Merry Christmas – Snapshot of the Day, No. 333

122413_333MerryChristmasR

Why does HE get to wear the Christmas cap? Just once I’d like to wear it!!!

This is Bob and Sera. Bob is the one donning the hat.

Bob is our best pet. He never makes a mess, and he is extremely quiet. We like to decorate him for all of the seasons. He’s a BIG Alabama football fan, too. He has lots of hats for football season.

Joe’s dad bought this stuffed bobcat years ago at a garage sale. Unfortunately he failed to tell Joe’s mom he had purchased it. So when she started to get into the car, she spotted “Bob” in the backseat and screamed bloody murder. And then she proceeded to run away as fast as she could. She would have made it too, if it weren’t for that grassy slope she tried to scale. Her feet were just spinning in the mud.

According to the story’s legend, it took her a while to stop screaming.

Fast forward to a couple of years ago.

Joe had borrowed his dad’s truck to haul some stuff to the dump. I guess you can guess where this story is heading.

Yep. I hopped in the front seat of the truck and happened to look back to help Joe back up – and that’s when I saw Bob. ( Up until this point, I had no idea he even existed.)

I screamed! Joe slammed on the brakes and said, “What is it!”

Me: “There’s a bobcat in the back seat!”

Joe: “Don’t DO that! You scared me!”

Me: “There is a bobcat in the back seat! How am I NOT supposed to scream in a situation like that???! That was the LAST thing I expected to see back there.”

Joe’s father had put Bob in the back seat of the truck with the intention of taking him to the dump.

We decided to take him home to scare the cats. (If only I had taken video of the meet and greet.)

Let’s just say, it took a while, but they finally accepted Bob into the family. Obviously, we decided to keep him.

Joe occasionally puts the cats’ toys in Bob’s mouth to see what they will do.

They toys always wind up back in the cats’ room.

I guess they are not willing to share their toys with a stuffed bobcat.

Photo Studio – Snapshot of the Day, No. 332

122313_332PhotoStudioRThis is the photo studio at work. I don’t get a chance to use it much anymore, but there are a lot of memories attached to this room.

Actually, the original studio used to be inside the former photo department. But that was a merger and several renovations ago.

Here is a link to a blog that contains several photos from that era. We had a lot of fun!

Dinner and a Cell Phone – Snapshot of the Day, No. 331

122213_331DinnerAndACellPhoneRMy initial idea for my photo of the day did not work out.

My second plan has not happened yet. We are planning on taking the dogs with us to see Christmas lights, but we still haven’t left the house.

So….as I was cleaning up the kitchen, I saw the remains of our dinner.

It still amazes me that my cell phone camera is sharper than the wide angle that came with our 35mm.

Time to buy a new lens.

Dome Room – Snapshot of the Day, No. 329

122013_329DomeRoomRThis is the dome room of the famous Chattanooga Choo-Choo. Yes, the train station in the song.

When I first walked into this room and looked up – approximately 40 years ago – I got slightly dizzy. I remember it very vividly. I would have to make sure I was sitting down whenever I looked up.

It was being used as a restaurant back then, and the most magnificent room I had ever seen – at least up until that point. But I was just a little kid at the time.

Now whenever I walk into the room, I still marvel at the height and architecture.

Today it’s used as a lobby to the hotel the Choo-Choo runs. You can even spend the night in a train car if you want to.

We plan on doing that one day. It’s a little pricey, but I bet it’s worth it.

Taking Their Toll – Snapshot of the Day, No. 328

121913_328TakingTheirTollR

We had a cookie party today at work, so since I already had Toll House cookie dough in the refrigerator……

Here’s the recipe if you’re interested:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks, 1/2 pound) butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated [white] sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 cups (12-ounce package) NESTLE TOLL HOUSE Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

1 cup chopped nuts

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE in preheated 375-degree [Fahrenheit] oven for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

PAN COOKIE VARIATION: PREPARE dough as above. Spread into greased 15″x10″ jelly-roll pan. Bake in preheated 375-degree [Fahrenheit] oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack.

FOR HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING (>5,200 feet): INCREASE flour to 2 1/2 cups; add 2 teaspoonfuls water with flour; reduce both granulated sugar and brown sugar to 2/3 cup each. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit, drop cookies for 8 to 10 minutes and pan cookies for 17 to 19 minutes.

 

Coffee Break – Snapshot of the Day, No. 327

121813_327CoffeeBreakRI ran into Rembrandt’s today during my lunch break and decided to use this guy as my photo of the day.

I was trying to shoot his photo without his knowledge – but looks like I was not successful. Oh well.

Mr. Bill Looses a Leg – Snapshot of the Day, No. 326

121713_326MrBillLoosesALegRWe went to Rock City’s Enchanted Garden of Lights tonight to continue our yearly holiday tradition.

Inside one of the stops, kids can decorate their very own gingerbread man – for a low fee of $3.50.

Apparently the owner of this little man did not care for the end result. One bite and he was ditched.

Fat Tire Muffins – Snapshot of the Day, No. 325

121613_325FatTireMuffinsRA few posts back, I announced I had made way too much granola in my zeal to cook; SO! this weekend, I utilized some of it and made granola muffins.

It didn’t make a dent. We still have tons of granola left. But the muffins are good, so I’ve got that going for me.

I decided to shoot only the crumbs to make the photo a bit more interesting today. The Fat Tire coaster is from a restaurant we went to last night. We had another buy one, get one free coupon that expires at the end of the year, so we ate out. We generally hit a lot of restaurants at the end of the year because of these coupons.

Anyway, I liked the artwork on the coaster from Sing it or Wing it, so I took it home with me. Neither one of us had ever been there – and it’s very likely we still would no have eaten there if it weren’t for said coupon. We cannot – therefore – do not sing in public. Plus, we like a calm, quiet atmosphere when we’re dining. This is a loud karaoke restaurant.

Joe: “This is probably not going to be very good. Maybe we should have just gotten a burger.”

Me: “Be positive! You might be surprised.”

And we were surprised. It was truly one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. It really was good. Joe liked his, as well. He got salmon and I got grilled chicken. Or as the menu refers to them as: Darling Dolly and Daring Diana.

Christmas Parade – Snapshot of the Day, No. 324

121513_324ChristmasParadeRWe went to the Christmas parade downtown tonight. The Humane Society was there with a bunch of pups.

This guy was a little shy before the event actually started.

Perhaps he was less than thrilled with his costume.