Regarding the yearly time change:   I think that most likely it will be ignored again, and put on hold, to wait for consideration?   Reason being that there are so many serious issues going on in the World now, that the "powers that be", will just let it continue as is, until some time in the future when it can be voted on?

OLM,   I'm worried about you up there by yourself.   Sounds like it's a contant struggle to stay warm and dry.   I'm hoping that you'll decide to join Ron, in the flatlands, for the worst of the Winter months?   Please keep us posted on how you're doing?

Yesterday,   younger daughter Sandy,  came over and spent the afternoon.   She brought me a big slice of Bulgarian cake, that she got at a small ethnic store in San Jose.  I wasn't sure where Bulgaria is located in Eastern Europe, but looked it up on a map, and see that it borders both Russia  and Ukraine.  Not a good place to be living right now. 
The cake was GOOD  . . .   I ate the entire slice for breakfast.   Sandy is fond of  foods from all countries.   She has always shopped at many of the market places in this area that feature different cultures, and loves to eat at authentic ethnic restaurants.

Good morning Marilynne, and all,

I typically go back to the farm the first or second week of November. It depends on when the farmers quit applying near our farm. The irrigation season ended the first part of October this year, so it should be better than last year. Currently we're considering the weekend of the 9th. Ron will be hunting over this coming weekend. He'll be able to come up and help me move out after that. We'll have to see how it goes. If the weather/travel is real bad, I'll hang tight here. As difficult as it gets here, its still exponentially better than down there if there are applications.

Ron brought me a large supply of LP, a more efficient heater and supplies so I can blanket the door. These things are helping. The tiny house is warmer than the RV. I've camped, boon docking, in the snow many times in the RV (which is why I have chilblains in my feet, etc.). Its like camping in a tin can. No insulation. The tiny house is insulated. At 65, I seriously over being cold. I'm pushing for warmth in a big way. My theme song is currently, "Wouldn't it Be Lovely" from "My Fair Lady." Warmth, chocolate, comfort. 

Describe "Bulgarian cake" please?😋 

I looked outside earlier this morning, and the fog and mist looked
cold,  heavy and bleak..  I could barely see the outline of the house across
the street.  Reminded me of this Sara Teasdale poem.

Gray Fog
   
A fog drifts in, the heavy laden
Cold white ghost of the sea --
One by one the hills go out,
The road and the pepper-tree.
       
I watch the fog float in at the window
With the whole world gone blind,
Everything, even my longing, drowses,
Even the thoughts in my mind.
       
I put my head on my hands before me,
There is nothing left to be done or said,
There is nothing to hope for, I am tired,
And heavy as the dead.

Sara  Teasdale

Now that is a poem that, today, I could get behind!


Thanks for the post.

Patricia,  Thanks for the "like".  We can't always be cheerful and upbeat.  Wish it were so, but sometimes we have to go with our true feelings.

OLM - Hope  things are looking up for you this morning?    You said  I'm pushing for warmth in a big way. My theme song is currently, "Wouldn't it Be Lovely" from "My Fair Lady." Warmth, chocolate, comfort. 
Just a couple of weeks to go, and you'll be back in a warm, insulated  house.  Then you can hibernate and recuperate for five or six months. 

The Bulgarian cake slice is hard to describe.  It was multilayered with a thin frosting on top.  Not super sweet, but just right. The salesperson, told her that the cakes and other cooked items come frozen from Bulgaria. So it tasted fresh to me.

I believe the original Bulgarian Cake was what I call a torte and was named after its creator, Austro-Hungarian pastry chef Kosta Garash. It was made without flour. Here is the explanation with a link to the original recipe.  https://www.tasteatlas.com/torta-garash/recipe  Of course, there are lots of versions today

The sun is finally peeking above the trees. We have had frost for the last two days, but I am not sure it quite got down to 32.

This morning I am feeling petty "dopey". I made the mistake of reading until around 12:30am and, of course, Oscar succeeded in rousting me out of bed at 5am to feed Shan and him. I did nap a while after they ate, however, that always leaves me feeling sluggish. Nothing else of note to report this morning.

MG, I found these while searching;

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=bulgarian%20cake%20recipe&atb=v481-1&ia=web

The torte sounds yummy?

🥶 Only t-t-wo w-w-ee-ks-s? ❄️❄️❄️🥶

I saw this today, and thought it was funny and cute, so decided to post it for others to enjoy.  So true!   Whenever  Halloween candy is mentioned,  someone always says, "I HATE  Candy Corn!"

HAPPY  HALLOWEEN  to all who look in today.  Hope you have some Reeses Peanut Butter cups,  and of course some Candy Corn, to munch on while waiting for the Trick-or-Treaters to arrive!      It will be a mild pleasant evening here tonight.  Supposed to be in the low 70's today.    Halloween usually marks the turning point for us here in Northern CA.  Now the weather will start to cool down, and we may finally get some much needed rain ahead. 

I never tasted Candy corn... I thought they were the vampire teeth!

 

Good afternoon everybody,
Hapoy November! Still focused on staying warm. Better today than the last coupe of days. Their liws were 25°F.  This morning was a balmy 34°F. Currently 45°, grey, windy.

Quote from: OnLonelyMountain on November 01, 2025, 03:58:59 PMHappy November! Still focused on staying warm.

Any progress on that flu pipe?

Good Morning everyone!    Not much action here in B&T, or any of the other boards?    So few of us left, but we can keep Seniors and Friends alive, if we all post a couple of times a week.  Also, it would be great if those members who only look in and read the messages, would stop and say Hello!  Some of you  have been around for many years, and others are new.  No matter if you haven't posted in a long time . . .  we would like to hear from  everyone! 

OLM,    I'm hoping that you have taken early leave from your mountain home, and gone back to the farm for the Winter?  I saw an interesting message this morning in the Bosom Buddies folder from Jane, who is one of our original posters, and is an Administrator   here in S&F.    She lives in Iowa, and spoke about how the cancer rate in Iowa has escalated amongst the young adults there.  They are thinking the cause, is the long time intensive use of sprays and fertilizers on the crops and th soil  in that state. Here's a link to her post:
https://www.seniorsandfriends.org/medical-corner/bosom-buddies/msg267993/#msg267993

Patricia,  I've been meaning to mention the link you left last week, about the Bulgarian cakes and other desserts.  The very first picture shown, the plain multilayered slice, is like the one Sandy brought me.  Most of the others are much fancier, and look absolutely delicious.  How I would love to visit a full Bulgarian bakery, and take my pick of a number of these cakes!  The bakery where Sandy bought this, is actually a Russian Bakery. It is in San Jose, but  further up going toward San Francisco.  Unlikely that I will ever go there, but she plans to go back soon.

 Hello to everyone else!  Please post a message!       

Good mid-morning, 14 degrees and partly sunny. Other than basic routines and meet and greets, I'm not doing much after falling on ice the 22nd, and having an MCL on my right knee.

And that's about it.

Looks like fishing isn't doing too good.  However, there's one of those old cracker barrels here to sit around and tell fish stories. Also an old pot belly stove for when it gets a bit cooler

Two days ago I ran across something mesmerizing. At least to me it is. This post on YouTube, aside from the moody/spooky music, had me staring at it several times. It has a Gothic feel. I could swear, even through the fog, that this video clip was taken along the Susquehanna River somewhere between Marysville and Duncannon or quite near. The headlights you see will be Route 11 and 15. It has been a while since I have been up that way. It is a great clip. Hope you enjoy it.

Check out his YouTube channel page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvLXYpRv2-IFZa8cnMFffcA

Rammel, you might like this bit of history. The name Thunderbolt 1000 the author uses on this site comes from Federal Signal's Thunderbolt Model 1000 series air-raid sirens. https://airraidsirens.fandom.com/wiki/Thunderbolt_(siren)

I've watched a lot of train vid's and don't recall ever seeing trains approaching each other lower their head lights. I wonder if it is automatic.

Good morning everyone,

I'm here to the end of the week. Weathers a few degrees warmer, very rainy. Highs in the 40°Fs-50°s.

Rick, no progress on the flu. Ron tabled it until I'm not here. He went hunting last week. He got a 5 point bull. He's 69 this year. I think he worries he may not be able to hike the mountains for much longer. He had the flu parts in his cart, but did not place the order as they'd be delivered while he was gone. Thats what he told me anyway. I don't believe he's made the transition either. When hunting season comes everything else fades from his perception.

Have a great day everyone!

Rammel, I couldn't find a specific rule for dimming headlights, but apparently it was done in the past. I think it might be a courtesy thing so as not to blind the oncoming engineer. I saw one poster in a forum state that when he worked on a New York line, they were required to lower lights when approaching an oncoming train. Someone else mentioned that it might be a rule set forth by a train company above what government regulations require. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-II/part-229/subpart-C/subject-group-ECFR4aa004644ff4be4/section-229.125 What I saw in the regs about light dimming is that dimmers must be installed but doesn't specify on what lights. However it does state that dimmers are required for auxiliary lights. This reminds me of my drivers training in foggy weather long ago. High beams actually reduce visibility because of light scattering, so low beams are best in fog.

Dimming the lights, especially Head Lights, is very understandable - just like with cars. No sense in "blinding"an oncoming train or car driver. Which brings me to thinking about the newer LED Headlights on cars. High or low they seem to blind one.

Spring forward, fall back....or not

https://www.popsci.com/science/permanent-daylight-saving-time-usa/

Quote from: MarsGal on November 04, 2025, 08:55:03 AMRammel, you might like this bit of history. The name Thunderbolt 1000 the author uses on this site comes from Federal Signal's Thunderbolt Model 1000 series air-raid sirens.https://airraidsirens.fandom.com/wiki/Thunderbolt_(siren)

The Thunderbolt link doesn't seem to work, but I rummaged around and came up with -https://airraidsirens.fandom.com/wiki/Thunderbolt_Siren_Series

Okay, fixed it Rick.

I don't remember ever seeing sirens out on stand-alone posts or towers like those shown in the article except for photos or videos of those out in the mid-west which, I think, are set up for tornado alerts. I do remember the firehouse cupolas that housed/house fire sirens.

That reminds me. I remember the fire sirens used to get tested every Saturday around mid-day. Then it got to be just when there was an actual fire/hazard alert. Now I don't hear them at all. Much of the time, we don't even hear engine sirens screaming down the street, unless absolutely necessary to clear traffic. Times change.

Last night I watched a video the same guy did about the boiler explosion on a steam train in Gettysburg, PA around 30 years or so ago. My sister and I both remember the event, and we cannot believe it was so long ago. The video of the events cleared up a question or two and added info I hadn't seen before. Two things I misremembered were that I thought one person died and that it happened at the station not during the trip itself. Also, the videographer not only followed what happened to the engine and the rail company afterwards, he also researched the and explained the causes and the changes the NTSB made regarding steam locomotive safety and maintenance requirements. At the time, George and I were planning a trip with friends when the accident happened. Just recently it was announced that rail excursions are again available, though not with a steam engine. Sue and I might just plan a trip next year.

"I don't remember ever seeing sirens out on stand-alone posts or towers ...." We had/have one of those across the City near the Hospital. It sits on a three sided frame tower. I don't know if it's still there but was likely used when we had a warning system because of a Nuke Power Generation place within "trouble" distance.
I remember those we would hear during WWII when there was a Drill.
Some local Volunteer Fire Departments use a Horn, and send out a Code ( 3-1, 3-2, 4.2, etc)to indicate where the Fire is. Some places now have selective Telephone dispatch now, so no loud blasting at night.

I know of boiler explosions twice around here. Before I was born, when my mother was pregnant, a boiler exploded in a Theater Building. My dad was working in a Theater building at the time. You have to know my mom panicked and went to the site as fast as she could. It turned out the Theater was one in the next block up the street.
The other was in a Telephone Company Building a long while back. Sent the Boiler through the Cafeteria just above it. I worked for the Phone Company in a Local Building. When my wife heard about it on the news She panicked a bit, until she found it was another building.
Since hearing those stories, and being I heat with a steam Boiler, I'm very cautious about it's care and operation. Being sure all safety devices are up to snuff.

Years ago I wanted to take the rail trip that goes across the Northern Border of the USA. No longer remember the name of that trip.

And I ramble on and on. This is likely one of my longest posts here - me of few words.

Maybe we will start hearing them again. They are expecting to reopen Three Mile Island in 2027 with a deal with Microsoft is for enough energy to supply the equivilant of 800,000 homes, whatever that translates into Kilowatt hour wise. There are at least four companies interested in or now building data centers in Central PA. The one that is getting the attention is in Lancaster. It is raising the hackles of some if not all of the residents who are/will have to deal with the new neighbors and attendant water level issues, dust, bright lights on all night, and loss of the previous pastoral scenery some had once enjoyed and the reason they had moved to that location. Recently, Middlesex Township declined to approve location of a data center within their township. Bless them.

Good to see all the recent posts  here in B&T, as well as in other folders!  I think there is hope for this site to stay active, as long as we all make an effort to post as often as we can, and encourage all others to post, who are now just "onlookers".

MarsGal and Rick -  I enjoyed your messages this morning about the sirens and the boiler explosions!  During the War years of the 1940's, there were sirens on all Government buildings, and on stand alone posts around town.  This was in Southern CA, right near the coast, so we kids were aware that we were in a vulnerable spot.  My clearest memories of the sirens sounding off, was occasionally during the school day.  When that happened the entire classroom stood up, lined up and followed our teacher out of the building and to a far corner of the playground.  All other classrooms also heading for the far corners.  There we grouped and stood quietly, waiting for the "All Clear" siren.  Then we filed back to the classrooms, and resumed the school day!  We asked no questions, and got no explanations.

The boiler explosion I remember,   happened in San Jose, in 1963, in the basement of the J.C. Penney department store in the downtown area, and also included the Thrifty Drug store.  It happened in the middle of the day, when the  both stores were filled with shoppers and people eating at the lunch counter at Thrifty.  It was a horrific disaster, and is still talked about.  We  were  living about a mile away at the time, and heard and felt the blast..    I included a link to a story written by an official San Jose historian. https://californiapioneers.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/The-Blast-56.pdf

OLM -  Good to see your post . . . you sound better!  Probably because you will be returning to your farm in a few days,  for the remainder of the cold weather. Not a moment  too soon  I would imagine.  I smiled when I read your comment:  "When hunting season comes everything else fades from his perception."  Yes, I remember it well.    Only in my case it was "Duck Season".  Starts here the first weekend in October, and lasts until the middle of January! 

Good morning everyone,
I have returned to the farm. I arrived yesterday evening and am currently in the RV, plugged into "shore power." So warm, and running the dehumidifier full time. My SIL, Justin, came up with Ron to help me finish loading yesterday. Justin drove me, and the dogs, back in the RV. We had a very nice visit. Ron buttoned up a few things and followed us back.

The last 2 weeks were damp and cold, with a lot of hard work getting prepared to move. I did leave a few things behind that wouldn't freeze, mildew or corrode, and I wouldn't need. I'd like to have left more, but with the woodstove not having been installed, it was too moist. I began transferring my stuff into the RV on Thursday and worked until I couldn't move every day. I was very glad to let Justin do the driving.

Kato, the Kraken, was so well behaved I have to mention it. Justin was a little apprehensive as Kato can be a handful. He's never seen anyone else but me drive. Ron and the grandkids are the only other people who've every been in the RV. I never know how he'll respond in a new situation. But he loves watching the scenery through the windshield, from his position tethered on the sofa. He was very well behaved.

 Yesterday morning the temp was 25°F. Today, at the farm its 36°F. 😍 My indoor humidity, even with everything being damp, was 76% on rising (a difference of 10%) and is currently down to a blissful 58%!

I've had my coffee, leisurely, as opposed to trying to get it all in in the short runs on LP. And I was able to get up when I woke up, as opposed to having to wait until closer to daylight to conserve the generator runs. So that was lovely.

I have to say, the level of noise down here is always shocking. Sounds from the highways, roads and town, sirens (police cars), trains. It takes me awhile to transition.

Its going to take me awhile to recover from moving, before I can move back into the house. But, I'm warm, drying out and have good internet again.

Enjoyed your posts. I remember those drills, too. 🤔

Marilyne, Ron used to duck hunt, as well as geese, turkeys and upland birds. His hunting and fishing used to cover the entire year.  Now its deer, if he draws a tag, and elk. Have a lovely day.

 

Quote from: OnLonelyMountain on November 09, 2025, 08:55:29 AMI have to say, the level of noise down here is always shocking. Sounds from the highways, roads and town, sirens (police cars), trains. It takes me awhile to transition.

A reminder of yesteryear, --- My dad had a house across from a Railroad Freight Yard, and Train Main Line. When I got out of the Navy and was living there, we heard the daily making up of freight trains. Cars banging together as it was done. Then, at some point during the night, the main freight train would stop by and add the cars made up for long haul. The first few nights after I came home and slept there I woke in panic a couple of times, thinking there was something wrong on the ship. Within a few days I learned to just sleep through all the noise and banging. The trains going through became like comforting music.