Lucky Man

The rain was gone by early morning but the wind out of the northeast was cold. I ran out and burned a boxcar load of boxes and Christmas wrapping and stood there watching the paper burn to ashes. The heat from the the fire felt good against the cold.
I was off today so I ran some errands. Being the adventurous soul that I am, I went to Wal-Mart to buy new lights to go around our screen porch. The old small twinkle lights died last week and I waited until the Christmas stuff went on sale before upgrading the lights. They look really good on the porch. I got the larger bulbs and they give off a nice glow. I'll be able to write out there after dark when the weather moderates.
Jilda called on her way home and said to preheat the oven. I knew before the words came out of her mouth that we were going to have soup and cornbread for supper. SOUP DAY!
We have soup a lot when the weather gets cold. It tastes better to me when the mercury drops. She decided on Taco Soup which is one of my favorites. Here's the recipe
1 pound of ground chuck
1 large onion, chopped
3 large cans of Mexican-style chili beans
1 large can of whole kernel corn
1 large can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can chopped green chilies
1 small packet of taco seasoning mix
1 small packet Ranch-style dressing mix
2 cups water

Cook beef and onions in a skillet until the meat is done and the onion is tender. Drain
Stir beans and the other stuff into the beef and onions (bring to a boil)
Eat it with a fresh hot pone of cornbread.

We sat in front of the fireplace and listened to music as we enjoyed the soup. It occurred to me what a lucky man I am.