Outside the dugout: What's cooking?

Some good stories here.

Mom and Dad were both WWII Navy veterans.

That is how they met.

Dad enlisted in '39 and was at Pearl Harbor on the cruiser Helena. He stayed in for 20 years and when he retired got a job as an employment counselor at the Virginia Employment Commission and helped a whole lot of people before he passed away in '68 from brain cancer. He rarely spoke about anything war related. But as we sat around the dinner table I enjoyed hearing the stories about all the folks he helped with employment. He was 48 when he died.

Mom just turned 98 in Feb. and still lives in her own home here in town. Pretty good mental state. Gets up every morning - dresses - has breakfast - reads the paper. We don't talk on the phone - we use email. And I see her each week when I drop off her provisions. And I take care of the landscaping there so I see her then as well. And when I take her to doctor appointments.

My late stepfather was Coast Guard WWII vet and instrumental in establishing the CG facility at Canaveral. He was born in Titusville. Never went to college like my Dad but worked for his Dad at the service station in Oak Hill and learned how to run that business. Also ran a wrecker and worked with the highway patrol, Bill. That service station had a little self service ice house out front that he kept when he sold the station and a few times I went with him to Titusville to pick up ice. Those huge blocks of ice they'd slide into the Chevy Apache bed. He taught me how to fix a blown head gasket on that same truck.

He became the post master of Oak Hill also for quite a few years. I did some custodial duties their as well for a few dollars. Kinda neat to work behind the counter in a post office where no one else is normally allowed.

Dad is buried at Hampton National Cemetery.

 

My Dad was in the S Pacific...."island hopping" as he called it. When I got old enough, past 25 yr old, I asked him about being on an island and knowing Japs were hiding. He kind of smiled and said "We can smell them and they can smell us. Depends on the wind"

I thought for a second then realized what it meant.

I asked if he had enough ammo and he said yeah, but we had more beer and cigarettes behind us than we needed.

He and a man named --- Kennedy became very close, after the war they wrote, never visited since we were in FL and Kennedy was in Calif. Funny, how today they would have done Facetime, visited, FB, etc. When Kennedy wrote, he would read the letter aloud at dinner. I didn't get it until I grew up for real. Then I got what they meant to each other.

 

Hoping for a positive outcome for your SIL, @GatorLurker !

Send some of that rain this way! We've gotten some spits and spats but not what I'd like to see.

Today I was picking up provisions and wanted to get some whole food for my dog. Looked at the chicken and just tired of it so over at seafood I see this Ahi - two nice pieces. One for Winkipop and one for Winkipop's Daddy. So that's what we had. Not quite sushi but in the same neighborhood, I guess.

 

My dad did the eye chart memorization thing. He eventually was drafted.
When I took my Vietnam draft physical they were giving us the color blind test. Showed the image with the different color dots—10 or 12 of us standing there. They asked one guy what color a dot was, he answered and they asked the group—“Everyone agree?”

 

We’ve been smelling a big pot of spaghetti sauce simmering and boy does it make you hungry.

A fresh Romaine salad topped with vine ripe tomatoes and garlic and Parmesan Texas toast for sides. A nice bottle of red Cav will be on the table.

Back porch ice cold longnecks and chilled wine will preempt supper.

Life is good in Gator Nation!

 

OK, Growl said we switched over to new servers yesterday so let's give it a try. Early 90's grilling kabobs in the lanai at my Lehigh Acres home.

 

Gotta love the Hawaiian shirt, chef’s apron, and flip flops. You dog you….”just ah swinging”………

 

LOL.....got that right! I was "entertaining" my Cuban date.......

 

We have had strong thunderstorms off and on since 3AM this morning and that’s great because we really needed the rain as it was very dry here…(We are showing 4+” in the rain gauge).

We are making fresh Cobb Salads tonight adding grilled boneless chicken fingers cut up and cut up fresh vine ripe tomatoes.

Back porch ice cold longnecks and chilled wine go great with an afternoon/evening of watching non-stress D-1 post season baseball.

Life is good in Gator Nation!

 

We went to Bangkok Station on Archer Road Sunday afternoon with a group of friends including a former colleague and her husband who were in town. Mediocre at best, although my wife liked the coconut ice cream

 

Tonight I’m going to be grilling bone-in country cut ribs indirect over cherrywood smoke. Pat’s Homade on the last two turns. Baked potatoes on the top rack.

Sides will be a fresh pot of crowder peas along with taking some fresh yellow squash, thin sliced, brushed with olive oil, then lightly shaken on Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese. Run them in the air fryer until crispy. Good stuff.

Ice cold longnecks and chilled wine are hard at work on the back porch.

Life is good in Gator Nation!