Saturday, January 2, 2010

It is a little chilly

It was 27 degrees BELOW zero this morning..that is -33C for my Canadian friends. I just get cranky when it gets this cold, okay that is untrue..I get crankier. Luckily just like yesterday, I do not have to go out. The cupboard is full of groceries, Chance has lots of food..if I learned how to bake bread and if Far Guy would use powdered milk on his cereal..or if we got a cow ..but a cow would mean that someone would have to go out and do chores..besides that we have no barn..and farm animals need a barn. Anyway we could hibernate inside longer if I baked bread and if Far Guy didn't drink milk.

Chance is valiant..he heads outdoors with great enthusiasm..after about five minutes..he begins the great paw exchange, holding one paw at a time in the air to warm it up. We play ball indoors on days like today..I wish I could get him to walk on the treadmill...


I have to make a list..one of those dreaded list of things that need to be done around here. Some of the projects are just down right boring like cleaning the oven. However there are a number of very organizational things I will do this year, I tend to like organizational type projects and actually look forward to them. Far Guys Mom kept every obituary from every funeral she ever attended. Likewise I have kept some for many years. Every time someones dies..I put their obit in my white Bible that my Grandparents gave me when I was confirmed. Since I am now getting older, lots more people die every year and my Bible is plump. So de plumping my Bible is on the list..I have a photo storage box and should be able to alphabetize them.

Years ago one of my cousins and I volunteered to make a family cookbook. We have collected recipes. I have been looking at Cookbook Software. Some of it is very high tech and confusing. I just need a simple program, we will print it out ourselves on something heavier than regular paper and bind it together..one of us cousins has a machine that does that. We will have to come up with a front and back cover design too. Does anyone out there have any suggestions for software? I found one called Mathilda's Fantastic Cookbook Software. It will create an address book too..and a birthday calender. It looks simple to use. My cousin is now milking hundreds of cows twice a day( I am sure if she had her druthers she would just rather be a farm wife working on the recipe book with me instead of helping her husband milk everyday..she is doing what she has to do...when are the farmers going to catch a break anyway?) So I will have to recruit other family members to help with the typing.. I have all the recipes..in a big yellow folder file..just waiting for organization...there are already a few family stories in there too. It should be a delightful family project. "The Cousins" want to have this project done and ready for sale by the family picnic in August. Yes, we will sell them but only to recoup the cost of paper, ink and bindings. It is a big project. And even though I don't like to cook..I do like to read recipes..strange isn't it? Far Guy says "I think you read recipes so you can cook in your head..and that is good enough for you."

I have cooked twice recently..he really appreciates it when I cook. One night I threw some salt and pepper on a couple of Catfish Fillets and then dredged them through some flour and then fried them up in a little butter..dumped some lettuce in a bowl..viola.. supper fit for a king! We both love good Catfish..I know not everyone likes them..but we lived in the south long enough to learn to appreciate the delightful flavor! I would have purchased some crawdads..but they only had fancy crustaceans. We both like crawdads too.

Fish houses down on the lake.
Why do you suppose I think of Crawdads and fresh oranges right off the trees this time of year? It must be the cold weather, and they are comfort food to me on a chilly Minnesota day:)
Update:  My brother just stopped by..he gets up earlier than us!  He had 39 BELOW ZERO at his house this morning..but we do live just south of him:)

26 comments:

Nancy/BLissed-Out Grandma said...

Brrrr. I love fresh oranges in winter, too. Interesting that you like recipes even though you don't like to cook. The family recipe project sounds like fun.

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

Ooooo a family recipe project sounds just deliciously fun!

I am in awe of how ya'll survive up there. I spent 45min. outside gettin' in firewood and feeding the critters and I thought I was goin' to die! Ya know the feeling that your eyeballs have turned into iceballs and your sweat freezes on your face. It was a warm balmy six above here and all I want to do is take a warm bath to warm up. I take my stocking cap off to you girl!

Keep cozy and have a blessed day!!!

DJan said...

I look forward to hearing how you taught Chance to love the treadmill... now THAT is a picture I'd love to see. Those kinds of organizational projects don't appeal to me very much, so I'm glad somebody likes to do them. Stay warm and cozy and keep on blogging!

L. D. said...

Okay, you beat us out by 10 degrees. We are -17, a real heat wave. Barney does the dance pretty quickly and he lays down on the ground instead of asking to come in. It is pretty painful for them to walk on that. Our little speed poodle can pee on the run so that he doesn't have to stay any longer than shutting the door and reopening the door. We actually are out of bread and have made bread in our bread machine. It is cooking right now and we are going to have spaghetti with it. Stay inside and stay warm.

Emma Rose said...

Brrrrr! That sounds painful to me. I would be happy to help you type. Just let me know :)

Emma sends WARM kisses!

The Duchess

Anonymous said...

Wow, what cold temps for this wimpy southern girl! I love the idea of your cookbook and what a treasure that will be! Mom and I collected cookbooks from all over; some very old. Like you, we enjoyed reading more than cooking! You should choose some of your awesome photography for the front and back covers. We love catfish too. I skip the flour and sprinkle some of Emeril's blackening on it. Always a pleasure to visit your blog Connie. Have a great evening.

West Side of Straight said...

Hi - we had -36 at 8:30 am - took Odda to Obed. training - My car started. - couldn't believe it.

Andrea said...

Those temperatures are ridiculous! I moan when we're in the high 20's here. That's cold, and the negative numbers are unbelievable!!!!

Patsy said...

That is just to cold for me. It is 25 here in Arkansas. Come on spring.
Patsy

Julia said...

Wow, that is so cold Connie...we are melting donwn under with 105 degrees in your temps..Shame we couldn't share and meet half way!!
Julia

gayle said...

So very cold!!! I am not a fan of cold weather!!!

Leah said...

I think it is a lot chilly - then again you are a bit more south than us! Stay warm --- a recipe book is a wonderful idea but ask Mom - it is a great big project! Again stay inside!

Gail said...

Thank God you live in the south part!

I was freezing at 17 this morning.

Rae said...

I have been stuck inside with three sick kids since Thursday. They are pinging off the walls from cabin fever. I think I will go outside in the cold (-16) just to get away from all of them. A little frostbite sounds like welcome relief compared to their fighting and whining. I think there is a beach in Florida calling my name right now.

Boomer Pie. said...

Brrrr. Pretty photos. Freezing weather but sounds like you have a warm heart, so I signed up to follow you. Drop by my place to thaw out with some New Year's cheer. http://www.boomerpie.com/

Merry Mary said...

I went to work this morning and before 8 am I'd heard 4 people ask out loud why we lived here where it gets so cold. I didn't have any good answer.

RURAL said...

Thanks for the Canadian conversion. I guess, cold is bitter no matter what temp right?

Does your air inside the house get really dry? And does your hair go all staticky? Cool.....

We are enjoying a balmy 8 C about zero. I know, and there is no ice in sight. Come and visit, there is lots of rain to share up here.

Jen

Moms Musings said...

I like it cold, but that's a bit much. The cookbook is a great idea. Lots of luck with it.

LadyFi said...

Oh my goodness.. that really is far too cold! And here I am feeling chilly at minus 15 C or so!

You could try regular software that allows you to publish books with photos for your cookbook.

TxFarmhouse said...

Your post makes me cold just reading it. To heck with the milk, I could hibernate in the warm eating homemade bread all day long!

Jeanne Estridge said...

When I lived up that way, I was told that once it got that cold you could take a pan of boiling water outside, toss the water into the air and it would freeze mid-air.

As curious as I am, the only time it got that cold, my desire to stay inside far outweighed my curiosity.

So if you'd like to try that, and have Far Guy film it....

BTW -- when did you live in the South? (Just point me to a post....)

Les Barr said...

Good Grief, girl! -27degrees below zero is one heck of a cold day. Since I've never been in cold like that over here in PA, I can only imagine what it must be like. How do you stand that nasty cold? Over here in PA it's cold, but not like that. The temperature right now is about 18 degrees, but the wind is blowing pretty hard, making the temperature feel below zero somewhere. I'm not much of a cold person at all. Winter and me don't get along that well. I'm glad when warmer temperatures finally get here.

I've seen on the news that Minnesota always seem's to get real cold during the Winter. How you stand that cold is way beyond me.

I hope that you stay warm up there!
Les

Far Side of Fifty said...

Jeanne..I wrote a post just for you. Yes the water does freeze in mid air..I will try it for you..maybe!:)
Muddy Boots..Yes..my hair sometimes sticks up in all directions..especially after I take off my wool hat! :)
Thanks everyone for your comments..to the new commenters I will try and visit you soon..thanks for stopping by:)

Karmyn R said...

BRRRRR!!! I will not complain about my 30°F. I will smile and enjoy!

And a family cookbook. I think that is a great idea. Especially getting some of those recipes from the older generation. My mom has tried to make some of those beloved recipes my grandma made (from her head) and they never turn out right.

Connie Peterson said...

Norm drinks 2% milk and it freezes well. We get a lot of milk at one time and freeze it so we don't have to worry about running out. I also get bread in advance (haven't gone back to baking it, yet) and freeze that, too. Now that our weather is cold (well, it's warmed up to -4 so I can't complain too much), we can freeze things in the entry way and also we use the "new" fridge out there as a freezer and our pantry is now a cool room / fridge as it does not freeze anymore (or at least hasn't, yet).

Stay warm!

Happy Hour...Somewhere said...

How nice to find a fellow "cooking in the head" type person~! How long does milk last if it is frozen? Can you freeze milk? A high five paw exchange to you and Happy New Year~!