Category Archives: home

2026, Family, home, Uncategorized

Is That Smoke?

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Our son’s dishwasher has been making the most dreadful noises all summer. He was hoping to wait until September to get it looked at by the appliance repair folks.

We are currently staying with our son and Dil looking after our grandson. Yesterday I started the dishwasher after I had finished making some Franzbrotchen, a Hamburg pastry. The dishwasher made its usual grinding noises. Not too far into the cycle it stopped and a warning signal began beeping and a special code popped up on the display to indicate what the trouble was. Husband and I were the only adults home. We contacted our son and he sent us the on-line information of what to do in this circumstance with this particular warning code. It said to unplug the dishwasher for 5 minutes, then restart it.

I followed the instructions. After I restarted the machine it no longer made the awful noise. Then, however, I noticed that something that looked like steam but had a burning, electrical smell was wafting out of the top of the door. I checked, then double checked and decided it was actual smoke. I immediately turned off the dishwasher and unplugged it. I removed the bottom access plate to see if anything was burning under the machine, felt all around on the floor and cupboards to see if anything felt hot, then checked the ceiling in the basement where the dishwasher was perched. It was ok.

For some reason when I woke up yesterday morning I distinctly remember thinking that Son needed to get that dishwasher replaced because the awful noise it made could mean it might start a fire. How weird is that? PI never have had a premonition, but this is pretty close. We helped him choose out a new dishwasher late yesterday afternoon.

Ever had a premonition? Any memorable appliance fails?

2026, Family, Government, home, Uncategorized

Signs

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Husband and I were ND State employees for 37 years. As such, we were actively discouraged, almost prohibited, by our bosses from putting political signs in our yard.

This was the case no matter what party was in control of the State government. There apparently was great concern that State employees had to appear as neutral as possible and not be viewed as trying to influence elections.

I suppose in more populous areas inthe country people wouldn’t necessarily know if you were a State employee . In ND, where everyone knows everyone and where they work, nothing was anonymous.

This will be the first year in decades we will be able to put political signs in our yard. Husband is going to the county DFL meeting tomorrow night and I hope he brings some signs home. It is pretty exciting!

Do you put political signs in your yard? Ever run into problems with them or had them vandalized?

2026, animals, Family, Food, History, home, Kids, Uncategorized

Time With Oma And Opa

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Our grandson is spending a few days with us this week while his daycare is closed. We plan to take him swimming and to the local library. I also plan to bake with him and we will make Franzbrotchen, a Hamburg pastry. I want him to learn about where his ancestors came from. He loves to bake and cook and is an excellent sous chef. We will have Pasta Carbonara, one of his favorites. We also will enlist his help with some gardening. He loves to grow things. We are Oma and Opa, to distinguish us from his Grandma and Grandpa on his mom’s side of the family.

I spent time with both sets of grandparents in the summer. My father’s parents lived on a farm outside of Magnolia, MN. That grandma was a great lover of cats and had a regiment of them. She loved to feed them buttered sweetcorn cobs after we were done eating the corn kernals. I would help her collect eggs and work in the garden. The hens pecking at my arms as I took their eggs were scary. I liked talking to the cows and pigs. My grandfather was partially paralyzed from a stroke. He had a wonderful library of history books, and we would talk about his recent read and the history discussed in the book. He really liked talking about Napoleon, someone who had such an impact on his family in northwest Germany.

My maternal grandparents lived on a farm close to Hatfield, MN, a small town with a notorious dance hall, near Pipestone. That grandma (who we called Omie) and I would bake sweet rolls and cook wonderful suppers together. She was a great story teller and related lots of reminiscences from her childhood in Hamburg, Germany and her teen years in New York City. Grandpa was a really quiet guy who kept busy helping my uncle on the farm. His English was somewhat limited and we didn’t talk all that much. He was kindly and gentle.

I hope our grandson has positive memories of his time with us. We have books, a garden, fancy food, terriers, cats, a library, and a really nice swimming pool. What more does a kid need?

Who were your most memorable older relatives? What did you learn from them?

2026, Family, Gatherings, home, Uncategorized

Coffee Klatsch

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Now that we are retired and are getting to know more people, Husband and I are participating in groups for coffee. We never had the time or inclination in ND.

Every Sunday after church a group of about 16 meets in the basement for coffee and cookies. Husband and I are the youngest participants. The women sit at one table and the men at another, and the men have to make sure all the coffee pots are filled. Conversation is brisk and somewhat gossipy.

On Wednesday morning Husband goes to a men’s bible study where they drink coffee, and then afterwards many of them go out for coffee at a local coffee shop for more secular conversation.

Husband now attends exercise class with me. The other men who attend the class invite him for coffee after class. He has yet to go but is touched by the offers. I had forgotten how much men here like to get together to talk and drink coffee. My father ran a coffee shop here for many years and it was always full of guys talking and drinking coffee. After he retired he met every day with a group of fellow WWII veterans at a local snack bar for coffee and treats. They were officially known as The Last Man’s Club. They even had by-laws written up. Governor Pawlenty’s wife came to Luverne to meet with them.

I have been more of a homebody than Husband, so my coffee klatsch participation is more limited. Maybe after my 50th reunion in September I will find local former classmates to meet up with.

Got coffee buddies? Any unwritten rules for participation? Where do you like to meet?

2026, Family, home, Kids, Music, Uncategorized

Instrumental

27 Comments

Daughter recently purchased a condo, and she has been busy nesting and settling in. We still have quite a bit of her stuff, including a collection of Russian nesting dolls and her baby china. I hope we can get it to her in Tacoma and get it out of our basement.

We have her French Horn in our basement as well. It is a lovely Conn French Horn we got for her in Middle School. She was a really good French Horn player, and even made it into Junior High All-State Band. Then disaster hit and she needed braces on her teeth. She never could play all that well again, but she played all through High School.

I asked her the other day if I could donate her horn to the local high school. It is truly a lovely instrument, and would be greatly appreciated. She surprised me by saying she wants to start playing it again. She said many of her middle school therapy clients talk about their band and orchestra experiences and she realized how much she missed playing her horn.

The horn hasn’t been touched for more than 12 years. Husband and I took it to a music store in Sioux Falls on Tuesday and upon examination they said it was in great shape. The valves all worked and everything was movable. They are going to clean it all up, though, and lubricate it. We will ship it to her after that. Now that she hasn’t braces on her teeth, perhaps she really will play again. I also hope this means she will start playing her violin again.

Did you have braces? Did you play in band or orchestra in school? If you have kids, still have their stuff in your home?

2026, gardening, home, Uncategorized

Garden Update

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This was our first veggie garden in our new home and our first attempt using raised beds. I am happy to report that things are working out well. We had no weeds and no garden pests.

Our raised beds are 3 feet tall, 3 feet wide, and 6 feet long. We planted tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and chard. The chard has been a real success. It is a white chard variety.

To date I have froze 7 lbs of leaves and made a Provencal chard and zucchini tart. The leaves will be used in an Italian pie of greens from The Splendid Table. The chard shares its space with basil.

I bought more pint jars last weekend for more pesto.

The eggplants have done well. We made Eggplant Parmigiano and also roasted and froze several eggplants for use in soup and curry. The leaves are enormous. The eggplants share a space with roma tomatoes and serrano peppers, King of the North red bell peppers, and an Italian frying pepper.

We planted Cherokee Purple, German Johnson, and Roma tomatoes in the third bed . They are doing well,

We tied up and trimmed them after I took their picture. I expect we will have a load of ripe tomatoes in about a month.

We plan to get two or three more raised beds next year. There wasn’t enough room for spinach, and I think we could swing a butternut squash bed as well. I am also happy to report that the pie plant (aka rhubarb) has taken nicely to its new digs.

How is your garden growing? What would you do with too many eggplants and hot peppers? Is it pie plant or rhubarb in your family?

2026, Family, Food, Gatherings, home, pets

ADOPTED!!!

25 Comments

If you remember, the organization that rescued Freya would not let us adopt her until her spay was done; it’s an inviolable rule of theirs.  So technically for the last four weeks we’ve been fostering her. The rescue calls it “Foster to Adopt” and they are very serious about it.  You can’t believe how much paperwork there was.  Oh, and I got to pay the entire adoption fee right up front. 

Anyway, her spay is done and the four-day wait (to make sure there are no complications) is done.  We filled out yet one more piece of paper and coughed up one more fee of $5.00 and SHE IS OURS!

In classic fashion around here, we decided to have a little family celebration.  In case you can’t read it, the banner says “Freya’s Fur-Ever Home”.  I made a little cake (some dog food loaf iced with whipped cream cheese).  The #1 candle is because we are her #1 fur-ever home.  We put her rabies tag and her new name tag on her collar. 

Collar & Cake

She thought the little cake was just yummy; we only let her eat about a quarter of it so she doesn’t get an upset tummy.  The rest is in the fridge to be doled out over the next few days.

YUM-O!

Been to any good parties/gatherings recently?

2026, Food, Gatherings, home, Mysteries, Uncategorized

Let’s Grill

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According to New of the Weird this week, in some parts of Russia, men are running personal ads.  Not those kind of personal ads!  They are running ads are “barbecue companions”.   Apparently it’s exactly what it says – someone to come over to your house for barbecue, beer and conversation.   The men are charging anywhere between $13 and $65.  They higher end companions can include preparing the grill, grilling the meat, setting up a tend and acting as a buddy.  One such ad said “I’ll help you organize barbecues and camping, keep you company, and grill some meat. Jokes and anecdotes are also included,” This seems to be on the up and up.  Only marketing to men and are meant to be one-time services – not an invitation to friendship.  If someone wants to hire the barbecue buddy’s services again, they have to pay for it.  Russian restaurateur Evgeny Demchenko said “From a business perspective, this is absolutely natural: if there’s an unmet need, a service will emerge.” 

It feels a little sad to me.  Don’t Russian men have any friends?  If I volunteered to grill, I’m pretty sure I’d have folks lining up.  Especially if the weather is nice.

Does having a barbecue companion hold any allure for you?   What do you like to grill?

2026, animals, home, Nature, Uncategorized

Fireflies

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About a month ago we had quite a bit of rain and the humidity stayed quite high into the evening. I was delighted to see small lights flit here and there all over the yard, and realized they were fireflies. We also saw them in the woods near our rental a couple of weeks ago near La Crosse. Grandson was entranced. There aren’t many fireflies in Brookings, SD.

It seems fireflies like heat and humidity, and we never had them in ND or in Winnipeg since it is so much drier there. There were tons of them the year we lived in Southern Indiana. We were pretty close to the Kentucky border. It was really hot and humid. The fireflies are my favorite memories from Indiana. Husband did his predoctoral internship there. We moved to Indiana after several years in Winnipeg. It was a pretty awful place after living in Canada. At that time Indiana was considered the most politically corrupt US state. It was very socially conservative. I was glad when our year there was up.

I can’t imagine there weren’t fireflies here in Luverne when I was growing up, but I really have no memory of them. Neither does Boommate. It was great to see them the other night. They seem magical.

Got fireflies? What are the best and worst places you have lived?

2026, Food, home, Mysteries

Half Butter?

36 Comments

YA and I switched from margarine to butter a long time ago.  It was a hit to our budget at the time so I’ve spent years keeping an eye out for butter on sale.  I have absolutely no brand loyalty to any kind of butter, unless you count the seriously fancy hand churned butter that I get a Kowolskis every couple of years.

I’ve also been lucky enough to have two friends who have worked at dairies.  My friend Tim worked at one of the big names for years and he would regularly be able to grab a pound or two of butter from their “free shop”.  Right about the time he retired, my friend Rita moved to the same company and now part of my solstice gift every year is a gift bag of butter.  Such wonderful friends.

Because of how I acquire some of my butter, I don’t always know what I have in the fridge.  Last week, I opened up a box of butter and was surprised when eight little wrapped bars fell out.  Instead of four ½ cup bars, there were eight ¼ cup bars.  As a baker who goes through quite a bit of butter, I laughed out loud.  I didn’t know anybody packaged butter like this.  I do occasionally need a half a stick of butter but it’s pretty rare and when I do, I just cut a whole bar in half.  Not a reach. 

But I suppose there may actually be a need for these half bars since somebody somewhere when to the trouble to manufacture and package these things???

Butter or margarine?  Any brand loyalty?  Would you appreciate half bars?