Thursday!
As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group is for us to check in at to let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It's also so we can find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. Members come here to check in. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
If you'd like to be part of the Itzl Alert Network, please leave a comment asking to join, or send us a message asking to join. We'd love to have you. The bigger our network, the less likely someone will be stranded all alone.
So, we survived yesterday.
It actually wasn't very hard. Because they keep the lights turned off in my office, and it was overcast and foggy - and hence very dark inside - most visitors thought the office was closed and walked around looking for another entrance.
They found the gazebo, which was unlocked for this event. That's exactly what they were supposed to do!
So Itzl and I had a comparatively quiet day, and I got much more work done than I'd anticipated doing. Yay! Not behind after all!
And when I got home, I baked pies.
I'd wondered, when I bought a special pie lifter tool, if I was wasting the money on the Williams Sonoma gift certificate my sister gave me for Thanksgiving. I was thinking perhaps I should have chosen something else.
But that pie lifter tool was pure gold!
When I bake these little mini pies, I've always had trouble getting the pies out of the tin - either I end up flipping the pan and the pies fall out on their tops and no matter how careful I am, at least half or more will shatter, or I end up breaking the crust digging the pies out of the pan or scratching the pan. The pan bakes 4 pies at a time.
But this tool slips right under the edge of the crust and pops the pie whole and unbroken right up!
I now have 4 many-berry pies and 4 chicken pot pies for lunches - and none of them are broken or crushed.
I guess the tool was worth it.