Jan being catty… who, me??? nah, just tellin’ it the way it is…

You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold em,
Know when to walk away and know when to run.

We’ve all done it,  a woman makes an “entrance” and of course we stop, dead still, check her out from head to toe.  Gotta see what all the “look” is all about…  It happened to me yesterday at T. J. Maxx.

I was headed toward the front and all of a sudden there she was.  Scarf tied around her head doo rag style, but it was long and flowy like a gypsy scarf, huge hoop earrings, great body, tight, tight, jeans tucked into knee-high white leather stiletto boots, cute bomber jacket, great cashmere sweater, amazing jewelry, prerequisite oversized saddlebag designer bag, lots of eye makeup.

Sooooooo,  did she make the cut?  After all, you know how much I like the trashy look.

Ummmmm, she was pushing 60…  Did she look hot???  No, she looked silly.  Twenty years ago she would have looked awesome, though…

Just an observation…

A tug at the heartstrings, for both me and Maggie…

It’s cold now, I put sweaters on the M&M’s when they go outside, Maggie has a whole wardrobe, but Mollie is too thick thru the middle for Mag’s clothes, she looks like a little stuffed snausage in them.

I had hubby go into the attic this morning for the box of Munchie’s clothes, I couldn’t bear to part with them, and I knew  some of them would work for Mollie.

I was sitting on the couch, he handed me the box, I started to open it and Maggie went crazy.  She was barking, and barking and running circles, and when I opened the box, she was sniffing those clothes frantically, she smelled Munchie on them…

Oh my, talk about bittersweet, I picked Maggie up, tears streaming down my face, gave her a long snuggle, took a deep breath and tried them on Mollie.

She looked adorable, of course.  And it’s okay, now.  The moment passed…I like to think that Munchie would like for me to share her things with Mollie…

For the guys….

Jean sent me a great oldie car site  today.  If you have a guy in your life that grew up in the 50’s or the 60’s, have him link to this.  He’ll love it!  It takes a while to watch it, but it’s a goodie… Great music, too!!!

Here’s the CLICK…

This is great gang, beauty secrets, Ellen style, you’re gonna love this!

We’re not alone….

Eva Longoria flashed her Spanx last night…..

At least she can get into her Spanx, yours truly finds it impossible to even get ‘em past the hips…

We all feel her pain…

SPANX, Inc. is a U.S. company which mainly manufactures footless pantyhose and other undergarments for women, particularly "body shaping" undergarments designed to give the wearer a slim and shapely appearance. The company's products are supposedly marketed to fit contemporary female lifestyles and fashion trends.

Source: Wikipedia

Hillary Rodham Clinton, whatever are you thinking!!!

Remember back in the day when my girl favored the black velvet headbands??? Well apparently she's now turned to gold in honor of her "Golden Years."

I'm thinking it's time to retire it.  Good bone structure, still, but some things are best left in the 80's....  Know what I mean, Vern???

Geezy Pete, I have all these chickens....

A few weeks ago hubby was at the Giant Flea Market, it's a local monthly weekend flea market where he goes and buys reading glasses by the case, yes by the case, twelve pairs at a time, several times a year,  because we lose them so frequently, but that's a whole other blog entry.

But anyhoo, the last time he went he came home with a frozen chicken.  Of course I'm going, "why would you buy a chicken at a flea market?"   He went on to explain that it was a local guy who raises them, that it was free range, yadayadaya.  So I baked it.  O-M-G, it was an amazing bird, it tasted like chickens of my childhood, when they roamed free and ate as nature intended instead of living their lives on wire and being injected with hormones like the chicken we eat today.

So he called the guy a few weeks ago to get more chickens, and he was sold out, but he said he would contact him when they slaughtered more.

Fast forward to this week, the call came, LC's working today, so lucky me gets to meet the chicken man by the side of the road, near the University, to pick them up.  So I haul a** to the highway, not too thrilled at the prospect of sitting there while all those college kids whiz by, I have the the M&M's in tow, and I'm talking to V on the cell to alleviate my boredom.  Pretty soon chicken man and his wife pull up in a new Lexus, yeah, a Lexus,  chickens apparently are a really lucrative business.

I get out of the car, his wife says, "these are really nice chickens, they're awfully heavy though, they weigh forty-six pounds."  Forty six pounds, imagine that!!!   FORTY SIX POUNDS,  holy sh*t, that's a lot of chicken.  They load em' up for me, they're fresh, not frozen, they gush profusely about how adorable the fur kids are, and how they used to have a Yorkie, I swear, I think the whole world has had a Yorkie at one time or another, and we're off for home.

The M&M's are scampering in the drive, I'm unloading all that frickin' chicken and  trying to stuff them in an already full freezer, trust me it was not a fun job and the only thing that made it remotely possible  was the fact that they were pliable so I could jam them all in there.  It was such a tight fit I could barely close the door.  And that was the freezer in the garage, the freezer in the house is full, too.  It's not me that buys all this food, it's hubby, he buys in bulk, he always has. I've had many a comment about how our pantry looks like a grocery store, because he also comes home with cases of canned veggies and beans and numerous other "deals."  Now he's on the hunt for a good buy on sweet potatoes so that he can buy a bushel of those!!!

He brings all this stuff in the house, and it's like, what are we going to do with it???  It's like he's a modern day hunter, bringing home his kill!!!

I also have a whole boneless pork loin in the refrigerator that he bought yesterday and I'm somehow going to have to fit it  into one of the freezers.  AND he bought twenty-five bags of Birdseye frozen Veggie Steamers this morning because they were such a good buy,  so those also had to go into the already full freezer because it already had a ton of stuff in there from his earlier shopping trips.  He threatened to throw away the bucket of frozen margaritas that Hooterville is so fond of, to make room, and I said, “Oh no you don't,” “ Hoot would absolutely kill you if you pitched her margs." 

But you see what I mean about hoarding food?  Sometimes he really does get carried away...  No, let me rephrase that, he always gets carried away...  And he had enough to eat as a child, I don't know why he feels the need to have so much food around...

Oh that man, whatever possessed him to order all those chickens???   Oh well, the freezer is stocked for winter, we'll share with the kids, and guess what we're having for dinner tonight..... yeah, you got that right..... CHICKEN!!!

An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving, starring Jacqueline Bisset, this looks promising, ladies

Hallmark Channel - November 22, 9p/8c

An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving

The Story:

Thanksgiving dinner. Suddenly, Mary’s wealthy and estranged mother Isabella (Jacqueline Bisset) has come to visit. Although she finds a kindred spirit in Mary’s eldest daughter and budding writer Tilly (Tatiana Maslany), Mary resents her mother’s attempts to help them out of their financial difficulties. In the end, more than money will be needed to heal the emotional wounds that exist between mother and daughter in this moving Hallmark Channel original period drama.
Mary (Helene Joy) and her 3 children have hit difficult times on their farm. This year, they cannot even afford a turkey for their Thanksgiving dinner. Suddenly, Mary’s wealthy and estranged mother Isabella (Jacqueline Bisset) has come to visit. Isabella wants to help but, in the end, more than money will be needed to heal the emotional wounds that exist between mother and daughter in this moving Hallmark Channel original period drama.

Read more about it HERE...

Source: The Hallmark Channel

Thanksgiving plans have you stressed???

Sometimes you just have to post these things…

My friend Barb sent me this tonight.  I debated for about five seconds as to whether I should post it on The Dish.  Of course, the bawdy old broad in me won out.  Yeah, yeah, I know nobody is surprised. 

I do think since this turkey is thick thru the middle and obviously middle aged, the lemons should have been oranges,  and should have been settled a bit lower in her midsection.  You have to admit girlfriends,  this was too  too funny not to share!

Lemon Turkey

Ingredients:

1 whole Turkey (weight is dependant on how many servings are required)

1 large lemon, cut into halves

sprig of rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

butter or olive oil, whichever you prefer

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Rub butter or oil over the skin of the Turkey until it is completely coated  
Take a knife and gently separate the skin from the breast meat

Slide lemon halves under the skin with the peel side up. This way the juice from the lemon will coat the breast.

Season skin of the Turkey to your preference, and place sprig of rosemary into it.

Cover and place in oven for 30-45 minutes.
Remove cover and continue to roast until juices run clear, basting every 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the bird.
If you've followed these steps correctly, your Turkey should look like the one in the attached photo.
Bon Appetite!

Be careful with those Christmas gift cards

Let’s get real, all kinds of scary things circulate on the net, I got this in an email, take it for what it’s worth, but with the economy tanking, it could be valid… 

Circuit City stores... most recent (? how many)

Ann Taylor- 117 stores nationwide are to be shuttered

Lane Bryant,, Fashion Bug ,and Catherine's to close 150 store nationwide

Eddie Bauer to close stores 27 stores and more after January

Cache will close all stores

Talbots closing down all stores

J. Jill closing all stores

GAP closing 85 stores

Footlocker closing 140 stores more to close after January
Wickes Furniture closing down

Levitz closing down remaining stores

Bombay closing remaining stores

Zales closing down 82 stores and 105 after January.

Whitehall closing all stores

Piercing Pagoda closing all stores

Disney closing 98 stores and will close more after January.

Home Depot closing 15 stores 1 in NJ (New Brunswick)

Macys to close 9 stores after January

Linens and Things closing all stores

Movie Galley Closing all stores

Pacific Sunware closing stores

Pep Boys Closing 33 stores
Sprint/ Nextel closing 133 stores

JC Penney closing a number of stores after January

Ethan Allen closing down 12 stores.

Wilson Leather closing down all stores

Sharper Image closing down all stores

K B Toys closing 356 stores

Loews to close down some stores

Dillard's to close some stores.

I finally threw out my prom dresses…..

Well, not really, but I got rid of a ton of stuff in my closet today.  Ya know how you always have the dream that someday you will fit into all of your wardrobe, dating back to high school, ummmm for me that was 1960’s.

Stuff is gone, poof, well except for some things I couldn’t part with.  Like my wonderful denim jacket embellished with sequined decks of cards and hand painted Las Vegas scenes.  Hubby got it for me when I turned 40.  It’s pretty spectacular!  Of course I haven’t worn it since I was probably 41, but it’s one of those Thelma Roper outfits that you have to hang onto…

I should model it for you and post it.  I’ll be sure to do that, soon as I lose 20 lbs.  *giggle*

Butternut Squash with Browned Butter and Thyme

I'm a big fan of Elise's Simply Recipes site and this simple dish looks just perfect,

Link here to read her recipe.

Hey townies…

If you’re from Heavensville, I have great news.  Hubby and I were cruising main street yesterday.  The renovations are underway, with condos, restaurants, shops, etc. 

At about 4th and main I saw a sign in the window for a new coffee shop.  AND, not just an ordinary coffee shop, this is one that roasts FRESH coffee beans and sells them.  Whoeee, I’ve been interested in fresh coffee beans for awhile now, supposedly beans lose a lot of their flavor within fifteen days after roasting.  So the ones I grind, Starbuck's Sumatra,  are stale, stale, stale.  I can’t imagine what fresh ones will be like, but apparently, I’m going to be able to find out!

Do any of you use freshly roasted beans?  Are they really better?  Comment, please if you have info on this…

~ jan

You know what happens when you drink a mug of coffee at 8pm?

You’re totally wide awake at 10:30, that’s what.  I knew better, what did I think I was doing drinking coffee that late!!!

Jeez Louise, will I ever learn???

I guess I could bore you all with ten things that go bump in the night, but I won’t.  I do like the idea of “ten things”, the possibilities are endless, but don’t worry, I’ll try not to do it constantly, think of it as an ongoing addition to the blog.   Still trying to decide if ten things is a bit much, or if I should cut it down to five things.  I’m working on it.

Lots and lots of possibilities with this, my ten favorite books, ten favorite movies, ten favorite “men”, hmmmm, maybe I had better cut that one down a bit… but you get the idea…. ten favorite breeds of dogs, ten favorite plants in the garden, ten funniest jokes, ten stupid things I’ve done, ten kitchen disasters, ten regrets and on and on and on.  if any of you want me to do a specific subject, hey, go for it…. but not tonight!  egads that was so stupid drinking that coffee that late!!!!!

Thanksgiving pies…..

Mother was always our pie maker at Thanksgiving time.  She made our pies until she was well into her 80’s, getting up at the crack of dawn on Thanksgiving morning to make cranapple, pecan and pumpkin pies, always from scratch. 

She loved to decorate her pumpkin pies with leaves, going into her yard, gettting a maple and an oak leaf , making  a paper pattern, then she would roll out her piecrust and cut the leaves out of the crust.  She would bake the leaves  separately, and then slide the baked leaves on top of her baked pumpkin pies to decorate them.  They were so festive, we always looked forward to that. 

This pumpkin pie is a much more sophisticated version of Mothers, this is from Williams Sonoma, the cutters to make the leaves are new this year.  They’re great, aren’t they?

Interested?  Click here for the link.  WS ships fast, there is still time to order…

Something’s Gotta Give, the best house, EV-ER…

I’m watching Something’s Gotta Give this afternoon, for the badzillionth time.  It’s not the story line, heaven knows it’s not Nicholson, he doesn’t do it for me, it’s the house!!!

V is the one who went gaga for it first.  She has a really arty eye, and she instantly recognized how fantastic it was.  I loved the movie, but didn’t realize, until dissing it with her, that it wasn’t the storyline  I liked so much, it was the house…

And we weren’t alone, women all over the country converged on their decorators, the movie downloaded on their laptops, to show them pictures to duplicate.  It’s one of the most popular movie houses, ever!

There is a ton of info about the house online, just Google Something’s Gotta Give house pictures and you can read all about it.

It is the perfect house, the kind of house we all dream about, comfy, spacious, homey, wonderful…  They trucked in 3,000 books from a bookstore to put in the den.  Tons of trivia about this movie is available…

Two years ago, I loved the move, “The Holiday” – loved it, the houses were wonderful in it, also.  Guess what, same producer (a woman, Nancy Meyer) and the same set decorator.  No wonder I liked it.  She has a movie in pre-production phase now, no title yet,  let’s hope it has wonderful sets as well.

Here’s a quick link to pictures of that wonderful, amazing house.  It’s perfection, girlfriends, perfection!

Georgetown Cupcake and brown paper cupcake liners, a must read!!!

Geezy Pete, girls, we've been missing out! 

I was watching a tivoed episode of Martha Stewart, she had on the owners of Georgetown Cupcake, famous for their cupcakes, and Martha was talking about how much she adored brown paper cupcake liners.  And I'm thinking, hmmmm, like a Reese Cup paper, that is cool.  She said they were hard to find, but of course, yours truly, scouted them out for you - oh, what would you all do without me....

These liners are available online, from Sweet Cuppin Cakes Bakery, yeah, I know, you want the link, got your credit card handy?  Theyre 7.99 for a hundred pack, inexpensive, but a must have, you, the readers of The Dish can 't miss out on something this important, you have to be on the cutting edge.

Here's the CLICK -

AND, I have the video for making their cupcakes, and the recipe from Martha's website for you.  This episode was the day before elections, so they made donkey and elephant fondant for the tops, if you wanted fondant on yours, you could always do Santa for the holidays.

You have to check out the website for Georgeotown Cupcake, its adorable.  Link to it HERE.

Click here for the video and the recipe, have fun checking it out...

~ jan

I'm really looking forward to this...

Australia is coming out Thanksgiving weekend.  I'm not a Nicole Kidman fan, but this appeals to me, just for the cinematography alone.  Maybe we'll luck out and it will be a great epic, like Out of Africa.  Meryl Streep would have been dynamite in this, drats, why did she have to get old...  like the rest of us!

 

 

Revisiting old favorites -

If you look in the right sidebar of this page at THIS ISN'T MY ONLY BLOG, I PUBLISH SEVERAL OTHERS, one of the choices  is Jan Can Cook, and it is chocked full of really special  recipes, not ordinary boring ones, girlfriends, really great ones.  Once you link to Jan Can Cook, look again to the right sidebar of that page, look for the index, there are a lot to choose from.

I was browsing soups this morning,  Olive Garden's Pasta e Fagioli is an amazing soup for this cold winter day.

Here's a quick CLICK for you.

~ jan