Hi Ben,

Fido had a belch on Sunday (2/15) and came up with I think all of the
missing messages I've had over the past month or so, some 1,000 of them.
I couldn't do anything with my mail because we we were on the road
Sunday and Monday, coming home from a ham radio event in Orlando. I'll
do all the replies and send in one upload in the next day or so.

Re: Participation (oven baked motherboards)
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Sat Feb 01 2025 13:32:27

using Tandy products, don't remember what one at the time but he'd
started around 1979 with a TS-80.

I remember using a TRS-80 in my school library. By that time it was
the lowest spec'ed computer in the entire school. I guess i was into retro from the get-go.

They went obsolete almost as soon as they came out.

On the topic of kitchen equipment motherboard repair, here is a post
about burning alcohol to fix an iBook back in 2007.

<http://www.geektechnique.org/projectlab/726/ diy-obsolete-ibook-logic-board-repair.html>

Don't know if I'd want to try it. Just from your description and the
header, it sounds a bit suspect.

And an obligatory radio recipe...

Title: Steamed Apricot Pudding
Categories: Puddings
Yield: 1 Pudding

Recipe by Aunt Sammy's Radio Recipes 1931

Pre television days, radio shows were popular--if you lived in an area
where you could pick up a broadcast. I guess the States were pretty well covered by then, probably with a lot of local stations instead of the
national ones we have now. We have satellite radio in the truck so we
can get the same program in NC as we do in AZ when visiting our daughter
there. (G)

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... I am positive that a definite maybe is probably in order.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

game--how many kids played Pong for hours on end with the family

I remember seeing an electronic Pong machine at a yard sale. They had
it hooked up to a TV, so i played it with a friend. So i can write
that i actually experienced that bit of history.

I only played it once, never was into computer games, especially
mindless ones like that. Only game I play on the computer is Solitare.

We've never had an iBook. Our first PCs were ones Steve cobbled together from various places--

I've built my share of Frankenpooters. The best thing is getting a
highly functional computer for a low cost. The worst thing i remember
off the cuff is using OEM motherboards with non-standard, cost-cutting design decisions and limited availability of documentation and
drivers.

Got a phone call once, person doing a survey (and wanting to sell a
certain system) asking if we had a PC, if so, what brand. I said "Yes
and the keyboard is a X, the printer is a Y, the monitor is a Z.......";
I think he was a bit bumfuzzled. (G)

A more appropriate one around our house would be Ham and Chips. (G)

Alas, my personal recipe collection doesn't include Ham and Chips.

Do you do seafood? Fish and Chips?

Here's a recipe for Granola Pie, which strikes me as ecclectic.

Title: Granola Pie
Categories: Pies
Yield: 1 Pie

Granola Pastry *

MMMMM--------------------------FILLING-------------------------------
1 c Dark corn syrup
1/2 c Sugar
1/4 c Brandy
1/4 c Butter; melted
3 Eggs
1 ts Vanilla
1/4 ts Salt
2 c Granola
Sweetened whipped cream

That does sound good. Don't think I could have gotten my parents to eat
it; they were very old school. One time my dad bragged he'd not eaten
yogurt, never intended to. Next time they visited, I made one of our
favorite desserts--sponge cake, yogurt and strawberries (split the cake,
add yogurt and strawberries to middle, then top with more). After
supper, our older daughter (about 4 at the time) asked her grandpa how
he liked the dessert. He replied that he really liked it to which she
told him that he'd eaten yogurt. He then pretended to act like he was
choking, to her amusememt.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Are you sure you really want to know that?

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

I "attended" that way several times. In the fall, when we
The last few months tho, we've been working on a merger with another congregation and AFAIK, they don't broadcast/link in their service anywhere.

How'd drive-in style service treat you?

Actually our church had enough property that we were able to sit
outside, tho somewhat scattered, but all within a relatively confined
space. We also did broadcast over a low power radio station if you did
want to sit in your vehicle but most of us preferred to sit outside and somewhat mingle. Of the 20 weeks we were outside, it only started to
rain once, right after services ended so we stayed dry. We also met an
hour earlier than the normal time so we weren't outside in the heat of
the day.

I used to attend a spiritual community in Eugene that gave dharma
talks. During COVID they set up cameras and a large screen so that
others
could attend over the Internet. It was a huge success for the
community and they grew in size.

However, i couldn't adjust to it. I did not like being on camera.
For community, meditation, philosophy, song, etc. i strongly prefer it
to be a small, in-person group. For me, the Internet sucks the joy
out of
that stuff.

We tend to go for smaller congregations where we get to know more
people, better. We did join, for a few months until we were transferred elsewhere, a good sized church in TX; IIRC, it had 1,000+/- members and
a couple of Sunday morning services. Overall, the smaller churches have
been our norm.

Title: Bluenose Strawberry Soup

How did "bluenose" get into the title? I don't see anywhere where it
would be related to what is in it except maybe the brandy--something
only affordable to the upper classes? Srawberry season will be coming in
a few months; I'll consider making this, leaving out the brandy.

Dave asked the same thing, and the best i could come up with was the following theory:

The recipe came from a cookbook titled The Strawberry Connection and
it was in a series of cookbooks that began with The Blueberry
Connection. My
guess is that it began as a blueberry recipe and was adapted for strawberries.

OK, sounds like as good a reason as any. We'll be getting fresh
strawberries in the next few months; I'll have to check my supply of
strawberry jam, see if I need to make some this year. My MIL gave me a strawberry pie recipe decades ago that I try to make at least once (if
not more) during strawberry season.

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... History repeats itself because nobody listens ...

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

Found that their music preference is LOUD so we've been
sitting in the overflow room to cut the volume level somewhat.

Sound volume preferences are also a challenge. I used to attend an ecstatic dance in Eugene. When i started, they played a lot of world music. Then after a DJ change, they played a lot of soulless EDM,
raised the volume about 400%, raised the admission fee, and started selling earplugs at the entrance. Ironically i am hard of earing but
the sound volume was painful for me. No thanks!

I'd have been out of there FAST! We went to a wedding a couple of weeks
ago; at the reception, the table we were assigned to was fairly close to
the band. It was a bit loud for us but we did stay for about 3 hours,
leaving so we could continue getting ready for our trip to Florida.

Sounds logical to me. What other fruits are in the series? Peach would
be a good one.

Unfortunately, i could not find The Peach Connection.

From: <https://nimbus.ca/book-author/beatrice-buszek>

The Apple Connection
The Blueberry Connection
The Strawberry Connection
The Sugar Bush Connection (Maple Syrup)

They all sound good to me. We're thinking of heading up to New England
this spring/summer and intend to restock our maple syrup supply. Also
want to touch base with a couple we know up there that are serving a
church plant; we've done several mission trips up there to work with
them.

And here's a sweet recipe for you...

Title: Yogurt Honey Cream Pie
Categories: Pies
Yield: 1 Pie

Recipe by Quaker Oats Wholegrain Cookbook

I think I have that cook book, got it decades ago and have made the oat
scones from it too many times to count.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Everyone has a photographic memory. Some don't have film.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

Are you based in Oregon? That, and North Dakota are the only 2 states
I've yet to visit. One of these days I'll get to them.

Yes, i am based in Oregon. I would be game for meeting up if you make
it out here.

We've got an 8th grade graduation in AZ and a high school one in Utah
next year (grandkids) so will be heading out that way. Maybe we'll
decide to be gone a bit longer and go a bit further west; Oregon is one
of the 2 states I've never been to.

We were
also introduced to maple creemees, a Vermont specialty where maple syrup
is blended with soft serve ice cream, decadent but yummy.

I've seen articles about Canada's strategic Maple Syrup Reserve, and sometimes i have difficulty telling whether they are serious. ;)

It does sound almost too good to be true.

I'd love to try a maple creemee some day. I've had family and

friends BC> with ice cream makers, but i've never tried my hand at
making it BC> myself. I read that it can be easy to do using a mason
jar in the BC> freezer.

We have a small ice cream maker, haven't used it in a while but save the
maple creemees for when we're in Vermont. It's one of those things that
are best in the area of origin; since NC isn't a maple state, I don't
expect to find a creemee here. I do expect to find good pork bbq and
seafood. (G)

Here's another sweet recipe. We have a seasonal treat made in
Washington called Applets and Cotlets. It is basically the same thing referred to in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe (Narnia Book 1)
as Turkish Delight. If it were me, i'd skip the coloring and add some fruit juice, preserves, etc.

OK, I wasn't sure what Turkish Delight was. I half thought it was some
sort of candy like Turkish Taffee; now I know better.

Title: Turkish Paste (Turkish Delight)
Categories: Candy
Yield: 1 Batch

3 tb Gelatin
1/2 c Water; cold
1 lb Sugar
1/2 c Water; hot
1/4 ts Salt
3 tb Lemon juice
Green coloring
Mint flavoring
1 c Nuts; finely chopped

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Some are so educated they can bore you on almost any subject

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

One of these days, we just might make it. Oregon is one of the states
our daughter in AZ has mentioned she might want to move to, now that
she's retired from active duty with the National Guard. She has 2 boys,
one on the autism spectrum and she mentioned that the state is good for education. Don't know what she was basing that on but...

From my perspective my educational experience was good, but my
friend's kids in Eugene had even better, going to charter schools,

Her boys went to charter schools up until last school year. She retired
from active duty (Army National Guard) and home schooled them last year,
not sure if she's still doing it this year.

until the
Covid thing. Abruptly shifting to distance learning was hard on them,
and i personally think that folks aren't aware just how harmful that
was. I don't know about autism, but a friend of a friend is a teacher
in Seattle, and she said that nearly 100% of her students have a
diagnosis of some kind, autism, A.D.D., depression, etc. and that most
of them are on a prescription of some kind. Some things are better,

Seems like a lot of kids are on meds these days that our generation had
to "tough out".

like classes
teaching about communication, emotional intelligence, and
interpersonal skils (wish *I* had learned those as a kid), and some
things are far
worse.

Win some, lose some. I went to a small K-12 school with no AP classes,
sort of wish there had been the opportunity for some or more electives but..................ended up graduating #12 out of a class of 63.

moved up to Washington, and knew we could get (and did) creemees in
Barre, about 15 minutes away.

Maple syrup poured on soft-serve icecream reminds me of Laura Ingalls
book Little House In The Woods where they poured maple syrup on the
snow to harden it into a frozen candy. I'd eat that. :9

That goes by different names; I first knew it as Jax Wax but have heard
it called Sugar on Snow, don't remember other names but it is good. You
have to boil the syrup down really thick--maybe boil a gallon down to a
quart to make it thick enough to harden quickly. But it is yummy; I can
tell you that from personal experience.

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... 90% of being smart is knowing what you're dumb at.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

... we donated several net books,
note books and other small computers to a local drive--helped clean out some of our unused stuff. Steve put a basic internet program on each of them before donating.

How cool is that! I like reading about old equipment being put to
use.

Helped us clear out some non usable (to us) stuff too. That space has
been filled (and overflowed now) with ham radio stuff now.

Sometimes you feel like a nut...

Hey i remember watching that jingle on broadcast TV when i was a
kid...

Same here, tho I've never been a fan of coconut or nuts in most things.
For a while (maybe 3 years) I found Milky Way bars with a chocolate
caramel filling, turned out they were made in Canada. Those were really
good but sadly, no longer available in the States.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Gone crazy, be back later. leave a message at the Beep!

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Hi Ben,

I remember loading arcade games from cassette tape onto a VIC-20. I
also remember two friends playing games on a C=64, and i didn't get as

Steve typed in a lot of the stuff from Compute's Gazatte onto the
datasette for the first 18 months we had the C-64. Had a tv for the
monitor, a bit of frustration when I'd want to catch the late news. I'd
remind him about 9:50 (we were in TX, late news was 10:00) and he'd say
"just a minute". News would be over, Johnny Carson almost over before
he'd stop most nights.

much
screen time on the C=64 as on the VIC-20. One friend had a floppy
drive and the other was using cassette tape only. But he was given a
HUGE set of cassette tapes. Whoever owned that C=64 before him
collected a lot!

We didn't collect a lot of tapes; about 18 months after we got the
computer, Steve used some money from a government travel settlment to
get a disc drive and monitor.

For the next time you get significant (clean) snow and have maple

syrup RH> on hand? We had 1.25" of snow last week, not enough to
harvest. Enough RH> to shut down the area for a couple of days tho. (G)

Exactly. So far this winter we had a dusting of snow one day. I
happened to bicycle through it to a dentist appointment. Sadly for
that dentist's business there was not enough snow to make candy in.

He will make up for it at the end of October. One of our local dentists
pays kids for their candy hauls, then sends the candy to deployed
troops.

I remember it too. We got our first TV when I was in 4th grade, only one channel. A few years later my dad reworked the lead in (no antenna, just
a wire from the main line) wire and we got 2 channels. When I came home from college for Easter break, my folks had tied into the NYC cable,
with one local channel. IIRC, the ads for Almond Joy and Mounds were in
the days when we got just 2 channels.

When i was a kid, my parents went without a TV because they thought it
was a bad influence. But we brought a TV in the house for that
VIC-20, and slowly began to use it as a TV too. I personally think it
was good for me to have had limited exposure to media, but i didn't
see it that way when i was a kid. :-)

We got our first one about a year before the JFK assasination; that was
my first exposure to an extensive news coverage event. Did somewhat know
about the world beyond our small town because Dad bought the NY Times
every day.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Myth #1: The computer only does what you tell it to do.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Re: Participation (oven baked motherboards)
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Tue Feb 17 2026 03:40 pm

Fido had a belch on Sunday (2/15) and came up with I think all of the missing messages I've had over the past month or so, some 1,000 of them. I couldn't do anything with my mail because we we were on the road Sunday
and Monday, coming home from a ham radio event in Orlando. I'll do all the replies and send in one upload in the next day or so.

Whoo, welcome back! Sounds potentially overwhelming. But hey, at least you have some reading material...

Alas, my personal recipe collection doesn't include Ham and Chips.

Do you do seafood? Fish and Chips?

Yes, i've eaten fish & chips. I recently read an article about how
restaurant food in the UK is often saltier than their nutrition facts
claim. However, one of the "good ones" was fish & chips due to the
fact that they sprinkle the salt on the surface AFTER it is cooked.
So it's not as salty as it tastes.

One time my dad bragged he'd not eaten
yogurt, never intended to. Next time they visited, I made one of our favorite desserts--sponge cake, yogurt and strawberries (split the cake, add yogurt and strawberries to middle, then top with more). After
supper, our older daughter (about 4 at the time) asked her grandpa how
he liked the dessert. He replied that he really liked it to which she
told him that he'd eaten yogurt. He then pretended to act like he was choking, to her amusememt.

LOL! I liked this story. :-)

That sounds almost idyllic, being prepared and having a backup plan to
be warm, toasty, and well fed.

It was nice; we ended up being caught between 2 systems than never
merged so we only got about 3.5 inches and our power stayed on.

This morning is a winter wonderland outside with snow all over everything.
I started a batch of chicken lentil soup in the crockpot with potatoes, carrots, sauteed onions, garlic, & bay leaves.

We've got an 8th grade graduation in AZ and a high school one in Utah

next year (grandkids) so will be heading out that way. Maybe we'll
decide to be gone a bit longer and go a bit further west; Oregon is one
of the 2 states I've never been to.

We have exactly one national park in Oregon: Crater Lake. It's busy! But beautiful, and pleasant to watch the sun rise over the lake. The food in
the lodge is expensive, but usually good. If you drove west from
Crater Lake to the Oregon Caves National Monument, you'd pass through
Grants Pass, where i live.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: Flintstones Beef Ribs
Categories: Five, Beef, Herbs
Yield: 1 serving

1 1/2 lb Bone-in beef short ribs (3)
2 tb 321 Spice Blend

MMMMM---------------------321 SPICE BLEND----------------------------
3 c Granulated garlic
2 c Ground black pepper
1 c Salt

Heat the smoker to 325?F/165?C.

321 Spice Blend:

In a large mixing bowl, add the garlic powder, black pepper, and
salt, and mix until combined.

Yield: 6 Cups

Ribs:

Trim the excess fat off the meat. Coat the ribs with the 321 Spice
Blend on all sides.

Place the ribs in the smoker over indirect heat until brown on all
sides, 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Place the meat on a wire rack set over a deep pan filled with 2" of
water. Tightly wrap the pan with foil. Return the pan to the smoker
over indirect heat and cook until the ribs are very tender, about
4 hours.

Remove from the smoker and plate to serve.

This recipe was provided by a chef, restaurant or culinary
professional.

It has not been tested for home use.

Recipe courtesy of Smoketown, USA, Louisville, KY

Recipe FROM: https://www.foodnetwork.com

Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives

MMMMM
--- SBBSecho 3.23-Win32
* Origin: The Fool's Quarter, fqbbs.synchro.net (1:105/500)

Hi Ben,

Fido had a belch on Sunday (2/15) and came up with I think all of the missing messages I've had over the past month or so, some 1,000 of them. I couldn't do anything with my mail because we we were on the road Sunday
and Monday, coming home from a ham radio event in Orlando. I'll do all the replies and send in one upload in the next day or so.

Whoo, welcome back! Sounds potentially overwhelming. But hey, at
least you have some reading material...

I'm all caught up, just doing the daily reading of Fido, e-mail, Raleigh
News & Observer on line and usually some sort of historic fiction book.
All caught up with laundry, mostly caught up with other household jobs
but going to chill for a few days. Had a routine doctor's appointment
this afternoon, found out I've got pneumonia---not severe but the rest
(and meds) will do me good. We have enough food in the pantry, fridge
and freezer that is either easy to cook or just heat and serve that I
don't have to fuss there.

Alas, my personal recipe collection doesn't include Ham and Chips.

Do you do seafood? Fish and Chips?

Yes, i've eaten fish & chips. I recently read an article about how restaurant food in the UK is often saltier than their nutrition facts claim. However, one of the "good ones" was fish & chips due to the
fact that they sprinkle the salt on the surface AFTER it is cooked.
So it's not as salty as it tastes.

I had some back in 1988 when I went to England with some friends. Chips
were actually French fries. (G)

One time my dad bragged he'd not eaten
yogurt, never intended to. Next time they visited, I made one of our favorite desserts--sponge cake, yogurt and strawberries (split the cake, add yogurt and strawberries to middle, then top with more). After
supper, our older daughter (about 4 at the time) asked her grandpa how
he liked the dessert. He replied that he really liked it to which she
told him that he'd eaten yogurt. He then pretended to act like he was choking, to her amusememt.

LOL! I liked this story. :-)

I thought you would, as well as others who read the echo. My dad was a
WWII veteran but not enthused about women in the military--until his
younger granddaughter (our younger daughter) joined up and ws deployed.
He was "bustin' his buttons" proud of her.

It was nice; we ended up being caught between 2 systems than never
merged so we only got about 3.5 inches and our power stayed on.

This morning is a winter wonderland outside with snow all over
everything. I started a batch of chicken lentil soup in the crockpot
with potatoes, carrots, sauteed onions, garlic, & bay leaves.

We're back to no snow or ice on the ground, last of it disappeared while
we were in Florida. Always the possibility of getting more this winter
but less and less likely. Your soup sounds like just the prescription
for a snowy day.

We've got an 8th grade graduation in AZ and a high school one in Utah

next year (grandkids) so will be heading out that way. Maybe we'll
decide to be gone a bit longer and go a bit further west; Oregon is one
of the 2 states I've never been to.

We have exactly one national park in Oregon: Crater Lake. It's busy!
But beautiful, and pleasant to watch the sun rise over the lake. The
food in the lodge is expensive, but usually good. If you drove west
from
Crater Lake to the Oregon Caves National Monument, you'd pass through Grants Pass, where i live.

OK, we'll have to think it over. Those trips are usually about 5 weeks;
a side trip to Oregon would probably add a couple more weeks to it. But,
now we have basic knowledge to plan distance to travel, time at each
stop, etc to factor in going further west.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... I'm clinging to sanity by a thread. Hand me those scissors.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Re: Participation
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Thu Feb 19 2026 03:52 pm

I'm all caught up, just doing the daily reading of Fido, e-mail, Raleigh News & Observer on line and usually some sort of historic fiction book.
All caught up with laundry, mostly caught up with other household jobs but going to chill for a few days. Had a routine doctor's appointment this afternoon, found out I've got pneumonia---not severe but the rest (and meds) will do me good. We have enough food in the pantry, fridge and freezer that is either easy to cook or just heat and serve that I don't have to fuss there.

That sounds good. Do you like historic fiction movies as well? The other
day i watched The Love Letter (1998), which wasn't bad considering that it
is a Hallmark Channel movie. It does have ridiculous parts, but i liked
the time travel theme.

I had some back in 1988 when I went to England with some friends. Chips were actually French fries. (G)

A friend's mother grew up in Scotland. She told me how the local outdoor swimming pool sold food. You could walk up to the counter and order
fish & chips right there in your bathing suit. I was imagining French
fries and not crisps.

Once i lived in a town that had an English pub style restaurant, and they
had malt vinegar on the tables to go with the fish and chips. Once when
they were having a rough time with the business, they switched from
"French fries" to kettle style potato chips. I suppose those would be
called crisps in the UK. I think it was temporary.

He was "bustin' his buttons" proud of her.

Aww how sweet. :-)

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: Collard Greens & Corn Balls
Categories: Pork, Soul food, Vegetables
Yield: 5 Servings

MMMMM--------------------------COLLARDS-------------------------------
4 bn Collard greens
4 md Ham hocks; up to 5
Salt & pepper; to taste
3 tb Bacon drippings; up to 4 tb

MMMMM-------------------------CORN BALLS------------------------------
2 c White corn meal
1 tb Baking powder
Salt; to taste
1/4 c Water; hot

Collards:

Wash ham hocks. Cook until half done. Prepare collard greens by
washing and cutting up if desired. After ham hocks are half done, add
greens. Greens should be tender before you add corn balls. Let corn
balls cook until done. Do not overcooks, or the corn balls will fall
apart.

Corn Balls:

Add all ingredients in bowl, gradually add hot water, then mix well.
Roll into medium corn balls by hand.

In order to form corn balls, mixture should be just moist enough to
stay together when formed into balls.

Recipe by Mrs. Erma Regland

Recipe FROM: <https://cdm16118.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/
collection/p16118coll37/id/993/rec/38>

MMMMM
--- SBBSecho 3.23-Win32
* Origin: The Fool's Quarter, fqbbs.synchro.net (1:105/500)

Hi Ben,

Fido is acting quirky again; this is my first mail since last Thursday.
Guess I'll just learn to live with getting mail every few days instead
of every day, like USPS. (G)

I'm all caught up, just doing the daily reading of Fido, e-mail,

routine doctor's appointment this RH> afternoon, found out I've got pneumonia---not severe but the rest (and RH> meds) will do me good. We
have enough food in the pantry, fridge and RH> freezer that is either
easy to cook or just heat and serve that I don't RH> have to fuss there.

That sounds good. Do you like historic fiction movies as well? The

I'm not much of a movie watcher; we've got a book shelf full of DVDs
that I think we've watched maybe half of them. Some are fantasy or
sci-fi which Steve likes, got a good collection of Veggie Tales and
classic Disney and assorted others.

other day i watched The Love Letter (1998), which wasn't bad
considering that it is a Hallmark Channel movie. It does have
ridiculous parts, but i liked the time travel theme.

I might watch it with someone else but not apt to do it alone. More
likely I'll curl up with some reading.

I had some back in 1988 when I went to England with some friends. Chips were actually French fries. (G)

A friend's mother grew up in Scotland. She told me how the local
outdoor swimming pool sold food. You could walk up to the counter and order
fish & chips right there in your bathing suit. I was imagining French fries and not crisps.

The lake where our town's youth summer recreation program had its
swimming classes had something similar. It was right across the road
from one of the big Jewish summer hotels in the Catskills so got a lot
of tourist business for the snack bar. I've not been in the area for
some years but IIRC, the hotel burned down at the end of one summer and
the lake was drained.

Once i lived in a town that had an English pub style restaurant,

and BC> they had malt vinegar on the tables to go with the fish and
chips. BC> Once when they were having a rough time with the business,
they BC> switched from BC> "French fries" to kettle style potato chips.
I suppose those would be BC> called crisps in the UK. I think it was
temporary.

Probably so. We went to Arthur Treacher's in Jacksonville (NC) a few
times after we were married and would always get malt vinegar for our
fish and chips. I'll have to check my pantry but I may still have a
bottle of it. I know I've got some fish in the freezer so maybe once I
get to feeling better, I'll pull it out and we'll do fish and chips.
Right now tho, it's easy to cook/clean up meals for a few more days.

He was "bustin' his buttons" proud of her.

Aww how sweet. :-)

When she was deployed, he sent her the New Testament that he'd carried
while serving in the Navy during WWII. I don't know if she kept it when
she came back to the States or gave it back to him; he passed away in
2017.

Title: Collard Greens & Corn Balls
Categories: Pork, Soul food, Vegetables
Yield: 5 Servings

Looks good but Steve can't eat corn. As far as we know, small amounts of
corn starch and even smaller amounts of corn syrup don't bother him but
any other form will give him migraine headaches. Much as we both like
corn on the cob and hush puppies, I don't make them (but I will
occaisionally indulge if we're eating out). Wegman's sells a black bean tortilla chip that we buy for him; I'll sometimes get a small bag of
original Fritos for me.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... OH NO! Not ANOTHER learning experience!

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Re: Participation
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Mon Feb 23 2026 01:52 pm

Fido is acting quirky again; this is my first mail since last Thursday. Gues I'll just learn to live with getting mail every few days instead of every day, like USPS. (G)

Just like the old days - mail would transfer by phone overnight to your local echo hub, who'd transfer it to one of the backbone hubs, which would send it on to the destination echomail hub, and to the recipient...

Conversations would take place over days.
--- SBBSecho 3.33-Win32
* Origin: http://realitycheckbbs.org | tomorrow's retro tech (1:218/700)

Fido is acting quirky again; this is my first mail since last Thursday.
Guess I'll just learn to live with getting mail every few days instead
of every day, like USPS. (G)

I wonder if your boss node, or maybe their hub, is having issues? Mail
for COOKING seems to be flowing daily here.

Mike
---
* BgNet 1.0b12
* Origin: moe's tavern * 1-5028758938 * moetiki.ddns.net:27 (1:2320/195)

Re: Participation
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Mon Feb 23 2026 01:52 pm

Hi Ruth,

I'll have to check my pantry but I may still have a bottle of it. I
know I've got some fish in the freezer so maybe once I get to feeling better, I'll pull it out and we'll do fish and chips.

I've read that expiration dates on vinegar are purely performative
measures to keep stock moving. Hope you're feeling better soon.

Looks good but Steve can't eat corn.

I forgot about that dietary restriction.

Last night i ate fajitas for dinner, roughly based on the following
recipe. We omitted the lettuce, added sliced crookneck & zucchini,
used home-grown oregano, and added fresh diced tomatoes, cilantro,
and yogurt. Delicious!

* Exported from MasterCook *

Fantastic Pork Fajitas

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Mexican Pork

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 lb Lean boneless pork
2 cl Garlic -- minced
1 ts Oregano -- crumbled
1/2 ts Cumin
1 ts Seasoned salt
2 tb Orange juice
2 tb Vinegar
1 ds Hot pepper sauce
1 tb Cooking oil
1 md Onion -- peeled and sliced
1 Green pepper -- seeded & sliced
4 Flour tortillas
Green onion tops -- sliced
Lettuce -- shredded
Salsa

Slice pork across grain into 1/8" strips. Marinate pork strips in
garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, orange juice, vinegar, and hot pepper
sauce for 10 minutes.

Heat heavy skillet or griddle until hot. Add 1 tb of oil, onion,
green pepper, and pork strips; stir fry until pork is no longer
pink, about 3 to 5 minutes. Serve with flour tortillas and
accompany with sliced green onion, shredded lettuce, and salsa.

Calories per serving: 293


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
--- SBBSecho 3.23-Win32
* Origin: The Fool's Quarter, fqbbs.synchro.net (1:105/500)

Kurt Weiske wrote to Ruth Haffly <=-

Just like the old days - mail would transfer by phone overnight to your local echo hub, who'd transfer it to one of the backbone hubs, which
would send it on to the destination echomail hub, and to the
recipient...

These days, it's all of these systems on autopilot that never get checked and when they break, there's ripple effects throughout Z1.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: No Mess Lasagna
Categories: Beef, D/g, Casseroles, Boat
Yield: 6 Servings

32 oz Jar spaghetti sauce
9 Lasagna noodles, UNCOOKED
12 oz Dry curd cottage cheese
1 Egg
8 oz Cheese, Mozzarella; shredded
1/4 Cheese, parmesan, grated
1 lb Beef, ground, or turkey
1 tb -Italian spices to taste -

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Brown ground beef and drain Mix together
ground beef and spaghetti sauce (add spices} In Medium bowl, mix
cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese and egg until well blended. Spread
1/4 sauce on bottom of pan (approximately 7 x 11 x 3) Place one
noodle layer 3 across bottom of pan Place 1/2 cottage cheese mixture
on top of noodle, then layer 1/3 of sauce then the second layer of
noodle. Repeat, ending with top layer of noodle, and then top with
sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Cover tightly with foil Cook 1
hour covered. Uncover and cook 15 min more. Test with point of knife
to make sure noodles are soft. Let cool 10 minutes before cutting
into serving pieces. MICROWAVE VERSION USE 8 X 8 glass dish. follow
above directions. except cover loosely with wax paper. Microwave on
high 18 min, turn dish and continue another 18 min.
Let stand 5 min before serving. (Test for doneness - zap longer if
necessary )

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini

MMMMM

-- Sean

... A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.
--- MultiMail/Linux
* Origin: Outpost BBS * Johnson City, TN (1:18/200)

Hi Kurt,

Re: Participation
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Mon Feb 23 2026 01:52 pm

Fido is acting quirky again; this is my first mail since last Thursday. Gues I'll just learn to live with getting mail every few days instead of every day, like USPS. (G)

Just like the old days - mail would transfer by phone overnight to
your local echo hub, who'd transfer it to one of the backbone hubs,
which would send it on to the destination echomail hub, and to the recipient...

Conversations would take place over days.

Better days than months or sometimes years before you got mail. Trouble
is, in today's society, (almost) everybody expects instant results for everything and it's just not always going to happen. A lot of the better
things in life take time, like sourdough bread without a yeast kick
start, many wines and other potent potables, couture clothing--lots of
hand stitching there and so much more. I was brought up in a time where
a slower pace was normal; our grandkids have learned that gratification
isn't always instant.

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... A mind stretched by new ideas can never go back to its original size.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

CORRUPTED [D:\FTN\COOKING\GTMSGS\00056.MES] .SOM7
---
* BgNet 1.0b12
* Origin: moe's tavern * 1-5028758938 * moetiki.ddns.net:27 (1:2320/195)

Hi Ben,

I'll have to check my pantry but I may still have a bottle of it. I
know I've got some fish in the freezer so maybe once I get to feeling better, I'll pull it out and we'll do fish and chips.

I've read that expiration dates on vinegar are purely performative measures to keep stock moving. Hope you're feeling better soon.

Some are suggestions, with some of them being a lot broader in scope of
actual expiration than others. I'd not want to drink 10 year old milk
(unless it's UHT proccessed) but a 10 year old vinegar might be a bit
sharper than a more recent vintage but still good.

I'm gradually improving, still not doing a lot beyond basic routine
things. Last night I put some Lundberg rice blend into our rice cooker
and we had it with chicken and cashews that Steve brought home from our
local Chinese place. Left overs will probably be supper tonight. I still
have a few days of meds and then have a (routine) appointment with my pulmonology doctor next week.

Looks good but Steve can't eat corn.

I forgot about that dietary restriction.

It's such an uncommon one that most people do forget about it. I've
forgotten to read labels a few times and come home with something he
can't eat...........but usually I can, at a time when he'd got a supper meeting.

Last night i ate fajitas for dinner, roughly based on the following recipe. We omitted the lettuce, added sliced crookneck & zucchini,
used home-grown oregano, and added fresh diced tomatoes, cilantro,
and yogurt. Delicious!

We'll pass on the cilantro but otherwise it sounds good. Steve will eat miniscule amounts of cilantro if it can't be avoided; I will eat more
but not a whole lot. At our favorite Mexican restaurant in in Hawaii,
Steve would ask for his dish to be made with no cilantro; I'd ask for a
small amount. We'd get the food and I'd pull out probably half a dozen
or more big leaves of that stuff--makes you wonder how much was in their regular cooking. Meals were always good except for that.

Fantastic Pork Fajitas

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Mexican Pork

Now you've got me hungry for Mexican. (G)


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net FIDO 1:396/45.28


... One of these days, I'll quit procrastinating.

--- PPoint 3.01
* Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)

Ruth Haffly wrote to Kurt Weiske <=-

up in a time where a slower pace was normal; our grandkids have learned that gratification isn't always instant.

That's a valuable lesson. I've got a 22 year old and a 16 year old, and patience is not a virtue with their friend groups.



--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
* Origin: http://realitycheckbbs.org | tomorrow's retro tech (1:218/700)

Re: Participation
By: Ruth Haffly to Ben Collver on Thu Feb 26 2026 12:14 pm

Hi Ruth,

I'm gradually improving, still not doing a lot beyond basic routine
things.

Hang in there! Friends and family have been getting colds. The last two
colds have passed over me thankfully.

We'll pass on the cilantro but otherwise it sounds good. Steve will eat miniscule amounts of cilantro if it can't be avoided; I will eat more but not a whole lot. At our favorite Mexican restaurant in in Hawaii, Steve would ask for his dish to be made with no cilantro; I'd ask for a small amount. We'd get the food and I'd pull out probably half a dozen or more big leaves of that stuff--makes you wonder how much was in their regular cooking. Meals were always good except for that.

I have the gene that's supposed to make cilantro taste bad, but i love it.
I guess that gene didn't express itself, thankfully. I'm surprised the restaurant in Hawaii wasn't more careful to honor your request. At least
the big leaves are easier to pick out than little bits are.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: Stuffed Pesto Potatoes With Fennel Compote
Categories: Stuffed, Veg
Yield: 4 Servings

4 lg Baking potatoes;
- well scrubbed
8 oz Soft silken tofu;
- drained, mashed
1/2 c Basil pesto
1 tb Low-sodium tamari
Salt
Black pepper; freshly ground
Olive oil; for drizzling
1 c Fennel Compote With Black
- Olives And Pine Nuts

Preheat the oven to 400?F. Pierce the potatoes with a fork and bake
until soft, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven but leave the oven on.

Lightly oil a baking dish. When the potatoes are cool enough to
handle, cut in half lengthwise and, leaving the shells intact, scoop
out the flesh into a large bowl. Add the tofu, pesto, tamari, and
salt & pepper to taste, blending until well combined. Spoon the
stuffing back into the potato skins and arrange in the prepared dish.
Drizzle with a small amount of olive oil and bake until hot, 15 to
20 minutes.

To serve, arrange the potato halves on a platter or 4 individual
plates and top each with a spoonful of the fennel compote and another
drizzle of olive oil, if desire.

Recipe by Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson

MMMMM
--- SBBSecho 3.23-Win32
* Origin: The Fool's Quarter, fqbbs.synchro.net (1:105/500)