Recuva

I was asked recently if photos inadvertently deleted from a large-capacity SD card could be recovered.  If you didn't know, deleting files normally does not wipe them out, you just don't see them anymore.  If the data isn't overwritten, it's usually possible to get them back.  

There are many recovery tools on the market with Disk Drill being the best that I tried, but for $80 that was a bit much for a (hopefully) single-time use.  In the end, I used Recuva, free (I love free) Windows-only software that could recover all the files and put them on my hard drive.  It's impossible to know if it recovered every single file, but Recuva's and Disk Drill's file counts matched, so it likely snagged them all.

You can find Recuva at the link below.

https://www.ccleaner.com/recuva

Moses

It's been eighteen years since Moses, "my little buddy in the purring business", passed away. Still, until recently I never realized he was a "rescue" cat, but since I got him at SICSA (Society for the Improvement of Conditions for Stray Animals) that makes him one.  I just knew they had cats and Moses was the only one who was not a kitten (he was a year old) and let me pet him immediately and purred.  There are several Moses stories over on my Life Experiences blog at the link below.

https://lifeexperiences.paulishing.com/2016/05/remembering-moses.html

Arborvitae

The bottom picture below was taken two years ago when our arborvitae were planted.  The top picture was taken recently and shows how much they have gotten taller and thicker.  The purpose of these trees is to provide a little more privacy in our backyard and they are certainly doing that.  I can't wait to see what another couple of years of growth will do.

Slow Cooker Beef Short Ribs

Gourmet Chef Elaine made this uber-delectable recipe of beef short ribs.  Beef stock, red wine, onion, garlic, tomato paste, spices, and cornstarch produce a gravy that's perfect over a mound of mashed potatoes.  It was cooked on low for about 6-8 hours while filling the house with its mouth-watering aromas.  This could be your next crowd-pleaser!

https://www.kitchensanctuary.com/crockpot-beef-short-ribs-with-rich-gravy

Rimfire

A very good friend gave us a bottle of Rimfire Whiskey, named after her great-uncle Eli Chapman "Rimfire" Hamrick.  According to legend, Rimfire came by his nickname when asked how he killed the chickens for the hotel he worked at, he replied, ‘‘With a rimfire rifle, by God.’’  Rimfire is a type of ammunition with its primer located within a hollow rim at the base of its casing and is used by the .22 Long Rifle cartridge, the most widely sold ammunition in the world today.

Rimfire is a great sipping whiskey that is smooth with a variety of aromas which you can read about at the link below.  It's not found in Ohio, but you may find it in Indiana where it's bottled.  However, it can be ordered at regencyliquor.com.

https://www.rimfirewhiskey.com

Clover

Clover is a type of weed and while it's way prettier than the typical dandelion its biggest downside is the bees it attracts.  I stepped on one earlier this year at our swimming pool in bare feet and wow was that painful.  Not only does the barbed stinger hurt, but it releases a chemical called melittin, and that venom causes a burning sensation.  More venom is released for up to a minute, so getting the stinger out quickly is important.  We kill clover at home using Spectracide Weed Stop For Lawns and I wish the pool would do the same.

More information can be found at the link below.

https://www.livescience.com/32566-why-do-bee-stings-hurt-so-bad.html

ChromeOS Flex

You can breathe new life into an old laptop by installing ChromeOS Flex, turning it into something like, but not exactly, a Chromebook.  You get a similar web-browser-only experience which needs far less CPU and memory than Windows.  The link below will get you started by looking at which laptops have been certified to work with ChromeOS Flex.  Then the basic process to install ChromeOS Flex is to create a USB installer via a Chrome extension, boot up your target device using that flash drive, and install ChromeOS Flex.  That's all there is to it.

https://support.google.com/chromeosflex/answer/11513094

Quarterly Newsletter

People ask me all the time what I do now that I'm retired (6 years!) and that's a variety of things, but one that I enjoy doing is writing a 6-page quarterly newsletter for our friends who own Kinzeler Realty.  The first page is a seasonal topic, page two is tips for homeowners, page three is related to buying and selling your home, page four is about our community, and page five is a history topic related to our area.  The last page is used for addressing the newsletter which is mailed to several hundred people.

I also upload the PDF file to their website and you can get to them at the link below.

https://www.homesdaytonohio.com/quarterly-newsletter

Zap Those Cobs

When a friend suggested microwaving corn on the cob, I thought that was crazy talk.  Truth is it's the best corn I've ever had with great flavor and since the cob gets hot also (unlike other methods), the corn stays heated as you munch off the kernels.  Gourmet Chef Elaine likes to soak the corn in water for twenty minutes, then microwave it on high for four minutes for one ear or seven minutes for two ears.  Be sure to wear appropriate gloves when you shuck them because, once again, they will be HOT!

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade

Kevin Milstead, the owner/operator of "The Food Dude Street Eats and Catering" and known for his amazing smash burgers, made the delicious and nicely garnished drink below using muddled strawberries, a light simple syrup, and the juice from a fresh lemon.  Not that it needed it, but I added a couple of glugs of vodka to kick it up a notch.  Perfect summer drink.

His contact information and where you can find him out and about can be found on the Facebook page below.

https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Food-Dude-Street-Eats-and-Catering-LLC/100091404420448