Sunday now...

I made fudge yesterday, but it did not get hard.  The recipe on the marshmellow creame jar said heat it to 324 degreed F.  My candy thermometer said heat it to 240 degrees.  I heated to 260 degrees.  That was not hot enough, apparently. 

The recipe said it boil it for 4 minutes or until it got to 324 degrees. I boiled it for over seven minutes but it did not get hot enough.

This means I will have to make it again, this time to get the temperature to 324 degrees. 

Today I will go to the Shaw breakfast.

I am reading The House of Silk, but rather slowly.  I have to read Mircro by the late Michael Crichton.

I ordered a 1962 Missal for the Catholic Mass, for the old Latin Mass.  I got it from eBay.  It will be fun taking to Mass next Sunday.  With Prime membership it comes in two days.  So next Tuesday I get it.

I ordered two conserative Catholic books for my Dad for his birthday. He turns 90 on Tuesday.  That is what he gets from me for Christmas, his birthday and Father's Day.

Next week we go back on Daylight time. 

In China, as big as the United States, there is by one time zone for the entire country.  Kunming is the middle of the country.  In the winter there, it got dark by 4:00 pm every day.

The picture here is from the lake in Kunming.  People live on these boats.  I do believe they make their living from the lake. 

Not much else happening today. I went to Mass last night,. 

Steven

Fudge today, not yesterday...

This lake is very big, but I showed you back waters of this lake in Kunming China.

This guy is poling along his boat.  Again, I think he has been fishing, but I was told there one cannot fish in this lake.

Saturday today.  Santiam Marketplace is taking place at the local middle school. I may not go there as it just vendors there. 

Tomorrow is the Shaw Breakfast.  I will probably go this breakfast to get some great sausage gravy and biscuits.  It is one of the best breakfasts around, but just before I left for China two friends invited me to taste their sausage gravy and biscuits.  Hers was much better than the Shaw breakfast. 

I have a big file of recipes I collected over the years.  I may punch 3 holes in each page and put them in a notebook. 

I was so busy yesterday I could not find the time to make my fudge. So this morning I did make it.  How long does it take to set up?  After two hours in my room it was still quite soft.  I moved to the kitchen table to cool down there.

I saw a dog walker across the river here yesterday. She was walking three  young Irish Setter dogs.  I should have stopped her to ask her where the dogs are near here. I may go across the river again later today to see if I can find her.

I am listening to Sonic Tap on TV on a station that plays The 60's Revolution  Great songs from my time a long time ago.

Great to have access to this blog, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube again. All were blocked by the Chinese firewall there. 

Many of the songs I hear on this TV station I already have on my Real Player. 

I made three CDs in China with songs for students there.  I wanted each of them to hear the imaginary of the songs. 

I found the Richard Harris version of MacArthur Park on YouTube.  It is one of my favorite songs.  Jimmy Webb wrote it, and it about a romance breakup with his girlfriend.  "They left the cake out in the rain..." is about him going quietly to her wedding and seeing the reception rained on half way through.

Sure fun to write again after being gone for over six months.

Steven

Fudge today...

Good morning:

This picture is from Black Dragon park, in Kunming China.  I went there about a month before I left China.  It is a gorgeous park, with many blooming flowers and trees even in late January.

Today I am making fudge.  I had most of the stuff with me in China but I could not get evaporated milk in China. So today I make a Christmas treat for me.

Yet another bifurcated night.  Ever since returning I get up between 2:30 and 3:00 am every night. I am wide awake at that time. I go back to bed after about 2 hours and sleep again.  I refuse to take a nap during the day as that will only affect it more.

Every time I turn the wireless on my Kindle it downloads books from my archives that I don't want on my Kindle. It happened again today. 

I get a free ebook every month on my Kindle Fire. So I got the first book of The Hunger Games.  I think I am entitled to another free ebook on my Fire so I will get the second book in the series.

It is great to watch TV again. I did not watch much TV in China.  I did watch the first season of Nikita and The King's Speech on DVD in China.  I brought back with me over 50 DVDs from China.  But I have not watched any of those yet. 

It is also great to hear English spoken again.  If I were a believer in the power of Her, I would say the foreign languages are what we get from the Tower of Babel.  But since I don't believe that or much else, I don't subscribe to that line of thought. 

The battery in my watch died during the night.  I will have to replace it today, very soon. 

Leave a note here if you agree or disagree with me.

Steven 

Winter wonderland outside now...

Hello again:

I got up at 3:00 am this morning. 

We have about an inch of snow outside now. I will take my camera outside later this morning to take some pictures of the snow here.

This picture is from the lake. Apparently people live in boats there.  I think they fish the lake, although I don't believe one cannot fish in that lake.

I am now reading a new Sherlock Holmes novel, called The House of Silk.  I have Micro here to read later. It is the last book by Michael Crichton.

I can watch movies and older TV shows on my Kindle Fire.  I have not watched any yet.  My Fire comes with one month free of Amazon Prime.  I am signing up for Prime once the month ends.

I do not know why I still get up so early in the morning.  I guess I am still on China time, so it better end pretty soon. 

Steven

Tuesday today

Hi again:

This picture is from a lake west of Kunming China.  This shows the back water of the lake. I will add more pictures in future posts of this lake.

I am working on my Kindle Fire, which I got a few days ago.  Strange to see color on a Kindle.  It is not an e-ink screen so I don't know if I will be reading any books on it, a totally back-lit screen.

I am not sleeping through the night here. I get up in the middle of the night still, around 3:00 am.  I watch some TV programs I recorded then I go back to bed for a few hours.  I guess I am not over my jet lag yet.

Tomorrow is Leap Day. A late uncle of mine has his birthday on Feb 29.  Stayton Ace is having a sale tomorrow with anything less than $30.00 is 29% off.  We need some lights here so I will go there tomorrow to get them.

I am finishing Rin Tin Tin, a book on the dogs that appeared in silent movies, in talking movies and finally on TV. I watched the TV show as youngster so this is an interesting book.  When the first Rin Tin Tin died it made national news and was quite the thing.  By the time the TV show we are on Rin Tin Tin IV.  It was the most popular TV show on TV in the late 1950's. 

The book's author is Susan Orlean, the writer of the Orchid Thief earlier.  I like the way she writes so I read every book and magazine articles she writes.

I am getting physical books from my local library again.  Waiting for me there are two more books, The House of Silk and Micro. 

I made lists at the Stayton library while I was in China. Because it is a regional library I cannot request all of my books at once, for they come in too fast. 

I am not getting used the cold weather here yet.  It was warm during the winter in Kunming.  It is called the City of Eternal Spring.  It does get a little humid in the summer but not like Beijing or Shanghai. 

I lost over 35 pounds in China. Now we shall see if I can keep the weight off during my long stay here.

Still looking for an Irish Setter dog. 

Steven