More Prattle from Povey

  The "Sunday Roast" at Chez Povey in Bristol, U.K. would often feature Beef, or Pork, or Leg of Lamb. When times were tough we might have the cheaper Shoulder of Lamb. I  recently had a yen for Lamb Shoulder.  I bought one via the www. There is toasted Lamb with potatoes,  garden peas  and mint sauce  in my immediate future. Then  the left overs will be utilized for Lamb and Barley Soup; or for Shepherd's Pie. O.K with you?

  My friend Barbara D (who died very recently) once gave me a framed print of a Metropolitan Museum poster. As I removed it from the wall in prep. for the repainting of my Lanai/Porch I managed to create a huge crack in the glass. This morning  I went to The Frame Shop to have the glass replaced.  A man called Mark was opening up the shop.  (I think that's him in the photo' above). We did business on the sidewalk.  He saw what needed to be done and said that it would be done by next Friday. We shook hands.  He didn't need my name (other than Michael), nor my 'phone number and e-mail address; nor my BMI Cool!

  It was back on May 15th that I had the second of two sleep tests at the Lung Associates of Sarasota; and six weeks since I began to use an APAP machine. Medicare requires that the APAP is used for at least four hours each night. My use is automatically sent electronically to Lung Associates. Today I had a follow up appointment at Lung Associates with a Nurse Practitioner (Holly). The news was good. FIRST   I am 100% compliant with Medicare's requirements.  Why not, since I am a people pleaser! SECOND  In my second sleep test I had forty Sleep Apnea events in an hour. Since using the APAP machine this has been reduced (on average) to six events each hour. THIS IS VERY GOOD NEWS!  

My sister Jean (b 1939)  died on 17th June 2023 Her funeral service was on 19th July 2023 The service included a Power Point presentation featuring Jean with her husband John their children and family members throughout  her years. John sent me the Power Point file.  One picture "leaped out", and made me happy.  I froze the presentation and took a photo' of a photo'. It was taken some seven years ago in Sarasota. Back row l-r;  My sister Maureen and her husband Bernard; my brother in law John and Jean. We'd eaten at a Siesta Key restaurant called "Turtles on the Bay"  On our way out I asked an in-coming restaurant guest to snap us.   He did a good job. In the face of my sadness at Jean's death  I love this reminder of happier days. '

  What the heck. Why had I been cancelled? My car insurance renewal was due in early July.  I paid it in full by a check on 13th June. The check was cashed.   P ay it in full and not by monthly instalments.  Instalment payments include an 18% interest surcharge.  Auto Owners Insurance sent me a Certificate of Insurance. BUT Last Friday  I received the above notice of cancellation.  BOO After a weekend of worry/frustration I took myself  this morning to my local agent (Wallace Welch & Willingham),  corner of Webber and Route 41.) A fine young agent (Miguel Heredia) was as confused as I.  He promised to take up the matter with Auto-Owners Insurance in Cincinnati. Ohio. That he did.  Here is the dope.   Head Office in Cincy  had received my check, but had credited the payment to an other account. I was glad to get this message from  Miguel later in the morning. Good morning Mr. Povey,   I called Auto-Owner’s and Phoebe from accounting was able to locate your check. Apparently, it was

  Lanai/Screened in Porch final touches. First the dull and boring bit Curtains at the east end - to prevent snooping.   My neighbour is not simply inquisitive, she is blatantly nosey.  I've seen her with her snoopy nose on the windows of other homes. The curtains will give me necessary privacy. And colour! I've installed some pretty dingle dangles, they hang from the ceiling. Green                                                    Blue

  Swordfish Chunks all ready for the Grill from Detwiler's. I don't have a Grill but my Air Fryer did well.  With "so-called" Mexican Style Corn 

  \ The Paint Job Boys did a great job in repainting my "lanai" this morning -  the first repainting in at least twenty three years. Well, it's not really a lanai.  Its a screened in porch, an add on to the original Villa. As such it does not have footings or walls.   The windows are made with Mylar, or with Perspex;  (which we put in after Hurricane Ian wrought his wrath).  Some have mosquito screens.  I don't need them since I never open the windows. I suppose that it would be great to have "real" windows.   It might be great but it would be costly. New footings, new low walls, new windows and door, new a/c ; new everything.  Indeed a  construction of a 29' x 11.5' room, with external walls stuccoed and painted to match the exterior of my unit. $50,000 anyone?  NOT IN MY LIFE TIME! I am content with what I have.  The new paint job spiffs it up.  And for now I never use the porch.   It's too darn hot without a/c!

  I ordered this book  (pre-owned) from an outfit which I discovered to be a subsidiary of WalMart. Here its the circuitous journey of the package  -  so far! Shipping Status 07-18-2023 3:40 pm Departed shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item AUSTELL GA 07-18-2023 Departed shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item - 3:40 pm AUSTELL, GA 07-18-2023 10:24 am Arrived shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item AUSTELL GA Arrived shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item - 10:24 am AUSTELL, GA 07-17-2023 9:47 am Departed shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item GLENDALE HEIGHTS IL 07-17-2023 Departed shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item - 9:47 am GLENDALE HEIGHTS, IL 07-17-2023 9:47 am Arrived shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item GLENDALE HEIGHTS IL Arrived shipping partner facility, USPS awaiting item - 9:47 am GLENDALE HEIGHTS, IL 07-17-2023 5:19 am Picked up by shipping partner, USPS awaiting item HAMMOND IN Picked up by shipping partner, USPS await

  Many years ago I let it be known to my brothers and sisters that I would not be traveling to Bristol for family funerals; nor would I expect them to travel to the USA for mine. I made a heart felt exception when my brother Steve died suddenly and unexpectedly at age 63.  My heart and mind flew me home for his family, and for his funeral. In 2021 I spent two weeks in Bristol with the express intention of spending time with each of my siblings in our ageing family; seize the day.  I succeeded thank goodness. Since then my twin sister Elizabeth and my sister Jean have died. And it's o.k. that I could not be at their funeral services.  I saw them alive in 2021! Jean's funeral was at 12:30 p.m. today (British Summer Time). So at 7:30 a.m. (U.S. Eastern Summer time) I took time to be quiet, and then prayed Psalm 23 and the Lord's Prayer. The previous time when my sibs (and I ) were in one place at one time was for our mother's funeral. Today the still living family (sans mo

12:30 p.m. British Summer time My sibs: (Maureen, Andrew, David, Martyn, Ruth)will gather in Bristol U.K.  for the funeral of my sister Jean (b 1939) who died on June 17th 2023. I'm sad to be the only sib who cannot be there. (Photo from 1979) Remaining back l-r  Martyn, me, Stephen (deceased) , David, Andrew Remaining front l-r Jean (deceased) , Maureen, Mum (deceased)), Liz (my twin, deceased) , Ruth. As they pray in Bristol I will pray here. ------------------------------------------------------------------- And today 18th July Ben (a friend since about 1986) died at his home in Camphill Village, Copake, NY (look it up) ( where he and his husband Ted worked for many blessed years). His death was not unexpected, but hardly ever has there been a man so serene as he moved towards the veil. I had dinner in Lee, MA with Ted and Ben on 13th May 2022 on the same day that I had tea and biscuits with my dear departed (the Revd.) Gwen W. Sears. May 13th 2022 Carpe Diem thank goodness. Ben

Zion was a street stray when he was taken into a shelter in Lafayette, LA.  in late 2017.   Lord alone knows how and why he'd been abandoned. He was a skinny 53 lbs with an estimated age of four. He had heart worm and minor flesh wounds. The Humane Society took him in from what was probably a kill shelter in Lafayette. Luckily we adopted each other in Jan 2018  via HSSC.  He was a winner from day one. I will never forget that when we got to my home and into the front porch, he sat down so that I could open the front door.  Since then I've not had to do a damn thing to train him! He is now a robust 64 lbs and in perfect health. He is a winner.  Perhaps he should be called  Euphrosyne , the Greek Goddess of joy!    That's his ministry  - to spread joy!  He does so every day and in every way. ( but imagine explaining and pronouncing that name!) So now he is going on ten years old,   I want him to be younger so that he will be with me longer! He was at the groomers today.  Here

.....   to catch  a breeze and to listen to the music of the wavelets as they reached the shore. Video-bombed by Zion! https://connect.xfinity.com/appsuite/#  

                                               Enough for two days

  Monk Fish with creamed spinach and corn. From the Web:  Also known as the "tenderloin of the sea" or "poor man's lobster," Monkfish more than earns its other, more savory nicknames. It's a delicious fish with toothsome flesh and a sweet aroma. If you need even more convincing, the late, great Julia Child even called it "a cook's delight" thanks to its firm texture and versatility. From me.   I like Monkfish.  It would not be liked by those people who say  (to my amusement and puzzlement)  "I don't like my fish to be too fishy!"

 From Mama G's, Sarasota SOUTH TRAIL Mon - Sat, 7 am - 3 pm 5900 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34231 Phone: (941) 926-2692 Email: mamagscoffee@gmail.com SARASOTA Mon - Sat, 6 am - 4 pm 8431 North Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34243 Phone: (941) 355-9236 Email: mamagscoffee@gmail.com Baked each day  (except Sundays) So good for Avocado Toast; or for Chunky Sandwiches: or for dipping into Olive Oil etc.

  Hector Berlioz' magnificent arrangement of La Marseillaise. https://youtu.be/w1pawMe_RP8        You can skip the ads. How he came to compose it. Richard Rodda's notes - CD inlay Berlioz spent the last two weeks of July 1830 shut up in the Paris Conservatoire writing, under strict supervision, a cantata ( Sardanapale ) with which he hoped to snare the  Prix de Rome . (It was his fifth and, he vowed, final attempt; he won.) "I was finishing my cantata when the Revolution broke out," he recorded in his  Memoirs . "I dashed off the final pages of my orchestral score to the sound of stray bullets coming over the roofs and pattering on the wall outside my window. On the 29th I had finished, and was free to go out and roam about Paris till morning, pistol in hand. A day or two later I was crossing the courtyard of the  Palais Royal  when I heard a tune I knew well - a dozen or so young men singing a battle hymn of my composition [one of the  Neuf Mélodies  on texts of

  Harvest House is a Church which is very near to my home -  maybe a ten minute walk away. I often drive by it. I know little about H.H. , save that the Sunday congregation seems to be comprised mostly of people with an African-American/Black heritage. My white liberal stereotype/ prejudice is that congregations with that demographic are not always hospitable to GLBTQ+ people.  Harvest House defies my narrow minded/blinkered beliefs.  I have so much to learn. So I will be there,  wearing my "Pride" cap; closing my mouth, and  opening my ears and mind. I'll walk over to Harvest House, eat some good grub  and listen.   

  Zion and I are practically housebound. But I am grateful.... that he and I could have a very early morning walk at the Nathan Benderson Park that we could do some 8:00 a.m. shopping at Detwiler's, in a safe parking lot, where I could leave Mr. Z in my unlocked car with the a/c on high whilst I shopped. that I could do some afternoon shopping at a Supermarket which has a covered parking lot, a safe resting place for Z  as I shopped,    that after this shopping Z and I could walk for a bit in the tree lined and shady Arlington Park, a cool place for his afternoon poop. that my whole house a/c system keeps us at a bearable 82 f. that I have an Air Fryer, enabling me to cook without heating the kitchen. Steamed veggies and broiled steak cooked   to perfection in the Air Fryer,  (simultaneously) .

 

  Maybe I should say "Stainless Steel Bowl Special". Waldorf Salad. One of my favourites, rarely seen on menus. Apple  (bathed in Lemon Juice), Diced Celery, Walnut Pieces; and Golden Raisins instead of halved Grapes.

https://jmichaelpovey-retiredpoveinsarasota.blogspot.com/2007/11/memories-of-rationing.html?fbclid=IwAR1F8CNgGVn_NvIlVRtHsMU8hZyUvbaDDd9pFA7TRQ48biFjMWR_5SEQo-Q ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fry's 5 Boys chocolate 1 EDIT Now best known for their Chocolate Cream and Turkish Delight, the famous firm of J.S. Fry & Sons began with one Dr Joseph Fry producing chocolate in his premises on Small Street in Bristol in the late 1750's.  By the close of 19th century the company, trading as J.S. Fry & Sons, had become a vast presence in the centre of the city.  In 1847 Fry's produced the first solid chocolate bar for widespread consumption, and in 1902 they began selling the UK's first milk chocolate - 3 years before Cadbury's Dairy Milk was introduced.  Fry's branded their new product as 5 Boys Milk Chocolate, linking it in the consumer mind to the trusted 5 Boys (dark) chocol

  All out of the blue a Pittsfield.MA friend sent me a box of U.K  sweets/candy. Bassetts Liquorice Allsorts.  Yum to the max. I was more or less weaned on them.  My Mum could not resist them. The figure on the box is well known in the U.K as "Bertie Bassett". I dare not open the box just now.  To eat one would be to eat twenty!

  Norwegian Salmon  -  cooked in my air fryer Kumatos - from Trader Joe's Mayo  (Duke's of course)

                                      Bench at Arlington Park

William Pitt the Elder;  Earl of Chatham.    (15 November 1708 – 11 May 1778)   Pitts' political career is maddingly confusing.   Do a Wiki search on it and you'll be scarcely wiser! Here is a salient point. He was revered in the American Colonies because of this speech.  He was seen as their ally.    The speech is long and complicated- no sound bites here! http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/documents/1751-1775/william-pitts-speech-on-the-stamp-act-january-14-1766.php Here I cut to the quick.  Here is a list of  American  cities, towns, areas named in honour of Pitt/Chatham. Places named after William Pitt [ edit ] United States Chatham Strait , Alaska Chatham, Virginia [92] Chatham, New Hampshire Chatham, New Jersey Chatham County, Georgia [93] Chatham Square , Savannah, Georgia Pitt County, North Carolina Chatham County, North Carolina Pittsburg, New Hampshire Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania (renamed, previously called  Fort Duquesne ). After British General  John Forbes  occupied  Fort D

......    G ENOCIDE The ignoble clause in the Declaration of Independence. He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions. Whose frontiers? Undistinguished destruction before and after independence, not by the "Indian Savages"  but on them. Shall we say as once was said: "Kill the Indian and Save the Man". Leading to  actual and cultural genocide. Sing your triumphalistic songs. Wave myriad flags. Honour the day with hot dog eating contests. Forget who paid the highest price for Independence.  The indigenous peoples and the enslaved. I am glad to rain on your parade.

  Well, it isn't glass for me.  It is Mylar - the plasticy window material on my screened in porch. Mylar is so hard to clean -  until I had Service Pro give the porch  (29' long 11.5' wide)  a deep clean. Now I see! There are about 197 units in my community - all single storey. Most look out on to other units.    Mine is one of about 40 which look out onto the retention pond. (That's why I bought it).  It's a great place in which to eat, read, and relax.  (Though not in this scorching weather - the porch does not have a/c)