Crecent City Connection...

I wanna go back someday real soon. The food, oh the food....divine. Anyplace, anywhere. You can find the best food... on the delta. What better place to experience the good life than in the "Big Easy"? Some would probably know that we're just a hop, skip, and a jump from Cajun Country. First, let's talk a bit on pronouncing some of the items you'd see....in N'awlins!! [New Orleans]. For instance, here in our household we call the delectable, nutty treat filled with pecans, caramel and chocolate...PRAY-leens. By the way, the nuts: [I say pah CAWN, Bud says pee CAN] But, if I travel a few hours just northeast of here around the BY yous and the Miss e sip ee...it'd be PRAW leens instead of pray-leens. Muffulettas [a super sized sandwich that is heeped with cheeses and cold cut meats] - I call 'em muff a LET tahs. In the Big Easy they're Moo fa LOTTAs. Honestly, I dare you to eat just one. They're humongous. A gris gris. That's French which is spoken all around the city [it's gree gree and it's a VOODOO charm]. Oh and the best one I ever heard, there is an expression they use....HI RISE. No, not a building. It's anything above sea level --------okay, I'm kidding. But truth be told it's the interstate highway system. The hi rise.

Now that I have you in the spirit of things. Let's talk the talk of what the city is famous for. No, not the Mardi Gras [MAR dee GRAW], or the French Quarter...but let's talk food. So many mixed cultures there!! So much good food! There is one that I've not tried making myself, but will attempt it someday. I've been craving it so often here of late; and that's Cherry Bread Pudding. My aunt [her husband was from Louisiana] could cook bread pudding to perfection. But this, this tasty treat is to 'die for' good.




CHERRY BREAD PUDDING with RUM SAUCE
[not my recipe...but, I've got it copied and printed out for future use]

According to this site [link]:
"This is a recipe that is gar-run-teed to send you into Cajun Heaven!"

Ingredients :

1 egg white
1 cup skim milk
2 tsp Sugar Twin artificial sweetner or equivalent
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
about a handful of crushed walnuts to taste
1 cup stale French bread broken into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup water packed tart red cherries, pitted and drained
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon raisins

Rum Sauce Ingredients

1/4 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1 tablespoon rum extract
2 tsp Sugar Twin artificial sweetener or equivalent

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F
Beat the egg white with the skim milk, sweetener, and cinnamon
Add the bread to the liquid mixture to soak for 1 minute
Add the remaining ingredients except the sauce and pour into a small baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Make the Rum Sauce: Blend the cornstarch with the skim milk. Heat, stirring gently until it thickens. Add the Run Extract and Sweetener. Spoon the hot Bread Pudding into custard cups or onto dessert plates,
Top with the Rum Sauce, and ... Enjoy!

Since tomorrow will be a very busy day for me...I need to buy groceries since I've not gone out much the last few weeks working on the computer most of the day, and then I need to unpack my Halloween Witches and get to decorating the house. So, I added the 4th annual treat handout today instead of on tomorrow's blogging.

photo of pudding borrowed from Google search

Rockin' Robin....

He rocks in the tree-top all a day long
Hoppin' and a-boppin' and a-singin' his song
All the little birds on J-Bird St.

Love to hear the robin goin' tweet tweet tweet


Rockin' robin (tweet tweet tweet)

Rock, rock, rockin' robin (tweet tweet tweet)
Well, go rockin' robin 'cause you really gonna rock tonight

Every little swallow, every chickadee
Every little bird in the tall oak tree

The wise old owl, the big black crow
Flapping their wings sayin' go bird go

Rockin' robin (tweet tweet tweet)
Rock, rock, rockin' robin (tweet tweet tweet)
Well, go rockin' robin 'cause you really gonna rock tonight







INSTRUMENTAL CHORUS AND WHISTLING









A pretty little raven at the bird's last dance

Taught him how to do the bop and it was grand
They started goin' steady and bless my soul
He out bopped the buzzard and the oriole


He rocks in the tree-top all a day long
Hoppin' and a-boppin' and a-singin' his song
All the little birds on J-Bird St.

Love to hear the robin goin' tweet tweet tweet.....

ROCKIN' ROBIN
YouTube Video LINK HERE



Thursday Theme Song [meme link button on sidebar]
Rockin' Robin
sung/recorded by: Bobby Day
Link

ALL PHOTOS VARIOUS BIRDS I've posted before.


note: Being a STRONG NYY fan, I am thrilled to report that Boston LOST to Baltimore Orioles last night...in the 9th inning. What an exciting, exciting ending to a not so thrilling season for me this year with the Astros mess.

Got Sugar Water?

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that the feeders were cluttered with hummingbirds [link] and occasionally some of the Baltimore Orioles would show their beauty. Well, they've pretty well left the area. It's been about a week now that there has been any Oriole activity in our yard. But, when they WERE here, I took photos of them - through the glass patio doors. They, too, like the sugar water mixture I make. By the way, someone a while back asked me what I use in the feeder. I don't use any artificial colored hummingbird mixture that you buy already prepared. The red food dye is something that scares me for the use with wildlife. So, I make my own ---and it's easy. If you have a feeder like I do, use a 2 cup measuring container. Always mix the ratio of 1 to 4 parts. By that, I mean: 1 part sugar and 4 parts water. [1/4 cup sugar to 1 cup water or for me and the larger feeder - 1/2 cup sugar to 2 cups water]. The birds go absolutely berserk with it. And it has attracted dozens of hummingbirds at once....



<— WEDNESDAY meme linked buttons found on sidebar


PS...I finished all the posts for my Genealogy. Yesterday was the last of the Pedigree files!! I still have one to go, but I'm waiting for help from the great state of Maryland....a genealogist in the historical society there is doing some microfilm research for me to find the Irish Immigrant ancestor...the first settler from Ireland in America. When I get proof positive on the names of that generation [mid 1700s], it'll be totally complete. I'm gonna give myself a few days away from that kinda work and concentrate on stopping by to visit my bloggin' buds!!!

Sum, sum, summary....

Of all the hibiscus plants we have in our yards [front and back], most of them have suffered terribly through the last year. First, the heavy ice storm that froze them ALL [one of my favorites in the front yard, the beautiful yellow, never recovered from the freeze], most are just now beginning to show green again....only to have the insufferable heat and drought. They're tropical plants that thrive in lots of moisture. Not to be seen this summer. But, one that keeps on going and going, and going, like the Energizer Bunny, is the one my sister had delivered to me for Sister's Day a few years back. This blossom is of the same. I thought the stamin showed off a great shadow for today's meme. This particular bush is three hibiscus in one --it has three different colored blossoms to the one plant.

Shadow Shot Sunday meme link button on sidebar




SUNDAY'S SUMMARY

Yep, I'm gonna begin my summary with the genealogy project. I think I'm about three quarters of the way through the pedigree files [image to the left is what I designed]. And, for the second time, I've taken a bit of time to go out on the 'net to view some different kinds of 'book' publishers from a blog. I'm not seeing what I want. There is one factor that just makes me cringe in a way. And I've tried working with the sites to get them to do this for me to no avail. They all tell me it's impossible, 'cause: "It can't be done, since it's in our templates." You see, what I want is to have all the blog's timestamps and dates posted taken off!!!! I don't want it to look like a blog, per sé...I want it to look like a book. One more thing that I don't like but I can go with it, and that's the fact that the images I have are re-sized to have two or three images on one page [through the publishing]...I would prefer a much larger image. In all actuality it would be my preference to have just ONE image per page. At a much larger scale. My next step is to finish the pedigree files and complete the project. Then, I'm going to go back out on the 'net to see if it's possible to convert my genealogy project blog to a PDF file. That way, all images and text/research will be the size I've made them; and without a timestamp for each entry. Either that, or I will look into going to Kinko's or somewhere like that and print out MY OWN...then make two laminated covers and a spiral notebook publication. I figure it's my long, hard, tiring hours spent on this, I want it like I want it. And that's wanting it as I post the blog pages. Now that's it is closing in on completion, I'm anxious to see the finished product.

Speaking of completion, I finished Irene's Halloween afghan this week. I seem to be on a roller coaster ride of beginning projects that are dearly challenging. This pattern had no finishing instructions since I made the witch panel from a pixeled grid. So, I had to make up my own way of framing the panel and getting it to a larger size to actually BE an afghan. I crocheted it all in dark nighttime blue [soft navy was the color of the skeins of yarn]. Trimmed the navy color in Halloween purple with two rows of half double crochet stitches. Then, to make it more 'unique' I added only FOUR tassels of yellow on the witch corners, and four orange tassels on each corner of the blue framing. Done! I will get it shipped off to Irene the first of this upcoming month. [She begins decorating her house for Halloween a lot earlier than I do even...around mid-September!!]

Just a couple more things, then, I'll leave you to blog hopping....if you're still here that is: The Fall Classic is coming up quickly. I'm more than pleased to know that the NYY are in the playoff games. I predicted at the beginning of the 2011 season that it just may be a repeat World Series...Yankees against the Diamondbacks. Maybe!!! Then, the last of my summary is that I finished reading a great book...a 1948 classic: Cry, the Beloved Country [link]. About South Africa and the turmoils of the era. Near excellent book. Unusual layout of text and conversation, but well written and a lovely [but sad and sometimes filled with a few surprises] family story. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in historical data; fictionalized. The new book I began this week is COLUMBINE [link]...a non-fiction book [2009] about the Columbine High School Massacre. So far, it is reminiscent of the book Helter Skelter. And, this too promises to be a good read. Oh, and P S ---Houston Astros clinched their title too!--------the worst ever standing season; in ALL of 2011 MLB teams. What a joke.

A Big o' Texas Howdy to y'all...

...and still I am getting more work done on the family tree. Progress has been slow, but fruitful. This morning, early, as I am cropping scanned photos of ancestors' headstones and getting them ready to add to my growing 'stack of pages' to be published, I had an assistant. Of course, he quickly got bored with it all - the mouse wasn't moving across the screen - so, Winston decided to lay down. Notice the grumpy look on his face? That's 'cause I had to slide him off the keyboard!! He loves to prop his furry noggin' up on the head...keyboard. Then, I have to stop and readjust and realign all the tools and taskbars since they are either messed up with his weight or they totally disappear.

Once again, I must add my thanks and appreciation for all those who visited with me over the last few days....I appreciate your leaving me comments and encouragement. But, I must confess...I truly feel guilty to not return your visit-------I'll get around to personal blogging, I hope, very soon. After this last group of photos you see on the monitor in this photo, I think I'm done with cropping and posting photos. Then, it's the last step. And this'll take the longest time ever. The last step before setting up the pages and proof-reading all the text will be Pedigree charts. From 1996 [the family's youngest] to the late 1600s. Each generation!! Lots of text and compiled research to this part.

Have a great day.

Long time....no see

This photo is of one of our trips to the Grand Canyon when we lived in Tucson Arizona. The shadows of sightseers and of the canyon are perfect for the weekend meme.
GRAND CANYON
ARIZONA, USA
[photo is kinda off kilter, it's taken right from the scanner --no adjustments or alignments]









Yet another 'photo' of shadows for fun...
Have you ever wondered what the 'backside' of Mount Rushmore looks like? Never been? ----well, you're in luck!!! I happened to fall upon a picture of the reverse side of our presidents' faces carved in stone. Remember, you saw it here first. LOL
[ Just kidding of course. This was sent to me via email ]

SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY meme button link on my sidebar





SUNDAY'S SUMMARY [a day early]

Another long, but busy week for me here. Composing and adjusting photos, adding the photos to the blog and actually, I spent a day doing more research to find the LDS Center here in town. Probably not much there, but worth a shot in the dark. You see, a long time ago, Bud's great great aunt told him and his mother while visiting her house in Michigan that they were related to one of the signors of the Declaration of Independence. As I was adding some documents to the genealogy blog, a familiar surname came to my attention. I followed it a bit and perhaps she was right. Maybe, maybe so, maybe not. That constituted me searching to see if this city had a Family Genealogy Center. I'll check it out sometime soon to see if they have the microfilm there, it'll need to be ordered from the LDS in Salt Lake City, I'm sure. It would be quite interesting to know that Bud is descended from one of the "founding fathers". It won't be a direct blood line tho, I don't think [If the signor is a direct line, then I'll add notes to my note pages that'll be part of the book for added text in handwriting]. At this point, I'm only doing DIRECT blood lines. My goodness, if I did brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, etc. my book would be humongous!!! Right now as it stands before publication, I have over 300 pages and counting.

Okay, on to other news. I finished the panel I've been slowly working on on the Halloween afghan for Irene. I am wondering if I'll get it completed before October 1st. That was my intention when I began the project...to have it done and sent to her by October 1st. Time will tell. Anyway, the solid panel is complete. And I began the other night after dinner while watching a ballgame, the edging. I have two sides of the edging done, now on to the other two sides. Then, getting them all pieced together on each side of the witch panel, and adding some fringe or some kind of finishing work. Then, done. The flying witch panel measures about 48 inches by 28 inches [guesstimate] and it should be, to be considered afghan size about 50 by 72 or so. There will be a large amount of edging involved to get it close to the correct size. I took an image from online made into a pixeled grid in order to get the pattern. Used the colors of yarn, while dropping one color and beginning another color accordingly.

In other news, as I was working on the computer early one morning just before sunrise, I heard the strangest noise outside. Well, not strange per sé, but something not heard much. At first I thought it was a jet plane flying over, low....but then it dawned on me.....IT WAS RAIN on the roof!!! I was elated. A good downpour. Strange phenomenon here this past summer. The storm lasted about 20 minutes [not nearly long enough to do much good on the parched land], but I'll take it. The forecasters here in the city are telling us there is a chance of rain for the entire next week; each day. Whoooohooo. And then, a cold snap is to hit. Cold snap? South Texas? Well, by that, I'm sure they mean the temperatures will finally drop below the century mark. Maybe even the high 80s. LOL


One more thing, then I must go do some visiting to those who have been kind enough to stop by here at Hootin' Anni's this past week ---we've been eating a lot of chicken pot pies. I need to make a full meal sometime real soon. Oh, and the photos of the post below this? Of the Humming birds? [link] Several commentors left note that there are a lot of 'em ----these photos don't show the REAL amount that sometimes hit the feeders. Why, we've had DOZENS at both feeders at the same time. Kinda like a huge invasion of mutant mosquitoes, they are.

...it's back to working on my project now. See y'all soon. If not sooner.

Ready, Set.....ACTION!!!

I guess the migrating season has started already? Guess so. Afterall, it IS nearing mid-September. Doesn't feel like September here tho, yesterday a record breaking high of 100 degrees. Hot and dry here. So, what's new with that? But, the hummingbirds are in the yard like there was no tomorrow!! I have been having to fill the feeders [ I have two ] each day now for the last week or so. We've also had an influx of Baltimore Orioles [ I have some pretty good photos of them also, through the window 'cause they're skittish when it comes to someone outdoors ]. Keeps me busy mixing the water/sugar mixture. I tellya....it's like the word is out: "Hey...have you tried the new restaurant in town?" "No, where?" "Follow me!!!" ---and they show up....









TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY MEME Linked buttons on sidebar.

Shadows of 9-11

It wasn't just Americans in the Twin Towers [and the Pentagon and Flight 93 also] and on Ground Zero [in the rubble and destruction] the fateful day ----




In the distance, shadows still linger
Memory of a decade past...
Shadows of our former lives
Shadows from back when were cast!

Today, we will not fail
For we find strength
in those shadows afar...
We stop, we fall silent;
but -- we shall prevail.

Our people, foreshadowed, the world...
In history, none of us will ever forget.
Amongst debris and dust, those shadows fell
Amidst the chaos; 'n' disbelief as well.
Shadows of what was yesterday...

Stop and remember.
Remember those who perished for our freedom
All our lost heroes, and those who saved; ---
And those who conquered America's threat
Our hearts open as one...as a flag in the wind
In unification, our hearts'll be UNFURLED!!!

                          SHADOWS OF YESTERDAY
                      ~Hootin' Anni  © 2011

Twin Tower images
courtesy of news media

Funny...it's all realtive[s]

It's one of those weeks where I don't know what day it is, and don't care. I have been working diligently on my genealogy blog. Started posting some images and charts only to have Bud call me from another room to show me he found some MORE old photos!! And some baby pictures of Clint and Dillon [and their late father who just passed away a couple months ago.] Dang. Talk about an organized mess!!! It's all about seniors and what I call half-heimers. So, thought I'd share this old dude's tale with you---------



A little old man shuffled slowly into an ice cream parlor and pulled himself slowly, painfully, up onto a stool.. After catching his breath, he ordered a banana split.
The waitress asked kindly, 'Crushed nuts?'
'No,' he replied, 'Arthritis.'

Blond roots showing up fast and furious now....

...not really, but oh the confusion is setting in. I tellya, if I hadn't started with the easy ancestors first, and began with the older generations [from the 1600s up to the late 1800s], I probably would be bald right now after pulling and tugging at my hair... just for the fact that everyone named their children the same Christian name!!! Bud's side....everyone from Europe, the immigrants, up to about the mid 1800s were given the name. Named the same as father and his father, and the father after that and so on and so on !!!! And on his other side, all the boys/men have the name of their fathers/grandfathers/great grandfathers and so forth!!! My side, the immigrants also, it's loads/tons of guys with the same given name on one side...and on the other side of mine...they're all named the same. Generation after generation!! Lord love a duck!!! They had to be insane!! I know, I know, it's probably a 'privileged' thing to be named after such and such...but, golly!!! I worked on one this morning from sun-up....I started it yesterday and worked on it about 10 hours---and I'm glad it's over. Done. The names...oh the names. Absolutely NO diversity. It's like ........who the heck did he marry again? or.....which dude is this again? The easy families, have different names and quick to decipher...like, good solid, DIFFERENT NAMES!! I see dark days ahead!!! Where is my lost shaker of salt? A good stiff margarita sounds good 'bout now. Heck, forget the mixer...just bring on the tequila!!!!!!!

Anyway, I came upon this cute little ditty I saved from long ago, over the years. And it will probably be used on my prologue page. It reads as follows:

I went searchin' for an ancestor.
I cannot find him still.
He moved around from place to place
and did not leave a will.
He married where a courthouse burned.
He mended all his fences.
He avoided any man
who came to take the U.S. Census!

He always kept his luggage packed;
this man who had no fame.
And ever twenty years or so,
this rascal changed his name!!

His parents came from Europe.
They should be upon some list
of passengers to U. S. A.
but somehow...
they got missed.

And no one else, in this world is searching for this man.
So I play genealo-solitaire to find him if I can.
I'm told he's buried in a plot.
With a tombstone he was blessed.
But the weather took engraving,
and some vandals took the rest.

He died before the county clerks decided to keep records.
No family bible has emerged, in spite of all my efforts.
To top it off...this ancestor, who caused me many groans,
Just to give me one more pain, betrothed a girl named Jones!!!!


                ~author M. Kenworthy

roflmao...I'm glad we don't have JONES in our family anywhere. I'd be in a looney bin right now!!! Trust me. I'm gonna take a break for a few minutes and then, back to scanning and editing another LONG group of the same names. PS...I don't drink any longer, so ginger ale sounds good right now. Oh and the animated graphic is linked to where I found it.

Love is a many splendored thing...

An old photo of my paternal grandparents...
shadows of late afternoon


SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY Linked Button found on my sidebar



SUNDAY'S SUMMARY

First I would like to add a response comment to those that have visited here with me in the past week. I HIGHLY APPRECIATE AND VALUE YOUR VISIT AND LEAVING A COMMENT. Tho, I've not had online time this past week to reciprocate with a visit to you. Soon, I hope, I will be back to regular blogging on Hootin' Anni's. I've just not been working on my personal blog. Instead, if you follow me, you'll know of my newest project I'm working on daily...my genealogy blog that I have the idea of having it published in hard cover book form when it's complete. In all intents and purposes, I've been working day in [nearly sunrise to sunset] and day out for the past week scanning, editing, and resizing old photos and documents that I have collected, researched, and saved for the past two and a half decades or more. Actually, the scanning is fun. The research that I was involved with over the years is showing up in my face and I find myself stopping to read and have revelations of some such happening [as with the post below this that explains how I came about being named Anni]. It's grueling, tiring, tedious, work...but quite a lot of fun. There was one day, thumbing through many things in my collections, that made my researching come to a halt. I found, in my many boxes from the attic, an old, old auction sale sales slip that was advertised in newspaper. A full page add. Dated 1905. It's Bud's side of the family. I felt like an historian with a highly valuable document. hehehehehe Anyway, when Bud received it from his parents, just after we were married some 40 years ago, it was in bad deterioration. You can imagine, being stored in an envelope, all folded up, just how badly it was decomposing still. I mentioned to Bud that we frame it...seal it in glass...and get it up on our wall of family photos and memorabilia. So with the two of us cleaning a frame, and washing glass and trying to save the piece, we got it up and on our wall collection. It's huge, and it will take me some getting used to it being in the family "hall of fame" [our hallway] 'cause it's size is massive and quite startling when a once blank section of wall is now covered with this. With that project taking up nearly half a day, I didn't do much else so I took the rest of the afternoon off that day, and just enjoyed my time away from the computer/scanner. Besides, after a week of sitting on my derriere twelve hours a day, the body got to stretch out and unwind. Of course, there's more work ahead. There are still hundreds of photos to edit.

For the Canadians and Americans stopping by, hope your Labor Day Weekend is safe and happy. To all....enjoy the weekend, and have a super week ahead of today.