X Y Z

 X Y Z  The slang phrase XYZ, meaning “examine your zipper,” has been used since at least the 1960's 

These letters are used for constants (because “c” stands for “constant”). xyz - because they are the last three letters of the alphabet. These letters are used for variables and unknowns (because “x” is symbolic if the unknown - a mystery, as in “x marks the spot”, “Mister X”, etc.).

Generation X (1965-1980)

Generation X is the demographic group following the baby boomers. They are described as people born between 1965-1980.

As of 2019 U.S. Census data, there are 65.2 million Xers in the United States. Most of the members of this group are the children of the Silent Generation and early boomers. Meanwhile, they are often the guardians of Millennials and Generation Z

Millennials (1981-1996)

Millennials are also known as Generation Y and were born between 1981-1996.

Generation Z (1997-2012)

Generation Z is commonly known as Zoomers. They are the new generation after the Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha.

This generation was born in the mid-1990s and the early 2010s. The people from this era are children of Generation X. The effect of the economy has been known by this age group as being shaped by COVID-19.

And there you have the END of this ABC challenge. 

Walk for JD

 

Every April around this time of year, we sponsor a walk for our little great grandson, Jerry Daniel aka JD; he was born February 17, 2023 with CDH (Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a rare condition that occurs when the diaphragm – the muscle that separates the chest from the abdomen – fails to close during prenatal development. This allows abdominal organs (stomach, intestines, and/or liver) to move into the chest. When the abdominal organs are in the chest, they can crowd the heart and lungs and keep the lungs from growing normally.)

He spent 8 months in hospital, having 10 surgeries to correct the hernia.  The worse probability came when he had a twist in his small intestine and several inches were removed.  Now he has a g button (One of the most common types of G tubes is a low-profile tube sometimes called a “button.” This type of tube lays on top of the abdominal wall and is kept in place in the stomach by a water-filled balloon. A special extension tube is attached when administering medicines or feedings.). He is fed constantly thru this g button.  

At this writing JD is thriving little boy, learning to crawl, even adapting to his feed tube attached.  He is always in a good mood!  We are happy to bring awareness as we walk for JD and other children born with CDH. 

We had a nice crowd that gathered at Oma’s ranch for breakfast, then our walk down the ranch road, watched patiently by herds of cattle and horses.

 We returned to enjoy brisket lunch with all the fixings!  The afternoon is spent visiting and watching JD as he belly laughs about the least little thing.  We love our adventurous boy!  And will continue to walk every April! 

U V

Undulate means to move in a wave-like pattern. If a sound increases and decreases in pitch or volume like waves, you can say the sound is undulating.

So,  how does this term apply to fiber arts?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GMWoyFwp8uM

Undulating knitting for you!!  Yes!  Let’s try our hand at this technique—looks really cool! 

Or this one below

Love the feature of this knitting. 

Undulating twill weaving—for a weaver, here is a draft

This is my weaving of undulating twill—10 harness

V= victory!  To get this far in the blog challenge! 

S T

 Simply tempted to stitch up those circle granny squares designed by #beeLori1. She has begun a stitch along—so tempting!!

You can find Lori’s instruction tutorials on YouTube or instagram—aren’t you simply tempted also?

Have you heard of those temperature blankets?  You can stitch with fabric or stitch with knitting needles or crochet hook! 

Quilted by Maria Bostwick

This is a different version with fabric from Elm Street quilts

This a knitted temperature blanket 

Has this crochet version

 

You don’t need to make a blanket—how about a scarf or a shawl? It’s a year long commitment though—I probably couldn’t keep up! 

Here you have a square in a square!  What fun quilt this would be!  Check out the directions here

QR

 We can cover two letters of the alphabet here—those pesky QR codes!  Everything has a QR code!  It’s found on can goods, fresh produce, clothing, shoes, furniture, packaging labels, even on menus—need to price an item, better have one of those little black/white squares. 

The QR code system was invented in 1994, at the Denso Wave automotive products company, in Japan.^[5][6][7] The initial alternating-square design presented by the team of researchers, headed by Masahiro Hara, was influenced by the black counters and the white counters played on a Go board;^[8] the pattern of position detection was found and determined by applying the least-used ratio (1:1:3:1:1) in black and white areas on printed matter, which cannot be misidentified by an optical scanner.^[9][5] The functional purpose of the QR code system was to facilitate keeping track of the types and numbers of automobile parts, by replacing individually-scanned bar-code labels on each box of auto parts with a single label that contained the data of each label. The quadrangular configuration of the QR code system consolidated the data of the various bar-code labels with Kanji, Kana, and alphanumeric codes that were printed onto single label.

Oh! Pancakes!

 Yes!  Pancakes and peppered bacon!  Perfect breakfast! 

On the Patio!  Pancakes can be for morning meal in your P Js or evening dinner in your precious gown—it’s easy to whip up a stack of these puffy yummy morsels!  

Here is the recipe I used. 

L M N

 Love! Love! Love! Knitting Lace!  On marvelous needles! 

This is Stephen West pattern, Glittering Snowscapes shawl

I’ve had the pattern for awhile and did begin it during the holidays and now, we’re in April!  There it lay in the knitting basket.  Why? You ask?  Because I got the “bug” to knit socks!  And knit socks I did—and a Lenten scarf and some small items. 

After I finished the last pair of socks, I told myself—“you’ve got to knit that lace scarf!” 

It’s the task to finish now. 

And I love these needles!  I have several—short shaft as well as longer shaft

Sharp points too just for lace knitting!

Marvelous needles!  Hope you enjoy lace knitting with your marvelous needles. 

J K

How about Jokes that begin with letter K?  Here goes!

Knock, knock.

Who’s there?
You.
You who?
Yoo-hoo! Anybody home?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Radio.
Radio who?
Radio not, here I come!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Ice cream.
Ice cream who?
ICE CREAM SO YOU CAN HEAR ME!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Weirdo.
Weirdo who?
Weirdo you think you’re going?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Canoe.
Canoe who?
Canoe come out now?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Tank.
Tank who?
You’re welcome.

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Howl.
Howl who?
Howl you know unless you open the door?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Hatch.
Hatch who?
Bless you!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Spell.
Spell who?
Okay, W-H-O!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Avenue.
Avenue who?
Avenue knocked on this door before?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Venice.
Venice who?
Venice your dad coming home?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Water.
Water who?
Water you asking so many questions for, just open up!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
A little old lady.
A little old lady who?
Hey, I didn’t know you could yodel!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Nobel.
Nobel who?
Nobel … that’s why I knocked!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Needle.
Needle who?
Needle little help opening the door!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Dozen.
Dozen who?
Dozen anyone want to let me in?

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Ears.
Ears who?
‘Ears another knock knock joke for ya!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Icy.
Icy who?
Icy you in there!

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Adorable.
Adorable who?
A-door-a-bell don't work, that's why I knocked!

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Kenya.
Kenya who?
Kenya open the door?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Boo.
Boo who?
Don’t cry, it’s just a joke!

knock, knock.

Who there?
Noah.
Noah who?
Know a place I can spend the night?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Adam.
Adam who?
Adam my way, I’m coming in!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Sue.
Sue who?
Sue-prize! Happy birthday!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Lena.
Lena who?
Lena little closer and I’ll tell you!

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Mikey.
Mikey who?
Mikey doesn’t work, can you let me in?

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Anita.
Anita who?
Anita use the bathroom, please open the door!

G H I

Good Day!  It's time to work on our evening meal---let's take these letters of the alphabet to plan our eats.

G = Grits!  Yes, It's time for some Southern grits!  Grits with Shrimp!  Definitely, a delicious dish for brunch or dinner.  What are grits?  Grits is nothing but corn; corn ground into grits; doesn't matter if it's white or yellow--you can purchase grits either instant, regular or old fashion.  I prefer regular grits cooked with cream.  I begin the grits with water, stir, stir, stir, stir continuously!  adding cream as needed.  This makes the grits smooth and creamy!  

Okay, now, add cheese, bacon and anything else that would add to the grits tastiness. 

H = Havati Cheese will be the one I add to my grits.  Havarti has a mild flavor similar to a Monterey Jack. Slightly acidic, the taste is buttery and ranges from somewhat sweet to very sweet. It often appears on sandwiches, in fondue and on salads.

I = Iced Tea  Yes!  That's a good meal!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock/broth divided
• 2 cups whole milk or cream
• 4 tablespoons butter divided
• 3/4 cup stone-ground grits
• 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
• 4 strips bacon (or 2-3 thick-cut slices)
• 1 lb. jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined
• kosher salt to taste

FINISHED!!

FINISHED!! Completed!  Ended! Terminated!! Closed!!

Fulfilled!! Stuck it out!  Polished it off!!

There are some times, finished just doesn’t mean what you want it to mean!  Yes!!  Finally, these socks were cast off the needles.  Why didn’t it feel like a winner?  Loved the pattern—yes!  Didn’t love the yarn.  It was what was on hand, had to be used though. 

It is what it is.

Close up view—

Here is whole top, quilted and bound.  It lingered for many moons before it found its way to completeness.  All the turkey pin feathers were donation from friend.  She didn’t know what to do with them so they became her orphans in my top. 

Another bobbin filled with plied cotton.  If only this bobbin could be self wound into a ball without my interference 

And, to the Lent scarf—thank you!  For bringing my hands and mind to several prayers of penance.  

F=fortified 

Eclipse

Our little town was on the path of totality!  Warnings of crowds swelling in our vicinity have been on going for weeks.  

How did we prepare?

We planned a block party—not traveling anywhere.  We gathered food week before, neighbors brought their favorite dishes—eclipse worthy!  

I made midnight pasta salad, funeral potatoes, blinded deviled eggs—and chicken rolled in darkness for the grill. 

For the fun part—we did wine pairing!!

 

Dash Away

Were you one of many that jumped on the Chaffee craze?  I admit—I was one!!  I had one (now,  I have 3) of those little Chaffee makers—it was a quick way to make a low carb breakfast or snack.  And recipes!! Oh my!! So many things you could add to make your little Chaffee!!!

Awhile back, Costco had this Dash maker—I couldn’t miss out on this!!  

Just look!! How many interchangeable plates are included—WOW!  Such cool designs! And—it would be easy to put in dishwasher or hand wash!

Love it!! Dashed to Costco to purchase the super duper Dash!  Of course, you don’t need one of these little makers to satisfy your Chaffee cravings.  The recipes work just as well in a regular waffle maker or even as pancakes. 

Need recipes to make on your Dash?  Here goes…………

But, doesn’t the Dash make such cute chaffles! 

 

Crusty Hot Cuban—Sandwich!!

 The Cuban sandwich, better known as a Cubano, begins with soft, slightly sweet Cuban bread. Heaps of heavily seasoned pork roast and sliced ham alternating between layers of Swiss cheese and sour pickles. The sandwich is cemented together with yellow mustard and a garlic butter schmear.

So, there was leftover roasted pork; decided to make something different with leftovers!  We don’t need to do bbq pork or pulled pork sandwiches, Brilliant idea, my brain said!  The ingredients, as listed above, were not so much in my brain when I went grocery shopping—

Our Cuban contained roast pork, ham, cheese (not Swiss but jalapeño cheese), Famous Dave’s pickles( not sour pickles), spread of yellow mustard, forgot the garlicky butter spread, not on sweet Cuban bread but small crusty bread, heated in oven instead of paninis maker.

So, is it still a Cuban sandwich?

Tasted good anyways! 

Books, Booze, Bluebonnets

 Books, books, books!  Oh how I love books!!  Any genre! Oh yes, I have some favorite authors!  But, give me a good book and I’m happy! 

Interesting read!  Only read in afternoon—not a night time, before bed kind of book.  Descriptive of brutal killings and harsh treatment of people.  But, that’s the way it was.

Okay read

I’ve read several of her books—The Housemaid, Housemaid’s Secret—all have interesting twists

Supernatural ghost story, if you like that kind of story

Just recently received these two books from brown headed daughter—given her stamp of approval!  

I love her notes!!

The only problem with these thick heavy books, while reading in bed, if you happen to fall asleep while reading, that heavy book falls on your face and scares the dickens out of you!!

We sip on our booze as we read.  On our recent trip, we passed thru Kentucky bourbon country.  Well, of course, we had to make a few stops—sipping bourbon is a “thing”!  

Now, admire bluebonnets!