Views of the neighborhood – First Signs of Spring

February 14, 2021February 13, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 93 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day.

I started out this week setting up a tour of the first signs of spring. The temps were in the high 60s, and I thought we would have another outdoor gathering. Well, Mother Nature fooled me. So this week, we will have to stay on the bus since the temperature is 25 degrees F (-3.8 C)

This calls for some real stick to the ribs kind of serving. For an appetizer, well have bacon-wrapped pepper poppers, potstickers with hot dipping sauce, and Miso soup. The main course is a choice of two. The first is old fashioned pot roast, oven browned potatoes, and candied carrots in brown gravy. The second is board carved seasoned turkey breast, mashed Yukon gold garlic potatoes, garden peas, savory gravy, and cranberry relish. We have hot apple pie with whipped cream or hot chocolate souffle with brandy sauce for dessert. Our wine selection is a 2018 Aubert Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast UV Vineyard for the red and a 2019 Invivo Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough X, Sarah Jessica Parker. Of course, all our top-shelf liquors are available.

Today’s entertainment is Meat Loaf.

So get on the bus, and off we go.

This will explain how come the original plan had to be altered. I think we were in the Spring of Deception and now in Third Winter.

Views of the neighborhood

We started out taking a look at some baby Bluebonnets.

Then to blooming Jasmine.

Cute little vincas

Views of the Neighborhood

Then came the rain and freezing temperatures.

Views of the Neighborhood

Mr. Fox is not pleased.

Views of the Neighborhood

The olive tree and mountain laurel in the backyard

Close-up of the mountain laurel.

Ice-covered tree.

Back to the ice-covered jasmine.

Some junipers in trouble

Broken juniper.

The junipers seem to have had the most challenging time with ice. Here’s another.

Since today is Valentine’s Day, how about heart covered boxer shorts.

The first sign of spring is what we call myrtle murder, where the crape myrtles are severely trimmed. Here are three victims.

Well, that does the tour of ice land. Our temperatures are to stay in the high 20’s. Monday morning is forecasted to be 7 F (-13.8 C) degrees. We are not in Canada or Michigan, folks. We can’t handle this stuff. Enough of my complaints. Stay and have more food and listen to Meat Loaf.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – prompt – Above/Below

February 13, 2021February 12, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 75 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday time again, and here comes Linda Hill with a small package.

“Hey, Linda.”

“Hey, John. Here’s your prompt for this week.”

“Small box.”

“Small prompt. See ya.”

“Thanks, Linda. Well, let me open the box and see what we have. Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “above/below.” Use one, use both, use ’em however they inspire you. Bonus points if you use them both. Enjoy!”

If you would like to have fun and enjoy, go to Linda’s blog and read how easy it is to join in. Here is the link. https://lindaghill.com/2021/02/12/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-feb-13-2021/

“The sky above and the Earth below.”

“What are we doing?”

“I’m creating a poem.”

“What’s it about?”

“The sky and Earth.”

“I got that part; how about the rest?”

“Not sure.”

“What do you mean, not sure?”

“I only have the first line, “The sky above the Earth below.”

“Do you mind if I add to it?”

“No, go ahead.”

“The row ahead, I gotta sow.”

“Hmm. Not sure that’s where I wanted to go.”

“The wind around is starting to blow.”

“I think you are touching on it, you know.”

“The river beside me continues to flow.”

“Now you are rhyming just like a pro.”

“The temperature’s falling, and it’s starting to snow.”

“Your skill is terrific, and mine is so low.”

“Spring will be soon, and things will grow.”

“For this great poem a debt to you I owe.”

“At last, our travels lead us to this plateau.”

“Wait, keep going, and I’ll pay you some dough.”

“Alas, my mind is tired, and we must end this tableau.”

“I’m thinking of a treat you might not want to forgo.”

“Not sure there is anything that is quite apropos.”

“I have in my mind a big treat by the name of merlot.”

“The lure of the grape has no hold which I had to outgrow.”

“Well, then I suggest a new friend, beer, just say hello.”

“I have met Mr. Beer, and our friendship is definitely not nouveau.”

“Let’s stop all this rhyming and go where we can become all aglow.”

“I happen to know a spot that would be perfect.”

“I’m so gal you stopped rhyming.”

“You actually threw off my timing.”

“Stop now.”

“But how?”

Friday John Ku – AKA – TGIF

February 12, 2021February 11, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 94 Comments

“Looks like another cold one, Lucy.”
“Yup, Little one. Another fly the couch day.”

Friday’s here and we are calling it Freez Day. We have temps no higher than the 30s until Wednesday with projections for nighttime temps in the teens or lower. On top of everything they are saying up to 4 inches of snow. As I write this, there is thunder and lightning with rain.

There have been countless accidents on the freeways. In Dallas there was a 100 car pile up. Here in Austin there is a 25 car mess which has the freeway blocked.

Needless to say we are not prepared for this kind of mayhem. The protracted temperatures below freezing will no doubt cause water pipes to burst so that will be another problem for folks.

There is not much we can do about the weather. I would say. “I guess we will stay home,” but that’s what we have been doing since last March.

Today’s John Ku talks about the weather. I hope you all have a super weekend.

Sometimes the weather,

Makes us feel something is wrong . . .

Then it seems so right.

Thursday – A Little Personal – Twiggy and Lucy Stay Inside.

February 11, 2021February 10, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 133 Comments

Lucy and Twiggy

“How about it, Little One. Want to go outside?”

“Let’s check the temperature first. Hey Dad, what’s the temp outside?”

“Let’s see. Right now, it’s 41 degrees Fahrenheit, which is 5 degrees Celsius. The high today will be 43 F (6.1 C) The low tonight is 34 F (1.1 C). Want to know what the market is doing?”

“No thanks, Dad. We have enough information.”

“Boy, he loves to go on, doesn’t he?”

“Yeah, well, you know how humans are.”

“So back to the original question. Want to go out?”

“You’re kidding, right? It is 41 degrees out there. Nothing good happens in 41 degrees.”

“You know there are dogs all over the world who go out in below zero weather and snow.”

“Yeah, well, they don’t live with me.”

“Should we ask if there is better weather tomorrow, Lucy?”

“We should ask tomorrow. I saw the weather forecast, and it doesn’t look good. Besides, I don’t want to get dad wound up again.”

“So what toy should we play with inside, Little one?”

“I think the tuggy toy is just sitting there waiting for us.”

Wednesday Story Day – AKA – Hump Day

February 10, 2021February 9, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 69 Comments

“It is still Wednesday, Little One.”
“I see that, Lucy. Looks like a nice day to relax.”
“You feeling okay? Normally you can’t wait until Friday.”
“I guess I’m getting more mature.”

It is Wednesday Storytime again, and last week, we heard Larry wrap up his feelings about the situation. Long story short, he doesn’t trust anyone. Pricilla has decided to move to her office, and she is taking Larry and Andrew with her. We all noted that she wanted to say goodbye to Mayfield before leaving. I don’t know about you, but the bells of St Mary’s went off in my head. I see our group has arrived at Pricilla’s office, so I think we better get there and see what is going on.

“You guys make yourself at home. As you can see, this office is big enough for three people.”

“The perks of the office.”

“Let’s set up here at the conference table so we can spread out. I’m going to have my tech come in and tells us what he has been able to find out.”

“So he is trying to figure out how to tell if Stennis has called any of Cortez’s men.”

“That is correct. Also, he can update us on what kind of calls Stennis is making now since we have him monitored.”

“Okay then. That should be interesting.”

“While we are waiting, I had an opportunity to review the circumstances around the so-called accidental death of Alexis Rafferty. I wonder why the city DA didn’t look into that closer?”

“We think he works for Cortez.”

“Yeah, makes sense. And you think that your Sandusky case and Rafferty’s murder are linked.”

“Like a fence, Pricilla,”

“In reality, jurisdiction for this case is really mine.”

“How do you figure?”

“If Janis Rafferty and her boyfriend.”

“Ned Dixon.”

“Yes, Ned Dixon. If they were involved, then they crossed state lines to commit a felony. A federal offense. Since the murder was done here in Nevada, in my area, it is up to me to bring it to justice.”

“I guess I see your point. What about Sandusky?”

“Well, if Cortez is responsible, that will wrap that case too.”

“All things lead to Cortez and being able to get lazar to testify against him.”

“That is about the size of it, Larry. The tech is in the outer office. Let me bring him in. This is agent Moore. Agent, meet Larry Dunfee and Andrew Cummings from the Boston’s police department.”

“A pleasure meeting you, gentleman. You can call me Mike.”

“Our pleasure to Mike.”

“Okay, now that we know each other, what have you found out about Stennis’s phone, agent?”

“First of all, I’m glad for the computer age.”

“How so.”

“I had to run so many permutations to sort out and eliminate the phone numbers called that without a computer, it would have taken a year to find out what I know now.”

“Fascinating. Why not tell us what you know.”

“I ran all of the call records for the past year and cross-referenced the numbers called with public records.”

“What did you find out?”

“Everyone that Stennis called has a phone number. All the phone numbers belong to someone who is searchable.”

“So the next step is to do a search on the people.”

“Yes. I need to run a cross-check to make sure all the numbers belong to real people. I set up an “if/then” program.”

“If/then?”

“Yes, I query the database for a home address and then cross-check with available stats. The if/then is if they have an address, then I query the property tax base. If there’s a match on the record, then the program confirms the hypothesis that it is a real person.”

“If not?”

“Then that is in all probability a phony name, and we can do more searching on the number.”

“How long will that take?”

“Should be done by now. I’ll go look.”

“Great. Come right back, okay.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“Agent Thomas would be good.”

“Yes, Agent Thomas. Be right back.”

“Wow, he sounds like he knows what he is doing.”

“He does, Larry. He does.”

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Kreative Kue 298 by Keith Channing

February 9, 2021February 8, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 60 Comments

In Keith’s words.

“Using this photo (below) as inspiration, write a short story, flash fiction, scene, poem; anything, really; even just a caption for the photograph. Either put it (or a link to it) in a comment or email it to me at keithchanning@gmail.com before 6pm next Sunday (if you aren’t sure what the time is where I live, this link will tell you). If you post it on your own blog or site, a link to this page would be appreciated, but please do also mention it in a comment here.

Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries next Monday.”

The photo

Kreative Kue #298

“Trevor. Oh, Trevor.”

“Over here, boss.”

“Over where? I can hear you I can’t see you, though.”

“By the hedgerow. Near the post.”

“There you are. What on Earth?”

“What on Earth indeed.”

“What happened?”

“I was minding my own business on the scent trail of that pesky skunk and all of a sudden I found myself stuck.”

“Can’t you back out?”

“That’s just it. I tried backing out but the snow clumped up on my behind and I got stuck.”

“It looks pretty free now.”

“Yeah, cause I started rocking back and forth to make room.”

“What stopped you then?”

“The skunk.”

“The skunk? How could the skunk stop you?”

“He came over and said he could get me out.”

“Your sworn enemy offered to help you?”

“Well, he said he could get me out if I made him a promise.”

“Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good.”

“Tell me about it. He wanted me to promise never to chase him again.”

“What did you say?”

“I told him I could never make a promise like that.”

“What’d he do.”

“Walked away. So, now, can you get me out?”

“Sure but I need you to make me a promise.”

“What promise?”

“To never chase that skunk again.”

“Here we go again. I could never make that promise.”

“Well, this snow should be gone in a week or two.”

“Okay, okay. I promise not to chase the skunk again.”

“Repeat after me. And if I do.”

“And if I do.”

“I’ll sleep in the barn until the smell goes away.”

“Gee. I kinda like the smell.”

“Say it or stay here till spring.”

“I’ll sleep in the barn until the smell goes away.”

“Okay, I have you.”

“Thanks, boss. By the way, I had my paws crossed.”

“And I’m the only one who can open doors to let you in the house.”

“Yeah, good point.”

Top Ten Things Not to Do at The First Trainload of Oranges to Leave Los Angles in 1886

February 8, 2021February 7, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 88 Comments

This week marks the 135th anniversary of the first trainload of oranges to leave Los Angles for Eastern markets in 1886. The town of LA only had 11,000 inhabitants when the oranges were shipped. Mostly farmers and workers on farms tending the massive orchards around the city. We can’t pass up the opportunity to go west again when LA was young. This time we need to take a look at the agricultural side of things. As usual, we need to take our list of things not to do so that we don’t cause a problem in the time continuum. Let’s all get in James’s Oldsmobile. I call shotgun.

James Wainwright’s 1956 Oldsmobile from Eternal Road – The final stop. You should read this one on Amazon. Just click the car to go there. Hurry back.

Top Ten Things Not to Do at The First Trainload of Oranges to Leave Los Angles in 1886

10 If you go, do not show your “Save the Colorado River” shirt. If you do, at best, you’ll get a quizzical look. At worst, one of the farmers will ask you what it means. (You see, Manawydan in the 1880s irrigation was mostly tapped from the hills. It wasn’t until 1941 that the Colorado River Viaduct routed water to LA from the Parker Dam 250 miles away. So right now, there are no arguments about water from the river. That farmer looks like he likes you.)

9 If you go, do not ask Tiny, the WWF champ, if you can have an orange. If you do, at best, Tiny won’t be listening. At worst, Tiny will think you are trying to steal oranges. (Tiny was told by the bosses to be on the lookout for orange rustlers, Manfried. He was told to show no mercy. This, coupled with Tiny’s sociopath tendencies, means you will experience Tiny’s famous drop hold. Yeah, that’s a drop like in fall for ten feet. Maybe the concrete isn’t the best landing spot.)

8 If you go, do not sing Carol King’s song about the Earth moving under your feet. If you do, at best, everyone will be watching the oranges being loaded. At worst, the local sheriff will wonder what you are trying to accomplish. (Earthquakes have been recorded in the Los Angles area as early as 1812 in the Ventura area. These guys don’t take moving Earth Lightly, Manley. I think the Sheriff wants to talk to you.)

7 If you go, do not mention frozen or orange juice in a can. If you do, at best, you’ll be ignored. At worst, you’ll be overheard by a farmer. (Now you’ve done it, Mannie. Orange juice was first canned in the 1920s as a way to take up the slack posed by too much fruit being grown. As fresh fruit ages, its taste begins to deteriorate. It was thought by canning it, the abundant stocks could be saved and sold. You have to hope the guy you told is the one who came up with the idea. Otherwise, you have altered the time continuum.)

6. If you go, do not ask for a screwdriver. If you do, at best, you’ll get a tool. At worst, you will be asked to explain what you mean. (Given that Los Angles has plenty of oranges, Manny it seems natural that a little vodka could be added. Unfortunately for you, such a drink was not invented until the late 40s. Two stories exist about that invention. The first story is that American oil workers living in Saudi Arabia would add vodka to their orange juice and stir it with a screwdriver since spoons were in short supply. The second story is U.S. Marines came up with the drink and named it. In any case, you are way ahead of your time.)

5 If you go, do not suggest making orange sherbet. If you do, at best, no one will hear you. At worst, the entire crew will enthusiastically ask you to do it. (The use of ice and salt to enhance the making of frozen deserts came to America in the 18th century, Manolito. Orange sherbet is a natural. Get some ice, salt, milk, sugar, vanilla, and fresh orange juice, and you have it made. Of course, there is the arm breaking cranking of the ice cream machine. We’ll see you later.)

4 If you go, do not offer to go with the oranges to New York City. If you do, at best, you’ll be laughed out of the county. At worst, someone will let you get in a car. (I hope you have plenty of provisions Mansfield. It will take over three weeks for a freight train to make the trip. An express passenger trip can be made in 84 hours via the new Transcontinental line.)

3 If you go, do not ask the farmers about Florida oranges. If you do, at best, the tractor noise will drown out your question. At worse, the biggest farmer will hear you. (Since the beginning of time, Manuelo, there has been a rivalry between Florida and California. You now will see how the big Californian Farmer feels about his oranges.)

2 If you go, do not take bets on how many pounds of oranges will be produced in 2021. If you do, at best, everyone will think you have lost your head. At worst, you’ll have no way to pay the bet since it will be 135 years in the future. (Be that as it may, Manvil. If someone guessed 25 billion pounds, they are a winner. I think you should give everyone their money back.)

1 If you go, do not argue with anyone about the original source of the sweet orange. If you do, at best, they won’t care. At worst, you will argue with someone who wants to win. (The original source for the sweet orange was China, Manzo. They were brought to America in the 1500s by the Spanish explorers. You need to go and offer that guy who is sharpening his knife an apology since that was his position. Yeah, maybe you ought to let him coll off a while. Here have an orange.)

Views of the Neighborhood – #LakewayStoryWalk

February 7, 2021February 6, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 113 Comments

This week is a Storybook Walk – Valentines edition. The book on the walk is “I’d Know You Anywhere My Love” by Nancy Tillman. We will be taking the bus to the Lakeway Activities Center and then disembark to have lunch on the walk grounds. We have a tent and electrical – hook-ups, so our meal will be hot where it needs to be hot and cold where it needs to be cold.

For an appetizer, we are serving cold stone crab and parm and tomato crostini. For the main course, you have a choice of Shrimp Étoufée, Dirty Rice, Roasted Brussels Sprouts. or Beef Wellingtondemi-glace, Yukon gold mashed potatoes, and broccolini. Both are served with spinach Salad cranberries, feta cheese, candied pecans, heirloom tomatoes, and red wine vinaigrette. For dessert, we are offering warm turtle brownies, and tres leches cake. Home churned vanilla bean ice cream is available. In addition to the Top Shelf liquors, we are serving a 2016 Castello di Volpaia Chianti Classico Riserva for the red wine and a 2018 Hall Sauvignon Blanc Knights Valley for the white. Our entertainment for today will be The Seekers.

So hop on the bus, and let’s go. When we get there, we will take a stroll.

Views of the Neighborhood

There’s the sign post.

The book cover.

A footbridge to cross

A pledge to know you no matter what you become.

Your smile will give you away.

The gleam in your eyes will be a tip-off.

How about your grin?

Or maybe your chinny chin.

A leftover from the Walk of Lights

A bench ready for Valentine’s Day.

Love messages in the trees.

A panda and giraffe being friends.

Messages left on the back of the Panda and Giraffe mural.

If you were a bear-cub.

I’d know you by your nose.

Your give away feet.

Your snowy owl wings say it’s you.

I would know your roar.

A lovely message for Valintine’s Day

Thank you for a visit. I couldn’t hope to show you all the pages of the book, but I hope you got a flavor. Now relax and have some food and drink and enjoy the Seekers.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt – Flag

February 6, 2021February 5, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 68 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday, and I pulled a postcard out of the mail today. To my surprise, Linda Hill did not make a trip to deliver the prompt. She sent it on this card instead. After reading the prompt I can see why. This week’s prompt, as written by Linda, is:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “flag.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

This one sure didn’t need a box or large envelop for sure. If you would like to participate in the fun, go to Linda’s blog and read how to do that very thing. (Was hard not to end that sentence with a preposition) Here is a link to Linda’s place.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Feb. 6, 2021

“You look relaxed for a Saturday.”

“I’m just enjoying the sun.”

“What about the angst that is usually associated with the prompt?”

“No big deal. I’ve got it in the bag.”

“In the bag?”

“An expression.”

“Want to explain your laid back attitude.”

“This week’s prompt is “flag.” There are many ways to take it. All I have to do is pick one and write it.”

“You leaning in any direction?”

“Well, I could go with Old Glory, our country’s flag.”

“That would be a good one.”

“Or I could write about racing and the checkered flag.”

“There are oceans of material there.”

“Speaking of oceans, I could discuss ships of the line and the admiral’s flag.”

“The ship the admiral is on is called the flagship.”

“I might write a story about a stranded motorist who needs to flag down help.”

“You could make it a thriller and have the person who stops be a serial killer.”

“That would be exciting. I could also explain flag football.”

“Not a lot of folks know about that for sure.”

“Maybe I will discuss how referees throw a penalty flag.”

“Like in a Super Bowl game?”

“Exactly.”

“This is where you were leading me all along, right?”

“Caught me.”

“Let me guess. This little thingy will end at the pub.”

“How clairvoyent of you.”

“And I’m buying?”

“Pure genius.”

“This flag prompt is over, right?”

“Beer 30 my man.”

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

February 5, 2021February 4, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 90 Comments

Lucy and Twiggy — “It’s Friday Lucy.”
“I see it is by the clock on the wall.”
“Let’s ruckus.”

Well, here we are on Friday again. It has seemed like a short week for some reason. I can’t explain why. Maybe it’s busy.

Taxes took up a bit of time this week. I spent 2 1/2 hours on Turbo Tax customer support to fix a problem caused by Microsoft. When I booted up Turbo Tax, I couldn’t get the software updates. I let this situation go several times, but since I bought the disk a while ago, I knew I needed them. I really don’t know what the problem was, but a Microsoft bulletin suggested a couple of fixes that didn’t work. Finally, The tech and I uninstalled the program and then eliminated some programs that looked to be interfering. Long story short, all is well. I had previously saved my work, so nothing was lost except time.

This is Super Bowl weekend, and I always look forward to the commercials. Of course, having two quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady playing against each other should be entertaining. I guess I’m not alone. The sports pundits are calling this the greatest match-up ever. Who am I to argue. I don’t have a favorite, so I guess whoever plays the best game should win. (DUH John)

Still more executive orders out of Washington. We shall see.

This week’s JohnKu talks about having fun. I hope you all have a great weekend. This week’s view of the neighborhood is a Story walk. See you there.

Yes, time not writing,

Causes us to be stressed out. . .

Time for other fun.