Our very advanced granddog, Roxanne, can now sit and say please. She was over for a visit Friday evening and when we were out in the front yard, a bouncy Bichon Frise named Betsey, from the Hickory Hill Hood, stopped by. The two pups frolicked in the front. Maddie, the Amazing Barking Dog, sat quietly on the ground beside me, carefully protecting her big bushy tail from possible pup molestation (you know how she hates that).

We also have another new granddog, as Brent and Lindsey got their West Highland Terrier puppy this week. Her name is Bonnie and I hear that she is adorable. I've also heard that she's quite the pooper. Can't wait to meet her.......


And we will meet her next weekend because it's APPLE FESTIVAL WEEKEND. I still need to find a few people who would be willing to work a two hour shift at the information booth. This is really pretty fun, because you get to hand out complimentary shopping bags, which makes everybody happy, and you get to point people to the Beef and Nudla and help find lost children (should any get lost, knock on wood that they don't) So, if you can help, and you know who you are, give me a call and we'll get you all fixed up.


I did a little subbing this week and made a few cakes, and the Book Babes met at our house on Thursday evening. It was an exciting meeting because we welcomed three new members: Cindy, Megan, and Jennifer. The Babes have been reading together for thirteen years and a couple of members dropped out and a couple moved away (you remember, good 'ol Stormy in Wilkes Barre). Anyway, we decided we needed a little rejuvenating, and we're all pretty excited about the newbies.

This month's book was Run by Ann Patchett, which we all liked, but we did not agree as to how it compared to her earlier Bel Canto.




Also on Saturday night, Bob and I, who, as you will recall, usually do exciting things on Saturday night like putting up corn for the freezer and obso-pondering in the basement, went to the fabulous Dekkochanski end-of-the-summer party. Wonderful food and Las Vegas fun!





Follow Up: The Terriers did win their homecoming game against the Orphans, handing them their 30th straight loss. Poor Orphans! However, unfortunately this week the Terriers went up against the highly-ranked Cahokia Comanches who chased them back to Carbondale with their little tails tucked between their legs. Next week will be better, I'm sure.



From the Archives: Wow this is small. The Pillers family, taken in May at Melissa's wedding. In front - Bob and Darlene, Back row - John and Pam, Dena and Drew (parents of the bride) Big Lou and Bob (dream-livers) - Bob left his jacket in the car

Recipe of the Week: Delicious dill dip that was served to the Book Babes along with crackers and the dip that's good enough to eat with cardboard (and nobody will care) and cinnamon-scented dutch chocolate cupcakes. These other recipes are also recorded in earlier posts.

Dill Dip

1 cup sour cream

1 cup mayo

1 tablespoon dried onion flakes

1 teaspoon dill weed

1 teaspoon seasoning salt

Mix together - refrigerate for several hours before serving with vegetables.

"I think that a hat which has a little cannon that fires and then goes back inside the hat is at least a decade away."Jack Handey

I took this picture from our driveway on Saturday afternoon. We even talked to the people in the balloon. This guy yelled down to us, "I don't know where we're going!"

"Really?" we said and we all laughed. Maddie, the Amazing Barking Dog had a field day with this, as you might imagine.

Lindsey and Brent came up for the weekend. They went to the Cubs/Cardinals game in Chicago on Friday night, then a wedding on Saturday in Fort Wayne. On Sunday, we went to church, then for a walk and then Lindsey went to a bridal shower and Brent and I watched football and the Ryder Cup, and ate vegetable soup with sourdough bread. I filled him in on some of my sports theories and thoughts like: why it was better for the Americans to play without Tiger and why I was worried about Troy Polamalu's hair and how I had researched the whereabouts of Jake Plummer - it seems he married a cheerleader and is playing handball in Idaho. Brent was mesmerized. Bob was out in California playing some golf this weekend.



There's a reason why they call our road Hickory Hill Drive. Looks like it's going to be a good year for nuts around here. We've got hickory nuts, walnuts, acorns and beechnuts.






More Musings: My brother-in-law is now coaching football in Carbondale, IL, and this was their homecoming weekend, so I was wondering if they won their big game, which was postponed on Friday night because of lightning, and played on Saturday afternoon. My sister was hopeful for a win against the Centralia Orphans, who hadn't won a game in the last couple of years. The Orphans? I couldn't help but wonder what kind of cheers went up at a pep rally when one was intent upon pulverizing a bunch of orphans.

Southern Illinois University is the home of the Salukis, so the high school team is the Terriers. If the Terriers won the game, would the newspaper headline the next day read: "Terriers Nip Orphans?" Or if they won, really big: "Terriers Maul Orphans?" Doesn't seem very sporting.

Our high school mascot, of course, was the Effingham Flaming Hearts. Chicago radio dj's had a good time making fun of our name when our basketball team played for the state championship in 1980. We always thought it was a great name - so much you can do with it: "Heart's got soul!" "We're givin' you a HEART attack!" "Watch Out, CARDIAC ARREST!"

I know a woman who went to high school in Michigan and they were the tractors.......what, "Tractors Plow Over Orphans?"

Good thing they aren't in the same conference.


FOOD NEWS:





The Chocolate Tootsie Pops are backing up again. Call me.






I'm teaching a pie baking class at the park department on October 21st. It costs ten dollars to take the class, and there will be pie to take home. If you're interested, call me, or call the park department at 347-1064.



Finally: The Blog is one year old this week!! They grow up so fast. Yes, I've been blogging now for one year, most every week, although I did miss a couple of weeks last winter, and of course, when I had the killer influenza. I was reading about a woman who was offered $130,000 to turn her blog about life on a dairy farm in northern England into a book. I wish somebody would see fit to publish a book about all the nuts on Hickory Hill Drive.




"I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they choose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas." Jack Handey

Unbeknownst to this blogger, there was a real potato theme going on in last week's post. Mr. Potato Head...I painted the walls with a color called "potato soup"...I served Bob,Potato Shitake Mushroom Gratin for his birthday. I didn't even realize it at the time, but later, this revelation gave me cause to pause and ponder the pleasing potato.

Did you know that archaeologists have found potato remains in Peru that dated back to 500 B.C.? Apparently the Incas both ate and worshiped them. And did you know that, as potatoes made their way to other parts of the world, they were oftentimes not well-received? In 1600, the French claimed that the potato "caused, not only leprosy, but also syphilis, narcosis, scrofula, early death, sterility, and rampant sexuality."

Whoa. I never dreamed I would "dig up" anything this spicy while researching the spud.

The German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche said, "A diet that consists predominantly of rice leads to the use of opium, just as a diet that consists predominantly of potatoes leads to the use of liquor." Hmmmmm

Bob's Grandpa Harvey insisted on having potatoes every evening. Legend has it that he once got up from the supper table, vowing not to return until a potato, in some form, appeared.

Yes, we love our potatoes. So much so, that I wrote them this little poem:

Ode to the Potato

Sing a song of praise for you, oh fair potato

As a satisfying side dish, you really are first rate-o.

Red, Idaho, Yukon Gold,

Fried, scalloped, baked, with flavor bold.

Served with ketchup, cheese, and butter,

Your taste thrills us like no utter.

We love you with burgers; we love you in soup

You're the shining star of your food group.

And the only time we will forsake

Is when we find the mashed potatoes FAKE!

Sing a song of praise to you, oh fair potato

It fills my heart with rapture to see you on my plate-o.

I stayed up very late Saturday night working on this birthday cake. Hope the birthday baby liked it.

Recipe of the Week: You remember that I promised you the recipe for the potato dish last week. I have to tell you that these potatoes got better with time and when I served the last of them on Wednesday night, with Parmesan chicken breasts, well, we were elbowing each other to lick the bottom of the baking dish. Even Rob likes them!

Potato Shitake Mushroom Gratin

6 tablespoons butter

1 1/2 pounds button mushrooms, coarsely chopped

1/2 pound shitake mushrooms, chopped

3 tablespoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

2 cups chicken broth

3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and sliced

2 cups grated Parmesan cheese (reserve 1/2 cup for last 15 minutes

2 cups half and half

2 cups whipping cream (can use fat-free- I, of course, would never do that)

1 - 1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Directions: Melt butter, add mushrooms and saute until liquid evaporates about 10 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, rosemary, saute 1 minute. Add chicken broth and simmer until liquid evaporates, stir often, about 18 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and cool.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter or spray a 9 X 13 inch backing dish, Arrange half of the potatoes in dish, top with half of cheese and half of mushroom mixture. Repeat. Whisk the half and half and whipping cream. Pour over potato mixture. Cover loosely with foil and place on a cookie sheet, to catch overrun. Bake about an hour and a half. Uncover, sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and bake another 15 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes and serve.

"I think a new different kind of bowling should be 'carpet bowling.' It's just like regular bowling, only the lanes are carpet instead of wood. I don't know why we should do this, but my God, we've got to try something!"

Jack Handey

From the Archives: Let's start with an old picture of Bob. What a cherub he was in his 1954 Easter suit and jaunty little cap! Monday, September 8th, is his birthday. Bob was born in 1952. Also turning 56 this year are:




















Warren 'Potsie' Weber from Happy Days - Anson Williams













Mr. Potato Head



















and PEZ

Musings: When you walk into your laundry room and find a spider in your sink, do you:


A. Find something to fish him out of there with and set him outside?


B. Ignore him - no way can he run up the side of that sink and attack you


C. Turn on the water?



Generally, I find myself doing C. I'll watch him swirl around a couple of times, but then when his little legs crumple up, I start to feel sorry for him, so I might turn off the water - you know - give him a second chance. Usually, it's too late, and I feel like a bad person.
Do you remember the statistic that was being thrown around a few years ago about the number of spiders people swallow in their sleep each year? I can't remember if it's 4 or 8 - and it doesn't really matter, because either one is way too many spiders. It's just not possible. That many spiders are charging into people's mouths - like lemmings over a cliff? I don't think so. A spider crawling around on your face would tickle - you would brush it away, and somebody, somewhere would wake up, look in the mirror, and notice a spider leg lodged between his teeth. I have never heard of that happening.

Bob is a real advocate for the spider. He sings the praises of the spider and his usefulness to mankind. He doesn't want me to knock any spider webs down.

"Think of how many bugs that spider will eat," he'll say.
"Maybe, but this is not 1313 Mockingbird Lane, and I cannot decorate with cobwebs," I'll say.


Yeah, Bob's a real cheerleader for the spider. He's going to be pretty disappointed when he reads this and realizes that I've been drowning them behind his back, for pure sport.


I've been working on a few projects around here:


Took down the textured wallpaper in the entry and hallways and painted with a color called "potato soup," and re-stained this little pipe cabinet. Also had the rugs cleaned and shampooed the carpets and.....


enlarged this flower bed in the backyard.


Bob's Birthday Dinner - In honor of Bob and his birthday, we had his favorite, eggplant Parmesan for supper Sunday night. I also made a potato shitake mushroom gratin that is wonderful, and I'll post that recipe next week. But the recipe of this week is for Bob's favorite birthday dessert, Chocolate Ecstasy.



Chocolate Ecstasy

1 - 21 1/2 oz package brownie mix

2 (2-oz) packages chocolate mousse mix

1/3 cup coffee liqueur

1- 12 oz Cool Whip

1 package Heath Bar bits

1 cup chopped pecans



Prepare brownie mix according to directions. Cool, then using a toothpick, poke some holes in the brownies and pour the liqueur over the top. Prepare the mousse according to the directions. In the bottom of a trifle bowl, place about half of the brownies, then half of the mousse, half of the Cool Whip and sprinkle with half of the Heath bits and pecans. Repeat the layering process. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for several hours.



"If I was being executed by injection, I'd clean up my cell real neat. Then, when they came to get me, I'd say 'injection? I thought you said inspection.' They'd probably feel real bad, and maybe I could get out of it."
Jack Handey

Just a short blog this week. We spent a great Labor Day Weekend in Houston, attending the wedding of Lucy & Jaer. The wedding was beautiful and the reception was really fun. This first picture is of Lucy and Jaer at the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. Lindsey was one of Lucy's bridesmaids, and she and Brent drove down to Houston. They did some sight-seeing on the way and even happened to be at LBJ's Texas ranch on his 100th birthday. They got to have cake.

Bob and I flew down on Saturday and back on Monday. We did not see Gustav. The only unusual thing about our trip occured while we were waiting in Concourse B at O'Hare for our connecting flight. I was talking to Lindsey on the phone. She was regaling me with an anecdote from the night before, when I interrupted her to tell her that there was a bird right by my foot, pecking at some potato chip crumbs left by messy travelers. We finished our phone conversation and I swear, not ten minutes later, a mouse scurried by! Bird and mouse within ten minutes! You can ask Bob. I think I might be a critter magnet. Or wait! Maybe it's Bob.

Here are other photos from the weekend:

Us with Kay Howard at the rehearsal dinner

photo by: the very lovely Dolly Dankel

Lucy and her sister, Dorothy, share a moment with guests

Vi helps her beautiful daughter get ready for the wedding

The bridesmaids wore green

Recipe of the Week:

We've got cherry tomatoes coming out of our ears here on Hickory Hill Drive and one good way to use them up is to make these stuffed cherry tomato appetizers. Here's the recipe:

Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes
24 cherry tomatoes, stemmed
6 bacon slices, cooked, drained and crumbled
1/2 cup finely chopped green onion
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Fresh parsley for garnish

Place tomatoes, stem-side down on a cutting board. Cut thin slice from top of each tomato. Using a small spoon, scoop out tomato pulp; discard. Invert tomatoes on paper towels; drain thoroughly. In a small bowl combine bacon onions and mayo. Spoon into tomato shells. Cover and chill for 2 hours. Garnish with parsley. Tasty!


"It makes me mad when people say I ran like a scared rabbit. Maybe it was like an angry rabbit, who was going to fight in another fight, away from the first fight." Jack Handey

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's rocks....oh, but I do, I do covet them. For you Illinois peeps, there are lots of huge, wonderful rocks in Northern Indiana and many residents have incorporated them into their landscaping. In fact, I think almost every yard in our neighborhood has a majestic rock of some kind on display. This is a rock down the road from us.

This is the rock next door........................

The rock across the street

You get the picture. Oh, we do have this. We dug it up in a flower bed about ten years ago. Obviously, it came straight from outer space, which makes it something special, but it's small and nobody ever notices it. You can't demand that people notice it either, you can't yell out at departing guests to "Make sure you get a good look at our meteorite before you leave!" That would be braggy and pathetic. No, people will just have to notice our meteorite on their own, without prompting or urging.

We also have this fine specimen. Rob found this a long time ago, at Maw-Maw's, I think. For years we wondered what it was, it seems just too round and perfect to be a real rock. Finally, I gave it to the head of the Geology department at IPFW and he reported back that it was, indeed, (hold onto your hats) a real sedimentary rock!

I guess we'd have to admit that we aren't lacking in the rock department and shouldn't complain, but I still would like to have a big rock in the front yard, and maybe we could even have our house number chiseled into it. I do know where there is such a rock, it's back in our own woods, behind the house, just west of the home of Hickory Hill Hans.

It's not gigantic, but it's pretty tall and has good color. I'm sure I'd be happy with it. Now, all I need is someone to help me get it up to the yard.

Still on the subject of rocks, (and this ties into our earlier post about songs with summer in the title) Bob Ritchie aka "Kid Rock," has a song out called All Summer Long. In this song, Kid says that in 1989, in northern Michigan, he was listening to the song Sweet Home Alabama, all the time. Well, that song is from 1974, and I guess he could have been listening to it then, but on his boom box or jambox or ghetto blaster or whatever portable sound system he had in 1989 (today, I have what I call my Ipod-thingy) However, I don't think he was listening to it on the radio.

Bob "Kid Rock" Ritchie really borrows big-time from the song Sweet Home Alabama, and that's okay, as that's kind of the point of the song, BUT...the rest of the song sounds just like Werewolves of London. Am I the only one noticing this? It's Werewolves of London. Didn't George Harrison run into a little trouble doing this - My Sweet Lord/He's so Fine?

And the lyrics: We were trying different things

We were smoking funny things

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I think those lyrics are right down there with "Way down the Road to Old Funkhouser."

But then, Bob "Kid Rock" Ritchie is making a truckload of money with that song, and I'm not, so................Rock on.

Bob "Man Rock" Pillers and I got this corn ready for the freezer Saturday night while we watched the Olympics. Yeah, we know, we're exciting, alright.

From the Archives: Earlier this year - a Tiki mask workshop at Maw-Maw's.

Recipe of the Week: My mother-in-law, Darlene, e-mailed me a recipe for Cinnabon cinnamon rolls. She didn't use this frosting recipe, but just glazed them with a powdered sugar and milk frosting. I did use their frosting recipe, and I think it makes them a little too rich. Darlene might have the right idea. I'll let you be the judge. Here are the rolls getting ready to go to neighbors (those lucky dogs with those great rocks)

Cinnabon Rolls

1/2 cup warm water

2 packages yeast

2 tablespoons sugar

3 1/2 oz package instant vanilla pudding

2 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

6 cups flour

Filling

1 cup softened butter

2 cups brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. cream cheese

1/2 cup butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 Tablespoon milk

In a small bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. stir until dissolved and sit aside. In a large bowl , prepare instant pudding per the directions ( usually with 2 cups of milk) Add butter, eggs and salt. Mix well. Then add yeast mixture and blend. Gradually add flour. Knead until smooth. Place in a greased bowl and allow to rise until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down and let rise again.

Roll dough out onto floured surface. Take 1 cup of softened butter and spread over dough. Combine 2 cups of brown sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon and sprinkle over dough. Roll up tightly and cut rolls - about 2 inches in size. Place on a greased cookie sheet or jelly roll pan about 2 inches apart. Cover and let rise until doubled in size. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden brown. Frost rolls when they are still warm. make about 20 very large rolls.

"When I found the skull in the woods, the first thing I did was call the police. But then, I got curious about it. I picked it up and started wondering who this person was, and why he had deer horns." Jack Handey

Week in Review: These are the Dog Days of Summer, but you sure can't tell it by the great weather we've been enjoying. Dog Days are supposed to be hot and the air, stagnant. The ancient Greeks and Romans called them caniculares dies (days of the dog) after Sirius, the dog star. I took advantage of the cool weather and moved some more lily of the valley out of the woods and put it around the grave of our first Shetland Sheepdog, "Tess, the Dog who Only Barked When Necessary." She was a great dog. Bob always reminds Maddie of this if the two of them happen to be anywhere in the vicinity of the hallowed ground. He'll turn to her and say, "Now there was a dog!" Indeed, they still speak of her in hushed and reverent tones down at Champs and Tramps Grooming and Kennel. They even took her along to visit nursing home residents a couple of times when she was boarding there. Maddie, the Amazing Barking Dog has never been invited by the ladies at Champs and Tramps to go along and help cheer up the elderly. In fact, she's been known to bare her teeth at those ladies when they mess with her tail (not that we haven't all felt like doing that, at times)

You know, the ancients believed the Dog Days of Summer were days of evil "when the seas boiled, wine turned sour, and dogs grew mad." They would sacrifice a brown dog at the beginning of the Dog Days to appease the rage of Sirius. I am not making that up.

Our front door mat

And more about dogs: This is what Rob and Candace bought this week with the change they'd been saving. Her name is Roxanne.











From the Archives: How about a picture from, probably 1993, of the kids and Tess, the Dog Who Only Barked when Necessary.












Recipe of the Week: 2008 is the Chinese year of the Rat, but around here it 's certainly shaping up to be the Year of the Pie. We've seen a lot of pies come through here in the last several months, and considering the fact that I put 30 pounds of cherries, 9 pounds of blueberries and some peaches in the freezer this week, I'd say our future pie prospects are promising.

The Year of the Pie isn't that big of a deal, but it's better than the Year of the Rat, and way better than the Year of the Grasshopper Scourge, or the Year of the FBI Surveillance, or the Year of the Chronic Eye Infection.

Here's the recipe:

Maine Blueberry Pie
6 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup plus 1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg white, lightly beaten with 1 Tablespoon water

Of course, always begin with Opie's No-Fail Pie Dough recipe. Then:
lightly toss the blueberries with 1 cup sugar, the cornstarch, cinnamon, grated lemon and vanilla. Brush the bottom of your pie shell with the egg white mixture to prevent sogginess. Put the blueberries in the pie pan and add the upper crust. Slash the top of the pie to vent and sprinkle on remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake in the lower part of a 400 degree oven for about an hour or until the filing bubbles.

"People think it would be fun to be a bird because you can fly. But, they forget about the negative side, which is the preening."
Jack Handey