Saturday, October 31, 2009

Trick - Pirate Franklin. Treat - FiberPlusBar

Franklin says he's going out partying tonight.

We don't have to worry about trick-or-treaters, we're isolated up a steep, rugged road. Our local mall always has a big Halloween bash for the young kids anyway.
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If you haven't tried 'em, these Fiber Plus Bars are goood, and 9 g's of fiber and 120 cals' per bar. I've just had the Chocolate Chip ones so far.

On the diet since Sept 12th, , I've lost 15lbs and Mike has lost 19lbs. In some ways it hasn't been so hard and in other ways, not much fun, I don't like having to think about it, and for me to lose weight, I have to stay focused on what and how much is going in my mouth. Mike says he is starting to feel so spry, when he loses another 19lbs, he's going partying with Franklin.
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Please keep voting for Suzanne at Chickens in Road, she really needs the job.
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9:00PM Update on Halloween Night - Mike and I are watching the 1941 version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde on TCM, a horror film starring Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, and Lana Turner. Spooky.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

ChickensInTheRoad needs your vote


Suzanne McMinn at Chickens in the Road needs your daily vote. Please go to her site, and it only takes 5 seconds of your time to vote. She really needs the job that could come from your vote. http://suzannemcminn.com/blog/

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

swine-flu cookies, goat butter, Cahoot & Clara

A local blogger, GNUMOON, made this swine-flu cookies, check out the snot on the noses. Her baked items are always so original, and the baking is just a hobby for her.


Over at Easy Living the Hard Way she's been making goat butter, I want to try it but have to get a milk separator like hers. Oh, I'd love to try goat butter, 'cause our goats milk is so tasty.



Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats

Cahoot


Isn't he a beaut?


Cahoot and Clara went on a date but she didn't even let him get to first base.


I think she likes him though, stay tuned.


June and Caliente were checking Cahoot out too. (Those water buckets are very clean on the inside).


We're still selling eggs at our tiny High Country Farmers Market.
Dr. Oz says - Measure your waist and aim small: Ideal is 32.5 inches or less for women and 35 inches or less for men. Oh my, I've got a looong way to go.

Friday, October 23, 2009

bucks, etc

My girlfriend, Dot, relayed a true story from her eye doctor. He`was explaining to a young-adult patient about a dry-eye prescription -

"the prescription for drops comes in trays of 30 small plastic containers with twist tops (sorta like flea drops) one for each day. There is enough for 2 days but if you lay it down the drops run out. The drug companies want you to throw them away each day so they will make more money. So just put a clothes pin on the bottom to stand it up until the next day."

The patient asked, "what's a clothes pin?"
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Pearl Guinea


I realize that this may be only a face a mother could love, just know that I could hug and kiss on him forever more.
Franklin, Bourbon Red Tom


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I live in an obese state, North Carolina. Give Mike and I a few months, and we're hoping to reduce that percentage in NC.

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Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats. I read something the other day - you're only a true goat lover if you have bucks, so true. We love our boys. We have 5 goat males. 2 wethers, and 3 bucks.

Cahoot Calhoun (will never be for sale)


Sundance and Cubby are the two wethers. We would sell these two together if the right home came along, otherwise, they'll stay right here.


People always ask me: Aren't bucks mean? Don't the bucks stink? No and no. Our boys are very gentle, and we pet/handle them often. Photo below is Dud, with his front legs on my chair, wanting me to rub his head. He has an unique odor but nothing like stink, smells sort of like an ammonia. Our boys eat a medicated feed, maybe that keeps Dud from smelling real bad, but I don't know. I know he lives in a very clean environment, Mike keeps the stalls very clean. I keep the water buckets clean and filled with fresh water.

MilkDud is just a big baby.




Below photo's, I was sitting in a chair, Cahoot and Deets came over and laid down next to where I was sitting.




Deets is peeking out from under the work table.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

meet Purkey

Purkey has come to live with us.


I told Franklin that he and Purkey are related, but Franklin shrugged and said, "that ain't no kin of mine."


Purkey has made the rounds getting to know everybody.




Franklin said, "looks like it belongs in the garden."




Early is keeping his distance.


Clara had to do a double take.

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One of Dr Oz's rules - Eat the same things every day. People who minimize food choices lose more weight. In 6 weeks, I've lost 11 lbs off this old, stubborn body. I'm getting better results now that I'm counting 1,2oo calories per day.

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I don't have bone spurs afterall. A reliable sign of impingement syndrome is a sharp pain when you try to reach into your back pocket. As the condition worsens, the discomfort increases. The joint may become stiffer. Sometimes a catching sensation is felt when you lower your arm. Weakness and inability to raise the arm may indicate that the rotator cuff tendons are actually torn. Trying to get my jacket sleeve off is torture. The Doc gave me an injection, but so far, I don't feel any results.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Daddy Bday, John Adams, fundraiser

For the Fall leaves, this is the peak weekend in the NC Appalachians but we haven't seen any sunshine for days, been cold and damp, gonna dip below freezing tonight.

The leaves-peak weekend, is usually on Daddy's birthday, today October 17th. Had he lived, he would have been 80 years old today, born in 1929 during some very tough economic times. Daddy was proud to be a veteran and I used this picture in his obituary 5 years ago.

William Edward Davis


We're watching JohnAdams, which was a HBO 7-part series. Here is a review - ... this handsome miniseries is praiseworthy on many levels -- as history, as entertainment and as a way to bring to life for new generations a sense of the sacrifice and heroism needed to establish the U.S. It also is a badly needed reminder that television is capable of so much more than it delivers most of the time, that it can be a rich and rewarding experience.


This morning, Mike and I helped out at a breakfast fundraiser for our local Humane Society. Here is Rachel ready to take your order.

Applebee's donated their facility, the food, the cooks, and a manager, and we got to keep 100% of the take, a big thank you to Applebee's, and they invited us to do it again. Below is Mike, Lee, Wendy, and Claudia. Or group served, buses tables, greeted customers, and raised awareness for homeless animals, And we had a lot of fun.



Wendy, Lee, and Mike


Syd


The back of Claudia as she serves a table. Actually she is waiting in some fellow Humane Society members - Mahala and Jack.


Claudia and JoEllen


Our Appalachian State Mountaineers were on TV this afternoon and came from behind to win the football game.
I'm going to the Ortho Dr Monday morning, same guy that put my left ankle back together, I have a right shoulder ailment, and for all his education, he'll be happy to know that I, Miss Type A, has already diagnosed the problem :-) bone spurs. My GP had been giving me cortisone shots in the shoulder but now I'm surrendering and going to Ortho Dr. I'm thinking he will be suggesting surgery. :-(

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Worded Wednesday

My best buddy since the summer of 1996, he's now approx 16 yrs old, and still getting along fairly well.


Below is me, a couple of years ago, holding Henry, Brawn, and Bliss. Henry is a "Humane Society Special" and Brawn and Bliss are Irish Terriers. Irish Terriers need to have their ears trained during adolescence, using a glue, see Brawn's ears below, I had made real mess when tacking his ears. Otherwise the ears may stick up, roll back or hang down unaesthetically.

Jack London's books Jerry of the Islands and Michael, Brother of Jerry were about Irish Terriers, that according to the bloodlines recorded in the beginning of the book may actually have lived.


The 2007 film Firehouse Dog features an Irish Terrier as the title character.

During World War I, Irish Terriers served as messengers and sentinels with incomparable spirit and disregard of danger. Lt. Col. E. H. Richardson, later Commandant of the British War Dog School, wrote, "Many a soldier is alive today through the effort of one of these Terriers.... They are extraordinarily intelligent, faithful and honest, and a man who has one of them as a companion will never lack a true friend."

As sporting dogs, Irish Terriers can catch and kill small game, and they are lethal on vermin. They go after fuzzy stuff such as chickens, and that's why the dogs are kenneled during the day and let out after the birds are in bed.

See how Brawn grew up, Blissi on the outside.

Blissi with a chew bone.


This is the photo of Blissi that I saw that made me drive many miles out to the midwest to adopt her. Brawn, a year later, came from Minnesota all by himself in an airplane.

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If you're local or gonna be in town this weekend and reading this, be sure to come out Saturday morning -

http://www2.wataugademocrat.com/story/Pancakes_for_Pooches
Pancakes for pooches, or flapjacks for felines, any way it is worded, have breakfast to benefit the Watauga County Humane Society this Saturday.

Applebee's Neighborhood Grill on Blowing Rock Road in Boone is hosting a pancake benefit from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. A short stack with sausage, coffee or orange juice will be served for $7.

Seating is limited, but tickets are available in advance at the humane society shelter on Casey Drive, Bare Essentials Market or by calling Claudia Strickland at (828) 963-4649.
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as of 1:00PM Wed, Oct 14 2009 Grade Grams Cals
Tomato Juice - Canned, With Salt Added A 243 41
French Onion Soup with Cheese and Croutons C 285 220
Apples - Gala A 152 75
1/2 sandwich 375
Total Calories Consumed 711

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

from my view



Here's a video I took on Saturday. I'm learning how to "merge, convert, and render" so I'll be working towards those in the future, this video doesn't have any of that though, just straight.


http://caloriecount.about.com/ I like this site. I'm at 1, 071 calories for today as I write this Tuesday evening. Notice it grades my food choices. Oh but that Panera Bread Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup was sooo good. Sometimes you can click on items already in the database and other times you're manually adding foods.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

grape, picnik, 2nd video

Butternut Squash Salad - with walnuts and cranberries - tasty from EarthFare, our health food store. Our Farmers Market, The High Country Market, is located next door in their parking lot.


I love all things grape. The 100% grape juice is 160 calories per 8 oz and I have to switch to a CranGrape for 5 calories pe 8 oz.

My parents loved their Port Wine, also made some home brew, but I never acquired a taste for wine, however, now that my folks have passed, I like to drink my juice from their Crystal (is that how you spell it?)






Have ya ever tried Sunflower Seed Nut Butter? Not any cheaper on the calories than peanut butter butI just wanted to try some. It's fair.


Lisa over at Laughing Orca Ranch was talking about Picnik, which I'd never heard of before, and it seems very user friendly. See the two photo's below.



Prior to going to the Farmers Market, we clean the eggs with baby wipes. We don't refrigerate the eggs, they sit in the cool feed room in the barn.