Oatmeal for breakfast

 I've seen a lot of very negative ads about oatmeal flash by on internet ads, and I have a friend who is always pushing something healthy and he says oats are not good for human consumption.  He says they are sprayed with something (isn't everything?). Before moving to The Estates (aka The Forum) I rarely ate oatmeal, but now that someone else makes it and serves it, I do have it about once a week.  Sometimes I take a small amount of walnuts and raisins with me and add those, plus about 1/4 C whole milk. So I looked it up.

Half a cup (40.5 g) of dry oats (from USDA website) Cereals, oats, regular and quick, not fortified, dry - Nutrients - SR Legacy | USDA FoodData Central

Manganese: 63.9% of the daily value (DV)
Phosphorus: 13.3% of the DV
Magnesium: 13.3% of the DV
Copper: 17.6% of the DV
Iron: 9.4% of the DV
Zinc: 13.4% of the DV
Folate: 3.2% of the DV
Vitamin B1 (thiamin): 15.5% of the DV
Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid): 9.1% of the DV
smaller amounts of calcium, potassium, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), and vitamin B3 (niacin)

The nutritional profile of one cup of prepared oatmeal (one half cup dry oats with water) also includes:
27.4 grams (g) of carbs
5.3 g of protein
2.6 g of fat
4 g of fiber
153.5 calories

Dear EWG, This Is Why Real Scientists Think Poorly of You | American Council on Science and Health

Can you really cook meme?

I saw this oldie on Facebook today. Thought I'd give it a whirl. I don't cook at all anymore, so digging deep into the memory for this.

Who can really cook? Who can cook real food, not stuff prepackaged or in a box? (No Kraft Mac N Cheese or Stouffer’s Lasagna). I look forward to seeing your surveys, on YOUR OWN blog. I thought it would be fun! Thank you

My score: was 39, however I couldn't claim that after I made it that it was all eaten! Like the pot of beans--never got good at that and gave up after several tries.
What's your score?

 
HAVE YOU EVER:
1. Made bread from scratch? Yes
2. Cooked fresh okra or squash? Yes
3. Made homemade soup? Yes
4. Fried chicken? Yes
5. Made spaghetti sauce from scratch? Yes
6. Made homemade rolls or cinnamon rolls? Yes
7. Baked a cake from scratch? Yes
8. Made icing from scratch? Yes
9. Cooked a pot roast with all the veggies? Yes
10. Made chili from scratch? Yes
11. Made a meatloaf? Yes
12. Made potato salad? Yes
13. Made mac/cheese from scratch? Yes
14. Made any pies from scratch? Yes
15. Made sausage from scratch? No
16. Made fudge? Yes
17. Made cookies from scratch? Yes
18. Cooked a pot of dried beans? Yes
19. Cooked a pot of greens? Yes
20. Made cornbread from scratch? Yes
21. Made a pie dough from scratch? Yes
22. Cooked a whole turkey? Yes
23. Snapped green beans & cooked them? Yes
24. Made mashed potatoes from scratch? Yes
25. Prepared a meal for 30 plus people? Yes
26. Made homemade tortillas? No
27. Made pancakes from scratch? Yes
28. Roasted vegetables in the oven instead of boiling them? Yes
29. Made pasta from scratch? Yes
30. Made tamales from scratch? No
31. Made tuna or chicken salad? Yes
32. Fried fish? Yes
33. Made baked beans? Yes
34. Made ice cream from scratch? Yes
35. Made jam or jelly? Yes
36. Zested an orange or lemon? Yes
37. Made grits from scratch? Yes
38. Made an omelet? Yes
39. Made homemade pizza? Yes
40. Lived in a house without a dishwasher? Yes
41. Apple sauce from scratch? Yes
42. Biscuits from scratch? Yes

After thought--not part of meme. I think our idea of "from scratch" probably differs from our grandparents or our great grandparents. If you look at a recipe for grits, someone has done a lot of work on that corn before you bought the package! And anything from a "fresh" egg isn't fresh at all. If you've ever had an egg that hasn't been refrigerated, it tastes like nothing you've had before. Although I grew up with margarine, I only use butter now, and even the packaged butter you buy isn't like fresh butter. So, "from scratch" can itch your curiosity.

Affordable. We've heard this before about health care.

Although President Trump is best in his field as a business man, he's fast becoming a politician. The latest plug about cars being affordable if the government gets involved is a page out of Obama's book on affordable health care. Barack gave us neither affordable nor healthy and left it to others to write the gazillion rules and stab us in the back. With cars, remember what they did the last time to make them "green?" They destroyed the older non-green models so there were no used cars to be "affordable." Only the rich benefitted. What will they do now? Manufacturers are owned by investors, and although it always looks like they go along with whoever is in power, they need to dance with the one who brought them.

https://youtu.be/ZCPId-2CABs?si=nvfIOwpJ-8kAsPAEAsPAE

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Don't be a fickle fool
You came here with a gal, who's always been your pal
Don't leave her for the first unattached girl, it just ain't cool

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

I had a friend in Texas
He really had some style
He sang that good old Western Swing and drove 'em wild
Then a talent scout from Vegas said,
"Boy, play and sing this way"
And in one short year he was broke in L.A

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

You gotta be real careful what you wish for
'Cause you just might get
The whole darn thing
Be sure what you want is really something you can use
Or you might wind up half dead
Just singing the Blues

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

Dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

Who wants to be 18? Not me.

I haven't heard anyone at The Estates (formerly the Forum) say this--"I wish I were 18 again." But I've enjoyed listening to some of the men (widowers, usually) talk about their kids when they were little--how cute they were, lessons they learned, crazy risks they took. I think I've seen men in a whole new light. If you're young, don't miss that part. https://youtu.be/81FjrGwkhi0?si=DR9jjtonqwH4ULmn Burns was about 85 when this was made.

First Sunday of Advent, Isaiah 40, Pastor Joe Valentino

 https://youtu.be/Tm6lUWcSVkY?si=2U7b39QEumfP95xE

Bible reading

I glanced across the aisle at church today and watched a three year old in her mom's lap. She almost made it to one of our Christmas cards some years ago when she was in the womb. She would have been a fabulous subject, but a different painting of Bob's won out. She had a pew Bible on her legs and was quietly studying the pages, intently moving her little fingers across the page, nodding her head and moving her lips. Perhaps she didn't know the words but in a family of 11 she's got those values down pat, like sharing, forgiving, mercy, justice, helping, caring, loving, trusting and looking to the future.

What the Democrats told us in the 1990s about WMD

Because I used to print and bind my blog entries, it's easier to look back and read them than skimming a computer screen. I was looking at November 2005 (20 years ago) and found a fascinating collection of a blog called, "Who said it game--Iraq Style." It looks like it ended in 2005, or perhaps changed names. It clearly shows our populace what intelligence and information President Bush had from 20-30 years before we got involved there. Direct quotes from Clinton, Reed, Gore, Kerry, Pelosi and others who later blamed Bush and lied about him. Before they were smearing Trump, they were smearing Bush, and some of the same players. Then we called it "Bush Derangement Syndrome" and the hate, anger and evil were the same. It's not about Trump, it's about Democrat ideology.

John Kerry, December 14, 2001, Larry King Live: "Oh, I think we clearly have to keep the pressure on terrorism globally. This doesn't end with Afghanistan by any imagination. Terrorism is a global menace. It's a scourge. And it is absolutely vital that we continue, for instance, Saddam Hussein."

John Kerry, 2003 CBS Face the Nation: "Well, it wasn't only on that basis. ... Saddam Hussein could not be left to his own devices based on everything we learned about him for seven and a half years while we were inspecting in Iraq. People have forgotten that for seven and a half years, we found weapons of mass destruction. We were destroying weapons of mass destruction. We were, the United States of America, together with Ambassador Butler and the United Nations."

Bill Clinton, Address to nation, Dec. 16, 1998: "Heavy as they are, the costs of action must be weighed against the price of inaction. If Saddam defies the world and we fail to respond, we will face a far greater threat in the future. Saddam will strike again at his neighbors. He will make war on his own people. And mark my words, he will develop weapons of mass destruction. He will deploy them, and he will use them.

Let me close by addressing one other issue. Saddam Hussein and the other enemies of peace may have thought that the serious debate currently before the House of Representatives would distract Americans or weaken our resolve to face him down."

Bill Clinton, Presidential Letter to Congress on Iraq May 19, 1999: "Many warnings (referring to April report) on weapons of mass destruction--biological and chemical--" "We are convinced that as long as Saddam Hussein remains in power, he will continue to threaten the well-being of his people, the peace of the region and the security of the world. We will continue to contain these threats, but over the long term the best way to address them is through a new government in Baghdad.

To that end, working with the Congress, we have deepened our engagement with the forces of change in Iraq to help make the opposition a more effective voice for the aspirations of the Iraqi people..."

Al Gore, December 16, 1998. On Larry King Live. "We need national resolve and unity, not weakness and division when we're involved, engaged in an action against someone like Saddam Hussein, who is trying to get weapons of mass destruction and threaten his neighbors... [I]f you allow someone like Saddam Hussein to get nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, chemical weapons, biological weapons, how many people is he going to kill with such weapons? He's already demonstrated a willingness to use these weapons; he poison gassed his own people. He used poison gas and other weapons of mass destruction against his neighbors. This man has no compunctions about killing lots and lots of people."

Madeline Albright, February 18,1998: "Iraq is a long way from [the USA], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face."

Nancy Pelosi, December 16, 1998: "Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process."

So, you see, it's the same old gaslighting and finger pointing that we have today, then when things get dark and confusing, they bow out and point fingers.

Advent--almost

This is an important day. It's the penultimate day of the church calendar. (Ultimate means final or farthest and pen means almost.) So it means next to the last. Advent, the first day of the church year, is Sunday, November 30, and we look forward to the coming of our Savior and Lord who took on our flesh as a helpless baby.

 
To make it easy on myself I looked up how that is determined and self was told: 

"The first day of Advent in 2025 is Sunday, November 30, 2025. This date marks the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity and is the first Sunday of Advent, which is always the Sunday closest to St Andrew’s Day (November 30).

Advent will conclude on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2025, leading into the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus Christ on December 25. Many churches observe this season with Advent wreaths, lighting candles each Sunday to symbolize themes of hope, peace, joy, and love."

Advent hymns are lovely and thoughtful--not exactly Rudolph and Santa. One popular hymn was written by Christina Georgina Rosetti and ends,

 
"What can I give him,
poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd,
I would bring a lamb,
if I were a wise man
I would do my part,
yet what I can I give him,
give my heart."

Our facility, The Estates at Knightsbridge, is swarming with Christmas elves who have miraculously put out wreaths, ribbons and trees to make this place look like, maybe not home, but festive and cheerful as we look forward.

Also, it's Black Friday when retailers make it or break it (are in the black), and you're crazy if you go out to shop or buy a quart of milk. It's also the day before OSU and Michigan fight it out in Ann Arbor; the streets of Columbus will be quiet and safe.

Yesterday morning we got an update on our dishwasher/paper plate problem. It wouldn't be fixed in time for the big Thanksgiving Day dinner. But Hallelujah! Wednesday at dinner we had full table ware and weren't eating with plastic. I don't know what got fixed (needs 180 degrees on rinse) but we are all relieved. Also rent announcements for next year came out, and we're so thrilled that Trump's economy is working and the inflation I expected didn't happen. I think the hype we're getting about "affordability" is last year's Biden left-overs and they smell bad.

Word of the year is Parasocial

BBC – “Parasocial” is the Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year, defined as a relationship felt by someone between themselves and a famous person they do not know. Its examples include the parasocial interest displayed by fans when singer Taylor Swift and American footballer Travis Kelce announced their engagement. The term dates back to 1956, when American sociologists observed TV viewers engaging in “para-social” relationships with on-screen personalities. Chief editor Colin McIntosh said it had recently been used to describe “a type of relationship, between a person and a non-person, for example a celebrity”. “It was originally coined as an academic word and was confined to the academic sphere for quite a long time,” he added. “It’s only fairly recently that it’s made a shift into popular language and it’s one of those words that have been influenced by social media.”  The Cambridge Dictionary said its word of the year is “parasocial” – beSpacific

Although I passed the AI quiz

 . . . it didn't pass the grammar quiz.  I spent about 30 minutes with a tech support staff member at The Ohio State University yesterday and finally have reinstated my password, which needs to be frequently updated.  While I was browsing, I saw the department offered a quiz on AI with 12 questions and the "chance" for a prize.  It's intended for OSU faculty and students who will be using AI tools in research.  I answered the 12 questions correctly and read the explanations about why the answer was right (important since I was guessing). However, I did suspect whoever wrote it needed to proof her work.  For instance. "What is a important to consider?" That sentence had at least 2 errors--the "a" should be "an," and "important" is an adjective modifying a missing noun.  Also, the singular nouns such as person or teacher or researcher were followed by they/them/their but I think that is a concession to woke and is probably the standard lest we leave out a woman or a trans-something, or even a furry, in the discussion,

A friend of Phil

 Cecilia Fernandes Obituary (1938-2025) | Columbus, OH

We remember the kindness of the family in our time of need in 2020.

Is there really a housing crisis?

Why is everything a crisis? Like the affordability crisis? The age of first home purchase has increased to 38. We were 22 when we bought our first house, a run down duplex. Dual incomes were the exception until 2nd wave feminism in the 70s when women were told to go to work to have value (and to pay more taxes). We were thrilled to have renters pay our mortgage! It needed a lot of sweat equity and a loan from my dad.

 
Young people today want much more. They marry later and have huge college loans--even their parents are still paying off loans! They want nice cars--and need 2 or 3. We didn't take trips, buy nice cars, go out to eat, or dress well. For a long time we were "house poor." I get this uneasy feeling that when the government steps in to "fix" housing, things get worse, like 2007-2008 subprime crisis, or building "affordable" neighborhoods (that aren't). We had run away consumerism and inflation--keeping up with the Jones. In America, you really can have it all--just not all at the same time.

This complex https://www.apartments.com/fox-and-hounds-columbus-oh/cvfs42e/ is about 50 years old. Based on inflation since 1967, it's less than the 2 bdrm 1 bath unit we rented in 1967 after we sold our house in Illinois and moved to Columbus . What is affordability? We had one income (because a wife's income wasn't factored in the housing costs in those days). The dollar had an average inflation rate of 4.00% per year between 1967 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 869.99%, or our $140 rent would be like $1360 in 2025.

Chicken or Chicken Little?

Have Democrats lost their minds by circulating a ridiculous video encouraging active duty military to defy orders? Trump told his supporters to go peacefully to the White House on Jan. 6, 2021 and they screamed insurrection. And now they ask active military to defy the chain of command? But they blame Trump for their outrageous, unpatriotic behavior. And no, I don't think the voting Democrats will hold them accountable; they elected them because they hate Trump. Yet not a one of them can cite anything Trump has done that is illegal or beyond his powers. They let some lowest court judge in podunk do their dirty work.  Are they chicken or just chicken little who cried the sky is falling and incited panic and alarm.

Do you ever play Euchre?

The word "euchre" is likely not directly related to "eucharist" in terms of etymology, despite their similar spelling. The card game "euchre" is believed to have originated from the Alsatian game "juckerspiel," with early forms of the name appearing as "uker" or "yucker" in American English by the early 19th century. The modern spelling "euchre" may have been influenced by the word "eucharist," possibly due to a phonetic resemblance or a deliberate attempt to give the game a more formal or ecclesiastical sound, particularly by individuals with a church background.

However, this similarity is considered coincidental or a later adaptation rather than a true linguistic connection. The Oxford English Dictionary notes the etymology of "euchre" as uncertain, and while some have speculated about a link to the Spanish phrase "ser yuca" meaning "to be the best," no definitive connection to "eucharist" has been established.

The word "eucharist" itself comes from the Greek "eucharistia," meaning "thanksgiving," and is rooted in religious context, whereas "euchre" refers to a card game with no such religious connotation.

The 613 Commandments and the number of Federal regulations for automobiles

I have probably been in 613 Bible studies in my adult life, the number of rules/laws in the Old Testament for observant Jews. I often hear (and maybe I said) one didn't need so many laws to be religious, or to please God. I had hoped to be writing a blog about this, but just thinking about today, 6 a.m. when I got up to 9:30 a.m. when I drove to a hair appointment, I thought I could come up with 613 federal, state, municipal, township, plus thousands of regulations that will affect my life. That doesn't count the general commonsense rules we and our culture expect for us. Like brush your teeth; comb your hair; dress for the weather; check the rear view mirror before backing out.  Imagine that people living 4000 years ago could get by with only 613 and yet survived to the 21st century.

Since I would be leaving my apartment in the car I thought I'd just ask AI an easy question, "How many federal laws and regulations apply only to automobiles." Co-Pilot and I really got into an argument, and I kept feeding back to it its answer and telling Co-pilot that was not what I was asking, especially when it finally came up with 142 after telling me about all the revisions and subsections of the codes. After about 6 responses, AI began to blame it on me that I didn't accept its answer!! It really got snippy and tried to overwhelm me with BIG giant words no one would know except a government geek. Really, the gall!!

My final response:

Oh please! You can't answer a simple (for AI) question so it's my fault for the way I worded it? Is this Wizard behind the curtain a politician? "142 is an illustrative approximation, not an authoritative count, and any analytic or policy discussion should recognize this limitation and contextualize the number within the broader, dynamic regulatory environment."

Questioning the question mark

Every Wednesday morning for the last 4 years I've been logging my husband into ZOOM for his men's Bible study, but I have to write down the password. It's only 6 numbers, but for some reason it just doesn't come to mind. Yet on Wednesday I remembered my locker code for MMHS, Mt. Morris High School, which has been closed for years. The mind is a strange and wonderful thing. I wonder what else will pop up. I also wonder why that last sentence didn't need a question mark, because Facebook corrected it. So, I asked and Copilot told me "I wonder" questions are indirect and don't need a question mark. Did we learn that at MMHS? I've been doing it wrong all these years.

Shutdowns and Food Banks

The Schumer Shutdown may have been paused but the Obamacare funding problem won't go away, and neither will hunger if political interests decide to use the misery of our people to wield power. Democrats openly admitted it--they needed the shutdown to punish Trump and his supporters for a bad medical insurance plan they created!  "Leverage" some called it. Some agitators are furious today,

"Feeding America" is an organization almost 60 years old with noble goals--feed the hungry. It began with one man (some sources say one woman) as Second Harvest, a charity to collect and distribute food that might have gone to waste and redistribute it through food banks to local food pantries. I remember in the late 1960s attending a meeting in Clintonville about establishing a central location for food to be stored for local pantries. Recently, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther called the local resources a "short-term approach to a crisis" [the shutdown] and said it was up to the federal government to fully fund food assistance. I don't call 60 years a short-term approach. Food banks have become a hallowed institution. Our food bank system here in central Ohio is massive. Our Commitment | MOFC

But low income people who are "food insecure," the current term for hungry, aren't stupid. They too are resourceful and want what's best for their households. As food programs expand, those households factor that into their budgets, leaving more cash for non-food items such as rent, utilities, clothing, alcohol, cigarettes, gasoline, cell phone contracts, etc. Studies show that even with the lowest unemployment rate since the early 1970s, food pantries are still an important resource for many households, some increasing their visits from occasional to regular. That in turn allowed for many small businesses to make a profit from the various food programs.

Right now, with the longest government shut down, we're in a situation that we've taught people to use food sources outside their income which includes government assistance. Was it a mistake for us to be charitable? No. Charity is required from good people, but we need to remember that good intentions don't always bring good results.

Schumer Shutdown--is it over?

It looks like the Schumer Shutdown is over for now. The disastrous Obamacare increases will still need to be solved, and the payment for illegals worked out. A CR would have been the smartest thing to do although once the gov't gives a freebie it doesn't go away, Schumer will still be attacked by his own party because they want the female youth vote that seems to go with AOC grabbing his Senate seat.
There are still people who are missing a paycheck or SNAP and will be relying on food pantries. For the most part, these are run and staffed by churches, but the "donations" are probably government and non-profit managed. The slack is picked up by the people--YOU.

Unveiling the Truth: Are Food Pantries Funded by the Government? - PanFlavor

Empire Wild at the Estates (aka The Forum)

Tonight, at the Forum (aka The Estates) we enjoyed the music of https://www.empirewild.com/ Empire Wild, 60 minutes of 2 cellos and a pianist. Ken Kubota now lives in NYC, but grew up here in Columbus (Worthington) and also Michigan. Here's his bio https://www.kenjameskubota.com/bio He has a large social media (YouTube) following. He also has a video series. Check it out.