Garden Veggies

Garden Veggies
Made into tile for my stove backsplash

Portland Rose Garden

Portland Rose Garden
Mike and my 2 youngest sons Ian and Leif

Grandson Michael's Birthday 2014 throwing water balloons

Grandson Michael's Birthday 2014 throwing water balloons
With son Beau, Grandson Luke and his mom Jennifer

Maren

Maren
I cut this out of a wedding line. I must take more pictures of her.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

HOW TO STAY NORMAL IN A TECHIE WORLD



I think there is a rare person now days who does not spend too much time on media in its various forms. We humans are very addictive and then some have computer jobs and that compounds the problem. My husband brought this article home from work recently. I think the ideas to help us unhook are good. (Taken from "Crosstalk" July-August, Journal of Defense Software Engineering)



1. Turn off the computer, leave your cell phone and iPod at home. Invite family or friends on a walk. Talk about anything but talk the whole walk. If you are not talking, stop walking. When you start talking you can walk.



2. Read a book. Not a technical manual, not a comic book...and you can’t use your Kindle. Preferably classic literature (but not from iPhone’s "Classics" app). Don’t race to the end; instead, savor the story.
3. Take in a live concert, musical, play, or comedy.



4. Learn the basics of human communication—transmission, reception, as well as verification and validation—without the use of technology.

5. (For business) Add someone to your design team who knows absolutely nothing about technology or can recount the salient points of "les Miserables" in one minute.
The very technologies designed to bring us together are keeping us apart. They promote isolation instead of collaboration...In designing our brave new world—where everything is a click away—remember to ask yourself if that’s a good thing..."O wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world! That has such people in’t!" (Shakespeare, William, The Tempest. Act V, Scene I)

ENJOY THE PEOPLE MORE!
 
 

Friday, July 24, 2009

CRUISING WITH MAREN














Maren was going on a Mexican Riveria Cruise with her friends in May that got canceled because of the swine flue. The cruise line would only give her a credit and the girls couldn’t come up with a date to go together so Maren took me on a shorter version last week.

We went to Catalina Island for a day, where we snorkeled—not the best place for fish but it was fun anyway. The island is quaint and charming. I would go there again.

Then we sailed to Ensenada Mexico for a day. I have been there before but never to shop like Maren and I did. She bought trinkets. I mostly checked prices on Retin-A at all the farmacias—Mexico is a gold mine for Retin-A. No prescription is needed and it is less than a third of the US price. The Retin A was for friends. I stocked up last time I was there.

The third day I think the ship mostly floated around in circles. The food was good and there is lots of it everywhere all day. We tried to be good and eat reasonably. We even worked out in the gym. The evening meal is a very nice sit down, order off the menu, dinner. We had some very enjoyable table-mates every evening. The yummiest thing all week was the Warm Chocolate Cake baked in ramekins with a soft fudgy bottom. I ate one every night after dinner. I got on line for the recipe when I returned. I haven’t tried it yet. Maybe you would like to try it first. (Can you see the butter in this? 35 grams of fat! No wonder I liked it.)

CARNIVAL CRUISE CHOCOLATE MELTING CAKE
8 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
7 eggs, divided use
6 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Melt chocolate and butter; cool 10 minutes.
In separate bowl, mix 4 eggs with sugar. Whisk. Add flour and whisk. Add remaining 3 eggs. Add egg mixture to chocolate mixture. Pour in individual baking cups or ramekins.
Bake until just done, about 15-20 minutes (interior will be melting, not set).
Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Makes 8 servings. Approximate nutritional values per serving: 460 calories (64.7 percent calories from fat), 8 g protein, 35 g carbohydrate, 27 g sugar, 2 g dietary fiber, 35 g fat, 250 mg cholesterol, 60 mg sodium.
Source: Carnival Cruises/bb.affordabletours.com


What did we mostly do? -- Sit on the adult deck in a lounge chair and read novels. It was a very relaxing vacation. Maren was the mom on this trip and I was her little girl. She took good care of me. I enjoyed these 4 days with her very much. This was our first cruise. We will do it again.














 

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

CONDUCTING





Written as a word of the day writing adventure - CONDUCTING


There are times in the car or at home when I am listening to my favorite music that I am transported in my mind to a stand where I am conducting an orchestra or choir with great gusto. Every part of my being feels the beat pattern and time. I can pick it up in perfect sequence in any part of the music. It feels as natural as the beats of my heart. Sometimes in church when we sing I can’t stop myself from beating little patterns under the hymnbook. I get very weary when songs drag because I have a strong sense of meter. But I am not a musician. I know a little music but very little. I learned all I know about conducting from Brother Belnap in the Wellington Church and in my teen years I had lots of practice conducting music.
Wellington is a dusty little town, close to Price, on the edge of the dessert. During my sojourn in the town there were a few farmers but most men worked in the coal mine, including my dad. There was an old school with three wings, 1-3, 4-6 and 7-9. Moving within these wings was like advancing to another cosmos. Wellington school had no kindergarten and since my birthday is in November, I was almost 7 when I started first grade.

On Tuesdays instead of waiting the usual hour for the bus after school I would tag along with the little girls my age, two blocks, to the church for Primary. My mother was not active so this was my first experience with the gospel. Today when we sing "The Light Divine," in meetings, I am wafted away to those long wooden benches in the old church. The afternoon light is soft, coming through the tall windows. I feel the spirit come into my young soul and it whispers, "God is here, for you." After Primary someone, who lived out of town like I did, would load me and my brothers into their car and drop me home. It was my favorite day. I loved Primary.


My mother began to attend church when I was 11 because some lovely women knew my mother had a special soprano voice and they invited her to sing in programs and church. It was a sweet time for us then. My mother quit smoking and was called to be in the Primary so she was there in the chapel with the soft light, after school. She always looked nice in one of her few home made shirt-dresses. Her hair was naturally curly with soft brown waves around her face. I liked it that she wore mascara and lipstick on Primary day. She conducted the music. I could hear her strong voice with its angelic tones above the children. It was good to have her with me at this time of spiritual awakening for both of us.

My mother had a strong clear soprano voice. She could have sung professional opera. I wanted to sing like my mother but it wasn’t to be. God had other plans for me. I tried. Once my mother and I sang "Teach Me to Walk in the Light of His Love," at a program. There are 3 verses, one for the child, one for the parent and one together. I sang my part, but I never had her gift. My brothers all had better voices than I did. I resented it a little. It seemed to me that my mother’s only daughter should get her talent. My mother sang with a group of ladies and occasionally I went with her to their practice sessions. They sang the "Bridge Builder" often and I learned every verse with them. I still know all the words.


THE BRIDGE BUILDER
An old man going a lone highway.
Came at even' tide cold and gray.
To a cavern vast and wide and steep.
With waters rolling cold and deep.

The old man crossed in the twilight dim.
The swollen stream held no fear for him.
But he turned when safe on the other side.
And built a bridge to span the tide.
"Good friend", said a fellow pilgrimed near.
"You are wasting your strength with building here.
Your journey will end at the close of day.
You never again shall pass this way.
You've crossed the ravine deep and dark and wide,
Why, why build this bridge at even' tide?"



The builder lifted his old gray head,
"Good friend, in the path I have come", he said.
"There followeth after me this day,
A youth whose feet must pass this way.
The chasm that was naught to me.
To that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be.
He too must cross in the twilight dim.
Good friend I'm building this bridge for him.
"
Now when I think of this song I know why I loved the words. I understood that bridges were being built for me.
When I was about 13 I was called to conduct the music in Jr. Sunday School. I don’t even know if I knew what I was doing until Brother Belnap came to town and I don’t know how old I was when he was sent by the church to rural Utah Wards to teach, anyone who wanted to learn, how to lead music. (I think he also taught piano players how to play the organ as accompaniment.) We met for several weeks and he drilled us on conducting skills over and over until we all could do it perfectly. Brother Belnap was young and handsome and I am sure I had a crush on him or I wouldn’t remember his name today.

I led music for years in Jr. Sunday school, Jr. Primary and Mutual. When my grandpa retired and moved to Wellington (this was his first church activity) he worked with the scouts. I liked seeing his beaming face in the MIA crowd. He often expressed his joy at my ability to conduct music.


I attended CEU junior college in Price, and lived at home, for two years. After that conducting experiences all came to a halt when I went to Utah State to finish my last two years of college. Now, 40 years later I volunteered in my new ward to lead in Relief Society once and now I fill in on occasion when needed. I don’t think I ever conducted music in my 29 years living in Somerset. There always seemed to be plenty of musical talent in the Ward. The opportunity to conduct in Wellington at such a young age blessed my life. Knowing how to conduct makes listening to music more interesting to me. There are times when I see me in my next life as the guest conductor of a heavenly choir, just like I have practiced in my kitchen, where my mother will sing the solo part. I can hear her belt out one of her famous high notes, right now. 
 

Friday, July 10, 2009

BOOK REVIEW - THE ZOOKEEPER'S WIFE


I was excited to read this book because the subject matter is very interesting to me. Jan and Antonia Zabinski were owners of the Warsaw Zoo during the German occupation of WWII. The Germans took many of the animals and shipped them to Germany, killed and let many of them go. Jan Zabinski was part of the Polish resistance. This couple hid Jews in the Zoo and their home throughout the war risking their lives, finances and personal comforts to do so. This is more of a documentary than a novel. It is a good overview of all that was going on in Warsaw Poland at this time. I didn’t enjoy some of the animal segments, like the breeding of Bison by the Germans. Parts of the book progressed slowly. Diane Ackerman relied heavily upon diaries kept by Antonia and quotes them throughout the book. I have a lot of admiration for the Polish people who risked so much hiding thousands of Jews or helping them escape. The Zabinski’s saved the lives of 300 Jews during the years of the war and helped countless others with creative ways to escape. I have a clear picture in my mind now of the atrocities of the Warsaw Ghetto. It is not a page turner but a worthwhile read. I would read it again.


Tuesday, July 7, 2009

AUTHENTIC HAPPINESS - Dr. Wally

Wallace Goddard, a spiritual mentor on my blog roll: http://www.drwally.org/ had this to say today on his blog. I think it is an interesting idea that I plan to think a lot about.

Question: Strengths
A powerful idea from Martin Seligman’s excellent book, Authentic happiness: “Authentic happiness comes from identifying and cultivating your most fundamental strengths and using them every day in work, love, play, and parenting.” Many of us fret endlessly about our mistakes, faults, and shortcomings. Yet the key to our happiness is using our god-given strengths regularly. What are your strengths? How can you create more opportunities to use your strengths this week?


http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/Default.aspx Go here for some interesting questionnaires.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

SCRIPTURES, LITERATURE, EVIL AND HOLLY'S CONTEST

I just finished the Book of Mormon for the 4th year in a row. (As per my commitment to read "every day no matter what") I always have a difficult time at the end when the Nephite civilization falls apart and evil overtakes everyone. "...for their sorrowing was not unto repentance, because of the goodness of God; but it was rather the sorrowing of the damned, because the Lord would not always suffer them to take happiness in sin. And they did not come unto Jesus with broken hearts and contrite spirits, but they did curse God, and wish to die. Nevertheless they would struggle with the sword for their lives....for I saw thousands of them hewn down in open rebellion against their God, and heaped up as dung upon the face of the land." Mormon 2:13-15


This is hard to read. The battles are brutal and depressing. The struggle seems so senseless as war always is. Why did Mormon leave this stuff in the Book of Mormon? Marilyn Faulkner wrote an article on Meridian Magazine recently that helped me understand we can learn from the written word of others so we don't need to experience evil in person.


http://www.meridianmagazine.com/books/090624good.html


Under what circumstances should we tolerate the treatment of evil in literature? This is an important question, not easily answered. We are commanded to seek after things that are “lovely, virtuous and of good report and praiseworthy.” Yet Jesus also warned that to successfully navigate the choppy waters of mortality we would need to be “wise as serpents yet harmless as doves.” Literature can offer us a way to develop a moral intelligence. The Bible sets the pattern, as life stories are presented and the results of choices can be observed from a safe distance, as it were. If we object to literature that depicts evil in any form, we would have to abandon most of the great classics, including the Bible! It is by experiencing evil and its consequences through fiction that we can gain wisdom without suffering pain ourselves. (Marilyn Faulkner, Meridian Magazine)