MUCH better today!

I got to go to my Storm at Sea class (very very cool), and I had Sonic TWICE. Life is good.

NOT What I expected

OK----my day has sucked.

First of all, they signed me up in the wrong class. They gave my money back etc. but I didn't get to take the mariner's Compass class.

Second: I have a horrible headache so I went over to Targe to get ibuprofin which leads me to

Third: The check engine light came on in the car so I have been sitting at the dealer's service center for most of the day. Now $300 later I am back at the hotel.

Boo.

Too excited to sleep!

You know that Disney commercial where the kids are too excited to sleep? Well, that's how my night went. Today is the day I leave for Hampton for 3 days of quilting fun! Woo Hoo! And what is more, I drive by two Sonics on the way!! That is pure excitement for this Sonic-deprived girl!

I will have my cell phone while I am there. Of course, it will be turned to silent while I am in class, but I will check it often so if you need me callme.

Love you all!

Don't say I didn't warn you....

Fla. Man Kills Roommate Over Toilet Paper
From Associated PressFebruary 21, 2006 6:18 AM EST

MOSS BLUFF, Fla. - A man accused of fatally beating his roommate with a sledgehammer and a claw hammer because there was no toilet paper in their home has been arrested.

And I bet it wasn't even snowing and he still went wacko because of no toilet paper. Please my friends and family, don't take this chance.

Bumper Stickers

What's the funniest and/or most offensive bumber sticker you have seen lately?

Today while at the grocery store I saw one that said "Old pilots never die, they just go to a different plane," which I thought was cute. Then on the way home some snit nearly killed me and on her car was all sort of Darwin walking fish with a bumber sticker that said "Born good enough the first time." For some reason, this absolutely enraged me. I wanted to drive on her bumper for the next 15 miles and shake my fist at her, a completely UN-Christian response!! Of course, I have an Episcopal shield on my back window so I thought better of the whole thing. I mean, how would that look if I am advertizing my church while behaving like a crazy woman? How bizarre that some $1.50 sticker affixed to our bumper lets everyone know sooooo much about us. Good thing I remembered mine and behaved accordingly by just driving home while shaking my head.

The strange things we cook!

Steve found this recipe in a Sam's Club catalog, of all places. He called and said that he wanted to make it and I admit that I was less than enthusiastic. Turns out, it was fabulous.

Chocolate Beef Stout Stew
Serves 4

3 TBS vegetable oil
2 ½ pounds beef bottom round roast cut into 1” pieces (or equivalent amount of stew meat)
5 medium onions peeled and cut into quarters
1 carrot (we used 2, could use more if you want)
1 quart beef stock
3 bottles Guinness® stout
6 TBS tomato paste (we just used the whole can, small size)
3 sprigs fresh thyme (1 tsp dried)
1 bay leaf
½ pound mushrooms, quartered
½ lb unsalted butter (Use only 1 stick. I can’t figure out where they thought all this butter was going)
½ cup flour
Salt and pepper
Chopped fresh parsley
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Heat 3 TBS oil in large sauté pan over high heat. When oil is hot, add beef, 3 onions, and carrot. Sauté until well browned; remove from pan, drain off fat.

Add meat and sautéed vegetables to a 1 gallon roasting pan or Dutch oven. Add stock, stout, tomato paste, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a boil on top of the stove.

Cover and transfer to preheated oven. Cook 1 ½ hours or until meat is tender.

In a separate roasting pan (or pie plate) season the remaining onions with salt and pepper and dot with 1 TBS butter. Roast onions for 45 minutes.

Remove stew from oven and use a slotted spoon to remove beef to bowl. Then strain the liquid into a container and discard the vegetables and herbs (We did not throw away the vegetable. We added them back in with the meat).

Over a medium high heat in a roasting pan (we used the same one we had just taken the meat out of), melt ¼ cup of butter and whisk in flour to make a roux. Whisk in a quart of the reserved liquid in and simmer 3 – 4 minutes to thicken. Add the meat (and reserved vegetables) and stir in chocolate until melted.

In a sauce pan, sauté mushrooms in 1 TBS butter and add to stew with parsley.

Serve over garlic mashed potatoes and garnish with roasted onions.

What, exactly, is a nor'easter?

I can't tell you exactly. I can tell you that it dumps a load of snow on us: 8-14 inches to be semi-exact! This morning when I stopped for gas there were 15 snow plows in the parking lot of the station. Are the 15 snow plows in the entire state of Oklahoma? I worked at the quilt shop today and there were a bajillion women in to get projects just in case they are snowed in for two or three weeks. I didn't even attempt the grocery store and I am sure there is a warrant out for my arrest since I broke that particular federal law. I mean, how much toilet paper does one really need? Don't answer that...

I finished "Manhunt" and it was as fascinating as I had hoped. The author talks about a tavern where Booth and several others had, originally, planned to kidnap Lincoln. I drive by that building almost daily - there are people living there! Apparently this part of Maryland was a hotbed of Confederate espionage, as was Baltimore. The book really made me want to read more about this region and both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars.

Be safe and warm my friends - I love and miss "all y'all."

So what are you reading?

I have been reading - a lot.

I just finished Memoirs of a Geisha, which was OK. I got bored with the continual conflict with the other geisha and the scheming to get rid of this man in order to get that one. A while back there was an autobiography by a woman who became the first Western woman to become a Geisha. I found that much more fascinating.

Misquoting Jesus: Very deep, and very interesting. It has come up several times in our Sunday School class, so, after we are finished with our current topic, our class is going to be on that book. I am looking forward to that a great deal. I just got The Historic Jesus from a friend and plan to start it. The author is on the edge of excommunication by the Catholic Church for this book. Hmmm....

Manhunt: This is a book I cannot wait to read! It is by a leading Lincoln scholar and it is all about what happened after Booth shot Lincoln. For those of you who do not realize exactly where I am in the world, Dr. Mudd's home is 2.75 miles east of me (he is the doctor who set Booth's leg after the assassination). Pope's Creek, which is where Booth crossed the Potomac into Virginia is about 15 - 20 miles west of me. I think it is going to be a great read especially since I plan to drive the route myself. Dorky? Probably. Fascinating? You bet!

Living a Life that Matters: We are reading this in our Daughters of the King chapter. It is by the same man who wrote" When Bad Things Happen to Good People." We are reading two chapters a month and then discussing our thoughts at the meetings. Very cool to see what other people think of it and how we each interpret the message.

So, what are you reading?

"Super" Sunday

So Pittsburgh wins. That's OK - I like the coach and Jerome Bettis. Not that I watched the game. There was an interesting program on who wrote the Bible on the History Channel that I got sucked into!

Yesterday, at Adult Forum (Sunday School), I saw how intelligent discussion and disagreement takes place. It was calm, there were great pains taken to make sure that neither side offended, and both sides, while not agreeing, acknowledged the other side's position and the process that was involved in coming to that place. It was very cool. It was even better that it was at church where, it seems to me, that usually the most virulent disagreements take place. No "drawing a line in the sand" or anything so dramatic or harmful. Thanks God - I learned more from that than anything else!

I am gearing up for my big adventure to Hampton, Va. at the end of the month. Four days of sewing classes and quilt show! I know that some of you would rather stick a pencil in your eye than do this, but that's ok....I will have a blast!

Bob is weird

Bob likes to eat fruit, and I find that very odd. So far, his favorite is oranges, but he really, really likes grapes too. Apples are OK if there is nothing else around. Does anyone else find this bizarre?

Steve's Game

Friend you can't live without - Renee Bauer
Family member you can't live without - All of them but especially my husband
Celebrity whose work you can't live without - None of them
Food you can't live without - Chocolate
TV show you can't live without - Duh, American Idol, isn't that everyone's answer? No, mine is Law and Order
Movie you can't live without - Princess Bride
Game you cant live without (Video, Board, Card, etc.) - My favorite game is one Ann and I play called, "What great adventure can we come up with this weekend?' or the other favorite, "Can you make up new lyrics for this song?" Same here
Activity you can't live without - Church, and whatever the current craft of the moment is
Sport you can't live without - Football