Spicy green peppers and pineapple stir fry

This sounds easy.  The title said red peppers, but I didn’t see any.  Like many foodie bloggers, she probably uses what’s on hand. Now that I’m getting good at making brown rice, I’ll try this.  I don’t have  a wok, but that won’t matter.  And mine won’t be very spicy.  Recipe at From Scratch.  I added a handful of dried cranberries to freshly cooked green beans the other night, and t was quite good. I think raisins and cranberries make a nice addition to vegetable.s

Ingredients: 1 cup cooked brown rice

2 green bell peppers

1 can pineapple chunks

1/2 white onion

1 handful of raisins

1 cup cooked shrimp (optional)

1 egg

olive oil for cooking

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

2 tsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. whole wheat flour

Drain your can of pineapple and set the fruit aside. In a small sauce pan mix together the pineapple juice, soy sauce, red pepper, sugar and flour. Cook over medium heat until ingredients are fully combined, set aside. Chop up the onion and green peppers. Drizzle some olive oil in a large wok and heat, saute onions. Once onions begin to brown add in the shrimp, pineapple and green peppers. Add in your fully cooked rice. Once rice has had a chance to warm move all wok contents to one side, crack and add in your egg. As it cooks work it into your rice and other ingredients. Now pour your sauce over the entire thing and add raisins. Allow to cook for another 15-20 minutes and serve.

Happy July 4th from the Bruces

In the shade of a 150 year old Oak tree on 2nd Street, we enjoyed the Lakeside parade with about 10,000 kids on bicycles and lots of adults acting crazy.Beautiful weather, high 70s, sunshine.

Watching the parade on 2nd across from Central Park

Couple on Lynn walking their decorated dogs

Guys Club cordless drill team

Peach Avenue Walleye gold cart

 

Kazoo Band

My kind of car—1955 Thunderbird

Neighbor Steve Bemiller and the Heritage Society popcorn machine

Lunch of bbq ribs, potato salad and baked beans on the lawn of Hotel Lakeside. Messy, but yummy.

A good question—why are we Democrats?

Is this the face of White Privilege?

Height, youth, beauty, brains and maleness does give one some privilege--that extends to all races. (Kardashians excepted). But being the offspring of a politician or celebrity, certainly allows for a hand up. Some crash and burn. I always thought Chelsea could avoid some of the down side--seemed to have a good head on her shoulders--but I think fame has taken her down a bit. Wouldn't you hate being the daughter of two flakes--although I'm sure they all love each other.

Cecile Richards’ handsome salary for aborting babies—$590,000

CEOs of non-profits do very well; some have blood on their hands. Indeed, one of Planned Parenthood's "largest sources of revenue is its varied government funding which amounted to $528 million of taxpayer money, an average of $1.4 million per day. But that’s beans compared to its reported $1.4 billion in asset."

“Despite the 282 new pro-life laws passed in the past five years, the leaders of the abortion giant are seeing dollar signs. ALL reports,  “The CEOs saw a 14.6% increase in the average salary in the last three years. At this rate, the average CEO salary will see a 4.8% increase every year.”

The income gap: “[Planned Parenthood] says 78 percent of its patients receive incomes below the federal poverty level. Yet, the combined salaries of its CEOs was $11,536,408 in 2013.” http://liveactionnews.org/planned-parenthood-president-gets-another-raise-even-affiliates-decrease/

Former Planned Parenthood clinic staffer writes, “You see, as an abortion clinic worker, I experienced evil in a way that most have not (thank The Lord). I have physically experienced evil. I have touched it when I pieced these tiny babies back together. I have seen it in those little glass dishes that I dumped their bodies into. I have heard it as the suction machine violently pulled these tiny bodies out of their mother’s wombs. And yes, I have smelled it. Abortion has a very specific smell, one that you will never forget.” Abby Johnson

Amazing Grace, violin and piano

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hFO6EcC0ls

"Amazing Grace” performed by Condoleezza Rice, former United States Secretary of State, and Jenny Oaks Baker, a world renowned violinist.

Compilation of links to my Lakeside cottage architecture stories

Most of these were written during the summer of 2008 and 2009. There has been more remodeling, more upgrades, more rules, but essentially Lakeside remains the same. My garage posts are pt. 11 and pt. 12. Not everyone writes about old garages, but that’s the advantage of following this blog!  Here’s a story about what Lakeside (and the Bruces) looked like in 1974.

What we looked like in 1974.  http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2008/07/lakeside-2008-nostalgia-thats-one-of.html

This is pt. 4 with links to 1,2,3 http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/07/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-4.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-5.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-6.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-7.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-8.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-9.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-10.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-11.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/08/lakeside-cottage-architecture-pt-12.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/09/nimfy-not-in-my-front-yard.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2010/01/garage-slab-winter-issue-is-now-out.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/07/every-town-should-have-guys-club-as-far.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2011/07/down-side-of-historic-preservation.html

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2010/07/made-in-usa.html

Five years ago

I’ve been reading through some of my blog entries from summer 2010.  Great memories, but most of the specifics of the programs and events I don’t recall—like Civil War week lectures, and Health week lectures on types of cancer. And then some things never change, like irresponsible dog owners, and the mess people make over July 4 celebration, or the delicious goodies from the Farmer’s Market.  Or my observations about poverty.

“Today is Tuesday and should be the first Farmer's Market.  There are two major seminar themes this week, "Race in America" and "American writers."  This morning's offering is "I am a promise" a film made in 1994. I'm sure it will not be noted that all our biggest poverty/education problems in this country are in urban areas controlled for generations by the Democratic machine which continues to create a sense of powerlessness, anger and hopelessness in people while buying their votes.  I don't want to hear how little has changed in 16 years and how if we just threw more money at it, everything would be OK.”

This week I’ve been thinking about the outrage over the racist, vacant eyed, young man, Dylann Roof, who  killed 9 black Christians in a church in Charleston, SC.  Many stories began popping up on the internet about homegrown terrorists in the U.S. and confederate flags contributing to the problem. That grew to demands to also remove the American flag as racist, stories of white privilege, etc.  If that brand of terrorism is worse (as some say) than ISIS homegrown cells, and the very obvious Confederate flag was flying in many communities for years, why isn’t Obama being blamed for their hate growth?  If it were Bush, he certainly would be bearing the brunt of the responsibility.

Tolerance and diversity are values of the left. Ha.

I won’t be “home” for July 4 festivities

My friend Lynne is our class of 57 poet.  So she sent me this little ditty, because I’ll miss the class breakfast this year.

I’ll give your regards to Main St.,  and remember you on Kable Square.

And tell all gang at Wesley and Main,  that you will soon be there-

Whisper of how you’re yearning,  to mingle with the old-time throng-

I’ll give your regards to old Mt. Morris and say you'll be there ere long..

(She writes, “Forgive me Geo. M. Cohan-but I couldn't resist)

2007, Ladies breakfast at White Pines

Columbus area will get a great show

Last summer Michael W. Smith performed at Lakeside; it was a wonderful show. One of the best in a spectacular season.   On September 28  he’ll be in Columbus (Grove City Nazarene) with Mark Lowry. http://www.premierproductions.com/tour/michael-w-smith-celebration-songs-hymns/columbus-oh

Andrew Young—he’ll have to pay for this

Black civil rights icon and former Mayor of Atlanta Andrew Young says that debate over the Confederate flag is a divisive non-issue which completely distracts from the real problem – the fact that 93% of blacks are killed by other blacks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdeynkVlmBk

While liberals fuss about a flag

The real problem for black poverty and white privilege: marriage.  But from now until the election, what the federal government has done to black families with the War on Poverty will be ignored or lied about.  Why?  Because it works.  It redirects the attention to something that doesn’t matter in the real world and won’t change the economic statistics, and the Republicans (except for Ted Cruz) fall for it every time. Even with a bench of 14, they collectively have half a spine.  Children of married parents rarely grow up in poverty. They have a higher education rate, lower crime rate. Guess what?  Kids need a dad!  Adult children of divorced families have a higher divorce rate, lower marriage rate. Children of gay couples will statistically be such a small sample (adopted or AI, both of which have their own problems) I think we can ignore both the liberal and conservative perspective. Children of unmarried white parents are heading for the same route as black families with no slavery in their background and more dependency on government programs, lower church attendance.

In 2012 The U.S Census Bureau released a report that studied the history of marriage in the United States. They discovered some startling statistics when calculating marriage by race. They found that African Americans age 35 and older were more likely to be married than White Americans from 1890 until sometime around the 1960s. Not only did they swap places during the 60s but in 1980 the number of NEVER married African Americans began a staggering climb from about 10% to more than 25% by 2010 while the percentage for White women remained under 10% and just over 10% for White men. http://blackdemographics.com/households/marriage-in-black-america/

Red palm oil, hype or help?

In this morning’s World’s Healthiest Foods Newsletter, I thought I’d be seeing an article about organic red palm oil, but instead it was on yesterday’s topic, cast iron skillets, which didn’t appear when it was announced.  So I looked it up on Google.  Google now puts mostly advertising first so after wading through about 10 pages of listings, I finally got to an analysis of the hype. Red Palm Oil is the New Coconut Oil on a website that analyzes food trends, fads, and hype. 

Red palm oil (or red palm fruit oil) is extracted from red-hued fruits of palm trees that grow in Indonesia and Malaysia.   The color of the oil remains red due to the beta carotene inside.  This precursor of vitamin A is the same compound that contributes to the color of carrots and other orange-red hued vegetables and fruits.

So it’s true that red palm oil supplies vitamin A.  In fact, the Micronutrient Initiative is exploring the use of red palm oil as part of a food-based approach to vitamin A supplementation in Africa and other parts of the world.  Vitamin A deficiency is a critical issue in developing countries, where it’s the leading cause of blindness (and can even result in death).  However, vitamin A deficiency is rare in this country, and there are certainly much better ways for all of us to get this nutrient, such as eating red or orange vegetables and fruits!

Ah. . . if it is used in a 3rd World country, is must be good. This article primarily goes after a Dr. Oz program on the topic (video not available).  I’ve come to see him (when I do) as great entertainment and a 21st century huckster, snake oil salesman. The Joe Schwarcz article gets a 404 no matter how I try to find it. But it’s a great quote: “As is usually the case with Oz’s miracles, there is a seed of truth that then gets fertilized with lots of verbal manure until it grows into a tree that bears fruit dripping with unsubstantiated hype.”

I guess I’ll have to wait a day to see what the newsletter says.  It’s web page seems to have it’s link confuse.  I’ll update tomorrow.

It’s a good thing artists aren’t killed for being disrespectful to Christians

“The unusual medium used to create a portrait of Pope Benedict XVI . . . has upset Roman Catholic leaders in Milwaukee,” reports Mitch Smith of the New York Times. Go figure. They’re not talking about Post-its or chewing gum . Niki Johnson’s portrait of the pope emeritus is fashioned from “17,000 stretched-out condoms in a variety of colors.” It is titled “Eggs Benedict.”  WSJ

No one is suggesting killing Niki Johnson, but does the Milwaukee Art Museum need to purchase it? I’d withdraw my membership and donation immediately.

“The decision by the Milwaukee Art Museum to acquire and prominently display a controversial portrait of Pope Benedict XVI fashioned from 17,000 colored condoms has created outrage among Catholics and others who see it as profoundly disrespectful, even blasphemous.

Many suggest that if a piece were as offensive to other faith traditions or communities it would not be tolerated, much less embraced.

Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki blasted the decision as insulting and callous. The museum acknowledged it has fielded about 200 complaints. A handful of patrons dropped their memberships; one longtime docent tendered her resignation; and at least one donor vowed never to support the museum financially again.

Museum officials said an equal number of people have voiced support for the piece and that memberships and pledges in general are growing. They said they regret that the portrait, by Shorewood artist Niki Johnson, has elicited such enmity. But they insist it was not their intent — nor the intent of the artist — to offend Catholics or anyone else. And they said they continue to enjoy the support of people of all faiths, including Catholics.”

So the intent was not to insult the leader of the largest Christian church in the world? How stupid do they think we are.  And I hope Milwaukee Catholics stand up to this ridicule.

Not to worry—you won’t need to be a citizen to vote

“Monday’s big election law news came from the Supreme Court’s penultimate decision of the term upholding Arizona’s congressional districts.

But before handing down its last three decisions, the court made voting-rights advocates happy by deciding not to review a different election case.

“Arizona citizens can continue to participate in voter registration drives without worrying about not having proof of citizenship documents,” Shirley Sandelands of the League of Women Voters of Arizona said in a statement Monday.

The case, Kobach, et al. v. Election Assistance Commission, et al., was about whether Arizona and Kansas could require voters to prove their citizenship when registering to vote with the so-called federal form. Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach led the suit against the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, which was an appeal of a lower court decision.” http://www3.atr.rollcall.com/supreme-court-victory-for-voting-rights-advocates/?dcz=

You would think being a citizen shouldn’t be such a tough one.  I can’t see Canada or Mexico letting me vote if I were passing through or had a summer home there. But I guess I don’t think like a Democrat. All that matters is pandering to that very powerful and growing demographic-- minority, black and young. They know where the gold is buried and that sensible people with common sense are aging out of the system.

http://www.truethevote.org/true-vote-commends-amicus-filing-noncitizen-voter-registration-lawsuit

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/04/22/ks-and-az-file-scotus-petition-in-effort-to-stop-non-citizens-from-registering-and-voting/

So this is transformation of our country

Middle and high school students can’t get a Coca-Cola or a candy bar at 13 Seattle public schools, but they can get a taxpayer-funded intrauterine device (IUD) implanted without their parents’ consent.

School-based health clinics in at least 13 Seattle-area public high schools and middle schools offer long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs), including IUDs and hormonal implants, to students in sixth-grade and above at no cost, according to Washington State officials.

Seattle school clinics

So seriously underage girls are being co-opted by the schools.  Does that make the participating public school system and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists which gave this atrocity a green light co-rapists in underage sex? Isn’t that a crime? And what about those poorly trained “clinic” workers who insert them? Isn’t that a violation of a child’s body? 

• Hormonal IUDs (e.g., Mirena®) contains the hormone levonorgestrel, which is a type of progesterone. A hormonal IUD prevents pregnancy in several ways: killing or harming the sperm, making the mucus in the cervix thick so sperm can't reach the uterus, and helping make the uterine lining an unappealing place for a fertilized egg to implant itself. About 2 in 1,000 women become pregnant during the first year of getting a hormonal IUD.
• Copper IUDs (e.g., ParaGard®) consists of copper wire wrapped around the stem portion of the T-shaped device. It can stay in place at least twice as long as a hormonal IUD--for at least a decade. A copper IUD works by causing a woman's uterus and fallopian tubes to produce a fluid that kills sperm. About 6 in 1,000 women become pregnant during the first year of getting a copper IUD.

For as long as they’ve been keeping track more contraceptives for teens means more sex which means more pregnancies which means more abortions or young, unprepared mothers.  But teach chastity?  OH horrors.  That wouldn’t work.  Someone might graduate from high school a virgin, and that would never do.  That’s not progressive; that’s not the Democrat way.  How many of these girls will get counseling on the psychological damage, say, if it’s incest, or an older man leading her to prostitution, or how many will get STDs. How qualified are these staffers who’ve had no training in counseling?

Do you suppose the President has had his daughters fitted with an IUD? He did say a baby is punishment.  But he also has a pretty good security detail to send on their dates.

Microbiome or why asthma and ADD today and not years ago?

“Commensal microbes that live on and in us are critical for our health. By cell numbers, we are approximately 90 percent microbial, and the vast majority of the genes expressed in our superorganism are not on our mammalian chromosomes but in the bacteria, archaea, and single-celled eukaryotes that call the human body home. Normally, a robust microbiome would be part of our inheritance, a legacy passed, largely maternally, from generation to generation. But recently that chain has been broken, usually more than once. The increase in cesarean deliveries, the reduced prevalence and duration of breastfeeding, overuse of antibiotics both as prescription drugs and in agriculture, modern urban living surrounded by sanitizers, and a general tendency to limit contact with the environment have changed our relationship with the microbes that are an integral part of our biology. In today’s world, our best chance of acquiring microbes might be from touching our computer keyboards and cellphones or frequenting shopping malls, hotel rooms, or doctors’ offices—and many are not bugs you want in and on your body.” . . .

“Antibiotic administration in infants is associated with higher risk of asthma later in childhood, a risk that scales with the number of rounds administered.¹¹ Increased use of antibiotics in infants is also associated with a higher risk of childhood obesity,¹² and some investigations have reported an association between antibiotic use and an elevated risk of celiac disease. It is likely only a matter of time before more links between disease and an infant’s compromised microbiome are revealed.”

The sum of our parts, The Scientist, July 1, 2015

Top local radio talk shows in U.S.

Most I’ve never heard of unless Chicago or Ohio or if they’ve substituted for Glenn or Rush or Michael. Not too many women on this list; I wonder why.  We are born with the gift of gab.

1. John and Ken, KFI 640 AM, Los Angeles, California.
2. Curtis and Kuby, WABC 770 AM, New York, New York.
3. Howie Carr, WRKO 680 AM, Boston, Massachusetts.
4. Steve Cochran, WGN 720 AM, Chicago, Illinois.
5. Bill Carroll, KFI 640 AM, Los Angeles, California.
6. Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor, WMAL 630 AM, Washington.
7. Brian Sussman, KSFO 560 AM, San Francisco, California.
8. Jeffrey Kuhner, WRKO 680 AM, Boston, Massachusetts.
9. Roe Conn, WGN 720 AM, Chicago, Illinois.
10. Chris Plante, WMAL 630 AM, Washington, D.C.
11. Michael Berry, KTRH 740 AM, Houston, Texas.
12. Dom Giordano, WPHT 1210 AM, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
13. Doug McIntyre, KABC 790 AM, Los Angeles, California.
14. Lars Larson, KXL 101 FM, Portland, Oregon.
15. Jim Gearhart, WKXW 101.5 FM, Trenton, New Jersey.
16. Geraldo Rivera, WABC 770 AM, New York, New York.
17. Steve Dahl, WLS 890 AM, Chicago, Illinois.
18. Clarence M. Mitchell IV “C4,” WBAL 1090 AM Baltimore, Maryland.
19. Joe Pags, WOAI 1200 AM, San Antonio, Texas.
20. Bill Cunningham, WLW 700 AM, Cincinnati, Ohio.
21. Armstrong and Getty, KSTE 650 AM, Sacramento, California.
22. Ronn Owens, KGO 810 AM, San Francisco, California.
23. Chris Stigall, WPHT 1210 AM, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
24. Mark Reardon, KMOX 1120 AM, St. Louis, Missouri.
25. Ron and Don, KIRO 97.3 FM, Seattle, Washington.
26. Mandy Connell, KHOW 630 AM, Denver, Colorado.
27. Dan Yorke, WPRO 630 AM, Providence, Rhode Island.
28. Larry Young, WOLB 1010 AM, Baltimore, Maryland.
29. Mark Davis, KSKY 660 AM, Dallas, Texas.
30. John Carney, KTRS 550 AM, St. Louis, Missouri.
31. Joe Piscopo, WNYM 970 AM, New York, New York.
32. Lincoln Ware, WDBZ 1230 AM, Cincinnati, Ohio.
33. Tom Bauerle, WBEN 930 AM, Buffalo, New York.
34. Jim Villanucci, KXNT 100.5 FM, Las Vegas, Nevada.
35. Charlie Brennan, KMOX 1120 AM, St. Louis, Missouri.
36. Charlie Sykes, WTMJ 620 AM, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
37. Brian Whitman, Ben Shapiro, Elisha Krauss, KRLA 870 AM, Los Angeles, California.
38. Tom Marr, WCBM 680 AM, Baltimore, Maryland.
39. McGraw Milhaven, KTRS 550 AM, St. Louis, Missouri.
40. John DePetro, WPRO 630 AM, Providence, Rhode Island.
41. John Hancock, WBT 1110 AM, Charlotte, North Carolina.
42. Mark Belling, WISN 1130 AM, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
43. Joyce Kaufman, WFTL 850 AM, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
44. Mac and Gaydos, KTAR 92.3 FM, Phoenix, Arizona.
45. Chris Merrill, KOGO 600 AM, San Diego, California.
46. Mark Trivisano, WTAM 1100 AM Cleveland, Ohio.
47. Alan Stock, KDWN 720 AM, Las Vegas, Nevada.
48. Simon Conway, WHO 1040 AM, Des Moines, Iowa.
49. Jeff Wagner, WTMJ 620 AM, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
50. Jan Mickelson, WHO 1040 AM, Des Moines, Iowa.

 http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/influential-talk-radio-hosts-shows/2015/06/30/id/652849/#ixzz3ee0xranV

Happy July 1 from Lakeside, Ohio

I had a 2 mile walk this morning, east on Third and then back west along the lake. Now sitting on a ice pack.  Right leg bursa not too bad, but thought I’d nip any inflammation in the bud—or in the bursa. I’ve now walked or cycled 1038 miles since Dec. 26.  Coolish today, but they are predicting a nice day, zero rain. Big storm last night about 10 p.m. but it seems to have moved over the lake.  Is there anything as useless as a diary/blog that discusses weather?  I have a calendar/garden diary of my mother’s from the 1970s.  It’s almost funny.

The Lakeside grounds crew is here cutting up the limbs from storm damage Friday and Saturday.  Our tree is on the easement, which means they clean it up.  Our neighbors’ Hackberry which fell over is on their property, so they have to pay.  If it had damaged their cottage, insurance would cover it, but it didn’t.  It actually looks like it’s on their neighbor’s property, except back in the day when people weren’t too sure, that driveway is 4’ over the line.

I bought a new microwave (smaller) in May, but it doesn’t seem to be heating all that great, which was the problem with the 20 year old it replaced.  The old one has been given away, and I don’t think I have the receipt here because everything seemed fine a month ago.

I left after the first 2 numbers of last night’s program, Hey Mavis.  It was sort of jazz, sort of blue grass, and mostly original material.  I usually wait until intermission.  It wasn’t bad, but just not what I felt like listening to, so I walked home and stopped to chat with a neighbor.  We had a nice chat with the young couple sitting in front of us at Hoover, but they left before I did.  They were staying in a B&B which must be tough with small children (one a baby), but she had fallen in love with Lakeside.

This year my husband joined “The guy’s club.”  I think it was originally a spoof on The Women’s Club which has been around for about 90 years, and they had no agenda and no programs. Their dues support various Lakeside projects. But they do march with their drill team (carry power drills and wear matching t-shirts) in the July 4 parade, and go to lunch.  So today he’s going to lunch with them.  He knows most of them from sailing, but has never joined.