Neighbors coming together

For about the last two weeks, a beagle was missing.  I first heard about it when my neighbor posted on Facebook mentioning seeing a stray dog roaming around.  You rarely see a dog walking unleashed where I live.

Our neighborhood has a Facebook page which has been very effective in alerting people to things relevant to us.  Posts began showing up of people seeing the dog but no one was able to catch it.  It was all around my house, but I never saw it.

I posted my phone number and asked anyone who saw the dog to call me as I seem to have a talent for getting dogs to come to me.  If I could get close enough to reach for his collar and tag, then most likely we could contact the owner.

Finally, yesterday word went out the dog had been caught and the owner notified.  She was very grateful to all of us who helped bring a happy ending to this ordeal.

I live on a quiet street.  Most of the people in this neighborhood work at the University of Rochester.  When the call goes out for help, as in this case, people join together to do what they can.

Occasionally, there are comical incidents that occur. . . as in the time I backed out of my garage and onto the street and saw a small group of people all staring at my house.  "Is there a problem?" I asked.

"Yes, that rabid fox is in your yard!"  I had heard there was one running around.

I went to run my errand and then came home.  A few minutes later, I noticed two police cars on the street directly in front of my home.  A police officer was walking up my driveway with a shotgun in his hands!

"Is this about the rabid fox?"  I asked.  I could think of no other reason an officer would be walking up my driveway with a gun!

I didn't realize it at the moment, but the rabid fox was about 20 feet away from me and the officer asked me to go back in my house.

Love my Vitamix!

I've had my Vitamix now for a couple of years or more and wonder how I ever got along without it.  While it is a versatile appliance, I use it for making smoothies.

Yes, you can use an ordinary blender to make smoothies, but the blender doesn't do a good job with hard fruits and vegetables, like carrots or beets.  The Vitamix is much more powerful.

Smoothies are a great way to get more fruits and vegetables in your diet.  When I first got my Vitamix, I searched the internet for smoothie recipes.  Then I found that no matter what I placed in it, it came out good tasting.  So now, I go through the refrigerator and the basket of fruit on my kitchen table and take whatever is there.

I don't care for the taste of kale.  But put it in the Vitamix with other foods and you've got a delicious drink packed with nutrition.  Including things like apples or oranges makes for a sweeter drink.

Here are some typical combinations I like.  What you choose is limited by your own imagination.

2 fresh beets, peeled and sliced
1 orange, peeled
2 kiwi, peeled and chopped
1 banana


about 2 cups of kale (or spinach)
1/2 to 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 apple, cored and sliced
1 mango, peeled and chopped
1 banana

And the best part is the clean up!  Simply rinse out the lid and jar with cold water.  Then put hot water and a splash of dishwashing liquid in it and put it back on the motor unit.  It cleans itself!

Maybe some day I will get around to trying the other options for a Vitamix such as soups, salads, appetizers, and sauces!

Knitting a poncho

Many years ago, I knitted and crocheted a lot.  Over the years, I made sweaters, both cardigans and pullovers, mittens, and afghans of all kinds.  Somehow life got cluttered and I got away from it.

About a year ago, I decided I wanted to get back into it because I always loved creating  things with yarn.  Except that about a year ago is when Bailey entered my life and with a new puppy in the house, there is no time for much else!

Now I'm back into something that brings me a lot of pleasure and softens the blows of the every day world.

I just started the poncho above.  I wanted something that I like and that wouldn't be too difficult for someone that hasn't picked up knitting needles in awhile.  I probably won't put fringe on it.  I'm not a "fringe" person!  But that decision can come when I finish working on it.

It was a surprise that I hadn't lost my skills!  I bought two books, one for crochet and one for knitting, that I use as a refresher.

I'll post pictures as I progress on this project.

Delicious pork tenderloin crock pot recipe

This one is so good!  I doubled the sauce recipe to cover the tenderloin in my crockpot.


one pork tenderloin (or two if they will fit in your crock pot)
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine the sauce ingredients and pour over the tenderloin in the crock pot.  Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

A delicious meal for very little effort!