A Visit from Osteopilus Septentrionalis

I awoke to the sound of tapping on my window screen the other night. At first, I thought our nocturnal cat was leaning against my window. I turned on the lamp and looked out the window. The shock of a huge frog jumping up and down inside the screen made me scream. My husband woke up and I told him he had to get this frog out of here or it would end up in bed with us. It jumped from the window sill to the floor and kept jumping about a foot and a half high alongside the wall. So, he got a rag, caught the frog and put him outside. Then, I realized it was one of those Cuban tree frogs and he should have killed it. They’re not indigenous to our area and have been known to wipe out other frogs, lizards and insects. They’re a threat to Florida’s natural ecosystem. I remember someone saying there is a “humane” way to euthanize this frog. University of Florida’s web site says to spread sunburn ointment or benzocaine on the frog, put it in a plastic bag, freeze it, and then, dispose of it. Well, I guess we have some frog hunting to do.

That's Incredible!

Did you know today is World Egg Day? Funny, because I had scrambled eggs topped with cheddar cheese today after eating boring cereal for seven days. Not only were they tasty, but they stayed with me until lunchtime. I was wondering about the fat and carb grams so I read the carton label. One egg contains only 70 calories, 15 grams of saturated fat, 6 grams of protein, and 1 carb gram. Not bad. I usually cook them in a frying pan sprayed with Pam Olive Oil to save on more fat. Some other interesting facts about eggs:
• Contain 13 vitamins and nutrients (in case you forgot your vitamins)
• “Incredible, edible egg™” slogan has been around 30 years (now I feel old)
• Europe has domesticated hens since 600 B.C. (that's a long time)
• Most eggs are laid between 7:00 and 11:00 AM (why do the male roosters crow so early then?)
For more incredible egg info, go to: www.aeb.org.

A Mother's Love and Principles

I just finished reading an amazing love story: Trudy's Promise by Marcia Preston. This tender story begins with strong-willed and principled Rolf defecting from East Berlin and leaving behind his wife and child in hopes that they’ll join him later. His wife, Trudy’s determination to move her family to West Berlin drives the rest of the story with emotional insights. As the reader, I found her fearless determination courageous and admirable, yet scary at the same time. Author Marcia Preston does a good job helping the reader to identify with Trudy and her actions. When she describes Trudy’s trek through the tunnel to West Berlin, I could well imagine the humility of having someone tuck my skirt into my underwear to keep it out of the way. I could almost feel the sting of scraped knees from crawling through the dirty, rocky passage. She continues with pictorial descriptions of Trudy’s shabby clothes and meager living arrangements on the west side. Not only are her descriptions vivid, but she brings to life the real history of communist Germany in the early ‘60s. The real focus of the story shows how strong a mother’s love is and how far she’ll go to be reunited with her son without compromising her principles. This was a wonderful story that I will not forget.

Three X-Rays

My son, Hunter, has had three x-rays in the last week! He fractured his right thumb playing football in PE and had to have an x-ray. Then two days later, he had a follow-up x-ray to check how his thumb was healing. On Saturday evening, he stepped on a toothpick at his friend's house. Dad decided to play surgeon and dug out two small slivers. He kept digging and Hunter was in tears. Heck, I was in tears. I had enough and decided to take him to the hospital where he could at least have the area numbed (and be seen by professionals). It turned out that getting the pain shot is just as painful as what it is supposed to prevent. And it took two shots to work. After putting a one-inch slit in Hunter's heel, the doctor dug around (just like Dad) and couldn’t find any more slivers. So another x-ray was ordered which revealed nothing was there. Maybe the x-ray should have been taken first. Thank heaven for health insurance.

Need A Recipe, Call Your Sister

My mother loves to come visit me and bake goodies. This time, she brought over a bag of apples and some butter to make apple crisp. Problem was my recipe called for brown sugar and oatmeal which I did not have. I was determined NOT to go to the grocery store six miles away. I told her I could look for another one online, but she said, “Call your sister. I don’t think we used brown sugar when I made it out there.” (“Out there” would be New Orleans or Corpus Christi or wherever Carol was living at the time). I called Carol and told her we needed “The Apple Crisp recipe” and she replied, “Oh good, I need a recipe for a roast.” Carol looked up a recipe in a “Cookbook for Boys and Girls” that she admitted to using a lot. I asked Mom for the roast recipe and relayed it to Carol—dried onion soup mix and water or mushroom soup. Cook a half hour for every pound at 350 degrees. Easy. And here’s the easy apple crisp recipe which turned out to be pretty tasty:
8 c. apples, peeled and sliced
½ c. water
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1-1/2 cups flour
2/3 c. butter
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Layer sliced apples into an ungreased 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. Pour water in. Mix cinnamon and sugar together and sprinkle in. Mash the butter into the flour to make crumbly. Cover the apples with the flour topping. Bake for 40 minutes.

Rain, Wind, and Floods, Oh My!

Tropical Storm Fay dumped over 20 inches of rain at my house and we were stuck inside for two days. The roads near our house were crowned with four to six inches of water. We could get out by our Toyota Tundra, but my Honda Accord would have floated away. The wind gusts were about 50 mph and blew some tree branches down. We were fortunate that we only lost power for a half hour. I took pictures of the yard and the neighborhood. The horses across the street were wading in knee-high water while ducks discovered a new pond.

Now, we’re eyeing Gustav and Hanna. Hurricane Gustav, now a Tropical Storm, is expected to turn into a category 2 or 3 hurricane. He’s heading straight for Louisiana which is where my sister lives. So, if I pray that he goes somewhere else, then other families are affected. I can only pray that he get disorganized or downgraded or for some kind of miracle.
I’m also watching Tropical Storm Hanna who is lurking in the Atlantic and expected to go towards the Bahamas. One of the computer models have her making a loop like Jeanne did in 2004. At this point, it’s too early to tell where she’ll head.
I just know, living in Florida, being prepared for a hurricane is a fact of life.

If We’re Not a 10, Let Us Know

That's the sign I saw at the front desk when I checked in. I don’t think I needed to tell them that they were not a “10” after this experience: I booked a room at a La Quinta because it was across the street from the Ford Amplitheatre where a friend and I were going to a Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift concert. The concept of not having to park in a large lot and then wait in line to leave was a major convenience. We checked in at 3:30 pm and got a what we thought would be a great room at the end of the hallway--not near the elevator. But when we stepped into the room, it was dirty… trash left around and beds not made. So, we took the elevator back downstairs to get a new room. This time, we were given a room on the third floor. Upon opening the door, we were knocked over by the stench of a “smoking room”. We went back downstairs and explained that we are allergic to smoke and had reserved a non-smoking room. So, the front desk clerk, while non-chalent about the whole situation, gave us another room, number 220. Upon trying both of our card keys, the door did not open. So, we went back down the elevator to get them fixed. The front desk clerk told us he would call the maintenance man and he would meet us back at the room. Finally, at 4 pm, we were checked into a clean, non-smoking room, but right next to the elevator.