New Year Say Cheese! Linky

Happy New Year everyone.
Christmas was enough to take off but I'm back spreading the cheese for the New Year.

CHEESE!

This Christmas will be remembered for my mother giving us winning (three out of four)  scratchers. I won $90 bucks, the most I've ever won unless you count that time my dad rigged a used car drawing.

One of my favorite photos of me and the old man

Here's a picture of middle nephew Christopher with his Christmas scratchers (he won $50 bucks).

My nephew Chris is growing up (and going bald?)

Here's one of my favorite photos of him and his brothers. He didn't like Andy being born on B.J. Surhoff's birthday, a fact he reminded us of repeatedly.

"But it's B.J. Surhoff's birthday!"

Ahhhaaaa, the boys are afraid it's out with the old and in with the new. And now it's time to see your photos or recipes, old or new. Yes, it's time for the Say Cheese! link up.

P.S. Looking at the beach photo on My Corner Of The World's link up inspired me to post a few photos I took this morning with my purse camera. This is the first real snow of the season.

Do you have a lovely photo with well-mannered subjects you're anxious to share? Don't link it here because this is the place for the waggish, unwieldy and unwilling. And as always, for recipes made with cheese. Shouldn't every recipe be made with cheese?
My apologies to the lactose intolerant, all are welcome. It's a bit of a free for all really.

This link-up is open until midnight Friday.

Christmas Cheer

We lost some incredible people over the last few years and most of them left us around the holidays.

May the seven in heaven keep the pasta hot, the finocchi cool and the wine room temperature

 I know most of them would like to be remembered with mirth and song and a tip of the glass.

I say most because I remember old school Italians wringing their hands while wearing black and saying the rosary until it's been long enough (a year or to a real Italian OG, "There is no such thing"). 

Aunt Ginny and Andy, always up for a song, a dance and a seltzer down your pants followed by a shot of Jameson

But I've also seen these people spear spiedini with one hand while rolling a cigarette and drinking wine with the other.

My dad, Clarence Francis, holding his Fantasy Football prize, crackers and a hunk of Irish Cheddar

That may explain some skills I developed in my twenties.

Merry Christmas to all and to all, Cheers, Sláinte, Salute 

I Used To Hate AC/DC

We had a wrap party last night, no not that kind of wrap party or this kind either. It was in preparation for a raucous game we tried at the Dempsey Christmas party last year. You use big balls (ha) of plastic-wrapped treats which someone unwraps while the person to their right rolls dice until they get doubles.

Go Susie go

The Irish Aunts oversee the proceedings with a wee bit of cheesecake

Danny had a wee bit of cheesecake too

We had more than just batteries and booze. There were five party balls for three different age groups. The elders (us) got two. What happened to party balls anyway? "No Party Balls" was actually written into my lease in the 90s.

Tis herself, Aunt Sara

Ta da. Cousin Nanci, our host

Cousin Rusty, our other host, on the hunt for fallen scraps of pizza

The best camera is the one you have and all I had was my little PNS

Stories were told, delicious food was consumed and balls were wrapped. That's me in the reflection, full of Starbursts and Tootsie Rolls

Finally, a good photo of our big balls by Nanci along with the insane hoop hats which I broke while trying to put together. Notice the tape. (That last Big Balls link is a cover sung by chipmunks.)

NOTE: The administrator apologizes for any Bears logos spotted during the reading of this blog. Because despite recent events, the Bears, as always, still suck.

Say Cheese! Tuesday Linky

Let's try this again, this time using Linky Tools. The theme is still cheesy because this is Wisconsin. Notice the Lake Effect t-shirt he's wearing at Irish Fest in Milwaukee. So link up anything fun, funny or corny, especially candid photos of people or pets. Bonus points if they don't want their photo taken. And of course, cheesy recipes are always a delight. In reality, you can link up pretty much anything, but the cheesier the better.

Hey, don't—shite, I have a full beer why am I talking?

Here's a quick cream CHEESE frosting recipe from Betty Crocker since a lot of people are in full cookie mode now. I usually just cream butter and powdered sugar with and without cocoa powder together and call it frosting. Although I often cheat with the small store-bought frosting for more detailed work because I don't feel like digging out my pastry bag and the million little scattered tips, but this simple recipe is a nice addition to my seasonal cookie crop.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
1/2 cup softened butter (the recipe says unsalted I always use salted)
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
-Beat the butter and cream cheese with mixer 2 to 3 minutes until smooth
-Stir in vanilla and powdered sugar until frosting is thick and spreadable
-A drop or two of food coloring or extract if desired
-Frost after cookies have cooled
-Use colored sugars or your favorite baking decorations

My favorite cookie decorations are colored sugars, pull apart licorice strands, heath pieces, coconut flakes, milk chocolate chips and chocolate Jimmies. Dots work well cut in two for large cookies but I'm afraid to use Red Hots anymore because some of us don't have the unbreakable choppers we used to.

Although the Say Cheese! link up is about candid photos and yummy recipes, all are welcome.

Cheesy Weekend LinkUp

There's something cheesy going on. I'm trying out a weekend linky party since one of my favorite Brit bloggers is ending his this month. As always, the more ridiculous the better.

This is where curdesy will get you

I'm preparing myself for some marathon baking by watching as many Christmas specials as possible. The kitchen seems to be shuddering at the thought, or maybe it's an unstable stack of dishes.
Speaking of Christmas ghosts if I can't find the 1951 Scrooge I might eat candy canes and watch the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina holiday special tonight, but the question is, which is more cheesy?

Cloudy with a chance of cheese

So hey der, anything cheesy going on over der by you? Link up your cheesy photos, images, recipes, what have you. They can be funny, corny or involve actual cheese. Nothing too grotesque or obscene, please.  The LinkUp is open until Tuesday.

Inlinkz Link Party

Merry Catsmiss

Brian and the gang had a great idea about making Christmas cards for blog buds so here's mine. Feel free to copy and post it in your sidebar.

Merry Christmas from The Ched Curtain.

♬ Mine, mine, mine all mine and then there's mine and mine and mine ♪

Maybe This Will Help

An art installation on this year's Farm/Art DTour called Sentinels of the Hills by Madeline Straka was the subject of my last post, "What The Hell Is that?" It was more of an excuse to use an old SNL clip than a legitimate question.

What the hell is that?

What the hell is that?

How did that dang deal get here?

Hey, come over here and look at this deal.

What the hell is that?

I don't know what the hell that is.

What in the hell is that?

An explanation from the Fest's artist page:

The farmland of Sauk County is watched over by a heard of monolithic beasts—elusive creatures born from the hills are finally revealing themselves. Fascinated by creatures of myth, emerging artist Madeline Straka seeks to bring impossible beasts to life on a large scale. Straka's practice employs animalistic forms inspired by folklore while exploring mythologies of monsters in contemporary contexts.

What The Hell Is That?

Words, Words, Words

In my experience, it's more like Be Silly & Get Looks.

But be silly anyway.

Not So Stormy Weather

Although I woke up to a frozen smattering of snow today it was pretty skimpy and no kind of open floor plan can help with the lack of sun. Although this murky weather is better than one of those Illinois tornadoes, I'm hoping that something breaks up this streak of gloom.

Not More Hay Bales

Yes, more hay bales.

I am the god of cold weather and cloudy skies. I eat your tiny flurries for breakfast and belch them out by lunch. Your ground shall remain green with ugly brown spots and windblown litter until my head blows off or birds steal my beard.