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Miscellaneous Subjects of No Import
Aug. 3rd, 2021 08:47 pmMask protocols are being reintroduced in most of the places I go to anymore. I am relieved. We had friends from out of area meet up with us for breakfast on Friday - it was so hard not to hug them! - and that is likely the last time we will eat out until the Delta variant disappears or 75% vaccination levels are achieved. And I am counting children in that percentage. Our friends have a six year old daughter, which is why we chose not to indulge in hugs. how can we know we aren't carrying the virus from day to day?
After we had breakfast we drove across the state to visit with other (elderly) friends who have been in strict lockdown and just recently started relaxing their diligence. There were four of us who visited but all of us four are "plague pod buddies" so it wasn't as dangerous as it seems. It was so wonderful to see our friends for the weekend, especially since they were not hosting an SCA event on their land so we could just hang out and be relaxed. Normally we see them when they have a mess of guests and we're all working the event. And their dogs were out and about instead of being locked into their kennel area as they are during events. They have a black lab and a set of littermates who are lab/beagle mixes.
Walmart has their own brand of flavored water that I enjoy drinking. They are lightly carbonated diet ones and cost about 60 cents per liter. But I drink a lot, about two gallons a day, and buying those containers is both wasteful (even if we recycle them) and a pain in the tush given how bulky and heavy they are each shopping load. But other sparkling waters are so bitter in comparison and too, too bubbly. So I bought a Drinkmate carbonation kit. At the time that I bought it, it was the only style which allowed you to use it on beverages rather than just plain water. I've had it since late December and I love it. The only difficulty has been finding beverage mixes or syrups that I like - many of the "Soda Stream" syrups are too expensive and worse, the sweetener they use leaves a bitter chemical aftertaste. All of the liquid "drops for water" flavors (like "Pure" and "Mio") have the same problem, that bitter aftertaste. I experimented with extracts mixed with monk's fruit, and that worked but was another pain in the tushy. Although I did find that Ralph's Sugar Free Pina Colada syrup somehow escaped the aftertaste trap but the rest of the Ralh's syrups I bought are going to be given away. Bleech. The flavor is too expensive for everyday drinking but it goes on my list of Things I Like To Drink. I have a notebook app on my phone with all of the various add-ins listed in order of preference. It makes shopping for flavors easier. Not only do I list the syrups/mixes in there but also where I got them from, as some are store-specific. I have found that I carbonate my beverages less often than I expected I would so my gas cannister I started with is still going nine months later. I feel a little sheepish about that. I think it is finally starting to empty out. The last time I used it it sounded strange as it was fizzing my beverage so maybe the charge is wearing out.
And I like that I can ignore Walmart now. I feel guilty when I shop there.
After we had breakfast we drove across the state to visit with other (elderly) friends who have been in strict lockdown and just recently started relaxing their diligence. There were four of us who visited but all of us four are "plague pod buddies" so it wasn't as dangerous as it seems. It was so wonderful to see our friends for the weekend, especially since they were not hosting an SCA event on their land so we could just hang out and be relaxed. Normally we see them when they have a mess of guests and we're all working the event. And their dogs were out and about instead of being locked into their kennel area as they are during events. They have a black lab and a set of littermates who are lab/beagle mixes.
Walmart has their own brand of flavored water that I enjoy drinking. They are lightly carbonated diet ones and cost about 60 cents per liter. But I drink a lot, about two gallons a day, and buying those containers is both wasteful (even if we recycle them) and a pain in the tush given how bulky and heavy they are each shopping load. But other sparkling waters are so bitter in comparison and too, too bubbly. So I bought a Drinkmate carbonation kit. At the time that I bought it, it was the only style which allowed you to use it on beverages rather than just plain water. I've had it since late December and I love it. The only difficulty has been finding beverage mixes or syrups that I like - many of the "Soda Stream" syrups are too expensive and worse, the sweetener they use leaves a bitter chemical aftertaste. All of the liquid "drops for water" flavors (like "Pure" and "Mio") have the same problem, that bitter aftertaste. I experimented with extracts mixed with monk's fruit, and that worked but was another pain in the tushy. Although I did find that Ralph's Sugar Free Pina Colada syrup somehow escaped the aftertaste trap but the rest of the Ralh's syrups I bought are going to be given away. Bleech. The flavor is too expensive for everyday drinking but it goes on my list of Things I Like To Drink. I have a notebook app on my phone with all of the various add-ins listed in order of preference. It makes shopping for flavors easier. Not only do I list the syrups/mixes in there but also where I got them from, as some are store-specific. I have found that I carbonate my beverages less often than I expected I would so my gas cannister I started with is still going nine months later. I feel a little sheepish about that. I think it is finally starting to empty out. The last time I used it it sounded strange as it was fizzing my beverage so maybe the charge is wearing out.
And I like that I can ignore Walmart now. I feel guilty when I shop there.
