Rootie's Blue Cheese

You can find some of the best chicken wings in Buffalo, New York, and on a recent trip, I was introduced to Rootie's Blue Cheese dressing/dip, which you see pictured below.  Best I've ever had!  Ultra-thick and extra-chunky!  Rootie's fans call it "Liquid Gold Mold" and refer to themselves as "The Blue Cheese Mafia".  If you're in a Wegmans grocery store in Buffalo, I recommend you pick one up.  It has to stay refrigerated, so bring a cooler.

You can also order it online at the link below, and they will ship it appropriately packed.

https://buffaloship.com/rootie-s-blue-cheese-15-fl-oz

Premier Protein

I've become a fan of protein drinks, but when my usual CorePower Strawberry Banana doubled in price, from $2 to $4 per bottle, I said, "No way, Jose," and began searching for a reasonably priced alternative.  While I haven't found a permanent solution, I ran across a deal during the recent Amazon Prime Days and ordered the 12-pack of Premier Protein for just $15.56.  I think the Pumpkin Spice wasn't selling well, and they wanted to get what they could.  The taste is a bit over the top, but adding a few ounces of whole milk gets it to where I like it.  

You can search for protein shakes using the link below.  There are a few options for around $2 per bottle, which is my happy price.  

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=protein+shake

Ruggles Ferry

Gourmet Chef Elaine and I took a trip this fall to Tennessee and played 18 holes of golf at Island Pointe and Ruggles Ferry.  Island Pointe was a real challenge, with most holes played next to (or over) the French Broad River.  A couple of days later, we played Ruggles Point, and while it had some water, the course was very wide open, in great shape, and even included a little cemetery, as you can see in the bottom picture.  While it's difficult to see in the top picture, my tee shot on this par 3 stopped two feet from the hole, the closest I've even been to a hole-in-one.  At $73 total for an afternoon tee time, including carts, it was a real bargain, and we would definitely play it again.

https://rugglesferrygc.com

Google Weather Lab

According to Google's Gemini AI...

"Weather Lab is an interactive web-based research platform developed by Google DeepMind and Google Research. It serves as a live platform to showcase and test experimental, AI-driven weather forecasting models, allowing researchers, meteorologists, and the public to visualize real-time AI weather simulations."

It's cool to see what's happening weather-wise across the planet all at once, like the screenshot you see below.  You can look at the current weather at the link below.

https://deepmind.google.com/science/weatherlab

Google Storage

I buy 100GB of Google storage because I've been using it for twenty-one years, so I've collected a lot of stuff.  For those of you who are running up against the normal 15GB cap, the link below is your starting point for reviewing and deleting data.  As seen in the screenshot below, you're presented with a high-level breakdown of what is being used by service.  Clicking on "Clean up space" will give you some suggested items and options to clean up by service.

https://one.google.com/storage

DLM Lobster Rolls

Our local Dorothy Lane Markets feature an outdoor lunch special during the summer months, and when the Lobster Roll you see below was the feature, we couldn't pass up the splurge.  I don't know if it comes through that well in the picture, but this baby was simply PACKED with delicious lobster.  I had to eat some of the pieces to shrink the rest to fit into my mouth.  With the coming of autumn, we'll have to wait too many months for its return, but you can check out the other things going on at DLM's four locations at the link below.

https://www.dorothylane.com/events

Pepino Martini

We recently stayed in downtown Cleveland at the Westin, and attached ot the hotel was the Masa & Agave Cantina.  I was in the mood for something different and decided to try the Pepino Martini you see below.  It's a combination of cucumber vodka, Ancho Reyes Verde (a chile liqueur), simple syrup, and a few other ingredients you'll find in the second image, which the bartender was sweet enough to let me take a picture.  It was a perfect combination of cucumber, sweetness, and heat.  I'll try to recreate it at home, but if I come close, that will be good enough.

If you're not familiar with Ancho Reyes Verde, you can read about it at the link below.

https://www.anchoreyes.com/products/ancho-reyes-verde

DEF

At a recent stop at the Buc-ee's off I-40 at the Sevierville, Tennessee exit, I noticed the letters "DEF" over a few pumps, wondered what they meant, and found the answer interesting and a little gross.  "DEF" stands for "Diesel Exhaust Fluid," and it's used in many diesel vehicles to reduce air pollution by lowering nitrogen oxides using a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system that breaks down harmful nitrogen oxide emissions into harmless nitrogen and water.  So far, so good, until I learned that DEF is a solution made of 32.5% urea and 67.5% deionized water.  Yuk.  In other words, not drinkable.

Buc-ee's sells DEF at those marked pumps for $3-4 dollars per gallon, or you can purchase pre-packaged jugs inside the store and save about 50 cents per gallon.  Sure beats getting it at Amazon for several times the price.  I'll never look at an 18-wheeler the same.  

More information, in case you're oddly interested, can be found at the link below.

https://dieselpowerproducts.com/blogs/blogs/diesel-exhaust-fluid

Love's Rewards

I've written before that Love's is our go-to travel stop on long trips, and while filling up recently at the last Love's before leaving Ohio on eastbound I-80, I noticed that if you download their app, you can get 10 cents off per gallon by scanning the app's barcode at the pump.  I did that and used it to save money at the first Love's on westbound I-70 after leaving West Virginia (my gas tax dollars are going to Ohio).  Not a big savings, but a dollar in my pocket is better than theirs.  I also get points, and my current total of 125 points translates into $1.25.  You can download their app and learn more at the link below.

https://www.loves.com/promos/download-app

Better Mute

I mute almost every commercial except ones that are funny every time, like the Allstate "Mayhem" and the Progressive "Becoming Your Parents".  That's easy enough on the TV remote, but on my iPad it involves repeatedly pressing the volume down, followed by repeated volume-up presses to restore the sound.  But I've found a much quicker sequence.  I swipe from the top right-hand corner towards the middle of the screen, which reveals the Control Center.  I can mute the sound by pulling the volume to the bottom.  So two quick swipes replace the tap-tap-taps of the old method.  The screenshot below shows the mute, but the rest of the screen is not black; that just happens because taking a screenshot does not include any video.