest surprise was how fast the day went. I was off work and it was already getting dark before I knew it. With my show Shogun done I need to find something else to watch. 🤔

Tuesday I had a magnificent triumph over a foe in this Zelda game. I originally encountered this villain by accident 4-5 months ago. Try as I did to beat him, it was in vain. His skills were too much for me. Tuesday I finally had the confidence and resources to attempt battle again. It was a success!! I was thrilled to have bested this unholy abomination, the dreaded Phantom Ganon. His appearance was a great unexpected surprise.

So because it’s October it’s time for me to kick off the Halloween horror. I started with a not so great film that came out in 2007 and was a remake from a much greater 1986 film both titled The Hitcher. My intention was to watch them back to back. What a great way to do a double feature.

The remake is fun and rather stupid. Sean Bean, one of my all time favorite actors, was having a damn good time as the unstoppable bad ass killer. Truly the only reason to watch this one, unless you just want mindless thrills because some of the stunts Sean’s Beans character pulls off are so unbelievable. The man truly has luck on his side. He might as well have super powers.

Rutger Hauer is the original villain. What a creepy sonofabitch. My god. Why hadn’t I seen this before. The story is mostly the same with some moments being exactly, as one would expect. This one leaves out any comedy and goes straight for the throat. Instead of a couple on the road it’s a solo young man. He actually picks up a hitchhiker rather than drives by one and sees later at a gestation on the road. This is its age: the 80s horror that I like. The ending is.. brutal. The remake hits a little happier note. Not the 80s version. Classic 80s music. Just a good B horror movie. I loved it. It’s a dark film.

Thursday was the new version of ‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. This novel has been adapted twice to television with this being the first film. Sadly because Hollywood studios as dumb fucks, this went straight to streaming services. I would have paid to see it. As far as the movie goes, I liked it. I liked the actors, they were all respectable. I liked the budget. I liked that it was actually a little creepy. The others were more or less cheesy. Everyone holds the original in high regards yet they have not seen it in years or even realize it was made for TV. This one condenses much of the in town drama from the book and goes straight for the vampires. They address they by stating the next scene is a week later and so on. Listen, I love Stephen King books but they are bloated. Its takes a filmmaker some work to make his work into something that needs to be 2 hours. I’m happy to finally have a film version of this novel I can watch and enjoy without spending 6 hours or more. Hope everyone else that can watch it will enjoy it. Shame it’s not in theaters. Assholes.

This week I decided to challenge myself. I want to save money for the big day so let’s see what frugal meals I can cook. This week it was hot dogs. Not a single damn bun. I know this sounds disgusting and likely will gross some out, but I know a good meal can be had from just a hot dog. I was rather excited when I came up with a menu for the week featuring the dogs. I’d incorporate pasta, rice and potato’s with hot dogs and make a meal. I only did this Monday-Thursday. I wasn’t going to subject Yvette and Teegan to my hot dog experiment.

Happy Friday!!!

Jalapeño

I just made a little snack tray. A charcuterie board, per se.

Biscuit, chicken and gravy with some tots.

Fish tacos. I finally made them for Yvette. The sauce was perfect, for it had been marinading for 3 days. We enjoyed.

A Hawaiian dish made with hot dogs and a ginger soy sauce over sushi rice.

Hot dog pasta with mushrooms, black olives and pepperoncini peppers.

Persian hot dog & potato skillet.

Mac n Cheese w/ hot dogs & broccoli.

Gyro with lemon rice and Greek salad.