This Old House 2 – Page 166 – Middle aged musings from farm & hearth

Before and After – The office of the Boss

This room, located in the front right corner of the house if you’re facing it from the street.. was originally a dining room. Since we use that big keeping room (kitchen) as a dining room, sitting room, hanging out at the island room… Mike made this his office. Jeff did all the cabinetry work in his shop, and the fireplace and beams are original, even the stones are back in place. Mike took photos before the dismantle and the stones were marked so that they would go back together properly.

Jeff and crew …..

I know there should probably be a photo of some prestigious politician or religious leader or prominent family member up over the mantle there… but this rhinoceros photo speaks to Mike in some mystical way, (POWER, MIGHT, BRICK SH*T HOUSE, I’m guessing).

Turning another page

I did not cry. But I could have…. easily.

*sigh*

See you at the Fair

I can’t think of a better way to start the fall season in New England. Within driving distance we’ve got everything from a MEGA -Fair, which draws Saturday Night Band Talent such as the Charlie Daniels Band and Leann Rimes… to small town fairs that have all the charm you’de expect. The kids love hooking up with their friends and we get to eat all that sinful food.

There’s a certain elecricity in the air…the combined energy of good live music, the smell of woodsmoke and bar-b-q.. talent contests, agricultural exhibits and 4-H projects, the rides, the games, young lovers, families, gathering of friends old and new… it’s a love affair I’ll never outgrow.

His shirt said Ho Ho Ho. I Believe.

Guess I’m not quitting my day job…

…just yet. I was going to try my hand at storm chasing this morning, but Earl petered out.

My favorite room in This Old House is the back porch. We spend alot of time out there…cool breezes off the fields gently caress even on the hottest day.

There are storm windows for what we hope is going to be three-season use.

While riding out the heavy drizzle today, I read this…the fall edition is a great issue….

Storm or no storm, that’s the question.

The last real hurricane I remember was Gloria in 1985. We took a beating here in Connecticut, without power for 7 days, trees felled everywhere. Here’s a picture from Gloria archives along Long Island Sound.

As Earl heads this way… or not…. our public schools have declared a half day today, my daughter’s college cancelled classes and recommended students go home. We’ve got plywood ready for that huge window in the family room and we’re taking in the lawn furniture. But you know… I think it’s gonna be a bust.

My friend Cindy and I were going to act like a couple of stormchasers, bring the boys and the cameras to the Rhode Island beaches this morning and take awesome wave photos.. but the webcams look foggy and the waves are minimal. Not worth the drive. Might head down to our local beaches tonight… I love a good storm…

as long as no one gets hurt 🙂

Have Mercy

Tomorrow morning at 8am my son will become a high school freshman.

My baby.

The Youngest.

The last baby I’ll ever have.

(Yes, that thought occurred to me long ago, but still. Hush.)

Honestly, this boy was independent from the get-go. In his first day of life he stared out from his hospital bassinet, eyes wide open with wonder, not a peep of protest or cry for reassurance. The nurses marveled at his gaze, at his ability to follow them around the room with his eyes. “They don’t usually do that so young!”. said one. He never did bother to crawl… he sort of just GOT UP when he was 9 months old and that was that.

Tomorrow starts a new chapter. He will attend a private catholic high school and this in itself will be strange territory. I believe firmly in a good public education and it’s how we were all brought up. My mother was a public school teacher for 39 years. For several reasons we (and he) decided instead of our town’s public High School, this was the route he would benefit from the most.

For him the workload will be two-fold. It was his decision to attend, and it will be up to him to keep up and apply himself. ( “Required Summer READING LIST? But… this is my SUMMER!!) Getting him to sit in the dentist chair for an un-novicained root canal would be easier.

For me the ironing will be ~~TORTUROUS~~ truly a labor of love. And so will the letting go… something I’m not very good at. For now there is still the boy in the young man… and I’m cherishing every minute. For now, there are still bike rides and sleepovers and xbox and turtle tanks and smores by the fire.

Last night over Buffalo Chicken Pizza and orange and lime sodas we discussed what they might want to do when they grow up. Two of the three shrugged their shoulders, and my son replied in all seriousness…

“ I’m going to be a Trophy Truck Driver”

Ok then.

18 Things

1. I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing really stinks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.

3. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

4 Was learning cursive really necessary?

5. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on number 4. I’m pretty sure I know how to get out of my own neighborhood.

6. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

7. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don’t want to have to restart my collection…again.
8. I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to. -such a sinking feeling…

9. “do not machine wash or tumble dry” means I will never wash this…ever.

10. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring, Hello? Hello? but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voice mail. What did you do after I didn’t answer? Drop the phone and run away?

11. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

12. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay.

13. I would rather try to carry 10 over-loaded plastic bags in each hand while cutting off circulation in major arteries than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.
14. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

15. How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said? (welcome to my WORLD)

16. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in to get past at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters! HOLD that Tiger!

17. There’s no worse feeling than that millisecond you’re sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far. -yep, this makes my blood run cold; been there, done that.

18. Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch three consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

Everybody needs alittle…

That’s the slogan and I have a funny story. Obviously, slogans are meant to be catchy..something to remember, perhaps even raise an eyebrow. Coke is “the real thing”, Pepsi -“You’ve got alot to live and Pepsi’s got alot to give”. The old Chesterfield cigarettes “Blow some my way”, A T & T “Reach out and touch someone”. Motel 6 “We’ll leave the Light On”. Nike – “Just Do It” .

Roba Dolce says….

…and that’s a simple enough statement. I like it, it’s catchy and it’s true. But it’s a statement of a dangerous flavor when the containers are mistakenly filled by a machine to produce a set of boobs effect. We opened a container from our local Stop & shop recently and what stared out at us was a choclate set of plump breast-like gelato, nipples and all. (you can imagine this in PINK) The factory was called and the equipment was revised..it was merely a glitch in the system, but oh did I laugh. That’s a little too much subliminal advertising.

To answer a few questions…

My two favorite flavors – Raspberry chocolate Almond and Dark Chocolate Chunk

Pistachio… it doesn’t get any better

The best way to eat this stuff is slightly thawed out of the freezer. I pop it in the microwave for 15 seconds. I also like to wedge the raspberry chocolate almond between two chocolate cookies for a sandwich.

I left out a few bits of information…

Current flavors with more to come
Coconut Gelat
Dark Chocolate Chunk Gelato – for Chocolate lovers, it’s the bomb.
Raspberry Chocolate Almond Gelato – My absolute favorite
Pistachio Gelato- dreamy creamy
Wildberry Gelato
Blood Orange Sorbetto
Lemon Sorbetto
Mango Sorbetto
Raspberry Sorbetto

The gelato and sorbetto can also be found at the following stores – I ommitted these in yesterday’s post:
(if you don’t see the Roba Dolce brand label in these stores, it means the product is under their private label)

Winn Dixie
Shop Rite
Harmons
Giant
Shaws
Frys
Kings
Negotiations are in the works with Target, but it’s not a done deal yet. Fingers crossed!

OK, getting off my gelato soap box now.

He might quit his day job…

Mike has branched out into another business while he has watched the housing market slow to a crawl. So far, it’s going really well and the company has grown ten-fold in the past year alone. A few years back he became a partner in Roba Dolce, America’s Most Italian Gelato.. A Rhode Island based family run company created by Mathew Olerio. This gelato is awesome..the sorbettos are to die for too…AND.. they’ve just won a contract to sell their gelato exclusively at Patriots Stadium!

A frequently asked question: What’s the difference between gelato and ice cream?
Gelato is just the Italian word for ice cream, right?

Answer: If you’ve ever visited Italy, you probably experienced creamy, delicious gelato. Many assume that the only reason it seems richer than American ice cream back home is because you are eating it right smack in the middle of the old country, not on your couch in front of the TV.

Ice cream legally has a minimum of 10 percent fat, whereas gelato is made with a greater proportion of whole milk to cream, so it contains much less fat. While ice cream is usually served frozen, gelato is stored and served at a slightly warmer temperature, not quite completely frozen and the flavor is more intense.

What I get out of that is… NOT AS FATTENING AS ICE CREAM!!!!.. and it tastes better.

This is their new packaging…

This is the new mini cup…

If you shop in any of the following stores and you’re so inclined to try it, let me know what you think!

Good, bad or ugly, we want to know!

Costco (not all of them yet)

Market Basket

Price Chopper

Dollar General

Dollar Tree

Kroger

Patriots Stadium (Gillette)

Under Private Label (meaning under their store name) they are also available in

Stop & Shop (Simply Enjoy)

Aldi

Kroger (Private Selection)

Food Lyon

Hannafords

Weiss Dairy

Sundance

This man could not have been more beautiful…although, I’m saddened to see what he’s done to his face in recent years. Personally?..I think he should have allowed it to age gracefully. Just sayin.