Happy Ground Hog Day
Don’t put away those snow shovels just yet!
The world-famous prognosticating groundhog Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow when he emerged from his den in western Pennsylvania early Sunday, meaning six more weeks of winter, according to the beloved and age-old 132-year-old folklore.
If Pennsylvania’s fluffy meteorologist hadn’t seen his shadow, it could have meant Spring was near.
The furry prognosticator has only accurately predicted the change in seasons about 35% of the time over the past 20 years, according to an NOAA study.
Here it is mid-winter and we are yet to have any snow. I’m not totally upset about what nature has handed us so far. I like snow but I prefer it up in the mountains. It is a great time of year to sort of hunker down in our individual nests to find a good series on Netflix or Amazon, put on a great pot of soup and enjoy the weather that is happening outside. I do feel bad for folks who must commute to work or work outside in the bad weather but then I and probably you had the opportunity to commute in the nasty weather and now it is someone else’s turn. So, enjoy the rain hitting on the windows or skylights while you are reading a great book. I do miss seeing my neighbors, that is the downside of everyone hunkering down with books in their homes.
Book club was held at Linda’s home we talked about Good Night Irene, about a group of women in WWII who dispensed coffee and donuts to American soldiers, often times in the front lines along with the soldiers. It was a very interesting story. Linda went along with the donut theme and had donuts and coffee for us to enjoy.
Book club on Feb 10th will be at my home, #303, we will be talking about The Tennis Partner by Abraham Verghese. It is a story about a physician and a young man from Australia who is an intern in the hospital where he is teaching. Please let me know if you plan to come.
March 10th will be at Venita’s home, #307. We will be talking about Slipsworth by Simon Van Booy. This is a story about a lonely woman and a mouse.
Entertainment -TV
We have a couple more entertaining recommendations for your in-house viewing.
The Secret Lives of Animals
This is a 10-part docuseries narrated by Hugh Bonneville. The Secret Lives of Animals: With Will Foster-Grundy, Hugh Bonneville. Showcases rare footage of animal behaviors across 77 species in 24 countries, highlighting their intelligence and adaptability through pivotal life moments like birth, raising families, and finding food.
PainKiller– This one is about the Oxycontin epidemic, not especially uplifting but very informative.
Number 24– a story about a young man living in Norway during WW11, again the bravery of people living during that time in history is astounding
All three of the above can be found on Netflix
The Ridge Report
Movies were our main form of family entertainment when I was a youngster. The first I remember was “Wizard of Oz” at about age 5. Supposedly a kid’s movie, I remember turning in my seat, covering my head, and crying when the flying monkeys appeared…and I’m still not too comfortable with them. I was also astonished when the black-and-white Kansas turned into vivid colors. (We lived in black and white in the 40s.)
In 1940ish our family was not broke, but near the edge. We had no radio, fan (in Louisiana), telephone, or car. Instead, we looked forward to a weekend outing at a theatre, even during the WWII years. Shreveport had a population of about 90,000 people and a fair sprinkling of movie houses. There were about 6 downtown and maybe 10 in the outlying neighborhoods. We were one block from the trolley line which traveled the three miles downtown and circuited by all the theaters. The trolley was 7cents each, and the movies were 10 cents for kids and 25 cents for adults. With some 5-cent candy or popcorn for me and my 2 sisters, you could eat right into $1.50.
Dad did most of the movie selection. The newspapers carried a full page spread of what was playing and what was coming. (Remember newspapers?) Dad was given to adventure, intrigue, and crime…Mom not so much. I think she was just happy to get out of the house. We watched Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, Tyrone Power, John Wayne, Gary Cooper, and Dad’s particular favorite, Johnny Weissmuller as “Tarzan”. Never missed a Tarzan. We also saw a lot of Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, and Sidney Greenstreet. “The Maltese Falcon”, “Key Largo”, etc. All different stories but much alike also.
Shortly after the war I was at an age when Mom decided I could journey to the movies by myself. I latched on to my best buddy to go with me to test my new-found freedom. The “Joy” Theatre on the main street downtown ran a Saturday extravaganza for kids. Always a double feature of Abbott and Costello, Hope and Crosby, or Laurel and Hardy, and a western with Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, or Red Ryder. (Funny how the western heroes always had to have a not-so-swift “sidekick” …Frog, Gabby Hayes, Little Beaver) But that’s not all! There would also be Movie Tone news, one or two Looney Tunes or Disney cartoons, and a weekly serial of Flash Gordon, Zorro, or some other caped individual. Usually, 200 to 300 kids in a beat-up old auditorium with very sticky floors. If you were late you got to sit on the front row and look up.
So, best buddy and I struck out on our first adventure. We had money. I had the correct change, my buddy had an unknown amount. We made it to the movie on the trolley, paid our 9 cents to get in, and moseyed up to the candy counter. I bought a package of hard candies, but my buddy was hungry and got a two-foot-long bag of popcorn for 15 cents. When it was all over, and we went to board the trolley home, my friend found he had 6 cents, and I had 7. We thought about it for a good while and finally decided to just walk three miles home. Some of the walks would take us through a not-so-good part of town so we walked faster there.
It took a while to get home. I could smell the burn from Mom before I got in the house. It seems we didn’t make it back at the appointed hour. She wasn’t impressed with our long walk for 1 cent. I told her I would have called if I’d had a nickel and if she had a phone. Then she could have come to pick me up if we had a car and if she knew how to drive.
There were no more lonesome movie ventures for some while….
David Ridge, 10/27/2024
Air B & B near Richmond Manor
Edy Strand has had a child here from England for intensive speech therapy. His mom rented a nice Air B & B near Richmond Manor. It is the top floor of a home on 195th; Two bedrooms, two bath, furnished nicely, big deck and west facing windows with a view of the Sound and Olympics. The owner lives downstairs, but it is a separate unit. It is a five-minute walk from Richmond Manor. Entrance is 16 outside stairs up to the deck and upstairs entrance. I wanted to let everyone know that she enjoyed staying there in case you have people visiting who may need an Air B&B.
Recipe Du Jour
Since it is still cold and wintery outside soup is on the menu
Hamburger Soup
Ingredients
1 T olive oil
1 large yellow onion chopped (about 2 ½ cups)
2 ribs of celery, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 large green bell pepper, chopped (about 1 ¼ cups)- we leave this out at our house, not our favorite vegetable
3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 T)
1 lb ground chuck
2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
¾ ground black pepper
¼ cup tomato paste
4 cups less sodium beef broth
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced into ½ pieces
1 (12 oz) package frozen mixed vegetables
Directions
Heat Oil: Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven on medium high
Cook Vegetables: Add onions and celery; cook 5 minutes until beginning to soften. Add bell pepper and garlic, cook for 3 minutes longer until softened.
Cook ground beef Add ground beef, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Cook, breaking up the meat, until brown and crumbly, about 6-8 minutes.
Add tomato paste: Add tomato paste; cook 1-2 minutes until fragrant
Add broth and tomatoes: Stir in beef broth, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and Worcestershire sauce.
Add potatoes and frozen vegetables: Stir in potatoes and frozen mixed vegetables. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, and simmer 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired
Recipe from Southern Living
Serves 8
Breakfast Cookies or Coconut Chews
Ingredients
2 eggs beaten
1 C brown sugar
1 C white sugar
1 C melted butter
½ C flaked coconut
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 ½ c flour
¾ c golden raisins
1 C Marcona almonds
1 package of chocolate chips
4 C Quaker protein granola(chocolate) you can order this from Amazon
Directions
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. mound cookies using an ice cream scoop. onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Carole made this rather large
Recipe from Carole she made these for a treat for our Maj Jong group. They were excellent.
Restaurant Review
Jerry and I went to The Diamond Knot Brewery Co. 5602 232 nd St. S.W. #106. MT Lake Terrace Located next to DD Meats
Hours-Mon-Thur 11 AM-10:00PM
Fri-11:00 AM-11:PM
Sat.8 AM-11:00 PM
Sun-8:00AM-10:00 PM
Tel-4256481994
We enjoyed our lunch, I had a Cobb salad which was delicious, Jerry a burger, not quiet up to Black Bird standards but still good.
Neighborhood News
There is a new garden store in the neighborhood
NW Garden & Stone
24200 76th Ave W.
Edmonds, WA 98026
Open 9:00-5:00 daily
This place looks interesting, it has plants, gifts and cards
Edmonds Monthly Winter Market
Edmonds has announced it will be having a monthly winter market starting in Jan. The dates of the following months are Feb. 27, Mar. 29 and April 26. Check it out, rain or shine located Fifth N and Bell St. A good way of supporting our local community.
Neighbors Mile Stones
Linda and John just celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary
Linda and Dawson celebrated their 50th.
A Tale of Woe but Luckily Not Our Tale of Woe
We have a good friend who lives in a very nice condo in Edmonds, up near the preforming art Center. A couple of weeks ago they had an unfortunate incident happen in their building. It seems a couple of young people managed to get into their supposedly secure building and walked the halls and tried several doorknobs. They managed to find one on the second floor that was unlocked. They proceeded to go into the unit, finding a wallet laying on a table they helped themselves to $200 cash. The owner of the unit was in another room on the telephone and was unaware he had guests. It seems one of the neighbors has a habit of blocking the front door of the building open when he takes his dog out for a walk around the block. There is a moral to the story, this is one of the reasons why we are so adamant about never blocking the door to the inside lobby open, so we don’t have this type of thing happen in our building.
Concert
The Puget Sound Concert Opera is going to perform “Highway 1, USA” by William Grant Still in the Greater Seattle area. The dates are the 7th (Bellevue), 8th (Parkland) and 9th (Seattle) of February. The performance is in the “Concert” style, not the “performing theater” style. If interested, this is the ticket information. 😃
I hope you enjoy the show! 🤗
Contribution from Kayoko #302
Good Vendor
Linda and John used a carpet cleaning company recently and are very happy with the results. They are recommending Shoreline Carpet Cleaners LLC. They can be reached at 206-327-5816. He did pre-treatment for heavy soil spots. Those spots always returned after the cleaners we have had in the past. The spots are not returning!!!!! Wonderful!!
Submitted by Linda Weschler # 301
We want to wish you all a Happy Valentine Day
We will be back in March with the next blog. Send me anything to contribute to the blog if you think your neighbors will enjoy or be interested in.