I'm A Voracious Reader : AVR Weekly News ~ 658th Edition

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by
Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer.
~ Recap the past week ~
~ Show what's upcoming ~
~ Share news ~
~ Display book hauls ~

Sunday ~ Meme ~ AVR Weekly News ~ 657th Edition
Monday ~ Audiobook Review ~ Sugar Cookies and Sirens by Danielle Garrett
Thursday ~ Audiobook Review ~ Hexes and Honey Buns by Danielle Garrett
Friday ~ Meme ~ Friday Featured Spotlight ~ BBNYA First Round

Monday ~ Audiobook Review ~ Leprechauns and Lemon Bars by Danielle Garrett
Sunday ~ Meme ~ AVR Weekly News ~ 659th Edition

Hello and Happy Sunday!

On the Home Front

Sunday ~ It's Shark Week. Trip waits all year for this. Anna went into work with Chris for double OT then they went back to his parents' place. Lazy day today. Worked on the blog, folded towels, read, napped a bit in my recliner, played Pokemon by myself then took the boys out to spin some stops and do some raids, Trip and I fed the critters, I cleaned and refilled the bird baths and tubs, and discovered .5" of rain in the rain gauge. Must have rained overnight. Leftovers for dinner. Anna finally made it home after 9pm. Went to bed around 11:30pm and heard thunder.

Monday ~ Anna and Kyle still on OT. Up at 8:30. Did the usual morning shit then while walking the dogs noticed halfway up the driveway that the gravel had a trench dug out where it must have rained really really hard last night. When I checked the rain gauge (1.75"!) I noticed Anna's tomato plants had fallen over, so I staked them. Trip and I will need to fix my rain trench in the morning. We're supposed to get storms tomorrow afternoon. Worked on the computer for most of the morning then played Pokemon for awhile doing some stuff I've been meaning to do for quite some time. Had a bologna sandwich and chips for lunch while watching Murdoch Mysteries then Trip and I had Mystery Tea. I think I've explained Mystery Tea before. I have SO MUCH Plum Deluxe tea that I have a basket on the kitchen counter where we randomly (hence Mystery) pull a packet out to steep for the afternoon. The packets currently in it are really old. Like 2022/2023/2024 old. Oops. We've managed to do this nearly every day for awhile and we're finally making a dent in the packets. I will admit to having 2 drawers full of tea. I can't help it! Especially since June is always Earl Grey month and that's my favorite tea. There are others that are delicious too, but I always circle back to the Earl Greys. Maybe I need to start a listing on which teas we have tried because we can never remember. Ok, I'm adding it down below. Leftovers for dinner. One of Kyle's co-workers gave him some tamales so he had those for dinner.

Tuesday ~ Up a bit late. Oops. I really need to start heeding my alarm. Did the usual morning things then woke Trip up to go out and fix the trench along the driveway we have for rain to run. I'm going to completely redo that at some point (this week maybe?) while I still have some gravel left, but there's a storm supposedly heading our way today so I wanted to get that fixed for now. {later} Ok, it rumbled some thunder but the storms completely bypassed us. I made some Rana roasted chicken and garlic ravioli and garlic bread. It's ok. Anna did not like and Kyle wasn't impressed so I won't get it again.

Wednesday ~ After doing the usual morning routine, Trip and I headed out to do a bunch of errands. We hit the Natural dog for canned dogfood, Harbor Freight for a cordless sander, Lowe's for various things including furnace filters, paint for metal, wood sealer, some cleaner, and a couple of bags of dirt (for Anna's tomatoes), Academy Sports for deer corn and a mineral block (cheaper than TSC and Democrat friendly), evil Wal-mart for Artemis's favorite chewies, and a few other things I can't seem to get anywhere else, we stopped for lunch at San Marcos then rounded out the day with BJ's, Food Lion, and CVS. Sweet Baby Jane. My feet were killing me and I was a sweaty mess after all that, carrying everything in, and putting it all away. But I wasn't done yet. Trip got the Kubota out and we loaded up the deer corn to take to the garden shed and while out, fed the critters and I did the bird baths. Chris came over to spend the night and offered to buy pizza, so I ordered online at Domino's just down the road and had it delivered. After feeding the furries their dinner and the pizza arrived I was finally able to put my feet up and watch some tv. My poor dogs were barking at me! Jess stopped around 9:30 after work at Sally's and picked up some groceries I had gotten for her and Ellie. Plus, some chili I had in the freezer.

Thursday ~ Woke up and did not want to work outside on the rain trench today. I just wanted to move it over about a foot or so. Condensation on top of the skylight had me nearly convinced it would be too humid and I would just say fuck it. However, when I walked the dogs it was really quite nice. A tad humid, but doable. So I woke Trip up and we got to work. We trimmed back all the vegetation that I'd let go wild, we moved rocks (holy fuck, so many rocks) and some blocks out of the way then I used the Kubota to dig up the dirt (and some of the gravel) for the new trench. We took a break and had a drink and snack while watching the birds and a deer come nom on the mineral block. Then I started moving gravel with the Kubota. We raked it out then I moved a few more piles. Raked that out and called it a sweaty day. The sun was taking away our shade so we'll finish moving gravel tomorrow. It's nearly done though. I wish I had some concrete half-round pipes to use for the trench, but I need to figure out where to even get those. I do have a lot of brick leftover from the additions. Maybe I can use those to line the trench. I'll have to fiddle with it. I think it would be a lot of work though. Ick. Maybe that could be a Fall project. Picked Kyle up at work. Anna cancelled her therapy app't to go over to Chris's for some R&R. Leftovers for the boys for dinner. I had a fried bologna sandwich and some chips.

Friday ~ After the morning routine I woke Trip up and outside we went. Very nice out. Not too humid, upper 70s (supposed to climb to nearly 90) and a breeze. While he did the weedeating I used the Kubota to move gravel to the rain trench. Nearly all of the pile is gone now. Yay! I put some over by the equipment shed, too since the one side gets washed out when it rains hard. I'll need to fix that at some point. After we raked those piles into place I started the mowing and set Trip to washing the Kubota. I did not check his work, but it looked shiny when he drove past me to put it away. I need to call Linder and find out if they can come out to service it. It's probably overdue. The wasband used to do all the maintenance, but Kyle will pay to have it done. At some point he may figure out how to do it himself. Anyway, I finished the mowing down by the house (with 2 hydration breaks) and thought I would die. I am fat. Too fat to be doing all this strenuous work outside 2 days in a row. lmao (not literally - I wish). Trip had showered so he took the dogs out for their potty break then I had him push the mower up the drive so I could mow up there. I followed in the Pilot, we went to spin some Pokestops, then he waited in the Pilot while I mowed. Usually only takes me about 10 or so minutes. I drove the Pilot down and parked while he put the mower away. We fed the critters, I watered my flowers and Anna's maters and put water in the bird baths. While I cooled down I had a turkey sandwich and Cheetos, got my clothes out of the dryer, made Mystery Tea then hit the shower. When I was done Anna and Kyle were home, so I had her look at the second toe of my left foot. It's been feeling weird all week, a bit tingly sometimes or numb. And today I noticed a bruise that wasn't there before. Not sure what's going on with it, so I made an app't with my podiatrist. I'm used to my second toes hurting from my shoes because I have Morton's Toes on both feet. That's where they are longer than the big toe. But this weird pain is different. Anna left to spend the night at Chris's so she can take his mom to the airport very early. Chris has to work, so Anna figured she'd let him sleep in. Then she'll come home tomorrow and we'll work on her room. Changed my bedstuff and tossed in the washer. Kyle said he'd buy Zaxby's for dinner so I picked it up. Egg rolls and fries for me since I do not like their other food. Watched Murdoch Mysteries then read for awhile before heading to bed around 10:30.

Photos of rain trench at the end of this post. They aren't the greatest though.

Much more impressive in person. Oh, well. lol

Saturday ~ Anna and Kyle no OT. Yay! Up by 8:30. Very humid out. Yuck. Got the furries fed, walked the dogs, and got started on the cleaning. It's the First Weekend of the Month and you know what that means, right? Extra cleaning on top of the usual cleaning. Those things are: changing the furnace filters, cleaning the air purifiers, scrub the dehumidifier screen (in the crawlspace by the new heating/cooling unit), and dust the ceiling fan blades all which I did after having Mystery Tea (see below). It was Kyle's turn to do litterboxes, so I started with the laundry room. He also emptied the grease bucket under his grill because it rained and it filled halfway with water because he didn't put the grill cover on. Lesson learned? Probably not. Then I did my bathroom. This week it was Eevee's water fountain cleaning and filter replacement. I do them every other week. Last week was Sugarcube's and Captain Kirk's. Washed the bathroom rugs from both bathrooms. Folded a load of towels and my bedstuff from yesterday. Washed the pet stuff and 3 loads of towels. Vacuumed rugs with the Dyson. Ran the dust mop over the kitchen, entry, and living room then mopped. This was just quick clean. Next week I'll sweep and mop and change out the rugs. Had Mystery Tea while working a bit on this post and taking a little break. Anna and Chris showed up just as I was going out to transplant her tomato plants from the one bucket to a couple more. It was so humid! Anna came out to help and we got it done. Watered the maters and Anna did the bird baths and 2 tubs. One tub was gross with algae, so I got my drill and brush and gave it a scrub. So much faster than trying to scrub by hand. Soaked in sweat by the time I got back in the house. Gross. Did a quick whore's bath (as mom called it lol) and changed clothes. Fed the furries. Scraped the last vestiges of 3-64 oz peanut butter containers into a half full one. Been meaning to do that at least 2 containers ago. I buy the big ones for the dogs' Kongs. Did the dishes. Scrubbed the sink first with soap then with Barkeeper's Friend. Too bad it doesn't stay so shiny for long. Kyle grilled Italian sausage and hot dogs. Ate dinner then came back to this post. Last day for Shark Week. Poor Trip. Had Team Tea since the Guardians were playing. Perfect after dinner timing. Started to sprinkle outside. Kyle jumped up and dragged his grill under the overhang instead of trying to cover it while it was still warm. I guess he doesn't want to clean a nasty water-filled grease bucket again. lol Finished a book and went to bed at midnight. Tired!

Today Anna was going to work on her room yesterday and did not. Will probably try to tackle some of that. Supposed to rain most of the day. I need to clean and refill Tiny Patrons feeders and replenish other critter food it it's not raining. I might finally organize the hall closet. Or I might help Anna for a bit then read. We'll see. I also need to put away all my red, white, and blue decorations (and my Pride stuff) and change my living room curtain now that it's August.

Mystery Tea

These are the packets we cleared last week.

Don't remember which days go with each packet.

Btw, they have since changed their logo.

Hospitality Blend Herbal ~ yum

Jubilee Green ~smelled like dried grass but was ok

Berry Bushel Bounty Oolong - yum

Picard Blend - ugh

Victorian Garden Grey Black - yum

Victorian Garden was the only one with a date 06/2024 lmao

The rest were prior to 2023.

Picard Blend was created January of 2020, so that's how old that packet was. 😂

We don't use a whole bag in my teapot. I can usually get 2 tea pots out of a bag if I'm generous. Stingy, I can get 3. But we've had these before so we're finally clearing a bunch of packets out. The basket on the counter will need to be filled soon. Don't worry. I have tons of packets. Literally fucktons. Ok, not literally. Figuratively.

In case you are wondering, as long as tea is stored out of the sunlight in a consistent temperature it's ok to use. I check (visually & by smell) all blends containing dried fruit just to be sure there's no mold. I'm sure they lose some of their flavor over time, but we've had no issues drinking "old" tea. This info reminds me, I should really organize my tea packets. When the new kitchen was installed I just chucked the packets in the drawers all willy nilly. There's black mixed with white mixed with oolong mixed with green mixed with chai mixed with puerh, all with no regard as to best by dates. I mean, I obviously don't really heed those dates anyway 😆, but I should at least separate by type. Better add that to my To Do list.

Monday ~ No Mistakes Oolong ~ Oolong tea, lemon peel, almond essence ~ no best by date

Trip did not like, I thought it was ok. Couldn't really taste the almond which is good. I'm not a fan of nutty flavors in my tea and have since put that in my personal preferences on the website to also include rose. As a Star Trek fan I was really upset that Picard Black Tea Blend is an Earl Grey with pecans. And the pecan flavor is really strong. Ugh!

Tuesday ~ No Mystery Tea today. The Cleveland Guardians played a double-header, so we had Team Tea twice. Team Tea is Bigelow Raspberry Royale in our team mugs. This time of year it's just the Guardians. It gets real busy in the Fall with baseball, hockey, football, and Trip's Tarheels. It's a lot of tea! 😂

Wednesday ~ Cranberry Earl Grey Black ~ Black tea, cranberries, orange peel, hibiscus, rooibos tea, bergamot oil, cranberry essence, blue cornflowers ~ best by 6/2024

Trip liked it. I loved this one. Yum!

Thursday ~ Happy Go Lucky Green Tea ~ Green tea, green rooibos, blueberries, coconut pieces, orange peels, blue cornflowers, bergamot oil, coconut & blueberry essences ~ no best by date

Trip liked it. I really liked this one. I'm a big fan of coconut so it stands to reason I would find this one yummy. The coconut really performs. I'm not sure if all the other flavors faded because it's such an old tea or if the coconut just talks with its whole chest. lol

Friday ~ Cinnamon Cider Chai ~ Black tea, rooibos, apple pieces, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, orange peel, apple essence. ~ no best buy date

Trip liked it and said it wasn't too strong. I liked this. I like cinnamon, so kind of a no-brainer. Smells like Christmas.

Saturday ~ Savory Pomegranate Green ~ Green tea, rosemary, raspberry leaf, raspberry pieces, pomegranate arils, pomegranate essence ~ best by 10/2024

Trip didn't care for it. Said it tasted like grass. lol I liked it. Can really taste the raspberry and smell the rosemary, but the pomegranate? Not so much. We always take a good sniff of the packet before we steep and green tea, without fail, always smells like hot summer cut grass to me. lol

New Year's Resolutions/Goals
I thought I'd keep a weekly record of these so I can see if anything is getting done. 😆
More reading, less tv ~ I read some.
Go back to the beginning and revamp old blog posts ~ Nothing this week.
Exercise ~ Only outside work.
Tidy up outside ~ Yes. Too much. lol

Touching Nature: Worked outside 2 days and a little on Saturday. Ugh.

Book News: Not much going on here this week. I did read some in the evenings.

Don't Touch That Dial!: Murdoch Mysteries.

At the Flicks: Nope.

Cyberspace Playground: Wordle, Word Lots, Word Search, Solitaire, Pokemon, and the Finch app - if anyone wants to be friends just let me know.

Randomness: I do this in the morning because I don't want to get out of bed.