I've been cooking for myself for almost 50 years. I don't often see a new recipe that I suspect I will like. The newspaper food section offers stuff like fish smothered in strawberries or pork with aocado sauce. I know what I like and don't like. Adding stuff like tofu and pineapple to my tossed salad isn't my style.
But I came across one in Better Homes and Gardens (I got a free subscription with some thing I bought at a store). It seemed weird, but I tried it. And I LOVED it!
So here it is (my adjusted version):
1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Spray or wipe some olive oil on a sheet pan.
3. In a plastic bag, place 6 bone-in chicken thighs, add some olive oil to coat, add some salt, ground pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and some dried red pepper flakes to taste. Shake bag to spread spices.
4. Place chicken on baking sheet.
5. Add 1 lemon and 2 shallots cut into wedges.
6. Bake 30-40 minutes until chicken thighs are 175F.
7. Squeeze lemons to release remaining juice. Careful, they are hot.
8. Remove chicken to bowl and cover to keep warm.
9. Add 1/2 cup green olives and 2 pats butter to pan. Return pan to oven for 5 minutes.
10. Pour heated pan liquid into a fat separator for 5 minutes. It separates quickly.
11. Pour juices over chicken and let sit 5 minutes.
12. Serve over any starch or pasta you like or none.
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Another Good Day Outside
Can you guess what these 2 garden paths and part of a flowerbed have in common?
No weeds! And why? They were covered all Winter with old black plastic sheeting! The stuff was used several year elsewhere, had rip and holes and cutouts for various resons. but folded up a couple times, it worked great to smother the winter weeds in the paths and bed and then cook whatever was left in the hot sun the past few weeks!
I spread them out to dry, but actually I have a new use for them. I have some annoying vine that a neighbor planted then mowed to death. But not before it escaped to my yard where I can't mow. This Summer will be a 'KILL THOSE VINES" project. I don't like using herbicides near the garden, so I will use the string trimmer to cut them to ground level, then cover the areas with the many-times-used black plastic. I have lots of bricks and stones to hold the plastic down.
They have gotten established in the old asparagus bed. The asparagus is long gone (lasts about 20 years and they were planted 30 years ago). Because there are also junk tree saolings growing there, I cut them down to ground level. Obnoxiously, that won't kill them. But I have an old piece of plywood that just fits. So I will set that down AND put black plastic on top weighted down with old cinder blocks. That old framed bed should be good to use again in 2 years. Sometimes, things take time to passively improve.
The 2 dwarf apple trees have been in place for 2 decades and I've never gotten a ripe one from them. The Evil Squirrels take then away before they are ripe. And poison ivy has taken over the ground beneath them. So very soon, I will use the hedge trimmer to cut the poison ivy to ground level (wearing a mask and elbow length rubber gloves that will go straight into soapy water in the basement laundry tub after), cover the ground with more of the old black plastic, and cut down the apple trees.
I will use a chain saw to lop the 3" thick apple wood trunks into small 1" slices for B-B-Q smoking, and wait for the poison ivy to smother under the plastic by next year.
Poison ivy abounds here. I have 2 neighbors who have parts of their yards they pay no attention to, and the stuff grows rampant. Birds are immune to poison ivy and eat the berries, so they spread around all over. I sometimes find new poison ivy plants growing where no poison ivy plant is near, so it has to be from seeds from bird-droppings.
Talking to my neighbors about it has no effect. I even offerred to spray them myself, but they declined. I meant the poison ivy, of course, but would consider the neighbors for being so oblivious. LOL!
They have gotten established in the old asparagus bed. The asparagus is long gone (lasts about 20 years and they were planted 30 years ago). Because there are also junk tree saolings growing there, I cut them down to ground level. Obnoxiously, that won't kill them. But I have an old piece of plywood that just fits. So I will set that down AND put black plastic on top weighted down with old cinder blocks. That old framed bed should be good to use again in 2 years. Sometimes, things take time to passively improve.
The 2 dwarf apple trees have been in place for 2 decades and I've never gotten a ripe one from them. The Evil Squirrels take then away before they are ripe. And poison ivy has taken over the ground beneath them. So very soon, I will use the hedge trimmer to cut the poison ivy to ground level (wearing a mask and elbow length rubber gloves that will go straight into soapy water in the basement laundry tub after), cover the ground with more of the old black plastic, and cut down the apple trees.
I will use a chain saw to lop the 3" thick apple wood trunks into small 1" slices for B-B-Q smoking, and wait for the poison ivy to smother under the plastic by next year.
Poison ivy abounds here. I have 2 neighbors who have parts of their yards they pay no attention to, and the stuff grows rampant. Birds are immune to poison ivy and eat the berries, so they spread around all over. I sometimes find new poison ivy plants growing where no poison ivy plant is near, so it has to be from seeds from bird-droppings.
Talking to my neighbors about it has no effect. I even offerred to spray them myself, but they declined. I meant the poison ivy, of course, but would consider the neighbors for being so oblivious. LOL!
Friday, May 11, 2018
New Neighbors
My new neighbors appear to be new to home-owning. I've mowed my lawn 3 times. Theirs is 12-18" high! I was looking for an opportunity to ask them if they wanted me to use my riding mower on their yard (without seeming like a pest) while they shopped for a mower of their own. I mean, for all I know, they are saving up to buy a mower. When I bought this first house, I was down to "dollars and dimes".
So I was surprised to see the front lawn was mowed while I was out grocery-shopping 2 days ago. They even mowed the few square feet in the corner of my lawn I can't get to with the riding mower and often just use a string trimmer on (My own regular push mower won't start and the battery string trimmer needed recharging).
Today they took a whack at the back yard and I was amazed. They would push the mower forward 5 feet, then pull it back, then push it in a different direction, and pull it back again. I'm not sure what their idea was, but really tall grass is hard to mow.
They stay inside almost all the time. First, that makes it hard to figure out what the family structure is. For the first several months, it appeared to be a husband and wife and a child about 5. But the husband was almost never there. I figured out that the husband is there when the car is in the driveway (the garage must be full) and may not actually live there.
And a new surprise. A 16 or so female showed up along with the usual crowd of high-schoolers walking down the street from the bus stop further up the neighborhood. I haven't seen her before. And she was the one who started mowing the back yard in the weird pattern.
This has become a diverse neighborhood over the 32 years I've lived here. And I rather like that. There are sometimes very interesting smells coming from outdoor cooking. And I see interesting decorations around holidays. All that makes MY differences stand out less.
These neighbors are hispanic, I think. At least, I assume so from when I noticed from the mother taking the child inside when the hispanic guys started cursing at some tree limbs they were fighting with (I guessed by the tone of voice). I took Spanish in high school, and trust me, they did NOT teach us curse words. But you can generally make a good guess in almost any language, LOL!
I'm outside a lot, so I tend to be aware of my neighbors...
So the teenager was mowing the lawn in a strange way, and all of a sudden, I heard her cry out and saw through the fence she was lying on the ground holding a leg. The child yelled "Mama, Mama". I was just reaching for the 4' stepladder sitting next to the shed to get up over the fence to see if she was injured when the older woman (30?) of the house ran out. But she didn't seem distressed. So I guess the mower hit a rock and it hit the teenager's leg. She was up and mowing again in a couple minutes.
Have you ever just wished you could knock on a neighbor's door and say "Can I help you learn how to do yard-things"? But knowing you didn't speak the same language?
I guess I have to just watch and wait. *SIGH*
So I was surprised to see the front lawn was mowed while I was out grocery-shopping 2 days ago. They even mowed the few square feet in the corner of my lawn I can't get to with the riding mower and often just use a string trimmer on (My own regular push mower won't start and the battery string trimmer needed recharging).
Today they took a whack at the back yard and I was amazed. They would push the mower forward 5 feet, then pull it back, then push it in a different direction, and pull it back again. I'm not sure what their idea was, but really tall grass is hard to mow.
They stay inside almost all the time. First, that makes it hard to figure out what the family structure is. For the first several months, it appeared to be a husband and wife and a child about 5. But the husband was almost never there. I figured out that the husband is there when the car is in the driveway (the garage must be full) and may not actually live there.
And a new surprise. A 16 or so female showed up along with the usual crowd of high-schoolers walking down the street from the bus stop further up the neighborhood. I haven't seen her before. And she was the one who started mowing the back yard in the weird pattern.
This has become a diverse neighborhood over the 32 years I've lived here. And I rather like that. There are sometimes very interesting smells coming from outdoor cooking. And I see interesting decorations around holidays. All that makes MY differences stand out less.
These neighbors are hispanic, I think. At least, I assume so from when I noticed from the mother taking the child inside when the hispanic guys started cursing at some tree limbs they were fighting with (I guessed by the tone of voice). I took Spanish in high school, and trust me, they did NOT teach us curse words. But you can generally make a good guess in almost any language, LOL!
I'm outside a lot, so I tend to be aware of my neighbors...
So the teenager was mowing the lawn in a strange way, and all of a sudden, I heard her cry out and saw through the fence she was lying on the ground holding a leg. The child yelled "Mama, Mama". I was just reaching for the 4' stepladder sitting next to the shed to get up over the fence to see if she was injured when the older woman (30?) of the house ran out. But she didn't seem distressed. So I guess the mower hit a rock and it hit the teenager's leg. She was up and mowing again in a couple minutes.
Have you ever just wished you could knock on a neighbor's door and say "Can I help you learn how to do yard-things"? But knowing you didn't speak the same language?
I guess I have to just watch and wait. *SIGH*
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
Good Outside Day
I presoak my large seeds. I think I get more emerging seedlings that way. I put them in an old ice cube tray. It isn't hard to tell some seeds apart (what else looks like corn or beans?) . But I had 2 kinds of SE bi-color corn (early and late) so I drew a box on paper with names.
I planted the beans (yellow italian flat pole beans), english style seedless cucumbers, a couple yellow squash along the trellises at the back of the framed beds.
Planting the corns was more involved. I chose to plant then where I had tomatoes near the house last year. It was mostly still covered with red plastic so there weren't too many weeds, but there were some. And I added 2" of compost to the top. I have a nice little electric tiller good for small spaces and used that to mix the compost in.
I didn't think there was much above ground or below, but this little tiller really wraps up anything around the blades! It took we 15 minutes to unwind all the grass and weed roots (and I was annoyed to find a poison ivy vine it pulled up.
I was wearing gloves, so no real concern about a poison ivy rash, but I soaked the gloves in hot soapy water and washed my had up to the elbows carefully afterwards. I'm careful around that stuff, as I pulled up unknown viny roots from my asparagus bed and had 2 weeks of poison ivy annoyance years ago.
But after the tilling, the ground was soft and mostly weed-free. So I drew two 3'x3' blocks and stuck stakes around them to mark the planted area. There is space for another succession planting of 2'x2' blocks of both corns in 3 weeks. Stuck one germinated corn seed in each 1 square foot block.
Then it was time to fertilize. I had some leftover 6-0-0 corn gluten meal liquid and some N-Lite 2-6-6 (which makes a good balance), but I can't use the corn gluten liquid where there are new seeds. Then I remembered I had some organic 11-0-0 lawn fertilizer.
So I sprinkled a mix of the lawn fertilizer and the N-Lite that resulted in a 6-6-6 fertilizer for most of the garden. I used the corn gluten liquid (that prevents seed from germinating) on the tomato and pepper seedling bed (since it won't disturb them but will suppress weeds). And I spread mostly lawn fertilizer over the corn planting area since corn is a heavy Nitrogen user (like lawn grass).
And since I was in "fertilizing mode", I mixed more 6-6-6 to spread on the meadow flower bed and the hummer/bee/butterfly bed.
The hummer/bee/butterfly bed really got my attention. It is almost bare of growth! I suspect the seed mix I sowed last year was almost all annuals.
I need to find a better mix. I got out the catolog I bought the last year's seeds from, but they do not say which are annuals and which are perennials.
But that is for next time. I was tired.
I planted the beans (yellow italian flat pole beans), english style seedless cucumbers, a couple yellow squash along the trellises at the back of the framed beds.
Planting the corns was more involved. I chose to plant then where I had tomatoes near the house last year. It was mostly still covered with red plastic so there weren't too many weeds, but there were some. And I added 2" of compost to the top. I have a nice little electric tiller good for small spaces and used that to mix the compost in.
I didn't think there was much above ground or below, but this little tiller really wraps up anything around the blades! It took we 15 minutes to unwind all the grass and weed roots (and I was annoyed to find a poison ivy vine it pulled up.
I was wearing gloves, so no real concern about a poison ivy rash, but I soaked the gloves in hot soapy water and washed my had up to the elbows carefully afterwards. I'm careful around that stuff, as I pulled up unknown viny roots from my asparagus bed and had 2 weeks of poison ivy annoyance years ago.
But after the tilling, the ground was soft and mostly weed-free. So I drew two 3'x3' blocks and stuck stakes around them to mark the planted area. There is space for another succession planting of 2'x2' blocks of both corns in 3 weeks. Stuck one germinated corn seed in each 1 square foot block.
Then it was time to fertilize. I had some leftover 6-0-0 corn gluten meal liquid and some N-Lite 2-6-6 (which makes a good balance), but I can't use the corn gluten liquid where there are new seeds. Then I remembered I had some organic 11-0-0 lawn fertilizer.
So I sprinkled a mix of the lawn fertilizer and the N-Lite that resulted in a 6-6-6 fertilizer for most of the garden. I used the corn gluten liquid (that prevents seed from germinating) on the tomato and pepper seedling bed (since it won't disturb them but will suppress weeds). And I spread mostly lawn fertilizer over the corn planting area since corn is a heavy Nitrogen user (like lawn grass).
And since I was in "fertilizing mode", I mixed more 6-6-6 to spread on the meadow flower bed and the hummer/bee/butterfly bed.
The hummer/bee/butterfly bed really got my attention. It is almost bare of growth! I suspect the seed mix I sowed last year was almost all annuals.
I need to find a better mix. I got out the catolog I bought the last year's seeds from, but they do not say which are annuals and which are perennials.
But that is for next time. I was tired.
Saturday, May 5, 2018
Meadow Bed
My error. I mentioned the meadow bed last time, but didn't show a picture of it.
It is lush with perennials. There may be flowers in a month. More pictures then...
Wednesday, May 2, 2018
Simple Useful Work, Part 2
The other minor project was to re-install the sunflower seed bird feeder. There were problems. The feeder itself needed some repairs (being 25 years old and damaged a few times), the pole was loose in the ground (just set in soil), and when I had some tree work done recently, one of the crew pulled it up (in case of an errant falling branch). He leaned it against another tree and it fell over. I've damaged it twice myself, taking it off the pole and trying to use it on the deck ahead of serious snowstorms for easier refilling.
Anyway, It has been reglued and rescrewed several times. I wasn't sure it could be again. But with some work and more screws, it should last another couple years.
The pole is designed to thwart Evil Squirrels. It WORKS! Just below the feeder, I have a wide flat baffle 5' up the pole. Immediately below, I have a barrel baffle. It works perfectly, no Evil Squirrel has been able to get at the feeder. If you have a problem with the tree-rats, just do THAT!
But it means I have to haul out my 8' stepladder every time I want to refill it. So I had this idea that if I could put a hinge on the pole, bend it over 90 degrees, and refill it from ground level (with a large funnel though the output opening). I finally found a pipe hinge designed to do that.
After finally cutting the pole to attach the hinge, it wobbled when attached. I decided the fitting was actually metric, so I used some metal strapping to tighten it. It wasn't easy. And it didn't work! THe wobble was in the hinge itself. It allows very little wobble, but over a 5' pipe, that adds up. It was unsatisfactory.
So (having cut the old pole in half, I needed a new one. But at least this time I could make sure it would come loose in the soil. It needed sideways braces in the soil.
So I went to the DIY store and looked at pipe-fittings. I came up with this...
The aboveground pipe is 6'. There is a 10" extension, a 4-way connection with 3" pieces out the sides, another 10" extension, and a 3-way at the bottom with 3" pieces out the sides at 90 degrees. I dug a 2' hole, set the post in it, propped it up level N/S and E/W and added soil back in 6" at a time with water and hard tamping with a 2"x4" board as I went. When I reached ground level, it was still perfectly vertical. I gave it a day to dry in place, then rotated the birdfeeder (there is a screw on flange on the bottom) and when it was tight it (wonder of wonders) was facing straight toward the deck. HURRAY!
It is perfect again. I still have to use the stepladder to refill it. I guess I'll have to live with that. Sometimes you have to do some work just to get back to "normal". But with those pipe extensions at 90 degree angles in the deeper clay soil, I bet it never leans or twists around in the wind again, LOL!
So, being pleased with my work and it being only 4 pm, I decided to remove weeds from my butterfly/bee/hummingbird bed. It is hard to tell, but it is a 10' circle with edging around it. There were some mock strawberries. AND some viney weed with similar leaves but small sharp thorns along the stem. I had to dig them out individually with a trowel. The roots don't have thorns, so I got down in them to pull. I got mostly roots, so those are set back a few years at least.
On the other hand, there isn't much growing there either. I think the seed mix I bought was mostly annuals. Fortunately, I bought several kinds of perennials that fit the butterfly/bee/hummingbird requirements and will be adding those soon. And I saved seeds from there that I will scatter tomorrow and cover lightly with compost. And I planted 4 sunflowers in the center around a 2' tall 12' wide cage to support them. Being clipped to the top of the cage really helps support them when they reach full height (6').
The meadow bed is growing like mad. It is mostly perennials, but I am growing some self-seeding annuals that are natural to meadows. It should look good this year and better next year.
The separate meadow bed
Anyway, It has been reglued and rescrewed several times. I wasn't sure it could be again. But with some work and more screws, it should last another couple years.
The pole is designed to thwart Evil Squirrels. It WORKS! Just below the feeder, I have a wide flat baffle 5' up the pole. Immediately below, I have a barrel baffle. It works perfectly, no Evil Squirrel has been able to get at the feeder. If you have a problem with the tree-rats, just do THAT!
But it means I have to haul out my 8' stepladder every time I want to refill it. So I had this idea that if I could put a hinge on the pole, bend it over 90 degrees, and refill it from ground level (with a large funnel though the output opening). I finally found a pipe hinge designed to do that.
After finally cutting the pole to attach the hinge, it wobbled when attached. I decided the fitting was actually metric, so I used some metal strapping to tighten it. It wasn't easy. And it didn't work! THe wobble was in the hinge itself. It allows very little wobble, but over a 5' pipe, that adds up. It was unsatisfactory.
So (having cut the old pole in half, I needed a new one. But at least this time I could make sure it would come loose in the soil. It needed sideways braces in the soil.
So I went to the DIY store and looked at pipe-fittings. I came up with this...
So, being pleased with my work and it being only 4 pm, I decided to remove weeds from my butterfly/bee/hummingbird bed. It is hard to tell, but it is a 10' circle with edging around it. There were some mock strawberries. AND some viney weed with similar leaves but small sharp thorns along the stem. I had to dig them out individually with a trowel. The roots don't have thorns, so I got down in them to pull. I got mostly roots, so those are set back a few years at least.
The meadow bed is growing like mad. It is mostly perennials, but I am growing some self-seeding annuals that are natural to meadows. It should look good this year and better next year.
The separate meadow bed
Tuesday, May 1, 2018
Simple Useful Work, Part 1
Some days are good for starting major projects, some days are good for doing nothing, and some days are good for doing a bunch of minor stuff.
Yesterday and today were good for minor stuff...
First, I got my Very Large rain gauge set up. I did feel like digging a 2' hole for a 4'x4' wood post (like I used to have it on), so I used an old piece of metal pipe that I could just pound into the ground at a new spot. And "wonder of wonders", the pipe was perfectly vertical in both directions. I used metal pipe brackets to hold a piece of scrap wood to the pipe, then attached the rain gauge holder to that with screws. The rain gauge is aimed directly at the master bathroom window so I can see how much rain as soon as I get up in the morning. That red thing at the bottom floats, so I can easily tell from the window. Helps me plan my day...
And I had to make a new holder for it because I installed a hose reel at the old spot last year. I got tired uncoiling and recoiling the hose every time I needed to mow the lawn and found a good solid powder-coated aluminum hose reel. It did say "wall mount only". They don't know me very well, LOL! Some of you may remember this project.
I not only post-mounted it, I constructed it so the hose reel would swivel (so that I could pull it off in the directions I needed to use the hose.
It turns right.
It turns left.
Well, that because I attached a metal TV turntable (that I had sitting around for years, bought at a farmer's market because it "looked useful") between the 2 layers of boards! And figuring out how to do that nearly drove me crazy! You see, you have to drive screws into it down into the bottom layer of wood AND up into the top layer. But as soon as you do the first, you can't do the second because the bottom wood prevents access to the upwards screws.
I found a few videos online about how to do that and still couldn't figure it out. I sat at my workbench for an hour each several times before I finally caught on. I won't bore you with the details (unless you need to know, facing a similar problem), but it finally worked.
The 2 platforms are edge-joined boards. That may sound flimsy, but each pair has 3 glued biscuits and a strip of construction adhesive between the biscuits. They wont come apart. Anything worth doing is worth over-doing, I always say!
Then I drilled 2 holes through both platforms and dropped bolts into the holes. That stops the hose reel from turning when I rewind the hose (it swivels back and forth forcefully when I turn the winding handle otherwise).
The rest tomorrow...
Yesterday and today were good for minor stuff...
I not only post-mounted it, I constructed it so the hose reel would swivel (so that I could pull it off in the directions I needed to use the hose.
I found a few videos online about how to do that and still couldn't figure it out. I sat at my workbench for an hour each several times before I finally caught on. I won't bore you with the details (unless you need to know, facing a similar problem), but it finally worked.
The 2 platforms are edge-joined boards. That may sound flimsy, but each pair has 3 glued biscuits and a strip of construction adhesive between the biscuits. They wont come apart. Anything worth doing is worth over-doing, I always say!
The rest tomorrow...
Thursday, April 26, 2018
The New Recliner Chair
Sadly, after trying out the new recliner chair for a few days, it isn't working out. I had to move it from the TV room to the living room and put the better of the older chairs back in front of the TV.
I should have bought locally after trying many recliners at different stores. I wasn't really intending to buy a large recliner chair. As I mentioned previously, I had it in my Amazon cart as a "maybe" and forgot it was there when I ordered a couple of other items and hit "1-click" purchase. And by the time days later when I discovered that, Amazon said it was out of their hands being a 3rd party purchase. The manufacturer said the chair was already in production. Amazon, in turn said I could refuse delivery, but the returns policy was up to the 3rd party. The manufacturer, in their turn at emails, said I would be responsible for return shipping in the original shipping container.
The deliverer had ripped the shipping box apart because it seemed damaged and wanted to be sure of the condition of the chair. There was no damage, and after going further than he had to (inside front door delivery or garage only), we brought the 2 pieces of the chair up the front stairs to the main level. He took the ripped up box away, and I wrestled the chair into place and attached the back to the base.
It is a rocker recliner (but not swivel). When I sat back in it, it was very comfortable with a high soft back, soft wide arms, and with the footrest up it was very comfortable. But then I started discovering some negatives about the chair.
1. You can't rest any weight on the arms, there is no structure in them.
2. If you lean back, you go all the way back.
3. The lever that lifts the footrest is one way. You can't move it the other way to lower the footrest. You have to push down hard with your feet and lean forward at the same time.
4. If you lean forward without the footrest up (and this is the killer), it tilts downwards to the point where you start to slide off. My old existing rocker swivel chairs had a positive forward stop at forward "level".
5. When I sit level on the new recliner, it takes a bit of balance, but also, my feet don't reach the floor! I'm not used to that. OK, I'm short, but my legs are even a bit short for my height (I have to have all pants shortened to a 25" inseam. Not having my feet on the floor is uncomfortable.
5. I am mostly a "percher", meaning that I mostly sit on the front of a chair. At my old chair, I sit on the front edge to eat dinner from a TV tray and to type on my laptop while watching TV. I can't do that in this new chair.
So I'm kind of stuck with a chair I don't want and can't return. I suppose I will try to sell it for 1/2 price and write it off as a bad decision. It isn't the manufacturer's fault. It was up to me to decide if it suited me. It isn't Amazon's fault; they offerred it, I bought it. The chair seems to work as designed.
Sometimes, you just make a poor purchasing decision and deal with it.
But I now have a greater appreciations for small rocker recliner chairs that would suit my body shape better and have features I want (like a positive forward stop at level"). I have learned a lesson here. I can adapt to a lot, but there are limits. And I'll sure check my Amazon cart before hitting
"1-click purchase" again...
Meanwhile, some of you may notice that my old chair lacks the worn out spots on the front of the arms in future pictures. That's because I had 2 and took the other one as the new TV/Dinner/Laptop chair.
It is almost funny that I went for a recliner. As I said, I'm mostly a percher. But the backs of the old chairs are 4" short of supporting my head properly when I DO lean back. So I still want a replacement chair with a higher back. I have seen a few online (but from local stores). So I think I will be doing some actual physical testing.
I've gotten too used to shopping online. Time for some real-world testing for a chair!
I should have bought locally after trying many recliners at different stores. I wasn't really intending to buy a large recliner chair. As I mentioned previously, I had it in my Amazon cart as a "maybe" and forgot it was there when I ordered a couple of other items and hit "1-click" purchase. And by the time days later when I discovered that, Amazon said it was out of their hands being a 3rd party purchase. The manufacturer said the chair was already in production. Amazon, in turn said I could refuse delivery, but the returns policy was up to the 3rd party. The manufacturer, in their turn at emails, said I would be responsible for return shipping in the original shipping container.
The deliverer had ripped the shipping box apart because it seemed damaged and wanted to be sure of the condition of the chair. There was no damage, and after going further than he had to (inside front door delivery or garage only), we brought the 2 pieces of the chair up the front stairs to the main level. He took the ripped up box away, and I wrestled the chair into place and attached the back to the base.
1. You can't rest any weight on the arms, there is no structure in them.
2. If you lean back, you go all the way back.
3. The lever that lifts the footrest is one way. You can't move it the other way to lower the footrest. You have to push down hard with your feet and lean forward at the same time.
4. If you lean forward without the footrest up (and this is the killer), it tilts downwards to the point where you start to slide off. My old existing rocker swivel chairs had a positive forward stop at forward "level".
5. When I sit level on the new recliner, it takes a bit of balance, but also, my feet don't reach the floor! I'm not used to that. OK, I'm short, but my legs are even a bit short for my height (I have to have all pants shortened to a 25" inseam. Not having my feet on the floor is uncomfortable.
5. I am mostly a "percher", meaning that I mostly sit on the front of a chair. At my old chair, I sit on the front edge to eat dinner from a TV tray and to type on my laptop while watching TV. I can't do that in this new chair.
So I'm kind of stuck with a chair I don't want and can't return. I suppose I will try to sell it for 1/2 price and write it off as a bad decision. It isn't the manufacturer's fault. It was up to me to decide if it suited me. It isn't Amazon's fault; they offerred it, I bought it. The chair seems to work as designed.
Sometimes, you just make a poor purchasing decision and deal with it.
But I now have a greater appreciations for small rocker recliner chairs that would suit my body shape better and have features I want (like a positive forward stop at level"). I have learned a lesson here. I can adapt to a lot, but there are limits. And I'll sure check my Amazon cart before hitting
"1-click purchase" again...
Meanwhile, some of you may notice that my old chair lacks the worn out spots on the front of the arms in future pictures. That's because I had 2 and took the other one as the new TV/Dinner/Laptop chair.
It is almost funny that I went for a recliner. As I said, I'm mostly a percher. But the backs of the old chairs are 4" short of supporting my head properly when I DO lean back. So I still want a replacement chair with a higher back. I have seen a few online (but from local stores). So I think I will be doing some actual physical testing.
I've gotten too used to shopping online. Time for some real-world testing for a chair!
Tuesday, April 24, 2018
A Strange Rememerance
I had the oddest recollection last night in a dream. Mostly, my dreams are of past events and jobs like when I wake up and wish I could retire and then suddenly realize I have and am grateful.
But for some reason, I dreampt a true story that Grampa told me about his days in a shelter house during the Great Depression and why he had a scar on the back of his hand.
He said he was sitting at the community house table and they actually had pork chops. He claimed the lights went out while there was one pork chop left on the center plate. He got there first but the guy next to him went at it with a fork. Hence his scar.
I know it is probably an old joke. I bet the true story would have been better (but more personal). But he went through some hard times in the Great Depression and that was likely the kindest way he could joke about it years later when I was a grandchild.
I always loved picking beans with him, and then later, pulling off the strings with Gramma. I had such great memories of them both and they died when I went off to college. Grampa is why I'm an organic gardener, and Gramma is why I learned to cook. And she taught me to play cards and games. She was lethal at them and never let me win when I didn't deserve to. Taught me to THINK HARD.
You know, sometimes I think I only blog to unspool my life...
But for some reason, I dreampt a true story that Grampa told me about his days in a shelter house during the Great Depression and why he had a scar on the back of his hand.
He said he was sitting at the community house table and they actually had pork chops. He claimed the lights went out while there was one pork chop left on the center plate. He got there first but the guy next to him went at it with a fork. Hence his scar.
I know it is probably an old joke. I bet the true story would have been better (but more personal). But he went through some hard times in the Great Depression and that was likely the kindest way he could joke about it years later when I was a grandchild.
I always loved picking beans with him, and then later, pulling off the strings with Gramma. I had such great memories of them both and they died when I went off to college. Grampa is why I'm an organic gardener, and Gramma is why I learned to cook. And she taught me to play cards and games. She was lethal at them and never let me win when I didn't deserve to. Taught me to THINK HARD.
You know, sometimes I think I only blog to unspool my life...
Friday, April 20, 2018
New Chair
Back in late February I placed a 1-click order on Amazon. I glanced casually at the cart first, but I didn't notice I had a big recliner chair on the list that was a serious "maybe". And when the order confirmation email came back I was all "yeah, yeah" and didn't review it carefully. So I had ordered a big recliner chair I wasn't certain I wanted... My bad!
So when I did look at the order confirmation, I was somewhat surprized to see I had ordered the chair. I contacted Amazon and they told me that, since it was a 3rd party order, I could cancel but would be responsible for return shipping. I contacted the manufacturer and they said that since the order was already in production, it was not cancelable. I asked if I could get it in black to match my decor better, but they said it only came in "chocolate".
The whole time schedule was kind of a joke. I received an email in early March saying it would be delivered on April 20th. When I looked up the tracking history recently, I discovered the chair had been shipped to a local freight company on March 15th and was sitting in a warehouse only 90 miles away. It took them 5 weeks to deliver it from there?
A little history... Back in the mid 90s, I found a cushioned upholstered rocker/swivel chair I liked at a local store. It came in peach, aqua, or butter. Aaccckkk! But, liking the chair, I emailed the manufacturer and told them I loved the chair but could I get it in black and an ottoman as a special order? They replied that they were flattered and willing, but I would have to order 2 chairs AND send them the fabric (and told me how much was required for 2 chairs and the ottoman). Well, I wanted 2 chairs anyway...
I had to visit several fabric stores before I found one with enough black fabric that seemed durable enough. I send the fabric to the manufacturer along with their email and a letter from me with more details. 2 months later, the chairs arrived. The freight company told me that delivery was merely off-truck, so I had to arrange for a local delivery company to pick it up from the freight company and deliver them in "room of choice" (as I learned the term was later). I only discovered afterwards that the chairs were lighter than I thought and I could have just carried them from the freight truck at the street into my house on my own, but you live and learn.
I was happy enough with those chairs was over 20 years. But springs sag, upholstery wears out, and everything begins to fall apart eventually. I spent a lot of evening time sitting in one of the chairs, and when Dad was her for 2 years, he practically lived in the other. Time for a new chair!
I considered a cushioned rocker/swivel arm computer chair. I find them comfortable. But when I stretch my legs out on the ottoman and cat curls up on my legs, that gets a bit uncomfortable with the weight on my unsupported knees. So I decided to get a recliner.
OK, so much for the previous chairs. I got my money's worth out of them.
So, I had spoken to a freight representative and she explained that they would do "inside delivery", which was great because the chair weighed 175 pounds. I live in a "split-foyer" house with the basement on surface level. The front door is up 6 outside steps. You enter the door and there is a 3'x5' landing. You can go up down a half flight of stairs to the basement or up a half flight to the main level. It's a ranch house built on a surface basement and there is an attic.
So "inside delivery" sounded good. I sure can't get 175 pound chair up the half flight of stairs myself. But 2 days ago, I called to confirm the delivery date and confirm the "inside delivery" (I've had some surprises before when truck drivers didn't agree with company policy). Sure enough, it turns out "inside delivery " means through the front door (or garage or side door) AND NO FURTHER.
Well, damn, if it just goes into the landing inside the front door, I can't even close the door! So I considered possibilities. My first thought was a bribe. If the deliverers had to carry the box up the outside steps annyway, maybe $20 (or $40 dollars if there was too much hesitation) would get it up the half flight of stairs. I could deal with it from there. My second thought was to have it delivered into the garage, so I pulled my car out the morning before delivery. The third possibility was to let them bring the box to the front steps and then threaten to refuse delivery and point out that "up the stairs" was a shorter distance than "back onto the truck".
As an aside, one of my first government jobs was getting furniture delivered to Congressional State and District Offices, and I learned a bit about whgat it took to get deliverers to bring furniture into awkward offices, LOL! I will add that option 1 about cash bribes was not an allowed option.
The delivery was scheduled between 8am - 5 pm (and you thought cable companies were bad). But I know that the delivery routes are carefully planned and the items are packed on the truck to empty from the back to the front. So first thing this morning, I called the freight companies and asked approximately where I was on the route. The person I spoke to checked and said, "Well, you seem to be in the middle of the delivery route, so my best guess is between 11 and 2". Well, that was better than 8-5...
He arrived at 4:40... You can't win even when you ask the right questions sometimes. And he arrived alone. No helper. And he said the box looked "pretty beat up". Those are NOT words you want to hear!
But lest you think this is a disaster post, rest assured all worked out better than I expected!
First, he said "Let me bring the box to the front door and we will open it up and examine it for damage. [My jaw drops].
Second, he rips the box apart and we examine the 2 parts of the chair in great detail. I mean, HE is looking for damage too as if it was his chair. We couldn't find the least bit of damage.
Third, he picked up the back of the chair and went in the front door. I helpfully pointed to the top of the stairs, and he brought it right up to the top of the stair!
Fourth, he was not so sure about getting the heavier base of the chair up the stairs, so I grabbed one end and said "we both can". It was awkward for me holding the top end and walking backwards up the stairs, but it went fine.
And he handed me the e-ticket to sign and walked back to the truck and drove away. I owe him a very positive review to his company about his help. I hope it gets him a bonus...
So I had these 2 pieces of chair sitting at the top of my stairs... I have things for that. I built a wooden base with wheels years ago and put the the base on it to push to the spot in front of the TV. The back was simply carryable.
I had expected more assembly (like attaching the chair legs and the handle that lifts the human leg support), but everything was installed. Attaching the back to the base was easy. It fits down onto 2 heavy metal tapered attachments. There was a satisfying "CLICK" as they meshed.
And then I sat on it. More properly, I should say I :SANK: into it. The recliner handle isn't exactly where I would have put it (being a little forward of easy reach), but it worked fine. The back is high enough to provide great head support in soft comfort. I was a bit confused at first that the reliner handle didn't ALSO unrecline the footrest, but discovered that the footrest returned to "unreclined" position with just a little downward pressure.
I miss the swivel ability of the previous chairs, but you can't have everything.
The cats are in love with it! The arms are so wide and cushioned that Iza fell asleep on my right arm and Marley purred awake on the left. I'm sure I will see Ayla there soon.
Pictures!
Now, knowing the size of this chair, I need to build a nice end table to match the space between the chair on the wall. Right now, I am using 2 TV trays to hold remotes and the telephone. And I need to move some pictures behind the chair. With the small desk that was next to the smaller old chair removed, I need horizontal space for "stuff"!
So when I did look at the order confirmation, I was somewhat surprized to see I had ordered the chair. I contacted Amazon and they told me that, since it was a 3rd party order, I could cancel but would be responsible for return shipping. I contacted the manufacturer and they said that since the order was already in production, it was not cancelable. I asked if I could get it in black to match my decor better, but they said it only came in "chocolate".
The whole time schedule was kind of a joke. I received an email in early March saying it would be delivered on April 20th. When I looked up the tracking history recently, I discovered the chair had been shipped to a local freight company on March 15th and was sitting in a warehouse only 90 miles away. It took them 5 weeks to deliver it from there?
A little history... Back in the mid 90s, I found a cushioned upholstered rocker/swivel chair I liked at a local store. It came in peach, aqua, or butter. Aaccckkk! But, liking the chair, I emailed the manufacturer and told them I loved the chair but could I get it in black and an ottoman as a special order? They replied that they were flattered and willing, but I would have to order 2 chairs AND send them the fabric (and told me how much was required for 2 chairs and the ottoman). Well, I wanted 2 chairs anyway...
I had to visit several fabric stores before I found one with enough black fabric that seemed durable enough. I send the fabric to the manufacturer along with their email and a letter from me with more details. 2 months later, the chairs arrived. The freight company told me that delivery was merely off-truck, so I had to arrange for a local delivery company to pick it up from the freight company and deliver them in "room of choice" (as I learned the term was later). I only discovered afterwards that the chairs were lighter than I thought and I could have just carried them from the freight truck at the street into my house on my own, but you live and learn.
I was happy enough with those chairs was over 20 years. But springs sag, upholstery wears out, and everything begins to fall apart eventually. I spent a lot of evening time sitting in one of the chairs, and when Dad was her for 2 years, he practically lived in the other. Time for a new chair!
I considered a cushioned rocker/swivel arm computer chair. I find them comfortable. But when I stretch my legs out on the ottoman and cat curls up on my legs, that gets a bit uncomfortable with the weight on my unsupported knees. So I decided to get a recliner.
OK, so much for the previous chairs. I got my money's worth out of them.
So, I had spoken to a freight representative and she explained that they would do "inside delivery", which was great because the chair weighed 175 pounds. I live in a "split-foyer" house with the basement on surface level. The front door is up 6 outside steps. You enter the door and there is a 3'x5' landing. You can go up down a half flight of stairs to the basement or up a half flight to the main level. It's a ranch house built on a surface basement and there is an attic.
So "inside delivery" sounded good. I sure can't get 175 pound chair up the half flight of stairs myself. But 2 days ago, I called to confirm the delivery date and confirm the "inside delivery" (I've had some surprises before when truck drivers didn't agree with company policy). Sure enough, it turns out "inside delivery " means through the front door (or garage or side door) AND NO FURTHER.
Well, damn, if it just goes into the landing inside the front door, I can't even close the door! So I considered possibilities. My first thought was a bribe. If the deliverers had to carry the box up the outside steps annyway, maybe $20 (or $40 dollars if there was too much hesitation) would get it up the half flight of stairs. I could deal with it from there. My second thought was to have it delivered into the garage, so I pulled my car out the morning before delivery. The third possibility was to let them bring the box to the front steps and then threaten to refuse delivery and point out that "up the stairs" was a shorter distance than "back onto the truck".
As an aside, one of my first government jobs was getting furniture delivered to Congressional State and District Offices, and I learned a bit about whgat it took to get deliverers to bring furniture into awkward offices, LOL! I will add that option 1 about cash bribes was not an allowed option.
The delivery was scheduled between 8am - 5 pm (and you thought cable companies were bad). But I know that the delivery routes are carefully planned and the items are packed on the truck to empty from the back to the front. So first thing this morning, I called the freight companies and asked approximately where I was on the route. The person I spoke to checked and said, "Well, you seem to be in the middle of the delivery route, so my best guess is between 11 and 2". Well, that was better than 8-5...
He arrived at 4:40... You can't win even when you ask the right questions sometimes. And he arrived alone. No helper. And he said the box looked "pretty beat up". Those are NOT words you want to hear!
But lest you think this is a disaster post, rest assured all worked out better than I expected!
First, he said "Let me bring the box to the front door and we will open it up and examine it for damage. [My jaw drops].
Second, he rips the box apart and we examine the 2 parts of the chair in great detail. I mean, HE is looking for damage too as if it was his chair. We couldn't find the least bit of damage.
Third, he picked up the back of the chair and went in the front door. I helpfully pointed to the top of the stairs, and he brought it right up to the top of the stair!
Fourth, he was not so sure about getting the heavier base of the chair up the stairs, so I grabbed one end and said "we both can". It was awkward for me holding the top end and walking backwards up the stairs, but it went fine.
And he handed me the e-ticket to sign and walked back to the truck and drove away. I owe him a very positive review to his company about his help. I hope it gets him a bonus...
So I had these 2 pieces of chair sitting at the top of my stairs... I have things for that. I built a wooden base with wheels years ago and put the the base on it to push to the spot in front of the TV. The back was simply carryable.
I had expected more assembly (like attaching the chair legs and the handle that lifts the human leg support), but everything was installed. Attaching the back to the base was easy. It fits down onto 2 heavy metal tapered attachments. There was a satisfying "CLICK" as they meshed.
And then I sat on it. More properly, I should say I :SANK: into it. The recliner handle isn't exactly where I would have put it (being a little forward of easy reach), but it worked fine. The back is high enough to provide great head support in soft comfort. I was a bit confused at first that the reliner handle didn't ALSO unrecline the footrest, but discovered that the footrest returned to "unreclined" position with just a little downward pressure.
I miss the swivel ability of the previous chairs, but you can't have everything.
The cats are in love with it! The arms are so wide and cushioned that Iza fell asleep on my right arm and Marley purred awake on the left. I'm sure I will see Ayla there soon.
Pictures!
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
DNA Re-test
CRIgenetics agreed to send me a new test kit for re-testing. I had annoyed them with several emails suggesting that their results were possibly contaminated because their report of recent ancestry was inconsistent with known family genealogy.
Here is a question. Since I suspect this company of errors and just MIGHT possibly just send me the identical previous report to avoid admitting an error, I have a thought. Should I just honestly send them my own cheek swab again OR get tricky and try to get a friend to do a cheek swab to see if they send an identical report? In that case, I would know they were falsifying the results just making the report up.
My dilemma is that, if I send them my own cheek swab again and get identical results as the last time, I will never know if they just simply sent me the original report again or if there is some accuracy to it I don't understand. But if I get some friend or neighbor to agree to this little trick, and CRI tests accurately, and if the results are different, I won't actually know whether the new test results are his or mine.
And quite frankly, if someone came to ME and suggested this "swap of swab", I would be immediately suspicious of some intended legal or family deception, and would decline to participate.
I'm not in any way suspecting parental infidelity, adoption, or family uncertainties in any way. I and my siblings certainly look enough like our parents.
I just want to have some reason to think the original report was inaccurate because it calls the genealogy into question AND disagrees substantially with a previous DNA test. So I want this 2nd company to "generally" agree with the other company.
I might have to get a 3rd company as a tie-breaker. The cost is trivial.
So, hit me with logical questions, suggestions, advice, experience, or anything else...
Here is a question. Since I suspect this company of errors and just MIGHT possibly just send me the identical previous report to avoid admitting an error, I have a thought. Should I just honestly send them my own cheek swab again OR get tricky and try to get a friend to do a cheek swab to see if they send an identical report? In that case, I would know they were falsifying the results just making the report up.
My dilemma is that, if I send them my own cheek swab again and get identical results as the last time, I will never know if they just simply sent me the original report again or if there is some accuracy to it I don't understand. But if I get some friend or neighbor to agree to this little trick, and CRI tests accurately, and if the results are different, I won't actually know whether the new test results are his or mine.
And quite frankly, if someone came to ME and suggested this "swap of swab", I would be immediately suspicious of some intended legal or family deception, and would decline to participate.
I'm not in any way suspecting parental infidelity, adoption, or family uncertainties in any way. I and my siblings certainly look enough like our parents.
I just want to have some reason to think the original report was inaccurate because it calls the genealogy into question AND disagrees substantially with a previous DNA test. So I want this 2nd company to "generally" agree with the other company.
I might have to get a 3rd company as a tie-breaker. The cost is trivial.
So, hit me with logical questions, suggestions, advice, experience, or anything else...
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