ABSILVER's World

So... trying to write each day and will publish occasionally... and add some funny comics along the way.  Keep Smiling! Day 3: Self isolation in East Texas 3 21 2020 First of all, there are no recipes for dealing with a time that has not been seen before.   My parents said they remember the rationing of WWII but at least you could out and socialize, and my Dad mentioned there was a black market for things as well so people who had means could find what they needed.   So, what do you do when the world is under the best recommendation seems to be that people isolate themselves to slow down the progression of this virus as to not overwhelm our healthcare systems until there is a cure and or vaccine. I don't know what others are doing.   We are effectively on day 3 of true isolation.   We had been socializing with immediate family, but since the recent changes in California and Pennsylvania and some news that east Texas is seeing spikes in fev

Spinach and Artichoke Dip: Ingredients:  1 cup of mayonnaise. (Hellman’s if possible) 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese. 1 can of artichoke hearts not seasoned. 2 TBSP of Olive Oil 1 package of fresh spinach (frozen is good as well). 3 garlic cloves chopped. Salt and Pepper to taste Recipe: Preheat oven 375 degrees Heat olive oil in a pan on medium heat for 2 minutes. Add garlic, and heat for a 1 minute. Then add fresh spinach and Saute till cooked about 3 - 5 minutes. Take the spinach and put in a colander to cool off. and then put in a dish towel and squeeze out the moisture as much as possible and then chop up. Drain the artichoke hearts and chop into smaller pieces. In a large bowl, stir together the Parmesan cheese and mayonnaise until well blended. Add the artichoke hearts and stir and then the chopped spinach. Add salt and pepper to taste, go easy on the salt as there is salt in the mayonnaise a

I sit here at home wondering about the weeks ahead and what to expect for life to become.    As we all hunker down over the Coronavirus, should I learn how to knit?    Should I be stalking grocery stores as we are down to 18 rolls of toilet paper?    Should I stop going out all together?    Should I consider altering our next trip to Savannah?    What will the next few weeks and months be like?   I am not as worried personally about the "virus".    I am hopeful as we live a pretty tight knit family life and are not prone to group socials and so we live in a fairly safe place.    I also realize that there is only so much good worrying will do.    I worked most of the last 15 years remotely, so I am confident that as needed I will be productive. That said, I am worried about us human animals.    We are a social bunch mostly.      Even those of us with introverted tendencies still need an occasional human or two to talk to, commune with and share a laugh and even a

Are you with Me? I sit here on a Thursday, in Longview, Texas at the Silver Grizzly having coffee, wondering when we the People and all global citizens will say “Enough already!” First, a bit of history. The British citizens of the original 13 colonies fought the revolution to be freed from the oppression of a remote monarchy that ruled over and taxed the colonies while providing little value for those taxes. The colonists had no ability to represent themselves to the monarchy. Generations of immigrants risked their lives to cross oceans to gain religious and personal freedoms that this country's founding fathers encapsulated into the US constitution; a constitution focused on personal freedom, privacy, and considerable concern to limit the power of a government and the majority to oppress minority citizens.   We live in an unprecedented time in the USA, where the ‘president’ and many elected officials are more concerned about their own well being than that of th

I have been a satisfied AT&T wireless customer since car phones were installed in your car.   When we moved, it  was easy to recommend them to Frank for our new home…   Frank and I decided about 3 months ago to make a move in our lives.   We sold our house in Austin and the plan is to split our time between closer to family splitting our time between Longview, TX where his family lives and mine in Savannah, GA.   The house is very nice, about 1800 sq. feet and close to Frank's Mom who has been very welcoming and helpful in our move. This email is about something simple, that went off the rails, all we wanted was to setup TV and Internet service at our new home in Longview.    In the last few years due to changes in homes from Florida to Austin, and now to Longview we have done this more times than most so you would think this would be easy?   Well, not so... we chose AT&T as what we thought we would be a reliable service and DirectTV for TV service.   My p

I have written starts and stops of a New Years blog. From the personal to the political and yet none of it was interesting enough to get out of my laptop or phone. My Top Ten lessons Learned in the Previous Decade. Nothing energizes my soul more than the sun rising over the ocean. Sunsets would come close but I am a morning person. My road traveled has led me back to Savannah and Longview . After living up and down the east coast and central Texas, we are home. A cat has shown me more about the importance of actually meeting diversity in person. I didn’t like cats cause I never had one to love. Quality and results of good work are more important to me than titles and money. Top ten days start with a walk early in the morning, plenty of good coffee and hanging out with Frank and our four legged family. Nice it happens every day. I have traveled around the world and lived near some mighty pretty places, but Tybee in the winter and Savannah are right at t

There are memories in your life that shape your life, but at the same time you keep quietly in your past.   You know, as you age, we say we have gotten past difficult times and learned our lessons and hope have moved on.   This is one of those days where you realize not all that is in the past has moved on. There have been two incidents at the University of Georgia about Swastikas painted on walls in the dorms.   https://www.redandblack.com/uganews/uga-student-groups-condemn-swastikas-drawn-on-students-dorms/article_44e68002-0c7d-11ea-8e1a-3f65d9769be9.html?fbclid=IwAR0ZMDV58hRz08VpvPi2g4auhF5D-re-CKNy3mKvcaV-CjV0LYqXPeUf4lE This is horrible, and certain anyone could see the hatred and wonder how in our modern day these kinds of incidents would happen.   Let’s be clear, someone or group has painted these swastikas in busy dorms where one would think there was at least one witness, but so far there have not been any witnesses to come out and share what they saw or part