And so it goes . . .

(source)

 

Cindy and I had a lovely lunch at Jonny's yesterday, our last of the year before they close for the Winter.  We also popped to the Cambridge convenience where I scored two bags of the Pumpkin Spice Biscotti.  Then to the liquor store (I wanted two bottles of wine for cooking), to Nichols Farm Market and to the Super Store to pick up some things for Thanksgiving dinner.  

We then filled the car up with gas and went to Cindy's to off load her goodies and drop her off.  As always, we enjoyed our time together and even picked up a new type of squash to try out.  It is called a Candy Roaster. 

Most of them were huge, but we managed to each get a small one. This is what I was able to find out about it online:

North Georgia Candy Roaster 

 A rare heirloom variety, the North Georgia Candy Roaster has a striking appearance with an large, oblong shape with pointed ends and a creamy orange color. It was originally cultivated by the Cherokee in the Appalachian Mountains of the Southeastern U.S. Many winter squash varieties, including this one, continue to be cultivated because of seeds saved by Native Americans. With its unusual shape, the North Georgia Candy Roaster may be intimidating but can be prepared similarly to other winter squash. Cut lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and roast with the skin on and then discard the skin once cooked.

 

I now have 7 different kinds to cook.  From left to right front (as far as I can figure out) there is a Red Kuri, Buttercup and Mashed Potato, in behind there is a Butternut, Blue Hubbard and Carnival, and in behind those you can see the Candy Roaster.  I am really looking forward to trying out the different kinds and tasting them.

And now for some disappointing news  . . . 

Sadly, our family Thanksgiving has had to be cancelled.  

Last night around 5 or so I got a call from Cindy to say that dad was very poorly.  He was shivering and could barely walk.   He had had a cold at dinner on Wednesday night so I told her we should probably test him for Covid.  Bingo.  He tested positive and so did Cindy.  She was saying yesterday she had a bit of a scratchy throat and the sniffles.  I tested myself and so far am negative, but I don't really have much in the way of symptoms. It just might not have come out yet. Cindy spends more time in close contact with dad because they live together.

I had to call my son and tell them not to come.  He said no problem, they had been wondering if they should as the boys seemed to be getting colds and New Brunswick at the moment has the highest incidences of Covid in the Martimes anyways. 

I called Eileen and told her Saturday night get-together was cancelled.  She was disappointed and a bit worried as well as she had spent yesterday afternoon with dad at Tim Hortons.

I cancelled the motel rooms I had booked for Saturday and Sunday. Thankfully they were quite understanding, and I won't be charged.

Dad had started to feel a bit better when I talked to Cindy a bit later on. He had been able to get up to go to the bathroom in any case and was no longer shivering.  I have not talked to her yet this morning.

We will have to just do it all another time.  😢

 

The Northern Lights were very vivid last night. People were posting photographs of them from all over the place. My son could see them very clearly in Fredericton, and my brother posted some really lovely photos from Ottawa.  I also had some friends in the U.K. post photos of them that they were seeing over there.

These two photos were taken in the next town over.  I went outside but it was really cloudy, and I couldn't see anything here. I have seen them in the past when we lived in Northern Alberta, but I had not seen them since then.   It looks like they really put on a spectacular show in the Nothern Hemisphere last night at any rate.  I also saw photos from New England.

We had Thunderstorms locally. Funny that. We never had any all summer and now, October . . . we had one with lots of loud rumblings.

 

(source)

Once the library opens this morning, I am going to go pick up some more Covid Tests. All the ones I have are out of date. The ones I do have expired in September, so I still used one of those last night to test myself, but I am going to pick up fresh ones for both myself and Cindy. I don't think many people are reporting when they have Covid anymore, but I think it is really important that people do. That is the only way that the Government can tell how things are going with the virus and track it.  These things have not lost importance just because we are no longer in a pandemic.  People still get it and die from it, although that is now a somewhat rare occurrence. We still need to let the health authorities know when it is spreading. I think that is the most responsible thing to do.

Once I get my new tests. I will test again. I do have a bit of a scratchy throat and a mild sniffle, but nothing too bad. Fingers crossed if I do get it, it's not a really bad case.

I was going to try to do a video this weekend of me baking cookies with my grandson Luke, but now I will just have to bake cookies by myself. Not quite as exciting I don't think! But we shall see.

In the meantime, I will leave you with a thought for the day . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
 *.˛.°Your mind is a powerful thing,
when you fill it with positive thoughts,
your life will begin to change.

~Unknown  ° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

In The English Kitchen today, Tomato, Cheese & Onion Bread.  A simple scone/biscuit dough crust is topped with red tomato pesto and a delicious cheese and onion mixture before baking to ooey gooey scrummy perfection!  Delicious cut into squares and served as a side dish or cut even smaller and served as an appetizer or party food.

I hope that you have a beautiful day.  There is a weather advisory in effect here today for strong winds. No rain expected however it will be quite cloudy.  Whatever you get up to today, stay safe and be happy. Don't forget! 

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And I do too!