A Time for Everything

It’s a snow day here in Portland, Oregon. We got somewhere between six and nine inches of snow last night. Maybe even more, but given how bad I am at estimating sizes of things1, I won’t try harder to be sure.

It’s not the first snow day we’ve had, but somehow it feels more like a snow day than any other. Maybe it’s how damn much snow is out there, or maybe it’s how quiet it is inside. I’m not sure. Nor am I sure if I care to figure out the “why” rather than just experience things as they are. In this case, it’s a snow day kind of day. I have tea. I have an urge to write. My tea is in a new, fabulous mug from the fantastic Deb Cooperman, and it’s encouraging my tea-ing and writing.… Continue reading →

Dog Booties.

I’d planned to write a post on Monday, to go up Tuesday. I have a few things in the pipeline. Some pumpkin beer bread. Some chili. Some thoughts on “teaffee”.

Instead, I spent Monday flipped out, frantic, desperately hoping my dogs wouldn’t be the center of a urine and fecal explosion roughly the size of my bedroom. It was a no good, horrible, terrible, very bad day.

They didn’t, thankfully, leave a trail of waste hither and fro. And then I, the next day, contemplated writing a post about that, but by then I had to work and then had to run around taking care of things like getting my hairs dyed for this wedding we had to attend (it’s in under 3 h)…

Anyway, my point is that blogging slipped a little, but I haven’t forgotten it.… Continue reading →

Happy Birthday to Me! Merry Christmas to You! Happy New Year to Us All!

It’s my birthday! It’s Christmastime! The New Year is just around the corner!

I’ll be taking a blogging break until 6 January 2015. Well, a posting break. I’m doing this, in part, so I can get some posts in the queue. Also to spend some of this time with Bill, who has off five days (starting today), and the puppies. Because they are awesome.

I love you all. Thanks again. I’ll be back with some new posts and likely some comments on my birthday gifts. And if you want to see the entirety of my birthday “loot”, look below.

Continue reading →

Sometimes, the Post Just Doesn’t Come

And sometimes, it’s not the right one when it does come.

Today’s been a bit of an odd day for me. The cold around me has finally eased a bit, which means I don’t feel quite as miserable at home1. The last two days have seen me huddled up under blankets in between attempts to get anything done. I actually managed, amazingly, to get my whole to-do list completed Monday, but yesterday was a bust. I was just too cold to do much. I did get half a post written, though. Today, I had no to-do list, but I finished that post. And pretty much immediately realized it’s a post for Monday, not for today. And it will probably need to be revised between now and Monday.… Continue reading →

Greetings to The Bittens!

I want to welcome anyone who has wandered by from The Bitten Word’s Food Network Magazine Post today!

Of course, if you’re here, you started at The Apple Pumpkin Brown Betty and are now perusing the main page wondering what to read next. Please, allow me to make a couple suggestions.

How about checking out how close my friend Dylan was to a cow that time we bought a hog? Warning! There are both cute and sad photos in that post. Mostly cute ones.

I recently wrote about my freezer addiction. It was prompted, in part, by my friend, The Bachelor Cook. Mostly by finding the inventory of my food in her freezer.

Finally, in case you’re worried I do nothing serious here, please check out one of my favorite serious posts on gardening and self-sufficiency.… Continue reading →