Cardiovascular Benefits of olive oil

This is just part of an article on the benefits of olive oil that was in WHFoods website (the newsletter article was shorter, but couldn’t find it on the website).

“Many different cardiovascular problems—including gradual blocking of the arteries and blood vessels (called atherosclerosis)—have their origin in two unwanted circumstances. The first of these circumstances is called oxidative stress. Oxidative stress means too much damage (or risk of damage) from the presence of overly reactive oxygen-containing molecules. One of the best ways to help avoid oxidative stress is to consume a diet that is rich in antioxidant nutrients. The second of these circumstances is ongoing (chronic) and undesirable low-level inflammation. Undesirable and chronic inflammation can result from a variety of factors, including unbalanced metabolism, unbalanced lifestyle, unwanted exposure to environmental contaminants, and other factors. One of the best ways to help avoid chronic and unwanted inflammation is to consume a diet that is rich in anti-inflammatory nutrients. Any food that is rich in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients is a natural candidate for lowering our risk of heart problems, because it contains the exactly right combination of nutrients to lower our risk of oxidative stress and chronic, unwanted inflammation. Many foods contain valuable amounts of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, but few foods are as rich in these compounds as extra virgin olive oil, and this fact alone accounts for many of the research-based benefits of this culinary oil for health of our cardiovascular system.

In terms of antioxidant protection for our blood vessels, olive oil has been shown to lower risk of lipid peroxidation (oxygen damage to fat) in our bloodstream. Many of the fat-containing molecules in our blood—including molecules like LDL—need to be protected from oxygen damage. Oxygen damage to molecules like LDL significantly increases our risk of numerous cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis. Protection of the LDL molecules in our blood from oxygen damage is a major benefit provided by olive oil and its polyphenols. Equally important is protection against oxygen damage to the cells that line our blood vessels. Once again, it's the polyphenols in olive oil that have been shown to provide us with that protection.

One process we don't want to see in our blood vessels is too much clumping together of blood cells called platelets. While we want to see blood platelets clump together under circumstances like an open wound, where their clumping together acts to seal off the wound, we don't want this process to occur in an ongoing way when there is no acute emergency. Several of the polyphenols found in olive oil—including hydroxytyrosol, oleuropein and luteolin—appear to be especially helpful in keeping our blood platelets in check and avoiding problems of too much clumping (called platelet aggregation). There are also two messaging molecules (called plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and factor VII) that are capable of triggering too much clumping together of the platelets, and the polyphenols in olive oil can help stop overproduction of these molecules.

Olive oil is one of the few widely used culinary oils that contains about 75% of its fat in the form of oleic acid (a monounsaturated, omega-9 fatty acid). Research has long been clear about the benefits of oleic acid for proper balance of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol in the body. When diets low in monounsaturated are made high in monounsaturated fat (by replacing other oils with olive oil), research study participants tend to experience a significant decrease in their total blood cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and LDL:HDL ratio. Those are exactly the results we want for heart health. In addition to these cholesterol-balancing effects of olive oil and its high oleic acid content, however, comes a new twist: recent research studies have shown that olive oil and its oleic acid may be important factors for lowering blood pressure. Researchers believe that the plentiful amount of oleic acid in olive oil gets absorbed into the body, finds its way into cell membranes, changes signaling patterns at a cell membrane level (specifically, altering G-protein associated cascades) and thereby lowers blood pressure.

Interestingly, a recent laboratory animal study adds one note of caution for anyone wanting to bring the unique cardiovascular benefits of olive oil into their diet. This study found that cardiovascular benefits from olive oil and its polyphenols were not realized when the laboratory animals consumed too many calories and too much total food. This result suggests that olive oil—outstanding as it is in polyphenol protection of our cardiovascular system—needs to be integrated into an overall healthy diet in order to provide its expected benefits.”

For anyone seeking the truth about the Tea Party—guest blogger Kay

As a supporter of the Sauk Valley Tea Party [Illinois], I know the liberal media has steered you wrong. The majority of the active members are people like you, retired and concerned about the future of the country. Our group focuses on education and we have people like Congressmen Manzullo, Schilling, radio hosts like Dan Proft, local leaders like the owner of Jimmy Johns in Dixon, representatives from a state-wide organization to point out facts of Common Core Curriculum.

The nation-wide Tea Party is comprised of people of all races, ages, and ethnic backgrounds. (And I'm quoting this from a statistic of a few yours ago.) I protested Pelosi Care in D.C., when it was staged to be voted by the Democratically controlled house. The "tea party" people at that protest included families with young children, all ages and races and even Democrats. Anyway, the point is: I was next to the security and as the security guards shifted around, their number one comment was: This group is the best group. . . never any problems occur with the Tea Party people, they are well organized and very respectful.

I hope you find peace with yourself in your quest for the truth.

Monday Memories—Caribou Coffee

For many years I had my morning coffee at Caribou on Lane Ave., and then would walk indoors at the Lane Avenue shopping center, then head for work at the Sisson Hall Veterinary Medicine Library. Now all are gone. Caribou has become Peet's, the enclosed mall disappeared—well, it was remodeled but now you have to walk outside, and the veterinary medicine library was torn down.

Ohio State fan on game day in Caribou on Lane Avenue, Oct. 2007

"Going out" for coffee is something I've done for about 60 years--starting probably when I worked the counter at Zickuhr's Pharmcy in my home town, Mt. Morris, Illinois. That's when it was $.10 a cup and I'd get a dime tip (or even a quarter occasionally) and all the town's gossip for free. It is still a social event, at least for me. No matter what McDonald's or Caribou or Cup 'o Joe's I enter, I see a group of regulars solving the day's problems. That's why I have a special blog about coffee shops. So you see, I've been on the other side of the counter too.

Friday Family Photo—the Ford Explorer

In the fall of 1999 we bought a 2000 2 dr. Ford Explorer, forest green, shift, good gas mileage.  It has been a great car and still looks good. There was a recall on the original tires very early, so we're still on those replacements after 14 years. The bumper got bumped about 5 years ago and developed some rust, so we had that replaced.  Because it's basically a truck, it's not comfortable for my back when I’m a passenger, but the step ladder fits in the back, so we keep it for the art shows and our kids hauling things. This week our daughter borrowed it while her husband was in Cleveland with their car, so we had to make some adjustments in our schedule.  We could probably manage with 1 car, but this is just too convenient and useful. (This is not our Explorer in the photo—it’s pulling a boat.)

Why you can’t reason with ignorance

I contribute to Huffington Post political FB page. I don’t call people names, slander the president or make biased statements.  I just contribute sourced statements.  Like this one about why the food stamp program is expanding as unemployment drops and so mean old Republicans want poor people to starve by cutting back. All you have to do is check a reasonable source like the USDA or a non-profit that works with the poor—left or right—and you see that recruiting of low income people was expanded with ARRA money--the money that was going to get people back to work in 2009 was used in part to add more people to SNAP (the new name for food stamps).  I even pointed out that the N in SNAP stands for nutrition, and that EBT cards can be used at fast food restaurants.  For that easily researched information I was told I was stupid and uninformed.  My posts are always researched and reasonable, and the left calls me a troll, stupid, tea bagger, racist, homophobe, etc.  That’s the level of political discourse.

Just say no, Doctor.

I've often wondered about this--why do pharmaceutical companies advertise to us, the consumer, as if we know what the doctor needs to prescribe.  It seems it's not that old.  Claritin was the first in 1997, according to the University of Illinois LAS newsletter (May 2013).

http://www.las.illinois.edu/news/2013/rosenberg/

Worked as planned

Divots on the golf course and pivots on the economy

"Because Obama speaks with such authority, it often takes several repetitions before I realize that what he’s saying is total nonsense." Caroline Baum, Bloomberg, on his "growing the economy" meme, A User’s Guide to Obama’s Inside-Out Economics, Aug. 7, 2013

He's pivoted again; it's back to the economy. The rich have recovered; the low income not so much. Five years and Obama can't fix it. The recession has been over since June 2009. Truman had a recession, Eisenhower had several, Nixon got a recession, so did Carter, so did Reagan, so did both Bushes, and all were brief and the economy quickly recovered. But then, they didn't try to take over health care and pay back and bail out unions and bankers. You have to go all the way back to FDR's mishandling of the Depression in the 30s, extending it a decade, to find a record this poor.

          

NSA snoops

Fourteen NSA documents were declassified on Tuesday in response to a May 2011 ACLU lawsuit. The documents were made public under the Freedom of Information Act and related to the government's interpretation of Section 215 of the Patriot Act, which ambiguously grants the FBI permission to obtain "any tangible things" without evidence or probable cause for the sake of national security.

ACLU National Security Project staff attorney Alex Abdo: "These documents show that the NSA repeatedly violated court-imposed limits on its surveillance powers, and they confirm that the agency simply cannot be trusted with such sweeping authority."

Conservatives underestimate Obama and his support

Although I enjoy reading American Thinker, this writer, J.R. Dunn is underestimating Obama. Conservatives seem to be in an echo chamber listening only to themselves. Obama's supporters still love him and think all these detriments Dunn cites are positives. They don't even see the worsening race relations, or blame them on those who oppose him. The wealthier are getting richer after a few tough years, and the poorer are losing ground--they don't care.

From J.R. Dunn in American Thinker:
"Obama is less lucky than FDR, less competent than Jimmy Carter, and less flexible than Bill Clinton. With Obama, all the failures of liberalism are coming to a head. He has put more liberal policies into effect in a shorter period than any other president, but thanks to his unique combination of ineptness, ignorance, inexperience, and arrogance, every last one of them is doomed. All of them are failing as we watch. His economic policies have repeated the failures of FDR's New Deal, with worse to come. His health care "reform" is in a state of collapse before it has even started. His stewardship of race relations has returned the country to a state of nearly open hostility and panic not seen since 1968. His Hallmark card foreign policy has killed tens of thousands overseas and will almost inevitably lead to the deaths of millions, as did the policies of Jimmy Carter in countries as unrelated as Nicaragua, Iran, Ethiopia, and Cambodia."

Defund Obamacare; don’t try to fix it

I called Steve Stivers, my representative, talked to a real person and after giving her my name told her, "Please tell Mr. Stivers I want him to vote for defunding Obamacare." She asked my address and thanked me for calling. To sweeten the deal for Congress and staff to get their support, Obama will give them a $4,500 subsidy for individuals and $10,000 for family coverage to help pay the cost of their Obamacare exchange. In the rest of the country, you lose assistance after an income of about $46,000 (Source: WSJ, August 8, 2013; Affordable Care Act) A number of companies and unions have been exempt, but HHS still mandates Christians will pay for abortifacients and birth control, and we all know that's just the nose of the camel in the tent.

Meanwhile according to today’s Washington Post, the U.S. continues to supply rebel forces, some of which are al-qaeda, in Syria despite our protests. And if we could ever get the media to do investigative journalism, we might find out what happened to all the arms we lost in Libya (Benghazi).

The CIA shipments are to flow through a network of clandestine bases in Turkey and Jordan that were expanded over the past year as the agency sought to help Middle Eastern allies, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar, direct weapons to moderate Syrian rebel forces.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/cia-begins-weapons-delivery-to-syrian-rebels/2013/09/11/9fcf2ed8-1b0c-11e3-a628-7e6dde8f889d_story.html

JAMA’s new cover design

I hate it.  Now I can never tell which issue I’ve read.  I loved their covers and always looked forward to reading the details. Yes, it’s still inside, but it’s lost its purpose.

“The cover art made JAMA a beacon for humanism that shouted out its presence in a sea of technological advancement, and reminded us that medicine is closely intertwined with people and culture. In marketing terms, the revised cover represents rebranding not only of JAMA but perhaps of the medical profession itself. The change comes at a time when medicine sorely needs a touch of humanism, and rather than taking art away we need more of it.” http://www.jeffreymlevinemd.com/jama-redesign-removes-cover-art/

Syria Time Line for White House

Sex diary of RFK Jr.

Robert Kennedy, Jr's sex diary has been published and although I think he's no moral prize and this is the pot calling the kettle black, "During lock up [with Al Sharpton], he apparently had plenty of time to critique his fellow Democrats, saying that Sharpton 'has done more damage to the black cause' than segregationist governors in the south who prevented school integration. '(Sharpton's) transparent venal blackmail and extortion schemes taint all black leadership,' Kennedy wrote."

Sounds like he was trying to keep up with his uncle, JFK, or maybe his grandfather who was also randy.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2415988/RFK-Jrs-secret-sex-diary-RFK-Jr-slammed-creepy-Al-Sharpton-said-Andrew-Cuomo-lacked-humanity-diary-kept-ranking-of-women-cheated-with.html

Fairfax County Library throws out usable books

Throwing out usable books and cutting staff, and hiring more non-librarians to buy more digitized collections is foolish. Information IS NOT FREE, whether it appears on your Kindle, your computer, or your paperback.  There are many people, children and adults, who would have been delighted to have these books.  And if the county isn’t allow to give away its own property, then the Friends of the Library should have sold them for a reduced price to get back some of the tax payer money.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/fairfax-county-library-revamps-system-discards-books-reduces-librarians/2013/09/09/e3dca65a-1724-11e3-be6e-dc6ae8a5b3a8_story.html?hpid=z3

For years, the public and librarians were told computerization/digitization would save money.  That hasn’t happened. It has just replaced library staff with IT staff and constant upgrading of equipment, software and contracts with book bundlers.   Also, digitized books/documents are easily edited with no one knowing--the earlier version is just gone. I recall looking something up a few years back in an e-encyclopedia at the public library only to discover the horrors of the Soviet Union had virtually disappeared.

Dumpster diving for books at Chantilly technical operations center in a Washington, DC’s affluent suburbs. (Median family  income in Fairfax Co. is about $120,000) Photo by Linda Smyth.

Mission Accomplished

Michelle Obama has hung out the "mission accomplished" sign for us. Her husband has completely destroyed U.S. credibility and succeeded in totally transforming our image from tough guy to indecisive, flip flopping wimp who will go after an enemy with words and itsy bitsy strikes leaving everything in tact. She doesn't want to lose any more far left supporters, so she's let him know his job is done.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2416530/First-lady-Michelle-Obama-opposes-military-action-Syria-president-reveals.html

What the state creates, it can destroy--marriage

I have no idea who Marie Dean is, but on several occasion this commenter at blogs has made a lot of sense.  Most likely a Catholic, this is Dean’s take on the so-called gay or same sex marriage. From comments on other topics, I would guess Dean teaches history.

“The state regulation of marriage began in the Protestant Reformation, a legal movement in the 18th century gaining momentum in the 19th century, with laws in England, Scotland, Switzerland, France and then Germany demanding State recognized marriages rather than Canon Law ones as previously regulated under the Catholic Church. What these laws did was give power to the State to determine the definition of marriage, rather than the Church, allowing for the State, therefore, to change the definition of marriage at will. Civil ceremonies were more common in the French Republic and under Napoleon, as religious or sacramental marriages were not recognized by the State, for example. In England today, a religious marriage is not recognized by law without a civil marriage.

What this did was undermine any moral position of marriage, as once marriage was divorced, pun intended, from religion, anything civil definition could be manipulated.

It is only in the 20th and 21st centuries that we see the logical consequences of separating marriage from a religious sacramental act and merely becoming one more cog in the societal wheel. That such gross aberrations did not happen before the mid-20th century merely points to the fact that there was an overlay of Christianity in the culture. Once that disappeared, the State did what it always wanted to do, define marriage outside that Christian moral framework.

The California law would be in keeping with the logical progress of the undermining of the sacredness of marriage begun back in 1753. Even if the state required a religious setting, as in England at that date, it was the State deciding, creating the law, not God. What the State can create, the State can destroy.”

9/6/2013 First Things article on Marvin v. Marvin

http://www.firstthings.com/onthesquare/2013/09/the-case-that-destroyed-marriage

The long good-bye

We worshipped at the lovely Hilltop Lutheran today; enjoyed Pastor Paul's final sermon there and also his playing the organ.  He is retiring at the end of the month and is preaching at different locations.  It is one of the 3 campuses of our church, Upper Arlington Lutheran, but it had probably been 5 years since we'd visited. A warm and friendly congregation, 12 South Terrace, Columbus, OH 43204.

Paul and June came to UALC in 1973 after 4 years in Minneapolis right out of seminary, and we joined in 1974, so we’ve had a long time together.  He left for awhile (8 years?) to pastor a church in Illinois, but came back as associate, and then became the senior pastor about 11 years ago.

Paul came to the hospital in 1988 when our daughter was in a serious automobile accident and was with us when she had her cancer surgery in 1996.  He officiated at our son’s wedding in 1999. He’s preached more funeral sermons than I want to recall. So, 40 years is a long time.

We also worshipped earlier at our Lytham Road campus, where we had flowers on the alter for our 53rd wedding anniversary.  Now we have them on the deck so we can see them through the dining room window.

Liberal media line up to kiss butt when Obama follows Bush

“Obama made clear in his Rose Garden announcement that he wasn’t seeking Congress’s approval out of constitutional necessity. “I believe I have the authority to carry out this military action without specific congressional authorization,” he said, arguing that the “country will be stronger” if Congress grants authorization. That happens to be precisely the argument the Bush administration made in the run-up to the Iraq War in 2002. The president also acknowledged during a press conference in Sweden on Wednesday that the United States “may not be directly, imminently threated” by the conflict in Syria.

As liberal commentators such as E. J. Dionne and Nicholas Kristof – along with a host of previously “anti-war” Democrats – have lined up in support of Obama’s plan to attack Syria, there has been relatively little discussion about the president’s blatant disavowal of the opinion he expressed as a candidate in 2007, when he told the Boston Globe that “the President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation.””

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/357764/obama-constitutional-hero-andrew-stiles

But wait.  Bush did get authorization, and Obama says he will strike without it, so I guess it really isn’t the same, is it?

Senators voting Yes and the defense contractor connection

* Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) - $60,000
* Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) - $24,150
* Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.) - $80,550
* Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) - $41,872
* Christopher Coons (D-Del.) - $19,500
* Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) - $127,350
* Tim Kaine (D-Va.) - $101,025
* Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) - $70,850
* Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) - $26,900
* John McCain (R-Ariz.) - $176,300

Looks like McCain got the largest amount, and he’s been one of the biggest disappointments for Republicans.  Having run against Obama in 2008, he knows personally how he lies and distorts.

“Senators voting Wednesday to authorize a Syria strike received, on average, 83 percent more campaign financing from defense contractors than lawmakers voting against war.

Overall, political action committees and employees from defense and intelligence firms such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, United Technologies, Honeywell International, and others ponied up $1,006,887 to the 17 members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who voted yes or no on the authorization Wednesday, according to an analysis by Maplight, the Berkeley-based nonprofit that performed the inquiry at WIRED’s request.”

President Obama and Syria

I rarely drink soda (aka pop)

It was very hot recently, and I had a 7-up mixed with orange juice.  Someone in the U.S. is drinking my share, which is in the gallons per capita.

Obama’s red line

The Cowboy Code

Bubba Thompson has written a book called "The Cowboy Code," about the ways a man should behave in his dating life. Alabama native Bubba Thompson lives by a code of honesty, respect, determination and faith with his family, his farms and his animals. Now, this modern day cowboy brings his code of conduct to relationships. In THE COWBOY CODE (Self-Published; on sale since September 3, 2013; Hardcover: $9.99), he shares straightforward tips, personal anecdotes, easy to follow advice and even some revealing moments from behind the scenes on CMT's Sweet Home Alabama. A must-have plan for finding and holding on to lasting love. http://www.cowboycodeusa.com/

Friday Family Photo—our anniversary

I've just put on a pair of heels for the first time in months. First it was a broken toe, then it was summer. Now it's our anniversary (almost) night out. 53rd.

Obama’s floundering economy

Notice the difference between the recession Bush inherited, and the one Obama inherited. It took Bush only a couple of years even with 9/11, although it never got back to the tech boom years of the late 90s. Obama is still floundering, and it may take until 2023 to get back to the Bush levels. Obama continues to punish small businesses and intimidate those who would expand and grow. He decided to tackle health care instead of the economy, and we are sure paying for that.

Is anyone with them on this trip?

Nancy, John and Bashar

Obama, Kerry, Pelosi and H. Clinton all tried to undercut President Bush when he was president by getting cozy with Assad. Bush made no secret about not liking him. He had the Iran/Assad connection figured out and had imposed sanctions. It's nice that they've figured it out, but why make us pay for their mistakes, which included defying and lying about a sitting president. Obama took office on 22 January 2009. Less than a month later, on 21 February 2009, U.S. Senator John Kerry was meeting with the Syrian President in Damascus. Senator Kerry would become Obama’s key envoy in dealing with Assad. You’ve probably all seen the sweet photo of the Assads and Kerrys dining together. Obama had sent a hush-hush delegation in 2008 to meet with Assad even before he was president.

Photos are from her trip when Nancy Pelosi defied the State Department and visited Assad, declaring that “the road to peace is through Damascus.”  John Kerry, acting in concert with the Obama administration, served as Assad’s errand boy in trying to bring Israel to the table for the purpose of returning the Golan Heights to the butcher of Damascus.  The Bush administration had been largely successful in isolating Syria (as Obama sought to do in 2012) until Pelosi and Kerry willfully undermined it.

"President Al-Assad and I had a very positive discussion on the formidable challenges facing this region and we found agreement on a number of ways in which both of us and other countries can contribute significantly to changing the dynamics that exist today," said Sen. John Kerry in March 2010. Then came the Arab Spring, and Obama began supporting the Islamists in various middle eastern countries.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303395904575157713877756160.html

Have you called your representative in Congress?

Black conservatives discuss needs of black community

Great show on GBTV tonight--an hour long discussion with 5 black conservatives on problems and strengths in the black community. Star Parker hosted; panelists were Scott Turner, (former Redskins, Chargers, Broncos) Republican House, Texas; Marc Little, author of "Prodigal Republican," lawyer, California; T.W. Shannon, Oklahoma House speaker; Katrina Piersen, Tea Party, Fox commentator. They discussed generational poverty, school choice, income, wealth, mobility and net worth. Job growth, not more government assistance is needed, they concluded. Although a source was not cited, one said that affirmative action had actually decreased black income over time.

Meeting up with the crazies on line

The Daily Beast and Huffington Post are just amazing sites on FaceBook--the editors write to inflame their supporters, and the comments are bizarre and crazy, sometime even funny.  Spelling and grammar are a bit up for grabs, but I do find some good ones, too.  Any offer of facts or truth get you labeled a troll. The cumulative misinformation would benefit from an Obama drone strike.

The support for legalizing marijuana is about 99%. I have an RN friend who works in a methadone clinic--sort of the end of the line for all the pot heads who thought marijuana was harmless, safer than alcohol, we just use it to unwind or relax, wouldn't lead them through the sparkling gate to the hard stuff, but it did. Wasted. Homeless. Addle-brained. Confused. And they were just so sure in their teens and twenties. . .

http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/marijuana-abuse/how-does-marijuana-use-affect-your-brain-body

I didn’t set a red line—Barack Obama

“I have, at this point, not ordered military engagement in the situation. But the point that you made about chemical and biological weapons is critical. That's an issue that doesn't just concern Syria; it concerns our close allies in the region, including Israel. It concerns us. We cannot have a situation where chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people.

We have been very clear to the Assad regime, but also to other players on the ground, that a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. That would change my calculus. That would change my equation.”

August 12, 2012, Barack Obama

What’s the rush Mr. President?

Obama made no move for the first 100,000 dead in Syria; he wasn't in a hurry to call Congress back for a vote. Now a vote has to be rushed through when about 70% of the people, left, right, and center, don't want another war. All this to save face? To cover the current scandals? To head into the 2014 elections? It makes no sense even in an administration excelling in the bizarre and incomprehensible. We have no leadership.  He can’t define the problem; he has no goal; no plan.

 

A letter to Congress about Syria

What Calvin Garlick wrote to his Congressman:

This is in response to the Syrian crisis that is ongoing. First, I will plainly state that I am AGAINST military action in Syria. It is has nothing to do with the humanitarian effort that all the politicians state or chemical weapons at that. The rebels clearly stated several times, they committed the offenses of using the chemical weapons. Second, this intervention is strictly geopolitical warfare and that it will not accomplish anything of real significance except more instability in the region, American troops getting deployed (don't act like they won't), and prove to the "east" that we are too war hungry. How can we say the Chechen militants, the Iraqi insurgents, and AL Qaeda (who are they ONLY ones who are making real advances against Assad) will be a fair partner even to Saudi Arabia? This is dangerous behavior. Doing nothing is not a serious consequence. It really is not. Tell them CIA guys and those Saudi guys to drop the advances. This is not anti-American rhetoric. It WILL save our troops lives. It was a stupid pick of a fight. Plus, this effort will leave Iran wide open to a preemptive strike against Saudi Arabia especially in an economic slowdown. This is the perfect time to strike for them. Consider that you politicians right now are the REAL ones about to start WW3. I don't want to look back at our country (if it even exists) and say "Son, We started that big war that killed so many people." Its so sad that I actually have to visualize this is a real thing. So, please I beg of you, the Syrians protested and were killed. Let them know it didn't work. Much like Bahrain and Qatar which they were brutally oppressed just the same during the same time. Please don't become the Bush/Cheney administration again. Its was a disgrace then and it still is now. Thank you for your time and Good Night

I don’t know Calvin, but saw this on HuffPo’s Facebook, a very liberal site full of crazies.  He sounded sensible and thoughtful.  And I would add, whether you agree or not, Bush actually did have a plan—he said many times, he thought the Afghans and Iraqis deserve the same freedoms we’ve enjoyed.  It was naïve.  We don’t need to impose our system on countries buried in the 7th century. Bush also had the assurances of Kerry, Pelosi, Clinton, Waxman, Edwards, and others, that there were definitely WMD in Iraq.  The same group that backed off later, then today is assuring us that terrible chemical weapons are being used in Syria. Bush also spent months leading up to the invasion in talks with Congress, and had strong support.

Why Obama wants us to go to war

Obama plans a gay rights push in Russia

Michael Wolfe writes on FB: 

“You have no patience. You hypocrite. You persecute homeschoolers already granted asylum from Nazi era anti-homeschool law, you persecute Christian businesses for not subsidizing sexual perversion and now your love for homosexual behavior and unconstitutional warmongering could help start WWIII. The bloodiest Nobel peace recipient in history? There's one for the books.”

The hypocrisy of a president who wouldn’t support gay marriage until he was sure it wouldn’t hurt him politically, or championing athletes and celebrities who hid in the closet for years, is just beyond me.

Sick.

Our government lies with photos

"Secretary of State John Kerry opened his speech Friday by describing the horrors victims of the chemical weapon attack suffered, including twitching, spasms and difficulty breathing. Attempting to drive the point home, Kerry referenced a photograph used by the BBC illustrating a child jumping over hundreds of dead bodies covered in white shrouds. The Secretary of State forgot to mention, however, that this photo was taken during US intervention in Iraq back in 2003." Journal of Turkish Weekly.

Because of all the scandals and lies of this administration, they can't be trusted on the issue of Syria, and may well be using this to cover the messes they've been making the last 5 years.

THINGS YOUR MOTHER SHOULD HAVE TOLD YOU

1. Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar cone to prevent ice cream drips.
2. Use a meat baster to “squeeze” your pancake batter onto the hot griddle and you’ll get perfectly shaped pancakes every time....
3. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.
4. To prevent eggshells from cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.
5. Run your hands under cold water before pressing Rice Krispies treats in the pan and the marshmallow won’t stick to your fingers.
6. To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature and roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.
7. To easily remove burned food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on the stovetop.
8. Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato-based sauces and there won’t be any stains.
9. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead and there won’t be any white mess on outside of the cake.
10. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it’s still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant “fix me up.”
11. Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
13. Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it.
14. When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn’s natural sweetness.
15. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh, but if it rises to the surface, throw it away.
16. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
17. Don’t throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.
18. If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.
19. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.
20. To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area and you will experience instant relief.
21. Ants, ants, ants everywhere. Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march. See for yourself.

Some of these I’ve heard of—like the pinch of salt in hard cooked eggs, but I make my corn on the cob in the micro wave since my husband doesn’t eat it and that’s very easy. This was posted on FB by Kathy Bennetch who I met as a blogger.

Alka-Seltzer tips

Now look what you can do with Alka-Seltzer.

Alka-Seltzer is an effervescent antacid and pain reliever first marketed by the Dr. Miles Medicine Company. It was developed by Maurice Treener, head chemist at Miles, in Elkhart, Indiana. Alka-Seltzer is marketed for relief of minor aches, pains, inflammation, fever, headache, heartburn, sour stomach, indigestion, and hangovers, while neutralizing excess stomach acid.  It was launched in 1931. Wikipedia

1. Clean a toilet. Drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes, brush and flush. The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous china.

2. Clean a vase. To remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets.

3. Polish jewelry. Drop two Alka-Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the jewelry for two minutes.

4. Clean a thermos bottle. Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka-Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).

5. Unclog a drain. Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka-Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, then run the hot water.

Back home again, in Indiana

The world's largest orchid species collection is found at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana .

Tomato juice was first served at a French Lick, Indiana, hotel in 1925. The first tomato juice factory was also in French Lick, Indiana. French Lick was originally a French trading post built near a spring and salt lick.

World famous basketball star Larry Bird lives in French Lick.

The first regulated speed limit (20 - 25 mph!) was initiated on Indiana roads in 1921.

The steepest railroad grade in the world is in Madison, Indiana .

An average of 400 funnel clouds are sighted each year in Indiana .

The city of Gary, Indiana, was built on fill brought from the bottom of Lake Michigan through suction pipes.

There are only two Adams fireplaces in the United States. One is in the White House and the other in the Diner Home in Indiana .

Josie Orr, wife of former Indiana Governor Robert Orr, flew bombers and cargo planes during World War II.

The Indianapolis Methodist Hospital is the largest Hospital in the Midwest .

One of the first complete bathrooms in Indianapolis was in the home of Hoosier poet, James Whitcomb Riley.

The career of Dorothy Lamour (famous for the Bing Crosby-Bob Hope Road Movies) was launched in Indianapolis.

Aviatrix Amelia Earhart was once a Professor at Purdue University.

Crown Hill Cemetery ( Indianapolis ) is the largest cemetery in the U.S. Many of my husband’s maternal relatives are buried there.

The library in Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana, houses one of the largest genealogy libraries in America .

Wabash, Indiana, was the first electrified city in the U.S.

Pendleton, Indiana, was the site of the first hanging of a white man for killing Indians.

The Courthouse roof in Greensburg, Indiana, has a tree growing from it.

The world's first transistor radio was made in Indianapolis .

Clark Gable and wife Carole Lombard (born in Fort Wayne , IN ) honeymooned at Lake BarBee near Warsaw , Indiana .

The American Beauty Rose was developed at Richmond, Indiana .

Elkhart, Indiana, is the band instrument capitol of the World.

Frank Sinatra first sang with the Tommy Dorsey band at the Lyric Theater in Indianapolis .

Purdue Alumnus, Earl Butz, served as the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

U.S. 231 is the longest highway in Indiana (231miles).

Johnny Appleseed is buried at Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The singing McGuire Sisters spent their childhood summers at the Church of God Campground in Anderson, Indiana . (I attended camp there one summer for Church of the Brethren Youth Conference.)

The main station of the Underground Railroad was in Fountain County, Indiana .

There are 154 acres of sculpture gardens and trails at the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

La Porte County is the only county in America having 2 functioning courthouses.

Nancy Hanks Lincoln is buried in Posey County, Indiana.

The Lincoln Museum in Fort Wayne, Allen County, contains the world's largest private collection of President Abraham Lincoln mementos (Lincoln National Life Insurance Company).

Crawfordsville, Indiana ( Montgomery County ) is one of the few sites in the world where crinoids are found. (What is a crinoid, you ask? A form of deep-water marine life that looks something like a starfish.)

Pendleton, Indiana, was the site of the 'Fall Creek Massacre'. A museum housing 3500 artifacts of pioneer heritage now exists on that site.

St. Meinrad Archabbey is located in Spencer County and is one of only 2 archabbeys in the U.S. and seven in the world. (Abbey Press is an operation of the archabbey.)

A buzz bomb [German ram-jet V-1, pioneer of the "Cruise Missiles"), believed to be the only one on public display in the nation, can be found on the Putnam County Courthouse lawn in Greencastle.

Roberta Turpin Willett was born in Indiana .

James Dean was born and is buried in Indiana.

The world's tallest woman lived in Indiana .

Red Skelton was born in Vincennes, Indiana  (and was a proud Hoosier 'til the day he died!)

Mae West and Claude Akins were from Bedford, Indiana.

John Mellencamp is a Hoosier and resides in Bloomington.

The inventor of the television, Philo T. Farnsworth, lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana .

Forrest Tucker was from Plainfield, Indiana .

You can't ship wine to Indiana .  (Direct to consumer, like UPS or FedEx)

Bob Greise is from Evansville, Indiana and was quarterback at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN.

Toni Tenille (of The Captain and Tenille) is from Indiana ..

Oprah Winfrey built her residence in N/W Indiana .

Florence Henderson is from Indiana .

The much sought-after Hoosier Cabinets are an Indiana product.

90% of the world's popcorn is grown in Indiana . (Orville Redenbacher was what percent?)

The Jackson Five are from Gary , Indiana .

The birthplace of the American automobile, the pneumatic rubber tire, the aluminum casting process, stainless steel and the first push-button car radio was in Kokomo, Indiana.

Frank Borman, NASA astronaut, born in Gary, Indiana.

I received this via e-mail, but most can be found at Facts about Indiana at the State Library site.

Three years of Obama’s views on marriage, civil rights, and faith

Obama has been guilty of many lies and flip-flops. Based on some things he said/believed while campaigning, is he a homophobe?  Those of us who believe that marriage is between one  man and one woman, that it does not include legalized polygamy, incest, pedophilia or same sex relationships, and for that historically sound belief that thousands of generations and cultures have held to, we have been called homophobes,  I offer this excerpt from American Thinker by Joshua Foxworth.

“Prior to becoming president, Barack Obama repeatedly asserted that marriage was not a "civil right." This goes back to his debate with Alan Keyes in 2004, in which he clearly and repeatedly asserted that marriage was not a civil right, but that property matters and hospital visitation were. After becoming president, Obama compared the struggle for marriage to that of the civil rights struggles of African-Americans. Since Obama's endorsement of gay marriage, the White House website now clearly classifies marriage under the civil rights tab. Thus, marriage was not a civil rights issue before Obama was president, and now it is.

In multiple interviews and debates, Senator Obama asserted that the issue of marriage was one to be decided by the states. He noted that the federal government simply did not have a constitutional role in marriage. However, not long after assuming office, the president endorsed the Respect for Marriage Act. While the White House website asserts that this legislation is intended to prevent the federal government from denying rights to same-sex couples, simply reading the summary of the bill shows that this is not the case. The legislation clearly states that it would repeal the parts of DOMA that allow a state to decide for itself how to define marriage, and force a marriage carried out in one state to be recognized in all states. Thus, marriage was a states' rights issue prior to the Obama presidency, and now it is not.

Finally, there is the issue of faith. In 2004, State Senator Obama clearly and articulately denoted his view that his faith dictated the definition of marriage as between one man and one woman. In his interview to endorse gay marriage, the president asserted that his faith dictated that we should treat others as we would like to be treated. Without addressing the problems with this assertion and the questions it raises about the president's knowledge of his faith, consider this: as little as three years ago, the president's faith told him that marriage was between one man and one woman, and now it tells him the opposite.”

Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/05/obamas_marriage_masquerade.html#ixzz2dus2mTB1

Pelosi back peddles on Obamacare—she read the bill

Chemical attacks on children American style

Rachael Ray Philly cheesesteak minis

I made these but didn’t use them as a snack.  I froze them in packages of 10 or 12, and would bring them out as needed and microwave briefly, either for a meal or a sandwich (2 will do it and press them down). I don’t know why it wouldn’t work as meatballs.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs  ground beef (1 lb per muffin tin)
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose biscuit mix
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 cups shredded provolone cheese, divided
• Salt and pepper
• Cooking spray

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Yields: 4-6 as a snack (fills 2 mini muffin tins)

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Preparation

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Put 2 mini muffin pans into the hot oven for a few minutes until hot. While mini muffin pan is preheating, prepare the Philly cheesesteak mixture.

In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, brown the meat. Once brown, add the onion, peppers and Worcestershire, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

In a medium bowl, mix the biscuit mix, milk, cooled meat mixture and 1 1/2 cups of cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Pull the hot pan out of the oven and spray muffin cups with cooking spray. Use a small scoop to evenly scoop heaping scoopfuls of the biscuit mixture into all of the mini muffin cups. Top each scoop of mixture with a little sprinkle of cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden on top.

http://www.rachaelray.com/recipe.php?recipe_id=4877

Christmas Pretzels

Christmas Pretzels Recipe
Ingredients:
Small Pretzels
Hershey’s Kisses (unwrapped)
M&Ms...
Directions:
Top each pretzel with a Hershey’s Kiss, and place in a preheated 200ºF oven for 10 minutes. Remove and immediately press an m&m into the top of each kiss. Let cool completely! (If you don’t eat them all immediately, that is!) Would also work with fall or Halloween colors.

Not racism; just realistic

Nine years ago in October 2004 Mychal Massie in “Darth Democrat”  warned the nation about then Senator Obama from Illinois--his Chicago style, his lies, his Muslim and socialist sympathies, his distain for infants born alive during abortions, the way he could suck you in with a turn of a phrase. Few listened.

He nailed it.

He is eloquent, well spoken, with a membrane-thin veiled socialist agenda cloaked in flowery speech. But unlike Rep. Harold Ford, D-Tenn. – who had to be reminded by Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., that while congressional blacks were no longer relegated to ticket taker in a cloakroom, they had better not forget their place – Barack Obama, D-Ill., is just the kind of black man elite liberals can use.

His positions on crime, sex education for grades K-5, homosexual marriage and taxes are out of the mainstream of the so-called liberal mainstream.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2004/11/27577/#r2Uxj6jE0Po16DXe.99

Massie is black.

Welfare is a disincentive to work

“The current welfare system provides such a high level of benefits that it acts as a disincentive for work,” Tanner and Hughes write in their new paper. “Welfare currently pays more than a minimum-wage job in 35 states, even after accounting for the Earned Income Tax Credit,” which offers extra subsidies to low-income workers who take work. “In 13 states [welfare] pays more than $15 per hour.”

“In Hawaii it is $60,590 in annual welfare benefits, once you account for the fact that welfare benefits are tax-free to the recipient, compared to work-related wages. That’s the equivalent of $29.13 an hour.”

Do you make that much?

Forbes

Tickle Me Elmo

My mother-in-law died 15 years ago. She was in a nursing home briefly before she died and my husband bought her a Tickle Me Elmo doll that talked, and since she had become rather child like, she just loved it. That toy was so popular when first issued scalpers could get $1500 for them. For 15 years it has sat in his office. This summer it has started blurting out it's message, and frankly the first time I heard it, it scared me to death. Imagine that weird voice coming out of nowhere and laughing . . .

We are leaderless, friendless and less much less under this president

His plan is working.

Labor Day 1963—Monday Memories

Fifty years ago Labor Day was also September 2  and I went into labor—I remembered that today reading Abby Johnson’s account of a medication abortion (mifepristone and misoprostol), her second. She and her husband were getting a divorce, and she was a volunteer at Planned Parenthood, and “chose” this option based on what counseling she received and thought it would be easier than a surgical abortion (she’d already had one of those).  She was lied to about the amount of pain and bleeding she should expect, and she was afraid she would die as she bled and passed clots for hours.  Alone.  She returned to PP later and asked why she hadn’t been warned and was told that the pain and bleeding is played down, or no one would choose it (I suspect that medication abortions are much more lucrative, and don’t require qualified medical people to be on hand).

After 50 years, I’m a little vague on the details, but I do remember that my second pregnancy had been uncomfortable from day one. . . like someone were pressing needles into my abdomen.  In this photo I was about 6 weeks pregnant and not feeling good at all.  I can remember a few weeks before the miscarriage having sudden bleeding, going to the hospital in a taxi accompanied by a nice man (don’t remember his name) who worked down the hall in the communications office (University of Illinois), and he stayed with me in the emergency room being mistaken for my husband. But after a few hours the bleeding stopped and I was sent home only to have it happen again on Labor Day week-end when I was home.

My first clue that something was terribly wrong was that the stabbing needle pain I’d had for three months was completely gone when I woke up in the morning.  I think now the pain ended because the baby was dead and my body was no longer trying to reject it, for whatever reason.  After some hours on the couch, talking on the phone with my sister in Indiana who was an RN and my OB, we decided to go to the hospital.  I don’t remember if I was given drugs or not, but after a few hours of fairly mild labor pains, the nurse came in to check, and then showed me what looked like a bloody softball in the bed pan.  She pressed all over my abdomen to make sure everything was expelled and examined all tissues carefully before sending it to the lab. She hugged me, too.

Like Abby, I bled a lot too with my miscarriage, but was in the hospital, so although I knew I’d lose the baby, I didn’t fear for my life and I wasn’t lying on the bathroom floor covered in blood, urine, feces and vomit, violently ill from powerful drugs that induce a miscarriage. And I wasn’t alone.

For Abby’s account of her “safe, legal, and quick” medication abortion check her story.

Reconnecting back in Columbus

                 

We take our newer HD flat screen TV to the lake in the summer, and then bring it back. I've rescanned the channels because the lake area channels don’t work in Columbus (we can get Detroit, Cleveland and Ontario there), and am surprised at the additional programming I didn’t have when we left in June. Not sure they’ve been added, or I missed them in the original scan.  I now have 2 channels on zero, and am getting DIY and 2 more c-span than I had before (no box so the selections are limited) and a few more I haven't identified. I’m getting Me-TV which I didn’t have before and an Ohio sports channel.  Both Fox 28 and WOSU are coming in on 2 different channels.

Don’t let Obama waffle us or sweet talk us again

Zucchini-Sausage Split

Serve this tasty morsel for brunch, or with salad for lunch, or cut into quarters for hors d’oeuvures. We enjoyed this at the Idlewyld Bed and Breakfast in Lakeside, Ohio and I asked Joan for the recipe.

1 pound finely chopped zucchini

1 chopped onion

14 oz. jar of salsa (Chi chi)

1 pound grated cheddar cheese'

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup parmesan cheese fresh grated

1 pound cooked bulk sausage

2 beaten eggs

1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley

1 cups bread or cracker crumbs

Season with salt, ppper, oregano, or fresh herbs

English muffin halves

Mix all ingredients together and spoon over toasted muffin halves.  Broil until golden and serve hot.  Serves 12

Governor Gilligan

I was walking on the dock at Lakeside about 7:30 a.m. and met a neighbor. He stopped me and asked, "Why is the flag at half mast?" "Governor Gilligan died," I said. "I haven't had the news on or read a newspaper much this summer," he said. And so it goes. People just don't want to know, the news has gotten so bad. Gilligan's worst legacy just might be his daughter, Kathleen Sibelius, head of HHS who is helping Obama kill the first amendment. http://cnsnews.com/news/article/sebelius-decrease-human-beings-will-cover-cost-contraception-mandate

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/08/26/john-gilligan-ohio-governor-congressman-death/2703863/

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/public/2013/08/26/John-Gilligan-former-Ohio-governor-dies.html

What’s the appropriate response to the new parents of a baby with Down Syndrome?

Congratulations!, says this mother.

DEAR AMY: I’m responding to your answer to “Caring Colleague,” the person wanting to know how to respond to a friend’s announcement of his sibling’s new child with Down syndrome.

I felt your answer was well-meant but wrong. As a parent of a 7-year-old with Down, I received both wonderful and horrid responses to the news of my child’s diagnosis. The correct answer is “Congratulations!” Period.

At the birth of a typically chromosomed child, one does not temper their joy at the thought of the work involved, the possibilities of difficult times (think drug abuse, teen drama, car accidents, school trouble, etc.) ahead. That comes with being a parent.

Just because the challenges faced by parents with kids with Down are different than the planned challenges, there is simply no need to acknowledge the road ahead as tougher than anyone else’s road. It is more work; it is more worry. But the benefits of having a child with Down totally level the playing field here. The birth of this child is a joyful thing. End of story. -- Proud Mom

Amy Dickinson advice column, Washington post.

Just like the Afghanistan surge of 2009

Meaningless and very dangerous.  Obama plans to “punish” Assad, and make a strike that is “visually compelling?”  It’s like announcing in 2009 U.S. withdrawal date and giving the enemy excuses to keep killing (and they did).  What sort of military leader is this?  Not only had he lost more military in 4 years than Bush did in 8 (which the media is careful not to mention) with his dawdling and foot dragging in Afghanistan after he became “chief”, but he makes “red lines” and shots “across the bow” and “let me be clear” statements that are squishy and meaningless.

No one is listening, but over 60% of Americans think Obama’s hawkish moves are dangerous and ridiculous.  We heard all the WMD gossip before Congress agreed to go to war in Iraq.  And this “peace prize prez” doesn’t even bother to ask Congress.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/30/obama-opposition-mounting-syria-strike

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/29/obama-syria-oil_n_3839931.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-bromwich/the-crossroads-on-syria_b_3839952.html

Obama plans to kill more Syrians than chemicals ever will. And at this point, no one even knows if or who is using the chemical weapons.

What happened to the little girl in the picture?

 

http://pjsaunders.blogspot.com/2013/08/do-you-know-what-happened-to-girl-in.html

The year of the bathroom

Earlier this year (seemed like it went on forever) we remodeled two full bathrooms in our condo in Columbus.  Then this summer we decided the wall in our only bathroom at our cottage needed more repair and fixtures than we knew (i.e. my husband) how to repair and repaint.  So we hired this one done, too.  We bought this house in 1988 when we were 49 and 50 and a lot livelier, and for 12 straight week-ends we drove here to paint and repair things, redoing the entire house, including carpet, curtains, window blinds, and since it was all done in the same time period, everything was coordinated around the colors, blue, pink and cream. The previous owner, a widow, had done a few things after her husband died, like put in whole house air conditioning and triple track storm windows. We added a deck, eventually replaced the roof, the furnace and the AC.   In the last few years, the sink, cabinet, floor and toilet in the bathroom have been replaced, and finally, the damage from showers just had to be fixed.  The reason you see a window in the shower/tub area is that when this house was built (1944) very few homes had showers, so it was never a very good fit. The shower was added probably in the 80s, and we’d had some of it repaired a few years ago. So here’s the “new” color—sort of the shade of the sky this morning under the sun as it rose over Lake Erie and I was walking on the dock—it’s deeper and richer than what shows in the photo. It will get a second coat today—after rescheduling this 3 times due to a variety of reasons, we got the most humid week of the summer. Owning a home is never an “investment,” it’s always expensive.  But owning a second/vacation home has no  tax advantages at all, unless you rent it out, in which case you have even more repairs.

Hot smashed potatoes

Ingredients
12 whole New Potatoes (or Other Small Round Potatoes)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Kosher Salt To Taste
Black Pepper To Taste
Rosemary (or Other Herbs Of Choice) To Taste

Preparation Instructions
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender.
On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookie sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.
With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the potato masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil.
Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available.)
Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Might be a fun way to serve potatoes.  This was shared by cousin Sarah Strauss on FB.