We cannot and will not forget 9/11. 16 years ago the US experienced the worse terrorist attach on our soil in history. Today we face threats from both inside and outside our borders. We should never let this tragedy be forgotten. We should take it as a lesson. The world needs to stop these battles. We can’t go on hating because of color, religion, where you live or whether you are rich or poor.
If you ask President Trump, Global Warming isn’t real, It’s FAKE NEWS! But if global warming is fake, why are we getting so many major hurricanes? Hurricanes gain strength and grow from the warm water of the Caribbean. When they pass over cooler water they loose energy. “The U.S. has never been hit, since we started collecting records in 1851, by two Category 4 or stronger hurricanes in the same season.” Jeff Masters
It looks like that is about to change. Hurricane Harvey just left Texas and now Irma is about to make landfall in Florida.
It’s a bit confusing actually. When we have an El Nino year extremely warm temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, push strong winds into the Atlantic, creating high levels of wind shear that stops hurricanes. In a La Nina year the opposite happens. Pacific sea temperatures reverse and cool which tends to drive hurricanes. But here’s the thing (there’s always a thing), this year is neutral! It’s neither El Nino or LA Nina.
In 2005 the conditions were much like they are this year. Think back. We had hurricanes Rita (Cat 3) , Wilma (cat 4) and of course Katrina, (cat 5). Katrina was like Harvey in that much of the damage was due to flooding. In the case of Katrina levees failed but Harvey stalled and rained and rained and rained!
I’ve heard all of the arguments about the weather being cyclical and I agree. But I do believe that the water is warmer so storms are more extreme when they happen. Something is making the oceans warmer. Something is making the ice caps melt which is making the earth warmer. I’m not a scientist but I’m sure all of our human polution can’t be helping the situation.
As Hurricane Irma heads for Florida even Disney is not immune. The World famous home of Mickey and Minnie is closing for only the 5th time since it opened in 1971. Why am I talking about this? Because it looks like I may be heading for Orlando just as Irma leaves the state.
About a year ago I had a chance to grab a quick visit to Orlando. By quick I mean only 4 days. Fly down, spend a couple of days and fly back. The cost, just $150.00 so I jumped at the chance. The only problem was that I had to use the trip before September 30. I usually avoid vacations before October because of my work load but the price was too good to say no. So now I find myself watching the weather channel nightly and getting updates from my friends in Orlando.
According to the weather folks, Irma’s hurricane strength winds are going to begin to reach Orlando tonight. On Sunday Orlando should be in the thick of it but as the pitchmen say-But Wait! There’s More!-. They just announced that Irma’s winds are going to hang around through Monday before the storm moves on out of the area.
I continue to monitor conditions. My resort is expected to be open for business on Tuesday. It’s been closed as of yesterday. Disney World is planning to welcome visitors again on Tuesday. Everyone is planning to bounce back quick. One can only hope the optimism is well placed. I guess it will all depend on the planes. If they are flying into Orlando I guess I’ll be going. House sitter/pet sitter is on standby so everything is in place if I get to go. I guess I’ll have a new adventure. I usually run away from disaster zones not toward them. I know my limits. In the meantime, keep your eye to the sky.
Just announced Irma is shifting to the West. Bad for the coast good for Orlando.
Fall is the time for baking in my house. Summer time is for grilling. Outdoor cooking keeps the house cool while the aroma of charcoal and grilling meat drift on the breeze. With cooler days and evenings its time to get the oven going. Homemade breads, muffins and cakes begin to appear. Fresh apples and cranberries lie in wait on the counter.
The cranberries haven’t quite hit the store shelves yet. They will be here any day now but apples are beginning to come in season. As I considered my options I thought Apple Muffins might be a good breakfast choice. I’ve never made apple muffins but I didn’t see any reason why they wouldn’t be just as good as blueberry or cranberry. With that in mind I began an internet search for a good day to day recipe. I found a promising one at Allrecipes.com
I made a quick trip to the store for flour, baking powder and apples. I had everything else on hand but I wanted to be sure the flour and baking powder were fresh. For apples I selected Granny Smith. I wanted Macintosh as that’s just what I always think of for baking but like the cranberries, there weren’t any on the shelves.
I’ve never tries a new recipe that didn’t need a little tweaking but this one looked pretty straight forward.
Prep 20 m
Cook 25 m
Ready In 45 m
Yummy, but next time I will use the jumbo baking tins and only fill 3/4 of the way. I’ll add the strudel topping to top it off. My regular sized tin was overflowing even with 8 muffin cups instead of 6 and I had to trim the strudel topping to get the muffins out. I found it easiest to eat them with a fork. But sooooo good! These are going to be very popular around here.
I haven’t been to a horse show in years with the exception of Equine Affair in 2013. That wasn’t a horse show like I remember them. Still if you have a chance to go and you love horses, it’s worthwhile.
Some Detours bring nice SurprisesI was on my way to Ipswich to check out Wolf Hollow. Traffic wasn’t bad through Boston but once I hit RT 128 we crawled. I’d missed the presentation but figured I’d finish the drive. It would make it easier to find next time I tried. I was almost there when I spotted horses, riders and trailers. The field was packed with cars. I slowed down until I saw a billboard WELCOME TO THE 2017 MYOPIA HORSE SHOW. September 1-3. It was a no-brainier. I pulled in. The nice police officer pointed me to a field and told me to park anywhere. I stayed away from the horse trailers. I didn’t want to get in anyone’s way.
The horse show is an event sponsored by the Myopia Hunt Club. Myopia Hunt Club is a foxhunting and private country club, located in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. It’s not all about the horses either. There’s a world class golf course. The U.S Open has been played at the Club four times. But back to the horses, on Sunday afternoons you can watch polo matches. Myopia features one of the oldest continually running polo fields in the nation.
This was a good choice. There was no fee to park and no admission fee! The sun out, the temperatures were in the 70’s with a nice breeze. I even managed to get a seat right next to the field. I stayed for Adult Hunters which is a jumping competition and the Ladies Side Saddle, a very elegant and beautiful event. It couldn’t pick a favorite. All of the animals were magnificent! I’m so glad I decided to stop.
