Dub's Burgers

 Boy, did I get lazy about posting while I was in Alabama. I am back home now but I want to play catch-up!

Can't miss telling you about our trip out one day to find hamburgers. Michael had heard of this place called 'Dub's Burgers' in this little strip mall. He'd never been so we decided we'd try it out.

                                                              What an experience. 

That place had been there since the big flood, I think. haha. Health dept. rating was 96 but the place looked like it had been, as my step-dad used to say,  'rode hard and put up wet'. Not your normal atmosphere but oh my how friendly and the burgers were like I remembered them before we had fast food junk. 

The waiter came to the table with a lunch sized paper bag in his hand. He proceeded to write our order on the outside of it. And, when he brought our food to us.... it was down inside that same paper bag. Novel idea and not a bad one at that! 

We really enjoyed our lunch at Dub's Burgers in Athens, Alabama. So, thank you, Dub, whoever and whereever you are! 

Breakfast.... Again?

 The funniest thing happened on last Tuesday. We'd spent the night in a 'nice' hotel, had a breakfast that was extra yummy around 7:45. I even had seconds since I figure it might be awhile 'til we stop again. 

But, 3 hours later Michael is pulling into a Cracker Barrel. I looked at the clock... it said 11:30 so I thought, well okay, he must be getting hungry

We go into the restaurant and notice the menus do not list any lunch items. Michael tells the waitress that we'll take the lunch special and she said they didn't have any. She finally giggled and said, 'ya'll driving west? You are in a different time zone now.' 

Michael had seen the car clock, it said it was 11:30 so hey it must be getting close to lunch. It really was just 10:30 where we were. That time change can flat fool you. 

                                 We ordered breakfast! Again! 

The hashbrown breakfast casserole was quite tasty. Their regular hashbrown casserole topped with melted cheese, scrambled eggs, chopped scallions and french fried onion rings. I hadn't been all that hungry so I couldn't finish mine. But, men being men, Michael's was all gone!

Lunch at Charley's

 Michael and I left Monday morning (he heading home, me riding along for an adventure). It's a long car ride but we planned to make it fun. Anything to keep Mama from conking out on him. hehe

I was surprised when it got lunch time and he suggested we stop in Farmville, Va. He'd heard about his sister, Shirley, and me having lunch at this cool restaurant there and wanted the two of us to try it out. 

It's been several years since we girls had gone there so I was surprised when I led him right to the front door of the place. Yep, there was Charley's... the best roasted red pepper/crab soup in the world! 

It was a fun stop over. We shared the soup. Michael got a Reuben sandwich which he pronounced as mild, tasty and it met with his approval. 

My chicken salad sandwich I thought had no flavor. Michael tried it and said the same thing. That was a disappointment. 

Man, I wish I'd just had a larger portion of the soup. It is soooo good.. 

After lunch we headed west toward the Blue Ridge Parkway... that will be in another post or two. 

Stuffing on Mongolian!!

 How nice to have my son come up from Alabama to visit and to be with me when I go for my 2nd RH2 treatment today. Yesterday we went to a Mongolian Buffet and had the best lunch. It was so good and both of us 'got our money's worth'. hehe. 

Chowing down on Mongolian food

His first plate (and there was a second)

My first plate and yes, there was a second! for me as well.

I have been less than happy with scheduling errors and other errors made by my oncology team. They just can't seem to get their act together.

I go for my second treatment today and hope to 'set those folks straight'. haha

So, wish me well with me being 'tough'. That's just not my nature. 

But you do what you gotta do, right? 

As Shirley always says, 'Put on your bitch lipstick and take care of business.' 

or as others might say, 'Put on your big girl panties.'

Fire, Food and Flowers

 I really feel for everyone affected by the wildfires in Canada.  It must be awful. 

Here in Virginia, over 800 miles from the fires, we have had severe alerts regarding air quality and everyone with any breathing problems have been urged to stay indoors or wear masks. 

The air is filled with smoke, but it's not nearly as bad as it is further north. 

The only other time I have been in such toxic- filled air was way back in 1965. The family was driving from California to Alabama and of course, a sand storm hit us. It was pretty interesting, the car being engulfed with sand. Thank goodness it did not last long.

After my doctor visit yesterday, Shirley and I went to one of our favorite restaurants and had some yummy food. Terrible picture of me.... I don't care who is taking the picture, but they always catch me with food in my mouth.. (grin) You can tell I am trying to act like I am not eating. 

Instead look at the Chicken Cali sandwich (chicken,  bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and avocado. And those fries. sprinkled with sea salt. Yummm

As we left out of the parking lot I saw this yellow rose on a fence so she got out to make some pictures. 

Y'all Come Back Now!  

(in case you aren't aware... that's a southern saying)

Laughter Every Day Will Keep The Doctor Away

 Well, it looks like I fell off the wagon... the blogger wagon that is. 

Just weird how it comes so easy some days and other times it's a real struggle to post anything.

I do have some things to catch you up on, though.

No pictures  for the first one, sorry....

Shirley came to Centerbrooke to conduct the activity meeting Tuesday afternoon. The staff that usually does that, had a dr. appt. We had the best time. While the cat's away, the mice will play!! 

We did get some events planned, committee reports done, that sort of thing but we just ended up laughing our fool heads off for two solid hours. (the meeting was so long 'cause we were having so much fun). 

Shirley had brought some of her wonderful cookies so we'd stop the meeting to  pass them out to the maintanence crew and anyone else who wandered in. We've got a new janitor. Tuesday was his second day, and we plied him with cookies (and his boss) hoping to stay on their good side. ha  

The Director went home at 5 but it was 6 before we turned out the lights and locked up the community room. Everybody needs to laugh every single day and we got caught up for a whole month's worth I think.

On Wednesday some of us drove to Wakefield (25 miles away) to where I used to live and where Shirley still lives. We had lunch at the Virginia Diner.

 That place is pretty famous. Besides being a restaurant they also ship Virginia Diner peanuts to shops all over the world. If you run across any when you are shopping, just think about me!! 

The diner started out in 1929 with a woman selling soup and biscuits out of an old railroad car. Business got so good, she expanded with an addition to it. That establishment got flooded so they just started over with a new building. Folks from near and far stop there to eat when they are traveling in Virginia. 

That's Lorettta, a sweet Christian lady.... Vivian, a new transplant from the Bronx, NY....Carolyn, another sweet lady.... Donald our farmer.. he has some garden spots here and shares his produce with friends. I sure am glad I am his friend.... Marcia is Donald's wife. She can not hear and it can;t be fixed so we communicate with her via her phone typing out what we say. And, that's where some of our laughter comes from. That phone can't hear any better than Marcia. Some of the things it types, well... I can't repeat here.

Today I repotted my amaryllis. The thing got too big for it's britches  pot. 

We'll see if it grows any better with more space and new soil! I even watered it!! 

Red Hot Chili Peppers

 In my last post I mentioned hushpuppies and pork rind... some of you didn't know what those were. Oh honey, let me tell you... if you haven't had hushpuppies you haven't lived. But, of course, they have to be cooked right and Q Daddy's knows how to cook up some hushpuppies!!

It's just basically a cornbread batter with onions and sometimes corn added and dropped by the spoonful into hot oil. The inside so tender and the outside so crunchy. I love them.

Pork rinds are what they say they are. Crispy fried pig skin. Yes, I know, it sounds gross but they are good!

I am a Southern girl. I am proud of that but I haven't always been in the South.

Following my Navy sailor husband around, I've lived on all four corners of the U. S. plus Hawaii and Midway Island. And, in those places I got introduced to food I wasn't familiar with. 

I remember that right after our wedding back in 1950, I moved with Elbert to San Diego. One day we trapsied across the border to Tijuana, Mexico. Had lunch... I had never had Mexican food, much less REAL Mexican food. It set me on fire!🔥 There wasn't enough water in the entirety of Mexico to put out the flames!!!!

I grew up poor. I was a Depression child and we ate what we grew out of our garden. We never had beef to kill but would on occassion kill a hog. 

My only introduction to Mexican food was when my aunt brought over a can of tamales for us to try. It was pretty mild, pretty mushy but I was intrigued by the shucks they were wrapped in. No, not true Mexican by any means. 

Now, I can put away some Mexican food. 

I love Taco Bell chalupas. I like taco salad. I like chili rellenos. But, that's not really Mexican!! My memories of REAL Mexican cuisine have never left me. 

Blessings! 

What Was I Thinking?

 Okay.... it's official!

I am gonna die! No, wait a minute... I should have died shortly after I ate lunch at Q-Daddy's BBQ today. I am still here hours later but, I am still so stuffed I can't move. What was I thinking?

I ordered a BBQ plate so I could bring some of it home with me. BBQ, potato salad, baked beans and 2 of the best hushpuppies you ever bit into. 

picture from Q-Daddy's facebook page

I DIDN'T LEAVE MUCH TO BRING HOME.

After that, I ripped open a bag of pork rinds, seasoned with their signature rub. That was supposed to go home with me, too. I did not eat the whole bag, just a handful. I swear! 

picture taken by Shirley Dietz

Then Shirley (who was my partner in crime) suggested we get dessert.  

Honey, let me tell you. When she came back to the table with my strawberry milkshake I 'bout passed out. It was huge. And, I drank the whole darn thing. 

picture from Q-Daddy's facebook page

We could not even get out of our seats so we sat there and talked for an hour... hoping our tummies would not explode in the meantime. 

Finally,  we staggered out of that place. We decided that next time we would just order the milk shakes.... oh, and a couple of hushpuppies. They are to die for.

What did I say... 'die for'? It was definately on my mind! Just two crazy nuts who ate too much and lived to tell about it! But, man, I know I will pay for it tonight!

Laughter and Food... a great combination

                                   Our Lunch Bunch went Mexican Today!

Once a month some of us try out a restaurant within our driving range. Sometimes that's challenging for us older gals so we choose something we feel comfortable driving to, going into the building, has food that won't be too difficult to chew and digest etc.  This growing old sure puts a damper on what you can eat! 

We laughed so much today. We have one new resident who went with us. Bless her heart, it's obvious that she has dementia. So, she said some of the funniest things. I know, it's very rude to laugh at people who have mental problems but we soon found out that she loved making us laugh. Soon as we laughed she'd say or do something else. She loved that attention and that way we all had a marvelous time.  

The wait staff expected us and they went out of their way to fulfill our wants and needs. Our waiter said we were pretty senoritas and of course, we loved that. He even took a picture of us so that all could be in it. So often the picture taker is missing! 

I'm really looking forward to our outing in March. 

(all photos but the last one was taken from their facebook page)

The Cockeyed Rooster!

 When Centerbrooke had a van, a bunch of us would go to lunch once a month. One day they hauled off the van (after Covid) and it's gone to van heaven I guess. Leastwise we haven't seen it since!

So, I decided that we had enough drivers around this place that we could start up that event again. Who needs a stinking old van, right? 

Yesterday 7 of us residents rode up to Smithfield, (That's in Virginia USA, the home of Smithfield Ham) to a place called The Cockeyed Rooster. They serve breakfast 'til 2 p.m. 

We had the best time. We laughed, told jokes, ate good food.... it looked like that we were a bunch of monkeys let out of  the zoo! That's what happens when you keep us 'older generation' cooped up too long! 

The menu is extensive.. omelets, hashbrowns, quiche lorraine, and the list just goes on and on. I think everyone enjoyed their food. 

Then the waitress comes by. She was so cute and friendly and we liked her even more when she said, 'It was so nice to have waited on y'all. Everything's been taken care of and I hope you'll come back again soon.' 

                                WHAT!! DOUBLE WHAT!! 

Our bill paid? by whom? She wouldn't say. However, one of our group knew the two men at the next table and we'd talked some to them while we were all eating. 

They are the ones who did it! They confessed that they came there about every day so we teased them about we were going to show up every day, 'just in case they were in a giving mood'. We all laughed about that! 

Their nice, generous gesture really made our day so special. They said, 'Just pay it forward.' I certainly intend to do that! 

More Birthday Fun

 We slept in.... I mean, what else would you do lying in a comfy bed 4 floors up listening to the waves crashing on the shore. The sun was out... hallelujah for that. So, we went out on the balcony to enjoy the last few minutes of our stay.

I've seen a dolphin or two from time to time but for my birthday I had a crowd of them swimming by. I bet we saw 3 dozen as they swam, rising up from the water every minute or two so that they could get air. Man, those buggers are so hard to photograph... they are quicker than lightning! So we got a few good shots of them. 

I was just so excited and amazed. Oh course I had my camera ready! I've missed being out taking pictures so much and this trip provided us with a lot of opts. 

And a lot of selfies. 

We were still not hungry from the night before so we decided to go shopping. I had been complaining that I hated my wardrobe. It's old, out dated, can't match a thing for an outfit. You ever get in that predicament? 

We two have a shopping system. Shirley pulls clothes she thinks that would look good on me while I try them on in the dressing room. We had a cartful of stuff. But, I didn't buy it all, I promise. Just a few pieces. he he

I mean, a birthday girl's gotta treat herself although I was just flooded with well wishes (and I do thank all of you so much who sent me happy birthday wishes), phone calls and gifts. 

All that shopping wore me out and my tummy needed breakfast so we headed to Jolly Rogers for some food. You'd wonder where in the world we put it but we did. 

Gee Whiz, we must be pigs! 

Then we headed home wishing we had booked the room for longer.

But, we'll be back.

On the way home we drive through the edge of the Dismal Swamp and I saw a beavers dam.

Another treat. 

Back to normal, doing laundry, packing away Christmas decorations. but, that's okay.

I had a blast! 

note: if you want to see the rest of my birthday bash click back one post.

It's My Birthday!

 Several times in the past Shirley has taken me to Nags Head, N. C. for my birthday. So, that's where we were for my 89th. Can you believe that! 89. I sure can't. 

We've had our interesting times down there. One time there was snow on the ground, another time we had a flat tire but this time it was perfect in every way. 

It was cloudy when we got to the hotel. Warm for this time of year. So, we were sitting on the balcony just relaxing to the sound of the ocean waves when a huge clap of thunder and bolt of lightning sent us racing back inside. 

Dinner was amazing. We tried a new restaurant, the 'Ocean Blvd Bistro and Martini Bar'. As many times as we have been to that area, this was the first time we stopped in there. Oh my goodness. Have we been missing out. 

I ordered scallops which came on a bed of oven-roasted veggies and rissoto surrounded by roasted red pepper puree. I mean, I cleaned my plate! It was sooooo good. 

Shirley got the rack of lamb. She loved it. 

Both of us were stuffed so declined dessert. But, here the waitress came with a chocolate lava cake topped by a candle. We finished that off, too.

We had the sweetest waitress, Maria. I told her I was gonna adopt her! She said she was up for adoption and gave me a big hug. 

It was just the perfect celebration and as always Shirley outdid herself seeing that I celebrated in high fashion. 

More on our trip next time. 

Fall Apples mean Fried Apples

         

                               Apples make me think of Fall. 

             How many of you go to Cracker Barrel to eat? I know, it's not located EVERYWHERE but if you've eaten there once, you'll go back. 

                        One of their treats is the fried apples. 

I can't get to Cracker Barrel just now but I can certainly make me some fried apples!