FL weather is working on becoming 'chillay', y'all, and soup.

Everyone tells you..you'll adjust and get used to it..after 20 years it's only gotten worse..used to be more cooler days back then...

If they would stop freaking trying to play God with the weather and their weather manipulations, all would be fine, I believe.

Made a batch of tortilla soup today using some of the turkey left over from Christmas Day dinner. Had a large bowl this evening. But hey, it's Wisconsin, we know all about cold weather food...

Next week I'll cook up a batch of chili and freeze 4-5 meals.

Week after it'll be time to do the same with spaghetti and meat sauce; freeze 4-5 meals so we can "shop the freezer" whenever we feel like it.

Going to hit about -15 here this evening without the wind chill factored in. Nice night for a cup of hot chocolate and a couple of rice bags to warm the foot of the bed.

Stay warm down there and good luck.

Oh my gosh. At that temperature, can you even feel your legs and arms?

Hell, I have to head on up to Minneapolis at 7 a.m. tomorrow.

One learns a few tricks. I'll have on a pair of polypropylene socks under a pair of merino wool socks inside a pair of insulated and goretex lined boots.

Long underwear under a pair of flannel lined canvas pants.

A t-shirt, a long sleeve polypro shirt, a wool L.L. Bean shirt and a Merino wool sweater.

A Columbia Titanium parka in the back seat. Fur lined hat with earflaps, glove liners inside 400 gram Thinsulate gloves (also with goretex).

Layering, using fabrics that don't absorb moisture next to the skin, breatheable fabrics, and the ability to shed layers if needed and you're all set.

Perspiring in really low temps is a bad, bad thing. As is clothing that's too tight, trapping air in the layers adds to the ability to stay warm.

And an emergency kit with a nice down sleeping bag in the car (not the trunk) for those "just in case" moments.

The upper midwest is a harsh place to live given that we can go from -40 with wind chill during the winter to 100+ with 70-80% humidity in the summer. But when you've done it all your life, eh, it's really more an inconvenience than anything.

I generally have a fast metabolism, so just sitting around can make be break out into a sweat.

Warm weather is overrated and becomes monotonous.

While I don't welcome very cold weather, the opposite extreme of furnace-hot weather sucks just as much.




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Wow.

Lots of good info. there, esp. about not perspiring and what types of fabric to wear. Very good. Oh yeah. I've been down here all of my life so I guess it is just what we are accustomed to. Thanks for sharing.

Anything to be of assistance, you're more than welcome.

BTW, the potato soup was most excellent. Glad I have not lost my cooking skill.

how do you make your potato, celery and onion cream soup. This sounds so good.

Manattee Co here. The say 36 for a low Friday. Brrrrr

It really was good tonight.

I don't stick to a strict recipe.

I only had one huge baking potato, so I cleaned and chopped that and the organic celery and red onion and boiled it all, saving that flavored water for the soup.

Then I made the Roux ( [link to dish.allrecipes.com] and mixed it in what was in my cooking pot, and added Himalyn. salt and black pepper.

Voila!

Eeek.

Say, have you ever been to that very old home cooking place called The Coffee Cup, in Manatee County? I think it's in or near Riverview?

Thanks for telling me how to make it, not to good with the cooking skills. I have everything on hand I'm going to give it a try.

OH good. Let us know.

I love any kind of potatoes so I try harder with that to work with. Always get nominated to bring potato salad to cook outs and that.

I forgot, but not necessary for the soup...I had some 'foreign' (from S. America, heh) canned milk that I added to the Roux. It's not necessary, though.

Stay warm and enjoy it :) I know it doesn't happen down there often, so it has to be a little bit exciting!

Jiggly butt leggings? OK, off to Google I go...

lol, love ya'!

You'll need a wood burning stove, a pile of pine firewood, and a box of lighter knot. Then you'll be all set. That and a good dog to keep you company.

Hahahaha. Jiggly - the thinner ones. Hahahaha.

2 for 10. Gotta love it. That's all they're worth to me, anyway.

No but we will have to check it out. Only been here since Sept so we are for sure open to checking out all the good places. Really only place we've found so far is in Bradington called Obricks. Really good!! Expensive but really good!!

Got any places you can recommend ? I work all over so doesn't have to be this side of the bay.

Oh sorry. I tried to find it to see if it was still going. I see it was there from 1928 to 1998 when they torn it down. It was something else. I worked for a lawyer in that area in the 90s, and used to travel there to eat sometimes. That was a long time ago.

It was one of those historical places that people of that area know about.