Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

A nice warm day today and it's going to get even warmer over the weekend - it's supposed to be 65 degrees on Sunday. Woo hoo! I ran out to the post office and bank this morning and then had to stop by and get gas on the way home. Goodness - $50 bucks and it didn't even fill the tank. And gas is supposed to be 4 dollars a gallon by spring.

The Frog Wrangler had a pretty good week. A couple bad days with her rear leg but an aspirin helped a lot. We had quite a few days of snow which made her really happy. Even this morning there was a blanket of new snow that fell overnight. Just enough to coat the ground. I think it all melted while she was out ther playing though. She loves her pillows and came in and flopped down for a nap. It's so funny that I bought her a dog bed years ago and she wouldn't use it - pillows that I had changed on the bed and was going to throw out - she loves. Here's hoping you all enjoyed this ribbet - leap day - and have a good weekend.

Frog of the Day

Hallmark - Kissin' Couple
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

A little late in the day, but it's the first chance I've had to sit down! I decided the kitchen was a bit messy and I've been up to my elbows in cleaning water all morning. Slowly it's getting cleaned up and looking spiffy. In the meantime I have the pork loin roast in the oven and it smells delicious! I can hardly wait for dinner.

This frog item comes courtesy of mom (thanks mom!). It is from Hallmark and is called Kissin' Couple. It is an animation and music plush. I caught this picture in mid-animation. It runs on 3 batteries. A fun item that I recieved yesterday.

This week is flying by.....

It's Wednesday already. The past few morning my back has been really bad and so today I finally broke down and took some pain killers. The relief is a double edged sword because when they wear off I usually feel worse than before I took them. But I'll take the relief for now. The Frog Wrangler has been having a couple bad days too, so we've been comisserating with one another about the aches and pains. The arthritis in the Wranglers one rear hip has really caused that leg to lock up - a baby aspirin does the trick though. This morning about an hour after an aspirin she brought me favorite toy wanting to play.

It's been snowing here for the last two days - ugh! Although the sun is out today more snow is falling again today. I'm glad I got all of my grocery shopping done the other weekend - I'm staying in until this whole thing is over and the snow gone! Yesterday I took a pork loin out the freezer and I'm planning on cooking that tomorrow with some potatoes, onions and carrots in on of those cooking bags. I took out a couple other things to last me through the week.

So the news this morning is that gas may go to 4 dollars a gallon by spring. Between gas and food prices I think a lot of people are going to be hurting in a major way. I see some of these families with three and four children and I wonder how they can afford to make ends meet. I guess they don't with home foreclosures going through the roof. CNN was saying yesterday that not only homes and credit cards are defaulting, but now household utility bills are going into default. I don't know the answer to the situation but something better change and quick.

On a cheerier note, quite a few cardinals were out this morning playing in the hibiscus hedge, calling to one another. The call is really distinctive and it's fun to look for them when you hear them. A couple males where fighting for territory in the hedge. I haven't seen any females yet but with all the mating calls sounding I'm sure thery're there somewhere! I hope to see little baby cardinals again this year.

Guest Frog of the Day

Frogs
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Today we have a special treat - a Guest Frog of the Day. This picture comes from Vicky who lives in Mexico. She tells me this is one of her favorite pieces from her vast collection of almost 2000 frogs! Way to go Vicky!

Winter is still here

Winter Wonderland
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

And creating havoc! The snow was still coming down quite hard this morning when the Frog Wrangler went out - she was in her glory. When she finally came back inside she was white from head to toe, covered in snow. Currently she's all warm and toasty, snuggled up on her pillow sound asleep. This picture was taken out one of the windows on the other side of the house (I wanted to give you a different view from the other day). This is one of the hibiscus plants that form a hedge along my driveway. This morning there was a lone cardinal sitting in the bush and looking quite stunning. I have to get a camera that has a good zoom lens. My Kodak does really well generally but doesn't have a powerful zoom.

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Wrangler and I were extra lazy today. We both ended up taking long afternoon naps. I know I've felt kind of blah all day, and it seems she has too. Of course, the most important part of napping is finding the right place to lay down. Here she is in the middle of the living room getting ready to plop down. First she has to make three of four turns just to be sure - I think she was in turn number 3 when I took this picture. Soon after - sound asleep. For the most part she's had a pretty good week - every day is a good day as long as those treat keep coming! Have a good weekend all.....

Brrr!

Ice and Snow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

A cold day here at Frog Central to be sure. The Frog Wrangler was all excited to go out thinking she'd play in the snow, but it is as hard as a rock! Everything here in Tidy Town has ground to a halt as it has in most of Southern Illinois. With temps in the teens and twenties, this ice (up to 1/2 inch thick!) is going nowhere today. I took this picture out my window (hey, that's the mad shitter's house over there! - look how far he had to walk his dog to bring it into my yard to do it's business). The main street looks like it's been cleared and salted a bit, but the side street hasn't been touched at all. It doesn't matter to me - I'm staying inside till spring! Let me know when the temperatures are back in the 70's please.

I just watched a car trying to drive up the main street and it was all over the road. Police are asking everyone to stay off the roads and I think that's good advice.

Ice!

I went in to lay down for a bit. My back has been killing me and frankly I didn't sleep last night at all and I was exhausted. I heard rain hitting against the window. I turned on NPR to listen to the afternoon programs and the local crew was on going through a list of everything that was closing and would be closed tonight and tomorrow. I don't think it registered until the Frog Wrangler wanted to go out. What I was hearing hitting the window wasn't rain - it was little ice pellets. Yikes. Everything is coating with ice and they are calling for anywhere for half an inch to an inch of the stuff. I hope the electric stays on through this. Now back to my nap...........

Frog of the Day

Alea Mosaic Frog Sculpture
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

I was up late last night watching election returns. It's been a conscious decision to keep politics off this blog - so that's all I'll say about it. The temperatures here are going through another roller coaster ride. It's no wonder everyone is sick with the flu. Today's temps are in the teens and more snow and ice is forecast over the next three days. After the weekend of running errands my back decided yesterday to go out in a major way. This morning was an adventure just getting out of bed. I sometimes wonder what goes through the mind of the Frog Wrangler as she sits there watching and waiting for me.

It's been a while since I've had a frog to put up. I've been holding this one in the wings because I wanted to have a couple of days in a row so that I could make this little guy. With the forecast of ice and snow I'll be shut in for a while and this should make a fun project. It is a mosaic kit from Alea Mosaic and is a Frog Mosaic Sculpture. I received this Christmas 2007. I'll keep you posted as to the outcome of this craft project.

A windy weekend

The winds picked up yesterday very early in the morning and promptly knocked out power. It makes you wish you had one of those natural gas generators that are automatically switched to when the power goes out - but alas, I decided to go over to Walmart and do some shopping. The power was still off so I lined up everything that had to go in the freezer and refrigerator and opened the door, slammed the stuff in, and closed the door. This afternoon I get to rearrange everything! LOL The power finally came back on but the cable was out. It became a topsy turving evening. First the cable was out, then the cable came back on, then the power went out, round robin it went for most of the evening. I finally gave up trying to reset the clocks. From the local news this morning I guess we were lucky here, many places are still without power.

No Rest for the Weary

As the saying goes. Today was going to busy right from the start and it did not dissapoint. I was up early - all shaved, shined, showered, and ready to go - when the cable guy showed up at the door. Things got put on hold for about an hour while he fiddled with the cable modem. My internet access went down last evening and usually they adjust something at the office and then I'm ready to go. No, he sat here in front of the computer, unplugging the modem, plugging it back in and marveling at the fact that it didn't work. It didn't take long to realize that he had no idea what he was doing.

Finally I told him I had to leave and that I guess someone who knew what they were doing would have to come out monday. He seemed to take it as a personal challenge and went to the office fiddled with the wires there and sure enough - I have access again. I love living in a small town - most of the time. A mad dash to the post office, bank, pharmacy, and then off to pick up my Angel Food order.

People, I'm telling you, you have to check out this program. The meats are fantastic. You get vegetables and other items, but it's the saving you get on meat that are unbelievable. For $30 dollars you get a nice box of food. I paid an extra $20 last month to get one of their specials - 6 pound of top quality steaks! With today's grocery prices skyrocketing, this is a great money saver. Their website is Angel Food Ministries.

Now I've got pork chops in the oven and finally I'm getting a chance to sit back and play with the Frog Wrangler - well, once she wakes up. She's exhausted from barking in her cage all day. Currently she's laying next to her food dish, happy that things are back to normal - well, as normal as things can be around here.........

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Frog Wrangler had a pretty good week this last week. It has been nice and cold out with some snow and ice. She liked the snow, but hated the ice. The Wrangler doesn't like it when she's slipping and sliding all over while trying to do her business. I can't say as I blame her. Her second favorite place to sleep (when I'm in her chair) is on her pillows. They get dragged all over the living room so she can plop down on top of them. She was upset with me yesterday because I picked them up and put them back in her area. As much to say "If I wanted them there, I would have put them there!" This afternoon I went looking for her to take a picture to put up and she was sound asleep. The Wrangler did not even open her eyes as I snapped a couple pictures. And you know the old adage - Let sleeping dogs lie - so that's exactly what I did. And as a matter of fact, it looks so tempting that I think I'll take a nap too.

TGIF

What sad news yesterday afternoon and continuing this morning here in Illinois. The shooting at NIU and the death of now 7 people is just shocking to the conscience. The media this morning is all over the name of the shooter - and that I think is part of the problem. I've said it before, if they never mentioned the name of the shooter - it he was relegated to oblivion, I think we'd see an end of these guys who want to go out in a "blaze of glory" as they call it.

In other news, I was beginning to feel neglected by my house ghost. Ever since I moved here the door bell would go off from time to time in the middle of the night for no apparent reason. I mentioned to a friend last evening that I was a bit disappointed that it hadn't happened in months and I guess I was no longer on my ghost's radar. Last night about 15 minutes after going to bed - the door bell rang. Maybe it was sending me a special creepy valentine......lol........gulp!

The Flu is rampant in Illinois

And I can attest to that fact. Runny nose, itchy watery eyes, and generally feeling like crapola. A cup of hot chocolate this morning and a couple of cups of tea help. Bring on the box of tissues and toasted cheese sandwiches......

The weather here is cold again today. Most of the ice melted yesterday but things refroze overnight. The temps are supposed to warm up again today but the call is for more two more winter storms to hit. One tonight and the other Sunday. What was the prediction of that stupid groundhog?

Our local newspaper had a story in last night that the girl scouts would be out delivering their cookie orders. Wait a second. They never knocked on my door. No thin mints this year for me! It's a cruel world I tell you........

Ice, Ice, Baby

Ice started falling Monday night and continued on into Tuesday. A little bit of snow mixed in now and then to blanket the ground, but when the Frog Wrangler goes out all you can hear is the crunch of the ice under her paws. I decided not to take the trash out last night for fear of slipping and falling. So it's going to be a couple lazy days stuck in the house until the temps warm up. I do hope they warm up by Saturday because this weekend is Angel Food pick-up day.

Ice and Snow

All day long the local stations had been warning of ice and snow. I had to make a mad dash this morning to the post office, then right back. The temps hovered around 10 degrees with wind chills down to below zero - it is cold. I can not imagine the people up at International Falls where the temps hit 40 below zero this morning - their coldest ever recorded temp. Even the Frog Wrangler isn't all that happy with these temps. She's been a little sore in her one leg, so she's been getting a daily asparin. Today she was happy to crawl into my lap and cover up with her blanket. The ice started as soon as it started getting dark this evening. A bit of snow has also fallen, but they're saying the majority of this storm is going to be ice. Brrrr.....

On a side note, stamps are going to go up in price again. I think I'm going to go order a roll of those forever stamps.

A Busy Weekend

At first I thought boy, I really hadn't done much this weekend. Yesterday I spent running the vacuum cleaner and general picking up. Today I spent most of the day in the kitchen. I love to cook and bake, so I put some chicken into the crock-pot to cook for a dish I'm making tomorrow. I made some macaroni and cheese with hot dogs for lunch today - on such a cold day it's a good comfort food. Then I made a batch of brownies. This evening I'll be making a round steak with mashed potatoes and broccoli. The Frog Wrangler has been underfoot constantly, sure I'll drop some chicken for her. No such luck. She had to contend with a crunchy treat. So looking back, it's been a pretty busy weekend. Now if only I could get some of these frogs on laundry duty.....

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Frog Wrangler had a so-so week. A couple good days, a couple of bad days. Last night was by far the worst - about 2 o'clock in the morning she started having fits and starts like she was having trouble breathing. This has happened twice before, but it's been a while. The Wrangler came running to me and lots of TLC until it all passed. Finally about 5, when things calmed down, she decided that her favorite blanket was what she needed. And this is how I found her this morning. I'm not sure what causes these attacks and they do make you panic when they happen, but other than a loss of sleep she's none the worse for wear today.

Face to Face with Frogs by Mark Moffett

Last night was television night. First up was the return of Survivor. I like that they started out with a pretty tough challenge. Then it was on to Lost. At least the question of the black smoke was asked - still not answered, but at least asked. Later it was Stewart and Colbert topped off with the late showing of Olbermann.

Stephen Colbert had Mark Moffett as his guest. He has written a new book called "Face To Face With Frogs." A beautiful book that can be found on Amazon.com (hint, hint).

The weather here has been crazy. One day in the 60's with tornadoes swirling everywhere and today it's in the 30's and the temps are going to be even colder this weekend. The local news says that they are still doing house searches in the tornado devestated areas. Apparently there were dozens of tornadoes on the ground at the same time. Things here in Tidy Town have gotten back to normal. The damages being repaird and things set right. Only one business was totally destroyed.

I can't believe how big my amaryllis plants are getting. The one that blossomed that originally shot up 5 leaves is sending up a couple more. The second bulb still has just the three leaves, but they are about a yard long.

The Frog Wrangler has a really great picture for this afternoon. See you then.

Devastating Storms

Yesterday was rough here in the heartland. It rained all day, but I still got out to vote and made it over to the MRI place. I was worried coming home because the roads were all starting to flood - a problem that happens when you live in a really flat area. By about 5 pm last night I had the candles at the ready because the electric kept flickering. There were a couple touchdowns of tornadoes, sending the sirens off twice during the evening. Hail pelted pretty good for quite a while and brought down quite a few branches out there. If we dry out a bit today, which is doubtful - they're calling for more rain again all day today - I need to get out there and get some of the picked up because they are in the Frog Wrangler's way. Thankfully, this northern end of the storm did not have any supercells in it. Unfortunately, the southern end of the storm did, with devastating results. The death toll this morning stands at 48 and the local news here is covering heartbreaking stories. A house to house search is still underway for more victims. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

No More Snow

The snow has melted. The Frog Wrangler went running out this morning and had this look of amazement as if to say "Where'd it go?" lol A little bit of rain did the last of it in. Thank goodness. Now I'll be able to get out to vote tomorrow. Don't forget to get out there and cast your ballot if you're in one of the 22 states having a primary. Then I have to go over to the MRI place to see about getting in for a test on my back. Today is wash day and I'm having fun going up and down the cellar steps. My walker takes me to the top of the steps and I have a rolling chair at the bottom. The Frog Wrangler doesn't go down the steps any more. She just lays at the top of the steps and whines at me for being out of her line of sight. In today's mail I got a nice cookbook from Pilgrim's Pride and it is filled with chicken recipes. I'm not sure who mailed it to me but I think AB probably had something to do with it. I've got a freezer full of chicken so now I can get cooking!

Frog of the Day

Walmart Gift Card - Frog
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Yesterday the groundhog saw his shadow in Pennsylvania, but didn't see it in Georgia. Whichever you believe, the sure thing is that winter is coming to an end. This morning I saw for the first time since last fall the return of the mourning doves. Personally, I love the cooing that they do. I know a lot of people do not. The Frog Wrangler had a tough night last night, which meant I had a tough night too. I took her out a couple of times but the snow, which had melted down yesterday, had re-froze when the temperatures dropped. This left her slipping and sliding all over the place. She finally gave up and came back in. It's been a busy morning already and I finally got a couple of free minutes to sit down at the computer. I've gotten the new computer to do pretty much everything I need it to do. And today's frog is appropriate as it helped purchase the new acer computer I'm using.

This frog item is a Walmart Gift Card. The frog design matches the card that was put up a couple of days ago. A cute design. I received this Christmas 2007.

Oklahoma City Zoo

The Oklahoma City Zoo has declared 2008 as the Year of the Frog - if you are in the area, be sure to check them out!

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

I just put the ham with pineapple sauce in the oven - the Frog Wrangler offered to help with the ham (taste tester, anyone?). After a couple Snausages she decided it was just as much fun to lay at the edge of the kitchen and watch to see if I drop anything. She even dragged her pillow over to lay on. The Wrangler spent a bit of time out in the snow this afternoon. When she first heads out, she stops and looks back to make sure that I'm standing there watching her, that I'm not going to leave her. Once she saw me, she took off to play for a bit. I think she tried to drag half the snow back inside with her. She buries her face right in the snow and comes running back with her tail wagging. She might like the snow - I personally, could do without it. Guess I better and go make the mashed potatoes for dinner - the Wrangler has had a really happy day and she's eyeing the oven, wanting to make the day even better.....

Apple Pie!

I'm just waiting the last 10 minutes for my deep dish apple pie to come out of the oven. I got a bag of apples in the Angel Food Ministries box this month and decided they would be put to best use in a pie. I make a pretty good pie crust from scratch too. The house smells wonderful and on a day when the snow and ice are taking over outside, its a great way to warm the inside.

The Frog Wrangler just came in from outside. I took some pictures of her out in the snow - we'll see how they come out and maybe they'll be up later this afternoon. She's over the snow already - after only a couple of minutes outside she was ready to come in and curl up on her pillows next to the heating vent. Hopefully all this snow will be gone in a day or two. Monday's temps are supposed to be in the 50's.

Frog of the Day

American Greeting - Frog Card
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

It started snowing yesterday and is still snowing this morning. We ended up with about 6 inches of snow here - The Frog Wrangler loves it! She came in this morning with quite a bit of snow on her face. Yesterday was a day that just got away from me - the next thing I knew it was time for Lost. That show is getting weirder than ever but like slowing down to look at a wreck, you want to know how it all ends. So I'll probably keep watching. Although I find it interesting they run all over the island now with out fear of the black thing that haunted them the first couple seasons and what happened to the polar bear?

This frog item is a Frog Christmas Card that I received this last year. It is from American Greeting's Just for You line and is part of their Twisted Wild Whiskers collection. This is a card that hold a gift card and I did receive a gift card that has the same image on it. A fun item.