The Gramzie Chronicles

  It is with great sadness that I say good bye to my good and faithful bread machine. She worked hard in her life and finally succumbed to one last batch of roll dough in my kitchen yesterday, not even having the energy to warm during the rising phase. She had also been suffering with a loose paddle and falling gear.  She will be replaced by, what I hope will be, a worthy successor. My birthday flowers also gasped their last breath. They were so beautiful while they lasted. No one can say I don't get my use from my appliances. I find that I have not yet purchased a bread machine that can withstand the usage I demand. Until our oven was out of commission with the kitchen remodel, I did not bake in the machine.  All my bread is from scratch. The machine makes it so I don't have to babysit the dough as it mixes and rises. The real fun for me is working with the dough once it's ready.  This last machine was a big one, making up to 3 pounds of dough. I don't need that cap...

We decided to venture out of town yesterday for a change of view. I am a firm supporter of shopping local, but there are times when we do patronize a certain big chain store whose name I will not advertise for them. We get lots of steps in, and some groceries at the same time. While there, I noticed a young man from time to time, pushing his cart, with headphones on. He was totally into turning his ordinary errand into a joyful chore, pausing to shimmy to the beat, completely unbothered by his surroundings. I have to admit, I was a bit envious! As it turned out, we arrived at self-checkout at the same time, where his personal party continued. Understand, he wasn't going all out, it was just his subtle moves that showed how much he was feeling the music. By the way, that youngster had a serious vibe going. As he finished his purchase, I had to stop him, gesturing to his headphones. He smiled when I asked to what he was listening. Removing the headphones, he placed them on my head so...

I gave in. Not because our neighborhood and many others in town are lit like a drunken wino, but because I figured if I didn't get to it, I may not put anything up at all. I enjoy seeing it, just not at my house.  Along with navigating a rather epic birthday, I'm not finding myself in the mood for festivities. I should not let world events dictate how I feel, but my emotions are all over the place. I found myself at an impasse yesterday and decided that if I was going to decorate, I'd better do it. Not for myself, but I do have my kids coming for Christmas. Some effort, however minimal, would be appreciated, I'm sure. So though I left an entire tote untouched, I do have two trees up. A garland on the front window and some silver bells are the extent of my outdoor decor. The little tree in our room has but lights and a wooden garland, just enough. The bigger tree hasn't much more than that; fur snowballs, gingerbread ornaments, and a wooden bead garland help the ligh...

I turned 70 yesterday. There was no big party, no confetti or cake, no pile of gifts. That is not what a birthday is to me. It's a milestone that I am so grateful to have enjoyed annually for this long. I just don't crave that kind of attention. This birthday, for some reason, is just hitting different. Not better, not worse, just...different.  The good news is this is fodder for my overthinking skills, and may be for a while as I mull this over...and over. When I finally come to a conclusion, I'll be sure to share. I cannot be the only one who may feel this way. Or am I? In the meantime, I have a few things for which I will not apologize. After all, my filter is completely gone so let's take advantage of that. I will not apologize for continuing to let my hair grow. I like it. Randy loves it. It's my natural color. I will not apologize for dressing up whenever I feel like it. It's not a damned competition. I will not apologize for not wearing makeup.  I will no...

As much as I love fall, what I really enjoy the most is the changing of the seasons. This year, fall came late, and as of yesterday, left early, in my mind.   The first snowfall of this year combined the best of fall along with the best of the upcoming winter: multicolored leaves mixing with a new snowfall is not a very pretty sight. It's as though Mother Nature couldn't make up her mind, ending with a rather unprofessional mismatch in her decor. It was a wet, heavy snow, just not enough to camouflage the fallen foliage. I now understand better why so many have brought out Christmas by now. Even I am more open to perhaps getting started! Perhaps. Randy left early this morning to flip pancakes for Kiwanis, so I enjoyed the extra coffee and blessed quiet. At the end of GMA, I was left with that familiar heaviness of what's happening in our country. Frankly, I'll take that discomfort over being a soul-less cretin who cares for nothing any day. After a couple of shoveling a...

Last night, a social media post sent me to a place I like to avoid. In fact, it was posts similar to that, perhaps not in content, but intent, was the reason I abandoned Facebook years ago. Let me preface this by saying, I don't profess to know everything. I do think I try very hard to get my facts straight before posting anything inflammatory. With some people, I know that can be an exercise in futility as there are those who find fault in everything. On this topic, I acknowledge I'm very emotional, which colors my opinion, so please give me grace. The post to which I've alluded was about being "sick of hearing about the SNAP recipients" and (this is the kicker) they just need to "get a job".  IMHO, this is the height of ignorance. To say I reacted badly to reading this would be an understatement, for a couple of reasons. One, this is someone who I thought of as a friend, and two, I empathize strongly to those who need help. I grew up not being a strang...