May, 2016 ~ Spring Dinners We Sprung!!!

Barbara101 wrote:Hot dogs give me heartburn. The burps. Also burgers, but I still eat them.

Bugster2 wrote:You recipe keeps the treats nice and chewy. It is the only one I use now.

bethk wrote:Lore, it sounds like you're really getting to enjoy being involved with the new neighbors.  After living 'in the country' for 45+ years it's nice, here in The Villages, to have more of a sense of 'community'.  It's not for everyone, as Barb would agree, but Dane and I find it refreshing to have new friends, peers, really....all retired and in the same age bracket.  I don't miss being around noisy teenagers and crying babies at all.  Oh, we see people's grandchildren, but it's not as concentrated as it was living in our old community.  I can't remember the last time I heard a screaming child at the grocery store or got slammed into by a child running amuck in the grocery store with one of those damnable toy carts......don't miss that at all.  LOL

Bugster2 wrote:Tonight will be eggs benedict.
We have a couch in the den that is pushed up against a window seat. We have a cat tree that sits on the seat. I was on the couch watching TV and fell asleep. Katie's 10lb cat was in the top shelf of the tree, about 4 feet above the couch. She jumped straight down on my stomach using it as a springboard. OOF! That hurt!

Niagara Visitor wrote:

bethk wrote:Lore, it sounds like you're really getting to enjoy being involved with the new neighbors.  After living 'in the country' for 45+ years it's nice, here in The Villages, to have more of a sense of 'community'.  It's not for everyone, as Barb would agree, but Dane and I find it refreshing to have new friends, peers, really....all retired and in the same age bracket.  I don't miss being around noisy teenagers and crying babies at all.  Oh, we see people's grandchildren, but it's not as concentrated as it was living in our old community.  I can't remember the last time I heard a screaming child at the grocery store or got slammed into by a child running amuck in the grocery store with one of those damnable toy carts......don't miss that at all.  LOL

"What a great party!  The food is amazing! This is our first time coming to a condo event, we had no idea how much fun it would be! How have you managed to do all this?  When are we having the next barbecue?"  Those are some of the comments of people.  We ended up with 85 people, the weather was perfect............. However, there always seems to be one killjoy....... Some lady, who has a reputation as a complainer, complained that we didn't have lettuce for the burgers, and she didn't see that "we" should pay for this, it should be paid for by the condo board.  Everyone else was amazed at the amount of food, and we feel that we broke even, and that's all we hoped for.  

We learned a few things, there were lots of volunteers once we gave everyone in the building a list of what we needed help in.  

Good learning experience, and really a very nice way to spend a couple of hours with our neighbours.  I am exhausted. Yes, I'll be happy to do it again.  Someone suggested next week, but not for me that quickly! 

Niagara Visitor wrote:I have lived in this condo now for almost 2 years.  I have no paper plates nor plastic cutlery or glasses.  I used paper plates very rarely on the farm.  Hate to eat off them, hate the waste of energy of producing them etc. etc.  But then I am in Canada, and we, I guess, are really picky about that.

Niagara Visitor wrote:Guess I need to apologize here.  I never had house cats.  They were barn cats, who only had food there, supplemented by the mice, chipmunks, grasshoppers they caught.  I would be washing dishes in the house also.

Uncle Jimmy wrote:We had brand new Sham Wow ( those orange cloths that were advertised on TV that absorbed water like a sponge). Well.....I took one, and placed it in a sheet pan, then only one layer of paper towels on top. I fried 4 big eggplants, all sliced that were breaded, and let them drain on the sham Wow pad. That pad sucked up oil like a sponge. When done, I soaked the pad in hot water and dish soap, then rinsed it, and threw it in the clothes washer machine to clean it. Perfect!!

Bethk wrote:The weather was beautiful. We had rain for part of one day only. The only thing I didn't enjoy was that it was 'No-See-Em' bug season and my feet and legs got bitten every evening we sat on the balcony in the evening. I'm still itching like crazy! But it was a wonderful time with Lyn & Bill. The guys went golfing three days and Lyn and I had our fill of shopping......She found a little 'sandal factory' where they make sandals on the island (downtown by Mallory Square) and I bought 3 pairs of really cute sandals for $15/pair.....what a deal! (look up kinosandals.com ~ I think that's the name)

Norm wrote:After it stopped raining, I grilled outside and did steak and corn. Inside I made a salad, cooked some mushrooms and baked a potato. The potato isn't on the table yet.

Lore wrote:Gotta admit, it is really encouraging to see such interest in this. Last night I had a phone call from the daughter of one of our more senior residents who normally does not come to other functions, because in her words "she doesn't do things like that any more." The daughter bought 3 tickets because mom wants to come. I guess most older people who have downsized really miss the outdoor BBQ events.
Wish me luck.

Niagara Visitor wrote:Thanks!  Yes, time to relax.  We had 20 lbs. of potato salad which I had figured out would serve 75 people.  That was because one med. potato weighed about 6 oz.  One of the ladies thought it wasn't enough, so we bought another tub of 5 lbs.  That one was never opened.  Live and learn.  As for what seems to have been the single detractor if I would have heard the comment, I would have asked her who paid for her breakfast yesterday?  If only one person had something negative to say, then Halleluja!

Setup and cleanup went amazingly well. There was help from quite a few of the younger residents here, and that is encouraging to me.  I am the youngest member of the social committee, and I know that the older members have shouldered much more of the physical "stuff" that needs to be done when there is an event.  Well, I am not afraid or too shy to ask for participation.  I printed up and posted a TO Do list on the bulletin board in the building, and quite a few rose to the occasion.  Good for us.  There are quite a few people here using walkers, so we "Young ones" LOL have to do stuff while we can, right?