Mandatory “It’s Spooky Season” Post

I will be the first in my house to take out all of the Halloween and Fall decorations because I simply love this season! The cooler weather, the different colored leaves, and the perfect excuse to wear a long black hooded cape for no particular reason all make me so happy!

This October, I am most looking forward to bonfires in my backyard, as well as baking all the Halloween-themed cookies I can! I’ve signed myself and my fiancé up for a local ghost tour next weekend. It’s a fact that people rarely explore the area they live in, so I thought I would start getting to know mine.

I’ve also joined a local book club that happens to be spooky-themed. I figured it would be good for me to get out of the house sometimes, and books and fellow book-lovers seemed like a valid reason. The book this month is Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. We shall see how I enjoy it.

I’ve decided to take a break from fostering this month because I am dog-sitting for both friends and family, so I won’t have much extra time to dedicate to taking care of other dogs. I will spend a portion of my free time in October cleaning up my yard and organizing the inside of our house because it’s getting a little chaotic. I will also try to spend a little more time doing outdoor activities since the weather will be more agreeable.

Next post, maybe there will be photos of some fun cookies to share!

Stove Drip Pans

There is a lot of cooking that goes on in my apartment and that results in filthy drip pans. Over the past year they have gotten even more disgusting and sticky, despite me doing my best to clean them with baking soda, vinegar, and vigorous scrubbing.

I have heard that ammonia, which is apparently perfectly safe for the environment (but should not be inhaled), does a great job in tidying up the grime that settles in drip pans, so I have acquired some.

I went outside and placed each of the 4 drip pans into a gallon zip lock bag and poured about 1/4 cup of ammonia into the base and then I sealed the bags. I will visit my drip pans again in the morning after they have soaked for 24 hours.

I will update on this matter tomorrow.

UPDATE: So, the ammonia did not do what I thought it would; however, I believe that our drip pans might have been beyond repair. They were already rusting and we forgot food in them forty too many times. I have discovered that drip pans are rather inexpensive, so I think we will just replace these when our lease ends next year.