Flamin' Cheetos

I just entered the "Flamin' Cheetos museum contest with the photo on the left and now I'm not sure if perhaps the photo on the right would have been a better submission. The "Cheetos" remind me of a "flamin' hot hoppin' bunny at least that is how I described it for the contest although maybe it looks more like a chef with one of those big hats or maybe a bear?  Sometimes shapes are in the eye of the beholder like looking at cloud formations or those "Rorschach" ink splatter tests.  And of course, one of the central questions in life is whether the eye truly sees or is it that the retinal images are interpreted by the brain.  Anyway, I shall see if this "Cheeto" will make it into the "Cheeto Museum" and reward me with enough cash to buy "Cheetos" for the rest of my life as that would be "WAY COOL".

"Super Storm Stella"

Here is the results of the "Super Storm Stella" from my front yard on Cape Cod after the March 14th predicted "Storm of the Century".  As you can see there is quite a bit of snow!. Why I would imagine there may be even more than TWO Shovel fulls!. Luckily school was cancelled for the local towns, the Governor warned us not to travel unless in an emergency; and I had matches, candles, and a goodly amount of food ready to weather all of this snow!  It was also helpful in preparation for this "Mega Storm" to receive automated phone calls from the Dennis and Yarmouth police departments so I was able to weather this incredible amount of snow. Why, there is so much snow I don't even know where to begin. I am so discouraged with this snowfall that I think I will just pray it melts as it is just TOO MUCH to handle!. Maybe I can just avoid this snow somehow.

See Soundings Snow Sea Sky

From out my sliding glass door today I see Soundings snow sea sky; and a few gulls flying by. Calmer day today after about 18 inches of drifting snow yesterday and last night. I don't think I'll go swimming today; but then again I might.

The Soundings Resort is "Charged Up"

The atmosphere is electric at the Soundings Resort (Bluegreen managed oceanfront resort in Dennisport, Cape Cod) with the new installation yesterday of a car charger for electric cars. Exciting news for sure!  Electric car owners should be ecstatic.

Also, in another shocking development, the indoor pool opened up this Thursday at the Soundings as well and I'm sure our guests will get a charge out of this news.

Cranberry Harvest

Up the street from where I live here on Cape Cod I noticed that they have flooded this cranberry bog to harvest the cranberry crop for this year. Right next to the Cape Rail Trail (a bike path) on Depot street in Dennisport; this crop will be just in time for Thanksgiving.

Snicker Time

I just celebrated another birthday recently and like many of us I suspect birthdays are a time to reflect over the past year and recent trip around the Sun and reminisce about past years and how things were back then compared to the present day.  For example, believe it or not back in 1969 I put the top pictured "Snicker bar " into a vacuum sealed air-tight bag and left it at the bottom of my parent's freezer that we keep down in the basement. Being from a family of 5 kids, my parents would stock up on meat specials to stretch their "grocery dollars". Lo and behold this freezer finally "conked out" and I found this Snicker bar at the bottom of the freezer in amazingly good shape.

I brought this Snickers bar back to my home on the Cape and have stored it recently in my refrigerator. I believe back in 1969 this Snickers bar cost twenty-five cents and would sure last me a long time. By comparison, I just bought the other Snickers bar today at the local "7-Eleven for $1.39. "What an example of how prices and size of the same product have changed over the years! " The current Snickers bar is way smaller and costs way more!

I remember back in 1969 as well working for Culbro Tobacco which grows shade tobacco for cigar wrappers at $1.25 per hour during the Summer in Simsbury, Connecticut,  Bill DeMallie and I as a picking team back then would average about $160.00 per week though as we were the only two local pickers and we earned extra money for our picking production (Piece work).  Now the minimum wage is $10.00 per hour and scheduled to increase to $11.00 per hour on January 1st, 2017. Although the wages are higher now; it is not how much you are paid that is most important but rather what the "purchasing power" of your income you can attain. These two Snickers bars do show how price and size of the same product have changed over the years.

Pumpkin and Pumpkin Seeds (Roasted) with Czech Pilsner-Urquell Beer

Amelia and Theresa of the Soundings guest services  (Dennisport, Cape Cod) carved this pumpkin with custom pumpkin carving tools that I came across this Summer from the "Treasure Chest". I told them, "Hey, make sure you save the seeds!

I roasted the seeds in my oven with virgin olive oil and sea salt that I make,  AND, as pictured above I drank a bottle of Pilsner Urquell beer brewed in Plzen, Czech Republic  (The original Pilsner). (Hi Denisa!) .My Mom always roasts the pumpkin seeds from pumpkins as well as some varieties of squash.

The carved pumpkin represents the 4 guest service Agents (Moi, Amelia, Theresa, and Tamara) at the Soundings (A Bluegreen managed Resort).   I heard recently that the record size for a pumpkin is now over 2,000 pounds. Imagine a pumpkin weighing over a ton! Maybe that is why in the Cinderella tale if I remember correctly her coach  to the ball was made from a pumpkin.

SO there you have it. Don't waste the pumpkin seeds when you carve up your pumpkin and please remember to only drink only Pilsner Urquell beer with the hot roasted pumpkin seeds if you do in fact like to drink beer.