ETC ...

 It is early morning here and awakened by the cat at 4 AM, I have eaten, fed him and endeavored to deal with a loose caster screw in one of my small front wheels. Much to my chagrin, despite having every flat and Philips head screw drivers, nothing is working so I am now going to search for a repair kit for my 2009 Tilite and hope I find something that works.

I ordered two cushion covers for the seat and got exactly what I did not want. The middleman seller is a supplier and not the manufacturer, so several phone calls later, I placed a new order for what is now a custom item and was told I could keep the covers from the original order. The second order is for what is called a shower cap cover. No zips which break because they are nylon, and no pockets. They are easy to put on and take off with simple elastic but the areas around the elastic now have holes. I have used duct tape on the underside and I'm looking for a patch for the top. Most of those are iron on and I don't own an iron. I will need to see if the multiple holes can be repaired with thread.

After several dry, overcast days, it is once again pouring rain as I write, no doubt from some system. As long as it is not a hurricane, the water is welcome, though we seem to have had an overabundance this summer. As always, I eagerly await our typically rainless, somewhat cooler winter.

The kitchen at chez moi has been an uncharacteristic hive of activity as split pea and matzoh ball soups, salads and a new-to-me breakfast cookie were attempted and enjoyed. The cookies were found on You Tube courtesy of Dani Spies at Clean and Delicious. The basic recipe is three ingredients: rolled oats, mashed banana and chocolate chips. My choice of chips is from Lily's Chocolate and are stevia sweetened which contain no added sugar.

They were baked at 350 on a parchment lined tray, cooled and placed in the refrigerator in a covered container. They will bake up to the size you form and I got 10 from the recipe because I formed them slightly larger. The hardest part was letting a mixture of two large fork-mashed bananas mixed with one cup rolled oats sit for 20 minutes so the oats could absorb some of the moisture before baking. Neglecting this step leaves the cookies dry and crumbly, as I discovered. According to Ms. Spies, this recipe is flexible. You can ditch the chips for raisins and or nuts, add a dash of vanilla, honey, maple syrup or cinnamon or whatever you like. I will enjoy  experimenting with some nuts or flax or other dried fruit but liked the taste, texture and simplicity of the original with tea or coffee. I cannot seem to abide oat meal in a bowl but this is a nice alternative.

My birthday was a quiet affair with a few cards and messages and an unexpected gifted bag of shelled pistachios, a long with two books from a friend.

Lukas and I are fine and plan to catch up on various things here in the next couple of days. Cheers and stay well.