Bird Feeder

This is the bird feeder Duane made recently from venting materials. I had been buying clear plastic ones from Kmart (at $20 a pop) but they didn't last too long. The plastic became brittle & the squirrels knocked them over & they shattered. I don't think we have to worry about squirrels with this one. It reminds me of the feeders in Grandpa's chicken house.

From Uncle Kenn

A few pix

I'll try to post a few recent pictures.


This was in winter of '08 down by the creek on the family farm that is now owned by Buelon "Boo/Pete" Moss, third from left. The others are L-R: Jim Snyder, Bernard "Bernie" Moss, and Gerald Moss.

More to follow when I find out where the others are filed. Bear with a slow senior.

bpm, 4th dork

ow!

who??

Poll/Question

Happy Valentine's Day!  (A few hours early.)

It is now the middle of February, & originally we'd planned to make this blog private now.  However, we still have 20 members of the family invited but not signed up.  Any suggestions?

Here is the poll - should we go ahead & make this private now, or wait until we have more of the family logged in?  I've sent out two invites to each, one week apart & the last was a week ago.  I may have to make a phone call to my own dad to prod him.

What say, Family?

recipe

PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH SHOOFLY PIEDry Mixture1-1/2 cups of flour1 cup of brown sugar1/4 cup of shorteningLiquid Mixture3/4 cup of real molasses (not Karo)3/4 cup of hot water3/4 tsp. of baking soda1/4 tsp. each of ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves (vary to taste)Blend the two mixtures in separate containers.Into a 9" or 10" pie tin, alternate layers of the dry and liquid ingredients. Start and finish with the dry mixture.Bake 15 minutes at 450°, then 20 minutes at 350°.The result is delicious "wet bottom" pie (cake). During the baking process the molasses miraculously settles to the bottom of the pie.

CA storms

Monday AM we woke to about 6 inches of snow.  We dug out the driveway & started down the mountain with the spider spikes on the front tires of the Honda.  It took two hours to get down the hill (normally a 45-50 minute drive), & it was snowing & visibility bad.  I'd have stayed home!

But the report was that the total snowfall for that day was 20 inches & the low that night was 3.5 F.  So we were somewhat dreading coming home to dig out the driveway again.  Even tho last night was cold also, 4.3 F, today was in the mid 40s & so the roads were not too bad.  We came the long way thru the desert, because the snow drive is much less.  In fact, we only kept the spiders on for about 5 miles because most of the road was bare, & much of it dry.

Still, it was a great surprise to us to get home & find our driveway - most of it - bare & dry!  Our kind neighbor had run his snowblower over 95% of it, & it was ready.  Duane had about 2 feet in front of the garage to clear.  We put the car in the garage because another bout of storms are due, starting either tonight or tomorrow AM.  

I find that when the stove box is cold it takes a looooonnnnnng time to get a fire going, but it is now & blowing out nice warm air.  It is nice & cosy & is good to be home.  Hope the rest of you are keeping warm & safe in the winter weather!

These pics are the December snows, we've not taken any recently.  The weird wheel thing is Duane's wovel.  He likes to use it.  I find it annoying.

Storms

Lots of wind across the state today - we had a tree to blow over in our back yard, but no other damage. There were tornado warnings not too far away, but far enough for our good. gem

Tuesday morning

Clear and frosty.

New battery in car, and it was in the garage.

Cheri has driven it to work.

The tea is all gone.

No excuses.

The cabinetry work awaits.

The new blog begs my time and focus.

Do you really want to know this stuff?

Like:

Our cat had to be put to sleep on Saturday and Amber's cat on Monday?

Mother-in-law is in hospital with pneumonia?

Being laid-off for 33 weeks?

Still drawing unemployment compensation?

Cheri has rotator cuff surgery next Tuesday.

I am not a nurse. I will be a nurse next week?

Below are pictures of a reading stand I made for our reading habits.

Yeah!! it worked. Sign me up!

testing testing 123

ok, tried this once before and it didn't work, so this is my test blog. See if it shows up somewhere.

Question

So after reading Uncle M. David's post, what did you do evenings to keep busy, not having TV?  When did you get the first TV in the Moss family?

Trial Post …

Wonder if this will work… I've never tried posting to a blog.  Who came up with that word, anyway - "blog"?  Is it an acronym or something?  …whatever… 

I was so proud of the results or Boo and my repair of the 1985 Jeep Grand Wagoneer' door latch and window track (no bungee cords or wood wedges needed now) that I drove it to the back field to look for more tree damage from the recent ice storm - and got stuck in the mud!  (Finally got it out yesterday.)  So the storm's impact continues.  Today I may pick up broken limbs from the front yard.  

When I was young, we had more snow, but I don't remember much ice.  There was at least one time we got both - older brothers, was there much tree damage then?  We did have occasional power outages.  Since we heated with wood stoves all the time anyway, that was not a problem.  And Mom & Dad (G'ma & G'pa) still had some kerosene lanterns to use.  Candles were too inefficient then.  Guess water supply was not a problem - the well and sand bucket never froze up.  Now during my life recall, the refrigerator could have been a problem, though I do not recall it.  In the early years, however, it must not have been a problem - didn't you use the spring as the milk cooler?  Times were so primitive then – and so much better: we were less dependent on the electric grid and public water and other utilities.  Those things were for "city slickers" and, as the song goes, a "Country Boy Can Survive!".  

MDM 

PS:

I really should look at my typing, and correct it! But looks like I got posted.

We took a long drive today, saw a hawk, lots of Branta canadensis, some mallards, some Pica pica, but that is about all. A few deer. I am eagerly looking forward to the arrivals of Turdus migratorius. (Laura says she has them in her yard, in Dusty, WA. I don't know what they eat, but she seem to think they stay around all year. They just have enough open water, and insect food.)

Kenn
PS: Turdus migratorius is the American robin....

Hi, Kathryyn.

I don't know if I am doing this Ok, but will try.
I put "Moss Family Rememberances" on my "Favorites" on my web page. Then, it gave me a page, asked for my e-mail address, and my password (which I have made the same as I use for lotsa other passwords), and it invited me to "submit". So, I hope this gets psoted. If it does, I'll use my Favorites again!

Happy Saturday evening from cold, but sunny and dry, central Montana, to you all.

Kenn

Deadline

Ok, i just sent out, again, the invitations to folks to join the blog.  We have seven family members who have joined, & twenty-three who have been invited.  The plan was to make this a private spot by mid-February, but if folks don't visit & join by then, making it private will be a death knell & the blog will die.

If y'all don't want to do it, that is fine, but i think we would benefit by it, especially the younger ones.  We will have all the notes & memories in one spot.  The flying email that go around are fun, but they are easy to lose.

Fini

12º here and going down to 9º tonight; high tomorrow to be 18º...cold, a little snow...

"oh, be careful little tires where you go"

Happy Birthday!

(Boo to Gerald)

Happy Birthday, Lil Brother !

I very well recall your Birth Day as well as Ron's, Linda's, and Morris David's!  Having an addition to the family was always an exciting time in our household.  I'm sure I was just as excited about Brother Bernie's Birth Day, but probably gave him undue grief as a just older brother!

Gerald, you were great fun and the fun was not ALWAYS at your expense.  One of the nice things about you being younger is that I can recall and relate memories that you may just as soon not have related!  But, I will not get into those today.  As a celebration of your day, I'll take you and Brenda out to lunch on Monday if you are open.  That will give me an opportunity to load up your fire wood gift (the birthday boy is suppose to get a gift, not give gifts, but again. . . ) to give some traction just in case the snow gets bad while I am in Lexington.  Then I can come by and pick up Dexter on Thursday after the meeting closes (hopefully by 3 PM).

We enjoyed the views of ice and snow though it was sure good to continue to have electric for heat though we were without TV cable and internet access for several days and then the phone decided to join the TV & computer so off it went for a day plus (all come in on the same line).  I was with Morris David yesterday and they have much more damage on their homestead and in their area than we have.

Saw Mom several times this week;  I often wheel her about and she enjoyed seeing the sun outside this morning much more than the views of ice and snow earlier in the week  (She doesn't care for winter weather).  She asked about or made comments about all of you as I related what information I had.  Gerald, she indicated that we needed to send you a birthday card for your birthday and then related the story about your concern and perplexity because we gave you grief over not getting out to see your shadow and of her reassuring you that you had a special birthday.  Yes, you are a special brother with a birthday on a special day.  

In talking with her about the economy, she repeated the old Depression saying of "Use it up, make it do, or do without."  For a while she gave me trouble about leaving this morning when I told her that I would go on and eat my lunch as they had brought hers.  "Why are you leaving now with all this to eat here?"  We need to just enjoy her for what we have and that she can still talk and that she generally recognizes us.

Have a good Monday, Brother!  I'll see you then if it fits into your schedule.  Le me add my congratulations on completing your book.  I also look forward to reading it.

Love, Boo