Bowser has a bone that he stole found that was gifted to him by our across-the-street neighbours and their dogs. Well, perhaps not willingly by the dogs…I dunno. There is not much left to this bone but Bowser seems pleased nonetheless.
We hope you are spending time with something/someone you love this weekend.
Rock on,
The WB
I was busy doing something (probably haus-frauing) in my place and Bowser was playing outside with one of his new favourite squeaky toys when suddenly he started barking and would not stop. Now, he usually barks once or twice when he sees something he feels should be noticed (and I usually take no notice as I am wise to the Ways of the Schnauzer) but this was unusual.
I took a look outside and this is what I saw:
Of course, before going out to free Mr. Squeaky Chicken and relieve Bowser of his misery I HAD to take pictures of all this drama.
After all, it was much more amusing than haus-frauing 😉.
Rock on,
The WB
For those of you who may not already know, I moved recently (late Summer 2022) from my city apartment to a separate dwelling located on my daughter and son-in-law’s semi-rural property. I have spent the fall waiting not-so-patiently for my kitchen to be installed and become workable. Thankfully, I am on good terms with my new landlords 😉, and had access to their kitchen while mine was being worked on. My kitchen is still not finished – backsplash, range hood, and under-cabinet lighting has yet to happen – but it is a fully working kitchen now, with brand new appliances. In December, I gave my new range a workout one Sunday as I prepared a meal for my landlords family. This post is about that momentous day, when I officially “broke in” Blue Steel, my navy blue Samsung range.
The inspiration for my range’s nickname:
Blue Steel is very smart (and chatty). He sends me messages all the time, on all my devices.
But how is he at actually doing the stuff he is built for? Let’s see, shall we?
The meal’s menu consisted of the family favourite: Greek potatoes, with a simple salad and air-fried chicken. I also made an almond cake.
Blue Steel came with an air-fryer function and also this tray, for that purpose:
For the “fried” chicken, I used this KFC dupe seasoning recipe, with some modifications: I didn’t have buttermilk so I soured a cup of milk with 1 tbsp vinegar; I used gluten-free flour; I only added 1 tbsp white pepper; I skipped the MSG; I used garlic powder instead of garlic salt and added an extra tsp salt (I figured that was close enough). Instead of deep-frying, I air-fried the chicken for 20 minutes at 400F, then turned the pieces and air-fried them again for another 20 minutes.
To finish off the main meal:
And the cake?
Blue Steel, you did me proud. (And you were worth the 4 month delivery wait.)
You’re welcome, Widow Badass.
Please share with Donna and/or myself what’s on your plate this month, in the Comments! Please check out her post on the delicious soup she made me, here! And here’s the Link Party, if you are so inclined.
Rock on,
The WB
Mommy and I came over to visit Oma using the back yard entrance, and her boots were within reach. Time to switch into Evil Villain mode!!!
Alas, my mission was interrupted when Mommy reclaimed her boot from my lair.
‘Til next time, Mommy! Bwahahaha!
Rock on, and happy 2023!
The Evil Villain Bowz 🐾
We had another big snow dump this past week. It wasn’t safe to drive, but it was perfectly safe to go for a walk in the woods. Or so I thought…
Bowser either tried to walk on the very thin ice or fell off of the bank into the channel! He was completely submerged for the longest millisecond of my life. Then he popped back up and tried to grab onto a nearby branch that was in the water although even further from land. Meanwhile I ran like a rocket to his location and coaxed him back to the bank, whereupon I grabbed him by the harness and hauled him back onto land. All the while agonizing how I was going to get this dog back home without him turning into a pupsicle in this -8 degrees C weather. (Obviously no pictures were taken of all this drama.)
Turns out I had nothing to fear. Bowser’s instincts kicked in and I was treated to the “snow zoomies”.
I doubt future walks will find us near the creek, for the time being! Bowser got over his dunking in no time at all, but I am still traumatized recovering.
Good Yule, Happy Solstice, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah! However and wherever you celebrate, hug your loved ones (and stay away from icy creeks).
Rock on,
The WB
Bowser loves the daybed in the TV/studio/guest/everything room in my new place (still under construction). He loves to lean back in the pillows and look out the window for passers-by, cats, and other assorted ne’er do wells.
We hope you are having a restful weekend!
Rock on,
The WB
Like a one-dog open sleigh…that was our Bowser the day after the snowfall, when someone had run a truck or quad through the logging roads we like to frequent on our walks. I had already shared these photos on social media, but not everyone follows me there. I hope you don’t mind seeing them again, if you already have seen them.
We hope you are enjoying whatever weather you have been given, this weekend.
Rock on,
The WB
I really thought that this box would be our last one, for the subscription. But then, another box showed up in the mail. So here is the review of the now next-to-last box – South Korea! Once again, Donna’s husband Richard was able to join us as our extra special guest judge insert favourite RuPaul’s Drag Race meme here.
First on the list of snacks to be evaluated: the choco pie.
Next up: spicy chicken flavoured corn puffs!
Then it was on to some marscapone shortbreads (What a lovely combination of 2 yummy things!)
These cookies have a weird (to us Westerners) backstory. Apparently Valentine’s Day in South Korea is the day for women to treat the men. And then came the sequel: White Day (March 14)…where men give white gifts to the women, including these cookies. Apparently this tradition originated in Japan – in 1978 – and spread to South Korea. Although LGBTQ+ folks appear to be left out of this celebrating, never fear Singletons! April 14 is Black Day, when you dress in black and go eat your feelings with all your single friends. Black-bean-sauce-smothered noodles is the preferred comfort nosh. All of this info according to the literature that came with the snack box!
Now onto some candy! Sweet and sour grape-flavoured chews.
Back to savoury snacks with the next on the list: Shrimp Chips.
Last but not least were a bag of Peach Flavoured Gummies, to sample.
I think this was my favourite box to date. So did Donna. Here is our scoring.
As usual, Donna treated us to a fabulous lunch afterwards. She wrote all about it on her latest WOYPBC post, here.
One more box to go! Stay tuned – we’re going to Italy next.
Rock on,
The WB
My good friend and WOYPBC co-host Donna and I are taking an ElderCollege course in her home community on Wednesday mornings. We usually follow this up with a walk and lunch. I’ve been lucky enough to be invited back to her place for our lunch…or am I?! This was a pre-lunch conversation during one such walk.
Donna: I’m going to serve us the lemon-lime soup I’ve been telling you about, for lunch.
Me: The one you said wasn’t that good? And that you were hoping to pawn off on me, to get rid of?
Donna: Oh goody, you remembered! Yes, that one.
She then peppered me with food safety questions about this soup – was it safe to reheat it in the crock pot for hours; how long could it be left out to thaw before it became dangerous, etc. (By now my eyebrows had completely disappeared into my hairline and I was wondering who I could get to call me on my cell so I could plead an emergency and beg off lunch 😉). Then she revealed that it was actually still in the freezer and she would heat it up once we got back to her place. Phew!
And now, for the moment of truth:
Friends, it WAS delicious. After all the anti-hype about the lemon-lime soup, imagine my relief!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this less than serious WOYPBC post. You know I am just kidding about Donna using me as a human garbage disposal, right? You were just kidding too, Donna…right? Please share with Donna and/or myself what’s on your plate this month! Please check her take on slow cooking, here! And here’s the Link Party, if you are so inclined.
Rock on,
The WB
This week we had a big dump of snow, which paralyzed the island. But it didn’t stop Bowser! Or did it?
We hope you are having fun (in the snow or otherwise) this weekend.
Rock on,
The WB
