Movie: The Two Popes

P gave us a Roku remote thing-a-ma-bob for Christmas in 2019. I do not have enough tech-intelligence to describe how it works. It just allows us to watch movies, etc., on Netflix. (We have a paid account.) And I've recently discovered I can view YouTube content, too. It probably has other (fee-based) streaming services, too. Our remote is not exactly like the remote pictured here. Among a couple other things, the two buttons on the right-side bottom of our remote say ESPN and Sling.

Thankfully P and JF installed the necessary whatever for the Roku to work on our TV. Then he set us up with the Netflix account.

JF and P install the Roku and Netflix

One of the first movies that I watched on Netflix was "The Two Popes." I mostly liked it. There was some political action in Argentina (birth country of Pope Francis) which I did not understand. And more than likely, there were other scenes throughout the movie that I did not pay a lot of attention to. I possibly dozed off. But one scene which really caught my fancy was as the movie was coming to a close:

Pope Benedict, the German one, is saying his confession to the next pope (not pope yet), Francis. Benedict says "It's been 8 days since my last confession. Several venial sins. And I'm getting too old and forgetful to remember what they are." Benedict looks surprised and says "Can you say that? I didn't know that you could say that. That's useful."

Child-Dog

I am a member of a "neighborhood" facebook-like group. I put neighborhood in quotes because there can be posts from all over C-U so I do not understand the neighborhood aspect of it. Altho I am a member as a resident of a SW neighborhood. But anyway .....

I do not delve too deeply into the posts. They can be just as stupid as FB posts -- rants and rude comments. Every now and then something will grab my interest. Such as this post. I took a look because I wondered what the issue was with this GoFundMe request. Sounds like her baby boy is suffering, doesn't it?

It's a dog. I've seen other posts like this. Such as, "Our little girl was playing the yard and has wandered off." Etc. Really catches one's soft side. Then turns out to be an animal.

I do not mind people making these posts. Maybe they're helpful in resolving whatever is going on. OK to think of their pets in this manner, but it is misleading and annoying to learn that their child is not human.

Translator Needed

I walked into family room. J says: Neum uck, neum eral.
I said: Huh?
"Need milk, need cereal."
He talks like a stroke victim.
I told him I'd go to the store tomorrow morning.

The other day he mentioned "lunch" a couple times totally out of context with eating. He was talking about the NASA launch. OK, now I understand.

He needs to have other people than me to have scintillating conversations with.

(Originally a text sent to sisters Sept 2020, year of the pandemic.)

Birthday Freebies - 2021

Looks like I really raked the treats in.

2021 - Birthday freebies

4/12	Portillo’s	Free slice of chocolate cake	$3.19
4/14	Texas Roadhouse	Free appetizer: ribs	~ $7.99
4/20	McAlister’s	Free cookie	$1.69
4/20	Denny’s	Free “breakfast slam” (4-choice build-your-own Grand Slam)	$8.69
4/21	Red Robin	Free burger	$13.89
4/21	Panera	Free pastry - bear claw	$3.99
4/25	Culver’s	Free turtle sundae	$4.09
4/27	Ye Olde Donut Shoppe	Free 2 donuts @1.75	$3.50
4/29	Moe’s	Free burrito	$8.79
4/30	Subway	Free cookie	$0.79
5/06	Arby’s	Free shake 2.99 + fries 2.29	$5.29
5/07	Perkins	Free Magnificent Seven	$7.99
5/16	Jimmy John’s	Free 8” sub	$5.95

Grammie's No-Bake Cookies

my grandmother's writing

Back when I was in junior high or high school, I used this actual recipe from my Grandmother B. to make these cookies. I followed it exactly.

I put   2 cups sugar

          1 cup cocoa

          2 cups milk

          1 stick of butter

in a saucepan and heated it on the stove.

Then I looked at the other scribbles and finally figured out what the measurements really said.

What I was heating was a total screw-up. How do you correct 4 times the amount of milk that I'd put in the 3-quart saucepan? I would have needed to use 4 sticks of butter. No way.

So, how to dispose of the catastrophe and start over?

The garbage disposal did not seem wise with the melted butter. Nor the toilet.

So I walked the hot saucepan out to the garbage barrel in the alley and dumped the contents there.

I don't think I ever told Mom.

I started over. Since I had broken the code, I knew to use 1/2 cup peanut butter and 3 cups oatmeal. And I ended up with perfectly delightful No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies.

Here's the easy-to-read recipe:

February 2022

Big snowfall event on Groundhog Day 2022.

J usually waits until the snow stops before shoveling. But I think one or the other of us had an appointment so he was shoveling while it was still snowing. He topped it off the next day.

February 3, 2022

February 4, 2022

January 3rd

January 3rd always makes me think of my third grade teacher.

I received a thank you note from Mrs. Farnsworth -- came addressed to me through the U.S. postal service. I believe it was probably the first letter I had ever received that was not a birthday card from a grandparent. 

Our room mothers collected money from the class -- probably 50¢. I remember that she thanked me for perfume, maybe Chanel No. 5. And then she signed off: See you January 3 -- Mrs. Farnsworth.

I wonder if Mrs. Farnsworth ever used the perfume. She told our class early on "Please do not wear perfume" because she was sensitive to it. More than likely she just thought 8-year-olds apply it too liberally. Can't say I blame her. I mostly dislike any scent that anyone wears, particularly if it is strong.

I kept that card for years. And I must have re-read it from time to time since I remember it so well.