Chill

2017 is about to become history, and whether we stay up to greet it or just go to bed, when we wake up tomorrow, we'll be beginning a new year.

Right now, 2018 looks like it will be getting off to a very chilly start. 

Local weathermen are predicting the coldest cold spell in _____ (fill in the blank) right now it varies from 10 to 20 years. 

The Boggy Thicket is located in the northeast corner of Harris County, just a mile or so from Montgomery County to our west or Liberty County to our east.  The weather bureau has issued a hard freeze warning that includes both of our surrounding counties, so it's a pretty good bet that we'll be getting several hours of sub-freezing temperatures.

All this leads up to something I saw posted this morning that sums up my attitude pretty well ---

K-Cup Hiccup

We retired our old Keurig coffee maker yesterday. 

It still worked fine most of the time, but most of the time ain't perfect.  Sometimes it got confused - failed to refill the reservoir after making a cup, the would sit and say "Brewing" forever.  We would have to turn it off and unplug it for a few seconds to get it to reset.  It would then work normally until it had another senior moment.

We had a brand-new machine I got a few months ago that was still in the box, so the transition was seamless, and only took a few minutes to unpack the new one and install it.

I saved the old one, but I'm not sure why. 

Based on our history with Keurig, I could probably get it replaced for free.  I may decide to try.

12/29

I didn't really have anything to report today.  Actually December 29 seems like sort of a nothing day - the day after our wedding  anniversary, a couple days short of the new year, etc. 
Just to have something to write, I went to one of those today in history sites to see what had happened on the 29th of December.

• Texas became the 28th State (1845)
• Henry II has Thomas Beckett assassinated (1170)
• Mary Tyler Moore was born (1936)
• Grigori Rasputin died (1916)
• Steve Lawrence wed Eydie Gorme (1957)
• Emma Snodgrass arrested in Boston for wearing pants (1852)

53

Fifty three years and one day ago, I slept through our wedding rehearsal.  My dad drove to my apartment and woke me up in time to make it to the rehearsal dinner.

The next day, I was at the church with time to spare, and I've thanked God every day since.

Happy Anniversary to my best friend in all the world.

Old Dodge - New Trick

I made a quick run to the store yesterday, and when I got home and started to get out of the truck, an alarm started beeping - loud, constant and very annoying, it was the same one that beeps when you forget to turn off the lights.  I had used the lights in the misting rain on the way to the store, but hadn't used them at all on the way back home.

I looked at the dashboard and there was an indicator light that I had never seen before. The symbol looked like it seemed to say I had left the shower running.

I had no idea what the darn thing meant! 

I dug out the owner's manual, and Honey finally found it - it was the symbol indicating that the cargo light was on.

In ten years and 130-plus thousand miles, I had never felt the need to turn on the cargo light, and hadn't intended to turn it on yesterday.

I didn't even know where to find the switch. 

Well, it was right where the manual said it would be. I must have accidentally hit it when turning the lights off. I have no idea why I had never noticed it before.  

Santa and the Garbage Truck

Living as we do out in the boonies, it is surprising that we have several companies who pick up garbage in our area.  The one we use picks up on Mondays, and recently expanded to pick up on Monday and Thursday. 

That has created a bit of a problem.  The two of us barely generate enough trash to justify hauling the can to the curb one day a week, but Honey thinks I should haul an almost empty can out twice a week so she can feel like we are getting our money's worth.

With yesterday being Christmas, our service did not come around, and I don't know if they will come by today.  But - in an act of faith similar to leaving cookies out on Christmas Eve - everyone up and down the street has their cans out at the curb. 

If they do come by today, that's great.  If they don't, I'll have to decide whether to bring the can back in, or leave it out until Thursday.

Christmas

Christmas 2017.
We decided to stay home this year - So far, so good.
The day dawned chilly and clear.
I've got the cornbread baked for the dressing.
We learned via Facebook that our grandson, Bryce, got engaged last night. She is a lovely girl.
We have a few concerns, but Honey and I are doing fine and wish you and yours a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Christmas Tree

Merry Christmas from the Oil Patch

Canadian Christmas Card

deja MOW

A year and a day ago, I posted on Facebook that I had just mowed the yard.  Not because the grass was too high, but to clean up all the fallen leaves.
I just came back in from mowing again today.  So far, just the area of the back yard inside the fence.  
Our old mower had a mulching attachment that made the job much easier, and the results much more aesthetically appealing.  With this one, I have to go over and over the same spots for similar results.

Solstice

Today marks Winter Solstice, the shortest day (or longest night) of the year - the day the Sun shines directly on the Tropic of Capricorn, before beginning its gradual trip back to the north.

Cranberries

Grocery shopping at WalMart today, and the only cranberry sauce I could find was the whole berry variety seen above.  I almost didn't find any at all, and with Christmas just a couple days away, it was a must have on my list.

It wasn't what Honey sent me to get; she much prefers the jellied cranberry sauce.

She isn't alone.  According to Ocean Spray, cranberry sauce has a place of honor on 60 percent of American tables, and many families serve both styles to keep everyone happy. According to Ocean Spray's latest consumer research, 76 percent of us opt for store-bought sauce and 73 percent of us like the jellied variety served up in the shape of the can.

Pantone Morning

I was treated to the most amazing sunrise this morning. 

We had heavy fog here at the Boggy Thicket, sunrise was at 7:11 a.m., but just before seven the entire sky began to glow. The entire world from horizon to horizon turned pink.

Actually the color was what Pantone labels as Rose Quartz - 

For what it's worth, Pantone actually named two colors of the year in 2016, Rose Quartz and a soft blue they called Serenity. 

2017's Color was called Greenery, and there's already a 2018 Color of the Year - Ultraviolet.

Better Watch Out

That isn't Santa on your roof.

It's Krampus, an old-world Germanic figure who comes each December to punish bad little girls and boys.  He carries a bundle of birch switches to spank the little stinkers, and he hauls the particularly bad ones off to the underworld.

Considering the way things are going this year, he may have to recruit a lot of help.

Home

We like trees. 
It's a good thing we do, because we have a lot of them.  To illustrate this, here's a picture of our home courtesy of Google Earth:

Anniversary Dinner

Our old pals, the Sheltons, will be celebrating their 53rd wedding anniversary on the 18th.  I was his best man back then, and he was mine ten days later on December 28th.  Yesterday, we got together for an anniversary dinner.

Last night our group added three new members. Travis and Cheryl's next door neighbors, Steve and Brandi, actually celebrate their second anniversary today, and they brought along their two year old daughter.

Like they used to say in the social pages, a good time was had by all.

Wiki

Continuing a Sort of a Tradition

Every year at this time I have posted a Christmas song - something out of the mainstream, something to enjoy when you are up to the gills with Little Drummer Boy.  This year's post is a Christmas song in the same sense that Diehard is a Christmas movie.
Enjoy - 

Greatly Exaggerated

Recently, I was saddened to learn that the Houston Press had finally bit the dust.  The Press billed itself as the city's largest alternative news source, and was a great place to find articles about food, entertainment, and weird events going on in Houston.  A couple of weeks ago, there  was an article on line saying that, in the aftermath of Harvey, the Press could not survive the loss of revenue and had shut down -  I can't find that story anymore, and don't remember who posted it, but I think it was one of the local TV outlets.

I'm pleased to report that, as Mark Twain said, the reports of its death were greatly exaggerated!  On line, anyway, the Press is still going strong - http://www.houstonpress.com.

Sixty-five years or so ago, my first paying job was delivering the print edition of the Houston Press to homes in Oak Forest every Wednesday afternoon. 

It was a bit of a challenge.  The papers were so heavy, and I was so light that it was hard to keep the front wheel of my bike on the pavement when I first started out.  If my route had covered a few more blocks, I never would have made it.

Jail

Looking for an unusual way to give a little this Christmas? 
A group called the Houston Peace and Justice Center is holding their fifth annual Christmas at the Jail event on December 24th at the Harris County Adult Detention Center. 
Kids who have come to visit a parent in jail will be greeted as they leave by (from their website) a crowd of smiling faces standing behind Santa Claus and a huge pile of presents.  To see the transformation on these small faces from sadness and confusion to wonder and pure joy changes the lives of all who experience it.
HPJC is welcoming volunteers and donations.  Check their website https://www.hpjc.org.

Ugly Is

This year's crop of ugly Christmas sweaters is just so-so.  There are a bunch more politically motivated themes than in the past, a few more featuring Jesus, and quite a few Star Wars based designs.  Here are a few from this year:

 And finally...

Ready for Spring

2017 has been a strange (and not very great)  year what with the flooding from Harvey, etc.  Now, the past week has brought snow and two nights of sub-freezing temperatures, and it's not even officially winter yet.
I think that it is definitely time to turn the page. 
Give me 2018, or, better yet, give me Spring. I'm ready!

Back to Normal

Back to normal on several fronts -

• Centurylink finally got its act together and internet speeds are not great, but acceptable.
• I think I'm finally getting over my cold.
• Somebody hauled off the big metal chicken from the Simpson's front yard.  They just moved away, and the chicken was still there for a day or two.  Maybe they came back and got it.

All over the TV news and social media everybody is posting pictures of SNOW! Granted, it was the first snow in Houston in eight years, and the second earliest snowfall on record, but it wasn't all that much and most of it didn't last past noon.

Just so you can't call me a Grinch, here's a pic from the old Boggy Thicket -

Slow Update

Centurylink had said on Wednesday that the internet would be back up to speed by 9 a.m. Thursday - it wasn't. 
I called them back yesterday afternoon and the help desk gal said they had no other complaints.  She ran me through several tests and had me modify a couple settings on our modem/router, none of which made any difference.  

Finally, she set up a service call to send a technician to our house today.  I can't imagine he will be able to do anything at all except, maybe, convince Centurylink that they have a problem.

How Slow Can You Go

I'm almost over my miserable cold - still have some lingering symptoms - and the weather is miserable, too -  43degrees and drizzling rain - so the only thing keeping me sane was access to the internet. 
What a perfect time for Centurylink to go FUBAR!
The internet went down for an hour or so yesterday, and when it came back it was so slow as to be almost unusable.  A check this morning shows a download speed of .15 (yes,  point fifteen) MBPS.
Centurylink is aware of the problem, and it's supposed to be fixed soon.  Meanwhile.....

Counting the Days

I once had a very wise doctor tell me this:

"If, at the first symptoms of a cold, you go to the doctor and get medications, you'll get over the cold in 10 to 14 days.  If you don't do anything at all, your cold could last as long as 2 weeks."

I'm currently at day 10, and Honey is a couple days behind me.  Two weeks can't come fast enough.

Is Sportsperson a Real Word?

Yes, it is, and in our politically correct, gender neutral, atmosphere, it's the only word that Sports Illustrated could be expected to use.

Three Wisemen Cartoons

Garth

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo hasn't even announced who the headline entertainment will be for next year's shows - except for Garth Brooks.  He will be opening and closing the Rodeo.

Tickets for those two performances went on sale on line  last week, and sold out in less than an hour!  

According to the local paper, the HLSRA site had some way to filter out bots, and all those tickets were bought by actual people.

I actually wrote about Brooks four years ago today - BROOKS - and, except for the fact that he lip synced has most recent TV appearance, nothing much has changed. 

Die Hard

Then again, so is Lethal Weapon. 
Speaking of which, Honey got her Texas Concealed Carry License in the mail yesterday.

December