iPhone 16e

Gourmet Chef Elaine's iPhone 11 was due for an upgrade, and we planned to do this sometime in 2025. However, with the unknown factor of tariffs flying around, we figured sooner was safer than later.  Her new iPhone 16e is shown below (with our grandkids, of course), has twice the storage (64GB->128GB), four times the camera resolution, and is 80% faster.  The folks at the Apple store transferred all the photos, contacts, etc., but couldn't transfer her cell phone number since it was with Total Wireless.  Best, and most unexpected, was the $130 credit for trading in the iPhone 11.

She called Total Wireless to get the number transferred and was met with an accent so thick that everything he said was almost incomprehensible.  That's when her technology assistant (me) took over and took it over the finish line.  

I can't wait for an English-speaking Chatbot to do this kind of support.

https://www.apple.com/iphone-16e

Homemade Sign

We saw the sign shown below as we headed out on one of our three-mile walks, and I was curious to know what was below the "T" written on top of the piece of tape.  How did they misspell "ESTATE"?   What could the hidden letter be?  I was so tempted to pull the piece of tape off to satisfy my curiosity, but I resisted, not wanting to mess up their sign.

On the way back, I wanted to snap a picture and from the other side of the sign, I had my answer.  It was the letter "A".  They apparently wrote "ESA", immediately realized their error, and used tape to hide and write over it.  

Encrusted Mac & Cheese With Bacon

Every January our local Dorothy Lane Market grocery store has their BaconFest event.  Just some of the selections are a Butterscotch Bacon Tart at the bakery, a Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball at the deli, a Cajun Bacon Cheddar Sausage at the meat counter, and a Bacon-Wrapped Sea Scallops in the seafood section.  We walked away with some of the Encrusted Mac & Cheese with Bacon you see below, which was awesome.  

https://dayton937.com/dayton-dining/baconfest-is-back-at-dorothy-lane-market.html

Flexible Tailpiece

I mentioned in last Tuesday's blog that I needed to buy a longer PVC tailpiece.  I expected to get one that was longer than needed and cut it down to the size needed, but what I bought is what you see below, an accordion-looking tailpiece that extends from eight to twelve inches.  The other advantage of this design is it can be bent to handle misaligned plumbing connections.  More product details can be found at the link below.

https://www.doitbest.com/product/400649/do-it-best-1-1-2-in-x-12-in-white-plastic-tailpiece-400649

Hottest Times

A few weeks ago I blogged on my life's coldest times.  Now, over on my Life Experiences blog at the link below, I cover the hottest times.  There are not that many compared to the cold ones, but these four stick out in my memory as self-induced puddles of sweat and lessons learned.  

https://lifeexperiences.paulishing.com/2025/04/the-hottest-times.html

New Vanity

One upgrade we've been wanting to make is replacing our upstairs bathroom vanity with the model shown below.  With my brother-in-law's help (really the other way around), we first removed the old vanity which was so strongly caulked it took several tools, including a crowbar, to finally pop it free.  The new vanity posed its own challenges.  The holes for the faucet handles were not predrilled wide enough so it required a trip to the hardware store to buy a rounded file.  Three of the drawer handles needed two long flat-head screws, but only four were included, so that took another trip to the hardware store.  One more trip to the hardware store was needed to buy a longer PVC tailpiece (more on that in a couple of days), bringing the number of trips to three, which is about average for a project like this.  The result was beautiful and worth the work.

Huge shoutout to Albert for taking his morning to make this a reality!

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Home-Decorators-Collection-Clady-31-in-Single-Sink-Deep-Blue-Bath-Vanity-with-Silver-Ash-Cultured-Marble-Top-Assembled-HD2030P2-DB/315622122

Food Bank Donations

Gourmet Chef Elaine and I signed up at St. Charles Church to make this April's deliveries of all the charitable items donated at the entrance to the church to the Catholic Social Service food bank near downtown Dayton.  The first week resulted in filling the back two rows of our SUV (shown below) and unloading fifteen crates of beef ravioli, canned corn, peanut butter, pasta, cereal, soups, paper products, and more at their donation site.  We learned they had provided food to about 130 families that morning and that their food bank is just one of many in our region.  Pretty impressive operation and much-needed help to people in need.

https://cssmv.org

Lebanon Bologna

I love Lebanon Bologna (shown below) but never thought of why it's named that.  A quick search led me to the Wikipedia link below where I learned that Lebanon refers to Lebanon County, Pennsylvania where the Pennsylvania Dutch developed it about 240 years ago.  I also learned it's not so much akin to bologna as it is to sausage.  It's cured, smoked, and fermented to impart its signature robust taste.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon_bologna

Strawberry Mule

The Strawberry Mule shown below is from Cooper's Hawk.  It combines Tito’s vodka, strawberry puree, and ginger beer with garnishes of sliced strawberry, lime, and a big sprig of mint.  You can make this without the puree, but I like the extra sweetness.  This basic recipe can be used to make tons of different flavors, with peach and watermelon next on my list.  Bring on summer!

Bottle Protector Bags

I ordered an 18-pack of the inflatable bags shown below from Amazon for $20.  That's way more than I needed but the price was OK, so I got them anyway.  They come packed flat and include a hand pump that worked one time before it broke, so I resorted to my battery-powered pump instead, which was way easier.  It's a bit tricky to inflate and I wasted a couple of bags before I got that hang of it.  I inflated two bags all the way and that made inserting a bottle difficult, so I inflated a couple more about three-quarters, which worked much better.  These bags are great for packing bottles in my suitcase and not worrying they may break.

The link below now points to a 36-pack of bags for $30, so you might want to shop around for other options.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098DCV7X7