Monthly Archives: December 2008

The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

Bob

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Summer named our Christmas tree Bob, after Bob in “What About Bob?” and here is our progress so far.

Summer on the Christmas Tree Field Train, wearing her great-grandfather’s hat.

Alison and Summer – Alison is wearing my trapper Land’s End hat under her hood. It was not that cold but we let her do it because we thought it made her look really silly, and so we looked more normal.

Oops! No pictures from the actual obtaining of Bob.

Part of Bob’s ride home, but this wasn’t his view because he was in the trunk.

Grandma driving on I-69; Bob, of course, cannot see her. This is Summer’s view. Grandma is wearing Summer’s hat, by the way.

Traditional stop at Steak and Shake after getting the tree.

Bob at Steak and Shake; Bob wasn’t hungry.

Bob in Krinner stand but not yet freed; Sydney circling Bob, the tree in the house.

This and That at The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

Sitting down

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Yes, sitting on the sofa on the porch. I have been doing domestic things instead of plopping myself in one spot at the PBC & Roadhouse and pontificating. Gathering leftovers and bagging them for freezing . . . cutting up a ham for slices later on . . . grinding up the chunklets of ham remaining for h-o-m-e-m-a-d-e ham salad. (The proceeding typed out approximately to the rhythm of “Bringing in the Sheaves”.) Then I put a roast into cook and then I made cupcakes and then I browned Sydney’s ground chuck for his special dietary rice and meat and dogfood supper. (Now that sentence was quite a bit like alternate lyrics squeezed into the Twelve Days of Christmas rhythm. )

Maybe you are stuck back on the cupcake section. Yes, I can understand that; that is sooo not AmeliaJake. Actually, I am hoping that Summer will decorate them and leave me in peace. Of course if Colin comes in first and sees them and yells, “CUPCAKES!!!!” it could be bad since Summer is in spirit a wolverine. Oh, well, let the games begin.

UPDATE: YES!!!!!!

Tomorrow is “tree day” as in bundle up and trudge out and select a spruce or fir and saw it down and put in on the wagon and haul it back to the barn and pay for it and have it bagged and stuck in the trunk. This is only the lead-up, however, to the “putting the tree up” which for years involved the stand, usually strong cord and frustration. Things have gotten a lot better, though, since I invested in my beloved Krinner tree stand. I just need to remember to cut the tree low to the ground so we will have plenty of stump.

I are so fond of this stand . . . I’m swooning.

Just Me - AmeliaJake, The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

Thursday at The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

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Vague post title, I know; but my mind is in a rambling mode so I won’t get real definite here. Of course, I often start off with a title which eventually has nothing to do with the post, so I guess I’m rambling about rambling. Whatever.

Two- hour planned East Noble delay today. Oh, the pain, the pain. Finally at ten they were gone! (Maniacal laugh here.) I may not be an enthusiastic grandma, but at least I haven’t duct taped them to the wall lately. (I’m out of duct tape. mwahahahahahahahahaha)

Kroger’s had a $2 flower cactus on the table by the check-put lanes so I grabbed it up and took it over to Mrs. Feller at the nursing home. I hadn’t intended to go but I knew if I went home first I would be hijacked for something and so headed off in the grungy clothes I had donned to make a quick and stealthy grocery raid. You know, the kind where you keep the hood of your sweatshirt up.

This is borning . . . I’m cutting to the chase: The weather did a quirky thing and hoar frost formed on all the trees very quickly, so I stuck my cell phone out the window and took a picture. It didn’t turn out too well, but here you go . . .  Hoar frost in Noble County. Indiana 3.

I am still boring, so I am going to quietly slip away for a while.

Just Me - AmeliaJake, The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

Hi there

Yes, I am just in a good mood and I’m not certain why, but I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth. Ack. Cliche alert. I had a peanut butter foldover since Der Bingle is not here to fix me my eggs with the soft yolks that I dip strips of toast in. I guess I could cook them myself, but, oh, the butterfly effect, dontcha know.

The sky has gone from grey to light blue to robin’s egg blue to deep blue to fading blue/insinuating grey. It is doing it quickly, I see even more grey now. Well, okay. It’s 24 degrees here and this morning we are going to deliver a poinsettia to the nursing home. Used to be I really didn’t care for them; now I don’t think they are so bad. Emory had a garden across the street for 66 years, so I’m hoping he will like the color. I read on the Internet that professionals use ice cubes to water poinsettias in locations that are not conducive to typical watering. I’ll have Kathryn tell the aides she’ll need a couple of ice cubes now and then . . . and, in fact, I’ll mention it myself to the folks at the desk.

Oh, here’s too much information: Last night I was chilled and so tired I fell asleep like a log. I dreamed I had to go to the bathroom, but couldn’t go – even with the dreaming of running water. When I woke up and remembered the dream, I thought, “Yes! Gotta love that animal brain that is somewhere in my so-called more sophisticated human one.” I was a little frustrated in the dream, but oh, so grateful the little red flags went off in my brainstem or whatever.

Maybe with that I’d better stick my head in a soduku and shut up for awhile.

This and That at The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

Thank you, Christ, for being born

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Religion is something I don’t talk about much. I don’t know about miracles or God-given truths. I don’t know about a lot of things involving the universe and dimensions and philosophical stuff. I have come to realize I am bunch of electrical connections in my brain that make me eccentric and iconoclastic and not naturally nice. But in the past couple of years I have come to realize that Christian principles are pretty important and good guidelines. And I have discovered that gritting your teeth and taking the “should do – would be best” route is a sound decision, even though all your little fibers yearn to  throw a tantrum and/or bang your head on the steering wheel.  Maybe that is what finding God is . . . realizing that you have the potential to be a wise cookie. And maybe the real glory of Christianity is that a group of people actually gathered to pay attention to the teachings of caring and kindness and, well, just being decent.

OKAY – We return you to your regular scheduled AmeliaJake . . .

The Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse

light through the blinds

This morning we’ve been cleaning and getting things picked up and I even put a burgundy tablecloth on the big table room here at the Peanut Butter Cafe & Roadhouse. And I put a metal double-sided cut-out of Santa and his reindeer taking flight. Need some candles for it though.

Someone stepped on the vacuum pipe but I fixed it by pounding a ballpeen hammer into the opening with a mallet to re-round the hole. Yes, yes, sometimes I even astound myself . . . and yes, the ballpeen hammer came out of the pipe. (That it would not was in the back of my mind.)

Cans were packed up and sent to recycling and soon I will shower and sort of cycle my daily way to “the Wal-Mart”. Auuuuugggghhhhhhhh.

The day started out with sun and blue sky and now it is overcast and forebodingly grey. But, but, before that happened, I ate my lunch at my usual table, the one by the window that faces the south. Chili and a small hamburger – don’t tell folks here at the cafe, but can you say Wendy’s? – and the pattern of sunlight and  shadow of blinds on the worn red tabletop. The Irish Tenors were on the CD player and when Fairytale of New York came on, I asked all the chatterers  to be still. They went to whispers, so soon I will replay it. Ha! Let them whisper with duct tape on their mouths.

Source of Irish Tenors . . . and Bing Crosby . . . and John Denver and Muppets

and

down below, one of AmeliaJake’s cute little guys