A PRECIOUS MAIL

Since he is retired Mr. G took over the hard job of emptying the mail box which gives him a good reason to grump the whole morning about the only mail we get .... invoices !

Since we had our snail invasion not so long ago I had put a snail killer product in the letter box because I didn't like half eaten invoices. Mr. G on the other hand was convinced that if he leaves some useless advertisings on the bottom of the box, the snails would make the difference and only eat the advertisings and not the invoices anymore.



Yesterday he missed a cheque which should have come by snail mail already a month ago. He called the sender, who confirmed that the cheque was sent end June ! Even snail mail doesn't take more then a month except for postcards. For an unknown reason, Mr. G thought about checking the mail box again and what did he find ? the cheque !!! well conserved and not eaten up by our pets the snails ! It was under the advertising papers he had left to feed the snails, but my anti snail mission had worked and had killed them all.

Fortunately ! it was a cheque of 500 € which is a little more than dollars ! I am sure that my snails would have loved to eat such an expensive meal and it was laying there at their disposal for more then a months !

Mr. G was very angry about himself, I told him to dig better in the letterbox and laughed and laughed before I ran to the phone to report this story to my friends !

FRIDAY's FAVE FIVE

Susanne at Living to Tell the Story hosts a “Friday Fave Five” in which we share five (not necessarily) favorite things from the past week. Visit her blog to see other participants.

1. I had heard in the news that this year mussels are especially good in Belgium and mussels with french fries belong to the traditional belgian kitchen.

I wanted to check if it was true and with a friend I went to a very nice restaurant in Waterloo and effectively the mussels were real good ! The weather was sunny and warm and we could eat outside, which is always a plus too.

2. I also went on some photo hunting through several residential areas here and in my little collage you can see a street with a lot of trees, hiding big mansions with tennis places and swimming pools.

3. I helped my friend Ilona to put up a sun tent and we were really very proud that we had done it all alone without the help of a man. Unfortunately after a short but very windy thunderstorm the tent had blown away and was broken, we hadn't fixed it strong enough. Apparently we still are weak women.

4. As usual I also went swimming three times this week in the swimming pool of my fitness club.

But before that I mowed the lawn, which is not very big and Kim loves the smell of freshly cut grass.

5. Here is my working place in our garden, with my little secretary. The ombrella helps to better see the screen. Otherwise it would be too light. I also collected 4 mouse corpses in 5 days in our house. The serial Killer was cat Rosie (my secretary) but this really didn't belong to my fave fives _ Next friday I probably have more to share, because on Monday I go to the UK at the English coast to my friend Anne and I will probably also sit there in the garden but then with seagulls flying over my head.

THURSDAY THIRTEEN

more participants here

13 funny articles out of newspapers

1. A male guinea pig had a night to remember after escaping from his pen and tunnelling into a cage of 24 females. He romanced each of them in turn and was yesterday the proud father of 43 offspring.

2. A caller reported that a bird had been stolen from his apartment. It later was determined that the bird had not been stolen, but was lying dead at the bottom of its cage.

3. Advertising : "Cab Drivers wanted, nights & weekends. Must have good driving & criminal record. Apply in person".

4. Advertising : "Pony for Sale. Looks like a small horse"

5. Advertising : "Used Tombstone, perfect for someone named Homer Hendelbergen. One only"

6. Advertising : "For sale : One pair of hardly used dentures, only 2 teeth missing. $ 100 call ...

7. FASTING & PRAYER Conference: "The cost for attending the Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals.

8. The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been cancelled due to a conflict.

9. Mrs. B also has trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Pastor Jack's sermons.

10. Russian football (soccer) fans have been told to drink whisky on their trip to Wales (UK) to ward off the H1N1 swine flu virus, the head of the country's supporter association (VOB) said Monday.

11. A baby boy playing with his dad’s telephone accidentally called 911, which led police to their house — and a 500-plant marijuana-growing operation.

12. Two homes in Abington, Pennsylvania have been burglarized by a naked man who stole a woman's clothes after exposing himself to her.

13. Britain's Queen Elizabeth was delighted when a group of schoolchildren designed underwear for her. Year six pupils aged between 10 and 11 at SS March and Michael Catholic Primary School in Garstang, Lancashire, came up with a variety of styles to keep the royal rump warm and comfortable.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

and my cat .... not that friendly !

MY WORLD - Brussels beach

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Through Brussels leads a canal until Antwerp. Each year in July the city creates an artificial beach at the canal to allow people to spend some holidays on "Brussels' Beach". This is a very nice thought for those who don't have enough money to travel or live in an appartment with no green around.

I had never been there and as I was near there anyway I had a little look from what I could see from outside.

From far I saw flags and this "cruise" boat. The city also organizes "cruises" on the canal which allows you to have a completely different look on Brussels. Next time I will try that.

That's what I saw from the other side of the canal


Then I went there and asked if I could make some pictures at the entrance. Palm trees in Brussels ! A miracle, there weren't a lot of people yet because it was early morning and it was also quite cool. But there was sand and everthing which a beach needs !


A little farer boats were anchored

a view on the canal
and a houseboat

FUN MONDAY - Favourite recepe

Sayre is our host this week, and I thank her very much without her the chain would have been broken because there were no volonteer at all ! The challenge is easy for most of us who love cooking, less for those who don't like to cook ! She said :

What I want from you is a step-by-step guide (pictures encouraged) for making your favorite summertime dish. This can be an entree, a vegetable, a casserole, or a dessert. Hopefully it will be quick and easy so we can spend August playing more and cooking less!

Cooking was my hobby when I was in my 30th/40th, I loved to eat a plate I didn't know at all, find out the ingredients just by tasting and then try to cook exactly the same plate at home. Mr. G was my guinea pig and he loved it.

But after 40 years of cooking, I found other interests. There was a time I really hated it. Now I found a way to cook healthy, good and always things which don't take time.

Here is one of my favourite plate, grilled vegetables. The recepee is very easy.

Take your husband or partner and ask him to cut green, red and yellow pepper, zucchinis and/or eggplants into slices, while you answer your the comments on your blog. (in case you are retired)

Put all the vegetables together on a plate. Throw some olive oil over it, garlic and basil and put it in the oven and let it grill. When it's half done add salt, not before because salt takes out all the juice of the vegetables. While it cooks you can continue to blog (for example).

You can serve this plate with a steak, chicken or fish and a fresh french bread or a ciabatta.



raw



and ready

WEEKLY WINNERS

More participants here at Sarcastic Mom Weekly winners

As the weather was nice, I thought to make a little tour through the most expensive places to live outside Brussels.




Obviously not a poor farmer but rather the kind of Gentleman farmer



to have a lake just in front of your house is not bad either



and also some restaurants around the lake



I will never understand why fishing is called a sport (??) This would rather suit my lazy husband, but without the fishing rod, he could never kill a fish



One of the houses



with a little bridge leading to it


and in the garden a bunch of ducks