Rainy Sunday Chat 9-29-13 10:39 AM CT

Sounds like you had a great time and some yummy stuff to eat and drink Jackie.

We should be getting some rain tomorrow and like you, I'm going to really enjoy it. Today is sunny and gorgeous but cool again. I decided to take advantage of the cool morning and do some cooking. I've cookies baking right now and then I'm going to make a breakfast casserole and later on a turkey meatloaf. I'll have breakfast and dinner handled for a few days :)

We've had a lot of squirrel activity around here too. We also have an area in our front lawn where it looks like something is digging up the grass. I did a google search and I'm guessing it might be raccoons looking for grubs. I'd sure love to see them in action.

Ewwww....new cookie recipe is a huge fail. It was a healthy version of a granola cookie but it needs more sugar or something sweet to qualify as a cookie in my book. Blech!!

Well, we're drowning here.  Lots of flooded streets in town.  Yesterday broke rainfall records, with nearly an inch falling between 5:30pm and 8:30pm.  And what was I doing doing during that time?  Driving for an hour, then walking several blocks to a restaurant, then walking more blocks to the concert hall for Hanson.  The line of ticket holders circled around 3 sides of the block when we arrived.  We stood in pouring rain (we had hoods, but no umbrellas, due to high winds) for 20+ minutes.   I kept telling my friend, "This better be a good show, or I'll be very annoyed!"  It's not like I'm a die-hard fan; I know that one song, but that's it.

By the time we got inside, we were soaked.  My socks were even wet.  Everyone else in the crowd were equally wet (especially those who stood in line WAY early so they could stand close to the stage), but everyone was in high spirits.  That's native Oregonians for you:  rain doesn't put a damper on anything.  I am NOT a native, so I was grumbling! 

The concert was actually very good.  The crowd was on its feet from song #1 and only sat down for a couple slow songs.  They played almost 2 hours and gave 110%, judging by the sweat they worked up.  They did the older "pop" songs, but they did many new songs that were pretty darn good -- nice mix of rock, funk, loud, good beats, etc.  They're very talented musicians, that's for sure.  And still cute, even 20 years later!

I think I've mentioned DH is quite an amateur chef.  He got a rabbit from the farmer's market last weekend (frozen), so he decided to make some kind of fancy gourmet stew with it today.  I'm trying to avoid the kitchen; I may be able to eat it if I don't see what it was ahead of time.  Knowing what it was is bad enough.  :-(  I'll try a bite, but I may have to eat something else for dinner tonight!

Rabbit huh?  Could probably eat that. You will have to let us know how it tastes.

The concert sounds fun! And I love hearing new funky music. I'm jealous!

I spent the weekend at my friends cabin. The dogs got work and play time. We got both as well plus great food. I left my car door open at one point though and lily took advantage. She jumped in and ate 4 lbs of natural balance food roll. She puked it up of course which then got eaten by other dogs. Lovely huh? Abbie has a bit of a limp going. She must have played a bit too hard. One of the other dogs there ripped up his pads from all the running they did.

Got home and quickly washed all 3 dogs, vacuumed the car and started laundry. Why is traveling so much work? Lol

Ugh 4 lb of NB dog rolls :( and that's not cheap stuff. Glad she puked some up to share with the others LOL! I hope Abbie's gimpiness is just a minor strain.

Tracy - sorry but I'd have been grumbling along with you after standing in the rain. I'm glad the concert was good though. Not sure I could eat rabbit if I knew what it was but I'll bet it tastes like chicken ;)

What an absolutely gorgeous day here and this evening is like a dream for me. It has the feeling of fall but is still warm and I have all the windows open with the sun streaming in. I'm determined to suck as much of this time and weather up because winter is really hard for me. We are supposed to get some rain tomorrow but I'll enjoy that too and it'll force me to chill out a little.

I told my friend that I was reading about relaxation induced anxiety (RIA) and she said "oh yeah, you've got that!" I really do have trouble just chilling out and am most happy with I've got stuff to do and more so if it's outside. I'd like to learn how to chill out a little more though.

Julie, sounds like a fun weekend for the dogs and humans, despite the "over-eating" Lily did.  Silly dogs . . . they're opportunistic eaters, that's for sure!

I can understand Abbie's gimpiness after a weekend of romping with friends.  I'm so pathetically out of shape that my lower back and legs are sore today from all the rapid walking we did to and from the car last night, as well as standing in line and then on the  concrete floor  for 2+ hours straight. 

I've never heard of RIA.  I definitely consider myself a high-anxiety person, but I'm not sure I have that.  I'm a great procrastinator, so I have no trouble chilling out with a magazine or good TV show . . . but I'd describe what I feel as GUILT more than ANXIETY when I ignore my To Do List.  I will say that a vacation where I just sit on a beach towel for a week would make make me very anxious.  I need activities, sight-seeing, etc.  A couple days of lounging is all I could take. 

So, the rabbit wasn't too bad.  You were right, Cathy -- it tasted rather like chicken!  It was a white meat, and DH took it all off the bone, so I tried to tell myself it was chunks of chicken in the stew.  It had potatoes, carrots, and prunes that had been soaked in brandy and brown sugar, all in a broth that was chicken-stock based.  If I didn't know it was rabbit, I would've enjoyed it more; I had a little queasiness thinking about what it was as I ate it.  And to annoy me more, DH kept referring to it as "bunny" instead of rabbit. 

Back when I was raising Rocky, the squirrel pup Piper found, I got to watch nest building close up.  Rocky didn't understand the value of altitude at that point, and built it where I could watch.  Careful weaving of branches with leaves, all done by instinct.  It was fascinating to watch.

Took Piper for a good run today.  Got her overtired, and had to help her into the truck.  When getting out, she misstepped and has a limp right now.

Wife just made a batch of apple butter from some windfalls, a few peaches and a few pears.  Delicious.

Apparently it is the start of the possible snow season, at least in Washington state.  Uff da!  Ya sure!  You betcha!  There, now I am ready.

Doug, despite my reluctance to accept the departure of warm weather, I know you'll be describing the snowy scenes in your area soon enough.  With the heavy rains we've had in the valley this weekend, I'm guessing snow is falling on Mt. Hood here.  I haven't heard what the freezing level is.

Squirrels are so industrious.  Watching them in nest-building or food-gathering season is fascinating.  Years ago in CT, we watched one carry nesting materials from a tree in our yard to the neighbor's chimney, which required a long tight-rope walk on a telephone wire over the driveways.  He moved incredibly fast and never dropped what he was carrying.

The Patriots had the game in their hands a couple minutes ago, now it looks like the Falcons will tie it up.  I don't need this stress on a Sunday night!