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.

Hitchhikers on the nerves—cancer of the head and neck

We see what we know. . .

HOMEMADE MOSQUITO TRAP

Items needed:
1 cup of water (200 ml water)
1/4 cup of brown sugar (50 grams)
1 gram of yeast
2-liter plastic bottle

HOW:
1. Cut the plastic bottle in half.
2. Mix brown sugar with hot water. Let cool. When cold, pour in the bottom half of the bottle.
3. Add the yeast. No need to mix. It creates carbon dioxide, which attracts mosquitoes.
4. Place the funnel part, upside down, into the other half of the bottle, taping them together if desired.
5. Wrap the bottle with something black, leaving the top uncovered, and place it outside in an area away from your normal gathering area. (Mosquitoes are also drawn to the color black.)
Change the solution every 2 weeks for continuous control.

This summer at Lakeside has been very wet—there was one point where we’d had rain 19 days in a row.  However, I’ve only had one mosquito bite.  So I’ll tuck this away for next year.  Since I don’t drink pop, I wonder if you couldn’t just add the yeast to some soda pop. Or are mosquitoes picky?

If you donate to Planned Parenthood, here’s what you support

Once again...
Planned Parenthood does NOT provide:
-Mammograms
-Prenatal Care
-Breast Biopsies...
-Breast Cancer Diagnostic Care
-Primary Health Care
-Diabetes Treatment
-Treatment for Elevated Cholesterol
-Treatment for Elevated Blood Pressure
-Holistic Medicine
-Obstetrical Care
-Pediatric Care
-Care for HIV Positive Individuals
-Infertility Treatments
-Natural Family Planning Instruction
-Care for Uterine Fibroids
-Treatment for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
-Adoption Placement
-Prostate Exams
-Uterine Laser Ablation
-Cervical Laser Ablation
-Miscarriage Management
-Bladder Disorders and Urinary Problems
-Prolapsed Pelvic Floor Concerns
-Laparoscopic Procedures
-Hysterectomy
-Treatment of Endometriosis
-Polyp Removal
-Endometrial Ablation
-BRCA Testing
-Bone Density Testing
-Treatment of Pelvic Pain
-Treatment of Vulvar Pain
-Molar Pregnancy Follow Up

Planned Parenthood DOES provide:
-First and Second Trimester Abortions
-Limited STD testing and treatment
-Pap Smears for Women in Child Bearing Years
-Limited Contraceptive Methods

Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood employee

What will they next call racist?

I’m thinking it might be wearing an apron, or serving pancakes.  I noticed at Obama’s inauguration dinner in 2009, all the servers were black.  Is that racist? Or just noticing it is racist.  Like noticing the difference in the way the media and the president treat black on white crime.  What will become racist is noticing how whites are treated. Here at Lakeside I watch Detroit local news in the morning.  Not good.

Keep in mind that we live in a nation with a black President and a black Attorney General. Furthermore, the government is legally allowed to discriminate against white Americans based on the color of their skin and it happily does so; yet you can't go a day in this country without hearing liberals howling about what a racist country they live in. It has almost become a circular, faith-based argument. America is racist because so many liberals say it's racist because they've heard other liberals say the country is racist. http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2013/08/27/15-moronic-things-liberals-call-racism-since-obama-was-elected-n1674131/page/full

Democrats’ record on WMD

Democrats have misled us before about WMD. At the end of the Clinton years, we had Kerry, Edwards, Kennedy, Albright, Waxman, Pelosi and Pres. Clinton to mention just a few convincing us of the threat--but they thought Gore would be president and needed to stir up fear. Democrats seem to have amnesia about Congress and the committees meeting in 2002-2003 before the Iraq invasion.

Today no one seems to be sure just who is using gas in Syria, but for the 100,000 already dead in this civil war of Muslim against Muslim, does it really matter? Are children gassed more dead than those who died in bombings? And who gives the U.S. the moral authority to "punish" the perps? With Iran threatening to attack our only ally, perhaps Obama needs to call Congress back from vacation.

• "He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983." Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998-[This was at the same Ohio State University appearance as Madeline Albright.]

• "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."
  Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

• "We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandated of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them."
  Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

• This one has a very familiar ring--like this week? "I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force-- if necessary-- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security."
  Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

• I guess now we know where those WMD went the U.S. inspectors couldn't find in Iraq. I mean, could all those leading Democrats be wrong?

Murray Trout, guest blogger, died on Monday, August 26

I was sorry to learn that Murray Trout of Mt. Morris, Illinois and The Villages in Florida died unexpectedly Monday evening.  He had been seen on his usual route that day, biking around the little town he loved and often wrote about. I’d known Murray since 1954 and was on his e-mail list which kept the ex-pats informed of local events and his political views.  This is sad news. I haven’t seen an obituary. I will miss his “Another Mounder passes. . .” e-mails.

Here’s a photo of Murray letting his views be known in Washington, D.C. about 3 years ago.

Murray wrote a nice time line from 1957 on about Kables and printing in Mt. Morris for my blog. http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2010/12/story-of-kables-and-mt-morris-timeline.html

What will he do about Syria?

Yup. I have friends and relatives who abandoned support for Bush because of the wars for which he had Congressional approval. They helped vote in Obama, who gave comfort to the enemy while a Senator, dawdled around about the surge in 2009 until Afghanistan lit up again and now he's lost more men in 4 years than Bush did in 8, and he's ready to go to war in Syria not even caring that we'd have to support one or the other of two really bad players. The U.S. leader has zip, nada, zilch credibility.

Obama’s gay agenda—from Minority Republican

“He [Obama] lied to the public when he was presidential candidate Obama, stating that he held the conviction that marriage was between a man and a woman, and is a sacred act before God. Over the course of a couple of years, he has abandoned that "deeply held conviction" and is now pushing a global "gay rights" agenda. He either lied then or he's lying now. Either way, he's a liar. Sure, all people deserve human rights, including the unborn (a group of people President Obama refuses to defend). . .

Every culture has moral standards, and the moral standards of American culture have declined to the point in which Christians must understand that we always have been and always will be counter-cultural. If we live as we should and believe what God says in His Word, we will not agree with many of the cultural norms embraced by modern culture, especially as this nation strays further and further from the moral foundation that this nation was founded upon, morals that were borrowed from Christianity and the Christian Bible. It is the choice of the people. If you are a Christian, the best way to fight the tide of secular humanism and moral relativism that has swept the world is through prayer, evangelism, and discipleship. This brings about a change not by law or force, but changes the mind and transforms the heart so that people will know and love the ways of God. Let's do our part! Share the gospel with someone today.”

The Civil Rights Movement—intellectually bankrupt

 

Juan Williams in today's WSJ contrasts the 1963 and 2013 marches. He notes that by 1963 the Civil Rights movement had stalled--". . . Few schools had integrated after the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision nine years earlier. One hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the Civil Rights Act was stuck in Congress."' The accomplishments he notes--the Emancipation, the integration of schools, the push for a meaningful Civil Rights act--were all by Republicans and Democrats were dragging their feet. Now it is the Democrat party again with locks on all the major cities and supporting the outrageous abortion rate for black women and the decimation of black families that is again blocking future progress for fear the race baiters will lose their power.

The regressive progressives

The March this past week-end was anything but progress. Now there's a black president, governors, cabinet, military, etc. and they are terrified their lies about race won't work! These race baiters fear progress for minorities--it would put them out of their jobs which rely on always stirring up hatred. And they were over counted and left the mall a mess, but they always do.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/24/march-washington-50th-anniversary-martin-luther-king/2693667/

Is this clear now? Obamacare and children—final rule

Who could possible untangle this?  But that’s government Obamacare.

The final rule [Obamacare, aka ACA] clarifies that former foster children are already a population that is eligible to be determined presumptively eligible (the rule does not extend to current foster youth as they are already Medicaid eligible and don’t need to be determined presumptively eligible). The rule also clarifies that individuals under age 21 will continue to receive Early, Periodic, Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) services either through the Alternative Benefit Plan (ABP) or as additional coverage that supplements the ABP. The final rule makes clear that CMS does not have statutory authority to require states to provide EPSDT services beyond age 21, but acknowledges that states have the flexibility to design and offer voluntary enrollment in an ABP targeted to former foster care children that provides a more comprehensive array of health coverage than is provided through the regular state plan. http://childrensmonitor.wordpress.com/2013/07/12/cms-issues-final-rule-on-the-aca-and-foster-care/

The election, gay marriage and Syria

This morning's lecture at Lakeside Chautauqua is on the 2012 election. I think I'll skip that. I know why we lost--Christians, libertarians, independents and conservatives stayed home and pouted because their favorite candidate was no longer in the race. If you can't win against a man with a disastrous record who lies all the time and was already involved in several scandals (increased since then), there's not much hope.

“You may be in favor of raising taxes on the rich, increasing support for the poor, nurturing the planet, and repealing Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act, but if you don’t support gay marriage, you’re out of the club.” (Michael Kinsley) And to think as recently as 2012, President Obama had not publicly supported it in his campaign, and in fact, in 2004 he said he supported the law of the land (DOMA) to one group and was against it to another. He seemed to blame Bush for the 1996 law which Biden voted for. But his grasp of history and time has always been shaky. Abortion, however, he's been perfectly clear on that one.

Both the Clinton administration and the Bush administration had "intelligence" that reported on chemical and biological warfare of various middle eastern governments against their own people. It's a good hook for Americans who have a collective memory of ignoring what was happening in Europe in the 1930s. However, we've been suckered twice. Let's not have another president push us into a civil war where we have no national interest and can offer no humanitarian aid. But at least, Bush consulted with Congress and had its backing; Obama does not. Nor can we trust the U.N. on this.

Monday Memories—travel

I saw a website about what states have been visited. I'm so fortunate to be able to just report those I haven't visited. Louisiana, Alabama, South Dakota and possibly Colorado (don't remember the exact route). I think it was night and fire season passing through Idaho--so didn't see a lot. Hawaii was awesome, but Oklahoma was perhaps the biggest surprise. Loved it. Travel if you have the opportunity. And my cousin Gayle should report the states they haven’t lived in! How many moves in 54 years?

This amazing skyscraper in Bartlesville, Oklahoma was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

This beauty is the art museum in Toledo, Ohio.

Here I am in New York in 1963 at Niagara Falls.

Annapolis, Maryland in 1999.

Highest Paid Public Employees—Football coaches

A government terrorist “training guide” that mirrors the IRS plan for conservatives

The Obama administration has a nasty habit of equating basic conservative values with terrorism. And now, in a document full of claptrap, its Defense Department suggests that the Founding Fathers, and many conservative Americans, would not be welcome in today’s military,” said Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton. “And it is striking that some the language in this new document echoes the IRS targeting language of conservative and Tea Party investigations. After reviewing this document, one can’t help but worry for the future and morale of our nation’s armed forces.”  No mention of Nidal Hasan’s problem that was well known, but overlooked.

http://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/press-releases/judicial-watch-defense-department-teaching-documents-suggest-mainstream-conservative-views-extremist/

Fetal ultrasound images from Mayo Clinic

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fetal-ultrasound/PR00139

A baby's cardiovascular system begins developing five weeks into pregnancy, or three weeks after conception. The heart starts to beat shortly afterward. Twenty-three weeks into pregnancy, or 21 weeks after conception, a baby begins to have rapid eye movements. A baby's eyelids begin to open 28 weeks into pregnancy, or 26 weeks after conception. The same technology that shows us these wonders also shows problems with development, for instance the hand is revealing for a type of mental retardation.  Or the gender--many people don’t want a girl. So many women are advised to destroy the baby. Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama and the platform of the Democratic Party declare this is moral and legal and not a war on the weakest or the disabled or women. Pelosi claims to be a devout Catholic, but if so, her beliefs are in violation of the church’s teaching on creation and life. In my opinion, she is just a devout Democrat.

Old paint brushes

I was trying to remember this today. From Old House Magazine website:  “Soak gunked-up nylon brushes in hot vinegar for up to 30 minutes to remove paint and soften the bristles. Afterward, wash them in hot, soapy water, brushing off paint as needed, then rinse and let dry—good as new.”  Now if we tried this with gunked up window hardware, would it work?

7 Ways to Reuse A Banana Peel

No, I haven’t checked these out, but we  use a lot of bananas. Might be worth a try on bug bites or warts.  I wonder if it works on callouses? So I googled it, and found someone who thought so, “Banana peels also are wonderful for removing callus from your feet....just put the inside of the skin next to your foot, put on a sock and go on with your day....repeat for 3 or 4 days and you will have feet SABA.”

1. Help Your Garden Grow: Bananas are naturally high in potassium and encourages plant growth. Use banana peel or puree entire banana and bury/turn with soil.
2. Shoe Polish: Use the peel to make your shoes nice and shiny.
3. Stop the Itch: Rub the inside of a banana peel on a bug bite helps itch relief.
4. Pain Reliever: The oil in a banana peel will help relieve the pain from burns and scratches.
5. Wart Removal: Tape a piece of banana peel on a wart, continue until it’s gone.
6. Make Houseplants Gleam: Just like peels can shine shoes, they can also be used to make the leaves of plants shine.
7. Removing Splinters: Similar to wart removal, tape a piece of the peel over the splinter. The enzymes will help dislodge the splinter and heal the wound.

Lakeside Antique Show today

I didn’t see anything at the dealers, but there was a yard sale about 2 blocks away and I found two books for $.50 each, The folklore of Maine, by Horace P. Beck, 1st ed., 1957, nice cover, perfect condition, but dull to read, and the 1998 hardcover of Taste of Home Annual Recipes. These recipes are very similar to what I already make, but they are useful for jogging the memory.  I think today I’ll make “Calico eggs,” which has peppers, onions and tomatoes.

Also saw a very easy looking sausage dish, “Sausage granola squares.”  1/2 lb of bulk sausage, 3/4 cup of granola cereal with fruit and nuts, and 1 egg slightly beaten. Combine, put in 2 qt. baking dish, at 375 for 20 min.  It doesn’t say to lightly cook the sausage and drain first, but I would. 1 serving (1/2 cup) equals 205 calories, 15 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 74 mg cholesterol, 270 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 7 g protein.

 

Perhaps God’s love is like this

Yesterday we were eating lunch in the dining room of the Hotel Lakeside.  We’d ordered our food and were waiting while conversing with our friends Rob and Lynn.  Then I heard a crash.  At the next table there was a mother and her two young daughters, perhaps 7 and 5.  Somehow, the older girl had knocked her plate to the floor, and it shattered with glass and food all scrambled.  I was very surprised because the floor was carpet over wood.  But there it was and everyone turned to look.  The little girl got down and started to clean it up.  I was horrified.  I expected to see blood any moment.  “Oh don’t do that,” I said out loud because her mother seemed immobile and couldn’t see what I saw.  Then the mom got up and started to clean it up, as slowly some staff appeared.  Finally, she sat down and a bus boy with a tray picked up the food and shards of glass.  After he left and everyone in the dining room returned to the soup and salads, the little girl’s frozen face crumbled, and she got down and ran to her mother’s lap where she sobbed and sobbed.  Mom didn’t say a word—just held and rocked her.

The dish was still broken; the food was still ruined; and yes, people had stared at her and she was still embarrassed to have been the “big girl” in the restaurant who had spilled her food.  But Mom held her.  It’s a reminder to me of how God’s love works. He can’t always undo what we did, but he can hold us close until the hurt and embarrassment goes away.

         

Slipping on idioms and phrasal verbs

Although I’ve never heard anyone say #21, it means you’d be back where you started if you made a 320 degree change. Here’s some detail on Home In and Hone In. I’ve always said this the “American way.”

Home in means to direct on a target. The phrasal verb derives from the 19th-century use of homing pigeons, but it resurged in the 20th century to refer to missiles that home in on their targets. It’s also commonly used metaphorically, where to home in on something is to focus on and make progress toward it.

Hone in began as an alteration of home in, and many people regard it as an error. It is a very common, though, especially in the U.S. and Canada—so common that many dictionaries now list it—and there are arguments in its favor. Hone means to sharpen or to perfect, and we can think of homing in as a sharpening of focus or a perfecting of one’s trajectory toward a target. So while it might not make strict logical sense, extending hone this way is not a huge leap.

Enarson Hall becomes Hale Hall at Ohio State University

A little back story on an OSU Today story about the renaming of Enarson Hall.  Dr. Harold Enarson (d. 2006) was the 9th president of Ohio State and really promoted programs for minorities and women, establishing the Frank Hale Center and pushing for a female president. I see in the news that Enarson Hall has been remodeled and renamed for Frank Hale. It will be the home of the Hale Black Cultural Center and the offices of Outreach and Engagement and Diversity and Inclusion. The man who was so inclusive has been excluded. Oh well, maybe they can find another building for naming rights. By today's standards (like for Gee, who got a $5.8 million retirement package after being fired for loose lips) Enarson was paid a pittance--$50,000, according to Bill Studer’s very excellent oral history now in the Knowledge Bank. http://fod.osu.edu/news/files/Hale_Hall.pdf

One of the first things I learned when returning to OSUL in 1978 (Agriculture library, USAID soft money for the ag credit collection) was not to donate memorial money to an institution whether it be a college, church or hospital. The next administration just takes the funds or room or scholarship and uses it for whatever. At that time, the Arnold Credit Library was an actual room with nice furniture and a collection in the Ag Admin building on Fyffe Rd.(We librarians would have called it a “closet library.”) The college wanted the endowment and the space, so they moved the painting of Mr. Arnold to an alcove in the Ag library, squished in some of the collection, named a paper file for him, and put me in charge of the ACTS file.   It was nice for me, and most of Mr. Arnold’s immediate family were deceased, and if anyone came looking for it, they could show the painting. I have no idea where it is now, since that was 35 years ago. A similar thing happened when I was in the veterinary library (which I think now is administratively linked to Ag). When Roberta Garrett was still the librarian there were very limited funds to buy textbooks so a fund was set up and it memorialized a number of deceased and retired faculty. By the time I got there in 1987, it was long forgotten and accumulating money in whatever office in the university oversees endowments. No one ever notified me that there was a little pot of gold waiting to be spent and growing each year. Finally, a staff member with a good memory happened to mention it to me, he did some searching, and the money was freed up to be spent as it was intended—textbooks for the library for students.

I usually disregard suggestions for memorializing. Recently, one of my close friends from childhood (we rode our tricycles together), a professor at the University of Nebraska, died. The memorial suggestion was ACLU, so if you know anything about my politics, that wouldn’t be a good match. So another friend and I went together, purchased two books of poetry by Ted Kooser, a friend of the deceased, and donated them to the public library in the town where we all graduated from high school. I hope when someone selects the book they’ll read the bookplate and wonder who was Nelson T. Potter, Jr.  If they don’t I know, they’ll enjoy the poetry. I often contribute to a nursing/retirement community in my home town (Pinecrest in Mt. Morris, Illinois) and it is either for immediate needs, like mattress replacement, or for a fund for people on Medicaid (Illinois is going broke) so the place doesn’t have to close due to irresponsible state public pension funds.

Anyway, if you want to read Bill Studer’s record of Enarson’s oral history, it’s at https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/handle/1811/482 , also because Enarson was a member of the Truman administration there is another oral history in the Truman library at http://www.trumanlibrary.org/oralhist/enarsonh.htm

Enarson Hall on the OSU campus   was originally the Student Union, and named for Enarson in 1986. It was slated to be torn down, then was saved by student action and was put on the National Register and named for Enarson.   http://herrick.knowlton.ohio-state.edu/taxonomy/term/226

Would a white nationalist be fired?

Daily Beast [Newsweek] reports, “An employee at the Department of Homeland Security runs a racist website in his spare time and advocates the mass killing of white Americans, gays, and black leaders he believes are traitors, according to a report by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Ayo Kimathi, a small-business specialist at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a branch of the DHS, is a "gay-bashing, revenge-seeking black nationalist" who runs the website War on the Horizon. The site calls for mass murder of white people, rails against "fag rights," and attacks a slew of black celebrities as "race traitors." In a statement, the ICE said it "does not condone any type of hateful rhetoric."

I'm guessing the government would find some way to fire this guy if he were a white nationalist. We should learn from Dr. Hasan and the Ft. Hood murders to take these people seriously.

Paula Priesse on the Christopher Lane murder

August 21st on her Facebook wall –

Unlike “white Hispanic” George Zimmerman, not much is being made in the media today about the racial makeup of those responsible for the murder of Christopher Lane. No mention of their racist tweets or their love for violent rap lyrics. The dirty little secret is that 13% of the population commits 50% of the murders in this country. For reasons the media never wishes to discuss. Like how big government libs are responsible for our failing inner-city schools. Or how 50 years of Dem policies have created a culture of black government dependency. And worst of all, how these same failed policies have destroyed the black American family. In 1965, 25% of black babies were born out-of-wedlock. That number today is 73%. Finally, we have Jesse Jackson’s Twitter reaction today to Lane’s murder: “Praying for the family of Chris Lane. This senseless violence is frowned upon and the justice system must prevail.” Is that it Jesse, frowned upon? What should be “frowned upon” is never taking seriously race-baiting profiteers such as yourself. P

I won’t hold my breath for Oprah to find something unhistorical to say, or Obama to identify with one of the perps who might remind him of himself.

As you’ve probably heard, the Obamas have a new dog

The faith and courage of the school staffer who talked to the potential school shooter was amazing--and 3 days later, the TV news is still reporting it. But nothing on the Oklahoma thrill killing of an Australian athlete attending college there by 3 teens. You'll need to find an Australian newspaper online. Selecting which stories to report is just as important as the slant. Meanwhile, updates on the new POTUS dog and the Kardashian baby. Hard news you can use.

http://www.smh.com.au/world/parents-of-accused-shooters-of-australian-baseballer-chris-lane-proclaim-their-sons-innocence-girlfriend-slams-evil-people-20130820-2s7rg.html

It’s no wonder

Breakfast with Ron and Nancy at the Patio on Sunday; lunch on Monday with Kate at Houlihan’s; breakfast at the Idlewyld with Joan and Dan on Tuesday; picnic in the park with other Lakesiders on Wednesday; breakfast at the Tin Goose on Thursday with Wes and Sue; and lunch at the hotel with Rod and Lynn on Friday. It’s just hard to control weight in the summer even with all the extra walking.

Patio Restaurant, Lakeside, Ohio, 2013 paintings

More women becoming ring leaders in slave trade

“There are more than 27 million slaves worldwide, according to the United Nations, generating an estimated $32 billion in profits, most of which are earned on the backs of young women, yet more and more case findings are uncovering women as ringleaders and operators of trafficking syndicates,” says Sharon Buchbinder.

 
http://www.thedailybeast.com/witw/articles/2013/08/07/when-women-are-found-trafficking-other-women.html

• A Saudi Arabian princess charged in Los Angeles: Meshael Alayban faces one felony count of human trafficking after being accused of holding a domestic servant against her will at her condominium in Irvine, Calif. Alayban is one of the wives of Saudi Prince Abdulrahman bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz al Saud. A female servant, originally from Kenya, escaped and flagged down a bus, after which she told her story to local police. The woman says she was promised weekends off and a good wage but was forced to work 16-hour days, seven days a week and was paid only $220 a month. Alayban faces a maximum sentence of 12 years if convicted. She is being held in the Orange County jail in lieu of $5 million bail.

• United Nations study shows females traffic more sex workers than men in developing countries: Using data from 155 countries, the UN’s first international report attempting to calculate the scope, nature and patterns of human trafficking found a disproportionately high number of female perpetrators selling other women into slavery. The report uncovered an alarming trend: women who were once victims of the sex trade often develop into ringleaders of the illegal, underground sex industry. Researchers cite money, poverty and a skewed psychological perspective for possible reasons for this phenomenon.

• Woman recently sentenced to more than seven years in a federal prison for trafficking a 16-year-old in three different states: Jessica Loren Posey was sentenced earlier this year to serve time for transporting a juvenile girl to Tennessee, Kentucky and Ohio for the purpose of prostitution. According to a U.S. attorney, Posey met the girl at a party and coerced her to engage in sex for money. Posey, 25, marketed the girl using uploaded pictures on various pornographic websites, and she arranged meetings at hotel rooms, driving the girl there.

The slow moving train wreck—government bureaucrats who write regulations don’t understand a lot of things

Obamacare is now going to require people to buy insurance who do not have a good track record for paying their bills--even with a generous government subsidy.

 http://healthblog.ncpa.org/obamacares-biggest-wrong-collecting-the-premiums/

Many people eligible for exchange coverage do not have bank accounts or credit cards. That is why inner city neighborhoods have storefronts that cash checks and issue money orders. Many people have surges of income, working one month but not the next, or collecting commissions one month and not the next. Many people have financial emergencies ― their transmission breaks down or they are out sick for two weeks, or their boyfriend moves out of the house ― they don’t have the money to pay their premium this month. We know these things will happen ― a lot.

This could hurt a guy’s career

If conservatives like Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh don't stop praising Ashton Kutcher, they could ruin his career. But really, he just speaks the life experience of most Americans.

”I believe that opportunity looks a lot like work. When I was 13 I had my first job with Dad carrying shingles to the roof, and then I got a job washing dishes at a restaurant, and then I got a job in a grocery store... deli, and then I got a job in a factory sweeping Cheerio dust off the ground. And I never had a job in my life that I was better than. I was always just lucky to have a job. And every job I had was a stepping stone to my next job, and I never quit my job until I had my next job. And so opportunities look a lot like work.”

The Butler movie is fiction

The Butler: Fact check--it is fiction although there really is a real man who was a butler in the White House who did not have a horrendous childhood or a mother who was raped, did not start during Ike's administration, did not have an alcoholic wife and did not have 2 sons, but who did vote for Obama (that part is true). Who is done a service in this film? Certainly not the real butler, and not U.S. history. Probably just Oprah, who recently has been lying about a lot of things. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/08/16/the-butler-fact-check-how-true-is-this-true-story.html

He’s with Washington and Jefferson

Manning, Snowden and Lynndie England

I haven't seen the Manning and Snowden scandals blamed on the Obama administration, as they would have been blamed on Bush. Remember the rogue reservists, three of them women, at Abu Ghraib? Yup. Bush's problem, thousands of miles away, but now Teflon Tricky Dick flies under the radar. Unless the media is free and alert, all sorts of crimes get buried. Never mind that the prisoners at Abu Ghraib were really bad dudes, who had been killing other Muslims.

http://www.rferl.org/content/iraq-war-lynndie-ghraib/24930947.html

The kind of math we all understand

A pastor sent along this joke—enjoy

A boy had just passed his driving test and inquired of his father as to when they could discuss his use of the car.

His father said he'd make a deal with his son, "You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible a little, and get your hair cut. Then we'll talk about the car."

The boy thought about that for a moment, decided he'd settle for the offer, and they agreed on it.

After about six weeks his father said, "Son, you've brought your grades up and I've observed that you have been studying your Bible, but I'm disappointed you haven't had your hair cut."

The boy said, "You know, Dad, I've been thinking about that, and I've noticed in my studies of the Bible that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, Moses had long hair, and there's even strong evidence that Jesus had long hair."

(You're going to love the Dad's reply!)

"Did you also notice they all walked everywhere they went?"

Observations on various Obama failures and foibles

Gun violence is down, has been decreasing for 2 decades despite the increase in gun ownership. Women particularly are choosing to protect themselves. However, there's an uptick of suicide by gun, particularly by the young. The recession seems to be at the center of this--people discouraged by Obama's failures, the man who said he believed in hope and change and would rehang the moon. His response is to blame guns.

“Threats against religious freedom in our country are not imaginary or overstated. They’re happening right now. They’re immediate, serious, and real.”
Most Rev. Charles J. Chaput, Archbishop of Philadelphia, August 17, 2013

Here's the kind of care your tax dollars and donations are buying for poor women who use Planned Parenthood which is a big Obama supporter, and vice versa.

Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood worker, now a Christian, writes on her Facebook page:  “Did you know that Planned Parenthood has phased out their prenatal care programs? Why? Because Planned Parenthood says that pregnant women are too “cumbersome.” They say that these patients need too much care and attention. Also, they often need to see doctors. That is a problem for Planned Parenthood. There are no onsite doctors, except those that are there to provide abortions. What about the physicians that are supposed to be supervising the nurses? Well, they rarely step foot into the clinics. In fact, our medical director never once came to visit or supervise any employees at my facility…not once in eight years.”

About 40 years ago in a movie Jerry Lewis played a German clown whose mockery of Hitler lands him in a concentration camp. Hmmm. Sounds like some Caesarists have a tradition of no sense of humor or freedom of political speech. The Lewis film only exists as a rough cut and was never seen by the public for non-political reasons. But surely this could never happen in a country that revelled in ridiculing Reagan, Clinton and Bush II.

"The American dream is not politically affiliated. The last time it was alive and well was the period from Ronald Reagan's second term in office through Bill Clinton's second term in office. In those 16 years, we enjoyed continuous low taxes, low government spending and economic prosperity." today's WSJ   I'm not always sure what exactly is "the American dream," but I am sure Obama lies about it, especially if the "dream" concerns the economy.

Pumpkin cake with apple cider glaze

Two-Ingredient Pumpkin Cake with Apple Cider Glaze

For the Cake:
1 Yellow Cake Mix
1 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree
For the Glaze:
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tablespoons apple cider
3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Empty the contents of the boxed cake mix and pumpkin puree into a large bowl. Using a hand-mixer or stand mixer beat until well incorporated. The batter will be very thick, but will come together nicely.
Pour batter into a greased 7 x 11 X 2 pan. This is the small, rectangular-sized pan from your Pyrex set. You know, the set you had to have when you got married and rarely ever used all the pieces. Finally, you have a use for it.
Bake at 350 degrees for 28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not over bake.
Let cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan, then flip onto a platter.
Make the glaze while you're waiting.
Combine powdered sugar, apple cider and pumpkin pie spice. Glaze should be thick but pourable. Add more sugar or cider if needed. Pour over the cake while still warm. Reserve some to pour over each slice when served.
Serve warm or room temperature.

Disclaimer:  I haven’t tried this.

http://noblepig.com/2008/11/the-pilgrims-would-approve/  See website for photos.

Why we need voter ID

His blog ended on 11/6/2012

“I'm full of mixed emotions on this election day in 2012 On the one hand, it's disheartening to come to the realization that so many Americans continue to support this president after all that's been exposed, including his troublesome upbringing, radical associations, lack of experience, narcissism, pettiness, thin skin, dishonesty, poor performance, poor judgment, poor work ethic, divisiveness and his contempt for the Constitution and rule of law.

On the other hand, I find it uplifting that so many others are smart enough to recognize this man for who he is and the very real threat he poses to this nation. Like myself, they have taken the time to learn the facts. That is no small job, in part because of the enormous variety and depth of topics to be absorbed in order to get an accurate picture of this administration's agenda. And perhaps that's just too much work for some people who still support Obama.”

And think of all the stuff we didn’t know in November!

A good question, Ann.

I’m not on a pilgrimage

There’s one educational theme week at Lakeside in which I don’t participate—the interfaith week aka peace and justice week. I use that week to take an art class or get some housecleaning done or go to lunch with friends.  I am not on a spiritual journey or pilgrimage.  I don’t investigate the twists and turns, the doubts and insights of other religions or quasi-Christian cults.  I found Jesus—or rather He rescued me—in 1974.  The exhausting journey ended, but not the learning, the joy, the comfort, and the little pieces to fill in the ever widening picture of God’s love, creation, mercy and justice.

When the journey ended I found a small shelter with a little food and water for an exhausted traveler. No more learned lecturers with too much college and not enough faith.  No more puzzling over supposed truths in the sacred writings of  Buddhism or Hinduism or Islam.  No more asking the government to be the failing god in our society.   It was peaceful and had a beautiful view.  That little shack is now a richly appointed castle of precious stones, luxurious fabrics, glittering art and sensuous music.  Why would I step out and follow yet another exhausting path of pot holes, rocks and poison ivy when Jesus has already said, “I am the Way?”  If you want to continue on, be my guest.  Jesus and I will sit here by the open door and wait for you to return.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

Prayer attributed to St. Patrick

Sunday morning worship by Lake Erie

Dr. Ben Carson on common sense

What if it’s not a train wreck, but is on track?

Perhaps you think Obamacare is a "trainwreck" because of the delays and exceptions to the mandate? Maybe not. Perhaps it is just on track. Here's a note from a friend who is an accountant. Keep in mind, the rates have already gone up in anticipation of the coming mandate.

"The mandate to cover everyone regardless of health must be covered in the insurance world. In order to cover their losses and costs due to this mandate, the insurance companies have been raising rates (which Obama promised would not happen...obviously he doesn't understand insurance.) Now Obama has delayed the implementation of the mandate/Obamacare...which was ...deliberate..So when the insurance companies post profits next year, Obama can say: “See how bad those insurance companies are."

Do NOT underestimate this president by automatically assuming he is failing at his job. Consider it is a carefully laid plan to create failure so he can blame capitalism.

Sledgehammers kill

You haven't heard of this case, but I saw the sentencing story of the 14 year old on Cleveland TV news today so just Googled "sledgehammer murder" and was shocked by how many stories came up that weren't the story I was looking for. OK. 2 black teenagers killed the parents of a white woman who had been attacked by the 18 year old and hospitalized. It happened in April 2013. Imagine the hate crime accusations if the victims had been black and the perps Hispanic, Asian or white? In this case, no mention of the race of the teens was even noted in most of the stories I browsed. Only when I found a news account with photos of their attackers did I find that out. This is not a game of "gotcha" keeping track of black on white crimes; only an observation that the media tries to whip up hatred only when it works for them.

Time to remove sledgehammers from the market along with pressure cookers and box cutters. They are just too dangerous in the hands of crazy people.

Federal employees don’t want Obamacare—92.3% want to keep what they have

Who knew that when President Obama promised, “If you like your health care plan, you will be able to keep your health care plan. Period,” he was only referring to federal employees … and himself? . . . Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid just revealed what lots of people believed all along: the real goal is a single-payer, government-run health care system.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/merrillmatthews/2013/08/12/shocker-new-survey-finds-nearly-every-federal-employee-rejects-obamacare/

I’m beginning to suspect that the snafus and hold-ups aren’t that at all.  Maybe the intention all along was that it would be so bad, there would never be a roll out, and the government would then just declare it had to be the only route, and dispose of the insurance companies and exchanges all together. Why couldn’t all the nation have had what federal employees have.  A choice of multiple plans to suit our needs?

Conservatives I follow

Wishing women well

I watched an interview with a young Cleveland woman competing in an invention contest at Wal-Mart. If she wins, thousands of Wal-Marts will be marketing her product.  It's a "table shade," and she has a patent.  She was quite excited about the opportunity.  I wonder how many corporate giants offer prizes for inventions.

Yesterday I was chatting with the woman who cleans the lobby and women’s restroom at the local hotel.  While she cleaned the floors and I used the stall, we discussed the early starting date for schools.  I asked about her children.  “My boy is getting his Master’s degree in Chicago, and my daughter will be a junior in college in Toledo,” she said.  I don’t know why she’s cleaning restrooms with that “pay it forward” genealogy, maybe she just wants some extra spending money for Christmas, or maybe she’s writing a novel about how people are treated in service jobs.

Although I don’t remember her name (many people we meet at Lakeside we see only a week or two in the summer), but we took a number of art classes together within the last decade, I recognized her coming into a lecture yesterday. I remembered our chats after class and how sweet and encouraging she always was.   Her husband was leading her and she had that recognizable shuffle of dementia.  So sad.  But his loving care and attention was even sweeter.  Another friend we’ve known perhaps 20 years and who is still doing things alone also has Alzheimer’s, according to her husband. Very talented and active in community affairs, her bright sparkling personality will be (is) missed.

I got my summer LAS News from the U. of I. today.  Interesting story about Christina Brodbeck, one of the 3 U. of I. students who developed YouTube. They sold it in 2006 to Google for $1.65 billion in stock.  Now in her early 30s she is an “angel investor” and has invested in 22 start ups. She came to the U. of I. to study history (AB ‘0l, History) and also studied Russian.  She picked up a book on HTML and taught herself web design.  Later she got an advanced degree in multimedia design at San Francisco State University.

Do not release balloons for your special event

Even those labeled “bio-degradable” can kill an animal, bird or plant.

This picture is worth a thousand votes

Another Father Dowling mystery solved

Father Dowling was a TV character in the late 80s early 90s.  A great show.

 

Born in Ireland, he’s now in prison ministry.  Whether he was a real angel or a real priest, he certainly saved the day for the injured woman.

Oprah is promoting her new movie with lies

Her comments comparing Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin were just absurd,  But the O has really gone overboard with misinformation. Oprah needs to brush up on history. In an interview with Parade magazine to flog her new movie, she put the figure for lynching in the U.S. at millions. The actual number of persons lynched, 1882-1968, was tallied by the Tuskegee Institute at 4,743, of whom 1,297—that’s 27 percent—were white. Does she know Republicans tried to stop lynching with laws at the federal level and they were voted down by Democrats? So is she that ignorant, or is she deliberately trying to drum up racial hatred among blacks? Why should I buy her products, read her magazine or watch her failing TV station (she's a billionaire) if she is this wrong about something very important?

And the Swiss clerk says Oprah lied about the hand bag incident. Given how she's moved thousands to millions, I'm inclined to believe the clerk. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2389798/Oprahs-liar-Sales-assistant-Swiss-racist-handbag-row-denies-telling-TV-host-view-item-afford-it.html

The intention is to attack Christians, not build support for gays

When Christians are attacked for marriage sermons and beliefs on the sanctity of sex within marriage, it's "hate speech" from the left.  All cultures, societies, nationalities and religions for thousands and thousands of years have supported marriage between male and female. Yes, there are blips and problems along the way--it doesn't work for everyone. Likewise, there have been loving relationships and households under other names that have worked without marriage. As recently as 2008 President Obama and Hillary Clinton were running for the highest office in the land supporting traditional marriage.  Just because they saw a political benefit for caving into the pressure of the gay lobby, doesn’t make what they said in 2008 “hate speech.”  Same sex agreements and ceremonies have a track record of being recognized by the state less than a year.

I've read there are a thousand + laws about marriage (I assume they are counting states and federal together)—taxes, benefits, etc., which apparently brings this down to money. Gay men are the most educated and successful demographic in the country.  They are about 1.7% of the population.  It would be interesting to know how many have shared bank accounts, named beneficiaries on pension and IRA,  joint mortgages with right of survivorship, wills with the partner as beneficiary.  They won’t get those benefits with a marriage license.

Monday Memories—visiting Niagara Falls

Photo from FlyoverCulture.com

After attending my brother’s wedding in 1963 in Kalamazoo, Michigan we continued on east and visited Niagara Falls from the American side, and New York City.

Then about 40 years later we travelled with friends on a tour bus to do a Frank Lloyd Wright tour of Buffalo, New York, and we again saw the Falls, but from the Canadian side.  So many new buildings had been built (hotels and casinos) that they have blocked the winds that cleared the mist.  We couldn’t see much. Apparently Ontario has no zoning authority on lands owned by the Indian tribes that have the hotels and casinos.  And here we thought Indians were all OK with saving the environment.  Even taller buildings (40 stories, maybe) were being proposed. I blogged about this trip in 2009.

Rising cost of health insurance under Obamacare

The average price for the lowest-cost ObamaCare "bronze" plan in eight states [Ohio is one of them] is 122% higher than the cheapest plan currently available in those states, according to an IBD analysis of rate filings and a recent Government Accountability Office report.

Read More At Investor's Business Daily: http://news.investors.com/politics/080213-666235-cheap-obamacare-twice-as-costly-as-existing-plans.htm#ixzz2bgkoK4z1

September 11—a decade apart from Democrats’ point of view

Civilian deaths in Iraq rising—highest since 2008

More than 1,000 Iraqis were killed in July by al-qaeda type groups--Muslims killing Muslims. Car bombs ripped through markets, shopping streets and parks late on Saturday as Iraqis were out celebrating Eid, the end of the Muslim fasting month, killing 57 and wounding more than 150.  Attacks in Baghdad on Tuesday killed 50. The State Department boldly called these killers terrorists. Meanwhile, the Ft. Hood terrorist attack on our military is still called "workplace" violence.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/11/us-iraq-violence-idUSBRE97A05H20130811

Meanwhile,  Obama continues to arm the Syrian rebels—we’ve learned nothing since arming al-qaeda and bin Laden back in the 1980s.

http://www.brookings.edu/research/opinions/2013/06/15-arming-syrian-rebels-us-afghanistan-1980s-riedel

5th Dimension wows the Lakeside audience

We enjoyed a fabulous performance at Lakeside’s Hoover Auditorium last night by the 5th Dimension featuring Florence LaRue. They did many of the songs made famous by the group in their early years in the 60s and 70s, but also others well known to the baby boomer generation, and it's a great family show with a lot of audience participation. Ms. LaRue is a strong Christian, has a B.A. in Education and has been an active member of The Church On The Way in Van Nuys, CA, where she sings in the choir, serves with the homeless ministry and missionary work. She also has a solo act. The other female singer in the group, Patrice Morris, is also a pastor and has sung with many gospel groups and is a featured speaker at many events, especially focusing on marriage. She is an active member of the praise team and ministerial staff of Cathedral of Praise International Ministries, Rialto, CA. Her voice is so powerful that must be some fabulous singing in her church! I’m going to look for her CDs.

They surprised the audience, and their band, by asking us to sing along with them—God Bless America. I thought perhaps that was the final number, but it continued.  Each member of the group had a chance to perform solo, and the richness and power of their voices were incredible.

 

Update: Both Florence and Patrice were at the 8:30 worship on the lakefront, and were introduced by Pastor Jennings. We also stopped and talked to them at breakfast at the Patio Restaurant. It was a real thrill.

Cheesy Bread Sticks

1 (10 ounce) can Pillsbury pizza crust dough
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 cup provolone cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
Preheat oven to 425. Unroll pizza dough onto a greased cookie sheet and brush with butter. Sprinkle cheeses and spices evenly over the dough.
With a pizza cutter, cut dough lengthwise into 12 long strips. Then cut those in half to make 24 strips. Do not seperate strips. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until light golden brown. Recut along each strip and remove from cooking sheet. Serve sticks warm with marinara sauce.
http://www.food.com/recipe/easy-cheesy-breadsticks-149066

I’ve never heard of Hugh Schwyzer who taught women’s studies at Pasadena City College

but I’ve certainly thought this about women’s studies in general and the men who advocate for them in particular.  I knew male students who thought these classes might be a good way to meet chicks.   It’s not a good career track.  Notes from the professor’s Twitter account in which he fesses up to the scam he’s pulled off for years .

“So the real story you all missed is that I talked my way into teaching women's studies on the basis of 2 undergrad courses only . . . The college knew that at the time, and since I had a history degree and wanted to teach it, they let me. . I then built a career as a well-known online male feminist on fraudulent pretenses. My mania let me talk a good game. . . But there was no there there. . . So with the clarity that comes from a shitload of anti-psychotics, I'm sorry I've been such a breathtakingly cocky fraud.”

He has also  used racism in white-dominated feminist spaces to shut down and silence black women.

http://twitchy.com/2013/08/10/bad-boy-male-feminist-melts-down-i-used-sex-and-charm-and-whiteness-to-scam-you-all/

Hypocrites about education—for me not thee

Rich Democrats want everyone else's kids to go to pubic school, but they send theirs to private schools. And vote against charters and scholarships for poor children when they have the opportunity. Obama never attended a U.S. public school, sends his daughters to private school, and doesn't support charters for poor kids because he's beholden to the teachers' unions.

“When the avowedly liberal actor Matt Damon revealed in an interview last week that he was sending his children to private schools - despite his vocal criticism of education reform efforts and statements about his staunch public school support – it was catnip for conservatives. Damon’s choice also raised the question of whether it is hypocritical for education reform opponents to make choices they would deny to others through public policy.” http://www.hollywoodrepublican.net/2013/08/matt-damon-school-choice/

Hollywood liberals also think it is OK to take guns away from the general public, but to protect their own families and staff with security guards armed to the teeth.

Another day, another scandal?

Ho-Hum. Another scandal, or just the usual misuse of power we've come to ignore? "While the president of the United States can declassify top secret intelligence information on his own say-so, disclosing secret grand jury material is a different matter. Rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure clearly states: “… no person may disclose the indictment’s existence except as necessary to issue or execute a warrant or summons.’’ Of course, he's not just a "no person," he sees himself above all laws. A bad case of Caesarism. Don't look for his buddies at the DoJ to look into this. http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/08/09/in-misstep-obama-discusses-sealed-indictment-on-benghazi/

Noun 1. Caesarism - a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)

dictatorship, monocracy, one-man rule, shogunate, Stalinism, totalitarianism, tyranny, authoritarianism, despotism, absolutism autocracy, autarchy - a political system governed by a single individual

The next time I’m in Europe

and am treated rudely by a retail clerk, I hope I can get on national TV and get my face out there to flog my latest movie like Oprah.  The billionaire has probably gotten someone fired. That’s what fat cats do.  I don’t know what she was wearing on the shopping trip, but the paparazzi have caught her in sweat pants and no make up and published the photos, so possibly she didn’t look the part of  “famous diva?”  I’ve heard the purse was $38,000.  It’s her money, she can spend two years of college tuition for a worthy poor student on a purse if she pleases.

http://www.examiner.com/article/oprah-winfrey-receives-apology-from-swiss-tourism-office-after-racial-incident

The exemptions

Remember—it’s only legal because the Supreme Court said it was a tax. 

The death of pretty

"Young women today do not seem to aspire to pretty, they prefer to be regarded as hot. Hotness is something altogether different. When women want to be hot instead of pretty, they must view themselves in a certain way and consequently men view them differently as well." Men will cherish pretty; they regard hot as a commodity to be used. "The death of pretty" http://www.ncregister.com/blog/pat-archbold/the-death-of-pretty

Helpful hints—just try a few

1. Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster!
2. Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!
3. Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
4. Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.
5. To make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonsful of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.
6. Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic, and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger taste of garlic.
7. Reheat Pizza Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on the cooking channel and it really works.
8. Easy Deviled Eggs: Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
9. Expanding Frosting: When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.
10. Reheating refrigerated bread: To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.
11. Newspaper weeds away: Plant your plants in the ground, work the nutrients in your soil. Then wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go, cover with mulch, and forget about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not get through wet newspapers.
12. To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.
13. Flexible vacuum: To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.
14. Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip to eliminate static cling. It works; you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and ... Ta DA! ... Static is gone.
15. Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.
16. De-fog your windshield: Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!
17. Re-opening envelopes: If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Voila! It unseals easily.
18. Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.
19. Goodbye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup an d gone forever!
20. Get Rid of Ants: Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it 'home,' can't digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!
21. Wash your dryer filter: Did you know that cleaning your lint trap with a dryer sheet can ruin it? Dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh that's what burns out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. It's what is in the dryer sheets to make your clothes soft and static free, and smell good. You know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box? Apparently that stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen. This is what causes dryer units to potentially burn your house down with it! You can test it by running the lint trap under water. If the water goes through you are good. If not then you need to clean it. The best way to keep your dryer working for a long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months.
22. Drop a small object on the carpet and can't find it. Place panty hose over the end of the vacuum hose and start vacuuming. The panty hose will trap anything too large to fit through the tiny hose and keep it from getting sucked into the vacuum.
23. Wearing a skirt or dress on a windy day. Cut open a few sections on the bottom seam. slip in some heavy washers or flat weights (anything small heavy and flat will work) then sew the seam back up.
24. Need to cut some corn off the cob. Use your bundt pan. Place the ear on the opening in the center of the pan, and as you slide the knife down the ear, all the kernels will collect in the main part of the pan..