Radically Retired

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  • Four Wins for the Win

    Four Wins for the Win

    Since returning home from Texas and after listening to rave reviews from my sister on Instant Pot Yogurt, I decided to finally give it a try.

    My sister has been making her own IP Yogurt for some time and says she prefers the flavour and texture to store bought.

    I’ve now made my second batch and to say I’m impressed is an understatement.

    From one gallon of skim milk, I get 10 cups of Greek Yogurt (the container with the red lid contains 2 cups). It’s fat free and preservative free, and has the creamy consistency of Fage.

    In addition, I’m saving the whey (in the jar on the left) from straining, to add to smoothies, soups, and baking.

    Not only is the taste and texture better than store bought:

    >The gallon (4 litre) jug of milk I use costs on average $6.50 Cdn ($4.72 USD)

    >The 10 cups (2500 mls) of Greek Yogurt that the recipe makes would cost, on average around $21 CDN ($15 USD)

    So, considering the no preservatives, the usefulness of the whey, the price point, and the better texture and flavour, the lengthy process is a win, win, win,win.

  • May Long

    May Long

    Victoria Day in Canada is a federal holiday. It has existed since at least 1845, and was established in celebration of Queen Victoria’s (known as the mother of confederation) birthday on May 24.

    The actual holiday is observed on the last Monday in May preceding May 25, so the date changes from year to year.

    The weekend of the holiday is affectionately referred to as the “May long”.

    This is, in many areas, including ours, the weekend that campgrounds open, gardens are seeded, and grain farm seeding is at full speed ahead.

    Often, Lilacs, as in my feature photo (that I took in 2024) are starting to come into bloom by the May long. Not so this year, because the holiday is a little earlier and the weather has been cooler and drier than usual.

    Hopefully the rains yesterday and today will change that.

  • There’s Dirt in the Air!

    There’s Dirt in the Air!

    Starting on Thursday this past week, an extreme low pressure system arrived here from the west.

    With it came winds with sustained velocity of 75 Km/h (46.6 mph) and gusts to over 100 Km/h (62.14 mph)

    We had mistakenly left our windows open after the night, and within a couple of hours of the wind starting, hubs mopped up enough dust from the floor, that it looked like the floor hadn’t been mopped in years.

    Winds aren’t uncommon here on the Canadian prairies and we’ve had tornadoes in Saskatchewan almost every summer for as long as I can remember, but this wasn’t that.

    It put me to mind of what it must have been like in the “dust bowl” of the “dirty thirties”. I can’t imagine dealing with something like this for a decade. Two days was plenty long enough.

    Hubs and I had to go out (to purchase a fan of all things) and I could feel and taste the dirt in my mouth long after returning home.

    My feature photo was sent to me by a dear friend. This was their farm yard on Thursday and that’s their topsoil in the air in the distance. They had just finished seeding that field.

  • Priced Exactly Right

    Priced Exactly Right

    One of my go-to phrases in recent years is that the favourite F-word for seniors is “free”.

    This week, I visited a new boutique that opened here while we were wintering in Texas.

    It’s a unique shop in that almost all of the many products from chocolate to liquorice to glassware are imported from Holland. As far as I know, there isn’t a large Dutch population in this area, so it’ll be interesting to see how the store makes out. I wish them well.

    I made one small purchase and as I was leaving, the shopkeeper told me to select a fresh cut flower bouquet from the many that were on a table near the door.

    The arrangements were made by a home business florist in a nearby town, and were no doubt brought in for Mother’s Day. It was nice to realize that the shopkeeper chose to gift these bouquets (while they were still good) to customers vs tossing them out once they were wilting.

    What a lovely gesture, and …. free sure works for me!!

  • Stereotypes

    Stereotypes

    Over the past few years, there has been a bench alongside one of our walking trails here that has often had a small painted rock sitting on it.

    I’ve always wondered who the generous artist was. Who would paint a rock and leave it for others to enjoy?

    In my mind’s eye, it was a middle aged to older woman who was a member of our local artist’s guild. She would be of petite stature with grey hair, glasses, and a friendly smile.

    The other day, as I was on that same path, there was a tall, heavily built, younger fellow walking ahead of me.

    I saw him stop at a bench, take something out of his pocket, and spend a few moments. He was far enough ahead that I didn’t know if he was tying a shoelace or what he was doing there.

    When I finally got to the bench, the young man was long gone. My feature photo shows what I found on the bench he had stopped at.

    Now, did this fellow paint and leave the rock? Is he the one who has been doing this all along? Did he maybe take the rock on a previous stroll and was now returning it for someone else to enjoy? Did he just spy the treasure and stop to take a photo of it, as I had done?

    That little painted duck provided much more than a gift of beauty along a hiking trail.

    It afforded me the opportunity to speculate and examine my sometimes stereotypical assessments.

  • Lucky 13

    Lucky 13

    Today, our daughter celebrates her 43rd birthday.

    It seems impossible that those many years have gone by.

    She was born on a Friday 13th, and besides being Mother’s Day weekend, that usually ominous date was a lucky day for us indeed.

    My feature photo is from an old one that needed repair. I used both Adobe Lightroom and Touch/Retouch for the necessary edits.

    Here’s the original:

    I then used chatGPT to create a card to send to her this morning.

    All I had to do was enter a photo of her, list the characteristics I wanted included, and request a birthday card with graphics only.

    Once again, in less than two minutes, the app came through with exactly what I had hoped for.

  • Spring Has Sprung

    Spring Has Sprung

    On my most recent morning walk, signs of spring were finally evident.

    Greening grass
    and Canada Geese everywhere
    Red Winged Blackbirds are back
    (Robins too but I couldn’t catch one)
    Buds are opening

    This time of year brings the promise of summer, especially along the hiking/walking/biking trails and it always brings to mind the little verse I learned in my childhood:

    Spring has sprung

    The grass is riz

    I wonder where the birdies is

    The birdy’s on the wing

    Now isn’t that absurd

    ‘Cause everybody knows

    That the wing is on the bird

  • Happy Mother’s Day 2026

    Happy Mother’s Day 2026

    I’m 72 years old and my Mom is still alive,well, and thriving.

    I don’t take this for granted, and feel truly blessed.

    To those missing your moms today, big hugs. ♥️

  • Back to Old School

    Back to Old School

    Every once in a while, I like to gift myself.

    Yesterday, I purchased something that’s been on my techy wish list for a very long time.

    My last printer gave up the ghost over three years ago, and because ink cartridges were more expensive than buying a new printer, I decided to do without for a bit.

    I entered the area of e-cards and when needed, I hired out document and photo printing.

    This decision removed a great deal of creativity from my life and I truly missed the “old school” way of doing things.

    When eco tank printers came out, I was intrigued, but not sure. Were they really as good as advertised?

    My sister purchased one a year ago, and recently reported to me that she loves it. She said that in the past year, she’s printed well over 1,000 pages and the ink that came with her printer still shows at just under half full. I prefer reviews from people I know, so I was “sold” and made my decision.

    My main concern was whether the print heads would dry up while we’re wintering in Texas. My sis came up with a simple, yet brilliant idea. Another of my sisters condo sits for us over the winter. She could easily have access to the printer and do some printing and maintenance. She’s a techy gal and wouldn’t mind one bit. She’d no doubt appreciate being able to print some of her own stuff while she’s here.

    The setup was incredibly easy, the few test documents I printed came out excellent, I love that I can turn on/off and operate the printer from my iPad or phone with ease, and I already have several ideas for print jobs.

    The first will be a Mother’s Day card for Mom.

  • Cinco de Mayo 2026

    Cinco de Mayo 2026

    Today, I decided to celebrate Cinco de Mayo all day via my food choices.

    Breakfast was one of my faves – avocado toast with salsa
    Lunch out with my sister in law, who also winters in south Texas – Quesadillas de Pollo. That’s not tequila by the way … it’s just ice water with a lemon in it. In hindsight, I should have requested a lime
    Dinner I prepared for hubs and me – Pork Carnitas with Guacamole, Salsa,
    and Sour Cream

    “More popular in the United States than in Mexico,Cinco de Mayo has become associated with the celebration of Mexican-American culture.” (From Wikipedia)

    Because we live half of our retirement lives in South Texas, in an area with a significant Mexican American population, I feel pulled towards celebrating the culture too. In my world (as a foodie), food is a key element of every culture.