the Sasquatch cooks

We were complaining about beef from the grocery store and how it doesn't seem to be as good of quality these days. The steaks and roasts seem to be cut differently than in the past and they are labeled with different or combined names so it's hard to be sure what you're getting.

The Sasquatch thought it might be worthwhile to try shopping at an actual butcher shop so he took it on himself to pick out some things at Kingsley Meats.  Not only picked them out, he cooked them for our weekly family dinner.

First up was a big plump chuck roast. It was tender and flavorful...really good!  He is a fan of the Le Creuset cookware and he used his big dutch oven for this roast. I wish I would have taken a photo of the pan too. It's a pretty blue color. You can just see part of the handle at the bottom of the photo.

It's a thing of beauty!

Next week it was bacon wrapped filets. The Sasquatch has a cooking method for those (originally learned from Chopper)...first searing in a very hot preheated pan, then baking in the oven to desired doneness.

He cooked these at my house and I'm afraid my oven is becoming more unreliable...the steaks weren't quite done when the timer went off.  But they were worth waiting the few extra minutes for - they were really delicious too!

I went over to Kingsley's and bought some of their ground beef. It was more expensive than the grocery but it wasn't pumped full of water like the grocery meat either.

We are paying the same price per pound for all that water that cooks off and that saturated absorbent pad that we find in all the grocery meat trays now.

Anyway, I think I'll occasionally make the drive across town and stock up on some meats there.

Also food - back in December I posted here about my fiasco trying to make Buckeye candy. I eventually gave up and basically made a fudgy mixture and poured it over a tray of the peanut butter balls.  It was okay but really just too heavy and sweet.

That concoction had been tightly wrapped in the fridge since then,  I took it out and melted the chocolate and peanut butter balls together, then stirred in some Rice Krispies cereal, poured it back in the tray and pressed more rice Krispies on the top, then let it set up again.

The cereal got a little soft and chewey but it did help to cut the sweetness. By golly, they were all eaten!

Puss felt duty bound to contribute something also.  She brought up this little blue tailed lizard she found in the basement.

I didn't want to be rude but I told her she should just eat it herself as a reward for catching it!

how it's going with the flooring

 The flooring is going in at a snail's pace but that's because we're trying to do everything right. I am really pleased with the results.

It goes in pretty quick once you understand the directions. Like so many things these days, the instruction sheet wasn't real clear on getting started...but we got it figured out.

The Sasquatch wielded the mallet and whacked the boards into place while I tried to lay out the next row of boards in a way that two like ones wouldn't be together and also scored and snapped the end pieces to fit.

Like I mentioned, the baseboards had to be removed, and since the new floor is lower than the old, that left me with a choice of  patching, sanding, and painting the newly exposed bottom of the wall...or buying new and taller baseboards.

Take a look at this lovely floral wallpaper that was behind the baseboard!  There was actually a whole wall covered with that paper when we moved here.

It was Chopper's room...poor kid!  Just what every 10 year old boy wants in his room!

But it didn't stay like that for long. I got that stuff peeled off!

So my decision about the baseboards was to buy new ones.  I'm glad I did. It gives things a more modern look. Of course they had to be caulked and painted (my job) after The Sasquatch nailed them in.

The floor isn't glossy and shiny and it has some indented markings in it.  Better to hide nicks and scrapes.

I put a few things back in place but then had to switch over to emptying out the next room, which is taking forever because it has a closet that is worthy of it's own "Hoarders" show...and my computer stuff which will have to be disconnected while the work is being done.

You know how when you start making improvements it makes everything else look old?  

I bought a new light fixture to replace the wobbly, noisy ceiling fan in there.

That thing has been a problem since Chopper was in high school. He was putting on a shirt and got his arm in the path of the turning fan blades - ouch!   

He came out with only a bruise but the fan was never the same!

Not a good photo but I really just snapped this picture in case I want another one for the next room.

Well, back to work on my Hoarder closet.

unseasonably warm

 We have had some sunny warm days. It seems like there are always a few of those every February.

I wanted to be outside to enjoy it so I sat on the back porch with a crochet pattern and a new skein of yarn.  It was still  cool enough for a sweater but it's so nice to sit in  the sun after a gray winter season.

The pattern I was trying out was for a zig zag afghan but after a few rows I decided I didn't like the way it was written so I unraveled it.

It was a free pattern from the internet so nothing lost.

How do you like my yarn bag?  Those cat food bags are such nice heavy plastic, I am always trying to think of how to use them.  I was going to try sewing handles on this one but instead...just cut some holes to put my fingers through.

Nah, even though I like orange this is just not very nice looking, and I have better bags...lots of them.

From the porch I could see some color on the Witch Hazel tree.  I walked over and found it's starting to bloom with it's fringy little flowers.

I still see a lot of buds so I think it's not fully bloomed out yet.

Naked Lillies pushing up their foliage testing the air.

All this can only mean spring isn't far off!

now snow

 It's snowed a little every day until the final accumulation looked like this...

Pretty to look at.

I had swept a path off the porch but it kept filling back in.

A couple of days later we had some sun and things started thawing. 

Look at all the animal tracks criss crossing below.  Look closer! That's not my cat...it's a skunk!

I have heard that they come out to mate then go back to their dens a while longer.

They all look a little different. This one only has white on his head and not much of a stripe on his back.

From behind he could have been mistaken for my cat...but I knew she wouldn't be walking in the snow.

replacing flooring

 From what I've read, a lot of people are doing home improvements while spending more time at home because of  COVID 19.

That includes us, because now we are replacing  flooring in 3 bedrooms of carpet. The carpet is right at 20 years old so it's time for a change...and I didn't want more carpet.

After researching laminate vs. vinyl planks, I chose to go with the vinyl (Home Depot "Lifeproof" brand).  I ordered online and chose to have it delivered.

I figured it would be delivered in a box truck but on delivery day when they called, they said no, it's coming on a tractor trailer!

Of course they couldn't pull into the driveway with that, so the driver parked in the neighborhood across the street and drove my order over on a fork lift.

He had to be on the highway with it for a short distance and I was a little worried, but it all worked out.

They only deliver outside your home unless you pay extra  (in this case $113 extra).

So the Sasquatch came over and carried the flooring in.  It's heavy stuff - about 33 lbs. per box. I carried a few in too.

We moved furniture out of one room, then, I spent time taking up carpet and padding.  But we found the sub floor in poor condition.

We knew the floors were soft and squeaky and the subject came up when hardwood was installed in other areas years ago, but this was a patchwork of uneven used plywood.

Some really saggy rotted wood in places. Some boards had a coat of dried concrete on one side, indicating they had been used as  concrete forms in a prior life.

There were holes, burns and paint rings.

The vinyl flooring definitely couldn't be placed on this.  I was hoping maybe we could get by with a thin wood layer over the top of it, but the Sasquatch convinced me that it would be better to do it right and tear out the old plywood and replace with new.

It was a lot of work but he was willing to do it.  A lot of heavy work for him too...getting the new 4' x 8' sheets of wood up the stairs. 

 

Here is the new wood subfloor screwed down. What a difference when we walk on it! Much more stable and sturdy feeling.

Baseboards had to be removed too...so more work there to replace them. I am anxious to see the new vinyl flooring in place now.

ice world

 Brrrr... Our weather was right for freezing rain.  An ice coating on everything.

I didn't take even one step out the door. The porch boards were as slick as an ice skating rink.

The ice is pretty to look at though, when you don't have to go anywhere. 

 There was very little traffic on the normally busy highway in front of our house, so maybe a lot of folks didn't have to go to work.  And our weather forecast warned us it was coming so everyone had a chance to prepare for it.

I'm warm and cozy inside and standing at the kitchen counter, pinning the layers of this quilt together to get it ready for quilting.

I won't be able to start quilting on it just yet. I need to clean and oil my sewing machine first, and right now furniture is moved around upstairs and blocking the closet where my sewing machine oil is kept.

We are getting some carpet replaced with new flooring so mass moving of stuff from one room to another.  A good chance to get rid of some stuff too.

quiet morning

We had a nice relaxing, no-obligations morning. We are content.

I did some non-challenging sewing while listening to some instrumental music on YouTube. 

I could do without them showing those cookies on the screen though!

Looking to my left, there is Lonnie, doing his morning bible study.  I know...he is looking at his phone but he sometimes looks up definitions and meanings during his studies.

Puss is in the room with me snoozing in the sun on her cat tree.

Usually around this time of year we take a Caribbean cruise.  I miss that but I wouldn't switch places right now.

This is what I'm sewing...a log cabin quilt from a kit. 

I only meant to make a start on it but it's so fun seeing how the different fabrics come together it's hard to stop working on it.

There are 80 blocks total to be made so maybe it's better to spread out the sewing sessions for this one.

That calls for more quiet leisurely mornings!