It's a Done Deal

I finally went and did something I only dreamed of doing. I actually bought something in a buyers market. Our motto used to always be Buy High Sell Low; at least that's the way it seemed to work.
The condo I found is a 55 and over building so it will be quiet, but I guess the cat is out of the bag on my age. It is 250 square feet bigger than my current place so that in itself is worth the disclosure of my well guarded secret. The icing on the cake for me and the kids is that I am a 3 min walk from them. My son-in-law has not verbalized his thoughts on this so I must assume he is "ecstatic" about this too.
The rental agent for this place will be here tomorrow, so I have a last minute scramble to make it look as valuable as possible. I've decided not to rent until Mar 1 which I hope will give me plenty of time to get all the details out of the way including income tax before I move. Wish me luck on the latter!

To Rent or Not to Rent.

I have been waffling over selling my condo as opposed to putting it back on the rental circuit. Well today my tax assessment came in and if my accountant doesn't have a stroke I think I may just be renting it out in a couple of months. The assessment is substantially lower than it had been which will lower the asking price substantially. So even if the market is better it will be a challenge to find a house in Victoria in my range. However the condo market is a buyers market there so I can slip into a much larger unit and actually increase my income as well. Logic tells me this may be the best option. That will make the kids very happy and I think it will fit well with my short term goals. If anyone knows of a renter with a good credit rating looking for a beach condo let me know.

Christmas Past

While my daughters remember Christmases past with much the same fondness as I, being alone for two days while they shopped in the insane traffic left me with baking and decorating. This was my time to experiment with things like pate and shortbread. This year we had neither from my kitchen. They didn't mention this in their memoires. I miss the poker games too, and enjoyed the reintroduction this year with Mark bringing his set to Victoria. I have kept mine in my car for 2 yrs now, just in case.
Janice and Rien didn't make it to Victoria after all for the fun and food, I hope next year will provide us with better weather. They missed a wonderful time with the boys and relatives. The highlight of my day yesterday was when Jack scolded Cameron not to touch something that he has been warned many times not to touch but has been fingering all week. He was so timely with his advice.
After eating yet another fine meal at Gord and Trudy's I 'slid' my car down their driveway, giving me a jolt to my blood pressure that was just fun. I managed to miss the two cars parked across the street and headed for the ferry to make my way home to laundry, cleaning out the freezer, and catching up with friends.
I have been filled again with the mystery of Christmas and will attempt to translate the inspiration through the new year. Rick has celebrated another Christmas in heaven with our Father who has given us the real reason for the season.

Endless Roll.

It is always frustrating to buy a roll of wrapping paper and find that it will only wrap 3 or 4 small packages. It is more amazing that the roll I bought 3 yrs ago is still not close to running out. After purchasing it rom Costco 3 Decembers ago, along with one other, I proceeded to wrap every other gift with this paper. It's heavy duty, and very pretty in blues with silver snowflakes. Hopefully no one on my list will recognize it in the middle of the crumpled paper on Christmas day. I'm fairly certain that I did not spend more than $8. on it, and highly doubt I will ever trip over such a bargain again. After a few of the adult version of my rum balls I don't mind using last seasons paper either.

Wheat-free rum balls!!!

According to my friend who owned a bakery for many years, the main ingredient in rum balls is cake crumbs. Which I thought was a pretty thrifty use of something a bakery always has plenty of. I found a wheat free cake mix that works well. Your own recipe for cake or brownies will work fine.
Take the day old cake and pulverize it in a large bowl. Hand mixing works best, but a food processor works well if you have a new manicure. The ball will be more fudgey if processed. Add enough cocoa, butter and powdered sugar and rum or any 'preferred liquer,' if there are not going to be children to share it with. They are just as tasty without liquer. Blend the mixture into a wad. You can use honey or agave if you desire and margarine and peanut butter or any nut butter will improve the fudgey texture. Once the wad is consistant throughout, use a small cookie scoop, and place on a baking sheet to freeze.
Freeze them at least 6 hrs.
Melt in a small container, chocolate chips. 1- 1/2 bags will coat up to 20 -1 oz balls. Roll them immediately in med grated, unsweetened coconut, or crushed nuts. Sprinkles will look great, and chocolate sprinkles are traditional.
Let chocolate set before returning them to your favourite storage container. I don't know how long they will keep in the freezer. I've never had them on hand for longer than a week. This may seem a little irregular as a recipe, but it will give each person a chance to add or alter the desired taste. A great deal of it depends on how much cake crumbs you need to dispose of. Almost any flavour of cake will do as a base. Be creative!

It May keep Us Distracted.

The ballots are still being counted, and in some states they will likely be recounted. The outcome is clear to any thinking being, but the media isn't finished chewing the last bit of fat out of the bones. It is wonderful that race is not an issue any longer. Maybe the minorities will finally believe it, and concentrate on more crucial world issues.
My real concerns are late-term abortion, and assisted suicide, in close quarters with universal health care. I wonder how long the media can keep us distracted from those issues.

Late Thanksgiving.

It's always better to be greatful even if the celebration is late. This year I chose to spend Thanksgiving alone. It may not have been the best weekend ever, but I learned a lot. I have friends I can really count on when I need to, and I can be quite happy alone.
While I listen to friends recount the "classic Thanksgiving fiasco", and I do know it is a form of bragging. They will have a story to rival any. This year I wasn't going to miss out on turkey, so at the last minute I zipped across the border where you can buy a turkey breast that is absolutely succulent. The power was out last weekend for nearly 3 1/2 hrs. and again on Monday when many people were roasting their big birds, the power was out another 6. When did I finally roast that puny thing? Well that would be on Wed. Why not have leftovers in the fridge all week just like every one else? Yesterday the power was again off for 3 hrs, so the leftover turkey came in handy.
I have been out for lunch with the girls twice this week and am headed out again in a couple hours. I am thankful to God for giving me the best bunch of fun, kookie friends in the world. Two more of them will meet each other next week for the first time. That leaves only Carolyn to haul her butt out here from Ontario to get in on the fun.
Ecc 9:7 Go eat you food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that the Lord favours what you do. When Carolyn does get here we may have to roast a turkey!