Category Archives: Uncategorized

floods, time change, and Basement…

I’ve been downstairs in the basement of Lowell Makes too much! (Not necessarily a bad thing) It is awfully confusing though. Today, I got up, picked up some things at the store…(Groceries and filters for fish tanks and a few bonus fishes because they were on sale) I hurried home and tried to clean my 55 gallon fish-tank.

I have a neat little hose that hooks up to the faucet and the other end goes into the fish-tank. So that i can drain the fish-tank for a water change easily and I can refill the fish-tank pretty easy too. “EASY” being the key word. In a perfect world it would be easy.

I have a grassy type of plant in my fish-tank that grows out of control and I pull some out…and some gets sucked up in the hose and ends up in the sink. I forgot the sink sometimes gets clogged with this grassy stuff and blocks the sink…However, I was really not paying attention this time. I should have heard the change in pitch the sink makes when the water stops hitting the sink bottom and starts hitting water building up in the sink. I didn’t. I failed to hear it change sound when the water then splashed out of the sink and onto the floor…I did however look over at one point and realize that the filthy water that I was sucking out of the fish tank, under rocks and such was now being poured onto the counter top to the right of the sink…under the microwave, dripping into drawers/cupboards and onto the floor…GROSS! So I stopped what I was doing. Grabbed the bin of old towels used for this exact purpose, large water spills after a few incidents with our salt water fish-tank. Dumped the whole bin out went to town drying everything off. All rugs managed to soak up some water, everything under the sink was soaked and removed dried and put back. Finally, done drying things…do a quick coat of disinfectant and a second wiping and figured, I was golden!

Went back to the fish-tank…Cleaning a few more things before filling it back up…to turn around and realize the sink again is now spraying dirty water straight up…a pan in the sink shifted at a funny angle and the pressure of the water coming out is spraying water everywhere…not hitting the ceiling, stove, getting the ceiling lights wet and reaching as far as the cat’s food bowl as far as 13 feet away. Ugh! This isn’t my day for cleaning this fish tank. So I Hurry around drying off the floors, lights, food bowls, stove and other do-dads and whoseie-whatsits that sit on my counter tops. Sanitize everything a second time. Finally realize that the best plan at this point is to just fill the fish-tank and clean the filters and call it a day.

I finish, with the fish tank and I take a peek outside at the window and the sun is dipping low in the sky. I’m thinking…oh, it must be about 5ish maybe 6ish out. I should start dinner so mike has food when he gets home from work today. Typically, he’s down at Lowell Makes…and I’m usually with him, in the basement with no windows. However, today…he’s at the office and I’m at home tackling the cleaning…or in my case the dirtying. So I quickly start making dinner. Get all the things in the pots and bake dinner and finally finish and look at the clock. How much longer till mike gets home? the clock reads 4. WHAT?!?!?! Wait. Huh? It’s pitch dark out. I can’t believe it’s so early!! I let the food cool and put it away in the fridge to microwave it when Mike gets home from work. Which probably won’t be till closer to 7pm.

It’s been such a long day, and only half the house is straightened and cleaned. Cleaned the kitchen 2 times and the bathroom. The living-room is looking a bit neater also.

I’ve been working for 2 months on a post that I assume at this point isn’t going to get posted, the way I wanted to post it. I had pictures to go along with it…but perhaps I’ll just post it the way it is. Are people still reading this? If so give yourself a cookie. Thanks for sticking in to the very end. 🙂

Fruit Cocktail Cake

Fruit cocktail cake
(15X10 pan)

2 eggs
1 ½ c. sugar
2 (16 oz) cans of fruit cocktail with juice
2 ¼ c. flower
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees f.
2. add eggs and sugar together
3. add the rest of the ingredients ( I mix it up all the ingredients with just the juice from the fruit cocktail…holding the fruit back last so it doesn’t just get squished)
4. DO NOT MASH THE CHUNKS OF FRUIT! They are a delicious surprise later!
5. Put in a greeced (15×10) pan
6. sprinkle top with coconut and chopped walnuts
7. place in preheated oven for 25 minutes
8. *If you just realized that you used a 39ox can of fruit cocktail…don’t panic…just bake 10-15 minutes longer…when the cake stops jiggling. It should be ok. Might be a little soupier and browner then the correct amount of fruit cocktail. It will still be delicious)
9. When it’s done it will have to be cooled for an hour… While it cools make the glaze for the top.

THE GLAZE

½ teaspoon vanilla
¾ c. sugar
½ c. butter
¼ c. evaporated milk
½ c. chopped walnuts

1. put ingredients all ingredients except the nuts into a pan. (Vanilla, sugar, butter, evaporated milk)
2. bring to boil and boil for 1 minute
3. put nuts in pan after it’s done boiling
4. pour nutty glaze over the warm cake
5. let it soak in and cool
6. best served cool. Refrigerate uneaten portions

This can be made without coconut and nuts (It’s ok, but not as Yummy)

This should take 40 minutes to make, and an extra hour after to cool in the fridge. 🙂 So happy baking!!