Flaming hot..!!

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Oh ...my ...gawd.

I have always been a fan of 'puffy' Cheetos. Or more correctly the Cheetos brand of cheese-flavored cornmeal snack. Keep your 'crunchy' Cheetos ...gimme that bag of 'puffy' Cheetos..!!

I also love the Cheetos Flamin' Hot Cheetos. But until recently I had only seen them in the 'crunchy' form.


Today my youngest daughter brought these into the house...





Woohoo..!!




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Look at that golden puffy-yet-crunchy texture..!!

Look at that coating of Flamin' Hot goodness..!!


I am sure I will regret these ever came into my life . . .but for now I embrace them with all the gluttony of a pimply teenager scoring a prom date with the Homecoming queen ...OK, OK ...maybe not quite that much.


But I does have me a new snack food/junk food addiction..!!



...tom...

P.S. I do see, from the Cheetos page at Wikipedia, that they apparently have been around a while . . .but the first time we have seen them here..!!

Photos May/June 2011

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Yes, sadly, I resort to a 'photo-post' in the act of applying the paddles to my moribund blog. I truly am pathetic.

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The large silver maple tree in our backyard. It is a pain with all the seeds and leaves . . .but it is good for shade ...and the squirrels love it.

Click the image for the larger pic ...it definitely looks better.



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A stained Adirondack chair that sits on our deck under the silver maple tree . . .and the shadow cast on it, and by it, as the sun falls in the west...



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The bleached rib-bones of a long-dead dinosaur ...at least as imagined for the kids' play area at our local zoo.



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This tool shed has not been visited recently ...dust and spider webs seem to rule now...



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My brother-in-law's bride and her father ...from the arm of one to the arm of another...



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No ...it is not Arabic script. After the wedding, above, was completed, the festivities continued in a back yard full of trees. Strung from the trees were strings of small LED lights. Which produced the above image after dark with all the other lights off. I found it interesting...



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Anyhoo . . .just some recent pics.



...tom...
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Random Pics 2011

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Random pics taken in fall/winter 2010 and 2011

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A white moth resting on a window screen, strongly backlit with outdoor light.

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A bee gets his pollen on at a flower in our yard.

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A barbed wire fence at a local farm.

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A pre-storm evening shortly before sunset.

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A praying mantis found in our front yard while mowing. Luckily I saw him before I ran over him..!!

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I will leave this one for you to 'figger out' what it is and how it was taken...



...tom...
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Ink, Paper, Holiday gift ideas...

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One of the earliest Christmas presents I remember receiving as a child was a set of Hardy Boys mystery books. One in particular, about a lost gold mine, really caught my imagination. I have never been able to pin that early memory down to one specific book but the imagined world of the Hardy boys swallowed me up. Frank and Joe were my BFF.


From that gift, and probably others before it and many since, has grown a love of books, their words, and their images, both on the page and in the mind. That so many writers are able to create and 'bring alive' both fiction and reality is a wonder to me.

It is no coincidence that decades later I found myself writing a silly review of another book--a tale I had loved forever--and posting it as my first review ... on Epinions.

Since that pitiful start years ago I have kept the focus of my 'Epinions time' on writing book reviews and reading the reviews of others.

In that time I have found myself reading so many wonderful reviews of books that I just knew I had to read . . .but sadly, most remain unread.

Regardless, these reviews were gifts to me. As a pointer to this book or that one, as a brief moment enjoying the thoughts of another Epinions member about a favorite or not-so-favorite book. Any 'book lover' loves to hear the thoughts of others about their favorite books ...and books they have never heard of before. Those shared thoughts are true gifts any day of the year. Those are gifts I find every day here on Epinions for all to enjoy.

Image courtesy of jurvetson at flickr.com

In that spirit I will share some links to reviews of books that I have loved discovering and reading here. These are links to reviews and 'bottom lines' from some of the most helpful book reviews I have found on this site. I guarantee that if you click on one or ten you will find a gift suitable for some member of your extended 'gift-giving tree'.

Who would not love a charming book for Christmas..??




Always a mix of sweetness and sorrow
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
review by befus

The Bottom Line: A wonderful book to read and to savor, and to enjoy with a young person you love.



Tori Amos Inspired This Female Empowerment Poetry...Written by a Man
Blueberry Girl by Neil Gaiman
review by smiles33

The Bottom Line: Beautifully illustrated, this poem celebrates young girls becoming strong and independent women. It would be a unique gift for pregnant moms and likely to captivate older girls.



Letters of Love to Christopher Reeve ~ Care Packages
... by Dana Reeve
review by Jev04again

The Bottom Line: This book has it all – touching moments, humor, surprise, spirit, and above all else – abiding love.


--snip--

Make sure to read the rest of my book gift idea essay:

Paper, ink . . .and the journey of a lifetime..!!

. . .at Epinions dot com

--snip--



The Bottom Line
So there ya go. A 'baker's dozen' of the fifty-some book reviews that I have rated 'Most Helpful' here on Epinions.

Click one, click 'em all ...and read. If none of them inspires you to click a shopping link to consider the possibility of gifting one of your loved ones . . .then I have failed my task here miserably. My task in this essay and my task on Epinions for the last 9-plus years.

But not to worry ...I guarantee you will find at least one to be just the right book for someone on your gift list . . .or even for yourself.


Enjoy.

Dad Hits a Home Run...

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Any baseball fan knows catching that ephemeral foul ball is the crowning moment of any baseball game. Well, other than that bottom of the ninth game-winning comeback. It is rather silly to attach so much value to a simple foul ball; but it does make you a part of the onfield struggle if only for that brief moment.


Now imagine catching that elusive foul ball, highfiving with the fans around you, handing the ball to your daughter as a special souvenir . . .and seeing her toss it back toward the field. Arrgggghhhhhhhh..!!





Just that scenario played out for a dad at a Philadelphia Phillies game overnight. But instead of being upset about it or standing dumbfounded with the realization of what his young 3-y/o daughter had just done . . .instead he reacts immediately to her questioning look -- 'What did I do wrong..?!?' -- as the fans around her gasped. Dad immediately envelopes her in the biggest and bestest daddy-hug ever. Letting her know that nothing was wrong and he loved her soooo much.


That my friends is what sports and baseball and family and dads and daughters are all about. It dont get better than that.


See the video here, on a local Phillie-area newscast clip. (And do note the video has already been ripped down from youtube.com "due to a copyright claim by [ the cold-hearted thugs of ] MLB Advanced Media." Sorry, a little editorializing there...)


Very nicely done Dad.



...tom...
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Nine on the Ninth__April

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Nine on the ninth . . .just a few days late.

Lets get started..!!



Bottles of wine, on the shelf, waiting to be drank... Yes, I have told the wifey they should probably be on their sides, ..no..??

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Chocolate Easter eggs in the bag. Family and friends got rid of most of the 'junk food' that day and the rest went to workplaces to be shared the next day. Certainly do not need it in the house..!!

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Three shots follow of a spider found in our basement. He was dropping on a thread from the rafter. But about a foot from the floor he began a long climb back up. Not sure what the white stuff he is carrying with him is. I assume it is the 'silk' that he was stringing out, dropping on, and then climbing back up.

The last shot is of him 'resting' on the rafter after climbing back up.

The middle shot is probably the best 'real life colors' pic of him.

Spiders creep me out ...yet fascinate me at the same time.

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My favorite t-shirt. An old softball fundraiser shirt bought from a team in Georgia, as I remember. Baggy, full of holes, a worn-out rag my wife threatens to throw away every time it is in the laundry.

She would not do that to my favorite shirt . . .would she..?!?

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Springtime cometh..!! Perennials (irises..??) ..sprout along the fenceline of our property...

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I just love the colors of this one. Have no idea what the plant is, but it looks great with the blue pots.

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One more reminder that time stops for no one. As evidenced by the slight blur of the pendulum as it swings back and forth, back and forth, back and ....

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Anyway. That is it. Nine for the ninth ...late in the evening of the 14th. Better than last month ... and not bad considering my daughter had our camera (for some reason) for too long the past month.

Until next month..!!



...tom...
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Nine on the Ninth__March

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OK, OK. Just a wee bit late with 'nine on the ninth' this month.

The whole idea, at least as I try to apply it, is to motivate myself to take more pictures, to be more critical about which ones I post, and to further my photography 'experience' . . .whatever the h3ll that means.

So here I am, two weeks-plus late, grabbing some photos over the last day or two, and throwing them up here late at night. ...sigh...


Anyway . . .away we go. Oh wait..!!

Do note that I am just going to 'center' them all. I have found the blogspot/blogger does a crap job of formatting the arrangement of photos across various browsers and video displays/monitors. So the heck with it this month; I will just post everything down the middle and see how it looks.


OK . . .now ...away we go..!!



Lead with your weakest stuff, right..??

A cardinal, a regular visitor to our crabapple trees, photographed through triple-pane window and plastic film ...with digital zoom dialed full on. Could have tried to go outside and capture him ...but surely he would have flown away. (Did I mention wifey is a 'cardinal nut'..??)


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Some postcards picked up to send to an Eps friend currently hospitalized. As I told the wifey . . .they have to shout 'Iowa'.

Well, lets see: giant ear of corn, cute pigs, and a windmill. That and 'Iowa' emblazoned all over them. Mission accomplished.


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Cupboard door under sink, rug in front of sink, wooden floor. Kinda interesting patterns ... and I am desperate for a kinda decent picture to use here...


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Fruit, light, shadows. I like this one. I would try to 'isolate' the pineapple and bananas more next time, but still works for me...


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Cup ...coffee ...shadow ...reflection.


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Light from a western-oriented window streaming through a bottle of dishwashing liquid. I like the color of the fluid, the light, the shadows, the diffraction...


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Nighttime, walnut tree, moon ...not as good as I wanted but . . .meh. I really liked the color of the moon ...so I did not try to correct the color of the overall picture. Which leaves the branches looking a bit strange ...but I love that moon.


********************************************************



That later-afternoon sunlight streaming through the window again. Falling on the cabinets opposite the sink in our smallish galley kitchen. I love the way the molding on the doors breaks up the lines of light.


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Our son came over for dinner tonight. Parked his car on the street (despite room for a half dozen cars in our two driveways.) Daft neighbor backs his pickup into the rear of it. Idiot, son and neighbor. Says he is good for it. We will see.


********************************************************


Anyway. That is it. Nine for the ninth ...early in the morning on the 26th. Promising myself a better effort for next month. It is almost/is spring time..!! Lots of outdoor color and activity coming up..!!



...tom...
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Sadness redoubled...

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My previous post spoke to my worst fears for an online 'friend' and her son.

Unfortunately, my worst fears were confirmed and I learned shortly afterward that her son had indeed succumbed to his illness.


I would encourage any who care to do so to check the Dr. Smak link blogrolled at my page.

Reading a few or many of the previous posts at her blog will afford you an intimate glimpse into the heart of this mother and her son and family. Her courage in sharing his ...their story has not gone unnoticed by many.

I am sure the message of strength and love and family evident in her posts and in her readers' comments will echo across the lives of many friends and readers.


...tom...
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Nine on the Ninth__February

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Chocolate sadness...

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I had intended to title this post 'Chocolate madness' ...but some times life changes your plans. Hopefully it will be the small things, like this, and not the more important things in your life that change for the bad.


A local radio station, WHO, 1040 AM, has hosted a 'chocolate breakfast' for some years now. Program director Van Harden and the AM 'drive-time' co-host Bonnie Lucas are known for finding new and unique events to invite listeners to attend and enjoy.

Skating parties, tours of local mines (yes, mines in central Iowa), outdoor skating parties, silly money give-aways, decorating a listener's home for Christmas and on and on.

My wife and I had attended these 'chocolate breakfast' events before. They are similar to a 'home show' or other large auditorium show you might have attended in the past. Local food businesses bring samples of their chocolate specialties and the attendees/listeners can come and sample a wide variety of chocolate treats during the broadcast of the radio show. They always draw big crowds to sample the chocolate confections and candies being given away. The lines were often long but the spirits of the patiently waiting crowds was always high.

This year they moved the event to a larger building with the promise of no waiting outside in line in the cold Iowa January pre-dawn morning. Well, that was true, much shorter waits outside but the larger inside space just made a larger space for the line of visitors to snake through the building. First through the outer foyer and then into the main exhibit hall as the line continued to grow.

My wife an I waited perhaps 35-40 minutes in the outer foyer area before passing into the larger hall and seeing the line continued to snake back and forth. My wife had to be at work in less than an hour and it seemed like there might be a wait of at least another 35-40 minutes in there before even getting to the areas where the food samples would be shared.

So we bailed out of line. Disappointed of course, missing the samples, the AM chocolate rush, the chance to try some new treats, takes some pictures to share... Big disappointment.


There are several suggestions I have for the organizers of the event next year. I hope they are willing to listen. I know we are not the only ones who left early, disappointed with the organization of the event. I am trying not to whine here and it helps to realize it was just a silly little throw-away moment in life.


Oh yeah, the one crappy picture I snapped on the way in:




Did not get a chance to take, or feel like taking, any more... And do not ask me what the crazy flare is . . .I am not in the mood right now.


Anyway . . .my beef of the day.


...tom...
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Nine on the Ninth__January

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Picture descriptions, top to bottom:

A garden frog sinks beneath a layer of snow-ice...

Dining room floor, rug, chair, shadows...

Hanging ivy plant and shadows on the wall...

A bowl painted/decorated/fired at a commercial kiln...

Close-up of our flag, purchased at this event...

Daughter's cube bookshelf with shadows...

Bookshelves again...

DVD cases on another bookshelf...

Flag, as above, w/o flash...


...tom...
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