The End of the Turkey

 

Thanksgiving Dinner…

 

Boo and I hope y’all had a fantastic Thanksgiving!!!

Ready… Set… go!

Well now… here in the USA it’s the day before Bird-day (or Thanksgiving if you so choose).

I begin things today even though I am alone and not doing a lot of cooking.  I will make a turkey and stuff it and make a big pot of gravy. ..and have a little cranberry sauce for taste.

So today I dice up the onions and celery and bag them up to sauté in the morning.  I also grind up walnuts to add to my stuffing.

I add a bit extra bread to the Pepperidge Farm Herb bag. I use about 4 slices each of white bread and rye bread.. then add a touch extra spices like poultry seasoning, rosemary and thyme.

Lastly I get out the gravy pot and tray for the Turkey. ( I will hide the tin in the oven so no dust gets in it.)

This way I get up and put a tub of (non) butter in a big fry pan and sauté the onions and celery and add it to the bread crumbs and after washing the *nekkid* bird, I get ready to stuff it! Then bake and baste for 5 hrs (18lb bird) and surprise, surprise we have a turkey and stuffin’ ready to eat!

Before I go I wanted to show off my “big deal” from a Rummage Sale…

It’s a pretty (in mint condition) Lenox Santa!  And like many things that I get that I like it cost a whole One Dollar! (and it’s really Lenox! woohoo!  I like Lenox because it’s generally “all white” and I like white, but I rarely can afford anything made by Lenox! This was a little pressie for me I’m just sure of it!)

Ok.. so tomorrow is the day… to all those who celebrate Thanksgiving:

 Happy Bird-day!!!

Nearly 8 minutes of the Hobbit!

This is on line, made by a fan who put all the trailers together in chronological order!
This is going to be yet another movie that no one could have done better than Peter Jackson.  His love for Tolkien's stories is greater, by far, then I might have, and I am most grateful that he has the talent and the means to bring it to life so fabulously!

Last Week…

** well one good thing that happened last week was that I “got dah boid”…and it’s chillin’ in the freezer!

(actually it’s now residing in the refrigerator slowly defrosting for Thursday. I will be alone again on Thanksgiving so I am only cooking “da boid” with stuffing and making a pot of gravy.  I also have a can of cranberry sauce..which is more than enough for me! (and then of course I get to make yummy Turkey Soup, mahhh favorite!)

**(allowing myself for follow Debi’s lead…) On each Wednesday, all afternoon and into the evening, on one of the higher cable channels they show reruns of Castle!!!  I loovve Castle! and considering the new episodes come on at 10 pm until 11pm ..and considering I often fall asleep before the show is over, this is a great thing!  I actually have seen many “complete” episodes !!!!  The new ones are great too.. I love the writers of that show who write the comedy parts for Fillion!

*** I finished reading Bleeding Heart Square.. it was good! 

**I received a few new books but the one I *squealed* over is “The Hobbit” movie guide!

How I love, love, love Ian McKellan as Gandalf!! (and as many other characters he has played, but Gandalf will always be my favorite!)  Now I will always wish I could get some signatures in the book the way I managed to get some in the other guilds to Lord of the Rings!

** Mornings have been cool so that I have been able to take my mile walk around the pond as I listen to The Village People singing the loooong version of “In the Navy”!  Great pace for walking!  However cool it is still a tad humid… which allows me to take pictures of the water droplets on the plants outside.

** The pipe break and water has all been fixed… I finally got to put all the stuff away that I had to move for them to suck up the water in my dining area…

(that was no fun lol)

But that’s all over now and in just a few days this apartment will smell gloriously like Cookin’ Turkey! Yummmmmmmm…

Meanwhile, Boo is trying very hard to sleep straight through until Turkey Day so that he can beg *piteously* for his fair share all day long!

Bleeding Heart Square

 

Bleeding Heart Square by Andrew Taylor.

Paperback: 464 pages
Publisher: Hyperion (January 19, 2010)
ISBN-10: 1401310141

From Publishers Weekly

British author Taylor (An Unpardonable Crime) springs a number of well-timed and well-planned surprises in this briskly paced thriller set in November 1934. Fed up with the slights and slaps of her husband, well-to-do Lydia Langstone decides to room temporarily with her father, whom she hasn't seen since she was a toddler, in his seedy boarding house in London's Bleeding Heart Square. Lydia soon finds out that papa is in the pocket of landlord Joseph Serridge, a darkly charismatic man skilled at manipulating others. Serridge is being investigated by another tenant, journalist Rory Wentwood, for his involvement in the disappearance of Philippa Penhow, the house's former owner. As Lydia helps Rory in his delvings, she uncovers a tangled skein of scandal and deadly intrigues stretching back decades and involving many of those near and dear to her. A hasty finale is the only misstep in this otherwise satisfying period piece.

An Unpardonable Crime is still my favorite book from this author, however, I will say that no matter which of his books you read he can paint a picture very well. 

You begin to feel the time of 1934 and the differences between “the upper crust” and the poor and you envision Bleeding Heart Square quite vividly.

I felt as if most of the book was being descriptive (which I like) and more getting to know the characters then it is writing about the mystery.   So I didn’t pick the book up each and every time I sat in my chair, yet at the same time it drew me enough that I never contemplated “not reading it”.

I will admit the twists and turns and final outcome did come upon you very fast and it ended quickly.  But still… in the end, I have to say I liked the book.  Would I read it again? Probably not, it takes something extra special for me to keep the book for a future reread.  I do like this authors writing though.  So far I’ve read 3 books by him now and I’m sure I will check into others he has written.

“Used” is such a good word!

Nothing here cost over $1.00!… just gotta love used books! (some look like NEW!)  They weren’t bought all in one day but I hadn’t posted them at all.. so here they are.

The Hustons. I’ve read this book long ago and must have given it away. Hopefully I will read it again.

A Pocket Full of Rye.  I've not read any Agatha Christie before and this seemed a good start.

Franklin & Lucy. Well recently I’ve collected 2 huge books on Eleanor so I thought I’d give Franklin some time. (lord knows when!)

Not sure I want to begin a series but that old saying: “Hey for one buck I might read it”.. came into my head. *sigh*

Ahhh yet another Biography of a well known writer.  I mean really.. it was only one dollar! and I’d swear it was never read!

and below:

Some Christmas books. I so love the covers too.  

Nothing like a few Fire Engines to get ones attention…

Last night I was in bed watching television. (9:30 ish)  I noticed my cat sitting by my bedroom door looking towards the living room afraid to go there.  I got up and flipped on the living room light, saw nothing and turned to go back to bed when I heard banging on my door and finally my battery operated “doorbell”.

Since I know no one who would be banging on my door at 9:30 at night I called out, “who’s there?”.  No one answered but then I saw a flashlight by my glass sliding door. That made me somewhat uneasy!  I peeked out to see a young fireman!  (huh?)  I smelled no smoke but went and opened the door.  There were quite a few people (firemen, police, neighbors) in the breezeway including my neighbor in her scooter with her oxygen.

Eventually I discovered that a pipe had broken and her apartment and the one above her were flooded!  The next thing I knew the firemen were coming in to inspect my apartment! (glad I vacuumed today!) 

Sure enough water was dripping from my ceiling in my eating area and carpeting was soaked from the wall to about 36 inches away from it!   (great, just great…but far better then my neighbors apartments!)

The Police and Fire departments stayed around over an hour and a half.  The neighbor went to a friends apartment for the night… her place had maybe 1/2 inch of water over her entire apartment… so did the man upstairs above her who is away on vacation.  What a shock he’s in for when he returns!!

They deemed my apartment safe to have the electric on but water was turned off… I decided not to uproot BooBoo Kitty to some motel for the night.

The Firemen were fantastic!  They even filled a big garbage can full of pond water so I could “flush my toilet” !

Boy how quickly one forgets how many times they used the bathroom!  And no water to wash up when you wake in the morning.  I have some bottles of water so I am able to have my Cafe Vienna! (or I might scream!)

So for the night I was one of only 2 apartments that stayed the night.  I sure hope someone notifies the water company and they fix it today, although their maintenance person said no one would do anything until Monday!   I am crossing my fingers that he’s wrong!

The Yard

The Yard by Alex Grecian.

Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Putnam Adult;(May 29, 2012)
ISBN-10: 0399149546

Book Description

Release Date: May 29, 2012

Victorian London is a cesspool of crime, and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives—known as “The Murder Squad”—to investigate countless murders every month. Created after the Metropolitan Police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper, The Murder Squad suffers rampant public contempt. They have failed their citizens. But no one can anticipate the brutal murder of one of their own . . . one of the twelve . . .

When Walter Day, the squad’s newest hire, is assigned the case of the murdered detective, he finds a strange ally in the Yard’s first forensic pathologist, Dr. Bernard Kingsley. Together they track the killer, who clearly is not finished with The Murder Squad . . . but why?

Filled with fascinating period detail, and real historical figures, this spectacular debut in a new series showcases the depravity of late Victorian London, the advent of criminology, and introduces a stunning new cast of characters sure to appeal to fans of The Sherlockian and The Alienist.

So.. I admit I bought this book because (once again) it takes place in Victorian London and involves Scotland Yard.  Little did I know I would enjoy it so very much!

I will be watching (looking?) for more books written by Alex Grecian!  This was one of those books I couldn’t leave sitting on the table very long.  Each time I sat down the book was quickly in my hands!

I loved the feel of the book.  And I liked that there were a number of “good guys” and by the time the book ended you felt like you knew them all!

There’s murder.  There’s mystery. There’s multiple deaths.  There’s abduction. There’s the discovery of “fingerprints!”…and there’s even a little love!

If you like a bit of “old London” and a bit of murder (and they even mention that this takes place not all that long after Jack the Ripper)… then this is a book that I would highly recommend!

Yup… I really liked this book.  I may have to keep it!

I discovered that this is his debut novel! I wonder how long I have to wait for the next book to come out?? *sniffle*sniffle*boohoo…. (did I hear a chuckle?! did I hear someone say, “oh right like you have nothing to read until his next novel comes out”??.).  ok, ok..but, but… this book was re.e.e.e.e.e.a.l.l.l.ly good!

Baby On Board…

Look what I found crawling down the breezway!… If it had gotten into the grass the Ibis would have it for a snack!

BooBoo Kitty had to check out the new kid….

I will put it in the pond after I watch it for a day :o)

The Secret Keeper

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton.

Hardcover: 496 pages
Publisher: Atria Books (October 16, 2012)
ISBN-10: 1439152802

 

Book Description

Release Date: October 16, 2012

From the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of The Distant Hours, The Forgotten Garden, and The House at Riverton, a spellbinding new novel filled with mystery, thievery, murder, and enduring love.

During a summer party at the family farm in the English countryside, sixteen-year-old Laurel Nicolson has escaped to her childhood tree house and is happily dreaming of the future. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and watches as her mother speaks to him. Before the afternoon is over, Laurel will witness a shocking crime. A crime that challenges everything she knows about her family and especially her mother, Dorothy—her vivacious, loving, nearly perfect mother.

Now, fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress living in London. The family is gathering at Greenacres farm for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday. Realizing that this may be her last chance, Laurel searches for answers to the questions that still haunt her from that long-ago day, answers that can only be found in Dorothy’s past.

Dorothy’s story takes the reader from pre–WWII England through the blitz, to the ’60s and beyond. It is the secret history of three strangers from vastly different worlds—Dorothy, Vivien, and Jimmy—who meet by chance in wartime London and whose lives are forever entwined. The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams and the unexpected consequences they sometimes bring. It is an unforgettable story of lovers and friends, deception and passion that is told—in Morton’s signature style—against a backdrop of events that changed the world.

I have read every one of Kate Morton’s books and ,surprising to myself only, I have liked ALL of them, including this new one which I was very skeptical about because mostly it’s a “love story” and I don’t read romance stuff…

This one takes place in England (naturally lol) during the war when the blitz was on.  I have to say that she was so descriptive that I really felt like I saw the war torn streets and homes as she wrote the story.

The story began slowly.. and then it began to build… and never stopped building!

A few things, when they happened, I shook my head and said, I knew that was coming. But the closer to the end of the book, the more the family secrets twisted and turned!  I absolutely loved the ending even though parts were a bit sad. 

Sorry to say that I do feel that woman will enjoy this book more then men but ladies… you are in for a treat if you like to dig and find out family secrets!! 

Very VERY well written!  Never would I have said I would enjoy a romance story…but fill it with a really big family secret and the background of the war and I found I was enjoying it as much as any of her other books!