Prep Genrl Weekly Prep Thread: Nov. 9 - Nov. 15, 2025

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
My bread baking is all done. Poppy seed bread is what I made, today. Cary will finally finish off the last of the cheese caraway bread, tonight. He has been commenting all day about how great the house smelled with all the baking going on. Honey whole wheat is what I'm planning to do next. I'm getting quite good at all this bread making! I got my motivation to start baking my own bread right here in the Prep Room threads, so, thanks to all of you.
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
There's nothing better than fresh, homemade bread and soup on a chilly afternoon!

Bread doesn't last long around here the way Cary eats it! He eats a slice or two with his soup everyday for lunch, then has a couple of more slices for supper. If I don't make bread at least once a week, we run out. I try to make 2 loaves at a time. He has always been a big bread eater. I've promised myself only 1 thin slice per loaf. I have to sample each loaf to see what it tastes like, LOL.
 

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Might have just lost my temper at FedEx. Told them, and mean it, that from now on I will ask who someone ships through. And if it is them, I will buy somewhere else and let the seller know why.

Because they misdelivered yet another package and want to insist that only the shipper can tell them that they made a mistake. So 12 days from now, after eBay's "just in case" time period, I can ask for a refund and go try to find another hard to find GFCI breaker.

Arch. So bloody frustrated.

I'm going to go figure out dinner now.
 

connie

Veteran Member
Heard years ago about a family with a Doberman. Then they had a child. They were playing fetch with the dog but once the toddler got the ball before the dog and the dog attacked the toddler. Just instinct on dogs part. You never know what can happen.
Our neighbor had pit but got rid of it.
 

anna43

Veteran Member
Can't believe it's Tuesday and I'm just now reading this week's thread.

I haven't been accomplishing much although I did finally get the carpet vacuumed today after 3 weeks procrastinating. I have carpet cleaners coming next week which is way overdue. I think it has been 3 years since last professional cleaning.

Dog attacks on children are all too common and it is often the family pet doing the damage. A friend's dog attacked their dd when she was 3 and she had repeated reconstructive surgeries for years. She is an adult and doing well now. Works for 911 as dispatcher.

I mended a sweatshirt's cuffs the other evening and tomorrow I'm going to do some thrift shopping where I hope to find a couple like new sweatshirts. If I don't, then it will be Walmart for new my next time to town. Most of my sweatshirts are old, faded, stained and just past wearing. I could wear them at home and currently do, but I hate looking like a rag bag every day.

I made an apple crisp Saturday with two cans of pie filling, ate two servings and tossed the rest today. The pie filling was way too sweet and runny. I have two additional cans that need to be used so will try again but will rinse off the apples and not add the "filling" part. My oven is repaired so I can bake again whenever I get myself going in that direction.
 

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Someone upstairs decided to intercept. I had absolutely no success with FedEx customer service. Lost my temper at their AI more than once. When I finally got through to a human being my tone was better but not helped by the absolutely stupid circles they were going in. "Yes it was delivered to the wrong address but we need the shipper to send it to a different address." Literally. Repeatedly. Someone finally agreed to at least start an investigation into what happened.

Two hours later I hear a thud on my porch and my doorbell tells me someone is there. By the time I get the camera up, the guy is coming back with a massive package that I know is not mine. So I catch him. I tell him those aren't mine and to please take them to the correct address. After a couple of minutes and Google Maps, we find the correct address about a mile away.

He decided to go find my package and get it to me before he went on to deliver those two packages. This poor guy, it was his first day, in a completely unfamiliar town, with a fragged FedEx GPS. And fragged GPS tracking means FedEx is not going to know where a lot of those pa pages ended up at.
 

Wildwood

Veteran Member
Prayers for the whole family of the little girl...just heartbreaking.

We have problems with Fed_Ex too...so aggravating. I don't blame the drivers. They must be hard to work for because we get a new one every week it seems like. For a couple decades our route was owned by a contract guy and it ran like clockwork. He must have retired or sold out because it's been horrific for at least a year.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
Some years we leave our tree up year round since getting the grandkids. We decorate it for all seasons when we do that. We don't do it as often as we use to but we did leave it up this past year. DGD and I took everything off of it a couple months ago, including the lights. We dusted and gave it a sponge bath, went and bought new lights and put them back on. After that was accomplished, we decorated it for fall and If I say so myself, it's been beautiful and much enjoyed. After Thanksgiving, we'll take down the fall stuff and add the bubble lights and ornaments to the tree. It's a narrow ten footer and very heavy or we'd take it out and wash it with the water hose. It's around forty years old.

I have one large cupboard in the dining area that holds all it's Christmas decor behind doors on the bottom shelves. It's really easy that way. We'll take off all the regular decor in a few weeks and put it on the dining room table, grab the Christmas decor off the bottom shelves and arrange it just so on the open top shelves...I take a pic when the Christmas decor is all up and use it the next year to speed up the decorating process. The every day decor then goes on the bottom shelves behind closed doors and put back up according to the pic I took of it before dismantling it for Christmas. I got so tired of lugging all the holiday stuff up and down the stairs. My whole collection of Santa's and other sentimental stuff goes on that cupboard. There's a few things that stay for both set ups...this made decorating so easy. I dust and wash everything when I'm taking it down.

I only decorate four spots in our great room...that includes the tree and the cupboard. I put a little lighted village on another spot and some more stuff on a side table. All the Christmas decor fits in that one cupboard bottom with the exception of tree ornaments and lights and they go in a storage space upstairs that holds all the other year round holiday decor.

If it weren't for grandkids, it would be a whole different story. DH would insist on a tree but that would be about it...maybe a few Santa's. We had given up on grandkids so when we got a couple, we did and still do all the things. The fourteen year old boy doesn't get that excited any more but that ten year old girl runs the show.
 
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WanderLore

Veteran Member
This is why if I can, I prefer to get things from a store. Not always possible.
I was up at 4 am to check stove and it's running perfect. I replaced the gasket. Wow huge improvement.
My sciatica is giving me fits.
Son has worked out deal with friends to get gravel on the long driveway. That's next Tuesday.
Yesterday was a tad stressful. The washer wouldn't work. So I hauled laundry in to town.
While there I grabbed the new gasket.
Went to wash truck, see crack in windshield.
Set up repair for Thursday.
Someone put money in my washer for me while I ran to get more!
It's just been so cold and there's still a lot of snow and ice. But it is warming up.
Got all the situations handled yesterday and son went to make arrangements about to gravel. I'm probably going to go this morning and get more coal from Amish. I was getting a little desperate to get the situation figured out but it's good now.
That's awful about the poor kid. I had a friend that was the dog warden for years and he said the pit bulls have the highest attack incidents of all the dogs he has to pick up.
I will definitely keep that little one in the prayers
 

patriotgal

Veteran Member
FedEx ground service quality is determined by the contractor who owns the route. We rarely have issues with FedEx or Ups now, thank God. While helping friend in her shipping business I met nearest route owner and saved his contact info. If you can get your hands on such info, it is priceless.

Gonna have 70 deg weather end of week after 2 days of 20's. Birds already think it's spring again and are very vocal. Deer herd is growing. I think the regulars are inviting friends, lol.

Using up a gift card balance to top off collagen and magnesium. Have a basket of summer tees I need to find a place for. We have made real progress on the garage and are loving open space. While it is nice this weekend I will try to finish cleaning and sorting the ebay area. DH's progress in the barn freed more totes. After the cleanup I need to work ebay time into my schedule. Can't sell it if it isn't listed. We have been selling just enough to cover groceries and I am happy with that.

DD is sending me a lighter weight headset. Mine gives me headaches. I thought of Krysan Tuesday. Seemed like every case I dealt with was a nightmare. But our support system is phenomenal. I was able to close my office door and leave work behind. Was never able to do that with one of the brick and mortar jobs. Now that I am more familiar with systems I never dread clocking in. Thank you God.
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
That's awful about the poor kid. I had a friend that was the dog warden for years and he said the pit bulls have the highest attack incidents of all the dogs he has to pick up.

Our DDIL's sister has a pit bull. She swears that it will never hurt anyone, because she is so sweet natured. Well, the last time we were at her house, the dog was sitting beside me on the sofa enjoying the loving I was giving her. Cary was across the room, and started walking in my direction. Guess what? The dog started growling at Cary, until he started backing away. That was the last time we've been to her house. Cary doesn't trust the dog. She has invited the whole family to her house for Thanksgiving meal, but I told her mom that we already had other plans.

Lillie has to stabilize more, before they can even begin any of the many reconstructive surgeries to repair her face and neck. She's still in critical condition in ICU.
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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Prayers for the whole family of the little girl...just heartbreaking.

We have problems with Fed_Ex too...so aggravating. I don't blame the drivers. They must be hard to work for because we get a new one every week it seems like. For a couple decades our route was owned by a contract guy and it ran like clockwork. He must have retired or sold out because it's been horrific for at least a year.
We get better service from Amazon drivers who don't speak English than FedEx! More than once, FedEx has just dumped packages randomly in the grass along our 1/8th mile long driveway!

Summerthyme
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
We've had the same two FedEx drivers for several years, now. One, a white man, and the other, a black woman. We've never had any problems with them at all. Only one time has Cary had to say something to the black lady. That was the day he saw her pitch something over our fence to our dog. It was the last bite of her hamburger. He told her not to ever do that again, and she didn't. FedEx is the one who delivers all of our Sam's orders, but USPS delivers all of our smaller packages to our mailbox. Walmart and orders from elsewhere also come by FedEx.
 

Meemur

Voice on the Prairie
I haven't ordered anything since earlier this summer, so I don't know how the delivery service is doing. I do know there's a massive turn-over of drivers. I never see the same ones twice.

I got all of my steps in today and a few extra. It's Indian Summer. Tomorrow will be back in the 60s. I'm going to work in and on the garage part of the day and try to finish my winter preps. I need to detail my car but probably only the front will get done. At least I'll get all of the summer supplies swapped out. My small shovel doesn't do me any good if it's in the garage and I need it at while I'm trying to dig out of a snowed-in parking spot.
 
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WanderLore

Veteran Member
Good morning coffee time. Oh my I had a day yesterday.
Got up early tended to stove, did the chores. Then set out to get coal. It is 32 mi round trip. It's a nice quiet drive.
So I get there and my Amish buddy loads it for me 20 bags. I'm leaving and I don't see the concrete barrier and hit it with my tire on the truck. Blew the sidewall out and knock the running board off.
Looked up mechanic local got one right down the road. He was there in 10 minutes. He had to cut the spare tire from the bottom of the truck because it was like welded closed or something couldn't get it loose. That works fine actually because if I need a spare tire I don't want to deal with something stuck underneath the truck.
My Amish family bless her heart brought him cardboard to lay on and fresh cookies.
They wouldn't let me pay him even though it was only $50 to cut the spare tire out the bottom and then put it on the truck! So I left a check for that with them. Plus this guy is going to get a lot of business from them.
Limped it home. Son unloaded the coal. Got appt in village this morning for good used tire.

Son just left for work. I'm sitting on a cold pack for my sciatica. It will be okay shortly.
Sorry just venting. But we're getting it done
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
We have been getting coal from them for 18 years. She asked me now that Scott is gone and I have all this free time could I possibly take them shopping occasionally. They would pay me $50 for the day. They're so sweet and been good to us I would probably just take gas money.
We'll see. Everybody thinks they have all this free time. I've been trying for a month to get the stove working and get in stores for the winter hay etc.
Get things buttoned up.
It's been 8 weeks. I guess people think I should have moved on by now huh
 

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
@WanderLore, you do you and move at your own pace. I do always find it annoying that people assume all sorts of free time. I'm not sure how that logic works.

Hugs. Life won't pause and it sounds like you are getting it done. One of the issues you may be running into is a reluctance to be around single women, especially newly single women. It's something I know has happened to other widows.

May you be supported and held dear while you travel the path forward.
 

Digger

Veteran Member
Today is our day to spend with the grandkids till our daughter gets home. I will be going by myself today. Hubby has the tree service coming to down some trees that are near the power lines, one leaning toward the house, and some off a pond bank. They will just down them and cut into pieces the tractor can move. Then we will do the clean up. Our son is coming up today thank goodness. He can keep an eye on his dad for me.

Yesterday we got out the log splitter and worked on the wood pile. We got a little over half of it done. We will finish and get it in the shed before long hopefully. The trees cut today will put us behind. That will have to be cleaned up before any more firewood work is done. Though the one leaning tree is hickory, so it will be kept for firewood. We have to get my job done soon too.

I washed all the globes on our kerosene lights. They are ready if we need them this winter.

I had better get busy. Have a blessed day everyone.
 

Wildwood

Veteran Member
I had cut back on my business a little but it doesn't suit me or maybe it's that little voice saying "not yet". I decided a week or two ago to forget slowing down so I've been organizing my main work room and going full steam ahead on making things. Maybe it's habit and I'm so use to a holiday rush that I can't let it go but I don't think that is it so here I go again, working like I still have a stack of wholesale orders waiting to be filled. It may be the fear of forgetting my craft.

In any event, the weather here has been a blessing this year. I don't think I've ever experienced such a mild fall temperature wise. The next four days are going to be warm with very mild night time temps too. I love it because, the older I get, the more I dislike cold weather.

I finally got all my peppers processed and I've got to take time to get these tomatoes in the freezer. We are still eating fresh tomatoes that have the best taste with a ton of green ones sitting on the counter. I may wrap a few of the green ones and store in a cool dark place to see just how long we can keep this going.
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
Our cold blast is over. 73 degrees today with 47 for our low tonight. It's supposed to be in the upper 70's and 40's and 50's at night for the next 8 days. Sunny skies, too. Forecast calls for 78 degrees on Saturday.

Cary has plans to do more mulching, today. We got a lot done, yesterday, but didn't quite get finished. The oak leaves are really falling, now. My roses and raised beds are now heavily mulched. Still have the azaleas to do, today. That won't take long, because the leaves are already piled up next to them. Just needs spreading out around them. He can do that while I make a couple of chocolate chess pies. One will go in the freezer. I, also, have a big load of laundry to wash, dry, and fold, too. I thought about cooking out more bacon from the freezer, but that will have to wait.

I cut 2 more inches off my hair this morning, and it did great again! I'm so glad I learned this method. Now, I can give myself a trim any time I want without having to get Mom or someone else to do it. Sure does save money, too. I'm done with the trimming for now, though. Over all, I'm minus about 4 inches trimmed off.
 

patriotgal

Veteran Member
Why do some people think if you work from home or are single that you have all sorts of free time? Yes my office is in my home but there is still all the normal management and upkeep that goes with having a spouse, a home, farm, grands and all the stuff life throws at you. A widowed friend was telling me how everyone suddenly decided a) she had nothing but free time, and b) she might as well be giving to them all those things she doesn't need anymore. Excuse me?!

I am liking my time working. No one can bother me. Grands are having to adjust, lol, but because of HIPAA they cannot enter my workspace. It is truly the first and only place I can hide.

Counting books today . Hoping to be done in 2 days so can list them online. Guestimating about 8k of them. (Once bought a bookstore cheap.) If I were younger and we were going to have a place for them, I would sell them individually online but that's not how I want to spend my time now. They are are of no use to anyone sitting around in boxes. Keeping out some kids books and giving away some nice bibles.

Visited nursing home yesterday. There is a new administrator since August. Have met him several times and speak to him often as his office is near the entrance. He is making some changes that appear to be welcomed by everyone. He remembers who mom is and told us yesterday we were walking into a music session. He is putting a lot of effort into more activities and seeing that those activities extend into the memory unit. We missed hearing the pastor but got to enjoy singing along to the old hymns. Took mom outside for fresh air after. She is doing well and happy. A new unit patient tried to leave with us and I felt sorry for the young man who had to handle that. I usually let DH and mom leave first so I can body block potential escapees. The young man was holding the door and realized too late that she wasn't with us. She is new and in what I call the belligerent stage. Mom's new roommate is a joy.
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
Exactly patriot girl.
I had years of being regimented in my daily life and still trying to do things with the grandchildren. I have no desire to get back on that treadmill again. The Little kitchen band plus the library want me to come in volunteer there. I can't count how many times I did stuff for them with them that I had to buy stuff bring stuff I could barely afford pinching pennies, then leaving poor Scot home alone.

Waiting on the Safelite guy, he text me it'll be 4:00 before he could get here. I should have put the super glue on. That's what Scot used to do before it got big, when it was just a little tiny crack that always stopped it.

Oldest son can't make it to the memorial on Sunday because he has to go to his wife's sister's baby shower....?
He wants me to go to a lot of trouble to sign a gun over and have it shipped to him in a different state pay for it and all that. I don't think so. I wouldn't mind doing things for the people if they were willing to help me in return. I do have a couple that we trade off and I'm very happy to do that.
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
I have two horses, 6 dogs, 12 cats. No more chickens. Plus a coal stove to keep filled and tended. Plus the regular house work etc.
I'm kind of enjoying my free time, such as I have.
I do have to try to get mower that's stuck halfway out the barn door, moved.
I did manage to get this huge inflatable tent my one son put up, set back up. It was flattened by snow. Lots of digging and baling.
I have a large bale of straw to haul over and put against the side of the house under the kitchen window to hopefully keep that from freezing. I'm just taking a pop break
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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WanderLore...I'll just caution you on starting to be an Amish taxi... it's one thing if the family are good friends, and you can count on them to help you out in a pinch. But, at least in the community we lived in, once you said "yes" to one, your number ended up in everyone's phone books, and they'd call constantly. And when they go shopping...dont plan on getting home in time for you to get anything else done that day!

And fifty bucks? Unless you're staying local, that won't even cover gas and vehicle maintenance... much less your time.

I helped out close neighbors, and I never turned down someone who needed a ride to the emergency room. But I had to make it clear that I just didn't have time to spend all day driving around... a couple times, I gave in and agreed to take someone to a doctor's appointment, and then discovered they had four or five stores they wanted to go to!

Summerthyme
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
WanderLore...I'll just caution you on starting to be an Amish taxi... it's one thing if the family are good friends, and you can count on them to help you out in a pinch. But, at least in the community we lived in, once you said "yes" to one, your number ended up in everyone's phone books, and they'd call constantly. And when they go shopping...dont plan on getting home in time for you to get anything else done that day!

And fifty bucks? Unless you're staying local, that won't even cover gas and vehicle maintenance... much less your time.

I helped out close neighbors, and I never turned down someone who needed a ride to the emergency room. But I had to make it clear that I just didn't have time to spend all day driving around... a couple times, I gave in and agreed to take someone to a doctor's appointment, and then discovered they had four or five stores they wanted to go to!

Summerthyme
OMG that's exactly it. "Can I get a quick ride" turned into 6-7 stops. One of the Amish elders actually had Scot running all day then handed him a dozen eggs as his payment.
Uh no.
I'm just starting to see this thing where people see that supposedly I have all this free time and I have all this stuff that I'm trying to sell get rid of clean out boy there's a lot of opportunists out there.
Yeah I'm just going to say no.
Plus they are 32 miles away round trip if I don't go anywhere else.
 

Meemur

Voice on the Prairie
@WanderLore -- I second what Summer said. My compromise is picking up grocery orders or similar errands, and I do that on my own, sometimes for several different people at once. I don't charge a lot for that, but that keeps me in gas with a little money left for meat, or sometimes I accept eggs and meat, depending. But I avoid driving people around, except to the polls on voting day (I don't charge!) or if there is some sort of emergency.

And, yes, some of the churches around here literally pounce on older, single women, like we have endless hours and energy to devote to church work. No. Just no.

There are a lot of days where I can barely do my paying job, get in my steps, and do a minimum of house chores before that's the end of my energy. A lot of people don't understand that.

However, my energy is somewhat better this week. The return of the sun and warmer temperatures is helpful. Today, I've worked on the garage and got a little of my car cleaning done. I have to take a bunch of things to the basement, but I'm only good for another 2 - 3 trips today.
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
Well. It's been 8 weeks. And no more concern from all those volunteer jobs. Only when I was willing to do free work. Disappointed but not surprised. ( I didn't ask or whatever, just the bit of contact I've had)
Safelite guy says I have to have new windshield. $40 service call. Hopefully that is set up for Monday.
Weather has been ok last day or two and we should have more seasonal weather for a bit.
 

Meemur

Voice on the Prairie
I'm sorry. But, yes, that's the way it goes in a lot of places.
Lots of retirement articles tout the joys of volunteering.
Yeah, I've been working my behind off, and I'm so looking forward to doing a
whole bunch of unpaid, under-appreciated work when I retire! :rolleyes:

Nope, I'm going to spend next summer working in my garden and doing my
own projects on my schedule.
 
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moldy

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Appointment with dentist went OK. I may need hyperbaric oxygen treatments before and after surgery, so figuring that out when I am at least 2 hours away from a chamber might be an issue. We'll see. otherwise, picked an estate that I wouldn't have been able to if I hadn't gone to the city.

it all works out the way it's supposed to.
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
Another day of not much going on. Forecast high of 76, today. Sunny skies.

Cary finished with the mulching, yesterday, and I got the chocolate chess pies made. Baked a 3 lb. boneless BBQ smoked ham for supper, made Cary a small bowl of potato salad, and I had boiled squash and onions. Cary is still raving over the poppy seed bread, LOL. The ham leftovers went into the freezer for a later meal. It will be chili con carne for tonight's meal.

I'll be talking to Mom later this morning to find out how Lillie and Maddy are doing.
 

SouthernBreeze

TB Fanatic
I just talked to Mom. She said that Lillie was out of ICU and might get to go home tomorrow. She will have to go back to the children's hospital in Memphis, Tuesday, where they will try to schedule her first reconstructive surgery. Her doctor did a minor surgery and some temporary stitching on her upper lip, so that she can eat through a straw.

Maddy, the one who has Huntington's is going downhill fast. Has stopped eating, and can only communicate with one hand by lifting her fingers to answer yes or no. It's so sad. Maddy and our youngest son have been best friends for years.
 
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