Yesterday we woke up to find 2-3 inches of that wet, white stuff that skiers and snowmobilers love but the rest of us in the Great Northeast grow to hate each year covering what was left of the dead, brown leaves on the ground. It did look pretty...compared to the leaves...and we didn't have to go anywhere...we thought. That changed when I poured myself a 2nd cup of coffee and found it was only lukewarm. Jeff said the cup was cold and the coffee just cooled off fast so I cleaned the coffee maker and tried to start another pot. The key word in that sentence is 'tried' because the coffeemaker didn't respond to anything. Pulling the plug out and putting it back in. Wiggling the on/off switch. I came to the conclusion the pot had died and put water in a kettle on the stove to boil. After I poured it over the dry coffee grounds that were sitting in the basket of the newly-deceased coffee machine (making a mess over the counter, but hey, the counter needed to be washed, anyway!) there was a pot full of almost hot coffee...for a few minutes at least. When Jeff wandered into the kitchen looking for more coffee he questioned why I had done what I did so I told him the coffee maker had died. He scoffed at that and started checking it out. Played with the switch, the plug, who know what else because I turned my back to his endeavors about then. After a few minutes he agreed the coffee maker was dead. I turned to face him and smiling pleasantly said, 'I don't get to say this to you very often but I told you so!' I drank instant cappuccino the rest of the afternoon and Jeff drank diet Dr Pepper. When he had had enough of that he went to Walmart and bought a new 'Mr Coffee'coffee maker. (the old one was a Norleco. We tend to alternate between the 2 brands depending on the sales at the time we need a new one.) We do have a Keurig that Jeff's sister gave us but it's a one-cup-at-a-time brewer and we never bought the reusable mini-basket that we'd need to use it. Jeff found 'Mr Coffee' on sale at Walmart and was instantly interested in the totally automated one until he saw that it also automatically turned itself off after 2 hours. We make 3-4 pots (12 cups) during the day, 1 with supper and usually 1 more after supper. That fully automated version would be turning itself off and on so often it would wear out before the heating unit burnt out! This is a nice version and the price was reasonable...less that $20. It should last 3-4 years. Maybe next time I can talk him into a French Press...no parts to heat up.
Today Jeff had an appointment for a PT evaluation of his left shoulder. When he had a post-op checkup with his attending MD (after his heart attack and the insertion of the 4 stents) it was noted that he could not raise his arms above his shoulders. The Attending ordered x-rays and while both shoulders show deterioration and calcium deposits, the left shoulder is in much worse shape. Today we went to Valley Health for the evaluation. When we went out to the car this morning around 9:30, the thermometer in the car was at 17 degrees. By the time we got to Herkimer, it had gone down to 15 degrees. While Jeff was being evaluated I talked with a man who's wife was having PT. They live on a farm outside of Little Falls and the temperature when he went to the barn this morning at 7am was 12 degrees. Come on, folks, this is only Nov. 13! If it's this cold now what is it going to be like in January and February??
When we got home, Jeff started cooking a whole chicken (Hannaford had them on sale this weekend and he got 2)in the crockpot. It will be dinner tonight and then go on to be chicken soup. Just right for these 'cold, winter days', huh? I decided to make my cousin Carol Paul's family famous Oatmeal Squares. It would warm up the house a little to have the oven on and I wanted to try to reduce the carbs and calories in them so Jeff wouldn't hesitate to eat them, too, not that he does but theoretically.... So I used coconut flour to cut carbs...in place of half the white flour, and brown sugar substitute in place of real brown sugar. I'm not sure it will make much difference health-wise but the oatmeal squares taste the same!!
This cold weather has made me start thinking about Christmas presents...what I want to make for whom. I think I'll do some gifts the same as usual: --------s for ----, of course, he expects them, but then I think I'll do somethings different. Maybe an ------ for --, --------------- for ------ and a ----- for ------. That may be it for my 'giving' list. I do have to do a Yarn Pal box and I just signed up for a Secret Sis exchange, too. I'll take photos and fill in the blanks but maybe not until Dec 26th!
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