Random thoughts for February 10th!

Snow snow, please go away!!

Old Man Winter, you've been a total grouch this year! So, get outta here! And, please take your crappy low temps with you when you hit that door marked exit! As of the tenth of the month, we've had just one day where the high temperature exceeded the daily low from last year! That truly sucks. And, to make matters worst, the snow is hanging around making my home in southwest Missouri more reminiscent of Nome Alaska. Oh, and yes, I just saw a snow plow going down my street... because it's been snowing once again!

A snappy and healthy pasta meal!

Never one to miss out entirely on the joys of eating pasta (while staying on a diet), I've come up with a filling luncheon style combo that works for me! OK sure, the amounts are a bit small, with the pasta weighing in at only 45 grams. But, as you can see in the nutritional panel, this is a very doable diet-minded entree. The spaghetti sauce was homemade and is also low salt. I used romaine for the greens, in the salad mix, as it is much more nutritious that what you get from the mostly water filled iceberg varieties. Now, I wonder, why it is that I'm still craving a Big Mac??

So, how big is your heating bill gonna be?

$$Ca-Ching$$! Talk about getting slammed in the old cojones! We've had back to back to back really cold months that have jacked up everyone's heating costs big time! (That is, unless you have a lot of free wood for a fireplace, or are using and averaging plan from your electric company). And, you propane users - Well, I've heard you really got screwed this year!

As of the tenth of the month, my area near Forsyth Missouri is averaging fourteen degrees below normal and at the noon hour, it's just 23F outdoors. And, we're it not for a warming trend arriving in a few days, I'd start to wonder if I was caught up in some weird Stephen King novel.

What would make this winter's cost much more bearable for everyone, is if we have a prolonged and mild spring to help even everything out. (By prolonged, I'm talking through September of this year with maybe a warmish winter to follow... I know I'm dreaming).

Those wonderful Facebook photos!

Oh gosh, those are all so good!

Most every day, someone is kind enough to post pictures they took on my Facebook page.  More oftentimes than not, they are pictures of children, adults with children or all the above with a pet thrown in for good measure! I particularly enjoy looking at the groups of six photos that are poorly framed and out of focus, with each frame more poorly composed than the one before it.

It would be seriously refreshing if everyone would put a just little more thought into what they desire to share with all their 'friends'. A good picture tells a story and communicates more than words ever could.


Troubling times!

Living in America, these days, is certainly no cake walk when it comes to individual or family economic survival. There was a time, not long ago, when jobs were plentiful and (if you had to) you could easily hold down two jobs at once! I remember those times, and you know what – I worked a full time and a part time job in order to put food on the table and to pay the rent! Those times were tough in that I remember I was always tired, but I did survive and over time things got better for me and other that I knew.

Sadly, those days maybe long gone. The fact is, even finding a single low paying part time work is a real challenge – and that's disheartening. Even if you have a job, constantly rising grocery and energy costs at happening at a time when the value of the dollar is going down! So, you could say that under the current administration, the average Middle Class worker is also going downhill. You could also say that things probably are not going to improve very quickly as the mechanisms that supported a recovery in the past are no longer in place or valid. Currently 43% of the adult population are on some form of government assistance and those numbers continue to rise as more and more individuals drop out of the work force. At this rate when over 50% are on support – one wonders who will pay the bills? Correction: 49.1% of the population is receiving government assistance as of the 2011 census!

On a parting shot, I did go to McDonald's, ate a Big Mac and blew my diet all to hell and gone!