Survival TV, Scrabble, Scones, and "Sully"

We made New Year's a 5 day celebration, even though we spent most of our time at home.  Backtracking to last Thursday, we watched a marathon of the survival reality show "The Last Alaskans" on Animal Planet.  Seriously, we don't do marathon TV but I had a bad episode of pain in the wee hours of Thursday morning that took away much of my sleep time, and I needed to rest and distract.  At 1 p.m. we sat down to lunch and I turned on this show.  Joel and I both like survival type stuff so it held our attention.  I can't believe I am writing this, but 9 hours later we headed to bed fully brain fogged from too much TV!  We did other things during the time including nap and wash, dry and fold laundry, but we tuned in at 1 p.m. and turned it off at 10 p.m. We even woke up the next day feeling draggy from too much TV!  Lesson learned.

Friday we headed with friends on a road trip which I wrote about here on Saturday's Scribbles. I ended up having to rest again most of Saturday, but that night we watched the movie, "Sully" about the pilot who landed the plane on the river in NYC.  It was both fascinating and stressful, and we enjoyed it very much.  Joel found it very interesting how Sully kept his focus and made such calm, calculated decisions during the short 3 1/2 minutes he had from the time of the bird strike until the water landing.  Steady, calm, focused, and following his instincts brought all 155 passengers to  safety.  Truly a miracle on the Hudson.  He did not let the voices of the traffic controllers, the plane's warning sounds, etc. distract him.  He did what he knew he had to do in a dire situation.  Pretty good analogy for much of life!

Sunday Joel preached at a church an hour south and I worshiped online.  Joel and I have been watching another reality show "The American Baking Show" on ABC.  For some reason we love this show......but it makes me want to bake.....and it makes Joel want to eat!  So Sunday morning while Joel was gone I made him a surprise.  Maple scones.  We both enjoy the scones we pick up at Farmer's Market but I have been thinking about how to make them using maple syrup instead of sugar.  And eventually almond flour in place of white flour.  It was a bit labor intensive, but using and adjusting The Pioneer Woman's recipe, I made scones.  We have enjoyed our New Year treat very much.

Today Joel and I played Scrabble.  We used to play quite often and I can tell I am rusty......You know, I sometimes worry about Joel's brain because he cannot pull names up very well.  He has always been this way I guess.  I think I better worry about my brain though since he beat me today 299 to 164. Yeah....that bad.  It has been awhile since I have picked up a Sudoku or crossword puzzle....a good goal for 2017.  Keep my brain active!

It has been an interesting holiday as we ushered in 2017.  My goodness, I still can't believe we are this far into 2000......With so many countdowns behind us, we give thanks for this brand new year that lies before us.

As I look outside I see Joel scrapping ice off the driveway.  Fog is settling in, ice is expected to continue to accumulate.  Winter is making itself known.  We are grateful for it all. Fellowship with friends, a warm house, family texting, survival TV, scrabble, scones, and a movie that makes us think.....We are here.  We rejoice~

Happy New Year!

The Cinnamon Cloud

Joel and I drove to Rochester Minnesota (home of Mayo Clinic) from our corner of the world, taking the backroads in the hope of seeing some fall foliage.  We discovered we have more trees in our small association that are showing off their colors than most of those we saw during the 4 hours of driving we did.

While in the "big city" we headed to an organic food co-op where we could buy some things in bulk. Joel decided to bag some cinnamon, but could not figure out how to get it out of the container into the plastic bag.  He dumped it from what he thought was the spout and it was the flip down lever instead so...........the cinnamon came out into the bag, but also went up in the air in a big cloud raining cinnamon down on the counter and container.  giggle.....the clerk who helped us out said nothing, but his grimace said it all.  On our way home later Joel stopped for coffee.  As he got out of the car he looked down at his boot and noticed something was all over his boot changing the color.  Yep, you guessed it, cinnamon!  We laughed and laughed over the cinnamon cloud that just kept on giving!  Ha...

Speaking of boots, we talked on the way home about how Joel's cowboy hat and boots attracted a bit of attention in the "big city".  Joel said to me on our way in to Trader Joe's, "People keep saying hi to me...what is that about."  I replied, "It's your hat."  True, Joel said, people look at the hat and then end up making eye contact with me so feel the need to say hi.   I laughed and replied, "Remember the kid we saw in the store with the funky 8 inch high funky hat on, the Nepal looking boots, and the feathers hanging around his neck?"   You got more attention than him without trying....."  giggle... Not really, but it had us smiling.

When we went to the organic food grocery store in downtown Rochester we parked in a place with meters, but you had to walk half way down the block to put the money in.  After a few minutes Joel figured it out and the machine pumped out a receipt giving us 20 minutes of shopping time in the store.  Twenty minutes later when we left we noticed there was a free parking lot on the other side of the building. These two "country bumpkins" had a good laugh at our new adventures in the big city of Rochester. We do get out of Iowa........really we do!

And I think the cinnamon story will be told more than a few times here!  The visual of the cinnamon cloud still has me smiling.

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Jury Duty

Joel and I both were called to be in the jury pool at the same time, so we have been calling in every Monday to see if our particular panel needed to report.  I was told to report to the court house today by 8:30am and was selected to move into the jury "box" for questioning by the prosecutor and the defendant's lawyer.  This was a domestic abuse criminal trial so questions leaned in that direction as twenty-one of us tried to answer openly and honestly what was presented to us.

Secretly I was hoping to not be chosen since I head back in tomorrow for the second laser surgery on my eye and I did not want to rearrange that appointment.  I need not have worried. 

Here is how the questioning went......."Does anyone know a family member or friend or have you yourself experienced domestic violence/assault?  I was one of two who raised their hands, having had two family members that I know of who have experienced domestic assault.

Another question was, "Have any of you ever had any positive or negative experiences with the police?"  Thinking only of our local police, I raised my hand, responding when asked to explain about a suspect the police were chasing who hid in the attic of our garage.  After the police left the area I spotted him leaving our garage.  Two days later he came back with his friends to intimidate me into not identifying him.  Needless to say, the police we involved.

Then this question came up......"Does anyone have a family member who is a police officer?"  Once again my hand went up!  Our son is a police officer.  I was further questioned on whether this would influence my verdict in this case.  I said no, but when we were asked if any "Joe off the street was a witness and contradicted what the police witness was saying, would I tend to believe the police.  I truthfully had to ponder that, since I have a deep respect for the police.  It led further into what would make a police officer a credible witness. 

Soon another question came to light...."Has anyone experienced violence personally?  I asked for clarification  Domestic assault only?  No, any kind of assault or violence.  My response was another question......" Well is it considered assault when someone threatens to kill your husband, the police have to come in your home to defend and protect you, and the threats continue for a long time....."  I was told that they would consider that an assault.  Okay, then.  I raised my hand.

Then came the question, "Have you ever seen anyone assaulted?  Good grief!  I raised my hand one more time.  Seriously I was getting embarrassed......I told how my son and I observed a man beating up his wife in a vehicle in front of our home which was also the church parking lot.  I then said, "Wow, your questions are bringing up all these memories!"   I then explained that my husband was a pastor and these kind of things just happened.  Didn't they?  (I did not even share all the times we have had to call the police)

Then, (I am not kidding) the lawyer for the defense asked, "Have any of you had to call the police to report violence? "  My response???   "And.......that would be me!"  The potential jurors laughed. 

The final thing that got me removed from duty was when they asked if we knew any of the people on the jury.  I did recognize a man who was in our former church.  I said as much, and the man leaned over to smile at me and said, "Yes, Renee's husband was our pastor for many years!"  Giggle....

So there was no surprise when I was dismissed. 

I told Joel the story and he laughed until tears came and he was still laughing 2 hours later.  This adventure got us talking about all the "interesting" encounters we have had in our ministry....with people threatening Joel's life.......seeing violence occur and trying to stop it........living with a threat on Joel's and our family's life for over six years.......the man hiding in our attic......Joel and sometimes myself being called to more than one crisis involving drugs, alcoholism, violence, murder, abuse, etc.  We began to wonder if all pastors and their families have experienced such events in their lives. 

And I began to ponder writing that book my sister Jan keeps telling me to write....I know how it would begin.......

A funny thing happened on the way to jury duty.....

What Does Tenacity Have To Do With Pancakes?

I have been told by several people that I have tenacity....another term for mule-headedness according to Lucy!  It has gotten me through my whole life....one of the tools I keep in my toolbox.   I. don't. give. up.  It's not in my DNA and yes, sometimes it gets in the way of God's plans for me...but that is another story.

So, how do pancakes play into my tenacious spirit?  I can't help but giggle as I think about it.  Yesterday I decided to fix pancakes for supper.  We had fresh strawberries and blueberries that would look colorful and taste great on some pancakes, of coursed topped with coconut milk whipping cream.  Delish! 

I decided to use a recipe that The Pioneer Woman had been ranting about. Her recipe called for sour cream, but she suggested Greek yogurt for an alternative, and that sounded better to me.  She used white flour, but I would need to substitute almond and rice flour.  No problem.  I would use maple syrup instead of sugar.  She forgot to mention she uses a Teflon griddle and ours is not.  No problem.  I heated up our cast iron griddle while putting the "quick" recipe together. 

Then came those problems I was saying "no problem" to. 

I am not used to our new stove yet and when I put the coconut oil on the griddle smoke rose to new heights and the fire alarm went off.  Seems I had the heat too high, and it also took me awhile to put together this "simple" recipe.  I ran outside and yelled for Joel to come in right away ~ telling him the alarm was going off.....again.  He is sorta used to it.  (This is the part of me cooking again that he probably would like to eliminate.  The chaos in the kitchen :-)  He came in, climbed on a stool and turned off the alarm while I moved the griddle off the hot burners and did a lot of talking under my breath. 

Eventually when the griddle heat lessened, I started over with more coconut oil and then the batter....which promptly ran all over the griddle.  A problem.  Then I tried to turn it over when the bubbles starting appearing and it stuck.  Another problem.  I added more flour to make them thicker, but it still ran and still stuck.  I am not one to give up.

By now Plan B or C went into action.  I turned off the burners heating the cast iron griddle and took out our only Teflon coated pan....a Wok.  Yep.  I made one pancake at a time with the Wok.  And it worked just fine.  Well, after adding more rice flour to the batter again and again.  So much for the 14 T. of flour the doubled recipe called for! 

So over an hour later, with batter everywhere, a dirty cast iron griddle and Wok, and enough flour in the recipe to bake three cakes, we sat down to delicious moist pancakes with almond butter, strawberries right from the farm....well farmer's market anyway...a few blueberries and a generous dollop or three of whipping cream.  Sigh..... It was nearly picture perfect and mighty tasty!

Sometimes my mule-headed determination is a good thing.  Well, actually, most of the time tenacity is really beneficial.  It has gotten me through some very tough challenges.  Like, ummmm, making pancakes with the Wok.  (giggle)  Anyone else blessed with tenacity?

A Blizzard, A Noisy Fan, And An Unruly Vacuum

This past couple of weeks have been pretty challenging for us, and things just sort of came to a head on this past Sunday afternoon, leaving Joel and I ready for a hide-away to well, hide away in!

Our weather was only adding to the heightened feelings of frustration and anxiety.  We had been forewarned of a blizzard, and by late afternoon the weather took an abrupt turn with temperatures plunging and winds sustained at 40 mph and gusting over 50 mph.  Snow and bitter cold temperatures were causing more than our bones to complain as our house creaked and groaned loudly.

We kept hearing a banging noise in the kitchen somewhere....Joel finally figured out that the high winds were causing the lower bathroom fan to flap and vibrate, making a great deal of noise.  He decided to head downstairs and find a way to make it stop.  After finding yet another use for duck tape and plastic, he decided he would clean out the fan vent while he had it open.  He took the vacuum and put on the attachment so he could reach inside.  While sucking out the dust and lint, the attachment fell apart leaving him with just the end piece in his hands.  As he looked down to see what had happened to the rest of the hose he saw it fall into the toilet.  Before he could react it sucked ALL the water out of the toilet and into the vacuum bag!  The toilet bowl was dry by the time he was able to take action!

Seriously~  I am not kidding. 

Another bathroom fiasco~! 

He quickly jumped down and turned off the vacuum.  As fast as he could he took the water-logged vacuum bag out of the vacuum and got it outside and into the garage, blizzard or not!

When he came in and told me what happened he was laughing so hard he could not talk...which of course got me laughing....we were both hysterical over this latest toilet crisis. What is it with us and toilets!  Maybe the next time the toilet overflows we can just turn on the vacuum and suck the water out in record time...haha....ugh....yuck.

Needless to say the stress we were feeling was "sucked" right out of us!  They do say laughter is the best medicine!

January Or Janublahy

What is it about January that makes the body want to slow it's pace and hibernate.  Joel and I have been sleeping between 8-9 and once an amazing 10 hours at night with short naps during the day.  What is up with that?!  The cold weather and gray days lure the body with a desire to slumber, is my guess.  Well, that and 3 months of steady activity....and lets not forget the roller coaster ride while blindfolded. More on that another time. :-)  Jesus take the wheel!!  We are making the effort to stay active....not letting ourselves sit in front of the boob tube for too long, walking, finding fix-it projects, and getting out of the house. 

January.  The tree has left the building and has been turned into toothpicks or kindling by now.  The decorations have been tucked back into their plastic tubs, and everything appears a bit sterile.  The cookies and bars have been replaced with salad greens since the scale began speaking loudly about overeating.  A cuppa and an afghan or quilt are not far from our reach.  The newspapers and magazines go on and on about the latest tropical destination or fad diet. 

January:  The family gatherings are becoming a fading memory.  Walking in the Mall is getting old...all that stale air.  The house is too quiet and our minds are too active.  We identified it today~ we are bored.  Huh..  The January blahs.....

January.  A time when I ask Joel once more....and why do we live here?  In our "younger years" we were more interested in the outdoors.  Okay, to be honest, Joel was more interested!  We did snowshoe in our twenties....sled and ice skate with the kids in their early years.  We missed the change of seasons when we lived in the Philippines, and drove into the mountains of New Mexico and Utah to find winter when we lived in those places.  But in this season of our lives we are weary of the cold, wind chills, and white stuff.  Yet here we are, so it is time to stop complaining and just smile until Spring arrives.

How do I look?  Sincere?