Sneaking in Some Midsomer Magic

The end is nothing. The road is all. Willa Cather

Time to quit living on Someday Isle (I'll), and just enjoy my journey. Time to put a little Midsomer Magic into my days.

And a good reminder from Jim Rohn, my favorite motivational speaker. RIP Jim. Click HERE. It's really short.

On Monday I was watching my Midsomer Murder when I had to pause it and go bake Oatmeal Cookies and Banana Snack Cake. I knew I had the ingredients for both and my bananas needed to be used. Now I have something in the freezer in case someone drops in Midsomer style. Whew! Don't want to be caught with an empty freezer. Now if I can just stay out of them.

QUAKER’S BEST OATMEAL COOKIES

1-1/4 cups (2-1/2 sticks) butter, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1-1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

3 cups uncooked oats, quick or old fashioned

1 cup nuts of choice (optional)

 

Heat oven to 375°.

 

Beat butter and sugars until creamy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.

 

Add combined flour, soda, salt, and spices.  Mix well.

 

Stir in nuts and then oats.

 

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheets.

 

Bake 8-9 minutes for a chewy cookie or 10-11 minutes for a crispy cookie.

BANANA SNACK CAKE

1/2 cup shortening

2 ripe bananas

2 eggs

1-1/2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional) 

Heat oven to 350°.

Sift dry ingredients into a small mixing bowl, whisk together, and set aside.

 
In a large mixing bowl, with hand mixer, combine shortening, bananas, and eggs.

 
Add dry ingredients and fold in just until moistened.

 
Pour into a greased and floured 9” baking pan.

 
Bake 35-40 minutes.

 
Leave in pan five minutes; then turn out onto waxed paper or a clean dish towel over a rack.

 
When cool, frost or dust with powdered sugar and cut into squares.

 

Happy Birthday America on Tuesday. I received only one handmade card. Not a popular theme with most cardmakers.

From Jean

I love 4th of July, so I sent some cards.

And I got a really cute summer card from Katie. Love this layout.

Someone celebrates every holiday by decorating her car. I see it at Aldi all the time.

Fannie Mae and Mim invited me to join them in their 4th of July tradition - a hot dog at Sam's. So much fun watching everyone coming in wearing red, white, and blue. Some had tee shirts with flags, some just wore r, w, and b, and some had special clothes. One guy was wearing a beautiful shirt with a blue background and covered with skyrockets, star bursts, flags, and white cats. Cats? And I loved watching the little ones with a huge piece of pizza, trying to manuever the wobbly tip into their mouths. One fastidious little guy asked mom to cut his into smaller pieces.

Of course I was the only one who had potato chips with my hot dog, but Mim did break down and get a swirl soft-serve ice cream; however, she also got two more cups and spoons, so we each had a third. Good lesson - if I only have a third, that's all I want. Guess it's the old "clean your plate" habit. 

I finished off the day by watching A Capitol Fourth. I actually knew some of the performers this year. The best part is watching the crowd as they celebrate. My neighborhood is usally quiet after the fireworks deadline, but this year they went on until sometime after 11:00 p.m. Perhaps I'm correct that there's a shift towards patriotism in America. 

Wednesday I got a robocall about 11:15 that trash pickup would not be delayed due to the holiday. Great! That means they picked up in my subdivision at 6:30 a.m. - five hours before I got the call. I find people are increasingly incompetent, but worse than that, they're uncaring. Maybe having smelly trash in my garage for an extra week will teach me a lesson. Must adjust my thinking. Maybe I'm attracting incompetent people.

I ran some errands and stopped by our local thrift store to look for green glasses for Terri. No glasses, but I bought three pictures for $4 each to replace the faded ones in the diningroom. They're not really faded, but somehow changed color so that the background is gray, which is totally out of sync with the room.

Old pictures

New pictures

The old pictures had better frames, so I'm saving them to see if I can find some better prints online. I actually bought three pictures, thinking I'd put one on a short wall, but then realized two were identical, so probably donated by a retail store. I must stop hurrying, and pay more attention when I shop.

After hanging the pictures, I realized they weren't even. How could that happen? I rechecked the size, one against the other. Exactly the same. I checked the position of the hanging brackets. Exactly the same. Hmmmm.....then duh! The brackets on the old pictures weren't in the same position. But like Scarlett, I'll think about that tomorrow. Until then, I'll just pretend I wanted them slightly offset.

The janitor skunk came to do outdoor cat food cleanup duty. Monday it was a team of raccoon and possum, and tonight a mama raccoon brought three babies. So cute! I got the camera, but every time I turned on the light, mama hustled them out of the patio before I could take a photo. And what a mess they made of the water bowl.

I fell asleep watching my Midsomer episode, so I had to start it over the next day.

Thursday I finally finished my grocery shopping. I was afraid I was going to be reduced to eating rice and canned goods. Feels good to be stocked up. And I bought myself a little Midsomer Magic - $5 and Kevin just told on his vlog that he got a dozen beautiful roses at Trader Joe for $7. Why can't we get a Trader Joe?

I also went to $ Tree to look for the green glasses, and wow! they had the lemon glasses to go with my dishes. They were out of them when I bought the dishes. I felt justified in buying them, as I plan to keep the lemons as my summer dishes.

I got a bill from T-Mobile with a CREDIT balance of $37.64. Why am I not surprised?

Friday Rita came over and we loaded the last ten bags of books into her car. Then we headed to the rummage sale at Jean's church. We each bought 6 lbs. of pecans, and I bought 

Six pretty pink napkins (donated by Jean)

A yellow cake stand.

Some ants for a picnic table.

A 4th of July centerpiece.

A white tablecloth.

and some costume jewelry.

Then off to Cracker Barrel where I had my favorite - chicken-fried chicken.

The Glenstone thrift store was open, so we just had to shop. I bought some fun shoes which have perfectly clean soles. There's a little wear on the tops of the sides where the plastic tie  hooked them together (which told me they're new).

$2.50

And a purse which needs a little glue on some of the beads - 75 cents. Guess I was just in a blingy mood.

I also bought some Christmas stamps.

What happened to "I am not going to buy any more clothes, things for the table, or things to craft!"?

Saturday I made strawberry freezer jam and did food prep with all the groceries I bought Thursday. I threw out the watermelon I bought at Walmart. It was actually pale pink instead of bright pink and absolutely tasteless. I also threw out almost an entire half gallon of milk from Braums. They've added something to make it easier to digest, and it tasted like chemicals. Yuck!

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM

3-1/4 cups crushed strawberries – 2 containers (1 lb. each)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 box Sure Jell MCP Premium Fruit Pectin

4-1/2 cups sugar

Put the strawberries into a large bowl.

Stir in lemon juice.

Stir pectin into strawberries. Mix thoroughly.

Let strawberries sit 30 minutes, stirring every five minutes.

Slowly add sugar, mixing thoroughly. Continue stirring until dissolved.

Pour into glass jars or plastic containers with lids.

Leave on counter for 24 hours.

Refrigerate for up to three weeks, or freeze up to one year. Thaw in refrigerator.

Note: For a lower sugar version, buy the low sugar pectin. Each box of pectin also comes with instructions. 

I tried really hard this week to cut my calories by eating smaller portions. Using smaller plates and bowls helps, cutting off the crust of the bread, a few potato chips instead of half a bag, only one pickle. And if the pickle can count as a green vegetable, I ate the rainbow that day.

I tried eating only one taco, but couldn't resist going back for another.

I still wanted to inject some Midsomer Magic with afternoon tea, but they looked like this.

I cheated one day, but I didn't want to waste the sides I cut from the Banana Snack Cake. This is one side cut into thirds.

Almost 3:00 p.m. and all I've done is take photos and work on this blog post. I did, however, multi-task and changed the sheets and finished all the laundry.  I actually don't change sheets; I wash the sheets and put them back on the bed. Saves folding sheets. When they wear out, I'll use another set.

Question. Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden, even the first lady of Ukraine, have all appeared on the cover of Vogue. But the most glamorous and beautiful of all the current first ladies, Melania Trump has not. It seems Vogue offered her a picture layout inside but would not guarantee the cover, so Melania declined. Wonder why Vogue wouldn't be thrilled to have Melania on the cover? 

Busy week coming up - trying to get caught up on work so I can make some more Midsomer Magic.      

I Skipped June, but onward and upward.

Finally! I have my life back. I'm so into this decluttering, and one thing lead to another. 

After having the dining room painted, I wanted to move some of the things from the buffet and the tea cart into the kitchen cabinets.

I also wanted to move the teapots from the pantry to the kitchen cabinets, but no room.

I decided to move some of the things from the kitchen cabinets to boxes and cabinets in the garage, but no room for more boxes.

I had to empty existing boxes (books and dishes) to make room for things from the house. 

What a project! But I disposed of over 400 books. I had two drawers of salt and pepper shakers and now I have one.

Then I had room in the other drawer to put sweetener holders, coasters, and teabag rests from the kitchen cabinets in with the individual salt and peppers. Do I really need this many individual S&P's?

I finished washing all the glasses, etc. from the buffet, tea cart, and kitchen cabinets and disposed of some, moved some to the cabinets in the garage, and some to boxes in the garage. And I moved the teapots into the cabinets. I can't see all my teapots without a step-stool, but at least I now have room in my pantry.

I disposed of some things, and now my clear glass dessert dishes with plates, and white small serving pieces are not so crowded. And with room for some tiny vases in front.

I disposed of some of my stemmed dessert dishes, and made room for some in the garage cabinets. Just can't resist these little treasures. Some I've had since the 1960's. How could I part with those memory makers?

Today I'll shampoo the dining room and put everything back in order tomorrow morning after it dries. Then I must tackle my weeds, which are taking over. My hired weed guy stood me up, and I haven't heard from him for over a week. Guess he's deserted, like so many of them who leave without a word.

Now that everything in the garage is organized, the goal is to use it all and than pass it on (at least most of it), and I think that will take about eighty lady lunches, theme meals, and afternoon teas. Maybe I can finally come up with something worthwhile for this journal.

I don't like to dwell on unpleasantness, so I'll just say that I had a bad experience with Verizon, and now I have a flip phone from Consumer Cellular, and I couldn't be more pleased. It fits with the simple and frugal life I'm seeking.

There have been some bright spots during all this. I got this darling thank you card from Jean (a technique she learned from Friend Linda, who is also Jean's SIL).

A cute card from Katie (the inside says, "no matter how you slice it").

Yes, I got Joey back to making cards, and now I haven't made even one card in weeks (but I will again). Here's one she made for someone in her bookclub.

Another bright spot was a trip to Sight and Sound Theater in Branson to see Queen Esther. It's absolutely fabulous. Words can't describe the magnificant costumes. Sorry, no photos allowed. Make an effort to go see it. Wonderful!

Another bright spot was a trip to Clinton, Missouri to attend the tea at the museum. I knew someone who always said, "Everything changes and never for the better." And she was right. I was very disappointed. In the past, each table was different and fit a theme. One of the volunteers brought in her own table settings, centerpieces, etc. and then the husbands and grown sons of the volunteers served the food and tea continuously throughout the tea. I can't remember the theme, but it had to do with music, vintage, and patriotic. Each table had a party favor for each guest. They were still working on the tables when I took these photos.

The placemats are actually vinyl records, and I'm so stealing this idea when I redo the Lyrical Lunchen theme meal.

This year all the tables were the same, the party favors were the handkerchiefs (or handkerchieves if you prefer) in the teacups. We had pretty paper napkins as well. And the husbands still served. The flowers were nicely done in teapots, and the guest sitting to the right of the table hostess went home with the flowers but not the teapot. They were fixed in little containers with water so they could survive the heat on the drive home.

We started with a scone - A scone, not scones served continuously throughout the tea. Then we got a plate of tea sandwiches to pass - three each (chicken salad, cucumber, and pimiento cheese). The sweets were also one per person, served on one plate to pass. (Crumbs are from my scone). I missed the variety and endless supply of sandwiches and pastries from prior years.

The highlight of the tea was meeting new people and chatting with other women - strictly girl talk and sharing memories.

And just a reminder: Afternoon tea is properly served in this order - sandwiches, scones, desserts. If using a three-tiered server - sandwiches on the bottom, scones in the middle, and desserts on top. And it's Afternoon Tea - not High Tea, as Americans have begun naming it. High Tea is like a light supper and requires an entree.

And while I'm on the subject of wonderful ideas borrowed from Great Britain, I have to mention my new obsession. I found some DVD's at the library book sale called Midsomer Murders.

The settings are quaint villages, cozy interiors, flowers everywhere both inside and out, manor houses with grand interiors, and those wonderful offerings of cups of tea and various pastries. And murder, of course. I'm surprised there are people left in the cute little villages, as they knock off two or three in each episode.

The series lasted a long time, and you can find it on DVD, YouTube, Acorn Streaming, and probably BritBox. I love the shows (about 1 hr and 40 minutes each) and I love the characters - Chief Inspector Barnaby, his assistant Sergeant Troy, his wife Joyce, and all the other wonderful people of English village life. 

I would suggest watching them in order, and here's the link to the first episode: Click Here. 

My new go-to for inspiration, along with my favorite Kevin Lee Jacobs on YouTube.

Of course, I have to post about food. The restaurant which moved into the old Pizza Hut location at Highway 160 and CC Highway is called Bistro 160. The emphasis is on breakfast (open 6 to 3, Tue-Sat). I think those are the hours. Not posted on their website for some reason. The people who own it are also the owners of the Prima Mexican restaurants.

I wasn't too impressed, but will give them another try. Everything was spotlessly clean, and I maybe made a bad choice. Rita and I ordered different sandwiches, but they were very similar. Good meat. The turnoff was my broccoli-cheese soup. It looked like grits or oatmeal. Maybe they used white cheese, and it definitely went through the blender. I couldn't eat it.

I'm so proud of Missouri's Josh Hawley - Click Here. I love watching him in action.

Tomorrow is the birthday of the USA. Wise words from Ken Follett in his novel The Man from St. Petersburg:

There he had learned the ultimate truth about oppression: that it works by turning its victims against each other instead of against their oppressors. 

Call me crazy, but I feel there's a plot for a new world order. Imagine the horrors as the leaders jockey for position, and we become no better than pawns.

I must pray for our country and that American eyes will be opened before we become a Socialist country like all the Socialist and Communist countries around the world who strip you of your dignity and freedom. What happened to the proud Americans who worked hard, were responsible for their actions, refused drugs, believed in God, and could rely on a mostly honest government? 

Time to get to work, and see if I can't put a little Midsomer Magic into my life. 

Week ending June 4, 2023

Monday: Busy day. I changed the sheets, did all the laundry, ran and emptied the dishwasher, cleaned the master bath, vacuumed all but the family room because I didn't want to wake Pepper (cat moms are pushovers), ate the rainbow, posted last week's blog, and ordered the cutting strip for the cutter I bought at Goodwill. I hope it will work, but it isn't scheduled to arrive until after mid-June. Tracking says it was shipped by Royal Mail. Isn't that fun? Sounds as if I'm getting a letter from the king. 

I also ironed the scarves I found at Goodwill for 50 cents each (75% off red tags). I like big scarves which can be used as a light wrap when you go to a restaurant. 

The week started off just fine, but quickly went south. Here's why. 

Lessons I've learned about switching cell phone providers:

I only use my cell phone for emergencies when I leave the house or to look up some info about restaurant hours, etc. I decided I could save money by going from T-Mobile to Consumer Cellular. 

T-Mobile had been charging my credit card monthly, and I never saw a bill after my email got hacked and I could never get my new one updated at T-Mobile. I needed to get this handled first, so I told them to send me paper bills and stop charging my credit card. They said it was handled. Cost $5/month more. Okay.

I went to Target to sign up with Consumer Cellular. There were two guys in red shirts working in the phone department. I told them I wanted to switch to Consumer Cellular. They said there's no one here to help you. We can make an appointment. We have a cancellation on May 25. I told them I had an appoinment to get my teeth cleaned that day, and I didn't know the time, so that wouldn't work. Why couldn't they help me? Because they only work for Target.

Lesson 1: There are no full time Consumer Cellular reps at Target. You must make an appointment or sign up online.

I went home and decided to try it online. No problem, I was told. We need $5 to mail you a new sim card and it will take five to seven business days to arrive. In the meantime, we need from T-Mobile your account number, your IME number, and your transfer code. We're setting up your account now, so you'll have a reference number when you call. Okay.

I went to T-Mobile and got my account number and my IME number and they told me that my account was past due and I owed a late fee. Horrors! I always pay my bills on time. I told them I'd never received a bill, and they told me we can't send paper bills. Then why did you tell me it was all set up? 

I paid the bill by credit card and they started working on getting a transfer code. It took an hour and three people working on it and talking to the tech department at headquarters or wherever. 

The result was that I couldn't get a transfer code because I had them turn off texting when I got the phone. So I asked them what does this mean? You can't keep your number. What?! Why didn't you just say so? I don't give a rip about keeping my number. No one uses it unless I don't answer one of the phones I have in my office, bedroom, family room, kitchen, guest room, or garage.

Lesson 2: T-Mobile does not do paper billing.

Lesson 3: Your trans code is only to transfer your cell phone number to the new service provider.

Lesson 4: If you turn off your texting at T-Mobile, they cannot give you a trans code.

My sim card finally came, so I called Consumer Cellular for directions. They sent a little tool with my card. It looks like a piece of wire, twisted into a loop, and with a tail. You remove the phone from it's case, insert the tail into a hole on the side of the phone, and it pops out a little door with your sim card nestled inside. You change the sim card and then they activate your phone. I told the rep that I needed a new phone number. No problem. This will take a minute. 

After two hours on the phone with the rep, trying this and trying that, I was told that my phone is not compatible with Consumer Cellular. What does this mean? I need to buy a new phone. They could have checked this with my IME number before we even got started, but didn't bother.

Lesson 5: Cell phones are not compatible with all companies; especially if it was a "free" phone. Most companies can check with the IME number right up front. Some require you to open an account first.

Lesson 6: The sim card is like the software from the service. It's like the operating system for that specific company.

Now I had a dead phone.

Lesson 7: Don't cancel your old provider until you're certain that the new provider is working properly.

I changed back to the T-Mobile sim card and it worked. 

Lesson 8: When changing providers, don't discard the old sim card or handle it too much until you're sure your phone is operating with the new sim card.

I decided to go shopping online. I went to Verizon and they asked for my IME number, and told me my phone was not compatible. I checked Mint Mobile. Same thing. I checked AT&T and got nowhere.

AT&T has an office in Nixa, so I went there and was told that I had to open an account before they could check my IME number. I told them I didn't wish to and went to Walmart.

There was no one working in the phone department until 11:00 a.m. 

Lesson 9: Walmart's website might have hours listed online for the wireless department, but that does not include phones. The phones are a concession and their hours don't always match with Walmart's hours. You have to check the schedule posted in the phone department.

I did some shopping and went back to phones at 11:00. I was told that the rep is always late, and sure enough, he showed up at 11:15. My Walmart phone department handles T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon. 

I knew I didn't want T-Mobile - been there/done that. I'm not happy with AT&T U-verse prices, and didn't want to open an account to see if my phone was compatible, so tell me about Verizon.

I got a free phone, paper billing, no contract, I can up my plan to include hot spots if traveling, and then change back later if I wish. Hot spots are where you can access the internet, even though your phone service is in a dead zone. It costs extra.

After an hour or so, working with the tech department at headquarters, my phone was finally activated. 

Lesson 9: Changing providers will take longer than you thought. Be sure you have the time before you start.

Glad I hadn't put ice cream in my cart before we started.

My mission was to lower my bill, but instead I raised it, though I now have unlimited text I won't use and unlimited data (internet) which I won't use, a new phone to learn even though it's the same maker - just an updated version, but I do have paper billing.

I went to the T-Mobile office and told them to cancel my account and I wanted to pay my pro-rated bill. I was again past due and had a late fee. Why didn't you charge my credit card? Because you changed to paper billing (which they don't have). Fine, just tell me what I owe right now, final bill, and I'll pay it by credit card. You're past the cut off date, so you have to wait until the next bill for the prorated amount from May 25 to May 31. Come back to our office toward the end of June and we'll handle it.

Then I got an email from Consumer Cellular that I owed $10.25. I called to ask why and it was my prorated bill from when I signed up until their cut-off date. I told her that my phone was not compatible and I'd never had service. After much back and forth, she said that she'd take care of it and that someone should have checked my phone before we ever started. I heartily agreed.

A few days later I got another email from Consumer Cellular that I owed $11+ by June 20. I called again and the robot told me that my bill was past due in the amount of $11+. What? not June 20 like the email says? And because my account had never been completed with a password, etc. I couldn't even see the bill. Once again I called and told them the story and finally had to get the manager on the phone to get it handled. I hope!

Lessons I've learned in the past: Everything bad happens for a reason. You  might not know why immediately, but be patient and the answer will be revealed.

Then I got a call that the painter would be here on Thursday to paint my dining room and entry. Great! Now I had to empty the buffet of glassware and s&p shakers, plus take all the glassware off the tea cart. I removed all the furniture but the buffet and table.

Now the painting is finished and looks great, but my kitchen looks like this. I decided to go ahead and wash all the glassware and the pumpkins from the top of the buffet, plus I'm orgainizing the things in the cabinets to sort out what goes to Jean's church for their rummage sale.

 

The dining room and entry still look that same but with fresh paint. I need to shampoo the carpet before putting furniture back. I also need to clean the buffet and tea cart before putting the glassware etc. back. The glassware on the table is washed and ready.

These things need to be washed.

But I've decided to get all my clear glassware out in one place and decide what I can do without.

These salt and pepper shakers and knick knacks need to be gone through also before I put away the ones I want to keep.

I've already sorted the things on the island and removed a few things for the church, but I've decided to pack it all up and take it to the garage.

And I have all this ready to go to the church.

I still have room to tuck in little things, so I need to get with it.

It's been a boring week, but life isn't always about the things you want to do; sometimes it's about what you need to do. Believe me, I needed that painting finished, my decluttering continued, and all the organizing of things in the garage which resulted from the decluttering.

Next week won't be any more exciting, but I'll get back to the fun stuff soon.

And kudos to Joey - she's back to making cards. I just got one in my mail.

I also got a sweet thank you from Katie as well.

And a "just because" card from Katie. The inside says, "Any way you slice it."

I'm definitely making a note of the day of this post so I can refer to it the next time I decide to change cell phone providers.