Crystal G

Each month I want to see how many $0 days I can get. All costs are rounded.

July 01: Bi-Monthly Bill Payment Day + $36 for Henna + $148 for a new distributor for dads truck and stamps
July 02: $0
July 03: $209 for groceries
July 04: $0
July 05: $16 for gas
July 06: $30 for gas
July 07: $33 to dad for gas and $240 to uncle for deck supplies
July 08: $26 on lunch with co-workers. I regret this one, but the food and company were good. I was actually quite inspired by the meal so I’m thinking it was meant to happen.
July 09: $220 for roof supplies on deck, last of deck expenses, woo
July 10: $0
July 11: $0
July 12: $30 to dad, $40 on pizza
July 13: $0
July 14: $26 to dad for gas, $13 for new cellphone battery, $40 out for MVA and icecream, $40 on dinner
July 15: Bi-monthly bill payment day
July 16: $32 on gas
July 17: $0
July 18: $0
July 19: $16 for breakfast with dad
July 20: $0
July 21: $0
July 22: $27 for gas
July 23: $0
July 24: $8 on icecream
July 25: $0
July 26: $0
July 27: $0
July 28: $32 on gas and $43 to dinner after funeral
July 29: $0
July 30: $0
July 31: $0

Days in July not spending money: 16.

Notes: Not my worst month, but certainly not my best. Especially considering the amount of money spent on food. Because of that, August will be another no eating out or ordering in month.

See also: June, May, April, March

Shown here

As mentioned on Twitter, yesterday when I took off for the funeral and to visit my grandfather, and then my cousin, sister, and I went by the old house to see what it looked like before they tear it down. Ironically enough (and not planned, mind you), it was the exact 1 year anniversary of when we left that place. July 28, 2008 is the day we packed up the rest of our belongings and drove off.

Dad has been back since, but I’d never been back until yesterday. There were a couple of times I wanted to, but could never muster up the gumption to actually go.

The yard was pretty desolate. Considering the amount of plants and flowers we had, the way it is now looks entirely foreign to me. There is insane overgrowth where there were once paths and cut grass that we’d sit out on. The back yard itself is just a mad jungle.

The front door was deadbolted, so we made our way to the back door and found our way inside. The smell of mold and……I don’t even know what else, was pretty overpowering. We all had to hold our noses as we walked through, using our other hand to try to navigate through the mass of spiderwebs. My cousin Steph let me take some pictures with her cellphone, because we were all just in shock at how bad things were. I cannot believe that just a year ago…my father and I were living in such horrible conditions, and for so long. I told Steph that this is what I imagine a house in a third world country to look like. I won’t even get into how the kitchen floor looked like it was starting to turn green with mold

Steph couldn’t believe how bad things actually were either, but I told her that when we were living here and had all of our belongings here, it looked much different. I guess the energy of the home would have been different too. We coped and patched things as best we could while we were there. Now that there is no one there to tend it, it just turned dark and gross.

The comparison from that house to the house we bought is unimaginable. I am actually grateful that I had the opportunity to go through something like that. To not only live in filthy conditions but to also move on to something normal, and be able to leave behind so much clutter and junk (and I don’t just mean physical stuff either).

The next two months of staying with family to recuperate are much of a blur. But I can’t forget the kindness my Aunt showed us while we stayed there, nor the good things I enjoyed about living there (the sunrises were AMAZING).

I’ll post pictures tomorrow (I left them at work). But even then they won’t be able to describe how things really looked.

Folks wanted to know what I did that won the Brownie contest at work, so here ya go. Fairly simple and straight-forward.

Cherry Brownies Recipe
I did not make the brownies by hand, I figure next time I probably will but this was quick and easy. I wanted to taste test ideas before I went out to get all the ingredients.

Any box brownie recipe will do, Ghiradelli makes a really good one with its own fudge topping if you don’t want to make ganache. But the ganache is excellent so..

- The only difference is that I replace any water with maraschino cherry juice instead, to give it that cherry flavor (idea thanks to Irene).
- Also embed several maraschino cherries in the batter itself about an inch apart. Will require the brownies to bake a little longer than recommended because of the excess cherry juice from the cherries.

Ganache Recipe
8 oz semisweet chocolate (I use dove’s milk chocolate)
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp of cherry juice from jarred maraschino cherries
2 tbsp cognac or brandy (optional, I haven’t used)

Heat cream, butter, and juice until boiling. Throw in chocolate and turn heat to low, stirring constantly until thoroughly mixed (I even used a mixer for this).

Pour ganache over the brownies while still warm, should make an even coating on its own, but don’t bother trying to cut until it’s sat a little while. It’s just a gooey mess if you do (I know!)

Now some say you should let the brownies cool before pouring the ganache over, but I didn’t and it made the brownies extremely moist. Depends on how moist you want the brownies, I reckon. Personally I loved how they turned out.

Serve warm with a side of vanilla icecream to cut the richness of the brownies. For the brownie contest I also garnished with a spring of two fresh cherries.

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• I’ve felt unmotivated to blog lately, but oddly enough have had a lot of different topics I’ve wanted to blog about.
• The doctors said Dad’s leg looks how they expected it to look, course I don’t know what that means, and since I don’t go with him to the doctors visits cause I work, I probably won’t find out. It’s a slow gradual process I guess.
• I’m glad I finally got my juicer replacement, as veggies are starting to come in full force. I don’t have as much of a variety of goods as I wanted, mainly due to not planting everything I wanted, and then not fertilizing the soil because we thought it would be rich fresh soil. Still, it’s a start Next year will be better.
• I have about $550 in side work waiting to come in, which will go towards the shoes I still haven’t gotten, and to give my uncle some money for all the work he did on the deck, despite him saying he doesn’t want any. I can be stubborn too, dammit. And to some work on dad’s truck.
• Had to take my dad’s truck to a dealership to fix something with the computer because the local mechanic didn’t have the right equipment. Will be nice to have that fixed because I want to start cutting firewood again.
• As mentioned on Twitter, I got my points reduced by half for my speeding ticket, and a slight refund. The officer and I had a chat before we even went in and came to that deal. When we went before the judge (in a courtroom behind a Sunoco gas station, btw. Yay rural PA), it took all of 3 minutes. Quickest trial I’ve ever been to. What’s nice is in PA your points drop after a year of a clean record. I hear that some states don’t even have a point system, I’m not sure how they figure out when to suspend licenses without them.
• July did not turn into another “no food” month, in fact I’ve spent more than I should have and will have to make up for it by making August a “no food” month. Especially since August 15th is the day dad’s loan of at least 10 years will be paid off within 8 months.
• I’ve been itching to pick up the guitar again and maybe my mandolin as well. I’ve been neglecting both quite severely.
• I get an odd sense of fulfillment when I send in our mortgage payment a month and a half early. Knowing we’re paid up till September is very relaxing. I dunno why people wait till the last minute to send theirs in, I think it would stress me out. Actually I know it would stress me out, it used to when I lived on the Naval base.
• I think this “letting my dad have a credit card on my account” thing is going to work out nicely. At least it is for July so far, and I just gave it to him a few weeks ago. He can get what he needs and I can keep track of it online. I pay it off immediately, and he doesn’t overdraft his bank account.
• I’ve been horrible about answering emails lately. If you’ve sent one and I haven’t answered, it’s not because I’m ignoring you, I promise!
• A friend died from cancer this morning. I’ve been working on a song (not mine, but slightly re-written) to play at her memorial.
• Thinking about death makes me want to focus on getting my dad a will again. As well as myself.
• I’ve also been focusing on cutting out the toxic people in my sphere of existence. They are unneeded, unwanted, unhealthy, and unnecessary.
• I’m going to be starting up a big fundraiser here soon to support the Grove for some much needed building repairs that we sorta need ASAP. I’m looking to raise about $20,000. If big churches can do it, dammit so can I.
• My uncle will be putting on the tin roof to our deck this weekend. Then I’ll take final before/after pictures and post them.

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I’m writing this here for my records, since I like to keep track of everything regarding my house.
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You can view updated deck pictures from today: http://picasaweb.google.com/acousticdryad/HouseAfter

And a few of getting the truck out and such: http://picasaweb.google.com/acousticdryad/AroundTheFarm