The Thanks That Keeps On Giving.

Source

We had a tragedy in this household on Thanksgiving. Probably one of the worst things that could happen to a couple that had just served Thanksgiving dinner for a large family.  But before I share exactly what happened, you need some of the backstory on how we got to that point. 

Back in the late '50s my grandfather, shown above, was stationed here in San Diego for his last tour of duty.  He moved here from Cherry Point with his wife and four of his seven kids, one of them being my mother.  My mom's oldest sister (a half sister and half brother were grown and married) had married a Marine there and also wound up being stationed here in the late 60s for his last tour of duty. Three of the four sisters had all had sizeable families, so I grew up around a lot of cousins, and we are a close-knit family.  The eldest sister started a tradition of hosting Thanksgiving, and I remember more Thanksgivings at her house than I do in Oregon where we moved after my own father retired from the Navy.  It was such a tradition that we would pack up our family of six and drive the length of California just to see the family and enjoy that Thanksgiving dinner. Those memories are very fond ones and that tradition is something we all cherish, so much so that we continue to have the family get together.  My aunt passed away last year, but we had long ago started moving that dinner around to various other family members.  Her eldest daughter hosted for several years, then our oldest cousin from my mom's half brother (14 years her senior), and so on. For at least 10 years it was one of the oldest cousins from each family that picked up the mantle.  My older sister lives here too, but she's somewhat of a hermit and her townhome is far too small for the family, so me and my wife started hosting.  Our home is not very large, but we have a sunroom that serves us well, fitting our expandable table to 14 seats, and a folding table or two fits the rest of us. It's a potluck affair, with a what to bring list sent out.  

The list is quickly filled with takers for soda, ice, pie, rolls, since they don't want to cook anything. A few do step up either because they like to cook, or a sense of duty and responsibility to the rest of the family, seeing how several people sign up for just a single item, leaving the actual food to others. My elderly Aunts, the ones on either side of my mother in the birth order, shouldn't have to do anything, but they want to.  I had to help one of them put their mashed potatoes in the over the range microwave to reheat them.  She's lost some height in her advanced age, and she was struggling lifting the big container.  I realized that I need to publicly give them a pass next year, and attempt to lay some guilt on the younger people in the family.  We have too many grown children and grandchildren who need to step up and stop expecting their parents to do it all.  

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My Aunt was not only struggling, but I could see she was in some pain trying to lift the large container above her shoulders, so I'm glad I was there to take over for her.  I made a mental note to have a talk with her and let her know it's perfectly fine to let the younger generation step up.  She lives with my other Aunt who has dementia, and has become her caretaker.  Before dinner she asked if my mother was coming.  She had forgotten that my mom has been gone for over 20 years.  So it's a sad situation.  They seemed to have a good time nevertheless, and enjoyed seeing all of the family members, but one of them closed her eyes after dinner while sitting on the couch, clearly tired out after the festivities.

The dinner went fine and while I was worried that two turkeys might not be enough for the 20 people expected, there were plenty of leftovers. I brought out the clamshell to-go containers and it seemed to be one of those loaves and fishes things, as there were still plenty of leftovers even after their containers were full.  I really enjoy leftovers, and am happy bringing turkey and fixings to work for lunch on Monday*, which is at least a day or two past when my wife has grown sick of them.  That's okay, more for me! 

It was during dessert though that tragedy struck. We had several pies, Pumpkin, Apple, Apple Crumb, and even a Lemon Meringue.  While one of my Aunts got up to get some pumpkin pie the other one did not.  I wanted Apple, and I knew my other aunt liked it too so I thought I would surprise her with a heated slice with a scoop of ice cream.  Unfortunately, and you may have guessed what the tragedy was, I discovered that my aunt would no longer be having warm apple pie on Thanksgiving.  Yes, tragically there was a death.  

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No, not my Aunt, my microwave had died!  No heating up of pie! No warming my coffee in the morning! No reheating leftovers in the tried and true tradition that is my post Thanksgiving weekend. 

It was the second loss we've had in a week.  After a power-outage a week or so ago, our stand-up freezer in our garage wasn't as cold as it should be and only parts of the freezer were keeping things frozen.  Our turkey was in there and had started to thaw.  I quickly ordered another and had it delivered two days later.  The turkey was moved into the fridge, but unfortunately much of the rest out there had to be tossed.  While the new freezer was here in two days, the new microwave won't be here until Dec 2nd, probably due to the Black Friday sales.  I could pick it up, but installing it over our range is a little beyond my home-repair comfort level.  

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Fortunately, all is not lost.  There's always the muffin-tin creation above, probably turkey pot pie for dinner Friday night, and I'll go with a cold sandwich in a pinch.  

But despite some lazy cousins, who I love most of the time, the failing appliances, and the idea (shudder) of some cold leftovers, it was a great holiday.  Thanksgiving is my favorite one of all, for all the things I've described above- the food, the family, and the leftovers.  Oh, that's also food.  Did I mention the leftovers?  I also like the finality of it- one day and it's over.   So now it's time to shift to Christmas.  I've already put up the lights so I'm actually ahead of the game.  

Anyway, time to go see what's in the fridge.

*Four days is my limit for refrigerated remains, unless they're frozen.

In the Enemy Trenches

Tranchée allemande de première ligne
François Flameng
Source

Louis awakened to a hand gripping his shoulder and shaking him.

"Stay awake, lad. Far too easy to slip off and die in this cold."

The Baron's teeth were chattering, he too was as cold as he'd ever been. Louis had a thought, "Why not just slip away? Can death be any worse than this, freezing in the mud of no-man's-land?"

"Something is going on, lad. Can you hear it?"

"I can't hear anything." Louis moaned as he rolled onto his belly.

"That's just it, no machine gun fire, no artillery firing, it's almost as if the war is over. Maybe we're dead and we just don't know it." The Baron's face was turned to the German lines, he was fully alert now.

"If we're dead than we must surely be in Hell." Louis moaned.

The major turned to his men, "Come on boys, keep moving. The first wave has seized a section of Boche trench and we need to reinforce them before the Germans counterattack. Move carefully but quickly!"

The infantrymen carefully picked their way through the debris and detritus of no-man's-land. One of them, a senior corporal, spotted something in a nearby shell hole, "Sir! Two of our boys over here, I think they're alive."

The man nearly jumped out of his skin when one of the bodies he'd spotted rolled towards him and said, "Of course we're still alive, is the war over?"

"Can you still fight?" The major asked the Baron, who was covered in mud and was shaking with the cold.

"Just give us a minute to stretch, we've been lying in the muck since this morning. We're stiff with cold."

The major nodded and shouted over to a sergeant, "Give these men some brandy, Sergeant Loiseul, then follow us forward as fast as you can."

"Yes Sir!"

The Baron and Louis climbed out of the shell hole and each took the proffered flask. The Baron took a long pull, wiped his mouth with the muddy sleeve of his greatcoat, then handed the flask to Louis. The younger man took a swig, then coughed.

"Damn, what is that?"

"Sorry it's not up to your standards, boy. But that's the best eau de vie we can produce with nothing but what we can find on the local farms. I think we made that with crab apples."

Louis coughed again as he returned the flask to its owner. He could already feel the warmth spreading through him. The taste was nasty, but it seemed to do the trick.

"You ready?" The Baron looked with concern at Louis.

"What are you, his mother?" Sergeant Loiseul growled.

"It's his first time, give him a break." The Baron snapped.

Loiseul shook his head, then snapped, "Follow me, or go home, I don't care."

Louis couldn't believe the number of dead leading to the German trenches. He didn't see anyone he recognized, most of the dead looked crumpled up and sad. Nothing like the paintings always showed. It was obvious that some of these men had died in agony. Others had died as they fell. Bundles of rags and torn flesh that used to be human.

When he climbed into the German trench it was worse. Now he was seeing the enemy for the first time. Though their uniforms were different, their look as they lay where they fell was no different than the dead Frenchmen he'd seen in no-man's-land.

The Baron called to him, "Help us knock down this parados, we also need to build up a firing step. Damn trench is facing the wrong way!"

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Louis had no idea what the Baron was talking about, but it seemed to involve knocking down the back lip of the trench and shifting what they could to the side that faced their old lines. Later he learned that the "parados" was there so that when they were on the firing step, their heads weren't silhouetted by the sky behind them, only more dirt and sandbags.

He jumped in to help with a will, many of the sergeants were nervous about the Boche coming back. He asked the Baron about that.

"The Germans always counterattack as fast as they can. They know it will take time to consolidate our gains, so they want to hit us before we can do that. It's one of the things that make those bastards so dangerous."

Louis went back to work, he noticed that most of the mud which had clung to him was now dry and falling away as he wielded a shovel. He also noticed that the rain had stopped, apparently it had stopped some time ago, he just hadn't noticed.

Then he heard a shout from down the line, "Here they come!"

He grabbed his rifle, mimicking the actions of the more experienced soldiers around him. Oddly enough he wasn't scared, he was irked that the Boche were interrupting his work on the trench.

Odd that.

A Long Day in No-Man's-Land

First World War: Scene of the Battle of La Craonne on 5/04/1917
Francois Flameng
Source

Louis started to lift his head then thought better of it, the air was alive with bits of metal seeking human flesh. There was a shell hole nearby and he wondered if he could make it there without being hit. He rolled in the mud, it was thick, almost a solid and it slowed his progress. As he got close, two hands reached out and pulled him in.

"Not safe out there, lad." It was the Baron who'd pulled him in.

Louis looked around, the shell hole was deep, filled with water to just below his feet. There were "things" in the water, things he didn't want to know. Things he knew had once been human, as alive as he still was. He wondered how long that state would last.

"Where is everybody?" Louis couldn't see any other men from his unit, were he and his sergeant the last ones left?

"Oh, they're around, somewhere. Whether they're still alive is another question. I saw the Lieutenant dive to the ground when the machine guns started, don't know if he was hit or not. I know at least two of our guys were killed outright. This attack was a stupid idea."

"How do you know they were killed?"

"Shot in the head, kills you every time, lad."

Louis shook his head, then curled into a ball and started to cry.

The Baron, whose real name was Henri de Neuville, looked at the young man with sympathy. There was nothing which could prepare a man for this sort of combat. Spending long hours huddled in a muddy trench, wondering when the artillery would come. Then periodically rushing forward into the chattering machine guns across the way when the high command decided that an attack was necessary.

The Baron's family had been serving France for a long time. His great-grandfather had marched with Napoléon into Russia, he had not marched out. His grandfather had fought against the Prussians in 1870. His father, serving as a magistrate, had not been required to wear the uniform of France.

The family was not of the nobility, minor or otherwise, so his nickname was ironic. His mother, still a staunch republican, would spit fury had she heard him referred to as "the Baron." She blamed Bonaparte for all of France's problems, though the man had been dead for many years.

A scream brought him out of his revery.

"I think it's the Lieutenant." Louis said, pointing towards the enemy lines, trying to wipe the tears from his face.

The Baron nodded, then called out, "Lieutenant! Are you hit?"

The voice answered, "No, but I'm with Pierre and Marcel, they are both wounded and we're pinned down. If we move the damned Boche start shooting."

"Sit tight, Sir, we'll have to wait for nightfall."

"If we do that," the man yelled back, "Pierre might not make it, he's badly wounded."

The Baron shook his head, "If we try and move, none of us will make it. Sit tight, Lieutenant, it's all we can do."

"How long until nightfall, Sergeant?"

The Baron looked at Louis, "A long time, lad. But there's nothing for it, if we leave this hole, the Boche will shoot at us, if the Lieutenant and those boys leave their hole, well, they'll be shot at. Best we can hope for is a follow up attack by our lads or night."

"Do you think our guys will attack again?"

"It's possible, depends on why we attacked."

"Don't we attack to try and punch through their line?"

"Not necessarily, sometimes we attack here to get their attention while the main attack goes in somewhere else. Sometimes we attack because the politicians back in Paris clamor for 'something to be done' and the generals attack to make the politicians happy. It's a vicious cycle lad, and we're caught up in the middle of it."

Louis nodded, he was starting to feel the cold. His greatcoat was coated with mud, as were his trousers, his boots looked as if they were made of mud. He felt cold to the bone.

"Are we going to die here, Sergeant?"

"Not if I can help it lad, not if I can help it."

Happy Thanksgiving!

Freedom From Want
Norman Rockwell
Source

I have liked this painting for a very long time. The lady putting the turkey on the table reminds me of my paternal grandmother, she dressed very much like this. My grandfather often wore a suit but I don't remember him wearing one for Thanksgiving. He might have though.

No matter where you are this day, I hope you can spend it with people you love. Whether friends or family, those we love make these holidays precious.

Though I can't be with all the people I love this day (that would require a rather large venue), rest assured, I'll be thinking of you today. You know who you are.

Peace and blessings this day.

Love you all.

Long Day in the Saddle

OAFS Photo

The holiday season is upon us and it's off to Maryland to spend time with family. As you can see in the opening photo, fall is well into "almost winter" and the number of leaves in this neighborhood is impressive. Especially when you consider that when I was here four weeks ago, there were almost that many leaves on the ground which the yard crew cleaned up and hauled away.

A lot of trees here, which is one of the reasons I love it, I'm a forest kind of guy. Grew up playing in the woods and have always had a need to have trees nearby.

The drive down on Monday was semi-uneventful. No crazy people exhibiting minimal driving skills close aboard, they stayed a reasonable distance from my vehicle and glad I was of it.

Traffic wasn't bad until we hit Baltimore, twenty minute delay by the harbor tunnel but, oh well, I opted to go that way rather than down the Delmarva Peninsula of Maryland. (Think that part of Maryland east of the Chesapeake.) It's a pleasant drive but as night approached I had no real desire to challenge a deer to space on the road. Been there, done that, wasn't pretty.

Anyhoo ...

Google Maps knows two or three ways to get there from the Delaware side of the Delaware Memorial Bridge, one of which sucks really bad, one of which is simply a pain in the butt, the third, my preferred, was not among the options offered when we hit Delaware.

I don't like exploring when the mission is to go from Point A to Point B and I couldn't remember which exit led to my preferred route, the one offered elicited a "Ah, Hell No!" from me when it came up on the screen. So I stuck to I-95 down to I-895, I'm familiar with that area.

Well, bad choice as traffic was horrendous due to the inability of people to understand two simple words: "yield" and "merge." To many Americans "lane closed ahead" means stay in that lane until the last minute then cut in. Saw a lot of that on the multiple on ramps leading to the harbor tunnel.

Oh well ...

While sitting in traffic The Missus Herself pointed out a deer grazing perhaps 10 yards from the highway. The deer was watching the traffic with a look on her face that seemed to say, "what a bunch of idiots." Which wasn't far from the truth.

So we're here at our home away from home for a bit, don't expect much fiction while we're here. If it happens, it happens. Otherwise ...

Y'all get what you pay for.

Heh.

"What Happens in Vegas" makes it to the Chant!

Well, Juvat is making me feel a little guilty.  He's posting so much when has a perfect excuse to sit back and recover from his Class-A Mishap.  I had 40-something days of furlough and might have only put out a single post if I even did that.  I just didn't seem to have the creative writing capability at the time, nor did anything political raise my ire.   I sometimes think I can't compete here at the Chant with either Sarge or Juvat and their creativity.  I didn't have as many flight hours or exciting stories, nor the ability to create historical fiction at the drop of a hat like Sarge seems to have.  I know it's not a competition though, and Sarge lets me post whenever I am able, and with whatever I'm going through.  I'm not lamenting my lack of posts, as I do tend to stay busy with all sorts of KofC stuff and other trials and tribulations that life throws at us.  So finding time to put my thoughts on paper can be difficult.*

I write this as I am sitting in my timeshare over the F1 track in Las Vegas. Second year in a row for me, and the second year in a row that my friend had something come up and he couldn't join. This would be one of those perfect guy trips, go to Vegas, watch the race, drink a little, etc. but others in my small circle of friends are uninterested or couldn't break away.  My wife has no interest either, so I'm a little bored, if not maybe a tiny bit lonely.  I found some exhibits to keep me busy though.

However, I'm perfectly fine just hanging out by myself, and have some experience.  When my mother-in-law fell and my wife had to fly up to Oregon to help her, she was gone for almost a month.  You might remember I joined her for a bit of that, but outside of it I kept myself busy with my collateral duty as the Director for Membership for the KofC here in California. It's a year-long position and there's always something to be done for it, either welcoming new members, giving guidance to councils on how to recruit, helping start new ones, reactivate old ones, etc.  Fortunately I'm at a lull right now before Thanksgiving so it's a good time for the race.  

Speaking of my mother-in-law, while we put her into assisted living back in September, we were unable to follow that up with, nor did we think we would need guardianship or conservatorship over her, which was a mistake.  Getting an appointment to see a lawyer up there was easy, but the appointment isn't until next month.  And in that time, my MIL checked herself out and moved back into her house.  She called a cab and just left.  She has dementia, but it isn't all consuming, and she can function somewhat.  However, she also has physical concerns which is why she fell and why we placed her there.  At the time she was accepting of it, and even admitted she can't drive anymore, and gave her car away to a niece.  However, the other day we got a call from a car dealership (they know the family) as she was in their lobby trying to buy another car.  They couldn't legally stop her from buying, but since she no longer had a license (it had an expired last April) they wouldn't let her take possession.  We're not sure if she actually made the purchase.  There's no change in her bank account so probably not.  My wife's sister and cousin have set her up with home health, and a maid, and I still have some VA paperwork I need to get submitted to help cover some costs. Her leaving might have been a blessing as the cost of that facility was pretty high, and we found out that her mom had spent every cent of what my father-in-law had left her.  While the house and car were purchased with cash, the rest of the fortune, 40 years of Dad owning & working for the family garbage company, had been spent frivolously, or given away through misplaced generosity.   There were also some scam-ish behavior by some folks, taking advantage of her.  Going through paperwork we found payments for various things around the house and the old ranch that were astronomic, people gave estimates that were sky high, and she just accepted it.  And thus, we wouldn't be able to afford that assisted living facility without putting her house on the market or up for rent.  To make matters worse, the rents up there would have to be combined with every cent she brought in monthly from social security and Dad's disability payment.  If the dementia gets worse, we will have to rethink memory care, but we will see how the appointment goes with the attorney and efforts to seek guardianship. 

Until then she has home health coming several days a week, the niece who was given the car is checking in regularly, and another cousin has been hired to keep the house clean as another check-up on her.  She really needs 24/7 care but we can't afford that right now. We did purchase a life alert system for her home as well.  We have mixed emotions about this, trying to do what is right for her, but she isn't happy with us taking over her finances, telling the dealership to tell her no, and other acts that she sees as controlling. 

I will reiterate what I stated in my previous post about this issue:  Have those conversations with your children now.  Children, ask your parents what they want when it gets to this point. 

I will touch a bit about politics, but not really a rant.  I am back at work which is nice, and it only took two days to clear out my inbox.  I may regret my fast-paced purge, deleting things that might be important, but I can blame Congress.  Will there be another furlough on January 30th?  I can definitely see it happening.  One of the agreements for the Dems voting to reopen the government was that Obamacare subsidies would be discussed.  However, we all now see that that is just a pass-through from the federal government, by way of more and more debt, just printing money, right into the coffers of the insurance companies.  It does nothing about why Obamacare is so GD expensive.  I don't think this issue will be solved by January 30th if that is the Dems litmus test for further funding.  Can they develop an actual budget with something that needs to be completely reformed?  I don't think so, but over the years I've become a political cynic.  Could Trump the dealmaker figure something out to help?  That wouldn't surprise me.  However, the list of donations by big pharma and big insurance to politicians on both sides of the aisle is long. 

Anyhoo, I'll be back to work on Tuesday (probably when you're reading this), and have the long turkey-coma weekend after that.  We're hosting the family again which has unfortunately gotten smaller.  The short lives my family seems to live is another reason why I relish these vacations.  You never know how long you have, so celebrate when you can, even if you're by yourself.  Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, and keep the prayers going for Juvat's recovery.

*Paper?  That's becoming a dated reference.

The Good, Bad and Ugly (no, not you Beans)

 Sorry, hit the wrong button and deleted my post. Yes, late in the evening.

Mea culpa, Mea culpa, Mea maxima culpa!

Next Monday

juvat

 

 

 

 

And So It Begins ...

Five O'Clock in the Morning 31.7.1917
Francois Flameng
Source

Louis woke up, shivering, his mouth dry, his body drenched in sweat. His first thought was fever, so he put the back of his hand to his forehead, it felt normal. He sat up and looked around the dugout.

"Louis, go back to sleep, we don't have to get up for another two hours," one of his squad mates said, sitting at the small table in the corner.

Louis looked at the man for a moment, then realized he wasn't shivering any more, but he had a vague feeling of unease. "I think I'm done sleeping for the night, is there any coffee left?"

The man at the table shook his head, "We drank the last of it last night, there'll be no more until we get resupplied. No one is going back to the depot today, we'll be too busy."

Louis nodded, then he realized that he'd been dreaming and had completely forgotten that they would be advancing today. Just before sunrise, he and thousands of other men would be climbing out of their trenches and advancing across no-man's-land. The generals wanted to try one more push before the snows came.

It had begun the day before, when the lieutenant had gathered his platoon to tell them of the offensive.

"Alright lads, nothing to it really. First thing the artillery will commence shooting, what they call a 'walking barrage,' each salvo moves forward at a walking pace with us behind. The idea is to keep the enemy's heads down so they won't be shooting at us. By the time the barrage passes into the rear areas, we're on top of them. It'll be like shooting fish in a barrel," the Lieutenant finished his little speech and noticed that the Sergeant had rolled his eyes at that last remark.

"You have something to add, Sergeant?" he asked, annoyed.

"No Sir, it's just that it's never that simple. In theory, yes, the enemy should be too stunned to be ready for us when we hit their trench line, in practice, the fish in that barrel will be shooting back," the Baron was angry, the officers always believed what the higher ups fed them.

"Well, Sergeant, you have your opinion ..."

"It's not 'an opinion,' Sir. I've been out there multiple times, every single time we cross no-man's-land, having been told that 'this time it will work,' and it never does. This is your first attack, Lieutenant, you must be a realist and not give the men false hope."

The men of the platoon stirred at that, the old hands simply nodded, the new men, like Louis, looked nervously at their mates, unsure of what, or who, to believe.

The Lieutenant looked daggers at the Sergeant, "Very well, Baron, no matter what, have your men ready to advance at eight o'clock, sharp. The sun will be starting up and the artillery will be putting down smoke in ..."

"Smoke, Sir?"

"Yes, smoke. Before the barrage, the guns will lay down smoke in no-man's land to shield the advance from enemy eyes. Mind your pace or you'll be too close to the barrage."

"Uh, Sir, you'll be there, yes?"

"Of course, Sergeant. But if something happens to me, you must lead them in."

"Understood. Sir."

Louis remembered all of that briefing, nearly word for word. The tension between the Lieutenant and the Sergeant had been palpable. The Lieutenant was indeed new to the front, he'd taken command of the platoon a scant three days before Louis' own arrival at the unit. The Baron? He'd been around since day one. He tended to believe the Baron more than anyone else.

Now here it was, some time not long after midnight, not able to sleep and an attack in the morning. Would he even be alive after tomorrow? It wasn't something he could do anything about, except perhaps desert, but he knew that he'd have nowhere to run. Just after training he and his fellow trainees had been mustered to witness an execution.

The man had left his post and been caught way behind the lines trying to get back to his home. The trial had been quick and short, he had been sentenced to be shot at sunrise. Louis and his comrades had seen that, it had made him physically ill to see a man tied to a post and then shot by his fellow soldiers.

So desertion wasn't really an option, if he ran, the army would kill him for sure, if he stayed and fought, the enemy might kill him. The latter seemed the better option, though neither option gave him any consolation.

Just pray and hope for the best, Louis realized. Pray and hope.

The Baron came into the dugout, "All right lads, up and at 'em, it's time."

Louis wondered where the Lieutenant was when he left the dugout and stepped into the drizzle of a cold November morning. The sun wasn't up yet, though it would be hard to tell with the fog and the drizzle. Louis shivered again as he adjusted his equipment for what must have been the hundredth time since getting out of his bunk.

"Louis," the Baron was close by his shoulder, "stay near me and keep your eyes open. Watch and learn, okay?"

"Sure, Sergeant, as best as I can." Louis answered, though he was so terrified he doubted he'd be able to function at all once they left the relative safety of the trench.

After that the Baron had the squad get together and reminded them to keep their intervals, "One man might not make a good use of ammunition to kill him, two or more, clumped together? That's a machine gunner's dream, stay apart, keep your eyes open. Louis, I will use you as a runner should the need arise, so stay near, but not too near, eh?"

Louis nodded, then realized in the early morning dark he might not be seen, so he answered aloud, his voice a croak, "Got it, Sergeant."

At that point the Lieutenant came down the line, "Alright men, up on the firing step - on my whistle, we advance."

The fog was thick, Louis couldn't see past the first tangle of wire near the parapet. He jumped when he heard the shriek of the outgoing artillery rounds overhead. He was glad that he was wearing gloves as his palms were so sweaty he probably would have dropped his rifle had he not been.

"Deep breaths, boy, take deep breaths."

The Baron, standing next to him, seemed unnaturally calm, the other new men, like Louis, looked nervously out into the fog and smoke.

In the near distance they could hear the exploding artillery as it drenched the enemy trenches, Louis almost felt sorry for the enemy. Almost.

Then, Louis heard the Lieutenant's whistle.

Outside of the trench, the men advanced, slowly, at a walking pace. Louis gripped his rifle and stared straight ahead into the whiteness of the fog. The cold drizzle turned to rain, a hard rain. Water was dripping off the back of his helmet and down his greatcoat's collar.

He reached back and pulled his collar down so it wouldn't catch the rain dripping from his helmet. As he did so, he nearly dropped his rifle. Then he heard the Baron's voice ...

"It's alright lad, slow and steady. Seems that the enemy is still asleep. Or, if we're lucky, they're all dead or run off."

Louis was shivering again, the water had gotten into his tunic and soaked his undershirt. He was cold, he felt that he'd never been this cold before. Still, he walked forward, into the mist.

To his front there was a deep shell hole, filled with water, he hesitated at the lip, then followed the Baron as he skirted the hole.

"Never know how deep those things are ..." Louis heard the Baron mutter.

Louis was startled when he heard something zip by his left ear.

"Brace yourself boys!" the Baron called out, "Here it comes!"

It was only then that Louis heard the chatter of the enemy machine guns, then he knew what had gone past his ear.

The men quickened the pace, no one wanted to be out in the open under machine gun fire. A few men jumped into shell holes and cowered there, only to be chivvied out by their NCOs and officers.

A man grunted to his right, as he turned to look at what had happened, he heard multiple "zips" near his ears, both of them. He dove for the ground.

"Dear God, save me ..." Louis moaned into the thick mud.

I'm Hungry!

 Well, Folks, things are getting a bit busy over here in juvat land.  The house is sold, we close on the 18th of December.  We're leaving the Burg on the 18th also.  The movers are coming on the 15th.  The horses are leaving on the 13th, they'll be boarded in College Station until we get settled in the new home.  Nice place, plenty of grass, other horses around to associate with.  Should be ok.

We're still trying to figure out vehicle moving.  Since I am prohibited from driving, that complicates matters.  We have our one remaining vehicle as well as our son's Tahoe.  That exercise is further complicated by the moving of 3 dogs and a cat.  The cat is very vocal about moving, which should enhance the enjoyment of the trip.

Other than that, Mrs Lincoln, how's the play?

But! We are definitely looking forward to being close to our Daughter and Family.  We are looking forward to our new house being completed and getting settled in it.  

So. juvat, what have you got for us in this posting?

Well, Beans, I cooked a pretty darn good dinner a while ago,   Mrs J and I had leftovers last night, they were even better than the first round.   

The recipe follows, y'all should try it,  just a word of caution, adjust the amount of peppers to suit your taste.  I added extra!  Just sayin' I like it spicy! 

https://www.thelunacafe.com/world-famous-green-chile-mac-cheese/

1. 1. Coat an 8- to 10-cup capacity, ovenproof casserole with vegetable spray or a dab of butter; or coat six 1½-cup capacity stoneware ramekins or iron skillets. Reserve.
   2. To prepare the pasta, bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil, add 2 teaspoons of salt, return to a boil, and add the pasta. Cook until still VERY al dente. Do not cook until fully tender.
   3. Remove the pasta pot from the stove and carefully pour the water and pasta into a large colander to drain. Run cold water over the pasta to cool it to room temperature. Add pasta to a large mixing bowl.
   4. Toss the pasta in the bowl with all of the cheeses and reserve.
   5. To make the breadcrumb topping, in a small mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, bread crumbs, and garlic. Season to taste with sea salt. Reserve.
   6. To make the cream sauce, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter, add the onions, and slowly cook until onions are just beginning to soften.
   7. Add the peppers and corn, and stir to coat with butter.
   8. Stir in the flour and cook without browning for two minutes.
   9. Slowly pour in the Green Chile Crema and whisk constantly while bring the sauce to a simmer. Simmer, whisking continuously, for 2 minutes.
   10. Season to taste with sea salt.
   11. To finish the dish, pour the sauce over the pasta and cheeses in the bowl. With a large spatula, fold to combine.
   12. Spoon into the prepared casserole, mounding slightly at the center.
   13. Sprinkle on the breadcrumb topping.
   14. Bake at 350º for 30-40 minutes for the single casserole or 10-15 minutes for individual ramekins, until heated through and just bubbling. (High heat or excessively long cooking time may curdle the cheeses.)
   15. Broil for a minute or two to finish browning the top.

Serves 6-8.

Copyright 2009-2017 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.

 For the leftovers, I added about a cup of Chicken Broth to loosen things up.  Both the first round and the second were excellent.

Highly Recommended.

Y'all never thought Sarge's blog would become a source of gustation masterpieces didja?

Well...When you run out of material to post on, desperation takes over and there are a lot of good recipes out there. 

Peace out y'all! 

Updates on a Happier Scale

 Having trouble with my computer. It and the photo's I clipped from websites didn't seem to get along.  Finally got them tamed when I deleted the problematic page I was working on and started all over.  Just something to file away in my  limited brain in case it happens again.

So,  This is the 5th day in a row I've published a post.  I have no earthly idea how Sarge can publish 1 per day 313 days per year.  (He gets Monday's off.). Every day has challenged my post authoring skills to the max.  However, he deserves a break.  I just hope he comes back soon.  His fictional stories are much better than my pissing, moaning and complaining.

But, here we go!

As most of you regular readers are aware, Mrs J and I are about to move to College Station.  Our Daughter, her Husband and two children live there.  In addition, my Son, his bride and daughter will be retiring in a couple of years and have expressed an interest in settling in College Station also.  Since all 4 of that generation in my Family graduated from Texas A&M University, I guess that explains things.  

So, getting on in years, Mrs J and I thought it wise (OK, she thought it wise, I just said "Yes Dear!") to move there also.  But, there are some caveats.  We don't want to live in downtown College Station, or Bryan for that matter.  Just don't want the hustle and bustle.

So, we've decided on a piece of property about 15 miles south of town.  4.8 acres, so we can bring our horses with us.  They're good listeners when I'm frustrated, annoyed, or just in need of a quiet listener.  They're very good at that, and I don't want to give them up.  So...They're coming with us.

In any case, this is the property we're purchasing.

Yes, it's got a lot (OK an awful lot) of trees on it.  That will be one of the first projects we'll need done.  

If you look closely in the center of the Red Rectangle, you'll see the prior owner's house.  It was probably built in the early '60s.  It is NOT in good shape,   The owner and seller of the property  is a widow and is also the daughter of the original owner.  The house is a wreck,  According to our Real Estate Agent, the furniture such as it is, is still in it.  Such as it is, being defined as a hospital bed and a TV. The original owner lived in the house until she passed and was there a bit longer.  In adition to that, the house is now lived in by about 20 cats.  The good news is no mice are in it. Not much else in the good news pile.

So, that house is being razed.  A beginning part of thinning the forest will involve creating a clearing to build our house in.  That will call for a Well, Electricity and a septic tank as the first things that need to be put in.  Then barring any further excitement, actual construction might go forward.  However, our contractor said the project will take a minimum of 8 months and quite likely a year.

So, Mrs J and I have been packing things in two categories, things we need and things that we can wait for.  We've been ruthless in the latter category.  Why?

Well, this is the house we'll be renting.  Quite a bit smaller than our current house and so...Stuff has to go to storage.  The yard is fenced in, so the dogs will be able to go outside.  Don't know if there are additional dogs in the vicinity they can "talk" to. Should be interesting.  That move in, should be Mid December. We've got to be out of this house by the 15th of December.  

Times a-wasting!

‘

But, we've got something to look forward to!

 

Courtesy of Akashi Designs

 

The plans were from Akashi Designs, just in case anyone is interested.  Really a nice home.  Looking forward to that move. 

 

Peace out, y'all!