What can I count on?

I think the Carbo-celebrations have a few common threads. Every year there is more food than people. Every year there is great people and greater memories. Every year a shirt for a shot has become a tradition. Every year most of the food is homemade. Every year I begin to plan the next year celebration (next year is MexicARBo!!) However the one thing you can always count on is the winter weather advisory allows RSVP's to the party. This is probably how the weather drinking game has become a staple of fun. Well, the Artic blustery weather appears to be scooting across Illinois. (Which means for anyone who read the blog about a month or so ago, Snocones mean money!! But I digress). Drive slow, drink responsibly or plan to camp out. There will be ample food ...

Frozen in time...

Well, the final hours are approaching for Carbozo. The guest list jumped by 15 people yesterday and the excitement is building. (For me I am sure, but not Clyde). See, Clyde does not like change so the food table that goes where Clyde's bed and toy chamber is, cannot be constructed until he goes on his mini-vacation on Saturday. Today is the shopping day for most non perishables like Vodka, Beer, Club Soda. I will be making the Sweet Tea Ice Tea frozen ring. Actually I am taking the Sweet Tea and freezing a large bowl of it. That way as it is in the dispenser, the Tea will keep it all cool and yet as it melts, it does not dilute the mixture. I am going to make chocolate chip cookies tonight and set up the Shot for a Shirt station! The tradition of chugging a concoction to earn a Carbozo original shirt will continue. I also have made a few menu changes. I am going to make an Indian flat bed appetizer for the "carb friendly" room. The Mardigras table will have the return of the Southern Style Chicken biscuit casserole. YUM just a few calories there! Well, it won't be long before the doors open and the fun begins.

Shout out ...

Just days away from Carbozo! Lately the phone has been picking up more and more reservations. One phone call allows us to have last years party game come back to life!! Seven Day Weather Forecast Drinking Game .... woohooo. This may not sound all that exciting, but of the ten years of Holiday Open Houses, this has to be the most memorable event. Menu is set. Some things have been made, but the real adventure starts Thursday around 3pm when the cooking, preparing and cleaning kicks into full gear. Friday is pretty intense preparing the 8 foot salad bar. Saturday is hell until 6pm when I finally take a deep breath and say, this is as good as it is going to get. Never too late to RSVP. Bring a guest, bring your company Christmas party instead of going wherever you were planning to go, as Carbozo will be a fun festive time. The guest list already includes some of the neatest hommies I know and you will make new friends for certain.

My lungs are like a vegetable, I think ...

For the past three weeks I have been coughing like a chain smoker. Well, I went to the doctors today and they gave me a couple medications to wipe away my cough. So, I am taking a few pills and a bit of liquid and I will be good as new. No fever, no other issues just this nice bronchial cough. When I lost my voice in October (yes, there is still a group of people that are cheering for that modern day miracle), the issue dropped from throat to lungs. I guess I should have had it treated then, but of course, I did not have time and I did not have the desire to go to the doctor. So, stay tuned ...

It's not parkay...

Well, not everything is coming up roses today. I had planned a light day today, so I was going to bake two butter chocolate cakes. What I have made are butter chocolate crumbles. I am sure that with some fixing up it will be better than a cake, but it was not targeted to be a truffle. The first one came out like a normal cake batter would look like. The second one came out like frosting, the first sign that something went off course. Ironically, they both tumbled into a bitter abyss. I do not know what went wrong, but I do that they both taste good. That is the nice thing about a cake that falls apart. One week from today, I will be elbow deep in dish water cleaning up dishes. So, stay tuned, Carbozo is steamrolling your way.

My cake and eat it too.

Today I made six cakes for the holiday open house. They were all wrapped and put into the freezer to be iced next Saturday. They are in all shapes and sizes. There are cinnamon cakes, chocolate cake, cherry and strawberry cakes just to name a few. Tomorrow is cookie day. This will wrap up dessert room. Reservations are slowly trickling in, and that is all cool. Coming up, I need to pick up the t-shirts from Stein Advertising. My refrigerator will be delivered on Monday and Thursday and Friday is full prep days. This means sausage and peppers will be sliced, chopped and ready for cooking. The menu is polished, the floor is not though haha. So, cleaning is on the schedule too. So, the tenth anniversary of Holiday Open houses is just right around the corner.

Black Friday

Well, I did not get up at 4 am to go shopping. I did not even pass a mall or a shopping complex where people were camped out in tents. But I did have my very own Black Friday. Well, not so much that I had it, but Clyde did. Today, Clyde went to the vet for his annual check up. He weighs the same exact pounds and ounces that he did one year ago. (That bitch!) He shook like he was on a belt sander. He was scared petrified. In fact, when I told him before we left the house he was going to the vet, he puked. Tell me that does not send a message. He had some blood taken to see if he had heartworms. They gave him two shots so he did not get the measles or something, whooping cough perhaps. About three minutes after the shots, he yelped. A tad of a delay reaction, but he must have thought, 'now damn it, stop hurting me. I am a good dog". He came home and he had some cottage cheese and has decided that he will just rest tonight.

No. thank you.

Today is Thanksgiving. I have been adopted by another family to share in the act of giving and thanking. They are giving me a place to sit at the table, and I am thankful. My family is in Florida, but I hear the weather is not much nicer than it is in Indiana. I am cooking my rootbeer carrots. I am also bringing a pumpkin roll bomb. Similar to the Italian bomb but replaced the pound cake with pumpkin roll, and replaced the chocolate and vanilla pudding for carmel pudding. Tomorrow, buddy goes to the vet to get his annual check up. He does not know this, yet, so he is thankful today for not knowing what is coming tomorrow. I hope everyone is having a great holiday no matter who you spend it with, where you celebrate it or how you toast to the day. The celebration I attended was brimming with family fun. I had a grand time, helped a bit in the kitchen and my rootbeer carrots were just as successful as my Pumpkin Bomb. Got to love it when people say nice things about your cooking, even if it isn't stellar or gourmet. Just one week and two days until Carbozo...

Trust me, far far away is not the half of it.

Well, my hours spent at the BMV went by relatively quick. I was entertained with stories (or true history) from the clerk who gave me the three sets of license plates. Here's the deal, since the mid 80's he has been writing a book about the UFO's that have been invading the US. I thought it was just immigrants from Mexico, but I guess we have the sky as a border we need to patrol now too! Well, many times the UFO's will fight with one another and blow each other up that is why we do not see them that often. The UFO's actually blew up another galaxy -- far far away. There have been many other civilizations that have been effected by UFO encounters. It was not just Star Wars that introduced us to life on other planets. As enlightening as this conversation was, that helped to answer that dying question of whether or not space crafts have odometers...they do NOT...., I could not feel anything more than sorry that he has spent over twenty years writing a book that will be probably be banned like O.J. Simpson's book had been. People really do not want to know the truth about UFO's.

Press pause

Tonight is Jim Brickman's concert in Indianapolis. With backstage passes in hand, it should be a great and fun concert. However, the boat is departing without me after all. There are so many things happening in my life that leaving town for twenty hours just seems impossible. So, I am leaving my ticket with a friend to use it as she sees fit. I have a jammed packed day. Have an 8, 9, 10, plus I need to get license plates for three vehicles all before the end of the day. I could be at the BMV for three hours once I get there at 1130! Uggh. Enjoy the day, and perhaps the holiday because I may still be at the BMV on Thanksgiving Day :)

Where is my yellow shirt!

Well, if this is your first time blogging my site, welcome. I am in the planning stages for Carbozo. Celebrating ten years of holiday open houses!! So, working with the time line, so I am prepared for the 2nd of December, I have made the list of foods I need to make and groceries I need to purchase. I will be making ten cakes, and 15 pounds of meatballs and 15 pounds of jambalaya just to name a few things. The tables are set and ready. I am planning for about a hundred people, but it could be more. The t-shirts were a Carboriginal, created through the hands of Stein Advertising. Stay tuned for more updates as the famed day approaches.

Friday night and the lights are low..

Here I go again...my my.. Mamma Mia was Thursday night at the Historic Embassy Theatre. What a production. I really enjoyed the evening, the company and the packed house to see a great Broadway musical, in Fort Wayne, with an extended run. If you have not taken advantage of the show being in town, you should, you must.

I have had the songs running through my mind for years and to see them put together to create a musical only will help "Dancing Queen" and "S.O.S" to play over and over and over. The costumes were fun,the cast was very well cast and did a superb job.

Then on Friday a friend and I went to see Sugarland in Southbend at the Morris, another great historic theater. I was rocked to find great seats, energetic performances and a crowd that was on their feet more than in their seat. Sugarland is probably best known for a song called "Baby Girl". If you do not own their first album, you must request it from Santa or Hanukkah Harry or any other gift giving soul. "Twice the Speed of Light" does not have one bad song on it. A true CD for you car.

Coming up... Jim Brickman on Tuesday in Indianapolis!

No apple for me...

Today I was a principal for the day at Northcrest Elementary School. Annually the Fort Wayne Community Schools picks local business folks to share life experience and observe the day in the life of the school's principals.

What is really nifty for me was to return to Northcrest Elementary after thirty years from being a kindergarten, first and second grade student at that school. What has changed, other than a few more classrooms, the student body looked like a meeting from the United Nations. When I was a student, we had one minority student. He lived around the block from me and I remember it vividly. This time around, there were very few little white children.

I enjoyed the experience, the opportunity to return to the school. I sat with a fourth grade class for about a half hour and discussed what they are learning in school and how each and everything they learned will be applied to real life. But what really brought out the questions was if the playground looked any different. I told them that it did look very similar, it has not been upgraded much in thirty years. Hmm, that made me puzzled. The question that stumped me was "how much Bosnian do you speak?" I hate to say, but I do not know one vowel of the language.

Call me crazy...

Okay, the entire world is changing! I am uncertain how much more I can take without having to find a white jacket. Speaking of white jackets, did you hear that KFC is redoing the icon known as Mr Sanders! The old fart is losing his jacket, getting a red apron and somehow he is the first old guy to lose weight eating fast food. It is depressing to see the old man get younger, thinner and well look like he should be bagging groceries. Oh heavens, no one bags groceries in an apron anymore, but they used to! Remember Maloley's or Roger's they all had aprons and then hauled your eggs to your car even if they were on the bottom. As thing changes and disappear, RIP Pink Panther cereal, I hope somethings remain the same. Like the newspaper being jammed packed with excellent stories and tid bits about our ever changing community. Don't tell me if even the newspaper may change...

Things I miss...

I was thinking of the great things that are no longer with us. I sure do miss Burger Chef! I also miss Lucky Steer too. Seems as if they both left Fort Wayne around the same time, mid 1970's. I was thinking around that time we lost Grape Tang too. If I am not mistaken Pink Panther Cereal was gone as well. Strange that when these places and things left the market place, I was not even ten years old. My memory recalls great tastes. I wonder if they were here now, would I feel the same way. Perhaps I was an impressionable child, where marketing perhaps lingered some thirty years later, but it does make me wonder in the next ten years will I have vivid memories of such items from the 80's? I really doubt it, but stay tuned to this blog for more memories.

Cooking Class with Carbo

From time to time, I share a recipe that is simple to make yet taste remarkable. So, today I will share a holiday side that could become a main course for some: Rootbeer Carrots! You will need one can of rootbeer, 1/2 cup of water, 2 pounds of carrots, 1/2 tsp of coarse salt, 1/2 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp of ground cumin, 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon (or a bit more ), 1/2 cup light brown sugar. What you will need to do: clean the carrots, you know scrape the exterior layer of the carrot. Bring everything to a boil except those carrots. Once the boil is raging, like your temper as you peal these carrots, you can toss the carrots in the pot, put a lid on it and walk away until the pot is brought to a boil, again. Let them boil for five minutes covered under the lid. Turn down the heat, take off the lid (perhaps drink a glass of wine) and let the carrots cook for another fifteen minutes or until the carrots are tender. Now, you are done with your side. Total time for prep and cook could not be more than 30 minutes unless you drink more wine or peal slow. Enjoy!

A shift in the house...

Well, this has been a wild week. Glad it is coming to a close. I know, with the title of my entry, I am sure you believe you know what my chat will be about. However, this has nothing to do with elections. Nope. Truthfully, though I voted both parties this round, I really do not think it made much of a difference. What really is important is that my home needs to whip into shape because CARBOZO is just weeks away. So, this weekend, I am making my list and checking it twice. No, not to see who I need to invite, that has been complete for months. What I am checking is to find out what I need to purchase to make the multi-room buffet for CARBOZO. This is the ten year anniversary of holiday open houses. Historically, this has never been a Christmas Party. This has always been a chance for friends to visit the home, eat some food, and make new friends. I can not begin to tell you how many people have met new friends, left very full, and even have bumped into classmates from fifty years prior. So. as the time line goes, this is the weekend of making the food shopping list. Next weekend is setting up all the tables and getting it ready to be a party, and then the following week, I prepare items that may be frozen (which is very little this year because I seem to have not thought out the menu well enough haahaa). December 2 is just around the corner and CARBOZO will go down as THE holiday party of the season. (At least I think it should be).

No one knows what I nose.

I was on Coliseum Boulevard this afternoon. You know how sometimes you get in the wrong lane. No matter what you do to avoid the slow, distraught driver, you seem to find yourself behind him. Well, I was there for a short time. I was proud. I maneuvered around him and the long line of traffic. When his car and my car reach the red light, I glance over to give him that look like ... you should have your license removed from your wallet, old man, look. To my startling surprise, (no he was not a woman, so stop the hate mail), the old man had the most amazing amount of nose hair I have yet to see in my life time. This guy had white hair growing from his nose, at least an inch out of his nose. I nearly blew a colon. I thought, no wonder why he is driving slow, he is just hoping no one will see him. Keep the traffic behind you, not in front of you, and his horrible secrete is safe. Not much more to say. It was just horrible!!!

I did my part today...

It is important to push the button, punch the chad or check the box to vote for the best of each field. I drove to my point and stood in a short line. I showed my ID, which was not too painful. She liked my picture on my license.

I went to the booth, and pushed one button, but then changed my mind because I realized I had a few issues voting full party ticket. I voted on things I had no idea were even on the ballot. Who knew that i could say yes or no to a judge who I did not even know exist.

I made two changes from the full party ticket but simply pushed the red button.

I went home and thought I would see how close my picks were to those who will now serve our community.

Hope you did your part to shape our communities future.

I heart this idea!

Today, during my annual Thanksgathering event, the topic of dating was a topic. Seems that a handful of people have tempted dating through online services. Seems few have had success. Fewer think they have a chance of finding that "right" person. Then I thought, what if a holiday was created to help single people meet other single people. I am thinking, Valoween. A combination of Halloween (the candy) and Valentines Day (the love). So, on this special holiday, all the single people will leave their lights on (the hunt-ees) and the other single people (the hunters) will be dressed to the 9's and go door to door, collecting candy and phone numbers. When a person trips the light fantastic, this person would turn off their light (and you know what happens from there, when the lights go out). Anyway, even if you come up a loser, you still get great chocolate. So, this is my idea of a new holiday that helps single people break out of the (candy) mold.

Up Up and far away!

Yesterday as I was "cutting through" downtown to avoid traffic on Coliseum, 69 and West Jefferson I knew I could make great time, because there was nothing happening downtown this weekend. No concerts, no festivals, no market. It was like a holiday in downtown Fort Wayne. I am zooming, at the legal limit of course, down Clinton Street. I gander left and right at Headwaters Park. Yep, no elephant ear trailers, no kids running through the water spray, not even a plastic (pop mmhmm) cup rolling along the curb side. The city was neatly put away until Monday. But low and behold, I see balloons, banners, people! They are on the sidewalk of the court yard. I even saw George Bush! Yes, the President of the United States. Well, not exactly, but close. See, George and many, many others were protesting. Protesting war, speaking of peace, demonstrating. The irony is, I was the only car on the road at 1130 am on a Saturday. I kept thinking, why aren't you on Coliseum or 69 or some place where someone can hear you, see you. I thought, did you people not get the memo, closed until Monday? Sometimes you just got to be up, up and out of the way.

..when it was cool...

Everyone has a dark side, part of their life that surprises other people. Not long ago, walking through Sam's Club, the place where I can buy a ton of cereal and make that my on going nightly routine, I came across a box set of cds. Three cds to be exact. One artists, thirty songs. Low and behold, I had to buy it. I have been a huge Barbaba Mandrell fan (plus her sisters, mind you) since the late 70's and 80's. I regret that I had never seen her in concert. She had a near death experience, that centered her to focus on family and leave the entertainment world behind. I had this box set, unopened for about a month until yesterday. I thought, I am going to listen to it in my car. Well, I did listen to it. I sang to it in the car and was just hopeful that no one on 69 could read my lips as I was belting out her hits: "Sleeping single in a double bed", "The Best of Strangers", "I was country when country wasn't cool" or "Crackers". So, as you think of my hidden nugget of the past, what are you hiding, that you think it is time to share?

Playing the field

I had been feeling very philanthropic as of late. I started to save clothes for the Salvation Army. The bag had old shirts that left my style, meaning I out grew them (figuratively, yeah! right!) I had an entire bag full. I moved them from the house to the garage as of recent. Just inches toward my car so they can be taken away. Yesterday morning as I was leaving to go the gym to work out, I opened the garage door from the house and turned on the light and out from the bag scurried a tiny field mouse. I screamed, because that is really what anyone would do, if they admit things out loud. Then I got mad. I will not have a tax right off now for clothing because I can guarantee anyone that I am NOT going to wash all those clothes to make sure that Mickey did not bring other friends. So all day at work I plotted how to take from the Salvation Army. So, I got home and got a chunk of really good peanut butter and loaded it with poison. Mickey ate some but he was not dying at the rate I longed for him. I really do not have days to deal with his issues. I cooked up a hotdog, I assumed he was not a vegetarian, and placed it on an old fashion wood board snap trap. I know that my friends at PETA are creating sandwich signs as they read this. Well, I placed the poisoned peanut butter on one (I thought double death dare ya) and the hotdog on the other. I checked back every ten minutes. It is a good thing commercials exists. Nothing. Well, he had eaten more of the peanut butter surprise but the trap did not smack him back. So I went to bed. I woke up at midnight because I had to check the trap. Well, low and behold Mickey does like hotdogs. This is a warning to all four legged critters that come near my home that are not wanted. I will hunt you down and snap your head. Makes me wonder why I am yet single. I feel like I am one death away from a serial killer. Oh well. Go and eat Hot dogs!!