Happy New Year!

http://youtu.be/jr-htpPV_Z0

Happy New Year (part 1)

God is not the only creator. The world is beautiful when we help to make it so.



http://youtu.be/zlfKdbWwruY

2012 Ornaments!

The wife and I have had a tradition of giving each other a Christmas ornament every year. Now, 20 years on, our tree is covered with ornaments that remind us of specific years and places. Naturally, we are have extended the tradition to the wee one.

From me to the wife: A tin poinsettia from Old Town:

From the wife to me: a glass seahorse from Solana Beach:

From Daddy to Annie: a decorated gourd from Old Town:

From Mommy to Annie: a glass butterfly from Solana Beach:

Quote of the Day

“I asked for health that I might do greater things, I was given infirmity that I do might do better things…I asked for riches that I might be happy, I was given poverty that I might be wise… I asked for power that I might have the praise of men, I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God…. I asked for all things that I might enjoy life, I was given life that I might enjoy all things… I got nothing that I asked for, but everything that I hoped for.   Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.  I am among all men most richly blessed.”

- Confederate Soldier

Christmas Goodness

Slow-Cooker Bacon-Mushroom Soup

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 6 hours

16 ounces mushrooms chopped

1 1/2 cups carrots chopped

1 cup celery chopped

1 cup yellow onion chopped

1/2 cup shallot chopped

1 teaspoon dried oregano

7 slices crisp-cooked bacon chopped, divided

4 cups beef broth

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Yield: 6

- Set aside 2 tablespoons of chopped bacon
- place the rest of the ingredients in the slow-cooker and set on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 3-3 1/2 hours
- transfer 4 cups of soup to a blender, process until smooth and return to slow-cooker
- serve garnished with remaining bacon

Some Children See Him

http://youtu.be/XR5vupwpRJc

Shirred Eggs

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 15 min

1/4 teaspoon butter softened

2 teaspoons heavy cream

2 eggs

salt to taste

pepper to taste

1 teaspoon fresh chives minced

1 teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese

Yield: 1

- Preheat to 325
- rub the inside of a 6oz ramekin with butter
- pour in cream, then crack eggs on top of cream without breaking the yolks
- sprinkle with salt, pepper, chives and cheese

**Also good topped with bacon bits or smoked salmon etc

- Bake until white of eggs have set and yolks are still soft. 12-15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to set for 2-3 minutes

Cranberry Sauce Extraordinaire

Servings: 12

Prep Time: 10 Min
Cook Time: 35 Min

1 cup water

1 cup white sugar

12 ounces fresh cranberries

1 orange, peeled and pureed

1 apple - peeled, cored and diced

1 pear - peeled, cored and diced

1 cup chopped dried mixed fruit

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Yield: 12 servings

- In a large saucepan, boil water and sugar until the sugar dissolves.
- Reduce the heat to simmer, and stir in cranberries, pureed orange, apple, pear, dried fruit, pecans, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst.
- Remove from heat, and let cool to room temperature.

Green Bean Casserole

Prep Time: 15 Min
Cook Time: 30 Min

18 ounces frozen, cut green beans, thawed

10 slices bacon

10 small fresh mushrooms, chopped

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1 cup half-and-half cream

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

1 carton French-fried onions

Yield: 6 servings

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Place green beans into a 1 quart or similar sized casserole dish.
- Fry bacon in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat until browned and crispy. Remove to drain on paper towels. Drain off some of the grease, leaving enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
- Add mushrooms to the grease in the pan and season with garlic powder and onion powder. Cook and stir until tender, about 4 minutes.
- Pour the half-and-half into the pan with the mushrooms and stir to scrape the bacon flavor from the bottom of the pan. Simmer until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. Pour this mixture over the green beans.
- Crumble bacon over the top, top with french onions and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the sauce is bubbling and the top is toasted.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Servings: 6
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 30 min

4 cups sweet potatoes peeled and cubed
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons butter softened, divided
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/2 cup pecans chopped


Yield: 6

- Preheat to 325
- Boil sweet potatoes until tender, drain and mash
- Combine sweet potatoes, sugar, eggs, salt, 4 Tbs butter, milk and vanilla. transfer to a baking dish
-----------------
- Mix brown sugar, flour. Cut in 3 Tbs butter until the mixture is coarse. Stir in the pecans. Sprinkle mixture over sweet potato mixture
- Bake 30 min or until topping is lightly brown

Turkey Carcass Soup

Servings: 12

Prep Time: 45 mins
Cook Time: 2 hours

1 turkey carcass

4 quarts water

6 small potatoes , diced

4 large carrots , diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 large onion, diced

1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage

28 ounces canned, whole peeled tomatoes , chopped

1/2 cup uncooked barley

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 bay leaf

1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 pinch dried thyme

Yield: 12

- Place the turkey carcass into a large soup pot or stock pot and pour in the water; bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook the turkey frame until the remaining meat falls off the bones, about 1 hour.
- Strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer into a clean soup pot.
- Remove the turkey carcass and remove and chop any remaining turkey meat.
- Add the chopped turkey to the strained broth; bring the to a boil, reduce heat, and stir in the remaining ingredients
- Simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 1 more hour. Remove bay leaf before serving. 

Nap Time

Bounty

by Robyn Sarah

Make much of something small.
The pouring-out of tea,
a drying flower's shadow on the wall
from last week's sad bouquet.
A fact: it isn't summer any more.

Say that December sun
is pitiless, but crystalline
and strikes like a bell.
Say it plays colours like a glockenspiel.
It shows the dust as well,

the elemental sediment
your broom has missed,
and lights each grain of sugar spilled
upon the tabletop, beside
pistachio shells, peel of a clementine.

Slippers and morning papers on the floor,
and wafts of iron heat from rumbling radiators,
can this be all? No, look — here comes the cat,
with one ear inside out.
Make much of something small.

Turkey is In the Oven!

Perfect Turkey
Servings: 8
Prep Time: 12 Hours
Cook Time: 3 hours

1 whole turkey neck and gibblets removed
2 cups kosher salt
3 tablespoons garlic minced
1 tablespoon black pepper
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 large onions yellow, chopped
4 carrots peeled and chopped
4 stalks celery chopped
2 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf
1 bottle white wine
2 cups butter melted
4 tablespoons onion powder (optional)


Yield: 8

- rinse turkey, rub inside and out with kosher salt (use whatever amount is needed) place turkey in a large stock pot and add enough water to cover turkey 3/4 of the way
- place garlic, pepper and brown sugar in a sauce pan with 4 cups water and boil until sugar is dissolved. Add ice to cool mixture.
- Add worcestershire to mixture and pour over turkey. Add enough water to submerge the turkey and refrigerate overnight (12 hours)
- preheat oven to 350
- rinse turkey and discard the brine mixture
- stuff turkey with 1/2 the onions, 1/2 the carrots, 1/2 the celery, 1/2 the thyme and the bay leaf
- scatter remaining vegetables in the bottom of the roasting pan and pour in 1/3 of the white wine (add wine throughout cooking if you do not have enough liquid for basting)
- place turkey breast-side down on roasting rack and coat with 1/2 the melted butter (dust with onion powder and/or salt and pepper if desired)
- roast uncovered 3-3 1/2 hours (for an 8-10 pound turkey) until internal temperature of thigh is 180
- baste every 45 minutes or so

*2/3 of the way through the cooking process, turn turkey breast-side up (use two clean oven mitts to handle the turkey) and coat with the remaining butter, onion powder and/or salt and pepper - continue cooking
- once done, remove from oven, turn turkey breast-side down on roasting rack and allow to cool for 30 minutes
- turn turkey breast-side up for serving

French Toast Bake!

French Toast Bake
Servings: 6
Prep Time: 8 1/2 Hours
Cook Time: 35 Min

1 day-old French bread loaf, cubed
5 eggs
2 1/2 cups milk
1 cup packed brown sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries


Yield: 6 servings

- Arrange bread in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish.
- In a bowl, combine the eggs, milk, 3/4 cup brown sugar, vanilla and nutmeg; pour over bread.
- Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking.
- Sprinkle pecans over egg mixture.
- Combine butter and remaining sugar; drizzle over the top.
- Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes.
- Sprinkle with blueberries.
- Bake 10 minutes longer or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

Merry Christmas!

What A Night

- Author Unknown

“That night when in the Judean skies the mystic star dispensed its light,

A blind man moved in his sleep and dreamed that he had sight.

That night when shepherds heard the song of hosts angelic choiring near,

A deaf man stirred in slumber’s spell and dreamed that he could hear.

That night when o’er the new-born babe the tender Mary rose to lean,

A loathsome leper smiled in sleep, and dreamed that he was clean.

That night when in the manger lay the Sanctified who came to save,

A man moved in the sleep of death, and dreamed there was no grave.”

Bloody Peasant!

I was reminded of one of my Favorite Monty Python scenes (and now I will resist posting twenty more)




http://youtu.be/rAaWvVFERVA

I cant help it:

http://youtu.be/xOrgLj9lOwk

and:

http://youtu.be/BZwuTo7zKM8

Quote of the Day

Adherents of Xmas are exhausted & overextended but Christmas worshipers are joyful. Are you rushing or feasting? 

-C.S. Lewis

Christmas is Hard

I don't understand, you want me to sit where?

Oh, okay, lay down?

Wait, lay down and look where?

20th Christmas

I am still trying to figure out what to get the wife for Christmas. This is our 20th Christmas together so I googled "20th anniversary gifts" and here is what came up:

The twentieth year of marriage is one of the big milestone anniversaries. As you celebrate this special 20th wedding anniversary, reflect on the commitment to a lifetime marriage the two of you have made.

Here are some twentieth wedding anniversary ideas and symbols to help you choose china or platinum gifts associated with your 20th marriage anniversary.

20th Anniversary Traditional Gift:

China. It symbolizes the beautiful, elegant, and delicate of your love for one another over the past 20 years.

20th Anniversary Contemporary/Modern Gift:

Platinum. Platinum is strong and enduring, just like your 20-year old marriage.

20th Anniversary Gemstone:

Emerald or a yellow or golden diamond.

20th Anniversary Color:

Emerald green or white.

20th Anniversary Flower:

Day Lily: The meaning of a day lily is that of coquetry such as flirting, playful behavior towards one another.

I was thinking more along the lines of a flak jacket, helmet and a bottle of vodka . . . . .

Lines Written in the Days of Growing Darkness

by Mary Oliver

Every year we have been
witness to it: how the
world descends

into a rich mash, in order that
it may resume.
And therefore
who would cry out

to the petals on the ground
to stay,
knowing as we must,
how the vivacity of what was is married

to the vitality of what will be?
I don't say
it's easy, but
what else will do

if the love one claims to have for the world
be true?

So let us go on, cheerfully enough,
this and every crisping day,

though the sun be swinging east,
and the ponds be cold and black,
and the sweets of the year be doomed.

The Bloody Mary

by Susan Donnelly

Sunday in late December
calls for one, with a celery stalk
and faint taste of Worcestershire,
to be sipped while eating
poached egg and corned beef hash,
in a hotel dining room
with someone you love. Touch
the hairs at his wrist
as the warmth endorses
all bed-lingering, non-churchgoing.
It's the solstice, remember,
when your frugal father
would hand around dollar bills
so the day would last longer.
Stir ice into the rich red
and consider such Celtic rituals,
as you watch, beyond the tall windows,
pilgrims traveling the paths
past snow-fringed trees in the park.

The 5 Stages of Grief and Some Assembly Required

A Yep

The Tree!

Take It

“There is nothing I can give you this season which you have not. But there is much, very much, that, while I cannot give it, you can take.  No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today.  Take heaven!  No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present little instant.  Take peace! The gloom of the world is but a shadow.  Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy.  Take joy!  And so, at this time, I greet you.  Not quite as the world sends greetings, but with a prayer that for you, now and forever, the day breaks and the shadows flee.”

- Fra Giovanni Giocondo,  Franciscan friar, Christmas Eve, 1513

Merry Christmas from The Gipper

The Christians and the Pagans

http://youtu.be/d9H9Fi4Qcus

Christmas

http://youtu.be/Aixcna743L0

Words by J. Popper Music by T. Anastasio and J. Popper

Comes the time for Christmas
And I really have to ask
If this is feeling merry
How much longer must it last

I wish a one horse open sleigh
Would come carry me away
But I've been waiting here all day
And one just hasn't come my way

Now excuse me if I'm not being reverent
But I was hoping for a miracle to hold me, wash me
Save me from my righteous doubt as I watch helpless
And everybody sings

If it's Chanukah or Kwanza
Solstice, harvest or December twenty-fifth
Peace on earth to everyone
And abundance to everyone you're with

Laha da da da da da
Da da da da da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da da
Laha da da da da
Laha da da da da

Comes the time for Christmas
And as you raise your Yuletide flask
There's like this feeling that you carry
As if from every Christmas past

It's as if each year it grows
It's like you feel it in your toes
And on and on your carol goes
Harvesting love among your woes

I want to buy into the benevolent
And I was hoping for a miracle to hold me, wash me
Make me know what it's about
As the longing in me makes me want to sing

Noel or Navidad
Season celebration or just the end of the year
Christmas can mean anything
And I mean to keep its hope forever near

Laha da da da da da
Da da da da da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da da da
Laha da da da da
Laha da da da da

As if a cold and frozen soul is warm to love
By loves own hand
So goes the prayer if for a day peace on earth
And good will to man

At twenty below the winter storm it billows
But the fire is so warm inside
And the children while nestled in their pillows
Dream of St. Nicholas's ride

And how the next day they'll get up and they will play
In the still falling Christmas snow
And together we'll celebrate forever
In defiance of the winds that blow

My god in heaven now I feel like I'm seven
And spirit calls to me as well
As if Christmas had made the winter warmer
Made a paradise from what was hell

As if a cold and frozen soul is warm to love
By loves own hand
So goes the prayer if for a day peace on earth
And good will to man.......

I wish a one horse open sleigh would come carry me away
And I'll keep waiting through next May
Until Christmas comes my way

Quote of the Day

The Seven Blunders of the World: wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, worship without sacrifice, politics without principle.

- Gandhi

Quote of the Day

“Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.  As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all.  Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.  If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Be yourself. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.  Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.  But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.  Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.  Be at peace with God and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.  With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.” 

- Max Ehrmann

Quote of the Day

"When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things -- not the great occasions -- give off the greatest glow of happiness."

- Bob Hope

A Big Ole Brew

A line from this song popped into my head today "One of these days everything I want is going to be mine" . . . blah blah something about it not and sunshine . . .

I had no idea who sang the song, what the other lyrics were or where I had heard that line but thanks to the internet, I was able to look it up. I have never heard of this singer and had no idea what the name of the song was but it was a delightful find.

Enjoy!



http://youtu.be/MMd54N4fqJ4

Quote of the Day

"Aren't we forgetting the true meaning of Christmas? You know, the birth of Santa." 

- Bart Simpson

Teenagers

by Pat Mora

One day they disappear
into their rooms.
Doors and lips shut
and we become strangers
in our own home.

I pace the hall, hear whispers,
a code I knew but can't remember,
mouthed by mouths I taught to speak.

Years later the door opens.
I see faces I once held,
open as sunflowers in my hands. I see
familiar skin now stretched on long bodies
that move past me
glowing almost like pearls.

Happy Thanksgiving

http://youtu.be/AmXfWqaJevg

Quote of the Day

"The pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts... nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving."

- H. W. Westermayer

Quote of the Day

He who has injured thee was either stronger or weaker than thee. If weaker, spare him; if stronger, spare thyself. 

- Cicero

The Cat in Iraq

by Renton

She came to me skittish, wild.
The way you’re meant to be,
Surrounded by cruelty.
I did not blame her.
I would do the same.

A pregnant cat, a happy distraction
Some sort of normal thing
Calico and innocent.

The kittens in her belly said feed me.

And I did.

She crept with careful eye,
body held low to the dirt,
snagged a bite,
and carried it just far enough away.

She liked the MREs
the beef stew, the chicken breast, the barbeque pork,
But she did not like canned sardines.
I do not blame her.
I would do the same.

She came around again and again
finally deciding that I was no threat
That this big man wasn’t so bad.

I was afraid to touch her as the docs warned us
Iraqi animals were carriers of flesh-eating disease.
I donned a plastic glove and was the first to pet
This wild creature who may be

The one true heart and mind that America
Had won over.

After a while I forgot the glove and enjoyed
The tactile softness of short fur,
Flesh-eating bacteria be dammed.

Her belly swole for weeks
And she disappeared for some days
Until her kittens were safely birthed
In the shallow of a rusted desk
In the ruins that lined the road behind us.

She came around again slim
With afterbirth still matted to her hind legs
She was back again, but not quite as often
She came to eat and for attention
But there was nursing to be done.

One day she crept up with a kitten in her mouth
She dropped it at my foot and stared up at me
She expected something, but there was nothing I could do
The young black and white kitten was dead
It’s eyes not yet opened.

It looked like some shriveled old wise thing
Completely still, mouth puckered
Small body curled and limp.

She let me take the baby without a fight
She knew, but seemed unaffected.

She fetched me a gift,
A lesson,
among the worried nights
Shot nerves from poorly aimed mortar rounds:

Everything dies
the evil, the innocent
Her baby and
me

I thought I should say a prayer and bury
This poor little thing
But I did for it what will be done for me

I laid it in the burn can amongst the ash
And said I’m sorry.

Tomato Pies, 25 Cents

by Grace Cavalieri

Tomato pies are what we called them, those days,
before Pizza came in,
at my Grandmother's restaurant,
in Trenton New Jersey.
My grandfather is rolling meatballs
in the back. He studied to be a priest in Sicily but
saved his sister Maggie from marrying a bad guy
by coming to America.
Uncle Joey is rolling dough and spooning sauce.
Uncle Joey, is always scrubbed clean,
sobered up, in a white starched shirt, after
cops delivered him home just hours before.
The waitresses are helping
themselves to handfuls of cash out of the drawer,
playing the numbers with Moon Mullin
and Shad, sent in from Broad Street. 1942,
tomato pies with cheese, 25 cents.
With anchovies, large, 50 cents.
A whole dinner is 60 cents (before 6 pm).
How the soldiers, bussed in from Fort Dix,
would stand outside all the way down Warren Street,
waiting for this new taste treat,
young guys in uniform,
lined up and laughing, learning Italian,
before being shipped out to fight the last great war.

My son calls me while I'm in line at the Stop & Shop

by Kathe L. Palka

and I freeze, transporting tea from the cart
 to the conveyer belt, mind racing to places
 he might need me, as I answer my cell.
 But he's not calling for rescue from the scene
 of an accident, a highway wreck or more
 natural disaster, rather calling, as if I were
 only in the next room. Home early
 from school, he's wondering what's
 for dinner and after being told, asks if I might
 make mashed potatoes instead of rice.
 I sigh a little yes, slightly annoyed at his
 casualness, but glad to be able to heed the call,
 reminded, I'm the one who thinks of this
 accessibility as a way to keep the world
 at bay, able now to respond anywhere,
 yet burdened by availability.
 Born into this expanding, more connected
 universe, he can't imagine why anyone
 would want to be out of reach, my child who
 wears new technology like a second skin
 and for whom the whole world
 is an easy touch away and should be.

Indian Summer

The Santa Anas blew through this past weekend. For those of you not from So Cal, the Santa Ana winds come just about every fall. The wind blows across the Mojave desert and brings warm dry wind to the coastal cities. It feels as if it is summer's last farewell and I love it.

A perfect excuse to break out the kiddie pool one last time!

 

 

 

 

X

by Wendell Berry

Whatever is foreseen in joy
 Must be lived out from day to day.
 Vision held open in the dark
 By our ten thousand days of work.
 Harvest will fill the barn; for that
 The hand must ache, the face must sweat.

 And yet no leaf or grain is filled
 By work of ours; the field is tilled
 And left to grace. That we may reap,
 Great work is done while we're asleep.

 When we work well, a Sabbath mood
 Rests on our day, and finds it good. 

Quote of the Day

You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one. 

-John Wooden

Quote of the Day

"Love and you shall be loved. All love is mathematically just, as much as the two sides of an algebraic equation." 

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

*Zerberts*

Sesame Street Friends

Quote of the Day

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

THE CHRYSALIS AND ME

BY JONNIA SMITH

The
caterpillar
cooperates with its
chrysalis according
to the Greater Order
of the universe,
accepting its sentence of
seclusion without struggle
or complaint. It does not
rage against constraint nor
kick and claw at every
change in the season
of its growth. It
harbors no
illusion of
control.
I
am not
nearly
so
wise.

Bless Their Hearts

by Richard Newman

At Steak 'n Shake I learned that if you add
"Bless their hearts" after their names, you can say
whatever you want about them and it's OK.
My son, bless his heart, is an idiot,
she said. He rents storage space for his kids'
toys—they're only one and three years old!
I said, my father, bless his heart, has turned
into a sentimental old fool. He gets
weepy when he hears my daughter's greeting
on our voice mail. Before our Steakburgers came
someone else blessed her office mate's heart,
then, as an afterthought, the jealous hearts
of the entire anthropology department.
We bestowed blessings on many a heart
that day. I even blessed my ex-wife's heart.
Our waiter, bless his heart, would not be getting
much tip, for which, no doubt, he'd bless our hearts.
In a week it would be Thanksgiving,
and we would each sit with our respective
families, counting our blessings and blessing
the hearts of family members as only family
does best. Oh, bless us all, yes, bless us, please
bless us and bless our crummy little hearts.

Quote of the Day

Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a Heaven for?

- Robert Browning

Matt's Story

A friend did a nice post about me and I want to reciprocate by linking to it.

This is a great and healthful blog that I really enjoy following and have even added some of the recipes to my "give it a try" file.

The blog is called "Two Sisters Share What We Love and Learn"

"Matt's Story" Is here.

Enjoy!

Quote of the Day

We are all receiving Charity. There is something in each of us that cannot be naturally loved. 

- CS. Lewis

A-yep Its One of Those Days

http://youtu.be/cnVsUpjjOeo

Quote of the Day

"We always want the best man to win an election. Unfortunately, he never runs."

- Will Rogers

The Bourbon Chase

WAIT! WHAT? How come I haven't heard of this till now?

2 days, 200 miles, 6 Kentucky distilleries, with 11 of your friends:



http://youtu.be/QMldPnwNdb8

The Right Honorable, The Lord Mayor, of London

http://youtu.be/z1ROpIKZe-c

One of the Best Running Podcasts I have ever heard

Steve Walker aka Steve Runner has been running since 1998. He has a podcast called Phedippidations (which I subscribe to on my Android phone via the Stitcher app) self described as "Inspirations, motivations, contemplations and conversations for and about runners". He's a running geek - but a thoughtful running geek. In one of his recent podcasts he explored one of the chapters of George Sheehan's book "Going the Distance: One man's journey to the end of his life" which Dr. Sheehan wrote while dying of cancer.

The podcast had me misty-eyed more than once and is one of the best podcasts I have ever heard on why we run. If you are looking for heart-felt motivation to get off the couch, this is worth your time.

Run long and taper.

Quote of the day

Paul said "Be As Harmless A Doves" & "As Wise As Serpents" Christ wants a child's heart, but a grown-up's head

- CS. Lewis

Quote of the day

Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels that he is "finding his place in it," while really it is finding its place in him. 

- CS. Lewis

Quote of the Day

Now I'm a man who ain't afraid
I destroyed my ego just to make the space
Cause I'm born again yeah

-- Richard Ashcroft

Quote of the day

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.' We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

- Marianne Williamson

Hoses

by George Bilgere

I love the hoses of summer
hanging in their green coils
from the sides of houses,
or slithering through lawns
on their way to the cool
meditations of sprinklers.

I think of my father, scotch
in one hand, the dripping hose
in the other, probing the dusk
with water, the world
around him falling apart,
marriage crumbling, booze
running the show.
Still, he liked to walk out
after dinner and water the lawn,
fiddling with the nozzle,
misting this, showering that.

Sometimes, in the hot twilight,
my sisters and I would run
in our swimsuits through the yard
while he followed us
with a cold beam of water.

And once, when my mother
came out to watch, he turned
the hose on her, the two of them
laughing in a way we'd never heard,
a laughter that must have brought them
back to the beginning.

Scarred for LIFE

A couple of years back, a friend of ours tipped us off to the work of Ted Meyer and his Scarred for Life project. Holly got in touch to compliment his work and recently we met with him to paint a few of Annie's scars.

We had mixed emotions about it but in the end we decided that we wanted to express that we thought ALL of our Annie-Lu is beautiful - not just the un-scarred parts. Here is Ted's masterful artwork:

his facebook link to this photo is HERE.

Ted asked for a brief Bio on what we thought of Annie's scars for inclusion in an upcoming book and that's why I wanted to do this posting. Here is what I wrote:
__________________________

During the second trimester of our pregnancy, as the ghostly shapes of the ultrasound swirled on the screen, the doctor began to murmur, “Lemon Sign . . . Banana Sign . . . Spinal Defect . . . Clubbed Feet . . .  “. Diagnosis: T5-Level Spina Bifida. Although in the mildest cases, people go their whole lives having Spina Bifida without even knowing it, we were told that our daughter would not survive more than a few hours after birth. Now here we are 4 years later with a happy and precocious Annie-Lu who just started her second year of preschool. 

Due to the severity of her condition, Annie is paralyzed from the waist down and she races about in the cutest glow-in-the-dark wheelchair you have ever seen. When people ask if she will ever walk, my response is, “Not with today’s medical technology but some of the smartest people on earth are working on it.” 

A year from now Annie will have another surgery (her 5th in total) where they will insert metal into her spine to correct the curvature. As parents it feels as if we have been receiving regular insertions of metal into our spines since the day of that ultrasound 4 years ago. It has been a tough road; one that has stripped us down to our core not only as parents but as people and rebuilt us with more tenderness and more steel. 

Children such as Annabelle force our society to slow down and exercise patience for others. Children such as Annabelle force us to reconsider our petty selfish griping in light of the burdens she carries. Annie prompts us to open a door for a child when we would normally push through, to crack an encouraging smile in an otherwise smile-less day. Children such as my daughter, Annie-Lu, force us all to a higher and richer level of compassion, kindness and humanity than our society would otherwise attain. What do I see when I see my daughter’s scars? I see a little girl sent to save us by her example from our endless personal obsessiveness. When I see my daughter’s scars, I see a pint-sized savior; sent to bear the burden of our bitter self-absorption and to help us free ourselves from it.
_____________________________
She's gonna show you how great she is

Ashley Lauren Fisher

http://youtu.be/R7HM5SKlDWo

Quote of the Day

We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey.

- Kenji Miyazawa

Quote of the Day

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."

- Winston Churchill

Quote of the Day

"In America Anyone Can Be President That's One of the Risks You Take."

- Anonymous

Quote of the Day

The virtue of courage is a prerequisite for the practice of all other virtues otherwise one is virtuous only when virtue has no cost.

- CS Lewis

Quote of the Day

Now if you know what you're worth then go out and get what you're worth; but you gotta be willing to take the hits and not pointing fingers saying you aren't where you want to be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that's not you. You're better than that!

- Rocky Balboa

Quote of the Day

If you asked twenty good men today what they thought the highest of the virtues, nineteen of them would reply, Unselfishness. 

- CS Lewis

Quote of the Day

"Perhaps the outstanding example of blame displacement in chronically anxious America is what has come to be called anti-incumbency, the tendency of voters to reject whoever is in office almost irrespective of their party affiliation. This flailing at the political winds amounts to a collective irresponsibility on the part of voters seeking magical, quick-fix answers to a complex range of the problems of existence. Instead of focusing on their own response to the challenges of change, these voters find fault in their political stars. And it is not just a political phenomenon; it is occurring with regard to coaches, educators, CEOs, and clergy, not to mention marriage partners and parents ... It is more a reactive response to the voter's own inner emptiness, personal frustration, general unhappiness, loss of hope, and feelings of helplessness."


- Edwin Friedman, A Failure of Nerve, 79-80

Quote of the Day

I'm not a good runner, but I'm better than someone who doesn't do it at all.

- Captain "Sully" Sullenberger

Tell Someone

Walk up to your most unsupportive acquaintance and inform him you have started running. This is preferably a person who was as lazy as you were just before the first run (one run and you're no longer lazy!), someone who will chuckle or even make fun of you. Ridicule is a strong motivator. Ask anyone who has ever achieved anything in life to tell you about the high school teacher who told him he'd never amount to anything.

- Runner's World

Quote of the Day

The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other.

- CS Lewis

Quote of the Day

"Dogmatic ideological parties tend to splinter the political and social fabric of a nation, lead to governmental crisis and deadlocks, and stymie the compromises so necessary to preserve freedom and achieve progress."

- George Romney in a 1964 response on why he did not endorse Barry Goldwater

Fun Run

So my buddy Sean had the idea to hike Cowels Mountain one day to watch the sunrise. Cowles is the highest peak in San Diego County at a little over 1500 feet and I had never hiked it so I was stoked to give it a try in the dark!

We got the trail head around 5am, strapped on our headlamps and headed up.

This is the view of the valley from the top of Cowels:

There is a trail that links Cowels peak to another peak named Piles. I had heard that very few people ever made the extra hike over to Piles so I was all for it. Sean was content to relax and watch the sunrise from Cowels so I struck out on my own to see if I could make it before the sun came up.

There is something exhilarating about running an unfamiliar trail in the dark all by your self and I loved it.

Just before sunrise at Piles Peak:

Looking back at Cowels from Piles peak (Cowels peak is just behind the radio towers):

Clouds blanketing the valley below:

Moon above the valley:

Almost!:

WHAMO!:

It was a blast and I definitely plan on doing it again!

Great idea Sean! Thanks!



http://youtu.be/wHs_XvtulzA

Quote of the Day

We can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling 'darkness' in his cell

- CS Lewis

Quote of the Day

You must believe that God is separate from the world and that some of the things we see in it are contrary to His will. 

- CS Lewis

Quote of the Day

"Son, this is a big day for you. Today, you become the man of the house, because, when we get home, your mother is going to kill me."

- The Family Guy

Carelton - Made from Beer

http://youtu.be/_GbHpqfv9is

Septembeard is Coming!

Similar to Movember last year:

The Daddy-O
The Bubba
The Swellick

Septembeard is a goofy way to bring awareness to prostate cancer.

Are you in? I am! C'mon, some of you ladies can join in too! (you know who you are!) ;-)




http://youtu.be/5TcWek36EKw

"Strike an average between what a woman thinks of her husband a month before she marries him and what she thinks of him a year afterward, and you will have the truth about him."

- H. L. Mencken

Don't Give Away Your Soul This Election Year

In my adult discussion group at church we have lately been discussing the dehumanizing effects of our reliance on labels.

Labels are a natural knee-jerk human reaction to the fantastic complexity of this wondrous existence. Life is such a terribly complex mix of contradictions and nuances that we often tire of trying to gain understanding and instead slip into the doltish habit of just labeling people.

People are "straight" or "gay", "liberal" or "conservative", "white" or  . . . . everybody else? Poor or rich. People are "Christian", "Jewish", "Muslim", "Agnostic", "Atheist", or "__________", or, "_________", or (worst of all!), "________".

Worse yet, we label ourselves. We self-identify as a "Ford man", a "Chevy man", a "Prius . . . . wuss"? Bud Light, Coors Light, Abercrombie and Fitch, LL Bean, J. Crew, Pepsi, Coke, Vegan, Vegetarian, Runner, Swimmer, Artist, Accountant and so on.

Here's the thing: Whenever you affix a label to someone else, you diminish their humanity. Whenever you self-identify with a label, you give your humanity away.

Every single one of the labels we use comes with a laundry list of baggage. Think of the top five things that represent Republicans - right now! Off the top of your head! Now do the same for Democrats. Take a look at those lists. REALLY? EVERY Republican and EVERY Democrat fits those descriptions? REALLY?

Lately, whenever I hear (read) someone who says that "the Republicans" or "the Democrats" or "the Christians" or "the Gays" . . . . blah blah blah  . . .  (I actually can't finish that statement because I stop listening or continue scrolling on my FB page) I think "dehumanizing" and move on.

Whenever I notice that someone is always on the side of the Democrats or always on the side of the Republicans I realize that they have sold a portion of their humanity for some half-baked fictional group identity.

A rule of thumb I have learned from those with disabilities is to always emphasize the person first and soften the descriptors afterwards. In other words, my daughter is not a "disabled girl", she is a 4 year old girl who has some physical challenges. Republicans/Democrats are not being "ignorant". Rather, people that hold to (x) particular viewpoint need to do some more research before we are willing to entrust them with political power. Yes, this takes more time and effort - celebrating humanity always does.

To give an example from my own life: Some would label me as:

42 years old

Male

Father

White

Middle class

Christian

Conservative

Runner

With the exception of the first three (and I am iffy on the third) I refuse to label myself this way or acknowledge the labels you put on me. I am certainly 42 years old and male. However (even though I have a daughter) I don't know what baggage the term "father" carries for you. I don't know what "white" means - I have more nationalities in me that my dog has breeds. I have no idea how you define "middle class". I don't know what baggage you load onto "Christian" - positive or negative - and I assure you I am not as good or as bad as you might think.

I have voted Republican for most of my life but am now unaffiliated and would not call myself one. I have run 118 days in a row but I wouldn't call myself a "runner".

Just as a specific example: I believe that the word "marriage" is a term of art that should have been restricted to religious orders. The government (being secular) has no business "marrying" anyone. Instead, the government should be granting any two consenting adults Civil Unions - be they hetero or otherwise - along with all the rights and benefits thereof. If you want a certificate that says "married" find a recognized religious group that will give you one. So what does that make me? Conservative? Liberal? Or just really, really smart? ;-)

What I am is a 42 year-old man who is doing his damnedest to live a good and beautiful life and leave the world better than I found it. I refuse to be shackled by the labels you fling at me and I refuse to voluntarily shackle myself with labels of my own making.

You want to know me? Start by loving me as a guy muddling his way through this life as best as he can and I will love you right back - we can go from there.

When I see a window decal with a cartoon urinating on an automobile logo, someone with a logo'ed sweatshirt, someone who leads with their sexuality, someone who engages conversations with "church people" or "the gays", I shake my head in sorrow. These people have given away some of their humanity in exchange for a false identity that neither satisfies or fulfills.

So spare me your labels and political hyperbole this election season. I'm not buying it. In fact, if you are willing to give away your humanity to a political label, I question your judgement on other matters as well.

I am setting myself free from you and I am setting myself free from me.

Set yourself free - be human first - be human last - be human only - celebrate the diversity of the humans around you - lay your labels down.

UPDATE:

I just saw this great video featuring Aimee Mullins that echos the point: http://youtu.be/-yKCbnI0IjQ

On Duty

DLF>DNF>>DNS

Quote of the Day

I'm better than anything
You have obviously ever seen

And I'm stronger than all of these 
Small-town things you've thrown at me

But I can't let you let me down

Yeah we reap what we sow,
So I'm moving on.

Cuz' I'm feeling strong.

- Stephen Ashbrook (Better Than Anything)

Children's Hospital Rotation

by Emily Gibson

The call came in the middle of a busy night
as we worked on a floppy baby with high fever,
a croupy toddler whose breathing squeezed and squeaked,
a pale adolescent transfusing due to leukemia bleeding.
It was an anencephalic baby just born, unexpected, unwanted
in a hospital across town, and she needed a place to die.
Our team of three puzzled how to manage a baby without a brain–
simply put her in a room, swaddled, kept warm but alone?
Hydrate her with a dropper of water to moisten her mouth?
Offer her a taste of milk?
She arrived by ambulance, the somber attendants
leaving quickly, unnerved by her mewing cries.
I took the wrapped bundle and peeled away the layers
to find a plump full term baby, her hands gripping, arms waving
once freed; just another newborn until I pulled off her stocking cap
and looked into an empty crater — only a brainstem lumped at the base.
Neither textbook pictures nor cruel jokes about frog babies had prepared me
for the wholeness, the holiness of this living, breathing child.
Her forehead quit above the eyebrows with the entire skull missing,
tufts of soft brown hair fringed her perfect ears, around the back of her neck.
Her eyelids puffy, squinting tight, seemingly too big
above a button nose and rosebud pink lips.
She squirmed under my fingers, her muscles strong, breaths coming steady
despite no awareness of light or touch or noise.
Yet she cried in little whimpers, mouth working, seeking,
lips tentatively gripping my fingertip. A bottle warmed,
nipple offered, a tentative suck allowing tiny flow,
then, amazing, a gurgling swallow.
Returning every two hours, more for me than for her, I picked her up
to smell the salty sweet scent of amnion still on her skin as she grew dusky.
Her breathing weakened, her muscles loosened, giving up her grip
on a world she would never see or hear or feel to behold
something far more glorious, as I gazed
into her emptiness, waiting to be filled.

The Greatest (Marathon) Show on Earth

The running bug has bitten me and hasn't let go. So far, 114 days in a row, 390 miles and 51 pounds lost!

Although I listen to music when I run, I listen to a number of podcasts when I am doing yard work or driving. My podcasts are automatically loaded to my android phone via the Stitcher app which I highly recommend.

One of the great things about Stitcher is that it will suggest new podcasts based on your listening habits and one of the podcasts that came recommended about a month ago was "The Marathon Show" with Joe Taricani. It. Is. Awesome!

Joe travels to various marathons, interviews the vendors and runners at the pre-race expo and then runs the race, microphone in hand, interviewing people. In between races, Joe does a variety of call-in topics and interviews with athletes, race directors and others in the running community.

His enthusiasm for life and his love of running are infectious and I have never once listened to a podcast of his that did not have me grinning ear-to-ear and feeling better about life-in-general afterwards.

At the latest San Francisco Marathon, Joe interviewed the makers of iFitness belts and SnuggBuds and his reviews were so positive I made a note to check out their products. He also extolled the beauty of the SF race which led me to add the SF Marathon to my list of possible future races (and I don't even like San Francisco!).

At my recent AFC 5k, iFitness and Snuggbuds had booths at the expo and because of The Marathon Show, I made a point to check them out. I casually mentioned to the iFitness gals that I had heard about them on a podcast. "Marathon Joe?", the gal asked, "We love Marathon Joe!". I liked the iFitness belts and might add one to my gear sometime in the near future.

I headed over to Snuggbuds and didn't mention the show b/c I didn't want to seem like a "name dropper". I liked their headphones and made a mental note to buy a pair when my crappy drug-store headphones eventually shorted out.

All this just reinforced my love for The Marathon Show so I went online to FB and left Joe a message telling him I loved the show. He responded immediately and said he was sending me a free pair of SnuggBuds just for saying I love the show! The headphones arrived this morning. Whata Guy!

Of course, I don't want to give the impression that anyone who gives Joe a shout-out gets free stuff that would be silly. I just got lucky. But free stuff or not, The Marathon Show is a fun and informative podcast that truly celebrates life through running.

Check it out. You will be glad you did!



http://youtu.be/q2XDJf8h9BM



http://youtu.be/dcbc23Gp4Cc

Quote of the Day

‎"Not till we are lost, in other words, not till we have lost the world, do we begin to find ourselves, and realize where we are and the infinite extent of our relations."

-Henry David Thoreau

A Life Well Lived

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57495803/oregon-town-says-goodbye-to-man-who-spent-life-helping-neighbors/?tag=showDoorLeadStoriesAreaMain;ENLeadHero

Quote of the Day

Never argue with stupid people. They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.

- Mark Twain

5k Update

It was a great day!

This is just before the race (we had to wake Annie up to get movin' this morning and she was still "powering up" in this photo):

Not knowing what to expect, I placed myself at the back of the pack just before the walkers.

And away we go!

Annie always gets a thrill out of races that we have been to and she got in on the action by cheering runners as they passed.

The splits:

I set up RunKeeper on my phone to record 5 min intervals. RunKeeper is always a little iffy when it comes to precise accuracy but here goes:

0min-5min: 7:03 min/mile pace - This is a fast start for me but is probably accurately reflecting the excitement of race day.

5min-10min: 8:09 min/mile pace - This is probably accurate as well as I got bogged down in the crowd a little (during the first 5 min I was able to run around the crowd by running on the sidewalk instead of in the road with the hoard). The entire race I was passing people and was never passed by anyone else. This doesn't mean I am fast, it means I seeded myself too far back in the pack. Next time I might try a middle of the pack approach (it's just so crowded!).

10min-15min: 5:25 min/mile pace - WAIT! WHAT? The day I do a 5:25 minute mile you'll know I am in my car. This can't be right! Plus, I am pretty sure this was the long hill that we climbed so it should be a slower pace than the rest.

15min-20min: 7:02 min/mile pace - Thank you AC/DC and Tesla! I was hoping to negative split the race so my plan was to spend the first couple of songs finding my form (Orchard and I Have the Touch). The next song digging in (Roll Away Your Stone). Then pouring it on (Back in Black and Getting Better). Then trying to hang on (Beautiful Day, Little Less Conversation and Born Again).

20min-25min: 6:51 min/mile pace - Thank you U2, JXL and a race course that ends with a down-slope! When I realized I was going to finish in the middle of the JXL remix, I knew I would beat my 30 min. goal.

Taking RunKeeper with a grain of salt, the negative splits tell me I didn't go out too fast and managed my pace well but that big fat 8:09 tells me I need to seed myself a little farther up the pack than dead last. I wish I hadn't set up my intervals this way. Instead of time, I should have set them up in either mile or half-mile intervals which would have been much more helpful to me afterwards. Live and learn!

According to my playlist I crossed the line in under 27 min but I forgot to stop my RunKeeper for another 10 minutes or so and the official #'s won't be up until this afternoon. So I am not sure what my exact time is.

It was a total blast and I am looking forward to running a longer race next. Maybe a 5 miler or a 10k? We shall see . . . . My next 2 challenges on the calendar are the Magic Mile starting September 9th and the 5x50 which also starts September 9th!

Today I saw a T-shirt on a runner in front of me that read "Run Hard, Live Easy". Well, I did half of that so far today and it felt GREAT!

UPDATE: Official Results Are In!

Time: 25:20
Overall: 120th place
Men's Group: 83rd place
Men 40-44: 8th place!

Not bad for a first-timer who couldn't run 5 minutes straight 3 1/2 months ago!