I Believe in Love

I don't believe in superstars,
Organic food and foreign cars.
I don't believe the price of gold;
The certainty of growing old.
That right is right and left is wrong,
That north and south can't get along.
That east is east and west is west.
And being first is always best.

But I believe in love.
I believe in babies.
I believe in Mom and Dad.
And I believe in you.

Well, I don't believe that heaven waits,
For only those who congregate.
I like to think of God as love:
He's down below, He's up above.
He's watching people everywhere.
He knows who does and doesn't care.
And I'm an ordinary man,
Sometimes I wonder who I am.

But I believe in love.
I believe in music.
I believe in magic.
And I believe in you.

Well, I know with all my certainty,
What's going on with you and me,
Is a good thing.
It's true, I believe in you.

I don't believe virginity,
Is as common as it used to be.
In working days and sleeping nights,
That black is black and white is white.
That Superman and Robin Hood,
Are still alive in Hollywood.
That gasoline's in short supply,
The rising cost of getting by.

But I believe in love.
I believe in old folks.
I believe in children.
I believe in you.

But I believe in love.
I believe in babies.
I believe in Mom and Dad.
And I believe in you.

Yes, well, that pretty much sums up my philosophy with a few extras tucked in and a few left off. This is one of John's favorites and he's still likely to grab me by the hand and whirl me around in a little sway dance, to which this song easily lends itself. Perhaps you and your beloved will give it a whirl this weekend yourselves.

And that's why you hear it playing on my playlist this weekend (and only this weekend as I usually keep the playlist turned off). Scroll down to the bottom of the page and press the off button if you don't want to listen. ♫ music ♫

Have a great Saturday and enjoy those Olympic games!

Tea Cozy

Thank you all for your wonderful comments, which have buoyed me considerably. I know that behind those comments are a lot of prayers. I can sense them and am so grateful for them.

And, I am taking your advice to heart. It may not be possible to get out of the house for a getaway very often, but I can get away in the house. It had been weeks and weeks since playing in my craft room. Though I'm not a very good crafter, I do enjoy my puttering time. Nan had her silver bell to ring for me and that gave me a few hours upstairs. She read. I sewed. It worked. She only rang once. ;D

So now I am in the tea cozy business (do not take this too literally...no Etsy shop in my future). My hope is to make all the ladies in the family a nice tea cozy because I have been enjoying my tea times tremendously. Chamomile is wonderfully calming and I need all the calming I can get.

Using Insul-Bright, yesterday's project was a repurposing of a torn pillow sham. Since it was going to be the prototype and the pillow sham was a gift from my daughter and I was keeping it, there was little fretting and lots of fun. I mean, look at it! What could I possibly have done to harm it? Ha!



Here's the finished cozy sitting on the jelly cupboard with a rooster button covering a patched hole...





Next up...



The thing that is really floating my boat is that there's enough old pillow sham to make a kind of matching cozy for my daughter. She doesn't drink tea, but who knows? One day, she may want to give the cozy a try.

Hope that if life should become stressful, you'll try a project and a cup of chamomile tea. A blessed day to you...

Cheesy Corn Chowder and Dessert Too

What a beautiful day has dawned here in the Northeast. My corner missed all that snowy mess even though the storm clouds were gathered. It reminded me all day of a quote I like: For every ten problems you see coming down the road, nine roll harmlessly into the ditch before they arrive. ~ Calvin Coolidge

Yesterday morning was busy with taking my mother for treatments, but yesterday afternoon she surprised us by wanting to come here for the remainder of the day. After lunch, she sent John and me off with a good wish for enjoying the afternoon while she stayed with her mother.

John and I so enjoyed getting away. We ran some quick errands, took a drive through the back country and found the most wonderful new business sprung up...a maple syrup business...so I shall be sharing more about that once that season has arrived. We drove through Kentucky Fried Chicken and ordered some of their apple pies. Love those things! We ate them in front of the public garden closed for the season, but we enjoyed the winter view all the same. Then we went to the flea market.

Back home, I put on the potatoes for a delicious if.I.do.say.so.myself. cheesy corn chowder...recipe to follow. Then it was off for a walk with John. A walk! Oh joy unspeakable and I remembered to take my camera and so I experimented with some of Ree's techniques. You do all know that she gives great tips *here in the photography section*. Anywho, for seeing some truly beautiful photography submitted by her readers, take a look. It's enough to make one very humble.

Here are my pitiful offerings. (NOOOO! I did not submit these. ;> )


High Aperture (Background in focus, subject blurry)




Low Aperture (background blurry; subject in focus)

Then back home for the putting together of the chowder and the making of corn bread or Johnny cake. We enjoyed a tummy-warming meal together and then I quickly made my dear friend Mrs. G's Gourmet Pears for dessert. Since I have modified it, I don't think that Mrs. G would mind my sharing my version. (BTW, Mrs. G., should you be reading...hope that you and yours are well.)

Finally, it was back to the city with my mother so that she could catch her ride home. My sister was working until six, but her twelve-hour shift turned into a fourteen-hour one. (Nurses have brutal shifts!) It gave mom and me lots of time to chat.

So here are those recipes...

Cheesy Corn Chowder

(This makes a huge batch so don't hesitate to divide it for a family of four.)

Ingredients:

* 4 lbs potatoes
* 1 onion chopped fine
* 2 cans evaporated milk
* 2 cans whole kernal corn
* 2 cans creamed corn
* 3 cans Campbell Cheddar Cheese Soup (1 can for a halved recipe will work fine)
* salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Cook potatoes and onion with enough water to cover potatoes. Cook until tender. Drain off the water and add remaining ingredients. Simmer over low heat until piping hot.

I also added some ground sausage to this pot for an extra taste sensation. Yummy!

Gourmet Pears

Ingredients:

* 2 cans drained pears (14 ounce cans)
* ½ cup plain yogurt + 1 TBS sour cream
* 3 egg yolks
* 3 TBS brandy, rum or sherry. Yes, vanilla extract will work, too.
* 4 or 5 TBS brown sugar

Method:

In a small saucepan, combine yogurt, sour cream, sugar, and egg yolks. Cook stirring constantly until the sauce is thickened...you'll know...about three minutes. Stir in brandy or whatever you're using. Place drained pears in an ovenproof dish, pour sauce over the pears, and sprinkle with brown sugar. Broil for three or four minutes. (A toaster oven works well for this.) May be served hot or chilled. (We ate ours warm...so delicious!)

Setting a New Tone

As women, we set the tone for our homes. This I firmly believe.

And it's some tone that I am setting of late. I do not wonder why my beloved is stressed or why I am stressed or even why my grandmother is stressed. It's my fault. All my fault.

Why does it seem as if every little thing she does is aimed at creating maximum annoyance...from the bathroom visits that last over an hour to the scraping of her breakfast bowl dozens of times? This morning, I asked her to please stop. "It's getting on my last nerve. It's unnecessary because it's not helping. You're not getting any more oatmeal that way. I'll make you another bowl if you want more." She was offended; I was irritated: Great combination.

So today I will call a support group. A social worker who visited last fall thought I'd be a candidate one day. I loved that social worker. She was the one who said, when Nan shared that she worries that her cat will smother itself, "You can't possibly believe that your cat would be that stupid!" Actually, she slipped and said something even more to the point, but that's my little secret.

And in other news, my mother is having a port placed today for nutrition and hydration purposes. She is in jeopardy just now in that regard and so we are praying that this will tide her over until she is able to have surgery next week. Lots of things going on all the time around here.

Anyway, back to Nan... One day, if we are blessed, we shall live to be old. Actually, my opinion of living to be old has changed drastically since caring for my grandmother. I'd rather not live to be old thank.you.very.much. (Well shoot! It's already too late for that.) And even saying that is putting my will first and that is the problem in the first place. It is not about what I want. It is about what the Lord has planned. Surely, I can rest in that.

For now, I need to realize that it is important to treat the aged with the respect that they deserve and with tenderness...great tenderness. I am standing in the need of providing both. Today.

Head for Margo's

Since I've got nothing, I'm sending you to Margo's for a laugh. It's probably only funny to those who weren't nailed with that big snowstorm last Friday and Saturday. This guy missed his calling...he might be better suited for a pulpit somewhere. :D Oh, and be grateful if he's not giving the warning to your corner.

(I'm still much too busy fluffing in here. How many changes does this make so far? At least 27. Aren't you glad that you didn't see all of them? No voting allowed. ;>)

What Does the Lord Require?

From time to time, I find myself pondering what it is that God wants of me, where He wants me to go, how I should have reacted in any given situation (yes, it's always after the fact), what words I should say, what I should do. Pondering isn't exactly the correct word, although I do think on these things. Usually, this could be better (and more honestly) described as fretting, stewing, churning.

It's part of the human condition. And just when I believe that nothing else could possibly happen to stir my world up any more, something always does. The enemy of our souls is like that.

This time it involves the youngest member of my family...questions and deep concerns. And so I've been pondering, fretting, stewing...praying. One day, prayer will top the list and remain there, I hope! Prayer does change things even when it is the calming of the churning. Of course, we yearn for more.

In the end, what will matter? What will stand alone as the single most important thing? Thankfully, I don't have to come up with that answer. It's already been provided in the Word of God. The Word has always proven true in my life and it can be proven true in all our lives and throughout our lifetimes as we yield our very selves to Him.

He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

(P.S. No sooner had this post been finished [I am writing on Friday, February 5], than I found myself at Suzanne's. She's always good for a cup of coffee and food for thought. This is what I found: The Firestorm. It blessed me and I'm pretty sure that it will bless you, too.)

Peace, Dear Ones.

photo source